Ultra Slacker

February 3, 2011

iPhone 4, it begins for existing Verizon customers.

The clock just struck midnight here in Cupertino Time and iPhone 4 pre-orders for Verizon existing customers have just begun.

iPhone 4 for Verizon:

February 3
We’ve set aside a limited quantity of iPhone 4 models for existing Verizon customers to pre-order from the Apple Online Store for free delivery on or before February 10.

February 9
Order an iPhone 4 from the Apple Online Store and have it shipped free to your door.
Or reserve an iPhone 4 on February 9 for pickup at your favorite Apple Retail Store starting February 10 and get Personal Setup.

February 10
Order an iPhone 4 from the Apple Online Store and have it shipped free to your door.
Or stop by an Apple Retail Store starting at 7 a.m. to buy an iPhone 4 on a first-come, first-served basis.

Note:
I am not a current Verizon Wireless Customer, so I wouldn’t be pre-ordering the iPhone 4.

February 2, 2011

My New Gear: Canon EOS 60D

I have been wanting to get a new DSLR Camera for a few months now. I have Canon gears so I was looking into getting Canon EOS 7D late last year. During one of the trip, I stopped by Idaho Camera at Boise Towne Square Mall and tried out a few cameras. One of them was Canon EOS 60D and I really like the swivel screen.

I ordered the Canon EOS 60D on Monday from Amazon.com with one-day shipping; I have Amazon Prime Membership. The camera arrived Tuesday Afternoon as promised. I immediately opened the packaging and charged the battery. Unfortunately I already had a commitment or Tuesday evening that I didn’t have a chance to play with the camera.

Wednesday comes and I took a few pictures with the camera, I still have to learn the controls. In the meantime, I’m still using the Canon EOS 500D/Digital Rebel T1i as my main camera.

I am going to take a week or two to learn using the EOS 60D before using it as my main camera.

What’s next?
I know I need a new flash unit to go with the 60D.

February 1, 2011

Apple seeds iOS 4.3 beta 3 to Developers.

Apple seeds iOS 4.3 beta 2, Xcode 3.2.6 and iOS SDK 4.3 beta 3 to Developers today. As usual, details are scarce due to three letter abbreviation known as NDA.

Some web sites are reporting:

Multitasking Gestures
This beta release contains a preview of new multitasking gestures for iPad. You can use four or five fingers to pinch to the Home Screen, swipe up to reveal the multitasking bar, and swipe left or right between apps. This feature will not be enabled in iOS 4.3 for customers, but we are providing this preview to gather input on how these gestures work with your apps.

iOS 4.3 beta 3 is available for:

iPad
iPhone 4
iPhone 3GS
iPod touch 4th generation
iPod touch 3rd generation
Apple TV 2nd generation

iOS 4.3 beta 3 for Apple TV is also called as Apple TV Software beta 3.

Xcode 3.2.6 and iOS SDK 4.3 beta 3 requires Mac OS X Snow Leopard.

iOS 4.3 beta 3 is available to registered Developers. Apple iOS Developer Program costs $99 annually.

February 1, 2011

The Apple and Sony eReader plus Amazon Kindle App Drama.

Following the fallout of Sony eBook Reader App rejection, many speculates that Apple would axe Amazon Kindle App from the App Store.

What is Apple’s angle here?

The sensationalistic headline from Ars Technica might start another mini revolt against Apple, as usual. In a short time we all would forget this all ever happened and everyone would be none the wiser. Apple will not remove Amazon Kindle App from the App Store because there is no good reasons to.

February 1, 2011

Does Bing Copy Google’s Search Results?

UPDATE 2:
Microsoft’s Bing uses Google search results—and denies it

UPDATE:
Bing’s reply.

Matt Cutts and Harry Shum

It’s the first day of February 2011 and the news are coming in. The first one that really caught my eye is Google’s accusing Bing of cheating by copying search results. It is not about the regular search results. It is about search with unusual misspellings.

Matt Cutts’ comment on Hacker News:

I had a front row seat for this test. I believe the experiment we ran provides conclusive proof. I’m on a panel with a representative from Bing later today and I’ll ask Bing about this directly.

I’m pretty sure Bing (read: Microsoft) could say that they want to give the users the best search results possible. If they did say that it means Bing would have admitted that Google is better. Bing could also say that they are not a mere search engine, they are Decision Engine.

Let’s see how this one goes.

January 31, 2011

Blown Capacitors on eVGA GeForce 7100GS.

Yep, this would be another eVGA graphic card with blown capacitors. Practically all the ones I bought during the same period suffer the same fate. I suspect the inadequate cooling system cause the problem to begin with.

The blown capacitors on this board are: FZ67, FZ69 and FZ6A.

January 30, 2011

Don’t Panic: Yet another security vulnerability in Windows and the temporary fix.

Frist microsoft said this:

Microsoft is investigating new public reports of a vulnerability in all supported editions of Microsoft Windows. The vulnerability could allow an attacker to cause a victim to run malicious scripts when visiting various Web sites, resulting in information disclosure. This impact is similar to server-side cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities. Microsoft is aware of published information and proof-of-concept code that attempts to exploit this vulnerability. At this time, Microsoft has not seen any indications of active exploitation of the vulnerability.

Then Microsoft provide this:

To have us fix this problem for you, go to the “Fix it for me” section.

What are you waiting for?