Could Valve's Steam TV be the Apple TV's Console Solution?

Kotaku has an article about Valve bringing Steam to the TV that is due to be released in Beta today. The argument is that Consoles are great, but they are walled gardens and Valve wants to create an environment that can be used on any box, at any time.

The timing is interesting, and the more that I read about Valve's Steam TV, the more I realized this could be Apple's way into console gaming without having to court high end developers to try and develop for the Apple TV platform. Not that I think there would be a big fight to get into the Apple TV market, even though it is very small. But Steam already has a huge inventory of games that would work given the right interface.

I've long believed that Apple would find some way to get gaming to the TV through the Apple TV. The most commonly believed avenue would be bringing your iOS apps to the TV, with the controller being the iPad or iPhone. It seems reasonable, and very likely. It wouldn't be at the same level as most of your console games, but then it wouldn't need to be since the expectation would be that of your iPhone gamer. But console gamers would want more.

So now, enter in Valve's Steam TV. Here you have very common PC games that already run on the Mac (thanks to the Mac release of Steam). Making an iOS compatible version of Steam shouldn't be that different from the Mac (depending on the software development platform they used), and it could be released to a broader audience than just the Apple TV in the very near future (iPad Steam, perhaps?).

Another argument for the release of Steam TV Beta on the Apple TV would be the current saturation of the Apple TV: a few million boxes are out there, but it's not as widespread as many other devices. Add a restriction to perhaps the latest Apple TV with the A5 processor and 1080P resolution, and you have even less. It's a perfect testbed for Steam TV.

Of course this is all supposition, as I don't have any contacts with Apple (who wouldn't say anything anyway, even if I did), and I don't have any contacts with Valve. But the idea is so interesting, so exciting, and so possible, I think it could happen. Perhaps this could be the "one more thing" for the announcement on Wednesday. What do you think?

What I'm Looking For at the iPhone Announcement

Unless you don't follow the Apple brand very closely, or don't own a smartphone, you are probably aware that Apple is having their iPhone announcement event on Wednesday, the 12th. As with a lot of other pundits for Apple (and against), there is a lot of supposition going into this announcement. Let me outline what I would consider newsworthy:

• LTE: This should go without saying, as it's expected and has been for a long time. Apple will finally release an LTE phone. They have an LTE iPad, so the stretch shouldn't be that big a deal. I think it's safe to say that Apple will have LTE in their next gen iPhone. If they don't, then it will be a huge disappointment.
• Better VIdeo Recording Tech: The 4S had some incredible recording tech with their steady hand recording. I'm looking for much better recording in the new iPhone, and possibly a better camera.
• iPod Touch Refresh: The iPhone dominates the news, but I'm looking for a refresh on the iPod Touch. It's been a huge hit for a long time, but there hasn't been a lot of changes in the past couple of years. Perhaps this year the iPod Touch will get it's big remake... as the iPad Mini?
• Apple TV Grows Up: Wired had an article recently about the 8 apps that the Apple TV needs to win the set top box war. And I agree whole-heartedly on these. Sure, you have Netflix and now Hulu Plus, but given Amazon Instant Video, specific apps for all the big (and small) networks, and add iTunes U (and similar) to the mix, you have one killer device that doesn't have to be connected to your cable provider. I've mentioned before how I think the cable companies could get into the mix. But if they don't, what better way to get around them than work with the independent networks? I like the idea, at least.
• Apple TV Gaming: This is another thing that I've wanted to see for a long time. While I don't expect the Apple TV to take the place of your big workhorse consoles, I think light gaming as seen in the iOS store would be very doable on the Apple TV. It could be very social, using the Apple TV as a central screen for individuals on their iOS devices going head to head. That would be sweet!

So that, at least, is my list of things I would like to see. What am I not expecting to see?

• RFC Payments: Google has been championing RFC technology for a while now with Google Wallet, and trying to get more and more vendors to by into it. Personally, I don't trust it because it's so easy to capture and duplicate RFC signatures, making it less secure. I'm sure Google has ways around protecting your money, but it's still a concern. Apple has already got some great deals going with Square and other payment methods without using RFC, so I don't see them going to it in the near future. Still, I could be wrong, as this is all just supposition. ^_^
• Reasonable Data Rates: Not really a problem that Apple can solve, as this is completely up to the carrier, but I don't see reasonable data rates coming from the new iPhone, and I don't know how it would get fixed.. unless there was only one national carrier that had all the LTE spectrum currently available.. but we all know what happens when you have a monopoly.
• No Snide Comments from Haters: Maybe it's the presidential election, the years of whining from pundits on both sides of the Smartphone environment, or perhaps just hanging around people who are so sure of their opinions without any proof given, but I'm sick to death of haters attacking other haters. Heaven forbid I prefer an iPhone to a Galaxy, and vice versa! *sigh*

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So that's my list of what I don't think will happen. Perhaps I'm wrong, perhaps not. We will see. But what about my list of unlikely features that I would really want?

• Waterproofing: Not that this has happened in my family, but some people do accidentally expose their iPhones (and other electronics) to water. There are lots of solutions to this problem, but apparently there is one that is a treatment to the internal surfaces of the components that can make the phone "waterproof". To what degree remains to be seen, but it would be nice to be able to take my iPhone to Sea World without worrying about where to sit, stand, or kneel. I'm sure it would make the iPhone the most valuable phone/camera at that point, and would be a feature very few other phones have.
• Built-in Projector: Forget having to cart around either an Apple TV or special adapters and cables.. why not just project straight from your iPhone or iPad? If this even was available it would most likely end up on the iPad, and would probably be so impractical to the majority of purchasers that it wouldn't make sense.. still, it would be awesome to just pull out your phone and run a full HD-quality presentation without anything else.
• Hand-held Scanner: Also not very practical, particularly since you can just take a photo of the object, but a high quality scan would be awesome. Not sure how it would be applied though...
• Laser Keyboard: It would be so awesome if, some how, a laser keyboard could be built into the iPhone, negating the need for an on-screen keyboard or a Bluetooth keyboard. Practical? I think so. Difficult? Definitely. Cost effective? It would mean fewer keyboard sales..
• Teleportation: Perhaps I've watched Phineas and Ferb with the boys, but a teleportation app that could automatically take you anywhere in the world? Awesome! Vacations would be a breeze, and I'm certain we would be off foreign oil very quickly. Of course, there's the whole quantum physics, computer processing necessary to make such a thing possible, and the facilities necessary to make it happen just don't exist. But if it did, awesome!

Anyway, that's my list. What are you looking forward to come September 12th? What don't you see coming? What would you like to see?

The New iPad Announcements: Impressions

On Wednesday, March 7th, Apple held their iPad launch event, and announced their new iPad, as well as their new Apple TV.  The pundits have had a chance to have their voices heard, and I've had a chance to watch the Keynote by new CEO Tim Cook, so now I think I'll offer my view of the new device. 

What I Like

Apple came through with the new Retina display, which was my biggest hope, and last hold-out I needed to get an upgrade for my first generation iPad.  I wanted something that would make it easier on the eyes for reading, and the new resolution is exactly what I was looking for. 

4G LTE was a big draw for me as well, not to mention the hot-spot support that would be made available.  I'm still not sure which network I would like to use, but I've got some time to think about it before I get one.  The speed was clearly a plus for what we wanted while traveling, and we seem to travel a lot lately as a family.  And add in the hot-spot capability, and it will make it useful for everyone in the family while traveling. Now, granted, I could probably get a MiFi hotspot from AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, or T-Mobile, but I like having as few devices as possible to keep track of when I travel, and I like the "temporary" feel of the 4G account, just pay by the month (unlike my iPhone). 

The new processor and RAM upgrade is killer, particularly since the battery life has been preserved.  That's always been a killer feature of the iPad, and one that I continue to tout as the best feature of all.  To keep that kind of battery life while increasing the processing power makes it OK that a quad-core processor (or at least a quad-core graphics processor) was added when I honestly didn't see an immediate need.  

iPhoto was unexpected, and is a great start: except it doesn't do everything I wanted.  I was hoping Apple would allow the creation of their printed Calendars with iPhoto and their printed photo albums.  Right now it's only available through iPhoto on OS X, which still requires a desktop or laptop to publish and have printed.  They released Cards with iOS 5, so perhaps I just need to wait until iOS 6 for them to release the other two apps.  

Garageband upgrade was killer with Jam Session, and something that I am thrilled to see!  I've loved playing with it (as have the kids, I might add), and the idea that we could play together and record a song (or an attempt at a song at any rate) is just killer.  Other than what was available, I would have to pull out my old mixing hardware that, quite frankly, seemed to be a little antequated in this digital age.  And, I might add, Jam Session is really easy to set up and use in my experience.  Great job!

iMovie was cool, and I like the way they set up the storyboard for iPad.  It looks just awesome enough that I'm now thinking of purchasing it (with the new iPad, it makes more sense to have it).  

Dictate is awesome, and something that has been long needed on iOS.  I've used Dragon Dictate, but it's limited in the amount of audio that it can convert at a time.  I'm not sure how long your dictate duration will be accepted, but I'm hoping it takes more than Dragon Dictate.  We shall see on that. 

It wasn't announced but I like the Apple Configurator app that was made available for mass-configuring up to 30 iOS devices for Education and Enterprise users.  It's a great complement to OS X Lion Server and it's Mobile Device Management services.

Apple TV upgrade!  The hardware isn't that critical to me, though I'm thrilled it supports 1080p now!  It's almost enough for me to purchase a new one, though we just got our current one a little less than a year ago.  I do like the new interface on the software upgrade, though my wife is a little dubious about it.  I think it bodes well for future third-party apps that may eventually come to the Apple TV, and make it easier to find them.  Perhaps, even, it will include a gaming section in future?  Time will tell!

Finally, I liked the fact that the rumored price increase was false.  I didn't think it would be increased, and it's nice to be relieved at the same price for the new iPad.  And for those that don't quite want to make the jump, the iPad 2 is now $100 less!  

What I Wanted To See

I've already mentioned it, but the lack of a print calendar project and a photo album project in iPhoto was something that disappointed me.  I'm hoping they pull that in later, or create independent apps for those features found in the desktop version of iPhoto. 

There is still a lack of a coding platform for Objective-C on the iPad, and that's something I would like.  The iPad is powerful enough to develop on, though I'm not sure it would be a good platform to test those apps in a simulator.  Not sure how that would work out, but it would be nice. 

I'm still waiting for Apple's Server management software to come to iOS.  Granted, Server is perhaps a small contingent of the Apple revenue stream, but for some of us it's a great package that we use quite often.  I'd like to see management happen easily from an iOS device, and creating server software for iOS would be a huge benefit for system administrators. 

I would like to see Apple Remote Desktop for iOS come out here soon.  I don't expect advanced services like the Task Server, but I would like to see ARD being used as a VNC/Command Line client for quick access to troubled computers and easy management.  A full ARD client would still be useful for the Task Server and reports, so I don't see it taking a lot of revenue, just making it easier for the administration team to help someone on the fly. 

Well, that's about it!  I'm looking forward to the purchase of my new iPad here in the coming months, and I'm thrilled to enjoy the benefits of the new Apple TV software now.  What were your impressions of the Apple Keynote on Wednesday?  What did you want to see, and didn't?  What did you see that took you by surprise? 

 

Growing Expectations for iPad 3 Launch: Killer Software and the Apple TV

There are a lot of people who cannot wait for the new iPad 3 to be released this coming Wednesday (March 7th).  There's a lot of hype and excitement that is buzzing about the hardware.  But should there be?  Granted, if the rumors are true, the retina display for the iPad will be awesome (and the reason why I haven't upgraded yet, I might add), but beyond that, the iPad has always just worked.  That's been it's beauty, and I don't see any significant changes to the hardware taking away from that experience. 

So that being said, what get's me excited about the iPad 3 launch?  Software.  That's right, I'm looking for some new killer software that will continue to relegate my laptop to "workhorse" status, while I use my iPad for everything else.  I'm looking to take all the fun design work out of the laptop and place it on my iPad.  What do I mean by design work?  I mean anything that doesn't require writing code, which is tedious at best with the built-in keyboard for the iPad.  Of course, that could change with a few minor keyboard changes (see Gusto for iPad, or iA Writer for iPad for ideas), but in general that is the useability point against using Xcode for iPad.  

So what software would I be looking for?

1. Photoshop:  Already released, Photoshop for the iPad is a killer idea.  I've used Photoshop Express for a while now, and fell in love with it. 
2. iPhoto Calendars:  I've mentioned this before, and I think it's really important for scrapbooking families to be able to create printable calendars (perhaps using dates and events from a Calendar in iCal?) from their iPad, and send them off to Apple for professional printing.  We use this in iPhoto every year for Christmas presents to relatives, and it would be very nice to be able to do this from an iPad. 
3. iOS 6:  I know we won't have it by Wednesday, but I would like to see the preview of iOS 6 as it is coming down the pipe.  In iOS 6, I would like to see some of the features that have been native to the Mac for years show up on the iPad, like maybe a Dashboard for widgets (a great way to get stocks, calculator, and weather on the iPad without blowing them up!).  Sometimes having a full blown app for something isn't really that necessary, but having a page with widgets would make sense.  
4. Siri:  Yes, I want Siri for the iPad.  I'd also like to see Siri taken out of Beta and released for the iPhone 4.  Perhaps with iOS 6?

So that's pretty much it for the iPad.  But I'm also hoping the rumors that an upgrade to the iOS-based Apple TV would be announced as well.  Why?  Because the Apple TV is a great device, and has been slowly replacing my need for Cable television.  With a few upgrades, it could also completely replace a number of other consoles that are hooked up to my TV.  

1. Streaming TV Show Subscriptions:  Right now you can stream any television episode you have purchased from iTunes to your Apple TV, and that's great.  And a pet peeve of mine about Cable has always been the need to purchase whole banks of channels I'll never watch, just to get the few shows that I do want.  Couple that with the restrictive nature of when what show is on, and I'm losing interest in watching television completely (perhaps that's not a bad thing).  But there are a few shows that I would like to keep up with, and allowing me to watch that streamed show when I want for a subscription fee would be just dandy!  After all, it's not that far from going to the network's website to watch the show, so why not provide it as a streaming channel?  
2. Games:  Since iOS has been used for the Apple TV, the populace has been waiting with baited breath to see if Apple would turn it into a gaming console.  With other gaming consoles turning into video streaming devices, it makes sense that Apple could go the other way.  And with the vast majority of iOS developers ready to jump in to this area, I see it as a foregone conlusion.  
3. Streaming Movie purchases:  TV Shows have it, why not movies?  With more of my movie purchases going to iTunes then ever before, I would like the peace of mind in knowing that I can get that movie again should my computer crash.  
4. 1080p:  720p video is great, and it looks great on the screen.  But when my TV can support up to 1080p, I'd like the Apple TV to support it as well. 
5. Cable Replacement:  Perhaps this is part of the show subscriptions, but I would like to have the option of using my Apple TV to watch television, and be my cable box (should I decide to keep it).  The less I have to hook up to my TV and plug into the wall, the better I feel.  

So that's my wish list for the announcement on Wednesday, March 7th, 2012.  Anyone else want to chime in?  

iPad Wish List: iPad 2

So Apple is going to announce their new iPad next week on the 7th. It's not a surprise, as it's been about a year since the last announcement, and that seems to be a pretty consistant release schedule for Apple so far (of course anything is subject to change at this stage of the game). There are a lot of release announcement predictions, but I'm not going to make any. What I've heard has been pretty consistant with expectations, so let me tell you what I expect:

1. Retina Display: It's about time the iPad had a retina display. This is what kept me from trying to convince my wife to get an iPad 2. Sure there were a lot of awesome features that I could have used up to now, but I wanted a display that was easy on the eyes. The Retina display (from my experience with my iPhone 4) is very easy on the eyes.
2. More Memory: This sounds pretty intuitive, but I would like to see more memory on the iPad 3. Not storage, but RAM memory (processing memory). It will boost performance without sacrificing too much battery life.
3. More Battery Life: I really want to see more battery life come out of the iPad 3. It's already killer in it's performance, so I'm not worried about it slumping down behind other tablets. Rather, I'm hoping for more distancing from the rest of the pack. Apple's delivered killer battery life thus far, and it's a trend I would like to continue. It's definitely a good thing considering the huge piece of mind it gives me while traveling.

So that's pretty much it. I'm not expecting a lot, because that's all I really need. That being said, let me tell you what I would want:

1. New Connector: Sure, to date I've had no trouble connecting my iPad and my iPhone to the same cable I've used for my iPod Touch, but I want something that can move more data faster with a smaller connection point. The 30-pin connector that is currently used seems so fragile to me, I'm always afraid I'm going to break something. What with syncing over the Air and iCloud for our iOS devices, perhaps a data connection isn't even necessary.
2. LTE: I wouldn't use it a lot, and I wouldn't want it on all the time, but when I'm traveling and happen to stay at a hotel that doesn't have wireless access (only wired? Really?), having an LTE connection for Netflix, web work, and email would be very handy.
3. Digital Hub: The iPad is a powerful device that has the potential to be a digital hub for all your devices. For now, I'm just looking at perhaps a built-in VNC client for controlling your Mac remotely, a better-designed Remote app for the Apple TV, and perhaps a way to report on other iOS devices registered in your name. It would be great to keep track of what the kids are doing on their devices, then control what's on the Apple TV, and then switch over to the Mac for some quick work that can't be done otherwise on the iPad.

So that's about it for the wants. Now, what about the wishes?

1. Waterproof: I would LOVE to see an iPad that was waterproof. I don't know if it can be done within the price range of the iPad and still have it be a money maker for Apple, but I would just about kill for a waterproof iPad. And when I say waterproof, I mean survive a tumble in the bathtub from a wandering toddler. Not very likely, but that would be KILLER!
2. OS Lion Server Admin Tools: There are some tools out there by third party developers, but I would love to be able to manage my server remotely from my iPad easily, while also pulling up data points and setting alerts on critical data. It's probably not something that would be widespread considering the market for iOS devices, but it would be nice.
3. Calendar and Photo Book Publishing: With iOS 5 Apple released a Cards app for creating and printing high quality greeting cards. They need one for calendars and photo books too. Do that, and my wife will never let her iPad out of her sight again.
4. Command Line/SSH: There are a lot of third party tools out there, but I would really like to have a command line tool on my iPad. It doesn't have to be a command line tool to access iOS, but rather a built-in SSH console that will allow me to access my computers at home and at work for quick code updates and HTML changes that are minor.
5. iBooks Author for iPad: I know it was just released, but as it's just another iWorks app (more or less), it would be nice to see an iBooks Author app for the iPad.
6. Xcode for iPad: This is definitely pie in the sky type stuff, but I would love to have Xcode for the iPad. A chance to get some real development done on a very mobile device that doesn't need a clamshell open while working: that would be awesome. If you need help with the special character set for programming, look at the way iA Writer has their keyboard set up, I think you would be very happy with that setup.

That's about it. Honestly, only Xcode and iBooks Author keep me on a laptop for right now, which is probably why at least Xcode will remain only a desktop app (and probably for the best). Still, it would be awesome to have, if not Xcode Express (all the coding and code check, none of the compiling or virtual environment testing).

Also, notice I didn't say anything about a quad-core processor. Honestly, as long as the graphics chip screams, why waste power on multiple cores? Tablet computing doesn't take a lot of processing power, so why have all those cores sitting idle? I also didn't say anything about SD slots for extended storage. With the expected iCloud improvements, SD cards will be less useful than getting data through the cloud. Even now I find that using Dropbox does more than enough for transferring files back and forth.

What would you like to see in the new iPad?

OS X Mountain Lion 10.8: Early Impressions

Yesterday I got a shock:  Apple was planning on releasing OS X 10.8 a year after Lion was released.  The development process for OS X has accelerated, which comes with it's own share of problems when it comes to training and Certification.  That being said, I couldn't wait to download and install the OS to give it a try!

Downloading

Once I got my voucher from the Apple Developer's website, I was taken to the Mac App Store to download and install the OS.  This isn't surprising, as Apple started this process with OS 10.7.  It took about 30 minutes to an hour to download, it being a large file in and of itself.  I then quickly backed up some critical files on my computer (always a good idea before upgrading!), and started the install.

Installation

Nothing changed much from the Lion install here.  It was pretty straightforward in upgrading.  Once installed I did get one update (which surprised me), but the update was for an HP printer driver.  Within 40 minutes I was looking at my new Mountain Lion Mac.

Changes

The first major change that I saw was the Notifications button in the top right hand corner.  This is something that has been sorely needed on the Mac, though Growl has done a decent job with notifications to date.  But I like the iOS feel of notifications, and how they are accessed.

Next, Messages.  I have to say, I'm glad that Apple has opted to add their iMessages into iChat.  It's a move I hope will be seen in iOS soon, because I'm all about centralized communications.  It helps me keep connected when I need to be, and that's a good thing.  There is a potential to be too connected, but I think that's more of an issue with how you use your messages.

Then I needed an update, and instead of opening Software Update, it opened up the Mac App Store!  It seems that all system updates will now be coming through the Mac App Store, as clicking on Software Update from the Apple menu launched the App Store as well.  It was a surprise, but seems logical given the installation process.  Of course, this begs the question: will you need to authenticate to an Admin account AND to the App Store to update your computer?  If so, it looks like mass deployments of updates may need to be rethought.  I might have a better idea once I get a chance to play around with Mountain Lion Server.

Contacts surprised me a little bit, as it took the place of the Address Book.  Though, technically, nothing changed really that I can see other than the name.  It took me a little while to find the Contacts app, as it is not in alphabetical order in Launchpad. But, the new search tool in Launchpad helped narrow that down.  That, by the way, is very much welcome.  I tend to have more than three pages worth of apps on my Mac, and the search tool in Launchpad definitely helps me find the app when I'm thinking about it.  Technically I can use Spotlight to find it as well, but if I'm in Launchpad already, it's nice to be able to search at that point.

I'm excited about Reminders and Notes being their own apps in OS X 10.8.  Previous to this, Notes was in Mail, and Reminders in iCal.  Not that it's bad to have them in there, but separating them out makes it easier for me to focus on that aspect.  It's another feature of iOS that is very welcome on the Mac.

The minor change in Safari that I didn't notice until today is definitely a welcome change!  Now, there is no longer a separate search box.  It seems Safari has finally updated to take the same feature of both Chrome and IE 9 and integrated the search box into the address box.  Not a critical, game-changer when it comes to browsing the web, but it's a nice change.  Here's hoping in the new iOS release the same will come to the iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch.

The updates to the Mail, Contacts and Calendars preference pane were great, but I started to see some bugs at this point.  It appears that selecting an account doesn't necessarily select that Account:  it may still have a previous or next account selected and you are editing preferences for it instead of the intended account.  Again, this is a Preview release of OS X 10.8, so bugs like this are expected (hence why I didn't install it on my main production computers).

The one thing that I was disappointed with was AirPlay Mirroring, if only because I couldn't get it to work.  When I got home, I looked for the AirPlay Mirroring display option to show up, just to see how it worked.  But it never did.  Now, it could be that I have my Apple TV wired to my router and the computer is wireless, but they were on the same network so it shouldn't have been a problem.  I'll keep playing with it and see if I can get it to work.  To date I'm not sure what use I would have for it at home where I have an Apple TV, but I could see a benefit in the workplace for a quick and easy remote monitor solution without needing dongles for VGA or DVI. Assuming, of course, you have an Apple TV box hooked up to your projector/HDTV.

Anyway, those are the features that I had a chance to play around with.  Notifications, I'm sure, will start to grow up as more apps start to utilize the process.  Game Center is nice, but doesn't interest me a lot right now, though I do like the connection between the Mac and iOS for similar titles.  To me it shows a level of growth and maturity in the Mac App Store to parallel the iOS App Store, and that's a good thing for the Apple ecosystem.  Gatekeeper, at least for now, doesn't seem to have a lot of application for me.  I can definitely see the benefits of it, and for anyone concerned about security in a fairly public arena (Office computers, family computer at home), it's definitely a good idea, though I can see one option missing: only identified developers (no Mac App Store).  I'm not sure that's going to happen, as all the updates come from the App Store, but we shall see.

Has anyone else had a chance to play around with Mountain Lion?  What are your thoughts?

OS X Lion Support Essentials First Class

Today I finished teaching my first full class of OS X Lion Support Essentials.  And barring the slight network issues and the fact that I had a server completely die on my this morning (and it was sitting in the server room), it was a pretty good experience. 

My class size was larger than usual, and the students were extremely bright.  All of them caught on quickly and easily, making it possible to cover a lot of topics faster than usual.  We even had time to run a certification exam that afternoon (the student passed!).  

For those who have not taken the class before, we cover the necessary essentials in managing an OS X Lion computer.  We cover installation, configuration, accounts, file systems, Directory binding, providing network services, printing and the boot process.  There's more and if you are interested in learning, feel free to register!  I call this certification the phone support cert, as it prepares someone to work at the help desk for Mac computers.  If you pass the certification exam then you receive your Apple Certified Support Professional (ACSP) certification, which is an accomplishment.  Ask anyone that had to take the exam, and I'm sure they would agree.  

I really enjoyed the class today, and I'm looking forward to this April for our Server Essentials class.  That will be a blast as well, particularly since I got to contribute to the Workbook on that one!  

iBooks 2 and iBooks Author: A Quick Review

Apple announced today at their by invitation only event in New York a new initiative for the iPad: iBooks 2. It’s to allow interactive textbooks to be sold through the iBooks store to create a more effective way to carry your textbooks with you to school. In addition to this method, they also created an ebook authoring tool: iBooks Author.

iBooks 2 is essentially the same as iBooks 1, but allows for interactive elements like video media, testing, etc. that have not been available in previous ebook readers. Prior to iBooks 2, these types of interactive books had to be separate apps, though the Yellow Submarine book released by the Beatles and Subfilms, Limited offered a glimpse at what could happen. But other than a significant backend update, the interface and general feel of iBooks 2 is pretty much the same.

The real news, at least in my mind, is iBooks Author. Prior to this app, creating any kind of ebook could be a tedious process. It required a lot of skills that many authors would not have, such as HTML or XML experience, layout skills, etc. And while those skills are still very important for most publishing works, iBooks Author takes a lot of that guesswork out.

The Mac App, free from the Mac App Store, looks a lot like any of the iWork apps. As mentioned in Gadgetbox’s review, it’s like a hybrid between Keynote and Pages, though I would probably take it a step further and say that it looks a lot like Apple’s now retired iWeb app, both in organization and interface.

You are presented with several pre-made templates from which you can select, and add your elements as drag and drop tools. You can add new pages, chapters, prefaces, etc. from the Add Pages tool (top left-hand corner). You can change the view and orientation of the book to see what it would look like in portrait or landscape mode on the iPad, and even preview the book on your iPad when you are done (either with the book or the section.

Once done, you will then be able to publish your book. To publish to the iBookstore, you need to first create an iBookstore seller account. Once you have your account created, you can then download iTunes Producer to submit your packaged book as provided by the Publish tool in iBooks Author.

The really cool thing is that this doesn’t have to be limited to just textbook publishers, or even instructors who create their own textbooks. Anyone can use these same tools to create and distribute their own works for self-publication. That means professional-looking ebooks are now easier to create for the iBookstore at least, and all with free tools. This will have a huge impact on the self-publication industry that is starting to grow.

As an educator, I think this is a great tool. I look forward to creating some sample textbooks to see how the process works, and whether or not it will be something I will be using in the future for my training courses. As a potential author, even of fiction, I think it’s brilliant! The idea that I can take my current work and publish it without the stress of trying to get it noticed by the right agent and going through the publisher’s timeline. Of course there is an argument of quality that would come into play as has been with the self publication market as a whole, but the ease of the process as introduced by iBooks Author takes a lot of the fear out of it.

What do you think of Apple’s announcement?

Apple Predictions: My Wishlist

With the end of the year fast approaching, I can't help but think what the new year will bring, particularly for Apple.  With the latest OS release for iOS and OS X, the new field for Apple changes will most likely be hardware.  While I have no connections with anyone that could even remotely speculate as to what Apple is going to release, here is what I would like to see happen for 2012 for all things Apple: 

1. Apple TV for Gaming:  Right now, the Apple TV does video and audio streaming, with some screen sharing when using an iPad 2 or iPhone 4S.  That's nice and all, but I would really like to see the Apple TV do more.  It's got the guts with it's A4 processor, and with iOS, it could provide a nice gaming platform.  All it needs is some sort of controller, be it built into the iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad or a new remote control that is WiFi enabled for controlling games.  It would require a whole new thought process in Apple gaming development without multi-touch, but it would bring the set top out of the video/audio only and bring it into the realm of gaming.  It may require a hardware upgrade, but it hasn't been refreshed in a long time. 
2. iPad with Retina Display:  This is what is keeping me from upgrading to the iPad 2.  If I'm going to invest in something that is an upgrade from what I have, it needs to be a serious upgrade.  Right now, my iPad does everything I want, with the exception of having that Retina display for reading ease.  This is probably a no-brainer, with reports coming in that the next iPad (iPad 3?) will have the Retina display I want.  Good, because it's on my list for this next year.  ^_^ 
   
   
3. Rack-mounted Mac Pros:  With the demise of the Xserve, which concerned a lot of my trainees, Apple no longer has an "enterprise" server for their Server app.  While the Mac Mini has pretty much taken the spot, a really beefy server can be handy from time to time.  Right now, that's the Mac Pro, but it's large, doesn't fit in a rack well, and doesn't look like a rack server.  Make it rack-mountable, and server farms using Apple will be happy.  
   
   
4. Apple Blade Servers:  This one is totally coming from my wish list, but with the miniaturization that has gone into the Mac Mini, is an Apple Blade Server so far-fetched?  It could be something as simple as a bunch of Mac Mini's tied together with Thunderbolt cables, all in the same chassis (so it would look nice).  The potential is definitely there, it just needs the market.  
   
   
5. Corporate Apple Cloud:  iCloud is great for providing access to your iTunes purchases and documents.  But many companies would like to keep that to themselves, and setting up a cloud within their network and plugging it into network desktops (virtual desktops?) would be awesome.  Cloud computing has a lot of different definitions, so this is not likely to happen by 2012.  Still, a corporate cloud that will allow access to any corporate licensed software, protected by login and LDAP/Mobile Management permissions and standardized across multiple servers?  I can see that as a huge bonus for corporations looking to move to Apple.  It would also justify an Apple Blade Server, by the way.  ^_^  
   
   
6. Siri for iPad:  I can understand Siri being removed as an app for all iOS devices and being released, integrated, exclusively for the iPhone 4S because it is in beta.  But it would be nice, perhaps with the next iOS update, to give all devices access to Siri.  It would depend on when the beta is over, I suppose, but that would be awesome, particularly for the iPad.
   
   
7. LTE Support:  While I will most likely not upgrade my iPhone 4 unless the iPhone 5 is a killer product (not sure how likely that will be), I would like to see an iPhone 5 with LTE support, as well as an iPad 3 with the same LTE support.  I would like fast, responsive data (preferably with a decent price tag for a lot of usage), and it looks like the best option out there is going to be LTE.  I know there are a lot of problems with offering some 4G technologies (like battery life, for one), so I'm not holding my breath.  But with carriers now rolling out their LTE networks, you would think it would be an easy thing to do.  
   
   
8. Cable-Cutter Apps for Apple TV: Netflix and YouTube/Vimeo are good starts, as are the various "channels" that come with NBA, MLB, NHL, etc. for the Apple TV, but I would like to see other offerings that will, if not exclusively then combined, let me cut my cable connection for TV.  Even it that means signing up with a cable company on a per channel basis for live streaming through my internet connection, so be it!  With the rise of Internet streaming, a cable company has become less critical beyond providing Internet service.  Perhaps with less cable TV, the Internet portion of my Cable experience will improve.  It also reduces the number of set top boxes for my TV to one:  the Apple TV.   That way I only pay for the channels I want, not channels I will never look at ever again.  Another way to accomplish this?  Subscription service per show.  I realize there are a lot of players in this, so it won't be easy, but it would be great for the end user.  

So that's my list for 2012, nothing huge or ground-breaking.  I'm not looking for an Apple HDTV, or an Apple car.  Just some changes that would make me happy professionally and personally.  So, that being said, it's time to hunker down, and look for what the future will bring from Apple. 

OS X Lion Server Essentials 10.7 Workbook is Available!

For those of you who are looking for Apple training for OS X Lion, particularly if you have a Server, the classes are now available for registration, and the workbook is available for those classes. And while I am excited that the classes are available and are being taught (some by me, of course), there is another reason: I contributed to the writing of the Workbook. I can share this now with the publication of the workbook, and I'm excited. It's the first time anything I have contributed to has been published, and it's a very good book.

The process was longer than I expected for such a small contribution, but it was a great experience. I was contacted by the project manager/official author of the book to help with the exercises. I chose one chapter, and got to work in my spare time rewriting the exercises to work with the release of Lion. My contributions, with screenshots, were then sent on to the technical editor for review, and he made a ton of excellent suggestions and corrections. I'm not the best at taking criticism, but every one was correct, though not all the suggested changes needed to be made (instead different changes were made). It then went on to editing, where more screenshots were taken, updated, etc. My part ended with the Beta class where Mac OS X experts who had more experience than I did got together and tested out the workbook. More suggestions and corrections were made by the Author, and the final book was compiled.

The publishers and editor at PeachPit were excellent to work with, and the staff at Apple were fabulous. Arek Dreyer, the author of the Workbook and the Reference book, was great to work with, as was Adam Karneboge the technical editor. I loved the experience and would do it again in a heartbeat.

For those of you who are interested in purchasing the workbook, I'm afraid to say the price may be more than you think: It's only available from Apple Authorized Training Centers, and only distributed to students that take the Lion 201 training course ($1500.00). But you get three days of training in the bargain, learn how to use Apple Server to manage a domain, website, file sharing, and Mobile Device Management for Macs and iOS devices. Classes at the University of Utah start in the Spring.  Check them out!  

Dual Boot Imaging with OS X Lion and Windows 7 Without Winclone

It seems I have a lot of traffic coming in to my dual boot process I created with Winclone as the cloning tool. Unfortunately, Winclone is no longer being developed, and it was an imperfect process at best. No, the needed to be a better way to make an image, and I was determined to find it.

Luckily, I had a comment from another user that put me on the scent to Clonezilla. I had another suggestion from our IT manager about using dd as my imaging of choice. Well, I liked the idea of using built in tools with OS X instead of using another operating system, so I gave it a try. I also tried Clonezilla, which is well documented in a previous post. Which did I like? Let me compare them and then I will give you my conclusion.

dd command

I love the command line. It's clean, it's powerful, and it's the reason I loved Mac OS X when I first saw it. S the idea of using a command line tool to do an image was pretty appealing. So, I took my imaged computer (MacBook Pro 2007 with 100 GB hard drive), and gave it a try. After booting up to target disk mode, I ran the dd command on my computer to copy the entire hard drive and then restore. The copy process took 9 hours, as did the restore. It worked perfectly, but the time delay was just too much to make it worth while. I kept the iso file I had created, but continued my search.

Clonezilla

Clonezilla is a boot disk that uses Linux, some very clever scripting, and Partclone to create your images. It's similar to Norton Ghost, but unlike Ghost it supports the HFS+ file system native to Mac OS X. I tried two methods: imaging the entire drive with the partitions, and just the Windows partition. Both worked, though I really like the first method for lab deployment. The drawback is the reliance on an install disk or USB key to start the image process.

But the benefits? Huge time savings, even over the NetBoot solution that Apple uses natively. It's not as flexible, but it does handle unicasting better than Apple's tool. How does it do it? By breaking up the install image into multiple tarballs and delivering them as needed to the image. It seems to be a sort of hacked multicasting method, and works very well.

So my method of choice? Clonezilla. If you want the step by step process, check out my previous post on the subject, and let me know what you think. It worked for me and my lab!

Siri: Why It's Great for Private Devices Only

Star Trek has colored all our technological expectations for years.  Before the cell phone, there was the communicator.  Before the iPad there was the PADD.  Now, with the release of Siri by Apple on the iPhone 4S, there is a plausible method of communicating with the computer/television/ship/car/toaster with natural voice control.  It's exciting, it's futuristic, and it seems to be all the rage with tech pundits across the Interwebs.  But there is one problem:  voice control in a public setting, without volume control or voice recognition, just doesn't work with our current technology.

Siri is an innovation in personal computing.  Ask "her" a question, and Siri will respond with an answer.  Ask "her" to adjust your schedule, and she will do so with verbal confirmation.  All this works within the realm of a personal question or personal request, much in the same way a personal question or request of your Personal Assistant would be handled.  But how well does voice commands work within a crowded room, without a way to block all the background noise?  This is the question technical pundits need to ask themselves before they start gushing on the possibility of a Siri-activated Apple TV.  

Case in point:  Our Chevy Traverse came with voice activated commands as part of it's OnStar service.  When the sales person was trying to demonstrate this for us, he couldn't get it to work without rolling up the windows.  To this date it is a feature we rarely use, because the children in the back cannot remain quiet long enough to accomplish anything.  So how is Siri going to work in a crowded family room or living room with chatter going on in the background?  I don't see it happening.  A car I see as being borderline, as you can commute alone occasionally.  But in front of a social experience like the old TV, I just don't see it happening.

You see, Television, since it's inception, had always been a "social" event, in that people would gather together and watch what was on.  Whether it was "Howdy Doody", "Uncle Milt", or "Ed Sullivan", the family always gathered together to share the experience.  Families do that now, to a certain extent, with various programs available now.  The background noise alone becomes problematic without using a microphone or voice recognition.  But, that would mean only one person is in control at a time (just like we are now with the remote), and adds in the initial frustration of imperfect voice recognition (it's getting better, but still not perfect out of the box).  

So when it comes to ideas about a Siri powered TV, I just don't see how anyone can do that.  The technology we have currently limits natural voice commands to a personal experience.  Now, is it possible Apple could have come up with a revolutionary way to get rid of background noise and make it work?  Sure, it's possible.  But is it probable?  I don't think so.  Not to doubt Apple, but I think it's not likely that the tech is ready for the regular consumer.  

What do you think?

Fun with iWeb

Because I never had a MobileMe account, or a .Mac account, I've never really played with iWeb.  Oh, it looks nice, but I didn't really see a need for it as most of my websites are integrated with a content management system.  But, that being said, I thought it would be fun to take a peak and see what it could do. 

When you first launch iWeb, it presents you with a list of templates.  These templates are pretty static, in that you can't recolor them in the interface, but they all look really nice.  I chose the layered paper interface, as I like the look of good paper.  Then you start with the Home page.  To change the title of the page, you click on the name of the page in the left pane.  Editing fields is as easy as clicking or double-clicking in the text box field. Pictures are also easy to add by either dragging them in from Finder or iPhoto.  

Most themes have image placeholders with preset pictures, waiting for you to add pictures yourself.  To add a picture, you drag your picture from Finder or from iPhoto into iWeb, and drop it on the picture.  You can even adjust the picture to mask parts of the picture you don't want to show (instead of cropping).  

Adding pages was easy, just by clicking on the Add Page tool at the bottom left.  There are quite a few pages to choose from, including a built-in Blog.  It's not as robust as Wordpress, but it works for a news area or general posting tool.  Though it can only be updated through iWeb that I can see.  Pity, as it has a nice design. Podcasts can also be added the same way, making it easy to set up a podcasting website using iWeb.  

But when you try to Publish, it will automatically try to submit to MobileMe.  Not a good thing, particularly as MobileMe is no more (or will be shortly).  Luckily, if you click on the Site itself, you can edit it to publish to an FTP site, and change your FTP settings to use SFTP.  Configuration was simple, setup was easy, and publishing at that point is one-click. 

The main drawback to iWeb that I can see is the lack of ability to edit the HTML that is getting published.  Each page is a set HTML page, with backup files assigned per page.  Also, it's not geared to very complicated websites with lots of navigation (I wouldn't run a storefront from iWeb).  If you are looking for something of that calibre, you may want to stick with the tried and true Dreamweaver.  But if you are only looking for a simple webpage creator that is not very complicated, it's a great tool.  

iWeb is no longer avialable from Apple, as it represents the older software from the iLife suite.  I hope it has not been killed, just held back as iCloud rolls out and MoblieMe fades away.  I look forward to a phoenix rising of iWeb to combine it's current ease of use interface for building websites with access to the code.  If that happens, you will have one sweet HTML editor on your hands!  

For an example of what iWeb can do, check out my main website at http://robbclan.com.

What is your favorite website creator tool?  

Pontifications about an Apple Television Set

There have been quite a few predictions that have been drooled over in the technology media about a pending Apple branded HDTV, all stemming from a comment Steve Jobs' made about cracking the TV interface.  It has gone viral from mockups to declarations about Siri being the interface of the future TV.  The predictions are exciting, all sound great, but I often wonder just how much is actually just pie in the sky dreaming, and how much is practical.  

Apple currently has the Apple TV, which gives you access to your iTunes media on your computer and in iCloud (for music and Television shows), as well as access to YouTube, Vimeo, and Netflix.  There are even some premimum channels for Sports fans, which each have their own subscription (though it's really nice to have the scores for free!).  The menu is easy to update with new features as they come, and there is a lot of potential with the Apple TV and it's iOS operating system.  But how would it work with traditional television sets?

One solution is to have Apple create an interface that is universal for all cable companies and their offerings, with only slight differences in what options are presented based on the cable company being used.  It's a great idea in principle, but becomes problematic in practice.  Apple doesn't have a strong history of being friendly to the dictates of other companies, but to provide their services with the same clean interface as the rest of their offerings they would find themselves in that spot.  They would need to work with every cable provider in the US and other countries they provide this "Apple HDTV" experience in order to get them to standardize their receiver interface, or create plugins that will allow Apple to set the interface while correctly accessing the cable companies content.  It's possible, but risky if jailbroken Apple HDTV's will allow free viewing of cable content.  That becomes a hurdle, and a big one for the cable companies. 

Another solution is to bypass the cable companies completely and work directly with content providers with a subscription based service for their offerings.  Instead of purchasing a "package", users would subscribe to the channels they want, and only the channels they want, and it would all be done much the same way as Netflix, MLB TV, NBA TV, etc.  It's a great concept in principle, because the consumer wins by only having the channels they want, and only paying for the channels they want.  But would it work?  It would mean increased pressure on bandwidth if it became widespread, as well as cutting cable companies profits from those "cutting the cord" on cable and satellite.  That means broadband internet prices could likely go up, and some companies not to fond of competition could, perhaps, start "filtering" specific content or sources.  There are a lot of legal issues that would come into play in this scenario, where the customer could ultimately lose.  

And then there is the issue of local network television access vs. access to the syndicated content they provide.  Will a local channel be able to provide their content on an Apple HDTV with the subscription model with the blessing of the studio?  How would it be provided?  And what about all the money they have just recently sunk into the new HD broadcast infrastructure?  Would they embrace an internet delivery method?  One huge issue I can see coming down the pipe is studios no longer sitting on a collection of shows to please everyone, but rather being merited by each show they do provide.  It's scary water to be navigating with some well established studios (like NBC and CBS) reaching the brink of bankruptcy.  They may be too afraid of breaking anything up for fear of losing valuable advertising. And that brings up another major issue:  advertising.  Who gets to advertise in this new internet delivery system?  Who gets the revenue?  How can it be monetized?  These questions would need to be answered. 

The fundamental question I ask is, how can current television viewing be made better?  Not just in what you see, but how you find what you want and how you access it at the right time.  That's the question we as consumers should be asking, because that is the same question Steve Jobs and the developers at Apple asked when they looked at a project.  It's what those currently working at Apple do every day.  They worry not about what features to add, but what features to remove in order to increase usability and fluid design.  That's what makes an Apple product, well, an Apple.  

Personally, I like the idea of subscribing to individual channels.  And I can see this as, well, Apps in the Apple TV App Store (which would need to be created, of course) that would allow you to browse for your favorite channel and subscribe.  Not sure you want the entire channel, but just a show?  Subscribe to the show instead, and have it stream through iCloud.  I see it as the most viable option for Apple, particularly if they can tie in a subscription based service for iTunes in the bargain.  But to do so would mean Networks placing their futures into the hands of Apple in a way that even Music didn't, which is scary for so many reasons.  

I would like to see someone work out a deal with Networks to provide their materials as a flat-rate subscription, and have users only pay for the channels they are going to watch, or even only the shows they would like to see.  Do that all with a simple interface, clean design, and a free update to existing Apple TV boxes, and in my mind Apple would have truly created something revolutionary and magical.  

Imaging a Mac Computer with Bootcamp using Clonezilla

Creating an image for a Macintosh computer that includes both a Macintosh partition and a Bootcamp partition for Windows is complicated at best with the release of Lion and the demise of the old standby: Winclone.  Since twocanoes stopped developing Winclone, I've been looking for another method to create an image that will be, well, reliable.  While it is possible to use Winclone 2.3, it's not supported and it's very buggy.  And that's just the Windows partition, not the entire drive, and I want the entire drive.  So, based on some suggestions I got with previous posts and lots of online research, I decided to give Clonezilla a try.  

Clonezilla is akin to Norton Ghost, as it grabs a complete image of a hard drive, partitions and all, and will restore it.  Unlike other ghosting software though, Clonezilla supports HFS+, the Mac OS X Extended filesystem, as provided by the core utility, Partclone.  That means it can image both a standard NTFS partition with the Mac partition.  It sounds great, assuming it would work, so I thought I would test it out and see if it were a viable option for mass deployment of Mac with Bootcamp.  Going through the motions, I was impressed with the repository settings that were available.  Much like Acronis, the Clonezilla Live CD boots up into it's own OS platform.  With Clonezilla, though, it's Linux, and it shows.  There are a lot of options to select, and it doesn't have a very friendly UI.  But, really, UI is secondary to performance in my case (because I'm used to a command line UI that it presents), so that wasn't much of a consideration.  

The first neat experience I saw with Clonezilla was it's flexibility.  You can select just about every language and keyboard setup that Linux supports, which makes it handy to deploy.  Unfortunely, you need to do it every single time you boot.  Perhaps there is a way to build a custom CD, or perhaps settings would be kept with the USB boot, but I didn't see it off hand.  The other flexibility option that impressed me was the method of finding your repository.  It's actually very easy to find a connection method that will work for you.  I really liked the idea of having an SSH repository, making images easy to deploy to and from a remote server if necessary.  The only thing to change performance at that point would be the speed of your connection.  Internally, if you are on a Gigibit switched network, it will come as close to that speed as possible.

Then we get to the image tool.  I only used the beginner options, which probably has a lot of settings that are defaulted, but I wanted to make this as easy as possible.  That, and after spending a good 5 minutes on choosing my keyboard and setting up the repository information, I wasn't much interested in spending more time configuring when default settings should work just fine.  Apparently you can back up just partitions, or the entire disk.  I chose the entire disk because that was what I am looking for, but I kept the partition idea in mind for future projects (assuming it worked, of course). 

Below are the steps I took while creating an image, and deploying that image to a computer. 

Steps: Booting from the CD

1. Boot to Clonezilla Live CD
2. Select boot option for Clonezilla.  The default works great at 800 x 600.
3. Select Language (default is US English)
4. If you are not using a USB keyboard, select the keymap from the arch list, otherwise continue with "Don't tuch keymap"
   1. If you selected to select the keymap, select your keyboard type (default is most common, QWERTY)
   2. Select the Keyboard layout (starts with Brazillian)
   3. Select your keyboard variant, either Apple USB or Standard

Now you are ready to set up the repository for your image. 

1. Select Start_Clonezilla
2. Select Device-Image, as you would want to create an image from a device.  
3. Select your repository method. 
   1. If you have a local device, like a USB drive or internal drive, you can use Local_dev
   2. If you have an SSH server you want to publish the image to, use ssh_server
   3. If you have an SMB server (Samba, or Windows server), this will be best for you
   4. If you have an NFS server (common in UNIX networks), nsf_server will work for you
4. Depending on what you selected before, you need to verify your network connection (or not if it's local).  I selected the Ethernet network (for speed), and then used DHCP.  This will probably be the most common setup for everyone. 
5. Since I chose SSH, I entered in my SSH server IP (can use DNS name too), confirmed the port number, and entered in the user ID for the login.
6. Then enter in the absolute path for the repository.  I put it on my Desktop, so I put in  /Users/userid/Desktop.
7. It will then ask you for authentication information to mount the connection.  Follow directions (hopefully you already know all this information).

You are now ready to start the image.

1. Select Beginner mode.  It's easy to use, and you don't have to mess with the expert stuff.  If you already know what you are doing, then expert would be great.  But then, if you already know what you are doing, why are you reading this?
2. Select Action
   1. savedisk:  Will image the entire hard drive as an image, with all partitions.  This is what I chose for creating the image of my Mac with the bootcamp drive.
   2. saveparts:  Will image partitions of the drive for restoration.  If you don't need everything, just a single partition (like your Bootcamp partition), this will back up just the partition.  Obviously this will save you time over the entire disk if you have more than one partition.
   3. restoredisk: Will restore the drive from an image.
   4. restoreparts: Will restore individual partitions.
   5. recovery-iso-zip: Will create a recovery disk of Clonezilla Live for either CD or as a zip for a bootable USB drive.
   6. chk-img-restorable:  will check to see if an image is restorable or not.  This is an option you can turn on while creating the image, so it will be checked after the image has been created.
3. Input the name you want for your image.
4. Select the disk or partition you want to back up
5. Choose to either check the image as it's saved, or skip the check.  I recommend letting it check the image (increased my image time by 15 minutes, but well worth piece of mind)
6. Press enter to continue. 

At this point, you are all set!  Clonezilla will create an image of each partition in the hard drive (or just the one you selected), and notify you how long for each partition it will take to back up and restore.  It took, for my two images, a total of about an hour and a half to back up and restore the image using SSH and the options I selected above on a Gigabit network.  

To restore, it's much the same process.  Boot to the drive, select your language, etc., and set up your device repository. To restore, you would use these steps:

1. Select Beginner mode.
2. Select restoredisk (or restoreparts, if you backed up a partition)
3. Select your archive as displayed
4. Select the drive you wish to image.
5. Press Enter to continue. 
6. It will then ask you if you want your hard drive partitions overwritten, type Y to continue.  It will then verify that you are wanting to replace your hard drive partitions, type y.
7. The system will not restore.

The restoration process is done partition by partition, with each partition taking less time to reimage than it took to create the image in the first place.  And the results?  Success!  The restore booted without a problem, with all settings in tact.  That is better than could be said for the previous imaging tools I have tried.  

So it looks like I have found a useful cloning tool for imaging my Macintosh computer lab, and pretty much any lab for that matter.  

The Passing of Steve Jobs

Last night I heard the news that Steve Jobs, the co-founder and former CEO of Apple, had passed away after finally succumbing to his long battle with cancer. The news was a shock and very sad, though I didn't fear for Apple. Having met many people at the Cupertino based hardware and software company, I'm firmly convinced that the company is in very good hands and will continue to innovate for years to come. But the passing of Steve Jobs is a sad milestone.

Steve and company developed some of the most innovative technology advancements that have changed the way those on the Autism Spectrum learn. With the introduction of the iPhone, iPod Touch, and finally the iPad, many parents have had affordable tools with which their children can communicate. Their dedication to those with disabilities has made devices that are accessible to the blind, deaf, and those with mental conditions that make communication difficult. And for that, Mr. Jobs, I salute you.

While he was known to be very opinionated, brisk, and abrasive at times, I have always found that the culture he fostered to be very open to all with ability. The campus was always busy with those who sought to improve the experience at every level for the user, and with their broad proliferation within the consumer market, they have succeeded. I had never met the man personally, though I had seen him once before the launch of the iPhone with the men who brought us that very unique and game-changing device. He was focused, determined, and seemed in a hurry. From all accounts of those closest to him this first impression I had of him was a very telling one, and very true to his nature and his drive.

My heart goes out to the family of Steve Jobs, as they mourn his passing. Know that we mourn with you.

Thank you again Steve, for all that you have done for a growing, often confused Autism community. You will be greatly missed, and remembered as one who, whether intentionally or not, enabled so many of us to help our children.

Apple iPhone Announcement: The Anticipation

Tommorrow, October 4th, 2011, Apple will be making their iPhone announcement.  Much anticipated is the new iPhone, the iOS 5, and iCloud as fit for release. There are some other rumors about some features, and that's what I want to talk about.  Why?  Because it's fun to speculate, and fun to dream.  And who knows?  Perhaps one day some of these wishes will make it into a future iOS release.  

First and foremost is iCloud.  Not a lot has been mentioned here, as most people tend to write off iCloud as a file sharing/email/contacts service that lets you download stuff you have already purchased from iTunes at any time.  Doesn't sound too exciting, does it?  But there is a whole lot more.  First, there are backups of your phone, allowing for quick and easy restoration should something happen to your phone.  That alone is a great feature, and well worth the new iOS release (which is expected to be free, I might add).  Backups are in general rarely made, particularly photos and documents.  We as computer users have been lulled into a false sense of security with better performing software and hardware.  Hard drive journaling with Mac OS Extended (Journaled), ext3 and NTFS for Mac, Linux and Windows respectively, have all presented us with fewer corrupted files.  The death of the floppy drive and the prolific use of the USB thumb drive have given us more storage that takes up less space.  We think our data is secure.  That is, until we have a hard drive failure.  Then we curse ourselves for not backing up our data. With iCloud, at least for iOS devices, photos, and documents, backups are happening automatically for us.  We still need to burn purchased movies and various other applications, PDFs and Downloads, but all in all iCloud will take care of our precious memories and important documents. That is a feature worth talking about.

For iOS 5, there are lots of rumors that voice control and voice activation will become deeply ingrained into the OS.  This is huge, because for right now most voice activated apps are narrowed down to taking quick dictation and needing a copy/paste procedure to keep it. While I don't know the depth of the integration, knowing what I do know about the development team I would speculate that voice acivation and dictation could very well be in the cards.  And I'm not talking just speech to SMS as Android has, or even speech to text for documents.  I'm talking voice control for apps.  This may yet be a pipe dream, but I can see a whole host of Assistive apps growing from a core module that allows for voice control.  For instance, suppose you wanted to help a child learn to speak clearly?  How nice it would be to have an app that would use speech recognition and translation to help them focus on their pronounciation, word usage, and speech.  Speech therapists would love to have something like that to help augment their teaching, and parents would injoy it just as much.  Not to mention language practice!  That would be huge.  Yes, that kind of depth would be fabulous.  Do I expect it?  Not really, I'm expecting some common voice commands and speech to text/SMS.  But that is just a stepping stone, in my mind. 

Specs for the iPhone have been bandied around, and I'm all for a faster processor when it's necessary or needed, but for right now I don't see that need for the iPhone.  I also don't see the need for a more powerful camera, etc.  Hardware for me, as the iPhone already has a display that is so highly resolute that the naked eye cannot identify the pixels, is more just icing on the cake.  Until the software demands a better phone, I don't see me upgrading the hardware.  The software, on the otherhand, is what will drive upgrades for me.  Luckily, from the declaration at WWDC, iOS 5 will be supported on the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4 as well as the new model.  

But specs for the new iPod Touch could be interesting.  If, as according to some rumors I have heard, Apple places a 3G/4G chip in with the WiFi chipset, effectively making the iPod Touch a mini iPad, then that will be an amazing upgrade.  It will effectively broaden the number of devices that can be truely used anywhere and anywhen, allowing for those who do not see the need of a phone to use their web-enabled device for anything they want.  And suppose they don't want a cell phone and all the texting/minutes/data issues that carriers tend to add to accounts, yet still want to have mobile phone access?  the iPod Touch will support Skype, as well as a number of other VoIP apps (many for free) for calls over the 3G/4G network as well as WiFi.  Carriers, instead of being phone companies, could quickly just become mobile Internet companies, providing data usage.  I wonder if the carriers would be happy with that?  

Another rumor that has since been dismissed is the release of the iPad 3.  It's really soon after the iPad 2 had been released, so I don't imagine the iPad 3 will be coming out now.  But if it did, the one and only thing I would really be looking for is a retina display.  That's what held me off from purchasing an iPad 2 when it came out, and sticking it out with my iPad.  I want to see the iPad with a retina display, thereby making it easier to read whatever app is on the screen.  For now, the display is still great, and the old iPad still does exactly what I want it to do, when I want.  

Finally, there is the rumor of the Assistant, which is a combination of a lot of speech control.  The demo circulating the Internet looks really cool, allowing for speech control in a number of OS-level functions (voice calling, searching, web searching, Twitter, etc.).  But the rumor also said it will only be available on the new iPhone model, and not any of the previous models.  That is disheartening, as I've had my iPhone 4 for over a year (has it really been that long?), and I can't imagine having to give it over to upgrade to the new phone.  I'll have to see which way this goes, and whether or not it's a feature I could or could not live without.  

So, lots of exciting things to expect from Apple tomorrow.  I think it's pretty safe to assume iOS 5 and a new upgrade to Lion (and possibly Snow Leopard) to support iCloud will be available tomorrow after the presentation, and I think there will probably be a new iPhone getting released.  I would also expect that a new iPod Touch will be announced with similar iPhone specs, and we may even see the final demise/retirement of the iPod Classic.  With iCloud, you no longer really need to have that much storage space, so I think it's pretty clear what's going to happen.  As for the other aspects of iCloud and iOS, that's what will keep my attention tomorrow. 

Kindle Fire: Amazon Gets It Right

Since the first Android tablets came out, the world has been waiting for Apple to take a back seat to Google's mighty tablet regime.  Unfortunately for Google, it hasn't happened, and all their tablets have been somewhat less impressive than one had hoped based on the Android smartphone presence.  And this even after tablets with the Android platform have been provided across several makers with very diverse price points.  And then the infamous failure of the HP Touchpad and lackluster sales of the RIM Playbook seemed to cement Apple's dominance in the tablet market.  Instead, the industry turned to Microsoft to see their release of Windows 8 Preview in hopes to find a platform to compete with Apple.  

Now, I really like Apple, but I also like healthy competition in a market to drive innovation.  Apple, having competed in the computer market for years found a way to drive innovation when they introduced Mac OS X and the iPod.  They then moved naturally into the mobile device arena by building on the success of the iPod with the iPhone and the iPod Touch, then the iPad and the Apple TV.  And why where they so successful?  Because they have innovative products that are backed by a very powerful ecosystem of apps and media for these devices.  The very walled garden that tech pundits had condemned when comparing the open Android platform has provided a seemless experience of adding media, accessing the apps you want, and protecting the iOS devices from security threats and software piracy that seem to be rampant in the Android platform.  

Many of those same tech pundits who doomed Apple to a slow, tortured death because of their walled garden, now were calling on Google to do much of the same things:  have more control over the Android Marketplace, provide more user friendly media options, etc.  And they wanted Android tablet makers to provide tablets at a price lower than Apple was offering.  The makers couldn't see their way to doing that because they didn't have the media sales to help recoup potential losses, or they couldn't build a tablet at the same quality level as Apple.  Because they were just the hardware makers, and not the software and media providers, they had little control, little say, and ultimately little ability to compete.  

And then Amazon came along with their Kindle Fire.  The Amazon Kindle has proven that a dedicated eReader without apps can be hugely successful if priced right.  They also have proven that taking a loss on the hardware can be recouped by media sales.  They have the infrastructure for their devices, including their own Android Marketplace that can be (I'm not sure if it is) tightly controlled for quality.  Essentially, they had the walled garden in place, they just needed the device to put that garden into effect.  

Now, I have yet to play with a Kindle Fire, but I would guess the platform is very solid.  From what I can read, it's very simple and is geared completely and totally to consumption of media from Amazon.  This isn't a bad thing, as a large majority of people out there may just want a consumption tool.  For those looking for a little more, such as apps for content creation (I'm thinking primarily documents, worksbooks and presentations here), the Fire may not be your best choice.  The screen is too small to type comfortably (if it compares to the Samsung 7-inch tab), so you would be relegated to having to use an external keyboard, and it looks like the Fire doesn't do Bluetooth (someone correct me if I'm wrong).  

So, overall, I think Amazon has the right idea.  If you have a tablet and a marketplace that can provide the ecosystem that is safe and secure for something as personal as a tablet, then the tablet can succeed. Do I think it will beat out the iPad?  No, but not because it's not great, but because the iPad can do more content creation with the iWorks suite, iMovie, and GarageBand.  Should Amazon create apps that can compete directly with those, then I think the price point will become an issue.  But I don't think Amazon will, because it doesn't make sense.  Apple is in the business of building hardware with a great customer experience.  Amazon is in the business to make it as easy as possible to consume their content they provide.  While both business models overlap at times, they are not the same.  Ultimately I see Amazon's Fire taking the wind out of the Android tablet market.  And if they move to WebOS as rumored, then Android will be in trouble.  

Those are, at least, my first impressions.  Perhaps one day I'll get to use a Kindle Fire (hint, hint, Amazon, should you want to send me one!), and I'll have a more comprehensive view of where the Fire will fit in the tablet ecosystem.  For now, I see it as a valuable addition, though not the market-dominant device.  

The Final Stretch in Villa Park: Advanced Server Administration

This week I finish up with my T3's for Apple with Advanced Server Administration.  This class is focused primarily on running the ADDIE process (Analyze, Design, Develop, Implement, and Evaluate) throughout the IT  infrastructure of a company, and build it up using both the GUI and Command Line tools.  Because it is assumed that you have been learning the GUI tools up to this point (this is the capstone course), it primarily focuses on the command line tools available to the Mac.  

I'm not sure when we will offer the class at the U, as much depends on other training offerings and any additional infrastructure we would need, but I already have a lot of people interested in this class.  Most of them are Linux administrators who are going to be supporting the Apple platform, and want to do so with SSH (just as they would with Linux).  I already have a list of people who would love to take that class.  

Anyway, it all hinges on whether or not I'm judged "good enough" to train.  Partly judged by my peers, partly judged by the Master Trainer, my fate rests in their hands.  At this point, however, I'm less concerned.  I'm rather more concerned with how my family is doing back home.  I'm literally counting the days until I fly out.  But I will miss the Chicago area.  

Anyway, more details on the classes I attended during this trip sometime next week.  I'll give a teaser for the classes, and give you my opinion of the materials and flow of the class.  

Mac OS X Deployment 10.5 T3: Review

As promised, here is my review for the Mac OS X Deployment 10.5 T3 that I attended this last week.  

First, the location.  Of course I'm biased, but I have always loved Chicago, and as such enjoyed the trip Villa Park and Oakbrook Terrace.  The hotel was nice, and the location of the training facility was fairly easy to get to.  The only problem:  no sidewalks.  It makes it difficult to walk when you don't have sidewalks, and there isn't enough room to walk on the street (without getting hit).  Other than that, the location was nothing to complain about. 

The materials:  There are quite a lot of material for this class, and I was a little concerned that it would be impossible to fit it all into a 2 day training.  Luckily, that was the thought of the course developers as well, and as such the training was extended to 3 days.  That fits in perfectly with my training schedule I have planned for the University, so I didn't complain. 

The Subject Matter:  There was still a lot that I wanted to cover but couldn't in the class, mostly those focusing around the command line.  But then, there is a separate class for that, which I will be attending in two weeks.  ^_^  But those important topics, such as deploying through the command line, and imaging through the command line, were covered in depth.  Also planning, scaling, and third party utilities for managing a deployment option was well covered.  

One really nice thing I liked about the class was a mandate for the student to immediately apply what they have learned to a real world situation.  They do this through a Deployment planning sheet, which the trainer should have printed out for each student.  We didn't have it, but it was made available to us in PDF form, and there is a link that comes with the learning materials to PeachPit's website for the same PDF.  Once the form is filled out, the last chapter talks about real world solutions in many large companies, school districts, and training centers, and gives the student time to go through their document to see what they find useful, and what they don't need, in their deployment of OS X.  

The Requirements:  It is essential the student have a command of both the Mac OS X GUI and have command line experience before starting this course.  Basically, students would need to have completed at least the Server Essentials course, and be able to manage a UNIX command line experience.  Why?  Because at the beginning of the course you are just expected to set up your computers with little assistance from the book.  At this point, it is expected that the student knows already how to set up a brand new install of Mac OS X. 

The command line experience would be more along the lines of familiar with syntax of commands.  Most, if not all, of the commands used are Mac OS X Utilities and not your typical UNIX commands, yet the syntax is the same and therefore the student needs to be familiar with that syntax.  There may be some situations when troubleshooting is necessary, and as such the student will need to know how to get to the man pages.  

Something else that would be important before taking this class is having troubleshooting knowledge, and an understanding of what you are being prepared to learn.  This way if something doesn't quite work they way it's written in the book, you can step outside of the given examples and find alternatives.  That's part of learning, something that many students I have had in the past didn't quite understand.  It requires reading/studying ahead of time, asking questions, and being attentive.  

The Pace:  Unlike both Support and Server Essentials where we pend a lot of time trying to catch the class up after some really long first setup exercises, this class is paced just right for the materials.  We as a training class (of 10 trainers) finished with plenty of time on the last day to cover some topics more in depth, and that was with us doing the majority of the optional exercises.  So with a typical class at this level, the pacing will be such that students will have some time to play with some configuration, or perhaps have a long lunch as a thank you for coming to the class.  

Overall, it is the best designed Apple training course I have attended so far.  The materials are well designed, the pace is just right (low to medium cognitive load), and the course talks well to adult students (through Constructivist methods).  This is a class that may not run often here in Utah, but will most likely be a well attended class when it does.  It is by far my most favorite class to date.  ^_^  

Also, I'd like to say thanks to everyone that attended, because they gave me some very welcomed constructive criticism, and the Master Trainer was a great host.  If only the Cubs could have won all three games I was there, rather than just one of the two.  Oh well, there is always next time.