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“Microsoft should abandon Zune and follow Apple’s strategy to try to make its presence felt in the high-growth smartphone sector,” commented Tradition Capital Management vice president George Kurian, according to MarketWatch.Overall interest in the device doesn’t seem to be very high, either. “The market reception for Zune is so disappointing that many retailers have even…

Storyist is the sixth novel (and screenplay) writing application covered in this series of reviews. Storyist, for many writers, may be just the kind of application they were expecting. A major focus is on the creation and linking of the a novel’s elements, plot outline, characters and settings. Storyist requires mastery to exploit fully, but…

While the deal isn’t as far reaching as it could have been, it still signals a big win for Microsoft. The company now has control over a much more credible search engine, and it can potentially become a bigger threat to Google — the reigning king of Internet search dollars.In exchange, Yahoo! gets to partner…

In the press release he sent out to commemorate the event, he noted that in 1999, 70 percent of users played games over dial-up modems connected to computers equipped with 128MB of RAM and 8GB of hard drive space. Age of Empires II was, and continues to be, the most consistently-played game. In addition, he…

In the research note obtained by The Mac Observer, Mr. Reitzes wrote, “We believe the 3Q09 report was very strong with solid demand for AAPL products combined with solid execution.” “Most importantly,” he added, “Apple continues to demonstrate how its unique business model can deliver industry-high margins over the short & long-term. We look forward…

If there was ever any doubt that Apple is on the right course with its notebook philosophy, which is most of its Mac sales, this Earnings Report removed that doubt. Apple sold 2.6 million Macs, just shy of its record of 2.611 million sold just before the economic collapse in the fall of 2008. Today,…

The Q3 also features a 2.4-inch LCD display that includes audio level meters, battery indicator, time elapsed and video display. It accepts up to a 32 GB SDHC card allowing up to 16 hours of movie making. Users can upload videos to their computer with the USB cable for immediate editing and sharing.  Powered by…

Judge Alsup, the Judge overseeing Apple’s case against Psystar in northern California, granted Psystar’s request to replace Carr & Farrell with Camara & Sibley on July 16. Camara & Sibley, along with their local representative, David V Welker, agreed to take on the case even though it has already progressed well into the discovery stage.An…

Microsoft is said to be ready to pay several billion dollars in exchange for Yahoo!’s search advertising business. Microsoft has also agreed to make additional payments back to Yahoo!, too.Considering the rocky road Microsoft and Yahoo! have taken to get to this point, there’s no guarantee that the deal won’t fall apart at the last…

On July 20, 1969, Apollo 11’s Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were the first men to set foot on the moon.Serial numbers for the Mac versions of the applications will be available at Carina Software’s Web site, and the free iPhone and iPod touch versions SkyVoyager and SkyGazer will be available at Apple’s App Store.

Apple’s senior executives like to believe that there is no value in reading the Mac and iPhone related Websites, and they tell their staff that. After all, Apple employees are too busy to dabble in rumors and speculation. So it’s just a time waster. Or is it? I was in an Apple retail store recently,…

“An annual decline in unit shipments is highly unusual in the PC market,” Matthew Wilkins, principal analyst, compute platforms for iSuppli, said in a statement. “Even in weak years, PC unit shipments typically rise by single-digit percentages.” For perspective, he added, “The last decline — in 2001 — was a 5.1 decrease in unit shipments…

Take even a simple device, like the smoke detector in my hallway. A few months ago, I needed to replace its battery. I spent over thirty minutes trying to get the cover off without breaking the case. I gave up and called the alarm company that had installed the device. Their service tech couldn’t figure…

At issue are two board members shared between the two companies — Google CEO Eric Schmidt and Genentech CEO Arthur D. Levinson — and Section 8 of the Clayton Antitrust Act. That Section limits the amount of information that can be shared by directors of two competing companies in an effort to keep companies from…

“For more than two years now I have been eagerly anticipating the day when I could finally write these words: the royalty crisis is over!,” wrote Tim Westergren, founder and current Chief Strategy Officer of Pandora, wrote in a blog post on his company’s site. He added, “Webcasters, artists, and record labels have reached a…

RAGE SERank 2.0 is priced at US$79.95 and is available at the RAGE Web site.

The analyst made the comments in a research note obtained by The Mac Observer. In that note he reiterated his “Overweight” rating for the stock (versus a “Neutral” rating for the sector) and maintained his US$173 price target. “Apple iPhone 3GS sales still look solid now more than two weeks after the initial launch,” he…

So far, investigators haven’t been able to track down the suspect or find a motive for the shooting, and the agency is looking for anyone with information about the incident.The suspect was described as “African American male in his 20’s or 30’s, 5’7” to 6′ with a medium build, and possible facial hair. He was…

According to Pystar’s filing, “To remain in bankruptcy, [it] will need to expend significant time and effort, and incur substantial fees and costs.” In essence, the company claimed it can’t afford to restructure its debt and deal with the courts at the same time.An attorney familiar with these types of cases told TMO that Psysatr’s…

Many viewers were disturbed by the ad and were left with a bad taste in their mouths. The Redmond-based company, however, told CNET that it listened to customer feedback and took action.”We created the OMGIGP video as a tongue-in-cheek look at the InPrivate Browsing feature of Internet Explorer 8, using the same irreverent humor that…

“As you all may already be aware, in late May Psystar filed for Chapter 11 protection. Although this was critical to our continued daily operations, we now are ready to emerge and again battle Goliath,” the company said.Psystar’s new Open(7) Mac clone.After the PC maker began selling computers with Mac OS X pre-installed, Apple filed…