Apple Event 14th October
09/10/08 20:11 Filed in: News
I can breath a
sigh of relief. Apple have announced an event next
Tuesday, 14th October. The invite simply reads
The
Spotlight Turns to Notebooks with a photo showing the
back of an unknown Apple notebook. You can see the
invite over at Ars.
Here’s hoping it’ll be something I can buy.
Here’s hoping it’ll be something I can buy.
Mac OS X 10.5.5
16/09/08 22:17 Filed in: Software
& Updates
QuickTime & Front Row
11/09/08 12:26 Filed in: Software
& Updates
QuickTime 7.5.5
(Tiger, Leopard, Windows) and Front Row 2.1.6 have both received
updates. The usual security and bug fixes.
They should be popping up in Software Update now.
They should be popping up in Software Update now.
Let's Rock
09/09/08 20:29 Filed in:
News, Hardware, Software & Updates
Apple updated its iPod line at today’s Let’s Rock event.
First, iTunes 8 which features a new Grid view, visualizer and Genius, a smart way of creating playlists.
You can now download HDTV programmes and watch them on your computer, not just the Apple TV. NBC also made a surprise return to the iTunes store.
The iPod Nano has returned to the long form factor of old, with a larger better screen, the Genius feature, voice-annotation, and a fun feature, you shake the Nano to shuffle songs. It comes in nine colours, nano-chromatic as Apple say. The Shuffle is also now available in the same colours.
The iPod Touch gained a slimmer form, improved software with 2.1, built in Nike+iPod for those who like to run about.
They’ve also improved the headphones.
The 2.1 software is also to make it to the iPhone soon.
You can watch the whole show here.
No Macs though, which is what I’m waiting for. Here’s hoping for something in October.
Free alternatives
18/08/08 14:56 Filed in: Software
& Updates
There’s a
lot of free alternive Mac software out there, for
things like Photoshop, Quark etc. You may have to put
up with some non Mac standard interfaces. You will
probably also need you to upgrade your X11 using
XQuartz, but for the price
it’s worth a try, even with an initial fiddley
setup. So, before you start searching torrents and
hoisting your skull and crossbones, why not conisder
a few of these:
Alternative to Photoshop? Try Gimp. Probably the best place to download is from Wilber Loves Apple
Alternative to Illustrator? How about Inkscape.
Alternative to Quark? Scribus, an open source DTP/Page layout package. Download.
Alternative to Microsoft Office? On the Mac there appears to be a number of distributions of Open Office under various different guises. The most Mac like at the moment appears to be Neo Office. There is also an Aqua version of Open Office on offer here.
Dreamweaver? I obviously use RapidWeaver, which is a great and simple app to use, but isn’t free. So, why not try Quanta Plus. There’s also NVU, but it hasn’t been updated in some time.
How about messenger clients, like Adium which allows you to have all your clients in one, or aMSN a MSN client which adds video support, which even the official version doesn’t have.
There’s probably an alternative for most apps you can think of, osalt.com is a great place to find them.
Experiment, try some out, save yourself some cash and avoid all that law breaking as an added bonus.
Alternative to Photoshop? Try Gimp. Probably the best place to download is from Wilber Loves Apple
Alternative to Illustrator? How about Inkscape.
Alternative to Quark? Scribus, an open source DTP/Page layout package. Download.
Alternative to Microsoft Office? On the Mac there appears to be a number of distributions of Open Office under various different guises. The most Mac like at the moment appears to be Neo Office. There is also an Aqua version of Open Office on offer here.
Dreamweaver? I obviously use RapidWeaver, which is a great and simple app to use, but isn’t free. So, why not try Quanta Plus. There’s also NVU, but it hasn’t been updated in some time.
How about messenger clients, like Adium which allows you to have all your clients in one, or aMSN a MSN client which adds video support, which even the official version doesn’t have.
There’s probably an alternative for most apps you can think of, osalt.com is a great place to find them.
Experiment, try some out, save yourself some cash and avoid all that law breaking as an added bonus.
Cuil
29/07/08 12:55 Filed in: News
Cuil is a new search engine
from former Google employes. It’ll probably
not catch on like many others, but I do like how it
displays results in columns. It means a lot less
scrolling, taking advantage of all the horizontal
space monitors tend to have.
WALL•E
29/07/08 12:44 Filed in: Games
THQ have also released the game, and yes, it’s available for your Mac, alas the demo isn’t. It’s available on the Apple Store.
iPhone iPod Interface
29/07/08 12:40 Filed in: Hardware
Interesting
post at The Small Wave on how the iPhone and
iPod Touch iPod
interface could be improved. It
all seems so obvious.
via Daring Fireball.
via Daring Fireball.
Nokia N73 & Bluetooth/iSync
24/07/08 13:27 Filed in: Hardware
The N73 isn’t a bad phone, it works with iPhoto and iTunes with the Nokia Multimedia Transfer software that Nokia provide. This makes it quite easy to drag and drop music and photos onto the device and get photos off directly into iPhoto. It also can use iSync to simply sync your Address Book, Calendars etc. I think I will need a new Sim to use 3G.
You could do this either with the USB cable, or more simply with Bluetooth.
That’s the good news, now the bad:
I found the operating system very laggy (slow). So, I checked here to see if there was a newer version of the firmware.There was,version 4.0735.3.0.2.
Annoyingly, you are unble to update the firmware on a Mac, and must use a Windows PC to use Nokia Software Update (this is a story in itself, having to set up an old PC of ours purely to do this update).
I managed to update the phone which sped it up, but found it no longer worked with Bluetooth/iSync on the Mac running Mac OS 10.5.4. The phone will pair, but you get the following error in iSync (the phone is named Stuartea):
You are also unable to browse the device using Bluetooth (from the menu).
It still works with the USB cable, but you no longer have the convenience of wireless transfers.
After some searching it appears I am not the only one with the problem, there is a thread on the Nokia forums dating back to October 2007, and there is no fix from Nokia. It appears the problem is between the 4.0735.3.0.2 firmware and Mac OS 10.5, as it appears it will work with Mac OS 10.4. The older version of the firmware 3.0704.1.01 works without any problem with Mac OS 10.5, which suggests a Nokia firmware problem. The Bluetooth on the Mac works fine with the Sony Ericsson K750i.
I mailed Nokia, they suggested making sure I had the latest plug-in for iSync and to reboot the N73, and restart the Mac. I pointed out there is no plug-in for the N73, it should just work according to their own site. Neither rebooting or restarting solved the problem.
Their next response was to contact Mac [sic] at “http://www.apple.com/macosx”. Two things worried me, first they called Apple “Mac”, and secondaly they gave me an Apple product page link.
I don’t care who’s to blame, Apple or Nokia. I would expect them to work together to find a solution. Also, Nokia need to give their front-line customer teams more support, or an ability to esculate problems to their software developers, rather than through lack of knowledge try to fob customers off and give them the runaround.
Update: Okay, the latest reply from Nokia may as well have said “Thanks, we’ve filed your messages in the bin”.
There may be a solution! I just read at TUAW, that Missing Sync for Symbian has just been released. The Nokia N73 is listed as being supported.
It does add more features than you’d get with just iSync. Including Proximity Syncing, which automatically syncs your phone when it’s within Bluetooth range.
I mailed them, and they let me know there’s a demo available here.
Sadly, it didn’t work. I get the following error after it pairs:
OBEX error fileTransferServicesDisconnectionComplete kOBEXSessionTransportDiedError| kOBEXSessionNoTransportError| kOBEXSessionNotConnectedError: -21880.
The Bluetooth icons on both the phone and menu indicate it’s attempting to do something, but gets no further.
This is what Mark/Space makers of The Missing Sync have told me:
“There is an issue with this device and with that new firmware.
It seems with the new firmware and Leopard there is an issue.
However with Tiger and the new firmware it works fine.
We are currently documenting this behavior and will
be posted in our Knowledgebase...”
Which they have done, here.
Maybe it might shame Nokia/Apple into fixing it? (but I doubt it).
iTunes 7.7
10/07/08 11:14 Filed in: Software
& Updates
Just in time to
support the iPhone launch, iTunes 7.7 has appeared in
Software Update. My brother should be pleased,
I’m on doorbell watch to make sure he gets
his.
“Use iTunes 7.7 to sync music, video, and more with iPhone 3G, and download applications from the iTunes Store exclusively designed for iPhone and iPod touch with software version 2.0 or later. Also use the new Remote application for iPhone or iPod touch to control iTunes playback from anywhere in your home — a free download from the App Store.”
“Use iTunes 7.7 to sync music, video, and more with iPhone 3G, and download applications from the iTunes Store exclusively designed for iPhone and iPod touch with software version 2.0 or later. Also use the new Remote application for iPhone or iPod touch to control iTunes playback from anywhere in your home — a free download from the App Store.”
Check Off
03/07/08 11:52 Filed in: Software
& Updates
How to change the System Preferences icon
02/07/08 15:28 Filed in: Tips &
Tricks
Maybe you prefer the old
icon?
You many want to change
your icons, especially ones in your dock, but one is
rather stubborn; the System
Preferences icon. Even though
it’s a standard application, you can’t just
change the icon as you would any other. I’d
normally just use the great free app.
LiteIcon to change icons likes
these, but for some reason it doesn’t appear
as one of the choices. It does appear in
Candybar, but Candybar costs.
Thankfully, I’ve worked out how you can do it
quite easily, without messing about in Terminal (there
may be some simpler way I’ve missed of course):
In the Applications
Folder,
select System
Preferences
From the File
menu, select
Get info, or the keyboard shortcut, Command+i
You may need to click the Padlock
icon at the
bottom right to unlock it by entering your admin.
password.
At the bottom of the window you will see
Sharing
& Permissions
Click the + (plus button)
Pick your user name in the list that appears and
click Select.
Your name will then appear along with the others in the
list
Next to your name, on the right under
Privilege,
change Read Only
to
Read &
Write
Highlight your name again and select the
Cog
button at the
bottom (to the right of + & -)
From the pop up menu, choose: Make "Your name (Me)"
the owner.
Where “Your
name” is your
user name.
You will then be able to change the System Preference
Icon in the normal way.
If you don’t know how to do that, see this
link.
After you’ve changed it, you can highlight the
system name in the list, select the Cog
button once
again, and set it as the owner. You can then highlight
your own name in the list and press the - (minus)
button to remove yourself.
There, your icon has changed - if not, just drag it out
of the dock, and drag it back in again.
Another nail in Facebook's coffin?
12/06/08 22:48 Filed in: News
I know this is
pure schadenfreud on my part, but I couldn’t not
post about a guy selling Facebook profiles on eBay. I
do hope you’re not a friend.....
Link
Link
WWDC 2008
10/06/08 10:48 Filed in: News
8GB model will cost £99 on the £30 & £35 tariff, and free on the £45 & £75 tariff. 16GB model, £159 on the £30 & £35, £59 on the £45 tariff and free on the £75 tariff. They will also be releasing a Pay-as-you-go version, pricing not yet available. Update: Previous owners will also be able to upgrade for free to the new model. Visit O2 for full details.
It’s also now available in white and black, the buttons are metal and the headphone socket is no longer recessed, making it easier to work with other headphones. Oh, and back is plactic now, which should help with reception I’ve read.
Not upgrading the camera seems a strange oversight. It still has the same 2 megapixel camera of the previous model, and no ability to record video, why? Many were also expecting a front facing camera, but that’s just an expectation, a good one mind. The problem is we still tend to go by the numbers and see 7mp as better than 2, just like the old days of the Mhz myth, we have the Megapixel myth:
“The megapixel myth was started by camera makers and swallowed hook, line and sinker by camera measurebators. Camera makers use the number of megapixels a camera has to hoodwink you into thinking it has something to do with camera quality.”
Really, unless you’re heavily cropping an image or planning on printing over A5, 2mp is probably fine. I’m not an Apple appologist, as it does seem rather dumb to have missed even adding 1 extra megapixel. Sure it’ll happen in the next revision, they probably were concentrating on 3G & GPS first. If you’re a serious photographer, you’re going to have a proper camera anyway.
David Pogue came to the same conclusions.
The only other missing feature it seems, is MMS (Multimedia Message Service), unless you’re waiting for that haptic feedback? They have improved Enterprise integration (which is interesting for those corporate chappies). My brother is planning on getting one, so I’ll see what he uses most, I’d suspect I’d be surfing mostly.
You can watch the new iPhone advert here.
Update: Apple have released a guided tour of the iPhone here.
Apple also launched MobileMe, a replacement for .Mac (itself a replacement of the free iTools, damn them!). MobileMe will push services like calendars, mail and contacts to the iPhone. As well as a suite of web based applications. It’s still going to cost you 20GB storage $49 - 40GB storage $99 annually. You can no doubt get these services for free elsewhere, perhaps less elegantly, but you pays your money... You can now watch a tour of the service here.
There was also some information on the next version of Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard. The OS appears to be laying foundations for the future, rather than adding flashy new features. Expected 2009.
Sadly, and I didn’t really expect it, there were no new Macs, specifically a new MacBook or MacBook Pro which is what I’m waiting for.
The keynote is available to watch here (but it’s a pretty dull one).