MarcForrest.com

Month: October 2010

  • Movie Review: The Social Network

    On Monday eve, I got invited to a sneak preview of “The Social Network“, thanks to the kind folks at 2ocenasVibe & Ster Kinekor distribution.

    As with most things in Durban, there was a rather dismal turnout, which is ironic given the movies background. The Social network follows the story of Facebook Founder Mark Zuckerburg and his rise to fame in building the empire that is Facebook today. The film mainly focuses on how the idea came to him after a breakup with a girlfriend, and follows the trials & tribulations with friends & enemies, while building the network.

    Here is a trailer of the movie:

    I have to admit, I really enjoyed the story having been part of Facebook since the “early days”. The lead actor Jesse Eisenberg, who plays Zukerburg really plays the part to a T, as we can only imagine Zukerburg really acting like that at times.

    But, there is a huge underlying motive & story behind the movie. In anything you do, you need to know who you taking on board. Friends can soon become enemies, and sometimes, you don’t always really know the people behind the pretty face, a point which really hit home for me this week :(

    The movie opens locally on the 5th of November, and I highly suggest taking yourself and a mate to see it.

  • FaceTime for Mac

    Ever since I got my iPhone 4, I have been a huge fan of the FaceTime functionality. I think the product is revolutionary, and even though people still say we have had “video calling” for years, this is NOT video calling. This is something bigger. Check out what my mate Anice Hassim, from immedia, had to say about it a while ago.

    Before last night Apple had already integrated FaceTime into their latest iPod Touch models, and now it is available as a stand alone application on existing & new Macs it opens a whole new world. Now you can chat to someone who could be on the other side of the world, and they don’t necessarily need to have an iPhone. Now we can communicate, visually with each other.

    To get FaceTime working on the Mac, you need to download it from Apple FaceTime site, and install the app on your Mac. You then need to either register an Apple ID, or use an existing one. Once you are in, you can call an iPhone 4 using the person’s cell number, or iPod/FaceTime for Mac using their registered email address.

    A few people have asked my they haven’t been able to use it yet, so below are a couple of things to check:

    • Make sure FaceTime on the iPhone is turned on. To check this go to Settings -> Phone -> And make sure FaceTime is switched on
    • If you are trying to call a FaceTime number (iPhone 4) from your Mac, you need to ensure you have it in the international format. So +27xxxxx
    • Check to see that you can call your FaceTime Mac from your FaceTime phone.
    • Make sure that the WiFi(iPhone/iPod) or Internet(Mac), the following ports are open: 443 (TCP), 3478–3497 (UDP), 5223 (TCP) 16384–16387 (UDP), and 16393–16402 (UDP). (Apple Support Doc)

    If you come across any other issues with FaceTime, leave a comment below, and I will try and see what I can dig up :)

  • Monitor your Vodacom balances on your iPhone

    I came across a really really cool (Free) iPhone app the other day called Consume (iTunes Link). The app allows you to view your balances from cellphone & broadband providers around the world, but only Vodacom has been added so far in SA. The other cool thing is you can add other web service such as Dropbox, Evernote, Gmail & Google Docs.

    The app is really simple to setup, and once you have downloaded it you need to enter your Vodacom/Vodacom4Me login details, which the app then uses to check your balances for both PostPaid & Prepaid.

    This is a screenshot from the Vodacom Prepaid option that shows how many minutes you have left, as well as how many promotional minutes I have, as well as when the next rollover is. Currently it doesn’t show your data bundle usage, but I have sent them a mail (begging) them for this.

    I don’t have a prepaid sim, but I assume the screen shows you your current balance, as well as expiry ?

    All in all a very handy app to have to keep track of your spend etc, and it’s free :) Oh, and there is an iPad app in development as we speak…

  • A quick post about Tech-Ed

    The last 2 days, and the next 2 ahead, have all been consumed by all things Microsoft. I am attending Tech-Ed on behalf of the company I work for, and have been pleasantly surprised so far. I will give a wrap up soon, and my also my views on the new Windows Phone 7.

    For now here is a post I did earlier today on Memeburn

    Over 2 500 IT professionals and tech-geeks from around South Africa and the wider continent have converged on Durban’s International Convention Centre for the 2010 installment of the annual Microsoft Tech-Ed Africa conference.

    The conference, possibly the largest IT gathering in Africa, kicked off on Sunday evening with a keynote address from Microsoft’s Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Worldwide Services, Norm Judah. Judah is no stranger to South Africa: He earned his first degree (in electrical engineering) from Wits University before heading abroad in the mid-70s. He has worked for Microsoft for the past 20 years, and has built an impressive reputation as a speaker and a strategic thinker around IT.

    Judah’s talk was about how Microsoft is striving towards simplifying our lives and focused on how we increasingly want the “Monday morning technology experience” to be the same as the “Sunday evening experience”, with full access to the same data and devices.

    At the TechEdAfrica event, Microsoft is showing off its much-anticipated Windows Phone 7 Series and controller-free Kinect gaming system -– both of which are launching in South Africa during November.

    Microsoft will also be highlighting some of its key cloud-based technologies, including its Lync collaboration platform and recent releases like SQL Server 2008 R2 and Office 2010.

    Sunday’s other keynote speaker was Mteto Nyati, Microsoft South Africa’s MD, who explained how cloud computing was becoming a significant part of many conversations on the net. “IT Professionals are looking for more guidance, standards, support and clarity as they begin to plan for cloud. To get it right, we’ll have to collaborate with business on the answers to these key questions, about business goals and how best to bring IT experience and innovation to the table,” said Nyati.

    The newly launched Windows Phone 7 talks have been a hot ticket, with people wanting to know more about the pending launch of the mobile device in South Africa. The official line is that we should see a mid-November launch, with one model of the handset being launched.

    Questions such as “Will there be an app marketplace in South Africa?” have been met with negative answers, with Microsoft execs explaining that we may have to wait a bit longer to see the full effect of the entire Windows Phone 7 eco-system.

    Tech-Ed Africa is also due to feature announcements of several new and upcoming technologies which Microsoft believes will enable IT professionals and developers to help their organisations save money and improve efficiencies.

  • MTN 280 meter scalectrix track WTF!!!

    Check out these 2 INSANE videos that got secretly sent to me this morning.

    The videos are to promo the new HIGH speed MTN data network. The ad will only be airing on Sunday evening, so you saw it here first ;) shhhh

    The video is a high speed Scaletrix car chase over 280m built in some guys lounge, with cars chasing through the “interwebs”. Seriously cool. Kinda reminds me of  my childhood days, to see who could make the longest Scaletrix track through the house.

    Check them out below. First one is the video that will be airing from Sunday, and the second is the sneaky sneaky behind the scenes video :)

    We used 280 meters of scalectrix track to demonstrate MTN’s new upgraded network. When MTN upgraded for the 2010 World Cup, they upgraded for all of us here in Mzansi. Ayoba!