Author: jamesclay

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Lego Harry Potter

I don’t play games that often on my iPad and those that I do are often word games such as Boggle or Scrabble. I also like card games and Mondo Solitaire is a fantastic app with all the versions of Solitaire that you can think of.

Though I have bought a few other arcade types, one that my family really enjoyed was Lego Harry Potter.

Play as Harry, Ron, Hermione and many more as you explore Hogwarts and engage in countless hours of gameplay spread across 40+ levels based on the Harry Potter books and movies. 

LEGO® Harry Potter™: Years 1-4 brings the world of LEGO® Harry Potter to life on the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad, giving gamers the power to play with LEGO characters and models in a brand new way. Based on the first four Harry Potter books and movies, LEGO® Harry Potter: Years 1-4 builds on the foundations of previous LEGO® video games by offering a mix of fun, accessible gameplay and light-hearted humor – appealing to all ages. Players can explore the wizarding world and feel as though they are at Hogwarts.

In celebration of the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows- Part 2, LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4 is only £1.99 which compared to the cost of console versions and PSP versions is really really really cheap! This is really good value for what is a compelling and fun game. That is key, though only £1.99 this is a great game that you can spend hours playing.

What Lego have done with their games is add a tongue in cheek element to the films they have made games of and as a result if you know the films you can smile at the little jokes that are interspersed in the little clips included in the game. So a perfect combination if you like Lego and Harry Potter.

The game itself covers the first four books/films of the Harry Potter universe and you start in Privet Drive before finally fighting you know who at the end of the Goblet of Fire.

As with many Lego games (those on the PSP, PS3 etc) the game is a combination of puzzles, logic and, in the case of Harry Potter casting spells.

What surprised me was how much all members of the family enjoyed the game and how quickly they picked it up. The controls work well within the touch interface and simple to use.

I do like the fact that Apple have made this a universal app so it works on the iPod touch, the iPhone and the iPad. Personally I think as a game it works better on the iPad because of the bigger screen.

I know that my family are awaiting the next installment of Harry Potter for the iPad and would also like to see other Lego style games too. We’ll have to wait and see, in the meantime why not try playing this excellent Lego game.

Update: Price has now gone back to £2.99 still excellent value for money.

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Roar!

The Lion is here!

Apple’s latest version of its operating system, Lion 10.7 has arrived. Unlike previous versions that you needed a DVD for, this version is only available via the Mac App Store and costs £20.99. The server version is £34.99.

OS X Lion is the next major release of OS X, the world’s most advanced desktop operating system. It includes over 250 new features that will transform how you interact with your Mac.  Tap, swipe, and scroll your way through your apps using fluid Multi-Touch gestures that make everything you do feel more natural and direct. Full-screen apps take advantage of every pixel of your display — perfect for reading email, surfing the web, or browsing photos. Launchpad gives you instant access to all the apps on your Mac in a stunning new layout where you can quickly find any app and open it with a single click. And Mission Control brings together Exposé, full-screen apps, Dashboard, and Spaces in one unified experience. With a gesture, your desktop zooms out, displaying a bird’s-eye view of everything running on your Mac and making it easy to navigate anywhere with a click.

I won’t be installing it straight away and will wait to see what happens with everyone else first. I will also probably first install it on an external drive before installing it on my “production” iMac.

It’s one big download 3.49GB and even if you have broadband, on a typical connection this is going to take hours to download. For those on rural broadband or 3G connections I have no idea how they are going to download it! Thankfully I have my BT Infinity fibre connection so it shouldn’t take me too long to do.

There is one advantage to downloading it through the Mac App Store and that means you can install it on all your Macs (legally).

Update: You can only download it and install on as many Macs you own or control if it is for personal use only (so not for commercial or educational use).

The screenshot was taken from the OS X Lion 10.6 License Agreement as linked to in the Mac App Store on the right hand side of the Lion App page.

Though in theory it does mean you need to download it each time for each Mac! I am sure there will be some workarounds soon.

This version of OS X combines the traditional elements of the desktop operating system with some of the features you will find on the iPad and the iPhone.

The use of gestures is much more useful in the OS, but I am sure will take a lot of training and getting use to.

I still smile when I see Apple talk about full screen apps, this is something that has been in Windows for ages. Often when people I know used Windows for the first time they would ask me how to make an application full screen, I said that it “wasn’t possible” and that the maximise window feature was there to put the application window at the ideal size for working with. So with Lion we now have full screen apps.

I have been using iPhoto full screen on Snow Leopard, however most of the time I have found I hadn’t needed to click the “full screen” button and have worked with it the same way I always have.

Apple have said that most of the refinements in Lion are behind the scenes, they have improved the way the operating system works rather than lots of new features, which in some ways is a good thing, but I am guessing provides less of an incentive to people to install it, if they can’t see what it brings to their Mac.

So if you have downloaded and installed Lion, what do you think? It is an incremental change with little new, or is it making a radical difference to the way that you work on your Mac?

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Adobe in the Mac App Store

Okay so it’s not Photoshop, but Adobe have their first product in the Mac App Store.

Adobe Photoshop Elements 9 Editor – Now at version 12

Make every photo look its best with a powerful yet easy-to use photo editor from the creators of industry-standard Adobe Photoshop software

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The Adobe Photoshop Elements 9 Editor delivers powerful yet easy-to-use photo editing tools that take your photos from flawed to phenomenal in seconds. Count on automated options that help you get great results with just a few clicks. Works great with iPhoto when you’re ready to go beyond the basics.

For many people Photoshop Elements has all the necessary tools and features for editing and adjusting photographs. Yes, Photoshop is a much more powerful editor, but if you want to go further than the editing tools in iPhoto, but don’t want to spend megabucks on pro tools, than this is the tool for you.

Having said it’s not expensive, if you are use to paying iOS prices for software, then £54.99 may seem a touch more than you are willing to pay, though it is cheaper than the £79 for the boxed software.

It is in fact cheaper to buy the boxed software from Amazon than buying from the Mac App Store, however one of the advantages of buying from the App Store is if you have more than one Mac, then you can, using the App Store, install it on all your Macs. I also like how I can update apps more easily from the app store. Another nice feature of the App Store is when you get a new Mac and then you can transfer your software to it really easily.

This move by Adobe, does make me wonder if their pro tools will ever find their way into the App Store?

There are some really nice features and tools within the photo editor and is a great tool if you want something that is powerful, but isn’t as complicated as the professional Photoshop application is.

Get Photoshop Elements from the App Store.

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ITV Player for Android

I recently discovered that there was an ITVPlayer App for the iPad and the iPhone I also on looking on the ITV site there is also an ITVPlayer App for Android.

I was never really impressed with the BBC iPlayer App for Android that I installed on my Google Nexus One.

The main problem is you don’t get the smooth playback that I get on the iPhone or the iPad. If I play videos direct from the phone I do get smooth playback, so I don’t think it’s an underpowered hardware issue.

I have exactly the same issue with ITV Player. Both apps I find result in audio sync issues. However when playing the same programmes on the iPad, the iPhone or my computer I don’t have the sync or buffering issues.

As I said before I don’t think it’s a hardware issue, identical mp4 video files play just as well on the Google Nexus One as they do on my iPhone. I often use the same file to show the difference in screen quality between the Nexus One and the iPhone 3GS (and now the iPhone 4).

It would appear that my Google Nexus One doesn’t like streaming video. It’s not the connection as I am on wifi and my home broadband is quite fast.

So a question, is it just me and my phone, or are others having similar stuttering, audio sync and buffering issues?

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Podcast Choice #03 – MacBreak Weekly

I have been asked a fair few times about the different podcasts I listen to. I not only have a lengthy commute to work, but also travel a fair bit for work, so it’s vital to me to have something to listen to. This series will discuss and review the different podcasts I listen to or have listened to. In a previous blog post I spoke about the why and how I listen to podcasts, now we look at the actual podcasts I listen to.

This week’s podcast is MacBreak Weekly.

Get the latest Mac news and views from the top journalists covering Apple today. Another great show from the TWiT Netcast Network.

I know I have a bit of a reputation as what some people would call an Apple Fanboy. I do have an iMac at home and one in the office, yes I do have an iPhone and an iPad. So in terms of using Apple hardware, yes I am a bit of a fan. However am I anti-Windows which is in my opinion what really make a fanboy, the answer is no. I do run Windows on my iMac, XP and 7, I do have an Android powered Google Nexus One. I also do use Linux.

Some people may consider MacBreak Weekly, a show about Apple, Macs and iOS as just one for the fans. I won’t say it isn’t about Apple stuff, as it is, however this is quite a balanced show with a focus on Apple stuff. If they don’t like it, they will say so, if they do likewise.

Each week a varied panel of Mac experts and journalists, chaired and hosted by Leo Laporte, review the weeks news, releases and occasionally rumours! They also have weekly picks covering hardware and software, both OS X and iOS.

It’s certainly the show I listen to, to find out what is happening with Apple and also what is happening with OS X and iOS software developers. I have picked up many ideas from the picks and made a fair few purchases. If you use Apple kit and software then you will certainly get useful tips and fresh ideas from the podcast.

As with many podcasts you might need to listen to a few episodes to get a feel for it. As you might expect there may be a few in-jokes that don’t fit if you only hear them once.

Unlike many podcasts each episode is a fair length, sometimes up to two hours, so be prepared for a lengthy listen.

Subscribe to MacBreak Weekly in the iTunes Store.

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Trainz

If you have seen my Flickr feed you may realise that I take a lot of photographs of food… I also take a fair few photographs of trains. My two boys love trains and they often drag me off to railway stations and level crossings to watch steam engines and other trains.

Torndao and the Torbay Express

This weekend the Trainz app for the iPad is on special offer for just 69p.

To celebrate the 10th anniversary of Trainz we have been busy developing Trainz for mobile devices and we are pleased to give each and every iPad user the opportunity to have Trainz at your fingertips. With Trainz custom built input system to get the most out of the iPad’s touch functionality you’ll find driving Trains, laying tracks, creating layouts and completing scheduled tasks a breeze. Trainz Simulator iPad is packed full of content, routes and sessions to give you the best Train experience on any mobile platform. Trainz Simulator is a world first for iPad!

Trainz Simulator for iPad includes everything you need to build and operate your own dream railroad. You can build a fun layout in minutes, faithfully recreate a railroad from days gone by or develop a fully fledged prototypical route; the choice is yours.

So if your young children like trains then they may like this app.

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QR Code on the telly

So there I was watching a cookery programme when up popped a QR code. Though I have seen them on the telly before, this was the first time I think I have seen one on a “normal” mainstream programme rather than your typical tech news or geek style show.

The programme was a mainstream BBC One early evening choice, so it would have hit a fair few viewers.

You would need to be either watching it recorded or on iPlayer or always have your phone’s QR Code reader ready to capture the code. I checked out how it worked using Optiscan on my iPhone and it (usefully) went to the mobile version of the website for the recipe.

One of the nice features of Optiscan (and other QR Code readers) is that I can then e-mail the link to myself so if necessary I can open the relevant link in my computer’s browser.

So are these QR Codes now mainstream?

Of course QR Codes are quite an old technology and more intelligent smartphone apps can now recognise that you are watching television and bring up the relevant content just by listening to the soundtrack. They compare the sound signature to a library and then connect with relevant content.

Likewise for other uses of QR Codes location awareness and image recognition of real things mean that it is possible to get content just by either taking a photograph or just by your phone knowing where it is.

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Boldly going…

When I saw this app mentioned on the Guardian website I thought, oh that sounds like fun.

However in the end I was disappointed.

The Star Trek PADD app was the kind of app that for me would be ideal to show off the iPad. Anyone who has watched Star Trek will have seen Captain Picard use an iPad type device called the PADD. No evidence to prove it, but I suspect a few Apple engineers were inspired by it….

The Official Star Trek PADD (Personal Access Display Device) immerses fans in a rich interactive database of Star Trek information and images with an authentic reproduction of the LCARS style interface introduced in the Star Trek: The Next Generation series.

The PADD provides access to the official Star Trek database from StarTrek.com of aliens, ships, places, technologies, and episode guide. The app includes a true reproduction of LCARS, the computer interface commonly used in Starfleet and the United Federation of Planets during the 24th century, and includes familiar computer sound effects and voice, making it enjoyable to everyone.

Features of the Star Trek PADD app include:

-Browse or search through official database of Star Trek television series information, including aliens, ships, places, technologies, and episode guide
-Rich, immersive LCARS graphical interface, introduced in Star Trek: The Next Generation television series
-Authentic computer sound effects and voice
-Jump to related information through cross-links to other content
-Read the latest news from the Star Trek Facebook page and Star Trek Twitter feed
-Enjoy two self-running diagnostic modes with an overview schematic of the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-D

The ability to have your own PADD, by running the Star Trek PADD was very appealing. I knew that all the content was available on the Star Trek website, so I knew I was paying £2.99 purely for the interface. That is quite a bit of money for an interface, but it is the same as a price of a cup of coffee from a high street coffee shop, I had hoped that the app would last longer than the coffee, but alas I was to be disappointed.

The LCARS interface wasn’t what I was expecting, lots of flashing bits and pieces. If my memory serves me rightly the LCARS on the television show wasn’t quite so annoying. The animated interface seems to be much more animated than on the television show. It certainly is flashing on and off a lot more than the website.

The PADD app seems to have a huge amount of content, though I am not surprised to read:

The official Star Trek PADD app database does not include all information within the Star Trek Universe. We will continue to update the database as information becomes available.

So some stuff is missing.

What did surprise me was the lack of video clips. There may be some in there, but I didn’t see any. The website has a fair few video clips, but as they are in a Flash format obviously don’t work on the iPad.

Overall I was disappointed with what should be an ideal app for the iPad, the content, though complete, failed to take advantage of the iPad platform, without video clips or animations, it is just a textual encyclopedia. Combined with the over animated LCARS interface, it was an app that didn’t work for me. I should have bought a coffee and accessed the Star Trek Wiki on my iPad instead.

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Podcast Choice #02 – Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4


I have been asked a fair few times about the different podcasts I listen to. I not only have a lengthy commute to work, but also travel a fair bit for work, so it’s vital to me to have something to listen to. This series will discuss and review the different podcasts I listen to or have listened to. In a previous blog post I spoke about the why and how I listen to podcasts, now we look at the actual podcasts I listen to.

This week’s podcast is Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4.

Bringing you a satirical take on the week’s news with the cream of UK comedy talent from BBC Radio 4.

Every Friday at 6.30pm on Radio 4 you can listen to (usually) either the News Quiz or the Now Show. These, if you like satirical comedy, are very funny and well worth listening to. The News Quiz was the inspiration for Have I Got News for You (on the telly) and is hosted by the talented Sandy Toksvig with a panels that changes every week. It’s a light hearted look at the week’s news in the form of a quiz!

The Now Show is a different kettle of fish, hosted by Punt and Dennis, if you enjoyed the Mary Whitehouse Experience (also from the Telly) then very likely you will enjoy the Now Show. It takes a satirical look at the week’s news and the running gags, “come on Tim” ensure a regular listen is a must.

The Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4 podcast alternates between these two shows, and occasionally with something less satisfying.

As a BBC Podcast one of the annoying aspects is that only the latest episode is available, if you forget to download it then you’ve missed it. I suspect that this is a licensing issue and the BBC can’t avoid it. I know I regularly check for new episodes in iTunes, however if you don’t subscribe to many podcasts it can be easy to forget to check on a regular basis. As it is a podcast, unlike iPlayer downloads, there is no DRM, so you can hold into past episodes. Unlike some of the other podcasts I listen to, these I will listen to again, so have a fair archive now of episodes going back a few years.

I usually listen to the podcast on the way into work on a Monday morning and it certainly has me laughing out loud as I trundle up the M5.

My only complaint, well, I wonder where the podcasts of Just a Minute or Sorry I Haven’t a Clue are? Would be great if they were available – they are occasionally as part of Radio 4’s Comedy of the Week, but would be nice if every episode was available to download.

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Update Now!

Have you noticed how some devices continually ask you to update, whilst others seem perfectly happy to stick with the firmware they were delivered with.

Windows can drive you crazy, especially if you use it less often than twice a day it would seem. Turn on the PC and rather than let you get on with stuff, it decides no you can’t get on with the stuff you actually need to do, no it’s much more important to use up the CPU and the RAM (and your Internet connection) to download and install updates. Once it has done that, and you think you can get on with stuff, no it needs to restart. On a bad day it will after restarting decide that you need even more updates… Once that’s done, you start your browser and then Flash, Java and Shockwave all need to be updated. By the time that’s done you’ve probably forgotten why you turned the PC on in the first place.

At work where I have no control over my locked down work PC, it is little better, first thing it does when turned on in the morning is, yes you’ve guessed it, update everything… Generally I turn on the PC and then go and make some coffee.

OS X is a little better, but not by much. The default for OS X is to download updates in he background before telling you what needs to be installed. If you have a small pipe and a bandwidth limit this can cause problems. Before I was lucky enough to get my upgrade to fibre one of the annoying things about OS X updates was the sheer size of them, often in excess of 1GB. On my ADSL connection this could take hours and soak up the entire connection.

iOS updates are just as bad, huge updates for both the iPad and the iPhone. Updating can take a while as files are backed up and apps reinstalled. I have over the last few years downloaded lots of apps, and as a result there are updates for them on a regular basis, at least I have a choice on downloading them. Same with Android, though at least you are given the choice on when you can update.

Of course you an change the defaults and download updates as and when you want to, which I do. I also recognize the importance of updating and especially security updates. It’s just that the default assumption is that the tool and the updating of the tool is considered more important by the tool than the actual reason you have the tool, which is to do stuff.

Back to my first point, I am “forced” to update my computers, iPad and iPhone on a regular basis. Why though does my Canon DSLR not need updating? Can I even update it? Why? Yes it is less complicated than my PC, is that the only reason?

Having said that, my old TV I have had for seven years and never updated it once. My new TV is less than a year old and it has needed updating about three or four times… One of the downsides of have an internet connected TV I guess. Likewise my Blu-Ray player often needs to be updated before I can play a Blu-Ray disc, well it has happened to me twice!

Then there are those updates that actually kill functionality, Sony have been good at this with their firmware updates for the PSP and the PS3. Updating can actually stop you from doing stuff. I remember an upgrade to Microsoft Office that I installed once that killed one of my favourite applications, the original PhotoDraw, that was very annoying.

I guess we are now in an era of updating, a continual process of improvement… But is it always improvement to make things better?