Just in Time for the Holidays: Best iPhone Apps

I read the previous edition of this book and found it to be high on the useful scale. So when I saw that the second edition was coming out in October, I knew it would make the perfect holiday gift for a number of folks on my list.

Just like the Hallmark commercial, in my mind, I envisioned the holiday perfection of ordering a few copies, wrapping them up and then seeing the expressions of surprised delight on the faces of my friends and family.

The Best iPhone Apps is a full-color book written by J. D. Biersdorfer and published by O’Reilly Media. Here’s why I like it:

• It has news you can use. Whether you’re a cooking buff or sports fan or looking for an app that can help you meditate better, you’ll find something in this book. In fact, you probably won’t make it too far through the book before you start searching around for your phone.
• It’s in color. This just makes it easier to read and makes the apps seem more exciting.
• Just like shopping in a good store, you’ll find apps that you never knew you needed. And you’ll wonder how you ever got along without them. Case in point: best app for finding a public restroom (along with ratings). And: best app for virtual sculpting.

The print version retails for $19.99 and the e-book sells for $15.99. Or you can get both for $21.99 by ordering directly from the publisher.

If you’re going for the print version (which is way more for fun to open if it’s a gift), you can buy it on amazon for around $13. At that price, you might as well pick up an extra copy or two for that last-minute hostess gift or office gift exchange.

Comcast Remote Code for Sony Bravia=10000

This is totally unrelated to programming - at least computer programming. I recently got a Sony Bravia LCD TV. I have Comcast cable service and in order to be able to use the cable remote to control the TV *and* the set top box, you have to enter a five-digit code for the TV.

Needless to say, the code was not in the documentation for the remote that I found on the Comcast site. And the feature on the remote that will automatically search for the code didn't work. So while I was on hold with their customer service, I just did a quick search and found out that the code is: 10000. And it works!

So I'm posting this in case anyone else has a similar problem. :)