IPhoneWorkshop
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Basic iPhone Setup
iPod/iPhone Setup
* Synch your iPod * How to setup WiFi access * Basic Navigation * Email Setup * Creating Web Bookmarks
1. Synch Your iPod Your iPod is designed to be synchronised with only one computer! When you logon to the Macs in the Music Lab at Unitec, you are actually logging onto the server. Your 'Home' folder and settings (including iTunes music) therefore lives on the server, so it does not matter which computer in the lab you use - it will be the same home folder. iTunes is used to synch various media from your Home folder to your iPod, including iTunes libraries, videos (imported into iTunes first), Safari Bookmarks, Addressbook entries, Calendar events, Podcasts, etc...
Your first synch will require you to create an Apple ID - which will be used if you later want to purchase songs through the online iTunes store. Remember your username and password!
Whenever you synch your iPod using iTunes, you can choose what media is synchronised rom the iPod options in iTunes.
Software updates for your iPod are also downloaded using iTunes - a note will pop up when you plugin your iPod if there is new software available.
The current version of the iPod Touch software is 1.1.3 and includes the new Mail, Notes, Stocks and Maps applications. If you do not see these on your Main Menu you will need to update to get them.
2. WiFi setup From the main i{od menu, choose 'settings', then 'WiFi'.
Make sure WiFi is 'On', and then all WiFi hotspots in range will be listed, showing signal strength and security status.
At Unitec, you will see at least Three hotspots:
* Unitec Hotspot - giving basic web access with your Unitec login required every session. * WLAN-STUDENT and WLAN-STAFF both of which give more access, but require a 'secret' WPA password to be entered. Once entered the password will be remembered by the iPod for next time. (Only ITSC and Thom have this password)
When you are in range of other WiFI hotspots, you can connect wirelessly to the Internet (if you know the password, or if the hotspot is open!)
There are currently 363 Telecom WiFi hotspots listed throughout NZ, and 116 in Auckland (Telecom NZ, Feb 2008) (http://www.telecom.co.nz/content/0,8748,204163-1106,00.html), including Starbucks cafes, MacDonalds, hotels, and most shopping Malls. If you are a Telecom Broadband customer, access to these WiFi hotspots is free. Otherwise it is $10 per hour.
If you have Broadband Internet at home, I recommend getting a Wireless hub so you can share the connection with your iPod Touch. The Apple Airport Express is a good WiFi Hub.
3. Basic Navigation The iPod has only 2 physical buttons
* An on/off/sleep button on top * A wakeup and Menu button at the bottom.
Pressing the Menu button takes you to the main menu. Pressing the Menu button twice (quickly) reveals a play controller in any menu - great for pausing or starting your Tunes quickly!
See the Apple Web site for tips and tutorials. http://www.apple.com/ipodtouch/
4. Email Setup Version 1.1.3 of the iPod software includes a dedicated Mail application. It is easy to use and setup. Just choose creat new account and follow the wizard. When setting up GMail on your iPod, there is a 'create new GMail account' option.
5. Web Bookmarks You can create a bookmark of any website on your iPod by selecting the 'book' icon at the bottom of the Safari web browser screen.
When creating a bookmark, you can also turn a bookmark into a shortcut button on the iPod Main Menu - great for frequently used sites - e.g. Newsgator.com, Blackboard, Your Blog etc...
The easiest way to create a set of web bookmarks for the iPod is to create them on your Mac or PC using Safari. Then when you synchronise your iPod with your computer the bookmarks can also be synchronised. HINT - I create a folder in my Mac Safari bookmarks called 'Web Apps' for collating all my iPod friendly web bookmarks.
Unlocking the iPhone
"Unlocking" the iPhone3G
The iPhone will default to connecting to the Internet via WiFi rather than 3G when it has a wifi connection available.
Using an iPhone 3g via wifi - everything works great, however when using 3g on the Vodafone NZ network you will get 'PDP authentication error' messages and no connection. It turns out that iTunes downloads an APN setting to the iPhone that effectively locks the 'unlocked' iPhone to a VFNZ iPhone plan only APN! To set the iPhone to use any APN browse (using wifi) to http://unlockit.co.nz on your iPhone and enter the prefered APN (use 'internet' for unrestricted access, no username, no password).
Choose 'Set Custom APN' - then input 'internet' as below - no username or password.
Choose "Download Custom Config"
Then "install". Restart the iPhone and you will now find a "profile" setting in the iPhone settings with the new APN.
Now you can use the iPhone with any Vodafone data plan - including the brand new casual broadband data rate that works on prepay SIMs ($1per day for a 10MB per day data cap).
GMail Setup
GMail Setup
A GMail account will also allow you to use the rest of the Google Web2 tools/services.
It's a great free service, and even if you already have several email accounts, a GMail account will be very useful (6.5GB and increasing free!).
Put your GMail address into your Blackboard Homepage.
NOTE: - turn on 'POP' access in your GMail 'settings' for it to work in other email applications!
ALSO: create a shortcut on your iPod Main Menu to Google Mobile: http://www.google.com/m/products
Item GMail settings There are three ways to access GMail on your phone/ipod: 1. Via mobile web browser 2. Via The GMail application (not available for iPod Touch) 3. Via the phones built-in email application
The mobile web-based GMail does not support adding attachments to new emails, so the best solution is to configure your built-in email application for GMail (Only available after the optional extra software update).
1. Web-based GMail Setup GMail on your PC/Mac first by going to http://gmail.com Create contacts for email, including your 'secret' VOX email address
Go to http://gmail.com in Safari on your iPod Touch
* you can create and send emails via GMail this way, an search for GMail contacts * you cannot attach files to emails created this way :-( * you can create a shortcut to GMail on your iPods main screen by clciking the '+' and 'add to Home screen when you are on logged into GMail.
2. Using the Mail application on iPod with GMail:
First Enable POP in GMail First go to http://gmail.com on your PC and login to your account. Choose 'settings', then 'pop & imap settings'. Select the option to enable POP email before setting up your phone's email application.
On your iPod Touch go to the Mail application and select 'new account', GMail.
Fill in the required details for your GMail account.
You will now have an email account called GMail in your email settings.
To check your GMail settings, login to http://gmail.com on your PC. Choose 'settings' from the top menu. then choose 'Forwarding and POP/IMAP'.
In the 'Pop download' section choose 'Configuration instructions'
Standard instructions:
1. Enable POP in your Gmail account. Don't forget to click Save Changes when you're done.
2. Configure your client to match the settings below:
Incoming Mail (POP3) Server - requires SSL: pop.gmail.com
Use SSL: Yes
Port: 995
Outgoing Mail (SMTP) Server - requires TLS: smtp.gmail.com (use authentication)
Use Authentication: Yes
Use STARTTLS: Yes (some clients call this SSL)
Port: 465 or 587
Account Name: your Gmail username (including @gmail.com)
Email Address: your full Gmail email address (username@gmail.com)
Password: your Gmail password
Unless you're using recent mode to download mail to multiple clients, make sure you've opted not to leave messages on the server.
Moblogging
Blog Setup
A Blog is an online journal, and will be the key activity of this iPod Trial, where you can document and reflect on your experiences. Vox also includes some social networking features to facilitate collaboration.
Create a free account at http://www.vox.com
Choose one of the preset templates for your Vox blog layout. If you choose you can even create your own Vox banner.
You will need to provide a real email address for authenticating your Vox account.
After you have chosen and setup your Vox address (url) include it in your Blackboard Homepage (In the 'Tools' menu on the left) so that we can all find each other's Blogs for commenting!
After creating your Vox blog, you can add 'Neighbours' - other Vox users that you want to be in touch with and notified when they make postings. Make your classmates and Tutors (& Thom) Vox Neighbours!
You can also 'subscribe' to each other's Vox Blogs and collections using their RSS feed. We will discuss this further when setting up Newsgator or Google reader.
OX Blogging from your iPhone
There are three different ways to blog to VOX directly from your iPhone:
1. Using Email - for text and media (as email attachments). See HERE 2. Using Blogit (http://blogit.typepad.com) for text blogging. See HERE 3. Using Shozu (http://www.shozu.com) for image and text blogging. Download the Shozu application from the iTunes store for free, and setup your online Shozu account . See HERE
Email uploads to Vox etc... Almost all Web2 services support email uploads of: blog posts, photos, audio and even video directly from mobile devices.
This is the easiest way to post to your Vox blog from your iPod Touch.
In your Vox account you can find your own unique Vox email address (xxxxxxxxxxxxxx@moblog.vox.com).
To find it,
* sign-in to Vox * go to your 'account' * select 'Mobile Settings' * copy the email address provided * Also, from your 'account'/'Mobile Settings' in Vox, choose Create Post: "Yes (create a post for items sent to this email).
Vox email options
NEXT: Create an addressbook entry with your Vox email address in your GMail account, and whenever you need to post directly to your Vox blog (and even upload photos from your iPod Touch to Vox) create a new email on your iPod and choose your Vox address as the recipient. After sending the email your Vox Blog will be updated!
Item GMail to Vox post example slideshow - click HERE to view slideshow!. iPod Touch & GMail blogging
Mobile Web2.0
Blog it
"Blog It for iPhone is a free web application that enables iPhone users to post to their blog and update their status using the iPhone-optimized Blog It interface. Just like the Facebook application, Blog It for iPhone is an easy way for you to simultaneously blog across multiple platforms, as well as update your status on Facebook, Twitter and Pownce. You also have the option of updating your status messages with the title and link of your post, so you can let your friends know what you're up to regardless of where they follow you on the web.
To start blogging with Blog It, go to http://blogit.typepad.com with your iPhone's Safari browser and install the Blog It icon onto your mobile desktop. Then, all you have to do is click the Blog It icon and start creating simple blog posts!"
RSS Feeds
Google Reader Create a Google Reader account & subscribe to the classes blogs
A great FREE online news aggregator is GOOGLE READER Your GMail username and password will get you into Google Reader. http://reader.google.com
RSS Real Simple Syndication or Rich Site Summary, is a way to 'subscribe' to news feeds from websites and blogs etc that you want to regularly read. Its a real time saver! Instead of logging onto all of your favourite websites one at a time, use a newsreader application to automatically download the headings of new posts, and then you can choose to visit the site for more info or not!
RSS is a great companion to Blogs - you can subscribe to your entire classes blogs in one simple window and keep track of your students progress.
Most news type websites now have RSS feeds. There will be an orange 'XML' or 'RSS' or 'FEED' symbol on the site, click this to find the site's RSS feed address and put it into your preferred RSS newsreading software.
There are two main types of feeds:
1. RSS 2. ATOM
Finding your VOX feed.
Go to your Vox Blog page, scroll down and copy from your side column the 'subscribe' link Subscribe
* Subscribe to a feed of these posts
URL on the side of the page for your blog (e.g. http://thomcochrane.vox.com/library/posts/atom.xml ). Copy and paste this url into the "Add Subscription" text entry in GOOGLE READER.
Google Mobile
OR http://www.google.com/m/products
This is the homepage for Google Mobile - make this a bookmark in your iPod web browser.
A GMail account will also allow you to use the rest of the Google Web2 tools/services. It's a great free service, and even if you already have several email accounts, a GMail account will be very useful (6GB and increasing free!).
Google Mobile Services include:
* Gmail * Google Calendar * Photos (Picasaweb) * YouTube * Google Docs * Google reader * Mobile Google Search * Google Maps * Google News * Google Homepage (iGoogle)
Safari Web Apps Bookmarks
You can import the attached Safari Bookmarks file to synchronise the below listed iPod formatted web site bookmarks with your iPod Touch!
Right click on the link below, choose 'save file as', save to your desktop, then open Safari, choose File - import Bookmarks. Then sync your iPod Touch via iTunes (Make sure the 'sync Bookmarks option is selected in iTunes).
Safari Web Apps Bookmarks.html
iPod formatted Web2 sites
Here's a list of some iPod formatted Web2 sites or services:
* Google Mobile http://www.google.com/m/products * Flickr Poto Sharing http://m.flickr.com/h * YouTube http://m.youtube.com/ * Wordpress Blog http://m.wordpress.com/ * Vox Blog http://www.vox.com/ * Google Reader http://www.google.com/reader/m/view/ * Google Reader for iPhone/iPod Touch http://www.google.com/reader/i/ * Google Calendar http://www.google.com/calendar/render * Google Docs http://docs.google.com/ * GMail http://mail.google.com/ * Pownce http://m.pownce.com/ * Picasaweb photo sharing http://picasaweb.google.com/home * Google Maps http://maps.google.com/ * MobileWebDocs http://www.mobilewebdocs.com/ * iPocket Bible http://www.ipocketbible.com/go/login.asp * Netvibes Homepage http://iphone.netvibes.com/ * SnapMyLife http://www.snapmylife.com/ * Skype for iPhone http://s4iphone.com/index_iphone.jsp * AIM Instant Messaging http://x.aim.com/ty/#_startPage * JWire - find free WiFi hotspots http://iphone.jiwire.com/ * Stopwatch http://www.kudit.com/desktop/kudit.php?shortname=stopwatch&success=false * Bloglines RSS Reader http://www.bloglines.com/mobile * Zoho MS Office http://mini.zoho.com/iZoho.jsp * Mundu Instant Messaging http://iphone.mundu.com/ * Newsgator RSS Reader http://m.newsgator.com/iphone.aspx * iGoogle Homepage http://www.google.com/ig/i * Mobile Delicious Social Bookmarking http://mobilicio.us/ * Meebo - Instant Messaging http://www.meebo.com (create a Meebo account & store all your IM logins!)
Applications
Applications on iPod Touch
http://www.apple.com/ipodtouch/appstore/
iPod/iPhone Apps overview
An intro to applications on the iPod Touch or iPhone
Free iPod/iPhone apps to install
Here's a list of really useful FREE iPod/iPhone apps you can install:
1. Blogit - not an 'app' but a great 'web app' - create a shortcut on your homescreen to Blogit. 2. AIM 3. MySpace 4. NetNewsWire 5. Facebook 6. Remote 7. Scratch 8. Shozu - the best image blogging app around! 9. PangeaVR 10. Google - quick search and links to Google Services on your iPod/iPhone 11. Wordpress 12. Palringo - multiclient Instant Messaging - YAY! 13. 2D Sense - QR Code reader 14. CellSpin 15. MoPhoto - online photo album collator (Flickr, Picasa, Photobucket...) 16. Palringo - multiclient instant messaging 17. Speedtest - check how fast your WiFi connection is! 18. eZimba - 'photoshop' on your iPhone 19. Air Sharing - copy files to and from your iPod/iPhone 20. Speedtest - see how fast your WiFi Internet connection is going 21. iTM MidiLab - demo version of MIDI remote control applications
Paid iPod/iPhone Apps worth buying
1. Mobile Flickr 2. Comic Touch 3. Sketches 4. FileMagnet 5. Band 6. Bomberman 7. Crash Bandicoot Nitro 8. Note2Self - voice recording for iPhone 9. Audio Recorder - record audio as either mp3 or mp4 directly to iPhone.
The v2.0 software ($9US) for the ipod touch adds several new features - including third party applications that can be either synched from iTunes or downloaded directly to the iPod. Many of these apps are FREE - including most of the Blogging and social networking apps.
My favourite apps so far include: Mobile Flickr uploader, Shozu, and the ability to take snapshots of the iPod screen (hold down 'home' button & press 'off' button to capture screenshot to 'saved pictures' folder on iPod) - great for creating examples & tutorials, and a way of creating images on the iPod touch without a camera ;-) .
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3227/2663910268_01553e983d.jpg
The above Apps (Top line are web apps, rest are from itunes App store) are all free except Mobile Flickr (a bargain at $5).
The V2 software update adds ann 'Apps' store icon to the iPod main screen - apps can be purchased & downloaded directly over WiFi to the iPod Touch. To purchase (or download freebies) and synch to iPod via iTunes you need to update iTunes to V7.7 - this adds an 'applications' menu to iTunes.
several iPod Apps below:
NetNewsWire (free) - RSS reader that synchs with http://www.newsgator.com account online, as well as desktop and Java mobile readers (NetNewsWire on Mac, FeedDemon on PC, Newsgator Go on Java capable phone).
AIM Instant Messanger App (Free). AIM or .Mac only.
VR Viewing App (Free). Also allows you to link to and share your own VR content.
Mobile Flickr ($5). Although other apps link to Flickr for free (e.g. Shozu), Mobile Flickr provides access to almost all of your Flickr account options from the iPod Touch. So I thought the small investment worthwhile!
SHOZU (Free) on iPod Touch. A great app for uploading pics and comments to a host of popular blog and media sites, and downloading a selection of Podcasts.
A couple of issues with Shozu though:
1. Unfortunately Shozu appears to only synch with one mobile device - so each mobile device requires it's own Shozu account or Shozu gets 'confused' and posts go missing!
What I'd really like to see is an iPod/iPhone app version of my favourite Mac Blog editor "MarsEdit"!
The Apps really find wings with the iPhone - using the camera for capture & 3G connectivity - but they also significantly enhance the iPod Touch as well.
VODCasting and YouTube
A quick overview of how to use Quicktime Pro to record and export a VODCast
YouTube works great on an iPod Touch or iPhone - the built-in YouTube application works really well. Also, with the V2 software update you can also view YouTube videos embedded in other websites or blogs - e.g. embedding your YouTube video in your Vox blog will make it viewable on your iPod/iPhone (YAY!). So, rather than uploading your video's directly to VOX, upload them to YouTube and then embed them in your Vox blog - when creating a new post on VOX, simply click the 'Video' tab, and then 'YouTube' and search for your youtube video.
To upload your videos to YouTube:
After recording and exporting your VODCast in either .mp4 or .m4v format, create a free account on YouTube and upload your movie to your YouTube account.
On your iPod Touch, choose the YouTube application, 'search', and search for your VODCast. Bookmark your VODCast on your iPod. NOTE: - YouTube can take a while to convert and display new videos - be patient!
Next search for each other's YouTube VODCasts on your iPod.
Each YouTube 'show' also has an RSS feed that you can subscribe to. They are of the format: http://www.youtube.com/rss/user/yourusername/videos.rss - you can use Google Reader (http://www.google.com/reader/i/) to subscribe to each other's YouTube shows!
Finally, upload your VODCast to your VOX blog as well - NOTE: VOX converts videos to Flash Video - currently the iPod Touch cannot view Flash videos directly.
Downloading YouTube videos
The YouTube application on the iPod/iPhone does not allow you to store YouTube videos on the iPod/iPhone. To download YouTube videos and convert them for transferring to your iPod/iPhone via iTunes you can:
1. Download YouTube videos from Firefox using an extension like "UnPlug" 2. In Safari - simply open the "activity viewer" window from the "Window" menu, Navigate to the YouTube video page you want to download, and start playing the video - note in the Safari Activity Window which file is downloading, and then double click on it - Safari will download the FLV video to your computer! 3. Convert the FLV video to MP4 using the free application VLC, using the "streaming and transcoding" menu of VLC. 4. Import the converted video into iTunes, and sync your iPod/iPhone - choosing to sync the video so you can watch it "offline". 5. Alternatively there is a free application for downloading and converting YouTube videos for the iPod/iPhone called "TubeTV" 6. Another option is to download the Perian plugin for Quicktime - which will allow you to view FLV videos directly within Quicktime Player itself, and use QuickTime Pro to convert the FLV to MP4 or M4V for synching to iPod/iPhone.
GPS Applications
The GPS built-in to the N95 and iPhone allows you to locate your position on Google Maps, plot directions, and geotag photos (embed longitude and latitude data into photos taken with the smartphone's camera, allowing location on Google Maps etc...). Other more creative applications are also possible - such as locating restaurants etc...
Online photo-sharing services, such as Flickr, support the use of geotagged data and provide direct links too Maps for locating the exact position where the photo was taken. This can be very useful. This data is usually embedded as EXIF data in a jpeg photo. Quote from Flickr:
What is EXIF data? Almost all new digital cameras save JPEG (jpg) files with EXIF (Exchangeable Image File) data. Camera settings and scene information are recorded by the camera into the image file. Examples of stored information are shutter speed, date and time, focal length, exposure compensation, metering pattern and if a flash was used.
When a geotagged photo is uploaded to Flickr, a 'map' link option is presented, and clicking the "more details" link for an uploaded photo will reveal the EXIF data. e.g.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3012/2780470332_9f9eae380b.jpg
On the iPhone, an example GPS enabled geotagging application is "Mobile Photos" - an iPhone Flickr client that supports 'location' details for photos uploaded from the iPhone:
http://static.flickr.com/3246/2773583495_704ce553bd.jpg
http://static.flickr.com/3012/2774438284_be8209a637.jpg
iPhone GPS screenshots:
Make sure the "Location Services" option is enabled in the iPhone's settings - as this turns on the GPS!
http://static.flickr.com/3036/2773547455_376e8b5c1d.jpg
http://static.flickr.com/3134/2780365916_4b66a08b39.jpg
http://static.flickr.com/3008/2773552049_c90830233d.jpg
http://static.flickr.com/3006/2779509077_d187f05af1.jpg
Accessories
A/V Cable connector
The iPod/iPhone can be connected to a TV or video projector etc using the A/V cable connector. There are two options:
1. Composite video connector for VHS quality 2. Component video connector for DVD quality
Using the A/V connector, the iPod/iPhone can use an external display for:
* Photos & slideshows (you can convert Powerpoint presentations to a slideshow for presentation using the ipod/iPhone!) * Videos * Live YouTube videos - great when TV is boring!
The iPod DOCK can be used with the A/V connectors to quickly connect the iPod/iPhone to your stereo/TV and can be remotely controlled by the Apple IR remote.
iPod/iPhone Speakers
Here's a couple of recommended speaker systems for the ipod/iPhone:
1. Bose Portable SoundDock 2. Jamo i300 Sub & satelite speakers 3. B & W Zeppelin Speakers
