Writing in WordPress

WordPress is a widely-used content management system (CMS) used by many blogs and websites, and it’s the CMS we’ve implemented at Low End Mac. After nearly 16 years of writing, editing, creating HTML pages, and uploading them from my Macs, everything is much more automated with WordPress.

Welcome to WordPress

After nearly 16 years of writing and editing site pages on my Macs, uploading HTML files to a server, and doing most site updates manually, Low End Mac is moving to WordPress. WordPress is a content management system (CMS) that is often used for blogging, but I want to make it clear that we are […]

The Case Against PPC Linux, OS X Tiger on Facebook, ResExcellence Rebirth, and More

Vintage Mac News is a roundup of news related to vintage Macs* and other older Apple products. For other Mac and Apple news, see Mac News Review. For iBook, PowerBook, and other portable news, see The ‘Book Review. iPad, iPod, iPhone, and Apple TV news is covered in iNews Review. Purchases made through links to […]

* Although Apple defines vintage as models discontinued over five years ago but less than seven years ago (at which point Apple calls them obsolete), we prefer a
definition that has more to do with a lack of functionality and the end of active support by Apple than with how long Apple makes service parts available.

Dictionary definitions of the word vintage start out with wine, but it is also applied to a group of items that share
certain characteristics, originated in a specific time period, and/or
is characterized by excellence, maturity, and enduring appeal – a
classic.

As we use the term here, vintage refers to Macs and related software, operating systems, and peripherals that
Apple has left behind over the years, whether that’s an original
Macintosh or a Power Mac G5 running OS X 10.5 Leopard. At present, we
consider all pre-Intel Macs and all versions of OS X that run on them
vintage (and at some point we’ll extend that definition to include
Intel Macs that can’t run OS X 10.7 Lion, and so on).

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The Late 2012 iMac Value Equation

Let’s get the gripes out of the way first: The iMac has always involved some compromises and forced some changes on Mac users. Back in 1998, it meant giving up ADB mice and keyboards and SCSI peripherals for something new called USB, and it meant no built-in floppy drive. But until now, every iMac has […]

The 13″ Retina MacBook Pro Value Equation

2012 – When Apple introduced the 13.3″ MacBook Pro with Retina Display last week, we learned that the 13.3″ MacBook Pro (MBP) is Apple’s best selling Mac. That’s quite an accomplishment for an $1,199 laptop, especially since it isn’t Apple least expensive notebook computer. (That honor goes to the $999 11.6″ MacBook Air (MBA), and […]

The Late 2012 Mac mini Value Equation

The littlest Mac has become a powerhouse. Apple updated the Mac mini last week, and while the entry-level 2.5 GHz dual-core i5 model is only about 5% faster than last year’s “better” Mac mini, the $200 more expensive model has made the leap from a 2.5 GHz dual-core i5 to a 2.3 GHz quad-core i7.

The Rapid Rise of OS X Mountain Lion

Apple had done a marvelous job marketing OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion, resulting in over 3 million downloads over its first four days on the market. That’s an impressive number, but what does it mean?

1997: Microsoft Saves Apple

Fifteen years ago, Steve Jobs announced at the Boston Macworld Expo that Microsoft was making a $150 million investment in Apple Computer, cash Apple desperately needed to remain afloat – along with a promise that Microsoft would continue to develop Office and Internet Explorer for Mac for at least five years, an assurance that helped […]

How to Recover from a Beige G3 Startup Error

Low End Mac reader David M. was unsuccessful in his attempt to install OS X 10.2.8 Jaguar on his Beige Power Mac G3. The attempt caused the computer to boot into Open Firmware, and he found several similar results on the Web.

No Office 2013 for Mac? Don’t Panic

From the headline, Microsoft Won’t Bring Office 2013 to Mac, but It Will Add SkyDrive Integration to Office 2011, you’d think that Microsoft was sticking it to Mac users. And from reading the article by Killian Bell, you’d never know that Mac users currently have a newer version of Office than Windows users – or that Microsoft has […]

SSD in 2012 MacBook Air Over Twice as Fast as Last Year’s

Sometimes the math geek – which can always be a bit anal about numbers and how they’re presented – wonders why a particular headline isn’t a bit better. For instance, Cult of Mac published The SSD in the New MacBook Air Is 217% Faster than Before on Tuesday, which makes it sound like SSD performance in the Mid 2012 MacBook […]

Microsoft Surface Is Destined to Be a Best Seller

2012 – According to Horace Dediu in The Evolution of the Computing Value Chain, Microsoft has had the dominant operating system almost since that day in 1981 when the first IBM PC shipped with PC-DOS, Big Blue’s version of MS-DOS. From DOS through Windows, Microsoft has held the top spot – until now.

The Mid 2012 MacBook Air Value Equation

Yesterday Apple overhauled its entire notebook line, moving everything to Ivy Bridge CPUs with Intel HD Graphics 4000 and USB 3. Ivy Bridge means a bit more processing power and improved energy consumption. HD 4000 graphics has one-third more cores than 3000 (16 vs. 12), and Apple is claiming up to 60% improvement there.

The Mid 2012 MacBook Pro Value Equation

Yesterday Apple overhauled its entire notebook line, moving everything to Ivy Bridge CPUs with Intel HD Graphics 4000 and USB 3. Ivy Bridge means a bit more processing power and improved energy consumption. HD 4000 graphics has one-third more cores than 3000 (16 vs. 12), and Apple is claiming up to 60% improvement there.

Mac (In)security

After the Flashback malware made a mockery of Mac security, Eugene Kaspersky said of Apple and Mac OS X, “I think they are ten years behind Microsoft in terms of security.”

15 Years of Low End Mac: Looking Backward and Forward

Back in 1997, Apple was beleaguered, the World-Wide Web was just seven years old and only starting to be known outside of the geekiest tech circles, and online resources about older Macs were few and far between. I had this program called Claris Home Page on my Mac and my first real Internet account (as […]