[4/30] First Notes on Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger--One Nice Surprise and Two Glitches So Far: We have installed Mac OS X 10.4 (Build 8a428) on several Mac desktops, including a 20" iMac G5 that is connected to a home network via an Apple AirPort Extreme card and an AirPort Express base station.

The nice surprise is that Tiger runs faster than Panther on the 20" iMac G5, a desktop with a single 1.8GHz G5. Just how much faster? Well, enough to notice it without objective measurements. Look for our comprehensive "How Fast Is It?" article on Tiger to be posted on Monday.

The first glitch is that the 20" iMac G5 does not always automatically connect to the AirPort Express base station on startup. We will be investigating this further with several Macs, including PowerBooks, and several types of base stations.

The second glitch is that our Apple Wireless (Bluetooth) Keyboard was not automatically recognized by our iMac G5 on two restarts. We had to re-pair it. Curiously the Apple Wireless (Bluetooth) Mouse was immediately recognized with no problem. We will also check out this problem on another Mac, so stay tuned this weekend! [Dana Baggett]

[4/30] SimpleFTP 3.0 was Released by On-Core: SimpleFTP 3.0 is the powerful yet easy to use FTP/SFTP client for the Apple Macintosh that runs on Mac OS X 10.3 or higher. SimpleFTP is a file transfer product, modeled on the RFC 959 File Transfer Protocol (FTP) Internet standard, that emphasizes simplicity and ease of use. SimpleFTP features include:

• Aqua compliant interface.
  
• Multi-threaded -- you can have unlimited number of simultaneous connections to different servers.
  
• File transfer resume of uploads and downloads (if supported by the server).
  
• Seamless multi file and folder transfers, and deletion.
  
• Bookmarks for easy access to commonly used servers.
  
• Drag & Drop support. Transferring files is as easy as dragging a file or folder!
  
• Supports the most popular UNIX®, Microsoft Windows®, IBM OS/2® and Apple Macintosh® FTP servers.
  
• Supports long file names (Mac OS X limit of 256 characters) and Unicode support.
• SFTP (SecureFTP) connections.
  

What's new in 3.00:

• SimpleFTP 3.00 is a complete rewrite of since our last version 2.01.
  
• Tiger (10.4) tested.
  
• Version 3.00 contains a new Smart Synchronization feature. Please see the manual for details.
  
• New bookmarks panel.
  
• Updated interface, including toolbar.
  
• Columns are sortable and rearrangeable.
  

We have used SimpleFTP since it came out. While v2.0.1 did work with Panther through 10.3.9, it had several issues. v3.0 fixes these. We have not yet used SimpleFTP with Tiger but we will this weekend. [Bill Fox]

[4/30] Apple Revised the Offerings from Three Hot Deals Retailers:

Apple's Clearance Section of Hot Deals, dedicated entirely to end-of-life and clearance Mac and Mac OS X products from all of your favorite retailers, boasts some newly added offers, including Digital Media's PreFlightPro, Smart Media 128MB Secure Digital Memory Card with $10 mail-in rebate, Dr. Bott ExtendAir Direct WiFi Wireless Antenna, Epson L-410 Digital Camera, M-Audio Oxygen B 25-Key MIDI Controller, and much more.

CompUSA has money saving deals on a bevy of Mac products, including Roxio's Toast 6 Titanium with $20 mail-in rebate, KDS K712s 17" LCD Display with $70 mail-in rebate, Optoma EzPro 732H SVGA DLP Projector with $100 mail-in rebate, Hewlett Packard LaserJet 1320 Laser Printer with $100 mail-in rebate, Canon Pixma iP5000 Color Photo Printer with $20 mail-in rebate, and much more.

O'Reilly has exclusively Hot Deals discounts for many of it's most popular Mac titles, including FireFox Hacks, iMovie HD & iDVD 5: The Missing Manual, iPod & iTunes: the Missing Manual, 3rd Edition, Photoshop Elements: The Missing Manual, iPhoto 5: The Missing Manual, and much more.

[Bill Fox]

[4/29] Apple Releases Slew of New Software on Tiger's Intro Day Including QuickTime 7.0 and Apple Remote Desktop 2.2: QuickTime 7.0 is available via the System Preferences Software Update pane or as a standalone update from the Apple Support Downloads Web page. Also available from the Support Downloads page is:

Apple Remote Desktop Admin 2.2
Delivers enhanced functionality and improved reliability. Rocommended for all users of Apple Remote Desktop.

Apple Remote Desktop Update 2.2
Delivers enhanced functionality and improved reliability. Rocommended for all users of Apple Remote Desktop.

Java 2 SE 5.0 Developer Documentation
Provides J2SE 5.0 Developer Documentation.

Java 2 SE 5.0 Release 1
Provides support for J2SE 5.0 on Mac OS X 10.4.

QuickTime 6.5.2 Reinstaller for Mac
The QuickTime 6.5.2 reinstaller will remove QuickTime 7 from a Mac OS X 10.3.9 system and restore QuickTime 6.5.2.

QuickTime 7.0
Capture video in a single click. Share movies with email or .Mac. Gate QuickTime Pro today for these features and much more.

Server Admin Tools 10.4
Installs updated versions of the Mac OS X Server

[Bill Fox]

[4/29] Tiger Officially Out Today--New .Mac Benefits, Widgets and More: Late last night Apple's .Mac Web site closed and re-opened featuring new benefits for Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger owners. Special Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger tutorials, broader syncing, shared family Address Book, new Dashboard widgets (coming soon), .Mac Tiger Mail aliases, personal travel information and photo editing tips from Jim Heid. More... [Jeff Hubert]

[4/29] Spotlight on Innovation--Develop and Deliver Great Mac OS X Games for Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. Learn about a wide gamut of issues related to developing and delivering world-class games on Mac OS X. Apple's engineers will focus on the key technology ingredients required for game development on Mac OS X, including programming best practices, third-party game technologies, business issues, and successful go-to-market strategies. This is a required session for anyone interested in game development on the Mac. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/29] Review--Max OS X 10.4 "Tiger" Ahead of Windows: In this AP review of Tiger vs Windows, Matthew Fordahl notes that Tiger is much more advanced than Windows and will be for a year or more. [Joseph Sacco]

[4/29] O'Reilly Released 802.11 Wireless Networks: The Definitive Guide, Second Edition: Using a wireless network can be a liberating experience. But underneath the experience lies a complex protocol, and even more complex issues arise when data isn't limited to traveling on wires. In his book, 802.11 Wireless Networks: The Definitive Guide, Second Edition (O'Reilly, US $44.95), Matthew Gast discusses the many issues facing those who are responsible for deploying and maintaining wireless networks: How do you structure your network so mobile users can move around effectively? How do you extend wireless coverage so it's available everywhere you need it? What kind of security issues do wireless networks raise? Gast answers these questions and many more. [Bill Fox]

[4/29] Griffin is Shipping TuneJuice, a Battery Backup for iPod and iPod mini: Griffin Technology Inc. is now shipping TuneJuice, a unique battery backup for iPod and iPod mini. Using a single 9-volt battery, TuneJuice is perfect for extending the play time of your iPod for those times when you just gotta have more than your iPod battery can give. TuneJuice's SRP is $19.99. [Bill Fox]

[4/29] O'Reilly Released Digital Audio Essentials: Digital music isn't just for techies anymore. Not so long ago, downloading music was slow and impractical for anyone but advanced users. But now, you don't need to have endless time, expensive equipment, and a technical degree to download music to a Mac or portable player; rip tunes to digital format or burn CDs; organize, find, and create music; preserve LPs and tapes; stream music off the Web; or even create a web-based radio station. With a Mac, an Internet connection, and a copy of the new Digital Audio Essentials (O'Reilly, US $34.95) by Bruce Fries and Marty Fries, anyone can join the digital audio revolution. [Bill Fox]

[4/29] Mozilla Released Camino 0.8.4, the Mac OS X Cocoa-Native Web Browser: Camino 0.8.4 is out as we noted it would be on Monday. The update is available for download from Camino's Web site. This is largely a security fix, the same as for Firefox 1.0.3 and Mozilla 1.7.7 that were released last week. The update also fixes a problem with Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger. The detailed release notes are here.

We downloladed and installed it. Camino is really coming along. [Dana Baggett & Bill Fox]

[4/28] Spotlight on Innovation--3D Environmental Audio with OpenAL in Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. Looking to create thrilling multi-channel 3D audio experiences in your application? Check out OpenAL, a multi-platform audio API that is perfect for games and advanced media applications. Leveraging the power of Core Audio, Tiger's built-in OpenAL implementation provides high-quality, low-overhead environmental audio that is compatible with a wide-range of audio devices. Learn how easy it is to integrate OpenAL into your application and take your audio to the next dimension. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/28] Apple Released SuperDrive Firmware Update for Some Macs: The download is available from this Apple Web page. According to Apple:

The SuperDrive Firmware Update delivers updated SuperDrive firmware to improve reliability when accessing DVD and CD media.

Systems:

- Power Mac G5 (June 2004)
- Power Mac G5 (Late 2004)
- eMac (USB 2.0)

[Bill Fox & Dana Baggett]

[4/28] O'Reilly Released iMovie HD & iDVD 5: The Missing Manual: iMovie is the first digital video (DV) editing software for nonprofessionals--that is, people who have lives outside of video editing.

"iMovie HD [the new iLife '05 version] represents a deep overhaul of the program, one that will challenge even the iMovie veteran with a good deal of unlearning and relearning," says co-author David Pogue.

In the new, full-color iMovie HD and iDVD 5: The Missing Manual (O'Reilly, US $29.95), Pogue explains iMovie's big-ticket features and improvements as well as the finer points--the intriguing little enhancements that typically go unmentioned but, "taken together, will make a big difference in your moviemaking career." And then, along with guest author (and bestselling digital-video goddess) Erica Sadun, Pogue includes an invaluable book-within-a-book on iDVD, exploring all of iDVD 5's new enhancements that make home DVDs look even more like commercial Hollywood DVDs. [Bill Fox]

[4/28] Sp@mX 4.1.7 Released: Sp@mX has added the ability to parse, trace and report spam stored in Opera email archives. Along with this important upgrade, the following changes have been made.

-- Built-in support Opera email archives!
-- User definable email abuse complaint subject
-- Improved search for spamvertized URLs
-- Added additional resource to lookup Korean ISPs
-- Improve regular expression parser for SMTP headers
-- Spammer trick of referring RIR back to same RIR dealt with

Additional information on the update is available on the hsc Web site. [Bill Fox]

[4/28] Apple's Tiger Tip-of-the-Week Starts Off with Two:

Spotlight: The keys to success

Dashboard: On a road to nowhere

[Dana Baggett]

[4/28] Apple Revised the Offerings from Three Hot Deals Retailers:

MacConnection has fantastic prices on essential Mac products, including Adobe's brand new Creative Suite 2 Premium, MacAlly iPod Headphone T-Splitter, Microsoft Virtual PC 7.0 with Windows XP, Markzware FlightCheck Pro 5.5 with $99 mail-in rebate, Hewlett Packard DeskJet 3650 Printer FREE with the purchase of any Apple CPU, Monster Cable iCarPlay Wireless Plus FM Transmitter Charger for iPod, and much more.

CDW|MacWarehouse has great deals on cool Mac products, including Adobe's brand new Creative Suite 2 Premium, Xerox 8400N Color Laser Printer with FREE iPod Shuffle and a huge $500 mail-in rebate, Adobe Photoshop CS2 Upgrade, Extensis Photo Imaging Suite, Wacom Graphire 3 4"x5" Graphics Tablet with cordless mouse and pen, and much more.

Ramjet has super low prices on RAM upgrades for your Mac, including 2GB DDR Kit for Power Mac G5, 512MB DDR DIMM for Power Mac G4, 512MB PC-2700 Module for Aluminum PowerBook G4, 1GB Module for Aluminum PowerBook G4, and much more.

[Bill Fox]

[4/27] Apple Boosts Power Mac G5s to 2.7GHz: The new Power Mac G5 line with dual 2.7GHz, 2.3GHz or 2.0GHz CPUs delivers higher performance graphics options with more memory and built-in support for Apple’s breakthrough 30-inch Cinema HD Display on the 2.7 GHz model. The new line also includes larger hard drives, a faster 16X SuperDrive with double-layer support and 512MB of memory across the line. The new dual G5 Power Macs cost from $1999 to $2999. Apple retained the single 1.8GHz model at $1499.

A new ATI graphics card, the Radeon 9650 with 256MB VRAM, supports a single 30" Cinema Display. It comes with the dual 2.7GHz model and is a $50 option on the other dual models. The Nvidia 6800 Ultra DDL which can drive two 30" Cinemas is a BTO option across the line for $500 or $450 depending on model.

The new Power Mac G5 line contains a marginal increase in CPU performance but substantially more value in drives and graphics, especially if one wants to use the 30" Cinema Disaplay. [Bill Fox]

[4/27] Apple Reduced Prices of 20" and 23" Cinema Displays by $200: The 20" Cinema Display is now just $799 and the 23" model is just $1499.

[4/27] Spotlight on Innovation--Cutting-Edge Interface Design for Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. Surprise and delight your customers with an elegant user experience. Learn about the latest techniques and design methodologies being used to build the best looking, easiest to use applications for Mac OS X. Apple's engineers will use sample products to demonstrate how to design the best menus, dialogs, and windows. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/27] Brief Hands-On Report--TechTool Pro v4.0.4 Update: Micromat released TechTool Pro Update v4.0.4. It is available for download from this Micromat Web page. The file updates either v4.0.1 or 4.0.2 to v4.0.4.

What's New in Version 4.0.4

• Mac OS X v10.4 "Tiger" Compatibility.
  
• Corrected reported issues with eDrive creation.
  
• Corrected iMac G5 Main Memory information drawer layout.
  
• Corrected Video Memory information drawer for older machines.
  
• Corrected Optimization window display issue.
  
• Corrected Fast User Switching issue.
  
• Corrected Gigabit connection speed in Network test.
  
• Additional FireWire hard drive support in Drives category.
  
• Additional support for Mobility Radeon 9700 in Video Memory test.
  
• Enhanced USB information drawer display.
  
• Added support for Case-sensitive volumes.
  
• Global updates for identifying new machines and hardware.
  
• Other minor fixes and updates.

We downloaded and installed TechToolPro 4.0.4 without problems. It features a "smart" installer that found older versions installed on our iMac G5 hard drive, eDrive and FireWire external HD. It give us an opportunity to approve upgrading each one before doing so. We were able to open the application successfully and boot into the eDrive without problems.

The only downside was that on the iMac G5 the installer tossed the former installed version into the Trash and we had to re-enter our TTP4 serial number all over again. But on our original Tangerine iBook, the new application retained the serial number from the old one even though the prior app was also tossed into the Trash. [Dana Baggett]

[4/27] FREE Envision Web Show of the Week--Tigers: Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger ships this week! In honor of Apple's new version of Mac OS X, this week's Envision Web Show of the Week is a collection of Tiger photos from Tigers in the Sky. The Envision Web Show of the Week can be downloaded from the Show of the Week Web site. Finally, be on the lookout for some significant announcements from Open Door Networks regarding Tiger in the next week. Hint: They're going back to the future! [Bill Fox]

[4/27] BeLight Software's April Fools Day Contest Over--Sebeny Wins iPod: The April Fool's Day contest from BeLight Software, developer of Mac OS X business productivity software, is over. Stephen M. Sebenyfrom Cuyahoga Falls won the first prize, an iPod mini. Read his funny magic story about business cards.

The second and third places go respectively to Javier delBarco-Trillo from Memphis and Tim Thompson from Missoula. Javier and Tim will both get the Business Card Composer boxed edition.

Bob "Dr. Mac" Levitis was the independent judge. [Bill Fox]

[4/26] Spotlight on Innovation--Leveraging Apple's Go-To-Market Programs: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. You've spent countless hours designing and developing your product. Now attend this Go-to-Market (GTM) session to learn why a strong GTM plan is critical to your market success. You'll discover the array of GTM services available from Apple, and will get expert answers on how best to bring your product to market. What's more, Apple's marketing experts will share their experiences helping thousands of Mac developers around the world be successful in the marketplace. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/26] Apple Released GarageBand Update 2.0.1: It is available via the System Preferences Software Update pane if you have iLife '05 installed or as a standalone updater from this Apple Web page. Here is the Read Me file:

GarageBand 2.0.1 addresses issues with duplicating tracks, playhead snapping to grid, joining software instrument regions on adjacent tracks, making precise adjustments to volume and pan settings, and converting Software Instrument Apple Loops based on drum sounds into Real Instrument Apple Loops. It also addresses an issue where recorded Real Instrument regions may not properly adjust to changes in the project key.

We downloaded and installed it with no problems. [Bill Fox]

[4/26] Apple Released Xsan Update 1.0.1: It is available as a standalone updater from this Apple Web page.

The 1.0.1 Update delivers overall improved reliability for Xsan and is recommended for all systems. It includes improvements for:

- using the ’mv’ command to move files from Xsan (ACFS) to Mac OS Extended (HFS+) volumes
- saving files over 4GB via SMB/CIFS to an Xsan volume hosted on Mac OS X Server
- greater server stability when resharing Xsan volumes via NFS
- eliminating spontaneous metadata controller failovers that can result in slow file performance.

[Bill Fox]

[4/26] Camino 0.8.4 is Coming Out Soon: Camino, the Mac OS X Cocoa-native web browser from the Mozilla Project, is now at the release candidate stage. Version 0.8.4 will fix the JavaScript engine memory heap disclosure bug that was just fixed in Firefox 1.0.3 and Mozilla 1.7.7. More... [Dana Baggett]

[4/25] Still Time to Save--Early Registration for WWDC 2005 Extended to May 6: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. Early registration by May 6th will save you $300. In addition, if you register by May 6th, you can get 5 registrations for the price of 4. Check out the details on this Apple Web page.

[4/25] Spotlight on Innovation--Writing Automator Actions with Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. In this hands-on session Apple's engineers will take you step-by-step through creating an Automator Action using AppleScript, AppleScript Studio, and Cocoa Bindings. You will learn everything you need to know to create Automator Actions using AppleScript for your own application. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/25] Severe Problems with ATI Displays 4.5 and ATI Radeon X800 Mac Edition Graphics Card: Two weeks ago, we finally got our ATI Radeon X800 Mac Edition graphics card, the hottest graphics card for the Mac according to early tests. We had ordered our card in early February but ATI's initial supply was limited and it was depleted quickly. So we waited 2 months to test it against our Nvidia 6800 Ultra DDL with our dual 2.5GHz Power Mac G5 and 30" Cinema Display.

When it arrived, we quickly installed it and briefly tried it out. At the settings that we play Call of Duty and Halo, the X800 was a few fps faster than the 6800 Ultra. We had planned to do a full test the following weekend for publication last Monday but Mac OS X 10.3.9 came out so we delayed our plans until this past weekend. Last week, ATI released a new firmware update for the X800 and an ATI Displays update to 4.5. Wanting to use the latest software in our review and tests, we updated our X800's firmware and installed ATI Displays 4.5 late last week. On reboot, we got a kernel panic...!

The kernel panic (dark gray screen telling one to restart in several languages) happened every time we rebooted at exactly the same spot, right after the gray screen with dark gray Apple logo. Sometimes that was where the G5 froze and sometimes despite the kernal panic it continued booting to a blue screen or partial desktop but the G5 was always frozen, i.e. no cursor movement from the mouse or keyboard.

We tried resetting NVRAM and PRAM but it did not fix the problem. We booted from a backup drive and exchanged the new ATI ROM Xtender (1.2.4f3) installed with ATI Displays 4.5 with the one installed with ATI Displays 4.4 (1.1.3) and got the G5 to boot successfully several times but then G5 once again succombed to the kernel panic on startup. Unfortunately, the firmware update is not reversible, at least not yet.

This is apparently a fairly widespread problem (see this Accelerate Your Mac web page) but not everyone encounters it. Our service ticket with ATI remains open. We had hoped a fix would be forthcoming before this past weekend but it wasn't. We'll report when a solution is found and conduct our speed tests right after. [Bill Fox]

[4/25] Peachpit Announced New Final Cut Studio 5/Shake 4 Books: Peachpit announced its lineup of Apple Pro Training Series books, designed to guide readers through Apple's new HD production suite Final Cut Studio (containing Final Cut Pro 5, Soundtrack Pro, Motion 2 and DVD Studio Pro 4) and Shake 4 applications. Covering the official curriculum that Apple uses at its own stores and training centers, Apple Pro Training Series books are comprehensive, self-paced courses that allow users to tackle Apple programs on their own computers.

The books take users step-by-step through video-editing and audio projects, offer chapter review questions, and include a companion DVD containing all the needed media and project files. Readers can choose to follow the lessons from start to finish or choose the lessons that interest them most. Peachpit's upcoming Apple Pro Training Series books on Final Cut Studio and Shake 4 include:

Apple Pro Training Series: Final Cut Pro 5
Diana Weynand; ISBN 0-321-33481-7
Starts with the basics and then takes readers all the way through advanced features, teaching how to mark and edit clips, color correct sequences, create transitions, and more.

Apple Pro Training Series: Advanced Editing Techniques in Final Cut Pro 5
Michael Wohl; ISBN 0-321-33549-X
Shares advanced techniques for cutting dialogue scenes, action scenes, documentaries, comedy, and more; and also covers Soundtrack Pro, audio finishing, managing clips and media, and working with film.

Apple Pro Training Series: Advanced Color Correction and Effects in Final Cut Pro 5
DigitalFilm Tree; ISBN 0-321-33548-1
Delivers hard-to-find training on motion effects, keying and compositing, titling, scene-to-scene color matching, and correcting for broadcast specifications.

Apple Pro Training Series: Soundtrack Pro
Mary Plummer; ISBN 0-321-35757-4
Guides users through the secrets of editing, repairing, mixing, and arranging multi-track audio files.

Apple Pro Training Series: Shake 4
Marco Paolini; ISBN 0-321-25609-3
Uses stunning real-world sequences to reveal the wizardry of keying, matting, painting, rotoscoping, and more.

Apple Pro Training Series: Shake 4 Quick-Reference Guide
Peachpit Press; ISBN 0-321-38246-3
Includes cheat sheets, quick-glance tables, and a concise explanation of the Shake interface, workspace, views, and tools.

Apple Pro Training Series: Xsan Quick-Reference Guide
Peachpit Press; ISBN 0-321-36900-9
Provides invaluable setup, configuration, and troubleshooting tips for Apple's exciting new enterprise-class file system.

[Bill Fox]

[4/25] Ham Radio Software Updates from Black Cat Systems--Morse Mania & Elmer:

Morse Mania 3.0.1--Morse Mania is a morse code tutor for the Macintosh. The software package helps you learn morse code at speeds ranging from 5 to 40 words per minute. Morse Mania is ideal for amateur (ham) radio operators who desire to learn or improve their morse code proficiency, especially in order to upgrade their license class. The generated morse code is played using the computer's speaker. This new version includes several bug fixes.

Elmer 5.5.2--Elmer creates sample tests to help you prepare for your amateur (ham) radio written examination. It contains all FCC question pools for each of the three written exams: Technician, General, and Extra Class. This new version fixes a bug that could cause duplicate questions to be asked in a practice exam, and corrects exam questions.

[Bill Fox]

[4/23] Spotlight on Innovation--Using WebObjects Tools with Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. WebObjects provides a rich set of tools for developing web-based applications. Bring your laptop to this session and get hands-on experience with Apple's engineers using data modeling, component creation, and rule-based assistants to rapidly build your application. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page.

[4/23] Apple Revised the Offerings from Five Hot Deals Retailers:

ClubMac has great deals on essential Mac products, including ATI's Radeon X800 XT 256MB Video Card, Aspyr Media Doom 3, XtremeMac SportWrap Armband for iPod Shuffle, Canon PowerShot SD400 5.0MP Digital Camera, QuarkXPress 6.5, 3G Technology GM-171B 17" LCD Flat Panel Display, Nyko Technologies iTop Control Re-locator for iPod, and much more.

MacZone has fantastic prices on essential Mac products, including Microsoft Office 2004 Pro Upgrade with StuffIt Deluxe, Sony 16x Double Layer DVD±R USB 2.0 External Drive, Sonnet PodFreq Premium FM Transmitter for iPod, Griffin iTrip 2 FM Transmitter for iPod, Belkin iPod Mobile Power Cord for iPod, Tucano Neoprene Laptop Sleeve and Pouch for 15" PowerBook G4, and much more.

Office Depot has fantastic deals on essential products for your Mac, including Canon PowerShot A400 3.2MP Digital Camera, FujiFilm FinePix S7000 6.3 Digital SLR Camera, SanDisk 1GB Cruzer USB 2.0 Mini Flash Drive, Maxtor One Touch 200GB External USB 2.0 Hard Drive, Office Depot DVD-R 15-Pack Media, Cyber Acoustics Accent S-3006 Speaker System, and much more.

Tech Depot has exclusive Hot Deals on great products for your Mac, including SimpleTech 250GB Simple Drive Deluxe USB/FireWire External Hard Drive, Samsung 910T 19" LCD Flat Panel Display ScanMaker S400 Flatbed Scanner, Kingston 256MB CompactFlash Memory Card with $10 mail-in rebate, Monster Cable iCarPlay FM Transmitter/Charger, and much more.

Publishing Perfection has great deals on a variety of design and print products for your Mac, including nik multimedia Color Efex Pro 2.0, AutoFX Photographic Edges 6.0, Corel Painter IX Upgrade, Curious Labs Shade 7 Standard, Colorvision Spyder2Pro Studio, TDK 48x Certified 700MB 100-pack CD Media, Innovation Multimedia Logos & Trademarks Collection, and much more.

[Bill Fox]

[4/23] RealNetworks Released Security Patch for Mac RealPlayer: Download the patch from within the application.

The security flaw, which falls under buffer overflow flaws, is used by hackers to flood a program with data and use the resultant data torrent to run their own codes on the victim’s machine.

Use "Check for updates" under the RealPlayer menu. We installed it with no problems. More... [Dana Baggett]

[4/22] Spotlight on Innovation--Maximizing OpenGL Performance in Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. In this hands-on session, the Mac OS X OpenGL team will explain the latest techniques to optimize your application's OpenGL usage. All aspects of optimization will be covered including vertex and texture submission, elimination of redundant copies of data, and ideal pixel formats. Threading tips and techniques will also be discussed. Code along with live demonstrations of the OpenGL Profiler and Driver Monitor, and discover how to solve real-world performance problems. You'll learn to maximize your use of the GPU to increase your application's frame rate. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/22] Brief Hands-On Report--Apple Java Update for Mac OS X v10.3.9 1.0 to Fix Java Problem: The update is available via the System Preferences Software Update pane if you have Mac OS X 10.3.9 installed or as a standalone updater from this Apple Web page. As we noted previously, some people have had problems with Java applications and/or Java applets in Safari after installing Mac OS X 10.3.9 Update. Apple posted a KBase article on the problem with a test for the Java problem and a fix involving reinstalling one or two prior updates. This Java Update fixes the problem directly with a small 532KB download.

The Read Me file states:

This update will correct issues affecting some Java users following the installation of Mac OS X v10.3.9 Software Update.

The Java Update appeared in our Software Update window on all of our Macs, including Power Mac G5, iMac G5, several PowerBooks and an original clamshell iBook, running Mac OS X 10.3.9 despite all of them having passed the test suggested in the KBase article. So we downloaded and installed the Java Update in all of them. No problems were encountered with their installation and immediate use. [Bill Fox & Dana Baggett]

[4/22] Getting Serious--Three Years in the Pokey for Illegal File Sharing of a Single Pre-release Copy: Congress just passed legislation to tighten up the digital copyright law. With it, one can get up to three years in the slammer for having just one copy in a shared folder of a pirated piece of pre-release software, movie or music file. The President is expected to sign the bill. More... [Dana Baggett]

[4/22] O'Reilly Released Developing Feeds with RSS and Atom: A content syndication feed is an XML-based file that allows a web site to share its latest content with other applications. The feeds can be anything from headlines and links to stories to quick summaries or the entire content of a site stripped of its layout. Many sites include a white-on-orange "RSS" or "XML" button, which indicates that it offers a content feed. "Content-syndication technologies are among the Internet's fastest growing," acknowledges Ben Hammersley, author of Developing Feeds with RSS and Atom (O'Reilly US $39.95). [Bill Fox]

[4/21] Spotlight on Innovation--Implementing Core Data in Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. Backups enable administrators to ensure business continuance. In this hands-on session, Apple's engineers will expand on the basics of Core Data by walking you through a series of examples to demonstrate how you can use Core Data to manage data effectively in your application. From data models to Interface Builder bindings to managed object context initialization, you'll discover practical techniques for using this compelling new Tiger technology in your application. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/21] Fill Your Mac With RAM--Price Drop to Continue: Wholesale prices of DDR RAM have dropped almost by half since the beginning of the year due to overproduction. The newer, faster and less power-hungry DDR2 RAM has dropped as well, almost to the level of DDR RAM. Prices are expected to continue dropping through mid-year according to analysts. More... [Dana Baggett]

[4/21] Opera 8.0b1 Web Browser Released for the Mac: Though it has a very smalll share, Opera is an excellent and fast web browser produced by a Norwegian firm. Opera 8 was just release for Windows and Linux and a beta of version 8 for Mac OS X was also made available. It can be downloaded from this Opera Web page. Here are the release notes. [Dana Baggett]

[4/21] Apple Posted NAB 2005 Gallery: Apple posted its own digital photo gallery of this year's National Association of Broadcasters conference. At NAB, Apple unveiled Final Cut Studio with major upgrades of Final Cut Pro, Motion and DVD Studio Pro. Apple also introduced Soundtrack Pro, a revolutionary new audio editing and sound design application. [Dana Baggett]

[4/21] Registered TextWrangler Users Get $70 Discount on BBEdit 8: Bare Bones Software sent us a notice that registered TextWrangler users are eligible to purchase BBEdit 8, their award-winning professional HTML and text editor, for only US$129 (a savings of US$70)! To buy BBEdit 8 with the discount, the coupon code received from Bare Bones when TextWrangler was registered is needed. TextWrangler is distributed as a FREE lite text editor from Bare Bones. [Bill Fox]

[4/21] Apple Revised the Offerings from Three Hot Deals Retailers:

B&H Photo and Video has fantastic prices of superb products for your Mac, including Canon PowerShot SD400 5.0MP Digital ELPH Camera, nik multimedia Dfine 1.0, Alien Skin Eye Candy 4000, Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT 3500 8.0MP Digital SLR Camera, Lexar 4GB 80x CompactFlash Card, Epson Perfection 4990 Photo Letter Size Flatbed Scanner, DLO TranPod All-in-One Car Solution for iPod, and much more.

J&R has great prices on top quality Mac products, including DLO iDirect Remote Control for iPod, Belkin iPod Battery Backup Pack, Brother MFC-210C Color Flatbed Multi-Function Machine with $30 mail-in rebate, Canon Optura 500 Digital Video Camcorder, Digital Age DAP-002A iSoundz Sound Wallet Mini Speakers, Griffin Technology EarJams iPod Earbud Enhancers, and much more.

Sweetwater has fantastic deals on a wide range of audio products for your Mac, including M-Audio Pro Tools M-Powered, Samson RH100 Stereo Headphones, Roland DM-10 Reference Speakers, Make Music PrintMusic, M-Audio Black Box, PreSonus FIREBOX, Edirol PCR-M30, and much more.

[Bill Fox]

[4/21] FREE Envision Web Show of the Week--Macworld 2005 Digital Art Gallery: This week's Envision Web Show of the Week is again of the Macworld 2005 Digital Art Gallery, to highlight Open Door's announcement that Envision is now on tour with that Gallery as it travels to art museums throughout the country. The Envision Web Show of the Week can be downloaded from the Show of the Week Web site. Previous Shows of the Week, including those of past Macworld Art Galleries, are available in the Show of the Week archive. [Bill Fox]

[4/20] Spotlight on Innovation--HiTextView Unleashed in Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. Learn how HITextView can replace custom text controls in your application and easily handle Unicode text, advanced typography, URLs and multimedia content. Hands-on demonstrations from Apple's engineers will take you step-by-step through code to show how you can maximize HITextView's benefits to your application. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/20] Details on Apple Security Update 2005-004: Security Update 2005-004 is now available via the System Preferences Software Update pane, if iSync 1.5 is installed, and as a standalone updater from this Apple Web page. It delivers the following security enhancement:

iSync
Available for: iSync 1.5
CVE-ID: CAN-2005-0193
Impact: A buffer overflow in iSync could lead to local privilege escalation
Description: The iSync helper tool mRouter contains a buffer overflow vulnerability. This could result in the execution of arbitrary commands as root by local system users. Security Update 2005-004 fixes this problem by providing a patched version of mRouter. iSync 1.4 is also affected by this vulnerability, and customers are encouraged to update to the freely available iSync 1.5 version, then apply Security Update 2005-004. Credit to Braden Thomas for reporting this issue.

We downloaded and installed the update on several Macs and PowerBooks with no problems. It did not change the version (1.5) or Build number (139) [Bill Fox & Dana Baggett]

[4/20] Commentary: Adobe-Macromedia Merger--Will the Deal Go Through? Adobe announced Monday that it had struck a deal with Macromedia's management to merge for $3.4 billion in Adobe stock. It seems like a good deal for both firms but is this a good deal for consumers of their products? Together, their competitive products dominate several media/graphics software markets, like web authoring (GoLive-Dreamweaver) and illustration (Illustrator-Freehand), and their combine will have a clear monopoly. On the other hand, many of their other products are either not totally overlapping, like Photoshop and Fireworks, or are complementary, like Acrobat and Flash.

Here is their explanation:

The combination of Adobe and Macromedia strengthens our mission of helping people and organizations communicate better. Through the combination of our powerful development, authoring and collaboration tools – and the complementary functionality of PDF and Flash – we have the opportunity to drive an industry-defining technology platform that delivers compelling, rich content and applications across a wide range of devices and operating systems.

By combining the passion and creativity of two leading-edge companies, we will continue driving innovations that are changing the ways people everywhere are experiencing and interacting with information.

We understand the power trip but don't buy the innovation smoke. We believe in the forces of competition and this merger seems more likely to squelch innovation than to "drive" it. Afterall, how innovative is powerful Microsoft? The best it can do is buy innovation, concomittantly stifling any competition.

The merger still has to be approved by shareholders of both public companies. It probably will be approved because forming a powerful, more efficient alliance that can crush any emerging competition is good for investors. The merger also has to be approved by federal regulators who are supposed to look out for the interests of consumers and maintain competition. We hope they do their job and give this deal a thumbs down. [Bill Fox]

[4/20] This Week on The Mac Night Owl LIVE--David Biedny, Opera, Joe Wilcox and TechRestore: This Thursday night co-hosts Gene and Grayson Steinberg will talk about the latest scuttlebutt in the Mac universe when they enter "The David Biedny Zone." You'll also hear about the newest Mac version of the Opera browser and visit with noted industry analyst Joe Wilcox, of Jupiter Research. You'll also receive knowledgeable answers on whether it pays to repair or replace your iPod from Shannon Jean of TechRestore. Tune in the internet radio show onThursday night from 6:00 to 8:00 PM Pacific, 9:00 to 11:00 PM Eastern. [Bill Fox]

[4/19] Spotlight on Innovation--Configuring and Deploying Oracle on Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger Server: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. Oracle 10g is a powerful enterprise database system that is fully supported on the Mac OS X Server platform. Learn techniques and tips for building an Oracle 10g server farm on Mac OS X, from people who know the system best: Oracle engineers and Apple IT experts. This session is perfect for database and system administrators who need to learn how to set up and deploy Oracle 10g for the Mac. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/19] Test the Speed of Your Safari 1.3: As we noted in our Mac OS X 10.3.9 hands-on report, Safari 1.3 seems to be much faster than v1.2. According to Dave Hyatt on his blog, Surfin' Safari, the new Safari 1.3 in Mac OS X 10.3.9 Update loads Web pages 35% faster than Safari 1.2 and has better JavaScript performance:

Page Load Performance
Safari 1.3 loads pages overall 35% faster than 1.2 as measured by IBench. In addition to improving the overall page load, Safari 1.3 will display content sooner than 1.2 did, so that subresources don't hold up the initial display of the page.

JavaScript Performance
We have substantially improved the performance of the JavaScript engine in Safari. I encourage you to check out Safari 1.3 on this benchmark for example to see the improvement relative to 1.2.

It also has the same "guts" as the coming Safari 2.0 in Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger. You can test Safari 1.3's JavaScript speed with BenchJS from this Web site.

We ran BenchJS twice with our dual 2.5GHz Power Mac G5 and got the 16th and 17th fastest times for any browser and OS at 5.68 and 5.69 sec. They were the 3rd and 4th fourth fastest times listed for Mac OS X. The two faster OS X times used Opera 8. The fastest combination seems to Opera 8 with Windows XP according to tests listed on the BenchJS Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/19] Apple Posted Fix for Safari 1.3 Crashing: Some people have had problems with Safari 1.3 after applying Mac OS X 10.3.9 Update, i.e. crashing on launch (incompatible plug-ins) or crashing when attempting to load Java "applets."

To fix the latter Java-related problem, Apple posted a test and a fix in this KBase article. If the simple test is positive, Apple suggests installing Java 1.4.2 Update 2, if not already installed, and installing or reinstalling Security Update 2005-002 regardless. [Dana Baggett & Bill Fox]

[4/19] Peachpit to Release Two New Books on Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger April 29: Peachpit announced today that it will ship its first books on Apple's Mac OS X version 10.4 "Tiger" on the same day Tiger becomes available, April 29, 2005. Peachpit's Tiger books are designed for all levels of users and cover all that's new in the OS, including Spotlight advanced search technology; Dashboard for instant access to information; Safari RSS Web browser; iChat with multi-way video; and more. The following two books will be available April 29, online and at local bookstores:

Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: Visual QuickStart Guide
Maria Langer; ISBN 0-321-30526-4; $24.99
* Task-based quick reference*
Get up and running in no time! This task-based guide represents the surest way to go from 0 to 60 in no time flat with Mac OS X Tiger. Maria Langer walks readers through the process of installing and configuring Tiger, then introduces its features before moving on to more advanced Finder techniques, application basics, connecting to the Internet, and more. Rounded out with plenty of tips and advice, this book is equally useful for both Macintosh novices and early adopters looking for a comprehensive reference guide.

Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: Peachpit Learning Series
Robin Williams; ISBN 0-321-33022-6; $29.99
* Project-based training book ideal for upgraders and new OS X users*
The Peachpit Learning Series makes its debut with this launch. This new project-based series brings together best-selling authors and hot topics, in a step-by-step format that allows users to learn just what they need to know at their own pace-whether it's working through lessons from start to finish, jumping directly to exercises about key features, or simply looking up what is needed at the moment. In this first Peachpit Learning Series title, veteran author Robin Williams uses her friendly teaching style to reveal what's new in Tiger, and how to get the most out of it, quickly. Through real-world projects and lessons, this book covers everything from upgrading to Tiger to customizing and troubleshooting.

[Bill Fox]

[4/19] Join the Navy and Get FREE Mac Antivirus Software: Actually you can get it even if you are a civilian and even if you have a Wintel computer. Are computer viruses bad enough to make you join the Navy? Well, maybe if you use a Wintel PC. More... [Dana Baggett]

[4/19] Mystagogue Released Demystifier 1.0 Preview: Mystagogue Corporation announced Demystifier 1.0 Preview for the Macintosh. Demystifier is a web development tool that displays the Document Object Model for both Internet Explorer and Safari. Demystifier also includes advanced search capabilities to quickly locate any element in an HTML document. A tool for all Macintosh web developers, Demystifier 1.0 Preview may be downloaded here. The Preview will expire on April 29th. [Bill Fox]

[4/19] Apple Posted Daily WWDC Schedule and iCal Schedule: Apple just went live with the daily Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2005 session schedules. Also available are downloadable iCal session schedules laid out by track. Click the "Schedules" button near the top of the WWDC homepage. [Bill Fox]

450MHz G4 Cube Speed Tests (average* scores or secs).

Test	Cube 450 MHz
Mac OS X Version:	10.2.8	10.3	10.3.8	10.3.9
Benchmarks:
Altivec Fractal (GFLOPS)	1.5	1.5	1.5	1.5
Cinebench 2003 - Rendering	49	48	48	48
- OpenGL Hardware Lighting	92	90	91	91
Let1kWindowsBloom 1.0 (sec)	61	42	52	53
Xbench - CPU	52	52	53	54
- Threading	34	42	42	42
- Memory	64	76	76	76
- Quartz Graphics	63	72	74	74
- OpenGL Graphics	84	81	80	80
- User Interface Graphics	60	104	103	102
- Hard Disk	66	64	57	54
"Real World" Tests:
Startup (sec)	54	44	54	52
Shutdown (sec)	7	13	15	15
Launch Classic Mode (sec)	-	-	24	25
Dup. 700 MB Folder 3600 Files (sec)	131	134	156	152
Scroll 142p Acrobat Reader File (sec)	57	55	55	55
Encode MP3 in iTunes (sec)	105	105	107	105
Export QT FQDV Movie in iMovie (sec)	35	32	33	36
Quake III Arena 1.32 (frames/sec)	22	21	36	34

*Average of three runs.

Dual 2.5GHz Power Mac G5 Speed Tests (average* scores or secs).

Test	Dual 2.5 GHz Power Mac G5
Mac OS X Version:	10.3.5	10.3.6	10.3.7	10.3.8	10.3.9
Benchmarks:
Altivec Fractal (GFLOPS)	12.7	12.7	12.7	12.7	12.9
Cinebench 2003 - Rendering	647	646	644	646	647
- OpenGL Hardware Lighting	1569	1587	1579	1574	1601
Let1kWindowsBloom 1.0 (sec)	11	11	11	11	11
Xbench - CPU	243	242	243	242	241
- Threading	241	242	260	262	262
- Memory	340	357	335	327	333
- Quartz Graphics	300	300	342	346	348
- OpenGL Graphics	209	195	178	198	202
- User Interface Graphics	374	367	410	410	415
- Hard Disk	110	109	108	108	106
"Real World" Tests:
Startup (sec)	45	38	38	39	40
Shutdown (sec)	9	9	9	11	10
Launch Classic Mode (sec)	9	9	9	9	10
Dup. 700 MB Folder 3600 Files (sec)	62	58	56	62	66
Scroll 142p Acrobat Reader File (sec)	13	13	12	11	11
Encode MP3 in iTunes (sec)	54	53	54	54	54
Export QT FQDV Movie in iMovie (sec)	20	19	19	19	20
Quake III Arena 1.32 (frames/sec)	417	409	407	416	411
Halo 1.0.5.3/1.5.1 (frames/sec)	57**	58**	61***	63***	63***
Call of Duty 1.4 (frames/sec)	n/a	84	84	85	85

*Average of 3 runs. **Halo 1.0.5.3 with ATI Pixel and Vertex Shaders. ***Halo 1.5.1 with Advanced Shaders.

[4/16] Mozilla Suite was Updated to v1.7.7 and it can be downloaded from the Mozilla Foundation's Web site. It is basically a bug/security fix since the feature set will remain at 1.7.x while Mozilla concentrates on the standalone Firefox web browser and Thunderbird emailer. Here are the Release Notes. [Dana Baggett]

[4/16] Brief Hands-On Report--Mac OS X 10.3.9 Client and Server: Last night Apple released Mac OS X 10.3.9 update for client and server. They are available for download via the System Preference Software Update pane and as standalone updaters, either as a delta version (client and server, 10.3.8 to 10.3.9) or as a combo version (client and server, 10.3.x to 10.3.9). We recommend the combo version to minimize the chance of any problems.

Here is what Apple says is in the delta updaters, i.e. new for 10.3.9:

Client (Delta) Improvements include:

• file sharing and directory services reliability for mixed Mac and PC networks
  
• Mail, Safari and Stickies application reliability
  
• compatibility for third party applications and devices
  
• previous standalone security updates
  
• Server (Delta) Improvements include:
  
• reliability of Open Directory authentication requests, and Active Directory integration
  
• AFP performance when listing large files and directories
  
• update to Cyrus version 2.2.10 for more reliable email message storage
  
• reliability of Ethernet communications on Xserve
  
• compatibility for third party applications and devices
  
• previous standalone security updates

Server (Delta) Improvements include:

• reliability of Open Directory authentication requests, and Active Directory integration
  
• AFP performance when listing large files and directories
  
• update to Cyrus version 2.2.10 for more reliable email message storage
  
• reliability of Ethernet communications on Xserve
  
• compatibility for third party applications and devices
  
• previous standalone security updates

Here are the details on the security aspects:

Kernel

CVE ID: CAN-2005-0969
Impact: A kernel input validation issue can lead to a local denial of service
Description: The Kernel contains syscall emulation functionality that was never used in Mac OS X. Insufficient validation of an input parameter list could result in a heap overflow and a local denial of service through a kernel panic. The issue is addressed by removing the syscall emulation functionality. Credit to Dino Dai Zovi for reporting this issue.

CVE ID: CAN-2005-0970
Impact: Permitting SUID/SGID scripts to be installed could lead to privilege escalation.
Description: Mac OS X inherited the ability to run SUID/SGID scripts from FreeBSD. Apple does not distribute any SUID/SGID scripts, but the system would allow them to be installed or created. This update removes the ability of Mac OS X to run SUID/SGID scripts. Credit to Bruce Murphy of rattus.net and Justin Walker for reporting this issue.

CVE ID: CAN-2005-0971
CERT: VU#212190
Impact: A Kernel stack overflow in the semop() system call could lead to a local privilege escalation.
Description: The incorrect handling of system call arguments could be used to obtain elevated privileges. This update includes a fix to check access to the kernel object.

CVE ID: CAN-2005-0972
CERT: VU#185702
Impact: An integer overflow in the searchfs() system call could allow an unprivileged local user to execute arbitrary code with elevated privileges
Description: The searchfs() system call contains an integer overflow vulnerability that could allow an unprivileged local user to execute arbitrary code with elevated privileges. This update adds input validation on the parameters passed to searchfs() to correct the issue.

CVE ID: CAN-2005-0973
Impact: Local system users can cause a system resource starvation
Description: A vulnerability in the handling of values passed to the setsockopt() call could allow unprivileged local users to exhaust available memory. Credit to Robert Stump <rds3792@cs.rit.com> for reporting this issue.

CVE ID: CAN-2005-0974
CERT: VU#713614
Impact: Local system users can cause a local denial of service
Description: A vulnerability in the nfs_mount() call due to insufficient checks on input values could allow unprivileged local users to create a denial of service via a kernel panic.

CVE ID: CAN-2005-0975
Impact: Local system users can cause a temporary interruption of
system operation
Description: A vulnerability in the parsing of certain executable files could allow unprivileged local users to temporarily suspend system operations. Credit to Neil Archibald for reporting this issue.

Safari

CVE ID: CAN-2005-0976
Impact: Remote sites could cause html and javascript to run in the local domain.
Description: This update closes a vulnerability that allowed remote websites to load javascript to execute in the local domain. Credit to David Remahl for reporting this issue.

We downloaded and installed the client and server editions (combo versions) on a number of Macs, including several PowerBooks. No problems were encountered while updating or while briefly using the new version. The only thing we noticed is that sleep on our PowerBook seems to be improved. Note in the server read me file that there are a number of things that should be done for certain configurations.

We updated with our backup FireWire drive attached to our 17" PowerBook with no apparent problems and it still booted our PowerBooks with 10.3.8 after the update. But it became unbootable after it was updated to 10.3.9. We will proba have to use Carbon Copy Cloner again to restore the backup drive to bootable condition as we had to do with 10.3.8.

Safari seems to load pages faster but that may be due to our internet connection being really good right now. But there doesn't seem to be any hesitation in loading pages as before. Unfortunately, Safari on our 17" PowerBook now quits unexpectedly very frequently [Update: This was fixed by deleting Safari's preference file and relaunching. We did not have this minor problem on any other Mac or 'Book]. [Bill Fox & Dana Baggett]

[4/16] Firefox 1.0.3 for the Mac is Available for download from the Mozilla Foundation's Firefox Web site. We download and installed it. Fortunately, our favorite theme, Nautipolis v1.0.5, still works with the new version of Firefox. Our speed mods also survived the update. [Bill Fox]

[4/16] Apple Revised the offerings from Two Hot Deals Retailers:

MacMall has fantastic prices on essential Mac products, including MacAlly Podwave Portable iPod Stereo Speakers, NEC MultiSync LCD17700V 17" LCD Flat Panel Display, Nikon D70 6.1MP Digital SLR Camera Nikkor Lens, Epson Stylus Photo R800 Inkjet Printer, Nyko iBoost Rechargeable Booster Battery Pack for iPod, Kingston 1GB Data Traveler, and much more.

O'Reilly has exclusively Hot Deals discounts for many of it's most popular Mac titles, including Photoshop Elements 3: The Missing Manual, Dreamweaver MX 2004: The Missing Manual, DVD Studio Pro 3: In the Studio, iPhoto 5: The Missing Manual, Office 2004: The Missing Manual, and much more.

[Bill Fox]

[4/16] O'Reilly Released Network Security Tools: Although a security tool will occasionally do exactly what a network administrator wants, right out of the box, more frequently it's necessary to customize the tool to fit the needs of the network structure. In Network Security Tools (O'Reilly, US $34.95), the authors Nitesh Dhanjani and Justin Clarke show network administrators how to use popular open source security assessment tools such as Ettercap, Hydra, Metasploit, Nessus, Nitkeo, and Nmap, and then customize them to defend against even the most experienced attackers. While most security books focus on keeping networks and systems secure, "Network Security Tools" also provides information on determining vulnerabilities in web applications. [Bill Fox]

[4/15] Apple Released iSight 1.0.3 Updater: The updater is available via the System Preferences Software Update pane. A standalone version is not yet available for Apple's Downloads Web page. Apple's iSight Web page still shows v1.0.2 as of publication time. Here is the Read Me file note:

The iSight 1.0.3 update improves the iSight's audio performance. This update is recommended for iSight users running Mac OS X 10.3.7 and later.

We downloaded and installed v1.0.3 in our iSights with no problem. We weren't having a sound problem so we notice no difference. [Bill Fox]

[4/15] Spotlight on Innovation--Advanced Document-based Application Techniques in Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. Move beyond the default document handling capabilities of Cocoa. Learn how to properly customize and extend Cocoa's document classes to support multiple windows displaying views of a single document, displaying data from multiple documents within a single window, advanced error handling, plugins, and much more. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/15] Brief Hands-On Report--Apple Released iDVD 5.0.1, iMovie HD 5.0.2 and iPhoto 5.0.2 Updaters: The three updaters appear in Mac OS X's System Preferences Software Update preference pane if iLife '05 is installed. They can also be downloaded as standalone updaters from this Apple Web page.

Here are the notes on each from their Read Me file:

iDVD 5.0.1 addresses issues related to general stability and compatibility with iPhoto slideshows and iMovie HD.

iMovie HD 5.0.2 Update addresses issues related to video and audio synchronization for DV projects and other issues. These include:

• Audio in PAL widescreen
  
• Sharing (exporting) HDV to videocamera tape
  
• Synchronizing with HDV 720p content
  
• Importing video from a DV videocamera when using analog passthrough or recording live video
  
• Compatibility with some analog-to-digital converter boxes
  
• Capturing video with Hi-8 (Digital 8) devices
  
• Placing titles over DV content
  
• Playing iPhoto slideshows that include protected content
  
• Opening iMovie 4 projects that use speed-adjusted clips.
  

This update is recommended for all users.

You must have iMovie HD 5.0 or iMovie HD 5.0.1 installed in its original location to update to iMovie 5.0.2.

iPhoto 5.0.2 addresses issues with iPhoto book layout, multiword searching, iDVD slideshow integration, and slideshow performance and photo editing on G3 systems.

We downloaded and installed all three updaters with no problem. Limited use of each application revealed no problems. [Bill Fox]

[4/15] O'Reilly Released Mastering FreeBSD and OpenBSD Security: FreeBSD and OpenBSD are often considered the "other" free operating systems--other than Linux, that is. However, these two BSD-based operating systems have increasingly gained traction in educational institutions, nonprofits, and corporations worldwide. The reason? They provide significant security advantages over Linux. In fact, security is the primary reason that most system administrators use these two platforms. Oddly enough, books that focus specifically on the security aspects of these two operating systems are rare. "It's about time that FreeBSD and OpenBSD--operating systems that tout security as one of their greatest assets--have a book on security," says Yanek Korff, coauthor with Paco Hope and Bruce Potter of Mastering FreeBSD and OpenBSD Security (O'Reilly, $49.95). Korff adds, "Deploying these systems without a firm understanding that security must be thought of in advance is folly." [Bill Fox]

[4/15] Antilog Released Barres II.0.1, a Low-Price EPSF Barcode Creator: Barres is a simple barcode generation application for Macintoshes. It can generate the following barcodes: UPC (12 digits), EAN13 (13 digits) and SCC14 (14 digits). By extension of the EAN code, the JAN13 and ISBN-EAN formats can be created. The shareware price of Barres is $30 for one single-user license. [Bill Fox]

[4/14] Apple Q2 Financial Report Blows Away Consensus Estimates by 42 Per Cent: Apple reported its best second quarter ever in a profit of $290 million and earnings of $0.34 per share on revenue of $3.24 billion.

Compared with Q2 of 2004, revenue was up 70% and sales of units were up 43%. Revenue and sales of units were up in all geographic regions. The retail store sales were up 115% in revenue and 106% in units.

By product category, unit sales were:

All products increased, the iPod phenomenally, except for the Power Mac and Xserve category. Hopefully, we will see a refresh of the Power Mac lineup soon that will arrest the continuing decline. But unfortunately, starting with Q3 Apple will report Mac sales by just two product categories, desktops and laptops. [Bill Fox]

[4/14] Spotlight on Innovation--Advanced Backup Architectures for Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. Backups enable administrators to ensure business continuance. Learn about advanced backup architectures such as mirroring, replication, snap-shots, and more traditional disk-to-disk-to-tape. See how Apple customers deploy Xserve, Xserve RAID, and Xsan to solve business challenges regarding backup. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/14] What are the 200 new Features in Tiger and How do They Compare with Panther and Jaguar? Is it worth updating from Panther or jaguar to Tiger (10.4)? Well, we think so but you are the only one who really knows for sure. To help you decide, Apple posted a list of the 200+ new features for Tiger and compared the major capabilities of Tiger with Panther and Jaguar on this Apple Web page. [Dana Baggett]

[4/14] Tonight on The Mac Night Owl LIVE--Dr. Mac and Mr. Gadget: This week co-hosts Gene and Grayson Steinberg will talk about the latest developments in the Mac universe with Bob "Dr. Mac" LeVitus. You'll also learn about some really cool personal technology treasures from Steve "Mr. Gadget" Kruschen. Tune in to this Mac internet radio show at 6-8 p.m. ET (9-11 p.m. PT). [Bill Fox]

[4/14] Apple Revised the Offerings from Four Hot Deals Retailers:

The Apple Store has just launched brand new pricing on Microsoft Office. You can get Office 2004 Standard Edition for only $349.95, Office 2004 Upgrade for only $199.95, Office 2004 Pro for only $449.95, and Office Pro Upgrade for only $299.95. That's a savings of $50, $30, $50, and $30 respectively.

J&R has great prices on top quality Mac products, including M-Audio MIDIMAN Audiiophile 2496 MIDI Digital Recording Interface, Macsoft Unreal Tournament 2004 for Mac, Epson Stylus RX620 Multifuntion Photo Printer/Copier, Scanner/Card Reader, Intuit Quicken 2005 for Mac, Microsoft Virtual PC 7 with Windows XP Home, UbiSoft Myst IV: Revelation/Myst III: Exile Bundle, and much more.

Apple's Clearance Section of Hot Deals boasts some newly added offers, including Pyrus TypeTool 2.0, Smart Media 128MB Secure Digital Card with $10 mail-in rebate, Dr. Bott ExtendAir Direct WiFi Wireless Antenna, Epson L-410 Digital Camera, Microsoft Optical USB Mouse by Starck, M-Audio Oxygen B 25-key MIDI Controller Keyboard, IK Multimedia Sonik Capsule - Studio Drums, and much more.

Ramjet has super low prices on RAM upgrades for your Mac, including 2GB DDR Kit for Power Mac G5, 512MB DDR DIMM for Power Mac G4, 512MB PC-2700 Module for Aluminum PowerBook G4, 1GB Module for Aluminum PowerBook G4, and much more.

[Bill Fox]

[4/14] Peachpit Published Making a Movie in iMovie HD and iDVD 5: Visual QuickProject Guide: Realizing that many users won't want to waste a single minute reading about all they can do with iMovie and iDVD, best-selling author Jeff Carlson cuts straight to the chase, using simple project-based instruction and big, colorful screen shots to guide them through the process of making their first movie on an interactive DVD. By focusing on that first project, rather than exploring every option and feature, in Making a Movie in iMovie HD and iDVD 5: Visual QuickProject Guide Jeff demonstrates the quickest, easiest, smartest route to cinematic success. (Peachpit, ISBN: 0-321-33018-8, $12.99) [Bill Fox]

[4/13] Apple Announced Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger Client and Server Release Date--April 29: Yesterday, Apple announced that the latest version of Mac OS X client and server, 10.4 or Tiger, will be released on Friday, April 29 at 6:00 p.m. during a special event at Apple's retail stores. However, if ordered from the online Apple Store, the client and server editions of Tiger will be shipped for free with an arrival date of April 29. The server edition can be ordered from the Business Section of the online Apple Store.

System Requirements: The minimum Mac system requirements for Tiger include a minimum of 256MB of memory, a PowerPC G5, G4, or G3 processor and built-in FireWire. In addition, initiating a multiway video conference requires a PowerPC G5 processor or dual 1GHz G4 processors and 384 Kbps or faster broadband Internet access. While just participating in a multiway video conference requires a 1Ghz G4 or dual 800 MHz G4 processors or faster and 100 Kbps broadband Internet access. Basically, every Power Mac back through the Blue and White G3, all PowerBook G4s, iMacs back through the first slot loading CRT iMac, the Mac mini, emac and iBooks back throught the clamshell FireWire model and SE all qualify.

Pricing: The client edition of Tiger is priced at $129 and the 10-license server edition is priced at $499. Apple is also selling a 5-license household family client edition for $199 and an unlimited license server edition for $999. If you are a student or teacher, the education client editon is just $69. The lowest advertised price that we could find from a third-party retailer is Amazon.com at $94.99.

In addition, the Mac OS Up-To-Date program will make Tiger available for $9.95 to those who purchased a new Mac on or after April 12th.

Finally, Tiger comes on a DVD disc. But if your Mac does not have a DVD drive, a set of CDs may be purchased the Media Exchange Program for an additional $9.95.

Improvements: Apple touts over 200 improvements, with features like Spotlight, Dashboard, iChat with the superb H.264 codec and 4-person 3D video conferencing, Automator the improved AppleScript, QuickTime 7, Safari 2 with built-in RSS reader, Mail 2, iCal 2, Font Book 2, new syncing with Xsync, 64-bit processing support, Core Image, Xgrid and much more.

We have pre-ordered a Family Edition copy of Tiger for our home Macs to be delivered on April 29.

More... and more... [Dana Baggett and Bill Fox]

[4/13] Spotlight on Innovation--More Hands-On Activities with Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. This year Apple has planned many more hands-on activities. You can bring your laptop to code along as Apple's engineers lead in these practical, "how to" sessions. Learn firsthand Apple Engineering's own coding strategies and best practices for leveraging technologies like Spotlight, Core Image, Xgrid, Core Data, Quartz Composer, and more. Details on more than 30 hands-on sessions are currently posted with access from this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/13] Apple's Second Quarter Financial Report Audio Webcast is Today: As we noted last weekend, today Apple will have a conference call on its second quarter financial report. The report and discussion will be carried live as a QuickTime audio webcast at 2 p.m. PT (5 p.m. ET) from this Apple Web site. The analysts consensus estimate as reported by Thomson First Call is earnings of $0.24 per share on revenues of $3.2 billion. However, Apple virtually always finds some way of beating the consensus estimate, occasionally quite dramatically, so tune in for the fun. [Bill Fox & Dana Baggett]

[4/13] Online E-Filing of Federal Income Tax Returns Hits the 50% Mark for 2004: As e-filing becomes easier and the experiences of many in the good-excellent range, taxpayers have flocked to e-filing of their federal income tax return. According to surveys, it appears that half of all filers are doing so electronically this year. We have filed electronically for several years using our Macs, including our state returns, using either TaxCut or TurboTax with no problems. We highly recommend it. More... [Dana Baggett]

[4/13] FREE Envision Web Show of the Week--Building the Empire State Building: This week's Envision Web Show of the Week is of photographs taken during the building of the Empire State Building in New York City from 1930-1931. The show is from one of a large number of online exhibitions from the New York Public Library. The Envision Web Show of the Week can be downloaded from the Show of the Week Web site. Previous Shows of the Week are available in the Show of the Week archive. [Bill Fox]

[4/12] Spotlight on Innovation--Focus on the Science Community: Apple holds one technical conference every year where they roll out their technology plans for the coming 12 months and make all the Apple engineers accessible. The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4 and certain key communities. Science is one of those communities. The science focus will include:

• Science Lounge with special lunchtime discussion topics and speakers
  
• Special session on Science
  
• Sessions on HPC, Xgrid, and all the new features of Mac OS X "Tiger"
  
• Apple Design Awards: Best Scientific Computing and best Open Source applications
  

Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Biill Fox]

[4/12] O'Reilly Released iPod & iTunes: The Missing Manual, Third Edition: For getting much more out of an iPod, as well as putting much more into it, the newly updated edition blows open the secret doors of the chrome-and-white beauty and its many siblings, including the iPod Mini, iPod Photo, and the tiny iPod Shuffle. "This book is one-stop shopping for iPod reference and information," promises the author J.D. Biersdorfer. "It takes you on a joyride through the iPod subculture. And it guides you through all the cool musical and nonmusical things you can do with your iPod, from looking up phone numbers to checking the weather report. You'll also find heaping helpings of the Three T's: tips, tricks, and troubleshooting." Check out iPod & iTunes: The Missing Manual, Third Edition, (O'Reilly, US $24.95), written by J.D. Biersdorfer and edited by Missing Manual series creator David Pogue. [Bill Fox]

[4/12] MultiMode v5.5.0 is Out for Shortwave/Ham Radio Fans: Black Cat Systems announced that version 5.5.0 of MultiMode OSX has been released. This update to MultiMode includes the addition of a mode to receive and transmit EAS (Emergency Alert System) packets, addition of RIT (Receiver Incremental Tuning) to PSK31 mode, the ability to change the audio input device and source while MultiMode is running, as well as several bug fixes. MultiMode is an application which allows your Macintosh to decode and transmit several different modes of non-voice communication often heard on shortwave and ham radio. It is the only program of its kind for the Macintosh,rivaling commercial packages for the PC platform costing hundreds of dollars. It is ideal for amateur radio operators, shortwave radio listeners, and other radio enthusiasts. [Bill Fox]

[4/12] Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger Pre-Sale is Top in Software Sales on Amazon.com: It's not even released yet, but Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger is outselling all other software on Amazon.com. This is amazing since one might think that tax preparation software would lead the charts at this time of year. Rounding out the current (as of publication time) top five are ZoneAlarm Security Suite, QuickBooks Pro, Microsoft Office Standard Student and Teacher 2003 and Winway Resume Deluxe, all Wintel software. Of course, Amazon has a great deal on Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger--$94.99. More... [Dana Baggett & Bill Fox]

[4/11] Patriots Quarterback Tom Brady's Playlist Posted on iTunes Music Store: If you are a football fan or just want to know which songs hyped New England Patriot Quarterback Tom Brady before winning Super Bowl 34 in February, Apple's iTunes Music Store has just posted his playlist in the celebrity section. It contains songs by Kanye West, Eminem, Rolling Stones, Toadies, Jay-Z, Aerosmith, Soundgarden and U2, reportedly Brady's favorite band. More... [Dana Baggett]

[4/11] Spotlight on Innovation--Create Safari Plug-ins for Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. There will be a number of special hands-on sessions in addition to the usual lectures and labs. The Safari Plug-ins hands-on session will teach you how to build plug-ins using Cocoa, the Netscape API, and Java. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/11] Apple Remote Destop 2 Honored at FOSE: The largest computer/IT show in our Nation's capitol is FOSE. FOSE comes originally from Federal Office Systems Expo but it is now an excellent IT show in Washington DC. Apple Remote Desktop 2 was selected as one of a dozen best of show items. Here is the full list:

- Adobe LiveCycle Policy Server, Adobe Systems Inc.
- Altova XMLSpy 2005, Altova Inc.
- Apple Remote Desktop 2, Apple Computer Inc.
- Comet 12, Tadpole Computer Inc.
- Gateway 9415 Server, Gateway Inc.
- HP ProCurve 3400cl series switches, Hewlett-Packard Co.
- HP xw9300 Workstation, Hewlett-Packard Co.
- Intel Centrino mobile technology, Intel Corp.
- Kodak i660 Scanner, Eastman Kodak Co.
- MPC Transport X3100, MPC Computers LLC
- Telkonet PLC, Telkonet Inc.
- VoteFiler, Comfidex Corp.

We use Apple Remote Desktop 2 to control our "headless" Mac mini and to service the other Macs on our global headquarters network. More... [Dana Baggett]

[4/11] Uses of Apple's XSAN--24-hr TV Station: Delivering breaking news and first-rate analysis to an information-hungry audience, 24-hours a day, seven days a week, is a huge endeavour. The sheer volume of material — both live and recorded — plus the ongoing imperative to present it in new and interesting ways, is staggering.

Technology is key to the undertaking; it can make or break a 24-hour news channel. The right technology, deployed effectively, can facilitate success by delivering performance and reliability at the right price. This is what Apple has done with XSAN and other hardware for TVN 24, Poland’s first and only 24-hour news channel, and by far the country’s best performing pay-channel. More... [Dana Baggett]

[4/11] Apple Still Strong at NASA--Focus on NASA's Bill Ingalls: He replaced NASA's original photographer, Bill Taub, in 1989 after a 14-year gap and has overseen the transition to digital photgraphy at NASA. The archive staff uses five dual-processor Power Mac G5s to offload and batch-process photographs and do image-editing using Photoshop. They also scan negatives and transparencies into the Macs using Nikon scanners. For printing, they forward files to two dual-processor Power Mac G5s attached to ultra-high-resolution Fuji Pictrography digital printers. "Images are printed on demand," Ingalls says. "Almost everything we send to the press is electronic." More... [Dana Baggett]

[4/9] Spotlight on Innovation--Create Your Own Mac OS X Tiger Dashboard Widgets: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. Dashboard introduces a new breed of mini-application called a Widget. Based upon standard HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, Widgets are simple to build and easy to extend using the power of Mac OS X. Learn how to use the technologies you already know to build widgets that can enhance your Mac OS X application or bring new capabilities to the platform. There is also a hands-on session will provide you with the techniques you need to make a great Dashboard Widget on Mac OS X Tiger. Widget UI design will be discussed and explained, using sample code, how to implement scrollers and other common Widget interface elements. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/9] Apple will Report Its Second Quarter Earnings on Wednesday--Earnings Forecast: Apple's second fiscal quarter closed March 31st and its financial report is due out Wednesday afternoon, after the markets close. The Thomson First Call consensus earnings estimate is $0.24 per share and revenue of $3.2 billion. But as anyone knows who watches the financials, Apple always beats the consensus estimate. There will likely be a webcast financial conference call Wednesday where Apple will announce the results and answer questions. We'll post the conference call link when Apple makes it available. More... [Dana Baggett & Bill Fox].

[4/9] O'Reilly Released Photoshop Elements 3: The Missing Manual: With most of the power of Photoshop--the tool of choice among graphics professionals--Photoshop Elements 3 lets people manipulate their digital images just as they like. But even though Elements is meant for "regular folks," says the author Barbara Brundage, "finding your way around the program has become a lot more complicated than it used to be." And since it doesn't come with a trusty manual, she wrote the all-new, full-color Photoshop Elements 3: The Missing Manual (O'Reilly, US $39.95).

To us Photoshop Elements 3 is a lot more like the full Adobe Photoshop than the previous version of Elements and, hence, is more complicated. Quite a few simple operations, like typing text over an image and manipulating it, are much harder to do but have greater flexibilty or features. This "Missing Manual" should be of help to anyone using Elements, including us. [Bill Fox]

[4/9] Apple Revised the Offerings from a Hot Deals Retailer:

CDW|MacWarehouse has great deals on cool Mac products, including Edge 2GB Power Mac RAM Module with FREE 80GB DiskGo Portable External Hard Drive, QuarkXPress/Macromedia Freehand Bundle, Pentax *ist DS Digital SLR Camera with 18-55mm Lens and Hood, El Gato EyeTV 200, Planar Dual PL-1910 OM 19" LCD Display and Ergotron DS100 Dual Monitor Stand, Canon Digital Rebel XT with FREE 256MB SanDisk CompactFlash Memory Card, and much more.

[Bill Fox]

[4/8] Spotlight on Innovation--Special Emphasis at WWDC 2005 on Key Communities: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. There's a wealth of content and special events for every kind of developer at WWDC 2005. But this year, there will also be an extra focus on these key communities:

* Audio & Video
* Education
* Enterprise IT
* Games Development
* Scientific Computing

Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page and follow the special "Find Your Place" links." [Bill Fox]

[4/8] MacImports has Special Prices on Kamas PowerBook Stands--From $89: MacImports.com has re-opened following its move to California. It is celebrating its move with the first-ever sale on the very best, precision-crafted PowerBook stands from Power Support of Japan. For a limited time, all models except the SK-77 for the 17" PowerBook G4 are just $89 plus tax (CA only) and shipping. The SK-77 is just $99. MacImports.com also has protective trackpad film for $9.49, pack of two. [Bill Fox]

[4/8] May Consumer Reports Lauds Apple Mac mini and iPod shuffle: The May 2005 issue of Consumer Reports magazine hit our mailbox today. On page seven it provides brief reviews of both the Mac mini and the iPod shuffle.

CR agrees with Macs Only! on the Mac mini, commenting that "The Mini's G4 processor and standard RAM [are] adequate for basic computing." It sums up by concluding that  "... the Mini offers a space-saving, low-priced entry into Macintosh computing."

CR praises the performance of the iPod shuffle, its earphones and signal quality, calling it "... a very inexpensive and simple way to enjoy music on the go."

For the rather staid and highly respected consumer magazine, that's about as good as it gets. [Dana Baggett]

[4/7] Spotlight on Innovation--VoiceOver, A Spoken Interface for Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. The VoiceOver spoken interface provides a new way for users with visual impairments to access the Mac. Apple will cover the VoiceOver navigation model, testing techniques, and verification tools so you can properly support VoiceOver in your application. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/7] The Apple Developer Connection Published Tiger Developer Overview Series: Developing with Core Data: Creating, managing and saving the data model of an application has been a tedious and difficult process for software developers, but with the advent of Tiger, that task is made much simpler. This article shows one how to use the power of Core Data to quickly define your application’s data model in a graphical way, simplifying the task of building innovation into your application. [Bill Fox]

[4/7] O'Reilly Released iPhoto 5: The Missing Manual: With iPhoto 5, a cornerstone of Apple's iLife '05 software suite, Apple has eliminated the infamous "chain of pain" of transferring photos from a digital camera, organizing them, and publishing, printing, or sharing them. This version offers fifty new features--but not one printed manual. iPhoto 5: The Missing Manual by David Pogue and Derrick Story (O'Reilly, US $29.95) comes fully loaded--and in full color--so readers can exercise all the power, flexibility, and creativity of the stunning new iPhoto 5. More... [Bill Fox]

[4/7] Apple Revised the Offerings from Three Hot Deals Retailers:

MacZone has fantastic prices on essential Mac products, including Microsoft Office 2004 Pro Upgrade with FREE Wireless Keyboard/Mouse, Sony 16x Double Layer DVD±R USB 2.0 External Drive, Belkin TuneDock Card Holder for iPod, Griffin iFire Amplifier and Adapter for Apple Pro Speakers, Edge 1GB DiskGo USB 2.0 Flash Drive with $30 mail-in rebate, and much more.

Publishing Perfection has great deals on a variety of design and print products for your Mac, including nik multimedia Color Efex Pro 2.0, Asiva Photo Plug-ins Bundle 2.2, DAQ Productions Motions CD, Human Software Frames Collection, StockLayouts for Adobe InDesign Volume 2, Andromeda Artistic Screening Tools, Gluon Cropster, and much more.

CompUSA has money saving deals on a bevy of Mac products, including Roxio Toast 6 Titanium with $20 mail-in rebate, Epson Stylus Photo RX500 All-in-One Device with $50 mail-in rebate, Samsung 712n 17" LCD Display with $70 mail-in rebate, Kodak EasyShare DX7590 Digital Camera with $50 mail-in rebate, Adobe Photoshop Elements 3 with $20 mail-in rebate, and much more.

[Bill Fox]

[4/6] Spotlight on Innovation--Writing a Spotlight Plug-in for Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. At a hands-on session, learn how to create a Spotlight plug-in to make your custom file format searchable by Spotlight. Apple will show you how to write a Spotlight plug-in to export information from a basic file, create custom keys that the Finder can display, and debug your plug-in. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/6] Firefox 1.0.3 and Mozilla 1.7.7 and Camino 0.8.4 Updates are Coming Soon--Security Fix: New versions of the web browsers will be out shortly. They fix a serious bug that allows a malicious site to use JavaScript to grab random parts of the memory heap. More... [Dana Baggett]

[4/6] FREE Envision Web Show of the Week--Born in Brothels: This week's Envision Web Show of the Week is of photographs from the Kids with Cameras organization. The work of this organization was recently highlighted in the Academy award-winning documentary "Born into Brothels". The Envision Web Show of the Week can be downloaded from the Show of the Week Web site. Previous Shows of the Week are available in the Show of the Week archive. [Bill Fox]

[4/6] Apple Announced that Nominations are Open for Tenth Annual Design Awards: The Tenth Annual Apple Design Awards recognize technical excellence and outstanding achievement in software products and solutions for Mac OS X. To celebrate Apple's tenth anniversary, the Apple Design Awards 2005 will boast the biggest prize packages ever and winners will be announced—and winning products showcased—in a special ceremony at the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference 2005 held this June in San Francisco. Here are the categories:

* Best Product New to Mac OS X
* Best Mac OS X User Experience
* Best Mac OS X Entertainment Product
* Best Mac OS X Scientific Computing Solution
* Best Mac OS X Server Solution
* Best Use of Open Source
* Best Mac OS X Student Product

And new in 2005...

* Best Use of Mac OS X Tiger Technologies

This year's Apple Design Award winners will receive huge prize packages that include top-of-the-line hardware, Apple Developer Connection memberships, and much more.

Nominations are open today--they close Friday, May 13. To get the details, go to this Apple Web page and follow the links. [Bill Fox]

[4/6] Report on 2005 O'Reilly ETech Conference--Exploring "Remix" Culture: Hackers and other innovators have embraced the do-it-yourself renaissance, tweaking here and integrating there, creating new tools and inspiring a resurgence of hands-on experimentation. These new, unexpected combinations--and the opportunities they present--were the driving force behind the 2005 edition of ETech, the O'Reilly Emerging Technology Conference, held in San Diego, California, March 14-17. The conference attracted over 800 attendees, making it one of the best-attended ETechs to date, illustrating both the popularity of "remix" and the pervasiveness of technology in our lives.

As new applications, services, and devices simultaneously converge and morph in unconventional ways, the lens of ETech--articulated on stage and throughout the program by conference chair Rael Dornfest and O'Reilly founder and CEO Tim O'Reilly--is particularly helpful in bringing new trends to light and focusing the future of computing technology for a wider audience. As in past years, ETech gave developers, IT decision-makers, lead users, engineers, and tech aficionados maximum exposure to new ideas and technologies through roll-up-your-sleeves tutorials, on-point plenary presentations, focused sessions that included late-breaking issues, and a relevant exhibit hall. Just a few of the intriguing speakers and topics at the conference included:

• Technology historian George Dyson mapped Von Neumann's universe
  
• Writer, consultant, and NYU professor Clay Shirky parsed folksonomy, metadata, and the phone as platform
  
• JC Herz, author and defense researcher/consultant, addressed emerging technology use in the military
  
• Joel Spolsky, founder of Fog Creek Software, discussed the ramifications of building communities with software
  
• Author Kathy Sierra outlined her methods for creating passionate users
  
• James Surowiecki, a staff writer at the "New Yorker," posed the question: Is it possible to be too connected?
  
• Danny Hillis, co-chairman and chief technology officer of Applied Minds, discussed how technology is remixed at Applied Minds
  
• Natalie Jeremijenko of UCSD described her methods of social activism using feral robotic dogs
  
• Chris Anderson, editor-in-chief of "Wired Magazine," presented the economics of "The Long Tail"
  

ETech's inaugural Maker Fair illustrated the popularity and "mass amateurization" of gadgets and grassroots projects. This science fair-like evening event showcased projects from O'Reilly's new MAKE magazine, which launched in March.

From hacking a Mac mini into a 1950 Nash auto, predicting next-gen media, remixing DNA, sharing insights into the digitization of fabrication, exploring the swarming web, and much more, the 2005 O'Reilly Emerging Technology Conference publicly celebrated just a few of the many ideas, projects, and people destined to change the way we use technology every day. More...

[4/6] Registration Now Open--Macworld Conference & Expo 2005 in Boston: The Macworld Expo 2005 in Boston will be July 11-14. Register on-line by June 10, 2005 with PRIORITY CODE: B0201 to receive your Free Exhibit Hall pass and Early Bird Pricing on all of our Conference packages. Exhibit Hall passes have access to Feature Presentations, the Exhibit Hall and Geeks & Gadget’s stage presentations for all three days. More... [Bill Fox]

[4/5] Spotlight on Innovation--Create Your Own Mac OS X Tiger Dashboard Widgets: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. Dashboard introduces a new breed of mini-application called a Widget. Based upon standard HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, Widgets are simple to build and easy to extend using the power of Mac OS X. Learn how to use the technologies you already know to build widgets that can enhance your Mac OS X application or bring new capabilities to the platform. There is also a hands-on session will provide you with the techniques you need to make a great Dashboard Widget on Mac OS X Tiger. Widget UI design will be discussed and explained, using sample code, how to implement scrollers and other common Widget interface elements. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/5] Fastest G4--2.0GHz G4 CPU Upgrade Available from Giga Designs: This CPU upgrade is based on the Freescale (formerly Motorola) 7447A G4 with 512K L2 cache running at CPU speed. The compatible Power Mac G4 models include: AGP Graphics (Sawtooth), Gigabit Ethernet, Digital Audio, Quicksilver and Quicksilver 2002. The G4 CPU is a 1.6GHz chip tested at 2.0GHz. It carries a 3-year warranty. Its SRP is $499. More... [Bill Fox]

[4/5] Forbes.com on Eight Web Browsers: Forbes.com reviewed eight web browsers for Mac OS X and Windows. Their top pick is Mozilla Foundation's Firefox. In fact, their top five picks are Gecko-based open source products--only Opera is not. Most are also cross-platform except for the Mac-only Camino and Safari and the Windows-only K-Meleon. Internet Explorer, Safari and Mozilla are the three not in their top five. More... [Dana Baggett]

[4/4] Spotlight on Innovation--Building 64-bit Solutions for Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. Are you developing an application that could benefit from more than 32 bits of address space? Mac OS X Tiger offers support for 64-bit command-line processes that can address vast amounts of memory. Learn the specifics of Tiger's 64-bit support and how to factor a Carbon or Cocoa application to run in conjunction with 64-bit backend processes. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/4] FREE Apple Online Seminars--Current Listings: These online events are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week from any computer with internet access. They are designed to be no more than 30 minutes in length and offer a wide variety of resources and information for your review. Topics cover solutions using Apple and partner products and technologies.

Here are the currently available seminars:

A Blueprint for Tiered Storage--Steve Duplessie, recognized independent expert on storage technology, discusses the practicalities of tiered storage & set-up of a solution that works.

Asset Management for Creative Workgroups: With Xserve G5 and Extensis Portfolio Server--Learn how you can better manage your photographs and creative assets with the winning combination of Apple Xserve and Extensis Portfolio Server.

Biotech is in our DNA--Michael Athanas, Ph.D., of The BioTeam will show how to install a fully provisioned informatics cluster on one or more Xserve servers using iNquiry.

Color Management for Your Digital Workflow--This free online seminar helps demystify color management and gives you the knowledge you need to incorporate it into your workflow.

Color Management: From Input to Edit and Print with Mac OS X Panther & ColorSync--Join Steve Upton, industry consultant on color, as he gives you an overview of color management from displays to applications and output.

Computational Clusters for Bioinformatics--Elizabeth Kerr, Ph.D., Director of Science and Technology Markets at Apple, moderates this informative webcast discussion of the Apple Workgroup Cluster.

Desktop Management Made Easy with Apple Remote Desktop 2--Join Apple Product Mgr Nader Nafissi to learn why Apple's new, easy to use desktop management software is the essential tool for any Mac system administrator.

Developers win with Mac OS X, Reap the rewards--Built on a rock-solid UNIX core and standards-based technologies, Mac OS X is hailed as the world's most advanced operating system.

Getting Started with High Performance Computing--On-demand rebroadcast of the Dec 16, 2004 webcast discussion of the high-level concepts of high performance computing, issues & obstacles, and more.

Guitarists and the Mac: A Conversation with Pat Metheny--Join Pat Metheny in this free online seminar and learn how the Mac can help you take your music to the next level.

Improve Your Presentation Skills--Watch this free online seminar and find out how to improve your presentation skills.

Information Lifecycle Management--Steve Kenniston, an Enterprise Storage Group analyst will offer insights as to how to manage vast amounts of data while keeping your overhead low.

Maximizing Mac OS X Application Performance--Re-broadcast of the webcast discussion of the basics of optimization, how and why developers should turn a critical eye to the code they've just written.

Mobile Creative Studio, Portable Workstation, Office-on-the-Go--Join Gail Nishimura, PowerBook product manager, to learn about the latest advancements in the PowerBook G4 line and discover which model is right for you.

Mobile Field Editing with Journalist Dr. Bob Arnot--Join Dr. Bob Arnot to learn how the Mac can help you become a more successful storyteller and videographer by editing video on-the-go using tools from Apple.

Optimize Your Creative Workgroups with Mac OS X Server, Xserve, and Xserve RAID--Join Brent Haley, Apple senior marketing manager for design and print, and learn how you can remove barriers to creativity while streamlining mundane IT tasks.

Perfect Color Starts Here. With Apple Cinema Displays--Join the Apple Cinema Displays product manager to learn how adding an Apple display to your creative system can boost your color-viewing experience.

Perfectly Focused, Digital Photography on Mac OS X--This seminar will show you why you should take the plunge to digital--and how to get started with your own digital photography workflow on Mac OS X.

The Ultimate Creative Workstation. Discovering the Apple Power Mac G5--Todd Benjamin provides a tour of the Power Mac G5, describing what makes them so innovative and how they will benefit your creative endeavors.

Unwire Your Business--Take this free online seminar and find out how Apple's wireless and mobile solutions let you take your computing environment with you wherever you go.

[Bill Fox]

[4/4] Sp@mX 4.1.0 Update Available: Sp@mX 4.1.0 has been posted for download from the Message Board at hsc's Web site. The update provides improved control of spam filtering and is free for registered owners. [Bill Fox]

[4/2] Spotlight on Innovation--Mac OS X Tiger and Scientific Computing: The upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, will focus on the latest edition of Mac OS X, i.e. "Tiger" or 10.4. Whether it's the PowerBook G4 for UNIX to go, the Power Mac G5 workstation for serious computational horsepower on the desktop, or the immense power and scalability of Xserve G5 and Xserve RAID, Apple delivers an ideal platform for scientific computing with an exceptional price/performance ratio. Learn how Apple products are driving momentum in scientific markets and hear how scientific developers are using Mac OS X Tiger technologies to deliver innovative research tools. Check out the details on what will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/2] Apple Revised the offerings from Three Hot Deals Retailers:

AudioMIDI has fantastic deals on a wide range of audio products for your Mac, including M-Audio Trigger Finger, Presonus Eureka with FREE AD192 24-bit/192K Digital Card, Izotope Ozone 3, Celomony Melodyne Uno, and much more.

Tech Depot has exclusive Hot Deals on great products for your Mac, including IOGear 160GB 3.5" Tri-Select Combo ION Drive, SimpleTech 250GB USB 2.0 External Hard Drive, Keyspan Digital Media Remote, Belkin Battery Backup for iPod, MacAlly Armband for iPod, Canon PowerShot SD200 Digital Camera, H&R Block TaxCut Premium 2004, and much more.

O'Reilly has exclusive Hot Deals discounts for many of it's most popular Mac titles, including iPhoto 5: The Missing Manual, Photoshop Elements 3: The Missing Manual, iPod and iTunes Hacks, Running Mac OS X Panther, Office 2004: The Missing Manual, and much more.

[Bill Fox]

[4/2] Clean Up Your Old Mac Before Passing It On: Old Macs rarely go to the dump. They usually go to other people so there are a number of things you should do to it before you sell or bequeath it to someone else. These things are: de-authorize the computer from your iTunes account, back up the entire drive contents, wipe the entire drive not just "erase" it. The songs you paid for from Apple's iTunes Music Store can only be kept on five different Macs so be sure to deauthorize the old Mac to keeep the five alive. You never know which file you might need so it's best to copy all of them and keep them for at least awhile until you are sure you will never need them. Finally, wipe the entire hard drive by booting from the OS X CD and using "Zero all data" under the options button for Erase in the Disk Utility. More... [Dana Baggett]

[4/2] Griffin Shipping AirClick, iPod RF Remote Controller: Griffin Technology Inc. announced that they are now shipping the AirClick Remote. Unlike conventional remotes, the AirClick Remote uses RF technology that allows users to control their iPod from up to 60 ft. away. Users will not have to be in the line of sight for it to work, making it a perfect solution for using your iPod while in your car, hiking or exercising. RF signals also pass through walls, so you can control your iPod throughout your home. The AirClick is $39.99 for the iPod mini and 4Gen iPods. [Bill Fox]

[4/1] Happy Birthday Apple! Today Apple Computer, Inc. turns 29, having been created April 1, 1976. [Dana Baggett]

[4/1] Spotlight on Innovation--Building and Using Xgrid Clusters with Mac OS X Tiger: If you run computationally intensive software, come to the upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference 2005, June 6-10, to find out how Xgrid can help you leverage the power of all your hardware, from racks of Xserve G5s to rooms of PowerMacs and iMacs (even Mac minis). This session will describe the new Xgrid implementation in Tiger, and will include coverage of the powerful administrative and security capabilities in Mac OS X Server. It will also cover the basics of how to run jobs and manage clusters using the command-line, as well as tie-ins to Xsan, OpenDirectory, and ActiveDirectory. Check out the details that will be covered at WWDC 2005 on this Apple Web page. [Bill Fox]

[4/1] Wednesdays are Business Days at Apple Retail Stores--April Topics: Every Wednesday, the Apple Stores have a special program for businesses. In April, the focus is on how to effectively grow your business. Here are the April topics:

• Build a reliable work environment complete with a lower cost of ownership
  
• Get the details on how Mac speeds are comparable to and often faster than those of PCs
  
• Hear about some of the 12,000–plus applications available for Mac OS X, including 4000 business programs
  
• Learn how Mac OS X is easy to integrate and network with other platforms
  

The stores also have on-demand presentations that may be requested from a Business Consultant at any time. April's topics are:

• Creating a wireless network
  
• Using Pages to create your business documents
  

Check with your local Retail Apple Store for exact times of the standard presentations. [Bill Fox]

[4/1] Apple's Brand Stands for Imagination and Fun: While comsumers are becoming more cynical about advertising, Apple is one of the companies that has bucked the trend and made its brand even stronger among consumers. Some say this is because Apple has broadened its reach to consumers beyond the computer to consumer electronics that are well-designed and well-marketed. More... [Dana Baggett]

[4/1] Mozilla Project Releases Camino 0.8.3 in Final: As we noted earlier this week, Mozilla released the final edition of version 0.8.3 of its Mac OS X Cocoa-native web browser, Camino. It is available for download from the Camino Web site. Here are the Release Notes. [Bill Fox]

[4/1] Apple's Mac mini, a Pleasant Diversion from the Windows World: More PC users are being enticed into the Mac world by Apple's latest desktop, the Mac mini. Of course, that is one of the main reasons for Apple brining it to market according to Apple CEO Steve Jobs' introduction of it in January. Here is a PC World editor's blog on their purchase and use of a Mac mini. [Dana Baggett]

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