Low End Mac Archive for August 4

August 4 in Low End Mac History

It's the bugs that bug me, Adam Robert Guha, Apple Archive. We never had to update firmware with older Macs. Why is today so different?
Mac OS X Server 1.2, Eric DeStefano, Mac Metamorphosis. Not only has Eric moved across the country, but he's picked up a 9500 and set up OS X Server.

The decline and fall of the iTunes Music Store, Dan Knight, Mac Musings. Sales at the iTunes Music Store have been declining since the service was first launched. Is iTMS in trouble?
The Web has left 68K Macs behind, Manuel Mejia Jr, Triassic Mac. Those with older Macs are running into their own digital divide as ISPs drop support and Web and email standards evolve.
OS upgrade problems, Better Trackpad, GPS for OS X, fighting spam, and more, Charles W Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings. Also PB 1400 CD problems, iBook benchmark comparisons, lack of Mac viruses, and shipping via USPS.

Quark Xpress, InDesign, Photoshop, warez, and the value of software suites, Jason Walsh, The Low End Designer. A look at some of the essential tools of today's graphic designer - and why you want to avoid pirated software.
Serial MIDI on a WallStreet with 10.3, SCSI-to-ethernet adapters, WallStreet hinge repair, and more, Charles W Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings. Also more on the cranky blue and white G3 and Radeon Enabler software.

Pundit decries unnecessary complexity of Apple's multibutton Mighty Mouse, Jeff Adkins, The Lite Side. "Well designed software shouldn't need extra buttons, right? Maybe Apple should reconsider...."
iTunes phone soon, HP drops iPod, 20 GB iPod top seller, iPod health threat, and more, iPod News Review. Also troubleshooting tunes that skip, how EQ settings work, Linux on iPod mini, iFM, new batteries, and more.
Apple recruiting Sony engineers, Trusted Computing on Macintels, halo effect intact, and more, The Macintel Report. Also, Apple and Dell united on Intel; Centrino, Celeron price drops, memory controllers in future CPUs, and more.

Apple's Keynote 3 impresses, Brian Richards, Advantage Mac. Keynote is far more than a PowerPoint replacement. It's a much more flexible, easier to use program.
Which Macs for 10.5?, Mac minitower thoughts, success with FireWire disk mode OS X installs, and more, Dan Knight, Low End Mac Mailbag. Readers weigh in on which Macs should work with "Leopard", what Apple should put into a midrange desktop Mac, AIFF files and metadata, Web page editors, frequent battery replacement, external USB drive problems, and more.
MacBook Pro battery exchange, MacBook reliability, strangest MacBook hacks, DIY laptop case, and more, The 'Book Review. Also Apple admits MacBook issues, more on palmrest issues, powering the $100 laptop, another Dell notebook bursts into flames, repairing your AC adapter, bargain 'Books from $300 to $2,149, and more.
Value of AppleCare, iMac your car, $500 1.6 GHz dual G4 upgrade, zero tension mouse, and more, Mac News Review. Also WiebeTech's ToughTech drive gains eSATA and listening to your iPod underwater.

Dell Studio Hybrid just another mini PC lacking any real innovation, Frank Fox, Stop the Noiz1. Dell has decided to take on Apple's Mac mini with a bigger, heavier, more colorful model. And the point is?
How concerned should we be about computers and phones as disease vectors?, Charles W Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings. Your computer's keyboard and mouse may have 30-60 times as many germs as a toilet seat. Time to pull out the antiseptic wipes?
Andrew Barry on why REALbasic is a great rapid application development tool, Rick Lawson, Pioneers in Mac Development. REALbasic started as a way to give the Classic Mac OS something similar to Visual Basic, but it's grown far beyond that.

Low End Mac Services. Low End Mac now offers data transfer, file conversion, hardware replacement, and consulting.
Net Applications cuts Mac market share by half, Dan Knight, Mac Musings. Real world data is now weighted by country, resulting in higher figures for Windows and IE, lower ones for Macs, Linux, Firefox, and Safari.
Gaming on an Aluminum PowerBook, Dan Bashur, Apple, Tech, and Gaming. There are quite a few high-end games from the late PowerBook era that run quite well on the later, faster G4 PowerBooks.
The day the Pismo died, Charles W Moore, 'Book Value. At eight years old, a short or power surge took out the Pismo PowerBook. But with the right parts, it's been brought back to life and remains in daily use.

Android is the new Windows, Dan Knight, Mac Musings. Sure, Android is growing market share, but its going to result in the same low price death spiral we see in the PC world.
The times they are a-changin', John Hatchett, Recycled Computing. OS X 10.7 Lion changes everything. Am I ready to leave my PowerPC software behind?