iOS devices are an excellent choice for visually impaired users. They’re portable, they’re fully self-contained and are designed to be used without external peripherals, and the iOS user experience is very functionally concise and goal-oriented. iOS will not present a proliferation of windows, toolbars and minuscule user interface elements. For the most part, they’re comprehensible, focused, and as intuitive as possible. These are all ideal qualities for accessible software, and indeed for software in general.
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NPR Names Ping on ‘Worst Ideas of 2010’ List
NPR:
The most popular services — the Facebooks, Twitters and MySpaces of the world — allow users to share links, thoughts, ideas, photos and music to connect with each other. Ping, run through iTunes, was supposed to be an evolution in musical connection. But iTunes, being a self-contained fortress requiring endless software upgrades and with more than a few frustrating quirks, isn’t conducive to the type of sharing Web-based networks enjoy across a variety of devices. I can access all three of the aforementioned sites from my Android phone, and I have a variety of apps that allow me to seamlessly integrate these applications into my life. To use Ping, I would have to be tethered to my iMac
‘Under the Covers’
Apple’s new iPhone 4 commercial is a lot less creepy than than the title suggests.
Mac OS X Downloads Site Closing
A sign of the times, as it is closing the same day the Mac App Store opens.
Sparrow Mail Beta 7
This morning, the team behind Sparrow, a minimal Gmail client for the Mac, dropped the 7th beta of the software.
The low-profile labeling system is my favorite addition, by far. Selecting “Archive and Label” will move the message into that mailbox, so it shows up where you expect it to in Mail. Here’s a screenshot of what I meant by a “low-profile” design.
Wonder why I have [Gmail] in all my label names? Check out this guide I wrote concerning Gmail, IMAP and Mail.app.
TSA Missed Loaded Gun at IHA
TSA checkpoints at airports are at the front lines of preventing terrorism. When you go through security, you expect to be scanned and searched. And you expect TSA to prevent contraband from getting on planes, but as we’ve learned, that doesn’t always happen.
Houston businessman Farid Seif says it was a startling discovery. He didn’t intend to bring a loaded gun on a flight out of Houston and can’t understand how TSA screeners didn’t catch it.
So, This is Probably Magic
My wife, who was an ESL teacher before being a mom, watched this video speechless.
Graphing the Flame Wars
The one about the Apple II is especially interesting.
Susan Kare Selling Prints of Classic Icons
Susan Kare is offering signed prints of original Mac OS icons, including the Bomb, the Smiling Mac and even the Alert icon.
Prices are pretty reasonable, at least for the smaller sizes:
- 8.5” x 11” edition of 200: $89
- 17” x 22” edition of 200: $129
- 24” x 30” edition of 100: $349
- 30” x 40” edition of 100: $499
These prints will make great gifts for any hardcore Apple nerds in your life. Needless to say, I’m probably ordering the dogcow one for myself.1
What’s Next for Delicious
Dropbox Hits 1.0
The easy-to-use, super reliable file sync software Dropbox wasn’t even a 1.0 product until this morning, which is kind of hard to believe, given how well it works.
Seriously, it’s awesome. It makes iDisk look like it was built by 8 year olds. If you aren’t using it, you should go sign up. If you do so via that link, we’ll both get some extra space, even on free accounts.