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  • Tech Peeve: Note to @WeatherBug – Stop issuing Tsunami Warnings when none exists

    WeatherBug beat out other weather apps to earn its spot on my Windows Phone’s start screen because it provides the most accurate information.

    The app has, however, one feature that really annoys me: It issues a Tsunami Watch/Warning when there is no actual warning. The “warning” is based on an informational alert from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center that clearly states This Statement is For Information Only. No Action Require. WeatherBug should be able to parse this statement and either not issue any alert (which pops up on my Windows Phone) or relabel it as a simple informational alert.

    Hey, WeatherBug! Please fix this issue in your otherwise useful app!

  • New Apple Podcast: Meet the Developer – audio + photo slideshow

    It looks like Apple launched a new podcast series named Meet the Developer. It is under the TV & Film/Events at the Apple Store category. The first podcast features a fourth generation butcher who released an app named Pat LaFrieda’s Big App for Meat ($6.99). The app has a somewhat unusual format. It combines the audio track with a slideshow of still photos from the discussion.

  • Publish an ebook created using iBook Author & lock yourself in Apple-land forever

    Apple created the desktop publishing industry in the 1980s. In the 21st century, they want to reinvent ebook publishing. Part of this reinvention process is the free iBooks Author software for Mac OS X that Apple released today (2012.01.19). Anyone using a Mac can download it from the Mac App Store at no charge, use the software to create an ebook, and publish it through Apple’s iBookstore. You can bypass the iBookstore publishing process for testing and informal distribution by simply getting the file over to an iOS device using, for example, Dropbox.

    However, as most of us have learned by now, there’s always a price to pay even when something is free. In this case, the price is being locked into distributing only through Apple’s iBookstore if you create an ebook using iBooks Author that is sold for a fee. From that point on, any ebook created using iBooks Author must be distributed through the iBookstore. That’s what Dan Wineman learned by reading the software’s EULA: If you charge a fee for any book or other work you generate using this software (a “Work”), you may only sell or distribute such Work through Apple (e.g., through the iBookstore) and such distribution will be subject to a separate agreement with Apple.

  • FYI: How to get a replacement copy of Erica Sadun’s iOS Developer’s Cookbook

    Here’s an example of a book publisher “doing the right thing” for their customers. Erica Sadun’s book, The iOS5 Developer’s Cookbook, has production process related defects. So, Pearson has corrected these errors in both the print and ebook versions and is making replacement copies available. Here’s the official announcement.

    The iOS5 Developer’s Cookbook – RECALL

    It has come to Pearson’s attention that problems occurred during the production process of The iOS5 Developer’s Cookbook. The scope of the error was widespread and all print and eBook versions of the first printing were affected. Pearson has corrected these errors and the title has been updated. To find out if the copy you have includes errors and how to obtain a replacement copy please visit informit.com/ios5update

  • Apps updated for my iPhone & iPad in the past week: 37


    Thirty-seven (37) of the apps for my iPad &/or iPhone were updated in the past week. Apps that do not have comments in the list below indicates that the update is simply a bug fix release.
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  • Save to Kindle tip: View PDFs in landscape mode

    I tried out the new Save to Kindle for Windows and it just worked. Here’s what I did:
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