Apple iOS 7 Translucent UI Needs Help

I installed iOS 7 on one of my iPads today. The first thing that struck me was the change in the way folders and the system tray looked. Honestly, I didn't spend a whole lot of time studying every aspect of iOS 7 so some of this might not have been surprising with a little digging, but this really caught me off guard. As you can see from the image below, the folders and the system tray look skin color. I really wanted to puke. I thought, how could this be!

After my initial shock wore off, I changed the wallpaper and sure enough, the colors showed through what I guess is a translucent UI. I searched the settings to see if there was something that let change the percentage of translucency or even the color, and nope, nothing.

I do like the new fast app switch, but it took me a few minutes to figure out how to close down an app. It's not the old-fashioned way of hold and press the X, you simply perform the Android maneuver of sliding it off the screen. Closed.

 

This isn't a post knocking iOS 7, or Apple. Just my initial observation. I wish for a day I can control some of the UI look on my personal device. But that's another post.

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Guest Hosting The Unofficial KickStarter Podcast KickCast

@KTData invited me to guest host an episode of his KickCast podcast, which is all about KickStarters. You gotta love technology. Here is the video recording of the session.

 


Watch live video from KTDataVision! on Justin.tv

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Accidental Fry

Accidentally took this at lunch a few days ago. Looks cool to me. #pressgram

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Trying And Failing Really Sucks

I've always been the type of person who wants to learn everything. I have spent a good portion of my life trying to stay ahead of whatever curve was in front of me for fear that I would be left behind. So in a mad dash to make sure I'm immersed in whatever will help me stay ahead (programming, mobile, fitness), I take on about 100% more than I can actually do. I know from past experience I will fail at some things, find I don't have time for others, or decide to change course. But all of this mean many things fail, and that really sucks.

I know failing is the new word for try. As Yoda says "do or do not, there is no try." I don't know anyone who likes failing. A couple of days ago I was having a discussion with someone who was trying to decide what type of decision maker I was. Would I be someone who would try a hundred things until I found the right answer, or would I take my time, think through a problem, look at multiple options, then make a decision. I know in their mind they liked the try and fail a hundred times option because it "looked" like effort was being made. But I'm the later. I can make quick decisions if I'm given enough information. And for the times when I have very little information, I might take longer to make a decision. There are few cases in this world where choosing to fail a hundred times at something to come up with a solution trumps thinking through a decision, either in your head or with a team.

So why am I bringing this up? Well, all of this start, stop, fail, succeed, has given me an opportunity to think of what's next. Martin Sheen's character President Bartlet in the TV series The West Wing used the phrase "what's next?" when he got the point and wanted to move on. I love that phrase. I've done the same things  for over 30 years, now I want to move on... what's next?


Here are a few things on my What's Next list:

• I'm finally over managing web servers. I can't stand it any more, and I simply don't have the stomach to worry about all the possible issues that could go wrong. It's not part of my core focus. So I'll be transitioning all of my websites onto something that some company manages for me. I just want to write.


• Speaking of writing, that's the next big part of my next... writing more. Expanding and broadening my knowledge of some technologies, exploring their long term values, and of course finally putting pen to paper (so to speak) on Old Coder Comics. I've had this idea for a while, and I really want to put some effort into that. I also want to finally finish the ten sci-fi and thriller stories I've started and stopped.


• Fitness. It's never been part of my everyday fabric. But it needs to be.


• Photography. This is simply a pleasurable thing. But my problem has been putting in the time to really learn the craft. I don't want to be a pro. I don't want to call myself a photographer (so I don't incense my real photographer friends), but I do take pictures.

While I've spent a good majority of my life learning the intricacies of programming languages, staying up all night to write code, fix a broken site, and generally try to come up with ideas for the next big thing, it's simply not what I truly want to focus on. I'll try and fail for sure at some of this. Failing really sucks, but, it's also a great way to learn. I've sure typed a bunch of I's in this post. But that's what you get today.

Photo credit andrewhurley

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Patriot Day 2013

In remembrance of September 11th, 2001. I'm sure there are more who have passed on because of direct or indirect injuries from that day. They aren't on my wall, but I feel them and their families the same. 9-11 has become a day to remember loved ones lost and fallen heroes. But mostly I want to remember today as a day of courage and resolve to stand up for what is right. I play for this team, and will defend it to the end. Nothing is perfect. We just need to do good.

 

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Salt Lake Comic Con 2013 - Photos

Sharing some photos I took at Salt Lake Comic Con 2013.

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Salt Lake Comic Con 2013

Comic Con in Salt Lake City was certainly a success for sponsors and more or less for fans. The mother of Comic Cons in San Diego California had approximately 130,000 attendees, and Salt Lake, a first year con, had nearly 80,000 attendees on the final day. By noon on Saturday, the fire marshal threatened to shut the Salt Palace down because of potential safety risks. Some ticket holders were turned away, what a disappointment.

Generally I was pretty impressed with the organization and the quality of artists and panel speakers. There were several instances of confusion, especially the registration system meltdown on Saturday, and lack of attendees willing to pay additional money to high-profile celebs speak (William Shatner being one).

Now on to the positive. The art displayed was amazing. The image above is a life-size replica of the White Orc from The Hobbit, created by Weta Workshop. The New Zealand company had a great showing. There were also a number of well-known artists and just as many indie guys showing off their wares.

Overall I would say as a con goer this was an impressive first showing. There are obviously kinks to work out, and the group has a year to make it happen. I purchased some books and comics which I'll link to below.

The Runelords by David Farland. David is a great writer and has several books on the market. Checkout his Amazon page here. (Affiliate link)

Met an author named Michaelbrent Collins, yes, spelt correctly. A lady working at his booth sold me on a unique zombie story called The Colony: Genesis. On the back of the jacket it reads "In under 10 minutes, 99.9% of the world's population will be dead... Or changed. Conversion is instant. Headshots just make them angry. And they're getting smarter." Wow what a great hook. Had me, so I bought. Hope the story lives up to the great description.

Then I ran into a graphic novelist named Dixon Mullins, who has created a series called M.I.S//ing, a take on he IT world. Seemed pretty cool, and she had a great deal so I bought. Looking forward to reading the three volumes I purchased.

One final note, I've been to dozens of cons and I'm a little more strategic than most. I plan and plan my schedule for efficiency, giving me time to see everything, eat, drink, pee, and learn. I wish more people did this, I think the overall experience would be better.

See ya next year. (Get the VIP pass for sure).

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Google+ Blogging For The Past Month

This past month I took a challenge from +Mike Elgen to blog exclusively on. Turns out I was about as hit and miss with long form posts as I am here on thomallen.com. I always post short form images, links and likes several times a day, that didn't change. Bottom line, I didn't blog any more or less.

On the subject of blogging and this site, a friend has gone through my blog and given me some pointers on SEO. I suck at SEO and he doesn't, so I'm listening to him. His suggestions included blogging more often, longer, and on topics that are consistent. I've always looked at my blog as a personal space, no ads, no real focus that you could count on day in and day out. As it turns out, that's what I'll use Google+ for, the stuff that is more off topic than what I write here.

What did I learn from this experiment besides my posting habits? I made a lot of new connections. One of the things I miss here on my blog are social connections. Sure, someone can comment, but it ends there. Unless I actively seek them out on other sites, like their blog or Twitter or Google+, I'm less likely to engage with them. That has always been a problem for me. Social sites at least let me say in contact with the people I want to interact with.

I've also learned that successful posts, posts that have value to the reader and the search engines aren't the quick and dirty posts. There has to be meat and substance, both of which I have neglected the more I involve myself with social networks like Twitter and Google+.

For what it's worth, thank you for reading, and I hope you come back often. If you still subscribe via RSS, the link is here. Check out the right sidebar for more places to follow me which I leave links to new posts on this site.

Image link: glenn-

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