bioneural.net

Access Bluetooth devices in Windows on Mac

Bruce — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 18:57:53 +0000

Users of Parallels Desktop for Mac find a number of advantages apply to booting Windows in a virtualized environment that is integrated with OS X. The shared access to hard drives, keyboards, networking, displays etc. does not unfortunately extend to your Mac's built-in Bluetooth. When I reviewed a Bluetooth-based GPS data logger recently I wanted to compare the Mac tools to their Windows equivalents. A small investment in a Bluetooth USB adapter was all that was required to make this possible. You could, of course, use Apple's Boot Camp and start your Mac up in Windows which—with Apple-supplied Bluetooth drivers for XP—makes your built-in hardware available. I would have done this, but my Boot Camp partition is unavailable as a boot drive in FireWire Target Disk Mode (it's a long story). After a bit of searching I discovered a solution hidden away in the Parallels Forum: Turn off built-in Bluetooth on the Mac; Start Parallels and insert the CD to install drivers for a Bluetooth USB adapter you purchased earlier (mine cost £12); Plug in the adapter when prompted, and wait for it to be recognized; When the installation is complete, turn on your external Bluetooth device and pair it; After pairing you should be able to access any Bluetooth services supported by the device. If you forget to turn off built-in Bluetooth on the Mac you'll encounter this message as OS X tries to appropriate the adapter:

Restore itinerary planning to TomTom ONE v6

Bruce — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 09:02:46 +0000

From bioneural.net:

Hot on the heels of the "latest" map debacle, I've another bone to pick with TomTom. My TomTom ONE 3rd Edition (v6) came with customizable menus which permitted use of the itinerary planning functions. Did you know RouteBuddy could upload, download, modify, and re-upload TomTom Itineraries (routes)? Great—except that TomTom HOME didn't tell me it would remove the itinerary code when "updating" the ONE's software. I was, however, able to roll back from NavCore 8.010 to 7.166 and regain that lost itinerary planning functionality. Lost in translation If you had read this you'll know that TomTom aren't too proficient at communicating ("a free download" to TomTom means one time only, whereas "AVG is a free download" means what we all think it means). I guess that's why "update" means "removal of pre-existing functions" in TomTomese. Consider the following sequence: Sequence Event One TomTom's NavCore 7.x software for the ONE (v6) includes itinerary planning code, but no menu option Two A procedure for activating itineraries using SDK custom menus is documented by users Three TomTom "update" NavCore to 8.x on the ONE v6, covertly the removing itinerary planning code Four TomTom release a new ONE with the same version of 8.x software, which does include itinerary planning You may draw your own conclusions as to their motivation and level of commitment to existing customers. Not all change is good With a custom menu the "old" NavCore software afforded easy access to point-of-interest (POI) management and Itinerary planning: Main menus using NavCore 7.166 software After "updating" to NavCore 8.010 such customization no longer works, and the ONE's Main Menu ...

Geotagging with the Mac-friendly GlobalSat BT-335

Bruce — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 20:37:06 +0000

From bioneural.net:

GlobalSat's BT-335 functions as both a Bluetooth-equiped GPS receiver (compatible with most NMEA-compliant mapping/ navigation software on Bluetooth SPP-compliant PDAs, smartphones, and computers) and as a stand-alone data logger. It can perform both functions simultaneously, saving coordinates, time stamps, altitude and even velocity to a log which can be wirelessly downloaded for use in geotagging photos or in other location-related applications. This review compares the BT-335 to my previously purchased and evaluated Holux M-241, focussing on Mac compatibility and geotagging utility. Disclosure: A sample BT-335 unit was provided by USGlobalSat, Inc. for the purposes of this review. Those unfamiliar with the basic concepts of geotagging may wish to read this introduction first. What's in the box? BT-335 packaging and accessories BT-335 unit; CD-ROM (with PDF manual, Windows-only software); Set-up/ quick start card; 12V DC car charger; US-style 110/ 240V AC wall charger; US-to-Euro wall adapter. The BT-335 ($US120) is a compact 75g matchbox-style unit in silver plastic that includes anti-slip strips for horizontal placement (e.g. on a dashboard). Unlike the cylindrical M-241 (which has to be kept vertical) the BT-335 doesn't come with a lanyard, although use of one was obviously a consideration—the unit has a lanyard attachment. I do find myself using the lanyard with the M-241 around my neck, mainly so I can keep a close check on battery status. One of the LEDs on the BT-335 lights red when the battery needs charging, but with a claimed 25 hour capacity the unit could easily be turned on and "forgotten" in a pocket (e.g. jacket, camera bag). As well ...

Silent and grey iTunes movie rentals

Bruce — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 13:47:51 +0000

From bioneural.net:

Well behind the American iTunes Store, earlier this month (June 2008) Apple gave iTunes Store customers in the UK the chance to rent (or purchase) movie downloads. Initially I wasn't sure I'd want to watch movies at my computer, even though I have a good screen and sound system. But I had to try it. With a 17Mbps downstream broadband connection getting the movie onto the computer posed no problem (a typical 1GB movie takes a few minutes). Trouble is all I see is a grey box with no audio. Now that I can't do it, of course I'm more inclined to want to. My iTunes Store account allows me to playback my DRM-protected iTunes music, a free TV episode, and a purchased short film with no problems. I'm running the latest version of OS X (10.5.3) with the latest version of iTunes (7.6.2) and QuickTime (7.5). I've now tried renting two films, hearing nothing and seeing only this during desktop playback: Hmmm.. if I wanted to look at nothing but dull grey I shouldn't have to pay for it—I can just look out the window at English skies. Oddly, when I moved the movie onto my iPhone I could watch it (and hear it) as expected. It seems I'm not alone having this issue, according to discussion in the Apple Support Forums. A number of suggestions have been made, most of which I have tried to no avail: Re-installed QuickTime 7.5 (on top of the previous: there is no "uninstaller"); Re-installed iTunes; Removed ...

Geotag open source app sports new icon

Bruce — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 20:52:05 +0000

From bioneural.net:

Andreas Schneider's open-source Geotag application supports automatic (via GPX import) and manual geotagging (via Google Maps/ Google Earth), and is compatible with most raw image formats. This cross-platform tool requires Java SE 6 runtime—sadly available for 64-bit Intel Macs running Leopard only. The latest release showcases a new icon (preview)—the third David, icerabbit and I (with others) have jointly worked on (the other two being the Geotag Icon and the Open Share Icon).

Lathkill Dale in the Peak District

Bruce — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 15:37:42 +0000

From bioneural.net:

Lathkill Dale in the Peak District is considered "one of the country's finest limestone valleys". Lathkill is one of five separate limestone valleys comprising the Derbyshire Dales National Nature Reserve, which is managed by English Nature. Friends took us walking in the area yesterday (we hadn't been for a while) and we were reminded how lucky we are to have such easy access to this part of England. The river Lathkill running through the Dale contains the clearest water we've seen anywhere in England. Some of the limestone outcrops that punctuate the valley walls can be seen above the stone wall in the right of the picture. This is fairly typical Peak District scenery, and quite hard to beat on a sunny Spring day. Click thumbnail to enlarge imageLandscape around Lathkill Dale The walk took us about 5 hours, first travelling west along the Dale from Youlgreave before climbing out of the valley just over half way to Monyash. At Monyash we stopped for liquid refreshments at the pub, then headed east along the second half of the Dale to our previous crossing point, climbing out at that stage to return to Youlgreave across the fields. As you can see in the following track, the panorama was taken from a high meadow looking down into the valley. Click thumbnail to enlarge imageOur route around Lathkill Dale Download a KMZ file (57KB) for viewing in Google Earth

Personal productivity on Mac and iPhone

Bruce — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 19:36:58 +0000

From bioneural.net:

As mentioned in an earlier post on using faux Contacts for collecting, managing, and synching tasks offline on the iPhone, I've been reading Getting things done (GTD) by David Allen. I have to say I found the book a difficult, overly repetitive and non-engaging read, despite my motivation to learn from it. If you could get a lot of things done in the time it takes to read 267 anecdote-heavy pages, here's my somewhat condensed take on the bits worth sharing, along with a few Mac-specific embellishments. This is Part two of a two-part series exploring GTD using a Mac and iPhone. It may make more sense if you review Part one first. Introduction I've been hooked on task lists since I first installed Claris Organizer 1.0 from floppy disk (remember those?) onto my PowerBook 100. Organizer incorporated Calendar, Contacts, Notes, and Tasks into a single interface—and I do appreciate integration. That app evolved into Palm Desktop and when I bought a Palm V in 1999 my obsessive list-keeping became mobile and subsequently synchronised via various apps including Entourage, iCal, iSync, and Missing Sync. While recent apps like OmniFocus and Things are rather pretty and more GTD-savvy, I'd prefer to rely the Apple-supplied tools I already have. Doing so is simpler (the less tools involved the better—that's one of Allen's recommendations), less costly, and makes use of the typically well-executed integration between Apple apps and devices. Reconciling task and time management Notice I said "typically" well-executed integration. Sadly integration of calendars, tasks, and notes between ...

More Mac tools for geotaggers

Bruce — Tue, 27 May 2008 12:24:43 +0000

From bioneural.net:

The developer of CDFinder has released GPS-Info CMM, a free contextual menu plug-in for the OS X Finder. Images with coordinates in EXIF can be plotted directly using several online mapping services or in Google Earth. Meanwhile the iCab browser b49 delivers extended geotagging support, such as recognition of EXIF-GPS data within images displayed inline on a web page: auto-detection activates the geotag icon.

Resolving router issues with Be Unlimited

Bruce — Tue, 27 May 2008 07:02:48 +0000

From bioneural.net:

Be Unlimited provide ADSL2+ services in the UK, supplying a Be-branded Thompson SpeedTouch wireless router called the BeBox. The Member Forum is full of complaints about router instability and errant behaviour. My 780WL had been doing well for around 6 months, then started resetting itself sometimes several times within a short period, but at least daily. Sometimes after a reset I was left with no Internet connectivity. Eventually Be sent me a replacement router, which came with replacement problems. So how do you turn a flaky BeBox into a rock-solid Internet router? Just take the "Be" out of your BeBox. Be deny any blame Be offered me a variety of explanations and solutions for the frequent disconnection/ resets I was experiencing: The router firmware was corrupt (this was suggested by each of the 4 support staff I contacted—perhaps a stock response. I explained I couldn't replace it using a Mac—see below); Local errors my router reported were indicative of a problem between the router and my computer; Local errors my router reported were likely due to line noise (despite very good data rates it seems, and a clear Quiet Line Test—17070 option 2); The replacement router was disconnecting because I was using the wrong DNS server IP addresses (I was; Be's instructions for configuring the replacement router for a static IP were completely wrong; I got no connection at all until I was given the correct gateway IP address over the phone); Ongoing issues with the replacement router indicated that the problem was "something on my network", ...

TomTom latest map guarantee trap

Bruce — Fri, 23 May 2008 15:18:12 +0000

From bioneural.net:

Just bought a new TomTom with a 30-day latest map guarantee? Don't download any map update as prompted by TomTom HOME on the day you register your device. Why not? Because if TomTom do release a new map in 30 days time, you won't be allowed to download it. You may still be within 30 days, but you will have the map that was current on the day you got your device. If, however, you carefully count to day 30 before downloading any map updates, you will get the latest map as of that time. The ambiguous guarantee is not for the latest map within 30 days—it's for a map within that period. Once again: Don't download any map update as prompted by TomTom HOME on the day you register your device. We ordered a TomTom One v3 with Western Europe maps which we received on 21.04.08. We'd seen it discounted in PC World, but it was an even better bargain online. The maps that came with my TomTom Navigator 5 were very out-of-date, and too costly to upgrade in relation to buying a new device with better software. Since we are driving to the Continent shortly the latest map guarantee we'd seen on the packaging would be very timely, we thought, negating any concerns I had that the unit may have been sitting around for months and the maps already outdated. As a marketing tool it was an effective device. The misleading leaflet that isn't what it seems Inside the packaging was a leaflet ...