Deja vu.
Just did a jailbreak on my iPad.
Three years ago I did a jailbreak on my iPhone before conducting a live lecture/demo for Medill freshman using independent apps to do live field reporting. Link to that blog entry.
I’ve already logged thousands of air miles and a couple of stamps in the passport with my iPad in tow and am gathering a lot of good field experience using it in ways to report I never thought I would. I have passed it around to journalists in newsrooms in Edmonton, Calgary, Vancouver and Richmond and gleaned some good feedback. Can’t wait to see the editors in Toronto react when they see that she is properly housebroken, er, jailbroken that is. I’ll be there next week delivering two sessions to editors-in-chief at the Canadian Newspaper Association.
You know, when the iPhone came out - many people were jealous and quickly showed that their mobile phones also had Google maps, push e-mail and maybe even a touchscreen. OK. Now you can ask them - can you convincingly play the melody to “Chopsticks” on your phone? Or are you in an iPhone band?
Bear with me - this blog is really about the future of mobile journalism This video above is of a digital piano program, or application, that runs on the iPhone. And it it runs on any iPhone that has been hacked to allow users to install new programs on it. The news is that today may be the last day that you would need to “jailbreak” your iPhone to get new functions like this.
At 10 a.m PST time today Apple is set to allow developers (The people who write software applications) to finally release their wares to all iPhone users. Most of the global digerati press corps I know is on a plane right now to Texas right now to cover the SXSW festival. It’s a shame some of them were not invited to Cupertino to talk with the developers who have been invited to Apple’s famous Building No. 4 to get the lowdown on the new capabilities that will soon be coming to iPhone owners.
I admit, I rarely use my iPhone to make calls. Not that there is anything wrong with calling or getting calls. It’s just this - do you really need to blah, blah, blah all the time with your voice when there are often more useful ways to connect using SMS, e-mail and Web sites (Like Twitter and Facebook) using the Web browser?
I look at my phone bill and all of those wasted minutes for “Voice” that slip past.
I don’t mind calls, I even occasionally make them but more often I initiate voice calls with my Skype account instead of my iPhone. Esp when I travel - it’s so easy and saves me thousands on roaming charges and all. I like the option to open a chat window and pass Web links while I talk with someone. That multi-channel style is just more natural to the types of conversations I have with clients and friends. We talk about a trend and I pass a link to the research. We talk about a video and I pass a link . . . etc.
How to save money with your iPhone
So here’s my setup for mojo with the iPhone. Get a Skype IN account (Not expensive and gives you a phone number in what area code you like.)
Robb’s Hacked iphone has Instant messaging, a direct to Flickr camera and a bunch of other tweaks designed for field journalism.
OK. I finally took the plunge and have successfully downloaded new programs onto my iPhone.
The temptation to be able to use new programs to report from the field with was just too much. More than ringtones, wallpaper and hacks modding an iPhone can put new superpowers in the hands of your reporting staff. I believe that a properly configured iPhone will allow reporters to do more reporting from the field - closer to their community, closer to sources, closer to where they should be doing their best work.
I waited this long to try this be sure I wouldn’t be ‘bricking’ or otherwise damaging my iPhone or exposing my data to security exploits.
Robb Montgomery produces new media workshops to train journalists and media professionals in more than 20 countries in writing for the Web, multimedia reporting, and Web video journalism.
His hands-on seminars include interactive learning techniques, live demonstrations and expertise in teaching new media concepts to professionals.
