Xserve G4 (Mid 2002)

After years of repackaging off-the-shelf Macs for use as servers, Apple introduced Xserve in May 2002 as its second attack on the server market – and the industry’s first 1U dual processor RISC server. Xserve supports up to 480 GB of internal storage, one or two 1 GHz G4 CPUs, dual gigabit ethernet, RAID, hot swappable drives, […]

Why Linux Instead of OS X?

Anyone with an interest in computing – especially in Unix-based OSes – cannot have failed to notice the hype surrounding the release of Mac OS X. OS X is a whole new ball game in Macintosh computing. For many years Apple have been trying to find a suitable replacement for their sophisticated (but rapidly dated) Mac OS.

Toxic Computer Waste

One of the problems facing the computer industry today is the fact that so many computers are thrown out each day. You might think that when you toss your old 286, it’s gone for good. Think again – the world has probably not seen the last of your ancient PC.

15″ PowerBook G4 (DVI)

A bit more than six months after speed bumping the TiBook to 550 and 667 MHz, Apple overhauled the titanium workhorse with still faster processors (667 and 800 MHz); a brighter, higher resolution screen (1280 x 854 vs. 1152 x 768); and ATI Mobility Radeon 7500 graphics with 32 MB of video memory. This is […]

eMac (2002)

Rumors of a 17″ iMac had been circulating since 1998. Apple finally did it by introducing the eMac to the education market at the end of April 2002 – and to the consumer market that June. The base 700 MHz CD-ROM model does not include a modem; all other models have one. The top-end 800 […]

4 Apps for Your Science Class

2002 – Here are four free (not shareware) programs you might find handy when teaching math, physical science, astronomy, or biology. Everything works under Mac OS X either natively or in Classic Mode except as noted. Enjoy! Graphing Calculator original Mac calculator OS X calculator If it weren’t for Graphing Calculator, the only option open to […]

2nd Generation iPod

With the second generation (2G) iPod, Apple replaced the rotating scrollwheel with a touch-based one, replaced the 1G 10 GB iPod, and added a 20 GB model capable of storing 4,000 songs. Apple retained the 5 GB 1G iPod as its entry-level model. Visually, the 1G and 2G iPods look the same. Only the scrollwheel […]

Quicksilver 2002 Power Mac G4

Apple first hit the 1 GHz mark in January 2002 – and doubled 1 GHz G4 performance with a dual-processor model. Although these look like the earlier Quicksilvermodel, they run 800 MHz, 933 MHz, and dual 1 GHz G4 processors. These were the first Macs to officially support hard drives over 128 GB on the built-in […]

Why Microsoft’s .NET Is .Not for Me

2002 – My students sometimes joke with me that if they don’t say they like Macs, I’ll ruin their grades. Of course, I wouldn’t ever make my computing preference a factor in a grade; other than the fact students must complete assignments on a computer, I’m not so narrow-minded (or unethical) as to do such […]

Beige Power Mac G3 Benchmarks

For months now, the Beige Power Mac G3 has been the most popular profile on Low End Mac, indicating to us that it’s the hottest low-end Mac out there. We recently rated it a Low End Mac Best Buy – but with reservations if you plan to run Mac OS X.

Installing OS X on a SuperMac S900

Like many of you out there, I had been salivating over Mac OS X since it arrived last year. There was one small issue: I was using a Umax SuperMac S900, and 604e support was less than forthcoming from Apple, so unless there was a new Apple G3 or G4 machine in my future, I was […]

Macworld Expo Wrap-up

Macworld San Francisco 2002 has come and gone, and the new flat-panel iMac has finally arrived. The iWalk was shown to be a Photoshop daydream, and the 1.0+ GHz Power Macs predicted by the rumor sites are still in the future.

14″ 600 MHz iBook G3 (Early 2002)

Apple addressed perhaps the biggest objection to the otherwise nearly perfect iBook by introducing one with a 14″ screen at the January 2002 Macworld Expo in San Francisco – all in a package just a pound heavier than the 12″ iBook. The larger screen doesn’t have any more pixels, but the pixels are bigger, making […]

15″ iMac G4 (Early 2002)

The 2002 iMac is definitely different with its 10.5″ hemispherical base and 15″ flat panel display. Definitely different. Steve Jobs says the design was inspired by a sunflower. All three versions feature a G4 processor and can burn CDs. The less expensive models have a 700 MHz G4, and the middle of the line has […]

Office Politics: ‘Rassling with Word 2001

2001 – This is the first Mac Lab Report I’ve submitted for a while, primarily because I was working on a grant proposal for my school, and it absorbed all of my time. It absorbed my time not just because it was a lengthy proposal (approximately 20 pages of text and charts) but because it […]

Good Surveys and Bad Surveys

I get some interesting letters about the Best of the Mac Web survey each time I run it. I suspect I’ll get more about the Rest of the Mac Web survey we’re launching today. Let’s look at some of the common threads:

The Digital Lifestyle: Pictures

2001 – One of the recurrent themes in computer advertising today is the “digital lifestyle.” Intel says that their Pentium 4 is the center of our digital world. Apple says that it wants to be our digital hub. People talk about going digital and wanting bits instead of atoms.

The Digital Lifestyle: Text

2001 – One of the recurrent themes in computer advertising today is the “digital lifestyle.” Intel says that their Pentium 4 is the center of our digital world. Apple says wants the Mac to be our digital hub. People talk about going digital and wanting bits instead of atoms.