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Weekend Poll: What would you have asked Tim Cook at All Things Digital?
On Tuesday, Tim Cook took the stage at D11: All Things Digital. Kara Swisher and Walt Mossberg spent nearly an hour and a half asking Cook about Apple's future plans and directions, questions he evaded with dignity and forbearance. Topics included wearable tech, Apple's potential foray into television sets, and diversification of Apple's iPhone line. As we sat and watched here at TUAW central, we shook our heads at what we perceived as wasted opportunity after wasted opportunity. Anyone could have guessed that Cook would not reveal Apple's internal development secrets. Here, they had Cook, a man sitting at the forefront of mobile and desktop development, and, frustratingly, asked him product questions they knew he wouldn't answer instead of exploring the man's insights. As one anonymous TUAW blogger put it, "It was 81 minutes of 'I can't tell you.' It gave me a headache" So where was the philosophy? How is user interaction developing over the next few years? What is the future of the desktop? What trends are pushing the evolution of accessible computing? What role does design language play in Jony Ive's interface refresh? What lessons is Apple taking from the Surface -- what did Microsoft get right, and what did they get wrong? It's been a year since "Toaster Fridge", looking back did you have it right? We were bursting with questions like these, ones we felt that Cook could have openly addressed. Of course, Monday morning quarterbacking is easier than being in the hot seat ourselves -- especially with such well respected interviewers. But surely, Mossberg and Swisher would have gone into their discussion with an agenda they'd discussed and considered. We're just befuddled by the questions they chose to prioritize. What did you think of Cook's D11 interview? Valuable as is? Or would you have ran things differently? You tell us. Join in this poll and then tell us in the comments what questions you would have asked. %Poll-82712%
Robotic iPad stand KUBI shipping in July (and you can get a discount!)
One of the more interesting Indiegogo projects our sister site Engadget covered earlier this year at CES 2013 was the KUBI robotic iPad stand from Revolve Robotics (US$289 MSRP). While we were saddened to find out that by robotic, the company didn't mean that it's following you around on an air cushion, it's still a pretty cool project. KUBI is almost here; the company is going to start shipping the 'bot in July, and you can even get a discount on one through StackSocial. Rather than going through a detailed description of how KUBI works, I'll let the inventors tell you in the Engadget video seen at the bottom of this post. As for the discount, you can buy a KUBI for just $259 for a limited time by ordering it on StackSocial. TUAW is attempting to get a KUBI for a full review, so keep your eyes open in the next few weeks.
Etón Rugged Rukus: Solid solar sound
TUAW has covered the alternative energy accessories from Etón before: the BoostTurbine is an excellent way to charge up an iPhone or iPad when the power is out, while the FRX3 acts as an emergency radio and has both solar cells and a hand crank for providing a charge to your iPhone when you need it. And the Mobius solar case for iPhone is a smart way to top off your phone. Now the company has announced the Rugged Rukus (US$99.99), an "all-terrain, solar-powered, wireless speaker." Designed to work with any of your Bluetooth-equipped goodies, the wedge-shaped Rugged Rukus sports a 20-square-inch photovoltaic cell on one side that charges the internal lithium battery (it can also be charged by plugging into any USB port). In full sunlight, that battery can go from empty to full in five hours, and when the lights go out the Rugged Rukus can operate for up to 8 hours blasting your tunes. A USB charge takes only about 2.5 hours. Note that you can also use the battery in the Rugged Rukus to charge your iPhone. Don't be concerned about babying the Rugged Rukus if you're at the beach or camping in a rainstorm, as it has an IPX-4 splashproof rating and it's also drop-proof from one meter (3.3 feet). The Rugged Rukus will be available soon on Amazon and at Apple and REI stores.
Weekend Poll: What apps did you discover via the 50 billionth download contest?
On Wednesday, Apple sold its 50 billionth iOS app. TUAW was there keeping track of the excitement and monitoring the iTunes store. Many of our colleagues and readers used this contest as an opportunity to stock up on numerous free apps, to test and explore. Were you one of them? What apps did you download and which ones do you love? Here at TUAW, most of our choices were word of mouth -- Megan downloaded Moves while I gave the Target app a try. I managed to convince Steve Sande to pick up Enigma. Sadly, none of us won. What about you? Did you discover a really great app while trying to win the prize? Drop a note in the comments and share your discoveries. And take part in our little poll. We're curious as to how many times people "entered" with the intent of winning big. %Poll-82542%
Preview, sips, and more: OS X image processing tools
On a recent trip, I found I had failed to add copies of my auto-resizing drop tools to my travel MacBook Air. My droplets allow me to convert images to TUAW-standard sizes, namely 225 pixels for small images and 456 pixels for banner images. (See? Information you never thought you'd need to know.) What a lot of people don't realize is that OS X offers solutions for these kinds of basic image tasks. First and foremost is Preview. This app is simply terrific. Yes, I know, Apple took some really helpful utilities like Link Annotation out of the app on its road to Mountain Lion. (Time? Feature trimming? It's hard to say.) Even so, Preview is the best app on your computer that nobody uses enough. Preview offers a surprising tool suite that combines a little bit of Photoshop and a little bit of Acrobat into one app. In addition to annotating PDFs, you can rotate and crop images using Preview's Tools menu. You have access to lasso selection, color correction, and image fitting, among many other features. At one point Steve Sande and I threw around the idea of writing an entire book on Preview (there's plenty of interesting material in there!) but ended up deciding against it. Unfortunately, demand leads sales and too few people know how powerful Preview can be. To resize an image, choose Tools > Adjust Size or click the resizing icon you see at the top-right of this post's main image. The icon looks like an arrowed line in a square box. An Image Dimensions panel slides into view, as you see here. Select the new width you want to use, making sure the small icon next to the two text fields remains in the locked position. This ensures that the height and width scale proportionately, so the resulting image is sized just right. Preview isn't the only resizing solution on your Mac, however. The "sips" command line tool offers another take on image processing, one that's especially convenient for scripting and batch processing. For example, if you want to resize an image to fit a given width, you can ask it to resample to the pixel count you supply. Here's how you might do that. % sips --resampleWidth 225 input.png --o output.png You can also perform many of the same tasks as preview. For example, you might rotate an image clockwise by 90 degrees: % sips -r 90 input.png -o output.png or convert a file from PNG to JPG format: % sips -s format jpeg input.png -o output.jpg OS X also supports related based on "folder actions". These refer to AppleScripts that you attach to folders, so when you drop items into the folders, they run those scripts. It's easy to take a peek at some of the system-supplied actions. Create a new folder on your desktop. Control-click or Right-click it and choose Services > Folder Action Setup from the contextual pop-up menu. Select a pre-built script like "Duplicate as JPEG" or "Rotate Left" and click Attach. Finish by checking "Enable Folder Actions". Your new folder applies the attached script to any file you drop into it. If you're an intrepid system-modding type, you can expand these script choices by adding items to ~/Library/Scripts/Folder Action Scripts. (The system supplied versions all appear in /Library/Scripts/Folder Action Scripts). Scripts are built around a standalone Image Events application, found in /System/Library/CoreServices. This app provides a "faceless background application" that wraps sips for AppleScript scripting. Apple has documented Image Events as part of its developer library, and its docs point to this external website that details how you integrate scripting with image manipulation requests. I'll leave the rest as an exercise for the reader, but a bit of Googling will turn up already-built image solutions ready for testing. Here at TUAW, we regularly use these for image resizing -- and they're exactly the bits I forgot to pack on my trip. So did I get my work done while gone? You bet I did. And a big part of that reason is how sips and Preview enable you to step up to image challenges without any third party software needed. Got some OS X image processing tips? Share them in the comments.
The Steve Jobs email that has the DOJ's interest
TUAW has covered the US Department of Justice price-fixing case against Apple for the past several years. Now an email sent from former Apple CEO Steve Jobs to James Murdoch of News Corporation (parent company of HarperCollins publishers) is being interpreted by the DOJ as showing that Apple and HarperCollins conspired with other publishers to raise e-book prices. John Paczkowski at AllThingsD pointed out yesterday that the DOJ might be taking the email out of context. The seemingly incriminating portion of Jobs' email is this: "Throw in with Apple and see if we can all make a go of this to create a real mainstream e-books market at $12.99 and $14.99." As Paczkowski points out, reading the entire email, it appears that Jobs was simply using those price points as "price caps in broader pricing tiers" and that he "openly concedes that the agency model he's proposing may well fail." Jobs wrote, "We simply don't think the e-book market can be successful with pricing higher than $12.99 or $14.99. Heck, Amazon is selling these books at $9.99, and who knows, maybe they are right and we will fail even at $12.99. But we're willing to try at the prices we proposed. We are not willing to try at higher prices, because we are pretty sure we'll all fail." Paczkowski notes that this is just "one piece of evidence in a much larger case," but that the DOJ appears to have "cherry-picked a quote for maximum effect." The full exhibit from which the Jobs email was taken is included below. Jobs-Murdoch-exchange var docstoc_docid="156857315";var docstoc_title="Jobs-Murdoch-exchange";var docstoc_urltitle="Jobs-Murdoch-exchange";
Belkin WeMo rolls out IFTTT multi-device control
TUAW readers know of my affinity for Belkin WeMo home automation tools, whether I'm using them to get Siri to turn on the Christmas tree or keep my cat cool in the summer. Today Belkin announced IFTTT multi-device control for WeMo switches. What does that mean? It means that you can now control more than just one WeMo switch in your house with IFTTT recipes. Previously, you could only control one of those devices at a time through IFTTT. Now it's simple to write recipes for multiple switches as seen in the image at the top of this post. Belkin announced that since the IFTTT.com WeMo Channels launched over 30,000 recipes have been created and over 400 shared recipes are available online. Now I just need to get one more WeMo switch so I can water my garden remotely through Siri...
Daily Update for May 8, 2013
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
Arcane Legends gets a new expansion, with a new exclusive item from TUAW
Spacetime Studios is releasing an update for its latest mobile MMO this afternoon, called Arcane Legends, and not only will you get access to a bunch of new content, but TUAW has an exclusive item for you to download in the game. The expansion is called Kraken Isles, and contains all sorts of fun new content to play with, from new areas to new armor sets, a level cap raise, lots of pirate-y action and a reset of the leaderboards so you can keep battling for the top place. But that's not all -- in addition to the new expansion, TUAW has a promo code for the game that will nab you an exclusive item based on your class. To get it for free, all you have to do is obviously download and start up the app (it's free), create your character, and then play through the introductory area. Once you reach the first multiplayer section (called the town of Windmoore), you just open up the chat pane and then type in "/promocode tuawkraken" (without the quote marks), and you'll get your free item! Pretty cool. Spacetime has been doing a great job on these MMOs for years, and the latest Arcane Legends release looks like no exception. If you haven't jumped in to play the game yet, definitely give it a download, and be sure to grab your free item from TUAW, too! Update: One quick note: The exclusive item won't go live until the expansion does, which we're told will be later on this afternoon. So check back then if the code doesn't work yet.
Punch Quest coming next week from Rocketcat and Madgarden
Rocketcat Games is the great company behind terrific iPhone games like Mage Gauntlet and the very popular Hook Worlds. Its latest title is called Punch Quest, built in conjunction with developer Madgarden. Punch Quest won't be released until October 25th, but Rocketcat kindly sent TUAW an early copy. You'll find a quick video preview of what the finished title looks like down below. Punch Quest will be available for iOS next Thursday, for the low, low price of completely free. Look for a full review here on TUAW when the game arrives later on next week!
TUAW's Mac Game of the Week: Trine 2 is a beautiful puzzle adventure game for $4 right now
Trine is a terrific puzzle/adventure game that's akin to Blizzard's old The Lost Vikings title, if you remember that one. It features three different characters (a thief, a knight and a wizard) all controlled by one player, each with different abilities that are used to navigate various physics-based puzzles and traps. It was a solid indie title, and did well enough to inspire a sequel in Trine 2. Trine 2 took the same concept even further, featuring updated graphics and the addition of a co-op mode, in which three different players could take over the three different roles and upgrade them as you play along together. Just like the first title, Trine 2 offers physics-based puzzles, and a really gorgeous mix of action and intellectual gameplay. This is a true indie gem -- you can tell there's a lot of love put into this one, and while it falls down in parts, the overall package shines with polish and ingenuity. You can get Trine 2 on Steam or from the company's main website, but it's currently on sale on the Mac App Store for just US$3.99, 75 percent off of the usual cost. Note that you will need to have a fairly new Mac (basically 2010 on) to play it, as the game can get graphically intensive at times. But if you do have a newer graphics card, this game is a no-brainer for just $4, and the ability to play online co-op with friends is icing on the cake. There's also an expansion pack called Goblin Menace that's out on Steam right now -- presumably that's headed to the Mac App Store version soon as well.
Magic 2013 brings (the Xbox version of) Magic to the iPad
The iPad is ideal for card games -- its size and wonderfully inviting touch screen makes it excellent for representing physical cards on a digital device. That's why, back when the iPad was first introduced, one of the most popular apps was a simple deck of cards, a virtual set of graphics that you could move and slide around the screen as needed. Traditional card games have always been well-represented on the iPad, and collectible card games really shine. As the iPad has matured, we've seen more and more virtual card games arrive, from Hothead's popular Kard Combat to enjoyable titles like Ascension and Shadow Era. For the longest time, however, Wizards of the Coast has declined to bring its monstrously popular collectible card game, Magic: The Gathering, to iOS. There have been popular versions of Magic on both PC (and even in the browser) and on game consoles, but up until this summer, there was no official way to play Magic on iOS. Fans had even released makeshift versions of the title on the App Store at times, all of them crushed by Wizards of the Coast's legal threats. Finally, about a month ago, we got what we'd been waiting for. Magic 2013 is an official version of Magic, the full game playable on the iPad's gorgeous screen, with all of the modern game rules and strategies (mostly) intact. But is this the version we've been waiting for, or is it yet another stopgap to let Wizards exploit the brand on iOS without actually pulling players away from its core physical card game? In short, this is the game you've been looking for if you're a Magic fan. It's as close as you'll get to playing real Magic almost anywhere, and it's plenty effective at imitating the real thing. The biggest drawback of Magic 2013 is that it's basically a port of the popular Duels of the Planeswalkers console series rather than an all-new iOS version, so all of the complaints about that series (that you can't truly build your own decks, and that most of the content is buried in a segmented campaign) are still mostly valid here. But otherwise, this is Magic, and all of the features that you'd hope to find in an official Magic game, including multiplayer online play, unlockable cards, Two-Headed Giant and custom game modes, and any other little extras, are all here for the taking. The base game is free and that is just a tester version. It offers just five levels, and doesn't include any of the larger features or card unlocks. A very reasonable US$9.99 unlocks everything else. While you can buy other cards or packs, the single $9.99 charge will get you most of the Magic you want: A full 30-match campaign, 10 decks to choose from and multiple opponents, including that online mode. There's no problem with content here at all. The digital game obviously isn't as flexible as the offline game (where you can put together your own strategies or play any number of custom rules), but given that Wizard definitely doesn't want to stop selling physical cards, all of the limits here are completely understandable. The biggest issue with Magic 2013 isn't in what it has, but in what it doesn't, and that's an iPad-specific interface. Again, the interface is lifted straight from the console version, which itself was originally designed to work with an Xbox 360 controller. As a result, Magic's digital cards just don't feel as real as they should. You do swipe cards up to play them, but tapping to attack simply moves them into position, and cards tap themselves rather than having you push them to the side. It's mostly an aesthetic argument, but still -- the iPad's screen is so well designed for tactile interaction that it's disappointing the developers didn't take more advantage of it. Wizards is probably leery of investing too much in a brand new version of the game, so hopefully later versions will have a more touchscreen-specific interface. The other issue with porting over from the console version is that games tend to run a little slow. The game moves through each phase with plenty of time for either opponent to jump in and cast spells or play cards, and all of that waiting seems less workable on the iPad's closeup screen. Again, this is the fault of the way the game was designed (and, to a lesser extent, the way Magic works in general), but I can't help but think that if the game was remade completely for the iPad, it would run just a little smoother than it currently does. Once you figure why everything moves as slowly as it does, however (and you'll have no problem doing that if you're an expert Magic player already), there's not a lot of other issues. The cards are clear, colorful and easy to read, and matches work just as they do in real life. The game's graphics are actually a little flashy for Magic, I thought, but they're also well-designed, and the music is pretty good as well. I don't know if this is the ideal version of Magic. Personally, I will probably tend towards playing the game on the Xbox, since that's where this version started and that's what I'm most used to. But we do finally have Magic: The Gathering on the iPad, and it runs as well as you'd want an official Magic app to run, with all of the boxes checked that you'd need. Hopefully, when the next version of the game comes around (Wizards has been releasing both new digital and physical versions on a somewhat annual basis), iOS will get a copy of the game that's been designed just for the excellent touchscreen it's rendered on.
The WWDC 2012 prediction post: Community edition
As we wait for Tim Cook to headline Monday's WWDC 2012 keynote, we're all getting excited about what's to come. We're dusting off the old crystal ball to see what WWDC will bring us this week. Here's what some of our TUAW bloggers predict for Monday. Plus, we want to invite you to join in as well. What are you most looking forward to on Monday? New tech, hardware, and software? Tell us what you expect to see and where you think our predictions have merit -- or are full of monkey wax. Jump into the comments and let us know your take on WWDC 2012. Predictions will be added by TUAW bloggers throughout the weekend, so revisit this post early and often! Steven Sande I'm predicting a surprisingly modest WWDC: iOS 6, a preview of Mountain Lion, and that's about it. Why do I think this to be true? Well, I think it's time for Apple to give devs some real lovin', and the words on the banner -- "Where great ideas go on to do great things" -- seem to be more focused on the act of development than on new hardware. Sure, it would be awesome to see a new iMac, new MacBook Airs, new Mac minis, a new Mac Pro, and maybe even some announcements of Apple-branded Thunderbolt peripherals. But my guess is that Tim Cook and Company are going to really focus on the software technologies that make Apple great. Erica Sadun The thing I most want to see on Monday -- and the thing I'm not really counting on -- is an Apple OS Roadmap, similar to the one that Steve Jobs offered in the October 2010 "Back to the Mac" event. During that presentation, Jobs announced Lion and the Mac App store and discussed how OS X would grow to take advantage of advances in technology innovated on the iOS side of the house. While I expect Tim Cook to introduce iOS 6 and demo Mountain Lion, which may enter its first "gold master" release at WWDC, I hope he will have the flexibility to discuss where the two operating systems are going next, and how much convergence we'll see over the next 3-5 years. I'd also like to hear about how supporting technologies like AirPlay, iCloud, and 802.11ac will bring the entire Apple line closer together over time. I wouldn't be surprised if we saw some hardware introduced as well, specifically brief mentions of a new MacBook Pro (feels like an Air, works like a Pro, docks to upgraded Cinema Displays). I suspect a lot of the Monday keynote will focus, however, on iOS 6 and Mountain Lion features. I'd really like to see some 10.8 surprises due to hardware refreshes and iOS 6 innovation for iCloud, reminders, and other key lifestyle support technologies. Megan Lavey-Heaton Like Erica and Steve, I think the keynote Monday will be focused on Mountain Lion and iOS 6. However, I do feel that new hardware will be introduced as a means to promote development. This is the Apple hardware's moment to shine outside of the iOS family, and I'd be disappointed if new systems weren't announced. We know Mountain Lion is coming. iOS6 is a given. The only blank is the hardware, and it's past time it had a refresh. Victor Agreda, Jr. I believe there will be enough amazing features in iOS 6 to continually raise the roof and the bar on Monday. From advancements in maps to upgrades to Siri, Apple will show why anyone considering the use of tiles on Windows Phone or whatever it is that makes Android compelling should consider switching or keeping iOS on their phone or tablet. Mountain Lion is less of a mystery, although I would expect the cloud efforts from Cupertino to be a key ingredient of the wow soup they are no doubt rehearsing at this moment. We've seen a lot of nice, new features, plus integration of iOS notions that will make life easier for the average user -- several of which Erica mentioned above. As for hardware... Isn't WWDC a software thing? It's possible we'll see the new MacBook Pros, or they could do it a week later (when "normal humans" continue their annual blissful ignorance of WWDC's purpose) so as not to distract. Further, the Pro may be due for a revision, but unless there are developer-specific niceties baked in, why not wait a bit later? It's not like we'll be so busy with the latest BlackBerry to notice. Chris Rawson Guaranteed: iOS 6 and Mountain Lion demoed. Likely: "iMaps," Apple's replacement for Google Maps. Maybe: Updates to at least one Mac model announced. Apple TV apps/SDK. Third-party access to Siri APIs. I'll believe it when I see it: Updates to all Mac models announced. Retina Displays on the MacBook Pro, iMac. Not a chance: iPhone, iPod touch, iPad hardware updates. "Are you inebriated?": iPad mini, Apple HDTV.
Dubdub Monday: Upcoming WWDC 2012 metaliveblog and TUAW community events
TUAW isn't just a blog, it's a community. And we're getting all excited for Monday's upcoming WWDC keynote. We want you to be part of the fun. Please join us for all the events and coverage during the day. We'll be hosting a special edition of TUAW TV Live before the keynote. We'll kick off at 8:30 Pacific/11:30 Eastern with a lively Community Chat edition. Come join us and be a part of the discussion. Got predictions? Jump over to our community-powered WWDC 2012 predictions post, which will go live later this afternoon. We've put our best guesses out there about what Tim Cook and company will be introducing during the keynote. Now we want to hear yours. What do you think we'll see at this year's event. Participate in our metaliveblog. We'll be covering the WWDC 2012 keynote with live updates, lively commentary, and fun for everyone. It's the big event of the season, so make sure you mark your calendars and set your Siri reminders! The event starts Monday, June 11 at 10 AM Pacific Time (1 PM Eastern time), and we'll be kicking off the live blog a quarter hour ahead of that. Want to chat with other TUAW readers during Monday's Apple event? Join us in the #tuaw chatroom on irc.freenode.net. Kevin Avila (eddienull) will be moderating. We look forward to seeing you then! And thank you for being a part of our TUAW community.
Daily Update for May 24, 2012
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
Friday TUAW Clinic: Spring clean your Mac with Erica and Steve
Spring is the traditional time to shake off the clutter of winter and do some cleaning. With Mac owners, it's a good time to think about doing the same thing -- getting rid of the junk that piles up on your machine, cleaning out excess log files, etc... To get you prepared for some spring Mac cleaning over the weekend, Erica Sadun and I will be hosting a live "clinic" tomorrow at 11 AM EDT here on TUAW. We'll start at 11 AM sharp, but you may wish to arrive a few minutes early to log into the CoverItLive system, which is what we'll be using to host the talk. Throughout the chat, we'll be capturing questions and providing answers as best we can, and we always like to hear from our readers about their favorite Mac spring cleaning tips. See you here tomorrow morning bright and early! And don't forget to bring your can of Lemon Pledge!
MacTech NYC Boot Camp to include TUAW/TidBITS panel
On April 18 and 19, the MacTech live event series will be coming to the Big Apple. The Park Central Hotel in New York will be hosting MacTech Boot Camp and MacTech In Depth: OS X Server Administration over those two days, giving IT professionals and consultants covering the range from home user support up to small & medium-sized businesses the best sessions, instruction and networking opportunities out there. TUAW is a media sponsor of the MacTech series (and our readers get a hefty $200 discount + a free MacTech subscription when signing up for either of the daylong events in NYC; just follow this registration link), but that's not the only reason I'm looking forward to the program on the 18th. At 6pm on that Wednesday, I'll be among the participants in a bonus panel session called "Understand and Make The News." My fellow hosts for the panel are MacTech's Neil Ticktin and TidBITS's Adam Engst. The discussion will cover how magazines and websites evaluate Apple-centric news, why some stories thrive and others don't, and how SMB owners and consultants can work more effectively with digital and traditional media outlets. If there's time afterward, I'll be happy to chat one-on-one with attendees about their specific media challenges and suggestions. If you haven't signed up for MacTech's NYC events yet, time is running short! Be sure to use the TUAW registration link to get the special pricing, and we'll see you there.
TUAW Social Club: Chat about your new iPad and Apple TV
Happy iPad day, boys and girls! Congratulations on your new 3rd generation baby -- and possibly on your new 1080p Apple TV. If your gadget household just grew in size -- or if you're trying to decide whether to pull the trigger on buying some new tech -- come join the discussion in our comments. We and the TUAW social braintrust are here to help you get your new equipment set up and to answer questions to get you going. So jump on in -- whether you've got questions, or answers, or just want to brag about your new baby. We're excited, too!
Hubworks uses iPads to help restaurant customers order food
We've posted before about Hubworks, a company based in Idaho that develops consumer-facing solutions for ordering food and interacting with servers at restaurants via iPads. Most of Apple's sales are directly to consumers, but Hubworks is just one company of many that's getting more involved in business-to-business sales of Apple products. These companies are the main reason you're soon going to see iPads used in kiosks and sales environments all over the world. Hubworks' VP of sales and marketing, Aaron Gabriel, told me, "In the next six months this is something that people will be able to go and see in their local environments." Currently, Hubworks is working on big deals with a few big "large international chains" of restaurants, with pilot programs and trials currently underway to check out how viable these iPad solutions can be. But Gabriel is convinced the iPad has a place in the retail and food sales environments. Hubworks uses its own special case for the iPad. The unit hooks up to Apple's tablet through the dock connector. It contains a credit card slider unit to charge customers and plugs into a point of sale system already working at the restaurants to deliver food and drink orders back to the kitchen. Hubworks has developed its own app to do that, though the iPad can have other apps or games running on it as well. The unit also has a battery pack that allows the iPad to be used for up to 18 hours. While the company hasn't squared away a security solution yet, Gabriel says, "we haven't had any problems thus far." Eventually there will probably be sensors on the iPads to let restaurant management know if they've been carried out the door by less-than-honest customers. Why haven't we seen this solution implemented on a wide scale yet? Gabriel says most of the biggest restaurant chains "just want to see it develop a bit" first and would like to "gather some performance metrics" before widespread deployment. In other words, restaurants are interested in giving iPads to customers, but don't want to be the first to do so. Gabriel is convinced that once these chains see a successful program in action, they'll all jump in on the idea. "These first deals are very important," he says. Once we do see these iPads in stores, Gabriel says there are more benefits than just the customers getting to play with Apple's tablets. Some servers were worried that with customers ordering from the iPad their tips would go down, but Gabriel says, "the average check size is going up" at restaurants where the customers use iPads to order their food and drink. With service that's quicker and ordering that's easier than ever, servers have more time to talk and customers buy more food than usual. That's the kind of stat that could really kick these programs into more widespread use. It may be only a matter of time before you're given a menu at your local chain restaurant printed on an iPad.
Introducing comments by Livefyre on TUAW
We've gone through a few permutations in our commenting systems over the years, but I'm rather pleased to announce our latest partnership with Livefyre, which I consider to be one of the best commenting platforms out there. Livefyre's features include the ability to sign in using a variety of social logins, and to easily comment on other's comments and share them across social networks. The idea is to enhance and promote our discussions on articles and allow you to share those discussions wherever you like. There are also enhanced moderation tools for the TUAW staff, which means better, more relevant conversations. And yes, we will be moderating comments, but not by default. In fact, Livefyre has a spiffy realtime commenting platform that is really quite nice to interact with on hot news items. As usual: be nice, stay relevant and don't say anything you wouldn't say to someone in person. One note: If you see an authorization window mention Engadget, don't fret that our systems have co-mingled and your comment is lost. That's just what it reads until we change it. A big thanks to Rick, Brett, Paul and Joe at AOL Tech, and everyone at Livefyre for making this happen. If you're having issues, let us know in the comments or via our feedback form.
