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Sunday, February 29, 2004

Top Stories

Apple Store Openings: A Community Event
by Dan Frakes, Macworld
Accoding to many of those in line, it's also the "community" that Apple store openings engender.

Jobs Opens San Francisco Apple Store
by David Schloss, MacCentral
Apple CEO Steve Jobs was joined by San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom and former mayor Willie Brown to open the San Francisco Apple Store earlier today. Both Newsom and Brown praised Apple for its choice to locate the newest retail store in the revitalized Union Square district of San Francisco, while thousands waited outside for their chance to get in.

News

Little iPod, Able To Store Up To 10,000 Songs, Has Made Big Impact On Consumers
by My-Ly Nguyen, Press & Sun-Bulletin
Make no mistake about it. Apple's iPod is for people who love music. Lots of music.

Laptop Program Causes Problems For School District
by Associated Press
A program intended to save teachers time by giving students laptops has caused classroom delays when the equipment malfunctions or students forget to bring the computers to class, a new study found.

Apple Opens Big San Francisco Store With Pomp
by Spencer Swartz, Reuters
How do you spend your 40th birthday and a sunny Saturday after a week of rain?

Cost Of Mini iPod Raises Questions
by Brian Garrity, Billboard
Is $249 a mass-market price tag for a portable music player?

Opinion

Apple's Customer Loyalty Is Deeper Than Just Hardware
by Robert Scoble
Apple's loyalty comes from the overall experience. You gotta stand in line during an Apple store opening to get this.

Review

Canvas 9: Illustration, Publication, Animation, And Presentation In One Program
by Merrily Miller and David Rosenblatt, Mac Design Magazine
Used with other high-powered programs such as Photoshop, Canvas is a tremendously efficient tool.

IceKEY
by Apple Legal
This is a great alternative for all who prefer the short key stroke travel and notebook keyboard feel, packaged in a full keyboard size form.

Wintel

Microsoft To Cut Tools Prices For Asia
by Alexandra Harney, Financial Times
Microsoft is planning to cut prices and offer different editions of its software development tools in China and other developing countries in Asia, in a move that reflects the impact of piracy and Linux, the free rival operating system, on its business in the region.

China Targets Microsoft With Software Law
by Julie Chao, Cox News Service
Officials say a new law will be announced by this summer requiring a minimum percentage of software bought by the government be produced in China.

Saturday, February 28, 2004

Top Stories

For Musicians, Solid Walls Make Good Neighbors
by Sabrina Tavernise, New York Times
Now that computers and recording software are houshold items, recording at home, for musicians, has become routine.

Apple Specialists' Feelings Mixed
by T.C. Doyle, VARBusiness
Talk with Mac specialists from the Atlantic to the Pacific and you'l detect an undercurrent of dissatisfaction. It seems they are losing business to the growing number of Apple retail stores, losing influence with Apple itself and feeling a little left out in the cold.

News

Technology Gap Forces Flexibility In Teaching
by Lori Aratani, San Jose Mercury News
If bringing every student into the online world were as simple as installing a wireless network and buying 535 iBook laptops, Andrew Hill High School would have it made.

File Sharing Vulnerability Discovered In Mac OS X
by Daniel Drew Turner, eWeek
A security issue that could result in stolen passwords and data on Friday was revealed for Apple Filing Protocol, a component of Mac OS X 10.3.2, a.k.a. Panther.

Opinion

iPod University
by Jason Snell, Macworld
Is this the beginning of a trend to photograph statues with iPods attached to them?

Review

iPod Mini A Good Fit For Athletic Types
by Glenn Fleishman, Seattle Times
It has an appeal that transcends its price simply because it does everything right without sacrificing good looks.

Cleaning iPhoto
by brian d foy, O'Reilly Network
Organizing thousands of pictures by hand was a daunting task, especially since iPhoto is so slow, so I came up with some scripts to do it for me.

Apple's Mini iPod
by James Maguire, NewsFactor
The Mini should do well in the market, proving that consumers are willing to pay extra for a superior design — and a dash of sex appeal.

When It Comes To The iPod, Make Mine A Mini, Please
by Stephen Williams, Newsday
Other players with similar attributes to iPod have emerged. None have Mini's preciousness.

Tinderbox
by Nathan Matias
It's a unique piece of extremely versatile software. I couldn't ask for more in stability, convenience, or ability.

Wintel

Microsoft May Bow To Overseas Price Pressure
by Ina Fried, CNET News.com
Microsoft indicated on Friday that it is developing ways to become more flexible about how it prices its software in overseas markets.

Friday, February 27, 2004

Top Stories

Apple Unveils 'Hometown' San Francisco Store
by Ina Fried, CNET News.com
Apple Computer staged a press event Thursday to show off its latest store, the "hometown" shop the company has been waiting to open for four years.

News

Apple Retail Store Report - San Francisco 2004
by OSXFAQ

Salling Clicker 2.1 Adds Symbian OS-Based Phone Support
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral
The new version adds support for "smartphones" that use the Symbian operating system, including models from Nokia, Siemens and Sony Ericsson.

Apple Fans, Do You Feel Lucky?
by Leander Kahney, Wired News
Apple sold Lucky bags during the recent grand opening of its Tokyo store, and the concept proved so popular the company decided to bring the idea to San Francisco.

iPod Mini Sales Sky Rocket
by Macworld UK
The launch of the iPod mini is exceeding all expectations, worldwide iPod marketing manager Danika Cleary revealed.

Pathe Archive: History In The Makiing
by Apple
The world-famous British Pathe archive is using Apple technology to adapt the first digital news resource of its kind, so that schoolchildren can download high-resolution, original footage of the Titanic, the D-Day landings or The Beatles, and use it to bring their school projects to life.

With $2.1 Billion, Steve Jobs In At No. 262 In Forbes' List Of The World's Richest People
by MacDailyNews

Apple Hopes To Have 80 Retail Stores By September
by MacMinute
Seventy-six are now open and a new San Francisco establishment is opening this weekend in Union Square at One Stockton Street.

Opinion

A Date With An eMate
by Chris Oaten, The Advertiser
Whatever you may think about Apple and its products, there is one undeniable fact: Apple has been a driving force in personal computing innovation since introducing its first product, the original Macintosh computer, in 1984.

I Came, I Saw, iPod
by Anna Kaufman, Daily California
You've seen us. On the bus. In class. Walking across campus, strolling down Telegraph Avenue. We're everywhere. We're 'Pod people.

Bag Of Mystery! And Other Apple Store Tales
by Jason Snell, Macworld
If you're one of the hearty souls who lines up early Saturday morning to be the first to enter Apple's San Francisco store, you will have the opportunity to purchase a Lucky Bag for $250. The Lucky Bag is a mysterious bag full of seven or eight products, all but one of them from Apple. Those products have a combined retail value of between $600 and $1000.

Review

Hearts Of Iron
by Bill Stiteler, Applelinks.com

iPod Mini Battery Tests
by Jeremy Hortwitz, iPodlounge

Halo
by Tim Robertson, MyMac.com

Hard Rock Casino
by Eric Ford, Inside Mac Games
Hard Rock Casino is one of the better casino simulations out there, and definitely one of the more realistic ones.

Wintel

Microsoft Ends 'Unfair' Contract
by BBC News
Microsoft has announced it is to ditch a controversial contracts provision under investigation in Japan.

Thursday, February 26, 2004

Top Stories

Mac Word 6.0
by Rick Schaut
We spent so much time, and put so much effort into, solving all the technical problems of Mac Word 6.0 that we failed to make the UI of Mac Word 6.0 behave like Mac Word 5.0.

News

Apple Makes 'Minor' Job Cuts As Education Unit Presured
by Tiffany kary and Donna Fuscaldo, Dow Jones
An Apple spokesperson confirmed there were "minor work-force reductions" but declined to say how many jobs were cut, or which area they came from.

Opinion

Apple Should Just Buy Apple
by Metroxing
No matter what else an online store might offer, each review will end with, "... but unlike Apple's itunes music store, you will not be able to purchase any Beatles songs ..." How much is that worth?

Review

The Game Room: Gods And Generals
by Peter Cohen, Macworld

Wintel

Microsoft Considering Update Dubbed 'XP Reloaded'
by Ina Fried, CNET News.com
Microsoft is considering updating Windows XP before it releases Longhorn, a major overhaul of the industry's dominant operating system that is not expected for about two years.

Microsoft's Tokyo Offices Raided
by BBC News
Officials from Japan's fair trade watchdog have raided Microsoft's Tokyo offices on suspicion of anti-monopoly law violations, authorities said.

Microsoft Deactivates ActiveX
by CNET News.com
Perhaps Microsoft's decision to finally allow its customer to turn off a vulnerable feature may mean that the software giant's security initiative is truly a break with the past.

Wednesday, February 25, 2004

Top Stories

Apple Computer Is Due To Contest Beatles' Lawsuit In U.K. Court
by Bloomberg
Apple Computer Inc. will return to London's High Court today to contest the latest lawsuit brought by a company owned by the Beatles over the personal-computer maker's use of the Apple trademark.

News

Apple's Q4 Worldwide Market Share Below 2 Percent
by MacNN
Apple saw its worldwide market share dip below 2 percent for the first time during the fourth quarter of 2003, according to Merrill Lynch.

M'soft Lines Up With Napster To Fight Off iTunes
by Stephen Lynch, New York Post
In the battle over digital music, Microsoft may be forced to play kingmaker — or else be reduced to a pawn.

Apple Computer Asks U.K. Court To Transfer Beatles Suit To U.S.
by Bloomberg
Apple Computer Inc. asked London's High Court to rule that a suit over its use of the Apple trademark, brought against the personal-computer maker by a company owned by the Beatles, should be heard in California.

Apple Case Judge Modern To His Core
by The Scotsman
Mr Justice Mann, of the High Court Chancery Division, revealed today that he owns an Apple iPod.

Inside Details On The Eminem Vs. Apple Lawsuit
by Larry Angell, MacMinute

Apple Kicks Off 'More Memory For Less' Promo
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral
The deal provides savings to U.S. customers who buy iMacs, Power Macs or Xserve G5s and additional memory, from the Apple Store online or Apple Retail stores.

Bull Session With Professor iPod
by Leander Kahney, Wired News
Dr. Michael Bull is the world's leading expert on the societal impact of personal stereos. Bull wrote the definitive treatment on the Walkman, and now he's turned his attention to the iPod.

REALbasic Adds Ability To Build Linux Applications
by MacMinute
The new version of development environment adds the ability to build Linux applications from Mac and Windows systems.

Andy Hertzfield Talks Folklore, Open Source And Apple
by MacMinute
Andy Hertzfield, who wrote much of the original Mac operating system, is still heavily involved in technology and Macs.

Opinion

The Jukes Of Harmony
by Garry Barker, The Age

iPod Counterculture Shallow, Satisfying
by Luke Nihlen, Daily Lobo
But it is pink. I must have it.

Apple's Elusive Corporate Configuration
by Alex Salkever, BusinessWeek
It's enterprise-computing push has yielded little, and the exec leading it has quit. But here's how Jobs & Co. might still fulfill the dream.

Review

The iPod Mini
by Peter Lewis, Fortune
In the case of the iPod mini, less is not more.

Bash On Mac OS X
by David Miller, O'Reilly Network
This article will help those who have played around with tcsh in Jaguar make the transition to bash in Panther.

Wintel

Is Microsoft Ignoring The Biggest Source Of Security Threats?
by Peter H. Gregory, Computerworld
Insider threats ignored?

Europeans Reject Offer By Microsoft
by Paul Meller, New York Times
European antitrust regulators have rebuffed an offer by Microsoft to include audio- and video-playing software of its competitors in the form of CD-ROM's in the boxes of new personal computers, people close to the talks said yesterday.

Tuesday, February 24, 2004

Top Stories

The 20 Mac Games That Mattered Most
by Inside Mac Games
In celebration of the Macintosh reaching its twentieth birthday a few weeks ago, it seems only fitting IMG would do a tribute to the 20 games we feel have made the biggest impact on the Mac.

News

Video Remixers Use Pepsi Ad To Attack Apple And RIAA
by Eric Gwlnn, Chicago Tribune
While some praise the commercial as a cheeky dig at the litigious Recording Industry Association of America, Brian Flemming fumed when he saw it.

Austin Indie Bands Shared Via iTunes
by Glenn Fleishman, TidBITS
Two organizations in Austin, Texas, are bringing the music of local independent bands to users of free local wireless networks — legally, thanks to the music sharing features built into iTunes.

Happy Birthday, Steve!
by Macworld UK

Apple Canada Announces 'Join The Music Revolution'
by MacMinute
"Join the Music Revolution" will show attendees "how technology from Apple and others can take you from the garage to the Grammys."

AppleWorks Updated For 9, X
by Macworld UK
The AppleWorks 6 updates support mice with scroll wheels, and improves the performance and reliability of its presentation and spreadsheet environments, says Apple.

Eminem Files Suit Over Use Of Song
by David Shepardson, Detroit News
Eminem claims Apple wrongly used one of his songs in a TV ad touting Apple's iTunes internet store.

Key Components Ready For PowerBook G5
by MacMinute
All of the key components for Apple to produce a PowerBook G5 appear to be ready, and Mac users should expect to see the new laptop no later than this summer.

Review

iPhoto 4: The Potential Remains
by Adam C. Engst, TidBITS
I'm left frustrated by iPhoto because it constantly displays glimpses of greatness that are then promptly undercut by obviously missing features and boneheaded bugs.

iPod Mini: The Power User's Review
by Jeremy Horwitz, iPodLounge

Contour Design's NoteRiser
by Neema saeedi, Inside Apple

Wintel

EU To Give Microsoft Leeway
by Reuters
The European Commission plans to let Microsoft choose how to solve EU competition concerns to avoid breaching the company's intellectual property rights, a source familiar with the case said Tuesday.

Has Microsoft Lost Its Leverage?
by David Harding
The new rule in the industry seems to be: don't let Microsoft control the software.

Monday, February 23, 2004

Top Stories

iPod Proves A Massive Hit With THieves
by Mark Prigg, Evening Standard
A series of muggings of people for their iPods has been reported, and experts warn the distinctive white headphones could be the secret of its appeal to criminals.

News

Will Apple Bite On Motorola's PowerPC Chip?
by Ina Fred, CNET News.com
Motorola on Monday announced a faster PowerPC chip that could be used in speedier Apple Computer laptops.

Apple Releases New Panther Security Update
by MacMinute
Apple said Security Update 2004-02-23 includes the following updated components: DiskArbitration, IPSec, Point-to-Point-Protocol, and tcpdump.

Do Macs Cost Too Much?
by David Frith, The Barrow
Some customers are accusing Apple Australia of taking advantage of the rising dollar to increase its profits — at the expense of the punters.

Tokyo Museum Begins iPod Audio Guide Service
by Martyn Williams, IDG News Service
Tokyo's Mori Art Museum has begun an audio guide service using Apple Inc.'s iPod digital audio players.

iPod-Based Adventure Game Released
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral
Remember "Choose Your Own Adventure" books? That's the format that XO Play has chosen for its new iPod-based adventure game.

Ambrosia Updates Two Titles
by MacNN
Bot updates to pop-pop and iSeek address bugs.

Opinion

Apple's Big Weekend?
by Tim Beyers, Motley Fool
It's too early to tell if the Mini's premiere was a flop... But between my in-store experience and the unscientific poll, it appears the hype may have been just that.

When Windows Won't Work, It's Time For A Mac
by David Coursey, ZDNet
In my computing life, there's one constant: The Macs don't crash and the Windows machines do.

Beyond Luxo Jr: The Next Flat Panel iMac
by Daniel Eran
Steve, just take a Cinema Display and slap three inches of Mac on the back.

Review

A Smarter iPod Mini Smart Playlist
by Christopher Breen, Macworld

Cool Tools: iSight Camera And iChat AV Software
by Christine Burns and Keith Shaw, Network World
Apple wasn't the first company to make a Webcam, it just made one that's better than others we've seen.

iTunes Can Be Really iRResitable To People
by Eric Toomey, Mace & Crown
Be apart of this revolutionary new music program.

Apple's iPod Mini
by Macs Only!
Our first impression of the iPod mini is that it is small, marvelously small, even when compared to the latest generation iPod.

Wintel

Microsoft Creates A Stir In Its Work With The U.N.
by John Markoff and Jennifer L. Schenker, New York Times
Several software industry executives and technologists contend that Microsoft has been moving behind the scenes to undercut support for a set of business-to-business electronic transaction standards jointly developed by the United Nations and an industry-sponsored international standards group.

Sunday, February 22, 2004

News

Gadgets' Batteries Have Limitted Life Span
by Mike Musgrove, Washington Post
Lithium ion batteries have one drawback: a limited lifespan. As soon as one leaves the manufacturing line, its countdown begins.

Opinion

Odd Jobs' Lot
by Hilary Kramer, New York Post
Before anyone anoints Jobs top cheese, let's consider what kind of management guy he really is.

Back In The Day - #1 - Working For Steve Jobs
by Rory Blyth
I don't think that working for Steve Jobs "back in the day" was probably all that great.

Review

iPod Mini Price Detracts From Benefits
by Mike Langberg, Contra Costa Times
Cool, colorful and too expensive.

Breathing New Life Into An Old PowerBook
by Noah Kravitz, PowerBookCentral.com

Wintel

Microsoft's A Hollywood Player No Matter What
by James Flanigan, Los Angeles Times
"Content may be king, but billing — the ability to get paid — is surely queen."

Saturday, February 21, 2004

News

Apple's Portable iPod Rotten To Some
by Rene A. Guzman, San Antonio Express
Some iPod users are so fed up with its battery life they think it's time Apple faced the music.

Hilary Rhodes: Designing A Virtual World
by Barbara Gibson, Apple
Rhodes chose Bryce on the Mac because she could create virtual domains using fractals rather than photographic textures.

Opinion

The Mini And Me
by Christopher Breen, Macworld

Review

Apple iPod Mini
by James Kim, TechTV
Naysayers should consider the mini's size and styling, which is both functional and easy on the eyes and fingers.

Apple's GarageBand Keeps The Beat, But Can't Guarantee Originality
by Glenn Fleishman, Seattle Times
Apple's key advantage with GarageBand is that it's hard to create songs that sound terrible — you have to work very hard to make bad music. But you have to work equally hard to make music that's unique.

Darling Mini
by Jason Snell, Macworld
Do I wish the Mini were cheaper? You betcha. But I'm not going to say it's overpriced. Every person is going to have to make up his or her own mind about that one.

Shareware And Widgets
by Chris Oaten, The Advertiser

First Look At Apple's iPod Mini
by Alexandra Kransne, PC World
Fashionable iPod mini provides digital music in style at its debut.

A Security Primer For Mac OS X
by Francois Joseph de Kermadec, O'Reilly Network
The Unix foundation of Mac OS X, Darwin, has provided us with powerful tools that we can leverage to help our computers remain secure in an otherwise dangerous world.

Home Automation With Mac OS X, Part 2
by Alan Graham, O'Reilly Network
In this installment, I'm going to dig deeper into the hardware and show you some tips I've learned from my experiences.

My First 48 Hours Enduring Mac OS X
by Matthew Thomas

iPod Battery Drain When Connected To Sleeping, Off Macs Part 2
by MacFixIt
What's odd is that some readers have reported that the drain occurs even while an iPod is dock-connected to a Mac that is turned off. This would appear to indicate that that the iPod is constantly "listening" for a signal from the Dock, depleting its battery in the process.

Final Cut Express 2
by Peter Wells, MacUser UK
Final Cut Express 2 has an exceptional number of features for a product at this price point, and, as with all good editors, puts sufficient emphasis on the job of editing and storytelling rather than wild effects and novelty features.

Halo
by Cliff Joseph, MacUser UK
The high system requirements and limited control options may deter some people, but if you're an experienced gamer with a powerful Mac, then — with the possible exception of Unreal Tournament or Medal of Honour — Halo is the best first-person shooter on the Mac.

TechTool Pro 4
by Mike Hirschkorn, MacUser UK
We were hugely impressed with TechTool Pro 4. It carries the tradition of a great Mac utility to OS X, and it adds a host of useful new features.

Art Directors Toolkit 4
by Craig Grannell, MacUser UK
If you are a designer who wants all the useful tools in one place, this is an inspired package.

ConceptDraw V Professional
by Christopher Phin, MacUser UK

REALbasic 5.2.4
by John Dixon, MacUser UK
REALbasic is let down by weak tutorials, and the uncommented code examples on the CD are difficult to follow. It does, however, make it easy to quickly create royalty-free standalone applications for both the Mac OS and Windows.

Wintel

Microsoft Stands By Its Code
by Peter Galli, eWeek
Although the source code leak won't change the way Microsoft shares some Windows code through its Shared Source and GOvernment Security programs, industry watchers and users alike hope the company will learn from the leak and possibly consider the benefits of certain open-source conocepts.

Friday, February 20, 2004

Top Stories

Mini iPod: Size, Style Do Matter
by Larry Magid, CBS News
Specifications don't tell the whole story. You have to see and feel this machine to truly appreciate it. A half-inch thick and otherwise the same dimensions as a business card, the iPod mini is a truly elegant accessory.

News

London Apple Shop? More Reaction
by Macworld UK

Mac OS X 'Most Secure Servers'
by Jonny Evans, Macworld UK
Apple's Mac OS X has been declared one of the world's safest operating systems by London-based security experts, mi2g.

New iPod Mini Cases From Marware
by Brad Cook, MacCentral

Apple Posts iSight 1.02 Update
by MacNN

Apple Leads Tech Pack In Profit Surge
by MacNN

Review

HomeGuardian 2
by Jeffery Battersby, Macworld
We recommend HomeGuardian 2 if all you need to do is monitor a single room. For that, it works perfectly.

iBook G4s: Familiar Design, Updated Technology
by Henry Norr, Macworld
Unless you have problems with its small screen, the standout in the new iBook G4 line is the $1,099 model.

Wireless Input Devices: Cord-Free Mice And Keyboards Promise To Set You Free
by Matthew Honan, Macworld
We liked the Microsoft mouse best, thanks to its software, ability to overcome interference, horizontal scrolling, and keyboard integration.

Sidetrack

Friday, February 20, 2004
by Heng-Cheong Leong

IS IT TRUE? : The chip inside Apple's iPod can play WMA files, but Apple removed that feature?

Wintel

Microsoft To Review Old Windows Code After Source Leak
by David Worthington and Nate Mook, BetaNews
In an effort to keep its customers secure following the recent Windows source code leaks, Microsoft has turned to the lessons it learned while taking a two month hiatus in early 2002 to clean house and eliminate insecure code from Windows.

Microsoft: No MS Office For Linux
by Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols, eWeek
The latest round of speculation was prompted by remarks to ComputerSweden magazine by Stefan Pettersson, technical manager for IBM's Lotus division in Sweden.

Thursday, February 19, 2004

News

Apple Debuts "Tell A Friend" Feature In iTunes Music Store
by MacDailyNews

10% Off Digital Camcorders For .Mac Members
by MacMinute

Helping Hand For Musical PowerBooks
by Macworld UK
A trio of Australian musicians is making PowerBook music using a system on the surface even easier than GarageBand — simply by using their hands.

Mac AIM 4.7 Adds Friendly Name, New File Sharing
by Brad Cook, MacCentral

It's Mac From Now On!
by Grace Chng, Straits Times
Who makes a better Macintosh advocate than one who is a convert himself? Meet Mr Edward Fun, the new general manager of Apple Singapore, who is on a mission to convince the world - in particular, the Windows world — of the Mac goodness.

Opinion

It's The Standard, Stupid
by Christopher Breen, Macworld
Ultimately it's not about the player. It's about the music you put on the player.

Tempers Flare Around The iPod
by David Pogue, New York Times
I already knew that a huge population of Windows bashers, and a huge population of Mac bashers populate the Internet — but now I've met the iPod bashers.

Apple's Other Hardware Hit
by Alex Salkever, BusinessWeek
As with the iPod, the hot Airport line of wireless-networking gear shows that ease of use and an eye for coming trends bring outsize gains.

Review

Stuck On The iPod
by Patrick Regnier, Money Magazine
Steve Jobs just made me buy another iPod. And that ticks me off.

Cocktail 3.4.2
by Lars Dueck, Inside Apple
Cocktail delivered as promised and didn't disappoint me in the least.

iPod Losing Charge If Connected To A Sleeping Mac
by MacFixIt

Apple iPod Mini
by Troy Dreier, PC Magazine
The Mini is as much of a pleasure to use as its big brother and even better dressed. The only question is whether Apple has gotten greedy.

A Band In Your Mac
by Jim Akin, Pioneer Press
GarageBand's greatest triumph may be its ability to give users at all levels of musical experience and ability (or lack thereof) a chance to be muscially creative.

Wintel

Microsoft Says: Don't Touch That Code!
by Joris Evers, IDG News Service
Warnings go to file-swappers and downloaders suspected of sharing stolen Windows source code.

Microsoft's Shared-Source Defeats Trustworthy Computing
by Thomas C Greene, The Register
The security of MS products, bad as it is, will only be degraded further so long as the company relies on keeping its source code secret, while at the same time sharing it with hundreds of 'select' outsiders.

Wednesday, February 18, 2004

News

Apple Pays Off $300M In Debt, Becomes Debt Free
by MacNN

Poll: iTunes 'One Of Life's Essentials'
by Karen Haslam, Macworld UK
Asked which Apple iApp they could not live without, over half of Macworld Online readers (57 per cent) named iTunes.

Rendezvous Support For Now Up-To-Date & Contact
by MacNN

Finder Designer Talks Of iFile And Apple Advice
by Dennis Sellers, MacMinute

PowerSchool Releases Student Information System 3.7
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral
The new version adds features including an automated schedule scenario set-up, advanced scheduling features and more.

Macs And Viruses — Are We As Safe As We Think?
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral
Outside of the annoyance of receiving infected e-mails, however, Mac users are immune to such problems. Or are they?

Apple Speaks On iPod Mini Pricing
by Jonny Evans, Macworld UK
"The size and capacity make iPod mini worthwhile."

Opinion

Ugly Graphics In My Home
by Noded
Apple has been using a really horrible picture of lots of Pepsi bottles to advertise their iTunes give away.

A Proposition For Apple: Port Cocoa To Java
by Fred McCann, OSNews.com

Microsoft Heralds Web Services For Devices
by Paul Krill, InfoWorld
Microsoft is leading a group of vendors proposing a specification intended to extend Web services to devices.

Review

LifeStage Professional 4
by Scott Dewbre, MacDirectory
With its drag-and-drop interface and assortment of customization and scripting tools built in, LiveStage is an excellent product that should be part of any multimedia pro's library.

FileMaker To Oracle Migration With FmPro Migrator On Mac OS X
by David Simpson, O'Reilly Network

Need For Speed: Cracking Open A PowerBook 17
by Ken Mingis, Computerworld

Sidetrack

Wednesday, February 18, 2004
by Heng-Cheong Leong

WIN-WIN : How to tell whether your Pepsi bottles contains a free tune before you purchase.

Tuesday, February 17, 2004

Top Stories

iPod Mini Hits Apple Stores This Friday, 100K On Order
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral
Apple confirmed that more than 100,000 pre-orders have been made for the credit card-sized MP3 player.

News

CNN: Apple 'Exporting America' For Cheap Labor Overseas
by Bryan Chaffin, Mac Observer
Apple outsources most of the manufacturing of its desktop and laptop products overseas, including a large percentage of its accessories.

Apple Opens WWDC 2004 Registration
by Jim Dalrymple, MacCentral
The annual conference, hosted by Apple, gives developers a chance to meet with Apple engineers and get an idea of the roadmap Apple will follow over the next twelve months.

Apple Offers Prepaid iTunes Music Store Cards At Target
by Jim Dalrymple, MacCentral
The $15.00 prepaid iTunes Music Store cards will be available in two areas of the Target stores: the CD section where customers traditionally purchase music and at the new iPod Kiosk. The kiosks will also feature accessories for the iPod.

iSync 1.4 Adds iPod Mini Support, More
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral
This new release of iSync adds support for the iPod mini. The new release also improves support for Symbian OS-based "smart phones," and offers stability improvements as well.

Fatboy Slim Goes GarageBand
by Macworld UK
GarageBand continues to inspire music-sample producers to deliver new and better loops for iLife musicians, with AMG releasing samples in Apple Loops format from Fatboy Slim and Erasure's Vince Clarke.

Why Windows Breaks
by David Frith, The Barrow
Look, one really hates to crow over others' misfortunes, but there are times when we're doubly pleased our office (and home) runs on Apple Macs, not Windows computers.

Review

Indiana Jones And THe Emperor's Tomb
by Mary Frey, Inside Mac Games

GraphicConverter: The Right Tool
by Vern Seward, Mac Observer
GraphicConverter is one of those tools that you don't know you need until you need it.

The Way, The Truth, And The iLife?
by Robert Velarde, CMUG

Consider Me Konfabulated
by Adam C. Engst, TidBITS
Whether you're capable of writing your own Widgets or just want to enjoy the fruits of the labor of others, Konfabulator is one piece of useful eye candy you'll want to check out.

Apple iPod Mini
by Eliot Van Buskirk, CNET
Although it scarcely seems possible, we think the Apple iPod Mini's design surpasses even that of its photogenic older sibling.

Wintel

EU Rejects Microsoft Offer
by Paul Meller, IDG News Service
Microsoft's attempt called 'half-hearted' offer.

Windows Source Code Exploit Released
by John Leyden, The Register
The leak of Windows source code last week has already enabled a hacker to create an exploit.

Why Microsoft Code Leak Worries Me
by David Coursey, ZDNet
I don't want Microsoft handing out source code for the products I use and I wish it would stop. I couldn't care less about the desires of big corporate customers, governments, or the Linux community, which want Microsoft to show them its source code.

Monday, February 16, 2004

Top Stories

Apple Fans Sneak Peek At Store
by Leander Kahney, Wired News
Apple's new store in San Francisco's swanky Union Square shopping district won't open for another couple of weeks, but it has already had problems with break-ins.

News

Apple UK Upgrades Wireless iBook Schools Kit
by Macworld UK
The new version is described as "more powerful and more scalable than ever". The product offers docks in which iBooks can be stored — and charged.

Fortune: Apple The Only Clear Winner In Convergence
by MacNN
"The only clear winner in this new world is Apple, which has leveraged its computer platform to make it easy and fashionable for consumers to get with the digital-music age."

Small Dog Offers iPod Battery Replacement Program
by MacMinute
Small Dog Electronics is now offering replacement batteries for both original and 3G (third generation) iPods.

Apple Set To Roll Out iPod Mini This Week
by Benny Evangelista, San Francisco Chronicle

OS X-Only iPod Under Fire
by Macwordl UK
The iPod's reliance on specific versions of the Mac and Windows operating systems has come under fire from the press.

Mix-Up Over Sale Of 'Silence' Clear Up With A Little Talk
by David F. Gallagher, New York Times
Lee Ranaldo said that the track was "a very intentional 'piece' on our part," and that restricting its sale was "against our ideas and sensibility."

Opinion

iTunes Bad, WMA Good?
by Sandy McMurray, Cornate Apple Matters
Online music is definitely not "future-proof."

Review

iPod Mini's A Small Wonder, But Its Price Is Just Too Big
by Mike Langberg, San Jose Mercury News
Cool, colorful and too expensive.

Wintel

Warning: Microsoft 'Monoculture'
by Associated Press
Microsoft's software is so dangerously pervasive that a virus capable of exploiting even a single flaw in its operating systems could wreak havoc.

Sunday, February 15, 2004

Top Stories

iTried iPod: A Classical View
by Peter Dobrin, Philadelphia Inquirer
Finding a piece on iTunes means wrestling with a structure clearly not designed with the classical buyer in mind.

Opinion

Tinker, Tailor — But Not With An iPod
by John Naughton, The Observer
This illuminates a deeper paradox, namely the tension between the quest by designers for 'perfection' and the fact that users have an unruly desire to modify things.

Wintel

Can Chinese Office Software Crack The Monopoly?
by Dan Gillmor, San Jose Mercury News

Curiours Programmers Face Legal Tangles With Leaked Windows Code
by Matt Hicks, eWeek
With portions of Microsoft Windows NT and 2000 source code running wild on the Internet, programmers are battling the temptation to peek at the operating system's code. Doing so, legal experts warn, could thrust developers and their software projects into a legal hotbed.

Saturday, February 14, 2004

Top Stories

Apple's iPod Mini Is A Big Deal In The MP3 World
by Rob Pegoraro, Washington Post
This kind of painstaking perfectionism explains why the iPod continues to sell so well — the rest of the industry runs on a "get it working, then move onto something else" mentality.

News

AvantGo, OS X Meet At Last
by Seattle Post-Intelligencer
It took a while but the open-source community has come to the rescue.

Illustrating The Imagination
by Barbara Gibson, Apple
"The major things that have changed are the tools and materials I've been able to use."

Opinion

A Little Software Developer
by Allan Warner, Geek.com

Can iTunes Learn From Musicmatch?
by Macworld

Review

20040214ibook
The iBook G4
by James Maguire, NewsFactor
Except for a few quibbles, this is a hot box for a good price.

Home Automation With Mac OS X, Part 1
by Alan Graham, O'Reilly Network
Home automation is actually relatively affordable to set up. Anyone with very basic Mac OS X skills can design and program their own system.

Wintel

Tech Experts Downplay Theft Of Windows Code
by Mike Musgrove, Washington Post
The early consensus among computer engineers who study security is that the incident may be more of a public relations embarrassment than a looming security crisis for the software maker and its customers.

Is .Net Microsofft's Exit Strategy For Windows?
by chromatic, O'Reilly Network
Microsoft has the opportunity to bet the company on a big shift in the desktop market. By making anything-but-.Net a dead end for Windows development and redefining the platform, they have yet another shot at their grail: complete control over your data and applications.

IBM To Launch MS Office For Linux
by Sverker Brundin, InfoWorld
As part of its initiative to put Linux on the desktop, IBM Corp. wants to migrate Microsoft Corp.'s Office suite to Linux. Microsoft said it's not involved and suggests that IBM might do it by emulation.

Friday, February 13, 2004

News

Apple-PalmSource Link 'Will Continue'
by Jonny Evans, Macworld UK
In a statement, supplied to Macworld UK, the company states: "PalmSource is fortunate to have a great Palm OS developer community who provide solutions for Mac compatibility today."

Apple Reseller Disappointed But Not Surprised By Apple Retail Store
by Simon Aughton, PC Pro
Apple reseller disappointed but not surpised by Apple retail store.

Norway Gets Its First Xserve G5 Cluster
by MacNN

Apple Stalks Core London Shoppers
by Jenny Davey, The Times
Apple is planning to open a giant flagship store on London's Regent Street. So far, it has just five other flagship stores based in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Tokyo and San Francisco.

Apple Opposes Sony-BMG Deal
by MacMinute

Wintel

200 Days To Fix A Broken Windows
by Robert Lemos, CNET News.com
Security researchers are both criticizing and empathizing with Microsoft for the 200 days the company needed to create its latest critical software patch.

Microsoft Confirms Source Code Leaked Over Internet
by Allison Linn, Associated Press

Microsoft Licensing Is Under Question Again
by Emma Nash, TechNewsWorld
"Microsoft is encouraging customers to buy upgrade routes to products that won't ship for two or three years. Where is thevalue proposition for customers?"

Windows Crown Jewels Leak To The Web?
by Mary Jo Foley, Microsoft Watch
It might not be all of the code, but it looks like at least part of the Windows NT 4.0 and Windows 2000 source seems to have leaked to the Web.

Thursday, February 12, 2004

Top Stories

Scientists: The Latest Mac Converts
by Robyn Weisman, E-Commerce Times
As Apple's Mac becomes more and more reliable, its scientific renaissance is likely to gather steam.

iPod's Low-Profile Creator Tops Cultural Chart
by Terry Kirby, Indpendent
His face is unknown to the public but his designs have rapidly become icons and changed the way we use computers and listen to music.

News

Apple Releases GarageBand Update
by MacMinute
According to the release notes, the latest version clarifies specific alert dialogs regarding system performance.

Students Investigate Laptops For High School
by Barry Matulaitis, Irregular
A group of Mt. Abram students is dedicated to improving their school through taking advantage of the benefits provided by laptop computers.

Mac Supercomputer Could Bring Apple Credibility In Servers
by Ken Spencer Brown, Investor's Business Daily
The company best known for the slick iPod and cutesy iMac is betting that Virginia Tech's coup opens doors to new, more button-down markets.

Apple, IBM New G5 'Best Desktop Processor'
by Macworld UK
IBM's PowerPC 970FX — the processor used in new Xserves from Apple — has been declared "the best desktop processor of 2003" by the industry's leading microprocessor title.

Macomedia Ships Director MX 2004
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral
The new version adds new features including support for JavaScript and Flash MX 2004, and much more.

MallMall Sells Pieces Of Virginia Tech G5 Supercomputer
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral
Virginia Tech's Power Mac G5-based supercomputer has already passed into legend among Mac fans, and now you can own a piece thanks to Mac catalog reseller MacMall.

Opinion

iTunes Bad, WMA Good
by Jason Cross, ExtremeTech
I fully expect Microsoft to whip its media playback software into shape with a better interface and a full built-in online music store. IPod sales and iTunes usage will continue to grow but the market will grow even faster, causing their actual market share to shrink.

Headless iMac: When Pigs Fly
by Core Dump
I've met so many people who bought the iMac because it's integrated.

iTunes Innovation, Please
by Macworld
While I bellyache about how Apple is too busy developing the iTunes Music Store to add features to iTunes, I also want to point out that some of the innovations that were added to iTunes as a part of the Music Store could really improve iTunes as a whole.

Review

Hooray For Latest Version Of iPhoto
by Al Fasoldt, Post-Standard
iPhoto 4 is superb.

Hollywood At Home
by Garry Barker, Livewire
Apple's iMovie application changed the world for ordinary people with digital video cameras.

For iPod, 6 Flavors Of Flattery
by David Pogue, New York Times
The iPod is still smaller, more attractive and more thoughtfully designed than any of the upstarts.

Wednesday, February 11, 2004

Top Stories

Smaller iPod To Hit Stores Next Week
by Walter S. Mossberg, Wall Street Journal
The iPod Mini is a gorgeous device that displays Apple's famous touch for people-pleasing design.

The iMac Needs To Lose Its Head
by Alex Salkever, BusinessWeek
Its integrated tilt-swivel flat-panel monitor has gone from a competition killer to just plain deadly. Apple should set it free.

News

Palm To Dump Mac Support; Third Party Software Will Be Required For Syncing
by Bryan Chaffin, Mac Observer
Palm has no plans to develop a Mac version of the Palm Desktop or conduits in the next version of the Palm's core software.

Uni Slashes Desktop Support Demands
by Rodney Gedda, Computerworld
When Edith Cowan University's communications school switched to Mac OS X for its desktop and server hardware system support demands fell.

Jobs A "Wired Renegade Of The Year" Nominee
by MacMinute

The Mac's Creator On Apple, Jobs And His New Project
by Dennis Sellers, MacMinute
Jef Raskin feels he has a better idea — and also some advice for Apple.

Review

Automated Backups With Existing Tools
by Peter Hickman, O'Reilly Network

Wintel

A Cure That's Worse Than The Disease
by Charles Arthur, Independent
One in 12 e-mails were infected by MyDoom. But commercial antivirus software stopped the rot, didn't it? Quite the reverse.

Microsoft Trademark Case To Be Delayed
by Associated Press
Microsoft's trademark infringement case against Lindows.com has been delayed indefinitely pending an appeals court ruling.

Tuesday, February 10, 2004

Top Stories

G5 PowerBook 'This Year'?
by Jonny Evans, Macworld UK
Microprocessor experts expect Apple to release new G5 Power Macs soon.

News

The Word From Apple
by Seattle Post-Intelligencer
In thinking about the Mac BU, it's interesting to note how Apple portrays the situation to its investors.

New Apple Store Sighted In Bethesda, MD
by MacNN

Virtual PC Updated For Forthcoming XP Pro Service Packs
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral
This minor point update to Virtual PC "addresses security issues and bugs related to running upcoming Windows XP Professional service packs," according to Microsoft.

WSJ: Apple Is A Defendent In Five iPod Lawsuits
by MacNN

Manchester Students Raise Money To Buy Apple Laptops
by Tom Fahey, Union Leader
Students at Highland-Goffe's Falls School in Manchester jumped a lot of rope and sold a lot of cookie dough, but now they've got 34 new Apple iBook laptop computers to show for it.

San Francisco Apple Store To Open Feb. 28
by MacMinute
Apple has announced that its first retail store in San Francisco will open in Union Square at One Stockton Street on Saturday, February 28.

Groupcal Viewer Lets iCal Users View Exchange Calendars
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral

Celebrating The Cult Of Macintosh
by Christopher Hutsul, The Star
The key to the Macintosh's success, or at least survival, has been its commitment to innovation and good design.

MacSpeech Offers iLife '04 Voice Solution
by MacMinute

Apple To Exhibit At Bio-IT World Conference & Expo
by MacMinute
Bio-IT World is "the leading event to demonstate how technology is transforming the life sciences throughout all discovery and development processes."

Opinion

iConsignment
by John Zeratsky
Is there any way for us to make our music available on the iTunes store?

Look Out, Steve!
by Stephen Lynch, New York Post
Microsoft may be plotting to unseat Apple by leapfrogging ahead to movies and TV.

Five Ways To Make Your Maicntosh Existence A Happier One
by Bill Palmer
All of us can do a few things to make our Mac experience even more sweet.

Copying Apple: When Is It Considered Ripping Off?
by 2 Guys, A Mac, And A Website

Pod People
by Izzy Grinspan, Village Voice
This Valentine's Day, the fastest way to the heart may be through the earbuds.

I Just Sold My Cube And I Feel So Dirty
by Surf-Bits

Review

Kasparov Chessmate
by Gregory Martinez, Inside Mac Games
I would really like to see a more feature-rich Mac chess game for OS X than this product provides.

Making Music With GarageBand
by Ted Landau, MacFixIt
I can't recall the last time that a software program (other than a game) has so captured my attention.

Apple Adds Music Creation To Its Suite
by Troy Dreier, PC Magazine
Software like GarageBand has been around for a while, but it's never been so easy to use.

iBook's Qualities Impress Quickly
by Mark Kellner, Washington Times
I could easily see this computer accompanying someone to a college dorm, or part of a very stylish home office. It's a good portable, it's a good home computer.

AppleScript Helps You Take A Load Off
by Gene Steinberg, USA Today
You tell the computer what to do every step of the way, usually with a keyboard or mouse movement. Wouldn't it be nice if your computer could handle some of that stuff while you turn your attention to something, well, more interesting?

iLife Perfects Integration
by Matthew Fordahl, Associated Press
A lot of high-tech companies strive to be the hub of a digital lifestyle, but unless they're pushing an expensive Media Center PC they mostly leave it to consumers to figure out how to make their products work with others. Macintosh computer owners don't face that headache.

1GHz PowerMac Vs Dual G4 — Which One Is Faster And Has Better Features?
by MacReviewZone

System Optimizer X (v4.1)
by Neema saeedi, Inside Apple

Hands On: Implementing OS X 10.3 (Panther) Server
by Yuval Kossovsky, Computerworld
I can tell you now that everything Apple promised is indeed in there — and it works!

Sidetrack

Tuesday, February 10, 2004
by Heng-Cheong Leong

STILL SEARCHING : You know what, I am still searching for a place where everybody knows my name, and five close friends who will be there for me, when the rain starts to fall.

Wintel

Microsoft: Oops! We Did It Again
by Associated Press
Microsoft warned customers Tuesday about unusually serious security problems with its Windows software that could let hackers quietly break into their computers to steal files, delete data or eavesdrop on sensitive information.

Windows XP 'Lite'? Not Quite
by Mary Jo Foley, Microsoft Watch
Microsoft sets the record straight about its plans to develop a new, cheaper Windows variant to go head-to-head with Linux.

Microsoft Restores Broken IE URL Handling
by Paul Roberts, IDG News Service
Certain Web URLs were banned by an earlier emergency browser security patch.

Gates Fiddles As PCs Crash And Burn
by Rivka Tadjer, Los Angeles Times
Inexpensive, efficient virus protection could be built into software.

Monday, February 9, 2004

Top Stories

GarageBand Kicks Out The Jams
by Leander Kahney, Wired News
Launched just over two weeks ago, the software has already spawned a sizable ecosystem of plug-ins, add-ons and websites for sharing tunes. And it has inspired a frenzy of musical creativity.

News

Mozilla Firefox, Thunderbird Updated
by MacMinute

Why Mac Won't Open Up Windows
by David Frith, The Barrow
Sorry Windows folk: it just won't happen.

Pepsi-iTunes Ad Boosts Apple.com Traffic By 573%
by MacMinute

Station Breaks Ground With iPod EP
by Marc Schiffman, Billboard
With so many radio stations releasing CD compilations of artist visits, it was bound to happen that one station would embrace the mp3 world.

Opinion

Your Small Business Computer Alternative
by Kevin Ledgister, osViews

Why I'm Turning A Deaf Ear To The Pod Botherers
by Bryony Gordon, Telegraph
I hate iPods. I mean, I really, really hate them. There, I've said it.

Open Source Vs. Mac Vs. Windows
by Francois Joseph de Kermadec, O'Reilly Network
Open source truly shines when it can be combined with proprietary solutions, in an elegant way.

Review

Plug In, Turn On, Tune Up
by Peter Lewis, Fortune
GarageBand, Apple's new home recording studio software, transforms the Mac into a musical instrument that anyone can play.

GarageBand Observations
by Sandy McMurray, Apple Matters
GarageBand is a hit at my house.

Sidetrack

Monday, February 9, 2004
by Heng-Cheong Leong

LOVE IS IN THE AIR : We Singaporeans are so lucky. Our government has just given us permission to have more sex. :-)

Wintel

Disney And Microsoft Strike Internet Deal
by Mark Tran, The Guardian
Walt Disney yesterday agreed to use Microsoft software to block the illegal distribution of film and audio over the internet in a deal that moves the computer giant closer to Hollywood.

Microsoft Not Ready To Battle With Google
by Paul Andrews, Seattle Times

Microsoft Talks Up 'Entry-Level' Windows
by Matthew Broersma, ZDNet UK
The company is to compete in poor countries with a cut-price, reduced-functionality version of Windows XP — and Thailand is already using the software.

Microsoft, Disney Partner On Digital Media
by John Borland, CNET News.com
Microsoft and the Walt Disney Co. have struck an alliance that will see the two companies working closely together to develop digital media content and delivery systems, the companies are expected to announce Monday.

Sunday, February 8, 2004

Top Stories

Building A Digital Magic Kingdom: As Technology And Entertainment Industries Converge, Jobs Finds Himself In A Favorable Position
by Benny Evangelista, Matthew Yi, San Francisco Chronicle
The late Walt Disney built his empire with a mouse. The same can be said about Steve Jobs.

News

Apple's Digital World Gains An Audience
by Straits Times

Review

Macs Attack Fun, Entertainment With Ease
by James Coates, Chicago Tribune
When it comes to having fun with a personal computer, the newest Macs rule the desktop — and the laptop. Call it the facts of iLife.

1.25GHz iMac
by Rik Myslewski, MacAddict
If you're simply looking for the best home computer money can buy, the 20-inch iMac won't disappoint, although we do recommend getting one that has a 512MB DIMM preinstalled.

Carrara Studio 3
by David Biedny, MacAddict
Carrara is still not the end-all-and-be-all 3D application for industrial-strength tasks, but for artists who need to break into the universe beyond two dimensions, it provides a fairly straight line between creative ideas and (virtually) tangible results.

CodeWarrior Development Studio 9
by Mary E. Tyler, MacAddict
CodeWarrior remains a competent application, though the latest version isn't exactly a must-have upgrade.

Dragon Burn 3.1.04
by Niko Coucouvanis, MacAddict
If you can find a reason to buy Dragon Burn, more power to you — the app behaved itself for us, and its price is nice too.

Dungeon Siege
by John Lee, MacAddict
Dungeon Siege is a polished gaming experience with easy, streamlined controls and enough addictive action to please anyone.

Ghost Master
by Narasu Rebbapragada, MacAddict
We love Ghost Master for what it is, a light-hearted Amityville twist on the classic Sims game

GoLive CS
by Niko Coucouvanis, MacAddict
Those who've had enough of Dreamweaver's increasingly finicky performance can find enough workarounds — including changing some of their own work habits — to warrant jumping ship to GoLive.

Halo: Combat Evolved
by Niko Coucouvanis, MacAddict
Halo is an awesome single-player game, and arguably even better for team and multiplayer games.

Illustrator CS
by John Cruise, MacAddict
Though Illustrator CS offers an abundance of features, several features are conspicuously absent.

Poser 5
by David Biedny, MacAddict
Poser represents an amazing bargain for the money, is as deep as an ocean, and provides the only way to whip up a crowd of people who don't expect you to feed or pamper them.

ScanFont 4
by Paul Yoon, MacAddict
ScanFont is useful for automating a good portion of almost any type-design workflow.

Solace 1.04
by Ian sammis, MacAddict
Solace will bore the pants off young whippersnapper gamers, but if your memories of waging war in turn-based board games are fond ones, you'll want this game.

The Sims Superstar
by Cathy Lu, MacAddict
If you're looking for fresh gameplay, Sims Superstar provides it. But if you prefer comfortable mundanity, skip this one.

Saturday, February 7, 2004

News

Reader: Problem WIth Pepsi/iTunes Codes
by MacNN
Customers with unreadable caps are instructed to send the cap to Pepsi for a replacement code.

Sidetrack

Saturday, February 7, 2004
by Heng-Cheong Leong

HMMMM.... : Safari is based on open-sourced KHTML. Apple contributes its modification back to KHTML. So why isn't Apple open-sourcing its WebKit component, so that other people can help update the rendering engine in Jaguar

WHY THE ROVER FAILED... : I am still laughing.

Friday, February 6, 2004

Top Stories

Why I Love Apple's New iLife
by David Coursey, ZDNet
Even if you're not a Mac user and never want to be, you should drop by an Apple store and see GarageBand in action.

News

A New Museum Takes Flight
by Nancy Eaton, Apple
Using QuickTime VR technology, the museum captures detailed interior and exterior views of each object, loading the finished movies into kiosks near the exhibits for public viewing.

Apple Store Opening In Mission Viejo, CA Next Week
by MacMinute

MacBand.com Lets GarageBand Users Share Music
by MacMinute
The site offers an online directory of songs and loops created by users who submit their work.

Students Receive Mac-nificent Gift
by L. Lamor Williams, Star-Telegram
Arlington school district gives away 100 of its refurbished computers.

Safari 1.2 'Panther-Powered' Apple Responds
by Jonny Evans, Macworld UK
"Safari 1.2 has been designed to leverage advances in Panther not present in the Jaguar release of Mac OS X."

Apple Japan Boss Quits For McDonald's
by Macworld UK

Filter Error Responsible For .Mac Mail Loss
by MacNN
Sources confirm that the emails not delivered during the type Apple's .Mac downtime have been permanently lost.

Alpine With Apple iPod
by CARkeys

Apple Reaffirms Committment To OpenGL
by Applelinks

Apple, Unova Resolve Patent Dispute
by MacMinute
Unova sued Apple and other computer makers in May 2002, claiming infringement of a patented invention to monitor use and recharging of laptop batteries. In January 2003, Apple filed a lawsuit against Unova for using technology protected by six Apple patents without permission.

Opinion

Video iPods On The Horizon
by Eliot Van Buskirk, ZDNet
I thought that Apple would forgo an iPod portable video player (PVP), but the company is reportedly working on one.

Dire Straits
by Paul Nesbitt, PC Pro
Apple's main problem has been its refusal to price the iMac as a genuine hot consumer item, rather than as a glorified executive toy.

Electronic Delivery Ain't No Record Store
by Matt Haughey

The Mac Hardware Report: Can Apple's Sales Keep Up?
by Gene Steinberg, Mac Night Owl
Maybe Apple should call on its design geniuses to rethink the all-in-one personal computer yet again, deliver something recognizable yet still demonstrating company's flair for great looks.

Review

This Blazing iMac Beauty Has Brawn To Spare
by Bob LeVitus, Houston Chronicle
While it isn't cheap, it delivers a lot of bang for your buck. And it has the biggest, most beautiful display ever in an iMac.

Tomb Raider: The Angel Of Darkness
by Kirk Hiner, Applelinks
Angel of Darkness does not breath new life into the genre, and it won't raise the Tomb Raider series to the level of importance that it once attained. But, when it comes to finding that necessary balance of action, adventure, and puzzle solving to make a game successful, Lara Croft hasn't missed a step.

Sidetrack

Friday, February 6, 2004
by Heng-Cheong Leong

FIGHT BACK : Pepsi/Apple Superbowl parody 2004. This film is work-safe; no wardrobe malfunction.

GIMME GIMME : You know a typical headline like "Jobs for Disney" can really go either way.

Either Steve Jobs will take over the Mickey-Mouse corporation, or Roy Disney is looking for a new gig. :-)

Wintel

Microsoft Purportedly Working On Windows XP Light
by Ken Fisher, Ars Technica
Microsoft is reportedly developing a "light" version of Windows XP to be aimed at developing markets.

Thursday, February 5, 2004

Top Stories

Apple CFO Anderson To Retire June 1
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral
Apple announced Thursday that Fred D. Anderson, the company's executive vice president and Chief Financial Officer, will retire on June 1, 2004. Set to step into Anderson's vacancy is Peter Oppenheimer, Apple senior vice president of Finance and corporate controller. Once he retires, Anderson will be appointed to Apple's Board of Directors.

News

Crank It! iTunes Sells Sounds Of Silence — For Real
by Ina Fried, CNET News.com
Apple said most of the songs are there because the artists intended for there to be silence as part of the albums and because the recording industry provided the songs to Apple as sellable tracks.

Uru: Ages Beyond Myst Coming To Mac
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral
Uru: Ages Beyond Myst is the latest installment in this long-running series.

iChat AV, AIM Updates Add Mac To PC Video Conferencing
by Jim Darlymple, MacCentral
With updates released today PC and Mac users will enjoy the benefit of video conferencing between the two platforms. One industry analyst said today that Apple stands to benefit greatly from the relations as it moves out of its niche market.

Apple Bluetooth Driver Update Supports Printer, Headsets
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral
Apple on Thursday released Bluetooth 1.5 for Mac OS X, a new version of their Bluetooth drivers which adds long-awaited support for Bluetooth-enabled printers.

TextWrangler Adds Rendezvous FTP Discovery, More
by Brad Cook, MacCentral
The update fixes bugs and adds minor enhancements, including Rendezvous support in the "Open from FTP" dialog box.

KDE Brings Safari Improvements To Linux
by Matthew Broersma, ZDNet UK
The Konqueror Web browser, which shares its basic engine with Apple's Safari, has benefited from Apple's Safari work, KDE said.

Apple UK Market Success In Q4
by Jonny Evans, Macworld UK
Apple delivered 25 per cent growth in the UK in Q4 2003.

The iPod As Boombox With A Magical Bass
by Ivan Berger, New York Times

Free GameHouse Puzzles For .Mac Members
by MacMinute

Apple Touts QuickTime For Cell Phones
by Marie Feliciano, Taiwan News
In the not-too-distant future, your mobile phone will have a morsel of Apple in it.

Apple Releases Backup 2.0.1
by MacMinute

Opinion

Apple's iPod Is Too Good
by osViews
Steve Jobs and Apple are expecting consumers to make a very smart yet hefty purchase the first time.

The Sound... Of Silence
by As The Apple Turns
We've compiled all the silent tracks we managed to scrape together into the first AtAT Essentials paylist, "To Be Played At Maximum Volume."

Can Apple Keep The Worms Out?
by Alex Salkever, BusinessWeek
Apple needs to protect people from things that go bump on the net, and to do so without requiring any of the tech know-how usually required for messy Unix computer security. This isn't as easy as it may sound.

The Cult Of Mac Users
by Sandy McMurray, Apple Matters
Many writers and analysts who cover Apple fail to understand the emotional attachment between Mac users and their machines.

Review

Apple Software Breathes Life Into Digital Lifestyle
by Matthew Fordahl, Associated Press
iLife is a great deal, not to mention a convincing argument for the digital lifestyle. And from a company with a reputation for premium prices, it's a refreshing bargain.

OmniWeb 5.0 Beta
by John Siracusa, Ars Technica
In OmniWeb 5, there is a lot to like.

Wintel

Microsoft IE Patch Leaves Users Locked Out
by Munir Kotadia, ZDNet UK
When Microsoft patched a security hole in Internet Explorer this week, it also blocked users from accessing certain Web sites.

Users Report Inconsistent Results From Latest IE Patch
by Munir Kotadia, ZDNet UK
Microsoft's latest Internet Explorer patch was issued to help stop phishing attacks, but it doesn't always work as advertised.

Microsoft Launches 64-Bit Preview OS
by John G. Spooner, CNET News.com
Microsoft now offers a public preview of its 64-bit operating system for computers based on Advanced Micro Devices' Athlon 64 and Opteron processors.

Wednesday, February 4, 2004

Top Stories

Bottom Of The Ninth
by Greg Sandow, Wall Street Journal
Before classical music is ever going to take off in digital downloads, the whole classical-recording database — this is a mammoth job, but it's got to be tackled — will have to be rejiggered.

News

What-Why-Where Pod
by J.H. Tompkins, San Francisco Bay Guardian
When it comes to music and the Internet, the iPod has stolen the show — but no one agrees on what to do for an encore.

Anger Over Panther-Only Safari
by Macworld UK
Apple released Safari 1.2 on Tuesday night — but Mac users are frustrated that the brand-new Internet browser requires the most current version of Mac OS X to function.

The Great Communicator
by Garry Barker, The Age
The Macintosh is 20, much changed by its journey through time and tribulation, stronger now than it has been for years and, two decades on, still acknowledged as the great innovator.

Tom Wagner: Tampa Bay's Digital Cover Man
by Joe Cellini, Apple

iTunes 'Will Win IN Europe' — Analyst
by Jonny Evans, Macworld UK
Apple's iTunes Music Store stands to win the European download market — though Roxio's Napster service is in the running too.

Create A Hoax, Earn Damnation
by Leander Kahney, Wired News
A harmless little joke about turning a shiny new Power Mac G5 into a PC unleashed a torrent of bad tidings, including death threats.

Poll: Users Embrace iPhoto Printing
by Karen Haslam, Macworld UK
It might have been a long wait for the iPhoto printing service to make its way to the UK, but that hasn't sullied the enthusiasm of Mac users here.

McDonalds: 'No iTunes Deal'
by Macworld UK
McDonalds has once again moved to quell rumours of a planned iTunes song give-away deal, first reported in November.

Apple Store Offers $30 Off Valentine's Day Special
by MacNN

Opinion

Computer: Test Rides Are OK At New Mac Shop
by Tanith L. Balaban, Tucson Citizen
The La Encantada operation mirrors Apple's many products: The store is sleek and expensive-looking.

Review

Building A Better Browser
by Arik Hesseldahl, Forbes
If, in its unfinished state, Firebird is this good, perhaps Microsoft should be worried.

Apple's iLife '04
by Paul Thurrott, Connected Home

How To Become A Rock Star
by Walter S. Mossberg, Wall Street Journal
GarageBand is a terrific tool for amateur musicians. It's another reason to buy a Mac, and another feather in Apple's cap.

Mac On The Go
by Troy dreier, PC Magazine
PocketMac generally worked beautifully in our testing.

Peak Performance
by Dan Heilman, ComputerUser.com
Thanks to products like Peak, the line between the audio professionals and audio enthusiasts is getting blurrier by the day.

First Look: OmniWeb 5 Beta
by Michael Brewer, O'Reilly Network
OmniWeb continues its tradition of having a really well-thought-out interface. And with this release they're bringing some refreshing new power to web browsers.

Sidetrack

Wednesday, February 4, 2004
by Heng-Cheong Leong

iPOD? GET A LAPTOP INSTEAD... : Can somebody confirm that this review comparing iPod with a laptop computer is a joke?

Wintel

Microsoft 1, Mydoom.B 0
by Associated Press
Microsoft said it had fought off an attempted software virus attack Tuesday that was aimed at shutting down some of the company's websites.

Tuesday, February 3, 2004

Top Stories

Where Does Apple Go From Here
by David Yoffie, HBS Working Knowledge
Macintosh market share continues to decline, but the iPod and iTunes are hit products. Where does Apple Computer's future lie?

News

MacHack Renamed ADHOC, Expands Beyond Just Mac
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral
This year, the event has been renamed theAdvanced Developers Hands On Conference (ADHOC), and has been expanded to include related technologies like Unix, Palm OS and more.

Apple's Ad, Offerings Out Of iTune
by Stephen Lynch, New York Post

Enterprising Apple Increases Direct Touch
by Sarah Stokely, ARN
Some resellers claim that the vendor's push to get its business development team in front of customers is coming at a cost to partners.

Apple Ranks Number 2 In Global Brand Poll
by MacMinute

Ambrosia Releases Snapz Pro X 2.0
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral
The new version sports dramatically improved performance in capturing video and other changes as well.

NetNewsWire Updated To V1.0.8
by MacMinute
This release adds confirmation for quick-subscribing, disk caching for NetNewsWire Lite, and several other bug fixes and tweaks.

Apple Acknowledges Email Delivery Problems With .Mac
by MacNN
Apple today acknowleged problems with email delivery for members of .Mac service, resulting in loss of some email.

Opinion

Apple Defends Its iLife
by Tim Beyers, Motley Fool
Apple's long-term prospects may be unclear, but the company could do well over the next year.

Review

Apple iPod Is Just What The Doctor Ordered
by Stephen Williams, Newsday

Life Balance: Balanced Software For Unbalanced People
by Jeff Porten, TidBITS
Like many people, I have been in search of the Holy Grail of personal organizers for years.

OmniWeb 5 Public Beta
by John Gruber
OmniWeb 5 has the potential to be a very big deal.

Toast 6 Titanium
by David Weeks, MyMac.com
If Roxio can clean up some loose ends with Toast Anywhere, and improve the documentation, this will be the perfect CD/DVD burning package.

20040203ifire
iFire
by Andrew Kator, ATPM

Wintel

Microsoft Balances Patents, Standards
by David Becker, CNET News.com
As Microsoft and other large companies actively embrace open standards as a way to expand the market for Web services and other technology, they walk a fine line between promoting the adoption of standards and protecting valuable proprietary software.

No Free Lunch: Microsoft Fumbles The Patent Ball
by Steve Gillmor, eWeek
Microsoft has coupled royalty-free licensing with its Office XML schema patent filings, but the move may turn out to be very expensive indeed.

Microsoft Releases Early IE Fix
by Robert Lemos, CNET News.com
Microsoft broke its once-a-month schedule on Monday to fix a critical flaw in Internet Explorer that could allow malicious coders to take control of an unwary user's PC.

Monday, February 2, 2004

Top Stories

Apple Releases Safari Update
by Jim Darlymple, MacCentral
In addition to stability enhancements, Safari 1.2 also includes several new features requested by users.

Music Biz Urges Download Harmony
by Brian Garrity, Billboard
While this is not specifically an Apple and Microsoft matter, many of the practical issues center on compatibility between the two tech giants.

Hollywood Mogul Plays By Technology's Rules
by John Markoff, New York Times
The decision by Steve Jobs to walk away from his partnership with Disney is the clearest indication yet that Jobs is becoming the personification of the digital media mogul.

News

Apple Releases Java 1.4.2
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral
"In addition to providing support for Sun's Java 1.4.2 APIs, this release includes enhancements to drawing performance and stability for both Java applications and Java applets," said Apple.

Apple Has Eye On 275,000 S.f.
by Mary Alice Kaspar, Austin Business Journal
Apple Computer Inc. is negotiating to lease roughly 275,000 square feet in Northwest Austin being vacated by another large company.

New Zealand Schools To Get Free Apple Software
by MacMinute
The New Zealand Ministry of Education on Mondayannounced that all state and state-integrated schools using Macs would get free copies of Mac OS X 10.3 Panther, Keynote and iLife by mid-February.

OmniWeb 5 Public Beta Now Available
by MacMinute

Adobe Ships InDesign CS PageMaker Edition
by Jim Darlymple, MacCentral
First introduced during Macworld Conference and Expo last month, the new release includes the PageMaker Plug-in Pack, a set of tools to give PageMaker users a familiar interface if they switch to InDesign.

Opinion

Don't Expect iLife Version For Windows
by Jon Fortt, San Jose Mercury News
It would take a major cultural shift at the company — a shift that hasn't happened yet — before we see Windows versions of Apple software such as iPhoto, iMovie, iDVD and GarageBand.

Review

Worth The Weight: Testing The 20-Inch iMac
by Gene Steinberg, USA Today
It's a perfect consumer computer with aspirations to much more.

Xserve Offers Users Power, Choice In A 'Dream Machine'
by Ryan Faas, Computerworld
Two words come immediately to mind to describe Apple's Xserve G5: power and choice.

The Sims: Makin' Magic
by Danny Gallagher, Inside Mac Games

Wintel

Windows Plan Underscores Microsoft Struggle
by Ina Fried, CNET News.com
A move by Microsoft to extend support for an older version of Windows underscores a new reality for the software giant: Convincing customers to upgrade is becoming much more difficult.

Intel Cranks Out New Pentium 4
by John G. Spooner, CNET News.com
Intel on Monday will serve up a large helping of megahertz with five new Pentium 4 processors for desktop PCs.

Sunday, February 1, 2004

Top Stories

10 Percent Off iPods This Weekend At The Apple Store
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral
The online Apple Store features a 10 percent off sale on all 15, 20 and 40GB iPod models and select accessories, this weekend only. The deal is also available at Apple Store retail locations.

News

In Windows, Apple Sees Opportunity
by Allan Hoffman, Star-Ledger
If iTunes is a hit with Windows users, why not offer them other Macintosh-only software?

A Shortcut In Playing Catch-Up To The iPod
by Terril Yue Jones, Los Angeles Times
The move by Hewlett-Packard to sell the Apple music player under the HP brand is part of a new strategy of borrowing technology when necessary.

Opinion

If It's Time To Close The Windows, What Should Be Next?
by Dwight Silverman, Houston Chronicle

Review

iLife '04 Is Worthy Upgrade, But It's Not Perfect
by Glenn Fleishman, Seattle Times
If you use iMovie, iDVD or iPhoto, you should buy it right away.

Smart File Sharing Between Macs And PCs
by Wei-Meng Lee, O'Reilly Network
There's an easier way through the use of an inexpensive application called "PC-Mac-Net FileShare."

Sidetrack

Sunday, February 1, 2004
by Heng-Cheong Leong

AN APPLE A DAY : Mac OS X Unwired, a guide for home, office, and the road.

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