Here at the CTIA Wireless conference in San Francisco, Quickoffice, historically a mobile documents viewer for Nokia phones, is showing off demos for four new iPhone and iPod Touch apps aimed at Apple’s contingent of MobileMe users.
The first, called MobileFiles, will let you view e-mail attachments, including Google and Box.net documents from your iPhone, something that iPhones don’t currently allow. Quickoffice is expected to launch MobileFiles as a free, view-only app in November.
Following that, Quickoffice plans to release three more applications for reading and editing spreadsheets, Microsoft Word documents, and PowerPoint presentations, respectively. Called Quicksheet, Quickpoint, and Quickword, the three editors will likely go for $10 apiece. On the performance end, Quicksheet and Quickword clearly displayed MobileMe attachments as multipage files and allowed users two ways to edit by tapping the screen. $30 seems like a hefty surcharge for the privilege of editing and saving all three document types back to the MobileMe account from the iPhone, especially when the viewing documents alone will be free. Not all users will need all three editors, but those who do should receive a markdown for purchasing the entire suite.
Unless a competitor steps up to challenge the pricing and app layout, by the time Quickoffice’s premium applications launch in Q1, Quickoffice will have the market advantage. We haven’t heard much from DataViz, the likeliest contender, about an iPhone play, though with the company fresh off releasing new versions of its flagship viewer, Documents To Go, for Windows Mobile Pocket PCs and BlackBerry, iPhone is their next logical platform to conquer. (Reprinted from CNET Reviews)
Ayelet Waldman is opening boxes. “My mail carrier is having heart palpitations,” she says. A week ago, Waldman sent a casual e-mail –- it “had all these typos” –- to just five friends, asking them to donate books to benefit Barack Obama. To her surprise, “the thing goes completely viral. All of a sudden I start getting this stuff in the mail.”
In seven days, hundreds of books have arrived. First editions from Stephen King and Billy Collins. Books from Anne Tyler, Tobias Wolff, Lisa See, Jodi Picoult, Jonathan Lethem, Dave Eggers. From Jamie Lee Curtis and David Leavitt and Judy Blume. Greil Marcus’ donated books each arrived with a limited-edition companion CD. While we talk on the phone, she opens a package with three books from Erica Jong and a note from the author.
The fundraiser that started it all will be hosted by restaurateur Alice Waters in a private San Francisco Bay Area home; the books will be part of an auction there. But the overwhelming response means that they’ll be available at other Obama fundraisers too.
One in the planning stages includes appearances by Michael Chabon (Waldman’s husband), Anne Lamott, Tobias Wolff and Isabel Allende. Things are happening so fast, though, that details for the events, which will be open to the public, are not yet available.
Waldman has been so focused on her efforts to support Obama — this is “too important an election,” she says — that her own work has gotten a bit buried. Pulling more packages out from a stack, she discovered the edits to her memoir in progress, “Bad Mother: A Chronicle of Maternal Crimes, Minor Calamities and Occasional Moments of Grace.” (Reprinted from the Los Angeles Times)
The Mist: The movie begins with David Drayton, the main character, hand painting a movie poster for an upcoming film. He is a poster artist. A collection of his other original works, including posters from The Thing, Shawshank Redemption, Pan’s Labyrinth, Green Mile and other paintings actually by Drew Struzan can be seen in his studio. He is painting a picture known immediately to Stephen King fans to be for his The Dark Tower. This is the original paintingcreated for the film.
HERE is a fun way to recycle your NetFlix flaps. NetFlix tear-off flaps are sturdy, colorful, and perfect for origami and paper airplanes, so don’t just toss those wrappers into the recycling bin.
Although most origami requires special paper squares, this site adapted these designs so you can use NetFlix flaps without alteration. Just tear them off carefully at the perforated line and follow the step-by-step instructions for making paper-folding magic.
Apple has confirmed that Nike+iPod integration, featured in the new second-generation iPod touch, will not be coming to prior iPod touch, iPhone, or iPhone 3G models. The restriction stems from the technology required to connect the touch 2G to the receiver without using the standard dongle, which is absent in prior devices. Furthermore, the dongle will not work with the devices listed above.
Sony has announced the ICF-CD3iP, a third-generation iPod/iPhone clock radio dock with a modern new look. The front has a circular housing that features a clock, AM/FM radio and a CD player.An attached base on the side holds the Apple device itself.
Music can be played using any of the sources and includes MP3 CDs and CD-R/RW audio discs. The iPhone or iPod are integrated with the alarm clock to wake up the owner and can be controlled using the included remote control. The ICF-CD3iP will be available in October with a price estimated at $100.
With so much positive buzz and so much business The Dark Knight has created, it makes sense that Warner Brothers wants to keep the movie fresh in the minds of the Oscar players next year. Even with the DVD coming out in December, Warner’s is going to rerelease Dark Knight in January. Batman wants an Oscar.More literally, Warner Bros. wants a statuette — or 10 — for “The Dark Knight.” So the studio plans to rerelease its blockbuster Batman sequel in January, the height of Academy Awards voting season.“It’s just a matter of bringing it back as a reminder for people,” a studio insider said.Warners domestic distribution president Dan Fellman acknowledged ongoing talks with Imax executives about the prospect of restoring the Christian Bale starrer to some number of giant-screen venues in January. It’s uncertain if “Dark Knight” also will reappear in conventional venues at that point.Directed by Christopher Nolan, the film’s huge commercial and critical success has spurred talk of possible Oscar nominations for its director, producers and cast — most specifically Bale’s co-star, Health Ledger, for the late actor’s edgy performance as the Joker.To date, “Dark Knight” has rung up about $512 million domestically and $440 million internationally, including more than $55 million in Imax grosses. A pre-Oscars re-release would help assure its topping $1 billion worldwide, and any traction with nominations or wins would likely mean even greater boxoffice.But with the title set to hit DVD in December, it’s now apparent anyone hoping the Batman sequel would soar to “Titanic” heights will be disappointed. “Dark Knight” already ranks as the second-highest-grossing movie ever, after “Titanic’s” phenomenal $1.84 billion — a mix of $600.8 million in domestic boxoffice and $1.24 billion in foreign coin registered in 1997 and 1998. (From Latino Review)
The new commercial for the 4th generation iPod Nano is out which also means the next big indie band is about to go mainstream. The song playing over all those pretty colors is “Bruises” by a group called Chairlift. By being featured in the commercial, they’ve received the Apple touch which grants one lucky, obscure band instant stardom. At this point, Apple has proven that every time an ipod is created, an indie band gets their wings.
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