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Trillian gets there first, brings Continuous Client features to latest build
Well this is rather awesome. Cerulean Studios may have just become the first company in the world to implement some of the ideas I hatched in an editorial I wrote about a little something called the Continuous Client. If you need a refresher you can read the article here, but the gist of my argument is that the work you're doing in applications on your phone, tablet, or PC should follow you around. You shouldn't have to restart each conversation or refocus your Twitter stream or re-open applications and load up files you were working on. Your devices (and their clients) should talk to each other so that you can placeshift your session from screen to screen. Well, believe it or not, someone took this to heart. The makers of the super-popular chat client Trillian have implemented Continuous Client features in the latest beta build for Windows (5.0 build 30). Amongst the new features added is the ability to share chats between devices "in realtime," allowing you to switch from PC to phone to iPad without losing the thread. Using "presence technology" the client can make logical guesses about when you're at (and not at) your PC or phone, and reroutes your notifications accordingly. The company has a blog post on all of the features of the new build, but of course, the best way to experience it is to download the software and try it out for yourself. We'd love to see your reactions and find out if it's making life easier, so sound off in the comments below.
Massively talks with Raptr's Dennis Fong
Raptr is a pretty ambitious project, even if you think about what has been accomplished so far. Essentially, the service is connecting all of your gaming-related services under one profile, one messenger, and one new iPhone app. Think of it as your Trillian messenger for gamers. I have a short history with Raptr but never really warmed up to it until recently. I wanted a service that would allow all of my friends, across all of the different networks that I visit, to see what and how much I am playing. Now that I have made a newer profile and have really started adding a few friends, I am sort of shocked at it's usefullness. Not only does it let me sign in to most of the major messaging services, game networks and social services like Facebook, but it allows me to see what my friends are doing as well, in some very specific ways. I was excited to get a chance to talk to Raptr CEO Dennis Fong and was impressed by how such an ambitious idea has now turned into a real, working application.
New Trillian alpha available for the Mac
A Mac version of Cerulean Studio's Trillian has been years in the making and as of this past Friday, the alpha build of the software is finally out in the wild for Mac users to try. A private alpha has been available since 2007. Since I dropkicked PCs out of my household five years ago, I've switched between iChat and the wonderful Adium. Trillian has a lot to live up to when it comes to instant messaging on the Mac. Adium, to start with, is free. Trillian costs Windows users $25USD to get full access to all of its features (the Alpha version for Mac is free). As stated when the original alpha was released, Trillian is rebuilding its software for OSX from the ground up. I downloaded a copy of the alpha to try, and I am not impressed. While Cerulean Studios did warn that the alpha version of Trillian is lacking features, the entire experience was just unpleasant. No buddy icons from any of my IM accounts came over and the program looks nothing like the picture included with this article (taken from Cerulean Studio's blog announcement.) Having one-button clicks to access your different accounts is nice -- when it actually works. The most glaring of the missing features is no group chat support, which will be a turnoff for many. Other missing features include a lack of voice and video support, chat logs and more. You have to sign up for an Astra account to even start using the IM client. When I was on Windows, the free version of Trillian was my IM client of choice. The Mac version has a lot to live up to, and maybe it could hold its own against its Windows big brother one day. But for now, I'd recommend sticking with much better, and free, alternatives such as Adium and Pidgin. [Via Lifehacker]
Two App Store updates: Trillian ships, Google Earth 2.0 arrives
There are two arrivals in the App Store of note. First, after a three month wait, the multiservice IM client Trillian is now available in the App Store [iTunes link] for iPhone and iPod touch. We previously discussed the fact that Trillian was sitting in approval limbo with no word from Apple as to why the app was being delayed. As of today it is available for US$4.99. Cerulean Studios website has more information on features, and we will be reviewing the app soon, but we wanted to let you know that it was available (for iPhone/iPod touch devices running OS 3.0 or later). Second, the 2.0 update to Google Earth for iPhone [iTunes link] is rolled out now. The major new feature in the app is the ability to overlay your own custom Google maps onto the geographic display in GE; the app also improves POI selection and adds a slew of new languages. Google Earth requires iPhone/iPod touch OS 2.0 or later, and it's free. [Google Earth hat tip to Ars Technica]
Trillian's 75-day limbo: the App Store, Freewill, and the pocket veto
What do United States politics, a Canadian rock song, and a California computer company have in common? Here are some hints: the Pocket Veto, Freewill, and the App Store. When the President of the United States is presented with a bill, she or he has 10 days to sign it, or veto it. If the President does not want to be seen as having acted in favor of or against some particular piece of legislation, he or she can simply put it in a pocket and wait for the clock to expire. Or, as the Canadian rock band Rush once said: "If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice." Back in late August, Apple claimed not to have rejected the official Google Voice iPhone application. The company claimed it was still "studying" it. Around that same time, Cerulean Studios submitted the amazing-looking Trillian for iPhone instant messaging application. Over two months later, Apple has not taken action on either app. Neither app has (officially) been rejected, but they have not been accepted, either. In the case of the official Google Voice app, it feels very much like Apple has simply "pocketed" the application.
Trillian IM client being ported to OS X - private alpha testing begins
While it's pretty hard to imagine why they'd bother, Cerulean Studios is porting Trillian, their wildly successful Windows multi-IM client, to OS X. How will Trillian (a commercial product) compete against Adium (a free product), particularly considering that Adium is a number of years ahead of Trillian on the Mac, and is by all accounts a very strong multi-IM implementation? As someone who used Trillian for a number of years in Windows, I can say that Adium has completely met my instant-messaging needs on my Mac. I'm what you might call a heavy IM user, with 6 accounts that I use regularly.Now, to be fair, Cerulean Studios states that this is in fact not a port at all, but a ground-up reimplementation of Trillian. The teaser screenshot on their announcement page is certainly intriguing. From the announcement:Though this first alpha build of the OS X version of Trillian is still very preliminary and minimal - the functionality pulled through is about the same as the Flash-based web version - the code for every single feature on the Windows version is there in the underlying mediums. As the UI is expanded, those features will become available. The OS X version will be playing catch-up to the Windows one for a while yet, however.Currently it appears that test versions are only being offered to testers of the current Windows-based Trillian Astra. Click through to the announcement page if you'd like to sign up to test Trillian on your Mac.
Trillian Astra chat / IM software for iPhone
Those hankering to get your chat on with that shiny new iPhone now have an option other than waiting 'til who knows when for a (potential) Apple update -- if you're cool with alpha software invading your handset, that is. According to Cerulean Studios', the Trillian Astra application has actually been "designed for iPhone, it doesn't just happen to work with it." The result is a polished interface that is "compact" and fit to the screen, meaning that you won't be dragging and moving windows in order to hold a decent text-based conversation. Currently, the software updates your contact list and message windows, and enables the sending and receiving of messages so long as your browser window is open. Interested? Curb your enthusiasm a bit, sign up to be an alpha tester, and exercise your patience "for the next few weeks."[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Trillian Astra provides iPhone interface to IM
Chatterboxes of the world, unite! You have nothing to lose but your inability to IM from your iPhone. Cerulean Studios, maker of the popular Trillian multi-service IM client for Windows, is hard at work on the next version -- Trillian Astra, which in addition to being cross-platform will also include a full web interface to all of the social networking features present in the standalone app.A wee birdie (thanks Victor) pointed us to this post on the Trillian Astra dev blog, which shows an interesting version of the TA web access portal. Seems that the code monkeys are psyched to do a carefully-designed Trillian Astra portal that is tuned to Safari for iPhone's specs... nice. Go ahead and sign up as an alpha tester if you wish, and do tell them that you are an iPhone owner, but note that it will be a few weeks before the iPhone UI is ready for test.
