So earlier on Twitter I was complaining that Messages on OS X seemingly didn’t support Facebook Chat, despite the recent OS X 10.8.2 update which integrated Facebook directly into the OS core. Apparently, I was wrong.
Simply go to this page and follow the simple setup instructions. Other clients are supported too, in fact, Facebook Chat is a Jabber setup, so any client that supports Jabber will support Facebook Chat.
Happy chatting!
Hey all. Sorry for the lack of posts. There isn’t much new to be discussed really for the moment. On top of that, I’m working a lot so I try and keep up when I can.
As far as push doctor is concerned, it’s pretty much dead for now. The automatic push generation server is not getting new certs because the donor device from @anethema is dead (wifi controller is fried). Until he can get a new dedicated (jaibreakable) donor device, there will be no new certs to use through the push doctor package, so don’t try and install it, you will recieve an error.
You can help mitigate this and donate a new device (an untethered jailbroken iPod touch will do fine) to @anethema (or myself in the future as I plan on getting a Mac Mini to use as a remote server at home) that way a dedicated donor device can be run 24/7 to provide the server with new push certs. We even have a guide with tools to allow users to help donate push certs for others, so be sure to check them out if you are able to dedicate a donor device full time the tools are there to give you the ability, the more that do this the better the community benefits.
If you still need to recieve a valid push cert, there is a pay service available, as well as a manual guide that I strongly implore you to investigate before sending me questions in the comments or on Twitter about the service not working. We have provided every possible option we can to keep this service free but since we lack funding that is all we can do. Tech support is at it’s max and it’s up to you to help yourselves figure it out or help us help you, by either donating hardware or money to the project.
However, since a lot more carriers are now coming around to unlocking iPhones, push doctor/donating push certs is becoming less needed except on really old devices. Eventually, the service will probably be wiped out from necessity except on the rarest of carriers.
For now, that is all there is to post. If anything else comes up, I will be sure to post here asap.
Ok, as we all have heard, the iPhone 4S on 5.0 had some reported battery issues where the battery was simply draining faster and not delivering on the advertised performance ratings that Apple was giving. Apple acknowledged the issue and released iOS 5.0.1 which was supposed to fix the battery issue. For some it did, for some it made it better and for some it stayed the same.
Some of the remedies included turning off all kinds of system services, such as iCloud, Location, etc. However, I feel these may have just been a placebo, and people still had the issues.
Recently, a website had run an experiment in which they had two iPhone 4S’, one that apparently had the battery issue and one that did not. You can read about that here.
What the site does not say was whether or not they had restored one phone with a backup from a 4S or 4 and left the 4S alone on 5.0.1.
In my experience, when I received my iPhone 4S, I had immediately logged into iCloud on the device, backed up my iPhone 4 on 5.0.1 to iCloud and restored to the 5.0 4S immediately. I noticed that I had the speedy battery drain. So I then upgraded to 5.0.1, and I still had the battery drain.
I then started turning off services as usual, to no avail. I was frustrated.
Then it occured to me that I was using an iPhone 4 backup on a 4S. It occured to me as well that the 4 was essentially a very different beast from the 4S. Apple has lots of settings that the user can’t access that pertain to hardware, and they usually do get backed up as well.
It’s very possible that restoring a 4 backup on a 4S causes the battery drain from the old hardware settings. To test, I did a pristine restore via iTunes, did not restore any settings, and did a clean sync to iTunes and set everything back up by hand. The results are very good. The battery has greatly improved. At the time of this post, I had the iPhone 4S fully charged and taken off the charger at 12pm sharp. It is now 4:43pm and with moderate usage the stats are as follows:
I’d say those are pretty impressive stats. If all else fails, start clean, give it a shot.
Personally, I am very upset about this news. This is a man that I often looked up to for inspiration. For creative process. Wisdom.
Steve Jobs was truly a visionary of our time. He’s been to hell and back, so to speak. In the end, he proved to himself, to others, to the board and to his customers that he could leave a legacy for us to follow. The technology Steve always pursued, while not always as fast paced as the competition, was always still top of the line, beautiful and stable. He’s taught most of us that, just like the tortoise and the hare, it’s the steady pace that wins. Without him, I feel that the foundations laid before us would not exist. He has inspired many, from me to Microsoft, to push boundaries.
Thank you, Mr. Jobs. You are forever in our hearts, especially my own.
Lately a lot of people have been commenting on the blog about Push Doctor. I’m going to address some of these comments in this post. Although most of the questions being asked are already answered by simply reading the blog posts, I will re-post them here in a single post.
1.a. I do not control the generation of push certificates, nor do I control the supply server or provide support for push notifications after a successful install of Push Doctor. I only host the package and help with repository or package support as needed. @anethema controls the generation of push certificates and the supply server, and like myself, has lots of real world responsibilities and necessities that will always come before the community. Please contact him about certificates or push issues after installing push doctor from now on. @anethema : email
1.b @anethema has recently informed me that the cert generation device is not functioning. It’s unknown how long it will be until another device will be obtained. You can help by contacting @anethema on Twitter and offering up a device for donation that has a working Wifi controller. Push certs will hopefully generate for a while until this donor device finally gives up.
1.c If you were able to install push doctor successfully with a cert, and it seems that push doesn’t actually work, make sure that you check Settings.app for the Notifications options and make sure the app you want is listed there. If you do see that, and push still seems to not work, install iPush Test (iTunes App Store Link) and see what that app tells you. If all else fails, read section 1.a of this post.
2. If you obtained a certificate via Push Doctor, removing Push Doctor does NOT remove your push certificate. Reinstalling Push Doctor will install a NEW certificate (and deplete the available supply for everyone else). Make sure you test completely before attempting a reinstall. Some push enabled apps like Facebook.app are terrible with push alerts, resulting in delayed notifications. This happens to non-jailbreakers as well.
3. If you get the following error during the installation:
“Subprocess post-installation script returned error exit status 1″
“sub-process /usr/bin/dpkg returned an error coda (1)”
The push certificate supply server is either offline or has run out of certificates. Before asking when certificates will be available, see point 1 of this post.
4. If you attempt an installation of Push Doctor and get the above error, you will need to forcibly clear Cydia. Cydia should prompt you for this.
5.a. If the supply server is offline or showing 0 certificates available, you can follow the method outlined at
http://www.cmdshft.ipwn.me/blog/?p=787 to obtain a push certificate.
5.b. Your two iOS devices do not need to be on the same version for the alternate method to work.
6. There is no current way to contribute to generating certificates at this time. Sorry.
I may add to this post at a later date.
IMPORTANT UPDATE: Since I have taken the repository offline, the steps outlined below no long work when trying to access the nimble and inject binaries from Cydia. I have provided a zip file download (with instructions on how to install the binaries) before the struck out text.
This post is for people who can’t get a push certificate via Push Doctor (the instructions are in an earlier post but hard to find).
You will need another jailbroken iOS device that can activate via iTunes for this to work. iPod touch and iPad will do fine (otherwise you need an iPhone that can legitimately be activated). For the sake of this guide, since I am personally able to activate legitimately, I will be using one device to demonstrate.
First, disable any passcode locks on both devices (as well as any SIM pins if applicable). Without this you will have to restore the secondary device.
Install OpenSSH on both your hacktivated iPhone and the second iOS device (and change your password, google the instructions for that, this way you protect yourself).
Download the zip file here.
In Cydia, add http://cmdshft.ipwn.me/apt/ as a new repository on both devices and let it refresh.
When that completes, install “nimble” on the device that is activated via iTunes, and install “inject” on the hacktivated device.
Open up a terminal (Terminal.app or PuTTY), log into the device that can activate with iTunes over SSH and run:
su [root password required]
cd /private/var/Keychains
./nimble
This will generate 4 .bin files in the Keychains directory. These are your certs, store them in a safe and secure location using an SFTP capable program (FileZilla, Transmit, Cyberduck, etc).
Using your SFTP program, login to the hacktivated iPhone, put those .bin files in /private/var/Keychains as in the screenshot above, open an SSH connection to this device and run:
su [root password required]
cd /private/var/Keychains
./inject
Shut down the hacktivated iPhone.
Login to the device that activates with iTunes via a terminal and run:
su [root password required]
rm -rf /var/root/Library/Lockdown
killall -TERM lockdownd SpringBoard
A connect to iTunes image/emergency call screen will show up, simply reconnect this device to iTunes and it will reactivate and can be used right away.
You can now turn on the hacktivated iPhone and push should work just fine.
You can use this method to backup your push certs (they are unique), which you should do anyway, this way any time you have to restore and rejailbreak you don’t have to rely on Push Doctor in case there are no certs on the server.
Hey guys. Just an update of sorts.
I’m going to be posting less about tech related subjects, and more about other subjects, mostly photography/videography and other stuff. I was recently made an AuthenticDUBBS (site is being built) member and I am starting my own photography business at Haüs of Boost Media. You’ll see more from that in the coming weeks/months.
I am going to be very busy. I will be working a full time job and a part time city job as an EMT, as well as my part time self-operated business, on top of trying to make it to shows with AuthenticDUBBS… This does not mean that I am stopping my Apple/iPhone/iOS related posts. I am still going to be running NERV Repo as well as hosting and delivering Push Doctor and working with anethema on getting push certs out to you guys.
I will be picking one of these badboys up tonight from my local Best Buy and I will probably post a small review as an update in this post. All new events that I attend will be shot with this, so expect Panty Shot Studios to make a comeback.
Sample shots:
I ordered some new iPhone 4 custom replacement back glass units from www.sw-box.com, and I am posting my thoughts here now.
First off, make sure you know which piece you want. They are not made the same. Some have diffusers for the LED flash like the OEM one that comes on the iPhone 4 from the factory, others do not. Some may come with a film that you have to remove from the inside that could cause the LED light to leak into the camera lens when taking pictures using the flash. You MUST remove this film to rectify the issue if you are experiencing this problem after installing. I picture of these differences will be shown in the photos that follow this post, and there is a how-to install video as well (please excuse the nasally sound of my voice, I am sick at the time of the video).
The backs, especially the red, are of great quality for the price you can get them at. I am really impressed. They use the metal screw mounts just like the OEM unit instead of the plastic mounts which tend to strip out quite easily, causing the screws to to eventually fall out which was the problem I was having with the old metal back that I posted a review of months ago. Overall verdict, if you’re not picky about design, any back should suffice, but if you’re like me, you definitely wanna make sure that you know which one you are ordering and what it has.
Make sure to check for and remove this plastic strip if your back plate came with it as mentioned above:
Here is the video on how to install the replacement glass back units:
I hate cases. For me they are useless and pointless. I like to show off my phone. I also like being able to use whatever accessory I wish without having to worry about a case causing me issues.
A friend of mine at my EMS squad recommended that I go look into getting my phone protected by Ghost Armor, a small kiosk at the mall.
I have to say, they fit my needs very well. I wasn’t fond of antenna coverings until I saw their Carbon Fiber skin they had in the display case, and they had someone else’s phone in the bin dryer that had it on, and once I saw it I fell in love. It looked absolutely fantastic.
The skin feels great in my hand, very textured and it gives it a little more grip, but not too much, so you don’t accidentally let it slip out of your hand. They even threw in the regular no fingerprint screen guard as well (I didn’t like the Carbon Fiber on the front of it, felt scratchy against my face).
Here’s some pics, and I definitely recommend these guys if you are picky like me. Runs about $40 for the full treatment.
