alexknight – Page 10 – Zero Distraction

An In-Depth Look at Gauges App

A few months back I closed my Google account. With that went many of its services that I used on a regular basis. FeedBurner, which once used to be a good product, has since languished since Google decided to acquire them. I’ve seen many people complain about this, including Jim Dalrymple of The Loop—he’s beenContinue reading “An In-Depth Look at Gauges App”

Pushing App Store Updates to All of My Macs

I’m fortunate enough that I can say I get to use my favourite tools for getting things done at home and at the office. At home I have a MacBook Pro, whilst at the office I run a Mac Mini. I use the App Store on a regular basis to source new apps, but alsoContinue reading “Pushing App Store Updates to All of My Macs”

Typography Nerds

One of the things I love about being a typography nerd is that one can spend an inordinate amount of time fiddling with kerning, line-height, or even finding that perfect serif for long form reading. I’ve redesigned this site numerous times over the years, changing the layout in vast ways, as well as experimented withContinue reading “Typography Nerds”

Instant-On MacBooks

One of the features I’ve wanted since the inception of the iPhone and iPad is instant on and off for my MacBook Pro. As solid state storage prices continue to plummet year-after-year, and as Apple continues to fine-tune OS X, we seem to be getting much closer to this being a reality. The current generationContinue reading “Instant-On MacBooks”

It Is Only A Matter of Time before Google Exerts More Control over Android

It’s only a matter of time before Google starts to feel that it should exert more pressure on its device manufacturing partners. In fact, this is happening right now (for reasons I’ll get into). I’ll posit that ODM’s (Original Equipment Manufacturers) need Google more than Google needs them (for now). Presently it may seem preposterousContinue reading “It Is Only A Matter of Time before Google Exerts More Control over Android”

Instacast 2.0 And The Entitlement-Minded Morons

I love Instacast. It’s the best podcasting app that’s available for iOS as far as I’m concerned. I’ve been a fan of it since day one too, and this 2.0 release certainly does not disappoint. Here’s the thing: since Apple has no infrastructure in place to support paid app upgrades, developers are forced to eitherContinue reading “Instacast 2.0 And The Entitlement-Minded Morons”

Lest We Forget The Talented Designers And Developers

Everyone benefits from competition — both we the consumers, and technology companies — makers of our products. Competition means not only choice for everyone, but also keeps the makers of the products we use on their toes. Companies like Apple are one of the rare examples that I can think of that have superlative industrialContinue reading “Lest We Forget The Talented Designers And Developers”

Firefox: Not A Good Citizen on OS X Lion

I’ve been a long time Safari user. In fact, I continue to use it today as my primary web browser. I’ve never been averse to trying other browsers of course — what good geek wouldn’t try new software? This is something I have and will continue to do. One browser that I have never beenContinue reading “Firefox: Not A Good Citizen on OS X Lion”

The Problem with iCloud and Instacast

I don’t blame developers for having a rough time with implementing iCloud syncing into their apps. Between Apples less than stellar iCloud documentation — not to mention issues with the service itself — building iOS apps that rely on the syncing itself is tough. In the end though, users end up suffering from poor experiencesContinue reading “The Problem with iCloud and Instacast”

Static Images

I decided to try out Wired magazine on the iPad. Since I’m only familiar with their print magazine, I figured their digital version would be as nicely laid out as the print version. Clearly I’m far too naive. It seems like they got the pricing just right. At $1.99 per month, or $19.99 for aContinue reading “Static Images”