RSS App Review-QooRSS

RSS

RSS (Rich Site Summary)  is a family of web feed formats used to publish frequently updated works—such as blog entries, news headlines, audio, and video—in a standardized format. An RSS document includes full or summarized text, plus metadata such as publishing dates and authorship.







Well there are various rss feed apps on the Symbian platform and today I am going to review the QooRSS app.


QooRSS' main function is to provide an RSS widget on the Symbian homescreen. It also has a fully usable application too where you can browse feeds and their contents, and tweak settings.

The QooRSS app is definitely stylish,no doubt about that.The most obvious feature is its semi-transparent background with selectable wallpapers to sit behind. On first launch, the tiny fonts gave cause for concern, but a quick trip into settings to change from small to large soon fixed that problem.

Fonts

Looks Stylish

       


















The tabs mentioned above are, in order: Feeds, Posts, and Content. Given contemporary user interface conventions, one would be forgiven for trying to move from the feed list to viewing a single feed, and then to a single post, by tapping on individual items. Not so in the case of QooRSS. Instead, one has to select the item of interest, then tap the next tab along at the top of the screen. Not only is this counter intuitive, but it requires more interaction with the touch screen. Not so good for me.

The main menu from the feeds list view allows you to add, remove and reorder feeds. When it comes to adding feeds, you can either manually enter a URL or import multiple feeds from a file. The Nokia Store page for QooRSS states that the application can import feeds from both OPML and HTML files. However, QooRSS completely failed to import anything from the files that I tested with it, leaving me to enter URLs manually. More score markdowns here. Even more markdowns to the score come from how QooRSS handles scrolling, Dragging across text selects it, and so scrolling is done by dragging a scroll bar which is -wait for it -  invisble!



The widget itself shows the title of the feed you've put at the top of the feeds list (in the application) plus the three most recent stories. There's also an RSS icon on the left, which reloads your feeds when tapped.

This app looks outdated really and since this is a paid app( you can get it at the Nokia Store for £1.00.)it really doesnt satisfy me.Besides, anyone with a Symbian device should now have the scrolling RSS widget, either via the Homescreen Widgets application update, or firmware updates to Belle Refresh or Belle Feature Pack 2.

Does Nokia Battery Monitor 3.1 Allow Compatibility With 3.8V Batteries?

Nokia

Nokia Battery Monitor has been something of a staple of the Symbian world in the last couple of years, providing a large-fonted, colourful guide to the state of your smartphone's battery. However, with new batteries coming along with slightly higher nominal voltages (quoted at '3.8V' rather than '3.7V'), the existing utility was demonstrably inaccurate. Version 3.1, now available, seems to behave better on the Nokia 808.

Firstly, note that battery voltages are never as easy to pin down as you might think, varying by temperature and load. They also vary according to the state of charge, typically starting at over 4V when full charged, quickly dropping to the nominal voltage (around 3.7V) and then dropping only slightly until they get to the last ten percent of so of charge, at which point the voltage starts to drop more quickly.
So when a battery is quoted at '3.8V', it just means that the chemistry has been improved slightly in such a way that the majority of the cell's discharge is at around 3.8V rather than '3.7V'. The maximum and minimum voltages will still be widely spaced and the voltage is never constant.
The result is that estimating the actual battery capacity remaining is something of a black art.
And isn't helped when the utility has the characteristics of yesterday's '3.7V' cells hard coded in, with the result that I'd charge my Nokia 808 and would be able to use it for a full hour while the charge was consistently shown as '100%'. This new version 3.1 of Nokia Battery Monitor seems to start decrementing the charge level sooner, though it's still not perfect
To illustrate the issues involved in the estimation of charge remaining, I did some tests over a full discharge cycle with my Nokia 808 PureView (with the BV-4D '3.8V' cell in place) and noted the percent values reported by both Nokia Battery Monitor and the voltage reported by the utilityPhoNetInfo:

   

OneNote Tip & Tricks

OneNote

OneNote is Microsoft's cloud notetaking system, and is part of the Office 2010 suite. OneNote is also built into the Windows Phone Office Hub, allowing you to sync your notes via SkyDrive. If you've always taken OneNote for granted and never investigated its abilities in-depth, then stop to read this guide to know  all of the tips and tricks.

You'll find your OneNote files within the Office Hub on your handset. Once there, you can either view notes you already have in the 'notes' section of the Hub panorama, or alternatively, swipe to the 'locations' section and navigate to wherever you know a OneNote file stored, either locally or remotely on SkyDrive, Office 365 or a SharePoint server.

OneNote files are known as notebooks. Within each you can create sections, in which you can create and store individual notes. Think of sections as chapters in each notebook with which you can create notes grouped by, say, topic. 

You can quickly start writing notes by tapping the "+" icon while viewing the notes section in the Office Hub. However, an even quicker method can be set up. From this notes section of the Office Hub, tap the "..." menu and select the "pin new to start" option. This will create a live tile on your Start screen with which you can create a new note.

 If you want to pin an entire notebook (i.e. file) to the Start screen, it's a little convoluted. Go to the notes section in the Office Hub, then tap the notebooks icon in the toolbar; from there you'll have a list of all available OneNote files, on which you can long-press for a menu which will have an option to pin.

Besides typing plain text, the note editing toolbar gives you quick access to four functions in the following order: toggle a bulleted list, add a to-do tick box to the current line, add an image, and add a voice note.

For adding images, you'll be sent directly to the gallery, but also take note of the camera icon on the toolbar, which lets you take an in-situ photo of something. There's no optical character recognition, which is one particular feature where OneNote is inferior to Evernote.

The microphone icon allows you to take voice notes, which is handy to use as a Dictaphone, but don't expect to be using it as a quasi-podcasting tool, the recording quality is far too low.

Tapping the "..." menu gives you more formatting options, to increase or decrease indentation and to switch to a numbered list instead of a bulleted list. You can also change some font properties too.

Formatting notes

Unless you save your notes in the OneNote notebook that is automatically created on your Windows Phone device, all of your notes, complete with images and sound clips, will be synchronised to the cloud, most probably your SkyDrive account.

Microsoft have provided surprisingly comprehensive coverage for OneNote. OneNote is part of the Office 2010 and 2013 office suites for desktops , plus Windows 8 users can now try the "OneNote MX" client that will feature on Windows RT tablets.

Awesome iPhone 5 Application to Play Around With!

 As is to be expected with the release of Apple’s iPhone 5, there is an influx of new apps into the market. Many of these new apps have been optimized to take advantage of the handset’s larger screen. Since games are a fantastic way to introduce a new gadget, there are quite a number that are being promoted by Apple so as to push its new product.

New Games for iPhone 5

Lili is an awesome 3D puzzle game for the iPhone 5!

 So far, the most remarkable of these new apps for Apple’s latest device is Lili. Lili is the title of a game that has 3D graphics, which are similar to those of a game console like the Xbox or PlayStation. It is an RPG that lets you take control of the main character Lili as she explores the magic island. This game is user-friendly as it has a very easy control system that only requires you to tap items on the screen and drag as you solve the numerous puzzles and tasks.

 Superbrothers: Sword and Sworcery EP is another one of the amazing games available for the iPhone 5. The RPG, which also costs $5, has blocky graphics similar to those used in games produced during the early period of gaming though it is more complicated than Lili. To advance in the game, you will need to use magic and a sword. There is plenty of audio feedback and great albums on the game’s soundtrack therefore you will benefit from using headphones as you play. You can also join forces with friends on social sites such as Twitter.

 Image Editing Apps

 Aside from the great games available for the new iPhone 5, there are apps that are specifically designed to distort (or improve) the quality of the images taken with the iPhone’s exceptional camera. One of these great apps is the Halftone app, which turns your photographs into halftone images with spots similar to those found in a color comic book or magazine. The app lets you include captions, speech bubbles and so much more for only $1.

 Another great app is E Color Splash, which allows the user to alter sections of an image to black and white while the rest of the image remains in color. It is a clever and innovative app that produces a film-like effect in a still photograph. Although some of the controls may be a little confusing, there is a built-in video tutorial that will give you all the necessary guidelines.

 Do not expect any of these to help solve the Purple Flare problem that many have been experiencing with the iPhone 5 camera!

Useful Apps

 Prismatic is one of the apps that have been optimized specifically for the screen of Apple’s latest device. The app calculates one’s interests based on their profiles at social sites, such as Facebook and Twitter. It is hard to say how accurate the application is, but it does seem like a bit of fun.

 If you want to know the Internet speed capacity of your 4G iPhone 5 for cell phone data, you can use the SpeedTest.net app, which is free of charge and certainly were useful with the type of information that it provides.

Pokemon Black Version 2 Review

Traditionally, Pokemon games go through a specific sequel convention. Each "generation" has two games, often of contrasting colors or materials (Pokemon Red/Blue, Pokemon Gold/Silver, Pokemon Ruby/Sapphire), followed shortly after by a half-sequel that presents a new color or material (Pokemon Yellow, Pokemon Crystal, Pokemon Emerald). These half-sequels have the same general structure of the main games, but with slightly different Pokemon and events. Nintendo and Game Freak have bucked the trend with Pokemon Black and White, the sixth generation of Pokemon games. Instead of a bland-sounding Pokemon Grey, Nintendo has put out Pokemon Black Version 2 and Pokemon White Version 2 for the Nintendo DS and 3DS $169.96 at Walmart.com, and instead of providing a retread of the original games they serve as a direct sequel with a new story and sequence of events. At $39.99 each, Pokemon Black and White Version 2 each offer (in very similar ways; there's no reason to buy both unless you're a completionist) an extensive Pokemon experience that manages to feel fresh compared to the original sixth generation games.

Pokemon Black and White Version 2 both take place two years after the events of Pokemon Black and White, putting you in the shoes of a new Pokemon trainer from a small town in the Unova region, just outside the original playable area of the games. It's the same deal as every other main Pokemon game, where you start with one of three elemental starter Pokemon, you have to collect Pokemon and beat the eight gym leaders of the region, beat the Elite Four at the Pokemon Championships, and thwart Team (Something) as they try to do something evil. None of that has changed.

The big change is in the region itself. Not only do you start in a new town, but nearly every location has been altered over the last two years. There are new towns, new gyms, and new ways to get between towns like underwater tunnels. You go through a completely new route and new sequence of gyms, with several new gym leaders (including characters from Pokemon Black and White), and while you do this you have to fight the remnants of Team Plasma, the villains from the previous games. Team Plasma has abandoned its ideals after its leader, N, was persuaded by the last games' hero to give up his mission to free all Pokemon, and now the old members that didn't follow N just want to take over the Unova region.

As you explore Unova again, you meet people who were affected by the previous games' hero and N's actions. If you played Pokemon Black and White and link your game's save file through the Pokemon Global Network (a process that requires visiting the Pokemon Web page and registering both games, then recording your save file to the network), you get more content in the form of flashbacks and special Pokemon involved with N and the hero, and the different characters all remember the name you put in from the previous game. It's a nice touch, even if the process is convoluted.

There are a few extra activities to try along with the ones from Black and White. You can now start in greenscreened movies at a studio, giving you more thoughtful, puzzle-like battled with certain Pokemon that emphasize meeting certain requirements instead of just winning. You can start your own shopping area on Join Avenue, where you can recruit NPCs to run and visit shops and expand by linking with other players through SpotPass. You can also collect medals by performing certain tasks, giving the game a form of achievements or trophies. The Battle Subway returns and is joined by the Pokemon World Tournament. The Battle Subway lets you fight random trainers with an equalized level of Pokemon for Battle Points to get new training machines, and the Pokemon World Tournament lets you fight gym leaders (bosses) from previous Pokemon games.

There are still plenty of online features, including battling and trading Pokemon across the Internet and local wireless connections. The Entralink feature from Black and White returns, letting players walk around parts of Unova with their friends and unlock rare Pokemon and new areas. The competitive Pokemon field is big, and if you like micromanaging and researching stats, you'll get plenty of use out of the online modes.

Pokemon Black and White Version 2 are more of the same as Pokemon games, but they offer enough twists and changes to feel like a genuine sequel of Pokemon Black and White and not just an upgraded remake like the other Pokemon half-sequels. Even if you played through the last Pokemon game, Pokemon Black and White Version 2 can feel fresh and offer plenty of content.

HTC J Butterfly (HTL21) Leaked

Unveiled by KDDI as the HTC J Butterfly (HTL21), this Android 4.1 device is the first announced phone to feature a 5-inch, 440ppi full-HD "Super LCD 3" panel, and it's fittingly complemented by a 1.5GHz quad-core APQ8064 underneath, making this the latest member in the small family of Snapdragon S4 Pro phones. There's an eight-megapixel camera that naturally handles 1080p video at the back, accompanied by a 2.1-megapixel front-facing imager. Other details include 2GB RAM, 16GB internal storage, microSDHC expansion, 802.11a/b/g/n WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0 (LE), NFC, LTE and CDMA/GSM/UMTS/GPRS radios -- that's right, it's a global device. Not bad for a 140g package, and it's waterproof as well, rated at IPX5. But the question is how well will the 2,020mAh battery last under that super dense LCD and high-end processor? Only time will tell -- even KDDI has yet to finalize this part of the specs. Folks on the KDDI network can grab hold of this powerful phone in early December, with a choice of red, white or black. This phablet will use panels supplied by Sharp and JDI.

iPad Mini to be Presented this month!

 There have been rumors circulating for months about the pending release of Apple’s new iPad Mini. Numerous devices are scheduled to be released in October and as the speculation goes, the iPad Mini is expected to be one of those devices.

 Fortune had previously predicted that Apple would announce the release of the smaller iPad during an event on 17th October, 2015. The invites to the reporters were to go out on the 10th however the date has been changed to October 23rd. According to a very reliable technology website on all things Apple, the company is set to reveal the iPad Mini at a media event to be held in the San Francisco Bay Area.

 The change of date from the 17th to the 23rd seems to make more sense since it would be too soon for Apple to announce their release of the new iPad since the invites have not yet been sent out. In addition, October 24th, 2015 is the set date for the launch of Windows 8 from Microsoft as well as the release of Microsoft’s Surface tablet later on in the week. Furthermore, Apple is to release its annual earnings on October 25th, which means that it would be better for the company to announce the release of the iPad Mini before then.

 The iPad Mini will come with 3G/4G cellular connectivity, a smaller screen measuring 7.85 inches and a Lightning Dock Connector that is the same as the one on the new iPhone 5. Images of the smaller iPad have been doing the rounds on the Internet following a report from The Wall Street Journal a couple of weeks ago that mass production of the iPad Mini has already begun.

 In September, Amazon’s new Kindle Fire HD was released starting at $199. The same price was quoted for the Google and Asus’ Nexus 7, which was released in June. About two weeks ago, Barnes & Noble launched the Nook HD and following the trend, it also started at $199. Although no price has been quoted for the iPad Mini, it is safe to assume that it might fall within this price range. So far, Apple has refused to comment on ABC News on the rumors about the iPad Mini. However, if the rumors are true, then more information can be expected from the company very soon.