HP introduced updated versions of its Windows-based MediaSmart Servers on Monday with support for the Mac. The ex485 and ex487 both support Mac OS X 10.5 and let users back up their data and share an iTunes library over a local network. HP’s MediaSmart Server for the home. The ex485 and ex487 support Leopard’s Time…
Mac
Safari Books Online Rolls Out New Mac, Photoshop Titles
New Mac-related titles include the just announced AppleScript 1-2-3 by Sal Saghoian and Bill Cheeseman, along with Scott Kelby’s Mac OS X Leopard Killer Tips. Also announced, but not available until January 5, is Lesa Snider King’s Photoshop CS4: The Missing Manual. Safari Books Online subscriptions start at US$22.99 a month.
Want to Experience Mac History? Check Out Mactracker!
Most people know that Apple helped start a computing revolution, with the introduction of the Mac in 1984. Part of the intrigue of these early machines was the decidedly nonstandard hardware, much of which offered features beyond the competition. If you’d like to take a walk down memory lane, there has been much written about…
Analyst Offers Detailed Prediction of Apple Netbook for Macworld
In the research note obtained by The Mac Observer, Mr. Ezra predicts an Apple netbook with a closed structure and limited abilities that build on the software distribution model of the App Store. He expects such devices to carry a price point of US$599, which would place them well below Mac pricing, but at a…
Want Your Mac to Sleep Smart? Better Get SmartSleep!
With the increasing amount of RAM you can have in your Mac, this process can take a while. Fortunately, a handy little prefpane called SmartSleep can fine-tune this behavior to your liking. Smart Sleep Prefpane Smart Sleep allows you to choose one of four sleep modes. The Mac’s default behavior is sleep and hibernate, which…
Another Unauthorized Mac Cloner Appears: OpeniMac
OpeniMac, which was first spotted by Engadget, is promoting its computers under the tagline, “Prestaciones de Mac. Precio de PC,” which translates as “The Benefits of a Mac. The Price of a PC.” Accordingly, the company offers visitors to its site comparisons between its computers and Apple’s Mac mini and iMac. We should note, though,…
Blinking/Flickering Display Issue Discovered for Late 2008 MacBook Pro Notebooks
The issue seems to occur randomly, though some users have stated that the problem emerges during heavy workloads. In some cases, the problem may only occur once or twice, while for others the blinking occurs rapidly, accompanying significant system slowdowns. As to the source of the problem, the current thinking on the issue per the…
Apple Advocates Use of Multiple Antiviral Programs for Macs
Apple is now advising Mac owners to use “multiple antivirus utilities so that virus programmers have more than one application to circumvent, thus making the whole virus writing process more difficult.” The company specifically recommended Intego VirusBarrier X5 ($64.99 – Amazon), Symantec Norton Anti-Virus 11 for Macintosh ($31.99 – Amazon), and McAfee VirusScan for Mac.…
A MacBook Surprise: View-Protected Content
[Update: posted November 26, 2008] Apple released QuickTime 7.5.7 yesterday (currently available via Software Update for new MacBooks). It should now allow non-HD protected content to play on any external display. I guess I should have had a bit more faith in Apple.
Belkin Intros Switch-to-Mac USB Cable
Belkin announced the immediate availability of its new Switch-to-Mac Cable on Wednesday. The USB cable includes a built-in converter that handles the process of transferring PC settings and files from a Windows machine to a Mac. Belkin’s Switch-to-Mac Cable The Switch-to-Mac Cable supports Mac OS X 10.4 and 10.5, and Windows XP or Vista. It…
Sayonara to My TiBook
For the last, gasp, 90 months, my trusty PowerBook G4 Titanium has served me well. And it itis not done yet. In itis new life, itill be used by my church for presentations. That so-called “TiBook” has been an amazing computer. What was once a state of the art Apple Titanium notebook computer has survived…
Tom Bihn Announces 15.4" Checkpoint Flyer & Brain Cell Laptop Bags
The Checkpoint Flyer is a trifold laptop bag designed around recently released TSA guidelines for laptop bags. It, in theory, allows users to not have to unpack their laptops at airport security checks, unfolding in a way the TSA will (supposedly) approve (The company offers a third party video review of the bag that shows…
Podcast - Mac Geek Gab #174: Wireless Router Options, Backups, Listener Tips, and New Mac Setup
Listen Now: Download: or (AAC coming shortly courtesy of Michael Johnston of iPhoneAlley) Show notes for Mac Geek Gab Podcast For October 27th, 2008 You ask, John and Dave answer! This episode includes a discussion about setting up a new Mac, answers about which wireless router is best, options for backing up and migrating iApp…
Developing Cocoa Apps with MacRuby
Appleis Developer Connection recently posted a tutorial on developing Mac apps with MacRuby. The advantage of MacRuby is that it bypasses the technology of the Ruby-Cocoa bridge and sits directly on top of core Mac OS X technologies such as Objective-C runtime, the generational garbage collector, and CoreFoundation. As the tutorial explains, “Creating a bridge…
Absoft Releases Xcode Plug-in for Pro Fortran 10.2
Absoft announced the immediate availability of its Xcode 3.1 plug-in for the Absoft Pro Fortran v10.2 product on Wednesday. The Intel Mac only plug-in allows Xcode development of 32- and 64-bit Fortran applications. It is included free of charge with the Fortran distribution. The plug-in is being released as an alternative to Absoftis own multi-platform…
Podcast - Mac Geek Gab #173: Migrating to a New Mac, Remote Network Config, Slow Safari Loads and More!
Listen Now: Download: or (AAC coming shortly courtesy of Michael Johnston of iPhoneAlley) Show notes for Mac Geek Gab Podcast For October 20th, 2008 Dave and John offer some advice for folks migrating from one Mac to another, find an interesting solution for remotely configuring network settings, discussing reasons for slow Safari loads and even…
Traveling with my iPhone (and MacBook Pro) in Japan
I’ve just returned from my 16-day trip to Japan. I travelled from Tokyo to Kyoto and further west all the way to Hiroshima. With me throughout these adventures were my iPhone and MacBook Pro. Originally, I had planned to take only my iPhone, leaving my MacBook Pro at home (not wanting to carry around its…
Intego Advises to be On Guard for MacGuard
Intego, as part of its routine security alerts, has sent out an advisory warning Apple customers to be wary of a rogue security program called MacGuard. The software itself may be dangerous, and also may simply be harvesting credit card numbers, Intego said. The advisory said, in part: “Intego has discovered a rogue program claiming…
AMEX Digital Announces External Blu-ray Drive for Macs
its USB external Portable Super Multi-Drive for Intel Macs. The slot loading Blu-ray drive has the following features: Latest Technology can supports the 12cm and 8cm disc BD-RE/-R (SL) 2X Speed Writing / Reading BD-RE/-R (DL) 1X Speed Writing / 1.6X Speed Reading BD-ROM (SL / DL) 2X Speed Reading Writes DVD+R DL and DVD-R…
Apple Upgrades MacBook Air with Larger Storage Options
On Tuesday, Apple announced new storage options for the MacBook Air: a 4,200 RPM, 120 GB hard disk or a 128 GB SSD. The graphics were also upgraded to the NVIDIA 9400M which should run a little cooler than the previous graphics, according to Steve Jobs. The other specifications for the MacBook Air remain unchanged…
Apple Posts MacBook, Display Event Video
Steve Jobs talks MacBooks in Cupertino
Apple to Replace Defective MacBook Pro Video Chips
Apple has acknowledged that the NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT video processor found in some MacBook Pro models is defective and the company is offering to replace those chips for free. The defective chips have caused problems that include distorted or scrambled video, or no video on built-in or external displays. MacBook Pro models that are…
CW: One More Thing for the New MacBooks - Wireless USB
Last week, Seth Weintraub at Computerworld made a list of likely technologies to appear in the new Apple MacBooks. On Tuesday, he spotted something that caused him to add one more thing to the possible list: Wireless USB. What caught his eye was a photo uploaded to flickr which, while it may not be authentic,…