The resource to people switching to the Mac (and to MacLife altogether): Mac OS X integration, Mac-Windows interoperability, iPod and most Macintosh-related topics!
Posted on August 3, 2007 at 10:11 am
According to several news sites, August 7th should see a “product presentation” from Apple.
A new iMac, some rumors on new iPod Nano and an update for iLife suite.
Speculation arises on Mac Mini’s life cycle coming to an end…
Posted on July 5, 2007 at 6:01 pm
Partner site iPodPalace.com reports that the original iPhone manual (PDF format) is available online.
Check here for more: http://www.ipodpalace.com/view.php?ID=2611
Posted on June 30, 2007 at 2:21 pm
How to dismantle a just-bought iPhone!
Partner site ipodpalace.com reports on the very first iPhone disassembly done by iFixit.com guys!
Some interesting details on the inner design of the iPhone.
Posted on June 26, 2007 at 4:55 pm
How do you meet when you’re at MIT campus?
Imagine you’re using one the many hotspots around and have to meet mates (or professors), you’re supposed to be using already a chat system but…
does it aloow you to locate other users?
Enter iFind from MIT, a Java-based IM (available thus for Win XP and Linux users too).
What is exactly?
iFIND is a location-aware application that puts you on a map of the MIT campus when you start the program. That is, it puts you on your own map of campus, and not other people’s, unless you give them permission.
As usual with MIT, iFind has its roots in a previous project way ahead if its time!
iFIND spawned out of iSPOTS, a project at SENSEable that began in 2005, and concerns over the privacy implications of real-time location data. Our response was to develop an application that would allow users to share location information in real-time, with the ability to start and stop sharing information with any users at any time.
Under the hood, the main features…
Positioning – we don’t have fancy positioning technology beyond what we found from PlaceLab. We just put PlaceLab to good use. Your location is derived from the signals that your laptop’s (for example) wireless card detects in its vicinity. Thanks to the high density of WiFi access points on the MIT campus, the software can compute your location accurately (we’d say within a few meters).
Distributed Data – we spent a long time deliberating over our privacy scheme. Our premise was, suppose some malicious person wanted to stalk some user and seized control of our server somehow (we would never let that happen, but just suppose), they should not be able to find logs of users’ locations. Thus, taking the extreme view of giving users control over their data, we implemented an architecture that does not collect users’ locations centrally. Instead, the only way to see a user’s traces is to get the user’s permission, and be logged on to iFIND at the same time.
Posted on June 15, 2007 at 10:27 am
VoIPstage.com reports:
Raketu is offering a Web-based VoIP calling service that works with Macs.
Raketu on Wednesday launched RakWeb, a new Web-based Voice over IP (VoIP) telephony service that runs on Mac OS X, Linux and Windows. Right now, RakWeb is the only way Mac users can use Raketu, as the company has only released a Windows version of its client to date.
Calling other Raketu users is free, and the company offers low rates if you wish to call other landline or mobile phones. The technology works over any Internet connection, broadband or dial-up, and features free calling to locations in over 40 countries around the world. The service also offers the ability to connect two people using landlines or mobile phones.
Posted on June 11, 2007 at 10:57 pm
Steve’s keynote is still going on but the title news are just these…
😉
Looking forward to try Leopard (and Safari 3.0).
Posted on June 5, 2007 at 4:10 pm
As rumors predicted a new lineup of MacBook Pros has been announced today by Apple.
Not exactly an update of the previous models: some brand new features have been introduced:
Another welcome feature comes from the LED-backlit displays that provides a more battery-efficient and bright view on both 15″ and 17″ models.
17″ has an option for 1920 x 1200 maximum high resolution, making the ideal choice for road warriors.
Good news about the price: 1.999 for the 2.2 GHz 15″ model up to 2.799 for the 17″ (and some US$ 100 more for the high-res display)
Posted on June 3, 2007 at 8:30 pm
Despite what some web sites write about Apple TV’s not-so-bright future, Apple has some programs and (good) news for Apple TV.
Starting from June, Youtube contents will be browsable from Apple TV just like any other iTunes content.
How nice will be to watch that zillion videos from the Apple TV device?
Posted on May 30, 2007 at 6:06 pm
iPodPalace.com reports on Apple launching two new faces of iTunes:
– iTunes Plus – a DRM-free music store with tracks featuring high quality 256 kbps AAC encoding for audio quality virtually indistinguishable from the original recordings—for just $1.29,
– iTunes U – a dedicated area within the iTunes Store featuring free content such as course lectures, language lessons, lab demonstrations, sports highlights and campus tours provided by top US colleges and universities including Stanford University, UC Berkeley, Duke University and MIT.
Posted on May 24, 2007 at 4:39 pm
Some business news among all techies:
Apple will be bigger than IBM by market capitalization within two years, an analyst notes
What does this mean?
“Apple will be a bigger company than IBM in terms of market capitalization. As of this writing Apple is just about to hit $100 billion in market cap while IBM is at $158 billion,” writes Georges Yared of Yared Investment Research in an article published on the Blogging Stocks website.
The analyst notes the different business cycles and strategies of the two firms, remarking “Apple is growing aggressively…but is just beginning.”
Welcome to the big blue apple? 😉
Posted on May 24, 2007 at 3:42 pm
Just like matter and anti-matter meeting, an unthinkable event: MS and Apple guys meeting and talking about tech stuff, future and … what we love & hate (and wait for) – their products & ideas.
Apple CEO Steve Jobs will face Microsoft’s Bill Gates in public conversation next week at the annual Wall Street Journal-hosted ‘D: All Things Digital’ event.
This will be the first time the two men have met face-to-face in public for an in-depth discussion concerning the technology industry that both have become legends within.
The two men will jointly discuss the history and future of the digital revolution in an unrehearsed, unscripted, onstage conversation on 30 May with D co-producers Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher.
“These two guys have always had different approaches – like night and day,” said Rob Enderle, principal analyst with Enderle Group.
Check full story here and DowJones press release here.
Posted on May 16, 2007 at 9:35 am
The changes were made to all three consumer MacBook models, Cupertino, California-based Apple said in a statement today. Prices for the 1-inch-thick machines start at $1,099.
Some had speculated that the computers would run off flash-based memory or have brighter, energy-efficient screens, but the new machines have only minor adjustments: the lowest-end one will now come standard with 1 GB of RAM and an 80-GB hard drive, instead of 60 GB. It will run at 2.0 GHz instead if 1.88. The higher-end MacBooks receive similarly small bumps: from 2.0 GHz to 2.16, and each of their hard drives jumps up 40 gigs, to 120 (white) and 160 GB (black). Their Super Drives will also become a little bit faster, from 6x to 8x with dual-layer support.
Sales of the consumer MacBook and higher-powered MacBook Pro notebooks accounted for 60 percent of Apple’s computer revenue last quarter.
The European Connection
Italians who received news of the spring 2007 MacBook update directly from Apple may have also been tipped off as to a change in the 13.3-inch displays used for the systems.
In its announcement, Apple Italy listed a 250cd/m2 brightness figure for the top 2.16GHz black model. The company has previously refrained from mentioning the display’s specifications in the past, suggesting that the brightness was a selling point for at least the top system.
Europe as a whole also saw the price of the systems drop despite the change, with each system dipping 70 Euros to 1,049, 1,249, and 1,449 Euros respectively.
Final Cut Studio 2 shipping delayed
Apple has given signs that its Final Cut Studio 2 video editing tools will slip past their intended May release window.
Visitors to Apple’s online Apple Store who place new orders are told that both the full version and its two upgrades will ship within 2-3 weeks, putting deliveries into early June. And despite showing an intended release date of May 15th, Amazon as of this writing is currently listing a 1-3 week shipping timeframe for new buyers.
A loud fix as well…
Apple vows to fix speaker issue
Meanwhile, Apple is aware of and intends to fix a problem with the volume of the internal speakers on at least some Macs, including last fall’s Core 2 Duo iMacs.
Owners of affected systems have complained that the built-in speakers have become too loud since the Mac OS X 10.4.9 update issued earlier in the year. The problem has become chronic and some customers have complained that Apple has taken a dismissive approach until today, denying that the patch was the root of the problem until the company privately admitted this month that its next software update should provide a cure.
“Not all Apple users enjoy being blown away by their systems nor are they from the generation that believes “loud†is the norm,” said one report. “There has been no explanation as to why Apple took the direction it did in regards to this issue.”
