In Your Pocket
Homotron.net has received confirmation from Apple on the removal of an app promoting anti-LGBT rhetoric. According to Apple PR:
We removed the Manhattan Declaration app from the App Store because it violates our developer guidelines by being offensive to large groups of people.
We previously noted the app's removal from the iOS App Store, but it was not clear what the official reason was or if the removal was permanent.
No word yet from Apple on other lingering questions, including the reinstatement of a previously removed LGBT social app and the upcoming release of an app from "ex-gay" group, Exodus International. We'll be sure to keep you posted.
For their part, the members of the Anti-LGBT Industry behind the "Manhattan Declaration" have posted a response and call for action on their site in response.
Recent confusion regarding where social apps for gay men stand and approval of apps promoting anti-LGBT politics is prompting some debate about whether we should consider putting our iPhones and MacBooks away for the cause.
In late October, the application "gay men's social network: Jack'd" was removed from the App Store, allegedly due to sexually explicit images. The app's developer also revealed that he was previously warned by Apple's automated submission system that the app may be rejected for it's use of the word "gay".
The "Manhattan Declaration" made its way to the App Store, allowing people to declare their opposition to LGBT people's "right to engage in immoral sexual practices, and even a right to have relationships integrated around these practices be recognized and blessed by law". A Change.org petition has since been posted by LGBT activist (and outing extraordinaire) Michael Rogers demanding that Apple remove the app. Reports are now coming out that the app has disappeared - although no confirmation from Apple or the developer, yet.
Exodus International, the leading "ex-gay" organization (HA!), has also announced its intention of targeting victims as young as 10 with new outreach strategies. Among the use of podcasts and YouTube, the group is also developing an iPhone app.
Recent boycotts of other companies for financially supporting politicians who support anti-LGBT stances seem to be getting Tweeters and followers of activist bloggers (in comments and forum discussions) in the boycotting mood. While the immediate demand would presumably be the removal of the offending apps, it's not exactly clear what the ultimate end-goal for any proposed boycott would be. However, the lack of a stated end-goal didn't prevent the other boycotts from proceeding.
If the ultimate hope is that Apple will censor content that LGBT consumers find objectionable - then the company may find itself revisiting the App Store submission guidelines. Apple has been struggling with the issue of censorship for over a couple of years now. However, this call for more censorship seems to be in conflict with previous demands by progressive consumers.
While Apple has been known for supporting LGBT issues, such as its public opposition to Prop 8, they have not censored anti-LGBT content from podcasts or ebook submissions. Since this issue has gained momentum, Apple's offices have been closed for the Turkey Day festivities. So it's unclear what official response, if any, the company may have. It's also not clear if the removal of the "Manhattan Declaration" app is for good. However, we may have more clarity from the company as early as Monday.
So what do you think? Should Apple censor anti-LGBT content from the App Store? Would that set the foundation for future LGBT supported Apps which target anti-LGBT polices from also being censored? Where do you think Apple should draw the line?
In Part 1 of this post, I highlighted some of the news coming from Apple which I feel hold clues to the company's next moves. While CEO Steve Jobs and his cohorts always have plenty of surprises up their sleeves - fans and critics alike still relish in making (often wild) predictions on what their next trick will be. Continuing that time honored tradition of Apple speculation - here are my predictions on what they may have in store for us in 2011.
I invite you to share your own conclusions by submitting a comment below. Keeping in mind that everyone's speculations are as reliable as earthquake predictions - your odds of being right are as good as any. Here's a peak at the predictions I'll elaborate on after the jump...
- Steve Jobs will do some big ticket shopping
- Apple TV becomes an actual Apple TV
- iPad v2.0 in your hands for iPad's 1st birthday
- iPhone (finally) comes to Verizon
- Back to the Mac with Lion
- Rest of MacBooks join their little brother in dumping their hard drives
Plus...
- What do YOU think?
Love or hate them - and there seem to be fewer people in-between - Apple is hard to ignore. Sliding past Google this year, they
receive more news coverage than any other tech company. So, what better way to return from the real life events which prevented me from posting (sorry about that) than by continuing Apple's media dominance? Wait...well in any case, in this post I'll recap some of Apple's recent news headlines. In Part 2, I'll engage in an Apple fan's favorite pastime - speculating on what it all means. You'll also be invited to join me as a speculator - so whip out that ouija board.
Since we last checked on Steve Jobs and company - much has transpired at One Infinite Loop. Here is a rundown of some of the headlines I'll expand on after the jump:
- iPhone 4 survives "Antennagate" - Apple exec's job does not
- iOS 4.2.1 is coming today - and one day it might even print
- Apple TV gets a makeover - but it's not iTV...yet
- Mac's userbase grows as Apple's cash stockpile grows more
- Lion giving Mac OS X and iOS a civil union - new Mac App Store offers sneak peek
- MacBook Air sends a Dear John letter to the hard drive
- Please welcome to iTunes...The Beatles!
Our GayGamer colleague Game-Boy got the scoop on the PSP v iPhone rumor that's going around, which sees the next PSP as a slide/flip-screened, double-analog-sticked bad boy that Pocket Gamer finds worthy of the moniker "iPhone beater":
It's no secret that Sony has been working on some sort of revision of the PSP, but there's been nothing but conflicting information coming from a variety of developer leaks. Today's latest batch via PocketGamer's anonymous developer source says that the next hardware update is set to include a touchscreen, a d-pad and set of face buttons that slide out, and... you better sit down for this one... a second analogue nub/stick. Praise Jebus!
The source also claims that Sony is ready to ditch the controversial UMD this holiday season in favor of digital distribution through the PlayStation Network Store. While I've never been a big fan of the UMD, I can't say that I'm that ecstatic to hear this. Sony's online stores have been awkward experiences for me at best and the 5th circle of User Interface Hell at worst (that's right next the original Xbox, for those wondering). Add on the fact that there's still no Mac software option for the PlayStation Network and I get the feeling that I'll be missing the UMD drive as much as I miss the GBA slot on the DSi.
Everyone, including the source of this latest rumor, is predicting that Sony will reveal the next step in the PSPs evolution at this year's E3 in June. Only time will tell if these stories are true or not, but with so much gossip around the PSP I get the feeling that there's at least a small amount of truth some of these rumors.
[
PSP 2 coming pre-Chrismas will be an iPhone beater] PocketGamer
People have been digging around the iPhone OS 3.0 beta and have discovered some rather interesting tidbits buried deep within the configuration files.
The video capabilities have pretty much been confirmed, as changing a configuration file to make the iPhone OS 3.0 think there's a video camera changes the camera interface into the picture you see, with a switch to change between video and still camera modes.
References to a "magnetometer" (compass), "auto-focus camera," and "Voice Control" have also been found in the configuration files.
All of these point to likely hardware additions to the next generation iPhone, rumoured to be released during WWDC 2009 in June.
It seems Apple is trying to match and beat the feature set of T-Mobile's Android G1 set. I love competition.
(Photo by MacRumors)
iPhone Video Recording Interface, Digital Compass, Voice Control and Auto-Focus Camera [MacRumors]
The problem with the iPhone and the T-Mobile G1 is that the user input is done via touchscreen, which would mean that users who are blind would be completely unable to dial such a device, right?
Not so, as Google engineers T.V. Raman and Charles Chen demonstrate their dead simple idea on how dialing on a touchscreen is possible without even looking at the screen:
So simple, and very functional!
Michael Dell yet again fluffed up speculation on his eponymous company's future in the smartphone market, despite rumors that wireless carriers aren't interested in Dell handsets. Speaking in Tokyo, the Dell CEO stepped up the hinting with a touch of specificity:
"For the last three years, we have integrated 3G radios into our notebooks," said Dell. "We already have agreements with many mobile carriers around Netbook devices, so it wouldn't be unreasonable to expect that we would have smaller mobile Internet devices or smartphones in the future."
Dell's own reorganization aims at expanding its product lineup while reinventing its public perception with some sleek new products. A cool new smartphone would fit right in.
Michael Dell Comments on Smartphones [Ubergizmo]
I've been participating in the GrandCentral Beta for a little while now, and I've been mostly impressed by the service. The amount of customization is spectacular, with the ability to set up various voice mail messages for different groups and people, and setting who can call what phone and when, are just a few of the options that you get to play around with in GrandCentral, and are just a few of the reasons I really like the service.
Recently, Google moved GrandCentral over to the mother ship and officially made the property they acquired a while back part of the big Google family. Now, putting aside that at this point Google really does know way too much about me, I'm mostly happy about this. The interface for the "new" Google Voice is drastically different than what GrandCentral offered, but I'm adjusting pretty well to the new Interface. I'm slightly disappointed though that my contacts list and voicemails did not make the transition from GrandCentral to Google Voice, but I suppose that's what I get for Beta testing a product like this.
One of the things I've noticed is that, unlike most Google products that reduce the amount of clicks it takes to do something, Google Voice actually increase the amount of clicks it takes to do many actions. For example, creating a group in GrandCentral involved hitting a Create button and setting everything up on the next screen, including selecting contacts to be in that group and what phones ring when those contacts call. Now I have to scroll to settings to create a group, then back to the group page to add contacts, then back to settings to select which phones get the message and click the advanced tab to do further customization. Same end result, just a bit more involved than previously.
I also enjoy that they are doing their best to pimp all their products, and it saddened me to realize how deep I am into Google's fold. Take this screen grab for example. This is their screen to demonstrate the changed Call Me Button (a widget you can add to any website that allows people to call you right from the site). If you'll notice, in one screen Google is pimping their Blogger Service, their Chrome Browser and their Google Voice service. That's pretty impressive all-in-all. The sad part? I use all of those. All I need now is a Android phone and I'll be completely entrenched in Google.
The move to Google Voice means a few good things though. First, if it's a "Google" labeled product, it will most likely stay free. The big G will subsidize the cost through advertising most likely, which is fine by me... I think. I was afraid of what GrandCentral would cost when it went Release, so I did not go all in on it, but now that it's looking to remain the same I'm leaning more toward relying on my Google Voice number. Also, the move means that there should be another round of beta invites soon, or maybe even a soft launch. If you're interested in the service, you can sign up to get notified for the next round of invites or check out all it can do.
I'm really excited to see where Google goes with this service, as I think it has a lot of potential. If you get in, let us know what you think. If you've been involved with GrandCentral and recently switched to Google Voice, make sure to drop us a line with your impressions.
Apple's promising 100 new features in iPhone OS 3.0, and while not all of those new additions made it into Tuesday's event, we've got the big ones - that we know about. Here's a rundown of what we've seen introduced:
- Copy, Cut, & Paste: first mentioned and arguably most anticipated, we'll now be able to cut or copy text from all applications, and pictures from the photo album. Yay.
- Multimedia messaging: it isn't a new feature for cell phones, but it's new for the iPhone. And about time.
- Landscape keyboard: across all applications. My sausage thumbs appreciate the news.
- Push notification: not the most coherent system, and non-native, but useful nonetheless.
- In-App purchasing: Remember how the new Kindle app shunts you to Safari for purchases? Not anymore. (In theory.)
- Peer-to-peer networking: good for games but not likely to impact functionality otherwise, at least not until/unless we see native Bluetooth data file sharing.
- Voice memo: another common feature just now being added to the iPhone's native software. Sayonara, 'Recorder.'
- Full search: Spotlight will search your mail, music, videos, notes and contacts all at the same time. AND, all it takes for access is a leftward finger-swipe from the home screen, which sounds very tidy.
- Forwarding of invites and contacts: absolutely necessary for enterprise customers, ho-hum for the rest.
- Stocks: the application has been improved to include headlines for your saved tickers and show charts in landscape mode. Data!
- Turn-by-turn directions: not a native feature and not available with Google Maps for licensing reasons, which disappoints, but still there. Expect to see turn-by-turn real-time directions in apps, but also expect to pay for 'em.
- Stereo Bluetooth: listen to music through Bluetooth headphones unless you have an iPhone Classic ('Classic' being Applespeak for 'Old.')
And there's more. From shaking your phone to auto-shuffle songs to syncing notes with your Mac. Autofill for Safari. Parental controls. It's nuts out there, kids.
Today's iPhone OS 3.0 event has just wrapped up, and with Den Den on vacation I've yet to piece together all that was unveiled, although some of the highlights include:
- In-app purchases
- Peer-to-peer Bluetooth
- Maps available in any application
- Turn-by-turn directions via Core Location GPS technology
- Push notification
- Apple's own Voice Memo app
- And of course: copying and pasting across all applications.
Finally!
SMS messages and third-party-app text can be copied just as easily as web page or email text, as well as text from Notes. Simply double-tap a snippet of text to select and up pops two grab points that let you resize your text-selection box (and in Notes, at least, we saw a "select all" function). The cut, copy and paste buttons are self-explanatory, but here's one awesome feature that isn't: just shake the phone to undo your last copy, paste, or cut.
Stay tuned for a more measured round-up once the ink on all the press releases dries!
The XKCD Kindle 2 comic has been brought full circle. Behold! The Kindle 2 laser engraved with those immortal words found on the cover of its spiritual brother, the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: "Don't Panic."
Grats Adafruit Industries, on having the geekiest Kindle 2 to date, and making me green with envy.
Hit the jump for a video of the laser doing its deed.
First laser etched Kindle 2! The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - "Don't Panic" [Adafruit Industries]
[via: Engadget]
And girls who like girls who like fembots!
Gadget of the Week
3D iPhone glasses. Why?
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No word yet from Apple on other lingering questions, including the reinstatement of a previously removed LGBT social app and the upcoming release of an app from "ex-gay" group, Exodus International. We'll be sure to keep you posted.
