Astraware to join Handmark family

Posted by: breley on Jan 07 2008 - 389 views

Wow! Today Astraware announced that it has forged a new operating relationship with Handmark in which it will become part of Handmark proper. Both companies have offered each other’s titles in the past, and now both hope to capitalize on each other’s strengths to become a gaming powerhouse.

"We recognize the genius of the mobile gaming pioneers who created Astraware and welcome them to the Handmark family," said Paul Reddick, Handmark CEO. "We share a passion for delivering superior mobile experiences."

Howard Tomlinson, CEO and co-founder of Astraware had this to say about the new business relationship:

"For over 10 years, Astraware has successfully created some of the best mobile gaming brands in the industry, building a company through unparalleled focus on quality and customer satisfaction," said Howard Tomlinson, co-founder and CEO of Astraware. "I am excited to be joining forces with Handmark and we will be able to focus our experience and talent on creating games across more platforms, and together we will become one of the most powerful forces in the mobile gaming industry."

With this business modus operandi, Astraware plans to expand its existing UK games development studio to produce new high-profile licenses as well as continuing work on its own original titles.

In addition to Palm OS and Windows Mobile offerings, Astraware will start releasing their first titles for Symbian S60 and UIQ in the first quarter of 2008. BlackBerry users, don’t fret, as apps for these devices will appear later in the year.

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Celebrate Hogmanay with Astraware!

Posted by: breley on Dec 30 2007 - 336 views

Our friends at Astraware would like to invite you to their Annual Hogmanay (pronounced hog-muh-NAY) Party sale which starts  December 31, 2007 and runs through midnight PST on January 11, 2008.  For those unfamiliar, Hogmanay is the Scottish word for the last day of the year, hence the tartan, bagpiper and Scottish Highland cow sneaking into the logo.

During this New Year celebration, one or more games will be offered with deep discounts. Astraware has plenty of game choices to choose from, so there should be something for everyone!  Keep in mind though that each offer lasts for a mere 24 hours, turning into a pumpkin at midnight…okay, it just changes to a new game offer at midnight, so be sure to check each day!

The first game in the Annual Hogmanay Party on Monday 31st December is the puzzle game Glyph, on sale at $9.95, for a sweet savings of $10 off the original price! To take advantage of this or other Hogmanay offers, point your browser here to join in the fun!

 

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Dear Mobile Santa…Bryan’s List

Posted by: breley on Dec 22 2007 - 230 views

Dear Mobile Santa,

Pardon my potential naïveté, but what I would like for Christmas is primarily more reasonably-priced data plans.

With the acquisition of my latest tech toy, a Verizon Samsung SCH-i760, I jumped into the realm of Expensive Data Plans.  In my case, the Verizon 10MB data plan costs $24.99/month on top of my standard voice plan.  If I opted for the unlimited, it would be $45 per month.   Let’s think about that for a moment. In a few months my cell phone bill will equal the purchase price of my phone.  Now if this were compared to my PC’s cable modem access charges, it would be like charging me $300 to $400 a month for broadband access!

One more thing…could you convince someone to speed up the adoption of R-UIM card for those of us on EVDO networks here in the United States?  GSM folks have their SIM cards, so the phones themselves aren’t tied to their network, whereas my handset is basically a proprietary device.

OK, I don’t have a big fancy list, but I think what I’m asking for is a big enough present that would benefit a lot of folks besides just little ol’ me. 

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Microsoft Office Live Workspace Beta available

Posted by: breley on Dec 17 2007 - 332 views

Microsoft has recently released its Office Live Workspace Beta, allowing interested users to sign up to pre-register.  With Office Live Workspace, users of Office XP/2003/2007 need only download an Office plug-in that installs a toolbar in supported Office apps that allows saving locally-stored files on the online Live Workspace site and later edit the documents after uploading. Users will also be able to invite others to collaborate on the Office Live Workspace documents, control site and document access privileges, and enable version control.

Of potential interest to mobile users is the ability to save over 1,000 documents in one location, access the documents from virtually anywhere with a web browser, and obviate the need for flash drives or emailing oneself the documents.  Synchronization of contacts, tasks and event lists from within Outlook will be supported as well.

Microsoft lists the following requirements:

• Internet Explorer 6.0 or later on Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, and Windows Vista
• Firefox 2.0 on Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, and Windows Vista
• Firefox 2.0 on Mac OS X 10.2.x and later

NB: Some features may require a browser that supports ActiveX.

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SecuBox 1.4 gets Windows Mobile 6 gold seal of certification

Posted by: breley on Dec 14 2007 - 294 views

Back in August, a very nice review of SecuBox was done by our very own Brandon Steili, highlighting some of the well-implemented security features and conveniences this program provides that are all too often blissfully overlooked yet often very necessary in a security-conscious world.  Now, the flagship product of Aiko Solutions, SecuBox 1.4 , received "Designed for Windows Mobile" certification via Microsoft’s Mobile2Market program. 

SecuBox allows users to conveniently create an encrypted volume that for all the world looks like just another storage card volume, with automatic data encryption on-the-fly when files are written to the card and decrypted when read.

Version 1.4 features:

• Designed for Windows Mobile 6.0
• Auto-unmount volumes on device sleep
• Added support for SH4 processors.
• Strong AES 256-bit encryption
• Secure data wiping
• Removable cards encryption
• Password Quality Meter

Encryption key backup, file wiping are compliant with the U.S. DoD 5220.22-M specifications. Price for a single-user license is US$39.95.  The prior version (pending store update) can be found in JAMM’s store here.

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Verizon set to reduce data plan pricing in 2008?

Posted by: breley on Dec 06 2007 - 618 views

Not too long ago I signed up for one of Verizon’s Data Plan packages.  After so doing, I was presented with a link and asked if I’d like to participate in a survey.  "Well, why not?" I thought.  In the space provided for commentary I echoed the feelings of many who see Verizon’s Data Plan as being fairly pricey when compared to others.  A day later, I received a voicemail from someone who identified himself as a "senior manager" with Verizon.  He thanked me for my survey participation and comments, and finished with an aside saying "I thought you’d like to know we plan on reducing our Data Plan rates in the first quarter of 2008.  That’s all I can tell you."

So there you have it.  A rumor at best, mere customer placation at worst.  I’ll have to keep a watchful eye on the New Year.

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