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Only hours after Apple released their updated 4.01 operating system for iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPad, and the iPod Touch 4G hackers say they are near the point where device users can update to the 4.01 system and still be able to run the programs they want. A practice known as Jailbreaking.

Software manufacturers try to create code in their software system so that users can only run programs that the manufacturer wants and not necessarily what the user wants. Hackers relentlessly try to circumvent these restrictions to restore choice to the user and the copyright office has agreed that Jailbeaking is legal.

Steve Jobs admits that its a cat and mouse game with the hackers trying to keep them from using anything but Apple approved software. In the previous version 4.0 of the software hackers created havoc with a hack know as JailbreakMe one. Apple later released a patch for it.

This new jailbreak exploits a vulnerability in the ROM code which pre-loads before the operating system. Hackers say this one won’t be very easy for Apple to patch since it might involve a hardware fix.

In the mean time the hacker team known as pod2g has advised users of  a hacked version of 4.0 not to update yet to 4.1 because if they do it is likely they will lose the ability to keep their system unlocked.

Here’s a crazy idea … why can’t OS manufacturers  just let the user decide what programs they want to use instead of trying to fence off the OS and keep control  after the horse has galloped out of the digital barn. It’s called freedom.

Quantcast’s latest report shows that the Android OS now is being used by 25% of all smartphone web browsers and continues to gain market share from both Apple’s iOS  and RIM. Apple still holds about 55% of the market compared to Android’s 19% and RIM with 16%.

Web developers still prefer making apps for Apple over Android by a wide margin.

In spite of  the recent launch of Iphone 4 Apple has been unable to make gains on Android since phone manufacturers started bringing to market several Android versions of smartphones last year.  The gains of Android have clearly come at Apple’s expense and affected RIM’s market share less severely. Apple’s market share a year ago was about 70% and continues to slip as more Android phones hit the market.

It was thought earlier after the release of Iphone 4 that iOS could increase its user base but most people purchasing version 4 phones were already users of a previous version.

Stay tuned for the battle of the smartphone mobile market between Apple & Google.