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News & Opinion
Reviews
Products
Software
News & Opinion
Mac vs. Windows: Does Low Cost = Value?
Mac Revu
says:
"...Microsoft found itself a big gun and for the first time in along
time put Apple in the crosshairs. Their new pitch is stunningly
simple.
"'Buy us . . . because we're cheaper.'
"It's hard to miss the irony here. Microsoft spent the better part
of last year and God-only-knows how much money trying to convince XP
users that Windows Vista was a better computing experience. In the end,
people not only disagreed but actually spent more money to keep Vista
off their brand new computers....
"My fellow Mac brethren might howl at this admission but Windows
PC's are indeed less expensive than Macs . . . Focusing on
cost makes Microsoft look like a leader. Focusing on the product
. . . well, let's just say that this hasn't been a position
of strength for them lately.
"Mac users, on the other hand, tend to have a much different
definition of value . . . Most Mac users accept the fact that
they'll pay more on the front end but we ultimately believe that we'll
save time, money and aggravation in the long run. For us, that's where
the value lies....
"The best argument that Apple can make is that quality is its own
reward and that true value has less to do with how a product begins its
lifecycle and more about how it ends it. There is an old expression
that really applies here, 'the consequence of poor quality lingers long
after the thrill of a bargain is forgotten'...."
Link: Mac
vs. Windows: Does Low Cost = Value?
OS X: Over 10% Market Share in March
OS X
(including the iPhone version) took more than of 10% of the OS market
for the fourth straight month at 10.26%, with desktop OS X gaining
again as well.
NetApplications HitsLink have posted Operating System Market Share
stats for March 2009, showing OS X gaining market share again
after a hiccup in February. Windows dropped below 90% in November 2008
and has stayed there, losing about a third of a point over the month of
March, while Linux's share gained very slightly - and remains below 1%
while the iPhone version of OS X was up a tenth of a point.
Here's the Operating System Total Market Share
rundown of the significant players for March (February figures in
parentheses):
- Windows 88.14% (88.42%)
- Mac 9.77% (9.61%)
- Linux 0.90% (0.88%)
- iPhone 0.49% (0.48%)
Comparing longer term, at 88.14% Windows is down more than five
percentage points since May 2006 (95.09%), while the Mac OS at 9.77%
has more than doubled its share over the same interval from 4.43% in
May 2006. Linux has also more then doubled its May 2006 numbers from
0.40% to 0.90%..
In terms of versions:
- Windows:
- Windows XP 62.85% (63.67%)
- Windows Vista 23.42% (22.79%)
- Windows 2000 1.24% (1.33% )
- Windows NT 0.12% (0.10%)
- Windows 98 0.19% (0.21%)
- Windows ME 0.12% (0.13%)
- Windows CE 0.05% (0.05%)
- Macintosh:
- Mac OS X 10.5 6.00% (5.64%)
- Mac OS X 10.4 2.66% (2.75%)
- Mac OS X (no version reported) 0.86% (0.95%)
- iPhone 0.49% (0.48%
- iPod (0.11% ) (Not reported last month)
- Mac OS X Mach-O 0.25% (0.27%)
- Linux 0.90% (0.88%)
- Link:
Operating System Market Share
- Link:
Operating System Market Share by OS Version
Safari and Firefox Gain Browser Share in March
Turning to
browsers, the Firefox browser exceeded 20% share in November 2008 and
has gained more ground every month since, while Safari dropped nearly a
quarter of a point in March. Internet Explorer continues to slowly
fade, down 0.69% from February and down 8% from a year ago. Google's
newcomer (and so far Windows-only) Chrome continues to nail down more
than 1% of the browser market. Fifth-place Opera has remained static at
within a tenth of a point of 0.70% for the past three months, and long
discontinued Netscape interestingly gained 0.03% over the month of
March.
Browser Total Market Share
- Microsoft Internet Explorer - 66.82% (67.51% )
- Firefox - 22.05% (21.73%)
- Safari 8.23% (8.00%)
- Chrome - 1.23% (1.15%)
- Opera - 0.70% (0.71%)
- Netscape - 0.69% (0.66%)
- Mozilla - 0.10% (0.07%)
- Opera Mini - 0.07% (0.07%)
Link: Browser
Market Share
5 Reasons You Should Buy the 2.26 GHz 8-core Mac
Pro Instead of the 2.66 GHz 4-Core One
IT Enquirer's
Erik Vlietinck says:
"When Macworld recently published its benchmarks for the Mac Pro
Early 2009 I won't have been the only one to be surprised by the
conclusion that eight-core machines are in many tests slower than the
single processor quad-core Mac Pro. You might therefore be tempted to
go with the faster, cheaper quad-core Mac Pro. But there are at least
five reasons not to. Here they are...."
Link: Five Reasons Why
You Should Buy the Slower Eight-core Mac Pro Early 2009
Leaving Computers on Overnight Costs US Companies
$2.8 Billion a Year
USA Today's Jon
Swartz reports:
"Even during an economic meltdown, when companies are scrambling to
cut costs, businesses are wasting billions of dollars by leaving their
PCs on at night.
"US organizations squander $2.8 billion a year to power unused
machines, emitting about 20 million tons of carbon dioxide roughly the
equivalent of 4 million cars according to a report to be released
Wednesday.
"About half of 108 million office PCs in the USA are not properly
shut down at night, says the 2009 PC Energy Report, produced by 1E, an
energy-management software company, and the non-profit Alliance to Save
Energy....
"Wastefulness does not just affect a company's bottom line, it
creates environmental concerns, the report says. If the world's 1
billion PCs were powered down just one night, it would save enough
energy to light the Empire State Building inside and out for over 30
years, it says...."
Link:
Leaving Computers on Overnight Costs Companies $2.8b a Year
Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2009
Dates Announced
PR: The Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) provides
developers and IT professionals with in-depth technical information and
hands-on learning about the powerful technologies in iPhone OS and Mac
OS X from the Apple engineers who created them.
The Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) is the premier
technical event for developers and IT professionals innovating with
Apple platforms. Over 1,000 Apple engineers will be at Moscone West to
present the latest Apple technologies and provide you with code-level
guidance. You'll learn how to harness the power of iPhone OS, Mac OS X
Snow Leopard, and Mac OS X Server Snow Leopard in the most efficient
and sophisticated way possible - saving you time and accelerating your
development. Bring your MacBook and your imagination, and prepare to
make your ideas happen.
Technical Sessions
At the heart of the WWDC experience are the technical sessions
presented by Apple engineers. Choose from a wide range of topics on
developing, deploying, and integrating iPhone OS and Mac OS X
technologies. Sessions cover introductory and advanced concepts so you
can gain a solid foundation if you are new to iPhone and Mac
development, or dive deep if you are already familiar with Apple
technologies.
Hands-on Labs
Work side-by-side with the Apple engineers at the hands-on labs.
Take advantage of this unique opportunity to solve code-level issues
that will fast track your development. Apple's Human Interface
designers are available for one-to-one consultations on the visual
design and usability of your iPhone or Mac OS X application. The labs
are also a great place to talk through your concepts and get answers to
the topics important to you.
Connect with Your Peers
WWDC brings together the best and the brightest developers and IT
professionals in the Apple community. Take advantage of this unique
setting to meet your peers using iPhone OS and Mac OS X. Strike up a
conversation and get inspired by how they are developing with,
deploying, and integrating Apple technologies. You're sure to hear
about new ideas and methods that you can incorporate into your own
environment.
Special Events
Special evening events at WWDC offer you time to unwind, relax, and
mingle with other attendees. You also find special lunchtime sessions
throughout the week where guest speakers present real-world examples of
how they use Apple technologies in their industries.
iPhone OS
Leverage the innovative technologies and capabilities in iPhone OS
to design the next generation of iPhone apps.
Mac OS X
Dive deep into the powerful new technologies available in Mac OS X
that will help you develop fully optimized, world-class
applications
Don't Lose Your Spot
Tickets to last year's WWDC sold out. Don't miss your opportunity,
purchase your ticket by April 24 and save $300.
Link: Apple
Worldwide Developers Conference
Reviews
Early 2009 Mac Pro 'Insanely Fast'
Primate Labs Blog says:
"Apple released a lot of new hardware this month, and while I was
able to post Geekbench results for the new iMac and Mac mini fairly
quickly, it took a little while longer to get Geekbench results for the
new Mac Pro.
Mac Pro benchmarks, 2006 through 2009 models.
"I've gathered Geekbench scores for the all of the Mac Pros that
Apple has released. Scores were collected from the Geekbench Result
Browser for Mac Pros with standard processors (i.e., no processor
upgrades, overclocked processors, or Hackintoshes)....
"What's interesting is the performance of the 2008 and 2009
entry-level Mac Pro; both Macs have roughly the same performance, but
the newer Mac Pro has a lower processor frequency and fewer
cores....
"The new mid- and high-end Mac Pros, on the other hand, are insanely
fast (and insanely expensive)...."
Link:
Mac Pro Benchmarks (Early 2009)
2009 Mac Pro Works Harder, Costs Less
PC Advisor's
Jim Dalrymple says:
"Apple's new tower PC, the Apple Mac Pro, has just received a major
overhaul.
"The two tower Apple Mac Pro models pack a brand-new processor and
video system, and feature a reorganised internal design. However, they
have lower clock speeds than their predecessors....
"...With its improved graphics, memory bandwidth, and reduced memory
latency, the 2.66 GHz quad-core Mac Pro was faster than the 2.8 GHz
eight-core Mac Pro, and at £1,899 costs £600 less. It would
be a fine purchase for anyone replacing an older Mac or buying a new
one for the first time. That is especially true for people who work
with processor intensive apps such as video or graphics. It's harder to
recommend that people spend £600 more for the new £2,499
2.26 GHz eight-core Mac Pro if they don't run software written for the
top-of-the-line Mac Pro's eight processor cores...."
Link: Apple
Mac Pro Eight-Core/2.26 GHz (2009 Edition) Review
Products
Western Digital Releases My Book Mac Edition 2 TB
External Hard Drive
PR: Formatted for Mac, this simple, elegant drive offers
up to 2 TB Of instant storage for your Mac and is very easy to use.
Just plug it into a USB 2.0 port, and you've got plenty of room to back
up and save your valuable data, music, photos, and movies.
Are you running out of hard drive capacity? Do you need to archive
some important digital documents, photos, videos or music? This elegant
external hard drive, reminiscent of a book, is the perfect
solution.
- Fits right in - Takes no more space than a paperback book. Collect
two or more and they nest neatly together like volumes on a shelf.
- Smart, eco-friendly design
- Built with an energy-efficient WD hard drive inside.
- Preserves power by turning itself on and off with your
computer.
- Fanless for cool, quiet operation.
- Shipped in fully recyclable packaging.
- Shock-resistant enclosure - The case is designed to provide maximum
shock protection to guard your valuable data from bumps and jars of
everyday life.
- Compatible with Apple's Time Machine- Use with Apple's Time
Machine, or your favorite back up software.
- Easy to set up - Installation is a snap because you don't really
install this drive, you just plug it in and it's ready to use.
- USB 2.0 interface - A simple connection that offers convenience and
compatibility among multiple computers.
Ideal for
- Adding additional storage to your Mac computer.
- Use with Apple Time Machine or your favorite backup software.
Capacities available: 2 TB, 1.5 TB, 1 TB.*
Total accessible capacity varies depending on operating
environment.
The 2 TB model can hold:
- Up to 571,000 digital photos
- Up to 500,000 songs (MP3)
- Up to 50,000 songs (uncompressed CD quality)
- Up to 150 hours of Digital Video (DV)
- Up to 880 hours of DVD quality video
- Up to 240 hours of HD video
System Requirements:
- Mac
- Available USB port
- Mac OS X Tiger or Leopard
Package Contents
- External hard drive
- USB 2.0 cable
- AC adapter
- Quick Install Guide
Link: My
Book Mac Edition
6 GB Memory Kits for Mac Pro
PR: The RAMSeeker blog says:
I've seen a few vendors this past month, with what I think is an odd
size for memory upgrades: 6 GB. In all the time I've been tracking
memory prices the sizes has always increased x 2 as the technology and
the memory sizes improve: 1 GB - 2 GB - 4 GB, etc.
Always doubling in size.
So as vendors come online with Memory Upgrade KITS For the Mac Pro,
I've seen more than one vendor carry this size so it's not just some
oddball listing that one memory vendor has dreamed up. It seems to be a
standard configuration.
So, that's one project for today - Add/track 6 GB Memory Kits
for Apple Mac Pro. Stay Tuned,,,,,
Link: 6 GB
Memory Kits for Mac Pro
Software
Free Car Art Calendar Updated
PR: Download this beautifully produced desktopADvantage
drop down software calendar and planner produced for Car Art Inc. Car
Art Inc. represents the best car art artists from all over the world
. . . this calendar features just a few of them. Use the
calendar's built-in weblinks to view more of their works as well as
view the works of other great artists. It's an amazing site with an
amazing collection of Car Art.
Features
- Stunning Graphics (Really)
- 3-Year Annual View
- Week-At-A-Glance Scheduler
- To Do List
- One Click Viewing Technology
- Manages Daily Appointments
- Mouseover Event Viewing
- Customizable Event Countdown
New in version Version 1.3.12.526:
- Minor fixes and enhancements
System Requirements: Mac OS X
Platform Support: PPC/Intel
Freeware
Link: CarArt.us
Desktop Mac
Deals
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