Pieroxy

These last few weeks, the press reported a number of incidents with the iPhone. More than isolated incidents, this phenomenon looks more and more like a global issue, and we dare think that the government should step in and declare it a public health concern.

Of course, many like to make fun of the various incidents and protagonists, even though there are more and more every day...

We had the chance to meet one of them. Here is his story.

Everything starts in the small town of Osage Beach, Missouri. Richard is timing his capacity to hold his breath with his iPhone. Richard is a scuba diver who trains himself with a stopwatch at home in his living room. As the iPhone is able to act as a stopwatch, he decided to use it for this particular task. Moreover, Richard installed the ChronoTweet application, allowing himself to instantly publish his best performances for his many friends around the world to see.

"I don't understand... I already read some scary stuff about iPhones exploding and screens breaking. To protect myself, I decided to put my iPhone in a ZipLoc bag during my apnea sessions. I don't want to take any risks with the contest."

Contest indeed, Ricardo wants to enter the Guinness book of World Records by beating the apnea world record. He is very touchy on anything that could disturb one of his sessions. Even if his iPhone were to explode, Rick would have to stay focused. The ZipLoc bag should protect him from whatever the iPhone could go through.

"I was holding my breath for one minute and fifty two seconds - about to break my personal record - when my iPhone started to tremble. The ZipLoc bag being a bit dirty, I didn't see the details of what was going on. I just saw it kinda opening in two and some stuff came out of the phone... The iPhone then started to shake furiously, jumping on the table. Unfortunately, I couldn't hold my breath anymore and had to take some air. I could have beaten my record!"

So far, our friend Dick thinks that the iPhone screen is just shattering, just like the other cases he's read about. But the most intriguing is yet to come. Unfortunately, Dickeroo will not witness the next few seconds, because he rushed out of the room to grab his video camera. He wants a digital camcorder, and then thinks that by filming the scene, he could maybe win one at "America's Funniest Home Videos" (AFV).

"When I came back, I couldn't see the iPhone. It was not on the table anymore. The noise behind my sofa led me to it. The damn thing was shaking furiously. And then I noticed something that stuck out of the ZipLoc bag... It looked like a gull wing or something, with feathers and stuff. By the time I to realized what was going on, another hole appeared in the bag and a second feather stuck out! My iPhone flew away before I could take a picture."

In fact, Dick'o'Dick couldn't find his video camera, so he got his still camera instead. He'll regret it later, as we'll soon discover.

"My iPhone was all crazy! It was flying inside my living room like a bird in a cage... hitting walls and doors. I tried to get a picture in vain. It was too fast."

Ricky went to open his door so that the poor animal could get and join it's kind. Shocked, he had forgotten that it was his iPhone!!

"As soon as I opened the door, the iPhone flew away. Then I could get a decent shot !"

Magic Dick was kind enough to share his snapshot with us. We only got an "optimized" version, because he plan on selling the HD version.








Witnessing this incredible proof, we asked ourselves what the authorities would say. Luckily, he had already contacted the police.

"The police didn't believe my story. I don't know what's up with it, but as soon as I start telling my story, everyone laughs or looks at me as if I were insane. It's hard to get the message through. Even showing the picture, nobody believes it happened! This is all very hard on me, I'm going crazy!"

On top of this series of mind-boggling events, Dickie also had to endure the mockery of the police force. Dickie then turned to the manufacturer in desperation.

"I also called Apple directly. They were very polite and said they needed the iPhone to do some analysis and decide whether the warranty could apply. How can I do that? My phone flew away!"

Despite his best efforts, nobody would listen, let alone believe his story. Despite all this, Dickytykyty will keep a fond memory of this strange event. And he did learn his lesson.

"From now on, I'll be more careful. I'll always keep my video camera at hand. Had I filmed the scene, I could have won a digital camera! This crazy adventure would not have been in vain!"

When we announced to him that AFV was not likely to air again next season, Richard burst in tears. Too much emotions for one day...

Even if Ricky's case is so touching we have to remember all the other victims of the Apple-branded phone.

But wait! Before concluding on this story, some ground breaking news just hit the network from Europe! Another iPhone is at it again. From what we can gather, in France, the home button of an iPhone poped out and a small penis made its way through the hole! I can't believe it! This is incredible! I report it as is, it is too much to digest just now: In France, a woman in her sixties witnessed her iPhone sodomizing her dog!

A support group was set up promptly by the French authorities to assist the witnesses of this horrendous event. We unfortunately cannot give you more details at this time, our French language knowledge is ... very academic. You can however catch up with this story over there: http://myiphonefuckedmydog.fr. For some reason, you apparently have to pay to get through.

But let's get back to lovely Ricky, and let him give us the conclusion of this story:

"In any case, I won't buy just another one. I'll buy several iPhones. I didn't know these things were actually alive! I wouldn't want it to be bored. Maybe they can even reproduce! And by owning several, I increase my chances to get one on video! Waitaminute! I could rig my birdcage with webcams ...."

Apple will never cease to amaze us!

I have already talked about my now ex phone: The SPV-C500. This was a phone running Windows Mobile.

I now own an iPhone. I probably never would have bought an iPhone, but it was a gift.

Until I got one, I was very interested by the iPhone. No doubt I already loved it (virtually that is). And I laughed everytime I read an article saying "Nah, it ain't 3G, it's gonna flop". Or the like. And trust me, there was plenty of such nonsense all over the press. How could anyone resume the success of a device to the raw list of its functionnality is beyond me. iPods always have been behing their competitors on the feature list. Yet...

And so history repeats itself with the iPhone. Migrating from the SPV C500 to the iPhone has been going backwards on many levels. Or at least not going forward. No memory card slot, no replaceable battery, no standard Jack connector. And that's just on the hardware side. On the software side: No video recording, no vocal notes, no contact sending through bluetooth, No instant messaging, no games, no ability to search (textually) for a contact, no synchro without a wire, no mass storage (to be fair, the SPV is "almost" a mass storage), etc...

The only things that got better are the gorgeous screen, the 2MP camera and the EDGE network (and Wi-Fi). And even there, apart from the screen, the iPhone is vastly behing the competition. For instance, you can't place a call through Wi-Fi. No 3G. Camera is only 2MP, no flash.

And there, I remember almost every article before the iPhone got out shouting: "What the h*ll ? This is a lost cause. It's never going to work."

The first thing when you turn the thing on: You have a bunch of icons, under which is a short text that describes what it does. All of the iPhone software is there, one tap away from your fingers. And the label clearly states what you are going to find behind, save Safari and iTunes where, if you're not an Apple afficionado, you might wonder what the hell it means. When you start a Windows Mobile phone, you have a Start menu... Icons in the main screen don't have any labels. You're stuck to explore, when you should just have to choose.

The second thing you will notice is that there is no user guide. WHAT ???!! No user guide ? There is a small notice explaining a dozen tips, but no user guide.

And the explanation is that you don't need a user guide. Everything seems natural and sleak. Simple, powerful and sexy. And as always with Apple, you have the frustration of not being able to fine tune anything. That is the price to pay. And the price is small compared with the benefits.

The main problem with my SPV C500 is that most "advanced" features are so clumsy to use that you just get used to ... not using them. Getting to the calculator is 6 key taps. It is just too much for such a simple application. Not worth it.

There is the "lock-in" factor as well. I can install any app I want on my SPV, not on my iPhone. That said, I played a bit with my SPV that way, and ended up not using any app at all, save the MP3/Video player. The iPhone is already loaded on that front.

Complaints about my old phone? It doesn't work. If you really use extra features (camera, media player, etc...) the thing will let you down on a phone call after several days of uptime. For sure. So you don't use the extra features anymore.

Another complaint? The user interface has been designed by a "blind monkey". I love that expression in that it is very visual, funny and right on spot. To be really fair, there are a few things - interface wise - that are really well thought out. The rest is horrendous. On the iPhone, everything is on the same level. Simple, intuitive, appealing.

In short, the iphone is something you get used to in no time. Will I get tired of it? Only time will tell. For now, given the choice, I'd go back to no other phone.

A small update to the last post, "I, Pirate".

amazon.com (along with others) have started to offer MP3 downloads. No DRM, no hassle. You pay, you download, you own a copy. As simple as pirating the file.

As for free music downloads (such as the Radiohead initiative and the latest Harvey Danger album for example) I will always be drawn to these type of initiatives. It cost less for me (even if I end up paying) and it rewards the artist more. I payed $5 for the Harvey Danger album, which is less that any album I could buy from the "commercial" circuit. And I'm sure it's more than whatever they were making out of an album sale through the regular music channels.

Then, the artist (remember, that's the guy I like, not the 154 people in the middle all getting their cut) will get the money, and THEY will choose who they want to pay for their promotion, music recording studio and all. Not the other way around.

All in all, I am sure things are going to stabilize on this kind of distribution (either the amazon.com initiative or the radiohead one). The RIAA affiliates hold on the various distribution channels (which made them a monopoly) is dissolving at last and their position in the distribution channel is going to be of a lesser importance, for the benefit of the artists - and thus the benefit of music.

Times have changed, and producing an album for an artists is not something that involves millions of dollars in hardware anymore. Along with a new distribution channel that is free for them to use, they don't need the RIAA as much as they used to.

That's my take on the issue. Go Music, go ! Die RIAA, die !

Disclaimer: The following is a fiction, all liability discarded - or so I hope.

I used to buy CDs when it comes to acquiring music. I do not do it much anymore, even though I haven't completely stopped. The new distribution I use is called P2P. Why?

I discovered P2P with Napster, just when I left college. It was reasonnably clumsy and it was honestly quite a bit of work to find worthy music on the network. Truncated MP3s were legion, and low bitrates didn't encourage one to download much. I did download much (in the hundreds of albums), but I barely kept anything from this period. However, it was an almost perfect preview tool. At that time, I almost never bought a CD I hadn't previewed through Napster.

I can say with an absolute certainty that Napster increased the revenue I gently let flow from myself to the RIAA affiliates.

But from the instability of the first implementation, legion of P2P networks flourished. Gnutella was full of promises, but I never quite could download anything out of it. Technical difficulties... Kazaa was great, but it was quickly loaded with *#~$ware. As of today, a few are worthy of a second look. Amongst them are Emule and BitTorrent.

And the deal is different, in that one can "acquire" an album at a great quality (at least 192kbps) in a few minutes - hours for the rarest tracks. That is when I started downloading stuff that I actually kept. No more buying involved for the distribution was stunningly convenient - and the shortcomings of the Napster era gone. A new distribution scheme was born, and I was firmly decided to stick to it. The convenience of having anything available just a few clicks and a few minutes away was too great of an advantage over the Tower Records model.

As a personal note here, I will add that this period was coupled with a great change in my personal life: Three kids in 20 month. The free time I used to have to go shopping for music vanished almost entirely.

At that time I started looking for alternatives. While the convenience of not having to pay is a definitive advantage - and I don't mind doing it from time to time - relying exclusively on that have moral implications that disturbs me a bit. Be reassured, I sleep well at night. But I also like to do the "Good Thing"™ when possible. So I looked for alternatives.

Well, the look was quick. There are three:

1. iTunes &, co. These are the "DRM" stores, approved by the RIAA and distributing RIAA content. Well, I happen to use Windows Media Center at home. So buying music from iTunes will prevent me from playing my music in my living room. Hmmm, I think I'll pass. Then again, I have an iPod I listen to every day while going to work. So buying from any other store will also be a problem, since I will not be able to listen to my (or should I say their) music on my iPod. Thanks to DRM, the "regular" stores are out of the way.


2. Indy labels. While I think this alternative might one day overcome the DRM stores - by sheer interoperability - I haven't had a lot of time to dig into indy music to find stuff I like. And the lack of public performance and distribution makes that step necessary before I start buying.


3. allofmp3.com. Well, all the RIAA are on their back, so I think they would not define it as being "legal" in my home country. So much for it.

So all in all, the fabulous distribution medium I had found with P2P is still widely unmatched by any "legal" alternative. And now that I have set foot in it, I find that it is highly addictive.

So, will I be a pirate for long? I hope not. These are not values I want to teach my kids - nor do I want to live with them for too long - so it will have to stop in a while. I still have some margin though, I can cope with being a pirate a bit longer.

The late RIAA's actions tend to indicate that they do not want this new medium to be matched any time soon. So all in all, I have two alternatives to that:

• Break my addiction. This will be a painful process and I see no strong compelling reason to do so...


• Have a serious look into indy labels. How funny that the RIAA itself drove me to that unique alternative.

So the problem, and I don't think I am the only one in this situation, is very simple. P2P showed a new distribution model that is a revolution. And it is nobody's fault: it was bound to be invented. Instead of embracing it, the RIAA and affiliates are doing their very best to destroy it, hide it and make it illegal. The negative approach. Instead, they could have embraced it and have benefitted from its dynamic.

Of course, a starving student will prefer downloading for free instead of paying. But he wouldn't have bought in any case. So it is maybe better to let him get accustomed to plenty of music, so that when he'll be a tad richer he can at least buy some stuff. Suing him will benefit no one, and certainly not the artists.

A while ago, I discovered eBay. It had all the required attributes (for me) to make itself an indispensable companion: Simple, free and efficient. And I created my first Paypal account, which had all the attributes required (for me) to make the perfect payment system over the internet: Simple, free and efficient.

Some time ago, eBay wasn't free anymore. They would take away 1% or 2% off of the auctions that would sell. And I thought that was well and good. After all, they provide the service that allowed me to sell in the first place.

At that time, I sold numerous stuff on ebay, and I failed to sell others. Anytime I had something lying around that could remotely interest someone, I'd list it up on eBay. And it worked fine.

But that time is long gone. Listing on eBay isn't free anymore. Charges on a successful auction aren't 1% anymore and Paypal is rotten to the core. When you sell something on eBay (with Paypal), you'll be lucky if they take away less than 10% of the overall transaction. And if you're unlucky and your auction doesn't sell, you will actually loose money.

And more recently, someone got hold of the classified market: craigslist. When I first had a look at it I wondered how did something like that (I mean it's gotten bettter, but it used to be real ugly) could overshadow eBay. And I started using it. And I realised there was another contender that had all that eBay had - and had lost: Simple, free and efficient.

eBay will probably not die, but it has lost what made it what it is: People wanting a quick buck out of their stuff lying around.

The competition is open again.

Well, I thought that after 6 month you can get a more in depth review. First of all, I am not a reviewer, so forgive me, but I have tested only stuff that I use.

I have tested reading. I have actually done a bit of reading on my phone since then and the screen is big enough to be pleasant. Tiny eBook Reader is my reader of choice.

I have tested the alarm. I wake up every day with the ring of my smartphone. When it rings. Because after a long enough runtime, it just doesn't ring anymore. No error message, no nothing. It just stops working. Workaround: Reboot the damn thing before going to bed. It has worked so far, but I've lost something precious in the meantime: Trust in my phone-that'd-like-to-be-a-PDA. And keep on reading for more.

The camera works on the same grounds. After a couple of days, the camera stops working. So you have to run the task manager and kill unused tasks. Yeah, there's no way to kill an application, so after a while, memory gets clogged. All the games, browsing, music playing and all just leave their processes in memory. So you've got to kill them off.

After a week of runtime and enough activity (games, reading, play videos, etc...), the camera will just stop working as well. And there, no amount of task manager is going to save you. Reboot is necessary.

After all, it is a phone. Well, errrr... the phone works also on the same grounds. After a while (few week's runtime) the phone stops working as well. Nothing seems wrong, but you can't call anyone (the call just fails) and noone can call you (the phone doesn't ring).

So all in all, if you really want to use that thing, you have to reboot it once a day, at least. And then the boot-up time becomes an issue (see my previous entry on the subject).

Good job Microsoft at screwing up this Windows Mobile thing so badly.

It is fate that drove me to this smartphone. I would have hesitated in getting a Windows CE smartphone. Well, I own one now.

What is there to say? I got the phone a month ago, and am ready to express my first comments. I must concede that they are mostly criticism. I must also concede that I haven't own a cellular phone in 4 years before this episode.

First of all, the first thing you do with your telephone: Turning it on. Or shoud I say booting it up? Believe it or not, from the point you press the power button to the prompt for your PIN, 55 seconds have elapsed. It is just unacceptable, especially compared to my last phone.

The OS in itself is just non responsive. Clicking on a key will trigger the proper action anywhere between half a second and two seconds. Talk about being unacceptable! I believe the proper word is 'sluggish'.

Another very significant thing: Ringtones. Of course, I wanted to put my own ringtones! Very simple: Just drop any MP3/WAV/MIDI file in 'My Documents' and select it in the menu. So far, so good. Then I tried to customize the other ringtones: Alert, SMS received, etc... For these, strangely, my already uploaded ringtones didn't show up in the list. After a small investigation, it turns out that it must be a WAV file, and nothing else. Not a big deal, these being rather short tones anyways. But strange.

Then I tried to add custom rings to my contacts. Here, again, none of the already existing tones used did show up in the list. Reminds me of something... After numerous retries, no way. I try every conceivable format, every location to copy the file to in vain. I decide that these must be customized with the build-in tones... It's only after a few days that I realize that one of my tests did indeed work: It was in the list!!!! After a complete investigation, it appears that to show up in this list, the files must be in WMA, located in 'Application Data\Sounds' and that you must turn off and on the phone before anything copied there would show up. Wow!

On the bright side, Windows media player does a fine job at pretty much anything you throw at it. Videos are fine, music as well. One regret: The sound level on the headphones is too low to allow the phone to be used as an MP3 player (with the mini-sd slot). That's even more unfortunate as it would play DRMed WMA files...

IE is a nice add-on as well, working surprisely fine with JavaScript and all enabled. Not blazingly fast, but I had no problems navigating websites totally not designed for it!! I actually had no issues with anything I did browse so far.

Oh well... It is a phone after all. It does a fine job on this count.

Ah, before I'm done, I wanted to relate my first crash! I was browsing weather.com and the screen went blank for 5+ minutes. I had to remove the battery. Rebooted, gave me an error message and re-rebooted once more. All my presets (background, custom ringtones, etc...) were reset to factory defaults. Ouch!

On the hardware side, the phone is really small, the screen is gorgeous, the camera is able to take half decent shots under not-too-contrasted lighting conditions (640x480).

Let's say I am pretty happy overall. It had the capacity to be a gorgeous phone, but for the software...