Let the Battle for Music in the Cloud Begin!

The gauntlet has been thrown down. Amazon today announced a service to store your music and media in the clous and play it back anywhere anytime. CNet has the details:
CNet: Amazon launches digital music locker

So you get 5GB of storage for free. 20GB for $20 a year. You can play your music in any Mac or PC browser and on Android devices. However, you can not play your music on iOS devices. That's right no iPod, iPhone, iPad. Odd isn't it? Mashable has the details and a few word arounds.

Mashable How To: Use Amazon Cloud Player With iOS Devices

So according to the story, there is no technical reason why the player will not work on iOS devices. In fact, only Mobile Safari doesn't work. If you use an alternative web browser, it plays just fine.

So why the rather odd snub to Apple products? There have been a number of reports that both Apple and Google will be announcing similar products this year. That could be the reason, but I don't think so. More likely this has too do with Apple's new subscription policy on the App store. Apple is planning to ban any apps that sell things outside of the app store. That would include Kindle books and newspaper subscriptions. Given the low prices of ebooks, it seems likely that paying Apple a 30% cut is just not feasible. So this move seems directly aimed at that app store environment. It will be interesting to see if Amazon "fixes" this issue in a timely manner.

Anyway, I expect some "leaks" about Apple and Google offerings sooner than later.

How to Permanently Block Sites from Your Google Search

Sharon Vaknin at CNET has created a very nice short demo on how to permanently block sites from your Google search.
CNet: How to Permanently Block Sites from Your Google Search
I am very glad Sharon made this video, because I am not sure I would have figured it out otherwise. lol. Note that this only blocks the site for you if you are logged into a Google account. In addition, it is only customized for you. Google will use this as a data point but may or may not use this information to remove sites from search results.

As I have written before, I fully expect link farms to try to use this feature to block good sites from search results. Hopefully, Google can combat such efforts.

How to Contact AT&T Customer Service

This might seem a bit silly. But I tried to find a customer support phone number on the AT&T Site. In the end, I had to Google it.

Here is the page:
AT&T Wireless Customer Support Page

And the number:
Customer Service 1-800-331-0500

Update: On another humorous note, my first attempt to look up the number was on my iPhone. I discovered AT&T does not yet have a mobile version of their site. Of course neither does Apple. lol.

Google Delaying Open Source Release of Honeycomb

According to Mashable, Google is indefinitely delaying the open sourcing of Honeycomb release of Android. The concern is that this version, designed for tablets, will not work well with mobile phones. So they want to address these issues before a general release.

That sounds reasonable, but I'm not sure how will it will go over with the open source community.

Why The AT&T & T-Mobile Deal Won’t Change the Industry

Why The AT&T & T-Mobile Deal Won’t Change the Industry - Mashable - Christina Warren

Christina Warren over at Mashable has a great write up on the proposed AT&T and T-Mobile Merger. A balanced article compared to most of the biased anti-merger reporting by most of the tech media. From the article.

Reports indicate that T-Mobile USA’s churn rate — the number of customers who leave the system for another provider — is around 25% per year. That’s double the industry average. We’ve seen numbers that indicate that T-Mobile’s churn is even higher than that. Customers are consistently choosing more expensive carriers over T-Mobile.

If T-Mobile is so great, why are they losing so many customers? Why does Deutsche Telekom want to sell this wonderful business? Because T-Mobile is not doing that great. Someone is gonna buy up T-Mobile, let the market decide.

Disclosure: The author of this post has a small financial interest in AT&T.

Samsung's Galaxy Player - Android-based iPod Touch

Hands on with Samsung's Android-based Galaxy Players | Crave - CNET

Samsung hosted a hands on event last week introducing the Galaxy Player 4" and 5" devices. These are Android based iPod Touches. All the features of an iPod, just bigger.

It surprises me how long it has taken the Android hardware manufacturers to come out with devices like this. I would love to have an Android device to try out. However, spending $600 or more to buy a full featured phone that I do not need, seems a bit foolish to me. A $200 or $300 Wifi based iPod Touch device makes a lot more sense. There has to be thousands of developers and gadget hobbyists out there like me.

Anyway, more updates to come as we still do not have a price or release date.

Where is the Insert Key on Mac Metal Chiclet Keyboard?

I ran into a problem this morning. I needed to edit the command line in Windows 7 and insert some text. On a Windows/PC keyboard this is easy, just hit the Insert key.

However, I am using a MacBook Pro with an Apple brushed metal chiclet USB keyboard. There is no Insert Key. On older Mac Keyboards you could just use the Help key. But there is no Help key. lol. The answer is in the help documentation, but its buried deep. So here it is.

Insert Key on Mac Keyboard

Old Mac Keyboards: Help key
New Mac Keyboard: Function-Return

You could call it Function-Enter too, but my keyboard says "Return" on the enter key. Anyway, works like a champ for me. Thought I would share to save some other people a little time.

This is the MacBook Air Alternative You've Been Looking For: Lenovo X120e

Yes folks, this is the MacBook Air alternative you have been looking for.

Lenovo X120e

Ever since the MacBook Air came out last fall, I have been looking for a comparable PC alternative. Don't get me wrong, the MacBook Air is a wonderful machine. Fast, amazingly light, and elegant, the Air has everything you want in a laptop. However, after configuring the Air with everything I want, the machine costs north of $1500. Ouch!

The Lenovo X120e provides a PC/Windows 7 alternative. With models starting at $399 and $449, the X120e provides a lot of the bang for the buck. Features include:

• AMD Fusion E-240 or E350 Dual Core Processor with build in GPU (Deep Dive into Processor Here)
• 11.6" Matte Screen. Yes folks a matte screen! (For those of us who use our screen for reading and not combing our hair.) The 1366x768 resolution screen is sharp and clear.
• At 2.93 lbs, its super light. Not quite as light as the 2.3lbs of an Air, but close enough.
• Super responsive keyboard. This is the nicest ultra-portable keyboard I have encountered. A springy feel and a really nice layout.
• Battery life is really good. About 3 hrs on the 3 cell and twice that on the 6 cell. With the included utilities, power consumption is very configurable. So you can get a little more life or a little less depending upon the configured power consumption.
• A really solid feel to the system. Everything feels sturdy, from the keyboard to the screen hinge.
• Choice of Windows 7 32 bit or 64 bit.

So those are the highlights as I see them. The only feature I would like to see added is a backlit keyboard. But the Air does not have that feature either.

Anyway, if you are looking for an ultra portable laptop you can carry around all day on those long business trips, give this machine a look. I think you will like it.

A New Affiliate for Books, eBooks, DVDs and Music

I want to welcome Barnes and Noble as the new book, ebook, dvd, music, and toy affiliate for Blue Sky Workshop. Not all my product and book links have been updated, but a number of them have been. All of my web sites should be updated in the next couple of weeks.

It's nice to be an affiliate of a company who's stores I actually frequent and enjoy.

So welcome Barnes and Noble and thanks!

How To Pages Updated

Over this weekend, I updated all of my how to pages on http://blueskyworkshop.com. The main change is new and improved PHP templates. The changes were necessary to update all my Google search boxes to a new format. I also discovered I had left out the Google Analytics telemetry out of my Java Pages. All that is fixed now.

The topics are linked on the right side of the page and also here.

CSS - iPhone/iPad Web Development - Java - JavaScript - OS X - PHP - Tools - Web - XSLT

Jeff Prosise's Blog : Using HTML5 Web Storage for Interprocess Communication

This article is a real deep dive into HTML5's local storage feature. Regular features are are covered along with the how to use interprocess communication.

Jeff Prosise's Blog : Using HTML5 Web Storage for Interprocess Communication

North Denver iPad Supply Intel Report

Due to work and family obligations, I was unable to wait in line for an iPad 2 on Friday. So starting about 5:15pm I hit my first North Denver store. I didn't get an iPad 2 but I did talk to a lot of people.

• Target stores got 5 Wifi-only iPad 2's each. I checked 2 stores and both had the same number of iPads and sold out in about 5 minutes.
• AT&T got ZERO iPad 2's!  I was surprised. As opposed to Target the salesman there thought they would only receive 3G iPads, no Wifi.
• Select Walmart stores got over 100 each. The store near my house got none. The sales person there thought that stores would only get single digit ships after the initial release.
• The Flatirons Crossing Apple Store got several hundred (200 to 300) and sold out very quickly.

Based on this information put in an online order in the Apple store. I think the iPad 2 is gonna be very hard to come by in the near term.

Google to Block Useless Sites? Well Maybe...

Google announced last Friday that they are gonna allow you to block useless sites. The gist of this feature is that when a link farm shows up in your search results, a link allowing you to block that site from future results is provided. Pretty cool. This will be a great help on some of those rare searches that result in nothing but link spam.

However, there is a danger if Google wants to use this feature to improve search results. Remember the first immutable law of the Internet. The first thing spammers will do is use this feature to block any good content. It is inevitable and predictable. Hundreds of spam servers requesting that any good content be blocked.

But I expect Google will figure a counter strategy in short order.

iPad 2 Buying Options

Mac Rumors has all the details for you iPad 2 buyers out there.

In addition to the Apple Store, Wal-Mart, Target, and certain Best Buys will also be selling iPad 2s. From the article, it sounds like stores will have anywhere from a few hundred to a couple dozen.

Don't forget phone companies. AT&T and Verizon should also have some inventory.

Good luck to all the buyers out there. It sounds like there will b a 2 or 3 week wait if you have to buy online.

Shortest SEO Guide

What is the secret to optimizing your site for a Search Engine? Here is the best explanation ever.
Shortest SEO Guide

Buying an iPad 2: What You Need to Know

Are you planning on buying an iPad 2 on Friday?
Don't have time to wait in line?
Need to know your options?


Fear not! Mashable has all the answers!
Buying an iPad 2: What You Need to Know

Developers rage after Facebook blocks Google and Amazon

Developers rage after Facebook blocks Google AdSense - Yahoo! News

Well well well, the knives are coming out. Facebook appears to be blocking Google AdSense and Amazon ads on their website. Facebook is requiring any advertisers to sign a restrictive agreement preventing them from using any Facebook data. It would seem unlikely either big company would agree.

Better be careful kicking dirt at the biggest kids on the block. They may build a more open version of your website. :)

Walmart’s Pitch for Amazon Affiliates - Digits - WSJ

Amazon.com has been fighting an ongoing battle with states over sales taxes. According to law and several court cases, a business that does not have a physical presence in the state, think mail order catalog, does not have to collect sales tax. Amazon distribution centers are only located in a few states so that most customers pay no sales tax on purchases.

A number of states, including Colorado and North Carolina, have passed laws to force Amazon to pay local sales taxes. In essence, the laws say any affiliate program in the state constitutes a physical presence and therefore, Amazon must pay state sales tax. Rather than fight these laws (which would likely be thrown out at unconstitutional, the law is pretty settled on the subject), Amazon merely fires its affiliates in that state and ignores the issue, thereby throwing their affiliates under the bus. Legally, Amazon is in the right. They should not have to pay sales taxes because of affiliate program. However, by not fighting these bogus laws they are encouraging other states to pass similar laws.

California is the latest state to consider an Amazon sales tax law. And once again, Amazon is threatening to fire its affiliates if the law is passed.

But Amazon's strategy may be backfiring. Now several big retailers with physical presences in every state are stepping into the void. Both Wal-Mart and Barnes and Noble are promoting their affiliate programs in these states. The Wall Street Journal has the details.
Walmart’s Pitch for Amazon Affiliates - Digits - WSJ

JavaScript as a Server Language? Node.js

While eating dinner I ran across a Mashable article on Node.js:

O’Reilly Reveals Preview for Its First Book on Node.js

node.js is a web application development platform written in JavaScipt and runs on the Google V8 JavaScript engine. I don't understand it all, but from what I gather, it scales a lot better for large applications than traditional HTTP web servers. Here are some articles I found that provide more information.

• What is node.js?
• Understanding node.js
• Learning Server Side JavaScript with node.js
• node.js is Genuinely Exciting
• Databases for node.js

Very interesting stuff.

Android Market targeted with malware-laced apps

As reported by MacWorld yesterday and several others, the Android marketplace was targeted with 50 fake apps that included malware:
Android Market spiked with malware-laced apps | Mobile | iOS Central | Macworld

Hackers took real applications, put spyware code in them, then rereleased the applications on the marketplace. Since Google does no checking of applications, it took a developer to notice and report the problem. In my opinion, Google has been naive with its Marketplace and has ignored the first immutable law of the Net. They do not have to be as strict as Apple with apps, but there has to be some level of review. Otherwise, their marketplace will be nothing but spam and malware.

Apple Announces iPad 2 and iOS 4.3

Yesterday Apple announced the iPad 2 along with a number of updates software updates including iOS 4.3. Stories from MacRumors here:

• Apple Announces iPad 2: A5 Dual Core, 2 Cameras, Thinner - Mac Rumors
• Tidbits: iPad 2 Mic, No iOS 4.3 for CDMA iPhone, iMovie and GarageBand Compatibility - Mac Rumors

Bottom line with iPad 2, lighter, thinner, and faster. Now it has a front and back camera and a version of iMovie to make movies on your iPad 2. The device goes on sale in the US March 11.

The iOS update is huge for one reason: Wifi Hotspot support for the iPhone. Finally! I've been wanting this feature since the iPhone 4 came out. The new iOS will also come out March 11.

iTunes too many computers authorized? Fix??- Dave Taylor

You know how to used to have a really groovy eMac that had all your music on it? And about 2 years ago you had the system recycled. And remember how you forgot to deauthorize the machine. And now you have a shiny new Mac Book but you have run out of authorized machines. A sad sad story. But Dave Taylor comes through again with the solution. Check it out:
iTunes too many computers authorized? Fix?? - Dave Taylor

Wanna learn Design Patterns and Javascript?

If you are interested in learning more about JavaScript and Design patterns, check this out:
Essential JavaScript Design Patterns 1.1 – A Free Updated Book For Beginners

It is an online book written in HTML and JavaScript that teaches you design patterns for JavaScript and JQuery. I haven't read through the whole thing, but the examples look very good. And if you really want to learn how to do something the right way, this book could save you a lot of time. Plus it is a great example of how to do a book in HTML, a very clean design.