iTunes store contains LOTS of good programs, and prices are fair. But why not take advantage of getting FREE tools when they are available for free.

Take a look on the website: http://freeappalert.com/.

Handbrake is multi-featured and runs on all three platforms: Windows, Linux and MacOS.

Supported sources

• Any DVD-like source: VIDEO_TS folder, DVD image or real DVD (unencrypted–protection methods including CSS are not supported internally and must be handled externally with third-party software and libraries), and some .VOB and .TS files
• Most any multimedia file it can get libavformat to read and libavcodec to decode.

Output

• File format: MP4, MKV, AVI or OGM
• Video: MPEG-4, H.264, or Theora (1 or 2 passes or constant quantizer/rate encoding)
• Audio: AAC, MP3, Vorbis or AC-3 pass-through (supports encoding of several audio tracks)

It’s freeware, and you can freely download this program over at: http://handbrake.fr/?article=download.

I am taking the first peaks into this knowing full well that I will be able to test programs once we have acquired this miracle of miracles next summer.

Have you downloaded the SDK and begun your own development of programs? Have you got special requests as to what tools YOU need, then please feel free to add a comment. I want to hear from you, the readers of the blog, to see what is needed out there. Thanks beforehand for participating.

Among the highlights you can read at the Apple website:

• Revenue Up 38 Percent Year-Over-Year
• Apple shipped 2,496,000 Macintosh® computers during the quarter, representing 41 percent unit growth and 43 percent revenue growth over the year-ago quarter.
• Apple sold 11,011,000 iPods during the quarter, representing 12 percent unit growth and seven percent revenue growth over the year-ago quarter.
• Quarterly iPhone™ units sold were 717,000 compared to 270,000 in the year-ago-quarter.

If you want to hear the conference call about the financial results, Apple has released it here: http://www.apple.com/quicktime/qtv/earningsq308/.

Since Apple “announced financial results for its fiscal 2008 third quarter ended June 28, 2008″ there is no doubt that international sales will reach even higher levels. Here in Denmark there is a VERY BIG interest in getting a hold of the new iPhone 3G so it’s only a question of getting them to the country to stimulate user requests before people settle for something less nifty.

So I hope Apple reads user blogs to catch the drift. We need more iPhones – in Denmark, and probably elsewhere also.

One source sells the iPhone at a cost of approx. 4.900,- so it is encouraging news. We will keep our eyes open. It seems Telia is going to be the Danish phone company to win distribution rights. Exciting times.

That anyone could ever bring themselves to throw a fully functional iPhone into a blender is rather strange. But, nonetheless, when you have another iPhone at hand you can at least survive loosing the first one.

Just kidding. Have a nice sunday.

There is no doubt that market shares could go far higher in the European market. The danger has been that numerous phone companies have been very reluctant in accepting the iPhone. Somehow, many companies focus on latest versions of Nokia and Sony-Ericsson and brands such as LG, Alcatel, Motorola and now also the Apple iPhone have been somewhat overlooked. This may not be a conscious decision but actually the power of repetition. Sometimes we continue in the same path as previously.

The Apple iPhone will change all of that as I have often emphasized in this blog. We look forward to buying these ourselves.

So, if you are also keen on this iPhone it might be a good investment that now even gets better. Personally, I do enjoy using both Mozilla FireFox and Opera on the MacBook.

One could indeed have imagined that if design patents were not secured some might actually make copies, as Apple has secured the same beauty in simplicity with both their iPods and MacBooks as one sees in the audio and tv world with products from worldly renowned B&O [Bang & Olufsen - another high-end quality product when it comes to people who CHOOSE design foremost].

The iPhone is no doubt just as beautiful but since it hasn’t yet been released on the Danish market, I can’t yet say more than what you may already have read and seen on YouTube.

Top Gadget

Time Magazine has written an excellent description about the iPhone, and in fact even put it at the top of their Top 10 Gadgets – read more here: http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/top10/article/0,30583,1686204_1686305_1690738,00.html

Every single word in that description matches very excellently why it is such an attractive gadget. We do look forward to Apple sending the iPhone on the Danish market also.

Top 10 Websites

I am rather amazed but the Time list of “Top 10 Websites” contained 10 websites which were all unknown to me.

There is no doubt that many will now visit these sites, but I am still somewhat perplexed about what criteria lay as reason for selection…

The Anathomy of Success

Just as in all other areas in life, marketing is based upon some very important and highly effective principles that must be fulfilled to one extent or another to secure success.

Some of the main rules are:

• Product vs. price. Having the right product at the right price. Not necessarily being the cheapest, but offering a fair deal compared with the features of your product.
• Stability. People want to be sure they can find spare parts if anything goes wrong. This would especially be true when dealing with computer products. Many have through the years acquired products that suddenly disappeared from the market – and often their entire investment was lost as a result of it.
• Innovative. When you ask people to take out their wallets, there must be some form of innovation in what you’re trying to sell to them. People want exciting new features. They might not “need” bluetooth for their phones, but if their wife, son or daughter needs to send them an image it would be a smart thing. Innovation can be an old technique in a new appearance, and often is. Something outdated in one line of business can become the new buzz word in another.
• Word of mouth. Nowadays reviews have quite an impact upon the way your product is received.

There are other important things also, but you will already have noticed that the iPhone fulfills ALL these points. That’s why many seasonal gifts might also involve an iPhone or an iPod…