Mac OS X Unwired: A Guide for Home, Office, and the Road

by Tom Negrino and Dori Smith

Today's wireless news from around the Web:

TerreStar Successfully Launches World's Largest, Most Powerful Commercial Communications Satellite

(source: Wireless DevNet)
Mobile communications provider TerreStar Networks Inc., a majority-owned subsidiary of TerreStar Corporation, announced today the successful launch of TerreStar-1, the world's largest, most advanced commercial communications satellite

Stratix Partners With Vangard Voice to Speed Enterprise Mobile Applications

(source: Wireless DevNet)
Using Vangard's MVP, Stratix will offer its enterprise customers the ability to further accelerate their existing mobile applications with faster voice-directed mobile transactions designed to improve mobile worker productivity

x-Mobility Launches Mobile Virtual Network Aggregator Service

(source: Wireless DevNet)
x-Mobility today announces the launch of its Mobile Virtual Network Aggregator service that provides a white-labeled MVNO service for brands wishing to enter the mobile space

GSMA Advances Embedded Mobile Initiative With Launch of Competition

(source: Wireless DevNet)
The GSMA announced new developments in its Embedded Mobile Initiative, including work to establish standard design guidelines for embedded mobile applications and the kick-off of a competition to drive development

AT&T Park Receives Upgrades to 'Giants Digital Dugout' Wi-Fi Portal to Enhance Fan Experience

(source: Wireless DevNet)
The Digital Dugout provides an enhanced fan experience with unique applications and exclusive content delivered throughout the ballpark over complimentary AT&T Wi-Fi access for any ballpark visitor with a Wi-Fi enabled device

Firefox 3.5 Brings Geolocation to Mass Users

(source: Wi-Fi Networking News)
Firefox 3.5 has shipped with location finding turned on: The latest release of Firefox includes by default the option to use a computer's IP address and, if available, a scan of nearby wireless networks to provide a location to Web sites that use appropriate JavaScript to request a position. Users can opt out when asked, disable location requests for a site, or disable location requests entirely. However, "ask for permission" is on by default.

Firefox is using Google Location Services, which is a combination of cellular tower data that the company has assembled along with some unknown method of collecting and locating Wi-Fi hotspots, much as Skyhook Wireless has been doing for years. Likely, Google gathers this information as it drives the streets for Google Maps.

Mozilla's location mascot

With several tens of millions of smartphones (iPhone and Android-based models mostly) and handhelds (almost entirely the iPod touch) providing location data through various combinations of Wi-Fi, cellular trilateration, and built-in GPS, getting a location instantly may not seem that interesting any more on the desktop or laptop.

But it still seems to have a place. Location has two purposes. One is to find oneself, an existential proposition if I ever heard of one, because you don't know where you are. But the other is to identify your location to someone else because you want them to know where you are for some purpose: personal, commercial, or otherwise.

In the latter category, having location built into a browser lets Web sites offer rich location data even when you're at home. Aren't you frustrated about having to type in repeatedly your street address for work or home to find something in proximity, such as with a store locator? Wouldn't you like to have Web applications that automatically took advantage of your location by providing relevant data you didn't need to look up separately? (There are already plenty of utilities for Mac OS X and Windows that can use location to change system-wide settings, such as backlighting, r to launch or quit programs, or change your instant messaging status.)

Smartphones work best at giving you instant proximity data when you're out and about, because there's zero startup time. You take the phone out, hit the wake button, and run a program. I've become addicted nearly instantly to Urbanspoon after installing it on my iPhone because it tells me with incredibly little fuss what's near me. I needed to find a place to take my older son for lunch, and his appetite doesn't mesh well with restaurants. He agreed to eat a hot dog. I punched hot dog into Urbanspoon and within a few seconds found a suitable place. (He did eat the hot dog, and about a million fries. We went to Schultzy's.)

A laptop is a much more tedious operation for a spur-of-the-moment check. You have to dig it out, find a surface on which to balance it or hold it in your hand, wake it or power it up, find a network connection (unless you have a cell data card), find the Web site you want, and so forth.

The flip side is that when your desktop or laptop is already running, and you need a location-based piece of information, it's far more convenient to get a full, fast browser experience, with a real keyboard you can use to type in what you're looking for.

We'll see how it pans out. Sites have to enable location services, which should work identically in Firefox 3.5 and Chrome, and which will likely spread to other browsers over time if there's interest. (I suspect indexing software can identify if the JavaScript used on sites contains location calls, and smart people will use that to quantify geolocation-aware sites.)

There has to be a pull from sites to make people interested in and expecting to use location services. If all that sites do is enable store locators via this option, I can't see much interest developing over time. But if sites can find unique ways to let the browser plus location combination provide the social networking or sheer utility of many smartphone apps, then the uptake could be large.

Part of this could happen through making laptops act more like smartphones, too, trickling technology back up. While Sprint includes GPS technology in all its 3G networking cards and dongles--and an API for developers--that's about the extent of GPS in most mainstream products.

Netbooks already have many of the attributes of smartphones (small, fast turn-on time), and are starting to gain ubiquitous networking via built-in 3G cell cards. This makes Dell's decision to put a GPS chip in its Mini 10 quite fascinating. The company has also paired with Skyhook Wireless, which will integrate Wi-Fi and GPS data for a location result. The GPS-equipped model ships next week. Pricing is still unknown, but a reputable gadget site puts the cost at $70 above the current $300 to $350 price tag.

This turns a cheap netbook into a potentially fabulous turn-by-turn navigation system--although you certainly want to have a passenger holding it or figure out a mounting system. The Dell Wireless 700 option, as the company labels it, comes with CoPilot software as part of the cost. But it also means that people with netbooks and without smartphones will have fast and accurate location data.

Is this part of a revolution? Location-based services (LBS) have been discussed as the next big thing for targeting advertising, coupons, and, well, information of use for several years. The stars (and satellites) may finally be aligning.

Mozilla Configuration

Location preferences are a bit obscure. By default, permission-based location access is enabled in Firefox 3.5. If you click a link where a site is attempting to use the Geolocation API's JavaScript, you're presented with a prompt along the top bar of the browser, much as with pop-up windows and certain security alerts. On the left you see a message, with the site requesting location data:

On the right, a set of options, which let you set a once-only share (Share Location by itself) or a site-based share (check Remember for This Site and then Share Location). You can also click Don't Share or click the X to close the bar.

If you set site-wide location permissions, then you have to be on a page at the site in order to disable this permission. Select Page Info from the Tools menu, click the Permissions tab, and then you can modify the options for Share Location. You can use a combination of options, such as unchecking Always Ask and setting the radio button to Block or Allow. Or check Always Ask to re-enable that behavior.

To disable geolocation for the browser, type about:config in the Location bar, then type geo.enabled, and finally double click the geo.enabled preference. Repeat these steps (or double click the preference again while displayed) to turn location back on.

]]> Copyright ©2009 Glenn Fleishman. All rights reserved. Please notify us if you find this content anywhere but at wifinetnews.com or wimaxnetnews.com. Reproduction of full articles from RSS feeds is prohibited without permission.

]]>

Review of Acer's X960 Windows Mobile smartphone

(source: MobileBurn)
While big in the personal computer space, Acer is a newcomer to the mobile world and is now offering smartphones under its brand, thanks to the acquisition of E-TEN. We take a look at its X960 smartphone in this review.
Read the full story here.

Google mobile universal search now available for all devices in 60 countries

(source: MobileBurn)
Google's universal search has been made available for all mobile devices in 60 countries and in 38 languages. Google's familiar universal search returns results for news, images, blogs, videos, and products on one page.
Read the full story here.

Nokia brings Ovi Maps 3.0 out of beta with official release

(source: MobileBurn)
Nokia has officially released Ovi Maps 3.0 for S60 3rd Edition and S60 5th Edition devices. The software lets users utilize a variety of location-based services and sync map data between PCs and mobile devices.
Read the full story here.

ZDNet: "Pink" could be a Microsoft-branded phone

(source: MobileBurn)
ZDNet's Mary Jo Foley reports that Microsoft has chosen a well-known ad agency to create a campaign for its 'Pink Project,' which Foley says is a Microsoft-branded phone.
Read the full story here.

Press Release: VODAFONE UK ADDS CARPHONE WAREHOUSE FOR NEW CONNECTIONS AND EXTENDS AGREEMENT WITH PHONES4U

(source: MobileBurn)

Read the full story here.

Zero01 Mobile misses launch date, seeks service distributors

(source: MobileBurn)
Zer01's unlimited voice and data service missed its July 1 launch date. The company is still seeking distributors to sell the service.
Read the full story here.

European Union drops planned TV/GPS tax on cell phones

(source: MobileBurn)
The European Union has dropped a planned cell phone tax after manufacturers lobbied against it. The plan would have introduced a 14 percent tax on phones with TV receivers and a 3.7 percent tax on phones with navigation features.
Read the full story here.

Press Release: AT&T to Offer BlueAnt Q1 Bluetooth Headset July 19

(source: MobileBurn)
First BlueAnt Device in AT&T Stores Accepts Voice Commands and Features Noise Reduction Technology
Read the full story here.

D-Day for Stimulus Rules

(source: Daily Wireless)

Press Release: Introducing a new member of the T-Mobile Booster Family T-Mobile launches Family Booster enabling families to talk and text for less

(source: MobileBurn)
T-Mobile Family Booster - a new option which gives up to five family members unlimited calls, texts and picture messages to each other
Read the full story here.

Mac OS X Unwired

Reviews

Errata

FAQ

Excerpt (PDF)

About the book

Purchase the book