The large majority of reviews of iOS 4 are quite favorable, which is understandable. Apple clearly worked hard to attempt to fix most of the perceived shortcomings in their mobile platform, particularly such irritants as multitasking.

Now it’s perfectly true that the vast majority of iPhone and iPod touch users didn’t suffer all that much from the absence of multitasking when it came to third party apps. On the other hand, anyone who tried to keep a Skype conversation going or run an Internet radio app, such as Pandora, suffered from the loss of a connection if you tried to do something else at the same time.

To be sure, multitasking is carefully restricted. Some folks are complaining about the lack of support for scheduled background network updates for some apps. Also, the apps you use need to be updated to support one or more of the seven multitasking APIs that Apple hatched. There’s a spanking new version of Pandora that fits the bill, but I’m still waiting for the Skype update as of this writing.

This is, by the way, a key reason why Apple doesn’t want to allow developers to use third party tools. It’s hard enough for thousands of programmers to rebuild their apps in record time in order to support the new features. What happens if the tools they use are designed for lowest common denominator apps that work on many platforms, but are late to the party when it comes to supporting unique features such as Apple’s clever multitasking system? That’s the question the skeptics cannot answer. They are too busy complaining in their blogs or to the FTC.

When it comes to performance, the jury is still out. It appears that apps launch noticeably quicker, but most other functions run at essentially the same speed as earlier versions of the iOS. At least nothing seems to be noticeably slower, which is often the case when loads of new features are packed onto an OS.

There are also a few lapses along the way. Although Apple has supplemented its Push Notification feature with Local Notification, you are still saddled with a single modal warning when an app sends a notice. What that means is that you have to stop in your tracks and answer that message before going on. If several apps or multiple messages need to be sent, you are apt to lose some, because there’s no way to stack and recall notices at a later time. Alas, Google’s Android OS and even HP/Palm’s WebOS manage these functions far more effectively.

So it’s clear Apple needs to do a little more work with notification prompts, and maybe the fact that the person who developed that system for the WebOS has since rejoined Apple, portends a possible 4.1 version that will address this and other shortcomings.

As I’ve said before, I’m not so enamored with the changes to Mail. Yes, a unified Inbox is nice, but it also means that people with lots of active accounts suddenly have to do extra scrolling to examine the subfolders. Worse, Apple still forces you to rely on your Mac, PC, or Webmail app to handle such chores as spam filtering and email rules. If your computers aren’t running, or you haven’t checked your mail online recently, the messages impacted by those functions are all tossed in your iPhone’s Inbox, for better or worse.

Some time back, one of my guests on The Tech Night Owl LIVE suggested these critical email functions might consume too much in the way of system resources. But with all the other stuff going on as the result of multitasking, I’m skeptical. Surely there’s a way for such functions to be handled without unduly tasking the system, particularly as iPhones become more and more powerful.

My experience with iOS 4 also indicates a rough edge or two, usually fixed by restarting the phone. In one case, when I tried to use the Reply function in answering a message, nothing happened. Closing and opening the folder or the account made no difference, but a restart did. Sometimes apps also quit for no discernible reason, but it’s also true that the offending software is probably not fully iOS 4 compliant, and I’m getting one or two significant updates every single day.

On the whole, though, I can’t say iOS 4 is less stable than its predecessor, where apps would also quit unexpectedly on occasion.

So there will be that inevitable bug fix update, and maybe a feature fix or two. I’m not suggesting if that will come in a 4.0.1 or 4.1. It all depends on the severity of the update.

When it comes to the iPad, Apple promised iOS 4 this fall, but I suspect it may be a 4.2 version that will roll out unique features for that incredibly hot-selling tablet PC. And, yes, it’s a PC, even though feature limited in comparison to the conventional Mac or PC. With the sales rate pretty much in the Mac ballpark after less than three months, I fully expect the iPad or a competitor to take over much of the consumer PC marketplace over the next few years.

That, my friends, is what Steve Jobs meant when he referred to the PC as the heavy-lifting truck, and the mobile platform as the car. Pay attention, because unlike the pathetic performance of his arch rival Bill Gates, Jobs is almost always right when he makes a prediction.

The news arrived Wednesday that Adobe plans to develop a version of their high-end audio app, Audition, for the Mac by the end of the year. Up till now, a reduced-feature version, Soundbooth, has represented Adobe’s efforts to throw a bone to Mac users who have rightly complained about the company’s Windows-only offerings.

At the same time, Adobe has been crying crocodile tears over the lack of support for Flash on Apple’s mobile platform. Indeed, the FTC is reportedly investigating that and other complaints about Apple to see if any illegal conduct is involved.

Of course the fact that Apple is being investigated doesn’t necessarily mean that an actionable case will be developed. It may well be that, after a routine investigation, the story will fade from the headlines and the FTC will seek out other potential offenders. Or, at the worst, Apple will be coerced into making a few minor changes in their policies, sign a consent decree, and get on with their business.

But I doubt that the FTC is going to attempt to force Apple to support an iOS version of Flash.

Meanwhile, Adobe has, after many delays, released a mobile version of Flash that will be available on many Android OS smartphones and other products, but not, of course, an iPhone. But this doesn’t mean that Adobe has somehow answered all of the objections recently voiced by Steve Jobs in that famous blog entry. In fact, the reports I read of the rollout of Flash on Android 2.2 indicated a buggy product with inconsistent performance.

It’s a sure thing that being able to access at least some Flash content on a smartphone is better for some than the alternative, although I still don’t see a huge movement clamoring for Apple to open the doors to Adobe.

More to the point, I recently made a public challenge, here and on The Tech Night Owl LIVE, where I suggest that if Adobe feels Apple is wrong, they can clearly demonstrate that fact by installing a working copy of Flash on a recent and current iPhone. As an Apple developer, they are allowed to install beta copies on test systems, and this would be their golden opportunity. They can even create a YouTube video, so we can all download the demo and decide for ourselves.

Steve Jobs claims Adobe has been unable to deliver the goods, and, so far at least, it appears he’s right. Of course, if the version being deployed on Android smartphones does function properly, which means delivering good performance on most Flash sites without hogging system resources, using excess battery life, and crashing periodically, they’d win at least part of the argument.

I remain skeptical, however. A supremely buggy product doesn’t overnight become slick and trouble-free. The new Flash plugin might be nothing more than a glorified public beta, which would give Adobe the excuse to claim they are still hacking away at remaining problems and there will be a better version available real soon now.

Or maybe they figure that even a half-baked version of Flash would be sufficient to grant Google bragging rights that they have something you cannot get on an iPhone, even if that something wouldn’t pass the smell test.

At the same time, Adobe continues to earn huge profits from the sale of the Mac versions of their software. They continue to develop for the iOS, and the news that they are going to bring yet another app to Mac OS X clearly indicates they have faith in the platform as a significant source of income.

So it’s clear to me that, even without Flash, Adobe isn’t about to suddenly abandon the Mac, even if they’ve given the platform short shrift in recent years. They understand that you cannot just force Mac content creators to move to Windows. Indeed, there’s no compelling reason to do so, since even the highly promoted Windows 7 is mostly Windows Vista with a shave and haircut.

If anything, the amazing sales of the iPad clearly indicate that the PC is essentially yesterday’s news, and that app developers are going to have to embrace new ways of doing things. The iPad may also afford developers of graphics software innovative ways of delivering digital content, although the true killer app has yet to arrive.

If the impending close of the PC era means a world where Flash is also a relic of the past, so be it. Adobe will have to swallow a huge pill, because of their multimillion dollar investment to acquire Macromedia and Flash technology several years ago, but it doesn’t seem reasonable that they are going to be able to do very much to slow the trend.

On the long haul, Adobe would fare better to pay more attention to building the best Mac and iOS apps they can without crying the blues. They can probably take that approach to the bank.

Say what you will about Apple, it’s clear we can’t stop talking about the company, even if a few facts have to be stretched, or totally twisted out of shape, to make a point.

Take a recent column from an online commentator notorious for trying to raise a little hell in his efforts to be provocative. In the past, he’s explained why you must upgrade to Windows 7 pronto, while also claiming to be a devout Mac user. He also purchased an iPad, sold it soon afterwards, and then decided to buy another perhaps due to seller’s remorse.

This week, he’s telling us how Apple deliberately manipulates new product announcements — or even the expectations of such announcements — so the stock price will rise. Now consider the implications, one of which is the possible questionable legality of such a practice, and what it all means.

You see, regardless of whether Apple’s stock price is $270 per share or $70 per share, that probably won’t stop people from buying their products. In the end, it’s all about profit and loss. While it’s nice to have a higher stock price and the attendant increase in a company’s perceived worth, at the end of the day if they can’t sell products and services, thus generating cold, hard cash, it all amounts to window dressing.

This insidious stock price manipulation scheme is supposedly demonstrated by Apple’s strategy to spread out new product announcements. So we had the WWDC and the official launch of iPhone 4 and iOS 4. The following week, Apple released a new Mac mini.

Anticipation about the new iPhone soared when Apple and its retail partners received over 600,000 pre-orders June 15, the very first day it was actually offered for sale.

On Monday, the iOS 4 upgrade was released, as Apple’s servers were predictably slammed, while the real event comes Thursday when iPhone 4 goes on sale. But wait, some pre-orders might actually be delivered the day before.

Can you see the clever stock manipulation scheme implicit in these events? If you do, you have powers of insight far beyond mine, or perhaps a more active imagination.

There’s actually a very sensible reason why the iOS 4 upgrade went live several days ahead of the new iPhone’s release. Return to 2008, when Apple attempted to deploy a new iPhone software release, a major upgrade to MobileMe, and a new iPhone on the very same day. Nothing worked, or if it functioned at all, performance slowed to a crawl. It was an utter mess, and clearly Apple learned a lesson, that they should have separated these releases by at least a few days to allow server traffic to settle down before overwhelming them with yet another avalanche of requests.

Of course, Apple wasn’t able to handle the huge increase in traffic on June 15, where AT&T reported getting ten times as many visitors as they anticipated. More to the point, when it comes to servers, you can’t just add another 30 thousand or 40 thousand boxes overnight, and have them ready to function, seamlessly integrated into a network. Maybe you can rightly criticize AT&T for being unprepared, but it’s not as if any company would have fared much better.

What’s more, spacing out product releases not only reduces potential server overloads, at least to some degree, it also helps keep Apple’s name in the newspapers and online media. That fuels public interest in the new products, and helps to increase sales.

Although Apple’s legal counsel said otherwise, you can say that prototype fiasco, where a lost or stolen prerelease iPhone found its way into the hands of a media company that delivers an online form of tabloid journalism, actually helped Apple. For weeks, everyone who cared about Apple talked about little else.

Indeed, that story isn’t over. The authorities are still deciding whether to prosecute the alleged offenders.

It didn’t even matter that the real iPhone 4, although it looked pretty much like that prototype in many respects, has clearly become Apple’s hottest new product ever, days ahead of its actual release. Right now Apple’s biggest problem isn’t premature publicity, but whether they can build enough units to satisfy initial demand. Indeed, this gadget may be back-ordered for weeks until sufficient supplies are available.

If you take the iPad as an example, that may take months to accomplish. As of today, you still have to wait up to 10 business days to get one. After 80 days, Apple reports that some three million have been sold, with no letup in sight.

It’s clear to me that Apple’s strategy is deliberate, carefully calculated, but ultimately not designed to boost the stock price. The end game is clearly to increase demand and sales, and that’s what, in the end, not only helps the stock price as a reality rather than a fantasy, but keeps stockholders insanely happy.

But the reality won’t stop some bloggers from manufacturing silly theories in order to boost the hit count.

So the highly anticipated, newly renamed iOS 4 arrived Monday morning in iTunes 9.2 for millions of expectant iPhone and iPod touch users. Predictably, Apple’s update servers were no doubt slammed by the incredible demand, as users clicked their Update buttons in iTunes over and over again to get in line to receive the upgrade.

If you’re using an original iPhone or iPod touch, forget about iOS 4 or just prepare to buy a new iPhone when version 4 comes out later this week. The new iOS won’t support those models. Those of you with an iPhone 3G can get most of the update, except for the long-awaited multitasking feature, which is probably the biggest enticement to install the upgrade.

On a 3GS, the update works well enough, and all features are supported. I didn’t notice any material change in performance, although I’m sure some of you will grade it snappier. But during several hours of routine app switching and Internet surfing, I didn’t notice much change. But you can tell there’s a lot of extra stuff going on in the background. The newly installed Pandora Internet radio software, for example, played reliably in the background as I accessed different iPhone apps.

The overall impact of multitasking is fairly seamless. You can use your iPhone is before and you probably won’t notice anything different, other than the interface updates of course, until you actually call up apps and functions that do call up one of Apple’s seven multitasking APIs.

The new Folder feature is particularly useful. Just drag and drop a couple of apps to build a folder, which will be labeled with the category in which those apps fit. In a case where the apps apply to different categories, the iOS appears to choose the source app for the category. So take IMDB, the Internet Movie Database, an entertainment app that lets you seek out information about the people involved in films and TV, and Opera, a Web browser. Dragging the former atop the larger created a folder in the Entertainment category, which you can easily change to whatever you want. I renamed it “Miscellaneous Stuff,” although the final version might be a tad more descriptive. It’s still a work in progress for me.

Among the highly-touted features is a unified Inbox for your email. That’s something that may be an advantage or disadvantage depending on your workflow.

In my particular setup, I have seven active email accounts. But some of them also use custom folders and rules established in Mail to handle messages from specific senders or which fit into certain categories, such as friends and family. Unfortunately, the new design forces me to scroll down below the list of Inboxes to a category labeled Accounts, where I can then navigate through the folder hierarchy to see those emails. With previous versions of the iPhone software, the Accounts list would be the only top-level listing.

Unfortunately, there is no way to turn off the universal Inbox that I can locate. It’s not in Settings, nor is it mentioned in any of the online information I’ve consulted so far. I’ll grant I might be missing some sort of secret salute that will resolve this dilemma for me, but for now, I’m not so happy with the new arrangement. But maybe 99% of iOS 4 users will disagree, so there you go.

In any case, the threaded discussions feature ought to help you keep tabs of your ongoing communications and business users will appreciate the ability to add multiple Microsoft Exchange accounts.

It would be nice, however, to be able to apply a custom signature for each account. You’re still saddled with just one, and despite the addition of spell checking when crafting your messages, there’s still no support for spam filtering or rules. For that, you have to depend on your desktop or Web-based email clients for both, or a server-side spam filter for the former.

Apple, however, seems to have remembered to fix the problem with Safari bookmarks, where, when returning from a site selected from that list, you automatically return to the place in that listing where you originally found the bookmark. This wasn’t so big an issue unless you had a long list of bookmarks, and were forced to constantly scroll to where you left off.

This oh-so-obvious fix is nothing original, however. The feature was present in iPhone 1.0, but dropped unaccountably in subsequent releases. Maybe nobody else cared, but I’m glad it’s back.

Another feature that may require some attention is the revised Wallpaper feature, where Home can have the same backdrop as the Lock screen, or you can make separate selections. The standard Phone background, however, may obscure some of your app icons on your Home page, so you’ll want to change it. This new feature affords a desktop-like motif similar in concept to that of the iPad, although the app icons are much closer together. Too bad you can’t adjust icon spacing on an iPad — at least not yet.

Since downgrading your iPhone software isn’t a trivial process, unless you happen to have an older version around from a previous installation or you successfully locate a copy online, you may want to hold off a day or two to make sure there aren’t any show-stopper bugs. But I jumped at the chance, and, aside from a few quibbles, I’m quite pleased with iOS 4. At least so far.