Barnes & Noble Nook Color Gets Another Update

This latest update is at best a moderate jump but still a welcome one. We're going from 1.0.1 to 1.1.0. The majority of the changes are to small things like pinch to zoom on the browser. Some have reported tighter touch sensitivity/accuracy and a sharper snappier responsiveness. The list of updates is as follows:

NOOKcolor Ver1.1.0 update contains enhancements to improve the overall performance, including:

• Improved performance of Wi-Fi connectivity, Home and Shop.
• Ability to pinch and zoom in browser.
• Enhanced reading experience for magazines and children's books.
• Access helpful NOOKcolor related information and support tips on the new default browser home page.
• Reduce mistyped passwords with "show password" option during registration and Wi-Fi set up.
• Easily identify NOOK kids Read To Me™ books with a new text banner next to the titles in Shop.
• General bug fixes and performance improvements.

The official update can be found here.

If you are reading this blog though I imagine you have some interest in rooting and unlocking the full potential of this awesome device. The great folks at NookDevs.com and XDA-Developers as always are on the ball. An update has been posted that, due to it's direct update nature, does not interfere with previously installed apps etc. It's not quite 100% stable but it worked like a charm for me and most others who have tried it. You can check the following thread to get the update package and list of instructions. If you are comfortable with your Android/Nook skills you can follow the following short instructions after the jump.

Random Thoughts on UI

Button Button Who's Got the Button? I read a blog recently, which I don't have the link for, that was pondering if the buttons layed out in rows is the 'best' interface for touch devices. Cnet's Buzz Out Loud podcast also put forward similar pondering's but as related to some of the current Apple shenanigans. Lets get real about all this silly pondering. All the icons on the desktop are are buttons. Icons are the virtual equivalent of a button. If this isn't the ideal layout/format for a finger friendly interface than all those folks who make and use keyboards, mice, elevators, vending machines, tons of kitchen appliances, cameras, game controllers and nuclear devices during the past century have been wrong. Some how I don't think we, meaning every one in the entire world, has been doing it wrong for a century and if we have then civilization is doomed. I think we're doing ok so lets put all the to rest. K, thanks!

iPad Hubbub

With the iPad launch upon us I feel the need, finally, to expound on my thoughts and ideas about it. For those of you who know me you will know I value Apples usability and quality of product but at the same time their increasingly restrictive ecosystem is kind of scary. The end result is that I equally desire and yet shun Apple and their products. It saddens me that such an innovative company in the area of usability and quality in their products is also such a capitalist pig that it goes to lengths to create lock in for the express purpose of milking every last dime from it's customers. It seems to me that a great product at a great value would go even further than their great product designed to stick it to your pocket book. This is why Android is gaining ground so rapidly. Apple continues its trend of tyrannical product lock in with this new, innovative, iPad device.

It seems few people are paying attention to the tidal wave of tablets that are about to hit the market. Most note-ably is a pair of devices coming from Asus. Both presumably on the same or similar hardware to one another but one running Windows 7 and the other running Android. If you own any other mobile devices besides an iPhone then these are really going to be the devices to look for. While the features that make a tablet unique are pretty obvious what is less obvious is interactivity with your other devices. Imagine having all your contacts, e-mail, documents and browsing experience being identical across all your devices. Apple has all ready drawn the line between their mobile platform and desktop platform. While they are similar they will never be the same and there will be a disconnect of sorts in that respect. However Google is poised to unleash true standardized cross platform experience as Android finds its way from phone to tablet to netbook and finally desktop. The standardized experience will continue on to the desktop via Google's Chromium OS. All this sameness gets tied together by the "cloud" so that a change on the phone is reflected every where else. Truly transparent cross device computing.

Mark my words Google has something truly useful going far beyond the neat sparklies that Apple is currently dangling in front of the short sited masses.