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For iOS users without Siri, there is Evi

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:16:11 -0500

For iOS users without Siri, there is Evi

Apple, America and a Squeezed Middle Class - NYTimes.com

Sun, 22 Jan 2012 00:12:35 -0500

Apple, America and a Squeezed Middle Class - NYTimes.com:

Interesting piece indeed.

AAPL breaks all-time high ... again

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 23:28:19 -0500

AAPL breaks all-time high ... again:

Wish I bought when it was $25.

Steve Jobs: ‘What’s wrong with education cannot be fixed with technology’

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 23:27:40 -0500

Steve Jobs: ‘What’s wrong with education cannot be fixed with technology’:

I would love to have a digital version of the textbook I’m using for
school right now.

iPads swapped with clay and sold at major Canadian retailers

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 06:03:37 -0500

iPads swapped with clay and sold at major Canadian retailers:

That’s not good.

Skype 5.5 beta for Mac launches today with option to answer calls with or without video

Sat, 14 Jan 2012 20:19:05 -0500

Skype 5.5 beta for Mac launches today with option to answer calls with or without video:

Audio only calls is a feature?

Bloomberg: iPad 3 production starts for March launch, packs Retina Display, LTE, quad-core chip

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 16:47:15 -0500

Bloomberg: iPad 3 production starts for March launch, packs Retina Display, LTE, quad-core chip:

Maybe I would upgrade if I didn’t used my damn MacBook Air so much more than my iPad.

Sculley: If anyone is going to change television, it’s going to be Apple

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 11:50:10 -0500

Sculley: If anyone is going to change television, it’s going to be Apple:

Question is can they do it without Jobs? Hope so.

Target confirms it'll open Apple shops in 25 locations

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 11:48:28 -0500

Target confirms it'll open Apple shops in 25 locations:

Target will now have more than just the iPad and iPod.

Shazam launches Shazam Player, now plays your music too

Wed, 11 Jan 2012 22:11:31 -0500

Shazam launches Shazam Player, now plays your music too:

Looks like Shazam just got a little more useful.

The MacBook Air Samsung SSD is about to get twice as fast | 9to5Mac | Apple Intelligence

Wed, 11 Jan 2012 21:40:32 -0500

The MacBook Air Samsung SSD is about to get twice as fast | 9to5Mac | Apple Intelligence:

Maybe I’ll wait to update my 2010 MBA.

Next-generation iPad rumored to be in production for March release

Wed, 11 Jan 2012 17:23:22 -0500

Next-generation iPad rumored to be in production for March release

Apple announces Jan. 19 event at Guggenheim in NYC

Wed, 11 Jan 2012 13:05:23 -0500

Apple announces Jan. 19 event at Guggenheim in NYC
The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)

Apple has sent out invitations to various media outlets, including The Loop, to attend an event centering on education at the Guggenheim Museum in New York City on Jan. 19.

The event is expected to focus on iTunes U and electronic textbooks and has been in the works since late September. At least two project announcements are expected, according to various rumors. Steve Jobs was reportedly intimately involved in the project prior to his death.

Launchpad Control allows you to select which apps appear in Launchpad

Sun, 31 Jul 2011 09:57:07 -0400

Launchpad Control allows you to select which apps appear in Launchpad

9 to 5 Mac - Apple Intelligence

A little tip for you weekend Lion users:

Launchpad feeling a little cluttered? Launchpad Control is a free application on OS X that will assist you in cleaning out the unnecessary apps in your Launchpad. The app is pretty simple in that you just check off which apps you don’t want to see . via LifeHacker

Download here.

Apple Extends iTunes Previews to 90 Seconds Internationally

Sat, 30 Jul 2011 09:48:39 -0400

Apple Extends iTunes Previews to 90 Seconds Internationally

MacRumors : Mac News and Rumors

Apple seems to have extended iTunes song previews to 90 seconds internationally. Apple first rolled out 90 second previews in the U.S. back in December, 2010. International song previews had been stuck at 30 seconds. According to a number of reports, the new preview lengths are available in at least Canada, Australia, New Zealand, UK and parts of Europe. As with the U.S. launch, not all songs will have 90 second previews.

In the U.S., Apple had made the change unilaterally in an email to labels telling them that they would automatically extend previews from 30 seconds to 90 seconds in the iTunes Store in the U.S. It’s unclear what was the reason for the delay for international markets.

Apple’s ultra-thin 15 inch notebook in late testing stage?

Tue, 26 Jul 2011 22:41:00 -0400

Apple’s ultra-thin 15 inch notebook in late testing stage? 9 to 5 Mac - Apple Intelligence

MacRumors reports that Apple has a new 15 inch notebook with an ultra-thin design in its final testing stage. It’s difficult to tell if Apple will be marketing this 15 inch notebook as an extension of the popular MacBook Air line, or if it is a piece of Apple’s redesigned MacBook Pro line. Although the machine is reportedly in final testing, there is no word on a release date. The last MacBook Pro update came in late February, so we would expect the new models to ship later this year or very early next year. Apple has held a Mac-focused event in October – in recent years – so perhaps Apple will continue that tradition this year.

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Microsoft wants buyers to 'do the math' and select a netbook over a MacBook Air

Sun, 08 May 2011 20:40:14 -0400

Microsoft wants buyers to ‘do the math’ and select a netbook over a MacBook Air

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)

As Ronald Reagan once famously said, “There you go again.” Microsoft has unleashed some new ads in Canada that suggest if you buy a PC laptop instead of a Mac you can use the money you save to take a trip to Hawaii.

Saving money? That sounds good… until you look at the comparisons. Microsoft’s chart compares various Mac laptops with PC counterparts from HP, Dell, Sony, Toshiba, Asus and others. True enough, Apple products are often more expensive than Windows laptops at first glance, especially if you don’t perceive any value in running Mac OS X and avoiding aggravation, malware and compatibility headaches. While Windows 7 is pretty good, I use it alongside Mac OS X and find that there is no comparison.

Above you’ll see Microsoft’s pairing of the 11” MacBook Air with three US$300-ish netbooks. While the price comparison is stark, the fact is that these netbooks are not even close to the MacBook Air where it counts, and to put them in the same category is silly at best and deliberately deceptive at worst.

The Core 2 Duo chip in the MBA is faster than the netbook Atom or E-Series CPUs, the 64 GB “HardDrive” in the Air is a super-speedy SSD that charges up performance even further, there’s no comparison on battery life where the Air shines; really the only comparable spec on these machines is the screen resolution. Oh, and that HP Pavilion DM1 sitting in the middle of the lineup? I’m sure it’s nice enough, but it weighs in at 3.46 lbs (1.56 kg) — 150% as massive as the slender, featherweight 2.3 lb (1.08 kg) 11” Air. How much do you have to save on chiropractor bills before the ‘inexpensive’ netbook stops being such a bargain?

Microsoft runs these campaigns when it gets worried about its OS market share slipping. Now that Apple is ahead of MS in profits, tablets, and smartphones, maybe that concern is justified. Of course, Apple slammed Microsoft many times with the “Get A Mac” campaign, but at least the ads were funny and generally grounded in truth — working off of Apple’s underdog status in the PC market, rather than playing defense as MS is doing here.

Microsoft, as it has in some past campaigns, is doing its best to mislead, and trying to sway would-be buyers on price alone when in fact MacBook Air buyers aren’t looking for the cheapest possible laptop. It would have been really interesting to put those netbooks alongside the iPad in a similar graphic, but no way does Microsoft want to plant the seed of doubt in consumers’ minds that they might consider a speedy, light, 10-hour battery Apple tablet instead of a tiny, underpowered Windows netbook.

I doubt these new ads will put a dent in Apple’s ascendant Mac sales, but they will fuel the inevitable flame wars between advocates for each platform.

Microsoft wants buyers to ‘do the math’ and select a netbook over a MacBook Air originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 06 May 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple and Guitar Center to offer GarageBand workshops

Sun, 08 May 2011 09:42:27 -0400

Apple and Guitar Center to offer GarageBand workshops

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)

Apple and the musical instrument retailer Guitar Center have teamed up to offer weekly workshops in GarageBand, according to Guitar Center’s website. Starting May 7th from 10-11 AM and running every Saturday, Guitar Center will be offering four free Recording Made Easy workshops at all of its 216 stores. The aim of the workshops is to teach musicians “How to record your first song using Mac and GarageBand…You’ll learn everything from basic tracking to creating a finished song.”

The first workshop on May 7 covers “Signal Flow and Microphone Techniques.” May 14 is “Virtual Instruments and Loops.” May 21’s workshop is “Effects” and the final workshop on May 28 is “Mixing and Publishing.” After the May 28 workshop, the workshops will begin again on the next Saturday, starting with the first one. You must register for the workshops to attend. Clicking the register button on Guitar Center’s site takes you to Apple’s Seminars & Events page where you can complete your registration.

Apple and Guitar Center to offer GarageBand workshops originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 06 May 2011 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple Negotiating Deal With Nuance for Speech Recognition in iOS 5?

Sun, 08 May 2011 09:41:36 -0400

Apple Negotiating Deal With Nuance for Speech Recognition in iOS 5?

MacRumors : Mac News and Rumors

TechCrunch reports that Apple is rumored to be negotiating some sort of deal with Nuance Communications, the speech recognition company behind the Dragon NaturallySpeaking engine that powers a number of popular applications for Mac OS X, iOS,…

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MacDefender malware targeting Mac users

Mon, 02 May 2011 16:57:47 -0400

MacDefender malware targeting Mac users

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)

Mac owners usually have little to worry about in terms of computer viruses and spyware, but a new malware attack seems to be causing issues for some users.

According to a report on The Next Web, a specialized malware attack targeting Mac users is making the rounds. Users seem to be targeted as they are browsing Google Images, with one victim reporting that he suddenly received a message stating that his machine had been infected with viruses that only a “MacDefender” application could remove. There is a MacDefender website that highlights a few shareware apps that a dedicated geocacher has written, and the site’s owner is warning people to not download the malware app.

The malware appears to be targeting Safari. The browser can be configured so that it will automatically open trusted software, and that appears to be the route of attack that’s being used. While the MacDefender malware isn’t infecting Macs with a virus or running a keylogger in the background, the author seems to be trying to scare users into providing credit card information by buying the software.

The Next Web provided some useful hints on how to protect yourself from the malware and to remove the pesky app if it is downloaded onto your Mac. If you aren’t seeing MacDefender in your Applications folder, you can protect yourself from possible infiltration by unchecking the “Open ‘safe’ files after downloading” box at the bottom of Safari > Preferences > General (see the area outlined in red in the image above).

If MacDefender is already on your Mac, check out the next page for tips on how to remove it.

Continue reading MacDefender malware targeting Mac users

MacDefender malware targeting Mac users originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 02 May 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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