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  • Swad
    Just because OS X is (arguably) the greatest operating system on the planet doesn’t mean it isn’t fairly annoying on occasion. And while we can’t fix everything, we can certainly fix some things.
     
    That’s why we're introducing the iAnnoyance Challenge this Friday. Every month or so we’ll launch an iAnnoyance Challenge in which we give Mac coders around the globe 3 days (the weekend) to come up with a small application to fix OS X’s little annoyances. If no one submits a solution in 3 days, the contest continues and the donation pot grows larger until a solution is found.
     
    To make it worth your time, we’ll give $100 to the first person that submits a workable app... and we'll take donations from others to make that number even higher (we expect several apps to be worth USD $200-300!). Prize money can also be donated to the charity of your choice.
     
    (Note: This is easy money, folks. Even if it takes you a solid 5 hours (unlikely) to create this app, you’re earning 20 bucks an hour for simple and fun work. When people donate more, your time is worth even more. That means that even if you’re unsure, it’s worth your time to try.)
     
    InsanelyMac will take the application (while giving you full credit) and make it open source as a free gift to the Mac community. Pretty neat, huh?
     
    We’ll launch our first iAnnoyance Challenge this Friday, so get your coding fingers warmed up. As with all of the Challenges we have planned, we think you’ll really like it.
     
    In the meantime, let us know what annoys you about OS X in our Great Debate. Your thoughts might make their way into an iAnnoyance app!
     
    [if you're excited about this idea, please digg it to share it with the world.]
  • Swad

    Snapz Pro X now Universal

    By Swad, in OSx86,

    Snapz Pro X, the image and video capture application, has been on the "I can't wait until it goes universal!" list of bloggers and users alike since Apple began the Intel transition. If you were one of these suffering souls, suffer no more.
     
    Ambrosia software has announced that version 2.0.3 is now Universal, along with a few performance tweaks and bug fixes. Snapz Pro X is USD $29 for Image Capture and $69 for Movie Capture and can be purchased from Ambrosia.
  • Colonel

    Vista now works on Intel Macs

    By Colonel, in OSx86,

    Though we'll never know if Microsoft was unwilling or unable to accommodate it until now, Vista is reportedly now working on Intel Macs. Windows Vista Pre-RC1 is compatible with Boot Camp 1.1 and it appears that Microsoft will continue this support in future releases of Vista. As a Vista user notes in his blog,


    The new Vista Pre-RC1 build (5536) works now on Intel Macs. The installation procedure is the same as with Windows XP SP2. The only down side is that not all the drivers provided in Boot Camp will work under Vista; the iSight and the Apple keyboard will not install. The performance of this build is amazing when compared to the Beta 2 that was made available to the public a few months ago. All the bells and whistles of the new Aero GUI are supported on my MacBook Pro, and according to online reports even the plain MacBook supports all of the new effects. This is great news for Intel Mac owners wanting to try out Vista, meaning it’s now possible to install Vista without erasing your EFI partition and having to reinstall. Hopefully Microsoft now understands that folks will install Vista on Intel Macs with or without corporate help.
     
    If you can beat 'em, support 'em?
  • Colonel
    Tired of searching in your Applications folder for that one piece of software you're looking for? Then you might want to check out Todos. It'll show you all of your apps with a quick hotkey... AppZapper is a great utility for completely removing an unwanted application. Just drag the unwanted app into AppZapper and all its related files are sent to the Trash... Last Monday the highly anticipated My Dream App contest launched... The MacBook was rated the best computer for school by the Seattle Times.
     
    Up for something random? Help us reach 1000 posts in this thread... And finally, what would an Apple commercial for a video game system be like?
  • Swad
    Cupertino, start your photocopiers. Please.
     
    Microsoft is planning to introduce "Live Drive," a .Mac-style solution for Windows in which users can store files, backups, and other items directly from their Windows Vista machines. Initial reports indicate that users may be given up to 2 GB for free, with the option to purchase more. No word on syncing capabilities or other features.
     
    While the details are still sketchy at this point, Live Drive sounds like a very promising addition to Vista... and one of the first about which I'm genuinely excited (which may be the only Genuine thing about my Vista installation). While it's quite obvious that Microsoft is taking yet another page out of the Apple book - and I'm not sure there are many pages left - tight Microsoft "Live" integration could very well leave .Mac in the dust. Free Email, free storage, and free syncing will likely bring Apple users to question the value of a .Mac subscription when Redmond offers similar features for free.
     
    So, Apple, let me be one of the many to implore you to make .Mac free. Today. You've done it before, let's do it again. Take a page from Vista's playbook and, as always, make it better. Then recycle that page to make Greenpeace happy.
     
    (Just in case Apple needs a month or two to ponder my proposition, we'll have a list of free .Mac substitutions in a few days! Stay tuned.)
  • REVENGE
    Adding some more fuel to the battery fire, it appears that there are major discrepancies between the US Consumer Product Safety Administration's site and Apple's Battery Recall site on the issue of which serial number batteries actually need to be recalled. For example, regarding 12-inch iBook G4 batteries, "the CPSC lists battery serial numbers 6C510-6C626 while the Apple site has it listed a 6C519-6C552." As it stands now, the CPSC lists more hazardous batteries than Apple, but Apple is only providing recall service to the batteries listed on its own website.
     
    So which party farked up the attempt at fixing the farkup? Things aren't clear at the moment, but it appears that Apple may be to blame for this one, for its battery recall site is also rejecting what according the site are valid serial numbers. Apple has thus far not commented on (or corrected) these issues.
     
    If you have an identified hazardous battery part, tell us about your experience with Apple's battery recall program.
     
    UPDATE: The CPSC site has now revised its chart to match the Apple Site's chart.
  • REVENGE
    After battling it out in the courts, it seems that Apple has finally given in to Creative on the issue of which came first, the iPod UI or the Zen UI. Apple has agreed to pay Creative $100 million dollars to obtain a license to use an user interface; in addition, Creative has now been included into Apple's "Made for iPod" program, allowing it to put the coveted "Made for iPod" logo on its products and accessories.
     
    This settlement comes after Creative and Apple mutually asserted this year that its user interface design came first, and that one stole the other's design. After filing for a patent in 2001, Creative was awarded the patent for their user interface back in 2005, centering around the interfaces ability to allow "portable media player players to navigate and select tracks." Then, in May of this year, Creative took legal action, suing Apple for patent infringement and asking for an injunction to stop the sale of the iPod and iPod Nano. Apple subsequently countersued Creative, alleging that they were the ones who were infringing, but as Apple's user interface patent filing was rejected, Creative had the upper-hand in this situation.
     
    The fact of the matter is that Creative's user interface design goes back all the way to their Nomad Jukebox players, which were first released in 2000. Unfortunately for Creative, its line of MP3 players have not enjoyed quite as much success as Apple's iPods. As News.com reports:


    "Creative is one of many companies attempting to chip away at Apple's runaway lead in the market for portable MP3 players. Its Zen products haven't translated into profits, however: Earlier this month, Creative reported a $12.7 million loss on slowing sales for its fourth quarter. The company expects the $100 million settlement to add 85 cents to its earnings per share figures for its current quarter." Guess we finally know who was "creative" after all.
  • Swad
    Apple today announced that it was recalling 1.8 million lithium-ion Sony batteries used in notebook models including the iBook G4 and 12- & 15-inch PowerBook G4. MacNN has the details:


    Batteries that shipped with 12-inch iBook G4 laptops eligible for a free replacement under the recall display a model number of A1061, with serial numbers: ZZ338 through ZZ427, 3K429 through 3K611, and 6C510 through 6C626.
     
    12-inch PowerBook G4 notebook owners eligible for a free replacement under the recall must possess a battery with model number A1079, displaying a serial number falling within ZZ411 through ZZ427 or 3K428 through 3K611.
     
    Batteries that shipped with 15-inch PowerBook G4 notebooks eligible for a free replacement under the recall display model numbers of A1078 and A1148, with serial numbers: 3K425 through 3K601, 6N530 through 6N551, and 6N601.
     
    Apple estimates roughly 1.1 million faulty battery packs were sold in the U.S., with another 700,000 sold outside the country.
     
    Apple is suggesting users remove the recalled batteries and contact the company to arrange for a free replacement, free of charge. Users requiring the use of their systems are advised to plug their laptops into the AC adapter until a replacement battery arrives.
  • Swad

    Is a Mac really more secure?

    By Swad, in OSx86,

    Good reading from Infoworld's Tom Yager regarding what has to be the nastiest piece of Window's malware I've seen. I think it's safe to say that most Windows users - even conscientious ones - have had a least one or two "Thank God for that backup image." moments due to malicious code... I know I have.
     
    At the end of the article, Tom dissects what allowed the exploit to occur on his Windows box and (you saw this part coming, didn't you?) then explains why something similar couldn't happen under OS X.
     
    I'm no server guru, so I'll take Tom at his word. I do know, however, that pride always comes before a fall, and while OS X is indeed more secure, I'm of the opinion that any dominant OS is going to be exploited.
     
    What do you think? Is Windows more vulnerable by its very nature or does OS X have similar but unique security questions?
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