2003: Is it just me, or is Redmond in a holding pattern? It seems that all the innovation is happening elsewhere in the computer industry these days. Apple is a prime example of this. It continues to update Mac OS X and other software packages at a good clip. OS X 10.3 Panther contains a boatload […]
2003: Recent reports indicate that governments around the world are considering the switch away from Windows to Linux. This has Microsoft worried enough to create a battle Linux slush fund to convince governments to stick with Windows.
Woahey! After last week’s successful “talk like a pirate” beginning, I thought today we’d celebrate “talk like a neurosurgeon” day. Notice any difference?
2003: Grind you teeth, readers, because I’m going to be asking you to do something you likely haven’t had to do since Microsoft gave Apple a financial hand in 1997. That’s right, it’s time to root for Microsoft.
After eight months at 1.0 GHz, the 17″ PowerBook G4 received an impressive 33% performance boost to 1.33 GHz. Along with the new 15″ aluminum PowerBook G4, it is the first Apple portable to ship with ATI Mobility Radeon 9600 graphics.
A little bit bigger and heavier than its Titanium predecessor, the Late 2003 15″ PowerBook G4 is clad in aluminum, runs faster (at 1.0 and 1.25 GHz), gains USB 2.0 and FireWire 800 support, and includes the same 1280 x 854 15.2″ display as earlier models. The hinge design now matches that of the 12″ […]
After eight months at 867 MHz, Apple speed bumped the little AlBook to 1 GHz and upgraded video with the Nvidia GeForce FX Go5200 graphics processor. The 12″ PowerBook G4 also catches up with the rest of the line by adding DVI support (with a mini-DVI to DVI adapter) while moving to an optional accessory for S-video […]
The first iMac to reach 1.25 GHz, the 17″ G4 iMac has a wide aspect ratio “cinema” type screen and displays 1440 x 900 pixels – just perfect for DVDs. Along with the 1.0 GHz 15″ model, it’s the first iMac to support USB 2.0, and it’s also the first to sport GeForce 5200 graphics.
The last revision of the 15″ flat panel iMac has a 1 GHz G4 processor, a 32x Combo drive, and 32 MB of video memory. Along with the 1.25 GHz 17″ model, it is the first iMac to support USB 2.0.
2003: Simple fact: Microsoft is a monopoly. Simple fact: Monopolies produce inferior products that fail to push the market forward.
I got a number of responses to How to Digitize Your Old Tapes, LPs, and 45s with Your Mac, my article about converting cassettes and LPs to digital format. Several readers wrote to recommend software and/or hardware if you have more music to convert than I do and don’t want to go through the complex rigmarole […]
2003: No sooner did I decide that the Fujifilm FinePix S5000 would be the perfect next digicam for me (see Going Mostly Digital) than Minolta upped the ante by announcing the Dimage Z1. It offers 3.2 MP, 10x optical zoom, and a $100 lower price.
In the endless rush to get the latest Mac that has come off the assembly line, Mac users leave behind a wondrous treasure trove of applications and documents that are of little or no use on the new Mac. The reason for this is simple – the application or document will not run using a […]
2003: BuyMusic* has reached the end of its second week of operation, and things seem to be going, well, less than swimmingly for the PC upstart. Let’s put this in perspective, shall we?
2003: My first digicam, a 1999 Canon PowerShot A50, was a reasonable choice as a snapshot camera and first digicam four years ago, but it’s been very much left behind. The worst problem is shutter lag, which has cost me more pictures than I care to remember. Sometimes it just doesn’t want to shoot – until […]
Low-end classic Mac users, Judgment Day seems to have come for us all. While reviewing July 9th in Low End Mac History for 2001, I came across an account of how one vintage Mac user was having trouble accessing his email using a Triassic Mac running vintage software. It seems that there was a problem related […]
To hear Slyck tell it (iTunes Sales Continue to Fall, 2003.07.30), the iTunes Music Store (iTMS) is in big trouble. After a hugely successful launch of 200,000+ tunes, sales have dropped to about 50,000 per day during the past month. Worse yet, there seems to be no end in site for this decline.
2003: Bang for the buck, the Fujifilm FinePix S602 has been one of the better choices for a serious photographer going digital for under US$1,000. The 35-210 equivalent zoom doesn’t go quite as wide as the recently discontinued Minolta Dimage 7i (28-200) or as long as the Nikon Coolpix 5700 (35-280), but the S602 sells […]
It isn’t as easy as ripping MP3 or AAC files from your CDs, but it is possible to digitize your old tapes and records so you can listen to them with iTunes.
2003: To absolutely no one’s surprise, a music downloading company is taking a run at the iTunes Music Store. When you’re top dog (or the only dog), people come knocking. Needless to say, yesterday’s announcement by BuyMusic.com to bring music downloading to the Windows masses sparked an interesting round of articles.
Over the last several months, the home network has fallen into something of a state of disarray. The OpenBSD file server was rooted with an ssh exploit sometime ago resulting in random outbound IRC connections, and the OpenBSD router forwarded its last packet some weeks ago due to a barrage of software and hardware issues.
2003: The sky is falling! Wonderfully negative reports regarding Adobe’s decision to make the latest version of Premiere a Windows-only application might make people think that Apple is going the way of the dodo (for the umpteenth time).
2003 – New Gigacelleration Alien World Technologies this morning announced the first G5 processor upgrade for AGP Power Macs. The dual 2.0 GHz PowerPC 970 promises the same level of performance as Apple’s Power Mac G5 at half the price.
I can’t recall the last time I bought a music CD. It’s probably been several years, so I’ve definitely been contributing to the slump in music sales.
Apple’s adventure into the PDA market was, shall we say, less than successful. Not that the Newton wasn’t a good product; it was just a little bit ahead of it’s time. PDAs started becoming popular in around 1998 with the Palm III.
2003: No doubt you’ve heard that Apple has announced new, powerful desktop computers that are sure to give Windows machines a run for their money.
The Power Mac G5 was introduced on 2003.06.23 – the same day Intel officially unveiled the 3.2 GHz Pentium 4. In terms of increased clock speed, that means Intel had a 6.7% speed bump the same day that Apple announced a 40% improvement in clock speed (from 1.42 GHz to 2.0 GHz), allowing it to […]
Leave it to Apple to completely confuse the market by releasing a “brand new” 1.25 GHz Power Mac G4 model at the same time it announced the first Power Mac G5s. Like the 2002 Mirrored Drive Doors Power Mac G4, this model can boot into OS 9 as well as OS X. It must be time for Apple to […]
Apple is dead serious about wanting all Mac users to migrate to OS X – so serious that they’ve developed the “No Mac Left Behind” program to make it easier for those with older, underpowered Macs to make the switch to OS X 10.3 Panther and the forthcoming G5.
2003: Is Apple in for a repeat of the computer revolution? The iTunes Music Store has lit a fire under the seats of a few big names. According to a Macworld UK article, Microsoft, AOL, and Yahoo are looking to get in on the music download act. Amazon, Viacom, and MTV are also mentioned as […]
