Cory Bohon

“Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes.

The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them.

About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They invent. They imagine. They heal. They explore. They create. They inspire. They push the human race forward.

Maybe they have to be crazy.

How else can you stare at an empty canvas and see a work of art? Or sit in silence and hear a song that’s never been written? Or gaze at a red planet and see a laboratory on wheels?

We make tools for these kinds of people.

While some see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.“

Steve Jobs has been an inspiration to me throughout my lifetime. Without a doubt, I would not be a developer today if I hadn’t bought my first iPod or Mac. These products have not only changed my life, but have inspired me to create things, inspired me to dream, and (most importantly) have inspired me to peruse my college education in the field of Computer Science. However, none of this would have happened without the inspiration of a simple Apple product. A simple product that itself was perfectly inspired and created by Steve.

Here’s to Steve… a person whose legacy won’t soon be forgotten.

Today, Steve Jobs, the co-founder of Apple passed away. Let’s make sure that his legacy of innovation and idea creation is never forgotten. He has inspired so many people over his lifetime, including myself. May his life never be forgotten, and may we always remember the man who shaped the face of computing technology.

Apple’s new CEO, Tim Cook summed it up best:

Apple has lost a visionary and creative genius, and the world has lost an amazing human being. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to know and work with Steve have lost a dear friend and an inspiring mentor. Steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple.

Apple’s much awaited iAds became available today for iOS 4 applications that have them enabled. Currently, Nisan is running iAds on the device through many iOS 4 applications.

If you are looking to check out iAds for the iPhone, I have two applications that support iAds as a support model.

• Coin Flipper Lite (free, App Store Link) – Flip a coin to settle any bets you may have.
• StepTracker Lite (free, App Store Link) – A pedometer for your iOS 4 device that will track your steps in style.

If you find the time and inclination to check out Apple’s iAd mobile advertising platform, I would appreciate you checking out my applications.

‘Twas the night before Macmas, when all through the house
Not a harddrive was whirring, not even a Mighty Mouse.
The iPods were placed on their docks with care,
In the hopes that St. Steve would soon be there.

The Apple fans were impatiently waiting all snug in their beds,
While visions of tablet-Macs danced in their little heads.

When up on the roof arose such a clatter,
I sprang from my bed to see what was a matter.
Away from Microsoft Windows I failed like Adobe Flash,
Tore open the Aperture and threw up the sash.

When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But Steve Jobs and eight tiny iDeer.

“Now Phil! now, Scott! now, Johnny and Tim!
On, Bertrand! On, Peter! On Mark and Ron!
Top the top of the porch! To the top of the wall!
Now flick away, Flick away! Flick away all!”

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof
The prancing, the pawing of each little iHoof.
As I drew in my head, and was turning around,
Down the chimney St. Steve came with a bound.

He was dressed all in Snow Leopard fur, from his head to his Nike Plus foot,
And his turtleneck and blue jeans were all tarnished with soot.
A bundle of Apple goodies he had flung on his back,
And he looked like a salesperson, just opening his Apple bag.

He sprang to his iSleigh, to his executive team gave a whistle,
And away they all zoomed like the Mac Pro’s processor.
But I heard him exclaim, ‘ere he drove out of iSight,
“Happy Macmas to all, and to all an Apple-night!”

With Windows 7 set to be released this Thursday (October 22, 2009), I thought I’d take a minute to tell you about some of the features that I actually like (yes, shocking, I know!).

I’ve been using Windows 7 since the earliest betas came out earlier this year, and I instantly enjoyed Microsoft’s newest OS. I haven’t used Windows on a regular basis since Windows XP about five years ago, but Windows 7 just seems different and refreshing — a break from the regular Microsoft OS.

Some of the cooler features that I like involves the user interface. One of (I think) the best features is the inclusion of a tool that allows you to drag a window near the edge of either the left or right of the screen and have it automatically resize to fill exactly half of the screen. When you want the window back to normal size, drag it back off. This allows you to view two documents, web pages, etc. side by side. And what if you have too much clutter on your desktop? Simply grab the foremost window and shake it side to side to hide all other windows. Shake again to reveal the hidden windows.

The taskbar has also changed dramatically, allowing you to “pin” applications to it and rearrange the pinned applciations in an almost OS X-like way. Oh, and what’s that small vertical bar at the far right of the taskbar? Well, press it and it will instantly hide all the windows to show your desktop. Click it again to show the windows. If you have a few windows opened up and need just to see what’s on your desktop, just hover over this button to make the windows invisible, showing your desktop.

Windows Vista was very buggy and reminded me of Microsoft’s mishap of an OS, Windows ME. Windows 7, however, will most likely be the operating system to redeem Microsoft from the reliability slump. I’ve experienced no crashes in my testing of Windows 7, and those annoying security messages have all but disappeared for unneeded authentications.

Overall, I’m extremely happy with Windows 7. And while I will remain a Mac user, I can now use Windows without having to shriek in horror of the bad user experience.