Category Archives: Use

Nov 22 0 comments
Use, Watch

ABC’s iView Now Available on PS3

It was forecast a couple of months ago and it’s now been delivered. I switched my PS3 on about half an hour ago and discovered a new TV option on the media bar, the sole sub-option being ABC’s iView catch-up/on-demand service.

Unlike the PS3’s web browser, the iview interface fills the screen. The picture quality isn’t high definition, but it’s acceptable. The interface still works best with a mouse; I’m hoping the ABC is working on a more console-friendly interface.

Right now I’m watching Chaser EP Julian Morrow’s 2009 Andrew Ollie media lecture. It’s only available for another 10 hours; if you’re going to give iView a go on your PS3, give this one a watch.

Oct 21 0 comments
Consider, Use

Not Drowning, Waving

google_wave_logoI’ve been mucking around with Google Wave these last few days and I’ve come to understand that this service won’t be for everyone.  It’s a workplace collaboration tool, not something you play around on with your friends, though it might get some secondary use for sorting out social things.

I know people are developing game widgets for Wave, but short of someone coming up with multiplayer online Balderdash in Wave, I don’t think I’ll be using for entertainment.

If you’re on Wave and you missed my last couple of tweets calling out for people I knew using the service and you want to connect to test it out some more, drop me a comment with your Wave ID.

Sep 27 7 comments
Canberra, Sydney, Use

iPhone App Review: GraffitiGeo

IMG_0938GraffitiGeo’s catchphrase is “Tag your city”. It’s not “Review local nightspots”, “Rate local restaurants” or “What’s the local buzz?”. Rather it’s a good, open-ended capability statement that leaves the service open to myriad interpretations. As long as you have an iPhone 3G or 3GS, that is.

The idea is that you create walls, leave comments and have conversations on walls while you’re out and about.  You can keep track of where you’ve been, what you saw/did there and what you thought of it at the time.  Business reviews, spotted street art, hidden gems not yet in the guidebooks (though it won’t take long before the travel sites are exploiting and citing such systems), gig reports, accommodation complaints, whatever.  As Gibson noted “… the street finds its own uses for things”.  They’re sharing data with SocialGreat.com too; that system aggregates data from GraffitiGeo, Brightkite and FourSquare to take the pulse of a city and mashes the tags and check-ins with Google Maps and Yelp reviews.

There are social and game elements to the system for those interested in playing.  There are badges to be earned by creating and tagging walls.  You can join groups called mobs and “take over your city” (crews would have been a better choice in keeping with graffiti slang).  The exclusive thing about mobs is that you can only join if you’re invited. You can’t search for mobs, nor can you ask for an invitation.  It’s really about who you know.  You can start your own mob, but only once you’ve earned 100 street cred points. It’s good to have goals.

In comparison with similar apps / services, it has advantages and disadvantages. On the upside, you can create a wall anywhere. In Brightkite you’re limited to places it can find by querying directories or use the vague “near…” reference. Not so with GraffitiGeo. You can’t upload photos or videos, so if that’s important to you, keep Brightkite around.  Same same if you don’t have an iPhone equipped with GPS.  I’ve asked GraffitiGeo if they plan to have apps for other devices and will update this post if/when they get back to me.

It’s not immediately a first-screen app for me, but I’ll be keeping GraffitiGeo on my iPhone to keep Brightkite company for a while. I’m interested in seeing how these augmented reality apps get picked up, or don’t.

It’s currently available for free from Apple’s App Store.

GraffitiGeos Heatmap of Sydney on 27 Sep 09

GraffitiGeo's Heatmap of Sydney on 27 Sep 09

GraffitiGeos Heatmap of Canberra on 27 Sep 09

GraffitiGeo's Heatmap of Canberra on 27 Sep 09 - Looks like I've got some work to do. CTUB mob coming soon.

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Sep 25 2 comments
Help, Use

Mystery Rib Injury

RibGray112So I went to bed the other night feeling fine. Next morning I wake up, roll over to swat the alarm off and an intense pain shoots forth from between my shoulder blades.

MOTHERF(*&(*^&

OUUUUUUUUUUUUUCH

Throughout the day, the pain makes tactical moves and controls the territory around the side and front of my chest, hiding when I’m still and attacking when I move. I seek help. Diagnosis is that I’ve done something to a rib. Remedy? Wait. Painkillers if I really need them.

Any other suggestions for a counter-offensive? Any strapping, bandaging, topical ointments or bacta tank immersion therapies I could try to keep the pains at bay?

Sep 20 0 comments
Use

RSS Feeds Updated

I’ve just updated my syndication feeds to go through FeedBurner so that I can get some idea of what’s going on subscriptions-wise.  If you read the site by way of RSS*, I’d really appreciate it if you updated your subscriptions to the new feed addresses.  Cheers!  (If you have no idea what RSS is, there’s an explanation below the fold.  You should check it out and get on board.)

The feed for blog posts can be found at http://feeds.feedburner.com/deanlkblog and the feed for comments can be found at http://feeds.feedburner.com/deanlkblogcomments.  If you’ve been listening to the soundbites I’ve been recording and distributing via AudioBoo, you can subscribe to those by way of http://feeds.feedburner.com/deanlkAudioboo. Over time, more feeds will get aggregated on the Feeds page.

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