Mac Musings

Mac Musings 2009 Archive

• Microsoft is not an unstoppable juggernaut, 12.22. Firefox passed Internet Explorer in Germany, and now Firefox 3.5 has passed IE 7 as the most popular browser version.
• Leaving MobileMe behind, 12.01. After nearly 10 years with a mac.com email address, it's time I stopped renewing my $99/year MobileMe subscription.
• The enduring value of Macs, 11.25. There's something anti-consumption about using your Mac as long as you practically can.
• Why Is Apple ditching netbook support now?, 11.16. Mac OS X 10.6.2 deliberately removes Atom support. What does Apple have to gain by doing so?
• IDE is dead; long live SATA!, 11.04. SATA has displaced parallel ATA. While IDE hard drives haven't disappeared, the best deals are in SATA hard drives.
• The future of personal computing: Personal servers and low cost portables, 11.02. With WiFi everywhere, virtual network computing, and remote access, your iPhone, iTouch, iTablet, or MacBook Air becomes a gateway to your home or office computer.
• The Late 2009 iMac value equation, 10.21. With larger 16:9 displays, the new iMacs bring a lot of value to the table, but there are some close-out bargains.
• The Late 2009 Mac mini value equation, 10.21. We called the Mac mini 'the best value in desktop Macs' two months ago, and the refreshed Mac mini only improves that value.
• The Late 2009 MacBook value equation, 10.21. The redesigned consumer MacBook uses unibody construction, gains LED backlighting and battery life, but loses FireWire.
• Thinking different about the next consumer MacBook, 10.05. The white MacBook design is old, and the market is clamoring for smaller, lighter, and more affordable. Here's how Apple could provide it.
• Sauce for the goose, 10.07. EU regulators are forcing Microsoft to offer Windows users a choice of browsers. Apple ought to offer Mac users the same thing.
• 2 Macs, 2 operating systems, 1 mouse, 1 keyboard, 09.29. We've made the move to 'Leopard' at Low End Mac headquarters, but we also need 'Tiger' and Classic Mode. Teleport makes it easy to use two Macs side-by-side.
• Microsoft vs. Linux, 09.09. Although Linux has just 1% of the market, Microsoft perceives it as a great threat. Why doesn't Redmond see Linux as an opportunity?
• Why is it called Windows 7?, 09.02. Ever since Windows 1.0 shipped in November 1985, Microsoft has maintained a consistent version numbering scheme. XP was 5.1, Vista 6.0, and 7 comes next.
• Mac mini the best value in desktop Macs, 08.25. Although the iMac is faster all around, the Mac mini provides plenty of power at half the price. Even with the cost of upgrades, it's the value champion.
• Apple gaining back-to-school shoppers despite lack of netbooks and low-end laptops, 08.20. From the headlines other sites are using, you'd think that Apple was losing back-to-school shoppers, but a thoughful analysis of Retrevo's survey shows the opposite is true.
• The 64-bitness of Mac OS X 10.6 'Snow Leopard', 08.19. Although Apple is promoting 'Snow Leopard' as a fully 64-bit operating system, it defaults to running in 32-bit mode.
• The road ahead: 64-bit computing, 08.19. Personal computers started with 8-bit CPUs, Macs started out with a 24-bit operating system, and 32-bit computing is starting to give way to 64 bits.
• The perfect Mac: MacBook Pro or iMac?, 08.11. The 15" MacBook Pro with antiglare could be the perfect Mac, but the iMac also has much to commend it.
• Net Applications cuts Mac market share by half, 08.04. Real world data is now weighted by country, resulting in higher figures for Windows and IE, lower ones for Macs, Linux, Firefox, and Safari.
• MacTablet could run both Mac OS X and iPhone OS, 07.30. What if Apple's anticipated tablet computer could run either Mac OS X or the iPhone OS - or both concurrently.
• Sorry, Henry, Apple's Mac business is not shrinking, 07.23. Henry Blodget finds a dark cloud behind Apple's silver financials - and pigs can fly.
• Low end G4: Migrating to an older Power Mac, 07.06. To use the fastest G4 upgrades, you may have to move to an older Power Mac.
• Amazon.com v. interstate sales tax: Everyone loses, 07.01. Amazon.com is standing up to states that are trying to have it collect sales tax on interstate commerce, which most see as a violation of federal law.
• Intel's promise fulfilled: More processing power per processor cycle, 06.30. Apple promised improved CPU efficiencies when it announced the move to Intel in 2005. Three years of MacBooks show the progress.
• Low-end mac & cheese, 06.26. Windows PCs are like macaroni and cheese you buy from the store. Macs are like homemade macaroni and cheese.
• Google making Gmail more secure, 06.17. Gmail is free, fast, spacious, and already offers a secure access option, and now Google is preparing to test secure email by default.
• Broadband growth, phantom traffic jams, and psychohistory, 06.17. Mathematics has always fascinated me, and I love deconstructing research to try to determine what's really going on.
• 4 years later: Looking back at Apple's switch to Intel, 06.15. "Apple survived with its unique hardware platform for over 20 years, but it since transitioning to Intel it has reached a broader market than ever before."
• The June 2009 MacBook Air value equation, 06.11. The updated MacBook Air is faster and less expensive, but close-outs and refurbs are priced competitively.
• The June 2009 17" MacBook Pro value equation, 06.11. The new model is a bit faster, but are older models better values?
• The June 2009 15" MacBook Pro value equation, 06.11. With an entry-level 15" MacBook Pro selling for $1,699, the midrange MacBook Pro line seems poised to take off.
• The June 2009 13" MacBook Pro value equation, 06.11. The new 13" MacBook Pro has a lot to offer over the discontinued Unibody MacBook, but where's the best value?
• The May 2009 MacBook value equation, 06.11. The 2.13 GHz MacBook White is worth the difference in price vs. the close-out 2.0 GHz model, but the best value is in used MacBooks.
• Best non-holiday quarter ever for Apple, but MacBook sales took a big hit, 04.23. Record income and profits for a non-holiday quarter, sales growth for the iPhone and iPod, but a drop in Mac unit sales - especially notebooks.
• How about an 802.11g card for the original AirPort Card slot?, 04.16. There are a lot of old Macs with 802.11b AirPort Cards still in use and with poor security. Someone should make a plug-and-play 802.11g replacement card to provide better security, higher throughput, and improved range.
• 12 years of Low End Mac, 04.07. Twelve years ago, I put a handful of Mac profiles on my personal website. Today hundreds of thousands visit the site every month.
• Microsoft doesn't get it, 03.31. The PC world rejoices at Apple's February sales drop, celebrates Lauren's $699 laptop, and says we pay $500 for the Apple logo. They just don't get it.
• Is the computer you have the computer you need?, 03.24. "There's a saying that the good is the enemy of the best. Maybe we should turn that on its head and proclaim that the best is the enemy of the comfortably adequate."
• At 20 years, the Web is a wealth of information and connectivity, 03.20. "We can bemoan the increasing level of trivial information posted on it and the growing amount of time so many spend connected to it. Or we can look at the breadth and depth of the Web, realizing that it is rich in information...."
• $600 million LCD antitrust settlement should benefit end users, 03.12. LG, Sharp, and others have been found guilty of price fixing and fined by the Department of Justice, but why don't they take the next step and distribute money to retail customers?
• The 2009 Mac Pro value equation, 03.04. In terms of sheer power, the Nehalem-based Mac Pro is designed for heavy listing. But how much power do you really need?
• The 2009 iMac value equation, 03.04. The new iMacs used improved Core 2 Duo CPUs, Nvidia GeForce graphics, and offer more value than ever before.
• The 2009 Mac mini value equation, 03.04. With a more efficient CPU, Nvidia GeForce graphics, and a SuperDrive at the entry level, there's never been a better time to buy a Mac mini.
• Apple won't ever make a Mac netbook, 02.23. Netbooks are small, cheap, and underpowered. Apple should offer a subnotebook, but not something underpowered or cheap.
• The 25 most important Macs, 02.17. The 25 most significant Macs in the first 25 years of the platform, continued.
• The 25 most important Macs (part 2), 02.17. The 25 most significant Macs in the first 25 years of the platform, continued.
• PowerPC architecture was not a failure, 02.16. CNET's Brooke Crothers calls PowerPC a failed architecture, but 12 years of PowerPC Macs, IBM's blade servers, and three game consoles tell a different story.
• Low end Macs in an economic recession, 02.16. "If ever it was important for a website such as Low End Mac to exist, this worldwide recession is it."
• Today's Macs: Many descendants from a common ancestor, 01.27. The Macintosh legacy as it shows itself in notebooks, consumer desktops, and pro models.
• Why Mac desktop sales are on the decline, 01.22. Apple believes that desktops are unimportant, and by not offering updated models regularly, it makes them unimportant to potential buyers.
• The Nvidia MacBook White value equation, 01.22. Moving the MacBook White to GeForce 9400M graphics and doubling memory while retaining FireWire and Mini DVI make this a hands-down winner.
• Was the Macintosh IIci the best Mac ever?, 01.19. Introduced in 1989, the Mac IIci was fast, had integrated video, included 3 expansion slots, and could be upgraded in myriad ways.
• The misunderstood Macintosh Portable, 01.19. Often ridiculed for its nearly 16 lb. weight, people forget that the Mac Portable wasn't designed to be a laptop computer.
• Psystar spews more nonsense in its bid to commoditize the Mac, 01.14. Psystar claims it has a right to install and resell OS X on computers because it legally purchased copies. That violation of copyright could eventually ruin the Macintosh.
• Surprise, average broadband throughput is lower than maximum throughput, 01.08. If a service is advertised as 8 Mbps maximum, it shouldn't surprise anyone that the average speed is below that number.
• The 17" Unibody MacBook Pro value equation, 01.07. The new model is a bit faster, a bit smaller, a bit lighter, and has an incredible 8-hour battery life.
• No, an overgrown iPod touch is not a netbook, 01.06. BlackBerry pretends its Storm is a netbook, but a netbook needs to be big enough for a typable keyboard.
• Happy birthday, Macintosh, 01.02. January 2009 marks the 25th anniversary of the Macintosh. Here's how Low End Mac plans to celebrate the event.

More Mac Musings in the archive: 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010