Kickstart the Flow: a capacitive touch screen paintbrush

Posted on April 21, 2011 by Chris White.
Categories: Uncategorized.

It must be stylus month on Kickstarter, with first the Cosmonaut and now the Flow appearing on the funding website. Like the Nomad Brush, the Flow by Joystickers is modeled after a paintbrush. The Flow has capacitive bristles rather than the traditional foam tip to more closely match the tactile experience of painting with real paint.

One of the things that's always frustrated me when painting on the iPad is that the friction from both my finger and any of the styluses I've tried isn't quite right. It can work very well for sketching but when I open up Artrage and start using a paint tool there always seems to be a bit of a tactile disconnect from what I'm doing. A paintbrush that works with the touch screen seems like the best possible solution short of pulling out real paint and using your iPad as a canvas -- which we definitely do not recommend.

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Kickstart the Flow: a capacitive touch screen paintbrush originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 21 Apr 2011 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

TUAWKickstart the Flow: a capacitive touch screen paintbrush originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 21 Apr 2011 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Red Giant Software debuts two iOS camera apps, gives away Plastic Bullet today

Posted on April 20, 2011 by Chris White.
Categories: Uncategorized.

If you're familiar with professional video production then you've probably seen the popular video post-production applications and plugins Red Giant Software makes. What you may not know is that Red Giant released the delightful iPhone photography app Plastic Bullet last year for making your photos look like they were shot with a plastic toy camera.

Red Giant Software wasn't done with the iPhone though and they just released two new camera apps that look every bit as good as Plastic Bullet.

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Red Giant Software debuts two iOS camera apps, gives away Plastic Bullet today originally appeared on TUAW on Wed, 20 Apr 2011 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

TUAWRed Giant Software debuts two iOS camera apps, gives away Plastic Bullet today originally appeared on TUAW on Wed, 20 Apr 2011 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhone theft results in a tragic death

Posted on March 30, 2011 by Chris White.
Categories: Uncategorized.

We have often written feel-good stories about the quick recovery of stolen iPhones, usually with the assistance of Find My iPhone. Unfortunately, today's story of a theft turned horrifying and tragic when a Chicago woman died after a fleeing thief shoved her down a flight of stairs.

According to the Chicago Breaking News, Sally Katona-King was standing at the Fullerton station platform on her way home from work during rush hour Monday afternoon when a thief stole the iPhone from another commuter and pushed Katona-King in his haste to flee the scene. Katona-King was hospitalized after falling down a set of stairs at the station and died Tuesday from what officials believe was a cerebral hemorrhage.

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iPhone theft results in a tragic death originally appeared on TUAW on Wed, 30 Mar 2011 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

TUAWiPhone theft results in a tragic death originally appeared on TUAW on Wed, 30 Mar 2011 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gameloft’s NOVA 3 rumored to be built on Unreal Engine

Posted on March 29, 2011 by Chris White.
Categories: Uncategorized.

Gameloft has announced that it has licensed the Unreal Engine for four upcoming games set to be released in 2011 & 2012.

Gameloft hasn't announced which games will be running on the Unreal Engine, but Pocket Gamer seems to believe that one of the titles slated to be released this year is their next followup to the popular-and already impressive looking-sci-fi shooters N.O.V.A. Near Orbit Vanguard Alliance & N.O.V.A. 2.

Last year Epic Games started dropping jaws when it released Epic Citadel as a proof of concept showing off the Unreal Engine running on iOS. Epic then followed it up in December with the stunning and widely praised Infinity Blade, a game many have claimed looked as good as current generation dedicated gaming consoles. After all, it's the same engine that powers many blockbuster games like Gears of War, Bulletstorm, BioShock 2, despite more limited hardware on iOS devices.

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Gameloft's NOVA 3 rumored to be built on Unreal Engine originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 29 Mar 2011 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

TUAWGameloft's NOVA 3 rumored to be built on Unreal Engine originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 29 Mar 2011 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sex industry embraces FaceTime, world feigns surprise

Posted on August 1, 2010 by Chris White.
Categories: Uncategorized.

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When I first saw the iPhone 4 FaceTime demo, I knew it wouldn't take much time before rule 34 took effect. It was inevitable that Apple's video chat tech would be used by the sex industry as a new way to deliver live adult content to customers.

Despite Steve Jobs' best efforts to keep the iOS platform porn-free, the sex industry continues to find ways to work around the edges. While the iOS platform may be carefully guarded in terms of adult-oriented applications, there's little Apple can do to make sure your phone calls, chats, videos and Safari browsing stay clean. Truthfully, for iPhone users who are consenting adults, it's not really Apple's business.

Joel Schectman of the Associated Press reports that the 3 million+ device iPhone 4 ecosystem is already an attractive target for the porn industry. Porn companies are advertising for model positions specific to FaceTime in at least five different cities on Craigslist.

Meanwhile, adult production studios like Pink Visual -- not coincidentally one of the first adult production companies to create an iPad optimized service -- says it will let customers video chat with some of the same models in their videos. Pink Visual's service will be released in the next few weeks and will probably cost around $5 to $6 a minute.

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Sex industry embraces FaceTime, world feigns surprise originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sun, 01 Aug 2010 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)Sex industry embraces FaceTime, world feigns surprise originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sun, 01 Aug 2010 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Audible finally arrives on the iPhone

Posted on July 16, 2010 by Chris White.
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Audible iPhoneI've been an Audible fan for far longer then I've owned an iPhone; when I first launched the App Store, Audible was one of the first things I searched for.

Thanks to some of the changes made in iOS 4.0, some of the largest challenges for an Audible iPhone app we've written about in the past are no longer a problem. I'm really excited that a free Audible app has finally arrived on the App Store!

Ironically, while you can create an Audible account from the app, you aren't able to browse Audible's selection or purchase books; plan on making a round trip to Safari whenever you want to buy something. Additionally, there are some older titles that have not yet been made available in a format ready for wireless delivery, but Audible claims over 75,000 titles are available.

One annoyance with the application is that you will need to be connected to Wi-Fi to download any files larger then 20MB. While this limit isn't particularly surprising given similar restrictions in other apps and the App Store itself, it is a limit not shared with at least one other Audible app on a competing platform.

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Audible finally arrives on the iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 16 Jul 2010 06:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)Audible finally arrives on the iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 16 Jul 2010 06:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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App review: Diptic is a delightful camera app for arranging and combining photos

Posted on July 15, 2010 by Chris White.
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Choose your layoutDiptic, from Peak Systems, is an iPhone and iPad app that creates interesting diptych and triptych images by combining two or three of your photos into geometric arrangements. Diptic's well-designed interface (which provides nearly flawless execution of a single task), simplicity, and thoughtful balance of features make it a delightful app to use.

The workflow in Diptic isn't complex; you begin by specifying one of five different layouts for your photos. After selecting the layout, each space can either be filled with a photo from your device library, or iPhone users can use their camera to shoot new ones.

Diptic uses the same touch controls that any iOS user will be familiar with in order to transform the photos within their individual frames; you can pan around the image with one finger or zoom in and out by pinching. Tapping on a photo brings up a menu for mirroring or rotating by 90 degrees. The only small disappointment is that you can not rotate images freely; you'll need to plan on fixing issues, like a slightly tilted horizon, in another app before you start Diptic.

Continue reading App review: Diptic is a delightful camera app for arranging and combining photos

App review: Diptic is a delightful camera app for arranging and combining photos originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 15 Jul 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)App review: Diptic is a delightful camera app for arranging and combining photos originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 15 Jul 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Want to upload 720p movies from iPhone 4? Try Pixelpipe

Posted on July 1, 2010 by Chris White.
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PixelpipeIf you were disappointed that you can't upload full 720p video from your iPhone 4 to YouTube without transferring it to a computer first, then check out the latest update to the free app Pixelpipe.

While there has been some speculation over whether app developers would be able to access the full-resolution videos for sharing, commenters were quick to assure us there was no reason to worry. Pixelpipe claims that it will share your edited mobile masterpiece in all its splendor not only with YouTube but also to Flickr, Facebook, MobileMe, Viddler, Posterous and a bunch of other video-capable sites (as well email and FTP) for videos up to 200MB.

The update to 2.01 is also quick to add iOS 4.0 multitasking for background uploading and should continue to serve as a semi-ubiquitous multi-tool for getting our videos (and pictures) uploaded almost anywhere you want them to go. We mentioned Pixelpipe previously around the time of the 3GS launch last year; it seems to have come a long way since then.

It is worth noting that some users seem to be experiencing some instability with the app that will hopefully get ironed out quickly. If you are having trouble with it, keep your eyes peeled for other developers to follow up with alternatives now that we know 720p uploading is possible.

Hat tip to Chris Pirillo

Want to upload 720p movies from iPhone 4? Try Pixelpipe originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 01 Jul 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)Want to upload 720p movies from iPhone 4? Try Pixelpipe originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 01 Jul 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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YouTube uploads from iPhone 4 are downsized

Posted on June 26, 2010 by Chris White.
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iMovie for iPhone 4Yesterday when we posted that iMovie for iPhone 4 was available on the App Store, we mentioned an important limitation on the resolution of the videos you can share with the iPhone. An Apple support document specifies that while iMovie can export a full 720p HD video if you send the video via email or import it back to iPhoto, movies uploaded from YouTube, MMS or MobileMe Gallery will be downsized to a maximum resolution of 568x320.

Since then, users like Chris Pirillo have started using the app and have confirmed the restriction. Chris asked us if there are any iPhone-only workarounds that don't require transferring the video off to your Mac or PC. Unfortunately, it looks like the only way you will be able to share a full 720p HD version of iMovie videos is to transfer the file to your computer before uploading it to YouTube or any other sharing service from there.

Ironically, while a second support document mentions this limitation is in place to improve upload performance, you are still restricted to 568x320 even when you're connected to WiFi -- perhaps the very same WiFi connection you will now use to upload the video from your computer.

Chris also mentioned he and other users are reporting issues logging into YouTube with both YouTube and Google credentials on a number of iOS devices. We're not sure why this issue is happening, but a few people on the Mac Rumors forums are suggesting that you make sure your Google credentials are associated with your YouTube login. You may also want to verify that your email address is confirmed in the email options to possibly eliminate the problem.

YouTube uploads from iPhone 4 are downsized originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sat, 26 Jun 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)YouTube uploads from iPhone 4 are downsized originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sat, 26 Jun 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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