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Tomorrow is the big day, the iPhone cometh. This morning David Pogue [posted an article][1] that has a sort of FAQ of iPhone features which lists some fairly serious limitations (along with the usual good stuff).
But here at Compiler we aren't all that interested in Gadgets (that would be [Gadget Lab][2]), rather we like software, and what we really like are software hacks.
Our interest in the iPhone is primarily to see what people can do with it -- using it in ways that Apple never intended them to.
Apple is famous (or notorious depending on your perspective) for leaving the back door, if not open, at least unlocked. For instance there's no way to take songs off your iPod via iTunes, however [dozens of third party apps][3] can handily accomplish that task.
Or take the AppleTV which has been [hacked to support externals hard drives][5], watching [Joost for internet TV][4] and more.
So we're curious what you think will end up being hacked on the iPhone. Pulling from various source's here's a list of potential shortcomings that might end up being hacked or worked around (I'm not a software engineer and I've never laid hands on an iPhone so take this list with a grain of salt):
>* Use any song as a ringtone. Crazy though it seems you can't do this the way the iPhone ships. I expect this to be the first thing hackers tackle. I'll be bold and go ahead and say this one will be done by the end of the weekend.
* Instant messaging. Considering the iPhone data plans start with a paltry 200 SMS messages there's definitely some consumer drive to figure out how to get IM clients running on the iPhone. At the very least there's always the browser-based options.
* The version of Safari on the iPhone lacks support for any of the following: Java, Flash, stored passwords, RSS, streaming audio or video (except for some QuickTime videos). All potentially hackable.
* Calendar and ToDo support lags (based on Pogue's piece). The iPhone synchronizes with your computer's calendar and address book, but ToDo items don't show up on the iPhone. Worse, memos created with iPhone’s Notes program don't show up on your computer. Again potentially hackable.
Then there's the small matter of the iPhone only working on AT&T's craptastic network (I currently have it, trust me, it sucks). No doubt unlocking the iPhone is the holy grail of hacks, unfortunately, I think it's unlikely.
There's tons of other stuff that could be potentially hacked or worked around to make the iPhone into what it should be, let us know your ideas in the comments below and I'll see about setting up a voting widget so we can track your ideas.
[1]: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/28/technology/circuits/28pogue.html?ex=1340683200&en=6db6ecaa7a2c97d0&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss "Often-Asked iPhone Questions"
[2]: http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/ "Gadget Lab"
[3]: http://blog.wired.com/monkeybites/2006/11/the_ipod_exodus.html "The iPod Exodus: How To Get Music Off Your iPod"
[4]: http://blog.wired.com/monkeybites/2007/03/hacking_appletv.html "Hacking AppleTV: Users Report Successfully Running Joost On AppleTV"
[5]: http://blog.wired.com/monkeybites/2007/04/transforming_th.html "Transforming The AppleTV"
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