Recent articles in tech (page 3 of 9)

1. May 24, 2012 Diet Coda for Modern Web Development

   Following the announcement (and imminent release) of Diet Coda from Panic Software this week, I’ve heard some complaints that it has been designed for a workflow that no longer exists (or shouldn’t). “Edit files directly on my server? Who *does* that anymore!?” Setting aside the fact that there are probably plenty of web developers who still do exactly that, those who think Diet Coda unsuited to a more sophisticated workflow are, I think, simply lacking in imagination.

2. Mar 7, 2012 2012 Apple iPad Event Predictions (Updated)

   Like clockwork, Apple is hours away from announcing the third generation iPad. I’m sure I won’t be the only Australia-based Apple watcher getting up at 5AM to take in the news. Since people keep asking me, I thought I might as well break the blogging ice with my predictions for today.

3. Jun 23, 2009 Radioshift Subscriptions as iTunes Podcasts

   Like many displaced Canadians, I like to listen to CBC Radio 3 at work to keep me feeling culturally connected to my home country. But the shows I enjoy tend to be on at inconvenient times here in Australia. Thanks to Radioshift, that isn’t a problem! Radioshift from Rogue Amoeba is a Mac application for scheduled recording of web radio streams. Radioshift makes it easy to import your recordings into iTunes, but it would be nice, I thought, if those recordings showed up as a podcast, instead of normal music tracks in my iTunes library.

4. Jun 18, 2009 An Open Letter to the Microsoft Partner Program

   I continue to be amazed by how horrible a job your web team does. Why would we ever take marketing advice from Microsoft?

5. Mar 19, 2008 Streetwise Will Throw Away Your Mac’s Serial Number

   Over the past week, I have decided once and for all to keep my computer out of the hands of Streetwise, a popular Apple retailer here in Melbourne. I have previously written about Streetwise, an Apple Authorised Service Centre, and its policy of holding onto computers while they wait days for replacement parts to arrive so that they can maintain a high Apple Service Rating.

   
   That original post came about when I had to get the palm rest of my MacBook replaced under warranty, and in the past week another shocking outcome of that repair has come to light: when the Streetwise technician replaced my palm rest, he did not transfer my MacBook’s serial number sticker (which is attached to the underside of the palm rest—inside the battery compartment). When I contacted Streetwise about this last week, service manager Jedda Wignall was appropriately contrite. “It is incredibly unfortunate that you have been hit with this inconvenience, as could have been put in a precarious situation as a result,” he wrote (sic.). “The technician who performed the work is no longer with the company, and I would like to think that this situation would not arise again.”