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What will it take to get every app on every platform? - Talk Mobile

By Talk Mobile, Wednesday, Jun 19, 2013 a 12:04 pm

There are three ways to choose what smartphone experience you're going to have: by carrier, by device, and by apps. Choosing by carrier places the quality of your voice and data service first, whereas making a decision based on the device means you're after a specific platform experience and hardware features. But choosing by apps is trickier.

The current array of mobile ecosystems is simultaneously fragmented and unified across the many platforms. Some major apps are available on all or most platforms, as are apps from smaller developers. Other apps are exclusive to a platform by virtue of features unique to the operating system or the resource constraints of the developer. But if you need that one app to do what you need to do, then the carrier or the device don't matter so much.

But what if all apps could be available on all platforms? Is cross-platform development something that developers should be concerned about, and what are the pitfalls that can be faced in doing so? Is it better to build an app specifically for each platform, or should the app be built with a cross-platform web-based framework?

Users and developers alike can agree that having an app available regardless of platform is a great ideal. But at what cost?

Let's get the conversation started!

What are you most looking forward to in OS X 10.9 Mavericks? [Poll]

By Richard Devine, Wednesday, Jun 19, 2013 a 7:13 pm

iOS 7 wasn't the only star of the show at WWDC 2013, OS X 10.9 Mavericks was officially announced and released to developers the very same day. During the keynote we saw the numerous new features that would be coming to the new version of OS X, including some until now iOS exclusive apps in Apple Maps and iBooks, and a consumer friendly approach to password management with the new iCloud Keychain. But, we want to hear from you guys; what are you most looking forward to in OS X 10.9 Mavericks?

iOS 7 and a second coat of paint

By Rene Ritchie, Wednesday, Jun 19, 2013 a 5:45 pm

Parts of iOS 7 shown off by Apple during the WWDC Keynote and on Apple.com look like we're still seeing the design briefs or wireframes rather than the final assets. Palettes have been chosen, elements have been put in place, but so far it looks like iOS 7 hasn't been given the level of polish we've come to expect from Apple, even during the beta stage. From icons to interface elements to typography, we seem to be getting a very rare glimpse at a very early work-in-progress, and something that still needs of a second coat of design paint.

Apple TV keeps users from cutting the cable TV cord

By Peter Cohen, Wednesday, Jun 19, 2013 a 4:38 pm

Services like iTunes and products like Apple TV have made it easier than ever for people to "cut the cord" from cable TV - enabling them to pay either a la carte for programming they want or to use subscription-based services they think are worth the money, like Netflix or Hulu Plus. Apple's latest changes to Apple TV sadly don't do anything to help that move - in fact, they work against it.

Best cross-platform messaging apps every iPhone owner should know about!

By Allyson Kazmucha, Wednesday, Jun 19, 2013 a 3:06 pm

What will it take to get every app on every platform? That's the question we're asking on Talk Mobile today. When it comes to messaging solutions, there's definitely some fragmentation present. Odds are you have friends that don't have iPhones, but Androids or BlackBerries instead. Since iMessage is exclusive to iOS and OS X, you'll have to find another option to communicate with friends and family on other platforms. While texting is always a viable option domestically, international messaging is still an issue for many.

Here are the messaging apps we think you should check out if you need a better way to communicate with all the Android, BlackBerry, and Windows Phone users out there.

Debug 16: David Gelphman from Adobe to General Magic

By Rene Ritchie, Wednesday, Jun 19, 2013 a 10:33 am

David Gelphman, former graphics and imaging engineer at Apple, talks to Guy and Rene about working on Postscript at Adobe, his time at General Magic, and how to avoid inverting bug fix prognostication equations. (Part 1 of 2)

How to downgrade iOS 7 beta back to iOS 6

By Allyson Kazmucha, Tuesday, Jun 18, 2013 a 5:52 pm

Lots of people itch to try new iOS beta versions when they become available and iOS 7 has definitely attracted lots of people that were curious to try out the new features ahead of time. If you were one of those and didn't heed our warning about betas, you may find yourself frustrated with lots of bugs and annoyances.

Fortunately, there's a pretty easy way to get back onto iOS 6 without too much fuss. If you're regretting the decision to install iOS 7 beta, follow along and we'll help you get back to iOS 6.

ChemDraw for iPad review: Molecular structure creation, sharing, error checking, and more!

By Allyson Kazmucha, Tuesday, Jun 18, 2013 a 1:57 pm

ChemDraw for iPad allows you to not only create molecular structures directly on your iPad, but share them just as easily via email or ChemDraw's own Flick-to-Share™ technology that allows you to send structures to anyone else using the app. From chemistry student to chemist, ChemDraw is a great learning app and productivity tool wrapped into one.

Racing to the app grave: the dead, the zombies, and the parasites - Talk Mobile

By Talk Mobile, Tuesday, Jun 18, 2013 a 12:00 pm

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Your finger hovers over the download button in your smartphone's app store. Maybe it’s free, maybe it’s not. Even if it costs only 99 cents, you spend four times that much at Starbucks every day. Yet you hesitate, haunted by the memories of that app you downloaded a few years ago, fell in love with, and then watched as the servers shut down and the app was abandoned and left to wither and die on your launcher.

And that sometimes makes us hesitant to hand over money, even a dollar, for apps that a developer spent weeks, if not months or years, building. It makes us consider if paying up front for apps and services is the way to go, or to minimize risks by going with free-as-in-ad-supported apps instead, or to try and give developers more money through in-app purchases or subscriptions in hopes that maybe that will help keep them around.

It makes us wonder -- can we depend on our apps? Can we count on them to be there for us when we need them? And which ones?

Let's get the conversation started!

Game controller support in iOS 7 is a step in the right direction

By Peter Cohen, Monday, Jun 17, 2013 a 4:46 pm

Introducing iOS 7 at WWDC last week, Apple's Craig Federighi mentioned MFi game controller support in passing. Apple's announcement has long-term ramifications for iOS 7 as viable gaming platform.