Apple, being the innovative corporation that it is, applies for patents many times per year. While many of these items may never make it to market, the company is proactive in making sure that possible patents are filed as soon as possible in order to protect the intellectual property that's been developed.

One such filing from last year describes a fascinating cloud-based, cross-platform sync service referred to as "Grab & Go." The filing showed up earlier this week and demonstrates how synchronization of data over multiple devices could be simplified. Grab & Go creates pre-defined data sets with categories like family, entertainment, or business that a user could literally "grab" and move to a device. The patent document shows how sharing files between devices (whether the device is a smartphone, computer, tablet, or even a game console) could be made easier.

The software is flexible enough to adapt to different connection types (Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Ethernet, to name a few) and can provide different levels of encryption and security. The filing even discusses a possible requirement of having two or more devices within a certain distance of each other in order for synchronization to begin.

If you're up for a long, but interesting read over the weekend, head on over to the US Patent & Trademark Office and check out the details of Grab & Go. It could be a foretaste of things to come, or just another long legal document.

[via AppleInsider and Engadget]

As a guy who likes shopping online, but who still appreciates the act of going into a retail store for big purchases, I love this news. Apple has introduced a "Reserve and Pick-up" service for the holiday season.

The name is a little unwieldy, but it gets the point across. You go onto the Apple web site to find what you want, click to reserve the product at a nearby Apple Store, and then go to the store and pick up the goods while you're doing your holiday shopping between December 15 to 24.

For many folks, this might seem awkward -- why not just buy the product online and get it shipped, or just go to the store and buy it? For guys like me, it's perfect -- all of the convenience of choosing a product online, with the added bonus of being able to check out the retail store during the holidays.

iLounge notes that there's no AppleTV on the list, so if you were planning to pick one up as a gift, you'll have to go a more traditional route. There's also no way to actually reserve an iPhone. Instead, you're told to get an iPhone gift card to give to some lucky recipient. Nevertheless, I like the idea of reserve and pick-up, an interesting mix of online shopping and in-store purchasing for the holiday season. It's Apple take-out.

Want an iPhone app business without all the boring hassle of actually programming and releasing iPhone apps? Boy, does Brice Milliorn have a deal for you! He's auctioning off his iPhone app business, which he says has 87 different apps for sale, over on eBay.

Milliorn says he started out developing apps on his own, but the business is just too big for him to keep up so he's selling all of the apps and their rights, all of the source code, and technical support for two months to transition everything over to the new owner. He doesn't specifically say that he'll transfer the developer account on Apple's App Store to your name (he says he'll send over a DVD with the source code and transfer "the whole kit and caboodle" to you), but we presume that's what will happen -- of course if you go for it, you're doing this at your own risk.

What will a burgeoning App Store business, complete with apps like iSexyRef and Swine Flu cost you? Just a cool $100 grand. That's the starting bid in the eBay auction, which has just over a week left and no bids as of this writing. There are certainly less expensive ways to get started selling apps on the store. It only costs $100 to register in Apple's Developer Program for a year, and then you just need to find a developer you can pay -- or even do it yourself with a helper service).

If you'd rather start off with a bunch of marginal to silly 99-cent apps and happen to have an extra $100,000 lying around to spend (maybe for a nice holiday gift?), here's your opportunity.

When the latest G-Map app covering navigation in the U.S. and Canada was updated with text to speech, it didn't make owners of the older East and West [iTunes store links for each] versions too happy. Now that has been corrected, and both iterations of the U.S. $24.99 app have text to speech, iTunes integration, and the ability to resume navigation automatically after a call.

Traffic will be added soon to both apps as an in-app paid update.

Meanwhile, the U.S. and Canada version has been pulled from the app store. According to the company:

'we found a critical issue in the new update of G-Map US & Canada. In order to protect our current users, we have no choice but to temporarily pull the app from the App Store. We already corrected the problem and re-submitted the G-Map US & Canada for approval. Please allow us a few more weeks to serve you. We will do our best to minimize any inconveniences that might occur to you.'

All the G-Map apps have been reasonably priced, but a bit buggy which has not pleased buyers. I'm working on a holiday buyers guide for nav software for the iPhone, but the whole landscape will change radically if Apple approves the free Google nav app with turn by turn directions and photo realistic rendering of routes. The app is shipping in the new Android 2.0 phones, starting with the Verizon Droid, which is scheduled for release tomorrow.

From time to time we have shared hidden settings in applications which can be used to "tweak" an app's behavior, such as forcing Snow Leopard's dictionary to reuse the same window or make the print dialog expanded by default. These settings are normally changed using the Terminal.app which can be daunting to some.

Secrets is a (free!) preference panel which has collected a bunch of these settings and made changing them as simple as checking a box or choosing from a drop-down panel of possible choices. It includes settings for about 40 different applications, from Apple applications such as Mail, iCal, iChat, Finder, Front Row, Keynote, DVD Player (and more) to third-party applications including Adium, Audio Hijack Pro, BBedit, EyeTV, VMware Fusion, and TextMate (just to name a few). Some applications have a lot of hidden settings, and some have only one or two.

If you see a setting but don't know what it does, click it and Secrets will show a brief explanation (these are also available on the Secrets website, but they are easier to read in the preference panel). If you change a setting which requires you to restart the application, Secrets will tell you, and even give you a "Quit This" button. (It's usually best to make these changes when the app isn't running.)

Unfortunately at least one of the secret settings from 10.5 doesn't seem to work in 10.6. That is, the setting to turn HelpViewer into a regular (instead of floating) window. There may be others.

I'm off to explore and see what new goodies Alcor (the developer of Secrets, who you may also know as the creator of Quicksilver) has uncovered.

Thanks to the recently-revived Hawk Wings site for bringing this to my attention. If you use Apple's Mail.app, Hawk Wings is a great site for tips and information.

Update: We seem to have taken down the Secrets website (oops!) but you can download the preference panel from a mirror (zip) (166kb).

Most American television viewers have been treated recently to endless reruns of Verizon's "iDon't" advertisements. These ads attack the iPhone, playing music that's similar to that played in iPhone ads while displaying a series of messages stating such brilliant and cutting phrases as "iDon't have a real keyboard," "iDon't run simultaneous apps," and so on.

Mac fan and Chicago Sun-Times writer Andy Ihnatko was apparently as fed up with the ads as most of us here at TUAW, so he took Verizon to task in a Wednesday column. In the column, he takes on Verizon's claims and for the most part finds them lacking or at least overblown.In describing the faults of the ad campaign, Ihnatko says "Its claims about the limitations of the iPhone are baloney (Mostly.)"

Andy has been testing the new Motorola Droid phone for an upcoming review, and he does like the phone -- a lot. But his take on the ad campaign is right on the mark: "Verizon's 'iDon't' is a terrible commercial. It provokes experienced iPhone users like me to get all Tyra Banks on the phone and the Android 2.0 OS. That can't possibly be good for business."

Don't mess with us iPhone fans, Verizon...

[via Chicago Sun-Times]

Let's file this under 'really bad ideas done poorly.' Sony would like to sell you 1,000 ringtones, sound effects, and comedy voices on a data DVD that's just oh so ready to import into iTunes. Sony doesn't seem to offer a comparable product for other cellphones, like maybe the Sony Ericsson brand, so I can only conclude this is a plot by Sony to make iPhone owners look dumb when a call comes in.

I listened to some of the samples on the Sony website, and the DVD seems to be a collection of bad and unmemorable production music, obnoxious sound effects, and jokey voices saying things like "Dude -- everybody keep your voice down, I think it's my Dad calling."

Fear of flying is nothing to laugh about. Having a panic attack while on an airplane, or not being able to even board a commercial flight because of fear, are both more common than most people would imagine. One solution is to learn how to relax, and to become knowledgeable about the sights, sounds, and feelings of flying.

Virgin Atlantic has had an amazing 98% success rate in curing fear of flying though its Flying Without Fear classes. These are seminars held throughout the UK that provide flight knowledge through a Q&A session with Virgin Atlantic flight crews, followed by a psychology session to make attendees aware of what makes them afraid and provide techniques to combat the fear. At the end of the day, attendees are taken on a short flight to try out their new knowledge and prove to themselves that they can fly without becoming paralyzed with panic.

To reach a much larger audience, Virgin Atlantic has just released the Flying Without Fear app [US$4.99, iTunes Link]. While the app doesn't include a visit from a flight crew or a psychologist, it's designed to make the techniques that have been so successful in Virgin Atlantic's in-person classes available to owners of the iPhone and iPod touch.

Virgin Atlantic President Sir Richard Branson provides a video introduction, followed by video-based explanations of what's going on at every phase of your flight. There's a built-in FAQ section with answers to questions such as "What if all the engines fail?", a set of relaxation exercises, and even a fear attack button (at right) for those scary situations that can occur in flight.

Of course, the app can't be run during takeoff and landing when you're asked to "turn off all electronic devices," but hopefully you'll gain enough confidence through using the app prior to your flight that you'll be able to stay calm.

[via CNET]

Stung by some pretty aggressive advertising by Verizon, AT&T has had enough and is suing the communications giant for false and misleading claims.

AT&T says the ads, which show that AT&T has poor 3G coverage compared to Verizon are causing it to lose "incalculable market share."

According to the lawsuit which AT&T filed in Atlanta federal court, a recently broadcast ad campaign shows maps with white spaces that mislead consumers into thinking AT&T has no network coverage outside of areas where it offers high-speed mobile services, known as 3G.

But AT&T argued that its customers can "fully use their wireless devices outside of a '3G' coverage area and undisputedly have coverage in areas depicted by white or blank spaces on the maps used in Verizon's advertisements."

Verizon says the lawsuit has no merit, and Verizon Wireless spokeswoman Nancy Stark said the ads "clearly state" that voice and data services are available outside 3G areas. She said the ads were intended to tell consumers about coverage for smartphones, which are used for data services.

If you want to see the ad that sparked the lawsuit, click here.

[via Engadget]

It may seem a little strange, or downright counter-intuitive, but Net Applications is reporting that Mac OS X's share of computers using the web grew from September to October this year, while Windows' share of browsers declined.

Windows (all versions of the OS) totaled 92.54% of computers browsing the web, a .25% drop, while Mac OS had a 5.27% share, up 2.73% from September. The iPhone, by the way, had a month to month increase of 5.71%.

The numbers come from tabulating visits to 160 million websites.

Windows 7 got 3% share in the daily tracking, largely at the expense of Windows XP. If Microsoft was depending on Windows 7 to quickly stop the Mac momentum, it hasn't happened yet, but at the same time, most Windows upgrades take place when new machines are bought.

Also, the general release of Windows 7 didn't happen until October 22nd, so the jump in Windows 7 on the internet wasn't available for most of October except for pre-release users.

[via Fortune Brainstorm Tech]

If you experienced some odd performance problems on your Snow Leopard-running Mac early this morning -- say, right around the time of the Daylight Saving 'fall back' to standard time -- you're apparently not alone. The Apple support boards are hopping with reports of 100% CPU spikes coinciding with the switchover from DST between 1 am and 2 am, mostly associated with having the menu bar clock enabled and/or having the clock automatic set feature turned on.

The workaround is apparently simple (if it hasn't already resolved itself after the cutover); just turn off the menu bar clock in System Preferences for a moment, and the problem should go away. On the other hand, the philosophical question of whether a system version that was billed as having no major new user-facing features outside of improved performance and stability should have arrived with so many fascinating quirks... well, good thing we got an extra hour of sleep last night.

Thanks to Gordian and everyone who sent this in.

Khalid Shaikh has been indicted by a grand jury for four counts of mail fraud. The FBI says Shaikh was involved in 4 denial of service attacks against the the firm he founded, YouSendIt, which crippled the content delivery company's servers.

According to the FBI, Shaikh was one of YouSendIt's founders when the company was established in 2004. He served as the company's chief executive officer until August 2005. He then served as the company's chief technology officer until he left the company in November 2006.

In August, Mobile Crunch reported that Shaikh had been banned from the iPhone app store after creating more than 900 useless apps that were mostly links to websites. How they got through the app approval process is another story.

For his part, Shaikh claims he is innocent. The maximum penalty for each count of mail fraud is five years imprisonment, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000, plus restitution if appropriate.

[Via The Alarm Clock]

Update: As our loyal commenters have pointed out, Gizmodo (which was among the first sites to report that Clow was changing roles, echoing a piece in the industry journal Advertising Age) has followed up with an internal email from Clow where he says Miller's promotion does not imply that Clow is stepping away from his own leadership role with the company, including "keeping an eye on Apple."

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When many people think of Apple, they think of the ad campaigns that the company has used over the years:

• The original "1984" Super Bowl ad that introduced the Mac to the world
• The "Think Different" campaign that coincided with the return of Steve Jobs to the company
• The iPod dancing silhouettes
• "There's an app for that" -- the iPhone ads
• "Hello, I'm a Mac. And I'm a PC." -- the Get A Mac ads

Apple's advertising agency is TBWA / Media Arts Lab, and the person who has been the creative force behind all of these ads is a man by the name of Lee Clow. The 66 year-old Clow has decided to step down as chief creative officer at the agency, although he'll remain chairman and global director of Media Arts Lab and fulfill other roles within TBWA.

Clow's replacement is no stranger to Apple. Duncan Milner is currently the executive creative director on the Apple account and is considered by many in the advertising industry to be the perfect replacement for Clow, a close friend of Steve Jobs.

Just in case you missed it, I got my wish from a while back: there is an official version of the classic board game Settlers of Catan, called just Catan, on the App Store right now. I'm still playing Kolonists, the unofficial knockoff that got kicked off of the store for infringement, but if you've got wood for sheep, this official version should get you your portable fix. If you're unfamiliar with the Catan juggernaut, check out this thorough piece from Wired.com.

There's hot seat multiplayer gameplay (I assume you just can't cheat by looking at what resources other people have), or a few AIs to tangle with if you don't have friends at hand, and the game includes a scrollable board to play on, game stats to track, and a tutorial for those of you who haven't rolled the dice and tried to build the Longest Road yet.

The game is created by United Soft Media, a German company that's also ported the game to the DS, and while it's not quite as shiny as the Xbox Live port (my personal favorite version of the game, outside of the real thing, of course), the reviews on iTunes say it gets the job done, at least while you're waiting for the next board game night (and while we're talking about board games, can I recommend Dominion? Best table game I've played in years). The game is $4.99 and available right now. Anyone have any ore?

There are three more full days until the start of National Novel Writing Month, and that means that yet another software developer has checked in with a deal on a Mac writing application.

This time, it's Mariner Software, and the application is StoryMill. Mariner's deal is this -- if you purchase StoryMill before the start of NaNoWriMo on November 1st, you'll get a 35% discount off of the normal price of US$49.95. That brings the price down to a very nice US$34.95.

StoryMill is unique in that it has a timeline function that gives authors a way to arrange the scenes in their opus on a graphical timeline. For continuity of the story line, that's a great tool, and it's something that seems to be available only with StoryMill. The package also has a distraction-free writing mode for churning out your average of 1,667 words per day, as well as a Progress Meter for counting down those 50,000 words in your NaNoWriMo novel.

If you're not sure that StoryMill will work for you, there's also a 30-launch free trial that may see you through NaNoWriMo. I'm hoping that all of you TUAW readers who are thinking of writing during NaNoWriMo have signed up by now and have decided what your story is all about. Good luck, and happy writing!