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Analytics App Finally Brings Google Analytics to the iPhone

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated November 12, 2019

I have about 20 different websites and part of my daily routine is to check out my Google Analytics account to have a look at the stats. Thanks to Michael Jensen and his new Analytics App, I can now do this on the go, directly from my iPhone.

There's already a couple Google Analytics apps in the App Store but they're not nearly as good as Analytics App [iTunes Link]. So what makes Analytics App so much better? Well, to be honest, it's as comprehensive as you can get and it really is a "pocket version" of your full Google Analytics account.

When launching the app for the first time, Analytics App asks for your Google Analytics username and password. Once done, it loads all the websites you have analytics access to. If you have different profiles, it will load all of them with each website conveniently listed. Just tap the website for which you want to see the stats and you will be presented with 29 reports as well as unlimited custom reports, if you set them up. Wow!

I could go on and on about what Analytics App can do but as I said before, it does everything you can do from your Google Analytics account on your computer's browser. To be honest with you, I think I find the app actually easier than the web version!

One thing I didn't really like though is the fact that I cannot get the stats for yesterday. As much as I tried to change the dates and everything, I just wasn't able to get my analytics report for the previous day, which is usually what I'm looking for. I assume it's a missing feature that will most likely be added in future updates.

Analytics App is a must-have for any website/blog owner! You can download it from the App Store for $5.99 and at this price, I still think it's a steal. Now I'm just hoping that Michael Jensen will also develop an application for Google Adsense and Adwords. Michael, if you hear me...

How to Downgrade Baseband 2.30.03 to 2.28.00

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated January 23, 2016

If you like this post, please feel free to digg it, or subscribe to our RSS feed, or follow me on Twitter, or all of the above ;)

[digg-me]Since firmware 2.2.1 came out and updated the baseband from 2.28.00 to 2.30.03, many people accidentally updated, and are now stuck on baseband 2.30.03. I wonder how you can "accidentally update" your firmware as it takes a few steps, but anyways... I've had a few emails from people asking me how to downgrade baseband 2.30.03 to 2.28.08.

If you're looking to unlock your iPhone with YellowSn0w, you can't do that as long as you will on baseband 2.30.03. Unfortunately, you can not downgrade baseband 2.30.03 to 2.28.00! Sorry folks but you should have read the Dev Team's warning!

Now the good news is that I'm very confident the Dev Team is working on updating YellowSn0w so it works with firmware 2.2.1, baseband 2.30.03.

You can still downgrade your firmware from 2.2.1 to 2.2 in iTunes by hitting SHIFT + RESTORE and selecting firmware 2.2 but you will most likely have errors and even if you manage to downgrade, you still won't be able to downgrade the baseband.

UPDATE: It's now possible to downgrade your baseband thanks to pHaseBanDowngrader

pH (Pedro Henrique Franceschi) created a tool to help you downgrade your baseband from 2.30.03 to 2.28.00. To use this tool, you have to have to have an iPhone with bootloader 5.8. If your iPhone was manufactured before September 2008, you're good. If you bought your iPhone after September 2008 with firmware 2.2.1 out of the box, then you can't use pHaseBanDowngrader because your bootloader is 5.9.

Here are the instructions on how to downgrade using pHaseBanDowngrader:

1. Download this file 2. SSH into your iPhone and put the downloaded folder (phasebandowngrader) inside the folder /Applications/ 3. In MobileTerminal.app, type “login” and enter “root” as user, the default password is “alpine” 4. Now, type “cd /Applications/phasebandowngrader && ./phasebandowngrader”. Follow the screen instructions 5. Done!

Again, a big Thank You to pH for developing this tool.

Tweetie – The Best Twitter App?

Guest Author ∙ February 4, 2009

The App Store has thousands of apps, including more than a handful of Twitter apps. So you might be wondering: "what is the best?" Well, one app that calls itself the best Twitter app is Tweetie. So the question is: is Tweetie really the best Twitter app?

Interface

The interface is nice and feels good. But, there's always a but. It takes a bit getting used to. Especially for users like me who used TwitterFon. You need to learn things like the "swipe" and other stuff. But it is relatively easy to master after a bit of use.

Look

Tweetie definitely looks much better than any other Twitter app I have seen.

Humor

Tweetie is the only app I have seen with a sense of humor. It has a "Popularity Enhancer" feature. It is a joke really, but what it does is it gives you a flashlight and when you do the "swipe" it replaces the normal click sound with a fart sound. Quite funny and a joke on the App Store.

Smoothness

Tweetie is definetly more smooth than other free apps, and it does not crash or eat up all your RAM.

Other Features

- An option for you to set the image compression for a smaller or normal size. You choose how much compression.

- Multiple Account management

- Instapaper integration

- Links to StockTwits

- Optional landscape keyboard

- Themes

- Follow and un-follow people

- Block/unblock users

- Navigate reply chains

- Inline web browser

- Inline TwitPic image viewer

Missing Features

One feature I liked from TwitterFon is that when you were typing a new tweet, there was a @ button which showed all the people you are following. This is very handy. The developers of Tweetie told me they will add this in future updates.

Overall

I'm going to be honest. If you are constantly tweeting, or use Twitter everyday I recommend Tweetie. It's smoothness and easy to use interface has won me over. I highly recommend this.

In my opinion, Tweetie is definitely worth $2.99 for those of you who use Twitter everyday or often. But for those who rarely ever use Twitter, I think you are better of with a free Twitter app.

RedSn0w iPod Touch 2G Jailbreak

Sébastien Page ∙ February 1, 2009

The long awaited RedSn0w jailbreak for iPod Touch 2G is now available but let me tell you right now that it is not for the feint of heart! Indeed the Dev Team released RedSn0w yesterday in a very discrete way as they didn't even mention it on their blog.

The main reason why RedSn0w was so quietly release is probably due to the fact that this version is what could be considered as a pre-release and it is "a no frills tethered jailbreak for iPod Touch 2G " as the Dev Team puts it in the read me file.

RedSn0w is in fact a tethered jailbreak and if you're sure about what you're doing, you should even try. You will have to use RedSn0w at your own risk and the Dev Team was clear that it will not provide any support.

WE WILL BE PROVIDING ABSOLUTELY NO SUPPORT FOR THIS!!!!! If you post comments on our blog looking for support, we reserve the right to ban your user ID from the blog. You really shouldn't be doing this unless you understand it all enough to not need support!

This version is for Mac only and does not include a GUI but if you know your way around a computer, you should be able to have it run on Linux and Windows. I haven't tried it myself as I don't have an iPod Touch 2G but so here are the instructions straight from RedSn0w.com. For the full read me file, go to the website.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------- rslite ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- This is an interface to the DFU and Recovery modes of the device. It requires you to have libusb installed on your Mac. Due to buggy interaction between libusb and the Apple device, any output that is long gets all chewed up. But if you stick to just the "!" and the "#" commands, you won't notice. We don't normally use this tool but it's a lot easier to distribute and compile than the GUI we use. The "!" (exclamation point, no quotes when you use it) sends a file. The "#" (pound sign, no quotes when you use it) sends a script. In both cases, you name the file right after the symbol. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Basic instructions ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Note: these are the bare bones instructions. Please don't come to us looking for more detailed instructions. Preparation 1) Copy the FirmwareBundles and CustomPackages directories into your PwnageTool.app/Contents/Resources directory 2) Create a custom 2.2.1 ipsw with PwnageTool in Advanced mode. Don't enable custom boot logos. 3) From your custom 2.2.1 ipsw, extract these (patched) files: iBSS.n72ap.RELEASE.dfu (name it iBSS221pwn.dfu) iBoot.n72ap.RELEASE.img3 (name it iBoot221pwn.img3) 4) From the official 2.1.1 ipsw, extract this (unpatched) file: iBSS.n72ap.RELEASE.dfu (name it iBSS211.dfu) Installing the jailbroken custom ipsw 5) Put your ipt2g into DFU mode using keypresses. Don't have iTunes running! 6) Start rslite. Send the official iBSS from 2.1.1: !iBSS211.dfu 7) Start rslite again. Send the redsn0w-lite patch: #pwn211ibss.txt 8) Send the patched iBSS from 2.2.1: !iBSS221pwn.dfu 9) Use iTunes to do a full restore using your custom 2.2.1 ipsw Tethered boot After the install, your ipt2g will not be bootable without assistance from a tethered computer. The method in this README.txt requires you to go into DFU mode, but you should be able to find (or work out on your own) other more convenient ways. 10) Repeat steps 5-8 11) Send the patched iBoot from 2.2.1: !iBoot221pwn.img3 Your homescreen should soon show up. You can then start iTunes.

If any of you guys try this, please let us know how it goes in the comments...

Apple and Adobe Collaborating on iPhone Flash

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated May 11, 2018

Flash for the iPhone kinda reminds me of copy/paste for the iPhone. It's something that should have been there since day 1, but never was because Apple made the non-sense decision to not having it. Why? I don't know for sure but I am certain Steve Jobs has a rational explanation for this.

The Flash non-sense is now coming to an end as Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen announced last week at the World Economic Forum that Adobe and Apple are working together in an effort to bring Flash to the iPhone. That's about time!

In an interview to Bloomberg, Narayen said that "it's a hard technical challenge and that's part of the reason Apple and Adobe are cooperating to try and get it done as soon as possible". He also said that "we have the developer kit and the onus is now on us".

According to RWW:

The debate has been long and tough. In March last year Narayen said that with or without Apple's blessing, Adobe planned to develop a Flash player for the iPhone/iPod touch platform. Unfortunately Apple CEO Steve Jobs had already made it clear the current Adobe offerings were not acceptable. Flash Lite, the version designed specifically for mobile devices, just wasn't good enough and Adobe's desktop product was just too slow on the iPhone. According to Jobs, what was needed was a "missing product in the middle."

It seems that Adobe has been working on this missing product and while there is no time frame, we certainly hope to get Flash on our iPhones sooner rather than later...

Up There is a Surprising Game

Guest Author ∙ January 30, 2009

OK, so the title sound weird huh? Well that's how I feel, really. I first heard of Up There on Twitter. I kept on saying what's the point?! Everyone kept saying it was a great game. Then the developer contacted me on Twitter. He told me he was going to send me a code just for my opinion (don't bomb him asking, guys). Boy was I surprised! The game is a beautiful game indeed just as everyone said. It features beautifully done artwork throughout the whole app.

Above is just a taste. The point of the game is to get the balloon "up there" as up as you can though the barriers that might block you, which is pretty hard. But this has become one of my favorite games. It features an online score board so that you can compete with people. The game is really fun. There aren't really many ways I can describe this well.

The app is normally $1.99 but is on sale for $0.99.

P.S: Just a little comment. One of the developers, Jeff, has agreed to sing us a song once the app reaches the top twenty. So, I'm looking forward to that Jeff ;)

Paper Pilot – A Show Off App!

Guest Author ∙ January 30, 2009

OK so I bet you are wondering what's so great about "Paper Pilot" due to the title right? Well I'll get right to the point. Although Paper Pilot is not a gigantic game that will keep you entertained forever and that you will get addicted to, it is a showoff.

This app uses the powerful Unity Game Engine and it shows off what the iPhone graphics can be. Paper Pilot has received criticism since it uses demos that come with the Unity Game Engine when you get it, but rest assure: Clever Coding (the dev of Paper Pilot) asked Unity for permission and they have allowed it.

The gameplay is pretty simple: you fly a paper airplane using the accelerometer, collecting paper clips and trying to do so in the shortest time possible to get ranks.

Here is a video of the gameplay (not by me):

Although the game is not yet a "wow" it is a very fun game showing off the iPhone's ability. The devs have planned for a future update:

- Weapons, like spitball guns and pencil missiles - Enemies, like the stapler and tape dispenser - Dogfighting other paper airplanes

The app is normally priced at $2.99 but is on sale for a "limited time" at $1.99. In my opinion Paper Pilot is a fun game to have. It's not anything you will be addicted to but is definitely fun and well made. You might want to get it at the sale price.

PwnageTool 2.2.1 Guide & Tutorial

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated January 23, 2016

This tutorial will show you how to use PwnageTool to jailbreak your iPhone firmware 2.2.1. Note that PwnageTool only works with Mac OS X. PwnageTool will create a custom 2.2.1 firmware that you will then load to your iPhone. This will allow you to update your iPhone without updating the baseband, which is a very important feature if you're considering using YellowSn0w to unlock your iPhone.

QuickPWN 2.2.1 Guide & Tutorial

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated January 27, 2016

If you like this post, please feel free to digg it, or subscribe to our RSS feed, or follow me on Twitter, or all of the above ;)

[digg-me]This guide will show you how to use QuickPWN to jailbreak your iPhone firmware 2.2.1. Please read carefully all the steps and warnings before attempting to use QuickPWN to jailbreak your iPhone. The following tutorial is for PC users.

UPDATE: I closed the comments on this post. If you have any question about QuickPwn, please ask your question in the forum.

Dev Team Updates QuickPWN and PwnageTool for 2.2.1

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated November 12, 2019

I thought the Dev Team would release updated version of QuickPWN and PwnageTool sometimes next week, but as usual, they were faster than I expected. In a blog post, the Dev Team gives us more info about these 2 jailbreaking tools and also tells us about the dos and donts.

I could try to paraphrase what they said but I think it's better I just copy/paste their post entirely. I do not like doing this but I believe it is very important information that shouldn't be disregarded.

I highly suggest you go visit the Dev Team blog and leave a nice comment over there. Click here to read this post on the Dev Team blog.

You can expect a QuickPWN guide and tutorial from me within the next couple hours, so stay tuned!

UPDATE:

Tutorial for QuickPWN: QuickPWN 2.2.1 Guide Tutorial for PwnageTool: PwnageTool 2.2.1 Guide

This is the low down on our tools for use with the 2.2.1 firmware from Apple, read the whole post in full before attempting anything.

GOLDEN RULE: If you have a 3G iPhone running 2.2 firmware and you want to keep your ability to use yellowns0w (or the option to use it in the future) do NOT use QuickPwn, and do not use the official ipsw or the iTunes update process without using PwnageTool. Yellowsn0w will NOT work with the baseband version (02.30.03) that is present in the recent 2.2.1 update - you will need to create a custom ipsw that will allow you to update safely without affecting the baseband. Please read all parts of this post before downloading and using these tools. Read items 1, 2 and 3 again and again. At the bottom of this post are the bittorrent files for the latest versions of PwnageTool and QuickPwn. These apps are suitable for the recent 2.2.1 release. The Yellowsn0w version has been updated to 0.9.7. Yellowsn0w is available from Cydia or Installer - this version allows compatibility with pwned 2.2.1 system (not baseband) - again - remember 0.9.7 yellowsn0w DOES NOT WORK WITH 2.2.1 (02.30.03) directly - you need to be running a ‘pwned’ version of 2.2.1 which doesn’t upgrade the baseband. Users of OS X 10.5.6 will be unable to use DFU mode correctly, please see the note towards the end of this post to easily fix this issue.

Baseband 101

The ‘baseband’ is the generic name given to the internal components of the iPhone that handle the phone calls and Internet access. This ‘baseband’ is a tiny and unique independent computer system that runs inside your iPhone, it is separate to the main system that handles the applications (such as email and google maps) and it talks to the main part of the phone over an internal communications network. Think of it like a cable modem or other peripheral that is attached to your home PC that needs occasional updates. When a software update is released and presented to you within iTunes the baseband is sometimes updated (to fix bugs or add new features). The 2.2.1 update for the iPhone 3G contains such an update, so running the vanilla updater straight away with iTunes will reprogram and update the baseband. This could be bad for certain people, depending on your ultimate aim.

SIM Free/SP Unlocked/Factory Unlocked iPhone 3G

This applies if you bought your iPhone 3G for $$$$$$$. This model of iPhone 3G doesn’t have an Service Provider lock (aka factory unlocked) and you are able to put any SIM card into the phone and get service. Your phone is already unlocked so you do not need to worry about baseband updates, simply upgrade to 2.2.1 using iTunes and then use QuickPwn to Pwn and Jailbreak. This will add Cydia and Installer too.

Locked iPhone 3G - Preserve Baseband

This applies if you have a locked iPhone 3G and you wish to update to 2.2.1 but preserve the iPhone’s current baseband software. Preserving the baseband will ensure that you can still use “yellowsn0w” the iPhone 3G unlock application. To upgrade your phone to 2.2.1 and preserve the state of the baseband you need to create a custom .ipsw with PwnageTool. This custom .ipsw will not contain the baseband update but of course will still give you any new stuff from 2.2.1

There are plenty of tutorials about this process on the web, but PwnageTool contains intuitive graphics and easy to follow prompts that should have you up and running in no time at all. Please note: PwnageTool is only available for Mac OS X.

Locked iPhone 3G

If you are using your iPhone with one carrier and have no interest in the possibility of an iPhone 3G unlock in the near future then just restore or upgrade to 2.2.1 using iTunes and use QuickPwn to Jailbreak and add Cydia and Installer.

iPhone 2G (1st Generation)

Update or Restore your iPhone 2G with iTunes then run QuickPwn to do the magic, ‘nuff said, you don’t need to worry about anything. iPod Touch 1G (Original iPod Touch)

Update to 2.2.1 with iTunes and run QuickPwn. iPod Touch 2G (New iPod Touch)

Sorry, no support at this time, but Redsn0w is being actively researched and developed.

Fixing DFU mode on 10.5.6

As noted previously OS X 10.5.6 introduced a bug that affected the use of DFU mode. with some Macs. There have been previously published hacks and techniques to fix this, but here is another method that can be used to easily restore functionality.

You will need an account with ADC (Apple Developer Connection) this is free and takes a few minutes to sign up, you should read the terms and conditions carefully and you should only sign up if you are thinking of developing applications in the future - http://developer.apple.com/mac/ Download the disk image “IOUSBFamily Log release for Mac OS X 10.5.5 Build 9F33” (yes, that is a “5” in 10.5.5 - this is a developer debug package of the USB kernel extension). Install IOUSBFamily-315.4.1.pkg from within the disk image Reboot your system!

Official Bittorrent Releases -

PwnageTool 2.2.5 for Mac OSX is here SHA1 Sum - 8fe2f20c00f48b37d8262d6872a12166c6e165ba QuickPwn 2.2.5 for Mac OSX is here SHA1 Sum - 2f1353242ef10dc408e95786643e497fcd04e4ea QuickPwn 2.2.5-2 for Windows is here SHA1 Sum - 82aae63218316af42e4fa20f8c69d9eb4fe9d4ee

Click here for the official blog post by the Dev Team.

Sorta QuickPWN 2.2.1 Is Out. I Say Stay Away

Sébastien Page ∙ January 29, 2009

I knew it wouldn't take long for some hacker to come up with an unofficial version of QuickPWN to jailbreak the new firmware 2.2.1. This time, it's Russian hacker Vortex that created the bundles and if I can give you a piece of advice, STAY AWAY from it.

People using this unofficial QuickPWN had varied results. So again, wait for the Dev Team to come up with an official version. They are most likely already working on it and I bet you we'll have updated versions of QuickPWN and PwnageTool within a week.

As usual, I will give you the heads up when I have more info!

If you really can't wait and want to take the risk of messing up your iPhone, then you can download this unofficial version of QuickPwn here.

UPDATE: Just got a tweet from MuscleNerd saying "iphone users in particular (even 2G) can do permanent damage running "untrusted" bundles (either broken or intentionally bad)"

If I wasn't clear enough before... DO NOT USE unofficial versions of QuickPWN or PwnageTool!

App Store to Get $19.99 Premium Games Section

Sébastien Page ∙ January 29, 2009

Don't you love rumors? Well, here is a new one for you, and I think it is more than a simple rumor. Apple is supposedly considering creating a $19.99 section in the App Store for "premium games". According to PocketGamer, "it's thought only a relatively small number of publishers would be partners in the new section, although in fairness, relatively few are currently geared up to create games with $19.99 production values."

If you think about it, it totally makes sense that Apple would want to create such a section in the App Store. Apple is not hiding its ambitions of having the iPhone and iPod Touch take over what your Nintendo DS or Sony PSP are doing, namely, be a kick ass portable gaming console.

Mike at TUAW says that "it's an interesting idea, and actually, though obviously it would cost consumers more, the bottom line in the App Store has always been worth, not price -- there are currently premium games being sold on services like Xbox Live and the Wii's Virtual Console for $20, and gamers are willing to pay, as long as they get the bang for the buck that they expect."

I'm not a gamer at all so, as far as I'm concerned, I couldn't care less, but I think it's very interesting to see where Apple is heading to. You gotta love Apple business model!