Microsoft takes legal action against Barnes & Noble,...
Microsoft has filed legal actions in the International Trade Commission and the U.S. District Court of the Western District of Washington against Barnes & Noble, and its device manufacturers, Foxconn International Holdings and Inventec Corporation, for patent infringement by their Android-based e-reader and tablet devices that are marketed under the Barnes & Noble brand.
"The Android platform infringes a number of Microsoft's patents, and companies manufacturing and shipping Android devices must respect our intellectual property rights. To facilitate that we have established an industry-wide patent licensing program for Android device manufacturers," says Horacio Gutierrez, Corporate Vice President and Deputy General Counsel for Intellectual Property & Licensing. "Other vendors, including HTC, a market leader in Android smartphones, have taken a license under this program, and we have tried for over a year to reach licensing agreements with Barnes & Noble, Foxconn...
Woz to keynote at 48th Design Automation Conference
Steve "Woz" Wozniak, co-founder of Apple Computer, and chief scientist, Fusion-IO, will keynote at the 48th Design Automation Conference (DAC), an event devoted to design and design automation of electronic systems (EDA).
He will be interviewed live on stage by "San Jose Mercury News" columnist Mike Cassidy on a range of topics, including the joy of engineering and following your passion to convert innovative ideas into reality. Wozniak will provide an insight into the vision that started the largest and most successful technology company in the world (that would be Apple, of course).
The 48th DAC (http://www.dac.com/) will be held at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, California, from June 5-10. Wozniak’s keynote interview will take place on Monday, June 6, at 2 pm and is sponsored by Magma Design Automation.
The AT&T/T-Mobile merger: Five issues for consumers
"Consumer Reports" says the AT&T/T-Mobile merger has five issues that should concern consumers. AT&T, one of the biggest national wireless carriers, is proposing to buy T-Mobile, one of the smallest. It's a $US39 billion deal that, if approved by regulators, will see AT&T's 95 million and T-Mobile's 33 million subscribers served by a united company, probably beginning sometime next year.
What's at stake for consumers? In an online blog (http://macte.ch/8EpHI) "Consumer Reports" had this to say:
"t's early days, obviously, but our advocacy colleagues at Consumers Union (the non-profit publisher of Consumer Reports) have already voiced concern, saying: "From a consumer's perspective, it's difficult to come up with any justification or benefits from letting AT&T swallow up one of its few major competitors."
"Here are five questions that could shape how good or bad a merger might be for wireless customers.
"Overall, will service be more like T-Mobile's or AT&T's?...
Apple number eight on most valuable brands list
Google became the world's most valuable brand this year based on Brand Finance's (http://www.brandfinance.com) rankings of the most valuable 500 brands across the globe. Apple ranks eighth on the list.
Per Brand Finance, the top 10 most valuable brands and their value are: Google (US$44.29 billion), Microsoft ($42.80 billion), Wal-Mart ($36.22 billion), IBM ($36.15 billion), Vodafone ($30.67 billion), Bank of America ($30.61 billion), General Electric ($30.50 billion), Apple ($29.54 billion), Wells Fargo ($28.94 billion), and AT&T ($28.88 billion).
Apple’s success continues as it moves up 12 places, "supported by innovative design, a very loyal consumer base and well-executed marketing activities," says Brand Finance. However, Coca Cola has dropped out of the top 10for the first time. This is underpinned by the consumer trend in developed markets to move towards healthier, non-carbonated drinks.
"The rise of the technology brands has been expected for some time, although Nokia’s...
Apple number two on most desired employees list
One in four young professionals wants to work at Google Inc., according to a survey by Universum, a consulting firm that helps companies improve their attractiveness to prospective employees. Nearly 25% of survey respondents picked Google, almost twice as many as chose Apple, which ranked second, reports the "Wall Street Journal" (http://macte.ch/AN08L).
Walt Disney Co., the U.S. State Department and Amazon.com rounded out the top five.
To conduct the survey, Universum asked 10,306 young professionals -- defined as college graduates with one to eight years of work experience -- to pick as many as five ideal employers out of a list of 150.
Respondents also could write in companies not on the list. The top write-in was Facebook, followed by the Department of Homeland Security and the United Nations.
No kiddin'? A clown drove Jonny Ive from the UK?
"The Daily Mail" (http://macte.ch/aoWSD) says there's no truth to recent rumors that Apple design guru Jonathan Ive planned to leave Apple and return to his native Britain. And he moved to the States to work for Apple because of a clown, the article claims.
Per the "Daily Mail": " ‘We lost a great talent,’ saysClive Grinyer, who first hired Ive after he came to work with him on a placement from Newcastle Polytechnic ‘We virtually created our own consultancy, Tangerine, just so that we could employ Jony (as Ive prefers to be called). And if I had to put my finger on why and where we lost him it would have to have been one day at Ideal Standard in Hull.
" 'Tangerine had a consultancy contract with the bathroom-fittings company to design a toilet. I was there when Jony made an excellent presentation to this guy who was wearing a red nose because it was Comic Relief day. This clown then decided to throw his weight around and pulled apart Jony’s design. It was ridiculous. Britain lost Jony...
No iPhone on T-Mobile for at least a year
With AT&T acquiring T-Mobile USA for US$39 billion, customers of T-Mobile are wondering whether T-Mobile is finally getting the iPhone. Not for at least a year, it seems.
In a FAQ section (http://macte.ch/oZG54), T-Mobile had this to say: "T-Mobile USA remains an independent company. The acquisition is expected to be completed in approximately 12 months. We do not offer the iPhone. We offer cutting edge devices like the Samsung Galaxy S 4G and coming soon our new Sidekick 4G."
Yay! is new music streaming, sharing app for Mac OS X
Snarbsoft has introduced Yay!, a new music streaming and sharing app for Mac OS X 10.5 and higher. With it, you can sream and share music, as well as extend your local music library with tracks from blogs, forums and websites all over the Internet.
From a single interface, you can catalogue secondary material like blogs, news and reviews, artist biographies, images, lyrics and music videos, all updated in real time. Yay! lets you do advanced searches by tags. Tags aren't limited to genres, but may describe a mood or gender, etc.
You can create and share playlists with your friends on Twitter and Facebook. Shared playlists are uploaded to Yay! Playlists, a public repository where other members of the Yay! community can check out, vote and comment on your compilations
Yay! is available from its dedicated website (http://getyay.com). A free trial version can be downloaded and run without any restrictions for up to seven days. The full app can be purchased for a US$10.. No monthly...
Energizer expands suite of Qi-enabled products
Energizer (http://www.energizer.com) is expanding its suite of Qi-enabled products (pronounced "chee"). The company says this new universal charging standard, developed by the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC), will give consumers the freedom to charge any Qi device five watts or less on any Qi charging pad regardless of manufacturer.
Following the launch of the first suite of Qi-enabled products in fall 2010, which included the two-zone Energizer Inductive Charger, the company will be showing a new single-zone inductive charger, the recently introduced iPhone 4 sleeve, and the new Energizer Micro/Mini USB Adapter. This slim, compact Qi adapter adheres to the back of any phone.
Additionally, Energizer will soon demo the following products:
° Energizer Travel Adapter -- an all-in-one AC adapter that includes an iPhone/iPod dock, nightlight, three AC outlets and two USB outlets with numerous converters for international travel;
° Energizer AC Universal USB Wall Charger -- a single or...
Will Smith donates Macs to West Philly high school
Will Smith is donating Mac replacements for 30 stolen computers to a high school in West Philadelphia, where he was born and raised, reports the "Associated Press" (http://macte.ch/3oIWk).
The Will and Jada Smith Family Foundation and the Charlie Mack Cares philanthropic organizations are giving 29 Apple laptops and one desktop to West Philadelphia High School.
Local community activist Charlie Mack is a longtime assistant and friend of Smith, the music, TV and film superstar, says the "AP."
Mack says he plans to deliver the new computers to the school Friday. Smith is working elsewhere and can't make it. The "AP" says two students have been charged with stealing 60 computers from the school last month. Police recovered half of them, but the rest remain unaccounted for.
Roulette, Craps 3D roll onto the Mac App Store
Viaden Mobile (http://mobile.viaden.com/) has debuted its first apps for the Mac: Roulette and Craps 3D.
Roulette 3D offers three roulette tables: European, American and French, with "professional dealers" who comment on every step of the game. Craps 3D is characterized by simple controls, flowing 3D animation, background music and "a friendly dealer who really knows from craps."
Roulette and Craps 3D are played for fun money only, no actual money involved. Both games are currently available on the Mac App Store for US$1.99 each.
App releases 'bugs' all over your Mac's screen
JBMJBM has released Bugs 1.0 for the Mac (http://www.jbmjbm.com/bugs.html). Launch this app and small, realistic looking ants, spiders or lady bugs start "crawling" around your screen -- and you can squish 'em. Bugs costs US$2.99, works with Mac OS X 10.6 or higher and is available at the Mac App Store.
There's also a counter to count how many bugs have been smashed. You can also increase or decrease the number of ants, spiders, or lady bugs on the screen. There's an option to change the type of bug.
Tutor for iDVD 1.0 available in the Mac App Store
Noteboom Productions has introduced Tutor for iDVD 1.0 (http://www.noteboomproductions.com/app/tutor-idvd), their latest video tutorial, now available on the Mac App Store. It costs US$4.99.
You can watch videos to learn how to use iDVD, part of iLife '11. The video tutorial consists of 21 video chapters on various subjects. This includes topics ranging from using Magic iDVD to using drop zones to adding photos and files to adding chapters.
Cocktail 4.8.2 fixes issues with Safari extensions
Maintain has released Cocktail 4.8.2 (Snow Leopard Edition), the latest maintenance update of Cocktail (http://www.maintain.se/c) for users running Mac OS X 10.6 ("Snow Leopard"). The new version fixes compatibility issues with Safari extensions, adds the "Delete Localization Files" Automator action as well as compatibility with Mac OS X 10.6.7.
Cocktail 4.8.2 (Snow Leopard Edition) requires Mac OS X/Mac OS X Server 10.6 or later and is tested for compatibility with Mac OS X/Mac OS X Server 10.6.7. Cocktail (Leopard Edition) for Mac OS X 10.5 and Cocktail (Tiger Edition) for Mac OS X 10.4 are available for download from the Maintain website.
Cocktail is a general purpose utility for Mac OS X that offers a variety of practical features designed to simplify the use of advanced UNIX function. A single user license costs US$14.95.
New version of LogMeIn Ignition adds iPad 2 support
Apple iOS device owners can use their iPad 2, iPad, iPhone and iPod touch to view, transfer and save files from their Macs and PCs with the newest update to LogMeIn Ignition.
The newest version from LogMeIn, Inc. (http://macte.ch/abkVl) adds file functions to Ignition's remote control capabilities. It's the first iOS app to combine remote control with file management, according to Andrew Burton, LogMeIn's vice president, Access & Management. The app is available now Apple App Store for US$29.99 and is a free update to current users.
With the introduction of file viewing and management, iOS device owners can choose to remotely control a computer desktop or directly access a computer's file systems -- or multiple computers' file systems -- using a single app. The new LogMeIn Ignition for iPhone/iPad also introduces the ability to wake a sleeping computer from an iPad, iPhone or iPod touch using
Wake-On-LAN.
LogMeIn Ignition, including the new file viewing and management capabilities...
Digital Heaven adds new features to Final Cut plug-ins
Digital Heaven has released free updates to eight of their plug-ins for Final Cut Pro and Express.
From freeware grid and guides generators to animating counters, subtitle creation and dead pixel correction, these 14 plug-ins provide a suite of tools for professional editors. The most popular plug-in, DH_Subtitle now features automatic line wrapping and metadata support. Other updates include automatic format detection in DH_LegalText and more.
The Digital Heaven products require Final Cut Express (version 2 and later) or Final Cut Pro (version 4 and later). Freeware plug-ins (DH_Fade, DH_FieldTrans, DH_Grid and DH_Guides) are available by registering on the Digital Heaven website (http://www.digital-heaven.co.uk).
Other plug-ins are available for individual purchase from the Digital Heaven online store at US$29 or $59. Existing customers are eligible for a free update within the same major version number.
Tembo 1.4 for Mac OS X gets new options
Houdah Software has released Tembo 1.4, an update of the friendly" find utility for Mac OS X, available at the Mac App Store.
The upgrade adds: a result count in group headers; an option to use a larger font size; an option to quit on the close of the last window; an advanced option to exclude files by type; and an AppleScript application programming interface to open search to a given folder.
Tembo is for designed to make the searching (and finding) of files, mail messages, bookmarks and more as easy as possible. It's sold exclusively through the Mac App Store for US$14.99 and requires Mac OS X 10.6.6 or higher.. A demo version is available from the product web site (http://www.houdah.com/tembo/).
AT&T to buy T-Mobile for $39 billion
AT&T (http://www.att.com) and Deutsche Telekom AG have entered into a definitive agreement under which AT&T will acquire T-Mobile USA from Deutsche Telekom in a cash-and-stock transaction currently valued at approximately US$39 billion. The agreement has been approved by the boards of directors of both companies.
With this transaction, AT&T commits to a "significant expansion" of robust 4G LTE (Long Term Evolution) deployment to 95% of the U.S. population to reach an additional 46.5 million Americans beyond current plans -- including rural communities and small towns, according to AT& Chairman and CEO Randall Stephenson. This helps achieve the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and President Obama’s goals to connect “every part of America to the digital age.” T-Mobile USA does not have a clear path to delivering LTE, he adds.
As part of the transaction, Deutsche Telekom will receive an equity stake in AT&T that, based on the terms of the agreement, would...
Forrester: iPad will dominate the tablet market as the iPod does...
Forrester Research (http://www.forrester.com) has released a study of the tablet plans from various vendors, concluding (not surprisingly) that Apple will dominate this market as it does the MP3 player market with the iPod.
The reason, as noted by "PC World" (http://macte.ch/8b0ED): Android tablets, along with the coming HP WebOS and RIM BlackBerry tablets, are overpriced, sold in cell phone stores that customers dislike visiting. And they're not compelling products in their own right.
However, the Forrester study says that most would-be tablet buyers really want a Windows tablet. Now THAT I do find hard to believe.
-- Dennis Sellers
29% of apps in Mac App Store are games
The Mac App Store has 2,225 applications available in the store approximately two months post-launch, according to the Distimo research group (http://www.distimo.com). Comparatively, the Apple App Store for iPad had 8,099 applications two months post-launch.
Although on the Mac gaming has been less popular than on Windows, the Mac App Store promises a bright future for Mac gaming. There are already 646 games in this store (29%), and 39% of the most popular applications are games as well.
The proportion of free applications in the Mac App Store is lower than that of, say, the app store for iOS devices. Only 12% of the applications are free.
Macgamestore.com offers 'Mac Games For Japan Relief Bundle...
Macgamestore.com has announced the "Mac Games For Japan Relief Bundle." This time-limited bundle of 15 games is aimed at helping the victims of the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan.
Available now thru Monday, March 21, this exclusive collection combines hit games from some of the most popular names in independent Mac gaming today. Proceeds will be donated to the Japan Earthquake and Pacific Tsunami disaster relief fund through the American Red Cross.
The Mac Games For Japan Relief Bundle contains US$200 worth of games for just $19.95, a savings of nearly $185. The games are: Destination: Treasure Island; Escape The Museum 2; LUXOR 5th Passage; Diamond Detective; Jewel Quest 4: Heritage; The Stroke of Midnight Collector's Edition; Mishap 2: An Intentional Haunting Collector's Edition; Cake Mania 3; Sally's Salon; Brain App; Mondo Solitaire; Twisted Lands: Shadow Town; The Treasures of Montezuma 2; Fishdom H20: Hidden Odyssey; and 4 Elements.
iSuppli: Japanese earthquake poses potential supply problems for...
The aftermath of the Japanese earthquake may cause logistical disruptions and supply shortages for the iPad 2, which employs several components manufactured in the disaster-stricken country—including a hard-to-replace electronic compass, the battery and possibly the advanced technology glass in the display, IHS iSuppli (http://www.isuppli.com) research indicates.
The IHS iSuppli teardown analysis of the iPad 2 so far has been able to identify five parts sourced from Japanese suppliers: NAND flash from Toshiba Corp., dynamic random access memory (DRAM) made by Elpida Memory Inc., an electronic compass from AKM Semiconductor, the touch screen overlay glass likely from Asahi Glass Co. and the system battery from Apple Japan Inc. There potentially are other components from Japan in the iPad 2; however, the teardown analysis process cannot always identify all components’ countries of origin.
iSuppli says that, while some of these suppliers reported that their facilities were undamaged,...
PopCap discounts games, donates sales to Japan relief efforts
PopCap Games (http://www.popcap.com) is discounting the prices of the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad adaptations of all of its games including Bejeweled, Bookworm, Chuzzle, Peggle and Plants vs. Zombies for 48 hours to raise funds for earthquake-stricken Japan.
Partnering with the Red Cross, PopCap will donate all of its revenues from the sale, which begins Saturday, March 19, at 12:01 a.m. (Pacific) and ends at midnight on Sunday, March 20. The price of each iPhone and iPod touch title is reduced to US$0.99 cents during that time, while the iPad adaptations are reduced to 1.99. Consumers can purchase the games via the Apple App Store or by going to PopCap.com.
HDRFactory creates HDR images from series of photos
Akvis (http://www.Akvis.com) has released Akvis HDRFactory 1.0, which is compatible with Mac OS X 10.4 and higher. The software creates HDR-images from a series of photographs taken at different exposures or from a single photograph.
You can create stylized images with colors and unique effects. HDRFactory also includes a deghosting tool for removing ghost artifacts that sometimes appear when combining photos with moving objects. The app can also be used for photo correction. You can adjust color saturation and brightness, and bring out the detail in dark and bright areas.
Advanced types of licenses (Deluxe, Business) offer additional features. They include a tool that helps to repair the so-called "ghosts" that sometimes appear when creating an HDR image. These "unwelcome guests" (semi-transparent doubled passersby, cars, tree leaves, etc) are a result of combining a series of source photos that contain moving objects. HDRFactory will help you to remove these artifacts.
Akvis...
Regex is new Mac OS X app for testing regular expressions
MotionObj has released Regex (http://motionobj.com/regex/), a new app for testing regular expressions running on Mac OS X 10.6.6 or later. It's available for US$4.99 at the Mac App Store in the Developer Tools category.
Regex features an interface for testing and constructing regular expressions. It offers dynamic highlighting of matches while the regular expression or sample text is being modified. It also supports capture groups and matching options such as case-insensitive matches.
With Regex, you can paste in a regular expression and a piece of sample text to work against and the tool allows you to tweak the regular expression, as well as the sample text and the matches will be highlighted dynamically. It supports capture groups and more.
Beat Tagger for Mac OS X lets you tag Beatport WAV music files
Silicon Studios has introduced Beat Tagger 1.0 for Mac OS X (http://www.beattaggerapp.com), a drag and drop app that automatically tags WAV files purchased from Beatport. It requires Mac OS X 10.6.6, costs US$2.99, and is available in the Mac App Store.
Unlike MP3 tracks downloaded from Beatport, uncompressed WAV files don't include ID3 metadata. Beat Tagger automatically adds these tags to WAV files so that when they're played back on players like iTunes, Serato, or Traktor the following info appears: Track Title, Album Name, Artist Name, Remixer Name, Genre, Label, Year of Release, and Album Artwork.
Beat Tagger also identifies corrupted WAV files, so that users may re-download within the limited time allowed by Beatport. The app is designed as an integrated solution for music lovers and DJs who purchase Beatport WAV files, and want their music labeled and organized without having to do it manually, says Silicon Studio's founder, Nuno Pereira.
Ohanaware donating funds to the Red Cross
Ohanaware (http://www.ohanaware.com) has announced plans to help the people of Japan. From Mar 18 until Mar 25, the will be selling their software, including the new HDRtist Pro and Funtastic Photos, at half price.
All the profit that Ohanaware generates this week will then be donated to the Red Cross (http://www.redcross.org), to be used to provide medical care, shelter, food and water for those that need it after last weeks earth quake and tsunami. The death toll from the recent tsunami and earthquake is expected to exceed 15,000, and over half a million people are without homes, heat, food and water. "
HDRtist Pro is a Mac App thats been designed to create and edit HDR or Exposure Blended images. Funtastic Photos is a "non-permanent and easily reversible: photo editor, with over 60 one-click styles, an advanced effects engine, direct sharing via Fun Cards, smartphones (including the iPhone) and photo sharing sites (flickr, Facebook, Picasa and MobileMe).
Color It By Numbers -- Animals prowls onto the Mac
ColorItByNumbers has released Color It By Numbers -- Animals (http://macte.ch/QbWpc), the first product in the company´s line of colorful infotainment products for children. This game features three coloring modes and a soundtrack that accompanies children as they paint animal-themed templates in different colors.
This edition of the software is dedicated to animals and features several species, including a dotted Alpine cow, a parrot, an ever-changing chameleon, a funny octopus, a crab, a pelican, a cute puppy, a huge elephant and an African lion. Each animal is represented by a multi-piece coloring template with numbers inscribed into each piece.
Children can pick a brush on the left-hand side and paint regions of the template with corresponding numbers. The other two coloring modes offered by the program include "Color to make it visible" and "Color it in your favorite colors." In the first case, the user has to color each piece to make it visible on the screen. In the "Color it...
'Cult of Mac' looks at the iPhone 5/NFC/MobileMe...
With all the rumors about NFC (near field communications) being -- or not appearing, depending on what you read -- in the next iPhone "Cult of Mac" (http://macte.ch/nBmaz) says they have a few more details about Apple’s remote computing plans that revolve around the technology.
NFC is a short-range wireless connection technology that would turn the iPhone into an electronic wallet or security passkey, the article says. NFC is already in use in Asia and is expected to explode here in the next three to five years, especially if Apple adopts the technology.
"Cult of Mac," quoting "a source close to the company," says Apple is busy testing several prototype iPhones with NFC. Unfortunately, the source has no knowledge of when Apple will actually introduce the technology in the iPhone, the article adds. It could be the next model, due this summer (the iPhone 5), or next year’s version (the iPhone 6).
However, "Cult of Apple" says Apple is working on a system that allows users to log into...
PADACS readies iPad 2 keyboard cases for April
PADACS readies iPad 2 keyboard cases for April
PADACS (http://www.padacs.com) says its first products for Apple’s new iPad 2 -- the improved Toccata and Rubata Bluetooth keyboard cases -- are planned for an April launch in the US and Canada.
The PADACS Toccata Bluetooth Keyboard Case (shown) contains a compact QWERTY keyboard that's purportedly large enough to type on comfortably without adding to the iPad 2 case size. Charged by an included USB cable, the Lithium battery-powered keyboard runs for as long as 45 hours. The PADACS Rubata iPad 2 keyboard case provides a cover with a built-in hard plastic shell Bluetooth keyboard with special iPad keys.
The Toccata 2 Bluetooth Keyboard Case has been redesigned to hold the 33% slimmer iPad 2, making the entire Toccata 2 case thinner and sleeker. Other enhancements include: keyboard controls to adjust the iPad screen brightness; addition of new keys including a right shift key and a Photo Frame button for the iPad; removal of the keyboard’...
ExactScan Pro gets new Imprinter module
ExactCode has updated its ExactScan Pro (http://www.exactcode.de/site/products/exactscan/) scanning software for Mac OS X (10.4 and higher) to version 2.14. The upgrade features a new Imprinter module which makes it possible to print flexible text onto the scan result (e.g. scanned date) or watermarks.
ExactScan includes built-in drivers for over 230 document scanners, including devices from Avision, Kodak, Oki, Visioneer and Xerox. Together with the Spotlight indexing services built into Mac OS X since 10.5 ("Leopard") this features form a document management solution suitable for small-office and home-office (SOHO) environments. What's more it has image enhancement algorithms that can recognize automatically how the images and documents have to be cropped and de-skewed.
ExactScan comes with support for many languages (English, Dutch, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Spanish, Simplified-Chinese, Traditional-Chinese) and works with Mac OS X 10.4 and higher.
ExactScan 2 is...
Pittsburg Apple store vandalized for third time
The Shadyside Apple store in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, burglarized at least twice in the past four months, was hit again on Thursday, reports the "Pittsburg Post-Gazette" (http://macte.ch/k1hHH). Police told the newspaper that thieves who stole thousands of dollars worth of laptops and iPods.
The same store was burglarized in November and January. Each case was similar in that bandits broke the glass and made off with merchandise in the early morning hours, says the "Post-Gazette."
Chrome updated to address Flash player issue
Google (http://macte.ch/vlqmD) has updated its Chrome 10 browser for the third time this month with the release of Chrome 10.0.648.134 for Mac, Windows and Linux and Chrome Frame, reports "eSecurity Planet" (http://macte.ch/sYgkn).
Chrome 10.0.648.134 is being issued to fix a single issue. It provides an updated Adobe Flash player that fixes a zero day vulnerability that is already being exploited in the wild.
Google's Chrome browser includes an integrated Flash player, which is something that no other browser vendor provides. Additionally Chrome is getting the Adobe Flash fix before even Adobe issues a public fix for all users, says "eSecurity Planet." Adobe issued a security advisory earlier this week, warning of a critical vulnerability in Flash Player 10.2.152.33 and earlier versions.
Class On Demand adds new Avid training
Class on Demand (http://www.classondemand.com) will exhibit at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) convention, held in Las Vegas from April 11-14. Stationed at booth SL11217, Class on Demand plans to display its full range of training titles, spanning recent software releases from Apple, Adobe and more, including the just-announced "Complete Training for Avid Studio" training course.
Class on Demand instructors and experts will be on site to discuss the benefits that post-production and broadcast professionals receive from staying up to speed on the latest industry trends and techniques with Class on Demand's affordable, self-paced products, says says Paul Holtz, CEO and founder, Class on Demand. The Class on Demand team will also demonstrate the pioneering Class on Demand Learning Platform, which includes a secure streaming video server employing Microsoft's Silverlight DRM technology for a convenient and accessible on-demand training experience from the Class on Demand...
DiscLabel 6.3.1 adds support for Microboards disc printers
SmileOnMyMac (http://www.smileonmymac.com) has updated DiscLabel, its CD/DVD label design software, to version 6.3.1. The update adds support for Microboards' PF Pro, PF 3 and G3 disc printers.
DiscLabel costs US$35.95 for new users. The DiscLabel Family Pack, for up to five computers in one household, is $44.95 and an office pack is $99.95. DiscLabel 6.3.1 requires Mac OS X 10.4 or later. A fully-functional demo version is available at the SmileOnMyMac web site.
DevonTechnologies updates products
DevonTechnologies says all editions of its information manager, DevonThink, and the note-taking application, DevonNote, are now available in version 2.0.9. DevonNote, EasyFind 4.7.1, and XMenu 1.9.2 are now also available on the Mac App Store, and DevonThinkTo Go 1.1 has been submitted to the iOS App Store for review.
Version 2.0.9 of all editions of DevonThinkand DevonNote brings, first of all, an updated conduit for DevonThinkTo Go, fixing a number of bugs. The older conduit e.g. transferred, accidentally, only the first 1KB of data of indexed text so that larger documents were not completely searchable, and could crash when sending very large files.
In addition DevonThinkPro Office 2.0.9 allows to properly archive mailboxes from any supported email client skipping messages archived earlier. This makes it possible to regularly "sync" a mailbox with the archive in DevonThink to keep the archive up-to-date.
DevonThinkPro and up can rebuild the global inbox database, too, and allow...
Apple says Blaze's Android/iPhone speed test comparison is...
Blaze Software, released a report Thursday in which it said the Android was 52% faster than the iPhone loading Web pages. The company purportedlly did 45,000 tests with the mobile operating systems to get their results.
“Their testing is flawed because they didn’t actually test the Safari web browser on the iPhone,” Apple spokesperson, Natalie Kerris, told "The Loop" (http://macte.ch/1zZR4). “Instead they only tested their own proprietary app which uses an embedded web viewer that doesn’t take advantage of Safari’s web performance optimizations. Despite this fundamental testing flaw, they still only found an average of a second difference in loading web pages.”
The problem of course, is that the embedded browser used in the tests had no JavaScript speed improvements, says "The Loop." While it’s not mentioned in Blaze’s press release, they did the time difference between Android and iPhone page loading in the documentation, and it comes out to just over one second, the article adds.
Private Contact 2.4 for Mac OS X adds simplified interface, more
Tension Software (http://pomola.com/products_privatecontact/privatecontact.html) has updated Private Contact, a native Cocoa software to manage an address book in an encrypted form in Mac OS X (10.4 and higher), to version 2.4. The upgrade boasts an improved main window layout, a simplified interface, improved category dialog, embedded PDF user guide and more.
With Private Contact informations inside documents, relative to various persons, can be read only by the Mac owner. In case of unauthorized access or theft of the Mac, the data inside Private Contact documents can’t be read without the proper master password.
Private Contact uses the powerful Blowfish algorithm to encrypt data. It's Universal Binary so runs natively on both PowerPC and Intel Macs.
Private Contact can be purchased for US$25. Version 2.4 is a free update to registered users of version 2.x.
Switzerland is the country with the most Mac market share
Pingdom (http://www.royal.pingdom.com) -- a site that covers Internet and online technology -- has examined operating system market share from across the globe using StatCounter web metrics data to find out where Macs are the most popular. And the winner is .... Switzerland with 17.61%.
Pingdom says the top 10 countries in terms of Mac market share: Switzerland, Luxembourg (15.79%), the United States (15.36%), Iceland (15.18%), Canada (14.03%), Australia (13.94%), New Zealand (12.84%), Norway (12.14%), Denmark (11.71%) and Singapore (10.69%). Just outside the top 10 you find countries like Sweden, Japan, the United Kingdom, France, Belgium and Finland.
When it comes to market share in different world regions, North America comes in at number one (14.09%), closely followed by Oceania/Australia (13.71%), then Europe (6.23%) as a distant third. The Mac has less than 2% market share in Asia, Africa and South America. Hey, just at those regions as potential areas for some serious Mac...
Real Software to donate 5% of sales to Japan relief efforts
Real Software will be donating 5% of the company’s total sales for the week of March 20-26 to the American Red Cross’ earthquake and tsunami relief fund for Japan. All of Real Software’s products including new licenses on its Desktop and Web Editions, renewals, upgrades and support plans will be applicable.
“Allocating a portion of sales for our neighbors in Japan after this devastating disaster is one small way we can help,” says Geoff Perlman, founder and CEO of Real Software.
Real Studio is a cross-platform software development tool suited to creating a wide range of applications, from utilities to enterprise-class applications. Real Studio Personal Edition for Mac, Windows or Linux is priced at US$99 and is geared for hobbyists and students. Real Studio Professional Edition, required for cross-platform (Mac OS X, Windows and Linux) compilation, is $299. Real Studio Web Edition is now available and priced at $599.
Real Studio Enterprise Edition, made for full-time developers...
Mac App Store now home to over 4,200 apps
In just ten weeks, the Mac App Store has seen its inventory of apps rise from around 1,000 to over 4,200, reports "InformationWeek" (http://macte.ch/GKjZc). It launched on Jan. 7.
The Mac App Store offers apps in Education, Games, Graphics & Design, Lifestyle, Productivity, Utilities and other categories. Users can browse new and noteworthy apps, find out what’s hot, see staff favorites, search categories and look up top charts for paid and free apps, as well as user ratings and reviews. The Mac App Store is available for Snow Leopard users through the Software Update as part of Mac OS X 10.6.6.
Mac developers set the price for their apps, keep 70% of the sales revenue, are not charged for free apps and don't have to pay hosting, marketing or credit card fees. To find out more about developing for the Mac App Store visit developer.apple.com/programs/mac .
iPhone tops J.D. Power rankings in customer satisfaction
Overall satisfaction with smartphones and traditional mobile phones is considerably higher among owners who use their devices for social media activity, compared with satisfaction among owners who do not access social media platforms on their phones, according to new studies by J.D. Power and Associates (http://www.JDPower.com). And the iPhone is tops in customer satisfaction.
For a fifth consecutive time, Apple ranks highest among manufacturers of smartphones in customer satisfaction with a score of 795 and performs particularly well in ease of operation, operating system, features and physical design. Motorola (763) and HTC (762) follow Apple in the smartphone rankings.
Sanyo ranks highest in overall wireless customer satisfaction with traditional handsets with a score of 715. Sanyo performs well in three factors: physical design, battery functionality and operation. LG (711) and Samsung (703) follow Sanyo in the traditional handset rankings.
In order of importance, the key factors...
Credit Suisse sets Apple price target of $500 a share
Credit Suisse on Thursday launched analyst coverage of Apple with an outperform rating and a price target of US$500 a share, reports "MarketWatch" (http://macte.ch/9XqCp).
"We conclude that Apple should be able to deliver outsized revenue/earnings growth of 50%/46% over the next two years, which is significantly ahead of consensus expectations, given a sustained competitive advantage in software, hardware and services/apps ecosystem," analyst Kulbinder Garcha said in a note to clients.
Some 2011 MacBook Pros not playing nice with iTunes Home Sharing
Some owners of Apple's 2011 MacBook Pros say they can't connect devices or maintain connections through iTunes Home Sharing.
A support thread (http://macte.ch/UGCse) in Apple's Discussion forums has received over 200 posts from owners of Apple's latest MacBook Pros reporting issues with iTunes Home Sharing. Several readers have also contacted "AppleInsider" (http://www.appleinsider.com) regarding the issue. According to forum user 'themacbear,' the new MacBook Pro was able to stream to a second-generation Apple TV at first, but then the Apple TV reported being unable to connect or would display the error message "There are no movies in this library."
Home Sharing in iTunes is designed to let you stream and transfer music, videos, and more with up to five other computers on your local network. Home Sharing is linked to a single iTune Store account.
Study: Android faster than the iPhone in loading web pages
The latest Android smartphone loaded Web pages 52% faster than iPhone 4 running iOS 4.3, according to thousands of independent field tests by Blaze Software -- as reported by "Computerworld" (http://macte.ch/OMA7d).
The web page load times were about a second apart for the two devices in a study that amassed 45,000 load tests in all. For Android 2.3 on the Google Nexus S smartphone using a version of Chrome, the median load time was 2.144 seconds, compared to 3.254 seconds for iPhone 4 on iOS 4.3 running a version of Safari, according to the study.
Blaze used Fortune 1,000 web sites for the tests, running the web page loading tests repeatedly over Wi-Fi and 3G wireless connections with nothing else running on the phones at the time, says "Computerworld." The Android phone was faster than the iPhone in loading 84% of the tested Web sites. "Android wasn't just faster overall, but rather provided a faster browsing experience four times out of five," the study said.
Steve Jobs emails Apple staff in Japan
Apple CEO Steve Jobs is reported to have sent a message to Apple staff regarding the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan. The contents of the email were posted to Chihouban.com (via Macotakara), and "MacRumors" (http://www.macrumors.com) also received a copy of it independently. The email was said to have been sent to all Apple employees and reads:
"To Our Team in Japan,
"We have all been following the unfolding disaster in Japan. Our hearts go out to you and your families, as well as all of your countrymen who have been touched by this tragedy.
"If you need time or resources to visit or care for your families, please see HR and we will help you. If you are aware of any supplies that are needed, please also tell HR and we will do what we can to arrange delivery.
"Again, our hearts go out to you during this unimaginable crisis.
"Please stay safe.
"Steve and the entire Executive Team"
In related news, the March 11 tsunami that has devastated Japan is expected to create...
Western Digital introduces 6TB storage system
Western Digital has introduced its My Book Studio Edition II dual-drive storage system with 6TB of storage. The new capacity provides users 33% more storage than the previous capacity, while maintaining the same footprint.
Combining its extended 6TB storage capacity and compatibility with Apple's Time Machine, the new My Book Studio Edition II drive becomes an instant storage solution for a variety of professions including art and design, photography, legal and medical, and a host of other small businesses, according to the folks at WD. The system offers a quad interface: eSATA, FireWire 800, FireWire 400 and USB 2.0.
The My Studio Edition II sports WD GreenPower Technology that consumes approximately one-third less power than standard dual-drive external storage systems and convection cooling architecture and power-saving mode and designed without a fan to run quietly. It's user serviceability, enabling you to open the enclosure and replace the drive inside.
My Book Studio Edition II...
'New York Times' launches digital subscriptions
"The New York Times" is launching digital subscriptions, which will affect some users of its award-winning website, NYTimes.com, and its applications for smartphones and tablets.
The subscription plan allows for free access to a set amount of content across digital platforms. When the monthly reading limit is reached, users who aren't already home delivery subscribers will be asked to become digital subscribers.
Digital subscriptions will be available in the United States and globally on March 28. "The Times" is launching digital subscriptions in the Canadian market beginning today in order to fine-tune the customer experience prior to the global launch.
For non-home delivery subscribers, the basic package -- NYTimes.com plus Smartphone App -- will start at $15 every four weeks. The NYTimes.com plus Smartphone App package is currently available for purchase by users in Canada. On March 28, the global launch, "The Times" will offer three digital subscription packages, all of which...
Divine Wind expansion pack blows onto the Mac
Virtual Programming (http://www.vpltd.com) has released Divine Wind for Mac OS X 10.6 or higher. It's the fourth expansion pack for the strategy game Europa Unversalis III and costs US$14.95.
Here's how Divine Wind is described: "Players travel to medieval Japan and assume the role of one of four major daimyos vying for influence with the Emperor and control over the Shogunate. A new graphical style brings the action to life on a detailed map packed with many new provinces, including internal Chinese factions that must be managed to keep the Mandate of Heaven.
"Divine Wind also features dozens of new culture-specific building types, giving players greater control over province development, along with enhanced diplomacy functions offering more options for alliances and peace negotiations. In addition, trade development is more realistic and allows players to control strategic resources that grant bonuses. As players build their Japanese kingdom, they can unlock over 50 achievements."
AssistiveWare, LVI join forces on Mac OS X
AssistiveWare (http://www.assistiveware.com) has partnered with LVI Low Vision International to deliver enhanced access to Mac OS X for people with vision impairments.
The result of this collaboration is MagniLink iMax, a magnification and screen reader for Mac OS X, which serves as a companion to LVI's MagniLink Student portable video magnifier. The software provides magnification, image enhancement and pointer settings as well as screen reading with high-quality speech output.
With the inclusion of the Infovox iVox Text-To-Speech voices by Acapela Group, MagniLink iMax comes with automatic language identification in the screen reader mode and also includes ConvenienceWare GhostReader, an application for reading selected text and documents, which extends the built-in text-to-speech features of Mac OS X.
GhostReader contains shortcut keys for access to the text, and the user can listen to documents including file types such as Text, Word, HTML, PDF, ODT and RTF. What's more, you...
