Thanks in no small part to the efforts of Adobe regarding their ongoing battle with Apple, the feds are stepping in to figure out whether or not Apple's new programming policy is in violation of antitrust law. The new programming policy restricts developers from using any outside third party tools to create Apps for the iPad and iPhone.

Excerpt:

"A key question facing federal regulators is whether Apple hurts competition by forcing software developers to choose between designing apps that can run only on the iPhone and iPad and those that can run on rival devices such as Google Inc.'s Android phones and Research in Motion Ltd.'s BlackBerry.

Apple's new policy, which was announced in April along with changes to the iPhone's operating system, has raised concerns for Adobe, which includes Flash as part of a package of software tools sold to professional designers and Web developers. Although Apple's decision to ban Flash limits what its iPhone and iPad can do, the popularity of the devices has led many software developers to design apps without the format."

Apple has long since been an opponent of FLASH, a popular product of Adobe used in the creation of online media such as games, videos, and animated websites. We'd have to agree with them. FLASH causes more problems than it solves and frequently crashes mobile devices. We think that foregoing flash does not limit what devices and websites can do. Apple is reinforcing the fact that there are more efficient ways to achieve the same results as using FLASH would provide without the headaches FLASH causes. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.

www.newser.com/article/d9fg5ts01/federal-regulators-to-look-at-new-apple-policy-on-programming-tools-for-iphone-ipad-apps.html

So unless you've been living under a rock lately you know the the newest incarnation of the iPhone was misplaced in the wild by an Apple engineer out celebrating his birthday. Well, Gizmodo managed to purchase the iPhone and dissect it revealing some of the long awaited new features everyone has been speculating about. It is also possible that this phone is not the final incarnation of the upcoming new iPhone and just one of many prototypes.

Excerpt from Gizmodo's site:

What's new:

• Front-facing video chat camera
• Improved regular back-camera (the lens is quite noticeably larger than the iPhone 3GS)
• Camera flash
• Micro-SIM instead of standard SIM (like the iPad)
• Improved display. It's unclear if it's the 960x640 display thrown around before—it certainly looks like it, with the "Connect to iTunes" screen displaying much higher resolution than on a 3GS.
• What looks to be a secondary mic for noise cancellation, at the top, next to the headphone jack
• Split buttons for volume
• Power, mute, and volume buttons are all metallic

What's changed:

• The back is entirely flat, made of either glass (more likely) or ceramic or shiny plastic in order for the cell signal to poke through. Tapping on the back makes a more hollow and higher pitched sound compared to tapping on the glass on the front/screen, but that could just be the orientation of components inside making for a different sound
• An aluminum border going completely around the outside
• Slightly smaller screen than the 3GS (but seemingly higher resolution)
• Everything is more squared off
• 3 grams heavier
• 16% Larger battery
• Internals components are shrunken, miniaturized and reduced to make room for the larger battery

If you haven't followed this story yet, you can check out the full time-line of event's here: gizmodo.com/5520438/how-apple-lost-the-next-iphone

Here is an insightful article into the development process for creating Apple software. Macformat magazine interviews the folks from Equinux. It's always interesting to see the methodologies being employed by other software firms. The interview does a good job of outlining the tedious but rewarding process. Incidentally, Equinux develops in a very similar style as thinkenhaus.

"One of the best things about the Mac is the community of dedicated software developers that create high quality software. But what is involved in the process that goes into planning and developing new software for the Mac? To find out, MacFormat magazine spoke to the following folks from equinux, the firm behinds apps including iSale, CoverScout and SongGenie."

http://www.techradar.com/news/computing/apple/before-you-buy-how-apple-software-is-born-601111

Japan marked the 20th anniversary of the Nintendo Game Boy on Tuesday and one can't help but reminisce about the mobile device that effectively launched the handheld market.  We here at thinkenhaus remember fondly the joys of holding all the fun of a Nintendo Entertainment System in your hand, able to go with you wherever you went.  For many of us, this monochrome device was the catalyst for our own personal technology addictions.  Over the years the Game Boy inspired a slew of handheld devices, all paving the way for the technology we have today - Sony PSP's, Nintendo DSi's, and yes...now the iPhone. 

Excerpt:

"The Game Boy was created by Gunpei Yokoi, a Nintendo employee who had moved up in the ranks from being a janitor to working on product development. It was originally a simple device with a monochrome screen, four buttons (A, B, Start, Select), and a four-way directional pad. But over the years, Nintendo transformed that simple handheld into a full-featured gaming platform, complete with a color screen and outstanding titles."

news.cnet.com/8301-13506_3-10224930-17.html

In a not so surprising move by AT&T, the company is pushing to remain the exclusive iPhone carrier as their contract approaches its end. The success of the iPhone has allowed AT&T to expand their customer base and increase revenue, partly due to the required iPhone data plan each customer is required to pay for. Incidentally, AT&T was only able to snag this contract in the first place because of the uncertainty surrounding the potential success of the iPhone at the time of its initial introduction. It will be interesting to see how these current negotiations pan out as Apple is now very clearly aware of the immense value of their product. The question remains: is it more beneficial for Apple to remain with one carrier or should they offer the iPhone to a larger customer base through all carriers? Also, how many more additional concessions will AT&T have to make to keep the iPhone to themselves?

www.informationweek.com/news/personal_tech/iphone/showArticle.jhtml

And also,

online.wsj.com/article/SB123973238611017715.html

As an Apple developer, thinkenhaus has experienced firsthand the frustrations associated with Apple's App Store approval process. I recently stumbled upon this old article from Macblogz.com in which the author details the many reasons so many developers have already given up on iPhone development.  That said, the boutique nature of iPhone development creates enormous opportunities for small companies and start-ups.  Few platforms can match the App Store's speed at which a developer can bring a product to market, regardless of a clear set of guidelines. In a way the App Store has leveled the playing field, allowing small companies to be featured right alongside the big boys.  This is why we continue on our own development quests...

“Without development guidelines, there is no way to know for certain if an application or game you are spending your time on, will get approved by Apple. In which case, you can organically appeal the decision and hope the community picks up your story, in which case word gets around to Apple that people are angered and they reverse the decision. Or perhaps they will realize that they made a mistake in rejecting your application/game and reverse the decision. Either way, Apple’s communication thus far has not been comforting to say the least.”

www.macblogz.com/2008/11/18/all-i-want-for-the-holidays-are-app-store-development-guidelines/

Google has just launched Google Ventures, their very own venture capital fund. This will provide much needed capital to many small technology companies at a time when venture capital is decreasing as is start-ups that actually make it to an IPO.

From the Google Blog: "Google Ventures is charged with finding and helping to develop exceptional start-ups. We'll be focusing on early stage investments across a diverse range of industries, including consumer Internet, software, clean-tech, bio-tech, health care and, no doubt, other areas we haven't thought of yet."

vator.tv/news/show/2009-03-31-googles-newest-venture

Just like Research in Motion, Nintendo is now jumping on the App Store bandwagon by adding a mobile software store to their new DSi.  It seems Apple's App Store has provided Nintendo with some hefty competition by selling such a wide array of mobile games that can be downloaded directly to your iPhone or iPod Touch. Yet another example of the continuing micro-computing revolution!

www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/04/AR2009040400098.html