Miro 4: A Solid Open-source iTunes Alternative

May 262011
 

Participatory Culture Foundation has just released a new cross-platform open source media player called Miro 4. The application has clean and nice looking user interface, loads of features and good performance. Also, an iPad app will follow in about three weeks.

The desktop version’s long list of features in quite impressive. They include:

  • Compatible with your current music library (e.g your iTunes or Windows Media Player library). Just point Miro to your music and video folders and those files will appear. Nothing will be changed.  
  • Compatible with a variety of formats such as MPEG, Quicktime, AVI, H.\264, Divx, Windows Media, Flash Video and more.
  • Sync with Android devices. You may connect multiple devices simultaneously and data if required.
  • Amazon and Android Market integration. Purchase music from the Amazon Music Store and Android apps from the Android Marketright from inside Miro itself.
  • Download, manage and play almost any video including Youtube, podcasts, Amazon, and bittorrent content.
  • Convert videos into different formats with with presets for a number of devices including iPhones, iPods, iPads, Android phones, and more.
  • Share your media on your network using WiFi for streaming and media transfer.

Miro 4 is a solid media manager and is definitely something worthy to try out especially for Android users. Another notable iTunes alternative for Android users is DoubleTwist. Miro 4 is available on Windows, Mac OS X and Linux distributions for free and can be downloaded here.

And on a side note, Participatory Culture Foundation also has a nice and easy to use video converter tool called Miro Video Converter. However, it’s on available on the Mac.

 

And Yet Another Case of iTunes Gift Card Scam!

Feb 052011
 

Apple describes its iTunes Monthly gift cards as a “great way to give a gift that just keeps on giving”. These electronic gift cards, once dispatched to the recipient’s e-mail address, allow him/her to purchase virtually any type of content from the iTunes Store; music, video, apps, you name it!

So why am I going on about iTunes gift cards? You might ask yourself. I would like to bring to attention the recent case of Peter, a fellow iTunes user whose account was hacked and found his bank account plunged “into the red” within a matter of hours. It turns out over $1,500 had been charged on fraudulent iTunes gift purchases.

Peter, shocked, couldn’t believe that all of a sudden, he was in such big debt with his bank. He logged onto his iTunes account to check his purchase history only to find that multiple purchases of so called “Monthly Gift” cards had been realized.

Disappointment with Apple

Peter promptly contacted both his bank (HSBC) and Apple to sort out this issue. Apple’s “solved” the case by simply suspending his account, whereas HSBC reacted in a better way, restoring the funds back to his account, allowing him to make his mortgage payment. In a recent interview with El Reg, Peter highlighted the fact that even after years of buying Apple products and using iTunes on a regular basis to buy some music (a very loyal customer), it took them over 24 hours to get back to him and offer no help at all.

Peter is still unsure how is personal data may have been jeopardized. Was it a phishing attack, a malware infection, a hacker? The reason still remains unknown and we might probably never know!

iTunes + fraud = very common!

Googling the terms “iTunes + fraud”, will bring up many stories that prove that Peter is not the only one who has lost a reasonable amount of money from his bank account through fraudulent iTunes gift purchases. The estimated total is said to be over hundreds or even thousands and this just goes for known cases!

The Solution

How can we protect ourselves from this scam? Is iTunes safe? There is no real solution to this problem, many things can go wrong. The best thing to do is purchase a decent antivirus with high detection rates, able to detect and eliminate almost any threat that could compromise your data. Furthermore, it is recommended that Internet users are cautious when it comes to surfing online, making sure they visit websites that are safe and will pose no harm to their respective PC’s. As for iTunes, Peter’s tale of woe raises questions to whether iTunes can guarantee safety to its users. It isn’t Apple’s fault in actual fact but personally, I think users should think twice about linking their debit or credit cards to their iTunes accounts. Instead, they always have the option of purchasing physical gift cards from any major retail store: Wal-Mart, Tesco, etc. or even an Apple Store.

Countdown to 10 Billion Apps Started, You Could Win $10,000 iTunes Gift Card!

Jan 182011
 

No kidding, but iTunes is going to give away $10,000 iTunes gift card to one lucky user who downloads its ten billionth app from iTunes. Now this is amazing, and here is what Apple has to say about it,

“As of today, nearly 10 billion apps have been downloaded from the App Store worldwide. Which is almost as amazing as the apps themselves. So we want to say thanks. Download the 10 billionth app, and you could win a US $10,000 iTunes Gift Card. Just visit the App Store, and download what could be your best app yet.”

If you’ve got a chance to visit the announcement page these days, you would have seen that it is showing an animated countdown counter which reveals how fast the apps are being downloaded every second.

App Store Just Going to Hit Ten Billion Downloads, Your Chance to Win A $10,000 iTunes Gift Card!

App Store Just Going to Hit Ten Billion Downloads, Your Chance to Win A $10,000 iTunes Gift Card!

Let’s see who is the lucky winner who not only wins the $10,000 iTunes gift card but also becomes the historic person to download the ten billionth app! See the complete official rules to enter the sweepstakes here.

60 Apps Per iOS Device? Good Job iTunes and App Store Developers!

Jan 162011
 

iTunes became popular somewhere between 2004-2005 and since then it took off really quick, so quick that today iTunes might sold 12 Billion songs last year and almost 10 Billion Apps.

iTunes App store was instant hit back in 2007 when fist iPod Touch and iPhone came out well now with iOS (iPad, iPod Touch and iPhone) Apple might sell 60 apps to individual iOS device, nope I am not kidding nor Asymco who ran the whole statistics report.

itunes download apps vs songs

How many apps to you have on your mobile device?

Source: Asymco

Apple Disabled the jailbreak detection API

Dec 112010
 

Recently Apple has disabled the jailbreak detection system just after six months of its introduction. Apple did not give any explanation for this. Device management team told the media that the reason behind this action is a mystery and they are thinking about alternative ways to detect any corruption. Previously apple introduced jailbreak codes to detect whether a user is using application other than I Tune based apps.
It is to be noted that jailbroken device poses a serious threat to enterprise. Even if the low level user does not load malwares, any unauthorized application might download them.

The new API was a part of MDM and was released in June with version 4.0. But in the recent version the API which detects jailbreak is either disabled or removed.
The API asks the operating system whether it has been compromised or not. There will be some corrupted files in a jail-broken device which will allow the user to load any third party application. Apple warned the user that jail-breaking might damage the device. Now it would be interesting to watch Apples next action to prevent jail- breaking.

In the past some device management vendors created individual programs to check the operating system for jail-braking detection which is analogous to normal antivirus applications.
But there has been objection from many users as this API based query system was much more complicated than it sounded before publication. But the concept of asking the operating system whether it is been compromised or not is actually interesting as any intelligent attacker would first try to attack OS files. According to inventors this jail-break detection method is more like cat and mouse game which really worked for them.
But API is past now and what will be Apples next move is going to be interesting. Apple still did not make any comment on this.

No Takers For Apple Subscriptions Through iTunes

Dec 042010
 

There is news about two subscription based digital newspapers that will only be published via the Apple App Store.  A Virgin-Based magazine and “The Daily”, which is going to be published by News Corp.  These two companies have been talking about the new subscription system in the app store, but it seems that not many other companies are on board with this, at least yet.

"The Daily"

According to these reports, there were to be some deals in the works with Apple, but now they have come to some sort of a standstill.  Companies are not very confident in Apple to provide them with sufficient consumer data.  This comes to somewhat of a surprise to most because Apple has always been a well regarded company that can offer up just about anything.

Users would be able to opt-in to allow companies to access their data, but apparently this is not enough for publishers to come flocking to the subscription service.  The data provided would only include an email and physical address of the user, which isn’t all that much and with privacy becoming more of a big deal these days (ie. Facebook), you can bet most people will opt-out.

The publishers also would have to deal with Apple’s cut in the purchases of the subscriptions.  At this point it looks like that fee would be about 30%, which is a lot when it comes to payments that are coming in all month long.

There are other reports that publishers really want to see customers credit card data would is valuable to their marketing strategies, but Apple is not allowing this data to be given away on an opt-in basis.  Currently, there is an announcement planned for December 9th, which will detail the involvement of News Corp. and Apple.

The Daily has been pushed back for a bit, but what is the reason?  Are they thinking about not dealing with Apple at all, or is it some sort of production issue?

Gift iPhone and iPad Apps

Nov 212010
 

Now you can get iPhone apps as a gift without getting charges with the help of iTunes gift card. This is going to cost you in the range of 10 to 100 dollar. Not so long ago, the iPhone apps were so costly and you had to get these apps from iTunes store whereas now, you can easily gift these apps by just pressing the option “gift this app”.

“Gift This App” permits you to give exact paid apps to your friends devoid of having to expend a ten or fifteen dollar gift card, least per receiver. With the distinctive app pricing ninety-nine cents, this is a greeting smash in fixed times. You are able to be confident that your gift receivers will in fact search out the meticulous iPhone or else iPad apps that you actually want to give them.

Make certain that your receiver does not previously have the iPhone app or else iPad app that you are going to give. In addition, be confirmed that your gift is well matched with the receiver’s hardware as well as operating system. You are able to realize this unswervingly by just asking over your receivers. Or else you can know ultimately with the help of a friend. The friend can acquire the information in secret. This is not different from asking your friend’s partner. For instance, whether he previously has the shirt of you plan to find him, or the size he dresses so you can find one that suits absolutely.

You can also present apps obtainable through your iPhone or else iPad rather than internet at the store of iTunes. In all occasion, the “Gift This App” choice is a grand method to provide your friends kindly considered, specially selected, excellence apps. With the Apps, they can take pleasure in and keep to good exercise for a long time to appear and remain happy.

Beatles Now Available on iTunes “Tomorrow IS Just Another Day”

Nov 162010
 

Yesterday we mentioned about the Apple event “Tomorrow is just another day” that happened this morning at 10AM EST. Well the good news is that Beatles are now available on iTunes but we have not heard “yet” as to what’s going on with iOS 4.2 which I am more interested in than Beatles. Don’t get me wrong I listen to Beatles too but I already have their albums and music etc..

Anyway, here is the Press Release from Apple:

LONDON and CUPERTINO, California—November 16, 2010—Apple Corps, EMI and Apple® today announced that the Beatles, the most influential and beloved rock band in music history, are now available for the first time on the iTunes Store® (www.itunes.com). Starting today, the group’s 13 legendary remastered studio albums with iTunes LPs, the two-volume “Past Masters” compilation and the classic “Red” and “Blue” collections are available for purchase and download on iTunes® worldwide as either albums or individual songs. Fans can also get a special digital “Beatles Box Set” featuring the “Live at the Washington Coliseum, 1964” concert film, a worldwide iTunes exclusive which captures the Beatles’ very first US concert.

“We’re really excited to bring the Beatles’ music to iTunes,” said Sir Paul McCartney. “It’s fantastic to see the songs we originally released on vinyl receive as much love in the digital world as they did the first time around.”

“I am particularly glad to no longer be asked when the Beatles are coming to iTunes,” said Ringo Starr. “At last, if you want it—you can get it now—The Beatles from Liverpool to now! Peace and Love, Ringo.”

“We love the Beatles and are honored and thrilled to welcome them to iTunes,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “It has been a long and winding road to get here. Thanks to the Beatles and EMI, we are now realizing a dream we’ve had since we launched iTunes ten years ago.”

“In the joyful spirit of Give Peace A Chance, I think it is so appropriate that we are doing this on John’s 70th birthday year,” said Yoko Ono Lennon.

“The Beatles on iTunes—Bravo!” said Olivia Harrison.

“The Beatles and iTunes have both been true innovators in their fields,” said EMI Group CEO Roger Faxon. “It’s a privilege for everybody at EMI to work with Steve Jobs and with Apple Corps’ Jeff Jones and their teams in marking a great milestone in the development of digital music.”

Each of the Beatles’ 13 legendary remastered studio albums, including “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,” “Revolver,” “The Beatles [The White Album]” and “Abbey Road” include iTunes LPs, which create an immersive album experience with a beautiful design and expanded visual features including a unique mini-documentary about the creation of each album. The two-volume “Past Masters” compilation and the classic “Red” and “Blue” collections are also available.

Single albums are available for purchase and download for $12.99 each, double albums for $19.99 each and individual songs for $1.29 each.

The special digital “Beatles Box Set” ($149) contains the 13 remastered studio albums with iTunes LPs and all mini-documentaries, “Past Masters,” and the “Live at the Washington Coliseum, 1964” concert film, a worldwide iTunes exclusive which captures the Beatles’ very first US concert in its entirety. In addition, Beatles fans can stream and view the “Live at the Washington Coliseum, 1964” concert film from iTunes for free for the remainder of this calendar year.

Apple Corps Ltd. was founded by The Beatles in 1968 to look after the group’s own affairs. The London-based company has administered the catalogue of The Beatles releases of the 1960s that have sold to date more than 600 million records, tapes and CDs. Since the 1990s, Apple has piloted new Beatles projects that have become benchmarks for pioneering accomplishment and which have included The Beatles Anthology projects, the 29-million selling album The Beatles 1, The Beatles LOVE show and CD and the 09/09/09 release of The Beatles Remastered catalogue and The Beatles Rock Band game. Further information on The Beatles’ projects can be found at www.thebeatles.com.

EMI Music is one of the world’s leading music companies, representing artists spanning all musical tastes and genres. Its record labels include Angel, Astralwerks, Blue Note, Capitol, Capitol Latin, Capitol Nashville, EMI Classics, EMI CMG, EMI Records, EMI Records Nashville, Manhattan, Parlophone and Virgin.

We will keep you updated as to what is going on with iOS 4.2 released etc..

Apple Says “Tomorrow Is Just Another Day, That You’ll Never Forget”

Nov 152010
 

If you head over to Apple.com you will get big image saying “Tomorrow is just another day, that you’ll never forget” Well well well… what is Apple cooking this time?

We know for sure that iOS 4.2 will be announced but not only that, iTunes might come to cloud which. Apple has been building that  data center for ever in North Carolina. Well one thing for sure is that you will be able to download and update your iPad, iPod Touch and iPhones via iTunes tomorrow.

So I guess tomorrow will enjoy the day that we will never forget, and I guess that will start at 10AM EST. What do you think it’s going to happen tomorrow?

Apple_1289835668403

Apple’s Ping Overwhelmed with a Flood of Users

Sep 042010
 

Apple’s ping social network was just announced on Friday for music and it is now flooded with 1 million users within this 48 hours.

Eddy Cue, Apple’s Vice president of internet services said in the press release as “One-third of the people who have downloaded iTunes 10 have joined Ping”. Cue also felt that this overwhelming response is going to be more voluminous in coming weeks as more people download iTunes 10.

In fact, Wednesday keynote, Apple CEO Steve Jobs mentioned Ping as “Sort of like Facebook and Twitter meet iTunes”. This trend is creating a chance for a user to follow artists and friends in order to find out what others enjoying and purchasing. The latest iTunes version downloading is mandatory to avail this service. At present iTunes is having a 160 million customer base in 23 countries and this is indicating that PING has a ready response.

Ping was an instant success on the Wednesday launch and several experts felt the same too that day. The “social music discovery” service was first started with facebook Connect option for finding friends and later it was disabled within no time and no resaons. In this context Steve Job responded as the terms demanded by Facebook were “onerous”.

There is another important thing about this one million users is that all of them are not legitimate as many of them resulted as spammers through posting links to “free iPhones” and various scams. Do not get surprise and among these one million few of them are created accounts with fake celebrity names too.
Via Appleinsider

Apple and Facebook at Loggerheads: Facebook Blocks Ping

Sep 032010
 

Seems like, Facebook is feeling the heat of competition. Apple’s new social media initiative Ping has hit a little roadblock, as apparently Facebook has denied API access to Ping service. This means that if you are using Ping and want to connect with your other Ping using Facebook friends, then you cannot do it by simply logging into your account. Apple and Facebook went through hoops to reach an agreement, but evidently Apple refused to succumb to Facebook’s “Onerous Terms”.

According to allthingsd.com, Apple has integrated the Facebook facility to Ping, but the functionality cannot be accessed since Facebook chose to block it on account of violation of terms of service. During the Apple event on September 1, Steve Jobs recommended to connect to friends using email or search function. Rumors are that people at Facebook Headquarter are not happy with Ping’s close resemblance to social media site. The companies are still said to be negotiating the terms. However, it would be interesting to see how Facebook reacts when Google joins the foray. Let the drama begin.

Source: Allthingsd

Double Twist Brings iTunes for Android

Sep 012010
 

The iTunes so far syncs with the iPhone is so brilliant and convenient for iPhone users. There is nothing Android phone users to look for the same. This is made possible through Double Twist. It combines a music player with complete library control to the computer, that’s when the magic begins.

Through this an Android phone becomes an extension of Double Twist, there full syncing of music, photos and movies just like iTunes handles for iOS devices. Here, Amazon MP3 store will occupies the place of the iTunes music store through Double Twist integration. The complete integration with the android Market for perusing, buying and installing apps onto the Android phone is under progress and best part is this functionality is free for the taking.

Via Gigaom

iTune Accounts Linked to PayPal are Victims of a Phishing Scam

Aug 242010
 

A phishing scam had seen light yesterday and this time the victims were PayPal account holders that are connected with iTunes. Yesterday some of the individuals reported that thousands of dollars transferred into the hands of this phishing scam and this was happened to the iTune accounts that are connected with PayPal. TechCrunch mentioned this as a “major security hole” on Monday. John Paczkowski of Digital daily also said that this kind of phishing scam that’s been around for some time.

PayPal responded reasonably to the incident and said it is reimbursing customers that were victimized to the phishing scam. Also, PayPal said “it is happening on the iTunes side”.

San Jose Mercury of Mercury new received an answer from the Apple spokes person as company is aware of the problem.

The spokes person also said as “Among other new security measures iTunes now requires more frequent re-entry of a customer’s credit card security code. But, if your credit card or iTunes password is stolen and used on iTunes, we recommend that you contact your financial institution and inquire about cancelling the card and issuing a charge-back for any unauthorized transactions. We also recommend that you change your iTunes account password immediately”.

Last summer, I Tunes was hit by developer and account fraud, which some developers used to boost their sales ranking. With this regard Apple mentioned it as those only 400 accounts were compromised of the more than 150 million active iTune users.

This month, Apple also bolstered the security of its Apple ID accounts, which are shared by iTunes. Users must verify their accounts information when they log into new devices, and new iTunes account passwords must have at least 8 characters with mixed capitalization.

Via Appleinsider

Genius Recommendation Tab is special addition to iPad App Store from Apple

Aug 062010
 

A mobile version of Apple’s Genius recommendation tab feature is adorned to the main navigational tabs of iPad App Store. This feature is a facility for the user to suggest applications basing on their account activity.

A “Genius” tab will appear at the bottom of the iPad for the user that activated this feature. This feature is very well placed at the right of the “Updates” tab. The placement is perfect unlike on the iPhone or iPod touch and easy to access. The users that are using small device can find this feature from the top row of “Featured” options.

The Genius feature is capable enough to analyze application purchases of the users successfully. Also, recommends the similar software that will be more appropriate for their iPhone, iPod touch or iPad. The same facility can be made utilized for the purchases as playlists within iTunes etc.

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