Today's News On One Page
November 3rd, 1999
The Nasdaq composite index closed above the psychologically significant 3000 level for the first time in history today buoyed by yesterday's news that inflation continues to remain subdued. The charge was lead by the technology sectors, especially the semiconductor stocks (SOX), which were up 4.58%. The Nasdaq closed up 46.88, (1.57%) to end at 3028.51 on volume of 1.3 billion shares traded. Today was the fourth record high session for the Nasdaq in a row. The Nasdaq first crossed the 2000 point level back on July 16, 1998. Meanwhile, the blue chips of the Dow can't seem to make much head way. The Dow was up by about 60 points at 3 p.m., then sagged back to close up only 27.22 points, (0.26%) at 10609.06. This was a mini-repeat of yesterday's trading. The S&P 500 advanced 7.19 points, (0.53%) to close at 1354.93. The 30-year US Treasury bond yield fell slightly to 6.131% from 6.136% Tuesday. Tomorrow, Wall Street will be watching the European Central Bank closely to see if they announce an interest rate hike. On Friday, the important employment data numbers come in. Strong employment growth combined with the increasing global cost of money might derail the rally. Likewise, weak employment growth and only a mild rate hike from the Europeans could spur the ongoing stock market rally to further highs. Apple continued its rally to a new record high closing at 81 1/2 up 1 1/4 or 1.56% on less than average volume. This marks the 3rd all-time high for Apple in the last 4 trading sessions. Bear Stearns analyst Andy Neff raised his 12-month price target on Apple shares to a range of 90 to 95, from 75 to 80 and reiterated Bear Stearns' buy rating. "We view Apple's near-term outlook with increasing confidence as it appears October sales and production are tracking in line with plan," Neff said today. "All four product lines are ramping production, demand remains strong, and we hear that G4 product availability is improving." Neff also said he is optimistic that Apple Internet strategy, which will be announced early next year, will further boost AAPL's price. In Apple related stocks Akamai (AKAM), on its fourth day of trading, gave back a bit to close at 190 7/8. Arm Holdings (ARMHY) extended its uptrend by 2 7/8 to 97. Oracle (ORCL) advanced another 4 5/16 to close at 57 5/16. Apple's Power PC partners were mixed, Motorola was up slightly while IBM closed down 7/16 to $94 3/8 . Adobe, Symantec and Pixar all closed higher. While Macromedia closed fractionally down. Apple's PC rivals had a good day too. Gateway, Dell, Compaq, Hewlett Packard and Intel all closed higher, only Microsoft weakened by 9/16 to close at 92. 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.
[4:00 PM] Apple Stock Watch: Nasdaq Closes Above 3000 and Another All Time High for Apple.
by Wes George
| [3:15 PM] AboutFace! New App Eases Font Selection by Staff FIDIM Interactive, which stands for "Fine! I'll Do It Myself," has released a new tool for Mac users to select their fonts. The new app is called AboutFace and allows users to preview their fonts at any time. According to FIDIM Interactive:
You can find more information on AboutFace at the company's web site. Currently, the free demo is available. Purchasing through Kagi will be available soon and pricing will be announced at that time. The Mac Observer Spin: This might get the prize for Best Name For A Software Developer. You have to admire the attitude behind "Fine! I'll Do It Myself" Interactive. :-) |
| [2:45 PM] New Service From Extensis Allows Image Manipulation In Your Browser by Staff Extensis has announced a new online service that allows users to manipulate and enhance images directly in their web browser. The service is being offered through Extensis's online magazine/resource CreativePro.com and does not require any desktop software, but instead relies on a browser plug-in. According to Extensis:
You can find more information on the service at CreatviePro.com. The Mac Observer Spin: This is one of the first compelling uses of web delivered applications that we have seen. Adobe probably does not yet need to be worried about sagging Photoshop sales, but Extensis may still have a hit on their hands. We will be following developments on this service as they appear. |
| [2:00 PM] QuickTime Streaming Host Offers Half-Price Hosting In November by Staff Themusicweb.com has announced a special offer for November that allows users to get QuickTime Streaming hosting for half-price. The company is looking to find out why their customers are interested in QuickTime Streaming and is putting their money where their mouth is. According to themusicweb.com:
You can find more information on the special, the company's service, and the company at their web site. |
The MP3 player/utility N2MP3 is now compatible with MacOS 9 with version 1.0.3, PopupCD gets a maintenance release bringing it to version 1.5.2, and Snitch, the popular file utility, gets a "bug fix" in version 2.6.5. These are the most recent updates listed at The Mac Observer's VersionMaster. You can find all the most recent Mac software updates with this service.
[1:30 PM] VersionMaster Latest Updates: N2MP3, PopupCD, And Snitch
by Staff
[Editorial] Apple's Upcoming Acquisition Of Chip Maker Could Hint At Future Products
| [Review] Microsoft IntelliMouse Explorer, One Of The Best Mice On The Planet by Dave Hamilton |
| [Column] Computing With Bifocals - Computer Pioneers II: Hewlett, Packard, and Cray |
| [8:00 AM] Steve Jobs To Deliver Webcast Speech As Pixar CEO, QT Not To Be Used by Staff Several Observer sent us notes they received from Charles Schwab about a webcast event to be held next week with Steve Jobs. Mr. Jobs, iCEO of Apple Computer, will be speaking in his other role as CEO of Pixar, the animation studio responsible for Toy Story and A Bugs' Life. The event is only open to Schwab account holders. It is also only available through RealPlayer as well, which is interesting considering the superior performance offered by Apple's QuickTime Streaming. An excerpt from the Schwab e-mail:
Participants can also submit questions for Mr. Jobs in advance of the event. You can find more information on getting an account with Charles Schwab at the company's wen site. The Mac Observer Spin: It is doubtful that Mr. Jobs had any control over the streaming format being offered, but this would have been a nice opportunity to showcase QuickTime Streaming to an audience not necessarily dominated by Mac users. |
| [8:00 AM] Computer To Telephone Free Long Distance - Not For Mac...Yet
One Observer has written to inform us of an amazing technology that allows phone calls to be made over the internet. If this sounds familiar, read on. This is not like anything you have seen before. According to Jed, an alert Observer:
Thanks, Jed. We agree. You can find more information at the Dialpad.com web site. The Mac Observer Spin: After exploring the Dialpad web site, we too think that this service is potentially groundbreaking. Long distance companies will not be fond of it, but for the consumer it could be a breakthrough technology. The Mac OS is famous for their originality, and technological leadership. Contact Dialpad.com and voice your desire for a Macintosh version of this application. Of course, the interesting thing is what happens if this is super successful. Though consumerism makes most of us think otherwise, someone does have to pay for things such as "free long distance" at some point. Infrastructure has to be maintained, bandwidth *has* to be paid for, etc. Still, services like this will put a lot of pressure on the more traditional long distance providers to cut their own costs still more. It will be a long time before people are willing to throw away their phones! :-) |
| [8:00 AM] Wanna Win A Free iBook? We'll Tell You About.com It by Staff About.com is giving you the opportunity to fulfill you dreams...or at least win an iBook. The craze generating, colorful little laptop from Apple is a hot item, and About.com wants to give you one. All you need to do is go to the About.com web site and fill out an entry form. While you are there, take a look at what About.com has to offer. Those that fill out the entry form will also have the opportunity to request a number of About.com's informative newsletters. For more information, and full contest rules, please visit the About.com web site. |
| [8:00 AM] New Web Resource Aimed At Designers by Staff Warp 10 Technologies has announced a new business-to-business web marketplace, BrandEra.com. BrandEra.com allows people to place portfolios, make contacts, find information, and keep up to date on relevant business issues. According to Warp 10:
You can find more information on this potentially valuable service at the BrandEra.com web site. |
| [8:00 AM] Vancouver Film School Shows Off Work With New QuickTIme Streaming Site by Staff David Gratton of the Vancouver Film School - New Media, has informed us of a new streaming QuickTime/multimedia site available to the public, VFS Live. Using QuickTime's streaming technology to demonstrate high quality graphic design work would not have been imaginable a few short years ago. According to Mr. Gratton:
The first live show is tonight at 6:00 PM CST. You can find more information at the VFS Live web site. |
| [8:00 AM] So, About This Particular Macintosh? Is It Available? by Staff Issue 5.11 of About This Particular Macintosh (ATPM) is currently available. ATPM covers an assortment of topics related to being a Macintosh user. According to ATPM:
You can find more information, as well as various formats, of About This Particular Macintosh at the ATPM web site. |