Todd Clarke's Technology Corner v2.0

A new browser, or actually, to be technically correct, a new browser interface built on top of Google’s Chrome Browser, has entered the market.

RockMelt offers social networking and feed options along the margins of your browser. Now Facebook and your internet surfing can co-exist in the same window frame.

I have to admit the interface is very compelling and easy to use.

Available as a browser on the PC, MAC and an App for iPhone and the Ipad .

Would you like to win a new iPad2 with red leather cover (notice the CCIM logo?)

Correctly answers the first 10 questions on our social networking quiz and give us some feedback on the next 4 questions at:

www.canteraconsultants.com/scavengerhunt
Good luck!

This marketing effort will be used to gauge the effectiveness of social networking in the marketing of the CCIM Technology and Social Networking course http://www.ccim.com/education/course/TSN/TSN0001 .

And has a slew of new features including:
– 1/3 thinner – its now thinner than an iPhone 4 (with same 10 hour battery life of iPad 1)
– magnetic clip on cover case that doubles as a stand (thanks engadget)
– front and rear facing camera
– faster dual core processor
– built in gyroscope (helps with maps)
– HDMI output (possibly mirrored which would help for those of us who teach iPad classes)
– prices will be the same as current iPad (check Craigslist if you don’t need these new features, as I’ve been watching used iPad prices drop during the last week)

Additionally, Engadget mentions that Apple has sold 15 million iPads, and 100 million iPhones…in 2010! They’ve also sold over 100 million books via iBook (thanks engadget.com).

Thanks to my two favorite gadget blogs www.gizmodo.com and www.engadget.com for their live coverage today.

UPDATE: Apple has just updated their website and has photos, specifications, and info on how to order.

Engadget has an update with a hands on look – they are very impressed with the speed!

Apple has just added a video of yesterday’s keynote.

Very excited – as of 5 minutes ago, our iPhone app to help client’s calculate their property taxes for commercial properties in Bernalillo County went “live” in the iTunes store! It is only 99 cents, and if you provide us feedback to improve version 2 and leave feedback, I’ll gladly send you a buck!

If you own a commercial property in Bernalillo County and you would like to compare your property’s value against the resolved cases from 2010, click here – http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/taxessor/id419811562?mt=8 to try it out.

The App is only $.99 and if you leave us a review and email me feedback at tclarke@nmapartment.com so we can improve version 2, I’ll gladly refund you a buck.

Thanks to Mark and Jamii at SWCP for making this happen.

Support for the app can be found here – http://www.taxessor.com .

Technology and Social Networking Tools for Today’s Real Estate Professional
This 1-day course, taught by Todd Clarke, CCIM, teaches how to implement the latest technology and social networking tools into a real estate professional’s day-to-day business and add value to clients. Participants will review the latest hardware available, including smart phones, iPads and netbooks, and find software and data storage solutions. In addition, develop a business strategy for using social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, through hands-on exercises.

Upon successful completion of this course, you will be able to:

Course location and pricing
Chicago, IL ~ April 5, 2011 ~ 8:30 am – 5:00 pm
Levine Learning Center
430 N. Michigan Ave Suite 800 ~ Chicago, IL 60611

Members $295 Non-members $395
Instructor: Todd Clarke, CCIM

Click here to register

Is fabulous and long overdue (since its been on the iPhone since this summer).

But I couldn’t agree more with this Gizmodo posting that I want the auto-rotate button back.

Apple changed the function of the button, which previously kept the iPad from turning the screen automatically, to being a mute button (like the iPhone).

Unfortunately, to access the same feature requires a double click of the home button, a left swipe and then selecting an icon.

Since I use the button to read while laying down, its an unnecessary and unwelcome change.

I received this email from the Itunes staff yesterday –

Dear (my email),
iTunes Connect will be temporarily shut down from Thursday, December 23 to Tuesday, December 28 for the winter holidays. Access will resume on Friday, December 29.
During this shutdown, iTunes Connect will be unavailable. In addition, app releases and pricing changes which are scheduled to take place during the shutdown will be handled as follows:
• All releases will not appear in the App Store until Friday, December 29. This includes apps scheduled to appear on the App Store for the first time as well as updates to existing apps.
• Pricing changes will cause the app to become unavailable for purchase until Friday, December 29, at which point the app will become available at the new price. Please check to ensure you have not scheduled any price changes during this time.
Regards,
The iTunes Connect Team

href=”http://www.canteraconsultants.com/tech/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/500x_smartbook.jpg”>

Now this is my idea of an ideal laptop – something that would “store” my iPhone, my iPad and an external USB or Harddrive – each of which would be components that I could remove AND that I could use as an extra screen, storage, etc.

More info can be found by clicking here.

Thanks to Gizmodo for the article.

I remember going to the Egghead store and purchasing my first internet browser, Mosaic for $39. Now, a dozen years later, Microsoft is releasing their latest and greatest – Internet Explore v9 for an ideal price of free.

Although the program is currently in beta, it is available to anyone who would like to test it out.

Although bigger, faster, better is always promised, I believe the big upgrade will be full support for HTML v5 an open standard for programming web pages. HTML 5 allows programmers to accomplish things they had only been able to do in the past using tools like Adobe Flash.

Check back here soon for updates on whether the upgrade is worth the installation.

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