R AID: Redundant Array of Independent Disks. RAID is the technology that allows computer users to use multiple hard drives as one large and/or fast drive. The main two versions allow for speed (called striping), or for redundancy (called mirroring). A quick Google search offers this fairly accurate and concise explanation from Infortrend, a RAID…
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Apple Exec Responds To Benchmarking Controversy
In a somewhat rare move, an Apple executive has commented directly on the subject. In a recent phone interview posted to Slashdot, Appleis Vice President of Hardware Marketing Greg Joswiak claimed that Appleis G5 and P4/Xeon comparisons were designed to be as fair and balanced as possible, disclosing all details in an effort to prove…
The Back Page - Lies, Damned Lies, & Benchmarks
[Update 6/25/2003: Since I wrote this column, Apple VP Greg Joswiak has answered many of the criticisms discussed below (see TMO’s full coverage for more information). It remains to be seen if all the things Apple’s detractors have complained about are, after all, quite appropriate, but the company is being very transparent and up front…
Just A Thought - AppleWorks Lament: In A Vacuum, No One Can Hear You Type...
AppleWorks sucks! Let me qualify that statement before you storm my home — pitchforks, clubs, and torches in hand — and demand my head on a platter: AppleWorks is a competent suite of office tools that has essentially remained unchanged for several years now. It has not been made to take full advantage of OS…
Jobs Won't Do Macworld CreativePro Keynote, But Greg Joswiak Will
IDG World Expo has announced the keynote speaker for Macworld CreativePro in July. Greg Joswiak, Apple’s vice president of hardware product marketing, will be the man in the spotlight. This will mark the first time Steve Jobs has not given the keynote address at a Macworld since his return to the throne in 1997. Macworld…
The Devil's Advocate - Apple Files For New Multiple "Persona" Patent For Use In PDAs
This is not an Apple PDA? For a company that swears it has no plans on releasing or pursuing a PDA, Apple has a funny way of showing it. And "it" looks something like this: (Click each image for a larger, more legible version.) The above device can be found in a patent application, 20030107606,…
Apple Files For New Multiple "Persona" Patent For Use In PDAs
This is not an Apple PDA? For a company that swears it has no plans on releasing or pursuing a PDA, Apple has a funny way of showing it. And "it" looks something like this: (Click each image for a larger, more legible version.) The above device can be found in a patent application, 20030107606,…
No More IE Development Could Hold Back The Web
Believe it or not, all three are linked to spell Bad News: not necessarily for Mac users, but for the Web in general. Ending development on IE for both platforms says that Microsoft has conquered the Web, sees no reason to keep innovating in the browser department, and prefers to put all their energies into…
Competitors Accuse Microsoft Of Abusing Antitrust Settlement Terms
This may possibly surprise you, but Microsoft is being accused of abusing the terms of the antitrust settlement worked out last year between the company and the DoJ. The Washington Post is reporting that Microsoft is charging what some are calling exorbitant prices to be able to access some Microsoft technology. The technology — some…
The Open Group Turns The Unix Legal Gun On Apple
More importantly, the Cupertino, CA company has counter sued TOG to get the Unix trademark invalidated because, the company says, the term has come to be generic in nature. Lindows.com, a maker of Linux-based computers, successfully counter sued Microsoft to have that companyis trademark on “Windows” revoked for similar reasons. That case is still in…
IBM Posts Pictures Of PPC 970 (Pics Included)
TMO recently discovered that there were product pictures of it on IBMis Microelectronics Photo Catalog that we hadnit seen before. After checking with IBM, it turns out that they were part of the initial product announcement in October 2002. Despite the age, we thought people would be interested in seeing them. The image on the…
Apple To Work With MP3.com Europe To Promote iPod
Internet Magazine, a UK general interest Web site we are not familiar with, is reporting that Apple and MP3.com Europe are working together to promote the iPod. According to the site, MP3.com Europe will send out e-mails to its members touting the iPod, and free music that will be available to them. The site also…
Steve Wozniak On Apple, Steve Jobs, "Pirates," In Interview With Baltimore Sun
T he Baltimore Sun has published an outstanding, and exclusive, interview with Steve Wozniak, cofounder of Apple. The interview was conducted by David Zeiler as part of his weekly Mac column for the Sun called The Mac Experience. The interview took place in Baltimore after Mr. Wozniak attended the 25th anniversary of the Maryland Apple…
Guardian (UK) Profile Apple's Jonathan Ive
Yesterday we reported that Jonathan Ive had been named Designer of the Year by the UK’s Design Museum. Relating to that development, and the £25,000 prize that went with it, The Guardian, a prominent UK newspaper, has published a story about him that is part news article, part profile, and part interview. Mr. Ive is…
Internet Music Sharing Workaround Found For Itunes
A tutorial at lostboi.com offers instructions on how you can resume outside sharing using either the open source utility mDNSResponder or Rendezvous Beacon, which is shareware. The concept is rather straightforward and uses a common networking technique, not an iTunes hack, to fool it into believing the stream is originating from inside the local network.
QuickTime 6.3 Released With Several Improvements
A pple has released QuickTime 6.3 today. The new version includes several improvements, including… The release notes are so brief, weill just let Apple say it directly: QuickTime 6.3 delivers a number of important updates, including: Automatic detection of streaming transport Improvements to DV audio and video synchronization Enhanced support for Keynote, iMovie, and iDVD…
Default Folder X Update Improves Hotkey Support
St. Clair Software has released version 1.7.1 of Default Folder X, its Eddy Award-winning utility for enhancing Open and Save dialogs in Mac OS X. Default Folder X 1.7.1 delivers a significant performance boost over the previous version, allows the use of hotkeys to access Favorites in the Finder without modifier keys, and corrects problems…
A Few Of Her Favorite Things: Oprah Gives iPods To Everyone In Audience
CKQUOTE> Raindrops and roses and whiskers on kittens, bright copper kettles and 15 GB iPods… That may not be how the original song goes, but when youire Oprah, you can sing it any way you want. According to Observer Randy Souther, Oprah likes iPods so much, she recently gave each and every single person in…
DMCA Discriminates Against Visually Impaired, Say Advocates
It seems that in the quest to protect e-books from the evils of piracy, a small group of readers are left out in the cold – the visually impaired. Advocates and copyright experts alike are seeking an exemption from parts of the controversial Digital Millennium Copyright Act, allowing them to circumvent the copyright protection in…
Dana - Part PDA, Part Laptop For Writers & Students
< B>What exactly, is Dana? Imagine a device that is smaller, lighter, and cheaper than a laptop, runs 25 hours on a single charge or an additional 35 hours on a set of 3 AA batteries, has a full size keyboard and a wide backlit screen for easy text input or eBook reading, includes typical…
Intel's Itanium 2 Beginning To Earn The "Itanic" Moniker With Newly Discovered Glitch
Servers are crashing and IBM is halting shipments of its x450 server after a glitch in Intel’s Itanium 2 processor line was discovered recently. According to an article on ZDNet, the bug appears in Itanium 2 processors running at 900MHz or 1GHz, and can be worked around by underclocking the chips to 800MHz. Intel is…
Forbes (Sort Of) Throws Fuel On PowerPC 970 Speculation
An interesting blurb hit Forbes early Friday evening concerning Apple. The mainstream financial and business magazine mentioned Apple and IBM’s upcoming PowerPC 970 in its "People To Watch" piece for this week. Forbes says that "rumors are starting to build that Apple Computer is closer than previously thought to releasing a computer with a new…
NY Times Quotes Apple Exec On Microsoft's Athens PC Prototype
H ave you seen the Microsoft/HP PC prototype that the two companies are calling the Athens PC? Itis been discussed at many Mac Web sites and forums for the past week, including a rousing discussion on Slashdot, and a flame-fest on at least one Windows zealot site. Athens was introduced last week at Microsoftis Winhec…
Best Buy & Microsoft Named In Scam Lawsuit
OK, tell us if you’ve heard this one: A priest, a cowboy, and an "escort" walk into Best Buy to purchase a DVD… Would you believe a boy scout, a bum, and two parrots walk into Best Buy looking for a vacuum cleaner? How about a guy who just wanted to buy stuff and wound…