By Graham K. Rogers

Opening Gambit:

eXtensions Podcast

Apple Stuff

Here's to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They're not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can't do is ignore them. . . .

Over the weekend Apple admitted to making a mistake. Bob Mansfield, who is to retire soon, has a letter on the Apple website about the removal of products from EPEAT and is quite clear in the wording of the letter, "I recognize that this was a mistake," he writes. Starting today, all eligible Apple products are back on EPEAT."

This all apparently stemmed from the newer products some speculated, like the Retina display MacBook Pro that would not qualify because the battery cannot be replaced. So how come that not only did Apple kiss and make up, but the return of Apple also saw the MacBook Pro with the Retina display awarded the EPEAT Gold Star: so all that speculation about the battery was wrong? Electronista had a report on this and explains why the star system may have been the reason for a mega-sulk by Apple and how points in the various categories are awarded. All rather weird. Is the gold star a sign that EPEAT is pleased to see Apple back?

The EPEAT news was one of the items that I picked used for the eXtensions Podcast (#2012 5) this week as well as about the odd piece of software that apparently gave users access to free in-app purchases that someone in Russia had developed. There was (unsurprisingly) a quick response iPodNN reports with an Apple understatement: "The security of the App Store is incredibly important to us and the developer community". Apple is investigating we are told. I bet they were working all night on that one. Another comment on this -- there were many of course -- came from Rene Ritchie on iMore who himself is a supporter of jail-breaking the iPhone but like me does not see the sense (and also sees the risk) in trying to save 99 cents.

Of course if you do click on this and go via the proxy server, allow false certificates to be installed on your device and then go online to make the downloads, not only are you stealing -- as many pointed out -- but who is to say you are not opening a massive security backdoor on your iPhone or iPad: and all to save a few cents. No sense there.

I did see a Tweet in which it was suggested that the deluded Russian thought that this was going to be his door to a position at Apple. I would think the only door he may be seeing is the one that closes on a cell.

Also at the weekend I looked at a new app from Kraft -- the cheese slices people -- that looked rather interesting: at least in terms of usefulness for parents with kids. It is called Dinner, Not Art and uses the idea of pasta shapes to create pictures: apparently kids use the real thing in the US to make pictures, while mother is trying to cook. Sounds good.

Not available here. So I wrote to the developer late Friday night and was pleased to see a quick reply the next morning which explained, "We're really sorry that we can't offer it outside of the U.S. App store at this time due to legal reasons." So there. Part of the app includes a donation to an American charity, which could quite easily be disabled for other countries. Good for Kraft that they are backing such an app, and good for Kraft that they use this for charity support. But a shame for us.

With perfect timing on Saturday morning an article by Leanna Lofte on More suggests that Apple might consider a section for Kids now that there is even one for food. As Apple clearly aims many of the apps at children even in the New & Noteworthy section for example this makes much sense.

I was rather interested in the Kraft app as a colleague at work had been asking me about iPad apps for children; and we also talked about the use of a stylus for the device. By a perfect coincidence over the weekend, Ellis Hamburger on The Verge has an extended review of several of these. Alas, many cannot be found here: shop carefully or find a friend going to the States.

Last week I wrote on preparing for Lion using Disk Warrior. Someone pointed out that the screenshot was of an older version (laziness on my part). When I checked, I found my own 4.3 version had been superseded by version 4.4. On Friday evening I attempted an update to Disk Warrior which went wrong: the original disk that I must use to make a new upgraded one may be damaged. Plan B -- which I am trying to fit in this week -- needs me to borrow another Mac (my own iMac is still in dry dock), while Plan C, if that does not work, is to pay for a replacement disk: not the first time either. I should look after these disks more.

Ah, what would the week be without a rumour about Apple. The iPhone is the favourite right now with stories coming out of China about its release and a possible design change, AppleInsider reports, which suggests that Gorilla Glass is now to be added to the backplate. The source for this was a blog in Japan with links to China where the iPhone is to be made.

This rumour cancels the earlier one that suggested the release date would be August. We are back to September or October. This rumour is complemented by some information on AppleBitch which carries information from the same source: the Japanese blog Macotakara.

In the meantime, we see that the NYTimes (Nick Wingfield and Nick Bilton) in a look at how other tech companies are trying to catch up with the iPad are fairly certain that the 7.85" iPad (or whatever it is called) is coming and reprise much of what has gone before, only weeks later than everyone else in a 2-page article that says nothing new. I guess readers of the NYTimes don't read tech sources.

In a slightly related report from T.C.Sottek on The Verge, Amazon is reported to be developing a 10" tablet.

Half and Half

Let me resurrect that useful quote from Rene Ritchie on iMore who wrote, "it's easy to cast Apple, Microsoft, Oracle et al as the bad guys. They're giant, nasty for-profit corporations, after all. And fair enough. . . . But so is Google." He adds -- and this is the crux -- "Google had systematically and recklessly displayed such indifference to the intellectual property of others -- -- from huge corporations to private citizens, as to border on contempt."

What he said. . . .

Other Matters

Well, Florian Mueller is one who certainly hopes it does as he analyses the award and thinks that with a fee of $8 per phone for one patent, that could lead to amazingly high costs per unit.

Despite the problems that RIM is facing right now, the current CEO,. Thorsten Heins, is optimistic (he has to be) and in an interview reported by John Biggs on Tech Crunch among other things he promises to keep the consumers fully connected and confirms that the Blackberry 10 is a guarantee to success for RIM.

In the race to the bottom, Nokia is also suffering a market share collapse fall in China, so their response has been to close two sales offices there, Alex Wilhelm reports on TNW.

A theme of late has been the concern that some have over government surveillance of its citizens. This is particularly critical right now in the UK as the current administration, just like the last, tries to bring in Stalinist laws to look at everything, while in a major example of penny-pinching says the ISPs have to pay for the equipment. There is no such meanness in the USA where Eric Lichtblau and Scott Shane in a lengthy investigative article on the NYTimes are reporting on the efforts of the FDA to try and keep its scientists on a short leash by capturing the emails that some of them have "sent privately to members of Congress, lawyers, labor officials, journalists and even President Obama. . . ."

Encryption, suggests Chris Matyszczyk in a comment on the NYTimes article, is something we may al have to consider: this may just be the tip of the iceberg. Perhaps all bosses do it.

The FDA says it is not a big deal as only 5 scientists were involved (1 is too many). This all stems from disputed review procedures and it is feasible that those under watch may be right on that as well. Since when is it OK to monitor emails sent to members of Congress or to The President?

And why is it OK for the US government to do this when it criticises other countries for doing the same: unless it is the UK and the other Echelon allies of course?

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Graham K. Rogers teaches at the Faculty of Engineering, Mahidol University in Thailand. He wrote in the Bangkok Post, Database supplement on IT subjects. For the last seven years of Database he wrote a column on Apple and Macs.