Linked List: October 28, 2009

Wednesday, 28 October 2009

eWeek: Google Working on Maps Navigation for iPhone ★

Clint Boultron, reporting for eWeek:

Apple already offers similar GPS capabilities on its iPhone 3GS maps applications, which leverages Google Maps data. However, Vic Gundotra, vice president of engineering at Google, said Google is working to build a version of Google Maps Navigation for the iPhone.

Buzz Andersen on the Purportedly Upcoming ‘Twitter Peek’ Dedicated Twitter Device ★

Interesting idea, but it’s a shame it’s a separate device from the regular email/SMS Peek. Integrated Twitter support would fit right in with a dedicated “messaging” device. (But I can’t imagine using Twitter without having a way to follow links to web pages.)

Engadget’s Motorola Droid First Impressions ★

Video includes a side-by-side browser speed test with an iPhone 3GS; the 3GS wins, but not by much. Interestingly, browser scrolling in Android 2.0 seems to have far less “friction” than the iPhone — flick the page and it seems to scroll until you stop it.

The iPhone Is a Platform ★

Nice piece from Paul Chapel:

A war? When did Apple start a war? I distinctly remember Steve Jobs saying he wanted 1 percent of the phone market. I don’t remember any rhetoric about invading Poland. Do you?

One of Those Classic Gartner Predictions ★

From August 2006:

Vista will be the last version of Windows that exists in its current, monolithic form, according to Gartner. Instead, the research firm predicts, Microsoft will be forced to migrate Windows to a modular architecture tied together through hardware-supported virtualisation.

(Via Kontra.)

Jim Dalrymple on the iPhone Platform ★

Jim Dalrymple:

The next version of the iPhone is already well underway and it will have cooler features than the existing models. Apple created a platform, not just a piece of hardware that uses the same old software. That’s a huge distinction.

If you want a parallel, try this. Apple had the most successful music player on the market with the iPod mini. Any other company executive would have given their right arm to have that device. What did Apple do? It dumped it. Apple stopped making its top-selling iPod and introduced the iPod nano in its place. Just when the competitors thought they had Apple in their sights, Apple completely changed the game.

Right. You know who thinks the iPhone 3GS stinks? Steve Jobs. No one is working harder on an “iPhone 3GS killer” than Apple.

Philip Elmer-Dewitt on Apple’s Advertising Budget ★

$500 million for 2009, less than Dell’s or RIM’s ad budgets, and about one-third of Microsoft’s.

Garmin, TomTom Shares Sink On New Google Navigation Feature ★

Ben Charny, reporting for the WSJ on the aftermath of Google’s announcement of maps navigation in Android 2.0:

The move sent shares of the top two navigation device makers reeling. Shares of Garmin fell 17.2% to $31.88 on very heavy trading, foiling any lift shares would have seen from an upgrade Wednesday from Goldman Sachs, which raised its Garmin rating to sell from conviction sell.

A Garmin spokesman wasn’t immediately available for comment.

Meanwhile, TomTom N.V. shares fell more than 20% to €8.11, a new 52-week low. The company also warned Wednesday that selling prices were 9% lower than it had forecast.

A TomTom spokesman was unavailable for comment.

I’ve gotten a bunch of emails from readers objecting to my earlier comment that the end is near for dedicated GPS devices. The biggest objection is that the dedicated devices store all the map data locally. That’s great, and I’m sure it’s essential for some people. But the writing is on the wall. Google is entering the field. Their service is going to be free. It is going to improve constantly. Surely, eventually, map data will be stored (or at least cached) locally on devices. Soon enough, Google’s service will be both free and superior. Garmin and TomTom are toast.

Peek, Low-Cost Email and SMS Device ★

This might have been something five years ago. Can’t see it going anywhere today, though — it does email and SMS, but doesn’t even handle phone calls, let alone browse the web.

Google Maps Navigation for Android 2.0 ★

The imminent Droid will ship with built-in GPS maps navigation. Methinks the end is near for expensive dedicated GPS systems.

Scammers Distributing Fake Chrome OS Betas ★

Wait a minute, Chrome OS ships with the Gnome desktop environment, OpenOffice, and GIMP? I thought the whole point was that it was purely web-based?

Update: Ah-ha, it’s a fake. Just some scammers hosting on Google Sites. No wonder I was confused. My apologies for the false alarm. I can’t imagine that Google is OK with this, but apparently this site has been here for two weeks.

Microsoft Retail Stores Selling PCs Sans Crapware ★

Todd Bishop:

People visiting Microsoft’s new store in Scottsdale, Ariz., have started noticing something interesting, apart from its shameless similarities to Apple’s retail outlets. The computers on display in the Microsoft Store come without any run-of-the-mill “crapware” — the derisive term used for generic trial software and other unwanted programs that commonly clog new PCs when they’re shipped by computer makers.

(Is the term “derisive” or just blunt?)

The Mythical LSSetApplicationForItem ★

Example code from Ben Artin of Fetch Softworks showing how to add a “usro” resource to a file for the “case when you need to make sure that a particular file will open with a particular app when the user double-clicks it in the Finder”. Note that “usro” resources are undocumented by Apple and subject to change at any time, but there’s no other way to get this behavior in Snow Leopard.

John Resig: ‘Google Groups Is Dead’ ★

Public groups are swarmed by spammers. As Andy Baio quipped, “if you want to know which areas of big companies are being ignored, watch for spam taking over.”