Thursday, September 20, 2012

Apple Maps Suck? It’s True

No, I am not turning into an Apple Fan Boy. I really like my Apple iPad and my iPod. They work very well. That’s all I care about. However, I will hit Apple as hard as I hit Microsoft when they deserve it.

And, today, they deserve it. In the newest release of the iOS operating system (Ver. 6 which arrived yesterday), Apple replaced Google Maps with their own maps…and it is not going well. Critics, users, and even some Apple Fan Boys are ticked off about this new, less-than-stellar map program.

Google got it right…Apple has a long way to go. I think that Apple’s hatred of Google got in the way of its good judgment. Late word has it that Google has submitted a new mapping software for Apple’s approval. Most interesting.

In spite of all that, I will say I mostly like IOS6. I installed it yesterday morning, within an hour of its release. To be honest, I have not tested many of its new features. However, I have given SIRI a good run for its money. And…I like it. It has worked flawlessly for all of my requests.

For those who don’t know, SIRI is a voice command program that is designed to answer your voice requests. For instance, I asked it to give me the score of the Giants game. It did, plus showed me the box score. Then I asked who is pitching tomorrow for the Giants. It told me in English and showed me on the screen.

I asked who the 49ers were playing this weekend. It told me that it is the Vikings, showed me the game time and who is broadcasting the game. It’s kind of fun and I am still experimenting. I hope it will become a useful tool. It’s certainly quite amazing.

For fun, I have included a positive and negative review of the new Apple iPhone 5…and more info on the huge security leak in Internet Explorer. It is quite serious. There is some other good information here, so let’s get rolling. -JRC

Why Apple Maps Won't Get Better Anytime Soon

Apple's maps are not off to a good start. They're getting killed by critics and users alike. And rightly so! They don't hold their own against last generation's Google Maps on iOS 5.

Complete guide to using iOS 6 (roundup)

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iPhone 5 Full Review

The iPhone 5 completely rebuilds the iPhone on a framework of new features and design, addressing its major previous shortcomings. It's absolutely the best iPhone to date, and it easily secures its place in the top tier of the smartphone universe.

5 reasons I'm passing on the iPhone 5

New connector, longer screen, upgrade price, and no NFC, just to name a few. And with iOS 6, the iPhone 4S is like a new phone. So, who needs an iPhone 5?

Microsoft Patches IE Zero Day Flaw in Just Days

Just days after being alerted to a new zero day security vulnerability in all shipping versions of its Internet Explorer (IE) web browser, Microsoft has issued a software fix to correct the problem. The unusually quick response was apparently necessitated by the seriousness of the flaw and rapidly increasing instances of exploitation.

Microsoft: Google breached your privacy; use Bing

Microsoft's latest campaign takes an almighty swipe at Google, after the search giant was found to have circumvented the privacy settings of Safari users across the Web earlier this year.

Wal-Mart to stop selling Kindles as Amazon threat grows

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ESPN Goes Realtime, Turns Its Content Firehose Into A Streaming Reader

Yesterday, ESPN launched a new product in beta called SportsCenter Feed, which offers sports fans a new way to consume ESPN's content.

How To: Living Without Audio CDs

If you're hunkered down for the winter with nothing to do -- or broke -- you can download free and paid software to rip audio CDs yourself.

Free Media Player VLC 2.0.2 Plays Almost Any Video File

If you don't have VLC, aka the VideoLAN Player, installed on your system, the chances are you don't watch a whole lot of video. VLC has millions of users and supports virtually every type of video found on the Web, as well as audio.

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