August 31, 2005 Link: Samsung D600
Samsung D600 is due out this quarter and is almost nice enough to make me want a Samsung phone.
August 31, 2005 Link: Winamp 5.1 Leak
Winamp 5.1 leaked. (Or: A nice way of generating attention to this all-but-dead MP3 player.) The files have since been pulled; how convenient.
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August 31, 2005 Link: 10.4.3
10.4.3. Sounds like we’ll be getting tabs in iChat, and fixes to a lot of what currently ails us.
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August 30, 2005 Link: the Alt Attribute
Speaking of the alt attribute, I’m horrible at remembering to place them!
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August 30, 2005 I’m DUN With It!
With my new Treo 650, Bluetooth, and [medium]-speed dial-up networking, I’m now fully-mobile. Even in the office!
It took a little bit, but I got DUN working on my new Palm Treo 650. I can now access the internet on my laptop wherever I have cellular service using EDGE speeds. In the Seattle area, that means an average of 90kbps, which is slighly higher than bearable …
However, today I welcome such meager speeds. Our office internet connection has been crummy all day — literally stopping and starting, and always slow. Sites never fully load, connections to servers fail or get dropped, RSS feeds return “invalid,” etc. It’s a web developer’s worst frustration — available but horrible internet access.
Enter DUN.
It’s a sad (but happy at the same time) day when your mobile phone gives better performance than your office network.
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August 30, 2005 Link: Shadows.com
Shadows beta. Website tagging and searching. “Every page on the web now has an alter ego - its Shadow page”
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August 30, 2005 Link: Test Drive a Mac Mini
Test drive a Mac mini and send it back within 30-days for your money back, if you don’t like it. UPDATE: Looks like Apple has removed the program — no explanation.
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August 30, 2005 Plausible Cause
The rumor mills are going nuts today with speculation about Apple’s recent stirrings: They’ve planned a “music event” for this Sunday Wednesday, September 7th — that, coupled with the fact that they have been working with Motorola on a mobile version of iTunes. Am I the only one who’s doubting some of the predictions these sites are churning out?
First of all, I’ve learned to never underestimate Apple’s ability to throw a curve ball. I didn’t see the iPod (1st generation), the shuffle, iPhoto, or the move to Intel coming. They were all announced amidst rumors that I completely disregarded. I’d like to think that I’ve become balanced.
That said, I am not too young (a Mac-fan and devotee) to remember such forgotten rumors as the Mac car or the new tablet/pda (which still exists, I guess). Rumors, in general, are dangerous. The key in deciphering Apple-related gossip is to think about cause and motive. Why is it in Apple’s (current) interests to [fill in the blank]. How would they benefit? Does [fill in the blank] keep them on the same roadmap they’ve been using?
That’s what I’m asking this week as we await the iTunes phone, possible iPod [mini] updates, and the infamous video iPod.
The iTunes phone
I forget who said this, but I like it: “Think about it, Steve Jobs has a cell phone and curses the thing every time he uses it.” You know it must be true. From the crummy OS/interface, to the useless apps, to the sub-standard sync capabilities … everything about todays mobile is positively anti-Apple’s style. If Apple wants to complete their journey, giving its consumers the best experience for their digital lifestyle, the cell phone must be on the agenda.
So, sure, start with the music app. Why not? It’s a perfect segue from the iPod to the iPhone. Choosing Motorola is obvious since A) Sony is out of the question, 2) Samsung’s OS is even worse than Motorola’s and d) the sexy RAZR phone is as close to Apple’s hardware heart as the PowerBook G4. (And yes, when Apple and Moto got into bed I’m sure the then-in-development RAZR was shown to Jobs.)
I believe we’ll see at least some kind of cellular convergent device introduced this weekend. Whether it’s the ROKR, the iPhone, or just the E790 with iTunes mobile. (What’s the difference? Ellifino.)
The video iPod
I think we’ll see it this weekend. However, I don’t think we’ll see an iPod that can play just any .mov you stick on it. I think we’ll get the ability to play whatever videos are downloadable from the iTunes Music Store (e.g. music videos, exclusives, etc.). It remains to be seen whether or not a new “section” will be launched within the store for just videos, but I think the lack of rumors surrounding this particular item denote it’ll be delayed.
My prediction is that the iPod upper line will be bumped to 60 and 80 GB models and support video playback of DRM’d videos from the iTunes Music Store. Look for price points starting at $499.
A flash-based, color iPod mini
I’d buy one. Beyond that, I haven’t the foggiest what to expect in this category. Again, however, I emphasize my learned ability to never underestimate Apple.
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August 29, 2005 Link: MP3 Player Virus
MP3 player virus, and yet another reason the iPod is my choice player (still).
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August 28, 2005 1 Pixel Off
Tweaking this site has uncovered a slight rendering issue with Safari. It shouldn’t be a big deal, but it’s driving me crazy. I’m searching for answers.
I know I shouldn’t be as bothered by this as I am, but I just cannot seem to let it go. I’ve scoured the web for a solution and no one seems to even recognize it as an issue.
Here’s the deal: I’ve got a single background image (for <body>) set to be center-aligned and repeat vertically. Then, I’ve got a div container set at 400px wide, centered. Here’s the basic CSS:
body {
margin: 0;
padding: 0;
font-family: 'lucida grande','trebuchet ms',sans-serif;
background: #fff url(/images/bg_fullbody2.gif) top center repeat-y;
}
#container {
width: 460px;
margin: 0 auto;
position: relative;
border: 0;
}
Safari, for some reason God only knows, shifts the container div 1px to the left. I’m left with three options:
- Somehow target only Safari and use
left: 1px, which I cannot seem to figure a way to do - Change the design
- Live with it (please note that this is hardly an option, it just seemed better to list three)
So, being that I have no time for option number two, and option three is out of the question, is there an answer for number one?
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August 28, 2005 Link: iSync Plugin for Nokia Communicator
iSync plugin for Nokia Communicator 9300. Not that I need this, but I find it interesting that Rui just “decided to learn how to create an iSync plugin.” Took him 20 minutes he said. (Hey, can you hook up a Treo 650 plugin while you’re at it?)
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August 28, 2005 Link: Mac OS Through the Years
Mac OS through the years. Crazy that I’ve been a user since system 6, about 17 years ago.
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August 28, 2005 Link: a List Apart Redesign
ALA redesigns. I was working on a center-aligned headline long before I saw this, so gimme a break for being jumping on the fad bandwagon without looking. Nicely done, though, guys.
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August 28, 2005 Link: Target IE (CSS Hack)
Targetting IE in CSS. Nothing new, but just in case you lost the link (like me).
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August 28, 2005 Link: Windows Apps on Mac on Intel
Windows apps on Mac on PC. Convergence is upon us.
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August 26, 2005 Thin, Big and Bold
The time has come. You may now mark your calendars — Sean has officially gone beyond a simple splash screen and launched an actual (linking, breathing?) website. Content may be lacking, but she packs a punch underneath.
Welcome to seansperte.com, version 1.0. I’m writing this at 3:15am after three days of coding and tweaking (obviously, only in my free time). Wow, I’m really tired now … But not as tired as I am of those stupid “coming soon” splash screens I was previously offering.
This site will be my personal space to geek-out and act like a 14-year old hacker kid. I’ve already provided a few links that support this cause. Now there’s no reason for me to bog down CommentSense — my wife and my other blog — with senseless techno-jargon and Photoshop tutorials. I can do that all right here now, isn’t that great?!
(Speaking of geeking-out, I’m sitting here in bed with my laptop and my wife just rolled over in bed, looked at me and sighed. I just realized what I’m doing, and I’m wondering what in the heck motivates this kind of behavior.)
Well, I’ll likely provide more details about the site in later posts. Until then, though, why don’t you try out the comment form and tell me what you think. If you’ve gotta suggestion, now’s the time to share.
Semi-important disclaimer: So far, I’ve only tested on Safari 2.0 and FireFox running Mac OS 10.4. I’ll get around to making sure it’s decent in IE6/PC (as in, the content can actually be seen) someday. Either that or I’ll just stick a big fat notice at the top of every page encouraging a switch to FireFox.
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August 26, 2005 Link: the PowerBook Prank
The PowerBook Prank. Leaps a bounds in front of what I do to phishers who try and get my PayPal account info — which I thought was cool until I read this story. Man, I’m lame.
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August 16, 2005 Behind the Curtain
Welcome to the new seansperte.com. By now you’ve been duly disappointed by the lack of content and/or underwhelming design representation. You may feel like Dorothy having just uncovered the man behind the curtain. For that I’m sorry. It’s never my intention to deliver unfinished works, and this website is the epitome of unfinished.
While finished I’m not, started I am. And I’m not just talking like Yoda here, I’m thinking like him, too: “Do or do not, there is no try.” After all, it’s only been, what, 10 years since I had a personal website worthy of a visit? (We’re purposefully not counting CommentSense here.) I just figured I might as well just do it.
So here it is.