danielkbx

This is about all my professional programming stuff.

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[danielkbx]

Replacing the internal flash drive of an iPhone? Crazy shit.

[danielkbx]

A localized application is the one that has all of its texts, translated into the users device current language. And this, for us developers, means …

Didn’t know that. Great.

[danielkbx]

Offline Time Machine Backups

By accident, I deleted a bunch of project folders yesterday while I was working at home. Never mind, this happened just after leaving the office so I would get access to the Time Machine backups the next morning. I used the rest of the day for other stuff that should have been done weeks earlier.

Back in the office this morning, I switched on Time Machine and it presented a list of backups that contained the deleted files but have been taken after leaving the office. Actually, Time Machine even backups your files locally while the storage device is unavailable. These backups are kept in /.MobileBackups and are private to root.

The next time, you need access to some fresh backups while on the go, just look there.

[danielkbx]

Snapchat Explained... Using Snapchat

It's time for you to learn how to love the most confusing social network. WSJ's Joanna Stern guides you through the app in a series of quick video "snaps."

Got it. She is one of the best tech writers.

[danielkbx]

Earin wireless earbuds

I received my Earin in-ear wireless headset which I backed last year at Kickstarter.

Just a few words after a couple of hours: they are awesome. Sound quality is impressive for such a small device with strong bass (but not in the Beats way) and clear mids and highs. Earin provides two sets of S and M Comply foam tips each.

Storage and recharging in the capsule works fine though I’d wish it was a bit larger. It is pretty fiddly for me to get the earbuds out of it. The longest session without a break was about two hours and the devices did not run out of battery.

Pairing with the phone did work well the first time. Since I use different music sources I have to re-pair them quite often. There is no button to put them in pairing mode so the only chance to connect them to a different device is to switch off Bluetooth at the currently paired one. Annoying.

Besides those minor issues there is one really big one: the right earbud loses connection to the left one way to often. So while the music keeps playing on the left side, it disappears on the right side mostly returning after a couple of seconds. I know that Bluetooth connections might drop from time to time but it happens like every three to five minutes, sometimes multiple times in a row. I read about this in the Kickstarter forum and it seems that some of the units are affected while others are not. I wrote an email to Earin, let’s see what they come up with.

If they fix the connection issues this probably is one of the best headphones sets you could get, if – and that’s important – you need them wireless. Having no cable at all together with the excellent fitting in my ear channels I sometimes do forget that there are these little things which play the music.

The shop is already online though they do not accept order all the times since production is still ramping up.

[danielkbx]

Live TV on Apple TV 4

TVHeadend > Plex Media Server (as channel) > Plex App

It works great, including timeshift and pausing live TV. Even show descriptions and channel logos are displayed.

I love it. And I am really excited to see the Apple TV port of tvhclient.

[danielkbx]

OnePlus X

The OnePlus X is about exploring contrasts and harmony. It’s about expressing individuality in modern urban life, the conflict between traditional craft and manufacturing, and balance between design and technology.

Say hello to the next iPhone clone.

[danielkbx]

Great.

[danielkbx]

Apple Likely Trying to File for 'AirPods' Trademark

Apple may be taking steps to protect the name "AirPods," based on recent trademark filings in a number of countries. While Apple itself is...

I always wondered – at least since the presentation of Watch – why there are no wireless headsets. Though I own (and love) a lot of different headsets, the EarPods are great when it comes to comfort, price and sound.

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chrissimpkins/Hack

Looks great in Xcode – amazing readability.

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Points just got a first icon.

[danielkbx]

Xiaomi's VP Hugo Barra Responds to Apple copycat accusations:

Every smartphone these days kinda looks like every other smartphone.

Almost right. There are two groups of similar (generation-wise) designed smartphones: “Apple  + Samsung” and “everything else”.

[danielkbx]

Side project: Points

I’ve been doing Weight Watchers for a year now. Though the program itself does work pretty well, it’s getting harder and harder to maintain the list of points every day by using their iOS app.

Not only that it is slow, but the search is awful and they do not support Today Extensions nor Apple Watch. So I decided (with a little help of a colleague) to write a simple app which only adds up points.

I know, there probably is no way to hook into WW’s points database. However, most items I add have been added before and I know the points.

Collecting points might be useful in other contexts as well. So if you have an idea on any other use case, just drop me a line.

The app will be implemented in Swift 2 using all the modern technology Apple gave us in WWDC15.

[danielkbx]

OS X Yosemite 10.10.4 with new Apache2 version

The current Yosemite Beta 4 (14E26a) comes with a new version of Apache. Although most users will not care (or even notice it), developers relying on a custom configuration should plan a little extra time.

The update reverts all changes to Apache’s configuration to Apple’s default. This means that manually activated modules need to be enabled again and custom vhost entries need to be added again.

If your configuration changes the user/group settings of the Apache process you should adjust this very setting before starting work. Otherwise, every created directory or file has a faulty ownership which causes hard-to-track-down error once you changed the setting.

OS X uses Apache for it’s sharing functionality. Having a built-in Apache (and Python, PHP, Perl …) is one of the reasons, most web developers prefer OS X as development system.

[danielkbx]

Apple Watch battery life: They did it exactly right!

I’ve been using my Apple Watch for a couple of days now and it turns out to be a pretty helpful companion though it is definitely nothing you really need. My Pebble needs to be charged once a week and I could do so while working and wearing it. Apple Watch, in contrast, needs to be charged every night.

The battery life you get depends on the functionality the device provides and the size of the battery. Both have effect on the overall size of the device. So there are 3 things – but you can easily combine only 2 of them:

long battery life + many features → not small

many features + small device → short battery life

small device + long battery life → no features

Apple chose to go with option #2: a pretty small device packed with a lot of features causing the battery to last only for a day. And they did it exactly right.

Recharging a watch every day sounds weird and, in fact, it is when you do it the first time. However, does it feel better to charge every second night? Or every third? So is tonight a “charging night”?

Two or three days battery life might sound better than one day but in real life it is not. Just to be sure, every user would charge it every night. Battery life gets not minor until it is really long. I mean really long like 30 days.

As mentioned, my Pebble lasts nearly a week – and I almost ever run out of battery. Yupp, last night actually was a “charging night”.

[danielkbx]

First impressions of the Apple Watch

My blue (developer) Apple Watch arrived this morning. I used to have a Pebble or an Activité Pop on my wrist so I have a little record in (let’s say) modern watches.

There is no need to talk about the box and the cables and so on, there are plenty of unboxing videos floating around. Setup is easy, the battery was at 80% so I could start using it after half an hour loading it to the full 100%.

I’ve always been a big fan of Pebble but there were some annoying issues with the whole concept. Notifications, for example. It is great to get a message directly to your watch. But with Pebble, you only get it when you phone already displays the notification. Reacting to it on one device does not swipe the notification from the other. So you end up marking every notification as read on both devices. Apple Watch is much smarter. Reading a notification on the watch make it disappear on the iPhone (and the other way round). This is how it needs to be done. In general, Apple Watch is more like a secondary screen to the iPhone. Start a navigation in Maps, Apple Watch will automatically show directions (and taps). Add another city in Weather, Apple Watch knows it.

Most people consider the ability to run real apps on the watch as a big plus. I don’t. I never wanted to book a flight on my watch and I never wanted to get guided to the next Starbucks with my hand in front of my face. But I wanted to have the most important pieces of information in hand without using the phone.

Until now, Apple Watch does exactly what I always hoped Pebble would do for me – in a very unagitated and modest way. It feels like I’ve never used something else.