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September 30, 2008

iPhone Media Downloads - is Apple Stupid, Evil, or Weak?

As a new owner of an iPhone, I am very happy with the whole experience. The device is great.

As a media geek, I'm finding it difficult to something basic. And Apple seems to be working against me. Here's what's frustrating:

I want to be able to update the media on my iPhone over-the-air. I want my Podcasts to be updated automatically, without having to sync with my PC. I also want to be able to email radio shows automatically recorded as MP3 files (using Replay A/V) to my iPhone, and then play them. (Think TiVo for the radio - on your phone!) For me, this would be the coolest. But no luck :(

On the Podcast side, an app called Podcaster promised to do just that sort of thing, but was rejected from the Apple store for no apparent reason.

On the Radio show side, Replay A/V is able to send me emails with links to download radio shows automatically recorded by my home PC. I was hoping to be able to send myself radio shows to listen to on my iPhone. But alas, Safari is "unable to download" files from these links. (The links are generated by YouSendIt, which is integrated into Replay A/V).

So, here are my theories:

Stupidity: Is Apple so dumb as to disallow significant over-the-air media transfers for no good reason?

Evil: Is Apple disabling this capability in order to enable their own service?

Weak: Is Apple being bullied by AT&T to disallow too much 3G data traffic? (Another app that let you use your iPhone as a laptop modem was also killed by Apple.)

This is also puzzling given the Pandora player, which is also a media downloader, and works great on the iPhone. There's no way Apple could kill the Pandora app though, as it would create a huge outrage.

These uncertainties should be troubling to anyone seriously considering developing media enabled apps for the iPhone. And the authoritarian, opaque, random policies behind the app store really need to end, otherwise all the development talent will go to Android or some other truly open platform, the coolness of the iPhone notwithstanding.

Posted by Bill Dettering at 09:56 PM | Permalink | Technorati Tags: | Comments (2) | TrackBack

September 27, 2008

Article on Downloading Amazon VOD Videos

Technology often moves faster than the news! Here's an example:

We were featured in an article done by Reuters on September 26, mentioning how Replay Media Catcher was able to download movies from Amazon's new VOD (Video on Demand) service.

Apparently, Amazon was asked for comment, and shortly before the article hit the wires, they had updated their system, making Replay Media Catcher (for now anyway) unable to record. Other aspects in the article are still valid though, but Amazon was a particularly big part of the story.

Nevertheless, there are other ways to record from Amazon -- we recommend WM Capture. As this is a real-time high-quality recorder that works by capturing videos directly off of your PC's screen, there's no way it can be blocked.

The other interesting thing is how the story got going in the first place, which we're still trying to figure out. Stay tuned!

Posted by Bill Dettering at 11:40 AM | Permalink | Technorati Tags: | Comments (0) | TrackBack

September 22, 2008

Nice review of Applian's products

I usually don't blog back on any reviews of our products, but It's My Take had a nice personal touch I couldn't resist mentioning.

The money quote:

We should all be grateful to companies like Applian for bringing technology and culture to our doorsteps. These are truly creative and innovative people who still produce a real product, the kind of people who had made this country great. Compared to the parasites on Wall Street, whose only motivation seems to be greed and who are quickly bringing us to our destruction, they're like a beacon of light. We're powerless, I'm afraid, when it comes to repairing our economic foundations. Thanks to Applian Technologies, however – and all such – there is a means of escape.

May they all survive!

Posted by Bill Dettering at 08:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack


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