Psystar Hit with New Discovery Deadlines

Apple and Psystar are currently fighting a legal battle over whether or not companies can sell PCs with Mac OS X installed. Apple asserts that any company wanting to sell Mac clones needs permission, and the Cupertino-based company has no plans to let companies sell PCs with Mac OS X installed. Psystar claims that Apple…

CopyWrite for Writers has the Write Stuff

If the other major apps for writers previously reviewed are aircraft carriers, and Jer’s Novel Writer is a destroyer, then CopyWrite is a frigate. Lightweight, simple, focused, and devoid of anxiety inducing complexities that can stymie the creative writing process. There are apps for writers that try to do everything: manage time lines, enable rich…

Intego Releases Update to VirusBarrier X5

This new version of the computer security program offers enhancements to the program’s logs, and improves performance for several of the program’s functions. The update includes the following changes: Logs now record more events: start and stop of real-time scanner, virus definition updates, and cancelled archive scansLog entries can be copied to the clipboard, and…

Amazon Unveils Kindle DX Ebook Reader

Like the smaller 6-inch display Kindle 2, the Kindle DX includes a built-in keyboard, wireless downloads via the 3G Amazon Whispernet network, and text-to-speech support.Amazon is targeting education and research with its new Kindle model. Educational book publishers Cengage Learning, Pearson, and Wiley have already committed to offer text books  through the online Kindle Store,…

Psystar Offers Weak Response to Apple Discovery Motion

Apple filed its motion to compel with the court after what it saw as a disappointing deposition hearing with Psystar’s CEO, Rudy Pedraza. Mr. Pedraza, according to Apple, “stated approximately 90 times during the deposition that he did not know or recall answers to basic questions about Psystar’s sales, its general costs and profits, its…

Atlona HDPiX Displays Internet Video on HDTV in 720p

For those who intend to connect a Mac to their HDTV and also preserve HDCP for protected content, the Atlona USB to HDMI converter provides a very simple solution. It’s about the size of a pack of cigarettes, accepts audio + USB from the Mac and outputs 720p via HDMI. The number of different ways…

On Spudgers, Dust and iPhone Repairs

Why should you care what a spudger is? Glad you asked. Turns out that, if you want to do any hardware repairs or maintenance on an iPhone (such as replacing a cracked front panel or a dead battery), you’ll want this tool. Apparently, a flat-head screwdriver won’t cut it. While most people will leave such…

Apple Adds Top Graphics Exec to its Corporate Ranks

After ATI was acquired by AMD, Mr. Drebin served as CTO of AMD’s Graphics Product Group, but left in January of 2008. He’s Linked-In profile shows that he had some downtime before joining Apple, which The Inquirer pointed out could well have served as non-compete time. His Linked-In profile shows that he’s currently a “Senior…

Blizzard Releases World of Warcraft 3.1.1 Bug Fix Patch

The patch can be downloaded by simply logging into the World of Warcraft client. The update is free, and the full version of the latest expansion pack can be purchased at Amazon.com for US$31.49. The patch notes in full: General In order to address issues with the dual talent specialization system, all players will have…

Looking Back at an Error From an Earlier Era

Okay, it’s not June yet and sixteen is not an especially noteworthy number. So why am I mentioning this? Because it is also the anniversary of what is probably the biggest miscalculation I ever made (aside from the money I put in the stock market last summer). Yes, the book went on to become a…

MobileMe Gets Live 24/7 Chat Support

The live tech support is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, so subscribers can “initiate a realtime help session with a MobileMe support agent.”MobileMe is priced at US$99 a year and includes online file storage and data backup, AddressBook and iCal syncing, Computer and iPhone and iPod touch syncing, email, and more.

New Apple Web Ad: "PC. Easy as 1-23"

In the ad, PC is showing a banner that says, “PC. Easy as 1-23,” which Mac assumes means easy as, 1, 2, 3, but PC explains that are actually 23 easy steps that are needed. PC. Easy as 1-23 9to5Mac.com first noticed the ad, which has also been posted to YouTube (above). The full list…

Apple Revises 10-Q Pay Votes, Passes Say on Pay

The “Say on Pay” proposal, or Shareholder Proposal Number Regarding Advisory Vote on Compensation, was originally reported as defeated because shareholder abstention votes had been accidentally counted as “No” votes. According to Apple, “the mistake was due to human error, which Apple regrets.”The reversal means that shareholders will be able to vote on executive pay…

Jobs Trying to Demolish Woodside House Again

The organization successfully stopped the demolition in 2006 after claiming Mr. Jobs and the town of Woodside failed to produce documentation that showed the house would be more expensive to preserve than to replace. According to the San Jose Mercury News, the new demolition filing shows it would cost over US$13 million to renovate the…

SEC Deposition Suggests Steve Jobs Felt Underappreciated

Mr. Jobs’s testimony was part of the SEC’s investigation of then-General Counsel Nancy Heinen, whom the SEC accused of backdating the 10 million option grant to Mr. Jobs. Ms. Heinen eventually settled with the SEC, paid a fine, and was not required to admit any wrongdoing. Mr. Jobs himself was cleared of any wrongdoing. At…

On Apple and Java and Oracle

First, the Java community is very large. My wife attended Java One last year and reported that it dwarfs WWDC by a considerable amount. There are, I’m guessing, billions of lines of code of Java in place all over the planet, seriously eclipsing C#. That creates a community that can bring to bear considerable pressure…

The Captain is on the Bridge

Some functions are strongly coupled and some are not. A significant rise in unemployment, for example, has domino effects. Add a little bit of slant from the media to get our attention, and things look pretty bad. There is no doubt now. Apple’s brand and products have weathered the worst recession in memory. Tim Cook…

Steve Jobs Named to CEA's 2009 Hall of Fame

The trade association will hold a Hall of Fame dinner and ceremony during its industry forum that will take place October 18-21 in Phoenix. It is recognizing Mr. Jobs because he “helped to create one of the first commercially successful PCs, the Macintosh (Mac),” the organization said in a press release. Other 2009 Hall of…

Backblaze to the Rescue!

With no other backups, the data on all of these drives are gone forever as well. Now fully awake, I write a brief note to myself: “Do something so that this nightmare can never become a reality.” The question is: What exactly should I do? One possibility is to buy a safe and store a…

The Impact of the Oracle-Sun Deal on Apple

While Mr. Ellison was quoted as saying that Sun’s Solaris OS is “by far the best Unix technology on the market,” Anthony Frausto-Robledo wrote in a commentary for Architosh: “Sun could foster an interest in running Solaris in its own Virtualbox as an industry Unix workstation platform, giving Mac Pro customers even more options. Sun…

Jer's Novel Writer is a Memorable Writer's App

If the big and famous writing assistance apps, StoryMill and Scrivener, are like an aircraft carrier, a floating city with its own ZIP code and a flight deck, Jer’s Novel Writer is like a destroyer, fast, sleek and focused. A major feature is being a memory aid for the creative writer. Jer’s Novel Writer is…

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