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Another look at What's on your Dock? Giles Turnbull writes about What's on your Dock? for a number of Mac OS X users - myself included - in an article today on the MacDevCenter. Yes, my Dock is that full... Discuss
AquaMinds releases NoteTaker 1.6 NoteTaker 1.6 offers integration with Safari, live Web page display in notebooks, improved AppleScript support, and more...
Another day passes with no fix from Apple For users of PowerBooks who installed Mac OS X 10.2.8 before Apple recalled it last week, we have now gone a week with no update to fix battery run time and power management issues caused by bugs in the software update. The clock is ticking...
The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King trailer 'Lord of the Rings: Return of the King' in QuickTime - Apple's Movie Trailers page features a teaser for "The Return of the King," the next installment in "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, exclusively in QuickTime format... [MacMinute.com]
More notes about the new 15-inch PowerBooks Mac developer Steven Frank offers notes about his new 15-inch PowerBook G4...
Power problem confirmation, of sorts A couple more developments on the power management and battery run time issues caused by Mac OS X 10.2.8 this morning. First, a reader of Macintouch offers some details from his experience consulting Apple about the battery issue. In the short report, the PowerBook user claims that Apple is aware of the problem and is working on a patch to fix the issue soon. Nothing out of the ordinary there, but I did find it interesting that the Apple tech support person informed the PowerBook user that backtracking to Mac OS X 10.2.6 would not fix the problem. Great... Not coincidentally, Apple has updated its AppleCare Knowledge Base article with instructions of how to reset the Power Management Unit (PMU) on PowerBooks and iBooks. Apparently some people have been successful in returning to normal battery life after resetting their PMUs. It didn't have any effect on my 12-inch PowerBook G4. I also want to contradict reports posted on MacFixIt that although the battery run time shown in the menu bar is decreased, that the actual battery run time has not been affected. At least on my machine this is false. I tested it by running the machine until the machine shut down due to the battery going into its safe mode. Before Mac OS X 10.2.8 I would get 2.5 to 3.5 hours or run time when doing this. After Mac OS X 10.2.8 I get 1.5 to 2 hours of run time. MacFixIt also offers the following cheery reminder:
Fire 0.32.f restores chat with Yahoo network Fire 0.32.f restores the ability of the free multi-protocol chat program to connect with the Yahoo chat network...much to my delight.
Stuffit Standard 8.0 Aladdin offers StuffIt Standard 8.0 - On the heels of StuffIt Deluxe 8.0's release, Aladdin Systems Inc. on Monday released StuffIt Standard 8.0, a new version of their compression utility for Mac OS X. The new version features faster compression, DropBox filters, access to newsgroup and Windows formats .yenc and .cab, and integrated HTML help. [MacCentral]
A snapshot from yesterday's birding walk 
Natalie and I ventured north to Marymoor Park in Redmond yesterday to walk along the Sammamish River and over to Lake Sammamish as part of our last research trip for our bird watching book, Birding Washington. Along with seeing some great birds - late season warblers, wrens, hawks, and a female Downy Woodpecker in the woods along an interpretive trail, beyond the off-leash dog area - we also found a surprising number of large mushrooms along the trail. Besides the bright orange and white mushroom in the photo above, we also found a dinner-plate sized light tan mushroom along the side of the trail, well out of reach of the hundreds of dogs running wild in the off-leash area.
Cocoatech releases Open Source code Cocoatech Open Source - The Cocoatech folks Ð the folks behind PathFinder, a Finder replacement Ð have released a bunch of code as open source. Among the goodies: "CocoaTechTerminal allows you to put a real working terminal in a plain NSView. It's super simple. Build your own Terminal.app in about 5 minutes." [ranchero.com]
More widespread battery and power management issues In the Macintouch reader report about the new PowerBooks linked in a previous post, yet another user weighs in with notes about power management and battery run time issues with PowerBooks after installing Mac OS X 10.2.8. I have read dozens of reports that back up the battery loss I see with my 12-inch PowerBook G4, and the machines affected seem to range from iBooks to all of the recent PowerBook releases. Hopefully Apple is going to fix this problem in the next day or two with another system update... I have taken a few steps to try and deal with the battery run time loss on my PowerBook after installing Mac OS X 10.2.8. I power-cycled the battery by running it all the way down and then recharging it, which Apple recommends doing occasionally, and I reset the nvram settings in Open Firmware as another step. Of course, the first thing I consulted was the Energy Saver settings to ensure that my PowerBook was already set up to maximize battery run time by running the machine at a reduced processor speed, etc. So far, none of these has made a difference - no matter what I do I get a run time of 1:42. One funny note is that while I was experimenting with the situation yesterday I tried setting the processor speed to maximum while running on battery and for a brief time the menu bar readout estimated I had more battery run time while running with a less power-friendly setting than when I run the machine with a reduced processor speed. Oh, I also tested the battery run time by using the Automatic settings in Engery Saver. It made no difference...the machine still showed a run time of 1:42. Prior to installing Mac OS X 10.2.8 my machine commonly showed a battery run time of 2:30 or slightly more, depending on how many steps I would take to save energy while running the machine off the battery. One possibility in this whole situation is that Apple's software is now reporting a truer estimate of battery run time, although I know in the past that I was getting real-life run times in the range of 2-2.5 hours... Discuss
Macintouch on new PowerBook impressions A number of Macintouch readers are chipping in with their first impressions of the new 15-inch PowerBook G4...
Captain FTP 3.0 released Captain FTP version 3.0 released - Xnet Communications today released Captain FTP 3.0, a new version of its FTP client for the Mac... [MacMinute.com]
Adobe's Creative Suite It looks like Adobe is unveiling enhanced versions of Photoshop, ImageReady, Illustrator, InDesign, GoLive, and Acrobat Professional as part of the Adobe Creative Suite:
Ridiculous - the theft of Pacific Northwest names I have had enough. First, Toyota decided to name its mid-sized line of trucks a few years ago as the Toyota Tacoma, stealing the name of my home town because some marketing guru said that the name offered a rugged image. Then tonight we see an ad on TV for the Buick Rainier, an SUV that steals the name of Mt. Rainier, the towering 14,410-foot volcano that dominates the skyline in Tacoma and Seattle and can be seen from hundreds of miles away into Eastern Washington as well. Mt. Rainier is used all of the time in advertising as a universal image of nature, and millions of people visit Mt. Rainier National Park each year, but to bastardize the name by slapping it on a gas-guzzling SUV...disgusting. What's next? The Ford Denali? Ridiculous... Update: A number of readers have since pointed out to that GM has already stolen the name of Denali, with the GMC Yukon Denali - a double whammy. I guess I am not all that surprised that auto makers are stealing these names and slapping them on vehicles that do more to damage nature than any other passenger vehicles. They are trying to sell an image, and American's lap up the false rugged image as only our consumer-crazed culture can. That is why so many folks buy SUVs for those times when the roads are really rough between home and the mall...
Donald O'Connor now Makes 'em laugh in the afterworld CNN: Entertainer Donald O'Connor, who combined comedy and acrobatics in the show-stopping "Make 'Em Laugh" number in the classic movie "Singin' in the Rain," died Saturday, his daughter said. He was 78. It is sad to hear of O'Connor joining the other entertainer who have passed on in the last couple of weeks. I may have to watch "Singin' in the Rain" tonight to mark his passing, just to note the "Make 'Em Laugh" number as well as the song "Moses Supposes"...
Apple updates AirPort Extreme firmware AirPort Extreme Firmware 5.1.3 released - Apple on Friday released an update to the firmware for its AirPort Extreme Base Station. The new update -- v5.1.3 -- can be downloaded from Apple's Web site. [MacCentral]
Can Apple be trusted with Panther release? In the wake of this week's release of Mac OS X 10.2.8 and its subsequent recall by Apple due to a number of critical bugs with Ethernet connections on many machines and widespread reports of power management and battery issues, the release of this buggy software begs a question: Should Mac users trust Apple's updates? And, if this update that was supposed to be the last version of Mac OS X 10.2 was so botched, can we trust Apple to release a usable and relatively stable major update when Panther arrives later this year? My take is that Apple has major egg on its face after this week and the release of Mac OS X 10.2.8. After being bit by the battery issues in 10.2.8, which I am still running and hoping for an update to fix the problems soon from Apple, I have decided not to be the first on the block to beta test Apple's software releases. And I am leery of the Panther release. I may just let others dig into Panther rather than ruining my own Mac OS X user experience with hasty software updates... Discuss
Yahoo shuts out Fire.app The release of the latest version of Fire, a free multi-protocol chat client for Mac OS X, which emerged earlier this week was supposed to help users to continue to chat with Yahoo IM users without the need to use a separate Yahoo chat client, but today Yahoo has managed to block access to its network for Fire.app users. I am sure that the creators of Fire are working to fix the problem, but for now at least, if you want to chat with Yahoo IM users you can't do it with Fire... The Fire Web page offers the following:
Author of Microsoft criticism canned Company disowns author of critical MS report - Security vendor @stake Inc. has dissociated itself from a report critical of Microsoft Corp.'s OS dominance, and says that the report's instigator, former @stake Chief Technical Officer Dan Geer has left the company abruptly. Geer and several other researchers wrote a report which argued that Microsoft's dominance of the desktop and server OS markets posed an inherent danger to security. The report was sponsored by the Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA). [MacCentral]
Western Pond Turtle success! OK, this isn't at all Mac related, but since I wrote some and posted photos on MNJ earlier this year when I was working every day with Western Pond Turtles in nearby Lakewood, Wash., I want to offer a happy update. After years of no success hatching the Western Pond Turtles, which are endangered in the state, I got news this morning that all 13 of the eggs laid by turtles this year have hatched! 13-for-13...can't beat that! A little additional background: There is a total of about 30 Western Pond Turtles in Western Washington, all living in the small pond complex near Lakewood. Now, after these 13 hatchlings spend a year being coddled and raised in premium conditions in a local zoo for the next year, they will bring the total Western Washington population up to 43 turtles or so. They should be released into the ponds sometime next year...
Nisus Thesaraus 1.0 for free Nisus Thesaurus 1.0 A Free Download - After a period of beta testing, Nisus Software has released Nisus Thesaurus 1.0, an electronic thesaurus that automatically integrates with any Service-aware Mac OS X application including Nisus Writer Express, Mail, TextEdit and Safari. By Dennis Sellers (MacCentral via MyAppleMenu) [myapplemenu]
Apple adds .Mac giveaways Apple Adds Free iBlog, VersionTracker Plus To .Mac - Apple has added three new exclusive gifts for .Mac members -- a free copy of the iBlog weblog software, a free VersionTracker Plus subscription and a US$30 discount on SmartDisk hard drives. (MacMinute via MyAppleMenu) [myapplemenu]
An 8.0 earthquake off northern Japan It is a preliminary reading, but this looks like a major 8.0 quake in Japan:
There should be more information here soon...
Serious battery issues with Mac OS X 10.2.8? I know that the main issues with Mac OS X 10.2.8, which Apple removed from circulation shortly after releasing it earlier this week, was with Ethernet connections on some G4 machines. My issue is different. Ever since installing Mac OS X 10.2.8 on Monday my battery life has dropped by an hour. I used to get about 2.5 hours of battery life when running my machine with a reduced process setting, AirPort enabled, the screen at full brightness and running my normal suite of applications. Now I get 1:45 per battery charge. My question: Are others seeing similar battery problems? My hope is that this battery issue is due to a problem with the OS update and not something that the update has done to permanently damage my batttery... Update: As an experiment to try and regain battery run time I restarted my machine and reset the nvram settings under open firmware, and after working the voodoo on my machine I still have the same battery life problems... Discuss
Apple offers tip for AppleWorks slowness No, the tip isn't to buy a faster Mac or to use a different program than the aging productivity suite from Apple. The advice is to clear the Recent Items list to help speed up opening the program as well as unusual slowness opening files with AppleWorks. A nod to Macintouch for pointing out the note. For my part, the slowness and lack of updates to help make AppleWorks a usable alternative for working with Office apps on Mac OS X led me to remove AppleWorks 6.2 from my dock a couple of days ago. I may take another look if Apple ever offers a real update to the application, but AW has barely changed, other than being Carbonized to run on Mac OS X, since at least 1999. Discuss
Interesting reading for weblog writers on ISSNs Joe Clark writes an interesting article arguing point-by-point why registrars should issue ISSNs or International Standard Serial Numbers to weblogs that fit a set criteria and that make the effort to apply for the registration number: Compatibility of Weblogs and ISSN. For more about the fight to make ISSN registration easier and the reasons that ISSNs are important for weblog authors, check out Clark's ISSN for weblogs page...
Living on the edge with Mac OS X 10.2.8 I am still using the now-recalled Mac OS X 10.2.8 and wondering, now that it has been a full day since Apple pulled the plug on the system upgrade, just how are others doing with machines they had upgraded before Apple removed the update from circulation? Are there new issues creeping up, outside of the known problems with Ethernet on some G4 computers? Discuss
Are iSight's and video chat already old hat? I found the opening lines of Derrick Story's latest collection of tips for getting more out of an iSight video camera quite interesting:
Why is this interesting? Because it points out the limited utility of video chat as a killer app. It's a nice add-on, but not something you really need. This doesn't bode well for Apple. Are you still using your iSight and video chat capabilities of iChat AV? Has the newness and coolness worn off? Discuss
Apple history web site The Apple Computer History Weblog offers some interesting tidbits culled from the history of the makers of nearly all things Apple...
Taking apart a 12-inch PowerBook G4 As further evidence that the idea of taking apart a 12-inch PowerBook G4 is not for the faint of heart, a Japanese Web page offers a series of photo pages documenting the process. Beware, taking apart that new 12-inch PowerBook stands to void your warranty...
What went wrong with Mac OS X 10.2.8? As The Mac OS 10.2.8 Dust Settles: What Went Wrong? - An obvious question comes to mind: Doesn't Apple test its system updates before release? Another, that it is so involved in getting Panther out the door that maybe the Q&A process for the apparent final Jaguar update wasn't as rigorous as it should have been. By Gene Steinberg (Mac Night Owl via MyAppleMenu) [myapplemenu]
Microsoft a threat to security? Duh... Report: Microsoft dominance poses security risk - A paper sponsored by an organization critical of Microsoft argues that the giant's dominance in key software technologies threatens the national infrastructure. [CNET News.com] Someone had to do a study to figure this out? Reliance on one system or one vendor is a major risk. This is why the existence of the Mac, Linux, and other alternative computer OSes and interfaces are critical to keeping computing moving forward. While some may think it would be great if everyone used the exact same OS on the same computers and that everything was standardized, this would be a nightmare in practice...
Server problems Apologies for MNJ being unavailable this morning. I am trying to resolve server problems with my Web host, Digital Forest... Update: The server problems are continuing off and on, as Digital Forest tries to get to the bottom of a problem with the server that hosts MNJ. Your patience is appreciated! Meanwhile, this almost has me longing for the days when I hosted my own sites on a Mac here in my home office...
Apple pulls Mac OS X 10.2.8 updater Apple Pulls Mac OS X 10.2.8 Update - Apple has apparently pulled the Mac OS X 10.2.8 update, as it is no longer available via the Software Update preference pane or as a standalone download. (MacMinute via MyAppleMenu) [myapplemenu] My take: Hopefully Apple releases a new version soon, and hopefully the only real damaging part of the 10.2.8 updater is the Ethernet issue, since I already have the update running on my 12-inch PowerBook G4 and my wife's Pismo PowerBook right now...
A word processor holy war on Slashdot As someone how makes his living as a writer, I find Word Processors: One Writer's Retreat an interesting read over on Slashdot today. I can't say that I would agree with the article's conclusion, but it is an interesting perspective. And even more entertaining are the comments that follow the article...
A good reminder: Run Repair Permissions Chris Chapman offered a good reminder in the Mac OS X 10.2.8 discussion this morning: Be sure to run the Repair Permissions options in Apple's Disk Utility application to make sure everything is fine on your Mac OS X installation. It is a good idea to run Repair Permissions every time you install a new system update...
A happy fall equinox to all! Today marks the change of seasons from summer to fall, with the fall equinox. How fitting that this afternoon I am scheduled to lead a nature walk in a nearby open space along a small salmon-bearing stream for the Tahoma Audubon Society. Although I am buried by work on our Birding Washington book right now, I do plan to start updating my Equinox Project weblog regularly beginning today. It is time to form that writing and photography habit all over again!
Ethernet problems after installing Mac OS X 10.2.8 A number of people are noting some problems with selected machines that lose Internet access after updating to Mac OS X 10.2.8. An MNJ reader posts information about a workaround from the Apple discussion forums in the 10.2.8 discussion. The link to the Apple discussion should help some folks, and hopefully Apple will be rolling out a more end-user friendly fix shortly. Meanwhile, if you don't want to need to dig around in Unix files to get Ethernet working on your machine, you may want to hold off on installing Mac OS X 10.2.8...
An interesting report on TiVo Series2 machines Writing in TidBITS, Alex Hoffman touts the advantages of second-generation TiVo digital video recorders, including the way it can be integrated with a Mac...
.Mac and email filtering Macintouch has a report about .Mac and email filtering. I should note that from this point forward I will point to other sites' reports on .Mac services, since our home office with its multiple Macs is now .Mac free...
Web inventor Tim Berners-Lee uses Safari What a ringing endorsement for Apple's Safari Web browser:
It is also interesting to see Berners-Lee talk about iCal. I still contend that iCal is badly in need of enhancement for my needs, but then I don't share my schedule information with others at this time, which is the killer feature of iCal...
Fire 0.32.e a must download for chat fans If you use Fire.app to keep in touch with friends and clients on AIM, Yahoo, ICQ, Jabber, or IRC, then you need to grab the new update to Fire 0.32.e. Among the host of fixes and enhancements, this version fixes those annoying error messages that come up every day from Yahoo telling me that I won't be able to chat soon...
Mac OS X 10.2.8 released Apple has released another update to Mac OS X, this time bumping the operating system software to version 10.2.8 with a 40.6 MB download, available through the Software Update panel in your System Preferences. The update is not compatible with Apple's G5 desktop computers. Here are the release notes:
I am installing the update now and will note anything new about my experiences under the new OS in the discussion...
Creative folks sticking to Mac OS 9 Mac OS 9 usage dwarfs OS X in creative fields - Following our report earlier today on Apple's market share numbers in the creative industry, Vincent Naselli, a director at research firm TrendWatch, provided MacMinute with a further break down of the numbers... [MacMinute.com] My take on this story is that it really isn't too surprising. We are in the heart of an economic downturn, and switching to Mac OS X costs serious money in both hardware and new software costs. Also, companies tend to grow very conservative with making big decisions like moving to a new OS in the midst of a downturn. Those things being said, I would bet that any company that took a look at Mac OS X and tried using it for a week in its current state would be begging to move to Mac OS X full time at the end of the trial. The advantages of Mac OS X far outweigh the learning curve incurred by making the switch...
Eudora has improved in its final 6.0 release I used the beta versions of Eudora for Mac OS X from May through early August and took note of some of the shortcomings of the beta versions, most notably that if I tried to run the program in a three-paned view, with the slide out tab for mailboxes open all of the time, then the program would fail to underline some mailboxes when new mail was filtered into them. This seems to be fixed in the final version of Eudora 6.0. This is a welcome fix for those times when I want to have Eudora look and act like other mainstream OS X email clients...
Notable software releases Here are a few software highlights released over the weekend and so far today:
Folk music comes to the iTunes Music Store It looks like fans of folk music have more options to consider on the iTunes Music Store now that Rounder Records has added some of its music catalog to the store. This is great news, since some of my favorite artists are on the Rounder label. Now lets hope that more independent recording companies will join the store soon! A nod to O'Grady's PowerPage for noticing that Rounder content has been added to the iTMS...
Back to Eudora Out of frustration with trying to encode an attachment in Base-64 format for sending to a Windows user, late Saturday night I made a rash move and dumped PowerMail and switched back to Eudora. Here are some notes about what led to the leap. I have been using PowerMail off and on for about three years, with switches back to Eudora here and there to see how the Mac OS X version of Eudora was evolving. My last switch back to Eudora lasted a few months beginning in May, when I tested out the SpamWatch features of Eudora which were enough to allow me to live with the aging user interface of the venerable old email client. I switched back to PowerMail last month to test the latest version and to try out the holy grail of integration with Mac OS X's features - using Address Book information from Apple's application of the same name rather than from PowerMail's own address book. The new version of PowerMail is fast and its address book integration works, although it is awkward (you click on the address book icon to add or edit an address and it then launches Apple's Address Book app, but then the PowerMail address book remains open in the background as long as you are using the program). What irked me and finally sent me fleeing from PowerMail was an odd configuration issue. PowerMail sets its attachment encoding options using configurations set in Internet Explorer, and trying to change these configurations from the default Smart-encoding option requires digging around in the file helpers section of IE. After multiple failed attempts to get the file encoding settings set up so that I could manually change encoding options I bailed on the program and went back to the most customizable email application around - Eudora. Not only that, but I paid the registration fee so that I could use SpamWatch in the new version. We will see how this works out over time, but my experience with Eudora has been that while it doesn't look pretty, it simply does email reliably and mostly how I want it to work. Discuss
Controlling your Mac from afar Control Your Mac from Afar - Do you want to control your Mac, or one that you're responsible for, from a remote location? If you're running Mac OS X, you can take advantage of a variety of built-in Unix and AppleScript tools to control your computer from afar. Harold Martin shows you how. [O'Reilly MacDevCenter.com]
Swen worm hitting Windows A new Windows worm called Swen is fooling enough users to rapidly spread to more than 1.4 million computers so far. I have received a couple of copies of this file in my email, but as usual, there is no need for Mac OS X users to worry. Swen has no effect on Mac OS X...
New version of Mozilla released New RC version of Mozilla 1.5 available - Mozilla.org has released a new release candidate version (1.5rc1) of Mozilla, its Web browser for Mac OS X. The new version adds a spellchecker for the Mail e-mail component and several changes to Composer, the fully-fledged HTML editor component for writing Web pages. [MacCentral]
AppleScripts for Net sharing with Bluetooth phones AppleScripts ease internet sharing with Bluetooth phones - Two Applescripts, one to disconnect and one to reconnect the internet sharing to your Bluetooth cellphone, complete with a detailed Read Me file that has the full how to and linkage to info. [Studio Log]
PowerBook G4 hinge replacements offered MacResQ offers PowerBook G4 hinge replacement - The latest service to be offered by MacResQ is a hinge replacement service aimed at PowerBook G4 users. The service costs US$499. [MacCentral]
Hard drive size lawsuit (Hard Drive) Size Does Matter - A group of computer owners sues eight of the largest personal-computer makers for overstating the capacity of their hard drives. The missing storage space, the plaintiffs say, could store an extra 2,000 songs or 20,000 pictures. [Wired News]
SuperDrive allows DVD-RW It appear from a note on the PowerPage today that the SuperDrive in the new 15-inch PowerBook G4 is capable of burning DVD-RW format discs in addition to the more standard DVD-R discs. Interesting...
Shortcomings of current Macs on dialup Chris Adamson writes an interesting piece on the O'Reilly Networks site today about setting up an iMac for his father. The problem: Bad MTU settings were making it impossible for his dad to maintain a connection or send large files on his dial up connection. Chris writes about how he was able to troubleshoot and temporarily fix the problem, but he also asks from great questions:
OmniOutliner now can export to iCal Export to iCal utility released for OmniOutliner - The Omni Group has released Export to iCal 1.0, a tool for exporting OmniOutliner tasks to the To Do item list of Apple's iCal calendaring application. If an outline also contains columns for due dates and priorities, that information will be transferred to iCal as well. [MacCentral]
PowerBooks benchmarked 1.25GHz, 1.3GHz PowerBooks benchmarked - Bare Feats has posted benchmarks for the new aluminum 15-inch 1.25GHz PowerBook and 17-inch 1.33GHz PowerBook... [MacMinute.com] The gist of the news: The PowerBooks don't seem to suffer speed hits from the removal of Level 3 Cache...
The OpenSSH exploit and Mac OS X MacFixIt offers an explanation of the holes in OpenSSH and how it affects Mac OS X, as well as notes about the new release that fixes the problem...
Software releases Here are some highlights from recent software releases:
Lies, damn lies, and computer specs As I was looking over the specs for the revised PowerBooks tonight I got to thinking... How can computer companies get away with the lies they make in specifications? Take Apple's PowerBooks, for instance. Has anyone ever seen five hours of battery life from one of the new PowerBook G4s? I know my 12-inch PowerBook G4 has never come close to five hours. Has yours? Were you actually using it when you hit that kind of run time? Discuss
An Apple Store even closer to home Apple to open second Seattle-area store next week - Apple will open a new retail store at the University Village Mall in Seattle, Washington on Friday, September 26 at 6:00 p.m... [MacMinute.com] Although this Apple Store will be closer to my home in Tacoma than the Bellevue store, making a visit still means a 40-minute slog through Seattle's nasty traffic to reach the U-District. The only reason I would be more likely to visit this new store is that it is just around the corner from one of the best bird watching locations in Seattle, the Union Bay Natural Area, better known to local bird watchers as the Montlake Fill.
12-inch PB G4 may have benefited most in new configs My quick take on today's new and revised PowerBook lineup: It's great to see the 15-inch PowerBook join the aluminum lineup and the feature set on that machine is about what everyone hoped for, but the high-end version of the 12-inch PowerBook benefited the most from today's updates. The addition of a 512k cache on the 12-incher, along with a 1 GHz processor and DVI-out capabilities makes the new Little Al much more capable than the Little Al I bought just a few months ago. If I were buying a new machine today, the 12-inch PowerBook G4 would still be an awfully attractive option. The wildcard is just how much hotter the machine will run with the 1 GHz processor and cache... Discuss
New Bluetooth keyboard and mouse In addition to the big news of new PowerBooks rolling out of Apple this morning, the company also introduced a new wireless keyboard and wireless mouse that offer 128-bit encryption for the Bluetooth wireless connection that operates up to 30 feet from your Mac. The keyboard and mouse each sell for $69 on the Apple Store. I should note that the new wireless mouse is still just a one-button mouse. No second button, no scroll wheel - both points that already have some people on the Net commenting on Apple's continued stubbornness...
Finally, a new 15-inch PowerBook G4, and more Apple Unveils 15-Inch PowerBook, Updates 17 And 12 Apple on Tuesday announced the long awaited revamped 15-inch PowerBook at Steve Jobs' Apple Expo keynote in Paris, France. The company also offered customers updated versions of its 17-inch and 12-inch PowerBooks, increasing speed and adding features. By Jim Darlymple (MacCentral via MyAppleMenu) [myapplemenu] This is excellent news for those still waiting on the fence for a new 15-inch PowerBook, and the update of the 12-inch PowerBook sets a new record for the amount of time between when I bought a new PowerBook and when the model was phased out. I will have to try and digest this more later today. A work assignment has me otherwise booked this morning...
Everything in computing doesn't have to be easy Mark Bernstein makes an interesting observation that is right on the mark this morning on his weblog:
Mark's point hits home, and it especially holds true for Mark's creation, Tinderbox. Yes, there is a learning curve. But if you are willing to learn, the pay off in the end is worth the effort. And who says that learning has to be a bad thing?
My article about Tinderbox in Tekka I have an article in the third issue of the online magazine Tekka that hit the Web today. The article profiles the way that Doug Miller uses Tinderbox to manage his work life through a customized digital dashboard:
Also of interest in this issue of the online-only magazine that costs $50 per year is an article about Apple's dramatic packaging and the first-time unveiling of a new PowerBook in one dramatic entrance, written by Anja Rau.
A verdict on Nisus Writer Express I spent the better part of a day testing Nisus Writer Express, and I was pleasantly surprised how seamlessly the program opens and saves .doc files compatible with Microsoft Word. This was the good news. The bad news is that Express really cannot handle anything but the simplest of Word files. If the Word document you need to open or create includes complex elements such as graphics then you are better off using another tool to work with that particular Word file. But if you only need to work with text or you rarely deal with complex .doc files, Nisus Writer Express may be just the ticket for easily opening simple Word documents. A couple of additional notes:
Overall, I would call Nisus Writer Express a good first stab at creating Nisus Writer for Mac OS X. I just hope that in the future the program will be able to work with more complex Word files and that it will add such critical features for my work as the ability to track revisions... Discuss
Today's software releases Information about a few notable software releases over the last 24 hours:
This weekend's notable software releases Here are a few of the notable software releases from this weekend:
More on links and permalinks A new beta version of NetNewsWire includes a new preference that by default favors using permalinks in the title elements of weblog posts rather than links to external sites. This is an interesting and welcome departure, because although many weblog sites use the permalink as the link associated with the title of each post, the thousands of folks using Radio Userland in its default configuration create weblogs that link to external sites from their titles. Big deal, right? Well, if you are a weblog writer who wants to read or post a link to a Radio Userland site, it is a big deal, as in a pain in the butt since you have to remember if the weblog you are pointing to is a Radio site and whether your readers will be sent to read the rest of a post on the weblog you are pointing at or if they will be sent off to some other site being pointed to by the title in the Radio weblog's title. The long and the short of it, if you want to see a permalink for each post, as most popular weblogging tools create by default, you can now set up NetNewsWire to behave the way you want. Radio Userland creator Dave Winer comments on the situation today as well:
I would disagree that Radio's behavior works perfectly, but I certainly appreciate that NetNewsWire is making an attempt to make Radio weblogs at least look like they behave like most other weblogging tools, even if they stubbornly don't.
An online interview of Howard Dean's blogmaster Chris Lydon interview with Matt Gross, Howard Dean's Blogger-In-Chief. [Scripting News]
Nisus Writer Express as a Word replacement Derrick Story notes that if you don't need the revision tools built into Microsoft Word but you do need to read and write .doc files, he has found Nisus Writer Express a worthwhile alternative. I will have to look at this. Although I like using OpenOffice.org while writing my book, it has shortcomings, not the least of which is the ugly look of the current version. OOo will remain in my writing toolkit regardless though, since it handles so many types of Office documents I throw at it and it offers a critical feature - revision tracking. If another .doc compatible word processor could get the revision tracking feature working, I would buy it... Discuss
So much for Macs bailing out Windows users It appears that in the month since the arrival of the Blaster worm Microsoft has changed the access requirements for its customer support sites. As part of those changes, I cannot get a hold of the latest Windows updater to deal with new security shortcomings in the monopoly operating system with my Mac. Thanks guys... What I was trying to do was to download and burn a CD with the updater to give to my client for installation on his Windows machine, since he is on a dialup connection and being told it will take four hours to download the updater. I would love to convince my client to give up on Windows altogether, but that isn't going to happen anytime soon. Discuss
A new book on Macs and digital photography Mac Digital Photography book coming next week - Next week Sybex Inc. will release "Mac Digital Photography," a US$29.95, 304-page book that addresses digital photography on the Mac platform. The book -- written by Erica Sadun in collaboration with Dennis R. Cohen -- shows you how to refine your photo-taking techniques, edit and repair your images, select camera peripherals, use your images in projects and share your photos. [MacCentral] I will be offering a review of this book when my review copy arrives sometime in the next week or two...
A discussion of RSS and links and permalinks I have been exchanging comments with others throughout the day on a topic that NetNewsWire creator Brent Simmons is addressing this afternoon in: RSS and links and permalinks.
The Beatles sue Apple Apple sued by The Beatles over iPod, ITMS - Apple Computer Inc. is being sued by Apple Corps. The parent company for music legends, The Beatles, has begun legal proceedings against Apple Computer, citing breach of contract for the suit, according to Fox News. [MacCentral]
Just say no to viruses and worms Just Say No to Viruses and Worms - With a new version of the Sobig worm expected any day now, computer experts and law enforcement officials testify in Congress on the best way to protect computers from ever more virulent intruders. By Kim Zetter. [Wired News]
Classic as a major security hole in Mac OS X? In a recent reader report on Macintouch folks are talking about a possible security hole in Mac OS X that could rival the holes built into Windows. The root cause of the hole appears to be the way that Classic is tied into Mac OS X and the kind of access that Classic has to permissions on the OS X side of a machine. This invites more investigation...
Remembering 9/11/01 This morning as I drove home from dropping Natalie off at her workplace in downtown Tacoma I opted to drive past the fireman's memorial alongside Ruston Way, just at the bottom of the hill along Commencement Bay. This memorial was a gathering place that was transformed by flowers, candles, photos, and firefighter momentos in the days following 9/11/01. Last year it was also a gathering place on the first anniversary of the attacks, and again this morning there were people gathering on a gray and rainy September 11th in solemn remembrance. May they all rest in peace...
Blogger Pro for free News.Com reports that Blogger Pro will be offered by Google for $0. [Scripting News]
Lexmark joins recycling movement Lexmark launches recycling program - The company announces the start of a new service under which customers can return used Lexmark-branded printers, in addition to toner cartridges. [CNET News.com] Kudos to Lexmark for doing the right thing!
Email encryption and Mac OS X Steve Mallett writes about email encryption and Mac OS X on the O'Reilly Network today:
A trio of additional Windows problems Windows flaw allows PC takeover - Microsoft warns of three vulnerabilities in Windows that could have a similar effect as last month's marauding MSBlast worm. [CNET News.com]
Lockergnome on why RSS will kill email publishing Lockergnome offers some great points about Why RSS will kill email publishing. One of the points is that you can't spread a virus or worm through an RSS channel. I would add the word - yet. There is a movement afoot to have more RSS feeds allow the transport of attachments. If this is widely adapted, it could provide an avenue for spreading viruses and worms... Discuss
Some perspective on Radio Userland I realized this morning, from a comment made by Dave Winer on another site, that my criticism of Radio Userland recently has come across as being a bit harsh. It isn't meant to be. What comes across as harsh is really just pent up frustration in seeing that the same bugs and shortcomings that forced me to move to other weblog and content management software nearly a year ago are still limiting Radio users today. My criticisms have been about the funky RSS that Radio blogs generate in their default settings and then the point I made yesterday about the rendering problems that can crop up for Radio users that leave tell-tale signs for everyone subscribing to the feed of a Radio user when ancient posts suddenly show up in your aggregator as new stories. Both of these issues are ancient, and the rendering problem was the main reason I moved to a more manual and more customizable system for Mac Net Journal using Tinderbox rather than Radio. I wish Radio worked as well as I had hoped it would. Dave Winer created a great tool. It just bogged down and hasn't made substantial improvement from what I have seen in the last year. One reason is the decision, made over and over again, to offer cool new features rather than fixing major issues that plague users. Maybe too many Radio users fail to offer Userland feedback about the problems. I know I did. I just couldn't wait any longer for things to be fixed, no matter how cool Radio Userland seemed and how invigorating it was to use software created by someone as interesting as Dave Winer... Discuss
Chris Chapman on why he won't use MS Office As someone who was once burned, Chris Chapman offers an interesting perspective on why he won't run Microsoft Office and why he supports the development of OpenOffice:
That is an argument that many small and large business users can understand...
A reader report on Toast 6 Macintouch has a new reader report for Roxio's Toast 6. It may make for good reading and research for those waiting a little while before upgrading...
Tips for attending Mac conferences Although this will only apply to the geekiest of the geeky Mac OS X users - those who would attend Mac conferences - Derrick Story offers some great tips for conference goers at the MacDevCenter...
SpamSieve 2.0 released SpamSieve 2.0 adds plethora of new features - Michael Tsai has announced the release of SpamSieve 2.0, a major update to his shareware utility that brings powerful Bayesian spam filtering to various email clients such as Mailsmith, Entourage, PowerMail, and now Eudora 6... [MacMinute.com]
Microsoft's grand scheme for Office and DRM BBC columnist Bill Thompson writes today about how the next version of Microsoft Office stands to force people to buy and use Office rather than a third-party office suite like OpenOffice.org or AppleWorks:
Thompson notes that the rights management features will only work in the new professional version of Office for now. But this will be little consolation for millions of people who exchange files with Office users who use professional versions of the software suite. This is obviously horrible news for people who don't want to use Microsoft's buggy software that is as much an invitation to hackers as it is useful for getting work done. And it stands to put Microsoft, which has been declared by U.S. courts to be operating as a monopoly in the system software market, in the driver's seat even more than it has been in the past. The question is, why do we in the computer using public allow this to happen? No one will be surprised to see this coming, and even though this sort of thing would be considered a crime along the lines of extortion in the real world, so far no one has taken real steps to stop the strong arm tactics of the pencil necked geeks in Redmond. Too many just start goose stepping along in a ludicrous "If I can't beat 'em, I may as well join 'em" attitude. Enough. Discuss
Opus back in the comics Opus returns! - A piece of wonderful news: Opus the Penguin Back In the Funny Business. Half-page and Sundays only, Berke Breathed is coming back in November with a new strip, "Opus." That's one of the few things that could actually get me to subscribe to a dead-tree edition of a newspaper again. [Backup Brain] This is excellent news!
How to tell when someone uses Radio Userland One of the easiest ways to tell if someone's web site is built and maintained using Radio Userland is to read their RSS feed in a newsreader like NetNewsWire. If you suddenly see 20-30 ancient posts showing up in NetNewsWire as new posts you can be assured that the feed is coming from a Radio weblog. Just shrug it off and offer condolences for the person still using Radio in all of its bugginess. The reason those old posts show up as new - the user was having problems getting his or her posts to actually show up on the blog, so the user republished the feed. When I used Radio last year I hated this behavior, which was one of the many niggling things that drove me away from Radio... My condolences this morning to John Robb and Ken Bereskin. May your new posts actually be new...
A free digital photo seminar from Apple Apple offers free online digital photography seminar - Apple is offering a free online seminar on how to "break through the barriers to digital photography success." Targeted to professional photographers, the seminar is designed to show how digital photography provides ways to deliver new content and gain greater control over the finished product "while saving time and money." Participants will also learn how to offer customers keepsakes such as DVD portfolios. [MacCentral]
Adam Engst reviews Eudora 6 TidBITS publisher Adam Engst reviews the latest version of Eudora in Eudora 6.0 Slams Spam, Concentrates Content. As you would expect, it's a great and thorough review. Adam just misses one point - Eudora 6 still looks like crap on Mac OS X. It is just very functional crap...
Power Mac G5 coverage on Macintouch Macintouch offers a review of the Power Mac G5 today along with extensive benchmark results...
RSS vs. email Deep thoughts on RSS vs. Email - Chuq Von Rospach has been thinking hard about the pros and cons of replacing email with RSS. Getting beyond the all-or-nothing view of things, Chuqui is trying to sift out the various modes of usage for email as a medium and then determine where RSS is a suitable replacement. Both of the entries linked above are lengthy, carefully written pieces that sum up the current state of RSS vs. email thinking and add to the discussion, well worth the time required to read carefully. Have at it! [Lockergnome's RSS Resource] My take: I have yet to see anything that leads me to think RSS could really replace email. It is a great idea for email newsletter publishers, but for person-to-person communication RSS is just too much work compared to writing and sending a simple email. On the topic of email, I am finally spending some time testing SpamSieve. So far it seems quite useful. Still digging though...
iClip 2.5 adds mutliple clipboards iClip 2.5 productivity software for Mac OS X released - Inventive, Inc. has announced the release of iClip version 2.5 productivity software for Apple Macintosh computers with OS X. iClip is a multiple clipboard/scrapbook application designed to improve user efficiency and productivity for many computing tasks. iClip works as a small window that floats above all other applications, allowing easy access to multiple bins that store clippings that users place into them. Clippings can be text, pictures, URLS, sounds, etc. iClip helps... [MacDailyNews]
Apple updates Java for Mac OS X Java 1.4.1 is a 39.7MB update to the Java frameworks for Mac OS X, available through the Software Update panel. Here are the details from Apple's release notes:
Installing the update will require a restart. Let's talk about Java 1.4.1, what it has fixed and what you are seeing: Discuss
BBEdit's Version Control BBEdit Version Control - John Gruber: "If you're a Web developer, even minor errors -- a simple typo in your code, for example -- can create major problems. But you can easily track down and reverse such mistakes by setting up version-control software. This powerful tool records all changes to a document and lets you quickly step back to an earlier version -- even if you've changed and saved the file many times since then. Just think of it as your personal time machine." [Studio Log]
Microsoft concerns over fair competition? Come on... OK, if this quote from a Reuters story on CNET today isn't the height of computer humor, I don't know what is:
So, let me get this straight. Microsoft has been ruled by the U.S. Supreme Court to operate in the computer operating system market as a monopoly, which by definition means that it has unfair advantages over any competitor. So, when a trio of Asian countries state that they are out to build an operating system to replace Windows, which would be based on Linux, then the stuffed shirts in Redmond cry foul? Sorry, Billy Gates, it doesn't work that way... You can read the whole Reuters story on CNET right here: Microsoft: Asia not playing fair over OS
The patch that doesn't It looks like Micosoft may have fumbled with a recent patch to Internet Explorer, according to security experts:
The end of the article offers a nugget of advice: "Concerned users can disable active scripting on their browsers to mitigate the vulnerability until Microsoft updates the patch."
iView MediaPro 2.0 released iView MediaPro 2.0 is the latest incarnation of the professional image and multimedia management tool from iView Multimedia. The new version offers a drag-and-drop organizer, a new iView catalog reader for sharing catalogs and slide shows, enhanced image editing, a PDF maker, better slide show and QuickTime movie support, and more. iView MediaPro 2 sells for $160, and the upgrade version is $72 for license holders of iView MediaPro or Roxio Toast, or $128 for users of iView Media... For digital photographers, I should note that iView MediaPro 2.0 now offers support for raw format images from Canon, Nikon, Kodak, Minolta, Fuji, and Olympus cameras.
Buzz building behind VoodooPad I spent a few minutes over the weekend taking a first look at VoodooPad, a new Mac OS X application for information organization. It looks like others are looking at the program as well:
Kudos to Apple regarding USB 2.0 Apple deserves some credit along with the announcements today of the revised iMac line in the fact that the machines now include USB 2.0 ports. Apple stumbled and delayed adding USB 2.0 ports to its computers in what was largely seen as a way to promote its own high-speed FireWire connections over the second-generation USB ports, but now that there are so many low cost peripherals with USB 2.0 ports it didn't make sense for Apple to penalize its customers by omitting the faster USB ports from new Apple products. The addition of USB 2.0 may have been grudgingly made, but it was the right decision...
New iMacs and iPods, but still no new PowerBooks Once again proving that it can fool the rumor mills, Apple announced revised iMacs and iPods this morning. The iMacs still use G4 processors, but now they run at up to 1.25 GHz, use faster 333 MHz DDR memory, offer USB 2.0, and have faster graphics capabilities. The 15-inch iMac now runs at 1 GHz while the 17-inch iMac has the 1.25 GHz processor. The new iMacs also support AirPort Extreme wireless networking at can include optional built-in Bluetooth. The 15-inch iMac will now sell for $1,299, while the 17-inch iMac will cost $1,799. Each configuration ships with an 80 GB hard disk, DVD-ROM/CD-RW drive, two FireWire 400 and three USB 2.0 ports, Apple Pro Speakers, and more. Apple also announced new iPods, now including a 20GB and a 40GB model. Apple says the new 40GB model can hold up to 10,000 songs. The iPod lineup now includes a 10GB model for $299, a 20GB model for $399, and a 40GB model for $499. Apple discontinued the 15GB and 30GB models. What Apple failed to announce was any change in its current PowerBook lineup. Although many PowerBook users and potential PowerBook users have been waiting months for a revised 15-inch PowerBook G4, it appears they will have to wait a bit longer before the Titanium PowerBook has its features brought in line with the 12-inch and 17-inch PowerBook models...
A 12-inch PB and Bluetooth phones 3650 and a 12-inch is a Mac site devoted to using a 12-inch PowerBook G4 and a Nokia 3650 phone with Bluetooth. I found the site through Technorati...
From the Never Let the Truth Get in the Way file Mitch Ratcliffe makes an excellent point in the moments leading up to President Bush's speech asking for $87 billion to help pay part of the bill for his pet war in Iraq:
Rain! Fall officially hit Puget Sound country today, with widespread rain in Western Washington for the first time in months! Today also marks the first day in more than two months that temperatures are not surpassing 70 degrees. Ahhhhh...comfort!
Site offers in-depth review of Toast Titanium 6 IT.Enquirer offers a multi-page review of Toast Titanium 6, including screen shots. The site rates the newest version of the CD and DVD burning tool a nine out of ten...
Notable software releases Here is a quick summary of notable software releases from this week, Sept. 1-5, as noted on Macupdate.com:
The Bush Administration on why WMD doesn't matter A quick political note via The Agonist:
Yep, it is time for some measure of honesty in politics. Tell it like it is, not like you want to spin it...
Photo Tools for image management Photo Tools designed for image management, manipulation - Microspot has announced Photo Tools, a US$79 set of tools designed for organizing, storing, editing and printing photos and digital images. The solution is compatible with Mac OS X and Mac OS 7-9.x. It's also designed to complement all versions of Apple's iPhoto. [MacCentral]
A sudden printing problem with OpenOffice.org Linux Journal takes a look at the Writer portion of OpenOffice.org today in Breaking the word processor curve. The article opens with: "OpenOffice.org Writer isn't a replacement for anything; it's simply a better piece of software." There is definitely a learning curve involved with using OOo, and for Mac OS X users there is also the need to get past the unfinished look of the graphical user interface when compared to the look, feel, and behavior of true Mac OS X applications. But despite these GUI issues, OOo has proven to be a great alternative to Microsoft Office v.X for me as I write a book, review Word and Excel files sent to me in the course of my other work, and do other work that would normally require that I spend $300-plus to buy Office. My switch to OOo is not without its nagging problems though. Over the last two days, for reasons that I can't yet determine, I cannot print any document I open with OOo. I have had printing issues with OOo in the past, since it cannot print to my Samsung laser printer, but I had always been able to print to my Canon S900 inkjet printer until it stopped working two days ago. Can anyone offer any insight for how to troubleshoot this problem with OOo? Discuss
GyazMail 1.1.1 released GyazMail 1.1.1 is the latest release of the shareware email client from Goichi Hirakawa. This version adds enhancements in how the program notifies users of new email, the option for BinHex decoding of attachments, and improved Japanese decoding, among other enhancements.
Question: Why would dialup users buy .Mac? I know that many people find Apple's .Mac service a useful addition to their Mac OS X user experience, but I have a pointed question for those huge numbers of Mac users who connect to the Net over a dial up connection: Why would you purchase a .Mac membership?
A quick tip for those installing Toast 6 Accelerate Your Macintosh offers some good advice for anyone installing the update to Toast 6 on their Macs - Run repair permissions after installing... It is generally a good idea to run the Repair Permissions portion of Apple's Disk Utility after every major installation you do under Mac OS X. Yes, it is easy to forget and easy to just skip it, but running this utility may help you avoid quirky behavior down the road...
Virus protection and Mac OS X Macintouch offers some great reader feedback on a question about the need to use anti-virus programs with Mac OS X. The long and short of the story:
My take on these comments is simple: Even though you are using Mac OS X and things are safe today, it is prudent to keep paying attention to the situation and to take steps to protect yourself moving forward. For me, protecting myself is as simple as paying attention and using common sense - not clicking attachments that seem fishy, etc. I am not currently running anti-virus software on my Mac but that could change if Mac OS X becomes a major target for virus and worm creators in the future. Meanwhile, I stay informed, and I plan to keep following virus issues related to Mac OS X in Mac Net Journal as things develop in the future. Stay tuned!
Working with AirPort passwords Mac OS X Hints offers a useful note today about How to use a hex key/password on AirPort...
OmniOutliner boosted to version 2.2.4 OmniOutliner 2.2.4 is a maintenance release of the outliner from The Omni Group in Seattle. This 1.6 MB update offers an updated French localization as well as a return of the Scripts Menu to the menu bar...
Apple offers Backup 2, StickyBrain for .Mac members Backup 2 is the latest beta version of Apple's backup utility for .Mac members, and it can be downloaded today from the Mac.com Web site as one of the latest perks for those paying $99 a year for .Mac services. Apple is also offering free copies of StickyBrain 2, the snippet keeper and lightweight organizer application from Chronos that normally sells for $40. The takeaway with these new enhancements for .Mac members: Apple is jockeying to win a few more renewals from the hundreds of thousands of .Mac users who purchased their first year of services for half price and who now need to weigh the benefits of .Mac membership with the $99 a year service fees. Apple has not offered numbers for the percentage of .Mac members who are renewing for a second full year of service. Discuss
A Mac, a camera, and a telescope Jeff Adkins writes on Low End Mac today about using a Mac in combination with a digital camera and a 10-inch telescope, along with some useful shareware, to capture meaningful images of Mars. If you are a science geek looking for another way to use your Mac, this could be a fun read...
Eudora 6 released Eudora 6 for Mac OS X is for sale now. It includes SpamWatch, Eudora's built in spam filtering system that works pretty well in my experience, but users have to buy the full version of the program to use SpamWatch. The spam filtering features are not offered for those using the program in the ad sponsored or lite versions. Eudora 6 costs $49.95...
Office for Windows riddled with more risks CNET details the latest updates that every user of Microsoft Office for Windows should download and install now to avoid more serious computer security problems. The problems affect recent versions of Office that support VBS scripting, including the 2002, 2000, and 97 versions. Users are urged to visit the Office Update site...
Microsoft Office v.X Updater 10.1.5 Microsoft Office v.X Updater 10.1.5 is supposed to fix stability issues with PowerPoint, Excel, and Visual Basic in the office suite. The updater is a 6.1 MB download...
New wireless mice and keyboards from Microsoft Microsoft introduces new wireless mice, keyboards - Microsoft Corp. on Wednesday announced new wireless peripherals that will go on sale before the end of the month. The mice and keyboards boast new scroll wheels and wireless optical technologies. They're compatible with Mac OS X (10.1 and higher). [MacCentral]
Still bullish on email? Columnist Julio Ojeda-Zapata says he is still bullish on email. Michael Fraase isn't so sure, and I would agree with Michael that email as we once knew it as a great way to communicate through means such as email lists and newsletters is quickly dying...
Should OpenOffice.org be called VaporOffice? |
