As you all may know, several weeks ago I found the Lisa Emulator (LisaEm) at lisa.sunder.net. After I downloaded it, I installed the ROMs and installed the Lisa Office System (LOS). After I played around with the emulator for a while, I wrote a review of LisaEm. The review contained several screen shots of LisaEm in […]
2007: One of the biggest hassles of the vintage Macintosh hobby is loading software onto your first older Mac. To get that vintage Mac up-and-running, you need to be able to write downloaded software onto disks that an older Mac can read. And that’s what we’ll talk about: Free tools for writing Mac floppy disks […]
I had the great honor of interviewing an important person the other day. His name is Ray Arachelian, and he’s the creator of the Apple Lisa Emulator. Without him, there may have never been a way for anyone without a Lisa to see the LOS in action.
Eight years ago, when I was 11, I came across the Lisa Emulator Project. I had heard about Apple’s Lisa, but I had never had a chance to use the Lisa Office System (LOS). The reason was that the emulator project didn’t have a working Lisa emulator, and neither did anyone else – until now.
In the US, the Apple II was considered the gold standard in the education market. The machine was more expensive than its contemporaries, such as the Commodore 64 and TI-99, but it had a very large software library and was heavily discounted to educators. Its position in the market was augmented by Apple’s Kids Can’t […]
Many of the greatest legends of our time have at one point or another brought their artistic abilities and creative genius back to the forefront of society.
Although After Dark got its start on the Macintosh, this wonderful screen saver also found its way to the Windows side through the help of two equally talented, artistic souls, Bill Stewart and Ian MacDonald. I recently interviewed Bill Stewart.
2007 – Steve Jobs spoke to the world last Tuesday about his outlook on digital music and what, if any, continued role DRM would have in the marketplace of digital music. While carefully worded – indeed no talk of DRM as it relates to video was broached – the written statement linked from the Apple […]
It’s nothing short of spectacular to interview the legends behind an artistic creation. Just to know through every freeze frame that came to their minds, every idea that became born of creativity beyond wildest imaginations, the magic, the bewilderment, the stories behind the culmination of it all – it gives you a feeling of awe […]
Ever bought a piece of software back in the day that made you go Wow!? Not being able to wait to open it? Just sensing true greatness lying within the box? Something on that disk you knew without a doubt you’d never forget?
Tommy Thomas managed to snag interviews with three of the men behind the After Dark screen saver.
2007 – “What’s happened to Low End Mac lately?” It’s a question I hear from readers and staff members. “What’s with the spate of pro-Windows articles? Why do you let your writers advocate for Windows?”
There are many different illustration programs for Mac OS X, including both high- and low-end choices. Freeverse launched Lineform last year, a powerful illustration tool with a simple user interface that bears a familiar resemblance to both Apple’s and Omni Group’s applications, meaning there is little to learn.
2007 – The unveiling of the iPhone blew me away, as it did most people in the technology community. The device had been rumored for months, with all kinds of patents filed that had everyone guessing what features such a device might contain.
Tommy Thomas shares his thoughts on Macintosh accessories and other tech.
2006 – I promised to bring the Zune into the fray, and I shall by putting forth the following question: Is it wise for Microsoft to further fracture the consumer media player market with yet another incompatible DRM scheme?
Everyone it talking about the Zune, Microsoft’s attempt at an iPod killer. It adds one neat new feature to the product mix, but otherwise it pales in comparison to the real thing.
A long, long time ago – back in the days when Outpost.com had an affiliate program – I got my first laser printer. The HP LaserJet 2100TN was fast for its day (10 pages per minute), solidly built, and sharp (1200 dpi output). I used it for about 8 years, and it probably would have […]
Because the original Macintosh had a new operating system, software companies had to rewrite their programs or develop new software to work with the Mac operating system and take advantage of the mouse and the powerful graphical user interface (GUI) that the Mac OS provided. This meant there was a relatively small amount of software […]
Mistakes, mistakes . . . we all seem to make them, and I’m no exception to the rule. For those who haven’t been tuning into Welcome to Macintosh, the most recent article in the Keyboard Roundup was about the Apple Extended Keyboard II. I’ve received several emails informing me of things I failed to mention, […]
Has it already been six months since the original MacBook was introduced? Then it must be time for an upgrade. Now that Apple has solved most of the MacBook’s teething problems, they’ve improved it by replacing the Intel Core Duo CPU with the newer, more energy efficient, cooler running Core 2 Duo. Overall, that should […]
Lately I’ve been using a Gmail account for most of my email. I find that Gmail has an elegant, easy to use interface that works well on pretty much any computer, as well as a good capacity for storage of old emails (2 GB and counting).
Bong! . . . 🙂 . . . Welcome to Macintosh! Chi chi chi, ha ha ha, chi chi chi, ha ha ha…. What’s that sound off in the distance? Chi chi chi, ha ha ha, chi chi chi, ha ha ha . . . Ahhhhhhhhhh!!!
2006 – I want to take time today to congratulate the iPod for its impressive five year run, which seems primed to continue well into the rapidly approaching holiday shopping season. I further want to detail those little tidbits that make the iPod very much a part of my daily dose of tech joy.
On 2006.10.24, Apple moved the MacBook Pro line to Intel’s newer Core 2 Duo CPU, claiming “up to 39% faster” performance than the model it replaced. Part of that comes from the more efficient CPU, and part from an 8% faster CPU. The 15″ MacBook Pro gains FireWire 800, an unfortunate ommission in the original […]
On 2006.10.24, Apple moved the MacBook Pro line to Intel’s newer Core 2 Duo CPU, claiming “up to 39% faster” performance than the model it replaced. Part of that comes from the more efficient CPU, and part from an 8% faster CPU. The new 17″ Core 2 model has a 2.33 GHz CPU and ships […]
In my previous Welcome to Macintosh column, I looked at the legendary Apple Extended Keyboard as the beginning of my Keyboard Roundup series. Just as some movies follow up on the original with a sequel, Apple came out with a sequel to the Apple Extended Keyboard. It was named, appropriately, the Apple Extended Keyboard II.
My previous article, A Stinky Old iBook that Smells Like Sweat, prompted a fair bit of email. Low End Mac’s publisher, Dan Knight, had requested that owners of stinky iBooks contact him with the specifics of their ‘Books so he could provide some meaningful consumer data. Six readers checked in, and he compiled what data he […]
Last time, I discussed my purchase of a used Dual USB G3 iBook (see eBay No Longer Your Best Source for Low-end Macs). When the iBook arrived, I unpacked it from its tight bubble wrap cocoon, pushed the latch button, and opened it. Immediately, my olfactory sense was stimulated in an astonishingly negative way.
Click . . . clock . . . click . . . clock . . . click-clock, click-clock, click-clock Oh, you’re probably wondering about that sound? If you listen closer, you may find it familiar.
Tommy Thomas looks at some of the finest keyboards built for personal computers – past and present.
Low End Mac contributor Tom Hormby posted an article on OSnews examining Apple’s Worst Business Decisions. Hormby’s histories are some of the most popular pieces we’ve ever published, but I’m have to question some of his analysis.
Ask just about any college student what Facebook is, and not only will they tell you, but they’ll probably also recount some of the site’s recent actions.
VisiCalc, the first spreadsheet, was one of the key products that helped bring the microcomputer from the hobbyist’s desk into the office. Before the release of this groundbreaking software, microcomputers were thought of as toys; VisiCalc changed that.
Tommy Thomas interviews people who keep the Mac spirit alive and well.