The world as frankps sees it!
Operating Systems
I can best be described as an OS junky!
HaxSync – Android Facebook Sync
1 week ago
People in Android
With Android 4.0 Google is taking a step in the right direction updating the contact manager into the new and improved “People” app. The biggest change is a set of APIs that integrates Android with social networks. This is important as you can then let your contacts maintain their own contact information, and you will then always have updated information available on your phone.
The second change is the most visuale one, as the user interface has also been completely revamped and viewing contacts has now become a much more visual experience. The People app will pull high resolution images of all your contacts straight from their Google+ account and display them in the contact list and in the in-call background. It seems that there is now yet another incentive to move your social circle over to Google+.
According to the API Overview of ICS when a new photo is pushed to a contact, “the system processes it into both a 96×96 thumbnail (as it has previously) and a 256×256 “display photo” that’s stored in a new file-based photo store”. Your contacts information is now also available to you no matter which app you are in. So, if you are in Gmail, viewing an email from your contact, you can click on their image to reply to the contact through any available channel, including through SMS, social networks and IM.
The first time I saw the new app demoed I went WOW, but when I got the Samsung Galaxy Nexus phone in my hands I went BAH! It is great to get your contacts to update information about themselves through their social profiles. But, why did Google have to limit the pull of high resolution images from Google+. Why doesn’t Google Contacts (the address book for Gmail) support high resolution images? Do you have friends actively using Google+? I don’t… So untill yesterday I had blurry pictures covering half of the screen when I ever was using People on my phone. A 96x96px thumbnail for incoming calls wasn’t pretty on incoming calls, and reminded me more of a C64 game.
A third improvement in People is that you can see your contact’s last updates on social networks, both Google+ and Twitter are supported out of the box. So what about Facebook, Google’s biggest competitor? Luckily, Google has made a plugin architecture available and there is already a third party solution available for you!
HaxSync – The Missing Facebook Integration
I have found an application that more or less solve my problem. HaxSync allows you to sync your Facebook friends with your Android 4.0 device. The sync is complete, with both status-updates and high resolution contact images in the People App! I bought the app within seconds and most of my contacts are now shown with beautiful high resolution images. But Google should integrate their services better ways…
How to configure HaxSync
- Install the official Facebook App.
- Go to System Settings → Accounts & Sync (Android Settings, not Facebook App Settings).
- Click “Add Account” → HaxSync.
- Click “Authorize HaxSync”.
- Confirm Authorization
- Wait for HaxSync to finish syncing.
- You should now see your Facebook contacts in the Android People app.
Airtight – A Killer App for Google TV
1 month ago
You might have heard the phrase If you can’t beat them, join them! That was exatly my first thought when I heard of Airtight. Airtight is an AirPlay receiver for Google TV, that lets you stream video from your Apple devices. I have tested the client with my Logitech Revue, iPhone, iPad and MacBook Air, and it is a fantastic app! To run Airtight you need a Google TV boxes running at least Android 3.0.
This first version of Airtight can only stream photos and videos, and do full mirroring of an iOS device. Streaming music is currently being “looked into” by the developers. And of course, anything protected by DRM is in this stage of development unsupported. Apple might look the other way, but AirPlay’s still a proprietary technology and this isn’t something Apple’s given its blessing to. If you feel like giving the app a try — work in progress, bugs and all — it’s available to download now for $0.99.
AirMusic and XBOX360
02 months ago
The best way to stream media from an iOS device, is of course with Apple’s AirPlay technology. But what if you have a XBOX360 in the house? I have already written about how you can connect your Mac to the XBOX with Connect360.
It is also possible to stream music from an iOS unit to the XBOX. The technology used is then DLNA. This is my first play with DLNA, so before I bought a DLNA app for my iPhone, I read a little bit about the technology.
You should know this about DLNA: Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) is a collaboration of the world’s leading consumer electronics, PC and mobile companies, and together they have created an industry standard connecting consumer electronics together. All you need to get started is a network – wired or wireless. The DLNA Certified devices will then connect, discover and communicate with each other over your network. The alliance aim to make it easier for consumers to use, share and enjoy their digital photos, music and videos. Chances are big that you already have one or two DLNA devices in your livingroom. Do you have a XBOX360 or a Playstation 3? What about your modern flat panel TV? Some smartphones also have DLNA support. If you have Windows 7 with Windows Media Player and Media Center (through the Windows Media Connect technology) is supporting DLNA.
The iOS devices do not come with built in DLNA support, but there are third party solutions available. I’ve tested AirMusic. It’s a great application for streaming music over Wi-Fi to your PS3, Xbox 360, or PC, and allows you to wirelessly listen to your tunes through your TV without using an AppleTV. As all DLNA devices, it is incredibly easy to set up – just ensure all of your devices are on the same Wi-Fi network, start AirMusic, and turn its functionality on. This will turn your iOS device in to a Mobile Digital Media Server (M-DMS) and let your game console, TV or PC act like a Digital Media Player (DMP):
After DLNA is turned on, on your iOS device, you can navigate to your music library on your console, TV or PC and your tunes will be there – it couldn’t be easier.
Although I use an AppleTV in our living room, I downloaded this application to try it with my XBOX360. The only downside I can find is that AirMusic won’t play older iTunes purchases protected with DRM. If you’re looking for a way to share your iOS library with your Xbox, PS3, or PC, I recommend you to purchase AirMusic!
HTC Mozart and HD7 get tethering
02 months ago
The possibility of using your Windows Phone as a mobile hotspot (accesspoint) was originally a function reserved for new Mango units. This week HTC changed that when releasing an update for HTC HD7 og Mozart. I have the Mozart model and was soon to update my phone. The update is only through Zune on your PC.
With internet sharing (tethering) you can share your internet connection with up to 5 guest units, and the sharing is automatically getting disabled after a few minutes of inactivity so that you can save the battery life on your phone.
Remember to not use internet sharing when abroad (so called roaming). It can fast get very expensive!
internet sharing is found under Settings on your phone. The functionality is set up with a predefined password that I recommend you to change under setup. You can also change the broadcast name if you want to, but I recommend you to keep WPA2 as the security type for the wireless connection.
Official Twitter client finally Windows Phone 7 Mango ready
02 months ago
One of the applications that I have been missing when upgrading to Mango and starting to use my primary Live account (the one registered with an address in Norway). The Twitter client, along with Flickr and GoWalla, was not available in the Norwegian Marketplace. As of yesterday, Twitter is updated to support Mango and now available worldwide in Marketplace.
Other then fast-app switching, I have not find any new features (no Live Tile or push notifications). The version number has only gone from 1.13944.31667 to version 1.14329.14900.