Friday, February 28, 2003
Top Stories
iPod Jacket Designed To Cover Any Midlife Crisis
So launch your persuasion campaign. Drop comments like, "It's way cheaper than a convertible, right?" Better yet, sprinkle Boxster brochures around the house. Better even yet, get the local Porsche dealer to leave eager messages on your home answering machine. That'll do it.
News
Adobe Vice President Moves To Apple
For the second time in two years, an executive of Adobe Systems Inc. will move to Apple taking a high level position in the developer group. Susan Prescott, vice president of Product Management and Marketing, Cross Media Publishing at Adobe, will move to Apple as a vice president in the creative group.
Opinion
Run What You Need On Whatever You Like
Platform choice is a terrible reason for picking one computer over another.
How Virtual PC (Still) Helps Apple
Watching Microsoft control the destiny of Windows on the Mac might roil platform orthodoxy among some Apple partisans, but Microsoft is at heart a secular company single-mindedly focused on promoting its agenda of "Microsoft everywhere," by any means necessary. Those who question that goal might look askance at this latest acquisition, but it certainly doesn't equal Mac extinction.
Review
Personal Storage 5000XT
Maxtor's new Personal Storage 5000 series of hard drives offers speedy file transfers, push-button backup, quiet operation—and a few surprises.
Keeping iPod Exciting
Getting an iPod or other digital music player is great fun for the first few months that you own it. But after a while of carrying around a good chunk of your musical collection in your pocket, the novelty does wear off. That's when it's time to start buying accessories that can make it do more.
Wintel
Analysis: Microsoft To Fight For Your Digital Rights
Microsoftís move last week to help users secure corporate documents with digital rights management will bring needed awareness to the technology but will hardly signal wide-spread adoption, according to observers.
Intel's Pentium-M: Too Many Options?
Notebook buyers will have to wade through multiple marketing messages to find the wireless combination they want when portables containing Intel's next generation of mobile chips make their debut next month.
Microsoft Pushes Portal Power
Microsoft plans to move further into the business applications software market this spring with new programs targeted at midsized companies.
Thursday, February 27, 2003
News
Turning The Desktop Into A Meeting Place
Spring replaces icons for software applications nad Web sites with representations of people, places, and things that can be connected.
Antioch Classrooms May Switch Over To PCs
To PC or not to PC? That is the question Antioch Unified School District trustees will consider tonight when they discuss a proposal to replace every one of the district's Apple Macintosh computers with Windows-based personal computers.
Opinion
Whither Virtual PC?
While no one outside Microsoft knows for sure what the company has in mind for Virtual PC, the weight of the evidence indicates it won't be deep-sixed anytime soon.
Hardware PC Versus Software PC
My hope is that with Microsoft controlling both VPC and the OSes that run on it, the product will drop in price.
Review
Apple 20in Cinema Display
It's combination of high specification and aggressive pricing is set to win over designers in particular with an unbeatable setup.
Software Can Make Mousing Easier
With USB Overdrive, you can assign operations to any of your buttons and to many combinations of keys and buttons.
Sidetrack
WE ALL GOOGLE : The question is, is google a new verb?
WINDOWS AT GENIUS BAR : I wonder if the geniuses at Apple's retail stores had customers bringing in Windows machines before.
"Your QuickTime Player for Windows doesn't work with my Windows XP."
HERMAN GOERING AT THE NUREMBERG TRIALS : "Why, of course, the people don't want war," Goering shrugged. "Why would some poor slob on a farm want to risk his life in a war when the best that he can get out of it is to come back to his farm in one piece. Naturally, the common people don't want war; neither in Russia nor in England nor in America, nor for that matter in Germany. That is understood. But, after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy or a fascist dictatorship or a Parliament or a Communist dictatorship."
"There is one difference," [Gustave Gilbert] pointed out. "In a democracy the people have some say in the matter through their elected representatives, and in the United States only Congress can declare wars."
"Oh, that is all well and good, but, voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in any country."
Wintel
Taiwan Forces MS To Slash Prices
Microsoft will cut software prices in Taiwan by 26.7 percent to settle an investigation into unfair trade practices, the island's competition watchdog said Thursday.
Rivals Chip Away At Microsoft's Dominance
For the first time in nearly a decade, Microsoft faces genuine competition for the heart of its monopoly: its Windows operating system and Office software, now on more than 90% of PCs.
Microsoft Open Source Plot Exposed
The most powerful voice in open source's corner? Microsoft, of course.
Microsoft Tunes P2P For Windows
The software giant on Wednesday unveiled a beta, or testing version, of the Windows XP Peer-to-Peer Software Development Kit. The programming tools are designed to let software providers or corporate developers more easily build peer-to-peer applications on top of Windows XP.
Wednesday, February 26, 2003
Top Stories
Mac User Fights For Quieter Life
Since October, a digital filmmaker has neglected his business to run a pressure campaign to force Apple to do something about the notoriously loud cooling fans on PowerMac G4s. So how come he's still grumbling now that Apple's offering a fix?
Dist. 54 Students To Get Laptops
"I think back 20 years ago. A school wouldn't even consider not having a set of encyclopedias. [Laptop computer] is a new resource every child should have access to."
News
AirPort Extreme Base Station Firmware Update Posted
"This firmware update fixes an issue where an AirPort Extreme network appears to be unavailable as displayed by the AirPort Menu Extra or the Internet Connection application."
Fresh Apple Software Promised
Apple is to expand its software range, promises the company's chief financial officer Fred Anderson.
Apple Releases iDisk Utility For Windows XP
With the iDisk Utility for Windows XP, users can access your iDisk Public Folder and upload or download files.
Harvestworks Makes Technology Accessible To Artists
"At Harvestworks, we keep on top of the technology, and make sure the artists know about it and have access to it. We are very interested in becoming a point place to explore interactive technology."
Apple Computer Says Goal Is To Raise Marketshare
Speaking at the Goldman Sachs Technology Symposium, Anderson said a "good intermediate" goal would be to reach 5% marketshare from 3% today.
Speed Demon Of Wireless Network Heads To Homes
The new Ferrari of wireless networking has just hit the market, driving techies mad with the promise of more speed than even they can handle.
What's Next: The Next Next Big Thing
Were you thinking that the innovations of the Internet age are over?
Wi-Fi Group Gives Time Frame For Approval
The Wi-Fi Alliance announced Tuesday that it will complete interoperability tests of 802.11g-based products in July.
Bare Bones Software Axes BBEdit Lite
A New Twist In The Mac-Windows Waltz
As long as Microsoft can make money on its Mac business, it will stay in the game. But as any Mac lover will tell you, Microsoft is a very unsentimental company, and if the business goes south, it will abandon Apple with few regrets.
Flaws Found In Apple Streaming Servers
There are several security vulnerabilities in recent versions of Apple Computer Inc.'s popular QuickTime Streaming Server and Darwin Streaming Server that give attackers the ability to execute code on remote machines.
Opinion
Poll: Virtual PC Buy Out 'Bad News'
One fifth of Macworld Online voters believe the purchase to be "a bad thing", while a further 43 per cent say it's a "very bad thing".
Is The Dock A Blessing Or A Curse?
The Dock is, like the rest of us, imperfect and in need of work. But I've grown accustomed to its cartoonish, goofy face.
An Open-Source Opening For Apple
PC emulation is exactly the area where Apple should rely on the open-source community for software and development. Lots of Unix and Linux users need it, so it's highly probable that a strong open-source support group will develop around Bochs or other PC emulation. That gives Apple a ready-made support and research team for Bochs.
Calling It Like It Is: What Was Free Is Gonna Cost Ya Now
I do think the Bare Bones people could have been a little more up front about the fact that TextWrangler is a replacement for BBEdit Lite.
It's Slow, It's Fast, It's...
My expectations weren't high, but Jaguar ran just fine.
Review
Ten For X Games
Despite the games aiming for a more youth oriented market, there was something here for everyone and as such it's a great family bargain.
Apple Downsizes PowerBook G4's Size But Not Its Features
Paired with new application flexibility, thanks to the BSD underpinnings of OS X, this unit is a compelling mobile system for the enterprise.
Controlling Your Mac With AppleScript And Java
Even though there isn't a lot of formal support for Java in AppleScript, you can execute AppleScripts from Java. Why would you want to do this? Because by combining these technologies, you can easily interact with and control your Mac from remote locations. What follows is a look at how to set that up.
Black & White: Creature Isle
With its lopsided gameplay and extra abstraction, it isn't the self-contained experience others have made it out to be. In the end it comes down to how much you value the contributions of your creature.
Ten For X Utilities
In short, Ten for X is a great idea that I'd like to see tightened up a bit.
Sidetrack
WHERE'S THE IMITATION? : Michael Gartenberg asks, "why hasn't anyone at least come up with a decent [iPod] copy?"
Indeed.
Wintel
HP Sharpens Dual-Brand PC Focus
"[HP] is going after Sony and Apple, and [Compaq] is going after Dell," said Jim McDonnell, vice president of marketing in the personal systems group.
Rights Management? Or Restriction?
If you are a big company or organization with lots of correspondence and documents you want to keep secret, Windows RM is, indeed, a blessing. If you are a whistleblower, a journalist, a lawyer, a cop -ó or anyone who has the audacity to want to use software other than Microsoft Windows or Office -ó you should be very afraid.
IM Has Identity Crisis, Microsoft Says
Speaking at the Instant Messaging Planet Spring 2003 Conference and Expo here Tuesday, Microsoft product unit manager David Gurle told attendees that IM is often misunderstood, and that for its true potential to be realized, service providers will have to undergo a tremendous shift in their business models.
Linux Servers To Host Office
CodeWeavers announced Monday new software that will allow Linux servers to host Microsoft Office and other Windows productivity applications, which can then be accessed through a Web browser.
Tuesday, February 25, 2003
News
4 Years Ago: Be Offering Free OS To PC Makers
Former Apple Computer executive Jean Louis Gassee is attempting to thwart Microsoft's sway with PC manufacturers by offering Be's own software for free, with the condition that the OEM (original equipment maker) configures the machine so that the BeOS is an initial interface choice a user sees when the computer is turned on.
Apple Releases Mac OS X Server 10.2.4
Apple today released Mac OS X Server 10.2.4, which "delivers enhanced functionality and improved reliability for the following applications, services and technologies: AFP, SMB and NFS file services, DHCP, NetBoot, Open Directory, QuickTime Streaming Server, Sendmail and Workgroup Manager."
Opinion
Job No. 1 For Apple: Find A Parade And Get In Front Of It
Apple's commitment to open source is nice, but it must lead if its business is to thrive in the free software future.
Review
Stuck On StickyBrain: Info-Clutter Organizer Extraordinaire
StickyBrain has an organic, imprecise feeling that should appeal to people who don't want to work with orderly fields and grids or whose personal data doesn't fit neatly into a linear set up. I see StickyBrain as a tool for those of us (particularly those who shy away from scripting) who want to customize the way we interact with our data, but who need a free-flowing environment that requires minimal setup, that respects our short attention spans, and that doesn't spit up all over when we make mistakes.
Sidetrack
QUOTE ME : As Scott Rosenberg says, "a quote is a dangerous thing in untrained hands!"
QUOTE ME : Slate compares the two headlines...
BUSH ON ECONOMY: SADDAM MUST BE OVERTHROWN (The Onion, October 2002)
KEY TO DOMESTIC AGENDA COULD BE VICTORY IN IRAQ (New York Times, yesterday)
Wintel
Lovgate.C Worm Crawls Across Web
The worm is primarily affecting users of Microsoft Outlook and Outlook Express e-mail programs. It can propagate itself through Outlook e-mail, but recipients may be users of any e-mail program.
Monday, February 24, 2003
Top Stories
Mac Users Must Factor Microsoft Into Future
Those at Apple had to ask themselves, "Are we outsourcing our oxygen supply to a company that's in direct competition?"
Microsoft Acquires Virtual PC From Connectix
Microsoft Corp. on Wednesday announced that they had acquired Connectix Corp.'s Virtual PC products, including Virtual PC for Mac, Virtual PC for Windows and Virtual Server. Microsoft also hired many of the Connectix employees that worked on the products to continue development.
News
Apple Hopes For Quark Lift
Publishing software market leader Quark has begun to reveal glimpses of XPress 6.0 — its first version for the Mac OS X operating system — as it edges closer to the program's launch.
Five Questions With James Nachtwey
"Photographs are a product of heart and mind and the ability to connect. But technology is absolutely essential as a delivery system, and in journalism the delivery is vital."
Peter Turnley: Life Studies
"I actually hired one of the most knowledgeable people in the digital photographic world, Rob Galbraith, to give me a week of intensive lessons using a digital camera and archiving my work on my PowerBook G4. It was really one of the best investments I ever made."
Apple's Graphical Crown In PC Peril
Today there is not much difference to running imaging software on either platform.
Agilent, Apple Say Conflict With Iraq Worsening Computer Slump
REALBasic 5 For Mac Arrives
REALBasic 5 for the Mac is now available from REAL Software, with enhanced support for Mac OS X 10.2 Jaguar, including drawers, brushed-metal windows and toolbars.
A "Perfect Marriage" For Microsoft?
Redmond's Tim McDonough says Mac lovers have no need to fret over the giant's purchase of the cross-platform franchise from Connectix.
Connectix CEO Weighs Company's Future
While the company still has Macintosh products in the market today that are not based on Virtual Machinesó-DoubleTalk, which allows Mac-PC networking from within the familiar Mac interface and not in a Windows environment, and the RAM Doubler, which was discontinued last month but is supported until Septemberó-both of those products are "heading towards obsolescence" as they are not Mac OS 10 compatible.
Apple Offers Power Mac G4 Power Supply Exchange For Noise Problem
Apple has begun offering a hardware solution for the Power Macintosh G4 excessive noise problem.
3 Years Ago: Mac Hits Another Home Run
Apple is poised to regain the software-design leadership it earned with the original Macintosh. It's not clear how much ground this will gain for Apple, but the renewed competition can only benefit consumers.
Review
Lights, Camera, Distraction
iMovie 3 appears to be filled with bugs of the worst kind. They are critical, "show-stopping" problems that manifest themselves only after the user has invested a great deal of effort in producing a long or complex movie.
The Sims: Unleashed Expansion Pack
Free Video-Editing Programs Coming Into Their Own
[Windows Movie Maker or iMovie] may be all most users will ever need. At the very least, they are excellent starting points for anyone wanting to dive into editing home videos.
They Blog, You Blog, iBlog
From the perspective of a Mac user whoís particularly attached to user-friendliness and intuitiveness, Iíd say that Radio UserLand is ìalmost thereî and that the next generation of such tools will definitely be accessible to the ordinary Mac user with no great difficulty.
Cool! Apple's Installer Works Better With OS X 10.2.4
It looks like an undocumented feature of Mac OS X 10.2.4 is that the installer for Apple apps can now install updates in the folders where you want the applications to live, rather than the default Applications folder at the root level of your installation.
iPhoto 2: iPhoto 2 May Turn Out To Be The Most Welcome Of The iLife Upgrades
If you're already an iPhoto user, iPhoto 2 is a shoo-in; you'll appreciate its improvements (though you'll likely be left wanting more of them). If you currently use other photo-editing and -cataloging programs, you may not find the changes reason enough to warrant changing programs.
867MHz 12-Inch PowerBook G4
The 12-inch PowerBook G4 is not as full-featured as either its massive 17-inch sibling or the Titanium — nor is it meant to be. At $1,799 — $500 less than the 867MHz Titanium and $500 more than the 12-inch 800MHz iBook — it effectively straddles the PowerBook and iBook product lines.
Wintel
MS Accuses Sun Of 'Unfair Competition'
In a court filing, the software giant asked a judge for attorney's fees and damages to cover what it characterized as Sun's unlawful violation of a settlement inked in an earlier lawsuit over the Java programming language.
Opera Won't Perform On Microsoft Phones
Opera, which recently launched its Small-Screen Rendering technology designed to make it easy to read standard Web pages on "smart phones," last week said it would never offer a version for Microsoft-powered devices such as the Orange SPV. The announcement means that users of Windows-CE based phones are likely to be confined to using Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser, which many consider inferior when it comes to smart phones and personal digital assistants.
Microsoft Sets Date For Windows Server
The release-to-manufacture date for the seven flavors of Microsoft's latest server operating system means gold code should be just weeks away.
IBM, Dell Win In Losing Server Market
IBM and Dell Computer wrestled market share away from Hewlett-Packard and Sun Microsystems in 2002, a grim year in which overall sales dropped 8 percent to $43 billion, a new study said.
Microsoft At Midlife: Bill Gates' View Of The Future
With the enthusiasm of a science student working on a killer project, Gates talks excitedly about putting together software he thinks may change the world.
Microsoft Approval Sought For Xbox Linux Project
The team working on getting the Linux operating system to run on Microsoft's Xbox has made a bizarre plea to the software giant — requesting that it support their efforts by digitally signing the operating system so that it can run on unmodified Xboxes.
Microsoft's Latest Movie Maker A Rough Cut
The saying goes that Microsoft doesn't get a product right until the 3.0 version, and that sounds like the case with Windows Movie Maker. The current version could use more time in the studio.
The End Of The Old PC As We Know It?
For more than 20 years, the PC has relied on the BIOS (Basic Input/Output System), a small set of fixed software routines normally built into a chip on the motherboard. This hangover from a distant past is causing more and more problems, said Mark Doran, Intel's principal engineer behind the Extensible Firmware Interface (EFI) that aims to humanely kill the antique technology.
Sunday, February 23, 2003
News
3 Years Ago: Taste-Testing Aqua
Experts wonder whether Apple's Mac OS X will be the new Coke of computer-interface design.
Saturday, February 22, 2003
Opinion
2 Years Ago: Top 10 Reasons The Apple Dock Sucks
The Dock, though derived from NeXTStep, will be seen by many as a clumsy attempt to copy the Windows task bar, but to make it look "cooler," at the expense of usability. Here are the ten most obvious flaws in their result.
3 Years Ago: W2KOSX
I was feeling nothing but pride last week as I read all of the coverage of Microsoft's new Windows 2000 in the mainstream newsweeklies and saw that many of those articles were accompanied by sidebars or even full pages about Mac OS X.
Friday, February 21, 2003
News
2 Years Ago: Jobs Unveils New iMacs, Slashes Cube Prices
Apple Computer CEO Steve Jobs on Wednesday unveiled new iMac models in two new psychedelic colors complete with CD-RW drives during his keynote address at Macworld in Tokyo.
Thursday, February 20, 2003
Opinion
4 Years Ago: The iMac And PalmPilot Show Microsoft The Way
The iMac and the PalmPilot are both winners in a contest that many manufacturers don't even realize they're playing: the simplicity war. The iMac's success isn't based on price alone (plenty of Wintel boxes are cheaper still), nor on speed (plenty of Macs are faster), nor on its looks, great as they are. The one thing it's got over all other personal computers is the simplicity factor. In this regard, Apple's ads hit the nail on the head: you literally take this thing out of the box, plug it in, and turn it on.
Wednesday, February 19, 2003
Opinion
2 Years Ago: Not The End Of The Mac As We Know It
Mac OS X is not the end of the Mac as we know it. The Mac as we know it has a long life ahead of it.
Tuesday, February 18, 2003
News
6 Years Ago: Steve Jobs: The Next Insanely Great Thing
Steve Jobs has been right twice. The first time we got Apple. The second time we got NeXT. The Macintosh ruled. NeXT tanked. Still, Jobs was right both times. Although NeXT failed to sell its elegant and infamously buggy black box, Jobs's fundamental insight — that personal computers were destined to be connected to each other and live on networks — was just as accurate as his earlier prophecy that computers were destined to become personal appliances. Now Jobs is making a third guess about the future. His passion these days is for objects. Objects are software modules that can be combined into new applications, much as pieces of Lego are built into toy houses.
Monday, February 17, 2003
Review
1 Year Ago: iMac's Radical Redesign Easy On The User As Well As The Eyes
Most computers might as well have descended from the boxes they were shipped in. Apple's new iMac looks more like something evolved from R2-D2.
Sunday, February 16, 2003
News
9 Years Ago: The Macintosh At 10
Although few took it seriously during the early years, in many ways the Mac defined what a desktop computer should be. Apple pioneered many concepts that users now take for granted.
3 Years Ago: Apple - Back To The Future
Now more than 15 years after the introduction of the Macintosh, Apple will release not merely an update, but a much-delayed major overhaul of its operating system. The update is key to the continued recovery of the company.
Saturday, February 15, 2003
Opinion
2 Years Ago: 75 Mac Advantages Updated
In this series of articles I will be taking a look at Apple's venerable 75 Mac Advantages brochure issued a couple of years ago but mysteriously missing from its web site today. Or perhaps not so mysteriously; after Mr. Jobs and Mr. Gates declared a truce to the Windows/Mac OS wars, many of the 75 Mac Advantages (which were, after all, advantages over Windows) were persona non grata at Apple Corporate Head Quarters.
Friday, February 14, 2003
Opinion
6 Years Ago: 101 Ways To Save Apple
Dear Apple, who wants to live in a world without you? Not us. So we surveyed a cross section of hardcore Mac fans and came up with 101 ways to get you back on the path to salvation.
Review
9 Years Ago: HyerCard 2.2: The Great Becomes Greater
HyperCard 2.2 is here! HyperCard was what chiefly convinced me to buy my first Mac; I still regard it as the neatest, most useful, most generous program ever conceived. Generous because it was originally given away free (no more, alas!); generous because it lets you program the Mac yourself, easily and powerfully.
Thursday, February 13, 2003
Top Stories
Apple Releases Mac OS X 10.2.4
The update addresses issues related to reliability for built-in applications and services, and more. It's available for download through the Software Update system preference pane.
News
TiVo Integrates With iLife
Apple and Tivo are working together to furnish complete integration between Macs and Tivo devices.
A Laptop Alights At Home On A Minimalist Perch
Griffin Technology hopes its curving, transparent plastic iCurve laptop stand will appeal to owners of iBooks, as the product's name suggests. The stand's design was inspired by recent Macintosh computers.
Final Cut Express Update Boosts Performance, More
Final Cut Express 1.0.1 features improved performance and stability, according to Apple. It also adds linked keyframe parameters to the Motion tab. NTSC and PAL non-controllable device presets have been added to the Easy Setup window, as well.
Opinion
Apple Of Whose Eye?
I was this close to ordering one of Apple Computer's new notebook computers.
Review
Apple's Big 12-Inch
It's not often Apple can claim to have the best value in computers, especially when one compares the price of an Apple to the price of a PC. But it seems that lately Apple has been working at jamming its laptops full of goodies, while at the same time decreasing the price — and weight — to make them less expensive than similarly equipped PCs. It's odd, but true.
Checking Out iLife
While Apple has added several nice features to each of the "iApps," by far the most valuable is the degree of integration.
Latest iPhoto Is Slicker And Faster
Apple's iPhoto software just got a lot better.
Logitech Internet Navigator Keyboard
Logitech's Internet Navigator Keyboard is a few features and two USB ports away from being a stand-out product. While I greatly appreciate the efforts of Logitech's Mac driver team, they could extend the functionality of all their supported products by giving users more customization options.
DayLite 1.2: Sales-Relationship-Management Program Delivers Power And Flexibility, But Also Administrative Difficulty
DayLite's Personal Edition and Business Edition are well-designed and amazingly customizable programs that give you all the tools you'll need to manage every aspect of your sales from start to finish. But at this point, the Business Edition lacks the necessary security and basic administration tools that most businesses require in a centralized application.
Sidetrack
WHEN TWO CEOs MEET : Found this exchange between the CEO of Apple and the CEO of Pixar on MacInTouch today...
Jobs: On behalf of Pixar, I say you should offer us a volume discount.
Jobs: On behalf of Apple, I must concede your obvious business genius, sir. (pause) And may I say ó that's a damn fine black sweater you're wearing.
TOO MANY DISTRIBUTORS AND RESELLERS? This is what Guy Kawasaki had to say, back in 1990.
"I believe that you cannot have too many silk blouses, too fast a car, or too much distribution. 'Controlled distribution' is an oxymoron. The right distribution is blasting out product and letting customers choose which distribution channel to patronize."
"Some customers will prefer the selection and social atmosphere of ComputerWare. Some will prefer the convenience of mail order from a company like MacConnection. Some will prefer the handholding of a developer or consultant."
"To be fair, if image or status are important to a company's product, it should be more selective. Mont Blanc pens in airport newstands, for example, would be depresing. In general, though, a company shouldn't worry about protecting anyone along the distribution pipe. The organizations and channels that fill a need will survive."
From the book, The Macintosh Way.
Wintel
Whoa! Intel's New - Slower - Chip?
The adoption of the Centrino brand could take a while, as Intel spreads its new, speed-isn't-everything gospel to computer makers and consumers — a message that rivals might actually welcome and help spread.
Microsoft Fights Sun's Java Injunction
Microsoft told an appeals court on Wednesday that a requirement forcing it to ship Sun Microsystems' version of Java is "unprecedented" and must be overturned.
Gates Lays Out Digital Vision
Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates on Tuesday said the software giant is "the most optimistic company" about advancing new technology innovations.
Microsoft Preps New Office 11 Beta
Microsoft is expected to release next month a second test version of a crucial upgrade to its Office desktop application software.
Wednesday, February 12, 2003
Top Stories
Apple 'Will Hit Cash Targets'
Apple has confirmed it expects to meet its previously announced targets for business in its second quarter.
NetNewsWire 1.0 Released
After an extensive public beta test, Ranchero Software has released NetNewsWire 1.0. NetNewsWire is an RSS news reader that displays news and headlines from thousands of different Web sites.
News
Apple Releases New Safari Beta
The update addresses issues reported from users and delivers overall performance improvements.
Inside The House That Woz Built
Legendary Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak will soon be moving from one Silicon Valley mansion packed with tech toys to another. Why? He can't get cell-phone coverage at his current residence.
iLife/Keynote Bundle: Overwhelming Response
Apple has informed educators participating in its "iLife and Keynote" bundle promotion that due to the overwhelming success of the $15 offer, the company is having trouble fulfilling all orders.
Apple And Web Services
In this first part of a two-part column, we'll look at what Apple is doing today in Web services, and what the future might hold.
Opinion
Why Apple Needs Fewer Resellers
Jobs & Co. has a big problem with independent Mac dealers. One solution: Eliminate them where they're too close to Apple Stores.
Why Apple's Market Share Isn't Budging
These Apple retail stores have not increased overall market share. They've simply positioned Apple to make more money by eliminating the middle man.
Review
PowerBook G4: Good Things In A Small Package
If your life is all play-ómovies, music, videosó-or if your work involves the things others only play at, the Apple G4 12-Inch is as good as it gets in less than 5 pounds. And for mainstream e-mail, Web browsing, or word processing, you'll find the G4 as capable as any Windows notebook.
AirPort Extreme: A Shomewhat Underwhelming Experience
Apple PowerBook G4 (867MHz, 12.1in. TFT)
The smallest Apple notebook packs an appealing punch.
The 12in iBook And 12in PowerBook - Brothers Under The Skin
The LittleAl isnít just an aluminum iBook with a G4 processor.
Final Cut Express
Considering the price, it will make it even more difficult for Avid (or anyone else for that matter) to compete in a market that is already dominated by the Apple and Final Cut Pro faithful.
Living The Digital iLife
The iLife suite is strong.
Developing Visualization Applications With Cocoa And VTK
NASCAR Racing 2002
If you've got the hardware, NASCAR Racing 2002 Season is an instant recommendation to any fans of the sport.
Wintel
Rivals Of Microsoft File Antitrust Complaint In Europe
An alliance of technology companies said today that it had filed a new complaint with European antitrust regulators about the Windows XP operating system of Microsoft, just as the regulators were nearing the end of an investigation into earlier versions of Windows.
Support Grows For .Net
Microsoft Corp. partners will be showing their support for the software giant's development tools platform at the VSLive developer conference here this week.
Gates Taking 'Pervasive' Linux Seriously
Microsoft Corp. Chairman and chief software architect Bill Gates on Tuesday weighed in on the threat the Linux operating system poses to his company's business, saying he is taking the threat seriously as Linux is "out there and very pervasive."
Microsoft Parades Xbox Hits For A Song
Microsoft said Tuesday that it will cut the price on some best-selling titles for its Xbox game console, a week after rival Nintendo cut some game and hardware prices in a bid to spur sales.
MSN Gets On Search Bandwagon
Web portal MSN is testing a new search service that touts faster, tidier results, in what is the latest development in a fast-moving contest to help people find what they're looking for online.
Microsoft Rebuilds .Net Tools
Microsoft on Tuesday will offer a glimpse at future versions of its Visual Studio.Net development tools and highlight a number of additions to the product line.
Tuesday, February 11, 2003
Top Stories
New Mac Tool Is Kon-Fabulous
Konfabulator, released on Monday, is a JavaScript runtime application for Mac OS X that runs little custom programs called Widgets. Widgets can be almost anything, from games to system monitors, stock tickers, utilities or Web services.
Microsoft To Tweak Office For Macs
Microsoft is set to offer this summer a long-awaited upgrade to the Macintosh version of its Office suite. The update will give Mac customers access to corporate calendar and contact information stored on a server running the software giant's Exchange software.
Apple Outlines Job Cuts
Apple Computer eliminated 260 positions in the last three months of last year as it closed manufacturing operations in Singapore and shifted strategy in its PowerSchool education unit, the company disclosed in a regulatory filing Monday.
News
Google Tops Branding Poll
Search engine beats out Apple and Coke In Web survey as brand with the most impact.
Apple Pays Jobs For Use Of Jet The Company Bought Him
Apple has paid Steve Jobs more than $1.2 million for the use of a Gulfstream V jet it bought for him two years ago. Apple paid nearly $90 million for the jet, taxes and its delivery.
Apple Extends Enterprise Reach
XserveRAID signal new market opportunities.
IMG Celebrates Its 10 Birthday
Peachpit Press Releases "Mac OS X For Windows Users: A Switchers' Guide"
Apple Announces WWDC Dates, Tracks
At WWDC, developers find out the direction Apple will be taking in the next 12 months with Mac OS X and other technologies the company has developed. The conference also gives developers a chance to meet with Apple engineers and fellow developers.
Opinion
Apple, Sun Embrace Openness
In important ways, Apple and Sun are leading a charge toward inexpensive, scalable, and easily managed enterprise computing.
Review
Virtual PC V 6.0.1
It is actually a pleasure to use. At least as far as running a PC in emulation mode on your Mac. As far as running Windows, well, that's another story...
Sidetrack
GO AFTER THE MONEY : Andrew Orlowski asked why Microsoft would want to concentrate on MSN for OS X over IE 6.0 for OS X, when the potential audience for IE is so much greater than for MSN.
My response: the audience for MSN are potentially paying audience — even if the pay is through advertisement. (Even though, as we all know, the ad industry isn't exactly a happy one nowadays.) The audience for IE? Will never pay a cent.
GROVER IS BITTER : The true story. :-)
Wintel
New Complaint To EU On Microsoft Windows
A computer trade group has filed a fresh complaint against Microsoft to the European Commission, alleging the latest XP version of Windows gives the software giant an illegal advantage that kills competition, sources familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.
Microsoft Renames XDocs App
Microsoft Corp. on Monday renamed its XDocs application to InfoPath, but declined to say whether this information-gathering tool would ship as part of Office 11, the code name for the next version of Office, or if it would be sold as a stand-alone product.
.Net Patent Could Stifle Standards Effort
Microsoft is in the process of applying for a wide-ranging patent that covers a variety of functions related to its .Net initiative. If approved as is, the patent would cover application programming interfaces (APIs) that allow actions related to accessing the network, handling Extensible Markup Language (XML), and managing data from multiple sources.
Monday, February 10, 2003
Top Stories
Live The iLife
Cheap, simple video editing software, and now a cheap, simple means of distribution: it all adds up to something that's well worth making a fuss about.
Apple Upgrades Xserve, Intros Xserve RAID
Apple Computer on Monday upgraded the company's Xserve 1U rackmount server adding a dual 1.33GHz Power PC G4 processor. The company also released the long awaited Xserve RAID, a 3U rack storage system with a 2.5TB storage capacity.
News
Apple Updates X11
Apple on Monday released an update to its implementation of the X11 Windowing system, bringing the current version to 0.2.
Apple Upgrades Servers, Unveils Storage
"Apple is entering the storage market pretty late in the game at a time when battle lines have been clearly drawn and loyalties are firmly entrenched."
Fed-Up iPhoto Users Lobby Apple
Apple today faces being swamped by angry iPhoto users demanding to know when they can expect full-feature parity with users based in North America.
Macromedia Pushes Subscription Plan
Software makers are increasingly turning to subscriptions as a way to generate steadier revenue by ensuring adoption of product upgrades.
New Website For Mac Users
A new website has been developed by Massey staff member Philip Roy in response to a need for local information for New Zealandís growing Mac community.
Macromedia Unveils FreeHand MX
With the latest version, FreeHand joins Macromedia's MX line of products and will be included in the Studio MX package.
Apple Aims For Bigger Local Market Share
Apple Computer will aggressively showcase its new notebooks and mobile wireless solutions in Singapore in order to grab a bigger market share.
Opinion
New Wireless 11g 'Standard' Ends In Tears
It is nearly a year since NewsWireless Net warned of the disasters looming if American wireless manufacturers went ahead with 802.11g - the go-faster WiFi standard. Now, we hear of incompatibility problems between rival 11g products - discovered in "secret" testing sessions. Are we really supposed to be surprised?
Apple: It's The Software, Stupid
It's nice to report a warming of the Microsoft/Apple relationship even as Apple finds it necessary to compete even more aggressively with Microsoft products. This should be an interesting spring and summer for the two companies' shared customers.
Review
Running To Stand Still
What's not so nice about iMovie is its chronically bad playback and tendency to bring on the "spinning pizza of death".
The New 12" PowerBook: Slick And Sexy, But Not Without Its Faults
If you want a cheaper Powerbook to boast to your friends, or you want a fast-ish Powerbook that is able to do its job fine and be small and really be portable, this is the Mac laptop you were looking for. And no matter what, don't buy an iBook.
Freedom Force
Freedom Force ends up being a game full of missed opportunities.
1.2 GHz PowerForce G4 Series 100 In A Cube
The 1.2 GHz PowerLogix PowerForce Series 100 G4 CPU upgrade makes our Cube very fast. It's cool to have the fastest single CPU Mac on the planet, even if for just a little while.
Sidetrack
BYE, BYE, SCI-FI : After years and years of waiting, I think we can now safely say that flying cars will not happen.
SCENTED CANDLES : My wife used to like lighting some scented candles in our bedroom. After a batch which caused us headaches, we never did anymore.
But, I would be willing to try some of there by Kottle and Meg. BBQ.... Mmmmmm....
Wintel
eMachines Turns Support Into Profit
Not only is eMachines making money selling computers, it is experiencing rapid growth in a stagnant market. Moreover, it's doing so in the long shadow of the industry's Pac-Man, Dell Computer.
Sunday, February 9, 2003
Top Stories
A PowerBook That Would Make Rodin Proud
You'll find more evidence of Apple's worship of the details as you look closer.
News
Apple MD Flies Off Into The Outback Sky
Ben Bowley, who has been managing director for Australia and New Zealand since the retirement of Diana Ryall two years ago, will leave the company at the end of March.
Browser Battle Rekindling
Dominance of Microsoft's Internet Explorer under attack.
Opinion
A Night Away From The Opera
Did Opera expect some sort of prize just for showing up? Any Mac user could tell you that just showing up is not enough.
Review
What Do You Mean You Still Run Windows?
The Mac is designed from the ground up with simplicity in mind. And that, my friends, is the advantage that Microsoft has, despite all its vast resources, failed to match.
Saturday, February 8, 2003
Top Stories
Apple iPod Is My Favorite Portable Music Player
The iPod is the best of all the portable players I've used. Not because the music quality is excellent, as most players have achieved that, but because the important details are better.
Apple (Sort Of) Denies European Retail Plans
Alan Healy, Apple's European marketing and communications manager claimed that the company 'officially' has no current plans to launch in Europe.
News
Pixar Switches From Sun To Intel
Pixar Animation Studios, which brought the world Monsters Inc. and Toy Story, is switching from Sun Microsystems to Intel, as the melodrama in the server market heats up.
Apple's Byte
Apple India is working behind scenes to bring about a radical change in its channel sales.
Apple To Open Retail Store At Arden Fair
Apple Computer will open one of its high-profile retail stores at Sacramento's Arden Fair this spring, giving the Macintosh faithful a place to worship and the mall a tenant that has proven it can draw traffic.
Opinion
iWave Vs. iLife = iEnvy?
I like to say that with the iApps, Apple has identified a new kind of productivity application.
Macs Suddenly Head To Head With PCs On Price
The iLife software is free with every Mac, and Apple guarantees it will all run perfectly. Can you think of a single PC vendor willing to make that claim?
If Apple Went To Intel: Two Developers Explain Impact
Architosh talks to Sean Flaherty, CTO, Nemetschek N.A., and Naer Family, CEO, BOD Research Inc.
Review
Lights! Camera! Action! It's Easy, Cheap To Edit Film
You won't turn into a Martin Scorsese or Steven Spielberg after a few hours, but you will have a lot of fun.
X11 And OpenOffice On Mac OS X
Today I'll show you how to install X11 for Mac OS X on your system and how to start using OpenOffice, a popular open source free Microsoft Office-like application for Unix-based systems.
BBEdit 7.0: Excellent Tool For Text Specialists Gets Even Better
BBEdit continues to be a remarkably powerful text editor for a wide range of users, from Web designers to programmers. This update further improves the program's text-handling and Web-design capabilities while also offering version control via CVS.
Wintel
In Europe, Microsoft Faces A Harder Sell
The software giant emerged virtually unscathed in November from an eight-year battle with U.S. federal and state authorities over how its violations of antitrust laws should be rectified. But it may not fare as well in another major antitrust case, now entering its final phase at European Union headquarters in Brussels.
HP, IBM Give Small PCs A Big Boost
Hewlett-Packard and IBM have quietly released new business PCs that are easy on desktop real estate.
Microsoft Coders Get A Bug-Catcher
The software giant plans to announce on Monday that a plug-in created by security firm Sanctum, scheduled for release in March, will be the first to easily integrate with Microsoft's development platform Visual Studio .Net.
Friday, February 7, 2003
News
Standards: Truce Pays Off For Rivals
As fast wireless technologies hit store shelves, networking companies that survived an earlier standards war in the booming market are determined to prevent another one from erupting.
Beat Of THe Slopes
Portable players turn a typical ride into a freestyle session set to a customized rhythm track.
Students Enjoy A 'Science Cart' From Apple
As what Apple calls a "seed" school, East Middle School will share results and opinions on the project with Apple so the company can get a feel for the product's future viability.
Zeroing In On Instant Networks
New approaches to zero-configuration networks provide faster, more flexible hookups for mobile devices.
Apple To Host 1394 Developers' Conf In Tokyo
The 1394 Trade Association is an international organization dedicated to the advancement and proliferation of the IEEE 1394 standard — better known as FireWire to Mac users.
Sun: We Would Consider A Mac OS X Office Suite If Microsoft Left
A Sun Microsystems representative has told MacFixIt that if Microsoft were to leave the Macintosh office productivity suite space — by ceasing development after Office 11 — the company would be more inclined to deliver a solid, production-level Mac OS X-native version of its StarOffice suite.
Sidetrack
GET LAID OFF? : "I was an Apple icon! After Steve got thrown out, I was the voice of Apple!"
Wintel
Slammer: The Fastest Spreading Worm Ever?
A white paper produced by the team, claims that Sapphire doubled its numbers every 8.5 seconds during the first minute of its attack.
Microsoft Releases Anti-Slammer Tools
Microsoft has released early versions of database security applications in reaction to the Slammer worm that wreaked havoc on the Internet last week.
Microsoft Toughens Up Windows Server
Microsoft wants to assure big companies that its upcoming Windows Server 2003 operating system is ready to handle complex business applications.
Thursday, February 6, 2003
Top Stories
European Apple Retail Stores 'In 6-18 Months'
In an interview with Sunday Business newspaper, Pascal Cagni, Apple's vice president and general manager of Europe, Middle East and Africa, revealed that the company is planning aggressive expansion into the consumer retail market.
News
Mac Games Return To Founder, Twin Cities
Now Tamte is back in the Twin Cities, once again churning out Mac games as part of his fledgling software firm, Destineer Inc.
Microsoft Plans New Switcher Campaign
Apple Still Says It Won't Attend '04 Macworld Boston
The departure of IDG World's chief executive — the man who apparently angered Apple Computer by working out a deal to move the annual Macworld trade show out of New York City and back to Boston — changes nothing, Apple said yesterday.
Opinion
Apple Timing
No doubt Apple could have announced these at Macworld, but instead they chose to wait. Why?
Apple's Cozy Niche
Over the years Jobs has often likened Apple to BMW or Mercedes-Benz, saying that catering to a smaller customer base willing to pay more for the Mac's tangible advantages is a valid strategy. There always will be those who see the computer as Jobs does. Apple's task is to make more such people aware of the Mac alternative.
Review
A User's Comparison Of The 12" iBook And 15" TiBook
Logitech Z-340
The Z-340 is an able performer, especially considering its $50 price tag.
Airport Extreme... The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly
Apple is known as the company that produces high-priced hardware, but hardware thatís the best you can get, what will they think when they discover their ëExtremeí Airport isnít very ëextremeí at all?
Mac OS X Disaster Relief
This is a fine book for understanding Mac OS X and setting it up, and especially tweaking it so it works the way you want. It is less effective for actual troubleshooting, but reading through the entire book will give you enough information that you may end up with fewer problems just by dint of better understanding the operating system.
Easy Ways To Adapt To Mac OS X
I really think you'll find little reason to dread Mac OS X, and plenty of reason to embrace the changes.
A Bioinformatics Web Service With Mac OS X
Using objective-c and Mac O SX's core web services to consturct an OmniGene analysis engine client.
Sidetrack
READ IT : It's not RSS readers that made me more "productive" in reading blogs. It's the tabs feature in Mozilla that allows me to open a lot of web pages with one click.
Safari better have something good. :-)
READ IT : Somehow, I felt a tinge of sadness after reading this first letter here, published on Straits Times.
Wintel
Opera: Microsoft Is Hurting Our Style
Opera Software on Wednesday said Microsoft has been sending its browser a faulty style sheet, which determines the presentation of graphics and text in a browser window.
Microsoft May Get 'Slammed' In Korea
A South Korean civic rights group may take Microsoft to task for the carnage caused by the Slammer worm last month.
Nvidia And Microsoft Are Chums Again
Terms of the arbitration are not disclosed but Nvidia describes it as a win-win for both parties.
Microsoft Looks To Rive 'iWave'
The software vendor aims to get the most bang for its marketing and messaging buck out of the Office 11, XDocs and SharePoint 2.0 product releases expected in June.
The Real Threat
We keep shipping crap, people won't buy it.
Microsoft Faces Employee Software Resales
Microsoft disciplined an undisclosed number of employees who are suspected of buying discounted software and reselling it for a profit, the software giant said on Wednesday.
Microsoft Releases Patch For IE Flaw
Microsoft on Wednesday advised Internet Explorer customers to apply a patch for a vulnerability that could allow a Web site administrator to steal data or take control of a person's PC.
Wednesday, February 5, 2003
Top Stories
Safari, So Good: Browser And Bluetooth Boost OS X
Safari cures the biggest drawback to OS X which we noted in our Jagwyre review: the utterly miserable browsing experience.
News
iBlog Enables Weblogging Through .Mac
With iBlog, you can not only create and publish your own Weblogs, but you can subscribe to others' Weblogs and newsfeeds.
Penguin-Powered iPod? Sort Of
In recent weeks, computer enthusiast Bernard Leach has been able to get Apple's digital music player to run basic parts of the uClinux version of the Linux operating system. However, in running Linux, the device sacrifices many of the iPod's key features.
Biting The Apple
Tenny Mirzayan recently petitioned Apple computers with a number of demands after her iBook began sparking wildly when she attached its power cord. She dropped the computer in fear, breaking its display.
Apple Retail Stores Coming To Mass, Florida
Macworld Promoter Takes Job With Rival
The departure of the longtime Macworld chief could complicate efforts to ensure that corporate star Steve Jobs, Apple's chief executive, makes an appearance at the trade show next year.
Apple 'Will Change Chips' - Omni Chief
Omni Group CEO Ken Case believes Apple will change it's chip architechture "when the time is right".
Five On The Upswing
A combination of Apple Computer Inc. innovation and market malaise could lead to Macs pushing some Windows-based PCs off of enterprise desktops.
O'Reilly Releases "Mac OS X In A Nutshell"
The book familiarizes readers with the Finder and the Dock, file management, system configuration, network administration issues, and more.
Battle For The Living Room
Multimedia PCs from Gateway, Apple, Lindows.com compete with digital entertainment centers.
A Rendezvous With Redmond?
Apple is delivering on the immense potential of its no-fuss networking system. With luck, it could be a direct challenge to Microsoft.
Opinion
The Macintosh Way: Get 'Em While They're Young
Apple has finally figured out how to grow its customer base: gets Macs into kids' hands for free.
The New iMac And eMac Value Equation
Although the Apple product matrix has grown much more complex since the four quadrant era, the values are steadily improving.
My Pocketful Of Music
I know it sounds silly, but this 20GB MP3 player has revolutionized my day.
Review
The Age-Old Question: Are Macs Still Too Expensive?
The point of this exercise is that those who continue to claim that Apple's computers are too expensive to be competitive need to come up with better arguments.
Sidetrack
TWO FUN WEEKS AFTER EXPO : Are more in the pipeline? Are we seeing updates to the iBook and iPod line next Tuesday?
MICROSOFT SELLING BOB... according to CARS. And they are throwing in an upgrade of Intenret Explorer.
Wintel
MS Says It Didn't Steal From Sendo
Microsoft has asked a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit by British cell phone maker Sendo, saying there was no basis to Sendo's charges that it stole technical know-how and pushed it to the brink of bankruptcy.
Microsoft Pulls NT Patch
Microsoft has pulled a security patch for Windows NT 4.0 because installing it can cause the operating system to crash, the software maker said Monday.
Borland Targets .Net Developers
Borland Software will make a play for Microsoft's .Net developer community with tools based on the software giant's homegrown programming language, C#.
Tuesday, February 4, 2003
Top Stories
Apple Trims Prices, Product Array
Apple Computer on Tuesday simplified its consumer Macintosh line and slashed prices as it seeks to gain market share from Windows XP-based PCs.
Apple Updates The iMac; Lowers Price On iMac And eMac
Apple Computer Inc. on Tuesday updated its flat panel iMac all-in-one consumer computer, giving the system a speed bump and many of the same technologies added to the Power Mac line last week.
News
Freshmen Debut First-Year-Life Videos
The Froshlife iMovie project, sponsored by Student Affairs, the Office of Information Technology and Apple Computer, allowed freshman to create short films about "the first-year experience."
G4 Chips Smell Of Stopgap
You can't help feeling these new machines are stopgap models, holding a place for Apple in the professional market until new chips become available.
No 'G' Whiz For Wireless
Sales of 802.11g-based hardware are on fire, but organizations could get burned by buying into "g" now.
Losses Grow For Corel
Canadian software maker Corel, in the midst of a difficult turnaround bid, on Monday reported a wider loss for its fourth quarter and 2002 fiscal year.
Jared Micah Herman: Award-Winning Director Captures Beauty WIthin Tragedy
OmniWeb 4.2 Beta Released
The Omni Group said that OmniWeb 4.2 improves compatibility with Web servers, and adds new preferences to aid in downloading files and managing Internet plug-ins.
Review
New Apple Apps: The Good, The Bad, The Stupid
It boggles my mind that Apple, the company that insists it's all about attention to detail, would ship a scheduling app that behaves so stupidly.
iPhoto 2 Steps Into The Frame
It's just frustrating to see a program with so many hints of greatness dragged down by what look like sloppy omissions.
iMovie, Take 3
With more work and some dedicated attention to fixing some glitches and performance issues on Apple's part, iMovie 3 could become the update I've been waiting for.
Sidetrack
15" SUPERDRIVE GONE? : The 15" iMac with SuperDrive is gone, apparently.
APPLE STORE CLOSED : The online Apple Store is closed at this time. (8.14 am EDT) Looks like the iMac rumors may be true. Update: Okay, the iMac has been updated.
By the way, I am planning to visit The Apple Retail Store at The Grove (Los Angeles) later this month. :-)
HOTEL SUGGESTION : Hi guys, I am looking for recommendations for hotels to stay in Los Angeles.
Wintel
Microsoft Warns SEC Of Open-Source Threat
Microsoft Corp. may in the future be forced to lower its software prices as a result of the growth of open source, the company cautioned in its latest filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Xbox Losses Mount; Office Profits Up
Microsoft nearly doubled its losses from the Xbox video game console in the December quarter, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Microsoft Wins Stay Of Java Order
The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted Microsoft a stay of a Jan. 21 decision from U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz in Baltimore, who gave the company 120 days to begin including Sun's latest Java runtime environment in every copy of Windows and Internet Explorer.
Monday, February 3, 2003
Top Stories
Apple Dealers Biting Back
Apple has been hit by a growing number of lawsuits filed by Mac dealers who are upset by the company's alleged efforts to lure their customers to outlets that Apple owns. They are also fed up with what they say are long-standing problems in the company's service and billing systems.
News
Microsoft Talking To Apple About $1.1 Bln Settlement
The talks indicate that Microsoft is seeking to prevent a prolonged battle to win court approval for the settlement, analysts say.
Lotus Founder Designs Low-Cost PIM
Open-source 'Chandler' is aimed at information management for small, midsize business.
Opinion
Adventures In Demo Land
Your editor here at MyAppleMenu will be attending DEMO 2003, where "the future begins here." And this is the blog I've created to jot down my little adventure.
Time For iLife Apps To Share A Unified Media Database?
And since the iLife apps are all so wonderfully integrated now, why not place all of my media in a single, integrated media database?
Review
Apple Takes On PowerPoint
One of the simplest, yet most compelling features of Keynote is its align guides for slide elements.
Apple Now Appeals To Financial Side Of Brain, Not Just Artistic
Mac prices have dropped so close to those of PCs, it makes good sense to consider making the switch.
Learning With Powerpuff Girls And Zoombinis
For children looking to save the world from disaster and learn something in the process, two CD-ROMs fit the bill nicely.
Apple 12" PowerBook G4 867: How Fast It Is?
We believe that road warriors, other than video graphics professionals, will be satisfied with the 12" model's feature set and performance. It is mostly but not completely down to a question of screen size vs portability.
Deck 3.5: Midrange Music-Production Tool Moves To OS X
Deck 3.5.1 is a fine choice for musicians who want a reasonably priced application for audio recording and production. The addition of OMF support should make this program even more attractive to musicians who use other OMF-capable music applications.
Move2Mac: One-Trick Pony Helps Windows-To-Mac Switchers
Move2Mac is an unusual program because it's meant to be used only once. Even so, it is a persuasive dollars-for-time proposition. You could do its work manually, but you'd need to have a network, expert knowledge of where files go in each operating system, and hours for copying files and retyping settings. For most people, $60 is a small price to pay for the assistance of this automated computer consultant.
Wintel
Microsoft Pulls Java From Windows
In compliance with a court order, Microsoft on Monday released an updated version of Windows XP Service Pack 1 without the company's version of Java.
Microsoft Protecting Rights—Or Windows?
Can Microsoft be trusted? How music labels, Hollywood studios and consumers answer that question could determine whether the software giant dominates digital media the way it does Web browsers or desktop productivity applications, say analysts.
Microsoft's SPOT: The Atari Connection
Microsoft's SPOT smart objects might indeed be tomorrow's technology ñ- if you were living in the 1980's.
Saturday, February 1, 2003
Top Stories
12 Hours With iPhoto 2
iPhoto is tons better, but there's still more that they could do. Overall, it's a great effort for 2.0.
AOL-Microsoft? Not Likely, Just Logical
If Bill Gates bought the online albatross, he'd acquire the subscribers to make MSN a winner. And Time Warner? Its stock would soar.
Apple On The Cusp
Senior VPs AvieTevanian, Jon Rubinstein discuss the convergence of business and consumer markets in Keynote and iLife.
News
Digital Data Chases Converged Reality
The rising tide of intertwined structured and unstructured data types is threatening to engulf corporations as a multitude of computing devices flourishes in a sea of diverse file formats, protocols, and standards. Chasing user demand for seamless consumption of multiple data types on a single client, technologies earmarked to capture and manage digital data are converging.
Seamus Conlan: Lost And Found
"Generally with digital -ó as with film negs ó- there is a color balance problem. But really all that I do is alter the color balance in Photoshop using a small program I developed around the automatic actions."
Kevin Gilbert: Fast Flow Photography
"If you can beat the next guy by two minutes, you beat him, you won." And nobody is more certain about where his advantage lies: in front-to-back, capture-to-print digital workflow.
Will Mac Fans Get An iLife?
Analysts and Mac users are questioning the iLife's price tag, as two of the suite's new components—iMovie 3 and iPhoto 2—will soon be available for free download.
Students Get Run Of Apple Stores
Aiming to show off what it can do for schools, Apple is letting students and teachers hold open houses in its retail stores to show parents the schoolwork they have done on a Mac.
Opinion
Is Microsoft Its Own Worst Enemy?
With Microsoft busy shooting itself in the foot, wouldn't it be a good idea for Apple to help load the weapon?
Mac Meets World
Of course, the IT staff can make anything work given the time and money, but with ever-tightening IT budgets and even less time for IT staffers to solve problems, chief technologists have to go with the thing that works for most people -ó and works now ó- and that thing is too often Windows.
Review
iPhoto 2.0 — It's Mostly Good News
If you carefully back up your data, you should be able to upgrade to iPhoto 2.0 right now and begin enjoying its benefits, including still using iPhoto Library Manager.
Sidetrack
YOU WILL MAKE THE DECISIONS : Why, oh why, is the preference for turning off image animation under "Privacy" (and not "Apperance") in Mozilla?
I need a search engine for Mozilla preferences.
Wintel
Trust But Verify
A patch for Windows' problems with security certificates doesn't end all of your headaches.
Microsoft Opens Windows For U.K.
The United Kingdom is the latest country to join a Microsoft program that lets international governments see the otherwise secret source code underlying Windows.