a multi-tasked stream of consciousness or perhaps just emails to myself
If nothing else you have to love the System 7 motif. Browsing around makes me want to get classic installed again though… some tempting morsels from the past.
The Macintosh Garden, a site devoted to preserving Macintosh abandonware games.
Abandonware is commercial software that has been discontinued by the publisher and are not sold or supported anymore.Macintosh Garden
Apple Computer has won a patent for the interface of its iTunes music software, underscoring the growing importance of the multimedia business for the company. [News.com]
I hear you man, but Steve Jobs seems to be thoroughly against streaming services believing that consumer want to own their music, not rent it. Perhaps the iMix addition is a taste though and if enough people take part, Apple will get that people want even more interaction with the music. For now though if you like iTunes and the iPod, you need to appreciate the island you are on. I like it… it’s a beautiful island. 😉
Of course, I love all of these services. But I don’t want 10 digital audio services. I want one. For now, its iTunes. So I want iTunes to integrate Rhapsody-like streaming, Mixmatcher-like playlist sharing, Musicmobs or TuneCircle-like social networking. That’s what Apple needs to do for me. [A VC]
I caught that Steve’s mix as well when I first checked out the new iTunes… seems like it might be. The resume link at the end of this one is worth a quick read. 😉
Is Steve Jobs posting iMixes to Apple’s iTunes music store?
This iMix, A Few of Steve’s Favorites, looks suspiciously Jobsian. It runs to his taste: Dylan, Cash and Joni Mitchell. Suspiciously, it has garnered 4,600 votes; far more than any other I can find. Smell a rat?
…Update: Patricio Lopez writes, “I was going through the item on Steve Jobs’ playlist, and wondered what would happen if you put that username after the homepage.mac.com domain. Here’s what I got: Steve’s Resume. [Cult of Mac]
So in case you missed the news, Apple updated iTunes to version 4.5 which comes with some very cool features as well as additions to the store. The features are great and include Party Shuffle which is a nice way to handle dynamic playlists, iMix which lets you publish a playlist to the store to share with anyone. It would be nice to add an affiliate purchase scheme to kick-back some whufie to the user in the form of iTunes bucks. I also really like the addition of Apple Lossless Format:
iTunes can give you that quality with the new Apple Lossless encoder. You�ll get the full quality of uncompressed CD audio using about half the storage space. You can copy music in this format onto your iPod or iPod mini, to take perfect audio wherever you go.
The big deal to me though seems to be the addition of VIDEO! Apple bundled in their movie preview site which is the largest movie streaming site around and then added Music VIDEOS for PURCHASE! Video for purchase!! Steve had alluded to the possibility of videos for sale, and I think it’s really just a preview of what is really coming next…
Apple now has a full multi-media store that sells music, music videos and audio books. Movies and TV shows are are the logical next step. An iTunes store service with reasonable pricing (say $3.95 a TV show and $9.99 a movie) could offset a good portion of downloads if done right because it would be Apple simple. I think even a rental market would be an interesting play. The DRM might work in a similar way your VOD does now on cable… you get get XX hours or days to watch as many times as you like and then it expires. Apple could own the on-demand market for video in an instant, because they know how to deliver very high quality content in a very easy to use manner and even integrate it simply with devices to enjoy it all on.
It could only get better with the addition of a new portable device…or of course a set-top box.
And it’s called Software Update…
Well, I have a word for these contemptuous techies: Save your energy for solving the problem instead of blaming its victims. Mainstream users shouldn’t have to be IT experts to operate their computers.
es, consumers need Microsoft to build into Windows an effective, free, constantly updated security service requiring little or no user intervention. This service would fend off all kinds of threats and invasions of privacy, including viruses and spyware, without getting all tangled up in academic distinctions. [ Personal Technology from The Wall Street Journal.]
Tired of your screaming 2.4 Gigahertz Windows XP monstrosity? Take a chill pill with “iLife ’84,” a 8Mhz, monochromatic adventure in “aaahhh” land. [The Daily Blog]
I don’t know about you, but this feels pretty damn corporate and cold too me… not like it should be… fun! I realize the service is Apple’s but the HP site certainly stays well within the corporate standard. You’d think this would be a case where you might want to bend the rules a bit…
HP yesterday launched a website for HP Music, its forthcoming music download service based on iTunes… [MacNN]
Even with a $1 salary and no bonus last year, Steve Jobs is doing alright. [The Unofficial Apple Weblog]
“With Mac OS X, we can flip vital services onto backup circuits and IP setups in seconds, trace attackers and weather the storm without our services being interrupted. I don’t sit around wondering how many crackers and script-kiddies are hammering our servers; I know those Macs aren’t letting them in.”
Linford’s main servers are Power Mac G4s and Xserves, but the heart of his network is a G4 Cube that maintains his Spamhaus Block List (SBL), which involves feeding real-time database changes to 300 worldwide servers that help more than 200 million SBL users reject around 8 billion spam e-mails a day. He notes that, except for reboots required when installing or upgrading software, he hasn’t needed to restart the machine since 2001.
“It’s an amazing piece of hardware,” Linford says. “There’s something very special about Macs in general, which starts from the moment you unpack one and discover that every component is a work of art. And working in Mac OS X simply doesn’t feel like hard work; there’s a feeling of calm about the OS.” [Computerworld]
A Mac-related web site has what it claims is a description of a handheld that Apple will release this summer. Supposedly, it will offer a clamshell design, an internal hard drive, and FireWire. [Brighthand]
As you might expect it would be the ultimate…
According to this report, the device will run an operating system that is described as being “OS X-like” and is quite possibly based on Linux. It will have an unknown amount of RAM, but it will also have the same type of miniature hard drive that is used in Apple’s iPod line of MP3 players.
Apparently it will use a clamshell design, with the screen on one side and keyboard on the other. Like many recent clamshell models, the screen can be rotated around and closed over the keyboard, allowing the device to be used as a tablet. Its touchscreen will have a HVGA resolution, and it will use Apple’s Inkwell for handwriting recognition.
Supposedly, Apple’s handheld will have FireWire, USB, and Bluetooth. Of course it will be able to synchronize with iCal, Mail, Address Book etc. on an OS X Mac, but Mr. Manzione reports that iSync with Windows will be available, too.
The real and obvious question is whether or not it is finally going to happen. To me it seems like a totally obvious missing detail in the product mix. The iPod is only one way, but does a great job of sharing info while on the go. A two-way device capable of mobile connectivity, full sync to the mac (and apparently pc desktop) with high speed bus and wireless… I’m there! I’d leave Palm in a second and I am sure I am not alone…
A third CEO title?
Former Disney board members Stanley Gold and Roy Disney think Apple and Pixar CEO Steve Jobs would make a great choice to run Disney if CEO Michael Eisner were to be ousted later this year… [MacMinute]
iChat AV v2.1 Public Beta adds support for video conferencing with the AOL Instant Messenger 5.5 for Microsoft Windows. [MacNN]
If you update your Bluetooth to 1.5 (also out today) you can use a bluetooth headset like my Jabra Freespeak as a mic for conversations!
In a conference call with analysts to discuss Pixar’s financial earnings, Steve Jobs blasted Disney for being weak creatively and unwilling to compromise on a distribution agreement… [MacMinute]
Steve Jobs’ other company — Pixar Animation Studios — announced today that it has ended its efforts to extend its distribution deal with The Walt Disney Co. and that it will seek other opportunities. [MacCentral]
Pepsi’s iTunes Super Bowl ad will feature about 20 teens sued by the Recording Industry Association … [MacNN]
Despite the fact that Apple executives have said several times that their company won’t be making a handheld, rumors persist. Now there is one that says Apple has put together a prototype handheld and is showing it around. [Brighthand]
The Guardian profiles Apple’s star designer, Jonathan Ive. [MacInTouch]
FileVault has generated as much discussion as any of Panther’s new features. Is it right for you? François Joseph de Kermadec unlocks this new feature and shows you around. [O’Reilly MacDevCenter.com]
Highly recommended read… I still don’t think I have the nerve to use it, though File Vault sounds like an excellent security feature.