TaskPaper comes to the Mac App Store
TaskPaper 2.2.3 from Hog Bay Software (http://www.hogbaysoftware.com/products/taskpaper) is now available in the Mac App Store, and for a limited time you can get it for US$4.99. It will switch back to $29.99 on Friday, April 8th.
TaskMaker is a list maker for Mac OS X 10.6 or higher. Its plain text file format let you integrate into your workflow in a variety of ways.
Dogs Playing Poker comes to the Mac
Candywriter has introduced Dogs Playing Poker 1.0 (http://www.candywriter.com/dogsplayingpokermac.html) for Mac OS X, a comic take on the old meme. It costs US$4.99, requires Mac OS X 10.6.6 or higher and is available in the Mac App Store in the Games Category.
Designed for Texas Hold 'em novices, advanced poker players, and dog lovers alike, users select their dog breed of choice and then enter a five-round tournament that spans a junkyard, dog pound, train car, den, and Chinese restaurant kitchen. On the way, users face off against 19 unique hounds; a fox and a walrus are also included in the line-up.
Poker novices can get up-to-speed on the ins and outs of Texas Hold 'em by completing the built-in tutorial. Experienced players can enjoy the diverse poker playing traits of the various characters and the hundreds of poker "tells" bundled into the game.
LogicalVue Software announces SQLVue 4.0
LogicalVue Software has announced SQLVue 4.0 (http://www.logicalvue.com/products/sqlvue), an update to their IDE for SQLite developers. With it you can edit table data using the data editor.
This SQL editor will auto-complete SQL commands, table names and column names. SQLite a free, open-source, single-user database engine. It's used by a wide variety of applications and development tools, including Mac OS X (CoreData), iOS, Real Studio, Adobe Flex/Air, Google Gears, Bento and more.
SQLVue uses a tab-based design familiar to most developers. Other features include: full code completion (for SQLite syntax and your table and column names); full display of database Pragma values; and a table editor that displays all table information one place.
SQLVue 4.0 rquires Mac OS X 10.6.6 or later. Through April 15, it's being offered at a special introductory price of US$9.99 and is available worldwide through the Mac App Store in the Developer Tools category.
Flash'In'App flashes to version 2.6
Eltima Software has released Flash'in'App 2.6, an update of the Cocoa framework that allows loading and fully managing Flash movies right in Mac applications.
With version 2.6, the app features new options designed to make implementing Flash Player component into any Mac application even more convenient. Those who are working with Flash'In'App for the first time, will find examples of Flash'In'App usage for applications written in different languages, including Python and Ruby.
Communication with Flash Player component was also improved. Now SWF objects, arrays and other data can be sent to it via the ExternalInterface class.
Flash'in'App 2.6 features several bug fixes to make it more stable and reliable. A set of classes, contained in Flash'In'App framework, will let any application play SWF files, manage their playback, communicate with them via external API [application programming interface], FSCommands or variables, control external resources loading, etc.
Flash'in'App 2.6.68...
Surveyed developers concerned about Android's '...
A survey of 250 working developers released by Baird's William Powers -- as reported by "Fortune" (http://macte.ch/QHDO2) -- believes Android's market share gains may be illusory -- especially when the rise of the iPad is taken into account -- and that as a development environment, Google's OS is, well, a mess.
Per Baird's survey 71% of respondents said they were writing apps for Android, and 62% said they were writing for iOS. But, "Fortune" notes, the survey also suggests that programmers writing for Android are finding the ecosystem to be every bit as perilous as Arment predicted.
Among the problems that surfaced:
° Device fragmentation. 56% of Android developers said that operating system fragmentation among the various Android devices was a meaningful or "huge" problem, a percentage that actually increased over the past three months.
° Store fragmentation. Several developers expressed concern over Android app store fragmentation.
° Ease of development. iOS outscored Android
° ...
Florida high school students to get iPads, MacBooks
Students at a central Florida high school -- Lakes Wales High School in Lakeland -- will have iPads waiting for them when they go back to school in August, reports the "Associated Press" (http://macte.ch/yCyX5).
Each teacher at the school will also get one of the new touchscreen tablets (presumably the iPad 2), as well as a MacBook laptop. That's thanks to an anonymous US$1 million donation to the school's technology program, notes the AP.
The donor said in a press release that he hopes the gift will allow students and teachers to realize their full potential. The AP reports that the money will also be used for a new science, technology, engineering and math research lab; new audio equipment and video screens for the gymnasium; and flat screen monitors around the school to exhibit students' work and help staff communicate with students.
Lake Wales Senior High School was constituted in 1924 and had a total student body of 85 students, five full time faculty members, and one...
Analyst: MacBook Air continues to be strong sales performer
J.P. Morgan analyst Mark Moskowitz says in a note to investors -- as reported by "AppleInsider" (http://www.appleinsider.com) that checks with Apple's supply chain indicate that the MacBook Air has continued to be a strong performer for Apple.
He says 420,000 MacBook Air units were shipped in the fourth quarter of calendar 2010, which represented growth of 333% year-over-year, and 326.8% quarter-over-quarter. The level was also three times greater than the product's previous quarterly high. The number is also much lower than an estimate of over one million units given by another analyst in March, notes "AppleInsider."
"We believe that the growth rate of the MacBook Air stands to moderate, but we expect the product to exhibit increasing contribution to the overall Mac business," Moskowitz wrote. "(The fourth quarter of calendar 2010) was the first quarter in which the MacBook Air accounted for greater than 10% of total Apple Mac units. More importantly, the MacBook Air accounted for...
Several European companies waiting for iPads to go paperless
European companies, including at least one Swiss multinational, are being forced to delay a move to paperless board meetings because of the shortage of Apple’s recently launched iPad 2 tablet device, reports the "Financial Times" (http://macte.ch/yChih).
"Company secretaries in Europe and elsewhere quickly embraced the original iPad and a specialized iPad app called Boardbooks from Diligent, a New Zealand-based software developer, as a money and time-saving alternative to sending out bulky packages of board papers to directors each month," the article says. "Many companies, however, had been waiting for the upgraded iPad 2, which became available in Europe on March 25 in limited quantities, before making the switch."
However, Apple restricts the purchase of the iPad 2 to two per customer because of component and product shortages. Now some companies have had to put their iPad plans on hold, says the "Financial Times."
NetMarketShare: Mac OS X, iOS, Safari all gain market share
Mac, Safari and iOS market share for Internet usage rose from February to March,, according to the latest market share survey from NetMarketShare (http://www.netmarketshare.com).
According to the report, among operating systems, Mac OS X had 5.25% of the global market share in March compared to 5.19% in February (that's global market share; in the US it's almost 10%). Windows remains dominant with 89.58% as of March. That's down from 89.69% in January. Apple's highest percentage previously was 5.27% in October 2009.
When it comes to browsers, Safari had 6.61% in March compared to 6.36% in February, while Internet Explorer had 55.92% Firefox had 21.80% and Chrome had 11.57%. That compares to, respectively, February percentages of 56.7%, 21.74% and 10.93%, respectively, for the browsers.
The iOS's market share also rose, according to NetMarketShare. It had 1.87% of the global market share in March compared to 1.81% in February. The iOS' highest percentage of market share was in January...
Google Analytics: iOS ecosystem still ahead Android ecosystem
A large sample of millions of website visitors detailed by Google Analytics indicates that the entire Android ecosystem combined, while slightly ahead of the iPhone 4, continues to be outpaced by Apple's iOS, largely due to the rapid growth of iPad, reports "AppleInsider" (http://www.appleinsider.com).
This mirrors additional data that underlines Apple's lead in both mobile browsing and app sales, refuting recent reports that claim Android is displacing iOS, the article adds. As "AppleInsider" notes, there are regular reports that Google's Android platform has passed the iPhone 4 in both installed base and growth. However, Jeff Tribble of SEO firm ROI365 notes that the firm's analytics data covering four million unique visitors across a large portfolio of web sites shows that Android's share of web visits over the iPhone "is very slight and has not grown much over the past quarter."
Tribble reported that his collective data "currently show 2.89% of the visits coming from Android vs...
Intel planning new chips for fourth quarter
"The Daily News Pulse" (http://macte.ch/HwCnp) says Intel will present a new chipset, the X79, in the fourth quarter of the year.
The article says that the X79 fully supports two PCIe x16 lanes, has 14 SATA ports and possesses eight ports that support SAS. There are 14 USB 2.0 ports, but no mention of USB 3.0 or Thunderbolt ports. PCI x1 support is eliminated.
The X79 chipset will purportedly consist of a 2011-pin LGA socket and will seat the Sandy Bridge-E series CPUs that will feature a quad-channel memory controller and a 32+ lane PCI-Express hub. "Intel has decided to skip the X68 naming scheme altogether and has instead chosen a rather odd naming convention," says "The Daily News Pulse."
Analyst ups iPad sales forecast, downgrades iPhone estimate
In a note to clients -- as reported by "Barron's (http://macte.ch/otJGt) -- Canaccord Adams analyst Mike Walkley has reiterated a Buy rating on Apple shares and raised his price target to US$480 from $460 while raising his EPS [earnings per share] estimate for 2012, based on a higher estimate for iPad sales this year.
Walkley boosted his iPad estimate for this calendar year to 36.5 million from 34 million units estimated previously. For 2012, Walkley’s estimate goes from 48 million iPad units estimated previously to 54 million. However, he also lowered his gross profit margin and his iPhone unit assumptions for this fiscal year, based expectations the iPhone 5 may be pushed from a summer to a September introduction.
Where Walkley had previously estimated 16.6 million, 17.7 million, and 23 million iPhone units in each of the next three quarters, he now sees 16.3 million, 19.6 million, and 22.8 million units. That brings this calendar year’s total to 73.4 million iPhone units, in total...
AT&T makes changes to early smartphone upgrade pricing
AT&T has confirmed to BGR (http://macte.ch/RlePn) that it has made changes to early upgrade pricing for its smartphones. The changes impact customers who wish to upgrade to a new smartphone but are not yet eligible for an upgrade at fully discounted two-year contract prices.
An imminent change to AT&T’s early upgrade pricing for smartphones was by the Android Central blog (http://macte.ch/xOBCV). AT&T has now confirmed to BGR that off-contract early upgrade pricing has increased by US$50 for all smartphones, including the iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, Windows Phones and Android devices. Pricing has increased by $150 when these phones are purchased with a one-year agreement.
Ambrosia releases Mondo Solitaire: Extreme for Mac OS X
Ambrosia has released their first person shooter, Mondo Solitaire: Extreme (http://lgm.com/MondoExtreme), for Mac OS X 10.6.6 or higher. It costs US$15.99.
Here's how the game is described: "Bringing the addictive card tossing game play of solitaire to the edge of your seat excitement of surviving a post apocalyptic world. Play as Andrew 'Wild Card' Welch, armed with a deck of cards and a half chewed cigar, he fights his way across the barren wasteland. In a world of anarchy, the only rule is to count your cards."
The New Logic Studio Unveiled By macProVideo.com
macProVideo.com, a company that specializes in tutorial videos for Apple software, has announced an exclusive first look (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1eNIFtcKjVo) at the New Logic Studio.
"macProVideo.com is known for our dedication to Logic Studio education. Because of this, Apple has provided us with a world exclusive first look at the next version of Logic Studio," says macProVideo.com founder Martin Sitter. "What's more, we've been given permission to unveil some of the best new features that will be included in this amazing update to our favorite audio editor!"
macProVideo.com's publisher, Steve H, has put together a detailed tutorial video demonstrating some of the key features in the new Logic. In particular, he provides a comprehensive overview of the revolutionary "Smart Music" plug-in. Using the latest generation of predictive DSP processing, Smart Music analyzes the songs in your iTunes Library to automatically generate new music in your own particular style.
With...
Lagente releases Scenario 1.5 for the Mac
Lagente Software has announced Scenario 1.5 (http://www.lagentesoft.com), an update to their AppleScript Launcher utility for Mac OS X. It's available for Mac OS X 10.6.6 and higher in the Mac App Store (in the Utilities category) and costs US$4.99.
A tool for non-experienced or experienced AppleScripters alike, AppleScript Launcher enables users to automatically launch AppleScripts when specific System events occur.
The list of events include logging-in, logging out, waking from sleep, going to sleep, becoming Idle or active again and pressing a user-defined key combination. It's a great tool to automate everyday tasks. Many users like to personalize their environment, and Scenario was developed to help them, says Marcie Lewis of Lagente.
Since Scenario launches scripts based on the AppleScript language, it can talk to and automate many applications and system components, Lewis adds. Scenario acts like a kind of glue to enable these users to launch scripts when specific events...
Kevin Smith headlines NAB SuperMeet
The annual National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) SuperMeet (http://www.supermeet.com), now in its 10th year, is welcoming indie filmmaker, actor, director, and editor Kevin Smith to Las Vegas as the event's headlining speaker.
Kevin "Silent Bob" Smith will discuss Avid Media Composer with SuperMeet attendees. Smith launched his career in the film industry in 1994 with Clerks, followed by films such as Chasing Amy (1997), Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001), and Jersey Girl (2004). His latest project, Red State, a horror film, is set to hit theaters in October. A devoted Avid editor, Smith is set to address SuperMeet attendees on his use of Avid Media Composer during the edit process, with a special sneak peak of the soon-to-be-released Red State thrown into the mix.
One of the largest gatherings of Final Cut Studio, Avid, Autodesk, and Adobe editors, HDSLR filmmakers and digital content creators, and gurus the NAB SuperMeet provides an open forum for discussing and presenting...
Scrivener comes to the Mac App Store
Literature & Latte says Scrivener 2.0.5 (http://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener.php), an update of their content-generation tool for writers, is now available on the Mac App Store. It requires Mac OS X 10.6.6 and costs US$44.95.
Scrivener is an application that stays with you from that first, unformed idea all the way through to the first or even final draft says its creator, Keith Blount. It won't try to tell you how to write; it just makes all the tools you have scattered around your desk available in one application, he adds. Virtual index cards store a synopsis for every document you create and more.
With Scrivener you can edit multiple documents. You can create "limitless" documents in the same project and edit them separately or merge them dynamically and edit them as a whole.
A fully-featured outliner helps you take control of your work's structure. A keywords system keeps track of characters, themes or ideas. With Scrivener, you can view your text in full screen mode...
SecureMac says it's discovered a new Mac OS X trojan horse
SecureMac say they have discovered a new version of BlackHole RAT trojan horse as labeled by the hacker as 2.0 for Mac OS X. This new version should not be confused with an older variant already detected back in February by SecureMac as BlackHole RAT 1.0c that has recently been in the news called OSX/BlackHoleRAT.B.
Upon first release of BlackHole RAT 1.0, SecureMac identified three variants of the trojan horse, including one disguised as Apple's Safari web browser. At that time, it was noted that the trojan horse appeared to be a work-in-progress, and that further variants would probably appear in the future.
SecureMac says their prediction proved to be correct, as there is a brand new version of the trojan horse currently being passed around on hacker message boards. This new version of the trojan horse is substantially different than previous variants, and is described as version 2.0 by the hacker who created it.
The new version of the trojan horse adds itself as a log-in item...
Apple-backed rules on conflict minerals take effect
Rules backed by Apple and Intel to stop sales of minerals used in electronics from funding war in Central Africa took effect today (April 1), forcing miners from the region to seek new buyers in Asia, reports "Bloomberg" (http://macte.ch/3Fo4A), quoting exporters.
“There is a de-facto embargo, it’s very clear,” John Kanyoni, president of the mineral exporters association of North Kivu, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, told the publication. “We’re committed to continue with all these programs. But at the same time we’re traveling soon to Asia to find alternatives.”
The Conflict-Free Smelter program applies to shipments of tin ore, tungsten, gold and coltan from Congo and its neighbors and demands mineral processors prove purchases don’t contribute to conflict in eastern Congo. The regulations were developed by the Washington-based Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition and Global E-Sustainability Initiative in Brussels, representing electronics companies including Apple and...
ComScore: Apple has 25.2% of US smartphone market
ComScore (http://www.comscore.com), which "measures the digital world," has released data from the comScore MobiLens service, reporting key trends in the U.S. mobile phone industry during the three month average period ending in February. The study surveyed more than 30,000 U.S. mobile subscribers and found Samsung to be the top handset manufacturer overall with 24.8% market share. Google Android led among smartphone platforms with 33% market share.
Approximately 69.5 million people in the U.S. owned smartphones during the three months ending in February, up 13% from the preceding three-month period. Google Android grew seven percentage points since November, strengthening its number one position with 33% market share. RIM ranked second with 28.9% market share, followed by Apple with 25.2%. Microsoft (7.7%) and Palm (2.8%) rounded out the top five.
Apple's numbers moved up just slightly. It had 25% of the US smartphone market in November 2010, according to comScore.
-- Dennis Sellers
Jobs on list of 'World's Best CEOs'
Apple CEO Steve Jobs not surprisingly is on Barron's list of the "World's Best CEOs" (http://macte.ch/6E2YH). The list includes the "top corporate leaders from around the world."
Here's what Barron's says about Jobs: "Jobs, 56, just might be the most successful technology executive of all time, turning his start-up into both a money-minting corporate giant and a global cultural trendsetter. By the end of this year, the number of iPhones in the world could hit 100 million.
"Even now, on his third medical leave from Apple, Jobs remains a forceful presence. On March 2, he took to the stage and launched the sleek iPad 2 with classic Jobs flourish.
"The fabled inventor quietly underwent a liver transplant in 2009, raising serious questions about whether he and Apple had told shareholders enough about his medical condition. Today, with Jobs' return uncertain, battle-tested Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook is running day-to-day operations.
"Through it all, Apple hasn't missed a beat; its...
Analyst: Apple products all have plenty of room for growth
Apple's shares could rise further despite having risen 51% over the past one year as the company's Macs, iPads and iPhones have plenty of room for growth, brokerage Sterne Agee told clients, as reported by "CIOL" (http://macte.ch/B5ZTy). The brokerage raised its price target on the stock to US$445 from $400 and said it is still a buy at the current levels.
"We think the beauty with the Apple story is that the company doesn't need to win everyone over to continue its success," says analyst Shaw Wu. "The company just needs to continue winning a fair share of its vast end markets."
He says the Mac share of the computer market share could double to 8-10% (not even counting the iPad). I'm not sure, but I think he means global market share as the Mac has already accomplished this in the US). With the iPad, the company's market share in computing devices could approach 15-17%, nearly that of HP and exceeding Dell, Acer, Lenovo and Toshiba.
Wu said the iPhone also has a lot of headroom for...
Gartner adds tablets to its computer hardware spending estimates
Gartner (http://www.gartner.com) has added media tablets, such as the iPad, to its computing hardware spending estimates beginning this quarter. Including media tablets has increased the research group's computing hardware growth outlook from 7.5% to 9.5% or 2011.
Worldwide media tablet spending is projected to reach US$29.4 billion in 2011, up from $9.6 billion in 2010. Global spending on media tablets is forecast to increase at an annual average rate of 52% through 2015.
Boom volume booster for Mac OS X explodes to version 1.1
Global Delight has updated Boom, a volume booster application for the Mac, to version 1.1. The update offers improvements with video boosting, channel balance, reduced CPU utilization by more than 50%. More importantly when it is idle (you make the volume boost/presets off), the app does not consume any CPU/memory.
Global Delight has also added a fun element to the app, called Shriek. With Shriek, users can test the power of their voice with the loudest shriek getting the better score and being awarded a title. Users can compete and challenge friends on Facebook using this app and compare scores both locally and globally.
Users are often confronted with the issue of low audio output on their Mac (both desktop and laptops). Sometimes the content itself comes with poor audio quality, as is the case with online videos. At other times, being outdoors doesn't help. The experience could be frustrating too like in the case of bad volume during voice chats in spite of maxing the volume of...
Let's Create! Pottery hits the Mac App Store
Infinite Dreams has released Let's Create! Pottery (http://www.idreams.pl/Pottery/index.html) on the Mac App Store in the Entertainment category. The ceramics making app requires Mac OS X 10.6.6 and costs US$9.99.
Let's Create! Pottery is designed to let you create one of a kind pottery items and share them with your friends. There's also an iOS version for $4.99 and available in the Apple App Store.
Avadon: The Black Fortress now available at the Mac App Store
Spiderweb Software has released Avadon: The Black Fortress (http://www.spiderwebsoftware.com/avadon/index.html), an indie fantasy role-playing game for Mac OS X, on the Mac app store. It requires Mac OS X10.5 or later and costs US$19.99.
Here's how the game is described: "Avadon is in epic adventure in a strange and dangerous world. You are a spy and warrior who must fight the enemies of your homeland. As a servant of the Black Fortress, your word is law. Gain power and influence, experience an exciting adventure, and battle a conspiracy to destroy your people.
"You are an agent of Avadon. The Black Fortress. Outside your lands, there are limitless threats. Barbarians. Fading, jealous empires. Titans and unspeakable horrors. The warriors and spies of Avadon are sent to keep them weak and divided. Your resources are unlimited, and all must obey you.
"But a dark time is coming. Assassins are killing Avadon's warriors, and hidden enemies plot to unite all of your homeland's foes. If you...
MacX iPhone Mounter lets you transfer files from iOS devices
MacXDVD Software has announced MacX iPhone Mounter (http://www.macxdvd.com/iphone-mounter/), a file transfer solution. It's being offered for free now through April 10.
MacX iPhone Mounter lets you transfer music, movie, TV shows, podcasts, eBooks, pictures, voice memos, camera shots and more from any iDevice. The built-in browser lets you sort the files by artist, album and genres to find the files you want to transfer.
MacX iPhone Mounter lets you mount an iPhone, iPod or iPad as a portable device to export files on a Mac to anywhere you want. You can connect multiple devices simultaneously. You can read and export pictures and videos recorded by iPhone to share with just a flick.
MacX iPhone Mounter supports all generations of iOS devices and is compatible with iOS 4.2 and higher and Mac OS X 10.5 or later. After April 10, it will cost $25.95.
First Toon Boom App approved in the Mac App Store
Toon Boom Studios' (http://www.toonboom.com) has been approved by the Apple for inclusion in the Mac App Store. It's available in the Entertainment section for US$39.99 and requires Mac OS X 10.6.6 or later.
Flip Boom Cartoon is an app for kids that lets them create animated greetings cards with drawing tools and fun templates. Children can draw and color a series of pictures with small progressive changes, record their voice over the animation, press play to see their cartoon characters come to life and share projects on Facebook and YouTube or on your iPod with the direct upload feature.
Pirates vs Ninjas vs Zombies vs Pandas on the Mac App Store
PAN Vision says Pirates vs Ninjas vs Zombies vs Pandas (http://www.pvnvzvp.com) is available at the Mac App Store in the Games category. It requires Mac OS X 10.6 or later and costs US$0.99.
Here's how the game is described: "Pirates vs Ninjas vs Zombies vs Pandas is an addictive new physics-based puzzle game. Players take control of the four factions, each launching their minions as projectiles at opposing armies."
Intrexx is web-based app creation tool for Mac OS X
United Planet (http://www.unitedplanet.com), a developer of enterprise portal software in Europe, has introduced Intrexx for Mac OS to its portfolio of Business Adapters for operating platforms.
The new portal software will enable the Apple community to create web-based business applications and process-optimized enterprise portals, without the need for lengthy or complex programming, says Axel Wessendorf, CEO of United Planet.
“Until now, there have only been a few tools available on the market for Apple users to create database-supported applications themselves," he says. "Users have typically used Apple’s “FileMaker”. The new Business Adapter for Mac OS offers an alternative approach which will enable self-powered web applications, intranets and mobile applications to be created for Apple computer users with a simple ‘point and click’.”
At the heart of the new portal software for Mac is a graphical user interface designed to streamline application development. Pre-prepared...
Mazda Kit available for the iSimple GateWay car docking system
iSimple says its GateWay automotive docking solution for iPhone is now compatible with many 2010-2011 Mazda models.
The company has introduced a new Mazda-specific GateWay kit and added select Mazda applications to its GateWay kit for Ford. For those that own late-model Mazda vehicles, the days of needing a FM modulator or 3.5mm auxiliary cable to enjoy music from an iPod or iPhone are over, according to the folks at iSimple.
Available at car audio specialty stores nationwide, the GateWay expands the audio and entertainment capabilities of most original equipment manufacturers' stereo systems by delivering sound directly from any model of iPod or iPhone using the vehicle's factory radio controls. The GateWay also supports battery charging on all models of iPod and iPhone with 30-pin connectors, and offers an additional audio input for use with other MP3 players, smartphones and tablets.
Users can further enhance the features of their GateWay with a number of upgrades including the...
iBuildApp offers free digital company for the iPad
Silicon Valley-based startup iBuildApp recently added an iPad publishing solution (http://ibuildapp.com/ipad_self_publishing/) to their suite of iPhone templates designed for the non-coder. The solution has templates, is automated, and totally free to create and update. See it here: http://ibuildapp.com/ipad_self_publishing/.
The solution also delivers a good experience for the reader, says Rafael Soultanov of iBuildApp. When someone swipes from page to page they can choose different stories to read. Images are vivid and video is optimized, Soultanoy says. If a reader wants to comment or share what they're reading, they just tap a button.
Soultanoy says the publishing app takes just 2-3 hours to create and publish content. Just copy/paste content into the pre-made templates for the iPad, for free. The iBuildApp iPad solution will be integrated with other CMS platforms such as Wordpress, Drupal and Joomla. It simply requires snippets of code from iBuildApp to be inserted into the CMS...
iWebTemplate offers Easter themes
iWebTemplate (http://www.iwebtemplate.com) is offering five Easter iWeb templates for use with the web page creation component of Apple's iLife suite. The company is also announcing an improved members area and a Plesk online website builder.
What's more, iWebTemplate is presenting iWeb Themes for Business 8.0. It includes five new themes: Bakery, Herbs, Hair Stylist, Movie and Clothes.
The iWeb templates can be easily customized. Over 162 iWeb templates are now available from iWebTemplate. The new Parallels Plesk Sitebuilder is a scalable web application for creating and managing websites.
iWebTemplates' themes and templates require Mac OS X 10.4.3 or higher and supports iLife versions ranging from 'i08 to '11. Plesk Requires Firefox.
Each new iWeb theme is available for US$10. Easter iWeb Templates are $6.99, and the Plesk website builder is available through the membership scheme.
Git client for Mac OS X updated to version 1.1
Fournova has updated Tower, a Git client for Mac OS X designed to make using Git easy and more efficient, to version 1.1. Git is a free, open source, distributed version control system.
Version 1.1 is a free update for registered users. It includes: single line staging; a command line tool; a cherry-pick feature; a revert/reset feature; a plug-in for the editor Coda; and support for additional diff and merge tools such as DeltaWalker and P4Merge
Tower works with the most popular tools and services for developers, according to the folks at Fournova. Repositories can directly be created and cloned on the leading Git hosting services, GitHub and Beanstalk.
To improve the working experience even more, users can choose between a wide range of diff and merge tools such as Kaleidoscope, TextMate, BBEdit, and many more. Tower is compatible with all Intel-based Macs running Mac OS X 10.5 or higher.
A free 30-day trial version with all features can be downloaded from the Tower website (http://...
Inpreflight For Indesign Updated To Version 2.9
Zevrix Solutions (http://www.zevrix.com) has updated InPreflight Pro -- its quality control, packaging automation and preflight reporting solution for Adobe InDesign -- to version 2.8.14. The new version The new version lets users automatically send collected jobs over the Internet and locally.
InPreflight provides a preflight solution for service providers, printers, ad agencies, designers and publishing houses. It gathers information about document fonts, colors and links and lets users locate potential problems according to preflight presets. The software is also a packaging automation solution that allows users to preflight and package multiple documents.
Among other abilities, it can collect all files into one folder, eliminating the need to collect the same links multiple times for each design. In addition, InPreflight lets users print graphic preflight reports and save them as fully searchable interactive PDF files, providing an easy way to analyze, archive and send reports to...
Maintain serves up Cocktail 4.9 (Snow Leopard Edition)
Maintain has released Cocktail 4.9 (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 adds the ability to purge inactive memory and optimize virtual memory usage, the ability to disable virtual memory swapping and the ability to prevent Help Viewer window from floating on top of other applications. Version 4.9 also improves the clear system caches procedure and contains updated Automator actions and Help files.
Cocktail 4.9 (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 10.6.5. 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 web site.
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...
Hasbro to launch MY3D 360-degree handheld viewer for iPhone,...
Hasbro (http://www.hasbro.com) will enter the 3D entertainment category on April 3 with the introduction of MY3D, a handheld that allows users to attach their iPhone or iPod touch and immerse themselves in a 3D entertainment experience.
Touting both proprietary 3D technology and unique 360-degree content, Hasbro is bringing to market premium entertainment and gaming experiences for iPhone and iPod touch users, says Ira Hernowitz, senior vice president of marketing for Hasbro North America. The MY3D viewer will be exclusively available at Target stores and Target.com on April 3 and is expected to roll out to retailers nationwide in June 2011.
The MY3D viewer features two access openings which allow users to interact with the Multi-Touch display of the iPhone or iPod touch, and includes four different cradles to fit a user's specific model of iPhone or iPod touch. The MY3D viewer is compatible with iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4 as well as second, third, and fourth generation iPod...
ABI Research: Android will seize 45% of smartphone market by...
According to ABI Research (http://www.abiresearch.com) 302 million smartphones shipped in 2010, chalking up a resounding 71% growth over 2009’s shipment levels. What's more, the research group says Android will account for 45% of the smartphone market by 2016.
Android’s success since its launch is expected to continue: some 69 million smartphones running the Android operating system shipped last year, and ABI Research expects that in 2016 Android will have captured 45% of the market.
“Android, Bada and BlackBerry have a great opportunity to fill the vacuum being left by the disappearance of the Symbian OS within the next two years,” says senior analyst Michael Morgan.
Apple’s iOS, which held 15% of the market in 2010, should continue moderate but steady growth over the mid-term, backed by new product introductions. ABI Research forecasts 19% market share for iOS in 2016.
RIM, which held 16% of the market in 2010, is expected to lose just a little ground: 14% is the forecast for 2016...
Apple, 30 others sued for (you guessed it) patent infringement
Another day, another lawsuit. A Texas-based company called H-W Technology is suing (http://macte.ch/jwtO0) Apple, Research in Motion, Amazon, LG Electronics, Microsoft, Nokia and other companies (around 30 in all) for patent infringement on patent number 7525955 for "Internet protocol (IP) phone with search and advertising capability."
The patent is for a software platform in an Internet Protocol (IP) phone having the ability to be used with different communication infrastructures such as broadband, wireless communication and Plain Old Telephone System (POTS) service. What's more, per the patent, the software platform in the IP phone has the ability to be used with different applications operating on the IP phone. Further, the IP phone has the ability to perform additional functionality than traditional Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) phones, such as searches and advertising, given its ability to converge voice and data within a single terminal.
The lawsuit was filed in the...
Apple to absorb increasing costs due to Japan's brownouts
Although Japan's power brownout policy is seriously affecting the operations of Japan-based upstream component makers, causing related upstream components to see price rises, since Apple has agreed to absorb all the additional costs in exchange for smooth shipments, reports "DigiTimes" (http://macte.ch/9lKDw).
Apple's upstream component suppliers, which purchase components from Japan, are expected to see their profitability undamaged in the short term, according to sources from upstream component makers, the article adds. However, "DigiTimes" says that, for other tablet vendors, purchasing pressure will increase, and "if they are unable to absorb the extra costs, which will only give Apple more advantages in the market."
Apple's VP of worldwide marketing communications leaving?
Allison Johnson, who has served as Apple’s vice president of worldwide marketing communications since 2005, is leaving the company, reports "All Things Digital" (http://macte.ch/Cq2KJ), quoting "several sources."
She's purportedly leaving to co co-found a new marketing and communications firm with another Silicon Valley communications luminary, Former Facebook PR exec Brandee Barker. Sources told "All Things D" that Johnson will begin work at the venture after negotiating her departure from Apple, which is likely to come sometime before the summer.
At Apple, Johnson has managed global advertising for some of the company’s most revolutionary products and the iconic ads for them. Those ads have been created by TBWA\Chiat\Day.
ParentsRemote 1.0 lets you keep track of your child's...
SubRosaSoft.com has released ParentsRemote, a tool for parents looking to protect their kid's in a digital world. It "makes it simple for you to monitor and control your children's computer remotely using an interface that is as familiar as an advanced television remote control," says SubRosaSoft.com CEO Marko Kostyrko.
A built-in key logger and history monitor help the user keep track of who their child is communicating with online and keep track of the contents of the conversation. The user can obtain recently visited websites, downloads, and programs, and decide what action to take.
Users can access the built-in web camera and desktop screenshots lets the user take photos inside their child's room. ParentsRemote gives the user the ability to discover what is happening on their child's screen. These activities can also be automatically recorded at the interval of the user's choice. Remote volume and power controls let the user coperate their child's computer directly from their...
Witness turns your Macs into a home alarm
Orbicule has introducced Witness for Mac OS X 10.6 or higher. The software turns a Mac into a home alarm system, using its iSight camera as a motion sensor. If motion is detected, Witness sends mugshots and video to your iPhone or iPad.
Witness uses advanced motion detection, says Peter Schols, president of Orbicule.. The alarm system can be controlled and monitored remotely using either the witnessapp.com web app or a free iOS app. These apps allow the user to remotely arm or disarm the alarm and they instantly alert the owner when motion is detected, showing mugshots and video of the intruder.
Witness is available from http://orbicule.com/witness . An account costs US$39 (one-time fee), with a $29 student license.
Layer Comps 2.0 InDesign Plug-in for InDesign CS3-CS 5 shipping
DTP Tools has released its Layer Comps 2.0 plug-in for Adobe InDesign. Layer Comps enables users to record different layout variations.
Landscape and portrait pages for iPad can now have the same source file, as well as print and electronic output allowing designers to do most of the work just once, staying in the same document until the final export. Version 2.0 lets you record: objects' size and position; page size and orientation; and states of layers in linked graphics (.psd, .ai) changing appearance or effects applied between versions
Layer Comps plug-in is sold for US$40 per license. It can also be purchased as a part of the Layer Tools bundle with Layer Groups plug-in. As with all DTP Tools plug-ins, upgrades from all previous versions are free. A 14-day demo for InDesign CS3-CS5 on Mac and Windows systems is available at http://www.dtptools.com/layercomps .
Missing manuals for iPhoto '11, iMovie '11
O'Reilly has released "iPhoto '11: The Missing Manual" (http://macte.ch/XlQgT) and "iMovie '11 and iDVD: The Missing Manual" (http://macte.ch/d3Xuw).
The former is US$31.99 for the ebook edition, $39.99 for the print edition, and $43.99 for print plus ebook edition. The latter is $27.99 for the ebook edition, $34.99 for the print edition, and $38.49 for print plus ebook edition
Here's how the books are described: "iPhoto '11 makes it easier than ever to transfer photos from a digital camera, organize them, and publish, print, or share them—but there's still no printed manual. The new version of iPhoto boasts loads of new features including easier ways to get your photos online and new options for creating printed projects. Fortunately, David Pogue and Lesa Snider team up in this funny, authoritative book that should have been in the box."
"With iMovie '11, fast, effortless editing has been pumped up with a roster of new, powerful features. Now you can create your own movie trailers,...
Keynote Themes 3.0 packs over 80 themes
Elia Network and iPresentee have announced Keynote Themes 8.0 (http://www.keynotestage.com/), which includes 80 themes to be used with Keynote, the presentation component of Apple's US$79 iWorks suite.
KeynoteStage contains 165 keynote themes contained in three categories: Keynote Themes, Keynote Themes for iPad and Keynote Motion Themes.. Each Keynote Theme is available in standard or HD formats. These new Keynote Themes has from 18 to 23 different master slide layouts.
Keynote Themes 8.0 costs US$30; each theme can be purchased for $5. The new release includes 10 new themes: Cloverleaf, Dew Drops, Paperclips, Crayon, Splash of Ink, Color Block, Water Drops, Color Spectrum, Yellow Art and Color Curves. The themes require Mac OS X 10.4.3 or iWork '08/' 09.
HandStand unveils rotating iPad 2 case with hand strap
Hub International has announced a HandStand2 case for use with the iPad 2. It allows users to spin the Apple tablet 360 degrees for a quick transition from landscape to portrait viewing and back again.
With the HandStand2, users can use the iPad 2 while turning it for optimal viewing and manipulation of the touch screen without accidentally launching apps or randomly scrolling. An integrated iPad stand with a slight incline allows for typing when placed on a stable surface.
The HandStand2 case comes in pink, black and white for US$49.99 and will be available for purchase in early May at http://www.thehandstand.com . You can receive a $10 pre-order discount by using the promotional code HANDSTAND2.
SMEStorage announces CloudFTP
SMEStorage (http://www.smestorage.com) has released CloudFTP, a new feature add-on for their open cloud platform that enables FTP storage clouds even if the underlying storage cloud doesn't support the File Transfer Protocol.
The CloudFTP feature continues a theme of providing ubiquitous access into silo'd storage clouds. SMEStorage already enables WebDav access into any storage cloud supported by the open cloud platform via the use of the CloudDav product. in addition to this users can already use the Amazon application programming interface to access any of the storage clouds mapped to their account.
According to SMEStorage CEO Ian Osborne, CloudFTP has been tested with many popular FTP clients such as Transmit, CODA, Krusader, Filezylla, the Ubuntu ftp client, Total Commander, and others. CloudFTP is available to new and existing SMEStorage users and is priced at US$19.99.
NewerTech debuts StoraDrive Media Storage Tray
Newer Technology (http://www.newertech.com) has expanded its hard drive accessory line with the introduction of the new $7.99 Media Storage Tray for use with the NewerTech StoraDrive.
The Media Storage Tray transforms one of the stackable anti-static StoraDrive cases into a compartmentalized, padded, all-in-one storage solution for protecting and organizing multiple digital media formats. It can hold up to 13 pieces of digital media in multiple formats.
Made of ESD foam rubber and weighing 0.8 oz., the Media Storage Tray provides fingertip access to five different media formats in a single, space saving desktop location. The Media Storage Tray insert is designed as an enhancement for the $9.95 NewerTech StoraDrive stackable anti-static cases.
