iPad mini and Twelve South Compass

Does the iPad mini fit on the Twelve South Compass? Just barely. Here's some photos.

What Apple Laptop is Best for Students?

I've been trying to find the best Mac hardware for students for a while now. I've used several different laptops and desktops, so I think I'm in a good position to talk about them. I've owned the 13 and 15 Macbook pro, 11 and 13 Air, iPad, and iMac. The following are pros and cons of each device for a student.

The 13 Pro is the most popular laptop right now. I see this everywhere in my University. It's the balance of power, storage, and weight that makes this king. There's plenty of the power for the average student, and then some for content creator. This would probably be the main computer, so ample storage is key. The 13 Pro definitely has enough with it's hard disk drive, but the spinning drive is also part of its weakness. I see many people just take the MacBook and shove in their bag to go off to the next class. Moving the laptop while the drive is still spinning could cause damage to the drive. The 13" form factor seems to be just the perfect screen size and weight for a mobile student.

If weight is a concern, the 13" Air is the way to go. I think the 13 Air could, emphasis on could, be the new favourite. It definitely wins out on the weight over the pro, but it still falls short in some aspects. Its battery holds three hours less of a charge than the 10 hours in the MacBook Pro, and it's processing speed is just good enough to pass. The 13 Air's biggest shortcoming though, is its storage. 128 GB is not enough for the digital student of today. I say that the 13 Air would dethrone the 13 Pro because my concerns would be answered in due time. The processing speed, battery, and storage would only get better. Oh, and it's much quicker than the 13 Pro because of its solid state drive

The second most popular MacBook that I see is the 15 Pro. This is more for the power users and content creators. It's has more of what the 13 Pro has. More storage, more power, and more screen size. All this addition comes at a price, and I'm not just talking about money. The 15 Pro weighs much more and has a larger footprint. It also still has the same spinning drive that could be damaged during transit. Two side notes. First, I suggest getting the Hi-Rez version of the screen because it gives you more screen real estate to work with. Second, I predict that Apple would create dual boot MacBook Pros. This means the operating system would in the the SSD media stays in the HDD. Apple already does this with their iMac.

The rumoured 15 Air should also be noted as a possible student MacBook. If it does get released, it would have more screen real estate, longer battery life, more storage, and faster processors. This is still a rumour at this point, but this is what I expect. I also expect a fat price tag for such a slim device.

An 11 Air could work as a student computer, but it's going to need to be paired with an iMac or another computer. I don't think the 11 Air is quite there yet, nor will it be in the next few years. The 11" form factor take up the least space on your table leaving you with enough room for a Wacom tablet. The iMac would pick up where the Air is weak; power, and screen. This is an expensive combo, and I'd suggest buying refurbished from the apple store.

I wonder why the iPad isn't around the campus as much as it should. I think this could be the future of textbooks, but not until those textbook publishers start producing Apps and digital books. As mentioned, the iPad would be the perfect reading device, but not a note taking device. I like typing me notes and then annotating them with a Wacom tablet. The iPad can do both of this but only in a subpar manner. The software keyboard is no  replacement for a hardware one, and there's not enough detail on the touchscreen to efficiently annotate notes.

I like annotating and creating some notes by hand, and this is where the Wacom tablet comes in. It can be used to draw on notes during class, draw on flash cards, and it can even be used as a mouse. The unescapable fact is that drawing by hand is still needed today. This is specially true in math, physics, and chemistry.

Android will use larger screens as a feature vs the iphone

The iPhone will have the same sized screen (3.5 inces) for some time to come. Android phone manufacturers know this so they will try to create large screened phones to one-up the iphone and draw in the crowd that want larger screens.

It will be difficult for apple to introduce a different sized idevice because of the applications. The app store will start to become fragmented and some app developers will have their hands full if they want to be current and be on all iDevices.

This is the same reason as to why I don't think there will be a 7" iPad on Q1 2011

Ridiculous license agreements

The following pertains to the Pocket Yoga HD iPad app made by Rainfrog LLC.

Below is a written review, first posted in the app store in itunes

I opened the app and the Licence agreement came up. I normally just hit agree but thought I would read this one for no reason.

First off, in the first paragraph, it says:

"IF YOU DO NOT AGREE WITH THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THIS AGREEMENT, YOU SHOULD REJECT THEM BY NOT DOWNLOADING THE APP"

I thought was was too ridiculous, mainly because I could not find this certain agreement anywhere else in the app description in the app store or in their website prior to purchasing the app. So I thought, what else in the agreement can make me raise my eyebrow.

Section 2: pretty much says you can't "...loan or otherwise convey the Software or any portion thereof to anyone" What, your telling me my family cannot take my iPad and use this application? I simply cannot agree to that.

Section 3: "You may copy the software onto you iPhone device. And you may make one (1) copy of the software for backup purposes"
What if I have two iPads? What if time machine backs up my iMac and then I make an archival backup of my time capsule on another hard drive (Which I do). And what if I have an online backup solution? I now have several backups of the software. Which means that by accepting the agreement, I will be breaking it if I make a backup of my computer. I simply cannot agree to that.

Section 5: "... the Software is licensed to you, not sold" I guess I can understand that, many other software and operating system is like this.

Section 7: "If you fail to fulfill any of your obligations under this Agreement, this agreement will automatically terminate, and Rainfrog and/or its licensors may pursue all available legal remedies available to them."
Holy flying dingos batman! this means I can get sued by them if I break the agreement? As I mentioned earlier, Section 3 would already do that for me.

Section 9: "You should consult a licensed physician prior to beginning or modifying an exercise program... and you acknowledge that Rainfrog had advised you of the necessity of obtaining such consultation."
Oh, and if your below the age of 18, you better not click agree because "In addition, the software should not be used by pregnant women or individuals under the age of 18."

Section 10: "Rainfrog provides the software to you 'as is', with all faults, and without warranty of any kind... including without limitation any warranty of merchantability." So if the software does not work as advertised, Rainfrog is not responsible. That's like buying a pair of shoes only to find out that the left one is missing and you can't do anything about it.

Section 11: "In no event shall Rainfrog or its licensor be liable to you for any... damages of any kind. (Including without limitation the cost cover, damages arising from loss of data, USE, profits or goodwill)"
Simply put, they are not responsible for the financial damage that downloading this app cost me because according to the first paragraph, I should not have downloaded it if I did not agree with the agreement. Which according to the statements I can't agree in the fear of getting sued because I did not follow everything.

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What is my point in all of this? I don't think Rainfrog is doing anything wrong. They are just covering their be-hind from being sued, and protecting their software from being stolen or reverse engineered. In doing so, it criminalizes the normal people like you and me. I personally will not agree to the EULA, if it is taken seriously. By not agreeing, I cannot use the software. And by fact of downloading the software I cannot reject the agreement. I am stuck in a limbo where the company has taken my money for service that they cannot provide.

With all that said, since I cannot actually use the software I will be giving this app a neutral 3 stars.