Android on an iPhone

nexusonenews:

This is an outrageous hack. Imagine the iPhone being able to duel-boot into either iPhone OS or Android.

Oh, man—if the latest version of Android could run nicely on the iPhone 3G I would be happy to NOT upgrade to a Nexus One or any other phone. After all, the hardware is just fine—it’s the fricken software that drives me up the wall—too many limitations!! Oh yeah: I HATE iTUNES!

ThePete's iPhone Page 2 20090125

Back on the 25th, I posted the first of many screncaps of my iPhone's home screens. Here is page 2 of my iPhone.

The top row are mostly obvious--you want your calendar and clock handy at all times. Same goes for your camera app and you photo album (I never know when I'll have to break out the wedding photos or show off some of my custom toy designs). The only unusual app in the top row is MyLite--it's just a simple app that turns your iPhone into a flashlight. Very handy.

The next row are also apps I use a lot. The Maps app is indispensible in a city like New York. Damn thing even usurps HopStop.com's usefulness and can give you public transportation routes now. Too damn useful for words.

Speaking of public transportation, the next app on row two, called City Transit, is a subway map for NYC and also syncs advisories with the NYC MTA's website. Very cool.

"Wund NYC" is a bookmark to the iPhone-formatted weather forecast for NYC at Wunderground.com, my prefered weather news source. WiFinder is a basic but effective wifi signal sniffer. It often works better than the iPhone's built-in sniffer and allows you to connect to networks inside the app.

The last app on row two is labelled "Settings" on the screen, but it's real name is "Supreme Preferences" and it's from a guy called iMario. This is another cool thing about having a Jailbroken iPhone--Supreme Prefs gives you a handful of extra things you can control--from changing the carrier name at the top of the screen, to turning on and off iPod controls, to changing calendar settings and more. I definitely recommend this app if you're Jailbroken.

Next up, we have GrandDialer. This app will log you into your GrandCentral.com account and allow you to make calls through your GC number. You tell it what number you want to call (use the keypad or your contacts) and it tells the GC website to call you at what ever phone number you give it, including your iPhone number. Not a perfect app (it doesn't give you access to your favorites and it sometimes fails to log in to GC), but very useful.

iPhone Modem 2 is something I have yet to use. There's a lot of talk about "tethering," or allowing your laptop to connect to your iPhone to share its Internet connection. I have yet to need this service. Of course, I live in a major American city, so there's usually an open wifi network around. If not, I tend to just use my iPhone. I mean, duh.

Evernote! Evernote is one of the most useful apps I have EVER USED. I have it on every single computer I own! Well, except my OLPC XO--I don't think there's a version of Evernote that runs on SugarOS. :) Evernote, if you're not familiar, is a brilliant note-taking app that allows you to sync with a web server so you can share notes across different machines and the Internet. You can post notes from this app, via email, the web or even a desktop client. It's pretty sweet if you're one of those people that is always having good ideas you want to write down.

Dropbox isn't an app (sadly), it's a bookmark for the iPhone-formatted version of the GetDropbox.com service. It's similar to Evernote, but allows you to sync files. So, you install it on your home computer and it puts a Dropbox sub-directory in your user directory (or on any internal drive) and will automatically sync its contents. Anything I need on-the-go I dump into this directory and can then access it inside Safari on my iPhone. Pretty slick. Would prefer it as an app, though. How cool would it be to have it sync files so you could access them locally, on your iPhone without a connection to the web? Very cool.

Finally for row three, we have Nambu. Nambu is a new addition to my iPhone. It allows me to post to and read from my Twitter, FriendFeed, Identi.ca and Ping.fm accounts. Very handy but it asks me if I want to follow Nambu on Twitter every time I star the app, whether I've said yes or no the last time it flashed the alert. INTENSELY annoying. Still, it's the only iPhone client I could find that handles FriendFeed and other services.

Pinger Phone is another newbie to my iPhone. It promises IM services, Twitter, Facebook and MySpace syncing. This is a great featureset but the app is seriously flawed in that it gives too much screenspace to usericons and not enough space for the status updates. So, in order to read most status updates you have to actually click on each one. VERY annoying. It's a shame because Pinger Phone would be really brilliant otherwise.

Finally, we have Pixelpipe--this is the app for the service that will allow you to crosspost media to multiple hosting sites at once. Got an account at Flickr.com and iPernity.com? Pixelpipe can post to both in one fell swoop. It'll also post to video sites (not from the iPhone sadly), blogs and other sites, too. In fact, it's the app I'm using to post my iPhone screencaps :)

So, that's it for now! Just five more screencaps to go! Wahoo! Got any questions about what you're seeing? Just let me know.

Jailbroken iPhone Warnings for January 27, 2009

So far, since Jailbreaking my iPhone many moons ago, I have run into very few problems with my choice to do so. I don't miss the original firmware and it turns out I have, not one, but two apps that provide the coveted "cut & paste" function that Apple idiotically left out of their Jesus-phone. Likewise since I unlocked my iPhone back on January 1, 2009. I did have a few bumps finding an alternative data plan from AT&T's, but I'm happy with T-Mobile now and spending about $20 less a month than I was with AT&T is pretty cool. All this said, I've recently come across a couple of problems with the Jailbroken, unlocked iPhone that I think my fellow JBUiPhone-users should know about:

1) iPhone dev-team member MuscleNerd Twittered just today about the possibility of silent update that plugs the hole yellowsn0w unlock uses to get in. MuscleNerd also says: "definitely don't update to 2.2.1_5H11 if you want to retain soft unlock / yellowsn0w :)" So hold off on any updates to your iPhone's firmware until further notice. Check out http://blog.iphone-dev.org for that further notice. Personally, I'll never update the FW on my iPhone just cuz.

But don't assume you are safe to update your Mac's OS if you have a JBUed iPhone:

2) My fellow XO laptop owner friend Donna posted a comment to my last iPhone-related post about an issue where updating your Mac OS after JBing your iPhone may lock-up said Mac. She links to a Gizmodo story that informs us that we should:

Be careful with that latest QuickTime update if you have run any "DFU fix" Automator scripts on your unibody (Late 2008) MacBook or MacBook Pro. Do not upgrade to QuickTime 7.6 until you've repaired the alterations that the script made to your system. UPDATE: I am learning from commenters that this is not just limited to unibody Late '08 MacBooks, but it applies to ALL MacBooks running 10.5.6.

Seems if you've got a Mac running 10.5.6 and want to JB your phone, you may be stuck. Lucky for me, I'm still running 10.5.5 and see no reason to update. I'm also running Quicktime 7.5.5 so I'm covered there, too. In fact, after reading this, I think I'll just stay away from updating iTunes, too.

Thanks for the heads-up, Donna!

3) Finally, I'd like to point something out that I noticed myself just last night. I updated the JB app Backgrounder to the latest version (I think it's svn.r125) and ran into weird trouble. What Backgrounder does is allow apps to run in the background so you can surf the web or read email while you're waiting for a pal on your IM buddylist to reply to your instant message. It's a great app, but after I updated to the latest version last night, I found that I suddenly couldn't open any apps without locking the screen first. So, I'd tap the "email" app icon and it would just gray-out a bit. I'd have to press and hold the power button until it asked if I wanted to power-off. Then I tap "cancel", then hit the home button and unlock the screen and finally, I see the email app. This is the same for any app I try to open. Once I uninstalled Backgrounder, everything runs as it should. Sadly, I don't have Backgrounder anymore and it was a very handy app, to have. :(

So, there you have it! Be warned! Don't update ANYthing (firmware, OS, or even your apps) unless there is obviously a problem with them. I suppose if you really feel compelled to update, do your research first to make sure the updates are safe.

Don't be a good little Apple consumer and eat whatever they put on your plate. Sometimes it's bad for you.

ThePete's iPhone Page 1 20090125

Here's page 1 on my iPhone. I have the first page blank so I can show off my wallpaper easily. Right now, it's an Obamicon of Jay ThePal. In my dock I've got my phone icon, mail, Safari then Cycorder (for local video recording and storage) and then the iPod icon. FYI once my videos are shot in Cycorder I use MobileFinder to move the clips into another directory where I can then use MF to email them. Its a shame I can't use PixelPipe like I am for this post. Page 2 of my iPhone home screen tomorrow.

Posted via Pixelpipe.

My Jailbroken iPhone 3G Starting Up with the 2.2 Update Onboard

Thanks to all the hackers out there who make this possible!!  I am but a humble wannabe hax0r who wishes he had the dedication to hack on the same level as the guys at iphone-dev.org and everyone else who did work on the iPhone that I'm not even aware of.

Hacking goes to the very core of who I am as a person.  I look at society and see a massively, uselessly complicated pile of rituals and traditions that have all been created by someone, sometimes for good reason, sometimes not.  I see systems in place that exploit but reward, so they are tolerated.  I see a country of people, in America, who allow so much to continue simply because they choose not to ask "why?"  As humans, it's our job to ask "why?" of everything.  There are always alternatives--sometimes they are better.

The iPhone is a perfect example of a system in place that shouldn't be there.

Hacking it via Jailbreaking re-exerts the rights we should all have over the things we willingly take into our lives.  

It may seem a small victory over the lack of freedom that has crept into all of our lives, but it's a victory, at least.  It also may seem odd to compare such grand ideals to something as geeky and seemingly inconsequential as a cell phone, but multiply all of these little compromises we make for society and you end up with a country of people who thinks a Cadillac is a sporty car and coal can be clean.

So, there you go--the iPhone is an awesome little powerhouse and now I have more power over it.

Posted by email from thepete's posterous

Jailbroken iPhone

Jailbroken iPhone, originally uploaded by thepetecom.

I now have access to even more bells and whistles, yet still no video
recording, VoIP, or unlockage. Supposedly, these will come in time.

ThePeteToy/Hack: The RoBunny USB hub+Flash drive

Here is another one of my custom DIY vinyl toy projects. This one is called the RoBunny and not only is he a toy, he's also a hack! He started out life as a blank DIY Baby Qee bunny from Toy2R. However, when I held my Ridata-brand flash drive and 2-port USB hub combo up to this guy's head I realized that I could hack him into a cybernetic toy. ^_^

Now he works great as a triple purpose accessory for my desk of gadgets! It's a toy, a USB thumb drive AND a 2-port USB hub! Pretty, cool, huh? OH yeah, he's also got an evil looking eye that lights up when he's plugged in, which I really think is cool.
Mobile post sent by thepete using Utterz.  Replies.

ThePeteHacks: Sonic USB Stick

Last year I first posted about my 1GB Sonic USB Stick, which I had hacked together from a USB thumb drive and a Doctor Who Sonic Screwdriver toy, but I had a much more lame name for it. Well, I've renamed it (see above) and added some finishing touches to the project, itself, so I thought it would be a good excuse to post about it again, but with more pictures. Check em out:



And now for the howto:



This is how the Sonic USB Stick started out life. It's a PQi 1GB "Mini I-Stick i810" I picked up from Meritline.com for $14. Get yours here: http://meritline.com/pqi-1-gb-mini-intelligent-drive.html (they also come in 2GB sizes).



Here's what it looks like with it's USB plug open.



Flip this puppy over to access from the bottom end.



I used a Swiss Army knife blade to delicately pry this part off of the main chassis with the hopes of being able to put it back together should my whole project fall apart. (Hey, it's always a possibility!)



There it is with the bottom part of the frame off and the actual "USB" part of the drive popped out. It came out with almost no effort.



View from above.



Ok, here is the Doctor Who Sonic Screwdriver. I picked it up from Amazon for about the same price as the thumbnail drive. Pick up your own Doctor Who Sonic Screwdriver here from Amazon: http://urltea.com/1ivy (Special thanks to my pal Edgyspice for bringing one of these back from the UK for me so I could confidently screw this project up and still have a spare ^_^)



Here it is with the cap off. That ballpoint pen nub is swappable with with a marker nub that writes with ink that only shows up under ultraviolet light--the same light that is produced by the other end of the Sonic Screwdriver. However, this is where we'll be putting the thumbnail drive.



Got Dremel? I think that's how you spell it. Anyway, so, don't cut straight through this thing unless you want ink all over you. The plastic is thicker than it looks, but it's pretty easy to just pick away at it while rotating the Sonic Screwdriver every so often. Also remember to wear safety goggles--little bits of plastic flew everywhere once I dug in.



See? The pen inside is pretty long and would have made a mess if cut straight through by the dremel tool. Dramel? Dremal? Dremmel? Drill-type thing?



OK, here it is all done. Looks just like it did in the beginning, huh? Well, aside from the little bits of plastic everywhere.



Here it is with the USB plug exposed. Sorry, stupidly forgot to take a picture of me dremeling (??) a hole for the thumbnail drive to fit in. I've got a close up later, however.



Here's a closer shot of the USB plug. Looks pretty sweet from this angle, huh?



Here's the Sonic USB stick plugged into my MacBook. The MB reads it fine, BTW.



Here's a different angle on the plugged in SUS.



Here's the promised close up shot on the USB nub. I dremeled down quite a bit of the pen nub to make it look as good as it does. Sadly, it's still a bit messy for my tastes, but not bad for less than an hour's work. Over all, I'm quite happy with it. I decided to use JB Weld to fill in this ugly space and make it look nicer.



So, this was the eventual solution to the rough look of the hole the USB plug was sticking out of. JB Weld. It looks great from this angle, but not so much on the flip side.



As you can see, this came out a bit more messy than the other side. Ah well. :\



If you can see in there, using an X-acto blade, I carved a slot for the USB plug to fit. Then I added some wall-tack which helps the nub-cap stay on a bit better.

So, that's it! Now you, too can have your own 1GB Sonic USB Stick!! Sweet!!