i had the opportunity to check out the tomtom iphone app firsthand and i have to say that at first glance the iphone app looked really good, but upon further inspection there were some glaring omissions.

the good
the GPS app itself works reasonably well. the interface is very similar like their dedicated devices. it’s reasonably easy to use and after some use, quite intuitive. the menus actually feel a little simpler to use that the dedicated devices.

the update of the map while driving is actually not bad when you are on the move. when you are slow, though, the weaknesses of the iphone’s GPS are painfully obvious. the update doesn’t really register movement well when you are moving less than 10-15mph.

the bad
1GB of storage space is required to install the app.

no text to speech functionality!

POI appear to only be looked up in DB, no inet updates.

so after all is said and done is it worth the $100 for the app? well, functionally, the iphone app gives similar functionality as the low end tomtom units with text to speech, so it’s a nice consolidation of devices.

it’s unfortunate that tomtom didn’t include the text to speech functionality. one would think that the iphone would be able to handle it. still, if i had the app, i’d be tempted not to bring along my tomtom unit when travelling.

WPtouch detects if the browser is an iphone/ipod touch and loads a mobile friendly theme optimized for the iphone. all this is done in a plugin so you won’t have to mess with themes it’s all detected and run at run-time.

the interface is nice and clean and the ajax calls makes the blog viewing seem more application-like.

the only thing i don’t like about it is that you have to click a title to read any blog. the first blog isn’t show by default. i guess it’s a design design, but that’s an extra click (touch :P) before you can start reading anything. form over function? i think it’s worth it.

stream torrent is a p2p tv streaming app. stream quality isn’t fantastic, but it is certainly watchable and better than nothing.

buffering takes noticeably longer than standard streaming and the quality of the streams seems to sit at around 400kbit which makes windowed viewing ok, but full screen viewing is pretty pixelated.

this technology, i would imagine is pretty cpu-intensive and so i think it is unfortunately limited to computers, but just think about the possibilities here. a decentralized streaming source where, if you have a large enough network, you could sustain much higher bit rates.

this technology seems to be pretty popular for chinese programming, but there are a few US channels that are broadcast that are of particular interest. how will cable channels like the NFL network and ESPN stop this kind of broadcasting?

what’s even cooler is that i was running stream torrent in a windows 7 VM and it was working just fine. it’s a shame that there’s no native mac client for this sort of stuff.

• RT @ProFootballTalk Shawne Merriman busted for battery, false imprisonment http://tinyurl.com/n7nwzw Who did he beat? His gf, Tila Tequila. #
• Don't see what all the hype about district 9 is about. Movie was ok, but not blockbuster, amazing for me. Sadly felt Harry Potter was better #
• Woke up early this morning after sleeping at 4am. I guess I should be productive and clean the garage…or eat the cookies made yesterday. #
• garage cleaning activities have been suspended for the week due to lack of space in the recycling and garbage bins. #
• Just saw a shirt that read: abcdefgHI. I think this shirt can only be pulled off if you are cute. #
• Yahoo fantasy football app for iPhone is beautiful AND free in the app store. Pretty basic featureset but great for simple management. #
• kitchen garbage disposal motor burned out today. had to make two trips to lowe's to replace it, but it's all done now! now we can dispose! #
• The park sign says if attacked by mountain lion, fight back. Yeah, that's, uhhh, reassuring. http://twitpic.com/ha96a #
• http://twitpic.com/hcd7x – what?? photos on facebook are unavailable right now? oh, not all photos, just some people's photos… #
• PSA: replace your air filter regularly. http://twitpic.com/hcm25 #
• RT @SebastienPage No, There Is No iPhone 3.1 Jailbreak Yet http://bit.ly/3brWMR *sigh* #
• Weird bathroo mirror http://twitpic.com/hd4h2 #
• When your mouth is on fire from spicy food, diet coke will not sooth the fire. It angers it. #
• Ah Sunday football in HD. The antenna is very sensitive about where it is pointing. http://twitpic.com/hmr28 #
• 49ers beat Arizona! 20-16! #
• video will probably be pulled down, but classy move by beyonce after Kayne outburst http://bit.ly/sPiql
  #teamTaylor #

i had heard all the hype. i’ve seen the billboards with mike singletary saying “i’m not a moral victory kind of guy”. a new offensive coach, the players training through a particularly tough training camp, a new starting quarterback, and all the talk that the niners are on their way up have been heard.

AND i’m a 49ers fan. i started being a fan in the 80s while watching football games with my dad. i suffered through the last decade or so watching them decline with more quarterbacks and game plans than i can remember. yes, last season came with a lot of change. yes, it looked like things were looking up.

but, come on, now, their first game was against arizona. the same team who last year, despite all odds, went to the super bowl. the super bowl! and there’s kurt warner that they are playing against. and their big top pick crabtree is nowhere to be found. i mean, i wanted the niners to win, but my hopes were not high.

and then i started to watch the game. the defense kept the cards in check. they scored first (albeit a field goal, but still, a score is a score). they kept a lead. it seemed like everything that singletary had been trying to sell the team to believe in themselves and they could accomplish more than they thought they were capable of was all coming true.

i wanted to BELIEVE, but i watched the game in disbelief. the 4th quarter came and then the niners started to unravel. i was started to feel deflated. kurt warner looked like he was hitting his stride. plays were starting to look effortless. the defense against him and his team started to look defeated.

and then there was a turning point late in the game. coach singletary saw what was happening. he saw that the team started to look their belief and he called a timeout. he called a timeout and reminded the team who they were, what they had set out to do, and what they have done so far. he reminded them all that they need to believe, they need to accomplish what they had set out to do.

was the running game pathetic for the niners? you betcha. was the play calling for the niners run offense unoriginal, uninspired, and unwavering? yup. was it the defense that carried the team to this victory? yeah, save for a great 50 yard catch by isaac bruce. you have to give props to nedney too, for that 50 yard field goal. but, come on, this was no offensive rout. nothing like what new orleans’ drew brees with 6 TD passes. no, this was a close game with a few good plays, few mistakes for the niners, and some strong defense.

but all things aside, the niners managed to get the win. AT arizona. i remember what this feeling is like. this is the feeling of being a fan of a team that you believe in.

though i think it’s odd that a coach is the face of a franchise, let me just say this, coach singletary: i believe.

i spent the weekend cleaning out the garage. it’s been a multi-day effort and finally, i am starting to see the fruits of my labor. i still have another two or three recycling bin’s worth of crap to take care of, but that’s just stuff that is going to be waiting to be thrown out.

i bought bicycle hooks a few months after i bought the house and JUST NOW am i putting them up. we have three bikes between the two of us and two of the bikes are being hung from the garage. the other bike is currently being lent out to a friend, so i’ll deal with figuring out where to put it later.

tools have been properly stowed away in a tool chest, puppy fostering supplies have been stored away in a couple of boxes, and a ton of memories have been boxed up and stacked away waiting to be remembered again one day.

garbage was just taken out and i’ve broken down almost all of the rest of the boxes that have been sitting around gathering dust. our recycling bin is full yet again, but the garage is really starting to look much better.

i don’t think that i watched the old melrose place, but i caught the pilot of the new melrose place and it looks like it has all the potential of having all the drama as the old series.

this show is chock full of pretty people. i’m very excited to see stephanie jacobsen in another series. the pilot episode was decent and it’s definitely shown enough for me to want to watch the next episode.

• How is it poison free? Isn't it poisoness to the ants? How else do they die? Inquiring minds want to know! http://twitpic.com/g0ajf #
• An apple a day… http://twitpic.com/g1w0t #
• The Kitchen Table in Mountain View is a dairy-free restaurant. What do they have against cows?? http://twitpic.com/g4rzd #
• just upgraded to the new PS3 3.00 firmware. looks good so far and it looks like sony is pushing the PS3 towards being a media center. #
• http://twitpic.com/g8ces – "This disc could not be burned and should be repurposed." those wacky Disco devs have a sense of humor. #
• giving ingrid michaelson's latest album _everybody_ a listen. i can't quite place what her voice reminds me of… #
• Finally Friday! Long day of testing/debugging ahead and then it's the long weekend. #
• ordered a laptop battery from ebay on 8/25. it still hasn't come. checked tracking and it FINALLY has left NJ yesterday. not speedy delivery #
• Fell asleep watching tv, but now can't sleep after moving to bed. Why does this always happen? #
• does facebook look weird to anyone else? #
• At Chow in Danville. http://twitpic.com/gnlq2 #
• Chow in Danville charges $2.75 for a can of diet coke, $4.95 for a glass of orange juice. http://twitpic.com/gnn05 #
• Fish tacos at Chow in Danville. http://twitpic.com/gofat #
• Costco run sucked today. Got run over by an impatient shopper who couldn't wait for the aisle to clear. It's a zoo in there. #

one of my biggest pet peeve’s at a restaurant is when they charge $3 for soda and the soda that you get is either a can of soda or doesn’t have complimentary refills.