Month: May 2010

iBye – An Easy Alternative to Back Up Your iPhone Data

Guest Author ∙ May 28, 2010

Recently released by a developer named EvilPenguin under the ModMyI repo is a pretty cool and useful app called iBye.

iBye can replace iTunes as far as backing your data. If you’re on the road and don’t have iTunes nearby or if you’re one of many anti-iTunes individuals out there, then iBye is perfect for you. iBye will backup your data and store that data on a FTP server of your choice . iBye will restore this data from the backup on that FTP server as well.

In order to do this, you just need to get yourself an FTP server if you don’t already have one. Windows users can get one here. Mac users here.

If you do not want to use a FTP server, then iBye will do a local backup and local restore on the iDevice itself.

iBye supports your basic applications such as Mail, Notes, Safari, Calendar, Photos and Contacts along with your system log.

It's a great application to backup your important information on the fly (ie. your contacts).

iBye also gives you the option to remove your data from the application of your choice if that’s what you want to do. This is helpful if you want to clear your calendar but don’t feel like going through each and every entry.

For a little bit under what you usually pay for a gallon of gas in California, you can get iBye $2.99.

iPhone 3GS OS 4 Beta 4 Jailbroken

Sébastien Page ∙ May 27, 2010

Yesterday I was telling you about RedSn0w 0.9.5b4, a tool to jailbreak the iPhone 3G running iPhone OS 4 beta 4. Today, Dutch developer Kaatje managed to jailbreak an iPhone 3GS with OS 4 beta 4.

She notes on her blog:

Cydia still has some issues, many applications install but crash, some examples include mobileterminal, sbsettings, five icon dock. I did this only to hopefully motivate the developers to get their applications ready for 4.0 as it is coming very soon and the last thing we need in the community is to have repos full of broken apps! I accomplished this by patching asr, lockdownd, LLB, iBEC, IBSS, iBoot, kernelcache, MobileSafari, Services.plist, and fstab. The binaries were patched with IDA Pro and OxED and were then diffed against the original pwned files with bsdiff to create patch files. I then took the diff files and built a firmware bundle that I dropped into Pwnagetool and updated the cydia tree within Pwnagetool as well. Once this was done, I created a custom ipsw with Pwnagetool, unzipped it, applied a pwned LLB from a pwnagetool generated 3.1.3 ipsw, zipped it back up and restored to my device. At this time I am unable to get my T-Mobile NL sim to work so I downgraded back to 3.1.3 after playing around with 4.0 for a while. I look forward to the release and the official unlock from the Dev-Team.

That's interesting to see she was able to downgrade back to 3.1.3. Other interesting point is the mention of the "official unlock from the Dev-Team". If I was a conspiracy theorist, I'd think that the Dev Team already found an exploit to unlock iPhone OS 4 but they're waiting for the official release to make it available to the general public.

What do you think?

SNES (HD): Super Nintendo Emulator for Jailbroken iPad

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated October 10, 2018

Most of us with jailbroken iPhones are already familiar with the PlayStation, Game Boy, Nes and Super Nes emulators, those hacks that bring our favorite old games to the iPhone or iPod Touch.

Because bigger is better, now comes SNES (HD), a Super Nintendo emulator for iPad and controlled with an iPhone. Don't need to read this previous sentence again because I'm going to repeat it for you: SNES (HD) is a Super Nintendo emulator for iPad that allows you to play any Super Nes game and control them with your iPhone.

SNES (HD) is an iPad port of the popular Super Nintendo emulator Snes9x. It is based on ZodTTD’s iPhone port snes4iphone but it has been rewritten for the iPad.

How to install the SNES (HD) Super Nes emulator on your iPad

Step 1: Your iPad and iPhone must be jailbroken. If it's not, jailbreak them. At the time this article is written, Spirit is the best way to jailbreak your iPad and iPhone.

Step 2: In Cydia, add the following source to your iPad and iPhone: http://wherethewoozlewasnt.com/cydia. SNES (HD) should be released in the ModMyI repo soon but for the moment, you will need to add this source manually.

Step 3: Once the source has been added, install SNES (HD) on your iPad and ControlPad on your iPhone.

Step 4: Now you need to add Super Nintendo ROMs to your iPad in /var/mobile/Media/ROMs/SNES. The best way to add ROMs is by using WinSCP for Windows or CyberDuck for Mac. If you don't have any Super Nintendo ROMs in there, you obviously won't be able to do anything. For legal reasons I cannot tell you where to find ROMs but a quick Google search with right keywords should get you what you're looking for.

Step 5: Make sure bluetooth is enabled on both your iPhone and iPad. Launch SNES (HD) on your iPad and ControlPad on your iPhone.

Step 6: Your iPad and iPhone will start looking for each other. After about a minute, "Tap to Connect" will pop up on your iPhone. Tap on the entry for your iPad, and in a second the iPad will display an “Accept/Deny” screen. Hit "accept" and you’ll be connected.

Step 7: Select a ROM from the list of ROMs available (it depends on how many you added) and enjoy your Super Nes emulator for iPad.

100% credit for this goes to the developer of SNES (HD) and his blog Where the woozle wasn't. I simply made the instructions clearer and easier.

This Super Nintendo emulator for iPad is free but the developer accepts donations. If you're going to use SNES (HD) that'd be nice if you could send him a few bucks by visiting his site and hitting the "donate" button.

If you're still on the fence about installing SNES (HD) on your iPad, watch this video.

Apple Surpasses Microsoft’s Market Capitalization and Becomes World’s Biggest Tech Company

Sébastien Page ∙ May 26, 2010

Apple finally surpassed Microsoft in terms of market capitalization to become the world's largest tech company. Obviously, there are many criteria on which you can rate companies and my guess is that Microsoft still surpasses Apple on many of them (ie. market shares for the personal computer market).

Anyway you look at it, it's still huge news. At the time I'm writing this, Microsoft market cap is at 225.58 billion dollars which Apple's is at 226.57 billions.

I'm glad I got some of those Apple stocks a while back...

Dev Team Releases Redsn0w 0.9.5b4 Jailbreak for iPhone OS 4 Beta 4

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated February 5, 2016

RedSn0w has been updated to version 0.9.5b4 by the Dev Team for the recent iPhone OS 4 beta 4. This beta release of RedSn0w is not for casual iPhone users. It is aimed at developers of jailbreak apps so they can update their applications to work on OS 4.

RedSn0w 0.9.5b4 jailbreak for iPhone OS 4 beta 4 uses the same pwnage2 DFU-mode exploit that has been using since OS 2.X, so nothing has been revealed to Apple.

Because this version is for iPhone OS 4 beta 1-4 which contain a baseband update, anyone who's remotely interested in unlocking should stay away from the OS 4 betas or even this version of RedSn0w.

Further information and instructions can be found here.

myPhoneDesktop: Send Images, Text, URLs and More Wirelessly to Your iPhone

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated January 23, 2016

myPhoneDesktop is an application from the App Store that lets you send phone numbers, URLs, text, and images from any desktop computer to your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch over the air.

With myPhoneDesktop, you can send content quickly from your desktop to your iPhone. Whether you want to send a long Google Map URL to a friend, or some text to a business colleague, or a photo to iPhone, myPhoneDesktop makes it easy.

myPhoneDesktop makes your iPhone an extension of your desktop by making them work seamlessly together. If you can copy it, you can send it to the iPhone. Using the comfort of your Mac or PC full keyboard, you can send SMS messages, notes, or anything you can type. And in moments, it will be on your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch.

On one end, you've got your desktop application. From there, you can copy any phone number, text, image or URL and hit "copy" to send it to your iDevice.

On the other end, you've got your iDevice. Simply launch myPhoneDesktop and the content you sent from your desktop computer will magically appear, assuming you are connected to the internet whether on wifi or 3G. From there, you can open, copy, etc...

myPhoneDesktop can also notify you with push notifications, letting you view the file right away or ignore it to see it later.

That's a very simple yet very useful application. I usually send myself emails with text, images or phone numbers really often and it can be a little cumbersome. Now I can send a phone number effortlessly and assign it to a contact or call it directly from my iPhone.

The desktop app is compatible with Mac, Windows and Linux. They also have a web client that allows you to bypass the whole download thing and lets you send content from any computer equipped with a web browser.

You can download myPhoneDesktop from the App Store for $1.99. It will work for your iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch

You can check the ugly myPhoneDesktop website here. [via Gizmodo]

aDownloader Download Manager for iPhone

Sébastien Page ∙ May 25, 2010

aDownloader is a download manager that lets you download many different files to your iPhone or iPod Touch. With over 40 supported files, aDownloader will download all your files over any available network, from any site, including hosting sites such as RapidShare and MegaUpload.

The supported files include but are not limited to:

PDF Word (doc and docx) Excel (xls, xlsx) PowerPoint (ppt, pptx) Audio files (mp3, m4a, wav) Videos (mpeg, 3gp, mov, youtube) Image files (jpg, png, gif, bmp) Text files (txt, html, xml) RAR and Zip archives (including multipart, password protected)

With aDownloader, you can easily manage and organize your downloads by creating folders, copying, deleting and moving files around.

This app gives you access to multiple simultaneous downloads, with no file limit. You can pause/resume interrupted downloads. If your internet connection fails, you can even resume your download later.

Finally, the best feature seems to be that you can download/upload your files to/from your desktop computer via your web browser.

I haven't tried aDownloader myself but it sure looks like a winner for those of you who need to regularly download files to your iPhone.

aDownloader is a free application you can download right now from Cydia. If you try aDownloader, please share your feedback with us in the comments section.

Browser Changer: Open Links in Third-Party Browsers

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated January 23, 2016

Browser Changer is a new applications available in Cydia that lets you make a third-party browser your default browser. This way, you can open links in a third-party browser instead of opening them in Safari.

Why would use this application? Let me explain. Let's say your web browser of choice is Opera Mini. Every time you click on a link in an email for example, you may want this link to open in Opera Mini. Apple doesn't let you do this but Browser Changer will.

This is definitely not a ground breaking application, but it is still a nice tweak for those of you who use a browser different from Safari. This app also comes with a SBSettings toggle, so you can turn it on/off easily and quickly.

Browser Changer offers support for Atomic, iCab Mobile, Perfect Browser and Opera Mini. You can simply choose your default browser in the settings.app.

You can get Browser Changer for free from Cydia. If you decide to try it on, please leave a comment below to tell us what you think about this app.

Thanks @PhoneTrips for the tip!

Spirit Jailbreak Ported to Linux

Sébastien Page ∙ May 24, 2010

The now famous Spirit jailbreak developed by Comex was already available on Windows and Mac. Now, thanks to iPhone hacker p0sixninja, Spirit is now available for Linux as well.

According to RedmondPie: "The binaries and source code needed to get to work are now available. You will need some experience with Linux commands to make it work. Spirit for Linux can be downloaded from here."

I'm sure this will be helpful to the Windows haters and Linux aficionados.

Android on iPhone 3G Now Available

Sébastien Page ∙ May 24, 2010

A couple of weeks ago, iPhone hacker PlanetBeing showed us a demo of Android running on an iPhone 3G. This week, he posted full instructions on how to install Android on an iPhone 3G.

In all honesty, I can't see why one would want to install this on the iPhone besides the thrill of the technical challenge. At this time, this port of Android is highly unstable.

Although this port does everything that you expect your smartphone to be able to do, it isn't usable for day-to-day activities just yet--I haven't implemented any power-management functions, so a fully charged iPhone running Android will last only an hour or so.

A few bugs and performance issues remain, too, so while the phone will be usable, it won't be fast. If you do something unexpected (such as forcing the iPhone off), there is a small chance that you may end up restoring your device. However, it is impossible for any bugs to brick or disable your iPhone permanently.

Finally, media syncing is not working, so loading your media onto your phone is kind of a pain. I'm working as hard as I can, though, and I expect to fix these issues soon.

PlanetBeing posted full instructions explaining how to install a port of Android on your iPhone.

If you don't have the required setup or feel a little scared by the instructions, you may want to give a try to iPhoDroid, by Sergio McFly.

iPhoDroid is an app that will make your life much easier. It will automatically transfer all the necessary files to run Android on your iPhone. The other advantage of iPhoDroid is that it is developed for Mac, which means you won't need a Linux machine like you would if you followed PlanetBeing's "manual" instructions.

If any of you dare taking a shot at installing Android on your lovely device, I would love to hear about your experience.

iPhone News You Missed This Week

Sébastien Page ∙ May 23, 2010

This is a wrapup of all articles that were published on the blog this week.

Watch live TV on your iPhone or iPad The real iPhone killer Rename: change your iPhone applications name Official Twitter app for iPhone Display your iPad screen on TV with DisplayOut AT&T internet tethering coming with iPhone OS 4? Record your iPhone screen with Display Recorder How to customize your iPhone with themes PwnTunes: manage media files without iTunes iPhone OS 4 beta 4 Words with Friends

Words with Friends!

Cody Lee ∙ Updated March 27, 2018

Wow! Free has come a long way in the Apple App Store. Gone are the days where free apps consisted of simple gimmick sound boards and unplayable games. I ran across quite the gem of an app the other day and figured I'd share it with our readers. I typically don't troll the App Store much so excuse me if I am late to the party with this short review of Words with Friends : Free Edition.

I actually was encouraged by a friend of mine to download the application. Without reading anything on the description page I did so and was pleasantly surprised. You see this was an old friend from back home and we used to play board games all the time, mostly Scrabble.

This was actually a near exact replica of the popular word game. Not only that, but after a quick sign up process using my email, I was able to look her up by her email, and within seconds we were playing "scrabble" together, from completely different states.

Not only do you play the game in near real time, you have the option to chat with your opponent (perfect for in game trash talking so you don't have to switch from your game to the sms app to say "VORACIOUSNESS bitch! Yeah it's a real word, 60 points!" Which brings me to my next point that this is certainly not your typical watered down trial version.

My favorite feature had to be the push notifications. They worked like a champ. If I closed the application to do something, and forgot that I was playing, it would beep and remind me that it was my turn, showing the typical push notification icon, on top of the game icon on my springboard.

Overall the game play was enjoyable, only having to wait 30 seconds to a minute between turns if the other player is paying attention, very nice. The interface was very intuitive as it felt like you were playing the board game, not hard to figure out.

The only real set back I ran into was when I tried to download Words with Friends for my iPad. It told me I needed to register the original version on my iPhone before being able to use it on another device. I'm not sure if that meant I needed to purchase the full version or just register my email.

To be honest I didn't mess with it much as I do plan on purchasing the full version in HD for my iPad if I continue to play it as much as I had been. For not costing me anything, this is a pretty sweet app that has definitely found a place on my home screen, how about you?