Posted by Mauricio on Dec 1, 2008 at 9:31 AM | Comments
I’m sure many of you know about the terrorist attacks in Mumbai. I just read a suspenseful article about this one lawyer who was trapped in his closet for 46 hours! His connection to the outside world, his family and security experts, was his BlackBerry.
FOR 46 hours, Australian lawyer David Jacobs’ salvation – as terrorists prowled outside his Mumbai hotel room – was his BlackBerry mobile phone.
Hiding in a wardrobe, Mr Jacobs exchanged a stream of emails with his family in Sydney and two security experts in the US as his life hung in the balance.
The emails are a remarkable real-time record of bravery, humour and grace under pressure as he sought information about the terrorists, weighed up his options to escape and received advice on what to do if captured by the gunmen.
Outside his room on the 16th floor of the Oberoi/Trident Hotel, Mr Jacobs wrote, he could hear regular gunfire and explosions.
He even tied sheets together in case he had to flee through the window.
The drama began in the early hours of Thursday morning, when the senior partner at law firm Baker and McKenzie phoned his wife, Jenny, in Sydney to tell her the hotel was under attack.
There was a fire, and smoke was filling his room.
He did not know whether he was going to make it out alive.
Posted by Mauricio on Nov 13, 2008 at 9:49 PM | Comments
Avaya gold business partner, Comlinx, has won a contract with Domino’s Pizza to update its communications systems.
To be rolled out in December, the installation involves Avaya’s one-X Mobile client software, which connects management BlackBerry phones to a new network. The integration will allow users to gain access to the system’s audio conferencing, voicemail, email, instant messaging and other features. Avaya video telephony and endpoints from Polycom will also be rolled out to provide IP-based video calling capabilities.
Comlinx director, Wayne Shaw, said the integrator had repeated this deployment a number of times in the past, and proactively approached Domino’s with the solution.
Posted by Mauricio on Nov 10, 2008 at 11:16 AM | Comments
Nice find by Jason over at BlackBerryNews. The BlackBerry Storm launch is getting closer, and along with it some leaks. Check out some more photos after the jump. { Continue reading }
Posted by Mauricio on Oct 27, 2008 at 2:21 PM | Comments
Bringing its flagship product to a robust mobile device market, Speech Design reportedly is supporting Research In Motion’s BlackBerry (News – Alert) Bold and BlackBerry Pearl 8220 smartphones (the Bold model is pictured below right) in its latest Mobility Client Software release.
Officials from the Germany-based company, which provides messaging and mobility solutions for the corporate and carrier networks, say their software now covers platforms such as Symbian ( News – Alert), BlackBerry and Windows Mobile, as well as many popular handsets.
Mobility Client Software adds an intuitive user interface to Fixed Mobile Convergence systems, company officials say, easing communication between wireless and wireline networks. The software also supports FMC systems developed by Speech Design and marketed by T-Systems, Siemens andAvaya ( News – Alert) under different product names, as well as its own brand, “Teleserver Mobile Pro.”
Posted by Mauricio on Oct 15, 2008 at 11:31 AM | Comments
The CTA may still have miles to go on the road to providing reliable, world-class service, but at least customers will now know what they are getting into before leaving home or work.
The Chicago Transit Authority on Tuesday introduced reforms, including e-mail alerts, to keep passengers better informed about routine service changes and, eventually, disruptions caused by equipment breakdowns and emergencies.
Riders can sign up at www.transitchicago.com to receive planned service-change notifications because of construction, special events and other situations. They also can view a new video on train emergency-evacuation procedures on the Web site.
The video and a new brochure explaining what rail passengers should do in an emergency are an attempt to end a string of recent incidents in which panicked passengers fled stranded subway trains on their own because no CTA personnel provided instructions.
Beginning early next year, CTA customers can subscribe to emergency alerts sent as text messages to mobile phones or as e-mails to BlackBerry-like devices, officials said.
Posted by Mauricio on Oct 15, 2008 at 11:27 AM | Comments
Berkeley, CA: October 14, 2008 – Apisphere Inc. (www.apisphere.com), a leading provider of location-awareness services for mobile business applications and devices, today announced it has joined the BlackBerry® ISV (Independent Software Vendor) Alliance Program. Apisphere will leverage the resources and tools offered through the alliance program to help developers build superior location-awareness applications for BlackBerry smartphone users.
Apisphere’s Geo Enabled Mobility (GEM) platform easily integrates location-aware features into mobile business applications, providing independent software vendors (ISVs), system integrators (SIs) and enterprises with flexible and customized solutions. Based on a Software as a Service (SaaS) model, Apisphere’s GEM platform provides mobile geo-location information to any mobile device, regardless of the service provider. Joining the BlackBerry Alliance Program will allow Apisphere to further develop GEM’s capabilities and optimize mobile business processes with on-demand, location-aware information to support BlackBerry smartphone users.
“With the growing demand for mobile and wireless technologies and the increase in BlackBerry adoption, businesses are embracing customized and innovative BlackBerry applications that address their particular business needs,” said Craig Harper, CEO, Apisphere. “Apisphere is thrilled to be joining the alliance and is planning on taking full advantage of the resources and tools to tailor its location-awareness technology to serve the numerous businesses that rely on BlackBerry solutions everyday.”
The BlackBerry Alliance Program helps independent software vendors, system integrators and solution providers create innovative solutions for the BlackBerry platform. As part of the alliance, Apisphere will gain access to business, marketing and technical resources for developing applications for the BlackBerry platform as well as access to other alliance members interested in leveraging Apisphere’s offerings.
About Apisphere Inc.
Apisphere, Inc. transforms the value of mobile applications and devices with location-awareness services that dramatically enhance the productivity and efficiency of mobile workers. Apisphere’s innovative approach to location-aware mobile content delivery is combined with its unique, patentable technology and a highly scalable Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) business model. For more information, visit www.apisphere.com.
Posted by Mauricio on Oct 15, 2008 at 10:47 AM | Comments
BETHPAGE, N.Y., Oct. 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ –Cablevision Systems Corp. (NYSE: CVC) today announced that it has successfully deployed Optimum WiFi wireless Internet access in commercial and high-traffic locations across its Long Island, Connecticut and Westchester/Dutchess service areas as a free enhancement for its Optimum Online high-speed Internet customers. Optimum WiFi has also been activated on the commuter rail platforms and station parking lots across Long Island, and at many Metro North stations as well.
Already the largest and most advanced consumer WiFi network in the nation, based on geographic coverage, Cablevision has more than doubled the size of its activated Optimum WiFi service area just since its initial deployment update early last month. Over the next two years, Cablevision plans to deploy WiFi in the commercial and high consumer traffic areas across its entire tri-state service area.
“We are pleased to announce that Optimum WiFi is now available to customers across Cablevision’s Long Island, Connecticut and Westchester/Dutchess service areas, as our market-wide deployment continues,” said Kevin Curran, Cablevision’s senior vice president of wireless product development. “Free and broadly available WiFi access is already becoming a popular enhancement for our Optimum Online customers, and a significant differentiator over our competitors. With an estimated 300 million WiFi-enabled consumer electronics devices shipped last year – a figure that is expected to grow to 1 billion by 2012 – we believe the interest and value associated with Optimum WiFi is only beginning.”
Current Optimum Online customers using laptop computers and portable WiFi-enabled devices like the iPhone, iPod Touch and BlackBerry can access Optimum WiFi through a simple sign-on screen. Once a customer logs into the service by entering their Optimum User ID and password, the network delivers fast symmetrical speeds of up to 1.5 megabits-per-second.
Cablevision currently provides Optimum Online high-speed Internet service to more than 2.4 million customers, more than 51 percent of the homes passed by Cablevision’s fiber optic network, the highest penetration of any Internet service in the nation. Optimum Online customers are already familiar with the benefits of wireless access, with more than half using wireless routers in the home.
Optimum WiFi uses the same standard used in wireless home networks, 802.11, and any device that is certified by the WiFi Alliance as adhering to the 802.11 standards and has a browser will be able to access the Optimum WiFi network. Cablevision has launched a consumer Web site, located at www.optimumwifi.com, to provide customers with additional information on Optimum WiFi, including tutorials and detailed coverage maps, which will be updated as the deployment continues.
Previously activated Optimum WiFi community zones – which are still providing service as the market-wide deployment increases – include Denville, Ridgewood and Tenafly in New Jersey, and Parkchester in the Bronx.
About Cablevision
Cablevision Systems Corporation (NYSE: CVC) is one of the nation’s leading media and entertainment companies. Its cable television operations serve more than 3 million households in the New York metropolitan area. The company’s advanced telecommunications offerings include its iO TV(R) digital television, Optimum Online(R) high-speed Internet, Optimum Voice(R) digital voice-over-cable, and its Optimum Lightpath integrated business communications services. Cablevision operates several successful programming businesses, including AMC, IFC, Sundance Channel and WE tv, through Rainbow Media Holdings LLC, and serves the New York area as publisher of Newsday and other niche publications through Newsday LLC. In addition to these businesses, Cablevision owns Madison Square Garden and its sports teams, the New York Knicks, Rangers and Liberty. The company also operates New York’s famed Radio City Music Hall, the Beacon Theatre, and the Chicago Theatre, and owns and operates Clearview Cinemas.
Posted by Mauricio on Oct 9, 2008 at 9:32 AM | Comments
Research in Motion Ltd. announced Wednesday that it is moving to take on Apple Inc. with a new touch-screen model of their popular BlackBerry phone.
The new Blackberry Storm, which will be available later this fall, represents the first time RIM is abandoning its traditional keypad in favor of a larger screen similar to that used on Apple’s iPhone.
The Waterloo, Ontario-based company said the new smartphone would be available exclusively to Verizon Wireless subscribers in the U.S. and Vodafone subscribers in Europe, India, Australia and New Zealand. It’s an unusual twist that the Storm will work with both Verizon Wireless’ network and with Vodafone’s, since the two use incompatible network technologies.
In developing the Storm, RIM listened to feedback from users of Apple’s iPhone, who found its glass screen awkward to type on because its virtual buttons provide little perceptible feedback. As a result, the Storm incorporates a whole screen backed by springs that, when pressed, provide users with a soft click when released, RIM said.
Posted by Mauricio on Oct 8, 2008 at 4:50 PM | Comments
Very interesting find by Ronen over at BerryReview.
I love learning about what technologies power each part of my gadgets and the upcoming Storm is no exception. I just got confirmation that the upcoming BlackBerry Storm is packing a Synaptics’ touchscreen. It turns out that the Storm is using Synaptics’ ClearPad custom module. This part is what enables multi touch input as well as other useful functions such as copy-and-paste.
Subscribe to the BBRocks! Store Feeds to stay up-to-date on the latest BlackBerry software, accessories, special offers, best sellers and the deal of the day!
