Ads are likely not the future, or the answer, because as readers we have many, many, tools that allow us to ignore, gloss over, or outright remove ads from content. Even if an advertiser still registers a page view on their ad, when they stop seeing returns on their advertisements they will no longer desire to pay publishers. This is where the market is beginning to head — the race to the bottom.
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RSS Sponsor: Drafts for iOS →
Thanks to Agile Tortoise for sponsoring the 512 Pixels RSS feed this week!
Drafts is the quick way to capture and share ideas on your iPhone or iPod Touch. Drafts reduces the friction between you and that next great tweet, email, task. Drafts opens with a new ready to edit draft – enter your text, and you’ve captured that thought. When you’re ready to do something with that idea, Drafts offers a growing set of output options: Tweet, Email, Message, Export – or send to other apps like OmniFocus, Things, Tweetbot and more.
More on 1944
Michael Markman adds some background to that weird Apple video I linked to last week. via The Verge
Instacast 2.0: The Best Gets Better
The most-used app on my iPhone just got a lot better.
Available today, Instacast 2.0 bring a myriad of new features (and better management tools) to the best podcast application out there for iOS.
The app is now $0.99, with a $1.99 in-app purchase that adds features like podcast-specific settings, smart playlists and push notifications for new episodes.
These features will be appreciated by “power users” who won’t have an issue shelling out another couple of bucks for them. That said, the app is perfectly usable without them.
iOS 5.1.1 Released
It includes “improvements and bug fixes.” Here’s the changelog:
- Improves reliability of using HDR option for photos taken using the Lock Screen shortcut
- Addresses bugs that could prevent the new iPad from switching between 2G and 3G networks
- Fixes bugs that affected AirPlay video playback in some circumstances
- Improved reliability for syncing Safari bookmarks and Reading List
- Fixes an issue where ‘Unable to purchase’ alert could be displayed after successful purchase
The Ultimate Markdown Editor
I agree with Brett’s list 100 percent. I’d pay him for this client if he built it.
That said, with some clever TextExpander snippets and Byword, I’m pretty happy with my setup as it stands today.
Offline
Ok, I’m not quitting the Internet.
I am however, taking a little break from Twitter and RSS this weekend. I already cheated a little by sending a few DMs to take care of some things, but other than that, it’s social media radio silence over at the 512 Pixels HQ.
I don’t know if I’ll be back on Monday or not. I like the quiet.
What I’m Reading This Month
This is what’s on my Kindle this month:
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire — This is my first time to read the Potter series, and I’m loving it.
- Home Game: An Accidental Guide to Fatherhood — A great book by Michael Lewis for new (or previously-used) dads. It’s painfully honest and amazingly funny.
- Insanely Simple: The Obsession That Drives Apple’s Success — Ken Segall tells behind-the-scenes stories from his time working with Steve Jobs on Apple’s advertising campaigns. Even if you read the biography, this is worth the time.
Bravery
I’ve gotten a ton of email about my post from last night.
Almost all of it has been encouraging. To those readers who have emailed or tweeted me, thank you. It’s nice to know some fine-looking nerds on the Internet have my back.
The word “brave” has been used over and over in people’s responses. Each time I read it, I wince a little.
I don’t see as what I do here as brave. It’s easy to sit behind a MacBook Air, sipping a drink while typing. Sure, hitting that “Send to Blog” button in MarsEdit can be a little nerve-wracking, but it usually isn’t too scary.
Apple Credits OpenStreetMap in iPhoto for iOS
It’s nice to see that the story that melted my server in March ended up being true.
It’s About The Mileage
An hour before I started writing this, I was soaking in my bathtub, listening to Back to Work, feeling crappy about my week and sorry for myself.
On Monday, our son’s latest MRI reported that his cancer remains stable. While his tumor will never go away, he’s now been off chemo for almost two years with no new growth.
On Wednesday, he had a subdural port removed. This hardware was used to deliver medication (including chemo), donated blood, fluids and more to his small system when he was undergoing treatment.