The performance gap between PowerPC and x86 is "not a myth," according to Mac and Windows gaming developer John Carmack, cofounder of id Software. Mr. Carmack made the comment at Slashdot in response to a discussion there about Friday’s Devil’s Advocate column by John Kheit at The Mac Observer. According to Mr. Carmack, the compilers…
Mac
The Devil's Advocate: Mac Punditry: Deranged and Dumb on any Processor
I wonder if the Atlantic ocean has as vast a collection of spineless jellyfish as seemingly comprises significant portions of the Macintosh user base and its ass-kissing punditry. With far too few exceptions, this is a group that just days ago was smugly debunking, dismantling, and railing against the notion of Intel processors in their Macs, only…
Mac Developers Mixed on Intel Switch
Macintosh developers at this weeks Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco have mixed feelings on whether the switch to Intel processors by Apple Computer will ultimately be a win for the company and software companies, two published reports said Tuesday. “It’s certainly the right decision in the long run. In the short term, there’s the…
TMO Reports - Merrill Analyst: Mac Sales "Accelerating"; Predicts iTMS Subscription Service in Next Year
Merrill Lynch analyst Steven Milunovich issued a research note Monday reiterating his ‘Buy’ rating on Apple Computer (AAPL), saying Mac sales are “accelerating” and that the iPod maker would probably start a subscription music service like Yahoo’s within a year. Having recently met with Apple management in Cupertino, Calif., Mr. Milunovich said Apple’s PC differentiation…
Dvorak Thinks Switch to Intel Could Boost Mac Market Share
Mr. Dvorak seems to assume, however, that Appleis decision would enable Mac OS X to run on garden variety WinTel machines, saying: “The Mac OS could be useable on more machines in the long term. You could take a PC as it now exists and use the Mac OS on it. That would increase the…
Lawsuit Tries to Stop Cobb County iBook Program
As first reported by MacDailyNews, an Associated Press article published on Wednesday revealed that former Cobb County commissioner Butch Thompson has filed suit to stop the roll-out of iBook computers to teachers and students at pilot schools in the Georgia district. Even though voters in 2003 approved a 1% sales tax to fund the program,…
TMO Reports - Home Builder Lennar Includes iBook, AirPort with New Houses
Home builder Lennar Corp. has announced a unique amenity for the houses it’s building in six of the neighborhoods in the Bressi Ranch community located in Carlsbad, Calif. Every dwelling comes with a 14-inch iBook, an AirPort Base Station, AirPort Express, a three-year AppleCare support package and a 5.1 surround sound stereo tuner with speakers…
Cobb County Georgia iBook Program Begins This Week
The Cobb County, Ga. School District’s US$70 million laptop program is scheduled to start this week with teachers in four pilot schools receiving their computers and training, according to Atlanta TV station WXIA-TV. Being called by Apple “one of the largest ever one-to-one computer learning initiatives” in the U.S., the contract calls for the initial…
Mac Gaming News - Feral to Bring Colin McRae Rally 2005 to the Mac
During a Q&A with Feral Interactive president David Stephen, MacGamer.com owner Corey Tamas received an intriguing scoop: the publisher will bring Colin McRae Rally 2005 to the Mac sometime during the next six months. Mr. Stephen told Mr. Tamas: “While rally driving is a sport that’s probably better known in Europe and Asia than it…
Power Mac G5s run Microsoft's XBox 360 Demos at E3
"Itis an alpha kit, it has the Power PC processor. Itis the closes thing to whatis in the console. Itis the best source," Mario Rodriguez, a Microsoft employee on hand at Microsoftis Xbox 360 booth at E3, told TMO. The Xbox 360 has long been known to use a special version of the G5 processor,…
The Back Page - Don't Do Business with Mac-Pro in Campbell, CA
Don’t do business with Mac-Pro, an Apple VAR in Campbell, CA. Why? Because they were rude to me, did a terrible job of working on my PowerBook, and the owner wouldn’t take care of the situation to my satisfaction. That’s right, I am using my column to complain about customer service. The story starts with…
Norton AntiVirus 10.0 for Mac Released
Version 10.0 includes a new Global Threat Assessment dashboard to provide users with an overview of current virus threats, a new Contextual Menu support feature and custom SafeZones. The Global Threat Assessment dashboard provides the status of local computer virus protection and an overview of global threats allowing users to quickly and efficiently monitor their…
MicroNet's miniMate Mimics Mac mini Look, Offers Hard Drive, Extra Ports
The miniMate ships with a seven-inch FireWire 400 cable and a nine-inch USB 2.0 cable. Its power supply is external, allowing it to cool down without the need for a noisy fan. The miniMate is supposed to sit under the Mac mini, given Appleis warning that anything placed on top of the diminutive computer could…
TMO Reports - Macs Help 'Webisodic' Show Break New Ground
LAS VEGAS — Dan Myrick, who co-created the hit low-budget film The Blair Witch Project, looks forward to breaking boundaries once again with his “Webisodic” series The Strand, which relied heavily on Macs during production of its first three episodes. He was at this week’s National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) trade show to promote the…
Nine Inch Nails Releases Song as GarageBand File For Mac Users
O n Friday, April 15th, Nine Inch Nailsi Trent Reznor gave his fans a free song, and made it a GarageBand file to boot. “The Hand That Feeds” is an advance single for Nine Inch Nailsi forthcoming album, With Teeth, which is due to be released on May 5th, 2005. The single is currently available…
Walt Mossberg: Fed Up with Windows Security Problems? Go Mac
W indows users who are tired of the endless hassles of security problems should dump Windows, and move to the Mac platform. These words of wisdom were brought to us by Walt Mossberg of the Wall Street Journal in an article titled "Digital Crime Wave" that rounds up all of his most-recommended guards against Windows…
Cook Reiterates PowerBook G5 "the Mother of All Thermal Challenges"
Just like he was asked last January in a similar analyst quarterly conference call, Tim Cook, Executive Vice President of Worldwide Sales and Operations, would not elaborate, but repeated his earlier comments saying, “I havenit changed my view on that.” Various Mac news and rumors sites — such as the French site MacPlus — have…
Walt Mossberg Recommends Macs Once More
W alter Mossberg heartily recommends Apple systems in his Spring Buyeris Guide, the feature in this weekis Personal Technology column for The Wall Street Journal. “If youire in the market for a desktop PC this spring, thereis good news and bad news. The good news is that you can buy a lot of computer for…
Improve Your Mac mini's AirPort Performance
Q uickerTek has brought its 5.5dBi wireless antenna boosting option to the Mac mini, which improves the systems AirPort reception. QuickerTek says its omnidirectional solution allows the Mac mini to reach access points up to three times further away. A three-foot coax cable comes with the antenna for easy mounting. The new design does not…
Frameline - A Power Mac G5 at Ground Zero of Austin Art Blaze
A few months ago, Kyle Fuller considered himself a platform switch hitter, using both Mac and PCs in his production company, SlamChannel, offices. Kyle felt indifferent towards either system, using both to accomplish the various needs of the multi-media outfit. That all changed, however, when his company’s main project was saved by a Power Mac…
Servers, Cellular & Pics on Inside Mac
The show, hosted by Scott Sheppard, features an interview with Random Digression columnist Dave Loebig, giving his take on the latest issues and e-mail heis getting from Mac users, Elgatois Tina Kulow on their products that can turn a Mac into an all-purpose entertainment center, Laura Burstein talking with Mac Mercis Rick Yaeger on how…
Using Your PowerBook as an Input Device
I t is possible to use your PowerBook as an input device, according to author Amit Singh, who is working on a book about Mac hardware. In the more recent revision to the PowerBook line, Apple Computer added something called the Apple Motion Sensor (AMS), a technology makes it possible for your PowerBook to lock…
Apple Acknowledges Trackpad Woes on New PowerBooks
A pple has acknowledged issues with the trackpads on new PowerBook G4 models and has posted a tech note with a workaround. “If you find that the trackpad cursor on your PowerBook G4 (12-inch 1.5GHz), PowerBook G4 (15-inch 1.67/1.5GHz), or PowerBook G4 (17-inch 1.67GHz) temporarily stops tracking or behaves erratically, try the following steps to…
Tracking Issues With Apple's New PowerBooks
T he troubleshooting gurus at MacFixIt have put together a special report that details the most widespread issues reported with Appleis new PowerBook G4 models, as well as some workarounds. The most common problem lies with the new trackpad, with many users reporting problems with tracking speed and clicking. Another problem involves oversensitive ambient light…