The first Apple iPad commercial aired during the Oscars tonight. I can’t wait for the iPad to come out.

This also does explain why Steve Jobs was spotted by a spectator at the Oscars in the picture below. The iPad is getting closer, are you ready?

Source: http://waynesutton.net/

Technorati Tags: Apple, ipad, ipad commercial, oscars, steve jobs, Tech News

News released from Xbox on March 5th states that there is an update to the Xbox Live Code of Conduct. The new code of conduct has a distinct change that I feel needs to be mentioned. The new Code of Conduct allows a person to express their orientation in their profile or gamertag. Here is an excerpt from the Code of Conduct:

You may use the following terms to express your relation ship orientation in your profile or Gamertag:

• Lesbian
• Gay
• Bi
• Transgender
• Straight

CNET News was told by Stephen Toulouse, the head of policy and enforcement for Xbox Live that he felt the previous policy regarding members expressing their sexual orientation was “inelegent” and that though he and his team were working on improving the situation, they had no timetable. Xbox did this to alleviate discrimination concerns that may have been plaguing them in the past. I am sure these changes are welcomed by tons of Xbox Live members. I also applaud Xbox for making this change in support of their customers. Xbox needed this change to remain diverse in their 23 million member strong community.

Technorati Tags: code of conduct, microsoft, Tech News, xbox, xbox live

Steve Ballmer made a visit to the University of Washington on the 5th to talk about the importance of cloud computing. While he was there he hinted at a possible smaller form factor Xbox 360 and different pricing points for them. Here is a quote from Ballmer:

For that big screen device … there’s no diversity. You get exactly the Xboxes that we build for you. We may have more form factors in the future that are designed for various price points and options, but we think it’s going to [be] important. (Source: Engadget)

Now who would’nt want a smaller more slim Xbox 360, the Xbox can finally compete with the new PS3 Slim. Now, What would Microsoft charge for the new Xbox, who knows but I would pay it. Also don’t forget Microsoft has Project Natal comming soon to Xbox 360, could they include the hardware with the new system? That would be pretty sweet to be able to get an Xbox with the hardware integrated and not have to worry about the bar that the Wii has. I am excited to see the new Xbox 360, heres to hoping.

Technorati Tags: project natal, steve ballmer, xbox 360, xbox 360 slim

The Apple iPad has been announced for release on April 3rd by Apple. But if you visit the iPad page on Apple.com you notice at the bottom of the page it says “This device has not yet been authorized as required by the rules of the Federal Communications Commission. This device is not, and may not be, offered for sale or lease, or sold or leased, until authorization is obtained.” I can only assume that is why the iPad release date is set behind the announcement date.

None the less, the iPad release date, the date it will be in stores for purchasing is April 3rd and preorders start March 12th.

Technorati Tags: Apple, ipad, itablet, Tech News

Source – Engadget

The Microsoft Courier is supposed to be a device that will allow you to write in it like a notebook or a book. According to Gizmodo, the device will ship with dual 7-inch screens on each side. It appears that the functionality of the Courier is much like a blog or an online journal. The Courier seems to have Bing Maps integrated into it as well. The pictures of the drawings on the screen are stunning to say the least, but will it hold up when it is released in the fall (rumor)?

Technorati Tags: gadgets, microsoft, microsoft courier, Tech News

Hello, I have started my own personal Blog where I can rant and rave. Check it out at http://matt.tekgoblin.com. Thanks!

Technorati Tags: blog, matt

Netflix recently sent out a survey to select members that specifically asked if members would like to be able to stream Netflix from their iPhone. Netflix has been steadily expanding its business from DVD’s to instant streaming to a computer, to streaming on the Xbox, Playstation 3, and even the Wii. Now the rumors are that it will be unlikely that AT&T will let us use Netflix over 3G, so it will likely be over Wifi which I feel is fine for now.

Survey text as follows:

“Imagine that Netflix offers its subscribers the ability to instantly watch movies & TV episodes on their iPhone. The selection availability to instantly watch includes some new releases, lots of classics and TV episodes. There are no advertisements or trailers, and movies start in as little as 30 seconds. You can fast-forward, rewind, and pause or watch again. The movies & TV episodes you instantly watch are included in your Netflix membership for no additional fee.

Whenever you want to instantly watch content on your iPhone, your iPhone must be connected to a Wi-Fi network (such as one you might have at home or at work, or in public places like coffee shops, book stores, hotels, airports, etc.)

If this functionality were available, how likely would you or someone in your household be to instantly watch movies & TV episodes on your iPhone via a Wi-Fi network?” (Source: HackingNetflix.com)

According to HackingNetflix.com, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings told Reuters that an iPhone app would not be released in the near future. Heres hoping. Whats you opinion, would you like to see it?

Image Source: hackingnetflix.com

Technorati Tags: iPhone, netflix, netflix iphone, News, Tech News, technology

Sky Master, created by iCoder is an iPhone application dedicated to providing its users incredible views of the sky based on their location. You can view the sky based on your location, you can see stars and planets as well as zoom in on them. You can select specific stars or search for specific stars or constellations and see their exact locations on the screen and more detailed pictures. This app will tell you what is out there.

Sky Master is a very interesting and innovative application with lots of potential. The only flaw that I have seen with their current release 2.0 is that it tends to crash sporadically. I will keep my eye on this app, because once the stability is fixed, the app will be even more valuable.

TekGoblin Reviews rating:

Official Feature list:

• View the entire night and day sky as viewed from anywhere on Earth with detailed information about planets, stars, constellations and galaxies.
• Use the time feature to fast-forward and or rewind time to see what sky would look like at any date and time. Watch animations of the stars and planets in motion with time exaggerated time feature which allows you to speed up movements millions of times for practical viewing. Lock-on to an object by tapping it and follow it through time.
• Uses GPS to determine your location or you can enter other coordinates manually.
• Use the solar system simulator to view planet’s positions relative to each other at any point in the past or future.
• Pan 360 degrees and zoom in on an area of interest as viewed from any point on earth. Sky Master also allows you to pan below the horizon to see objects out of your line of sight.
• Search for celestial objects by name.
• Setting panel gives you the ability to adjustable star luminosity, add/remove labels for planets and constellations, activate the star target feature (requires you to be fully zoomed in) which gives the azimuth and angular altitude of any point in the sky and allows you to activate observer mode which tints the entire screen in a shade of red as to preserve your night vision for real-time star viewing (without this mode your eyes would have to constantly adjust from the bright iPhone screen to the dark night sky).
• Includes additional imagery and information on well over 100 popular astronomy targets including clusters, galaxies, and other celestial formations. Just touch the marked points in the sky and press the info button for more details on the object.
• At only $2.99, Sky Master offers incredible value and puts millennia worth of collective data about the heavens at your fingertips.

Technorati Tags: Apple, astonomy, Education, icoder, iPhone, review, stars

I have written a lot of reviews for various iPhone apps so I thought I would put together some of my favorite ones in a list of Top 5.

1. SoundHound

First on my list is an app by Melodis called SoundHound. With the Soundhound app you are able to identify any song that may be playing around you easily. SoundHound is not just limited to listening to a song already playing, SoundHound can also identify a song that you are humming or singing as well. SoundHound also features, speak a title or artist as well as search for a specific title or artist. Some new features to SoundHound include Pandora stations based on what kind of music you like.
Official Features:

• Just hold your iPhone up to a speaker, and SoundHound names the tune in as little as five seconds!
• It even works if you sing or hum the melody, or if you do it while an iPod song plays – no more title or artist confusion for your iPod songs.
• Instant lyrics and lyrics text search for most songs – whether you find the song with SoundHound or have it in your iPod.
• The world’s first ever combined “My Music” and online search: when your SoundHound search results match a song in your iPod library, you’ll see an iPod icon right there to play your own version.
• Charts of the hottest songs, just grabbed songs, and SoundHound’s much-anticipated “Underplayed” list.
• Groundbreaking new design with instant access to previews, bios, top songs and YouTube videos.
• Sharing on email, Facebook and Twitter.

• See lyrics for most songs
• Play the song right from your iPod if you already have it
• See lyrics, bios and more for any iPod song
• See top songs for the artist, and which ones you already own on your iPod
• Buy the song in iTunes
• Share it over email, Facebook, or Twitter
• Check out the whole album, or the artist – including a bio, photos, similar artists, and top songs
• Play a free preview or youTube videos without leaving SoundHound
• Instantly launch a Pandora station based on any song or artist. (US only)
• Tour Dates – See when and where your new favorite band is playing.

View original review here: http://www.tekgoblin.com/1241/apps/apple-apps/soundhound/

2. AirYell

My second most favorite and most used app would be the AirYell app by Avantar. The AirYell app for the iPhone allows you to search Yellowpages.com for the phone numbers and locations of businesses around your or what you are searching for. AirYell is a very handy app, I use it all the time to find the phone number to somewhere I am going or want to go.

Official Feature List:

• Auto-detects your current location
• Finds local businesses and services, giving you a distance reading from where you stand
• A robust national business directory search
• Single tap to driving directions
• Single tap to call option

Original Review: http://www.tekgoblin.com/490/apps/apple-apps/airyell-yellowpages-app/

3. RedLaser

My third most favorite app is RedLaser by Occipital. The RedLaser app for the iPhone allows you to scan barcodes where ever you are! Say if you are in the supermarket and want to see if you can get the same thing somewhere else cheaper, just scan it with RedLaser. RedLaser will then compare the prices to competitors online. This app comes in very handy when you are trying to save money.

RedLaser Official Feature list:

• Scans UPC, EAN, UPC-E, EAN-8
• US and UK Searches for prices with TheFind Product Search as well as Google Product Search
• Local search powered by TheFind (US Only)
• Email a list of products
• Send barcodes as email attachment
• Search ANY website using a custom URL
• Automatic search localization for USD, EUR, and GDP
• Multiple scan mode for quicker entry
• Search local libraries for books (US)
• Exclusively scans new Repo Men movie posters

Original Review: http://www.tekgoblin.com/1162/apps/apple-apps/redlaser/

4. Personal Assistant by Pageonce

My fourth app for the iPhone will be the Personal Assistant app by Pageonce. With the Personal Assistant app, you can virtually do anything! The Personal Assistant app allows you to access all of your bank accounts, shopping accounts like Costco, Netflix, etc, and more… The Personal Assistant app is just a really good choice if you want an app that makes everything easy.

Official Feature List:

• Monitor banking, credit card transactions and investment accounts
• Keep track of frequent flyer miles, travel itineraries and flight information in real-time
• Track cell phone minutes and get reminders when your bills are due
• Stay on top of bill due dates and expiration dates
• Guard against fraudulent activity
• View your Netflix queue, eBay bids, and view feeds from your social networking sites

Original Review: http://www.tekgoblin.com/2018/apps/apple-apps/personal-assistant-by-pageonce/

5. Eliminate

The Eliminate app from Ngmoco, is my final app for this list. Eliminate is what I believe to be the best FREE first person shooter on the iPhone to date. Eliminate has stunning graphics and awesome game play. Eliminate features global multiplayer competition over 3G or Wifi. Eliminate is relatively easy to use on your iPhone or iPod Touch, it may take some practice but soon you will be fragging with the best of them.

Original Review: http://www.tekgoblin.com/596/apps/apple-apps/eliminate/

I hoped you liked our first Top 5 list, please let us know what you think by posting a comment below or sharing this post with friends, Thanks from TekGoblin Reviews!

Technorati Tags: Apple, favorite, favorite apps, iPhone, iphone app, ipod, tech, Tech News, tekgoblin, top 5

Today, Apple announced that the iTunes store has hit 10 Billion Songs Sold. The 10 billionth song that was downloaded was “Guess Things Happen That Way” by Johnny Cash. The person that downloaded the 10 billionth song was awarded a $10,000 iTunes gift card for being soo darn lucky. The person that got the card was Louie Sulcer of Woodstock, Georgia. According to Wikipedia Louie got a call from Steve Jobs himself and got the surprise.

Eddie Crue, Apples vice president of internet affairs said:

“We’re grateful to all of our customers for helping us reach this amazing milestone,”

“We’re proud that iTunes has become the number one music retailer in the world, and selling 10 billion songs is truly staggering.”

The Apple iTunes music store opened on April 28, 2003.

History of the iTunes Music store (Source: Wikipedia)

• 100 million songs sold: Summer, 2004

(Kevin Britten of Hays, Kansas, bought the 100 millionth song, and the twenty-year-old was given a call from Steve Jobs congratulating him.)^[32]

• 125 million songs sold: September 1, 2004^[33]
• 150 million songs sold: October 14, 2004^[34]
• 200 million songs sold: December 16, 2004

(Ryan Alekman of Belchertown, Massachusetts, USA, bought the 200 millionth song, which was one of the tracks on U2’s digital box set The Complete U2.)^[35]

• 250 million songs sold: January 24, 2005^[36]
• 300 million songs sold: March 2, 2005^[37]
• 400 million songs sold: May 10, 2005^[38]

On July 5, 2005 Apple announced a promotion counting down to half a billion songs sold.^[39]

• 500 million songs sold: July 18, 2005

(Amy Greer of Lafayette, Indiana, USA, bought the 500 millionth song, “Mississippi Girl” by Faith Hill.)^[40]

• 850 million songs sold: January 10, 2006^[41]
• 1 billion songs sold: February 23, 2006

(Alex Ostrovsky of West Bloomfield, Michigan, bought the billionth song, “Speed of Sound” by Coldplay.^[42] He later got a call from Steve Jobs with the good news that the sixteen-year-old was getting ten iPods, an iMac, a $10,000 music gift certificate, and a scholarship established in his name at the Juilliard School.)^[32]

• 1.5 billion songs sold: September 12, 2006^[43]
• 2 billion songs sold: January 10, 2007^[43]
• 2.5 billion songs sold: April 9, 2007^[44]
• 3 billion songs sold: July 31, 2007^[45]
• 4 billion songs sold: January 15, 2008
• 5 billion songs sold: June 19, 2008^[46]
• 6 billion songs sold: January 6, 2009^[47]
• 8 billion songs sold: July 21, 2009
• 8.6 billion songs sold: September 9, 2009
• 10 billion songs sold: February 24, 2010^[48]

Technorati Tags: 10 billion, Apple, itunes, music, Tech News

Who would have thought that jumping would be soo much fun? Doodle Jump is a game for the iPhone that will keep you glued to your iPhone till your battery dies. Doodle Jump is a relatively simple game, all you have to do is jump from platform to platform avoiding monsters and obstacles to reach the highest height and score. A unique and awesome feature to Doodle Jump is that while you are jumping you will see marks on the side of the screen that show other users highest scores. By seeing other users high scores it gives you something to strive for. Oh, did I mention that the game gets harder and more challenging the higher that you get? I do recommend you download Doodle Jump if you are looking for a fun and addictive game, its only &0.99 so download it already!

TekGoblin Reviews rating:

About Lima Sky (Creators):
Lima Sky is a New York based studio dedicated to creating entertaining and educational, well designed iPhone apps, with a special focus on fun apps for kids. We have been present on the iTunes App Store since July 2008. Eight of our apps have been featured by Apple on the App Store and many are constantly in the top 25 of their categories. Doodle Jump has reached the #1 Top Paid Games spot in the US and the #1 Top Paid App spot in the UK, Australia, Germany, Holland, Sweden, and Austria; and AniMatch made it to the #1 spot in kids games category in the US, Germany and France.

Technorati Tags: Apple, doodlejump, featured, Games, iPhone, lima sky

Apple is going to release its next maintenance patch to Snow Leopard being 10.6.3 very soon. From my sources I have heard that 10.6.3 fixed the 802.1x authentication issue with WPA enterprise. The new update did not just cover the airport, but covered many other things as well. The airport actually was not mentioned in the notes, but developers were asked to test the airport. This will be a welcome fix if it does actually fix the airport issue discussed above we have been having this kind of trouble here at Purdue University since 10.5.8.

10.6.3 Feature List:

Features

• Performance improvements for 64-bit Logic
• Addresses compatibility issues with OpenGL-based applications
• Includes changes to QuickTime X that increase reliability, improve compatibility and enhance security.
• Improves printing reliability and compatibility with 3rd party printers
• Respects the DNS server ordering as specified in Network Preferences
• Addresses an issue that causes background message colors to display incorrectly in Mail when scrolling
• Resolves an issue that prevented files with the # or & in their names from opening in Rosetta
• Resolves an issue that prevented files from copying to Windows shares
• Resolves an issue that caused machines using BTMM and the Bonjour Sleep Proxy to wake unexpectedly

Technorati Tags: 802.1x, airport, Apple, macintosh, snow leopard, Tech News

Newegg is selling video games for the PC, PS3, Xbox360, Wii at Blowout prices. Visit THIS LINK to get your as fast as possible before they are all sold out. I don’t know about you but $8-$9 video games and FREE SHIPPING sounds pretty good. I don’t like paying $70 a video game so this is awesome, check it out!

Technorati Tags: newegg, PC, ps3, video games, xbox, xbox360

Lower Merion School District responded to some of the questions regarding the recent privacy allegations regarding student laptops. the superintendent Christopher W. McGinley said the following:

Updated February 19, 2010

1. Did an assistant principal at Harriton ever have the ability to remotely monitor a student at home? Did she utilize a photo taken by a school-issued laptop to discipline a student?

• No. At no time did any high school administrator have the ability or actually access the security- tracking software. We believe that the administrator at Harriton has been unfairly portrayed and unjustly attacked in connection with her attempts to be supportive of a student and his family. The district never did and never would use such tactics as a basis for disciplinary action.

2. How were the decisions made to develop the original security plan? Were there/are there safeguards in place to ensure student privacy with regard to use of the security application?

• Concerned about the security of district-owned and issued laptops, the security plan was developed by the technology department to give the District the ability to recover lost, stolen or missing student laptops. This included tracking loaner laptops that may, against regulations, have been taken off campus.
• Only two members of the technology department could access the security feature.

3. Were students and families explicitly told about the laptop security system?

• No. There was no formal notice given to students or their families. The functionality and intended use of the security feature should have been communicated clearly to students and families.

4. How many thefts have there been? How many times was the system used? What have been the results in terms of recovery of computers?

• During the 2009-10 school year, 42 laptops were reported lost, stolen or missing and the tracking software was activated by the technology department in each instance. A total of 18 laptops were found or recovered. This number (18) is an updated number given the information we have compiled today.

5. What was the total cost of implementation of the laptop program?

• The approximate cost of each laptop is $1,000 and during the two years of the program, there were 2,620 laptops purchased.

6. How was funding obtained for the laptop program?

• Laptops were purchased using a combination of district funds and and Classrooms for the Future grants.

7. When was the district notified of the allegations contained in the lawsuit?

• The district learned of the allegations Thursday, February 18th. No complaints were received prior to this date. The district’s initial response was posted on the district webpage and communicated to students and parents the same day. The district will not be commenting on the specifics of the plaintiff’s complaint, however, outside the legal process.

8. In the future, will students be required to use district issued laptops?

• The district believes students received significant benefit from the one-to-one laptop program and has no intention of discontinuing the program.

9. Is remote access activity by the district logged?

• Yes. There is a log entry for every instance of the security feature activation. The logs will be reviewed as part of the special review conducted under the direction of special outside counsel.

10. Can parents return currently issued laptops to the district at this time?

• They can, but we note that the laptops are an integral component of the educational program in the district. The security feature has been deactivated and there is no reason to be concerned about the use of the laptop on campus or at home.

11. Did the district remotely access any laptops which were not lost, missing or stolen?

• No.

12. Are students allowed to cover the camera on their school issued laptops with tape?

• Yes. There is no requirement that a student use the camera’s standard webcam feature.

FAQs Posted February 18

1. Why are webcams installed on student laptops?

• The Apple computers that the District provides to students come equipped with webcams and students are free to utilize this feature for educational purposes.

2. Why was the remote tracking-security feature installed?

• Laptops are a frequent target for theft in schools and off school property. The security feature was installed to help locate a laptop in the event it was reported lost, missing or stolen so that the laptop could be returned to the student.

3. How did the security feature work?

• Upon a report of a suspected lost, stolen or missing laptop, the feature was activated by the District’s security and technology departments. The tracking-security feature was limited to taking a still image of the operator and the operator’s screen. This feature has only been used for the limited purpose of locating a lost, stolen or missing laptop. The District has not used the tracking feature or web cam for any other purpose or in any other manner whatsoever.

4. Do you anticipate reactivating the tracking-security feature?

Not without express written notification to all students and families.

Source: LMSD.org

Technorati Tags: laptop, lmsd, lower merion, merion, News, privacy, security, technology

TekGoblin Reviews rating:

iNet for the iPhone or iPod touch will allow you to see what hosts and services are available and running on your network. iNet allows you to scan the network that you are connected to for anything that is connected to it. When you find a particular host, you can run a port scan on it to see what ports are open, iNet will also display what Bonjour services are running and able to connect to. Bonjour services are zero configuration networking  services for connecting to devices such as printers.

The iNet app is really easy to use and I think it is very hand to see what is available on your network. iNet allows you to see what network vulnerabilities are visible on your own network from your mobile device.

The following features are available with iNet:

• Scan Network
• Ping
• Bonjour Browser
• Wake on LAN
• Portscan
• Device Info

Below is the official description of services from the iNet official site:

Scan network

iNet shows the devices connected to your local network, e. g. computer or router, along with their name, IP and vendor. You can find out the name, vendor and IP of the connected devices as well as the kind and number of running Bonjour services on that particular device. You can also perform a classic portscan on the choosen device.

The technology used in iNet scans on a very low level, therefore you even find machines that don`t want to be found, e. g. a computer running in stealth mode.

Most items are displayed by their real name so that you can easily identify what is going on in the network you are scanning, which computers are connected or which services are running. For most Apple Macintosh Computers you even see the particular computer model.

The last 10 scan results are saved automatically. In addition you can save your scan results and name them. A send scan per mail is available too.

Ping

Ping is a computer network tool used to test whether a particular host is reachable across an IP network. The ping section in iNet enables you to find out wether an IP exists (if its ping service is enabled; otherwise you will get no response ). For your convenience we added a bookmark function to store often needed addresses.

Bonjour-Browser

Bonjour or “zero configuration networking” is a widely used industry standard for connecting computer and computer devices ,e.g. printers. The Bonjour-Browser in iNet scans the connected local network for Bonjour services, detecting any hardware that ist connected via the Bonjour protocol (e. g. computer, router, printer, …) and any software running Bonjour services, e. g. iTunes® or Filemaker®.

Wake on lan

WOL is a wakeup tool for computer connected by an ethernet cable to a local network or to the internet. The outstanding feature of our implementation is its easiness of usage and the simple setup process. A bookmark function for often used hosts is integrated also. For more information see iNet WOL, the stand-alone tool for WOL.

Portscan

Applications on devices communicate with the outside world through so called TCP-Ports. iNet detects whether ports are open or closed.

A quick portscan is available after performing a network scan. Here iNet checks TCP ports in the range of 1 to 1000 plus a number of standard ports that are often used.

A sophisticated portscan is available via the main menu of iNet. You can select from predefined portlists, enter port ranges and single ports. The ports to scan can be saved per device. For all found open ports the service using this port is displayed by its real name if available.

Device info

The device info in iNet shows some information related to your iPhone or iPod touch, e. g. its name or its IP.

Technorati Tags: Apple, inet, inet pro, iPhone, ipod, network security, network vulnerabilities, security, technology

Some exciting stuff happening at Evernote, including new partners, and new Evernote versions. Evernote is an application that allows you to pretty much save everything from screen-shots, audio recordings, notes, etc… more info at Evernote. Below is an email I got from Evernote highlighting all of the upcoming changes.

We have some really exciting stuff to tell you about in this update. First, we released a completely new version of Evernote for Windows–make sure to read about it below. Then, we flew past the 2 million user mark (it’s closer to 2.4 now!). On top of all that, February is Partner Month, so we have lots of new partners and an exciting upcoming partner event in San Francisco. Wow. Onward to the updates.

- The all new Evernote 3.5 for Windows released! This is BIG.
- New partnerships and integrations
- Sony VAIO
- Nokia N900
- TimeBridge
- Cliqset
- New partner section on our website
- Evernote Notable Tech in San Francisco on Feb 25th
- Apple iPad plans

The all new Evernote 3.5 for Windows
Evernote 3.5 for Windows is completely new. We rewrote it from the ground up to make it faster, more reliable, and just plain better than Evernote for Windows has ever been. Our goal was to use everything we’ve learned since our launch to make a great Evernote experience on Windows. If you’re interested in trying Evernote 3.5, install it from our downloads page ( http://s.evernote.com/windows ). There’s a ton more to say, so please read our blog post(s): http://s.evernote.com/win35blog

New partnerships and integrations
- Sony VAIO: Every new Sony VAIO laptop comes with Evernote pre-installed. Neat! http://s.evernote.com/vaio
- Nokia N900: The Evernote Sharing Plugin makes Evernote a native sharing option on the N900 smartphone: http://s.evernote.com/nokia
- TimeBridge: TimeBridge helps you organize better meetings. Now, save all your meeting notes into Evernote: http://s.evernote.com/timebridge
- Cliqset: Evernote and Cliqset create a permanent memory for your social streams and activity: http://s.evernote.com/cliqset

New partner section
See all of the products that work with Evernote in one place: http://s.evernote.com/partnerpage

Evernote Notable Tech event
To close out Partner Month, we’re hosting our first Evernote Notable Tech event. Come out and see great partner demos, hear interesting discussions, and geek the night away. The event will be on February 25th in San Francisco. Hope to see you there. We want to give a very special thanks to our sponsors: Sony, Launchsquad, Fujitsu, TimeBridge, and mDigger. Get your free tickets here: http://s.evernote.com/notabletech

Apple iPad
We know you’re wondering. Rest assured, we have big plans for Apple’s amazing new device. Read our CEO’s blog post about Evernote’s history with tablets and plans for the iPad and other devices. Read the post: http://s.evernote.com/ipad

Tips to help you stay organized
6 Ways Evernote Can Boost Your Productivity – Guest Post By Joshua Zerkel: http://s.evernote.com/productivitytips

Evernote T-shirts
Did you get your Evernote T-shirt yet? Check out the Evernote Store for great men’s and women’s T-shirts: http://s.evernote.com/store

Get the latest Evernote news
Follow Evernote’s every move by reading our blog ( http://blog.evernote.com ), following us on Twitter ( http://www.twitter.com/evernote ), joining our Facebook fan page ( http://www.facebook.com/evernote ), listening to our podcasts ( http://s.evernote.com/podcast ), and checking out our tips blog (http://s.evernote.com/tips ).

Technorati Tags: evernote, evernote news, evernote update, technology

I just received an email that Cisco Systems is closing their affiliate program with Linkshare. Cisco states that they have changed their business strategy and have made the decision to suspend the affiliate program on Linkshare effective March 27, 2010. Below is the original email with contacts removed.

Dear Cisco Systems Affiliate,

Cisco Systems would like to thank you for your participation in our affiliate program. Given some recent changes in our business strategy, we have made a decision to suspend our Affiliate Program with LinkShare effective March 17, 2010. We understand that you have contributed time and valuable resources to support our business and we are deeply grateful.

Pursuant to our Affiliate Agreement between Cisco Systems Inc. and you, this shall serve as our formal written notice to shut down our Cisco Systems Inc Affiliate Agreement. You will be paid for all commissions earned on Net Orders received through an affiliate link based on the terms of our Agreement, plus any earned outstanding payments currently owed to affiliates. Affiliates sales commissions will not accrue after March 17th 2010. If you have changed your contact information, please update your profile at LinkShare so you can receive your final commission check in a timely manner.

Per our Agreement, you are required to remove any and all banners, buttons, text links, product images and store fronts that link to Cisco Systems Inc. by End of Business Day March 17th 2010. If you have any questions regarding this manner, please contact (email removed).

Once again, we thank you for supporting our business and appreciate your compliance with these provisions. We will be sure to keep you informed of some exciting, new opportunities for our affiliates in the second half of the year.

Sincerely,

(Removed)

Hopefully they will return to Linkshare in the near future.

Technorati Tags: affiliate, cisco, linkshare

The Lower Merion School District of Pennsylvania was recently accused of privacy invasion per this post. Now the school has released an official response to the allegations. According to the school, the security feature was installed in the laptops as an anti-theft device and was not intended to invade privacy. The software that was installed would take a photo of the person using the laptop after it was stolen to give to the authorities. Now this may be what it was intended for, but it seems that someone did’nt get the memo.

Read the press release below (Source: LMSD.org)

LMSD initial response to invasion of privacy allegation

Updated 2/18/10 5:26 PM

Dear LMSD Community,

Last year, our district became one of the first school systems in the United States to provide laptop computers to all high school students. This initiative has been well received and has provided educational benefits to our students.

The District is dedicated to protecting and promoting student privacy. The laptops do contain a security feature intended to track lost, stolen and missing laptops. This feature has been deactivated effective today.

The following questions and answers help explain the background behind the initial decision to install the tracking-security feature, its limited use, and next steps.

• Why are webcams installed on student laptops?

The Apple computers that the District provides to students come equipped with webcams and students are free to utilize this feature for educational purposes.

• Why was the remote tracking-security feature installed?

Laptops are a frequent target for theft in schools and off school property. The security feature was installed to help locate a laptop in the event it was reported lost, missing or stolen so that the laptop could be returned to the student.

• How did the security feature work?

Upon a report of a suspected lost, stolen or missing laptop, the feature was activated by the District’s security and technology departments. The tracking-security feature was limited to taking a still image of the operator and the operator’s screen. This feature has only been used for the limited purpose of locating a lost, stolen or missing laptop. The District has not used the tracking feature or web cam for any other purpose or in any other manner whatsoever.

• Do you anticipate reactivating the tracking-security feature?

Not without express written notification to all students and families.

We regret if this situation has caused any concern or inconvenience among our students and families. We are reviewing the matter and will provide an additional update as soon as information becomes available.

Sincerely,

Dr. Christopher McGinley
Superintendent

Technorati Tags: lower merion, lower merion school district, privacy, privacy invasion, Tech News, webcam, webcam privacy

TekGoblin Reviews rating:

The Personal Assistant app for the iPhone by Pageonce is a must have. What’s so great about the Personal Assistant app? I’ll tell you. The app has tons of features to make your day easier. The Personal Assistant app allows you to access various different accounts and services that you may have. For Example you can see updates to your flights, bank accounts, credit cards, Netflix, Amazon.com, and more…

The app has an easy to use interface which allows for quick navigation to everything within. Another great feature of this app is that it allows you to do remote deletion of private account data via the Pageonce website if your phone or iPod is stolen. The app includes the following options:

• Credit Card Control
• Bank Account Status
• Investment Portfolio
• Cell Minute Tracker
• Frequent Flyer Miles
• Travel Itineraries
• Shopping Management
• Bill Management
• Netflix Queue
• Alerts

Manage accounts from accounts such as:

• Bloomberg, Chase, Citibank, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Fidelity, United, Southwest, Comcast, AT&T, Blockbuster, Linkedin, MySpace, Facebook, Amazon, eBay, Skype, and thousands more.

The difference between the paid version and regular is, The paid version has no ads, refresh all accounts in one click, Real time flight information, exclusive personal pin number for added security.

I do recommend the Personal Assistant app if you would like to keep all of your accounts in one easy to use place for quick access. This app is also great if you are concerned with your private data, because it does allow data destruction upon theft of your device. If you are indeed concerned about your data and Pageonce, take a look at their privacy page here.

Technorati Tags: AT&T, bloomberg, citibank, comcast, ebay, facebook, iPhone, linkedin, netflix, pageonce, pageonce review, personal assistant, productivity app, review, skype, tech, technology

I would like to see a new feature on Wordpress. I would like to see the default comment system overhauled. The major change that I would like to see is the ability to have openID logins available to users by default and integrated into wordpress. I want so see logins such as Twitter, FaceBook, Google, etc. I feel that I should not have to rely on some commenting plugin that is not guaranteed to work properly with Wordpress. I often find myself troubleshooting those commenting plugins and their features when getting them to work with my site. The most common problem I see is a problem getting the pingback/trackback part working properly with the blog, as well as integrating site login with it.

I would be happy to pay Wordpress a small premium for them do develop this into a later release. The commenting system currently on the site by JS-Kit is not without issues.

(Image from: Afrison.com)

Technorati Tags: js-kit, openID, pingback, trackback, wordpress, wordpress comments

According to a post at boingboing.net and the court documents here, the Lower Merion School district of Pennsylvania was using school issued student laptops to spy on the students with the webcams. The school would issue the laptops for student use and then activate the webcams to spy on the students activities while they were using them. The major issue with this is privacy, the laptops could have been recording while in a bedroom or another intimate situation.

It was discovered that the school was doing this because they accused a student of improper behavior at home, and provided evidence from the webcam on the laptop. I dont even see how a school could discipline you while you are at home.

I just can’t believe that a school would invade your privacy without even telling you that they are doing so. I would like to see more on this issue, please post more info if you have it. Below is the actual court documents embeded.

Download (PDF, 627.68KB)

(Image from: DigitalTrends.com)

Technorati Tags: lawsuit, merion, privacy, privacy invasion, webcam, webcam spy

If you are an HD buff or simple HTPC fan then you will love Boxee. In CES 2010 we saw the Boxee new UI and in all honesty it was pretty clever. However, there were some issues with the new version. For me it was high CPU usage. I know that I do not have a high-end PC but why does the interface crash all the time. I used the new Boxee for 2 days and in the end uninstalled it with a heavy heart.

Nevertheless, I still did not give up on Boxee and so, we have a new Beta version, which according to the blog has 500 issues resolved. Five hundred is a very high number but I am hoping it will fix some problems that I was having before.

List of changes or fixes:

• Multilingual keyboard support: under settings->appearance->region to add keyboards
• Significantly improved video quality of our DXVA support
• Regained support for older graphics cards (pre-2.0 pixel shader) which was broken after move to DXVA
• Improved file scanning performance
• Hardware acceleration of H.264 on Intel HD4500 cards
• Hang on FLAC tag read over SMB
• SMB crashes when canceling SMB operations
• Hang on shutdown due to wait for SMB and file scanner
• Hang in file scanner when manually scanning a folder
• Hangs due to excessive locks around database pool
• Hangs when left idle due to UDP sockets leak
• Corrupted graphics on some ATI cards (X1600)
• Log file cycling (every 32M, old log overrides boxee.old.log)
• Present action dialog when clicking on DVD icon to allow browse/eject
• Optimization to file scanning making it less IO intensive
• Fixes to iPhone remote keyboard under Linux
• Added support for m4b playback (audio books)
• Crash in ID3 tag reading (playback and background scanning of some mp3 files)
• Crash in some wav files which contained extra-info in the wav header (playback and background scanning)
• Crash on some rss feeds caused by mis-parsing of empty http headers
• Crash on image extraction from mp3 tags (in some cases)
• win32: fixed runtime error in some cases where vc90 runtime was not installed properly
• Dual screen issues. sometimes a movie would only show black screen when switching screens.
• Allow apps to define properties for rtmp streaming
• Playback of some internet video streams, mainly coming from playlists (partial read of the network buffer was causing wrong codec detection)
• Playlist playback of internet video streams was sometimes using the music player instead of the video player
• Playback of music from history (was not working and now it will open the folder played from)
• Logout was broken enabling logging-in even after password change (was using stored cookie)
• Win32: when launching boxee while another instance is running it will just bring the other instance to front

DXVA support is improved which is good news since most HTPC users would want their GPU’s to do all the work.

So, don’t wait and download the latest version of boxee from here: Download

For more information: Link

Technorati Tags: Boxee, DXVA, fixes, HTPC, Mac, PC, tech, technology, update, windows 7

Now that the iPad has been announced, here are the Tech Specs from Apple. I will list their specs and then tell you my thoughts.

Display

• 9.7-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit glossy widescreen Multi-Touch display with IPS technology
• 1024-by-768-pixel resolution at 132 pixels per inch (ppi)
• Fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating

Size and weight

Technorati Tags: Apple, ipad, ipad tech specs, iPhone, ipod, itablet, itunes

Our site has changed! TekGoblin Reviews has a new look! Please come visit us at www.tekgoblin.com and check out our new design and let us know what you think by leaving a comment here!

Technorati Tags: new look, News, site news, tekgoblin, update

TekGoblin Reviews rating:

iFaceLaugh is one of those apps that you can just have fun with, and have fun using it with friends. The iFaceLaugh app allows you to record your best laughs and then compete with your friends for the best laugh. You can compete with your friends online with the app or send your laughs to family and friends.

The bonus game which allows you to compete to best mimic the current laugh selected is pretty fun and can be addicting.

Now iFaceLaugh may not have a practical use, but if you and your friends are bored and want to have some fun, try iFaceLaugh.

Official Feature List:

• Embed recorded laughs or other sounds into photos
• Collect and send “facelaughs” to family and friends
• Play all facelaughs at once
• Includes a great laugh imitation game called laugh a laugh

Technorati Tags: app store, Apple, gadgets, iPhone, ipod touch, itouch, itunes, review, Social Networkng, technology