Pat's Posts: iPod Touch Owners Screwed (Again…)

I’ve long been an iPod obsessive (since scroll wheels where actually movable) so it wasn’t a total surprise that I grabbed an iPod Touch with both hands as soon as they launched. Having had several earlier iPods die from hard drive failure (funnily enough hard drives dont like movement which doesnt bode well for a portable audio player), moving to an iPod with more reliable solid state memory made a hell of a lot of sense. The fact that the Touch also sported a user interface that is sex on toast, not to mention fantastic video playback and Wifi didn’t exactly discourage me much either.

Unfortunately I’m now starting to regret the fact that contributed to the Steve Jobs Black Polo Sweater Mutual Fund by purchasing the iPod Touch. Has this tech journo gone stark raving mad uttering such anti Apple blasphemy? Apple might make some of the hottest hardware in existence, but as with previous iPod/iPhone formware upgrades they have yet again screw over unlucky iPod Touch owners by labotomising the latest iPod Touch upgrade whilst iPhone owners get the full monty.

This time its a case us iPod touch users being denied Google Street View in the firmware 2.2 upgrade released by Saint Stevo last week. Thankfully iPod Touch Fans site member, timmyj9 has worked out a hack that’ll enable the iPhones poor cousins to enable the StreetView feature. Beware however that implementing this hack involves editing XML and jailbreaking your iPod. If doign this gives you a severe dose of the squits, dont try it (or get a friendly geek to do it for you).

Before you implement the hacksy, you’ll first need to install the firmware 2.2 upgrade and then jail break your iPod Touch (remember that Jailbreaking will invalidate your Touch’s warranty and that us at Tone cannot be held responsible for any mishaps resulting from a botched jailbreak attempt) using the free QuickPwn utility. As a bonus, jailbreaking will also free you from the shackles of the iTunes Application Store, allowing you to install applications Apple have banned. QuickPwn can be found at http://www.installerapps.com/2008/11/22/download-quickpwn-22/

Now you’ve liberated your Touch from Apples stiffling embrace, the next step is to implement timmy9′s Google Streetview hack, timmyj9′s instructions are so idiot proof that even I with my rudimentary XML knowledge managed to follow them once they’d been posted on Gizmodo. Here they are for your reding pleasure.

1. get this file via ssh: /System/Library/CoreServices/SpringBoard.app/N45AP.plist
2. convert to xml at http://iappcat.com/plist/bin2xml
3. add

< key >telephony< /key >
< dict >
< key >maximumGeneration< /key >
< real >2.5< /real >
< /dict >

underneath

< key >standAloneContacts< /key >
< true/ >

Editor’s Note: Be sure to take the spaces out of the commands above. Had to include them here for formatting purposes.

4. save then using that website again reconvert to binary
5. rename original file N45AP.old
6. copy new N45AP.plist in (make sure permissions are 644)
7. reboot ipod
all new Maps features work however you get a searching for service (replaces the word ipod in the top left) and waiting for activation message that pops up occassionally, music settings disappear also music slot in prefs disappears (hjrry)

Hopefully someone can patch the frameworks or springboard which wouldnt require this to be done! Anyway if you’re desperate to try it out, thats all that needs to be done theres nothing wrong with stability or anything so you’re not going break anything permanately trying this out.

Voila! Streetview on your Touch. Wouldn’t it have been a shedload easier if Apple had just given us Streetview inthe first place? If you’re as steamed as I am about Apple treating us iPod Touch owners like second class citizens, do the following:

1) pass the URL of this hack onto every iPod Touch owner you know. If enough iPod Touch’s are jailbroken, it’ll send a clear signal to Apple that enough is enough.

2) Vote with your wallet next time you buy an Mp3 player. There’s a lot of other Mp3 players out there that are nowhere near as labotomised as the iPod Touch. Apple migntn’t value your business, but I’d be willing to wager that their comeptitors do. If Apple start loosing market share to competitors they’ll quickly change their tune

3) get vocal. Make your voice heard on any and all Apple/iPod related forums. If enough of us make enough noise Apple will be forced to re-think their bizarre policy of treating iPod Touch owners so shoddily.