Apple has filed its response with Norway’s Consumer Council over concerns that iTunes Music Store licensing violates Scandinavian laws. According to Macworld UK, Apple submitted its response by the Council’s deadline, but the contents of the letter has not been released to the public. Norway claims that the terms and conditions for purchasing music from…
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Hidden Dimensions -- WWDC Secrets You'll Want to Know
"I get up every morning determined to both change the world and to have one hell of a good time. Sometimes, this makes planning the day difficult." – E.B. White Preparation Whether you’re preparing to attend Apple’s annual Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) for the first time or you’re doing an encore visit, or if you’re…
Kazaa Piracy Suit Settled
Sharman Networks Ltd., the makers of the Internet file sharing application Kazaa, settled a lawsuit on Thursday that accused it of allowing music and other copyright protected files to be transfered through its service without authorization. According to Forbes, the company agreed to pay more than US$115 million in penalties to music and movie companies,…
Microsoft Ready to Spend Time, Money to Catch iPod
Microsoft is ready to spend hundreds of millions of dollars over several years on its Zune products to catch up with the iPod. According to CNET News, Microsoft sees its music player and download service as a long-term investment. Robbie Bach, Microsoft’s president of the Entertainment and Devices Division, said “We think of this in…
TMO Reports - Apple Eliminates Forum Mods; Quality Drops, Rudeness & Piracy Increases
Apple Computer has terminated its Apple Discussions Hosts, the forum moderators that monitor and moderate the company’s user discussion boards. A source involved with Apple Discussions, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Mac Observer that management at Apple has questioned the value of the discussion boards. The end result, however, has been a marked…
French 'iPod Law' Declared Partly Unconstitutional
France’s Constitutional Council late Thursday released a report declaring unconstitutional some aspects of the country’s so-called “iPod law.” According to an International Herald Tribune article published on the New York Times’ Web site, the 1789 Declaration on Human Rights was referenced in the council’s conclusion that property protections were being violated by the law. Reporter…
Just a Thought - Mapple?
It has been common knowledge for sometime now that, while Redmond based Microsoft owns and/or controls much of the worldwide PC market, the industry looks to Apple for clues as to what’s next in the hardware and software world. From servers that serve powerfully yet quietly and with no fuss, to integrated applications and hardware…
Microsoft Pushing for Apple-style PC Designs
Microsoft is working to change the beige-box image most PCs suffer from by offering manufacturers its own how-to kit. According to BusinessWeek, Microsoft is advising PC makers to design cases with “accelerated curves” and “purposeful contrast.” The colors Microsoft’s kit calls for are obsidian (a shade of black) and ice (translucent white). The booklet included…
Apple IMC Sponsors Arab Student Film Project
Dr. Elias Abou-Rustom, General Manager of Arab Business Machine Ltd (The company that manages Apple IMC East), commented “Here we can display our support for a local community event; an experience that will provide our young with an opportunity to express themselves creatively, while learning a variety of skills that can eventually open more doors…
Analyst: 'iPod Halo Effect is Set to Resume'
The halo effect is a term that describes the influence something has over those who are near it. In the case of the iPod, many analyst believe that Windows users who are exposed to Appleis technology by owning the popular MP3 player will become more inclined toward considering a Mac as their next computer purchase.…
RouteBuddy GPS Software Released
Other features include searching Map data with FastSearch; recording live GPS data and tracking routes; exchanging RouteBuddy map data with other users; accessing Google Earth and Google Maps from within RouteBuddy; sharing Geocache and other location data; importing Geotagged URLs for major online map services; and adding metadata to maps and waypoints. RouteBuddy is a…
Author Produces History of Apple's Operating Systems
As part of his 1,680-page book Mac OS X Internals: A Systems Approach, author Amit Singh produced an in-depth history of Apple’s operating systems. Since he had to discard much of the material while whittling down the first chapter to a manageable length, Mr. Singh has decided to make “A Technical History of Apple’s Operating…
Apple to Launch Premium VAR Program
Garett Doyle, the managing director of Rapid Solutions, an Apple reseller, said that he thinks the premium VAR program will replace the Apple Center program. He commented “I think September will be about the right time for the appointment of the first Premium partners. Resellers that are willing to open stores in high-profile locations, or…
Analyst: Zune 'Akin to a Civil War'
Mr. Wu continued: “While the focus is on AAPL, we believe this move will likely have a much larger competitive impact on CREAF, SNDK, Sony, Samsung, iRiver, Archos, and others. We believe MSFTis action could also make partners think twice before deciding to work with MSFT on future projects. We view MSFTis entrance into portable…
Herb Greenberg Offers His Apple Reality Check
He says “So, whatis not to like [about the earnings report]? Plenty, especially when you consider that iPod unit sales, from a quarter ago, tumbled 5% — the second straight quarter of declines.” iPod sales are down for the second quarter in a row, and iPod revenue was down 13 percent. Compared to last year,…
30% of Canadian Employers Ban iPods at Work
Thirty percent of mid-to-large-sized businesses in Canada have banned MP3 players, including the iPod, at work because of data theft fears. That number comes from an Ipsos Reid poll conducted on behalf of Sun Microsystems of Canada. In addition, 49% of those surveyed also prevent personal laptops and USB key drives from entering the workplace.…
Apple Sells Parallels in Stores [Updated]
Parallels Desktop is proving to be a popular item at the New York SOHO Apple Store. It sold out the same day the software hit the shelves. Parallels Desktop lets you run additional operating systems, like Windows XP, on Intel-based Macs while Mac OS X is running. Appleis free Boot Camp software lets you boot…
iPod's Success Breeds Refurbishing, Repair Businesses
As the iPod’s popularity has soared, so have the fortunes of businesses dedicated to refurbishing and repairing the MP3 players. Some of them, such as PodSwap.com, allow customers to trade in used iPods — working or not — toward the price of new or refurbished iPod. In 18 months, PodSwap.com has taken in 5,000 iPods,…
80% of Survey Respondents Would Give Up iPod Over Wi-Fi
According to a survey released this week by Kelton Research, 80% of American adults between the ages of 18 and 64 would give up their iPod rather than forfeit wireless Internet access. Similarly, when faced with a choice between their home telephone and their home Wi-Fi network, 79% opted for the latter. Looking at demographics,…
Flat Panel Market Likely to Hit $6 Billion in 2006
The flat panel display (FPD) market for computers is expected to hit US$6 billion this year and $12 billion by 2009, according to the research firm DisplaySearch. As MacNewsWorld pointed out, that bodes well for Apple, which last week moved to an all-LCD computer lineup, a first in the industry. Robert Andreas, a senior director…
Keep Your Mailboxes Healthy
Appleis Mail does its best to keep track of your messages, but sometimes it takes a little maintenance to keep things running smoothly. Rebuilding your mailboxes goes a long way in preventing crashes and lost messages. Hereis what you do: Launch Mail. Itis probably in your Dock, but you can also find it in Applications/Mail.…
Law and Economics Professor Asks EU Regulators to 'Listen to Reason'
Thomas W. Hazlett, a professor of law and economics at George Mason University, has written an editorial for the Financial Times in which he implored Europe’s anti-trust regulators to “listen to reason” when dealing with iTunes. “While the [new French] law allows Apple to retain iTunes exclusivity if it gains copyright permission, this escape hatch…
Apple VP in Japan Resigns
Appleis successful iPod marketing push in Japan was credited to Mr. Sakito. Phil Schiller, Appleis senior vice president overseeing worldwide marketing, will take over his duties in Japan until a replacement is hired.
TMO Quick Tip - Building a Computer to Computer Network
There are several ways to copy a file from one Mac to another, like email, portable hard drives, USB Flash drives, and networks. But what do you do when you want to swap a file with someone, and none of those options are available? If both Macs have AirPort built in, make a computer to…