No Sweat Mobile Mail (and other iPhone Applications) Installation for the iPod Touch

Yesterday, I took and plunge and upgraded my 16Gb iPod Touch to the latest firmware (1.1.2). Jailbreaking my 1.1.2 upgraded iPod Touch was pretty painless, in fact, the process took less time than my previous jailbreaking activities. Applications that I did not immediately restore are the mobile iPhone applications (Mobile Mail, Mobile Notes, Weather and Maps) because I knew that there may be some incompatibility issues considering that the files I have of those apps were still version 1.1.1.

But this morning, I revisited the Touchdev wiki and saw that there's an easier way to install the iPhone mobile apps. This involves adding a new software repository to Installer.app and once that new repository is recognized, 1.1.1 and 1.1.2 iPhone applications will be available for automatic download and installation!

Now, my iPod Touch is back to its old usable state and I couldn't be happier!

Happy hacking!

Blogged with Flock

AFP: Yet Another Way to Add Files to your iPod Touch/iPhones

The original way of putting files on the iPod Touch/iPhone is using command line SFTP (Secure FTP).  This method is efficient but not well-received by the community (who wants to use command-line interface anyway).  Then there's the method of using Cyberduck or FUGU, an easier way because of its graphical nature.



Now TUAW reports that someone has found a way to use AFP (AppleTalk Filing Protocol) to work on the iPod Touch/iPhone!  IMHO, this is the better way to transfer files to your iDevice because it does not involve using a 3rd party application on your Mac (for Windows users... I think they can find a way to use this too).

I can't wait for this to become available in Installer.app so I can give it a spin.

Blogged with Flock

Apple Releases iPhone Firmware Update 1.1.2: Hackers Keeps Up

TUAW reports that the dreaded firmware 1.1.2 update for the iPhone is ready for release.  According to the report, 3rd party applications for the iPhone (and presumably the iPod Touch) has been disabled and all hacks based on the .TIFF exploit used to hack the older iPhone (and iPod Touch) firmware has been plugged.

The good news: the security flaw on the iPhone/iPod Touch has been fixed.  This means that any malware that exploits the .TIFF vulnerability of Mobile Safari is kept at bay.
The bad news: the security flaw on the iPhone/iPod Touch has been fixed.  This means all 3rd party applications that are available for both the iPhone and the iPod Touch is now rendered useless (unless owners does not update their devices).


And now for a Good-er news:  TUAW later reports that the jailbreak for the iPod Touch's 1.1.2 firmware update is already in the pipeline.  I guess it will just be a matter of time before the same happens for the iPhone.

I guess there's no stopping the iPhone/iPod Touch hacking community then

Graphics grabbed from TUAW.com

Blogged with Flock

jailbreakme.com: Jailbreak Your iPhone/iPod Touch By Visiting a website.

I have mixed feelings about this "easiest jailbreaking method ever".  By just visiting jailbbreakme.com, a previously "virgin" iPhone/iPod Touch will be jailbreak-ed opening it to 3rd party applications with minimal user intervention.  This is made possible through the TIFF exploit discovered by a PSP hacker named Niacin.

Well and good for those who does not want to muck around with using SSH (or WinSCP) -- which is a vast majority of iPhone/iPod Touch owners.

But... this also opens up the iPhone/iPod Touch to the dark side of the web.  Picture this:  a "virgin" iPhone/iPod Touch visits a seemingly "harmless website" using Mobile Safari.  But in the background, the seemingly "harmless website" is now capable of running a background process in the iPhone/iPod Touch doing something sinister (like sending out the whole contact list as an email to the hacker, or simply messing up with the system file... bricking the device).

Now, if an iPhone/iPod Touch was jailbreak-ed using jailbreakme.com, the process also patches the system, fixing the TIFF exploit.  Those that have jailbreak-ed their devices using the more arcane methods also has the option to download the TIFF exploit fix.  But what about the majority of users that kept their units untouched?  They are all vulnerable to these types of "attacks".

This is my fear at the moment.  I think Apple will address this TIFF exploit weakness on the iPhone/iPod Touch.  Once Apple releases the official fix through another software update, the firmware 1.1.1 fiasco may happen once again and will render countless devices useless, until the hacking community finds yet another way to circumvent Apple's "fixes".

I guess I'll just have to be content with what I have now -- an iPod Touch with extended capabilities thanks to the iPhone/iPod Touch hacking community (with some level of confidence that it is somewhat safe from the TIFF exploit).

The solution to this conundrum? Apple should immediately release the SDK for this platform and let the developer community enrich the iPhone/iPod Touch platform.

Blogged with Flock

Apple to Release SDK for the iPhone/iPod Touch

Let me just say it: We want native third party applications on the iPhone, and we plan to have an SDK in developers’ hands in February. We are excited about creating a vibrant third party developer community around the iPhone and enabling hundreds of new applications for our users. With our revolutionary multi-touch interface, powerful hardware and advanced software architecture, we believe we have created the best mobile platform ever for developers.

Apple

The item above came right out of the horse's mouth -- Steve Jobs'.  All I can say is "bring it on!" and I'm looking forward to restoring my iPod to its original configuration and install authorized applications to it.  But in the meantime, I'll continue enjoying the 3rd party apps I'm using right now.

For the uninitiated, SDK means "Software Development Kit" and its release would mean that programmers can use this SDK to create more applications for the iPhone and the iPod Touch and installing these new application will not require its users to hack into their devices ("jailbreak") to add functionality to them.

Oh and one more thing:

Blogged with Flock

GUI Jailbreak for the iPod Touch

iJailBreak is out!
October 14th, 2007 | Posted by Ben Feldman, co-13-year-old developer

And it's on our Google Code for download. It has been tested to work on OS X Tiger on Intel chips. No guarantees that it will work on PPC chips - we're working on it. Enjoy!

iJailBreak - Home

If you're not too keen about using Terminal.app to jailbreak your iPod Touch, this *may* be the solution for you.  It is currently at version 0.2.1 which means that it is still in its early stages of development, therefore USE AT YOUR OWN RISK.

Update: Oh, and did I mention that iJailbreak only runs for Intel-based Macs?  The developer, however, promises compatibility with PPC Macs in the future.  Sorry Windows users, no love for you here... yet. :)

Update 2: iJailBreak works!  I botched my previous hacking attempt by manually installing an alpha version of an app (don't ask) so I decided to restore iNewton and run iJailbreak and it indeed worked!  Now iJailbreak has the Talkin' Tech seal of approval! :D

Update 3: Windows users need not fret!  There's a Windows-based all-in-one solution for you too and its called touchFree. Since I can't test this version, let me just quote my friend at Mac-a-Doodle, "CAVEAT hax0r".

Blogged with Flock

Ladies and Gentlemen, Talkin' Tech's iPod Touch is JailBreak-ed

After a harrowing 45 minutes, I was able to follow touchdev's jailbreak procedures and my iPod Touch is now capable of running 3rd party apps (until Apple decides to do another software update. Meh!).

Notice the "Books", "Launcher", and "Installer" icons? Those are the results of the Jailbreak! We are indeed living in interesting times!

Update: I'm experimenting on an application called iPhone Remote a.k.a. "Telekinesis". It is basically a web server installed on a Mac (sorry Windows users) that allows an iPhone or an iPod Touch some level of control over the computer. I'll do a separate blog post on this later (hope I remember to do so)

Blogged with Flock

What I Like About my iPod Touch (and things that I don't)

I got my iPod Touch last Friday and I must say that I like it! Yes, I saw the iPhone and I was able to play with it but the thought of doing a PSP on it makes me a bit iffy about buying one at this point in time. As I have mentioned in a local iPod-centric forum -- the iPod Touch is not a crippled iPhone, the iPhone is a crippled cellphone. The comparison between the iPod Touch and the iPhone is inevitable because apart from some minor differences, they share a very similar form factor.

Now back to the iPod Touch. I like its interface. Its Touch interface really works for a device like this and using it with the said interface is like being transported in the future where buttons and keyboards are rendered obsolete. It is a very good digital audio player. I'm no audiophile but I'm really happy with the sound it gives me. As a video player, it works very well too.

And the thing that makes the iPod Touch shine is its Mobile Safari. I've always wanted to buy a mobile internet device (MID) and I was tempted to get a Nokia N770. Its a good thing I waited for this. Casual surfing on the 'net is a real experience with the iPod Touch. It renders the website I often visit real well and its zooming capabilities makes reading text an easy affair. At its present version, it does not display flash websites really well but then again, if I want to play around with Flash, I'll just whip out my MacBook and surf using a full-blown browser.

Synchronizing data between my MacBook and the iPod Touch is fast and easy. Some users complain that data transfer is not fast enough but I find it just right considering that I do not transfer too much data between my MacBook and iPod Touch that frequently.

Now that I'm done praising the iPod Touch, here's what I *don't* like about it. I'm almost ready to believe an article that I've read somewhere saying that the OS of the iPod Touch (and the iPhone for that matter) was rushed. I've discovered some inconsistencies with it and although they rarely appear, they are annoying when they do. Its OS is basically a mobile version of OS X. Why wouldn't Apple release a proper SDK to the developer community so that proper applications and add-ons can be written to it? I'm sure hacks will be written for it but wouldn't it be better if real applications are released specifically for this platform? Oh and one more thing... the other iPods (Classic and Nano) have games built in to them... why are there no games for the Touch? Its interface is ideal for casual games like Bejeweled and TextTwist. Oh and one last thing. Why did Apple not include a hardware button for changing the volume? Changing the volume while listening to the iPod Touch is a but kludgy.

All in all, despite of the things I don't like about it, I still am convinced that this is one of the most revolutionary product that Apple has released to date. Yes, the iPhone was released earlier but I think between the iPhone and the iPod Touch, the iPod Touch is the better device... for now.


(Doing a PSP -- keeping the device one version below the current firmware to prevent it from being "bricked")

Blogged with Flock

The iPod Touch has Landed (in my hands)

Over the past few weeks, I was thinking of getting one of the following gadgets: the Eee PC, the iPhone and the iPod Touch. Well, the weeks long thinking of what to get is over. And I finally decided to get an iPod Touch.


So some people are already asking me why I settled for the Touch at this point in time. Well here are the reasons:

• The Eee PC is, as far as I'm concerned is still vaporware (no sign of being released locally). I may still get the Eee PC in the near future but as of now, its scratched off of my to-buy gadget list.
  
• The iPhone, as attractive as it is, is not yet officially sanctioned to work in our neck of the woods. I'd hate to have a "brick" in case an accidental software update happens.
  

So there. Its been more that 24 hours since I got this baby and so far, no buyer's remorse (yet). So how do I like it so far? I LOVE IT! This is my first video-enabled iPod and I like the way it sort of liberates my digital video collection. Now I can watch my movies whenever I have the time to do so. I watched an episode of a TV series and I like the experience. So as an iPod, the iPod Touch works and it works really well.

Its Touch interface is topnotch. The much praised user interface of the iPhone really works well with the iPod Touch. Mobile Safari works pretty much like its desktop sibling. Using it on the iPod Touch is pretty much like using it on the iPhone... lots of pecking of the fingers on screen, some pinching/unpinching to zoom/unzoom, dragging and flicking. As a colleague says: its like working on an early version of the computer that was used in the movie "Minority Report". Shifting views from portrait to landscape is, in itself, a conversation starter. Married to Mobile Safari, the automatic shifting of view makes any website readable and usable. Since this is basically a phoneless iPhone, most websites that work with the iPhone works with the iPod Touch.

The iPod Touch is not without its fair share of niggling annoyances. One of which is its inability to add/edit calendar entries while it allows its contact list to be edited. Some application interface is still a bit inconsistent -- it allows Mobile Safari to move into any orientation (portrait and landscape) while doesn't allow its video player the same capabilities. Some system messages/error messages does not follow its orientation, I encountered a system message in portrait mode while using Mobile Safari in landscape mode.

Despite these annoyances, I feel like a device from 10 years in the future has fallen on my lap. This is an impressive piece of hardware and software and I would recommend this to anyone who would ask.

Blogged with Flock

iPod Touch Available Locally!

The iPod Touch is finally (and officially) available in Philippine stores.  The first store to offer the Touch is PowerMac Center.  Stocks trickled in slowly starting from their northernmost outlet until it finally reached all its branches. Ynzal has the Touch on their website but there's no news when they'll get their stocks.


When it comes to the iPod Touch's SRP, prices seems to vary between seller to seller.  The 16Gb variant sells between Php 19,999 and Php 22,600.  So if you want to get your grubby little hands on the Touch, do your homework, shop around and buy where you can get the best deal.  I for one knows where I'll get mine. :)

Blogged with Flock