Microsoft Vs Apple

Early in June the latest Mac operating system was released and it looked so much better than Windows 8 and because of this I think Windows 8 is not going to be very sucsessful. There is a big price differance between Windows PC's and Apple PC's (on average it is about £1000). So Microsoft is better in that aspect but for another £1000 Apple computers are alot quicker and a more easy to use.
Whenever Apple releases a new product or operating system it is kept a complete secret until it is completely finished and relesased however Microsoft's Windows 8 had features offically anounced about it almost a year before it was released. I think Microsoft needs to copy of Apple's technique and keep their products behind closed doors until they want them to be released.
Because I think Windows 8 is going to be so weak compared to the Mac OS, Microsoft needs to advertise the fact that their computers will bring Microsoft Office to the tablet market and they need to push for simplicity (because nobody want's a computer which is hard to use.)
Microsoft also needs to make a cheap gimmic (like Siri for Apple), I think this will make their products more fun to use. I also don't think that the Metro styles home screen is very good on Windows 8 however at least it is new and original.
Also in an attempt to catch up with Apple, I would get Microsoft to release a free upgrade to their operating system quarterly for the next year. For the updates they will ask for feedback on the operating system act on that to make the operating system better.
Only if they do this, will they maybe have an operating system as good as Apples (In my opinion anyway).
(So when I take over Microsoft Windows, that is what I will do!)

iOS 6

With the latest Apple operating system (iOS6) coming out in Autumn I though I’d tell you about some of the main features.

Finally, Facebook integration is included. This means you can post photos, your location, app information and web pages straight to Facebook from your Apple device.

Next is the new Apple mapping app replacing Google Maps. The new app gives you and Ariel 3D view of some parts of the world, it speaks turn-by-turn directions and by clicking a building where a business is it can tell you information about the business and how to contact them.

A new app called ‘Passbook’ has been made for iOS6 which allows you to store tickets, store cards and even boarding passes. This idea probably came from a news story a few months ago where a man was able to pass a border by just a photo of his passport on his iPad.

Sharing photos with friends through ‘photostream’ has been added allowing your friends to view and comment on your photos from their Mac, Internet Browser or Apple TV. I don’t know how much of a success this will be as there are already hundreds of photo sharing sites but then again, this one is made by Apple.

So, with new features and improvements I think this operating system will keep Apple dominating the smartphone market.

Edinburgh Zoo

After a recent visit to Edinburgh where I visited the Castle, the Zoo and 'Camera Obscura and World of Illusion' I learnt that Edinburgh was a lot more than Scottish tat shops selling funny tartan berets and kilts.
I need to admit though that the Castle was pretty standard, I don't know if that is because I didn't get an audio guide or if it is because the only good thing was the surrounding view of the city (below).



Next door to the castle was 'Camera Obscura and World of Illusion'. A Camera Obscura is a mirror on a pole on the top of a building reflecting the image onto other mirrors and through lenses onto a circular table in the building. This doesn't use any electricity however it produces amazing images. They have one in Edinburgh which allowed me to see all the way from the bottom of the Royal Mile to the top of the extinct Edinburgh Volcano.
However the highlight of the trip must have been Edinburgh Zoo. Last year the zoo paid millions of pounds to get 2 Chinese giant Pandas and when we went to see them they seemed a bit bored however it is the only place in Britain where you are able to see them. They had an indoor and outdoor section both with a glass wall so visitors can look in however I'm surprised that their space wasn't bigger. Also in the Zoo was lots of monkeys, some of which looked like people who I know, others cuter. The Rhino's were one of the more lively creatures to watch as they were fighting in pool of water.
I wonder if there is regulations stating the minimum living space for zoo animals. Although the Zoo was brilliant, there was so many animals it seemed that they were all a bit cramped... apart from the Zebra's who seemed to have acres of space.
I did come across a Tiger at the Zoo. This animal was also half asleep but never the less good to see. Best animal for me was probably the humongous sea lion that was the first animal I saw when I went in. It yawned a lot but I was amazed by how much it stared at visitors who were watching it.

Queen's Diamond Jubilee

 Sunday 2nd June
This was the first day of the celebrations when most parties were and it was the day that over 1000 boats went down the river Thames lead by the Royal Barge with the Queen and close family on it. They were sailing for most of Sunday afternoon in the miserably weather but that didn't stop people from coming to the Thames to see the boat parade.

 Monday 3rd June
On the evening of Monday 3rd June it was the Jubilee Concert which had been organised by Gary Barlow and it stared loads of musicians old and young. They included Jessie J, WILL.I.AM, Madness, Tom Jones, Stevie Wonder, JLS, Robbie Williams, Cheryl Cole, Madness and Paul McCartney.
Even when they had a gap in the middle of the show they got Rolph Harris up singing '2 little boys had 2 little toys'. He unfortunately needed to be cut off because Stevie Wonder was ready.
Gary Barlow performed his Diamond Jubilee song 'Sing' with the Commonwealth Band.
The highlight of the night for me was Madness singing on the roof on Buckingham palace. They sung 'Our House' and 'It must be love'. Although it was dark when they were singing they amazed the crowd by projecting images on the the whole front of Buckingham Palace turning it into a bunch of council houses.
Paul McCartney ended the wonderful night singing various Beatles songs. Then Prince Charles made a speech about the Queen, her 60 year reign and people who helped make the night a success.

Tuesday 4th June
On the Morning the Queen went to St. Paul's Cathedral.

iPhone 5 and IOS6

I've been looking at some rumours and some pictures of what the iPhone 5 and what iOS 6 might look like and I've put together some rumours which I hope come true.
First one is probably the most common rumour, I hope that the iPhone 5 has a 4-inch screen. The current iPhone screen is 3.5 inches and comparing that size to the current average smart phone it is on the smaller size.
Facebook, more users than Twitter and the original social network. Apparently they were trying to get integration with Facebook for iOS5 however they ran out of time so hopefully we will see integration on iOS 6. The integration will hopefully allow you to post your iPhones pictures directly to Facebook, post your location from the maps app and hopefully much more.
Talking about maps, there is a rumour that the next iPhone will no longer feature google maps, instead it may include Apples own new mapping system. I don't know what the advantages of this would be however if it made by Apple it will obviously be 'revolutionary'. Google maps for iPhone has loads of options and features such as street view and options to share your location via Twitter, email and messaging.
Finally, I hope that they give Siri to iOS 6 so you can update your iPhone 4, iPod 4 and iPad 2 and 3 and get access to the smart voice system. Apple may not do this though because Siri is the main unique selling point for the iPhone 4S and it might stop people from buying it so I doubt that it'll be in iOS 6.

Prometheus

After a massive build up for this movie it was definitely worth the wait. When a group of 17 scientists and crew voyage to a far a way world trying to find out who made the human race and what is the point of life they don't necessarily find out their answer. But they do find an abandoned temple with a dark secret.
This action/horror film has amazing special effects yet a brilliant and emotional story line behind the FX. I would definitely recommend this movie to people who love sci-fi.

Ikea TV

This full HD, LCD, Smart TV which can be connected to your home Wifi network is actually made by Ikea. The stand underneath it comes with the TV and it has an integrated CD/DVD/BLU-RAY player along with a 2.1 speaker system. This is in hope to stop a big bunch of messy wires behind the TV like what most house-holds have at the moment. The stand has compartments at the front which can be closed up but which still allow the remote control signal to come through to reach your sky, freeview or virgin media box.
It comes also with a wireless subwoofer which you can put where ever you like and an iPod and MP3 player dock build in. FM radio is also included.
On the side of the TV there are 2 USB ports and 4 HDMI ports so you will never have to unplug anything to make space for another.
The TV comes in all shaped and the stand comes in all different sizes so no matter how big or small your room is, it will fit.It is called UPPLEVA.

I'm genuinely surprised that this TV has specs like what it does. Whilst big TV brands like Samsung and Panasonic only focus on making TV's smart on the inside, Ikea has focused on the outside of the TV as well like their stand which the TV is connected to and how no matter what size screen you get it in, they all have the same quality and amount of options.
I think the price is going to be the only major issue because I can't imagine all of this coming cheap. The best feature for me will probably be how there is only 1 disk compartment and how it recognises and plays CDs, DVD's and BLU-RAY's.
So as long as the price stays down, I think this is going to be a successful TV which people should take seriously.

Great App Idea

Wouldn't it be a good idea to make an app which writes music for you. You press a button and hum a tune then it works out what musical notes you are making and how long you are holding them for and then it writes music for you and it can play the music back for you on piano or guitar or whatever musical instrument you want. Then if you want to add chords you can select the musical note you want to add a chord to and hum the chord. The app name 'Hum Music?' 'Humusic?'

Passwords!?!?

If there is 3 computers and 2 network ports locked behind a locked door and one of the computers doesn't need a network conection becuase it is only used for video. What is the point of connecting it to the network leaving a computer which does need the internet, networkless! This means I can't now do I job that needs doing urgently because the video editing PC is connected to the network which means someone has password locked it!

Jimmy and the Giant Supermarket

Last night I was watching Jimmy and the Giant Supermarket on Channel 4 and his quest to replace some of Tesco's most popular meat products with free range and high quality meat products. On the first episode last night he was trying to replace Tesco's cheap meatballs made from low quality meat with meatballs made from high quality meat. He failed because in order to use high quality meat, the supermarket would need to increase the price of the meatballs which might turn some people away. When people go shopping only a small majority of people focus on buying free range and high quality meat, they get whatever is cheapest.
I've done some research and I think it must be impossibly to produce cheap free range and high quality meat and eggs. I looked on the ASDA website and I found out that the a single barn egg cost around 13p compared to a single free range egg which cost around 27p.
It's understandable because in order to produce free range meat it means the farmer needs to meet legal requirements of how much space to give the animal which can cost a lot of money and some farmers can't see the point when not many people can tell the difference between free-range and barn eggs or the difference between a pig that has spent it's life in a cramped barn with other pigs and a pig which has lead a happy life in the outdoors rolling around in mud.
Apart from price there might have been something else putting people off Jimmy's meatballs. They contained Veal (baby cow). People don't understand that there have been big changes in the way that baby cows are treated since the 1980's. They need a certain amount of space and they live in and they need to have a good quality of life. Veal is sold because it is a tender meat and inn my opinion I think it must be better them dying at 7 months old after living a little instead of just after they are born so I think people should buy veal.
In conclusion Jimmy is going to have a serious struggle to produce cheap free range meat for numerous reasons however if he pulled it off it would be truly brilliant.