Services like Ustream and Qik< have long offered the promise of live streaming video from your mobile phone to the web — except if you had an iPhone. For those devices, that was only possible if you jailbroke your phone. Not anymore.

The Ustream Live Broadcaster has just gone live in the App Store tonight and yes, it allows you to stream live video from the iPhone to the web. And yes, it even works over a 3G connection. And yes, it’s awesome.

While one of the key features of the iPhone 3GS was video recording capabilities, that was limited to recordings that were captured on your device and could be uploaded to the web after they were done recording. With the Ustream Live Broadcaster, you can easily record videos right to the web, and allow others to watch them as they’re being recorded. These videos can also be archived so that people can watch them later, if they choose.

Settings within the app also make it easy to automatically tweet out when you go live, as well as to do things like share the videos on Facebook and YouTube. The live broadcast can also send out your location, if you’re into that sort of thing. The app also allows for chatting with viewers, and yes/no polling.

Ustream has long promised that it would be the first to allow for live video streaming on the iPhone, and it looks like they’ve finally come through — though almost a year after we first wrote about it. They’ve had an iPhone app out for a while, but it hasn’t had live capabilities until now. Qik has had a live-streaming app, but it was only an ad-hoc app, meaning it wasn’t available in the App Store.

This Ustream app’s approval follows the approval

of another live video streaming app, Knocking, after the developers emailed Steve Jobs personally about its rejection. But that app only does one-to-one streaming, this does one-to-many — full-on broadcast.

Find the Ustream Live Broadcaster in the App Store here for free

I just tested ! This is awesome. Finally on the iPhone. Bye qik !

This is HUGE !

The Passing of a Legend

With great sadness we share that Jim Rohn, our mentor and friend, left us December 5, 2009 for a better place.

Over the past 18 months, in his battle with Pulmonary Fibrosis, Jim assured us with a smile that all is good, that he would fight until the last breath, yet he had no fear as to what would be next. Jim’s faith was as much a part of his life as his desire to inspire and challenge us all to be the best we could be and to live our dreams.

Jim’s courage in his final months and days were a testament to his message that we should all fight the good fight. He never gave up and never gave in.

Jim Rohn touched millions of lives over the past 46 years through his seminars, books, articles and CDs. He always stayed long after an event t o shake hands, take pictures and sign autographs. He loved making a difference in people’s lives, that was his passion and inspiration. Yet he was also a private man who kept a small, loyal and caring inner circle. He was a tremendous friend to those who knew him.

Harold Dyke, long time close friend of Jim’s for over 55 years said it best, “As Jim is ending one life he is simultaneously being birthed into a new life. One that he has talked about over the years and anticipated with great joy in his last remaining days.”

Kyle Wilson, long time colleague and friend of Jim had this to say about his mentor, “Jim Rohn was a great human being. Jim had the rare ability to take any concept or idea and then frame it in such a way that the rest of us could see it more clearly. His wisdom and insights positively affected everyone he touched on some level and to so many of us it was in an extraordinary way. But even more impressive was Jim Rohn the man. He possessed style and charisma, yet was humble, kind and understated to all who knew him. I find myself every day reflecting, benefiting and passing on the wisdom and ideas that are rooted in Jim’s message and wisdom. Jim is irreplaceable on every level. I will miss him beyond words, but am comforted as I know he was, that his message and legacy will live on and positively change millions of lives over the years to come!”

Someone once said “when you are born you enter the world crying while everyone else is rejoicing and when you die hopefully you have lived such a life that everyone will be crying while you are rejoicing”. Jim Rohn lived such a life.

Jim’s family asked us to thank all of you for your concern, prayers and love toward their father and grandfather, which has been so evident during the past 18 months.

Darren Hardy, dedicated student and Jim Rohn protégé for more than 15 years, said of Jim, “He was the most influential man in my life, second only to my father. Jim cemented my philosophical foundation and nourished my mind with ideas and ambitions never before imagined. He chiseled my character seminar by seminar, tape by tape, book by book, then CD by CD, hour by hour. Jim emboldened my belief, in me and in my most daring dreams. When I fell and was bloodied, he was there with encouraging words to help me get back up. When I didn’t think I could go on, Jim convinced me I was stronger than I imagined. When I wanted a shortcut, he reminded me there aren’t any. Even when I got too caught up in trying to achieve and succeed, Jim compelled me to leave room to live, to laugh and to love.”

Stuart Johnson, business associate and long-time admirer, said, “I was first introduced to the philosophies and teachings of Jim Rohn almost 25 years ago. And he made an immediate impression on me. I was amazed by how this modest and unassuming man could communicate such an extraordinarily powerful message in simple and straightforward terms. In person, one-on-one, he was as humble and down-to-earth as he was in front of an audience of thousands. I will treasure my personal memories of Jim and know that I will forever benefit from the wisdom of this remarkable man.”

There will be a private funeral held in the coming days. Plans and details are also being arranged for a Public Memorial Service to be held in the Los Angeles area in the coming weeks. Details will be announced upon final confirmation at the Jim Rohn Tribute Site.

We know Mr. Rohn is looking down on us at this very moment with a smile saying I did it, I gave it my all, I went for it, now it’s your turn. Go for it. Make your life a life worth living well!

View a special tribute to Jim at the Jim Rohn Tribute Site produced earlier this year and debuted at the March 2009 SUCCESS Symposium. You are also encouraged to post your thoughts and remembrances of Jim on the Memorial Wall.

Jim fondly closed his programs with the following sentiments: “I go with you in all the experience that we’ve had. But I promise you this as we leave here: I will not leave you behind. I’ll take you with me in my thoughts and in my heart.”

Rest in peace Jim. Txs for everything. Your legacy will survive you

Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey just flicked on the public spotlight over his new venture: Square. It's a tiny plastic blob that gives smartphones the ability to act as secure credit card readers. It's clever, disruptive, but will have to evolve very rapidly.

Square was born extremely rapidly: It began as an idea in February 2009, and the new company came out of stealth mode just yesterday--that's a window of just ten months, which is swift even though the idea behind the device is extremely simple. Essentially it's a small piece of electronics that translates the signals from a magnetic strip reader into an audio signal. This audio signal, corresponding to the data on a credit card swiped through the device, goes in through the headphone/microphone socket of an iPhone, where it's decoded by the special Square app and wirelessly routed off to Square's remote servers which then perform the usual banking jiggerypokery that more ordinary credit card readers do.

So far, so simple-sounding humdrum, right? Well, it's more complex than that of course. By providing a basic, easy-to-use and secure system (no credit card data is stored on the iPhone in use) Square could turn almost anyone into a credit-card accepting merchant. It also costs way less than the typical wireless keypad/printer card machines you see in stores, even factoring in the price of the iPhone--partly due to its "no contracts...no hidden costs" promise. And ultimately it'll be able to work with other smartphones and laptops--anything with a microphone input, and for which a Square app can be written. Over at GigaOm they're calling a disruptive technology because of the ubiquity of smartphones, and the possibility Square could overturn the way traditional e-banking transactions are carried out.

And that's probably true...with one huge "but." It's to do with Europe. European banking and credit card systems are very rapidly switching away from magnetic strip technology towards the smarter, more secure in-card chip tech. The change is so swift that U.S. visitors are often finding their old-fashioned magnetic cards aren't accepted in many establishments, and it's such a vastly superior system that there are even mumblings that the E.U. may ban magnetic bank cards pretty soon. This will pose a significant problem for Square, which relies on the low cost of its hardware components and fancy in-smartphone processing to work. For Square to disrupt the European electronic banking system, it will need a newer, more expensive piece of hardware that can interface and decode the in-card chips directly--this will complicate its business model pretty severely. And there's another problem: Europeans in many nations are already used to using wireless credit card readers for almost every transa ction--I bought a single carton of milk in my tiny local store using the system this morning. Square will have to fight cleverly in a battle dominated by the big, muscly banks if it's to be a disruptive influence over the Atlantic.

Still, since Square went from concept to product so swiftly, it should be possible for Dorsey's system to evolve with nimble speed to cope with this issue, don't you think?

via Fast Company