Time Inc. Will Provide all 21 Titles to Tablets by 2012

Brandon Orndorff
-
0
Time Inc. Will Provide all 21 Titles to Tablets by 2012

Time Inc logoTime Inc. is one of the largest branded media companies in the World. The Time Warner division reaches more than 110 million Americans every month with magazines like Time, People, Instyle and Sports Illustrated. All of these titles and more will be available digitally via Tablets by the end of the year.

Time Inc. released the following press release today at 9:30 am EDT:

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–As part of Time Inc.’s industry-leading effort to deliver its iconic brands everywhere consumers want them, the company today announced that all 21 of its U.S. titles will be available as tablet editions by the end of 2011. Time Inc. will be the first major U.S. magazine publisher to make all of its titles available on all leading tablet platforms, with products designed specifically for this medium.

“Having our entire portfolio available on tablets will create a significant new digital reach for our advertisers.”

Brands including INSTYLE, REAL SIMPLE and ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY will now join PEOPLE, TIME, SPORTS ILLUSTRATED and FORTUNE with digital tablet versions. To date, Time Inc.’s digital magazine and other content apps have been downloaded more than 11 million times. Hundreds of thousands of current print subscribers have upgraded their subscriptions to include the tablet editions at no extra cost, with thousands more being added each week. Time Inc. has also sold more than 600,000 digital single copies of those four titles.

“Now is the time for us to make this bold commitment. In the coming year, there will clearly be many more consumers using tablets, accelerating demand for content and driving advertiser interest. We are putting ourselves in a great position to take advantage of these opportunities,” said Maurice Edelson, EVP and a member of Time Inc.’s interim management committee. “Having our entire portfolio available on tablets will create a significant new digital reach for our advertisers.”

Today, the company also announced an agreement with Barnes & Noble to sell digital subscriptions and single-copy issues of FORTUNE, PEOPLE, SPORTS ILLUSTRATED and TIME on the NOOK Color starting later this month, with the rest of the portfolio to follow by year-end. The Barnes & Noble agreement adds the NOOK Color to a growing list of platforms where Time Inc. distributes its digital titles, including Apple iPad, Android Marketplace, HP TouchPad and Next Issue Media’s store.

Time Inc. offers consumers an All Access approach that includes print and digital subscriptions, as well as digital-only subscriptions and the ability to purchase single copies. Additionally, each of Time Inc.’s 28 million print subscribers will have the option to upgrade their subscription to include the digital edition at no additional cost. The digital editions will be presented using reader software that is native to each platform.

Print ads will be incorporated into the tablet editions. The company plans to report digital sales and subscriber information to ABC (Audit Bureau of Circulations) beginning in January 2012. Time Inc. research shows consumers place a high value on digital editions that include ads.

Install the Android OS on your iPhone

Brandon Orndorff
-
0
Install the Android OS on your iPhone

Install Android on iPhoneI know all you iPhone users out there would rather have the Android OS on your phone instead of iOS. Those of you that have the iPhone 3G have been slowed down due to new updates to iOS that have been focused on the iPhone 4 because as we all know Apple only cares about people who keep buying from them and lets others go to the wayside. Here is how you do it.

Instructions to install Android on your iPhone:

  1. Jailbreak your iPhone via PwnageTool, Redsnow or Blackra1n. Since this tends to change based on firmware version we wont post the instructions. Its an easy process though so don’t stress it.
  2. After your phone is jailbroken launch Cydia and add repo.neonkoala.co.uk to your list of repositories. Tap “manage -> sources -> edit -> add” then enter repo.neonkoala.co.uk as a repository then tap “add source”.
  3. Tap on the new repository you just added and install Bootlace. When complete close Cydia.
  4. Launch Bootlace (if you don’t see it on your home screen reboot your phone and it will be there). Let Bootlace download and patch the kernel. When complete tap reboot and wait for you phone to boot back up.
  5. Launch Bootlace again and tap “OpeniBoot -> install -> continue”. Wait for OpeniBoot to install.
  6. Tap the “iDroid” button then tap “install -> ok”. Now wait for Android to install on your phone. This will take a while so make sure your battery has enough charge to finish.
  7. You are done! Now to boot into Android OS you need to go into Bootlace and tap on the QuickBoot button and tap the Android icon. Once confirmed your phone will reboot into Android.

Things to take not of when in Android OS on the iPhone:

  • iPhone lock button is the Android back button
  • iPhone home button is the Android menu button
  • iPhone volume down button is the Android home button
  • Lock the screen by pressing the iPhones home and lock button at the same time
  • Power off by holding the lock and home buttons until you see the power off prompt.

We had a lot of fun with this on an iPhone 3G we had collecting dust in the office. Its not a perfect Android OS but is still fun to play with.

Flash Samsung Vibrant Back Stock

Brandon Orndorff
-
3
Flash Samsung Vibrant Back Stock

Those of you that need to flash back to the Samsung Vibrant stock ROM can do so with the following directions.  This works on phones that are updated to Froyo and need to be flashed back to gain root access as well as those who have bricked their Vibrant by messing around.

You will need drivers installed on the computer that you use to flash your Samsung Vibrant back to the stock rom.
You can get these drivers here: 32-bit Driver | 64-bit Driver

Instructions to flash Vibrant back to Stock:

  1. Get your phone into Download mode by holding volume down and power.
  2. Download Odin for Flashing (Download Link)
  3. Open Odin
  4. Extract and Load the 512.pit file (Download Link)
  5. Extract and Load the Vibrant JFD Image (Download Link)
  6. Don’t check anything else, “Auto Reboot” and “Reset Time” should be checked by default
  7. Connect your phone to the Computer via USB
  8. Hit “start”! be patient!

If you don’t see a progress bar after hitting start (after a minute) start over at step one.

Having Trouble with Download Mode:
If you are stuck on the PC and phone screen just hold both volume buttons and power at the same time. let the Vibrants screen come on and go back off and on the second time before the Vibrant comes back on let go of the power button while still holding the volume buttons. This should get you back to download mode.

Motorola Photon 4G Custom Recovery Available

Brandon Orndorff
-
0
Motorola Photon 4G Custom Recovery Available

You can now flash the bootstrap ClockworkMod Recovery package on the Motorola Photon 4G. You of course have to have your Photon rooted (if you need to root it still you can go to this article). Along with root access you will need an AC adapter with the USB charging cable.

Photon 4G ClockworkMod Recovery Installation Instructions:

  1. Download the recovery file (Download Link)
  2. Connect your Photon to the computer via USB
  3. Put the .apk you downloaded on your phone
  4. Unplug your phone from the computer
  5. find and install “Bootstrap_signed.apk” (the file you just put on the phone)
  6. After install is done run the application
  7. Click “Install Recovery”
  8. Accept the Superuser request
  9. After completed, plug your Photon 4G into the wall to charge
  10. Verify that your phone is charging from the wall
  11. Press “Recovery Boot”
  12. Your device will now reboot into CWM Recovery (be patient it is slow)

Source: http://briefmobile.com/motorola-photon-4g-root-custom-recovery-now-available

How to Root the Motorola Photon 4G with Webtop

Brandon Orndorff
-
0
How to Root the Motorola Photon 4G with Webtop

Photon 4G and Webtop

For those of you that have gotten the Photon 4G and really want to root it there is already a way to do this.  The only downside is that you need to have the HD Station to do it for now.  This is a permanent root for the Photon 4G and hopefully we will have a method for those without the hd station.

What you need to Root the Motorola Photon 4G with Webtop:

  • HD Docking Station for the Photon 4G
  • HDMI cable that came with HD Station
  • Monitor or TV with open HDMI port
  • Wifi connection on the phone
  • Computer with network access to the phone

If you don’t have an SSH program on your pc download Putty (Download Link)

Root Instructions for the Motorola Photon 4G:

  1. Install Superuser from the Android Market
  2. Install SSHDroid from the Android Market
  3. Open SSHDroid and make sure its listening on port 2222
  4. Connect Photon to the HD Station
  5. Connect the HD Station to the TV/Monitor via HDMI
  6. Open Firefox in Webtop
  7. Go to http://higgs.cygnusx-1.org/~edgan/pulse.tar (do not save it)
  8. Instead of saving it open it
  9. Extract pulse.tar to /var/tmp
  10. Connect to your phone via SSH at the ip address in SSHDroid port 2222
  11. Type /var/tmp/pulse/pa_race
  12. Type /var/tmp/pulse/install-su.sh
  13. Type rm -rf /var/tmp/pulse*
  14. Congrats your Photon 4G is rooted

Original instructions can be found at XDA in the forums located at:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=16254545#post16254545

Does the Amazon App Store hurt Developers?

Brandon Orndorff
-
0

People have mixed feelings about this question although there are two sides to this argument. We have heard the argument that the Amazon App store is bad for developers because of the free app a day giveaway. While this is a great way for consumers to get apps that they may not otherwise have even known about does it hurt the developers?

Well the Free App A Day doesn’t make the developer a dime as some of you may think otherwise. This is bad for developers for that day although in the long run should not (assuming the app is worthy of use) effect any sales of it later.

There are those out there that think the giveaway is wrong only for the fact that the developers don’t make any money and Amazon is receiving serious traffic and upselling from it. Shift Jelly posted the following about the Amazon App Store:

“What makes us mad though is the public perception that Amazon pays developers to be featured. Every single person we asked on Twitter or via email thought they were helping developers out, and getting a free application. Amazon does nothing to dispel these rumours, in fact they put really restrictive clauses at the bottom of their emails, saying that no one is even allowed to discuss these back door deals they are doing.”

Our take on this is that most of the free app a day giveaways are apps that consumers are downloading only because they are free. Those that are downloading the app because its free and no other reason would not have purchased the app anyway. This being said the Developer is now getting free publicity and users that may in the future recommend an app to a friend that otherwise would have never even thought about it. If developers create a great app the word of mouth after the free day will make up for any consumer downloading it that may have paid for it later.

Android Trojan that Records Conversations

Brandon Orndorff
-
0
Android Trojan that Records Conversations

Android Trojan that Records Phone CallsZDnet says they have found an Android Trojan that will not only get into and steal your call logs but also records your conversations. This is another reason why all Android users should have some sort of malware detection on their device at all times. Generally you can avoid these easily by leaving “unknown sources” turned off on your device.

How to help Avoid Trojans and other Malware:
To Not allow installation of apps from unknown sources go to Settings -> Applications and uncheck “Unknown Sources”. Of course you can always turn it on when needed to install anything outside of the Android Market although leaving it off if you are inexperienced with the platform is good practice.

What this Trojan does to your device:
When the trojan is downloaded to your device it asks for permissions such as hardware controls, phone calls and system tools. What the trojan will do if you accidentally accept it is access the .AMR files stored in the MicroSD card where the phone stores conversations.  These conversations can then be accessed remotely by people that you don’t want to have them for purposes unknown (we are sure not good).

Always look at what your phone is asking before installing anything especially if you didn’t know you were installing something.Android

AT&T Throttling Customers with Unlimited Data Plans

Brandon Orndorff
-
0

ATT LogoFriday AT&T stated that they need to manage their users “exploding demand” for data. Many users that have been with AT&T for any amount of time have grandfathered in their unlimited data plans. Since these users (Android Advice included) are among the top data users on their network AT&T has decided to throttle those unlimited users that use the most data.

AT&T was the first carrier to implement tiered data in an attempt to reduce the amount of data passing through their mobile network. They have said that this will only effect a small amount of their overall users and many of us may not even notice it. Those of you that love to watch streaming movies and music on the go will only notice the reduction in data near the end of your billing cycle. This throttling of data will then reset at the beginning of the next cycle.

AT&T tries to blame this action on the T-Mobile merger that seems will never take place. This being said Sprints CEO (who was formerly at AT&T) claims that AT&T has the resources but wants to fight it out by customer outcry. AT&T states that the T-Mobile merger would solve all of the issues that they are currently throttling for:

“But even as we pursue this additional measure, it will not solve our spectrum shortage and network capacity issues.  Nothing short of completing the T-Mobile merger will provide additional spectrum capacity to address these near term challenges.”

Android Office App Comparison

Brandon Orndorff
-
1
Android Office App Comparison

I get many people asking what the best office app for Android is. Now we have compared the top four office applications for Android to allow you to see some of the features they have. If you have an office app that you like not listed here let us know and we may add it to the list to help others when looking for an Office app.

We are going to be comparing are “Documents to Go”, “Picsel SmartOffice”, “QuickOffice Pro HD”, “Polaris Office”. Within these apps we will be comparing some of the most important features of an Office app.

Documents to GoDocuments to Go ($14.99)
Very good at rendering fonts and other formatting with symbol fonts recognized. Pictures and other rendering of graphics are a bit blurry with some imaging features missing. Does not interpret cropped graphics at all. No transitions or animations. Does not have a slideshow mode included, slides move left to right not up and down as expected. Also there are options to insert and duplicate slides which is a redeeming feature. When displaying tables the surrounding text tends to get messed up a bit. There is no pinch zoom option which is disappointing. Supports cloud integration with Google Documents.

Picsel SmartOfficePicsel SmartOffice ($5.99)
Renders fonts and other formatting well but doesn’t recognize symbol font. Pictures and other rendering of graphics are a bit blurry with some imaging features missing. Does not interpret cropped graphics at all and when tried all surrounding text is messed up. No transitions or animations. Does have a slideshow mode included with a 3D view option available and slide overview on the right. When displaying tables everything fits in cells and renders as expected. Suuports cloud integration with Dropbox.

Quick Office Pro HDQuickOffice Pro HD ($14.99)
Average rendering of fonts and other formatting and does not recognize symbol font. Pictures and other rendering of graphics are a bit blurry with some imaging features missing. In most cases images are very pixelated and tend to render incorrectly. Does not interpret cropped graphics at all. No transitions or animations. Does have a slideshow mode included allowing insertion of new slides from camera or storage and has a slide overview on the left. When displaying tables the text doesn’t fit within the cells correctly and tends to mess up the surrounding text as well. Supports cloud integration of the following apps; Google Docs, Dropbox, Box.net, huddle, Sugarsync and MobileMe.

Polaris OfficePolaris Office (comes with some ASUS devices)
Character spacing is very narrow although it does seem to render fonts and formatting about like the others. Pictures and other rendering of graphics are almost perfect with a few inconsistencies with ms office objects. Interprets cropped graphics although not very well. No transitions or animations. Does have a slideshow mode included with a slide overview option. Everything within tables displays as expected although text squishes together inside the tables. Supports cloud integration with Google Docs and Box.net.

Overall none of the office apps stand out as a complete winner although if we have to pick one it would be polaris office. Now that we have all four from testing though i’m sure they will each have their uses in different situations.

How to root the Droid X on Android 2.2 Froyo

Brandon Orndorff
-
0

If you have a Droid X running Android 2.2 there is a method allowing you to root it with a single click. The Droid X has a previous root method but it was rather complicated and left a lot of room for error.  We actually have had many users contact us about fixing their soft bricked devices using other methods. Sil3ntKi113 over at alldroid.org has created a simple one click method to easily root the Droid X.

Root Instructions for the Droid X:

  1. Download and unzip the One Click Root program (Download Link)
  2. Put your Phone in USB Debugging mode (Settings -> Applications -> Development)
  3. Connect your phone to your PC via USB (rear connection if one is available)
  4. Open the program you downloaded above as Administrator (right click and run as admin)
  5. Click Root and follow any instructions
  6. After rooted go to the android market and install Superuser App. If its already installed then your already good to go.

Please keep in mind that if it doesn’t root try turning bluetooth on and off and if that doesn’t work try turning wifi on and off instead.  In most cases the root works fine and in fact all three devices that we attempted to root worked just fine.  If you have any questions please feel free to ask and we will do our best to get everything squared away.

1...515253...63Page 52 of 63