Multi-Platform is a Feature

Maybe this is obvious but as iCloud rolls out, users are going to add a new criteria to their app buying calculus. “Is it multi-platform?”

Just like the way even us ‘power users’ are getting hooked on Lion’s versioning and auto-saves, even the most die-hard Dropbox supporters are going to find themselves expecting data to migrate between their Macs, iPads, iPhones, and even Windows PCs.

With iCloud, there is no secret incantation, retina scan, or hacking involved. Your data just is. No longer will you have to consider whether the right folder is synced to the right app. Work on one device. Turn it off. Work on another device and pick up where you left off.

There is a price to brain dead syncing. From everything I’ve seen, in order to work, you’ve got to be working on the same app on every platform.

For the first time since the iOS arrived in our lives, using the same app on multiple platforms comes with an added benefit, data bliss. When users look at apps for their Mac or iOS devices, they are going to actively seek those with support on other platforms. Automatic data-syncing is a huge benefit and multi-platform is going to be a big deal for enlightened Mac and iOS developers.

Already there are some text editors supporting both iOS and Mac OS X. I think this will spill over into most productivity apps: PDF apps, outliners, mind mappers, graphics apps, and any app with a user generated data file. Expect to see a lot of familiar apps on unfamiliar platforms soon.

Byword Daily File

With Lion’s new document versioning framework, I’ve been running a single Byword document called “Daily” for two months. I use it every day to write text for any of a number of uses ranging from contract language to blog posts. All of this text ends up somewhere else. The advantage of this daily file, however, is that Lion Byword now has an archive of most everything I write and I’ve got one more place to look for old text. (I really like text, remember?)

Bonus Points Tip: If you are working on something that you want to save as a different name for saving elsewhere as text, use Byword’s Duplicate function.

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Home Screens – Jory Raphael

This week’s home screen features Jory Raphael (Twitter). Jory is the genius behind all of the 5by5 artwork, including the latest iteration of Daren Rolfe’s excellent Mac Power User’s logo. Jory is super-talented and a really nice guy. You can learn more about Jory’s work at Sensibleworld. So Jory, show us your home screen.

What are your most interesting home screen apps?

I think they’re all interesting!  The one app I use in an unexpected way is probably Adobe Ideas.  It’s replaced the notepad on my nightstand, as an easy way sketch ideas I have during the night.  That said, decoding those ideas in the morning can sometimes be a little tough!  Interaction with the iPhone and iPad touch screen is fantastic, but my finger can be cumbersome when trying to sketch a specific idea.  I’m definitely looking forward to the arrival of my More/Real stylus cap.

What is your favorite app?

The app I use the most is Tweetbot, followed closely by Reeder and Camera+.  I love the design of all of the Tapbots apps, and Tweetbot is no exception.  I’ve gotten so used to it’s features and layout that I feel a bit lost now when using pretty much any other Twitter app, iOS based or not.  Reeder is a definite must for keep up with RSS feeds, and Camera+ has proven invaluable to quickly capture important moments and milestone’s in my kids’ lives.

Which app is your guilty pleasure?

Instacast.  It’s invaluable as a way to easily keep up with podcasts.  I’d call it a guilty pleasure because it prominently showcases podcast artwork.  The majority of the shows I listen to are on 5by5, so I get to see my artwork full screen when I’m listening. Sparkynote: I love Instacast too.

What is the app you are still missing?

There is one app missing from my iPhone.  One astronomically fantastic app.  A real game changer.  It’s completely and totally amazing. Epic. Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.  That is to say, I have an idea for an app that I have yet to design.

How many times a day do you use your iPhone/iPad?

iPhone: Constantly.  iPad: On average once a day.  More if I’m out on the road meeting with clients.

What is your favorite feature of the iPhone/iPad?

The camera on the iPhone 4.  And, perhaps oddly, I love being able to easily access the display brightness on the iPad by double-clicking home and flicking right.  I tend to read on the iPad at night and quick brightness adjustment is key.

If you were in charge at Apple, what would you add or change?

Wait, is there an opening?

Anything else you’d like to share?

I’ve recently jumped into UI design for iOS, so have been studying apps (and their icons) non-stop.  I’m also currently working on the next (free) update to my Symbolicons vector icon set to include optimized icons specifically for iOS design and retina displays.

Thanks Jory.

See more home screens here.

Animated sheet music

Outstanding find by Kottke (and pointed out to me by Ernie Svenson). Giant Steps and Confirmation are both rights of passage for every saxophonist. It is not the fact that you can faithfully play one of these solos that gets you in the club though. It’s the fact that you get to the end without slamming your horn against a hard, flat surface that gets you in.

Speaking of my sax, I pulled it out of mothballs last weekend and blew the cobwebs out long enough to record the new Mac Power Users song. The music is all live musicians. No loops. I’m, by far, the worst but thankfully everyone else makes me sound good. Stay tuned. The song isn’t named yet but I’m lobbying hard for Kernel Panic

Steve and Tim

That Steve would retire was not difficult to see coming. What we all wondered was whether they’d stay in-house for a successor or go outside. John Gruber nailed it last month. (No surprise.) Still, it is good to see that the company is in the hands of someone who gets it.

One of the most interesting angles of this is the way it all happened. The announcement wasn’t Friday, after markets close, but Wednesday. Moreover, in typical Apple fashion, nothing was left to chance. Steve is stepping down and Tim is replacing him. There was no public bloodletting or year long search committee and all the terrible mess and speculation that comes with such a committee. The succession plan was set, and activated. Steve even mentioned it in his letter. At its most fundamental level, this was presentation of a problem and a solution all at once.
How very Apple.

Finally, here is my favorite Steve Jobs related link. (via Merlin Mann)

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