Microsoft has been battling declining revenues exacerbated by the economic downturn that manifested in 2008. The company recently reported results for the September quarter that were ahead of analyst expectations, but the company felt the need to further react to its current business levels. In a statement released to PaidContent.org, Microsoft sounded much like Apple…
Bryan Chaffin
Bryan Chaffin is the cofounder of The Mac Observer and currently serves as Afternoon Editor. He has contributed to MacAddict and MacFormat magazines, and co-authored the last two updates of iPad and iPad Pro for Dummies with Bob “Dr. Mac” LeVitus and Ed Baig. You can find out more about Bryan at his personal site, GeekTells, or find his Twitter link below.
Articles by Bryan Chaffin
Lose/Lose Mac "Game" Deletes Your Files with Every Ship Destroyed
The game was found by Takashi Katsuki, one of Symantec’s engineers in Japan. In the video and screeshots below, Symantec shows what happens when you play the game with a Finder window open next to the game’s play screen. Mr. Katsuki said that the game promises consequences to destroying the alien ships, while alluding to…
Apple 10K Shows 70% Capital Expenditures Increase for 2010
“Apple’s recent 10K forecasts FY10 CapEx increasing a whopping ~70%Y/Y to US$1.9B from FY09’s $1.1B,” Mr. Cihra wrote. “And while we recognize this might just be typical Apple conservatism (e.g., FY09 capex originally seen +36% vs. ultimately reported +5%), we do believe Apply may be in motion on some strategic new infrastructure.” Mr. Cihra also…
With Help from Free Concert Tickets, 2nd Microsoft Store Opening Gets 1,000 People
The newspaper reported that fans of Microsoft and Mr. Bieber began lining up on Wednesday, the day before the store opened. Many of those people wanted to be sure they were in time to get their hands on some of those free Justin Bieber tickets – this included one Mac user who there as a…
Apple Approves 102K Apps, 94K Available
Apple announced it had passed the 85K milestone on September 28th, and will likely announce the 100K milestone the day that number is available for actual download, which could be as early as the next three or four weeks at the current rate of progress. Google’s Android platform is #2 in terms of the number…
iTunes 9.0.2 Disables Palm Pre Sync
The site wrote, “Here we go again. Apple has updated iTunes to version 9.0.2 and Palm Pre sync is dead again using webOS 1.2.1, despite Palm’s Hurculean efforts to spoof nearly every aspect of USB identification known to mankind. As with previous breakages, iTunes does launch when you connect a Pre with Media Mode, but…
Marware Announces Sport Grip Case for iPod nano 5G
Features: Rugged, soft silicone protection Contains anti-microbial additive Docking port is safely covered until you need it Access to all buttons and ports INCLUDES: silicone skin, clear film protector, and microfiber cleaning cloth and Marware’s Lifetime Warranty Sport Grip is priced at US$19.99, and is available now from Marware. Sport Grip for iPod nano 5G
Phil Schiller: Apple's "Holiday Lineup Is Set"
The comment came during a briefing last week on the recently announced iMac and MacBook updates, but Gizmodo ran the quote today for those still holding out for some kind of big announcement still to come. In recent weeks, Apple has launched Snow Leopard, introduced new iPods, updated the iMac, updated the MacBook, and introduced…
BALDERDASH! There's Plenty of Room for iTablet & dedicated Ebook Readers!
I kid, or at least I exaggerate, but there’s something here that speaks to broader issues, and that’s the ongoing transformation of the book, newspaper, and magazine publishing businesses. For context, let’s back up a bit and look at the fundamental issues behind what both John and I are on about: Apple is rumored (or…
Amazon Plans Kindle Reader for Mac
Kindle is Amazon’s eBook platform. The company’s main vehicle for Kindle eBooks is its own Kindle device, a standalone E Ink-based device that can download books via a 3G connection, and display them. Amazon also has Kindle for iPhone, a free iPhone app that can sync with your Kindle account, browse books, and display them…
Rebellious Psystar Releases Snow Leopard Enabler for Generic Intel Hardware
The move comes in the midst of a legal battle between Psystar and Apple over the former’s selling of unauthorized Mac clones, and hot on the heels of an audacious move by Psystar to certify third party computers for Snow Leopard. The release of Rebel EFI, however, is a direct-to-consumer way for Psystar to profit…
Apple Updates Airport Extreme, & Time Capsule with Improved Performance
The company is being a bit shy on the specifics of their improvements, but the AirPort Extreme Web page said, “improvements in antenna design give you up to 50 percent better WiFi performance and up to 25 percent better range than with the previous-generation AirPort Extreme Base Station.” The price for AirPort Extreme base stations…
Apple Goes Buttonless on Multi-Touch Magic Mouse
“Apple is the Multi-Touch leader, pioneering the use of this innovative technology in iPhone, iPod touch and Mac notebook trackpads,” Philip Schiller, Apple senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing, said in a statement. “Apple’s Multi-Touch technology allows us to offer an easy to use mouse in a simple and elegant design.” The device is…
Apple Introduces LED-Backlit, Polycarbonate Unibody MacBook for $999
The unit houses a 2.26 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 2GB RAM, a 250GB hard drive, and the NVIDIA GeForce 9400M integrated graphics. The unit weighs 4.7 lbs. and has a non-skid bottom surface. “The new MacBook includes many of the great features found on the innovative MacBook Pro, such as an LED-backlit display,…
AAPL Jumps $6.86% to $202.55 in After Hours Trading
At one point, the stock surpassed its all-time high of $202.96 per share, which it hit in December of 2007, but profit taking pared the stock back to the levels mentioned above. *In the interest of full disclosure, the author holds a small share in AAPL stock that was not an influence in the creation…
Court Rules Ringtones Not Entitled to "Public Performance" Royalties
In the Summary Judgement, Judge Cote wrote, “Verizon does not recite, render, play, dance or act the ringtone either directly or by means of any device, and thus does not perform the music.” In other words, the judge ruled that Verizon, the main carrier in this particular suit, isn’t responsible for when and how a…
IDC Puts U.S. Apple's Mac Market Share at 9.4% for September Quarter
Overall, IDC said that unit sales increased in the U.S. by 2.5%, propelled in part by increased sales of cheap portable computers and back-to-school purchases. The firm also said that companies with a strong retail presence were the “main beneficiaries” of the increased sales. Apple, for instance, has a very strong retail presence in the…
Microsoft Warns Upgrading from XP to Windows 7 Could Take "Couple of Hours"
The video is hosted by Kellie Eickmeyer, a senior program manager on Microsoft’s Windows team, who tells us at the beginning that, “Installing Windows 7 on a computer running Windows XP requires more steps than a typical upgrade; and we’ll be honest; it could take a couple of hours.” Enjoy the full video for a…
Snow Leopard Guest Account Wiping Some Home Directories
The problem was first reported in Apple’s own discussion boards, with many users reporting the problem, though it received little initial attention from the press. For instance, user Rattymouse wrote in Apple’s support forums, “Add my parents to the list of people waxed by this bug. Brand new iMac, less than 1 month old, EVERYTHING…
Report: Dell to Bring Google android Phone to AT&T in 2010
Dell first announced its desire to enter the cell phone market in August, where it showed a device being developed by Chinese manufacturing partners. The Android-based product is, apparently, similar to the product first shown at that time, but it includes a camera, too. Android is Google’s smartphone OS that it licenses to companies like…
"Listen" by Tryad: First Non-Apple iTunes LP Release
Tryad is a Paris-based band that records in English, and iLongPlay began working on the iTunes LP release without consulting the band (the Creative Commons license specifically allows use of the material by other parties wishing to add to it or build upon it). The result includes an iTunes LP version of the album with…
U.S. Chamber Chastises Apple CEO for "Forfeiting Opportunity" on Climate Change
“I am sorry to learn of Apple’s resignation from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce,” Mr. Donohue wrote in a letter obtained by The Mac Observer. “It is unfortunate that your company didn’t take the time to understand the Chamber’s position on climate and forfeited the opportunity to advance a 21st century approach to climate change.”…
Adobe Offers Backdoor Flash Apps for iPhone Through Conversion
While a far cry from a Flash plugin for Apple’s Safari for iPhone, the announcement marks a step forward for Adobe’s Flash platform which is currently on the fast track to nowhere on the hottest mobile phone platform on the planet. When Adobe is able to bring it to market, the conversion tools in Flash…
Dell Releases Latitude Z: Laptop that Charges Wirelessly
The press release offers a litany of boring features aimed at business users, but it’s the wireless inductive charging option that caught our attention. The default charging option is via a standard external power supply, and indeed, that’s the only option that is available today. “In a couple of weeks,” Dell said that a wireless…