Software posts

Apple’s iOS, for all its benefits, is notoriously closed. Particularly annoying about this is that you have no access to the OS’s file structure, which means you cannot download music or video clips from across the web. Thankfully a new iPhone and iPad app called Meteoric looks to fix that. Though on the surface Meteoric is a download manager, it actually works by providing the user with a browser. As you browse through sites, links to media content – images, music, video, or any other format that works natively on iOS – can be downloaded simply by long-pressing the link. Upon doing so, you then get…

App watchdog group ViaForensics has been running popular Android and iPhone apps through their system to see who is encrypting sensitive data such as passwords, user names, and application data, as well as over 20 other pieces of details normally stored through apps. The results have been expected, albeit depressing. Many major apps, including FourSquare, LinkedIn, and Gmail, failed the test for one reason or another. Below is a list of those who failed. AIM Android AIM iPhone Android Mail (Exchange) Android Android Mail (Hotmail) Android Bump iPhone Foursquare Android Gmail Android Groupon…

Local branches of Apple and Google stores in Taipei City have been given two weeks to offer free 7-day trials on apps that run on their mobile platforms or face financial penalties. According to Yeh Ching-yuan, Taipei City’s director of Law and Regulation Commission, “If the two companies fail to meet the requirement by the deadline, they may be slapped with fines of up to NT$1.5 million (US$52,265).” Currently, both companies are in violation of Taiwan’s Consumer Protection Act, a consumer protection that requires companies to have return and refund policies available for all purchases that…

The question often gets asked by businesses to their marketing firms, “Do we need an app?” The rise in popularity of mobile internet use has prompted the need for more easily accessible mobile functionality for websites. The real question is, “Do we need an app or a robust mobile site?” “We went with mobile sites,” said Jarvis Allison at Albuquerque Ford. “We considered an app but we just couldn’t imagine people downloading something that they’re only going to use every two and a half years.” Many business sites have a mobile variation of them. Web companies are making entire business models around…

When Amazon rolled out their cloud player, it streamed sounds from the cloud flawlessly on Android and the web but wasn’t working at all on iOS. It wasn’t a Flash issue, nor was there any indication why it was so. It simply didn’t work. That changed today. No announcements, no updates. It simply started working. When you first visit Amazon’s Cloud Player from an iPhone or iPad, you get the standard warning that the browser is incompatible, but if you skip passed it you’ll see that it works. This would be an indication that the change was made on Apple’s end, not Amazon’s. That is not the case, and the warning…

If you’re an active Sony Playstation network user, you’re aware that it was “game over” last week as hackers made their way into the network and made off with a ton of your personal data. Sony has said that they are not certain whether sensitive credit card data was taken. According to discussions in underground hacker forums, the hackers got your numbers. Comments in these forums, which are being monitored by security researchers, reportedly claim that the hacked database included customer names, addresses, usernames, passwords and up to 2.2 million credit card numbers. The hackers hope to…

Is your “app”etite getting quenched? Apparently not, as the growing world of mobile app development is creating a tremendous need for more powerful, faster mobile devices. From phones to tablets, we are watching the world shift to quick-delivery, multi-functional apps that harness the power of touch screens and ever-present internet connections in help us accomplish tasks, have fun, and learn. This infographic by ShoutEm breaks it down for us. Click to enlarge. Brought to you by ShoutEm – Mobile App Builder…

Amazon’s data center crash has created a small level of doubt in “the cloud” and the ability to serve tremendous amounts of data to sites like Reddit, Foursquare, and Hootsuite, but that was after Forrester completed their recent analysis of the future of the cloud market. In the study, they concluded that the market will jump nearly 6-fold in less than a decade from $40.7 billion in 2011 to $241 billion in 2020. Software as a Service (SaaS) is projected to hit $21.2 billion in 2011 and expand to $92.8 billion in the next 5 years. Many social networks, quick-data ports, and SaaS providers rely or plan…

There is little doubt that the self-perception of “Mac people” and “PC people” are often completely different, just as the way they look at their counterparts differ. Still, it’s surprising to see just how much difference there is in these perceptions. This graphic by our friends at Hunch breaks down the debate that has been raging for over a decade. Are you a Mac or a PC? Or neither? The debate will go on as long as both computer types dominate the marketplace. Click to enlarge. …

The Web browser has been a standard feature included with operating systems for years. Most of them look and act in a similar fashion, with the core behaviors being relatively similar. But the devices have changed, and now the browser is changing along with it. The 360 Web Browser is leading that change. Digital Poke’s tagline is “proving crazy concepts.” Well, 360 Web Browser truly is a crazy concept, but not only is it crazy, it is also amazing as well. It takes everything you know and love about the standard Web browsing experience and modernizes it for touch-based interfaces. Comparing…