Short list of iOS 7 resources I've found useful

Few iOS 7 resources I've stumbled upon, mostly through Twitter. I will not include the obvious Apple ones, as you should have already read all of them by now, twice!

• ios7.io - A selection of iOS7 specific links covering icons, designs, apps, and much more. 
• iMore.com - A collections of iOS 7 news from no other than Rene Ritchie. 
• iOS 7 Apps Redesign - Various redesign of apps to match iOS 7 guidelines, with a screenshot of a before and after. 

iOS technical newsletters that everyone should use

1. objc.io - once a month in-depth technical topics related to Objective-C, by Chris Eidhof, Daniel Eggert, and Florian Kugler. A must read for everyone that is interested in best practices and advanced techniques. 
2. NSHipster - another high quality resource on topics for Objective-C, by Mattt Thompson. 
3. NSScreencast - weekly screencast on iOS development, by Ben Scheirman. This is a paid subscription-based service. 
4. iosdevweekly - weekly emails of iOS development links, by Dave Verwer. 
5. Ray's Monthly Newsletter - monthly tutorials for iOS developers and gamers, by Ray Wenderlich. 
6. Evolution or Extinction - weekly newsletter on iOS and other technology topics, by my good friend and co-worker Justin Kent. 

Subscribe, read/watch, and enjoy!

A couple of short links - July 7, 2013

1. Stroke of insight: Jill Bolte Taylor - fascinating TED talk about a neuroanatomist that one morning had a stroke, during which she analyzed and remembered every single moment. 
2. 13 Things You Must Know When Starting Out In iOS/Mac Development - advices from well known people that are involved with iOS. 
3. Clear - a list-keeping app that is fully focused on content and uses gestures instead of buttons. Inovation at its best!
4. Dribbble - have a design you would like to get feedback on? Look no further. 
5. TSA API - you can find out wait times for TSA security checkpoints. 

Application Ecosystem for the BlackBerry PlayBook

According to their press release, RIM has officially announced the ecosystem for applications that will run on the PlayBook tablet. Below is a quote from the release:

• BlackBerry PlayBook to support BlackBerry Java and Android apps
• Native C/C++ development support added, in addition to HTML5, Flash and AIR support
• Support from leading game engines: Ideaworks Labs (AirPlay) and Unity Technologies (Unity 3)
• BlackBerry PlayBook becomes a new market opportunity for all the developers who have already created over 25,000 BlackBerry Java apps and more than 200,000 Android apps 

The most important part for me, and something that I've been hoping for a long time, is the added support for Android. What RIM was lacking was an application ecosystem. This will not be the case anymore. And it is not only about Android in the end. Moving away from Java ME is the first step (still need it for existing applications). When you can write applications using HTML, Flash, C/C++, Java ME, and Android, you can't go wrong. There is no other ecosystem out there that provides such a diversity. 

Basic vs Applied Research - Linear vs Nonlinear Models

I was reading a review in IEEE Spectrum of Henry Petroski's "The Essential Engineer: Why Science Alone Will Not Solve Our Global Problems", and found several references to the linear model of how research is being conducted in the U.S.:

"Part of the problem, he [Henry Petroski] says, is the linear model of technological progress: Basic research spawns applied research, which in turn fuels technological development. This model is wrong historically, and it undervalues the creative juices of good engineering ... This linear model became ascendant in U.S. science policy after 1945 when Vannevar Bush submitted his famous report, “Science—the Endless Frontier”, which enhanced the prestige (and funding) of basic research at the expense of applied work."

I wrote in one of my previous posts about linearity and nonlinearity in biology, engineering, and financial systems, and how linear models (such as blood vessels in biology, waterfall model in engineering) have a negative impact on the systems where they are applied. The review of the book has the same underlying message, namely how moving away from the linear model of basic research towards the more practical approach of applied research (or development projects) has a greater outcome in terms of engineering advances. 

Android Ginerbread adds NFC support

Listening to the conversation with Eric Schmidt at the Web 2.0 Summit 2010, I was pleasantly surprised that the new Android 2.3 (called "Gingerbread"), will add support for NFC, or Near Field Communication (I heard rumors about this in the past). There are many use cases that I can think of, the major one being using your phone for making payments. I said it in the past that the main reason I think NFC has not been adopted is because there was no major company/platform using it. Now there is.

2010 Gadget Census

Retrevo's 2010 Gadget Census revealed what gadgets people were using in each state, with the summary of it captured in the image below: