The Brooks Review

Category: Links

  • The B&B Podcast #69: How Dead Was It?

    There were a lot of questions that people have about this transition to a paywall — Shawn does a good job scratching the surface with me on this week’s B&B Podcast. I think it is a really good episode where we talk a lot about the current state of blogging — and Mrs. Shawn Blanc’s lack of an iPad.

    Thanks to our sponsors: [Studio Neat](http://www.studioneat.com/) (and they may have a discount code if you listen to the show) and [Bartender](http://www.macbartender.com/). ((Yep, want to know why there are sponsors on the podcast and not my site? Listen to the podcast.))

  • ‘Twitter Is Building a Media Business Using Other People’s Content’

    Mathew Ingram writing about Twitter, and how Twitter sees itself, has this to say:
    >But as its advertising business grows larger — thanks in part to reports from advertisers of “staggering” levels of engagement with ad features like promoted tweets — and it continues to tighten the rules on its API to squeeze out third-party developers, it becomes more and more clear that Twitter’s future is based on controlling access to the information flowing through the network as closely as possible.

    I hadn’t seen the article that Ingram [linked to for the “staggering engagement” quote](http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304458604577491170573156612.html), but in reading the link it is very encouraging news for Twitter. Perhaps all this talk about Twitter is starting to get old, but it is fascinating to me.

    Facebook is using the same old boring business model of display ads, and while Twitter is doing the same — Twitter’s platform is so very different from any other that we don’t yet know how this will play out. I was very worried when I heard Twitter was going to start injecting ads in people timelines, but in practice I hardly notice these ads.

    That said, I hardly *notice* the ads.

    Perhaps I am exceptionally good at filtering them out, or perhaps the ads being shown to be are mostly irrelevant to me. No matter which it is, this is the problem with ads for services like Twitter. Luckily(?) Twitter knows this and that is why they are trying to have complete control over how Tweets (and thus ads) are displayed.

    All of that you could likely guess, but then I was thinking about how to optimize the ads displayed on Twitter, and an interesting idea hit me. What if the ads shown in my Timeline were shown at the precise right moment when I might act on them?

    What if I tweet: “Looking for a good lunch spot in Portland…suggestions?” And in my mentions tab Twitter promotes a lunch deal from P.F. Chang’s which happens to be two blocks from me? I’d say there is a high probability ((I love me some P.F. Chang’s.)) that this ad would get me to P.F. Chang’s. What if I send a tweet asking about a product and that product then is promoted in my timeline? Now we are at a place where I am interested in something, wanting and ready to buy it.

    So that was my thought, then I realized: I bet Twitter could make more money by charging companies a fee and in return Twitter would serve up a site with all the chatter surrounding that company — which then the company could directly respond to. Now *that* seems like a killer feature. No need to keep searching for keywords, it’s all packaged up for you and delivered to your PR team. Someone tweets they want lunch in Portland, every paying restaurant has a chance to respond and try to get that customer in their door — I think that could be pretty cool for business *and* users.

  • ‘Why Tweetbot for Mac Matters’

    Marco Arment:
    >I use a Mac client all the time, for almost all of my Twitter use. Without a great Mac client, I’d use Twitter about as often as I use Instagram: in occasional bursts on my phone when I’m bored, but not regularly.

    Ditto, 9-5 Monday through Friday is all Mac usage of Twitter. I currently use Osfoora on the Mac, I don’t love it, but it’s better than Twitter for Mac. It’s clear to me that on mobile devices Twitter thinks you should be using a native client.

    What’s also, unfortunately, becoming clear to me is that on the desktop Twitter thinks you should be using the web view. Well guess what? I hate the web view because it sucks. I have to wonder if Twitter thinks TweetDeck is the native desktop solution (I hope not) because otherwise I don’t know why a company would waste such a great app in Twitter for Mac.

    I know many don’t think Twitter will kill off third party apps, but I honestly don’t see how you build a profitable business without killing them off. This is why I worry about Twitter’s future for nerds like me if Twitter forces to use the web view on our Mac/Windows/Linux boxes.

  • ‘Petition the U.S. Government to Force the TSA to Follow the Law’

    There’s no reason to not sign this and even less of a reason not to take the time to sign it. This is important. This isn’t about the TSA being stupid, it’s about them defying a court order.

  • ‘Sitting for More Than Three Hours a Day Cuts Life Expectancy’

    Andrew Seidman:
    >Sitting down for more than three hours a day can shave a person’s life expectancy by two years, even if he or she is physically active and refrains from dangerous habits like smoking, according to a study to be published on Tuesday in the online journal BMJ Open.

    Converting to a standing desk is really tough for the first two weeks, but if you can get past that it really does feel great. I had some lower back problems completely disappear once I made the switch — and I was sitting in one of the best chairs money can buy. Do note that researchers relied on self reported data, and believe that many respondents lied about how much they actually sit, meaning the numbers are probably worse than they look.

    The other advantage to standing, if you work in an office with others, people that come to your desk are forced to stand if they want to talk to you. This means they tend to linger less since they are probably not comfortable just standing at a desk. This was a great fringe benefit for me.

  • Soulver – the Notepad Calculator

    [This tweet from Marco Arment](http://twitter.com/marcoarment/status/222755117840089089), reminded me just how much I love and use Soulver. Without any exaggeration I use Soulver everyday that I am at my Mac. It is so good that I bought a second copy from the Mac App Store when I setup the retina MacBook Pro.

    Surprisingly the app is only $11.99 on the app store — it’s worth at least twice that. If you [buy the iOS version (and you should) for $2.99](http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/soulver-notepad-calculator/id348142037?mt=8) then iCloud will sync your calculations back and forth.

    Soulver is a bit more than your normal calculator, it’s almost like having an Excel scratchpad handy — without all the Microsoft junk that comes with excel.

    If you are reading this, you know I don’t normally gush about apps, but I *love* this app.

  • .Mail by Tobias Van Schneider

    An interesting conceptual email client, that has some good ideas going for it. The design itself is not all that compelling to me, but a few of the ideas behind it are very compelling. Mainly:

    – Focusing on readability. Why is this overlooked in current email clients?
    – The ability to show all your received attachments seems really neat to me.
    – Actions. While I personally would never use them, I know it would improve my life because most everyone I email with would use this feature.

    I think the biggest problem with email is that the market is far too niche to be profitable for most companies. While most users could and should have a better email client, not many would be willing to pay for one. I really do hope we see more people working on email clients though and I hope they can make money at it.

    [via @hrbrt]

  • ‘Apple Wins Patent for NFC-Enabled ‘iTravel’ Transportation Ticketing App’

    This is really interesting to me, an old patent application from 2008 for a travel app for what looks to be an iPhone. As MacRumors points out this is particularly interesting given the Apple Passbook app in iOS 6.

    To me, paperless travel and booking is a much more desirable tool than paying for things with my iPhone, but it’s also much harder to accomplish in the U.S. The main reason travel is so much harder: both Airlines and the TSA don’t particularly give a crap about what is easiest for travelers. Actually I always feel like both kinda hate their customers.

    Passbook will work because small stores and big stores are all looking for ways to make it easier for you to hand over your money, so they are naturally inclined to adopt any such tool that helps with that. Prime examples: Square and Credit Cards.

    This travel app will have a much harder fight, because after they convince airlines (shouldn’t be hard) they will have to convince the TSA. That may be the most futile fight.

  • Apple’s Disruption

    Horace Dediu answering a question during an interview with John Cox, has the following to say about Apple and how it approaches the business of selling hardware:
    >Apple changed the basis of competition from hardware as the primary value consumers paid for to a combination of hardware, software and services. Being competitive changed from having good hardware to having good hardware, good software and services — made usable through integration.

    The “made usable through integration” bit is perhaps the most notable change of Apple in recent years and I think the reason that iOS has really taken off. We all like to hate on the mess known as iTunes, but the fact remains that iTunes made syncing the first iPhone relatively painless for Mac users. Fast forward to today and you have iCloud, which from my own use, has been even better than iTunes — and that’s before you take into account the fact that iCloud requires no cable.

    Apple is in the process of taking everything that makes using multiple devices a pain in the ass, and removing that pain from your ass — so to speak. Cables: gone. Contact/Email/Calendar syncing: done. Moving photos from your device to computer: done. Backups: check. If you stop and remember where we were before 2007, then you can truly appreciate all the advancement that Apple has had a hand in bringing forth.

  • “Most Pro of Tips”

    I never could reason a use case for the blinking of the flash light for notifications, but I like this reasoning.

    The only wish I have with this tip, is that it was easier or faster to turn this on and off so that I could quickly set it on. Perhaps even just turning it on when the phone is switched into silent — that would be pretty useful.

  • ‘AT&T to Start Blocking Stolen Cellphones This Week’

    I love this little bit of news from Brian X. Chen about AT&T:
    >The company said that its database would initially prevent reactivation of stolen devices on its own network. Later this year it plans to expand the database to work with other carriers.

    I am sure the meeting for this went something like: “Hey boss! I’ve a great idea: let’s track phones that have be stolen and block them. This will make current customers happy, and force more users to buy our subsidized phones!” Then the boss slowly turns with a glimmer in his eye and replies: “Genius, what a great, brand new, never heard before, idea. (With a subtle undertone of ‘that’s why I hired you — I’m so smart.’)”

    In other words: why hasn’t AT&T been doing this all along?

    If that was all that was in the story I wouldn’t have linked to it, but that’s not all in the story, the best bit comes right now:

    >Verizon Wireless, the No. 1 carrier, said that unlike AT&T, it has had its own database for disabling stolen cellphones on its network for years.

    That sentence is so perfect, on so many levels.

  • ‘Dear Internet: Please Stop ‘Reviewing’ Microsoft Surface Until You’ve Actually Used One’

    Craig Grannell making the point with a comparison to early iPad coverage:
    >I still like my iPad a lot and I don’t regret buying it, but it certainly doesn’t live up to the initial coverage online—and that’s something you only realise and can only tell after extended use, not through seeing a couple of pictures online and a keynote video.

    Doesn’t matter who the person is, or what the device is — you cannot and should not review something that you have never used. Likewise I don’t recommend things that I haven’t used first. So the “Amazon Items of the Week” posts, yeah all those items are things I own, like, and therefore can recommend to you.

    I have no problem with speculating on announced products, but calling such speculation a “review” or “buyers guide” is basically out right lying to your readership.

  • HTC Defeats Apple in swipe-to-unlock Patent

    I’m actually really glad Apple lost this patent because it’s something that just seems silly to not have on touchscreen devices.

  • The Amazon Smartphone

    Chuck Skoda, [responding to the rumors that Amazon will release a smartphone](http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-07-06/amazon-said-to-plan-smartphone-to-vie-with-apple.html), speculates that the Internet browsing and apps are what makes the iPhone a success, a component that Amazon hasn’t shown it can be good at, so Skoda asks:

    >How many books, movies, and tv shows are you consuming on your phone?

    When I look at most everything Amazon does it is very clear to me that the strategy is consistently: sell more. The Kindle sells more ebooks, the a Fire is trying to do the same with media, so what the hell would a smartphone sell for Amazon?

    Do people really need an Amazon device to buy from Amazon? No.

    If this rumor holds it seems very much like a break in strategy and a ‘me-too’ move from Amazon, which is not how they got to where they are today.

    *Side note: am I the only one that wants Amazon to release a product named ‘Amazin’? I can’t be alone in this wish.*

  • ‘Web Designers: You Need a Retina MacBook Pro’

    Marco Arment makes a great argument for every web designer needing a retina MacBook Pro and I agree. The last design of this site I did was tailored first and foremost for the iPad. Now I am torn whether to tailor for the iPad or the retina MacBook Pro, because now I can’t decide which device I like reading on more.

    A couple of people wrote me to tell me that I should stop throwing out complaints about magazines and start offering solutions: step one is making all digital publications look great on retina screens.

    Oh and in case you were wondering about designing a site only on a retina screen, [Tim Van Damme has you covered](http://maxvoltar.com/archive/web-designers-you-need-a-retina-macbook-pro):

    >I think right now the perfect setup is a Retina MacBook Pro, and a non-retina external monitor.

    Just be warned, you won’t use that second screen for anything other than testing.

  • Retina MacBook Pro vs. Mac Pro: Aperture and Motion

    Rob for Bare Feats:

    >If apps like Aperture and Motion are your “bread and butter,” you can conclude from this test session that the 2012 MacBook Pro (Retina and ‘normal’) performs on par with the best Mac Pro with the best graphics cards.

    Aperture has always been a dog in terms of performance and thus I have usually preferred Lightroom. However since getting the retina MacBook Pro I have switched back to Aperture and haven’t noticed that dog slow performance in Aperture. Maybe the hardware has finally caught up, maybe Apple got around to optimizing Aperture.

    I do get some good satisfaction from how favorably the retina MacBook Pro and MacBook Pro compare to Mac Pros.

  • ‘Apple’s Fix for Corrupt Binaries’

    Marco Arment on Apple’s solution for the corrupt binaries:
    >By republishing “updates” to these apps, Apple is helping users avoid deleting them and losing their data.

    As Marco points out this is a smart move by Apple — because as a user I’d be pissed if I lost a bunch of data in an app. I also think it was a clever way of avoiding the deletion of comments, which would have likely caused outrage among idiots.

    Sidebar: If your app stores all the user data locally, ‘just’ enable iCloud so that users can delete your app and later reinstall it without losing their progress/data. Or sync that data somewhere so that deleting an app doesn’t delete the data.

  • Apple to Remove One-star Reviews?

    Lex Friedman:

    >Sources told Macworld that Apple will be removing one-star app reviews developers earned unfairly because of the company’s server issue.

    I’m actually pretty surprised by this, but I hope it’s true.

  • The B&B Podcast #68: My Socks Would Be Buttery

    >Shawn and Ben talk about popcorn, writing reviews of beta apps, using Checkmark and how it works alongside other reminder apps on the iPhone, and Belkin’s new WeMo device.

    I feel like Shawn and I went really in-depth on the popcorn discussion.

  • Problems Reported Mounting USB 3.0 External Drives on New MacBooks

    I’ve personally seen this issue on my retina MacBook Pro — what I thought was just a faulty hard drive is not. I hope this is a software problem and not hardware but it is an issue I am seeing as well.

    If I plug in my desktop HDD or USB 3 memory card reader it is rather hit and miss as to whether the computer will mount the devices. It’s less than 30% of the time right now. I have tried different cables and ports on the Mac — nothing matters.

    However the mobile LaCie USB 3 drive I have mounts 90% of the time. A bunch of people in forums seem to think that this is related to a low bus power that Apple is putting out, but I tend to think it is more software related.

    So buyer beware for now.