Its great to see revolutions in search and other technologies as it allows all of us to find more information easier, faster, and more relevant to what we’re looking for. It also allows for us to complete tasks faster and find more solutions to more problems.

But, technology also allows us to see interesting little facts. I must admit that while I watched the live announcement of this new Google Search feature that I instantly started testing the results. As promised, typing the letter W showed me todays weather, Searching “The American Showtimes” displayed me exactly when I could catch the movie, and typing top queries still showed Maciverse.com in the top query result.

As I continue to explore, I got curious to see what Google Instant thought of Apple, one of their leading competitors. Interestingly enough, Google Instant seems to have a positive opinion of Apple.

When searching the phrase “Apple is Awesome” Google Instant quickly displayed its top 10 results and ~27 million other results. I thought I’d test the opposite of “Apple is Awesome” and found that Google didn’t have much to say at all. Searching for “Apple Sucks” in Google Instant returned 0 results.

I’m sure that Google actually was smart enough to put an “Instant” block on search phrases or words that could potentially be questionable. I am a bit surprised though that “sucks” would fit into such phrases.

Google Instant on Safari

Google has enabled this feature on their Google.com page for signed in Google Account users. But they don’t plan on stopping there. Google Instant will make its way to mobile browsers on devices like Android phones and I imagine the Google App for iPhone. Google also plans on bringing the functionality to browsers search boxes. It will be interesting to see how Google is able to incorporate this type of functionality with Safari. It may just a Safari Extension to accomplish the task.

Have you found any interesting results with Google Instant? If so, please share in the comments.

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1 million members in a social network in just 2 days is an impressive number, but Ping only has room to grow. There are a total of 160 million iTunes members that can potentially create Ping accounts. The thing that may be holding them up is the fact that they haven’t updated to Apple’s iTunes 10. Ping is only available in iTunes 10 and users will have to download the latest version of the software to see the Ping option in the iTunes left navigation bar.

Apple explains that 3 million individuals have already downloaded the updated iTunes. One third of possible users is an impressive number. If all 160 million iTunes users eventually download iTunes 10, we can expect Ping with roughly 53 million users. If those numbers hold true, Apple could have a social network 1/3rd the size of Twitter in just a matter of months. Those are numbers to pay attention to.

Initial registration numbers are impressive, but Apple has some growing of its own to do. Its clear that Apple is new to the social networking market and many features that users would like to have such as posting home-made videos and pictures are only available to music artists registered with Apple. The network feels like its designed to help sell music and not to help users enjoy a better music experience.

Apple originally planned to make it easy for users to find friends through Facebook Connect, but the feature was quickly disabled after iTunes 10 was available for download. Its still not clear if the removal of Facebook Connect was an Apple decision or because the feature was blocked by Facebook. But the lack of another viable option (You can email your friends but nothing built to look at your address book from gmail or other mail account) to find friends makes the social network weak at its core. If you can’t connect to your friends, will you ever really use Ping?

Let us know what you think of Ping in the comments, or if you even plan to create an account?

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Apple was one of the first sites to offer HD trailers that were streamed through their Quicktime application to users. Today, Quicktime is still used, but HTML5 is also another option for viewing movie trailers served by Apple. Fiber Optic services like Verizon Fios makes HD video sites, like Apple’s Trailer site, an amazing experience.

In the early days of HD trailers, you’d start the process and come back 20 minutes later to actually watch the trailer. With increased bandwidth comes increased happiness as now watching a full trailer in HD quality from Apple.com is just a click away.

Find Movie Show Times At Apple.com

Apple added a feature recently to their trailer website that made it easier for site visitors to find when and where the movies the trailers featured were playing. This new feature makes it so you have 1 less website to go to once you identify a movie that looks interesting to you. It being late and on a Friday night, I went to check the latest movie trailers to see if anything caught my eye. Now, I can quickly and easily see when and where The American is playing around me.

I must admit that The American trailer has caught my attention, and I’m not a George Clooney fan at all. I am however an assassin movie fan and thanks to the Find Showtimes feature on the Apple Trailer webpage for the movie I can easily see that I’ve already missed the last showing of the movie for the night. I guess it will have to wait until tomorrow.

To check the showtime listings for movies like The American, click the “Find Showtimes” button on the page and enter your zip code. A map will display showing the closest theaters and the times the movie is playing in your area.

Check out The American Trailer and 4 other video clips from the movie at its trailer page on Apple’s website and see if its not too late for you to catch the movie tonight.

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The new Apple TV is a lot smaller and has a smaller purchase price of $99. In fact, you can hold the device in your hand and is probably slightly larger than the original iPod. Part of the reason that the device can be so small is that it does not include a large internal hard drive like the original Apple TV. The removal of the Hard Drive is in part because Apple believes that individuals don’t want to own their television shoes. With this philosophy they were able to talk some of the television networks to rent their shows for $.99. These rented shows can be streamed to your Apple TV and enjoyed in HD quality (720p) on your televisions.

The Apple TV comes with HDMI and USB ports and the ability to connect via Ethernet or Wifi to the internet. It includes Apple’s A4 chip as its processor and it will be interesting to see if individuals find ways to hack it as they did with the original Apple TV.

The Apple TV includes a remote to control the new interface for the device, or users can use the Remote App on their iPod Touch or iPhone to

Watch TV Shows, Movies, and More With Apple TV

In addition to renting television shows, Movies in HD quality can also be rented through Apple TV. The price for new releases is $4.99. Older movies drop in price by a dollar. I imagine that at these price points, Apple will still struggle to rent as many videos as if they compete with the price available to renting from RedBox.

Netflix subscribers will be pleased to know that the Netflix movie library is also available for streaming through the Apple TV. This time of agreement between Apple and Netflix makes me believe that Netflix won’t be streaming new releases anytime soon, or Apple wouldn’t have any movies to rent through their own device.

Music and other video can also be streamed to the Apple TV. This includes streaming your library from your Mac.

What Makes This Apple TV Special?

Overall, the changes to Apple TV are not significant. It still feels like a hobby for Apple. If they would have figured out a way to introduce their touch devices and iOS operating system to the television I’d be singing a different tune, but I believe there is still something special about this second generation Apple TV.

What makes the Apple TV special is the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad. Apple built into the Apple TV the ability to quickly connect to your iOS device and use it as a remote, or as the source of your media files. AirPlay, the technology behind the ability to connect the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad to the Apple TV will allow you to stream straight from your device to your television.

Why is this so special? The HD video that you capture with your iPhone, or the photo collection you store on your iPad can quickly be shared with a room full of friends and family in any home that has the Apple TV. It means that your digital library of movies and TV shows can go with you anywhere and then be enjoyed on your HD televisions. This is the best feature of the new Apple TV and one that will get people talking about Apple’s entire product line. Something that will surely continue to help Apple sell more computers and mobile devices.

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But, Apple also announced an update to their popular iTunes applications. iTunes 10, which is now available for download from Apple’s website, is everything we’ve grown to love from iTunes with a new integrated social media service that Apple has named Ping.

How To Setup Ping in iTunes 10

Apple seems to have seen the popularity and success of social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook and realized that they must be able to make a similar service to help connect people around music. Facebook had tried, and failed a number of times, but their weakness maybe that users weren’t connected easily to their music library and tastes. Apple has a huge advantage in this area and figures they’ll capitalize on it.

At its core, Ping appears to be a social tool that will help us find music easier. Or in other words, it will help Apple sell more music through its store. I know that the way that I identify new music is by being introduced to it from friends and family. Rarely do I find myself quickly interested in music provided over the radio, but I always give chance to music my friends and family are listening to. Ping understands this and hopes to make it easier for me to see what those closest to me are interested in.

Setting up Ping is quick and easy. To Setup Apple’s Ping through iTunes:

1. Download iTunes 10 and install it on your computer
2. After installing you should see Ping under Store on your left navigation pane in iTunes 10.
3. Select it to start the Ping Setup process. You should see a screen inviting you to Turn On Ping. Click the button to get started

4. After clicking the Turn On Ping button you’ll be asked to enter some information about yourself. Select a photo, which takes advantage of all the Photo Booth Effects on your mac. Take and select your picture to add it to your Ping profile.

5. Next, select your privacy settings and get ready to start enjoying connections to your favorite artists, friends, and family

After you’ve setup Ping you’ll be able to communicate with friends and family as well as connect with your Facebook Friends who have already setup their Ping accounts. It’ll be interesting to see how many iTunes users fill out and create Ping profiles. Apple faces the difficulty of keeping their social network alive, and to do so they’ll need active participants. Lucky for them, over 160 million people already have iTunes, so even if half the individuals create accounts they’ll be off to a great start.

Easy Music Purchases

Ping is the most significant update since the original release of iTunes in terms of enticing users to purchase more music. Genius and other recommendation services were their first efforts, but a computer is limited in its ability to convince someone to try a new song. If that same recommendation looks like its coming from a friend, then I’m a lot more likely to give it a shot. Apple understands this, and Ping is their way of keeping me interested in new music, and plenty of it.

With that in mind, you’ll see that many of the links on each Ping page is to a sample and test page where I can listen to a snippet of music and purchase it with one click. I can only imagine how many songs will sell in the coming months.

Ping Privacy Settings

It seems that Apple has been playing close attention to the privacy discussion on social network sites like Facebook. After Facebook faced significant backlash for their privacy settings, Apple is doing everything they can to avoid a similar difficult situation. Steve Jobs even stressed the simplicity of the privacy settings and configuration for the new iTunes feature. Apple learned with their iPhone Antenna issues that negative press needs to be taken seriously.

Overall, the Ping privacy settings are simple to configure and understand. I expect that Apple will do its best to keep it this way. I want to connect with friends and family, but I want to know how I’m connecting with them and what I’m sharing.

Conclusion

Overall, iTunes 10 is a solid update. The verdict is still out on Ping but Apple has done an excellent job at making it quick and easy to create an account. If its this easy to share my music interests over the platform, then I’m sure only big things will come from Apple’s network. Especially if individuals are making purchases based on what they see through the network.

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We’ve discussed what we’d like to see in Apple’s updated product line, and the features that would make the device a must have app and anxiously await to see what Apple has to offer us. For the first time in a long time, Apple is going to make this announcement easier for us to follow.

In a press release issued this evening, Apple explained that they would provide a live video stream of the September 1 announcement. Now, we won’t need to head to techcrunch, tuaw, or other tech sites to keep up as they blog the announcements as they are spoken by Steve Jobs. Apple is going to bring the event to each and every Snow Leopard, iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad owner that is interested in finding out what Apple wants to talk about.

My guess is that Apple learned their lesson during the WWDC 2010 and the difficulty it was having with its efforts to get through a technical demonstration, especially with so many journalist creating their own network to broadcast the event. Now Apple will have an official broadcast, and many of these sites that thrive off the traffic that is brought to them will have a lot less interest from potential readers.

I know that I’ll be watching the streaming event, which I imagine will be handled by Akamai streaming services and should be able to be streamed to millions of participants with no trouble, and be taking notes of every time Apple announces a feature we have been hoping for.

If you’re interested in seeing Steve Jobs and other Apple employes discuss, demonstrate, and brag about their products then be sure to check in to Apple.com at 10am PST tomorrow, September 1st 2010.

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As always with a new Apple product launch, we wait with baited breath to see what features will be included, so to pass the time we’ve come up with six things we’d like to see packed into the new iTV.

1. 1080p Support

The rumors doing the rounds suggest that, like the iPhone 4 and iPad, and indeed the iTunes Store at the moment, the iTV will not be able to output full 1080p HD video. If true, it would appear to be an almost wilfully contrary move, especially in 2010, when there are plenty of cheap media players already on the market capable of handling this resolution. It would also leave the lingering suspicion that Apple didn’t see fit to include an HDMI out on the iPad purely so as not to cannabilize sales for this upcoming product.

Related to this point, of course we’d like to see wider codec support, but know it’s never going to happen. However, access to the App Store may quickly solve this issue, as CineXPlayer has on the iPhone and iPad.

2. Movie Streaming

And we don’t mean from your local Mac or PC. No, we want the same standard of instant-on movie streaming from the Internet for iTunes rentals that Xbox Live users currently enjoy on their hardware. No waiting around for downloads – let us watch it when we want it. Of course, that might be what Apple’s giant new server farm in North Carolina is for.

3. TV Show Subscriptions

The present pricing scheme on iTunes for TV shows makes using it to catch up on entire seasons of current and varied content an activity reserved for those who like to light their cigars with $100 bills. Apple need to thrash out a more sensible system with the networks to make iTV our first port of call for on-demand television.

4. An Innovative Controller

With no touchscreen, the iTV is going to need a new method of control, and while there will undoubtedly be remote functionality released for the iPhone and iPad, here is where we’d like to see Apple’s renowned design chops really go to town. No more remotes that resemble something from Cape Canaveral please. Perhaps the Magic Trackpad is an indication of where the future of remote control could lay. Of course, an innovative controller would tie into our next point …

5. Gaming

Apple really missed a trick with the original AppleTV by not making it a gaming platform. A games console that also acted as a gateway to the iTunes ecosphere? A far easier sell to the public. Instead, Apple left the way open to Nintendo to clean up this console generation with the Wii, a product that screams “Apple!” from its control method, its marketing and even its onscreen typeface.

Of course, Apple didn’t “get” gaming then. They certainly do now, since the explosion of portable gaming on the iOS devices. With Wii and DS sales stagnating, a gaming-enabled sub-$100 device, with all the benefits the App Store provides, could see Apple hoover up the new “casual” market that the Wii unlocked. It could also blow the wind out of Sony and Microsoft’s sails right before the releases of their respective attempts to appeal to this new audience, the PS3 Move and Xbox 360 Kinect controllers.

6. FaceTime

No, it’s not essential. It probably wouldn’t even get used that often. But it would be utterly cool to be able to video-call distant friends and family and see them on the big screen. Inbuilt webcam it is then, please Apple.

So these are six of the things we would like to see included in the rumored iTV. Some of them we’re likely to get – movie streaming and gaming seem like utter no-brainers – some we probably won’t, but we can live in hope. No matter what Apple does see fit to incorporate in the iTV, you can be sure we’ll be here with the best tips and tricks for making the most out of this latest addition to the Apple family.

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It’s almost as if the iPad was designed to help people sleep better. Its larger screen makes it easier to view the clock and time that are often built into many iPad sleep applications and make it easy to see from across the room. Additionally, developers have flocked to fill the sleep app market and have already created over 92 sleep related applications. Below is a detailed look at a few applications for the iPad that can help you get a better night sleep.

Alarm Clock Pro HD

With a majority 5 star rating on the App Store, Alarm Clock Pro HD brings Alarm clocks to the iPad like no other app. The App is designed to look like most alarm clocks, but can quickly be configured to play your favorite song as the alarm when you should be waking up. The clock features include 12 or 24 hour format, vertical and horizontal views, and even setting a playlist as an alarm. Now you can wake up to the music you love played continually.

I personally love the idea of waking up to something soft, and relaxing until a hard rock song comes up in my playlist queue to let me know its really time to get up and moving. The playlist isn’t the only feature, the clock includes like most custom alarms, the ability to snooze so you can quickly jump back into sleep.

Alarm Clock Pro HD is an amazing app that helps you end a perfect night sleep. What good is your rest, if you don’t get up in time to enjoy the day.

White Noise Pro

Sometimes we need something to help us tune out the world and relax our minds. There is nothing better to do that than White Noise Pro. With this iPad application, users can enjoy a perfect collection of ambient sound and bring their inner sole to a relaxation state perfect for a nights rest. In addition to the 40 ambient sounds included with the app is the ability to mix your own. Create the perfect collection of sounds to put you in the middle of your own relaxation environment.

White Noise is designed to help you relax, and relaxation will help you sleep soundly.

Bedtime Stories Collection HD

What would a good night sleep be without a bedtime story? Bedtimes Stories Collection HD hopes to help children and people of all ages enter a number of different fantasy worlds before resting their heads on a pillow. Note, that the app does require in-app purchases for many of the books, but organizing and keeping them all in one location for quick access and enjoyment is just what Bedtime Stories Collection HD was designed for.

Reduce your library, clutter in your rooms, and move your books and bedtime stories to your iPad.

Lucid Dreaming

If you enjoyed the movie Inception, then this is the app for you. Lucid Dreaming is an app that promises to help you take control of your dreams. The app is essentially an eBook and audio recording that uses Hypnosis to help you control your dreams. Inception helped us imagine the possibilities of a dream we could control, and this App believes it can guide us through the process of doing it ourselves.

While you may dream up crazy adventures with your new found Lucid Dreaming skills, I suggest you focus on relaxing dreams that will help you awake refreshed and ready for the day.

Conclusion

Apple’s iPad helps users solve a lot of problems, and one of them includes sleeping. Check out these, or the other 90+ available apps in the app store and help yourself get a good night rest. You’ll be amazed at how much more productive you’ll be after you solve your sleep problems and rest peacfully.

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Apple’s Safari Extensions Gallery isn’t bursting at the seams just yet, but it does already feature a selection of extensions that we couldn’t surf without, and we’ve highlighted six of our top picks below.

1. AdBlock

Finally bringing the ability to block those annoying and invasive banner ads that are apparently designed to disrupt your browsing enjoyment, AdBlock should be the first Safari extension on everyones list. Firefox and Chrome users have enjoyed this functionality for what seems like aeons, and now thankfully Safari surfers can join the ad-free party as well.

2. GMail Counter

This particular extension is a great way to keep on top of your GMail Inbox without either having a separate tab open or Mail idling on your desktop while you browse. Not only does GMail Counter feature a numbered notation of unread emails directly in your Safari browser bar, it also provides one-click access to your Inbox and new mail composition.

3. Ostrich

There are several Twitter-themed Safari extensions available already, but our favorite is undoubtedly Ostrich. Integrating perfectly with your browser, Ostrich enables you to access Twitter functionality no matter what webpage you’re reading, allowing for rapid tweeting and easy sharing of any great links you come across when surfing.

4. KeySearch

KeySearch massively expands the search functionality of Safari, without having to faff around with drop-down menus and search settings. Simply bring up the KeySearch toolbar, and preface your search term with the name of the engine you want to use. The extension come pre-equipped with all the major search engines and online retailers, and you can add your own favorites as well.

5. Snapper

Invaluable when you’re after quick-fire screenshots, Snapper allows one-click images to be taken of whatever webpage you are currently viewing and then dragged to your desktop or image-editing application of choice. An unassuming but priceless little tool.

6. WOT

The Internet remains polluted by scam and phishing sites, out to attract and compromise the unwary or uninformed. Safari’s built-in security features do a pretty good job at protecting surfers against the worst offenders, but it never hurts to have more information at your fingertips. Web Of Trust (WOT) is a community-based rating system for websites, and its Safari extension uses a traffic light icon next to search results to let you know whether a site is viewed as trusted or not, helping you evade some of the Internet’s murkier locations.

If the experience of other browsers has taught us anything, we can expect the Safari Extension Gallery to soon be home to a multitude of weird and wonderful applications for enhancing your Internet enjoyment. We’ll continue to keep you informed of the best extensions that developers concoct over the coming months.

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Watch College Football on ESPN3

ESPN 3, ESPN’s newly branded website that was formerly known as ESPN360.com, will broadcast 20 NCAA Division 1 college football games this year. Mac owners will be able to few these games by navigating their Safari or other web browser to ESPN3.com and clicking through to the game in progress. A complete schedule of games that will be broadcasted on ESPN3.com this year is already available online.

Virginia Tech fans will be finding themselves glued to their computers more than other college fans, as the Hokies will be broadcast 3 times on the ESPN online network. If VA Tech can win throughout the season and keep their high ranking, ESPN3.com will receive a considerable amount of use as more and more fans will be interested in the games being broadcasted on the network.

Most of the games scheduled this year will feature larger schools from BCS conferences playing smaller schools. It will be interesting to see if the trend to online broadcasts continue over the next few years. If so, we can expect to see more and more important games brought to our Mac screens.

Connect Your Mac To your TV

If you’re wondering how to watch these online games with friends and family on your new HD big screen television, then you’re in luck. Apple computers easily connect to most HDTVs through either VGA or HDMI adapters that connect to the video out ports on your Macbook or latest iMacs. Mac Mini’s even include a built in HDMI port to allow you to easily use your HDTV as a monitor and broadcast the games streamed to you over ESPN3.com and the internet.

If you don’t have a Mac MIni, you’ll want to be sure to have an HDMI adapter for your Mac so you can easily connect it to your HDTV. After connecting the adapter to your Mac, you’ll be able to use an HDMI cable to connect your computer to your HD television. Then, open up ESPN3.com, select your game and enjoy the event on your television.

Overall, we’re excited about watching college football on our Macs. I’m crossing my fingers that Apple’s September 1st announcement makes this process even easier.

What are you looking forward to watching on your Mac this fall?

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