Archives for July 2009

July, 31st July 2009

• Ebay Warns that Patent License Disagreement Could Result in Skype Shutdown

  Ebay has warned that a patent licensing disagreement could result in a shutdown of its VoIP service, Skype. The company…

• Particle Debris (week ending 7/31) National Security: Poof!

  In this week's amalgam of technical news debris, John looks at rumors of Apple talking to book publishers in preparation…

• Apple MacBook MC240LL/A 13.3-Inch Laptop:  $961.49 Delivered

  The Deal Brothers found a deal on the Apple MacBook MC240LL/A 13.3-Inch Laptop for $961.49. This is the white plastic…

• Apple’s Cash on Hand vs. Microsoft

  I thought it would be interesting to compare Microsoft's cash on hand (and short term securities) to Apple's. Over the…

• Safe and Cheap File Storage for Mac Users

  360Works announced the launch of 360Works SafetyNet on Friday. This utility is an automated offsite backup plugin designed specifically for…

• Jeff Gamet to Speak at the Denver InDesign User Group Tuesday

  The Mac Observer's own Jeff Gamet will be presenting at the Denver InDesign User Group meeting on Tuesday, August 4.…

• Apple Tablet: The Killer Feature

  Today TMO readers are talking about the rumors of an Apple tablet-type device and what its killer features could be.

• Take Control Updates Mac OS X Password Guide

  Take Control and TidBITS announced the immediate availability of Take Control of Passwords in Mac OS X, Second Edition on…

• NetNewsWire Gets Google Reader, Drops NewsGator Support

  NewsGator released NetNewsWire 3.2 beta 6 on Thursday with long-awaited support for Google Reader syncing. While the news is sure…

• Life on The Internet, Aiding and Abetting with an iPhone

  Life on the Internet can be great. Apple gives us magnificent tools and apps. Others jump in with their apps…

July, 30th July 2009

• Columnist Makes Case for Apple Being the Most Discreetly Feminine Brand

  Apple is the world's most discreetly feminine brand, according to Forbes columnist Bridget Brennan. Ms. Brennan makes the case that…

• Warhammer for Mac Announced for Fall Release

  Mythic Entertainment and Electronic Arts announced Thursday that a Mac client for Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning will be released…

• Apple Pulls Shake from Apple Store, Redirects Product Page

  Apple has pulled Shake from its online store, and is redirecting its product page to the Final Cut Studio Web…

• Mac Box Set Drops Down $134.99 Delivered

  The Deal Brothers found yet another price drop on the Mac Box Set, which includes Mac OS X Leopard, iLive…

• Analyst: Microsoft Should Dump Zune

  The Zune accounted for part of 43 percent decline in Microsoft's non-gaming entertainment device sales during the company's fourth fiscal…

• A Turtle Shell For Your Mac Notebook

  RadTech announced the immediate availability of STM Turtle Hard Shell Laptop Sleeve on Thursday. This horizontal-loading STM Turtle protects notebooks…

• Kirk to HP: Clean Up Your Act, Like Apple

  William Shatner, the actor that originated the role of Captain Kirk in the classic Star Trek series, is apparently unhappy…

• Apple’s Impact on Handheld Gaming

  Today TMO readers are talking about the impact the iPhone and iPod touch are having on the handheld gaming market.

• Recover PDF Password Adds PDF 1.7 Support, More

  Eltima Software announced the immediate availability of a new version of Recover PDF Password on Thursday. The update added support…

• Apple Doubles Time Capsule Storage Capacity

  Apple quietly released updates to its Time Capsule Wi-Fi based data storage system on Thursday. The new versions offer twice…

• Apple at CES? Not Likely

  The tech community was hit with a big surprise on Wednesday when a report surfaced that Apple was planning on…

July, 29th July 2009

• Developers: ModBusProbe 1.0.0 Now Available

  ModBusProbe 1.0.0 was released on Wednesday, a Mac OS X app that can poll ModBus enabled control system devices. The…

• Rebuild a Restaurant Empire in Burger Shop 2

  Macgamestore.com on Wednesday released the restaurant management game Burger Shop 2, which features 120 levels continuing the story from the…

• iPresentee Releases 5 New iWeb Themes

  iPresentee released iWeb Themes 5.0 on Wednesday, which includes five new iWeb themes: Amber, Flowered, Blue-Black, Claret and the curiously…

• Fantom 2TB G-Force MegaDisk Triple Interface Hard Drive:  $189.99 Delivered

  The Deal Brothers found a deal on Fantom 2TB G-Force MegaDisk Triple Interface Hard Drive for $189.99, with free delivery.…

• Jumsoft Unveils Numbers Spreadsheet Templates

  Jumsoft announced the immediate availability of a series of templates for Apple's Numbers spreadsheet application. The set includes ten templates…

• Drive Genius 2.2 Adds Snow Leopard Support

  Prosoft Engineering announced the immediate availability of Drive Genius 2.2 on Wednesday. The update for the system and hard drive…

• Bing: The New Yahoo!

  Microsoft and Yahoo! struck a deal that makes the Redmond company's Bing the new search engine technology for Yahoo!. Today…

• Psystar Ready to Take On Apple with “Guns Blazin”

  Psystar, the company Apple is going after for making Mac-compatible clones without authorization, is apparently ready to take on Apple…

• Storyist 2 Brings Out the Story Teller

  Storyist is the sixth novel (and screenplay) writing application covered in this series of reviews. Storyist, for many writers, may…

• Microsoft, Yahoo! Finally Land Search Deal

  Microsoft and Yahoo! have finally struck an online search and advertising deal that will, as the two companies put it,…

• Eye-Fi Intros Apple-exclusive 2GB Geo Camera Card

  Eye-Fi announced the immediate availability of the Eye-Fi Geo on Wednesday. The Wi-Fi enabled SD camera card supports geotagging and…

• Looking at Skype/Google Voice from AT&T’s Point of View

  Apple's created quite a kerfuffle by approving and then pulling third party Google Voice apps from the App Store, and…

July, 28th July 2009

• Barnes & Noble Offers Up AT&T Wi-Fi for Free

  Retail book seller Barnes & Noble began offering AT&T Wi-Fi access for free in its stores on Tuesday. Barnes &…

• PasswordVault 7.0 Adds Web Bookmark and Textclip Management

  Lava Software announced the release of PasswordVault 7.0 on Tuesday. PasswordVault automates Web site logins and helps users organize and…

• A New Cartoon Look for Boris FX

  Boris FX announced on Tuesday that a new Boris Continuum Unit, Cartoon Look, is now available. Boris Continuum is an…

• iProng Magazine Interviews TMO’s Bryan Chaffin

  The Mac Observer's own Bryan Chaffin is more than a journalist, he's also an accomplished musician and a lead vocalist…

• Samsung 933SN 18.5” Widescreen LCD Monitor:  $93.99 Delivered A/R

  The Deal Brothers found a deal on the Samsung 933SN 18.5” Widescreen LCD Monitor for $93.99. That price includes delivery…

• Bikinis and the App Store Approval Process

  Search for the word “bikini” in the iTunes App Store and you’ll come up with a collection of apps that…

• Mac-Chi Releases WhoPaste 3.0

  Mac-Chi announced the release of WhoPaste 3.0 on Tuesday. WhoPaste is an intelligent contact tool that allows users to capture…

• Reader Reaction: Apple Tablet Rumors

  Rumors that Apple will release a tablet-type device this fall are on the rise, and today TMO readers are offering…

• Dates to iCal 2.1 Improves Sync Speed, More

  John Maisey announced the immediate availability of Dates to iCal 2.1 on Tuesday. The update for the birthday and anniversary…

• GameRanger Founder Scott Kevill Reflects on the Past Decade

  Online gaming service GameRanger recently celebrated ten years of existence, so I got in touch with founder Scott Kevill, who's…

• EMC Ships Retrospect 8.1 with PowerPC Mac Support

  EMC announced the immediate availability of Retrospect 8.1 on Tuesday. The update for the data backup application added support for…

July, 27th July 2009

• MGG 212: Unmounting Disks, Screen Recording, Sync Configuration, Network Settings, More!

  Your favorite Mac geeks, John and Dave, are back with a show chock full of questions, tips, Mac goodness and…

• Virtual Programming Brings Action/RPG Game Alien Shooter 2 to the Mac

  Virtual Programming has published the arcade action/role-playing game Alien Shooter 2 to the Mac. The game, which is also known…

• Aspyr Bringing Star Wars: The Force Unleashed: Ultimate Sith Edition to Mac, PC

  Aspyr Media on Monday announced that this fall it will publish the Mac and PC versions of Star Wars: The…

• BusyMac Releases BusyCal Public Beta

  BusyMac Announced Monday that BusyCal has been released as a public beta. BusyCal is a standalone calendaring app for the…

• Aspyr Ships Beyond the Sword Expansion for Civilization IV

  Aspyr Media on Monday said that it is now shipping Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword, the latest expansion pack for…

• Leaked Microsoft Retail Docs Reveal Answers Bar/Guru Bar/Windows Bar

  Microsoft is planning on answering Apple's enormously successful Genius Bar with one of three concepts, the Answers Bar, the Guru…