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Apple wins patent for iOS app folders and 'jiggle mode'

Apple has finally won a patent for a system that lets iOS users more easily organize their apps.

Granted today by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the patent dubbed "Device, method, and graphical user interface for managing folders" describes the method used by iOS to let users create folders in which to store apps and activate the "jiggle mode" to move or delete them. Introduced in iOS 4, the technology outlined in the patent is pretty much the way iOS users know it today.

Holding down the icon for an iOS app causes all … Read more

Q&A: MacFixIt Answers

MacFixIt Answers is a feature in which I answer Mac-related questions e-mailed by our readers.

This week, readers wrote in with questions about whether it is possible to install Windows on an external hard drive for use in Boot Camp, how to set up Time Machine to back up home folders stored on secondary drives, and how to disable the yellow tooltip popups that appear over URL links in many OS X applications. I welcome contributions from readers, so if you have any suggestions or alternative approaches to these problems, please post them in the comments!

Question: Using Windows 7 … Read more

YouTube adds live streaming to iOS app

If you were hoping to watch last weekend's Coachella concert on your iDevice, you just missed your chance: although the event was streamed live on YouTube for free, the iOS YouTube app doesn't support live streaming.

It does now. (Cruel timing, Google!) YouTube 1.3 for iOS, released today, adds a handful of new features and fixes, not the least of which is access to live streams.

For those unaware, YouTube offers a variety of live content, everything from concerts (natch) to news and sports.

The iOS streaming feature joins a "Send to TV" option introduced back in February, … Read more

Output stereo as mono in OS X

If you listen to music on your Mac while at work, you may use earbuds so as not to disturb co-workers; however, this does have a tradeoff. When using both earbuds, you can drown out others who might be trying to get your attention, but if you only wear one earbud, you will miss the parts of stereo recordings on the channel for the bud you left out, which in some cases can make a dramatic difference in the sound you're hearing.

You can avoid this by setting your Mac to use Mono output. This will combine all audio … Read more

Firefox Mobile OS to launch in five countries this summer

NEW YORK -- Firefox Mobile OS will launch this summer in five countries, Mozilla CEO Gary Kovacs said at the All Things D conference here Monday.

Kocacs, who announced earlier this month that he will be stepping down from his post as CEO, said that the new operating system, which is designed for low-end devices, will launch this summer in Venezuela, Poland, Brazil, Portugal, and Spain.

A spokesman for the company reiterated that the company had announced initial launch countries on February 24 when it was showing off the mobile OS at the Mobile World Congress trade show in Spain.… Read more

AppGratis tries petition to shame Apple on app removal

Facing what appears to be an indefinite ban of its software from Apple's App Store, French app discovery service AppGratis is trying to make a case for itself with an Internet petition.

A new page that went up over the weekend gives users a special e-mail address to send their pleas to if they want to "save" the company. So far, the initiative has accumulated more than 608,000 such messages, according to the page's official tally.

AppGratis was removed from Apple's App Store earlier this month. The software would alert users to a daily … Read more

Pic Stitch for iOS 2.9 Review

You've got a high-resolution camera, an Internet connection, an iPhone or iPad, and an itch to share your photos with your friends and the world. What to do? Enter the free iOS photo-editing app Pic Stitch, allowing you to easily combine, filter, and change photos on your device and share them with friends.

Pic Stitch's interface is surprisingly simple to navigate considering how many features it includes. The free version of the app does have periodic ads, and quite a few features require paid upgrades to use in full, but every core feature is available for free.

To … Read more

Turn iPhone photos into artwork with Pixuru

Do you fancy yourself an Instagram artist? If you have masterpieces on Instagram, Facebook, or tucked away on your phone's camera roll that are begging for a spot on your living-room wall, give Pixuru a whirl. This free iPhone app lets you order a variety of prints. Pricing is reasonable, and Pixuru promises quick turnaround and free shipping. It also states that an expert will carefully review your work of art before shipping it to you. Photographers without iPhones, fear not. Pixuru also offers a Web app and says an Android app is coming soon.

The process of ordering … Read more

New Angry Birds clone does a lot of things right, but lacks polish

Stay Alight! (iPhone|iPad) is a destruction game that is somewhat similar to Angry Birds, but in this game, you play as Mr. Bulb and it's your job to take out the monster microbes.

Instead of flinging objects like you would in Angry Birds, with this game you're shooting an energy projectile that bounces off walls. So to get the best trajectory and power, you'll need to both think about where your targets are and how the projectile will bounce through the level to hit as many monster microbes as possible. Like many games in this genre, … Read more

Get a Dr. Seuss e-book collection for $7.99

Every parent knows (or should know) the importance of reading to their kids. And when it comes to stories adults and toddlers alike can enjoy, it's hard to beat Dr. Seuss.

Of course, browse the aisles (real or virtual) of any bookstore and you'll see that your average Dr. Seuss hardcover can run $10-15. Ouch!

That's why I continue to be a big fan of Oceanhouse Media's Dr. Seuss e-book apps, which not only provide the complete Seuss experience (and then some), but also save you considerable coin.… Read more