Today's News On One Page

February 29th, 2000

[6:00 PM] Apple Stock Watch: Stock Markets Leap, Apple Climbs Higher by Wes George Both the tech stocks on the Nasdaq and the blue chips on the NYSE surged higher, an anomaly for today's divergently trending indices and a welcome change of pace. Apple added to yesterday's gains, but Wall Street's attention was focused on the semiconductor stocks and the Palm Pilot's IPO coming tomorrow. The focus of this rally hasn't helped the PC manufacturers because recent media buzz is about the next generation of networking and info processing moving away from desktop computers and into cellular phones, wireless handhelds, your TV or even the dashboard of your car. Palm's IPO serves to focus the market's attention on a comparison of the future growth potential in both desktop and mobile computing. Apple gained 1 3/8 or 1.21% to close at 114 5/8 on 3.27 million shares traded. CBS Market Watch reported that the Janus Special Situations mutual fund (JASSX) has increased its stake in Apple and in Earthlink, Apple's Internet partner. Apple is already the largest holding of the fund, at 10.37%. Stein Roe is pushing their Young Investor mutual fund (SRYIX) which holds stock in America Online, Cisco, Motorola, Vodafone Airtouch and Apple, among others. Stein Roe said they believe Apple is, "...riding a very strong product cycle, and they have shored up the senior management position by permanently bringing on Steve Jobs. They seem to be executing on all six cylinders, and they have four new products that they are rolling out, and they are executing flawlessly.” The Nasdaq gained 118 points (2.60%) to close at 4696, a new record high with record volume of over 2 billion shares traded. Biotech stocks were up over 5.0%, chip stocks and financial stocks were also strong. The Dow soared 89 points (0.89%), to close at 10128 on very high volume of 1.2 billion shares. The S&P 500 gained 18.36 (1.36%) to close at 1366.41. In Apple related businesses: Adobe gained 4 3/16 to close at 102 dollars. Akamai gained 4 1/2 to close at 261 1/4. ARM Holdings lost 7/8 to close at 233 5/8. IBM slipped 2 11/16 to close at 101 13/16. Shares of Earthlink lost 1/4 to close at 24 7/8. Macromedia lost 3/32 to 86 7/16. Motorola gained 12 dollars to close at 170 1/2 after announcing a 3 for 1 stock split. Apple's competitors: Intel gained 5/8 to close at 113. Dell gave back 3/16 to close at 40 13/16. Hewlett Packard climbed 6 1/8 to close at 135 dollars. Shares of Microsoft lost 2 3/16 to close at 89 3/8. Gateway gave back 3/4 to end at 68 3/4. Compaq slipped 5/8 to close at 24 7/8. 3Com (COMS) doubled tomorrow's initial public offering price for its spin-off Palm Pilot unit to the 30 dollar range. The company estimates that they will net $663 million from the Palm IPO and 3Com shareholders will get a piece of the Palm pie, although the ratio per share has yet to be determined. Analysts expect demand for shares of the new Palm Inc. to overwhelm supply in tomorrow's trading. Shares of 3Com soared 18 15/16 to close at 98 dollars. In other news: The monthly consumer-confidence index, issued by the Conference Board, fell from its all time high of 144.7 in January to 141.8 in February, for the first decline since October. Based on a survey of 5,000 households, the consumer-confidence index is believed to indicate what sort of spending mood the average American is sporting at the moment. Since most of the US economy is based on consumer spending, high readings in the consumer-confidence index correspond to strong economic conditions. Lynn Franco, director of the board's research center said, "Declining consumers' expectations for the next six months was the major reason for the overall dip in confidence. Consumer attitudes will bear watching over the next few months to gauge the impact of rising interest rates and relatively high gas prices." She added, that "As for now, the index is signaling further economic growth ahead." According to The Wall Street Journal, "The Conference Board said 17.6% of those surveyed in February expect business conditions to improve in the next six months, down from 20% the month before. A total of 4.7% expect them to worsen, up from 3.5% in January. The rest expected no change." This is a big week for economic data. Tomorrow watch for the National Association of Purchasing Manager's Index and construction spending data. On Thursday the new jobless claims, new home sales and the leading indicators are released. Friday has the most important data release this week, with the employment data for February on the menu. The bellwether 30-year US Treasury bond traded up 17/32 to 101 11/32. The yield, which moves inversely to the price, dropped to 6.15%. For full quotes on all the companies mentioned in this article, we have assembled this set of quotes at Yahoo! for your reference. We also have many of these same quotes reported live (20 minute delay) on our home page. For other stories regarding Apple's stock activity, visit our Apple Stock Watch Special Report. Apple

[2:00 PM] Apple's PowerPC Producer Plans 3 For 1 Stock Split by Staff Motorola has announced that the company's Board of Directors has authorized a 3 for 1 stock split. The measure, which must be approved by shareholders before becoming official, comes as Motorola trades above the 170 mark. Motorola is Apple's primary supplier of PowerPC chips. The other supplier, IBM, is only now ramping up production after exiting Apple's processor business last year. IBM is acting as a contractor for Motorola in the current processor production deal. According to Motorola: The Board of Directors of Motorola, Inc. today approved a 3-for-1 common stock split in the form of a stock dividend, subject to approval by stockholders of an increase in the number of the company's authorized common shares. If Motorola stockholders approve an increase in Motorola's authorized shares of common stock from 1.4 billion to 4.2 billion at their Annual Meeting on May 1, the stock dividend will be distributed on June 1, 2000 to holders of common stock of record on May 15, 2000. As of this writing, Motorola's stock is trading at 171 7/16, up 12 15/16. Motorola's market cap is US$104.4 billion. The Mac Observer Spin: Motorola is an enormously large corporation with different divisions competing in a number of different markets. Apple's PowerPC business is a relatively small percentage of the company's overall revenue. Embedded applications are much more of a target for the company's PowerPC business. That said, Apple is not an inconsequential partner with the company, and it is good to see them performing well. Motorola

[1:40 PM] Mac MP3 Fans: MP3 Rage Adds Several New Features by Staff Chaotic Software has updated their Mac MP3 player/utility, MP3 Rage. The new version, 1.8, adds several new features and squashes bugs. According to Chaotic Software: Chaotic Software is pleased to announce the release MP3 Rage 1.8, the ultimate MP3 tag editor, cataloger, organizer, renamer, finder, player, and more. MP3 Rage is the definitive collection of tools for MP3 enthusiasts. You can edit ID3 tags, play MP3 files, catalog, organize, rename, find, and change thousands of MP3 files and their ID3 tags quickly and painlessly. It also has a clean, powerful, and easy-to-use interface. MP3 Rage 1.8 change history: Added custom genre support. Removed tag padding to be more compatible with other MP3 tools. The Finder can now search for files that contain any version of ID3 tag. Added "Edit MP3 Tags" contextual menu item, for quickly changing a variety of MP3 tag information. You can find more information on the product at the company's web site. The update is free to registered owners while the full version is priced at US$24.95. Chaotic Software

[1:30 PM] Apple Announces New Tools For Teachers by Staff At the Florida Educational Technology COnference, Apple has announced a new initiative for the education market called the Apple Learning Solutions. These new services include the Apple Learning Exchange, The Apple Learning Series, and The Apple LEarning Professional Development. According to Apple: Apple® today announced an all-new line of Apple Learning Solutions designed for educators and developed to meet the latest needs of state and federally mandated standards. The new Apple Learning Solutions bring together three powerful resources to arm teachers and students with the best tools for integrating technology into the classroom: the Apple Learning Interchange, the leading web site resource for educators; the Apple Learning Series, an integrated suite of software applications and curriculum content; and Apple Learning Professional Development, offering Internet-based and leader-led staff development courses. "Apple has a rich history of delivering powerful software tools to help teachers easily integrate technology into their classrooms," said Phil Schiller, Apple's vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "The new Apple Learning Solutions uniquely integrate classroom curriculum with an Internet interchange to provide teachers and students with the most powerful learning environment available." The new Apple Learning Interchange (ALI) web site has over 30,000 members and features QuickTime™ TV video content—the place to go for electronic field trips, technology demonstrations and special presentations by education experts. The Apple Learning Series consists of nine new K-12 titles which will be available in April. The new series each include leading software applications coupled with online student projects and staff development, all correlated to state and national education standards. Apple Learning Professional Development consists of online and leader-led courses to help teachers and school leaders fully integrate technology for teaching and learning. Apple has not yet included information on the new services at their web site, but we are expecting them to do so soon. The Mac Observer Spin: The Education market is vital to Apple, and it's great to see them giving some attention to this area. These new services should be welcome to educators and we ask Observers in education to let us know what they think. Apple

[12:00 PM] Mac Drivers Coming For USB ASIO Products by Staff USB-Audio.de is reporting that Mac users can expect a USB audio ASIO driver sometime in April. The new driver will give the Mac compatibility with a number of ASIO based audio applications, like Cubase and Logic Audio. According to USB-Audio: Works with almost every interface on the market, even digital interfaces 32KHz, 44.1 KHz and 48 KHz support (96 KHz as soon as there are devices available) Support for multiple USB-audio interfaces plugged in at the same time 16 bit and 24 bit audio resolution possible You'll need this ASIO driver to work with professional harddisk-recording software and USB audio! No official availability/pricing has been announced as of yet. You can find more information at the USB-Audio web site. USB-Audio.de

[12:00 PM] New Company Launched To Provide Mac Tech Support by Staff If you are looking for some expert Apple technical support, 877MacTank may be right up your alley. 877MacTank can provide general Mac support, and can thus help troubleshoot specific application or system problems. According to 877MacTank: 877MacTank is the technical support alternative for users of MacOS computers. We have established a nationwide network of Macintosh professionals ready to provide support over the phone at an affordable price. If it can freeze, fail or crash we can fix it. And our work is guaranteed for 30 days. For a limited time, an additional $15.00 lets you download the incredible Timbuktu Pro and work interactively with an operator. This is a whole new way of doing technical support. With Timbuktu Pro installed, you can grant one of our operators temporary access to view exactly what is happening on your computer and solve your problems, or configure your system over the internet. Just ask your operator for details. We help the customer after the call. No matter which plan you choose we'll e-mail you the steps we took to get you back on track, so it won't be a problem anymore. All users of 877MacTank qualify for $25.00 off Alsoft's amazing utility DiskWarrior. 1999 Macworld Editors' Choice Awards (Eddy Awards) - Winner Utility Software. Users can schedule an 877MacTank appointment for US$29.95. You can find more information at the 877MacTank web site. 877MacTank

[Column] Wasting Time With The Idiots - How QuickTime Saved The Idiots

[Column] On The Flip Side - A Tribute To Don Crabb

[6:00 AM] New PlayStation 2 & Aqua Icon Sets Released by Staff Epoch Icons has released two new icon/desktop pattern sets. The first is based on, what else, Apple's forthcoming Aqua user interface. The second is based on another highly anticipated product release, Sony's Playstation 2. According to Epoch: Can't wait for Aqua? Get darker. Epoch Icons has recently been updated with some new desktop pictures and a new icon set that will tide over your hunger for OSX's Aqua. A bit darker, the icons and desktop feature dark glass and cool metal to spice up your desktop. Playstation 2 Desktops and Icons The release of the Playstation 2 in Japan is just around the corner! For those of you into videogames, Epoch Icons has released a pair of pictures to adorn your mac that sport graphics from upcoming Playstation 2 videogames such as Gran Turismo 2000 and The Bouncer. Fans of the original RPG Chrono Trigger can find 32bit enhanced icons of its hot new PSX sequel, Chrono Cross. Dreamcast owners can find a set of 32bit enhanced Soul Calibur icons, featuring all the characters (+secret ones!). So if you are into videogames and the next generation console, head over to Epoch Icons to deck out your mac with the latest icons and desktops! You can find more information and full icon sets at the Epoch Icons web site. Epoch Icons

[6:00 AM] PackageTracker Update Adds New Features by Staff Intelli Inovations has updated Package Tracker to version 1.2. This program is vital for those that do any amount of shiping or receiving packages through any of the major shipping companies. Package Tracker 1.2 allows users to track the whereabouts and status of any package. According to Intelli Inovations: This version adds new Package QuickTrack memory features and fixes various bugs and cosmetic issues. Package Tracker features: QuickTrack, letting users query for detailed shipping information with ease - without the hassle of a web browser. Tracking Manager, keeping information about important shipments and categorizing them for easy reference Package Tracker will allow you to save and print queries for records or reference An easy to use Control Strip Module for quick tracking services. Packages shipped through Airborne Express, Federal Express, UPS, and the US Postal Service can be moniterd by Package Tracker. Package Tracker is available for US$12. You can find more information at the Intelli Inovations web site. Intelli Inovations

[6:00 AM] MoonMenu Receives Maintenance Release by Staff Selznick Scientific Software has released an update to their very neat system utility, MoonMenu. MoonMenu adds a small moon to your menu bar. The update is a maintenance release. Use and registration of this product also serves to support a very worthy cause. According to Selznick Scientific: Version 1.0.2 This update fixes minor mid-month mathematical offsets. MoonMenu is an extension that adds a small moon in the current lunar phase to the right side of your menubar. It serves as a subtle, unobtrusive reminder that there's an entire universe out there, even without your web browser. In addition, registration choices include an optional donation to a very worthy cause... promotion of K-12 science education by the National Academy of Sciences. We're very pleased to be able to support such an important program. MoonMenu is available for US$12. You can find more information at the Selznick Scientific web site. Selznick Scientific Software