Archived Links for December 2006

12.30	MacOSXrumors	8-Core Mac Pro and new displays slated for January, Alexandros Roussos: Sources indicated to MacScoop that Apple is readying the launch of renewed Mac Pro and Cinema Display line-ups in January.
12.29	MacDailyNews	When crap collides: Ford and Microsoft team up for in-vehicle operating system, Staff: Ford Motor plans to unveil a deal with Microsoft in January that will put the software company’s technology into some of the automaker’s cars.
12.29	ZDNet	Could YouTube be the killer-app for Apple’s iTV?, Steve O’Hear: With Macworld Expo just over a week away, many expect Apple CEO Steve Jobs to announce further details (and the availability) of the company’s yet to be released set-top-box, codenamed iTV.
12.29	Macworld	The best of the best of 2006, Brian Chen: As Apple continues to proliferate in the computer market, the amount of top-notch products and software for Mac users is ever increasing. The following list is a compilation of what we at Macworld and Playlist consider to be 2006’s best of the best-products and software that we deemed worthy of a rare five-out-of-five rating.
12.28	Mac Night Owl	Some Nice Things About 2006, Gene Steinberg: Just before writing this article, I sat back and looked over the material I’ve presented over the past few weeks, and it seems I’ve been very negative; so much so, in fact, that you can rightly assume that all I want to do is rant.
12.28	MacDailyNews	Top 10 all-time Apple rumors, Staff: What do you get when you cross a notoriously tight-lipped computer company with rabidly fanatical users? A whole lot of gossip, speculation and hearsay, that’s what.
12.27	Apple Matters	Apple and Nintendo Should Play Together, Chris Howard: Apple and Nintendo share a lot in common with both liking white, both having an inclination to think different, both appealing to the average consumer and both up against powerful opponents.
12.23	MacOSXrumors	Leopard build 9A321: all the new features listed!, Alexandros Roussos: The latest build (9A321) of Mac OS X Leopard 10.5 is revealing several great features. We gathered all this information found on other reports and forum postings in one article, for you, Mac OS X fans!
12.22	Low End Mac	Good-bye PowerPC and Classic Mode, Hello Intel and the Road Ahead, Tommy Thomas: In one form or another, Classic lived for 22 years. You’ve got to hand it to Apple for being able to stretch the usefulness of the Classic Mac OS that long. Let’s never forget our roots as Mac users as we wave good-bye to the Classic era and say Hello (again) to the next generation of the Mac and fully embrace OS X.
12.20	Low End Mac	The NeXT Years: Steve Jobs before His Triumphant Return to Apple, Tom Hormby: On September 12, 1985, Jobs wasn’t completely sure what he wanted to do for the rest of his life. He vaguely wanted to stay in hardware, and he wanted to market that new hardware to college students, as Apple had done with the Macintosh.
12.18	Apple Matters	The iPhone Commeth, James R. Stoup: Ladies and gentlemen, it is now official. I no longer care whether or not Apple releases an iPhone. Today, tomorrow, five years from now, it doesn’t matter, I don’t care. A year ago I cared very deeply. A month ago I cared enough to read all of the blog posting. A week ago I cared enough not to gouge out my eyes with an ice pick. But today I officially do not care at all. I have been over saturated with iPhone mania.
12.13	Low End Mac	Avant Prime: Rebirth of the Legendary Northgate OmniKey Keyboard, Tommy Thomas: Back in the 80s, a company called Northgate made PCs (like many other clone companies). While their reputation for PCs was average, one thing they made stood out as a legend in the computer industry: the Northgate OmniKey line of keyboards. It had the same stellar reputation as the IBM Model M keyboards.
12.13	Low End Mac	13 Sources for Free and Shareware Mac Software, Ed Eubanks Jr: When it comes to software, I’m willing to pay good money for what I need (if there isn’t a free version that will do exactly the same thing). And I love supporting the shareware community, because I think shareware and demoware is the way that software ought to be.
12.13	Apple Matters	December 13, 1980: Apple Hits One Billion in Sales, Chris Seibold: When most people think about Apple, they think first of either the Mac or the iPod. The failures are largely forgotten: the Newton, the Lisa or Apple’s foray into digital cameras. Just as telling, one of Apple’s biggest successes is also largely forgotten--the Apple II.
12.13	NMA	iTunes sees drops of 60% in monthly sales, Sam Matthews: Apple’s music download store iTunes has witnessed a 60% drop in monthly sales in the first half of this year. According to a report by market-research firm Forrester, the number of iTunes transactions declined 58% between January and June of this year, while transaction size fell 17%.
12.13	Forrester	iTunes sales are NOT plummeting! Press credibility, on the other hand..., Josh: What an interesting couple of days it’s been. What follows is a case study in how information -- and misinformation -- spreads on the Net.
12.13	CBS 5 - San Francisco	Leak Floods Apple Computer Building In Cupertino, Staff: (BCN) CUPERTINO California Water Service Co. crews are cleaning up what’s left of a major water leak that left more than a foot of water lining the floor of an Apple Computer Inc. building in Cupertino early Wednesday morning.
12.13	ActiveXBox	PS3 and Wii Outsell a Years Worth of Xbox 360’s in Japan, Byron Hinson: The Wii has sold more consoles in one week than Microsoft has done in 56 weeks. With the release of Blue Dragon this week in Japan, this could well be the week that decides where the Xbox 360 will lay in the charts for the rest of its lifespan.
12.13	Wired News	iPhone: Just Another iPod?, David Becker: Sigh--days and days without a good new iPhone rumor. In place of any juicy psudeo-news, we offer comments from Sanford Bernstein analyst Toni Sacconagh on why any Apple entry into the phone market will be cautious.
12.13	Yahoo!	Apple iPhone: Not The Game-Changer Many Expect, Eric Savitz: Sacconaghi basic view is that the iPhone isn’t going to be the dramatic game changer that people hope - and that in fact it could substantially cannibalize sales of free-standing iPods.
12.12	Low End Mac	Forming the Next Macintosh Generation, Matthew Jay: Is the "Mac fanatic" group dying out? Some would say that the new wave of PC popularity has caused the popularity of the Mac to fall even more that it had previously. With Apple’s switch to Intel, the Mac is now capable of performing just like a PC by running Windows XP and (soon) Vista, and some people are buying Intel Macs because they can run Windows so well.
12.12	Macworld	Microsoft exec praised Mac to ’change Vista process’, Eric Lai, Computerworld: Outgoing Windows development chief James Allchin says he was being "purposefully dramatic" in a three-year-old email to Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and CEO Steve Ballmer that surfaced late last week at an Iowa antitrust trial against Microsoft. In the email, Allchin told his two colleagues that development on the Windows Vista operating system had gone astray and that he would buy a Macintosh from rival Apple were he not a Microsoft employee.
12.12	AppleInsider	CNBC poll predicts sales of 17M iPods this holiday, Staff: According to the second edition of CNBC’s Holiday Central survey, some 8 percent of those polled expect said they expect to buy one of Apple Computer’s iPod digital music players this holiday shopping season.
12.12	BusinessWeek	Who Says Macs Aren’t Used In Businesses?, Arik Hesseldahl: I was at the Hewlett-Packard analyst’s meeting today and a funny Mac-related thing happened. I happened to sit right behind a four people folks from Soleil-Cross Research, three of whom were typing notes on MacBook Pros.
12.12	The Street.com	In Nintendo Wii Trust , Robert Holmes: With the video-game market becoming dangerously vertical, Nintendo has introduced its new Wii console as an answer to gamers looking for a more satisfying experience -- and as a must-have on every gadget lover’s Christmas list.
12.12	Mac Night Owl	The Leopard Report: Don’t Change Too Much, Gene Steinberg: It’s a sure thing that the Mac OS interface is very far from perfect. It’s also a sure thing that things can get worse and that features can be piled upon features without a lot of thought about integration and reach a point where utter confusion can result.
12.08	Mac Night Owl	The Leopard Report: Last-Minute Wishes, Gene Steinberg: I’m going to be realistic here. There’s little doubt that Apple has finalized the features for Mac OS X Leopard, and no chance that much will change beyond spit and polish between now and the actual release. What’s more, I also think there’s no chance it’ll be ready for Macworld Expo in January, except, perhaps, as fuel for a fascinating demo.
12.07	AppleInsider	Three iPods on Apple roadmap for 2007, Kasper Jade: As it stands, Apple Computer hopes to introduce three new iPod models during the 2007 calendar year, AppleInsider has learned.
12.07	MacNN	Apple better prepared for holidays, Staff: Apple has eliminated its product lead times as it heads into the final stretch of the holiday shopping season, which places the company in a far better position than it experienced the same time during the last two years.
12.07	Low End Mac	Watch Out! Getting Notebook Design Wrong, Andrew Fishkin: My previous article, Getting Notebook Design "Just Right", was about what I look for in the design of a portable computer in terms of hardware, with an emphasis on keyboard, screen and build-quality. It was a very subjective look at what works for me and why. In this follow- up, I’d like to examine the opposite end, bad design, and how you might spot it before spending your hard-earned money.
12.07	Smarthouse	Apple Mac Games Console Considered But Rejected, David Richards: Claims that Apple are looking at the games market are accurate according to Apple Insiders however the problem for Apple is getting access to a processor that can deliver the speed needed for an advanced games console.
12.07	MarketWatch.com	Apple shares fall; CIBC sees iPhone release pushed back, Rex Crum: Apple Computer Inc. shares fell $1.79, or 2%, to $88.02 after CIBC World Markets analyst Ittal Kidron said he believes the company’s anticipated iPhone product will come out in either the late first quarter or early second quarter of 2007.
12.07	MacDailyNews	Ecamm Network offers ’Huckleberry’ iSight mirror; turns Apple MacBook, MacBook Pro into video camera, Staff: Ecamm Network has announced the immediate availability of the Huckleberry MacBook mirror.
12.07	CNET	The Apple phone flop, Michael Kanellos: (a) It’s only a few weeks to Macworld, where Apple Computer is expected to release a smart phone similar to the BlackBerry, and (b) I haven’t antagonized Apple fans in a while. It’s my birthday this week, after all, and I need to get more fun out of turning 45 than just counting the new moles on my back. iPhone it will largely fail.
12.07	TUAW	Color your iPod, Erica Sadun: ColorwarePC offers a distinct way to create a personalized iPod. They’ll color it for you. For $74, they’ll tint your iPod from their palette of 28 colors.
12.07	TUAW	God is a Mac user, Laurie A. Duncan: This week’s TIME Magazine features an interesting Essay on page 103. Evan Eisenberg checks God’s email. If you click the pic above you can see the full-sized image I scanned in, which offers even more insight into God’s computing habits. I knew the big guy was a Mac user!
12.07	TUAW	Found Footage: The Woz sells the Datsun 280z, Scott McNulty: The Woz always makes me smile, and his turn in this Datsun commercial is no different. Watch and find out why the Woz prefers the Z, and how his voice goes down many octaves when he is enthusiastic.
12.07	Apple Matters	The HP Crossfire. iMac Killer Anyone?, Aaron Wright: The HP IQ770 ’Crossfire’ PC is sure to be one of many PC’s aimed at killing off the iMac’s "cool" image.
12.06	Computerworld	Browser Smackdown: Firefox vs. IE vs. Opera vs. Safari, Scot Finnie, Dennis Fowler, Preston Gralla and Ken Mingis: Four experts go head-to-head (to-head-to-head) to defend their Web browser of choice in an opinionated free-for-all.
12.06	MacNN	Nutballs at Greenpeace Place Apple Last, Staff: Greenpeace hippies today updated its ’Guide to Greener Electronics,’ ranking Apple as the worst technology company with regard to environmental issues.
12.06	MacNN	Microsoft warns of Word vulnerability, Staff: Microsoft has issued a security advisory for a new vulnerability in Microsoft Word that could allow remote code execution by an attacker.
12.06	MacNN	iPod dubbed legal in Australia, Staff: Australia’s Attorney-General Philip Ruddock today issued a frequently-asked questions (FAQ) document to clarify the practical implications of his controversial copyright reforms.
12.06	Low End Mac	Corporate Greed at Work: The RIAA, MPAA, Apple Computer, and Universal Music, Dan Knight: Greed isn’t a good thing. In fact, it’s considered on of the seven deadly sins. When combined with sloth or laziness (another one from the list), it’s even worse. And when you add to it pride and gluttony (also deadly sin), you’ve got an unwanted combination. Yet we see it every day, and some recent examples show the level of corporate depravity in today’s world.
12.06	Low End Mac	Libraries Not Playing Nice with Macs or iPods, Nathan Thompson: First, let me indulge a pet peeve of mine, which has become particularly relevant the last couple months. Services listing themselves as compatible with portable MP3 players should not provide digital rights management (DRM) encumbered files that so very clearly are not representative of anything even remotely resembling the MP3 format.
12.06	Computerworld	A Windows expert opts for a Mac life, Part 2, Scot Finnie: The transition was a little rocky for Windows expert Scot Finnie, but once over that hump, his Mac experience has been superb.
12.06	Computerworld	First look: A guided tour of Apple’s Leopard Server OS, Yuval Kossovsky: Look for Leopard to be an exciting release.
12.06	KOMO TV	Microsoft expects to sell 1 million Zune players by June, Associated Press: Microsoft Corp. said Wednesday that it expects to sell 1 million of its new Zune music players through the first half of 2007. That figure would pale in comparison to Apple Computer Inc.’s market-leading iPod, but Microsoft contends it would be a good start.
12.06	MacDailyNews	Apple CEO Steve Jobs places second in MarketWatch Readers’ Choice CEO of the Year, Staff: The MarketWatch Readers’ Choice CEO of the Year contest was open to voting between Nov. 13 and Dec. 5 and the results have been counted.
12.06	MacDailyNews	Unpatched Microsoft Word flaw affects Macs too, Staff: Microsoft has warned of a serious - and as yet unpatched vulnerability - in Word. Hackers (albeit to a limited extent) are exploiting the zero-day flaw in its ubiquitous Office application.
12.06	MacScoop	Apple eying the gaming industry?, Alexandros Roussos: Recent revelations and analyst reports recently fueled rumours that Apple may be considering entering the gaming industry, starting with additional iPod games.
12.06	Wired News	Remembering James Kim, Eliot Van Buskirk: CNET senior editor James Kim was found dead Wednesday in the snow-covered mountains of southern Oregon, 11 days after he and his family went missing.
12.06	Mac Night Owl	How Microsoft Can Compete with Apple, Gene Steinberg: The very idea of this article may seem improbably, and it’s fair to say that the 90s signaled the ascendancy of Microsoft as the dominant player in the operating system arena and nearly did Apple in. In those days, Microsoft, feared and admired with equal fervor, could do no wrong. Every product they announced - and certainly some were never released - was praised as the next great thing.
12.06	MacUser	An iPhone In Your Pocket?, Andy Ihnatko: I think "iPod + Phone" and my immediate response is always the same: I get a crystal-clear mental image of being in a dicey parking lot late at night with a car that won’t start. And I can’t call for help on my iPod Phone, because on my flight home I listened to all six hours and seventeen minutes of Robert Evans reading The Kid Stays In The Picture, which drained the batteries right to the floor.
12.06	Apple Matters	Apple Entering Video Games Console Market? Not Likely., Aaron Wright: Let’s be honest, there’s barely enough room in the video games console market for the three companies already present there, Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft, so why would Apple want to stick their noses in?
12.06	MacMegasite	Use your Wii remote with a Mac, Mike: DarwiinRemote is a new utility which lets you use a Wii remote with your Mac. Since the Wii remote is a Bluetooth device, it will work with any Mac that supports Bluetooth. DarwiinRemote emulates an Apple Remote, so the Wii remote can be used to control applications such as Front Row & EyeTV.
12.05	Low End Mac	Tablet Mac? Ultralight MacBook? Or Both in One?, Dan Knight: Macworld Expo is just five weeks off, and rumors are approaching a fever pitch. iPhone rumors make it sound like a done deal, but the latest rumors should be of more interest to Mac users. There are two rumors about new notebooks. The older one posits the release of a Tablet Mac. The newer one suggests Apple will be releasing a thin-and-light 12" MacBook Pro.
12.05	Low End Mac	Apples from Other Orchards: The Apple II Clones, Joshua Coventry: We all know about the early IBM PC clones, such as Compaqs and Dells. And some of us know about the Macintosh clones. But there were clones before the IBM PC existed ... Apple II clones!
12.05	Apple Matters	Zune, Wii or iPhone?, James R. Stoup : The hype is over, the products are on sale and the verdicts are in. The Zune sucks, the Wii rocks and the Playstation 3 is causing mass hysteria. I, for one, can’t wait until next year when we all can stand in line trying to knife one another over who gets to buy an iPhone.
12.04	MacScoop	Details on the iPhone revealed?, Alexandros Roussos: Kevin Rose, the founder of Digg.com claims in the latest episode of Diggnation that he has gathered reliable information about the forthcoming iPhone.
12.04	MacScoop	Sources confirm plans for a smaller, ultra-thin form factored MacBook Pro, Alexandros Roussos: MacScoop has obtained reports from sources believed to be very reliable, claiming that Apple is developing a smaller and ultra-thin form-factor MacBook Pro.
12.01	Electronista	Survey: 35 percent see Zune as an upgrade, Staff: A survey conducted by Reuters indicates that of people expressing interest in the Zune, 35 percent see it as an upgrade to an existing player.
12.01	MacNN	Apple ’switch’ rates underestimated?, Staff: Industry watchers may have underestimated the switch rates of Windows users who will purchase Apple systems after Apple unveils Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard with Boot Camp next spring.
12.01	Electronista	HP planning "Crossfire" iMac rival, Staff: HP is developing an all-in-one PC to coincide with the official release of Windows Vista, documents obtained by Engadget reveal.
12.01	MacNN	iPhone patent hints at iPod mini shape, Staff: Apple is in the later stages of finalizing its cellphone design, according to a U.S. patent granted to the company this morning.
12.01	zBiz.TV	Guy Kawasaki Interviews Steve Wozniak, Staff: Video of Kawasaki interviewing the Woz.
12.01	Low End Mac	Upgrade the Power Mac or Buy a Mac mini?, Dan Knight: One of the things we love about the Power Mac G4 design at Low End Mac is how expandable it is. All the models with AGP video support up to 1.5 GB of RAM or more, have several hard drive bays, and make it easy to swap out the CPU for a faster one.
12.01	Low End Mac	The Universal Zune Tax: Coming Soon to an iPod Near You?, Dan Knight: Universal Music Group Chief Executive Doug Morris said on Tuesday he may try to fashion an iPod royalty fee with Apple Computer Inc. in the next round of negotiations in early 2007.
12.01	Apple Matters	7 Predictions for 2007, Chris Seibold : Since nothing new is likely to come in December that means this is the perfect time to make predictions for 2007. What will Apple do? How will the moves be received?
12.01	Macworld	Research firm says Apple has an age-old concern, Jim Dalrymple: Age may just be a number, but for the Mac market, it’s a fact of life according to Metafacts. A recent report from the market research firm says that nearly half of Apple’s customers are 55 or older.
12.01	Playlist	Zune Diary: Out of the Box, Christopher Breen: Yes, Microsoft’s digital media player, the Zune, has finally made its way into my hot little hands. My Playlist colleagues and I have had our say on the idea of the Zune, now I turn my attention to the reality of the device--how it performs as well as how it compares to the iPod and iTunes. During the next few days I’ll issue reports as I progress. Today we start with the out-of-box experience.
12.01	Macworld	PlayStation 3 sales drop sharply on low supply, Martyn Williams, IDG News Service: Sales of the PlayStation 3 console during its first full week of availability in Japan were sharply lower than those during the two days immediately following its launch, according to estimates published this week.
12.01	Mac Night Owl	Why Apple Needs Competition?, Gene Steinberg: With all the pretenders to the iPod throne clearly failing, and the Zune may join the list unless sales pick up big time real soon, you wonder if Apple can continue to float along as it has, resting on its laurels.
12.01	InformationWeek	Now That Vista Is the Past, Let’s Look At The Future, David DeJean: One of the best things about the launch of Windows Vista -- finally -- is that it clears the decks. Now we can look past it to the really interesting operating systems coming in the future, like Apple’s version of OS X that will natively run Windows XP applications. I swear I’m not making this up. But other people may be.
12.01	SeekingAlpha	Microsoft’s Vista Goes on Sale to Corporations (yawn), Carl Howe: Steve Ballmer’s announcement yesterday that Microsoft’s Vista and Office 2007, as well as a lot of server products, are now available to corporations.
12.01	MSN Money	Microsoft ’may need a rethink’ on Zune, Staff: The mixed early reception for its Zune music player means Microsoft will have to make early tweaks if it is to stand any chance of rattling Apple’s dominance of the digital music business, according to analysts.
12.01	Switch To a Mac	Safari Market Share Rises to 4.03 Percent - Up 45 Percent Year Over Year, Staff: According to data collected by Market Share, Apple Computer’s Safari Web browser continues to gain market share as its use continues to rise. Safari continues to rank as third most used browser trailing only Microsoft’s Internet Explorer and Mozilla’s Firefox.
12.01	globeandmail.com	Is the rumoured iPhone calling?, Matthew Ingram: For the better part of the past two years, there have been rumours that Apple Computer Inc. was about to launch an iPhone, a supercool device with all the same sexy features as the company’s wildly popular iPod digital music players, but with the added ability to make cellphone calls.