by Juan Carlos Peréz
Google will begin to offer browser-based offline access to its Gmail Webmail application, a much-awaited feature.
This functionality, which will allow people to use the Gmail interface when disconnected from the Internet, has been
expected since mid-2007.
That's when Google introduced Gears, a browser plug-in designed to provide offline access to Web-hosted applications
like Gmail.
Gears is currently used for offline access to several Web applications from Google, like the Reader RSS manager and
the Docs word processor, and from other providers like Zoho, which uses it for offline access to its e-mail and word
processing browser-based applications.
Rajen Sheth, senior product manager for Google Apps, said that applying Gears to Gmail has been a very complex task,
primarily because of the high volume of messages accounts can store. "Gmail was a tough hurdle," he said.
Google ruled out the option of letting users replicate their entire Gmail inboxes to their PCs, which in many cases
would translate into gigabytes of data flowing to people's hard drives. It instead developed algorithms that will
automatically determine which messages should be downloaded to PCs, taking into consideration a variety of factors
that reflect their level of importance to the user, he said. At this point, end-users will not be able to tweak
these settings manually.
"We had to make it such that we're managing a sizable amount of information offline and doing it well in a way
that's seamless to the end-user," he said.
For example, in Gmail, users can put labels on messages, as well as tag them with stars to indicate their
importance, and Google can use that information to determine which messages to download. Sheth estimates that in
most cases Gmail will download several thousand messages, preferring those that are more recent as well. Depending
on the amount of messages users have on their accounts, they may get downloads going back two months or two years,
he said.
Google will begin to roll out the Gmail offline functionality Tuesday evening and expects to make it available to
everybody in a few days, whether they use Gmail in its standalone version or as part of the Apps collaboration and
communication suite for organizations.
While the feature was "rigorously" tested internally at Google, it is a first, early release upon which Google
expects to iterate and improve on. That's why it's being released under the Google Labs label. Users are encouraged
to offer Google feedback.
Users have been able to manage their Gmail accounts offline via other methods for years, since Gmail supports the
POP and IMAP protocols that let people download and send out messages using desktop e-mail software like Microsoft
Outlook and others.
However, the Gears implementation will let people work within the Gmail interface without the need for a separate PC
application. When offline, messages will be put in a Gears browser queue, and the desktop and online versions of the
accounts will be synchronized automatically when users connect to the Internet again. This will come in handy for
people who travel a lot and often find themselves without Internet access, Sheth said.
To activate the offline functionality, users of standalone Gmail service and the standard Apps edition should click
"settings" after logging on to their Gmail account. There, they should click on the "Labs" tab, select "Enable" next
to "Offline Gmail" and click "Save Changes." A new "Offline" link will then appear in the right-hand corner of the
account interface. Users of the Education and Premier Apps versions will have to wait for their Apps administrators
to enable Gmail Labs for everyone on the domain first.
Google is also rolling out Gears-based offline access for its Calendar application. However, it will be for now
read-only and exclusively available to Google Apps account holders. Previously, Google introduced read-only offline
access to the Spreadsheet and Presentation applications in Google Docs, which is also part of Google Apps.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Hack: How to Play DVD Movies on Your Nintendo Wii
by Mike Keller
This past holiday season, Big N's little white console dominated the competition once again. Largely due to its family-friendly appeal and relatively low price, Nintendo Wii sales haven't lost momentum since its 2006 release. However, for hardcore gamers, the Wii has always left a bit to be desired. Last generation graphics, few adult games, weak online community, and lack of DVD movie playback are just a few of the things that have led me and many other twenty-somethings to oft-favor a certain other console. However, with my recent discovery of the Homebrew Channel, I can mark one up for the Wii. I know it's old news for some, but for those of you who always wished that glowing blue drive could play your games as well as your movies, it's now easier than ever. Here's how to it, no warranty voiding mod-chip required.
First of, the things you need are:
--A Wii with system version 3.2.--A FAT/FAT32 formatted SD card (no bigger than 2GB, as the Wii can't read SDHC cards).--An SD card reader/writer (or a USB device that can act as one, such as a digital camera or digital photo frame).--"Zelda: Twilight Princess" for Wii (random, I know, but you should really own this anyway).--The "Twilight Hack" (a modified Zelda save game that runs the Homebrew Channel Installer).--The Homebrew Channel Installer.--"DVDX," a Homebrew app needed for the Wii to read DVDs from the drive.--"MPlayer," a Wii port of a media player that plays commercial DVDs.
There are essentially two main tasks here: installing the Homebrew Channel, and installing the DVD player. I'll start with the HBC.
1) Insert your SD card into your reader and copy the "private" directory of the Twilight Hack onto it. Also copy the Homebrew Channel "boot.dol" file.
2) Insert the SD card into your Wii and delete your Zelda save file in the Wii File Manager (start a new game if you don't already have one). If you care about your saved game, you can first copy it to your SD card and copy it back after you've installed HBC.
3) Before inserting Zelda into your Wii, flip it over and take note of the text on the inner ring. It will either read "RVL-RZDE-0A-0" or "RVL-RZDE-0A-2" -- both versions will work, but you need to make sure you apply the correct hack (RVL-RZDE-0A-0 requires TwilightHack0, RVL-RZDE-0A-2 requires TwilightHack2, both included in the package).
4) Switch to SD view in your Wii File Manager and copy over your correct version of the hack.
5) Insert your Zelda game disc and start the game. You should see the Twilight Hack save game. Select it to start the game. Once you can control Link, walk backwards (weird, I know) until the Homebrew Channel installer starts. After a minute or two, the HBC will be installed and can be accessed just like any other Channel on your Wii.
Once you have the Homebrew Channel up and running, you can now install a slew of great third party apps such as emulators, homebrew games, media players... even Linux! For now, here's how to get DVD playback on your Wii with MPlayer.
1) Pop your SD back into your card reader. You can erase the "boot.dol" file and the "private" directory if you'd like (we no longer need the Twilight Hack or Homebrew Channel installer as it updates automatically and can be removed just like any other Wii Channel).
2) Create a directory on your SD card and name it "apps" (no quotes). Copy the "dvdx" and "mplayer" directories into the "apps" folder.
3) Eject your SD card and insert it back into your Wii. Turn your console on and start the Homebrew Channel.
4) Now you should see the two apps you just copied onto your SD card. Run the DVDX installer app. When that starts up, select "Normal Installation" and wait for it to finish.
5) Go back to the Homebrew Channel, insert a DVD movie of your choosing into your Wii and start the MPlayer app. To play the movie, select "DVD-Video" from the MPlayer menu, and then "Play DVD" (or "Play Title #1"). After a few moments your movie will load and you'll be enjoying a feature that should have worked out of the box to begin with!
*I should mention that while this method does work, the MPlayer software is currently pretty buggy. DVD menus are pretty hit or miss and not every movie I tried even plays. Hopefully they update the MPlayer software at some point, but I suspect it was more a proof of concept. There's always a certain amount of risk with installing unofficial, third party software, but hey, that's part of the fun. In any case, the Homebrew Channel is a really cool piece of work and will definitely breathe new life into your neglected little Wii.
This past holiday season, Big N's little white console dominated the competition once again. Largely due to its family-friendly appeal and relatively low price, Nintendo Wii sales haven't lost momentum since its 2006 release. However, for hardcore gamers, the Wii has always left a bit to be desired. Last generation graphics, few adult games, weak online community, and lack of DVD movie playback are just a few of the things that have led me and many other twenty-somethings to oft-favor a certain other console. However, with my recent discovery of the Homebrew Channel, I can mark one up for the Wii. I know it's old news for some, but for those of you who always wished that glowing blue drive could play your games as well as your movies, it's now easier than ever. Here's how to it, no warranty voiding mod-chip required.
First of, the things you need are:
--A Wii with system version 3.2.--A FAT/FAT32 formatted SD card (no bigger than 2GB, as the Wii can't read SDHC cards).--An SD card reader/writer (or a USB device that can act as one, such as a digital camera or digital photo frame).--"Zelda: Twilight Princess" for Wii (random, I know, but you should really own this anyway).--The "Twilight Hack" (a modified Zelda save game that runs the Homebrew Channel Installer).--The Homebrew Channel Installer.--"DVDX," a Homebrew app needed for the Wii to read DVDs from the drive.--"MPlayer," a Wii port of a media player that plays commercial DVDs.
There are essentially two main tasks here: installing the Homebrew Channel, and installing the DVD player. I'll start with the HBC.
1) Insert your SD card into your reader and copy the "private" directory of the Twilight Hack onto it. Also copy the Homebrew Channel "boot.dol" file.
2) Insert the SD card into your Wii and delete your Zelda save file in the Wii File Manager (start a new game if you don't already have one). If you care about your saved game, you can first copy it to your SD card and copy it back after you've installed HBC.
3) Before inserting Zelda into your Wii, flip it over and take note of the text on the inner ring. It will either read "RVL-RZDE-0A-0" or "RVL-RZDE-0A-2" -- both versions will work, but you need to make sure you apply the correct hack (RVL-RZDE-0A-0 requires TwilightHack0, RVL-RZDE-0A-2 requires TwilightHack2, both included in the package).
4) Switch to SD view in your Wii File Manager and copy over your correct version of the hack.
5) Insert your Zelda game disc and start the game. You should see the Twilight Hack save game. Select it to start the game. Once you can control Link, walk backwards (weird, I know) until the Homebrew Channel installer starts. After a minute or two, the HBC will be installed and can be accessed just like any other Channel on your Wii.
Once you have the Homebrew Channel up and running, you can now install a slew of great third party apps such as emulators, homebrew games, media players... even Linux! For now, here's how to get DVD playback on your Wii with MPlayer.
1) Pop your SD back into your card reader. You can erase the "boot.dol" file and the "private" directory if you'd like (we no longer need the Twilight Hack or Homebrew Channel installer as it updates automatically and can be removed just like any other Wii Channel).
2) Create a directory on your SD card and name it "apps" (no quotes). Copy the "dvdx" and "mplayer" directories into the "apps" folder.
3) Eject your SD card and insert it back into your Wii. Turn your console on and start the Homebrew Channel.
4) Now you should see the two apps you just copied onto your SD card. Run the DVDX installer app. When that starts up, select "Normal Installation" and wait for it to finish.
5) Go back to the Homebrew Channel, insert a DVD movie of your choosing into your Wii and start the MPlayer app. To play the movie, select "DVD-Video" from the MPlayer menu, and then "Play DVD" (or "Play Title #1"). After a few moments your movie will load and you'll be enjoying a feature that should have worked out of the box to begin with!
*I should mention that while this method does work, the MPlayer software is currently pretty buggy. DVD menus are pretty hit or miss and not every movie I tried even plays. Hopefully they update the MPlayer software at some point, but I suspect it was more a proof of concept. There's always a certain amount of risk with installing unofficial, third party software, but hey, that's part of the fun. In any case, the Homebrew Channel is a really cool piece of work and will definitely breathe new life into your neglected little Wii.
Sunday, January 11, 2009
10 must-have free BlackBerry apps
by Logan Kugler
Your BlackBerry might be plenty powerful out of the box, but there are hundreds of third-party applications out there that can make the device even more useful.
Adding the apps to your BlackBerry is a breeze, because they can all be installed "over the air," either by visiting the app's site with your BlackBerry's built-in browser and downloading the file directly, or by having an e-mail sent to your BlackBerry with a direct download link.
Even better, some of the best of these apps are totally free. Here are 10 of the best free apps available for your BlackBerry.
ViigoViigo is a full-featured RSS feed reader that lets you read your favorite feeds and keep up with important news wherever your day takes you.
You can add your own feeds (Viigo's auto-detect function can discover the feed address for most Web sites), but Viigo also comes well equipped with a variety of tech, politics, sports, weather and other feeds.
Preconfigured feeds also allow you to easily set up traffic alerts, stay up to date with flight information, and track packages from UPS, the U.S. Postal Service, FedEx and DHL. The new version, now in beta testing, adds support for custom search alerts and even podcasts.
VlingoAlthough recent BlackBerries support voice dialing, the speech-recognition app Vlingo goes far beyond dialing numbers from your address book.
Using only your voice, you can run Web searches ("Find post offices in Punxsutawney"), launch built-in BlackBerry applications ("Open Calendar"), compose e-mails and send text messages.
The transcriptions tend to be very good, so you don't have to worry about double-checking before sending. Vlingo takes over the application key on the side of your BlackBerry, making it easy to access even while driving.
Google MobileAccess the entire suite of Google's mobile-friendly services in one place with Google Mobile. A single interface gives you one-stop access to Google's Gmail and Maps applications (the latter of which can integrate with your built-in GPS tool, if your BlackBerry has one).
It also includes links to Web services including search, Google News, Google Reader, Google Docs (which is read-only on mobile devices), Picasa photos, and your Google Notebook, all of which open in your BlackBerry's built-in Web browser. Google Mobile also includes the Google Sync service, which allows two-way synchronization between your BlackBerry's built-in calendar and the Web-based Google Calendar.
BBNotePadPacking a little more oomph than your BlackBerry's built-in MemoPad, BBNotePad is a plain text editor that allows you to write full-length documents or even code wherever you might be.
BBNotePad sports three text sizes for tired eyes, and it saves files as .txt files that can be opened directly on any computer, saving to either your BlackBerry's internal memory or on your removable flash card. It's very useful for sending notes and memos over Bluetooth to other handheld devices.
Your BlackBerry might be plenty powerful out of the box, but there are hundreds of third-party applications out there that can make the device even more useful.
Adding the apps to your BlackBerry is a breeze, because they can all be installed "over the air," either by visiting the app's site with your BlackBerry's built-in browser and downloading the file directly, or by having an e-mail sent to your BlackBerry with a direct download link.
Even better, some of the best of these apps are totally free. Here are 10 of the best free apps available for your BlackBerry.
ViigoViigo is a full-featured RSS feed reader that lets you read your favorite feeds and keep up with important news wherever your day takes you.
You can add your own feeds (Viigo's auto-detect function can discover the feed address for most Web sites), but Viigo also comes well equipped with a variety of tech, politics, sports, weather and other feeds.
Preconfigured feeds also allow you to easily set up traffic alerts, stay up to date with flight information, and track packages from UPS, the U.S. Postal Service, FedEx and DHL. The new version, now in beta testing, adds support for custom search alerts and even podcasts.
VlingoAlthough recent BlackBerries support voice dialing, the speech-recognition app Vlingo goes far beyond dialing numbers from your address book.
Using only your voice, you can run Web searches ("Find post offices in Punxsutawney"), launch built-in BlackBerry applications ("Open Calendar"), compose e-mails and send text messages.
The transcriptions tend to be very good, so you don't have to worry about double-checking before sending. Vlingo takes over the application key on the side of your BlackBerry, making it easy to access even while driving.
Google MobileAccess the entire suite of Google's mobile-friendly services in one place with Google Mobile. A single interface gives you one-stop access to Google's Gmail and Maps applications (the latter of which can integrate with your built-in GPS tool, if your BlackBerry has one).
It also includes links to Web services including search, Google News, Google Reader, Google Docs (which is read-only on mobile devices), Picasa photos, and your Google Notebook, all of which open in your BlackBerry's built-in Web browser. Google Mobile also includes the Google Sync service, which allows two-way synchronization between your BlackBerry's built-in calendar and the Web-based Google Calendar.
BBNotePadPacking a little more oomph than your BlackBerry's built-in MemoPad, BBNotePad is a plain text editor that allows you to write full-length documents or even code wherever you might be.
BBNotePad sports three text sizes for tired eyes, and it saves files as .txt files that can be opened directly on any computer, saving to either your BlackBerry's internal memory or on your removable flash card. It's very useful for sending notes and memos over Bluetooth to other handheld devices.
Friday, January 2, 2009
Free BlackBerry Storm Apps: Seven Essential Downloads
by Al Sacco
The weeks following the release of the Research In Motion's first touch screen BlackBerry, the Storm, on November 21, were unfortunately filled with complaints from users, reviewers and critics alike regarding the extremely poor quality operating system that shipped with the device. And rightly so; RIM and Verizon Wireless rushed out buggy OS code that was simply not ready for prime time, in order to meet previously stated release dates.However, behind the scenes, a variety of mobile software developers were studiously working those weeks away on new applications for the much-anticipated device. Now, less than a month later, Verizon has updated and improved the Storm OS, and many of those apps are starting to pop up on the Web. Best of all: Many of them are free.
Not all of the following applications were developed specifically for the Storm, but each and every one functions well on the device--with the exception of a few minor bugs. I've mentioned most of the apps in previous free BlackBerry software stories, but that was before the Storm landed and before anyone knew whether or not they'd work on RIM's first touch BlackBerry.
(Note: All of our recommended applications were downloaded and tested using a Verizon Wireless BlackBerry Storm 9530 running OS 4.7.0.75, the latest official Verizon release.)
WeatherBug for BlackBerry Storm: Makin' it Rain
One of my personal favorite free BlackBerry applications, WeatherBug is a unique and valuable mobile weather app. The software creates a dynamic icon on your BlackBerry home screen that updates itself according to your local weather conditions--or the weather conditions in a pre-specified locale. For instance, when it's partially cloudy, your WeatherBug icon displays an image of the sun with a cloud eclipsing it, as well as the current temperature and the day's predicted high and low. And when the weather changes, the icon is automatically modified accordingly.
The software pulls its information from the company's WeatherBug Network, which it claims is the largest, most technologically advanced weather system in the world, at more than five times the size of even the U.S. National Weather Service.
WeatherBug is available for a variety of BlackBerry devices, but the Storm specific-version is different in that you can employ touch-based gestures for navigation. And the app utilizes the Storm's built-in accelerometer to determine the device's orientation--portrait (vertical) or landscape (horizontal)--and customize the display accordingly.
Additional WeatherBug features include the ability to view a weather summary for the current day, with metrics like dew point, wind chill/heat index and humidity levels; seven day forecasts; maps with numerous overlays including current temperature and precipitation; and local weather alerts.
WeatherBug for the BlackBerry Storm is available for free over-the-air (OTA) download via the BlackBerry browser.
The weeks following the release of the Research In Motion's first touch screen BlackBerry, the Storm, on November 21, were unfortunately filled with complaints from users, reviewers and critics alike regarding the extremely poor quality operating system that shipped with the device. And rightly so; RIM and Verizon Wireless rushed out buggy OS code that was simply not ready for prime time, in order to meet previously stated release dates.However, behind the scenes, a variety of mobile software developers were studiously working those weeks away on new applications for the much-anticipated device. Now, less than a month later, Verizon has updated and improved the Storm OS, and many of those apps are starting to pop up on the Web. Best of all: Many of them are free.
Not all of the following applications were developed specifically for the Storm, but each and every one functions well on the device--with the exception of a few minor bugs. I've mentioned most of the apps in previous free BlackBerry software stories, but that was before the Storm landed and before anyone knew whether or not they'd work on RIM's first touch BlackBerry.
(Note: All of our recommended applications were downloaded and tested using a Verizon Wireless BlackBerry Storm 9530 running OS 4.7.0.75, the latest official Verizon release.)
WeatherBug for BlackBerry Storm: Makin' it Rain
One of my personal favorite free BlackBerry applications, WeatherBug is a unique and valuable mobile weather app. The software creates a dynamic icon on your BlackBerry home screen that updates itself according to your local weather conditions--or the weather conditions in a pre-specified locale. For instance, when it's partially cloudy, your WeatherBug icon displays an image of the sun with a cloud eclipsing it, as well as the current temperature and the day's predicted high and low. And when the weather changes, the icon is automatically modified accordingly.
The software pulls its information from the company's WeatherBug Network, which it claims is the largest, most technologically advanced weather system in the world, at more than five times the size of even the U.S. National Weather Service.
WeatherBug is available for a variety of BlackBerry devices, but the Storm specific-version is different in that you can employ touch-based gestures for navigation. And the app utilizes the Storm's built-in accelerometer to determine the device's orientation--portrait (vertical) or landscape (horizontal)--and customize the display accordingly.
Additional WeatherBug features include the ability to view a weather summary for the current day, with metrics like dew point, wind chill/heat index and humidity levels; seven day forecasts; maps with numerous overlays including current temperature and precipitation; and local weather alerts.
WeatherBug for the BlackBerry Storm is available for free over-the-air (OTA) download via the BlackBerry browser.
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