Google has released an official Google Earth application for the iPhone.

Even before we introduced Google Earth back in 2005, the team had long dreamed of being able to carry the Earth around in your pocket. Well, today that dream becomes a reality as we introduce Google Earth for iPhone and iPod touch. With just a swipe of your finger you can fly from Peoria to Paris to Papua New Guinea, or anywhere in between. It may be small, but it brings all the power of Google Earth to the palm of your hand, including all of the same global imagery and 3D terrain. You can even browse any of our 8 million Panoramio photos or read Wikipedia articles.

With Google Earth for iPhone, you can:
? Tilt your iPhone to adjust your view to see mountainous terrain
? View the Panoramio layer and browse the millions of geo-located photos from around the world
? View geo-located Wikipedia articles
? Use the ‘Location’ feature to fly to your current location
? Search for cities, places and business around the globe with Google Local Search

It’s available today in 18 languages and 22 countries in the iTunes App Store.

Best known for its Peak audio editing software, Bias has released what looks like it could be a useful little recording application for Apple’s iPhone/iPod touch.

iProRecorder can be used to capture any sounds you like. Musicians are likely to find it handy for recording interesting samples while ‘in the field’, and also for getting song ideas down quickly when moments of inspiration strike.

The software offers one-touch recording, while input meters let you check your level. You can choose your recording quality (from 16-bit/11kHz to 44.1kHz), and the fact that files are stored in WAV format means that they can be played back and edited in any suitable Mac or PC software.

There are some handy playback features, too: a shuttle job/wheel for audio scrubbing, and the option to slow down or speed up the playback. This should help musicians when they’re transcribing.

Further spec details are available on the Bias website, while iProRecorder is available to buy at Apple’s App Store. It’s currently being sold for just $0.99/?0.59, so you’ve got very little to lose by giving it a try

via. MusicRadar

The Nokia Comes With Music subscription service provides users with unlimited access to Nokia’s Music Store catalogue. That’s a nifty two million songs on your phone, anytime. Now, the mobile giant has built a load of park-bench-shaped MP3 players to promote the service, and save our derrieres?

The benches will be placed at ’secret locations’ ? namely parks, streets and town squares ? all over the UK. Each bench has three Nokia handsets and headphones installed into the arm rests.

The available playlist differs depending on where you are. Nokia surveyed the nation to find its favourite songs, and tailored the list to fit each region’s favourites. Whether Liverpool’s list is chock full of The Beatles and Birmingham’s with Black Sabbath remains to be heard.
Take a seat

Before you think about stealing one for your garden, each bench will be accompanied by a live performer and, presumably, a security guard. One different appearance will be made each day between now and Christmas – check out the Comes With Music site to find out where.

via. MusicRadar

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Aviary

As Apple promised in early October, the company has posted an updated Software Developer Kit (SDK) Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) which allows iPhone application developers to more openly discuss their development plans. In order to facilitate such discussion, Apple has also opened a forum especially for iPhone developers.

When Apple first opened the iPhone to third-party development, it put in place a very restrictive NDA that earned the ire of developers, because it prevented them from communicating with one another. Apple was also criticized for not providing mailing lists or a Web site forum for developers.

Earlier this month, Apple stated plans to drop the NDA. Apple said that it had put the NDA in place to protect its inventions from being stolen by others, but acknowledged that the result had placed too much of a burden on developers and ?others interested in helping further the iPhone?s success.?

The revised NDA agreement binds developers to continue to to honor as confidential information regarding any Apple pre-release software along with ?Apple Events or Paid Content.?

New developer forums, open to registered iPhone developers specifically, have also been set up on Apple?s developer Web site. The company lists the forums as beta presently, and calls it ?a collaborative environment? where iPhone developers can post questions for each other and discuss iPhone development topics.

via. MacWorld

The Halloween Theme Pack includes the following:

One Ghost static display picture
One Cemetery conversation window background
One full-window Ghosts Wink

Please visit http://freebies.windowslive.com/ for more on this months freebies.

Apple didn?t just introduce new laptops Tuesday; it also introduced a new term to the vocabulary of Mac users?DisplayPort. The Mini DisplayPort found on new MacBooks, the refreshed Macbook Air and 15-inch MacBook Pros replaces the DVI and mini-DVI interfaces found on older models. But is this another proprietary debacle like Apple?s failed Apple Display Connector (ADC) interface? No.

DisplayPort is, in fact, an open industry standard promoted by the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA), the same group that determines standard sizes for flat panel display mounts, for example. And Apple isn?t the only company supporting DisplayPort. HP, Philips, Samsung, Lenovo, AMD, Nvidia, Intel and many other companies have thrown their weight behind the standard, so we?ll be seeing a lot more DisplayPort-compatible devices in the coming years.

Digital Visual Interface (DVI) has become the de facto standard for flat panel displays over the past few years, and it?s not hard to understand why. It?s a direct digital interface between a computer and a display, which makes it nice and fast, keeps images sharp and colors crisp. But DVI interfaces are big and clunky?probably its most obvious difference with DisplayPort.

Compared to a full-sized DVI interface, DisplayPort?and especially Mini DisplayPort?is much smaller. Apple says the Mini DisplayPort?a smaller version of the official spec?on its redesigned portables is 10 percent the size of a full DVI connector. Thus, DisplayPort frees up a lot more space on the side of a laptop as well inside the machine.

There are practical issues as well. With DVI, you have to use thumbscrews to insert and secure a connection; you just push a DisplayPort connector into place as you would with a USB device. And you can?t easily bend a DisplayPort connector?s pins, like you can with a DVI connector.

But just like DVI and, to a certain extent, High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) video port found on newer home entertainment products and flat-screen TVs, DisplayPort can work equally well connecting a Mac or PC to a flat screen or to a home entertainment system.

A lot of what makes DisplayPort better than DVI, though, is found in the technological nitty-gritty. DisplayPort has greater bandwidth than DVI does, for example (no need for a Dual-Link DVI connector, as a single DisplayPort can accommodate a 30-inch screen), and it embeds the clock signal in the data signal, while DVI and HDMI do that separately. It also supports High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP), which should help put content providers at ease.

The downside of Apple?s push to use DisplayPort: It?s still very early in this standard?s adoption cycle, and there?s no guarantee that DisplayPort will be used as pervasively as DVI is right now. Even if it is, it?s going to be an uphill climb for consumers, at least until more display vendors have more products on the market that use DisplayPort.

Unless you?re content with the infinitesimal selection of displays that work with DisplayPort right now, you?ll have to buy more gadgets to get your new Mac to work with a DVI or VGA display. You?re going to pay $29 for the privilege of getting such an adapter through the Apple Store. Unless you need a Dual-Link DVI adapter to hook up a Cinema HD Display or another 30-inch LCD panel, that is?that?ll set you back a full c-note, and you?ll be waiting four to five weeks for it, according to the online Apple Store.

What?s more, regardless of whether you buy Apple?s DisplayPort adapter or a third party?s (if you?re lucky enough to find one, that is), you?re going to mess up your desk with more boxes and wires getting that DVI or VGA display to work.

For what it?s worth, Apple is one of the first major computer makers to actually release a system with DisplayPort on it, but it?s not the first company out of the gate with a product equipped with a DisplayPort connector. Dell released displays earlier this year with DisplayPort built in, and HP has since followed suit. PC users can also buy Windows-compatible graphics cards (from vendors that use both Nvidia and ATI chipsets) that have DisplayPort adapters built in.

However, unlike HP and Dell with their displays, Apple is going out on a limb with its new 24-inch LED Cinema Display. That new monitor requires a DisplayPort connector, so for now, it?s only compatible with the new Apple laptops?at least until Apple upgrades the rest of its product line with DisplayPort connectors.

via. MacWorld

GTA Trophies patch is out. Its a 20mb file.

For those who don’t know what trophies are, here is the info:

Bronze Trophies:

• Off The Boat — You have completed the first mission.
• One Hundred And Eighty — You scored 180 with 3 darts.
• Pool Shark — You beat a friend at pool.
• King of QUB3D — You beat the high score in QUB3D.
• Finish Him — You completed 10 melee counters in 4 minutes.
• Genetically Superior — You came first in 20 singleplayer street races.
• Wheelie Rider — You completed a 500 foot wheelie on a motorbike.
• Gobble Gobble — You got a turkey in 10-pin bowling.
• Driving Mr. Bellic — You unlocked the special ability of Roman’s taxi.
• Rolled Over — You managed 5 car rolls in a row from one crash.

Bronze Trophies:

• Walk Free — You successfully lost a 4 star wanted rating.
• Courier Service — You completed all 10 package delivery jobs.
• Retail Therapy — You unlocked the special ability of buying guns from Little Jacob.
• Chain Reaction — You exploded 10 vehicles in 10 seconds.
• Lowest Point — You completed the mission “Roman’s Sorrow”.
• Order Fulfilled — You completed all 10 Exotic Export orders.
• Manhunt — You completed the most wanted side mission.
• Cleaned The Mean Streets — You caught 20 criminals through the police computer.
• Fed The Fish — You completed the mission “Uncle Vlad”.
• It’ll Cost Ya — You made a taxi trip from one island to another without skipping.
• Sightseer — You have taken all variations of the helicopter tours of Liberty City.
• Warm Coffee — You were invited into your girlfriend’s house.
• That’s How We Roll! — You unlocked the special ability of Brucie’s helicopter ride.
• Half Million — You have amassed a fortune of $500,000.
• Impossible Trinity — You completed the mission “Museum Piece”.
• Full Exploration — You unlocked all the islands.
• You Got The Message — You delivered all 30 cars ordered through text message.
• Assassin’s Greed — You completed all 9 assassin missions.
• Under The Radar — You flew under all the main bridges in the game.
• Dial B For Bomb — You unlocked the special ability of Packie’s car bomb placement.
• Gracefully Taken — You completed the mission “I’ll Take Her”.
• No More Strangers — You’ve met all the random characters.
• That Special Someone — You completed the mission “That Special Someone”.
• Teamplayer — You killed 5 opposing team members.
• Cut Your Teeth — You were successfully promoted up a rank in multiplayer.
• Join The Midnight Club — You won a multiplayer race without damaging your vehicle too much.
• Fly The Co-op — You completed “Deal Breaker”, “Hangman’s NOOSE” and “Bomb da Base II” in time.
• Taking It For The Team — You were on the winning team in all multiplayer team games.
• Top Of The Food Chain — You successfully killed 20 players with a pistol in a deathmatch.
• Top The Midnight Club — You won 20 different multiplayer standard races.
• Auf Wiedersehen Petrovic — You won in all variations of multiplayer games.
• Let Sleeping Rockstars Lie — You killed a Rockstar in multiplayer.

Silver Trophies:

• One Man Army — You survived a 6 star wanted level for a full 5 minutes.
• Dare Devil — You completed all the unique stunt jumps.
• Endangered Species — You collected every hidden package in the game.
• Liberty City (5) — Your friends all like you above 90%.
• You Won! — You have completed the story.

Gold Trophies:

• Liberty City Minute — You finished the story in less than 30 hours.
• Key To The City — You completed GTA IV to 100%.
• Wanted — You achieved the highest personal rank possible in multiplayer.

Platinum Trophy:

• Taking A Liberty — Sorry for taking liberties with your time!

One of the joys of the Mac community is that if you find something?a program, a method of doing something, what have you?there usually isn?t a shortage of people willing to suggest alternatives. That same sort of ?Hey, did you consider this?? spirit seems to be emerging in these early years of the iPhone platform as well.

Take my recent review of People, an iPhone application that looks up phone numbers and addresses for people who aren?t among your Contacts. People is? all right?it works as advertised and it?s free, so it?s a perfectly acceptable people finder for your iPhone or iPod touch. But I noted some general interface flaws?specifically, no way of easily clearing search fields if you wanted to look another phone number and the inability to selectively purge recent searches.

One reader posting in our forums suggested giving WhitePages Mobile a try. Like People, this free app looks up names, addresses, and phone numbers from WhitePages.com. But in this case, the application is actually made by WhitePages.com, so you?re going directly to the source. More important, WhitePages Mobile eliminates some of the interface quirks of People that I found particularly bothersome while expanding the app?s searching capabilities.

As with People, you search for phone numbers on WhitePages Mobile by typing in a last name and a street address, city, or state. However, as you type in a location, WhitePages Mobile proposes city names that look like what you?re typing, much in the same way that Google Mobile App offers suggested search terms as you type. So as you start typing in ?San Francisco? to look up a phone number for that city, WhitePages Mobile offers you the option of tapping on San Diego, San Antonio, San Jose and other options that keep adjusting as you type. (?San Francisco,? in fact appears by the time you type out san f. Tap on a suggestion and WhitePages Mobile fills the field, saving you typing time.?

Even better, each search field has a gray X at the far right of each entry. Tap that, and the field clears of any data. This saves you from having to repeatedly tap on the backspace button when you want to run another search, as you would have to do in People.

Once you have a search result, WhitePages Mobile functions much the same way as People does. Tap the phone number and, if you?re using an iPhone, the phone will dial up the number. Tap the Create New Contact or Add Existing Contact to add the newly found name, number, and address to your address book. (Contacts never actually launches, so it?s hard to tell at first that you?ve updated your contact list with this new data.) The WhitePages search results page also includes a map image showing a thumbnail of the address listed; tap that, and the Maps application launches.

WhitePages Mobile has a Recent Results page that stores your 20 most recent searches, five more than are stored on the Recents page People. Another key difference is that People?s Clear button only lets you erase all recent searches, while WhitePages Mobile selectively deletes recent searches. Just tap Edit followed by the red minus sign next to any search result you wish to vanquish.

Search results that turn up work numbers are clearly labeled in WhitePages Mobile with a Work icon. What?s more, the app offers a separate search function for businesses, either by a business name or category (?pizza,? for example, if you want to look up all the pizza joints in a given town). Business search results are very location-specific?you?ll only get listings for businesses in the city you enter, as opposed to the surrounding area, and WhitePages Mobile doesn?t make use of the iPhone?s location feature to say how close those businesses are to you.

One other limitation for WhitePages Mobile is that search results are limited to 30 listings?there?s also no Web link to additional listings as there is with People. This is rarely a problem when you?re looking up a person?s number, but if you?re conducting a business search?taxis in San Francisco, say?you?ll only get a smattering of listings restricted to the first few letters of the alphabet.

That limitation aside, WhitePages Mobile does just about everything you could ask in a phone-based people finder?with a few flourishes that make it an extra useful addition to your mobile device.

WhitePages Mobile is compatible with any iPhone or iPod touch running the iPhone 2.x software update.

via. MacWorld

O?Reilly postponed its upcoming iPhoneLive conference indefinitely, the company said on Thursday. The conference was supposed to take place on November 18 in San Jose.

?We?re sorry to announce that we?ve made the difficult business decision to postpone the O?Reilly iPhoneLive conference,? O?Reilly?s Maureen Jennings said in an email to Macworld.

O?Reilly first announced the conference in early September, targeting the event to iPhone developers (and those who want to become iPhone developers), web programmers and designers, project managers, user interface architects, mobile app developers, strategic decision makers, analysts, investors, venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, and enthusiasts.

The conference seemed well on the way to success when Apple lifted the iPhone NDA, opening the door for more in-depth sessions. In previous conferences, speakers would have to talk about Mac development tools and try to relate them to the iPhone, without speaking about the iPhone, but with no NDA, speakers could be very specific.

At this point that conference has not be rescheduled, but that is still a possibility.

?O?Reilly will continue to explore the mobile space, including the possibility for a future version of the conference,? said Jennings.

via. MacWorld