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1) TUAW redux: The future of iPhone OS and Mac OS
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/02/26/tuaw-redux-the-future-of-iphone-os-and-mac-os/
Filed under: OS, iPhone, iPadOne of the big topics of discussion yesterday in our TUAW back channel was this post from the New York Times Bits blog. In "Why can't PCs work more like iPhones," Bilton pointed out that the iPhone has given Apple a chance to build a new OS from the ground up.
This is a familiar viewpoint to us here on TUAW. Last year, I asked whether the future of the Mac OS would turn out to be the iPhone. In my write-up, I pointed out that the iPhone OS was built from scratch to work with Objective C 2.0 with its properties and other modern language features. Its API, far from being cobbled together, showed ever increasing design maturity without the weight of heavy backwards compatibility concerns. I concluded that Apple might take a lesson from the iPhone OS and consider offering a ground up redesign for Mac OS X, at least in terms of core OS principles.
In his post, [...]
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2) Apple files for 'Magic Trackpad' trademark
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/02/26/apple-files-for-magic-trackpad-trademark/
Filed under: Accessories, Hardware, Peripherals, MacBook, iPadApple sure likes that word 'magic' lately. We already have the Magic Mouse, and soon we may have a 'Magic Trackpad'. That's the word from the Patently Apple website that keeps an eye on these sometimes mysterious Apple filings. Apple wants to have the rights to 'Magic Trackpad', and wants to make sure no one else can can get their sweaty little hands on it.
No one knows exactly what this thing is for, or where it might be used. It could be for the new iPad, or something for the upcoming laptop refresh. It could well be an extension of the work Apple has done on multitouch, or something completely different. Apple has filed under International Classification 009 which includes touchscreen and trackpad tech, so it's possible that they're just covering their bases on their current products, and nailing down a marketing name in [...]
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3) Interview with the creator of the Apple startup sound
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/02/26/interview-with-the-creator-of-the-apple-startup-sound/
Filed under: Hardware, Multimedia, Software, Apple, Developer
We met them while they were shooting on the Apple Campus, and now the creators of the Dutch site onemorething.nl have posted their interview with Apple sound designer Jim Reekes (who also appears in Welcome To Macintosh). They met up with Reekes while at Macworld in San Francisco a little while back -- he's the guy that programmed most of the sound in the early days, including the famous Mac startup chime and the legendary "sosumi" chime. What's most interesting to me is all of the math behind it -- while making music is traditionally seen as an art, there's a lot of technical know how and information that actually went into the sound's creation. Essentially, you're creating a beep that has to represent a brand, and that mix of technical data with artistic representation is fascinating.
Plus, Reekes definitely seems like a [...]
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4) Associated Press sources report Associated Press working on iPad app
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/02/26/associated-press-sources-report-associated-press-working-on-ipad/
Filed under: iPad
Business Insider's The Wire is reporting, rather humorously, that AP sources have the scoop that the Associated Press is working on its own iPad app. It will reportedly be a paid subscription news app that generates content from the AP and more than 1,000 member newspapers and broadcasters.
The AP follows the New York Times and other news sources that are developing applications for the iPad. While the AP doesn't say if the app would be available for the iPad launch late next month, the hope is that its eventual release will generate sales from the three million people who have downloaded their free iPhone app and would be willing to pay for the apps features on a larger-screen device. To get users interested in the app, it may be free upon initial launch.
From the official press release:
The group already has drawn up plans to charge for an application designed [...]
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5) Minutes from Apple's shareholder meeting
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/02/26/minutes-from-apples-shareholder-meeting/
Filed under: Apple Corporate, Steve Jobs, AppleFortune's Apple 2.0 blog has some unofficial minutes from this week's Apple shareholder meeting -- while press weren't actually allowed inside the event (which featured Apple's board, including Al Gore, Steve Jobs, and new co-lead director Andrea Jung), that didn't stop an anonymous shareholder from revealing the goings-on. Not that it mattered much -- the whole affair sounds pretty boring, with Apple running down what they've done in public over the past year, along with lots of formalities and shareholder votes.
One highlight is that Steve Jobs sounds like he's got the magic back -- apparently he was "feisty" during the Q&A session, and he sounds like he's back to work, saying that Apple is holding onto their piles of cash for some "big, bold moves." There was news that Apple is planning to expand their retail presence in China, opening [...]
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6) Directly connecting and syncing content between your Mac and Apple TV
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/02/26/directly-connecting-and-syncing-content-between-your-mac-and-app/
Filed under: How-tos, Tips and tricks, Apple TV
After many years together, my Linksys WRT54G and I have parted ways. In its place, I'm now using an 802.11g-based Apple AirPort Express with AirTunes that was passed along to me. Besides not wanting to fork out the extra beans (c'mon, who here isn't saving up money for an iPad) for a shiny new 802.11n Airport Express, the devices living in my current wireless ecosystem are more g-leaning. That, and I don't really need the speed of 802.11n or the ethernet cable connection afforded to me by the WRT54G.
Or so I thought.
I had just restored my Apple TV to factory settings when I realized that I'd have to transfer 20GB of videos back to it from my MacBook Pro. Waiting for paint to dry would be more fun than waiting for all 20GBs to transfer using the AirPort Express's 802.11g connection. Or, for old times' sake, I could bring the WRT54G out of [...]
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7) Ask TUAW: Shopping for new Macs, iPhone home screens, home folder on external disk, and more
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/02/26/ask-tuaw-shopping-for-new-macs-iphone-home-screens-home-folde/
Filed under: Features, Troubleshooting, Ask TUAWWelcome back to Ask TUAW, our weekly troubleshooting Q&A column. This week we have questions about whether to buy a 27" iMac or a MacBook Pro, increasing the number of iPhone home screens, moving your home folder to an external disk, and more.
As always, your suggestions and questions are welcome. Leave your questions for next week in the comments section at the end of this post. When asking a question, please include which machine you're using and what version of Mac OS X is installed on it (we'll assume you're running Snow Leopard on an Intel Mac if you don't specify), or if it's an iPhone-related question, which iPhone version and OS version you have.
Bayuze asks
I have a iPhone 3G 8GB. There are 11 home screens on my device now and I noticed that when I install new apps they don't appear anywhere and are only available if I search [...]
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8) Line2 adds a second line to your iPhone for $15 a month
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/02/26/line2-adds-a-second-line-to-your-iphone-for-15-a-month/
Filed under: Software, iPhone, App Store, iPod touch, iPad
Would you like to add a second line to your iPhone? Perhaps you'd like to add a business number to the phone, but your existing phone is currently tied to your personal mobile number. You could always carry a second phone, but that's an expensive proposition, particularly if you're an iPhone addict.
VoIP provider Toktumi has a solution that may work out well for you. They're now selling an app called Line2 (US$0.99) that mimics many of the capabilities of the standard Phone app, complete with a form of visual voice mail. Purchasing the app provides you with one month of free VoIP service. After that point, each month's continued service costs $14.95 for unlimited calls within the US and Canada. The service is purchased in-app, and was a point of confusion for me -- the app listing in the iTunes store shows a "Top In App [...]
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9) AT&T rolling out MicroCell to five more markets
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/02/26/atandt-rolling-out-microcell-to-five-more-markets/
Filed under: iPhoneWe've previously written about AT&T's MicroCell device and service here at TUAW. It's a tiny cell tower that you plug into your home cable or DSL connection to boost your phone reception. This is particularly handy for those with home offices who may currently be plagued with poor reception on their iPhones.
WMExperts is reporting that AT&T is adding five more markets to the short list of trial areas. If you live in Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Las Vegas, or San Diego, you can have the opportunity to spend an additional US$19.99 per month on top of your existing iPhone service plan to get 5 bar service in an area up to 5,000 square feet around your MicroCell.
To determine whether or not you're currently in one of the target zones for the service, visit the AT&T 3G MicroCell website and enter your zip code into the appropriate spot. If you're one of the [...]
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10) Clearing the air on iPhone terminology: 4th generation vs. "4G"
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/02/26/iphone-4g-clearing-the-air/
Filed under: Rumors, Odds and ends, iPhonePlenty of discussions about the next revision of the iPhone have referred to the as-yet hypothetical device as the "iPhone 4G." As many of our readers have correctly pointed out, not only is this nickname completely unofficial, it's also highly unlikely to be the name of the next iPhone.
It made sense to call the second-generation iPhone the iPhone 3G, as the addition of a faster 3G wireless chipset and antenna was in many ways the defining feature of the device. The next iPhone, the iPhone 3GS, once again has its distinctive feature spelled out right in the name: "S" for speed, since the 3GS is a faster version of its predecessor.
tweetmeme_url = "http://www.tuaw.com/2010/02/26/iphone-4g-clearing-the-air/"
tweetmeme_source = "tuaw"
So why won't the next iPhone be called the iPhone 4G? For a pretty good reason, actually: as of right now, [...]
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11) Digital Camera Raw Compatibility Update 3.1 available
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/02/26/digital-camera-raw-compatibility-update-3-1-available/
Filed under: Software Update
Apple has released Digital Camera Raw Compatibility Update 3.1 via Software Update. The update can also be downloaded here. The 6.77 MB (web) or 7.2 MB (Software Update) update requires Mac OS X 10.5.8 or 10.6.2, and extends RAW image compatibility for Aperture 3 and iPhoto '09 for the following cameras:
o. Hasselblad H3DII-50
o. Leica M9
o. Leica X1
o. Olympus E-P1
o. Olympus E-P2
o. Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1
o. Pentax K-7
o. Pentax K-x
o. Sony Alpha DSLR-A500
o. Sony Alpha DSLR-A550
o. Sony Alpha DSLR-A850
The two Olympus cameras and Panasonic Lumix model are examples of the new compact Micro Four-Thirds cameras, which provide SLR-like capabilities in a compact form factor. The Hasselblad is a high-end 50 Megapixel camera with a price tag to match (US$25,000 and up), so it's good to know that your Mac will be able to handle the digital output [...]
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12) Mac 101: Navigating OS X with your keyboard
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/02/26/mac-101-navigating-os-x-with-your-keyboard/
Filed under: OS, Leopard, Mac 101, Snow LeopardLet's face it: unless you're just casually surfing the Internet or playing a game, chances are pretty good that your hands are on the keyboard most of the time when you're at the computer. Sure, the mouse is only a few inches away, but wouldn't it just be easier if you didn't have to keep going back and forth from the mouse to the keyboard?
Enter the world of keyboard shortcuts. A keyboard shortcut is exactly what the name implies: a way of using the keys on your keyboard to quickly perform tasks that typically would require multiple steps using a mouse. Before we dive in to the magic keystrokes, let's take a quick look at how shortcuts work on the Mac.
Most keyboards have a number of special keys in the bottom corners that look and work differently from the other keys. These keys are called 'modifier keys', because they change (or [...]
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13) Rumor: Steam coming to the Mac?
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/02/26/rumor-steam-coming-to-the-mac/
Filed under: Gaming, Software
Telltale Games recently held a Mac revolution, and that was a nice piece of news for Mac gamers, but this would be a "game-changer": Valve may be considering bringing their Steam platform over to the Mac. They released the beta version of the new UI for their digital game delivery system, and a few users found some "OSX" icons hidden in the game files.
Unfortunately, that makes this just a rumor (it's certainly possible the icons were simply included in some stray bit of code, as they appear to be simple window controls, not actual game code), but if there's anything to this at all, it would be huge for us Mac gamers: Steam comprises a gigantic library of present and classic PC games, and bringing even a portion of them over to the Mac would be terrific. CrossOver Games has been working with Steam in the past, and they already have most of Steam's biggest [...]
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14) New patent hints at iPhone camera gesture control
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/02/26/new-patent-hints-at-iphone-camera-gesture-control/
Filed under: iPhone
An interesting patent application came to light via PatentlyApple yesterday. The patent, titled "Camera as Input Interface," was filed by Apple in August 2008 and details a means of controlling an iPhone by swiping a finger across the device's camera lens. The patent proposes using the iPhone's camera, which is typically idle when the user is on a call, to control voicemail options such as rewind, fast forward, and pause while the iPhone is at the user's ear:
"In one embodiment, to access his voice mailbox, a user may tap the phone to cause playback of a message to pause, tap the phone again to resume playback, swipe his finger over the camera lens in one direction to fast forward playback, and swipe his finger over the camera lens in another direction to rewind playback. These actions allow the user to control functions of voicemail review without removing the [...]
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15) Yet another Mac OS X 10.6.3 seed released to developers
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/02/26/yet-another-mac-os-x-10-6-3-seed-released-to-developers/
Filed under: Software Update, Developer, Snow LeopardMac OS X 10.6.3 Build 10D561 has been released to developers less than a week after the previous build. Not a great deal has changed since the last build -- iPhoneinCanada has the specific details on this latest build, which include refinements to OpenGL and 64-bit logic. Since this sixth 10.6.3 build follows so quickly after the last one, it's a good indication that an official release of 10.6.3 is imminent.
10.6.2 arrived on November 9, 2009, and, like the forthcoming 10.6.3, was primarily a bug fix update for Snow Leopard. 10.6.3 should be out any day now in Software Update complete with those always-informative release notes, including my favorite: "increases reliability and improves compatibility and security."
[Via MacRumors]
TUAWYet another Mac OS X 10.6.3 seed released to developers originally appeared on The Unofficial [...]
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16) Found Footage: The Powerbook snowboard
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/02/26/found-footage-the-powerbook-snowboard/
Filed under: Humor, Cult of Mac, Odds and ends
Ok, we'll admit it -- the recent snowpocalypse may have driven some people nuts. But probably not this nuts -- these two German guys wanted to go snowboarding, but didn't actually have a snowboard around, so they did what most of us would naturally do in this situation: take two old PowerBooks, connect them together and put some shoes on them, and go snowboarding.
Ok, so most of us might not do that (and while our German isn't that great, this actually looks like a viral plug for some Asus laptops), but those laptops actually hold up pretty darn well. The keyboard can't take a drill, and they probably shouldn't be breathing that smoke. But in terms of structural integrity, it looks like you can actually snowboard with an old PowerBook. Even if this is just a viral, we'd like to see them try the same thing with the laptops they're hawking [...]
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