TweetFollow Us on Twitter

Sep 95 Viewpoint
Volume Number:11
Issue Number:9
Column Tag:Viewpoint

Viewpoint

By Scott T Boyd, Editor-at-Large

What!? You missed MacHack again? What are we going to do with you? Oh, well, this tenth anniversary of MacHack had much to offer for about 300 Macintosh hackers from all over the map.

Some people go for the sessions. Some people go for the caffeine. Some people go for the amazing things that happen when they deprive their body of sleep for 72 hours. Nobody goes for the food! And this year nobody went for the luxurious accommodations of the Southfield, Michigan, Ramada (who needs air conditioning, anyway?).

Nevertheless, this event ranks among the few unmissable events of the year for those who just can’t get enough of Mac programming. Why? The people, of course. Nowhere else can you find such a favorable ratio of hackers to marketeers. It’s one of the few places where marketing, Windows, and other holy cows come under constant and brutal attack, much to the delight of the crowd.

The Ninth Annual MacHax™ MacHack Best Hack Contest (hosted each year by Greg Marriott and yours truly) attracts a wildly-diverse set of entries, and accounts for the bleary-eyed, caffeine-pumped, sleep-deprived crew of entrants who show their wares to a rabid, merciless crowd of their peers. The show starts at midnight, and follows two days of crazed hacking.

I’m often asked how one goes about winning. Strangely, I get a disapproving look (or small amounts of cash) when I suggest bribing the judges. I’ve never won (I’d just get accused of cheating, anyway), so instead I’ll offer a few tips on how to have a great time at MacHack.

I wandered around the machine room at 2AM, seeing if I could interest anyone in a Web-hack idea I’d been mulling over. I didn’t know whether I’d find someone to work with on this hack, or on another hack, but 2AM is a good time to find the right kind of person. Many people were already working on their hacks, but I met a guy I’d never met before, Grant Neufeld. Strangely, though, I’d been to his web site <http://arpp1.carleton.ca/grant/>. He was working on a CGI shell - it was perfect for hosting my portion of the hack, and he liked my idea.

We started working right away. He prepared the CGI shell, and I hacked out some code to play with QuickTime’s compression manager and the (unpublished) Layer Manager. We changed designs about a thousand times, and finally got something mostly working. At that point, we decided that public relations was the next most important thing to address, so we put together a killer About box, picked a cool name (Whatson?), and Grant made the icon.

Instead of getting our demo rehearsed, we decided to add another feature (the real killer feature), and found ourselves up against the deadline that I myself had imposed. What to do? Ha! I changed the rules, and moved the start of the Hack Show to 12:30! (Everyone accused me of it anyway, and it makes a better story if I just give in and say so, in spite of the fact that the Hack Show equipment really wasn’t ready, honest!)

How did it turn out? We didn’t win (something about running out of the room in the middle of demonstrating the hack at the Hack Show, but that’s a whole ’nuther story). In retrospect, if we’d really wanted to win, we probably should have gone ahead and made t-shirts. That would have made all the difference, no doubt. Nevertheless, we had a blast. In the process of madly throwing together the bits and pieces of this hack, we met and got help from roughly a dozen people, we faked up a fun photo with Photoshop, and we dabbled in several areas of the Macintosh toolbox we hadn’t played with before, all the while relishing the camaraderie, chaos, and caffeine.

Convinced? Want to enjoy the conference, at least vicariously? The list of winners and some of the hacks are at <http://www.machack.com/>. Want to try out Whatson? <http://www.hax.com/whatson.acgi>.

From the “Where’s the Beef?” Department

Microsoft’s reputation for out-marketing Macintosh prevails in the consumer arena. Microsoft holds the title in the developer arenaas well. For example, Microsoft continued their full frontal assault at MacHack, both with their Windows95 preconference, and with ample support and cosponsoring of the machine room and Internet connection. On the other hand, Apple, once famous for insanely-great developer relations, has recently fared poorly in Macintosh developers’ hearts and minds, losing ground as Microsoft presses on with aggressive developer relations efforts. This year’s strong sponsorship of MacHack stands as a clear and welcome exception.

What’s a Macintosh zealot to do? Well, never fear. Hope springs eternal. In what might be Apple’s answer to Microsoft’s challenge, Apple recently brought Guy Kawasaki back on board as an Apple Fellow. His mission? To “represent developer issues and perspectives to Apple”, among other things.

In that vein, he has started up a mailing list designed for the Macintosh faithful. He wants list participants to help him understand what developers need and want.

If you can handle a healthy dose of e-mail, join the list by sending a message to <mailto: semper.fi@thing1.info.apple.com> with the body of the message (not the subject line) containing subscribe YourRealName. Once you’re on the list, you can send mail to the same address. You can also send mail directly to Guy at <mailto: MacWay@aol.com>

Food For Thought

“Can one Guy get ahead of [Microsoft’s] James Plamondon? He’s pretty far out there!”

- Name withheld

“You know you’re really having fun when you find yourself falling asleep at ‘breakfast.’”

- Brad Kollmyer, bradk@vitalsoft.com

“It wasn’t broken air conditioning at the MacHack Windows preconference - it was the Mac programmers burning in Hell ”

- Anonymous

 

Community Search:
MacTech Search:

Software Updates via MacUpdate

Typinator 9.1 - Speedy and reliable text...
Typinator turbo-charges your typing productivity. Type a little. Typinator does the rest. We've all faced projects that require repetitive typing tasks. With Typinator, you can store commonly used... Read more
ESET Cyber Security 6.11.414.0 - Basic i...
ESET Cyber Security provides powerful protection against phishing, viruses, worms, and spyware. Offering similar functionality to ESET NOD32 Antivirus for Windows, ESET Cyber Security for Mac allows... Read more
Opera 105.0.4970.29 - High-performance W...
Opera is a fast and secure browser trusted by millions of users. With the intuitive interface, Speed Dial and visual bookmarks for organizing favorite sites, news feature with fresh, relevant content... Read more
Slack 4.35.131 - Collaborative communica...
Slack brings team communication and collaboration into one place so you can get more work done, whether you belong to a large enterprise or a small business. Check off your to-do list and move your... Read more
Viber 21.5.0 - Send messages and make fr...
Viber lets you send free messages and make free calls to other Viber users, on any device and network, in any country! Viber syncs your contacts, messages and call history with your mobile device, so... Read more
Hazel 5.3 - Create rules for organizing...
Hazel is your personal housekeeper, organizing and cleaning folders based on rules you define. Hazel can also manage your trash and uninstall your applications. Organize your files using a familiar... Read more
Duet 3.15.0.0 - Use your iPad as an exte...
Duet is the first app that allows you to use your iDevice as an extra display for your Mac using the Lightning or 30-pin cable. Note: This app requires a iOS companion app. Release notes were... Read more
DiskCatalogMaker 9.0.3 - Catalog your di...
DiskCatalogMaker is a simple disk management tool which catalogs disks. Simple, light-weight, and fast Finder-like intuitive look and feel Super-fast search algorithm Can compress catalog data for... Read more
Maintenance 3.1.2 - System maintenance u...
Maintenance is a system maintenance and cleaning utility. It allows you to run miscellaneous tasks of system maintenance: Check the the structure of the disk Repair permissions Run periodic scripts... Read more
Final Cut Pro 10.7 - Professional video...
Redesigned from the ground up, Final Cut Pro combines revolutionary video editing with a powerful media organization and incredible performance to let you create at the speed of thought.... Read more

Latest Forum Discussions

See All

‘Sonic Dream Team’ Apple Arcade Review –...
What an unusual day we have arrived upon today. Now, Sonic the Hedgehog games aren’t a new thing for iOS gaming. The original Sonic the Hedgehog appeared on the classic iPod, so the Blue Blur got in the doors as fast as you would expect him to. The... | Read more »
PvP Basketball Game ‘NBA Infinite’ Annou...
Level Infinite and Lightspeed Studios just announced a new real-time PvP basketball game for mobile in the form of NBA Infinite (). NBA Infinite includes solo modes as well, collecting and upgrading current NBA players, managing teams, and more. It... | Read more »
New ‘Dysmantle’ iOS Update Adds Co-Op Mo...
We recently had a major update hit mobile for the open world survival and crafting adventure game Dysmantle ($4.99) from 10tons Ltd. Dysmantle was one of our favorite games of 2022, and with all of its paid DLC and updates, it is even better. | Read more »
PUBG Mobile pulls a marketing blinder wi...
Over the years, there have been a lot of different marketing gimmicks tried by companies and ambassadors, some of them land like Snoop Dog and his recent smoking misdirection, and some are just rather frustrating, let’s no lie. Tencent, however,... | Read more »
‘Goat Simulator 3’ Mobile Now Available...
Coffee Stain Publishing and Coffee Stain Malmo, the new mobile publishing studio have just released Goat Simulator 3 on iOS and Android as a premium release. Goat Simulator 3 debuted on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC platforms. This is the second... | Read more »
‘Mini Motorways’ Huge Aurora Borealis Up...
Mini Motorways on Apple Arcade, Nintendo Switch, and Steam has gotten a huge update today with the Aurora Borealis patch bringing in Reykjavik, new achievements, challenges, iCloud improvements on Apple Arcade, and more. Mini Motorways remains one... | Read more »
Fan-Favorite Action RPG ‘Death’s Door’ i...
Last month Netflix revealed during their big Geeked Week event a number of new titles that would be heading to their Netflix Games service. Among them was Acid Nerve and Devolver Digital’s critically acclaimed action RPG Death’s Door, and without... | Read more »
SwitchArcade Round-Up: Reviews Featuring...
Hello gentle reader, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for December 4th, 2023. I’ve been catching up on my work as much as possible lately, and that translates to a whopping six reviews for you to read today. The list includes Astlibra... | Read more »
‘Hi-Fi Rush’ Anniversary Interview: Dire...
Back in January, Tango Gameworks and Bethesda released one of my favorite games of all time with Hi-Fi Rush. As someone who adores character action and rhythm games, blending both together seemed like a perfect fit for my taste, but Hi-Fi Rush did... | Read more »
Best iPhone Game Updates: ‘Pizza Hero’,...
Hello everyone, and welcome to the week! It’s time once again for our look back at the noteworthy updates of the last seven days. Things are starting to chill out for the year, but we still have plenty of holiday updates ahead of us I’m sure. Some... | Read more »

Price Scanner via MacPrices.net

Apple is clearing out last year’s M1-powered...
Apple has Certified Refurbished 11″ M1 iPad Pros available starting at $639 and ranging up to $310 off Apple’s original MSRP. Each iPad Pro comes with Apple’s standard one-year warranty, features a... Read more
Save $50 on these HomePods available today at...
Apple has Certified Refurbished White and Midnight HomePods available for $249, Certified Refurbished. That’s $50 off MSRP and the lowest price currently available for a full-size Apple HomePod this... Read more
New 16-inch M3 Pro MacBook Pros are on sale f...
Holiday MacBook deals are live at B&H Photo. Apple 16″ MacBook Pros with M3 Pro CPUs are in stock and on sale for $200-$250 off MSRP. Their prices are among the lowest currently available for... Read more
Christmas Deal Alert! Apple AirPods Pro with...
Walmart has Apple’s 2023 AirPods Pro with USB-C in stock and on sale for $189.99 on their online store as part of their Holiday sale. Their price is $60 off MSRP, and it’s currently the lowest price... Read more
Apple has Certified Refurbished iPhone 12 Pro...
Apple has unlocked Certified Refurbished iPhone 12 Pro models in stock starting at $589 and ranging up to $350 off original MSRP. Apple includes a standard one-year warranty and new outer shell with... Read more
Holiday Sale: Take $50 off every 10th-generat...
Amazon has Apple’s 10th-generation iPads on sale for $50 off MSRP, starting at $399, as part of their Holiday Sale. Their discount applies to all models and all colors. With the discount, Amazon’s... Read more
The latest Mac mini Holiday sales, get one to...
Apple retailers are offering Apple’s M2 Mac minis for $100 off MSRP as part of their Holiday sales. Prices start at only $499. Here are the lowest prices available: (1): Amazon has Apple’s M2-powered... Read more
Save $300 on a 24-inch iMac with these Certif...
With the recent introduction of new M3-powered 24″ iMacs, Apple dropped prices on clearance M1 iMacs in their Certified Refurbished store. Models are available starting at $1049 and range up to $300... Read more
Apple M1-powered iPad Airs are back on Holida...
Amazon has 10.9″ M1 WiFi iPad Airs back on Holiday sale for $100 off Apple’s MSRP, with prices starting at $499. Each includes free shipping. Their prices are the lowest available among the Apple... Read more
Sunday Sale: Apple 14-inch M3 MacBook Pro on...
B&H Photo has new 14″ M3 MacBook Pros, in Space Gray, on Holiday sale for $150 off MSRP, only $1449. B&H offers free 1-2 day delivery to most US addresses: – 14″ 8-Core M3 MacBook Pro (8GB... Read more

Jobs Board

Mobile Platform Engineer ( *Apple* /AirWatch)...
…systems, installing and maintaining certificates, navigating multiple network segments and Apple /IOS devices, Mobile Device Management systems such as AirWatch, and Read more
Omnichannel Associate - *Apple* Blossom Mal...
Omnichannel Associate - Apple Blossom Mall Location:Winchester, VA, United States (https://jobs.jcp.com/jobs/location/191170/winchester-va-united-states) - Apple Read more
Senior Product Manager - *Apple* - DISH Net...
…Responsibilities** We are seeking an ambitious, data-driven thinker to assist the Apple Product Development team as our Wireless Product division continues to grow Read more
Senior Product Manager - *Apple* - DISH Net...
…Responsibilities** We are seeking an ambitious, data-driven thinker to assist the Apple Product Development team as our Wireless Product division continues to grow Read more
Senior Software Engineer - *Apple* Fundamen...
…center of Microsoft's efforts to empower our users to do more. The Apple Fundamentals team focused on defining and improving the end-to-end developer experience in Read more
All contents are Copyright 1984-2011 by Xplain Corporation. All rights reserved. Theme designed by Icreon.