There's no denying that Netbot by Tapbots is the most popular iOS client for App.net (ADN), but it was a little surprising and disappointing that the client launched without support for push notifications. Tapbots did release a statement saying that notifications will be coming as soon as ADN releases the appropriate protocols to do so, but other clients, like Felix and Rivr, have found their own ways to offer push notifications. Another such client is Adian which has recently been updated to include support to redirect push notification to open Netbot. Yes, you read that right, a competing app is improving Netbot.

Since Netbot does not have push notifications, Adian has added a setting which will redirect its push notifications to open Netbot to the specified post instead. You can set it from the Accounts page by tapping on the blue arrow next to your username.

Wow. On one hand, you have the competition making the most popular ADN client even more successful, which many would argue is a bad choice. On the other hand, you have a small time app grabbing the attention of all the users of the most popular ADN client thus increasing their potential user base -- a potentially brilliant move.

Regarding the use of Adian, push notification redirects work exactly as advertised. Each notification will be from Adian, but when you open it, Adian will temporarily open for a split second, then switch to Netbot. It's fast, simple, and gets the job done. Unfortunately for Adian, the app as an ADN client isn't anything to brag about. The layout and interface is extremely basic and doesn't grab your attention. This is what, I believe, will ultimately cause their choice to offer push notifications for Netbot to ultimately not matter. Sure, they'll get a temporary boost of sales, but once Netbot starts offering push notifications, they likely won't have many more sales since all Netbot users will stay as Netbot users and not refer Adian to their friends.

If Adian was a really good ADN client that rivaled Netbot in terms of features and usability, then it'd be a completely different story. Ideally, for Adian, Netbot users would purchase Adian for the sole purpose of gaining push on Netbot, but then after spending some time with Adian, fall in love with it and start using Adian as their primary ADN client. This would drive future sales even after Netbot gained push notifications. But in Adian's current state, I doubt a single Netbot user will switch to Adian. Instead, they'll delete Adian once Netbot gains push and never see a future update from Adian again -- even it the update is awesome.

All is not lost for Adian, however, as Netbot doesn't yet have push notifications. We do not know when Netbot will update with native push, but if the folks at Phrygian Labs work hard and release an incredible update that makes Adian a true competitor to Netbot before Netbot gains push, this could have a great impact on Adian's success.

So what do you think about Adian's business choice? Smart move? Or just a temporary boost in sales that won't have a lasting longterm effect? Are you picking up Adian just to have push for Netbot until Netbot is able to offer it themselves?

$1.99 - Download Now

Source: jazzychad

We're celebrating the new design and makeover given to the iMore forums by updating our avatars with some killer photos and giving away over $140 in prizes -- and you only have 3 more days to enter! Although self-portraits are extremely popular for people to use as their avatar, this is not a requirement. Pick a subject that reflects you, get creative, and capture that awesome image that translates into the perfect avatar.

The prize: Olloclip Lens System, Glif tripod mount, and $50 iTunes gift card

We're going all out this week and not only offering the winner one prize, but THREE! The winner will receive an Olloclip Lens System, a Glif tripod mount and stand, and a $50 iTunes gift card to spend on all those photography apps you've been wanting to buy! That's $140 worth of prizes!

The rules

The rules of entry are very simple. The photo must have been taken with an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch (we'll check the EXIF data of the original file to verify) and any edits must have been done with an iPhone or iPad app. No Photoshop CS6! If you have external lens accessories you are more than welcome to use them.

Additional Rule: In addition to the normal set of rules, this contest also requires that you set the photo as your iMore avatar and share it in the contest thread.

Resources

Now, before you run off to take your photo, remember that it's not technical skill alone that will claim this prize. Even if you're not the best photographer (yet!), a great eye and a great subject can still get you the win. However, a little help can never hurt, so make sure you check out these articles from our iPhone photography series for some tips.

• How to take great looking portraits with your iPhone camera
• How to edit portraits with iPhoto for iPhone and iPad
• How to make your iPhone photographs more powerful with negative space
• How to make your iPhone photography more striking with the "rule of thirds"

How to submit

Submitting your photo is easy. First, you must set your photo as your iMore avatar, then head over to the iMore Photography Forum and post your photo to the official contest thread. Don't forget to state which apps, if any, you used to edit your photo!

That's it! Now go out and shoot!

ENTER NOW

We heard yesterday from some very reliable sources that Apple would be holding an event to launch the iPad mini later this month; October 23 to be more precise. Some more information is starting to slip out and it appears that the actual event may be focused on Apple's iBooks store and of course education. The news comes from The Next Web who has now heard this from multiple sources.

In what will likely be completely unsurprising news to many, we've now heard from multiple sources that Apple's as-yet-unannounced iPad mini event will have a strong focus on iBooks. Since an iPad mini would likely be squarely aimed at those who wish to partake of media on their tablets that would make a lot of sense.

The event will, of course, be primarily devoted a new hardware device, which iMore first reported would be a thinner, cheaper version of Apple's iPad. But the primary purpose of such a smaller tablet would be to act as a conduit for Apple's content, namely iBooks publications and movies.

When you think about it, the focus on iBooks does make a lot of sense. The iPad mini would be a killer device in the education market. The fact that it would be a much more affordable device as well would make it perfect for students to carry around with all of their text books stored on it. The iPad mini event is supposedly just around the corner so we will not have much longer to wait to see what Apple has up its sleeve. We would expect the invites for the event to start arriving for the chosen few in the very early part of next week. Who's excited?

Source: The Next Web

The second annual Cingleton Symposium -- Ç deux -- kicked off at the Nelligan Hotel in Old Montreal tonight. Organized by Guy English, Luc Vandal, Scott Morrison, and Petra Mueller, it brings together the best in iOS and OS X developers, designers, and media, mixes them up like high octane cocktail, and let's amazing things result.

Guy kicked off the event by threatening attendees, just to get them in the proper mood, then Luc, Scott, and Petra set the stage for the evening.

This year's theme is scaling, and Jason Snell, editorial director of Macworld, PC World, and Tech Hive gave the opening keynote.

He showed his skills as a Basic programmer and then drew parallels between Apple and Star Trek 2: Wrath of Khan, bookending Dan Moren's Apple as Star Wars talk from last year.

While last year's event topped out at roughly 70 attendees, this year's larger venue allows for over 100. Speakers for the rest of the event include Glenn Fleishman, Serenity Caldwell, Michael Lopp, Marco Arment, Molly Reed, Brad Ellis, Michael Jurewitz, Dan Moren, and Lex Friedman.

It's all being recorded for posterity by Thomas Unterberger, so if you missed the event, you'll be able to catch up on the talks. Last year's are available on Vimeo now.

Here's the deal -- you follow iMore on your favorite social networks, and we give you awesome accessory prizes... EVERY MONTH!

We know our loyal readers already visit iMore.com daily, subscribe to our RSS feeds and get the iMore Podcast on iTunes, but we wanted to do something a little extra to reward our loyal fans and grow our audience in some of the off-iMore social networking and content sharing sites that iPhone owners hang out and visit.

It's easy! All you have to do is follow iMore on Youtube, Twitter, Google+ and Facebook and as a thank you for doing so we're going to pick a lucky winner each month from among our iMore followers / subscribers / fans on each of these sites to win some great iPhone prizes! That's four winners each month - one picked at random from each site. All you need to do is click the links below to follow us on each site, and just keep following us! We'll pick our four winners on the last day of each month and announce them around the first day of the new month along with the prizes to be won for the new month. You can subscribe to all of Youtube, Twitter, Google+ and Facebook to maximize your chances of winning.

This month we're going to help you protect your iPhone 5 with new cases and gift certificates to the iMore store! See the list below for links to the sites and the prize you could win on each one.

• On Youtube - You could win Seidio CONVERT Combo for iPhone 5!
• On Twitter - You could win a Trident Kraken AMS Case for iPhone 5!
• On Google+ - You could win a Incipio FAXION Case for iPhone 5!
• On Facebook - You could win a Incipio EDGE PRO Hard Shell Slider Case for iPhone 5!

We'll send out a reminder each week with ways to earn extra entries, so make sure to watch the blogs! Thanks for following, spread the word and good luck!!

Google+ bonus entry!

Looking to win a bonus entry on Google+ for an extra shot at that Incipio FAXION Case for iPhone 5 and a $50 iMore store gift certificate? It's your lucky week! After you add iMore to your circles, hit the +1 button on this post on Google+ and you've got yourself a second entry! See, we told you it'd be easy.

Follow iMore and Win Contest FAQ/Details

Eligibility - Open worldwide. In order to participate as a follower /subscriber / fan of the iMore accounts in this contest you must have an account with Youtube, Twitter, Google+ and Facebook. We'd love you to follow on us in all four locations (that maximizes your chances of winning) but it's not required. One, two or all four is fine. If you're already following us when this contest starts, don't worry, you're entered automatically!! You must also be a registered member of iMore to be eligible.

Announcing Winners - Winners will be chosen randomly each month. Winning usernames will be posted to the iMore blogs within the first few days of each new month. Winners will be contacted via the respective sites (Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Youtube) and once initially contacted the follow-up will be conducted via email to work out details (address for shipping, etc.) on getting the prize. There is no rule against being able to win more than once.

There you have it! Be sure to tune into the blogs around the first day of each month for the winners' announcement and to see what can be won next month. If you have any questions, you can email me at michelle @ iMore.com - be sure to make the subject Follow iMore and Win Contest!

Found an interesting article you want to share with iMore? Have a burning question about that feature you just can't figure out? There is ALWAYS more happening just a click away in the forums. You can always head over and join in the conversation, search for answers, or lend your expertise to other members of our community. You check out some of the threads below:

If you're not already a member of the iMore Forums, register now!