The Twitter industry has got to be one of the fastest growing industries in history. There are endless services and programs to support this very basic yet addictive concept of micro blogging in 140 characters. There are many desktop clients for Mac and PC, some of my favorites include TweetDeck, Digsby, Twhirl, and most recently DestroyTwitter. However, when it comes to iPhone Twitter apps, there are only a few choices…
Software
Latest Discoveries
John Stewart Talks About Twitter
It is always fun to have a good laugh at yourself. Mine is in the following video.
Motorola Following Palm and Coming Back to Life
One of the companies struggling most in this hard economy is Motorola. Now, I am sure the economy has some part in their hardships but I am pretty convinced Motorola itself is not exactly innocent. I cannot remember the last handset coming out of Motorola that even remotely excited me, since of course, the Razr (you know you loved it the first time you saw it too). So now the people over there at Motorola have to be thinking how to get back in the game. What does Motorola have to do to become relevant again?
How To Use Gas & Save the Planet
Well it’s true if you use this kind of Gas, you will help save the planet one click at at time. It’s called Green Any Site or GAS for short. This little bookmark “gives shoppers the ability to easily donate a portion of any online purchase they make, to the environmental charity of their choice. All it takes is clicking a special “green this!” bookmark whenever they shop online.”
It really is as simple as that. I had that chance to speak with the guy behind it, Tal Ater, who showed me how it works. He really didn’t need to show me much, because what I love about it, is how easy it is to use. The installation is just a drag and drop bookmark, and the process is really just a click and confirm action. 
I am all for saving the planet and everything like that, a treehugger at heart, but when it comes to the web, ease of use needs to be the first priority, or else users like myself won’t use it. Not that I don’t want to help out, but if it is hard and annoying to use, then it is just not going to happen.
GAS has really incorporated both the environmental aspect and the user experience factor, into a really amazing and easy to use tool. Kudos to people like Tal who are using his talent as a programmer and web designer to save the planet. The world needs more people like you.
Tal isn’t out there just to save the planet, and disregard his needs, he actually has a business plan. It’s rare to see such a venture with a business plan that makes sense and is attainable.
GAS’s business plan is focused around two areas:
- Extremely targeted, ethical advertising at the time of purchase… Knowing what a user is about to buy and where he is about to buy it, is an amazing opportunity to advertise other products to him, and to help him make greener choices. This is one of our plans on how to not only raise money for the environment, but also help our users make smarter, greener buying decisions.
- For example, when you’re about to buy a book online and click “green this”, you may see a small notice next to the GAS window suggesting you save an extra tree and buy the audio or e-book instead. This space may also be used for green tips such as suggesting places to recycle your old phone when you purchase a new one.
- It should be noted, that GAS uses the data about a user’s purchase only for the duration of the transaction. No personally identifiable information is kept on a user’s shopping habits, in order not to intrude on his privacy.
- Packaging and providing our technology for use by other non-profit and for-profit companies, so they can create their own version of GAS, completely branded to their charity, and benefiting different causes.
GAS is a really great way to make a change with a click, so check GAS out and start saving the plant one click at a time.
-Aryeh
Top Mobile Device To Come Preinstalled With Industry Leading Software
It is not often that two industry leaders that both have revolutionary products, join forces. That is exactly what has just happened with my favorite phone of this year’s mobile congress, and my favorite mobile application.
Jerusalem Twestival
Hi All,
I just got my ticket to the Jerusalem Twestival taking place this Thursday February 12, 2009. The event takes place in 180 cities worldwide and raises money for Charity:Water which provides clean drinking water to villages in Africa. There is a 50 shekel donation for the event and you can be sure the money is going to a good cause.
The event will include:
* Real-time broadcasts of various Twitter feeds integrating text, video and photos from our event and events across the globe projected on walls/screens
*Selected Cleantech companies will have tables around the room as part of a “micro-expo”
* We will have additional (fun) activities around the room and outside including an innovative Twitter Bubble Adventure with giant bubbles
*Live music performances from HaMekor, Yitzchok Meir, Noah Lubin.
*Cash wine bar and beer
* “Tweetorials” for attendees to learn to use Twitter in new and different ways, and new users to sign up for Twitter on site.
I recommend everyone come, hang out, have some fun for a good cause, and enjoy the power of Twitter. If you want to meet, make sure to contact me before so I know to look out for you.
Looking forward to seeing you all there,
Aryeh
Some Amazing New Startups
I could not agree with Aryeh more, it was really nice to see all competition put aside for the night and a room full of people, some highly successful, some working on becoming highly successful, there to just try to lend a hand. They had U.S lawyers there to give legal advice on starting a company, they were offering all members of TechAviv office space in various cities to get their company started, and assistance in job placement using TechAviv’s community. It was a truly inspirational night.
Now, down to the details.
Google, LG, Asus & Garmin Making News While Microsoft Disappoints
There is so much going on in the tech world, I literally could not decide on one topic for this post, so consider this an overview of today’s events.
iPhone is Now Officially Smarter Than People
With all the talk and Hollywood movies about robots outsmarting humans, we might have reached a dangerous point (no, not really). A new app called Cube Cheater proves that the iPhone is in fact more intelligent than your average homosapien (I have not used that word since like 6th grade).
The app analyzes a Rubik’s Cube (can you believe they have a website?) in any given state and tells you how to solve it step by step using a 3D interface. You can input the state of the Rubik’s cube by painting it in the app’s UI, or by taking a picture of it, how cool is that?
I don’t know about you, but I do not know many people that can solve a Rubik’s cube, and the few that can, take much longer than Cube Cheater. Should I prepare for the revolution? (OK, so I watched one too many Terminator sequels, so what?)
-Hillel
iPhone to Offer Wireless File Transfer; Finally
Looks like some very smart developer is working on one of the most sought after features for the iPhone, wireless file transfer. As I wrote those words, I thought to myself how hard it is to believe that Apple left out such basic bluetooth functionality like file transfer and stereo bluetooth. It really does not make sense to me, and I would love to hear some suggestions from my readers in the comments. Why is Apple so opposed to making our lives that much simpler, with features (I would not even call these things features) like copy/paste, video capabilities, and running multiple apps simultaneously?
I am a firm believer that most companies do not just leave out basic functions when designing a mobile device. I am sure somewhere along the line, Steve and some of his buddies were sitting in a very nice conference room somewhere and discussing what the iPhone would and would not have.
Maybe the conversation went something like this:
Steve: ” I want to make the best mobile device the world has ever known. It will have an amazing touch interface, and will work better than any previous phone”.
One of his buddies: “Well, OK, we can do that, but just take into account that certain functions that were available 10 years ago, will not be able to be implemented on this phone. No way we can get copy/paste functionality in it, for example. Not to mention Bluetooth functionality that can be found in the most basic of Nokia phones.
Steve: “OK, go ahead as planned, as long as you can swipe between pictures”.
OK, so that did not happen. What was really going through Apple’s mind when leaving out file transfer via Bluetooth? Please share your insights.
One thing I will tell you in full certainty, if this developer pulls it off, he will be a very rich man. Watch the demo in the video below.
-Hillel
Firefox vs. Chrome; Innovation vs. Simplicity
My time on the Web is usually mostly dedicated to reading about the newest technological advancements in the mobile market. Lately, however, whether it is because not much is going on in that industry, or because most of the people I follow on Twitter are not as interested in mobile as I am, I have spent a lot of time researching and reviewing a totally different realm of technology. I have been trying to determine which of the many Web browsers, best suits my needs.
My conclusion is narrowed down to two browsers, which seem like they pretty much dominate the public opinion, or at least the opinion of most tweeple in twitterville. The first browser that I feel is leagues above most others is Google’s new Chrome. It will not take long for me to explain to you why I love it so much, in fact, I can pretty much sum it up in one word; speed. I read somewhere (probably in a tweet) that someone compared launching Chrome to opening Notepad or any other similar program. It is instant, and smooth. There is absolutely no delay whatsoever. Chrome is much faster than any other browser I have tested, and I think I have pretty much tested em all. So, if speed is what you are looking for in a browser (aren’t we all?), Chrome is your choice.
However, and this a big minus for me, with Chrome, what you see is what you get. I mean to say, that what makes my default browser, Firefox 3, so great, and worth sacrificing those few extra milliseconds upon launch, are the amazing add ons for Firefox. Firefox can be used with the basic configuration you get when you download it, or you can download endless add ons to enhance its functionality. The experience of downloading add ons for FF3 reminds me of the experience with the App Store, as in, effortless, smooth, and even fun.
Just to give you a few examples of the add ons I use, which by the way, I found through a recommendation of one of my followers on Twitter (if you have not figured it out yet, I have been spending a lot of my time on Twitter, and you can expect a lengthy detailed review of why I love it so much, some time in the very near future). Here they are:
- TwitterFox: A really great add on that came very close to replacing all my desktop clients that I use to access Twitter. The only issue for me was, and this is not a function of this specific add on, rather a characteristic of Firefox, when I am watching a movie, or do not have Firefox on the front of my screen, I can not receive Twitter notifications. You do not expect me to go an hour and a half without knowing the happenings of Twitter, do you?
- IE Tab: This add on is borderline genius. In the time I have been using Firefox, there have been many instances where I could not view a web page or a video the way it was meant to be seen, because of all sorts of compatibility issues. Some sites still only work on Internet Explorer. This add on gives you three options. You can seamlessly change your current page from Firefox to IE, without closing it and reopening it in IE. This is the option I do most. You can also open a new tab in IE, and then type whatever URL you want to visit in the address bar. The third option is you can click on any link and open it in IE. It’s a great add on that I have used many times since I installed it.
- FoxyTunes: One of the coolest add ons available. Basically, this add on gives you the ability to control your music player from your browser. You can rewind, fast forward, skip songs, adjust the volume and more, without opening iTunes, or whatever music application you use. Very useful.
- Screen Grab: A simple but practical add on. It is as it sounds. It enables you to take a screen capture of an entire screen or a selected area, without ever opening up another program.
Those are just a few examples, but all my add ons make it impossible for me to use any other browser. If you are deciding what browser to use, here is how you decide. For starters, x out IE, it just is not in the same league. If you are trying to decide between Firefox and Chrome, it really is an easy decision. Just think about your needs. Do you want a browser that is blazing fast and gives you the basic functionality that a Web browser is supposed to give you? Or do you want a browser that is really much more? Are you a basic Web user or do you do more on the Web than just read interesting articles and blogs? I think these browsers really target different audiences. Google, as usual, managed to make a simple, but extremely impressive browser, while Mozilla, really revolutionized the browser world, by creating a browser that is a Jack of all Trades.
-Hillel
