Simple Drops

Legal Issues, Flickr, and What You NEED to Know

Almost all bloggers depend on Flickr for their pictures. It’s only a few clicks to find the picture we want, but in reality it’s not that simple. There are some legal issues that all of us need to be aware of.
8 Types of Blog Posts That Guarantee Traffic
3 Easy Ways to Get More Traffic to Your Blog

links for 2008-08-29

Karim Baz — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 00:32:22 +0000

Android Developer Challenge winners announced

Karim Baz — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 05:46:26 +0000

Google has wrapped up judging on its very first Android Developer Challenge, and some twenty dev shops (or in some cases, individual developers) are finding themselves considerably richer as a result. Of the fifty apps to make it through to the final round, ten have been awarded $275,000 each and another ten have made off with a cool hundred grand — good coin for some really good ideas. As you might expect of anything being backed by Google and the Android platform, a good number of the finalists made location-based services an integral theme; take grand prize winner Locale, for example, which automatically switches device settings based on your current location (if that’s not a “why didn’t we think of that?” kind of product, we don’t know what is). The more we scan it, the more we realize that the list of winners reads like a who’s-who catalog of apps we know we want installed on our Dreams out of the gate — and more importantly, it looks like Google has a great way here to encourage best-of-breed Android development over the long run.

[From Android Developer Challenge winners announced]

NextWorth Swaps Your Old iPhone With Someone In Need, Gives You Cash For a Shiny New 3G [Dealzmodo]

Karim Baz — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 05:45:31 +0000

Original EDGE iPhones are still going for pretty serious dough on eBay like they were back in June, but if the market is anything like it was around the time of the first launch, you’re likely to go through tons of fraudulent winners before you finally get connected with someone who’ll actually pay. Saving you that hassle, but at a significant premium, is NextWorth, a service that will take your Jesus Phone (now Peter Phone? Hmm) and send you a cash voucher or Circuit City gift card for your trade-in, before probably selling it on eBay themselves. But is it worth it?

A quick search of recently completed auctions shows 8GB Peter Phones still fetching anything from $250 to a crazy-high $575. 16GB models are grabbing even more, seeing a range of the same $250 to $700+ (for new in-box, unlocked phones). Over at NextWorth (which will also take iPods), a 16GB with all the accessories and with “light wear” (as opposed to the “normal wear” which is the next highest option) will net you an even $300, just enough for a 16GB 3G. My 8GB, which is soundly in the “normal wear” category after a few drops and a broken headset, will only fetch me $180, which has me thinking eBay is the answer. NextWorth does not pay a premium for unlocked phones as many will on eBay, and if you read Giz, you should be able to unlock your phone and load it with whichever firmware seems most valuable before putting it up for auction, no sweat.

Anybody sold their iPhone EDGE on eBay recently? How’s the market out there? Let me know. [NextWorth via Gadget Lab]

[From NextWorth Swaps Your Old iPhone With Someone In Need, Gives You Cash For a Shiny New 3G [Dealzmodo]]

The PlayStation 3 in a Handy Model Comparison Chart [Playstation 3]

Karim Baz — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 05:44:25 +0000

While to the naked eye most PS3s look pretty much alike, Sony will soon have released six separate SKUs for the console. Mostly the results of cost cutting, this chart by Joystiq can guide the more resourceful bargain hunter to find the precise PS3 of their choice. Everything from the amount of USB slots to PS2 backwards compatibility is listed. And even if it burns through a few more trees to operate with its larger 90nm processor, we’re still pegging the original 60GB model as the best PS3 to date. [joystiq]

[From The PlayStation 3 in a Handy Model Comparison Chart [Playstation 3]]

Adobe strategy: Mobile app meets Photoshop Elements, Express updates

Karim Baz — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 05:35:05 +0000

Adobe Systems on Monday let loose its plan to reinvent its image-editing software: the convergence of desktop, Webware, and mobile photo applications.

In late September, Adobe will update both Adobe’s Photoshop Elements and Premiere Elements with version 7, rebrand Photoshop Express as Photoshop.com, and debut a mobile Photoshop (of sorts) for Windows Mobile.

Syncing with the new Photoshop.com

Whereas Photoshop Express (review) began life as an experimental, Web-based offshoot of the Photoshop brand, Adobe’s new strategy to automatically sync photos from desktop to Web to phone and back again now gives Photoshop Express a starring role on the Photoshop playbill, albeit using a different alias. Don’t let that fool you–although the product will now be Photoshop.com, it will retain its editing features and the ability to post photos to Facebook, Flickr, Photobucket, and Picasa. The bigger difference is that the new Photoshop.com will sync with the two Photoshop Elements applications and the new mobile software.

A sneak peek at Adobe Premiere Elements 7……..

Xbox 360 Fall Dashboard Update Comes in November [Xbox 360]

Karim Baz — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 05:33:58 +0000

Microsoft’s just gone on the record with RPG-TV and said the Fall Xbox 360 Dashboard Update will be hitting in November, which technically is still a part of Fall. Previous updates have also been released in late November (as close to Winter as you could push it while still being Fall), but all those new features coming this time might be cause for delay, even though they skipped the Spring update for this reason. Seriously Microsoft, will we have to wait another three months to get the ability to make a little avatar that looks like ourselves? You’re forcing us to turn on our Wiis? [RPG TV via Kotaku]

iPhone Game Pads Are Coming To Enhance Gameplay Tenfold [Gaming]

Karim Baz — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 05:33:01 +0000

TouchArcade has found evidence of two upcoming iPhone control pads that add, at the very least, an SNES amount of buttons to the iPhone. iControl pad is the first, and has four face buttons, a D pad, Start/Select and an LED to show when it’s in use. It may be ugly now, but it’s just a prototype.

Another game pad design (below) was received anonymously and looks like a patent application. It has an analog stick instead of a D pad, and places the Start/Select buttons over on the left. Both seem incredibly useful for games that require precise control—something the tilt sensor is not good for. The upside is that these control pads can serve as a slightly large protective case as well. I, for one, can’t wait to actually play NES and SNES games the way they were supposed to be played. [Touch Arcade - Thanks Arn!]

links for 2008-08-27

Karim Baz — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 01:01:56 +0000

Sony’s PlayStation 3 wireless keypad now available for pre-order

Karim Baz — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 20:06:52 +0000

Hey, remember that totally bodacious PlayStation 3 wireless keypad we told you about last week? Well if you do — and you should — you’ll be pleased to know that you can now pre-order the $49.99 accessory at Amazon. Sure, you’ll still have to wait till November 30th to get your hands and fingertips on the thing, but at least you can sleep at night, safe in the knowledge that it has your name on it.

Xbox 360 Dashboard Update to arrive in November?

Karim Baz — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 20:05:05 +0000

The next Xbox 360 Dashboard update promises to be a big one, with a totally revised menu system, Netflix support, and Wii-like avatars, but so far Microsoft’s kept mum on when it’s coming — but we’d circle November on your calendars for now, since that’s what MS UK apparently told the crew at RPG-TV. It’s still not official official, but at least now you have something to look forward to in November besides awkwardly hanging out with people from high school over Thanksgiving.

[From Xbox 360 Dashboard Update to arrive in November?]

PS3 backup hack kinda clarified, still kinda sketchy

Karim Baz — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 20:02:21 +0000

There was (and still is) plenty of buzz surrounding StreetskaterFU’s recent hack that enabled Blu-ray games to be played back from the PlayStation 3’s internal hard drive, and now it seems like details are beginning to seep out. Fellow hacker ATOC has released an admittedly sketchy step-by-step guide for getting a number of backups to boot from the PS3, though it has only been thoroughly tested on Warhawk and Call of Duty 3. Hit up the links below for instructions, but think long and hard before you make any irreversible decisions and come dangerously close to destroying the universe.

[From PS3 backup hack kinda clarified, still kinda sketchy]

AT&T adds two international data plans for iPhone, still pricey

Karim Baz — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 20:01:12 +0000

Following new plans geared to the decidedly less fruity phones in AT&T’s lineup earlier this month, the carrier has announced a pair of international data packages geared specifically toward the iPhone and iPhone 3G. The bad news is that they still cost more than the average subscriber’s entire monthly bill; the good news, though, is that they should still manage to save globetrotters a buck or two (or a thousand) who insist on keeping data roaming enabled while out in the field. 100MB of global data is going to set you back $119.99 on top of your regular package, while 200MB runs $199.99 — certainly not enough to go crazy in the App Store, but probably enough of a meager allowance to take care of email and stay on the grid. The new plans are available starting tomorrow.

[From AT&T adds two international data plans for iPhone, still pricey]

links for 2008-08-25

Karim Baz — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 01:02:06 +0000

Debunking The Myths of Multitasking [Exclusive Lifehacker Interview]

Karim Baz — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 14:51:12 +0000

In a fast-paced business culture of “get everything done yesterday,” it’s easy to admire and reward those busybusy people who always seem to be juggling 14 things at once. But business coach Dave Crenshaw argues that the most common kind of multitasking doesn’t boost productivity—it slows you down. In his new book, The Myth of Multitasking: How “Doing It All” Gets Nothing Done, Crenshaw explains the difference between “background tasking”—like watching TV while exercising—and “switchtasking,” juggling two tasks by refocusing your attention back and forth between them, and losing time and progress in the switch. Crenshaw’s on a mission to reduce distractions, interruptions, and fire-fighting at work, and create environments that let employees see through tasks with their full attention before moving onto the next thing. Here’s what Crenshaw had to say…

….Finally, Crenshaw offers a few tips for reducing switchtasking and making better use of your time.

Take control over technology—Your cell phone ringer (even on vibrate)
doesn’t need to be on all the time. You can turn off email notification on your computer as well.
Become master over the nagging beeps and buzzes by creating some silence.

Schedule what you can schedule—Set regular times in the day and week to check your voicemail and email. Let others
know that you will be using that schedule so they know when to expect a reply.

Focus on the person—When you switchtask when dealing with a computer, you simply lose efficiency. But if you
switchtask on a human being, you additionally damage a relationship. Be present, listen carefully, and make sure
everything has been taken care of before moving on.

Is your office a hotbed of switchtasking or do you have the time and space to focus on what you need to get done without an interruption in the next 10 minutes? Are you constantly scanning your inbox or handheld for new messages when you should be writing that report or crunching those numbers? Tell us what you think about multitasking in today’s office in the comments.

Dial A Human Cuts Through Automated Phone Prompts [Phones]

Karim Baz — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 14:46:15 +0000

When you’ve just about had it with an in correct bill, a faulty product, or anything else you have to call a 1-800 number for, waiting for the automated operator to finish listing all the buttons you can push can feel like rubbing salt in the wound. Dial a Human, a web directory of shortcuts and end-runs around unnecessary prompts, eases the pain….

HTC Dream’s Dimensions Leaked by FCC, Misses Out All-Important Thickness [Android]

Karim Baz — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 14:44:19 +0000

HTC’s Dream phone, with Android goodness, hit the FCC last week, and details have been popping up elsewhere too: But a new pic over at FCC has given us a concrete bit of data at last… the Dream’s size. It’s a svelte 55mm, or 2.17-inches wide, and 115mm or 4.53-inches long. That’s a jot shorter than the iPhone 3G’s length (though it’s 0.28-inches narrower,) and only slightly bigger than the HTC Touch Diamond at 4.02 x 2.01 inches. Do you spot what’s missing? The all-important depth of the phone—it’s not shown on the FCC imagery. The slide-out QWERTY keypad will play a part in that, but we don’t know as yet exactly how slim or pocket-stretching it’s going to be. [FCC]

Karim Baz — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 08:33:18 +0000

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New Kindle rumor revived, this time with a collegiate twist

Karim Baz — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 06:48:31 +0000

Just last month we heard that Amazon could be cooking up a new pair of Kindles for the future, and now we’re seeing another report that adds a bit of legitimacy to the claim. According to McAdams Wright Ragen analyst Tim Bueneman, “there are already several new, improved versions of the Kindle in the works,” and while an MP3 version (saywha?) isn’t in the cards, one with an “improved interface” is. Furthermore, Amazon could be aiming at least one of the new Kindle(s) at college students, though no details were given on what exactly that meant. Wait, do university attendees even read anymore?

links for 2008-08-24

Karim Baz — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 01:00:42 +0000

Nine Things You Should Never Pay Full Price For [Saving Money]

Karim Baz — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 22:17:03 +0000

Personal finance writer Mary Hunt believes there are some things you should simply never pay full price for. Among them? Pets, cars, software and games.

Buy a purebred puppy from a breeder in California and you will spend at least $700, plus vet bills. Adopt a previously owned puppy from the animal shelter for about $175 including spay/neuter, vaccinations and fees. Savings? Oh, about 78 percent

I’ve had shelter and pure bred pets over the years and loved all of them equally. Hunt is also spot-on regarding video games and software.

Games for consoles like the Xbox 360 and Sony PlayStation can often be purchased used for half price. Ditto for popular software. Sure you will have to wait awhile after its release, but by then you will know for sure which game or program is a winner, and which are considered losers.

I’m about seven years behind the current cycle of consoles. While my friends look at me strangely when I talk about a game I just discovered that came out in 2001, I don’t enjoy the games any less than I would have then and I pay a fraction of the original retail cost now. How do you avoid paying full price for things? Share you money saving tips in the comments below. Photo by Jason Edward.

Sources: Xbox 360 price cut week of Sept. 7; 60GB $299, Elite $399, Arcade $199

Karim Baz — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 17:11:42 +0000

Click to embiggen

It appears that two of the Xbox 360 SKUs will receive a $50 price drop by the week of Sept. 7, making the 60GB model $299 and the Elite $399 — ~~we’ve yet to hear any change on the $279 Arcade~~ meanwhile, the Arcade will drop $80 to $199. A few of our retail contacts, some of whom have given us good intel in the past and who all work for separate corporations, have sent us identical information regarding a price drop. Evidence of the Elite and Arcade price cut can be found in the gallery below.

“Xbox 360 Live 12 Month Gold Card plus 1 Month Bonus” (Microsoft Software)

Blizzard debuts ‘Wrath of the Lich King’ intro

Karim Baz — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 17:10:47 +0000

Once you finally, finally install the Wrath of the Lich King onto your personal copy of World of Warcraft, what’s the first thing you’ll bear witness to (besides empty Mountain Dew cans and an empty, empty apartment)? Why, the above video, of course. For your viewing pleasure we present the opening cinematic from Blizzard’s upcoming opus.

Read More — [From Blizzard debuts ‘Wrath of the Lich King’ intro]

PSP Fanboy outlines top 20 games under $20

Karim Baz — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 17:08:18 +0000

Now that we’ve got a new PSP-3000 model on the horizon (October 14, to be exact), it’s probably a good time to look back at some of the best, affordable titles for the handheld. Our friends at PSP Fanboy have done just that, looking at the top 20 titles that’ll cost you less than an Andrew Jackson to buy. Our favorite picks are Patapon and the Final Fantasy Tactics remake, but definitely check out the other 18 while you’re at it.

Use PS3 Fanboy’s printable 25% GameStop coupon to make this list even cheaper. Happy shopping!

Read More – [From PSP Fanboy outlines top 20 games under $20]

Kojima: Metal Gear Acid for PSN ‘possible’

Karim Baz — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 17:07:23 +0000

Filed under: Sony PSP, Action, Strategy

As our stack of thick, leather bound binders filled from end to end with valuable Pokémon cards will attest, we’re suckers for collectible card games. You could probably also tell from our proclivity to creep around the local Wal-Mart with a black bandana crudely wrapped around our greasy mullets that we’re also diehard fans of stealth action. As such, it would seem logical to assume we’re big supporters of the PSP-exclusive Metal Gear Acid titles — unfortunately, one look at our barren ludological library will show that we possess a powerful, unnatural fear of video game packaging.

Read More [From Kojima: Metal Gear Acid for PSN ‘possible’]

Amazon Confirms Student Version Of Kindle

Karim Baz — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 14:46:15 +0000

Amazon confirmed our speculation that they are planning to target colleges and universities with a new version of the Kindle, reports the Seattle PI. Textbooks are a $5.5 billion annual market, and most publishers now offer electronic versions of their textbooks. McGraw-Hill Education, for example, publishes 95% of their books electronically as well as in print. But there is no compelling device to read them on. The new Kindle will likely be a large screen version of the original, which is much better suited for textbooks.

Amazon also downplayed our estimates that 240,000 Kindles have been shipped since launching last November. Citi analyst Mark Mahaney later increased his sales estimates as well.

Amazon officials gave McAdams Wright Ragen analysts the impression that high-end estimates on Kindle sales reported by TechCrunch and a Citigroup analyst are not reasonable. (See a previous blog post on the topic here and here.)

Amazon managers “told us that the Kindle is definitely selling very well, but they also said the analysts and reporters giving out these extremely high estimates ‘did not run them by company,’” Bueneman wrote

[From Amazon Confirms Student Version Of Kindle]

Five Best Note-Taking Tools [Hive Five]

Karim Baz — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 13:50:57 +0000

Despite the wealth of information a Google search box puts at our fingertips, good old-fashioned note-taking is still one of the best ways to build a personal knowledge database. The only sensible solution used to be pen and paper, but computers have introduced a handful of excellent alternatives for capturing notes in computer-friendly digital form. On Tuesday you shared your favorite note-taking tools, and today we’re back with the five most popular answers. Keep reading for a look at the five best note-taking tools, then cast a ballot for the note-taking tool you prefer…..

[From Five Best Note-Taking Tools [Hive Five]]

Google Calendar Adds CalDAV Support, Enabling iCal Sync [Google Calendar]

Karim Baz — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 13:47:01 +0000

Google Calendar has added support for the CalDAV standard, opening up a realm of syncing possibilities for business users and webapps. Right now it’s somewhat limited, with a few known issues, but the big news is that it’s now possible to sync your iCal and Google Calendars without any third-party software. As the Google Operating System notes, however, it’s not an entirely simple process to hook the two up, so a free option like recently-made-free CalGoo might still be the best option for anyone who doesn’t enjoy fiddling. Hit the link below for details on GCal’s CalDAV options.

[From Google Calendar Adds CalDAV Support, Enabling iCal Sync [Google Calendar]]

Poll Everywhere Gathers Votes by SMS [Mobile Apps]

Karim Baz — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 13:44:53 +0000

Need to know how many folks coming to your big bash prefer beer, wine, or soda? Poll Everywhere offers a free polling service that lets you send up to 30 SMS messages with simple reply instructions to gather opinions. You can also send a link to your polling page by email, Twitter, or whatever service you’d like, but the convenience of having to text less than 10 characters back likely boosts your return rate. Poll Everywhere’s free plan doesn’t let you see who exactly voted for what, but it could come in handy when you need a small group’s opinion.

[From Poll Everywhere Gathers Votes by SMS [Mobile Apps]]

Access Mac drives from Windows

Karim Baz — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 13:44:01 +0000

Reading and writing to a Mac formatted drive from Windows couldn’t be any easier than selecting the samba file sharing option in Leopard. This works great if you have 2 physical computers but what if you only have a Mac running Boot Camp? Since Leopard isn’t running getting to that document on the Mac partition from Windows would be difficult unless you installed MacDrive.

Once installed, Windows Explorer is able to mount the Mac drives right along side your standard Windows formatted drives. You are free to access them like any other drive.

If you’re worried that you may accidentally delete files off your Mac partition just tick the option to mount the drives in “read only” mode, thus preventing any accidents. MacDrive’s options can be access by double clicking it’s icon in the system tray. But once you have tailored it to your work flow you’ll rarely have a need to access the options.

[From Access Mac drives from Windows]