You’re not imagining it, iSync really is broken for S60 V3 devices.
Badly.
It used to be that iSync would push over a little binary that ran a daemon to negotiate iSync communication between your Mac and your S60 handset, which dutifully listened for iSync connections and did a sync.
Now, this process has been broken from the start, due to completely obliterating speed dials and contact groups on the handset. It also blows away custom ringers on contacts and groups because it completely trashes the database on the handset with each sync.
But it gets worse. Much, much worse.
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Technorati Tags: isync, mac, s60

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Summary: The Nokia 770 is the best bridge-device yet between mobility and the web2.0 world. It is a solid go-to device for messaging and presence, as well as having a very capable browser. It can appear a bit sluggish at times, but it is a very flexible device with a lot of untapped potential. Having said that, Nokia has been making steady improvements to the device in the form of software updates.
I am running the 2006 edition of the software. I am also only going to cover the things I actually use my 770 for, since it does a lot of things, but I think it may be interesting for people to know how I use the device.
The Nokia 770 is easy to like. It runs Linux and X11, has a slew of little applications and allows easy third-party access, and also speaks WiFi and Bluetooth allowing you to talk to the Internet with ease.
Physically the device feels great, it is a good weight and the build quality is nice. It feels substantial and not cheap. It really freaks me out when I’m using something that feels hollow and brittle. I really like holding and using the 770. There are some minor construction issues, namely that when you have the 770 in its metallic sleeve you can’t reach the stylus because its blocked by the lip of the jacket. I don’t know how something like that got through QA.
So it has a stylus and a touchscreen, and it does handwriting recognition but I haven’t used that yet. It doesn’t have a PIM and it doesn’t sync against anything. It isn’t a PDA but is more of a surfboard for IM, Presence, Browsing, and Email. It can also be transmogrified into a softphone via Gizmoproject or Google Talk.
When you first boot the device up and do some simple configuration you’ll be dumped out to a desktop of sorts, which is also activated by using the Home key on the device. You can run little widgets that do things like pull RSS feeds, access Internet radio, or give you easy access to your favorite search engine.
Read more (including about 17 screen shots)…

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I’m sure we’ll see a lot more on this later today, but for now, widen your browser window and check it out.
I’m still waiting for a 12-13″ wide-format notebook, personally. Now that the flagship is here, perhaps the more portable version is coming shortly.

Technorati Tags: mac

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I’ve been using a Nokia N90 S60 smartphone for almost a month now. I have the full unlocked 3G version from Europe, not the crippled cracked out one you can buy at Ritz Camera in exchange for a new contract with T-Mobile.
I routinely change things up, get new devices, but I always seem to come back to S60. I think this is largely because the devices are just so damned usable and functional, especially when compared to BlackBerry devices, the Treo, UIQ devices such as the Sony Ericsson P910 and the like.
Some of the built-in applications on the N90 are quite good. For example, the email client is fantastic. It supports IMAP, IMAP-IDLE, and email gets pushed to me as fast as my BlackBerry ever got it. I have no complaints there, really. The input device doesn’t even bother me that much because a lot of my email when I’m mobile is consumption anyway, and I rarely have to type out a huge edict or anything unless I’m at a desk. Even the built-in browser is quite good. I have also installed Opera and Opera Mini but honestly I use the built-in browser most of the time.
But like any smartphone user, I have managed to accumulate some favorite applications over the last month that I feel are very useful, so I’ll be outlining them in this post.
This post is a doozy. Get comfortable.

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Getting data from .Mac to mobile handsets doesn’t need to be so difficult.
Currently Apple’s approach is desktop-bound, adding a handset to iSync and letting your mobile phone talk to iCal and Address Book. But there is a much better way to do this that I’m surprised Apple hasn’t moved on yet. I can only assume that they will, and soon, but until then I can only grit my teeth and wait for the inevitable.

Apple needs a more vocal mobile strategy

They dabble and they play a bit, and so far what I’ve seen is solid. It isn’t especially transparent but they’re trying. Apple doesn’t like to do anything unless everyone can play, and I think Apple needs to clamp down on the bite-plate and move on this market, hard.
Messaging and communication will soon not take place on the desktop. I strongly believe that all communication will soon be offloaded to mobile devices, if it hasn’t already for many of you. IM, Email, Text Messaging, MMS, and usable syndication for mobile devices is either already available or almost there. Much of your consumption of information can take place on the go now, without requiring a desk-bound reader or user.
Read More!

Technorati Tags: mac, mobile

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Oh, snap. The Nokia N80 has a home on the NokiaUSA website!

If we are to believe the digits given for network capabilities, this makes it very unlikely for a launch on Cingular. I find it unlikely that Nokia didn’t make a mistake — it is foolish to launch a 3G handset on T-Mobile which lacks a UMTS network.

The Nokia N80 is a 3-mega-pixel havin’ mp3-playin’, wifi-rockin’, email-fetchin’, S60 smartphone that is the absolute peak of Nokia multimedia innovation. Nokia has also announced a Bluetooth audio gateway that mates to the N80 allowing you to kick your audio from your handset to your home stereo system without cables. While Apple makes bigger and thinner iPods, Nokia is doing an end run.

Pricing is unavailable but I still expect the unlocked and unbranded flavor to fetch USD$900 upon release. if a US operator like Cingular or (gasp) T-Mobile starts selling it it is likely that they’ll charge around USD$400 for the device, as well as using the new strong-arm thug-life tactics to prevent customers from unlocking the device or de-branding it with proper firmware. It is also probable that US operators will cripple this device and there will be little you can do about it. Observe the footnote:

“To use the phone you must have service from a service provider. Many features and mobile services require network support. Some networks have limitations that affect how you can use phone features. Your service provider also may have requested that certain features not be activated in a phone. If so, they may not appear in the phone’s menu. Contact your service provider about feature support and availability.”

So even if this handset tucks you in at night and feeds your cat, there is a chance that your operator will block those features from use. It will be interesting to see how badly they screw this up. But you’re all savvy consumers who demand the best, so you’ll be paying the big bucks to get one that works as Nokia intended, right?

Technorati Tags: mobile, nokia, s60

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Mac OS X has been the target of a few of proof-of-concept attacks as of late and has addressed them rather quickly. Usually the security community tries to abide by a process of professional courtesy that involves disclosure, an advisory, and releasing the gory details post-patch.
Obviously you shouldn’t rely on the kindness of strangers when it comes to such things, since it should be clearly evident that in the IT world, nobody has to play fair.
But is the issue over and done with? Did Apple really solve the problem? 2006-001 mitigates only a possible method of exposure to the underlaying flaw, without actually addressing the issue. What is the issue? Metadata.
Read More…

Technorati Tags: infosec, mac

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Blackberry maker, NTP settle patent dispute for $612.5M – Mar. 3, 2006:

That’s a tidy sum. But it appears to be over. Although they’ve settled before.

The real question is this: is Apple really comfortable acquiescing mobile sync to RIM, Microsoft, and smaller players?

Technorati Tags: mobile

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Well this is a bummer, man. A major bummer.

The Nokia E61 that I mentioned earlier? Well it finally got FCC Approval but I’m told that the device is set for a limited launch outside of the US for the first few weeks while the final bugs are ironed out.

Part of me wonders if this talk of bugs are legit, since Sony Ericsson and Nokia have both been very timid about releasing devices that support BlackBerry Connect in the United States while RIM and NTP go at it tooth and nail in courtrooms across the United States.

Further updates as events warrant.

Technorati Tags: mobile, nokia

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I’m stumped.

I have removed this computer from the .Mac system preferences pane, added it back. I told it to reset my information. Every time this workstation goes to .Mac to perform a sync, it asks me about my calendars. These same calendars sync to two other Macs via .Mac without incident.
There is nothing in dotmacsync.log that mentions the calendars.

2006-02-16 10:12:52 -0500|Info|Starting .Mac Sync Session for 'sempai'
2006-02-16 10:13:01 -0500|Info|The dataclass Keychains will not sync because the dataclass is disabled in the .Mac Preferences
2006-02-16 10:13:01 -0500|Info|No anchors or first sync for this dataclass - Full Syncing dataclass Mail Rules, Signatures, and Smart Mailboxes
2006-02-16 10:13:01 -0500|Info|The dataclass Mail Rules, Signatures, and Smart Mailboxes will not sync because it is not enabled in the .Mac Sync Preferences
2006-02-16 10:13:01 -0500|Info|No anchors or first sync for this dataclass - Full Syncing dataclass Mail Accounts
2006-02-16 10:13:01 -0500|Info|The dataclass Mail Accounts will not sync because it is not enabled in the .Mac Sync Preferences
2006-02-16 10:13:01 -0500|Info|Nothing to sync for this session - cancelling the sync
2006-02-16 10:13:01 -0500|Info|Ended .Mac Sync Session

Any ideas? Remember, I have removed this machine, added it back, done a reset, to no avail. I even did a “Backup” from iCal and AddressBook on known-good machines, then imported that backup to iCal and AddressBook on this machine. Still asks me to merge or replace.