Source: Slacker Radio Press Releases (http://www.slacker.com/company/pressreleases.jsp)

Slacker Radio has gained its share of popularity among music fans for offering a nifty cache feature that other mobile music apps lack; after creating a station, you can save it for offline use (perfect for underground subway rides or long plane trips). Now it's distinguishing itself from other services even more by incorporating still more diverse content.

Slacker isn't the first service of its kind to incorporate news content Sirius | XM does something similar but this move does serve to give Slacker what could be seen as an edge over Pandora, which only serves up music and doesn't allow caching.

For 14 days, basic Slacker users will be able to access ABC News content; Slacker Plus users can keep on tuning in after the two-week period ends (the Plus subscription is $3.99 per month). The content which includes segments from Good Morning America, anchored by Robin Roberts, George Stephanopoulos, Juju Chang and Sam Champion; and Nightline anchored by Terry Moran, Cynthia McFadden and Martin Bashir is located within the mobile app in a folder marked News, and works in much the same way music stations do (i.e. you can skip stories).

You can also choose to add hourly news updates to any of your stations, but the process to do so is laborious, to say the least. First, you have to futz around on the website, create a station, go to the Fine Tune tab to select that option, save the station, make it a Favorite, and, if you're already logged into Slacker on your mobile device, sign in and out to make the Favorited station appear. Sure, you can choose to Fine Tune any pre-existing station which is easier than creating your own playlist or choose to have ABC News turned on for all your stations by surfing over to Account Settings, but all this still requires signing online. We wish it were possible to do all that within the app, as going through all that song-and-dance degrades the whole easy and accessible aspect of it.

More About: abc, App, Mobile 2.0, music, News, Slacker-Radio

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The site has grown at an incredible rate since its inception, and it's always struggled to keep up (technically speaking) with user adoption. Ever since its userbase spread beyond the tech elite to more mainstream social media users, the site has been subject to a seemingly unending string of growing pains.

In response to a wave of failures last month during the World Cup, Twitter engineer Jean-Paul Cozzatti posted that the company's network was improperly configured, leading to downtime and trouble with features.

Cozzatti claimed that the company had doubled the capacity of its internal network, improved its monitoring and rebalanced its traffic to prevent future downtime.

For much of 2009, Twitter's biggest challenge was coping with our unprecedented growth (a challenge we happily still face), he wrote. But as this week's issues show, there is always room for improvement.

Apparently, the improvements made last month were not enough to keep up with user growth and their demands on the service.

Cozzatti posted again today to address Twitter's issues Monday, comparing the engineering team's work on scaling the app to riding a rocket. To give you an idea of how fast that rocket is soaring through the social media universe, we reported in April that the service had 105 million users. In his post today, Cozzatti said Twitter now has 124 million registered users.

Scalability and uptime are the team's top priority; in fact, Cozzatti noted, other projects are being put to the side until these problems can be thoroughly solved. He stated that Twitter's engineers have made more than 50 performance and optimization tweaks since the site's World Cup woes, including doubling throughput to the database that stores tweets, improving how the app uses memcache and improving page caching of the front and profile pages, which helps to reduce page load time.

Nevertheless, There are still times when we run into problems unrelated to Twitter's capacity, Cozzatti admitted.

Monday's issues serve as a perfect example. During the database malfunction and restart which covered a 12-hour period users were unable to login, sign upor update their profile information and design. In the end, wrote Cozzatti, this affected most of the Twitter ecosystem: our mobile, desktop, and web-based clients, the Twitter support and help system, and Twitter.com.

While Twitter is getting its own data center this fall and is actively recruiting more engineering talent, the company clearly needs to implement the long-term solutions we're reading about. To have the cultural cachet of a web service such as Google search, Gmail, Facebook or any of the apps we rely on for day-to-day work and life and we have the distinct impression that Twitter does, indeed, hope to be part of that cadre it must first and most importantly achieve an acceptable uptime ratio. All the partnerships, revenue and media buzz in the world can fall a bit flat when the app itself doesn't work.

That being said, we're certain Twitter can and will make the needed improvements for scalability, and growing pains are good pains to have.

Are you confident that Twitter can become reliable and stable in the near future? Or do you foresee more significant downtime from this service? What will it take for Twitter to grow as quickly as its users require?

More About: developers, down, downtime, engineering, scalability, twitter

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Disney has released the newest trailer for TRON: Legacy at Comic-Con, and it's spreading around the web like wildfire.

TRON: Legacy is the much-anticipated sequel to Tron, the 1982 classic that follows hacker Kevin Flynn's journey into the virtual world of the ENCOM mainframe. Jeff Bridges is reprising his role as Flynn in the sequel, which is due to be released on December 17, 2010.

This trailer not only shows off the cutting-edge, techno-style special effects that make the world of TRON; it also dives deeper into the storyline and the relationship between Bridges' character and his hacker son Sam Flynn (played by Garrett Hedlund). Comic-Con attendees got an extra bonus, though: eight full minutes of footage from the upcoming film.

The film trailer has been a hot item around the web. The movie wins nostalgia points with children of the eighties, and it also wins the hearts of technology and computer geeks. After seeing this trailer, we're more excited than ever for this film.

What about you: Are you excited? Are you planning on going to see the film later this year? Let us know what you think in the comments, but please, no reaction videos.

More About: entertainment, f, Film, movie, movie trailer, TRON, tron legacy

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We've already brought you ways to share music on Twitter, but the solutions below will help you share the spoken word. Whether you want to sing happy birthday to someone, rant, or make a heartfelt apology, we've found five services that can help you out.

All the services we've tested have three things in common they are all completely free, they don't require a phone (i.e. they are web-based solutions), and they are all easy to use. There are differences between them, so it's worth having a read through our experiences so you can see which would best suit your own needs.

1. Chir.ps

Chir.ps is a super simple way to broadcast your voice to your Twitter followers. After signing in with OAuth, it's just a matter of entering your name for your personalized Chir.ps page before you can get going on the recording side of things.

The on-screen recording is again, simple just authorize Chir.ps to use your computer's mic, hit one button to start, say your piece, and then hit stop. You can preview your recording and once you're happy with it, add text and then tweet it.

There's a slight delay before the tweet will hit your stream, and when it does Chir.ps will have added a shortened URL (like this: http://chir.ps/6hb) to your message which people can click through in order to hear your audio.

While still decent, the audio quality of Chir.ps did not seem as great as other services we used, but the site does offer a listen count, so you can see how many people have hit play, which we do like. Here's what your message will look like when people click through to Chir.ps:

2. AudioBoo

AudioBoo (because sound is social) offers an iPhone and Android app as well as an online service, but for the purposes of this article, it's the web-based offerings we're interested in.

Once you've signed in with OAuth and chosen your AudioBoo username, the online recording takes place in a pop out window, which also gives you the option to upload a common audio file.

If you record via the site, you can talk (or sing, or hum, or groan or whatever it is you want to do) for five minutes, after which you can preview your ramblings. Once you're happy, give the recording a title and AudioBoo saves it down into the Your Boos section of the site.

From here you can choose to share your audio to Facebook, get an embed code for it, or tweet it, which creates a short URL like this: http://boo.fm/b154817

AudioBoo's sound quality is good, but there's no way to see how many people have tuned-in to listen to your broadcast, although there is the capability to comment on Boos. This is what your Boo will look like:

3. Twaud.io

Twaud.io is another service that lets you both record online and upload files. Recording online is easy: Just sign in with OAuth, authorize use of your mic and you're good to go for a generous thirty minutes worth of record time, which is practically podcast length.

Just hit the record button, hit it again to stop, and then press play to review whatever it is you've just uttered. Once you're done on the same screen there's a box to enter up to 100 characters of text, then just press the Twaudio it! button and you're done.

Twaud.io's URLs are super short (http://twaud.io/ls4) and play automatically when someone hits the link. Those who listen to your recordings also get the option to download them, get an embed code, retweet them or comment on them, which is sent as an @reply to the creator.

Sound quality is good, and the site tells you how many listens you've racked up, which is also good for an ego boost. This is how your message will appear to others:

4. Chirbit

Chirbit doesn't offer OAuth sign-in as it's not designed solely for the microblogging service, but setting up an account is a pain-free process, all the same.

Once you're in, you can use the service to record up to two minutes of audio, as long as you've given the appropriate permission just by hitting the onscreen buttons. After you've listened back and decided you like what you hear, you can give the clip a title and then add it into a category.

The default category is a Chirbit and any casual users who are interested in occasionally using this as a social tool need not worry about the others (such as audiobook, joke, pickup line), which are designed to help the Chirbit community find content more easily.

To save your Chirbit, you hit send and it will then appear on your Chirbit homepage. To get sharing, hit the cog icon on your recording and the site gives you the option to post it to Facebook or Twitter, making you a nice little shortened URL in the process. Here's one we prepared earlier: http://chirb.it/5LAfeM. And here's what viewers will see, which includes the option to respond:

5. ShoutoMatic

As well as offering a paid-for service where celebrities will record a message for you to tweet, ShoutoMatic also offers the infinitely more useful and free service of letting you record your own tweets.

Head on over to the site, either sign up for an account, or connect via Facebook, and you're ready to start shouting, as it were.

On the simple interface you just hit to record, review and save the clip. If you've signed in with Facebook it will prompt you to post it on there, but you can skip this bit.

After you've saved it, you can e-mail, download, post to Facebook or tweet your audio. If you tweet it, then Shoutomatic makes you a neat shortened URL (like http://bit.ly/ckvllv) and adds the text Check this out to your tweet, which obviously, you can choose to delete.

There is no listen counter on ShoutoMatic, but people are able to reply directly on your message page. Here's what anyone following the link to your message will see:

BONUS: Pockets

If you're in the United States, Pockets lets you send targeted voicemail to an individual Twitter user. As you will see in the video demo above, Pockets will call you and record your message, which is then sent as an @reply to the recipient who can click through to the Pockets website to listen.

More Twitter resources from Mashable:

- Top 20 Sites to Improve Your Twitter Experience
-10 Ways to Share Music on Twitter
- Twitter to Facebook: 5 Ways to Post to Both
- HOW TO: Create Custom Twitter Backgrounds
- HOW TO: Get the Most Out of Twitter #Hashtags

[Img credit: Pixey]

More About: audio, AudioBoo, chir.ps, Chirbit, how to, how tos, pockets, shoutomatic, social media, Twaud.io, twitter, twitter tools, voicemail

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Shared by Jim
I agree with this, I loved my Kindle. I sold it when I got my iPad because it didn't make sense to have two devices, but it was great for reading. If you're a reader, at this price now it doesn't make sense for you not to own a Kindle. (if you don't have the need / want for an iPad)

Yesterday, Amazon announced a new Kindle, similar in design to the new DX and just $140/$190 for WiFi-only and 3G models, respectively.

Naturally, the tech press is already declaring it dead, because the tech press loves product killers and other perceptions to completely rule out entire classes of products because they lack the empathy or worldview to recognize these products' markets.

Dave Winer says:

When I read on tech blogs that Kindle is a goner, I think these people must not read very much.

I love the Kindle. The iPad didn't kill it. Amazon is going to sell a ton of these, especially at this new price point.

Reading on the iPad is a bit of a kludge. You can read on it, and it's a lot better than reading on a computer, but it's still too reflective, heavy, bright, and power-hungry compared to the Kindle.

People often assume that the iPad's backlit LCD screen is an advantage over the Kindle because it doesn't need a separate light to be read at night. But the Kindle's e-ink screen is actually more versatile for different lighting: not only does it work in bright sunlight just as well as paper, but I find it easier to read a Kindle at night with a small lamp on than with an iPad in the dark, even using dark mode and low brightness. And I often can't use those same nightstand or headboard-clip lamps with the iPad to light the area less harshly because the iPad's screen is too reflective. The iPad is also too heavy to comfortably hold in most ways for long periods, and its wide range of software capabilities can be distracting. When you're holding a Kindle, all you can do is read. When I read on an iPad, I always want to go check my email. And my feeds. And Tumblr. And Twitter. Just for a minute.

The iPad is a great casual computer, but the Kindle is the superior reading device.¹ And there doesn't need to be any killing. If you really like an iPad for its other uses, now that a Kindle's entry price is $140, it's perfectly reasonable to have both.

Tiff and I are taking our first backpacking trip in a few weeks. We'll presumably have no access to AC power for 6 days, and we'll likely regret carrying anything heavy or unnecessary. But we'll have times at camp in which it will be nice to be able to entertain ourselves.

I'm not bringing the iPad. I'm certainly not bringing a laptop. I'll have my iPhone for emergencies, but powered off to conserve its battery. I'm bringing the S90, not the 5D Mark II.

And I'm bringing a Kindle, loaded up with books and Instapaper compilations, in a Ziplock bag for waterproofing. No case, no charger, no extra batteries. Total weight: 10 ounces. (I'll be carrying more coffee than that.) If it breaks, it's a lot cheaper to replace than an iPad. Its battery will outlast the trip, even with heavy use. It holds so much text that I'll always have a great selection and more than enough supply. And I'm simply bringing a few extra sets of AAA batteries (2 oz.) for my headlamp to light it at night if needed.

Gizmodo and the like probably don't care that the Kindle is the perfect device for so many uses like this that people encounter on a regular basis in Real Life. But Kindle owners, and Amazon, don't need them to.

JJJJJJJJJooooooooooooooooooobbbbbbbbssssss!

Favorite Comment: Punmaster timbenzidrene says, A fine example of high speed photography!!

Remember the CrunchGear Geek Weekend series, where we attempted to show some fun stuff to do in various cities across the U.S.? Yeah, we kind of let that peter out, didn't we? Also, there are lots of great non-geek things to do in and around cities. This is especially important for families: the kids might be more interested in Tecumseh! than the early television museum. With the A Day's Outing website, and now its new iPhone app, you can quickly find all sorts of interesting things to do.

This is a super simple app, and provides a nice front end to the website. You plug in what kind of activities you want to see, a date range (today, this weekend, next 7 days), and define a range (5 miles, 30 miles, 60 miles, etc). The app will query the A Day's Outing site and return a list of things going on. You can toggle between list view and map view, and you can get driving directions to any destination you select.

If you don't have an iPhone, you can simply use your smartphone's browser to access the website to get the same functionality: it'll just involve a bit more scrolling around on the page.

I like the presentation of this app. I find it calming. It's simple and uncluttered. My only gripe is that the back button is a little too small for my meaty fingers.

If you're making a cross-country road trip with your family, or just visiting in-laws for the weekend, A Day's Outing ought to let you find something interesting to do. It's only $3.

A few WordPress superstars have teamed up to create WPEngine, a new and very exciting platform that promises to do all of the above and more.

WordPress has become the killer platform for many bloggers, small businesses and developers/consultants with multiple clients.

However, there's a middle ground between a WordPress.com blog and a hosted WordPress site that a few apps are attempting to cover. This middle ground includes people who don't have the technical skills of a WordPress developer or even a website administrator but who still want to take advantage of a greater part of the WordPress ecosystem of plugins and other benefits.

About the Product

WPEngine offers a WordPress VIP-type experience for smaller-scale websites, and it includes top-notch support, one-click backups, optimization for speed and scalability, and security features that include automatic software upgrades. Also, you'll be able to use any WordPress plugins, themes, custom CSS or JavaScript you like.

The platform gives users a set of specially curated plugins that have been vetted for security and have the WP Engine team's absolute recommendation. If there is a plugin that isn't in our list, reads the site, you should feel empowered to use it anyway.

Most of all, WPEngine promises its users simplicity and a seamless transition and integration experience.

The platform seems like it will work for bloggers, for businesses, and also for small dev shops that need to keep an eye on several WordPress-based sites.

About the Team

While the product sounds fabulous and, indeed, just what the WordPress ecosystem needs, product is only part of what makes a good startup; the company also needs to have a great team. WPEngine was developed by Aaron Brazell, a well-known figure in the WordPress universe who authored The WordPress Bible; blogger and developer Jason Cohen; and Cullen Wilson, an Austin-based developer. The startup is also under the wing of Ben Metcalfe, who has made a habit of picking good bets in the startup world. His last pick, NutShell Mail, experienced the Silicon Valley version of a Cinderella story and was acquired recently by Constant Contact. Altogether, it's a bit of a dream team for a WordPress product.

Finally, the platform got the following 140-character thumbs-up from WordPress founder Matt Mullenweg this afternoon: I think it's a nice complement to first-party solutions, especially for businesses that use [WordPress] as a CMS.

About Signup and Migration

We talked a bit with some of the WP Engine team today about migrating blogs including themes, customized TypeKit fonts, comments and more over to the WP Engine platform, and it's a process we're eager to test. We'll be trying it out soon, and we will report back on the results.

In the meantime, if you're interested in learning more, sign up for WPEngine's beta program. The platform will be open to the public very soon. You can test the platform for 15 days free of charge, and it costs $50 per month thereafter. There are no contracts, and you're free to move your blog elsewhere at any time.

What do you think so far? Is this something you'd be interested in trying? Do you think it will be useful for businesses and WordPress developers? Let us know in the comments.

More About: aaron brazell, ben metcalfe, Wordpress, wpengine

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OK, to start, let's get past the whole PC means personal computer so a Mac is a PC thing. I'm aware. But for the sake of argument and story-telling, I'm going to use PC to refer to a Windows-based machine, whether home built or from a manufacturer.

That said, I have to repent for a sin. Though actually I guess I'm just admitting, because repenting would lead you to believe that I plan on stopping. That's not the case.

That sin is lust, and the object is a Mac.

I came into this profession as a blogger wielding a plastic-bound Logitech keyboard and 24 inches of widescreen Dell. I was determined to be the one that didn't change. I was going to profess my love of Windows 7 and the world would know that I was typing every new entry while staring at the beauty of the 4-color Microsoft flag.

It's not really that I'm a Microsoft fanboy. In fact, I've used a wealth of different operating systems, and would move to a flavor of Linux if more of what I do with audio production were supported. But, that hasn't happened, so I've stuck with the old standard.

Conversely, I'm also not an Apple fanboy. I think that the iPhone is pretty, but I don't really want one. Apple TV is one of the most disappointing products I've ever seen and iTunes on a PC is the single worst piece of software I've ever been all-but-forced to use.

But then it happened.

I'm a slave to the number pad on my keyboard. I avoid the top row of numbers as if they're carriers of some highly infectious disease. Unless I'm playing a game, this row of digits is doomed to a solitary confinement, never to be graced by my tender touch.

One day, the 2 on my trusty Logitech bit the dust. Without warning or probable cause, it simply died. I was in shock. I knew that I should have bought two of the things when I got it, but I just neglected to do so. Disassembling the $20 thing was of no use, and they were out of stock at all but the most untrusted sources. I had to face the fact: it was time to buy a new keyboard.

I started my search across the vast keyboard wonderland that is Amazon, reading reviews and trying to decide what was right for me. Time after time, the most highly rated keyboards came from Logitech and Apple. In a moment that can only be described as fiscal insanity, I shelled out $50 for the Apple Aluminum keyboard. The one, of course, with the number pad.

The next day, as the keyboard arrived at my door, I was wary of even plugging the thing in. I carefully unboxed the device, making certain that I'd be able to return it if I didn't like it. I set it in place, plugged it in and typed my first sentence.

And then it happenedAs if in an instant, I suddenly began to understand.

From the first few words, I instantly knew that I was addicted. I had never before felt a piece of hardware that was more responsive. Typing with this newfound friend was like driving a sports car that answered willingly to my every touch. With light flicks across its chicklet-laden frame, I found myself typing faster and with less effort than ever before.

I was hooked. I needed to find out more.

The next instance of my unintended investigation came with the arrival of Ostrich. Being that I'm the editor of a channel entirely dedicated to applications, it was up to me to take a look at Ostrich and figure out if it was any good.

Only one problem: I used Chrome, and Ostrich was the first Twitter extension for Safari. Well, no harm done. I'll load up Safari for Windows and, give Ostrich its due time and then I'll be back to Chrome.

I'm guessing that you can already tell what's going to happen, so I'll spare you the details. I'll just say that I'm now firmly into my third week of using Safari and I have absolutely no plans of going back to Chrome or Firefox as of this time.

Why? Because Safari, for me, is justbetter. And that's the confusing part, honestly. I can't put my finger onto why it is that I like Safari better than Chrome. They're both Webkit-based and both run essentially the same, but after weeks of using Safari and dealing with a couple of initial frustrations, I keep getting the sense that the browser is more intuitive, more responsive and simplybetter.

And so here I sit, typing this missive on an Apple keyboard, using Safariin Windows 7. Why? Not for lack of desire, mind you. Simply for lack of funds. I've finally gotten to the point where I can justify in my mind the cost associated with owning a Mac, but my wallet doesn't seem to care what my mind thinks.

I now understand the cost. I now also understand why Mac enthusiasts shell out the money for them without a second thought. I've used a years-old Powerbook that still ran flawlessly. I've seen a friend who still has a Mac G4 Cube in daily service without a hitch. Why? It comes down to build quality, and Apple simply can't be beaten, in my PC-using opinion.

So there it is. 900-some words later and I've finally laid it out there for flames from both sides. So flame on, my Internet-anonymous friends. Don't mind me, I'll just be over scraping change out of the sofa cushions to add to my Macbook Pro savings account.

Original title and link for this post: Confessions of a Mac-lusting PC owner.

Working in the mobile advertising business, New York City-based Xtify has been building its platform for brands and other app developers, allowing for geo-targeted notifications most often, ads that are pushed to consumers when they are within a predefined area, say a one-mile radius from a department store. The company has announced it has raised $2.8 million in a first round of institutional funding, which it is using to beef up its product development and team, currently ten-people strong.

Xtify picked up the funding from Acadia Woods Partners, SeventySix Capital and an undisclosed, significant New York-based angel investor. CEO Josh Rochlin says Xtify is looking to raise another sum of money in the fall, due to major announcements and partnerships that are rolling out soon, although he declined to disclose those just yet.

Xtify's platform allows for brands, businesses and anyone building apps for iPhone, Android and Blackberry devices to create and manage push notification campaigns. When users who have downloaded an app for instance, an app for a clothes brand are within a certain distance from a retailer, they will get a notification of a sale or special offer, or a prompt for whatever action the app developer desires, on their cell phone, much like the ones users get now when there are software updates available. The trick is that the app doesn't have to be running in the foreground: Users will be notified even if the app is not currently in active use.

This only applies to the users who have downloaded the app that notifies them, nobody gets spammed, Rochlin explained. Xtify also keeps things anonymous, as no phone numbers or email addresses are collected. Instead, users in Xtify's database are identified with random user keys, which are then paired with information about the device, such as the make and model of it, and its location.

Xtify faces competition from other location-based ad companies, such as San Francisco, Calif.-based Placecast, which runs geo-targeted ad campaigns, for instance pinging users with text messages when they are near a shop. Xtify says that the very fact that they have a background-running notification system is what differentiates them from the competition. In addition, the service is not reliant on getting a phone's location from a carrier, nor is it using SMS, which makes the service cost-efficient, Xtify says.

Founded in 2009, Xtify launched at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona last February, and the team is currently keeping its head down, building out the product. The major announcements that the company has in the pipeline in the following weeks will make for a big increase in traction for the platform, Rochlin says.

Tags: geo-fencing, mobile ads

Companies: Acadia Woods Partners, Placecast, SeventySix Capital, Xtify

People: Josh Rochlin

Today at our Social Currency CrunchUp in Palo Alto, CA, James Lamberti, VP of Global Research and Marketing for InMobi, sat down with our Michael Arrington to tell us a bit about mobile advertising.

InMobi is the largest independent mobile ad network in the world. Overall, they're number two behind Google's AdMob. That earned them an $8 million investment from Kleiner Perkins and Sherpalo Ventures a couple weeks ago. But what's particularly interesting about InMobi is how well they're doing outside the U.S.

Out of inMobi's 16.9 billion mobile ad impressions globally, 2.6 billion are in Africa, more than the US's 2 billion. 10 billion are in Asia, no surprise considering inMobi was founded in India and had more time to develop reach, while Europe follows Africa with 1.6 billion and the Middle East .5 billion. InMobi's mobile eCPM development is highest in Europe at 29%, with North American coming in a close second at 24%.

When inMobi's development rankings, are stack ranked by country, Australia comes in first due to its high adoption of the iPhone and Malaysia performs at number two. Not surprisingly the iPhone platform dominates inMobi's marketshare the US, being responsible for 38.2% of all mobile ad impressions. Globally Nokia trumps other platforms serving inMobi ads, at 22.2% of the market.

Lamberti says that InMobi's biggest growth markets are in the US, Japan, and South America and the US, partially because of the benefits from Google Ad Mob changes on the iPhone. While 60% of all mobile iPhone impressions are still in the US, inMobi is now poised to to monetize the 40% that aren't.

Slides from their presentation below.

If you've ever tried to jailbreak your iPhone handset before, you'll know it's not always that easy. Aside from the fact that your jailbreak tool has to relate to your iPhone (2G, 3G, 3GS, 4) and iOS, words like baseband and boot loader are thrown around like Frisbees leaving those unfamiliar with the art (like me) more than a little confused.

However, the guys over at Jailbreak Matrix have a solution. They've posted a table for each generation of the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad, detailing the jailbreak tool required for your firmware, baseband, and bootloader. Additionally, Jailbreak Matrix also gives a recommended version of iTunes, and the relevant unlock software.

So, if you're thinking of jailbreaking your iDevice following America's recent change in attitude, be sure to take a look at Jailbreak Matrix and find out which jailbreak tool is right for you. And thanks to lifehacker for spotting this!

Related Posts

• iPhone Dev Team Jailbreaks iOS 4 For iPhone 3G And iPod Touch
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Here's a quick trick for any iOS 4-running iPhone 3G owners who want to speed up their phone without restoring back to iOS 3.1.3.

According to lifehacker, users may notably increase the speed of their old-and-reliable iPhone 3G handsets simply by refining what Spotlight searches for, when you swipe your Homescreen to the left.

Go to Settings- General -Home Search Results, and shut off everything you don't need (I disabled Music, Podcasts, Video and Audiobooks; leaving Contacts, apps, Notes, Mail and Calendar checked). Made my phone a lot quicker, more like it was with v2 (I'm still running v3.1.2, jailbroken).

I'm currently in the process of attempting to speed up an iPhone 3G. After installing iOS 4 (and then promptly downgrading back to iOS 3.1.3), this fix was next on the list. And, I have to admit it worked for me, too.

So, if you're starting to lose patience with your iOS 4-running iPhone 3G, be sure to give this a try. And, if you're still not pleased with the speed of your handset, you could always revert back to iOS 3.1.3. If you're not sure how, be sure to check out our step-by-step guide! And, don't forget to let us know how this quick trick works for you in the comments box below.

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Filed under: App Review

Gallery: American Museum of Natural History Explorer app

TUAWThe American Museum of Natural History's Explorer app for the iPhone and iPod touch originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 30 Jul 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

By now, many of us have seen the video of YouTube user Hungrybear9562 (a.k.a Paul Vasquez) freaking out over a super pretty rainbow there are been remixes, interviews with Bear and even an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live (Kimmel helped Vasquez rocket to stardom after tweeting a link to the vid at the beginning of July). Yup. This video certainly was meme-tastic, and now it has a country rock cover befitting the soundtrack of some awesome '70s movie about love and loss, like Harold and Maude.

This isn't the first time Fallon has given a viral vid the Young treatment he covered Pants on the Ground (remember that classic jam?) back in January. And now, for your Fridaze listening pleasure, here's both of those jams. Fallon should seriously cut an album his comedic skills are questionable, but I would totally listen to a disc of viral covers if I had a truck and nothing but the open road before me.

Double Rainbow

Pants on the Ground

More About: double-rainbow, humor, jimmy fallon, pop culture, television, viral video, youtube

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Name: KnowPro

Quick Pitch: KnowPro apps helps people learn new topics, test for competence, or compete against friends or colleagues through social platforms.

Genius Idea: It's no secret that the iPhone can be used as an educational resource, and KnowPro's extensive lineup of tutorial-style iPhone apps demonstrates just how pocket-friendly and fun learning can be.

KnowPro has developed dozens of apps for practically any educational purpose. App categories cover subject matter such as animals, science, history, music, politics, business and pop culture.

In the science category, for instance, Board Review: Pharmacology is designed to help pharmacologists prepare for their board exam, Periodic Table of the Elements includes quiz questions on all 112 elements, and there's even an app to help with preparation for the biology portion of the MCAT.

Each app tutors users by testing them with quiz questions. At the beginning of each randomized quiz, you can set how many questions you want to answer. Then, for each question, you'll be presented with four possible answers. Get a question right and you'll advance to the next question. Get a question wrong, and you'll need to continue guessing until you get it right.

At the end of each quiz you can then publish your score to the service-wide leaderboard or publicly share it on Facebook or Twitter.

KnowPro's selection of apps is impressive, so if there's a particular subject matter you'd like to master, chances are a KnowPro app can help. The only downside is that each app comes at a price, with the more sophisticated tutorials costing as much as $6.99 apiece. Still, being able to use your iPhone in lieu of flashcards could make the expense worthwhile.

Sponsored by Microsoft BizSpark

BizSpark is a startup program that gives you three-year access to the latest Microsoft development tools, as well as connecting you to a nationwide network of investors and incubators. There are no upfront costs, so if your business is privately owned, less than three years old, and generates less than U.S.$1 million in annual revenue, you can sign up today.

[img credit: foundphotoslj]

More About: educational, iphone apps, knowpro

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Shmoop, the online study guide publisher founded by husband-and-wife entrepreneurs Ellen and David Siminoff, has announced the first of what it says will be a number of deals with major media companies. The Mountain View, Calif. startup says it has signed on to write content for Bio.com, the website of the A&E television show Biography.

Shmoop's website offers study guides in areas like literature, US history, and economics, aiming for an entertaining, funny style. For example, the study guide for The Scarlet Letter includes a short summary, a guide to symbolism, and concludes with Why Should I Care? a long anecdote about showing up for class with I didn't read the book' tattooed to your forehead and being berated by your Dumbledore look-alike teacher.

The study guides are free. The site runs advertising, and it also charges a small fee for apps on the iPhone, Kindle, and other devices. Deals like this seem like should bring in revenue and raise the company's profile with a broader audience. The Shmoop team will be creating biographies for the Bio.com website, starting with Twitter cofounder Jack Dorsey, celebrity chef Bobby Flay, actress Joan Collins, and others.

Ellen Siminoff, Shmoop's chief executive, previously served as CEO of Efficient Frontier, while David Siminoff, the chief creative officer, cofounded 4info. The third cofounder is Ana Rowen McCullough, who cocreated the Quest Scholars educational program.

Companies: Shmoop

Filed under: Utilities, Google

Google Earth now displays real-time weather originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 30 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Today at TechCrunch's Cruchup in Palo Alto, CA, Jeremy Stoppelman , Yelp's CEO and John Hanke , VP of Product Management at Google talked about the strain that is building up between Yelp and Google Places.

According to Stoppleman, Yelp now has 12 million reviews on Yelp, with 35 million uniques per month. 2.5 million uniques between Android and iPhone.

Asked if Yelp is like the yellow pages, Stoppleman said that, Yellow pages are boring, so I don't know if we want to be that. Google's Hanke said that, The Web [as a whole] is the yellow pages.

Henke believes that, The areas that Google can help [in local search] are data and monetization. Over 4 million business are feeding the Places API. The other part of the strategy is monetization. Henke said that there was a lot of local-focused startups that failed because there, wasn't an advertising platform for location startups, and Google aims to fix that.

We sell ads, we have 100 sales people on mobile we haven't done any monetization there we could just add in our search ads. Our most valuable data is our reviews. There longer than other site's reviews, said Stoppleman. He also noted that, check-ins have been awesome for Yelp.

Google Places vs Yelp

Our primary concern is what is best for the user. I think there is a real tension [between Google Places and Yelp]. I think Google has to be very careful that they don't block the best content, said Stoppleman. Later he said, That can be difficult for a company like Google to swallow.

If the best content on the web is Yelp or the New York Times, we're [Google] going to show it. The competition isn't between Google and Yelp or anyone else the real competition is getting local businesses to advertise in the first place, said Henke.

Original title and link for this post: Yelp CEO: There is real tension between Google Places and Yelp

At their genesis, bike-sharing networks were low on tech and heavy on grassroots, cooperative spirit. But the programs and systems rolling out today for tracking and distributing up to thousands of bicycles in cities from Milan to San Antonio are of another generation one built upon mobile access to the real-time web and GPS chips.

Armed with these IT tools, new and evolving bike-sharing networks fit into the larger trends of smarter digital and networked transportation systems, innovation around providing mobility as a service, and moves by unconventional players (from non-profits to advertising giants to health insurance firms to new startups) to assume new roles in the transportation sector.

Public entities are getting into the act, too, with Montreal's BIXI system being deployed in cities in the U.S. and the UK, while federal and state governments are providing seed money and ongoing funds for some programs. The hope is that the right combination of technology, pricing and convenience will help integrate bicycles into the larger transportation system at mass scale (right up there with buses, trains, ferries and taxi cabs, for example) and spur the growth of some new businesses in the process.

On Friday, the world's largest bike share network will launch in London, with 6,000 bikes at 400 stations. It's an illustration of what technologies like text messaging, smartphones with GPS, and the real-time web are ultimately driving in the bike-sharing market: a shift in scale, as infrastructure costs come down, and growing convenience attracts a broader market.

As it becomes increasingly common for consumers to have web access on the go and operators can use sensors and real-time communication to flag available docks and bikes barriers to adoption are falling away. It's just plain easier to find a station and a bike that's ready to roll. And with GPS chips that can locate you, a bike, or a parking spot, operators have a tool for tackling the bane of bike sharing networks of yore: theft.

A similar shift can be seen on the automotive side of the mobility as a service market. Whereas car sharing providers have had networks at the city or regional scale for years, often using a nonprofit model, Zipcar has built up a national footprint and begun to extend its reach overseas over the last decade. While the company which filed in June for a $75 million IPO has never turned a profit, its revenues reached $131.2 million last year, up from just $13.7 million in 2005.

Zipcar, which has also grown through acquisitions, developed its fleet technology with a plan to scale it. The company's vehicles carry some essential hardware, including a black box device (a custom circuit board, processor and modem) fitted to a vehicle windshield that allows users to unlock the car they've reserved, and also lets Zipcar remotely monitor vehicles. It's a relatively streamlined customization process, compared with competing systems that require installation of keypads in the dash, for example, or a hands-free calling setup. In fact, Zipcar CEO Scott Griffith has told us that the ideal vehicle for car sharing would be modeled after smartphones, with an open platform that would allow Zipcar to roll new cars into its fleet with little more than a software download.

Zipcar's grand vision is for a subscriber who lives near its Cambridge, Mass. headquarters, for example, to rent a car in a Barcelona or London Zipcar fleet just as easily as in their home network. Might we eventually be able to rent a bike just as easily in any city around the world, with the swipe of a smartcard or by sending a text message? The race is on to find out, as a growing number of operators seek to replicate their systems in other cities.

We put together a cheat sheet on 10 bike sharing networks to watch earlier this year. But the pace of growth in these programs called for an update, so we revamped our guide to show how bike-sharing networks are putting technology to work, who's paying how much, and what you might expect to find in your own city sometime soon. There are dozens more that we couldn't include on our list (tell us about em in the comments section), but here's 20 places to watch as the latest generation of bike sharing systems put chips to work for pedal power.

Related articles on GigaOM Pro (subscription required):

Mobility on Demand Takes Aim at Transport Networks' Last Mile

Electric Vehicles Give Mobility as a Service a Jumpstart