Mac Trojan: Real Threat, or Website Traffic Generator?

I'm late to the party with this one, but it's been busy around here... what can I say?

So, last week there were reports that a genuine Mac OS trojan had been discovered "in the wild" (meaning, in the real world, affecting real Mac users). I checked it out (per the link above) today and found that it's still just a good opportunity to get some hits to your site.

The so-called "trojan" is an AppleScript file that must be downloaded, and double-clicked (opened) in order to do anything. I must admit, what it is able to do is impressive. It somehow works around the OS safeguards and is able to do some things only an administrator should do. However, it still requires user activation.

So, the Mac continues to be (by far) the safest computing platform available. I do wonder if this particular script "counts" enough for Apple to have to say there are now (1) viruses for the Mac?

(NOTE: I visited a page where Apple used to claim there were currently zero viruses for the Mac OS, and now it does not explicitly say that. Perhaps they are becoming a bit less smug about their incredible security? Perhaps.)

How Did I Miss This?

How busy have things been around here of late, you ask? Well, today I was browsing my news RSS folder (for the first time in a while) and caught a few articles titles referencing the big WWDC keynote today at 10am PST... and I thought, "TODAY???"

That's right, folks. There are big doin's today in the world of Apple, and I was totally unaware of it!

I'll try to do better next time... :-)

Apple Myth Debunking (By Another Writer)

I posted recently some thoughts on the ongoing myth that Apple computers are more expensive (comparing "apples to apples") than their Windows-running counterparts. It's pretty amazing that such thinking is still widespread. I like to give folks the benefit of the doubt, and say they just haven't actually seen the real numbers for themselves...

Today came across another article debunking several myths about Apple/Mac OS. Here's one snippet of what he said:

While users do pay some premium for both the Apple brand and the innovation that goes into Apple's often brilliant hardware design, the premium is not out of line with that users already pay for name brand systems from vendors such as Sony, HP or Lenovo. In many cases, comparable Apple systems are priced similarly or in some cases are even cheaper than their competition.

If you're interested, you can read the full article by Michael Gartenberg at his blog. It's relatively short. And, if you really still think PCs running windows are cheaper... just read the article. :-)

(Also, it's not just the price myth, he also takes on the software myth as well as the proprietary myth. Sheesh. Why so many myths??) :-)

Apple's Market Share

It's been quiet here at GregsHead because it's NOT been quiet in Greg's office or Greg's home! I even tried to post something like Steve did yesterday, but didn't have time to finish it! Ha! :-)

But wanted to post a link to this article about the Apple market share myth(s). Pretty interesting stuff. Was chatting with a fellow Mac user about it and he sent me this link.

From what I have seen (from my decidedly Mac-skewed vantage point) the world is much more than the fabled 2% Mac market share. And, as the article says, we are some of the coolest tech/computer users out there. :-)

It's not too late to "go Mac"...

:-)

Still?

I can't really believe that this still comes up, but I've been talking with a friend who is in the market for a new computer, and though there are several people close to them who insist they would love a Mac, is still convinced that he can get "the same" computer for less. Folks... this is just not true. Perhaps a little less... but usually the opposite is true. I wrote about this here TWO YEARS ago, and Apple has gotten heaps better in those two years.

I was trying to figure out why I can't just let it go sometimes. I think it's just my personality. I need stuff to be true. (Though, not in everything... but I guess the stuff I care about.) If someone just doesn't want a Mac, that's OK (too bad, but OK) ;-) But if they say they don't want it because they can get the same computer for less... that's just not true. I think it all works out pretty evenly in the end, except with a Mac you get no viruses, spyware, everything just works "out of the box" (all included in the computer) and you get the Mac OS, which is fantastic. (Not to mention their superior customer support.)

I'm really not trying to be a salesman... and I TOTALLY understand the need to spend less on a lesser product simply due to lack of funds. TOTALLY. But I just wanted to say again, Macs are not ridiculously overpriced. You get what you pay for, and we think, with Mac, you get even more than what you pay for.

If you're at all interested, or even if you think you know that you're NOT interested... check out this section of Apple's website. apple.com/getamac. Not only are all the cute/funny ads there, read the 10 reasons (and more) "Why You'll Love a Mac." Great list. Explained well.

Everyone gets to choose and use what they'd like, but we, the Campbells, can't say enough how great Macs are, and how much you'll love 'em if you try 'em.

(This blog post brought to you by an Apple fan and user for over 13 years now. No money was received for this endorsement.) :-)

Breaking News!

There are some advantages to staying up super late. I had some stuff to do tonight, and kind of randomly pulled up the Apple online store when lo and behold, I have a scoop! The Apple Store is currently down... and today (tomorrow for me) is Tuesday, which is when Apple typically releases new products.

I don't know what it will be. BUT... I've been telling folks for a couple weeks that I think Apple will be updating the iMac soon. They had a "limited time offer" on refurbs of the current generation listed at the online store for just about two weeks now, and to me that meant that at least an updated iMac is coming, if not a bigger revision of the best computer on the planet! :-)

So anyway. Now that I've broken the story...

I'm going to bed. :-)

Check the apple store for what the actual news is tomorrow. ;-)

Great Deal on a Mac!

I am no longer paid by Apple to tell you this, but that never mattered anyway! I was looking for something at the Apple store yesterday and discovered that they are selling refurbished iMacs at extra low prices. You can get a 20" core 2 duo iMac for $999! (That's good.)

I think that link will work... if it doesn't, just go to apple.com/store and scroll down to the refurbished Macs link near the bottom left.

Great deals, and for a limited time! So, maybe a way to spend your tax return? :-)

Nationwide Wireless Internet

I still say it's coming. Depending on how they handle it (whoever wins this bid) it could be fantastic. Go Google.

Apple Lighter Than "Air"

The big news from the keynote presentation from Steve Jobs today at the Moscone Center in San Francisco was the announcement of the highly anticipated ultra-portable laptop - the MacBook Air. This computer is as thin as .16" and the full thickness when closed is .76". Whoa. Still has all the bells and whistles! (13" screen, 80GB hd, 2GB ram, built-in iSight camera, backlit keyboard, multi-touch track pad, 802.11n wi-fi, Bluetooth 2.1, and some cool software that allows you to access/use an optical drive on a network computer - Mac or PC!)

They're pretty pricy, but also a pretty amazing little product. You can even get it with a solid-state drive (flash drive), which might give you more battery life, but definitely is super fast and less parts to breakdown.

Other announcements included a new wireless router (AirPort Extreme base station) that includes a hard drive for easy network access, and Time Machine backups. It's called Time Capsule, and is available in 500GB or 1TB. And, the iPod Touch received some software updates, allowing iPod touch owners to access Mail via their iPod as well as some other "essentials" (weather, stocks, etc).

The other big announcement involved iTunes and the AppleTV. iTunes sells movies, but not all that well. Not compared to how they do with music. The AppleTV has done OK, but not that well. Well, now the newly lower-priced AppleTV gives you access to much more movie content which can be rented and immediately watched on your AppleTV. Movie rentals are $2.99 and $3.99 for 24 hour rentals. HD movie rentals are $4.99. You can also purchase music directly on your AppleTV now as well.

I'm still waiting for Apple to fully get into the TV business and release a real AppleTV. We should start saving up now, cause I know it's coming! :-)

Fun stuff today from Apple. Not sure I'll be getting any of it soon, but those MacBook Airs will sell faster than anything Apple has ever made. Even at that price (starts at $1799). Just watch and see.

[for more coverage, see the archived live coverage page from Macworld.com.]

100 Miles Per Gallon?

Came across an article in my news feed today talking about a new engine that is based on a concept from a 1930 engine that could increase automobile gas mileage up to nearly one hundred miles per gallon! That seems pretty crazy, but the article references the different structure of the piston chamber reducing weight and allowing more space (for more pistons I presume) as well as firing on both sides of the chamber?

Here's an excerpt...

The unusual configuration results in several advantages. Gas mileage can be boosted by 40 percent to 50 percent, when a two-module engine is compared with a standard diesel. The engine also can be made 30 percent lighter. Because the engine modules are horizontal, cars can be more aerodynamic.

(I do not presume to know what they are talking about, but it was interesting enough for me to post the link here.) :-)

Perhaps I have a subconscious fascination with the automotive industry as my Dad spent 30 plus years of his life working for them? :-)

Macworld 2008

It's that time of year again, the annual Macworld Conference and Expo is going on starting today in San Francisco, CA! For some reason I am not as excited this year as I usually am... maybe just too busy with other stuff. But, I'm sure I'll be following tomorrow's keynote presentation by Steve Jobs around my lunchtime and will be at least slightly excited by the new products and services announced.

Rumored this year is a new super slim MacBook. They are calling it the MacBook Air. We'll see what actually shows up.. there are a lot of rumors supporting something like that though, so I'd say that will be one of them.

Expect a full report back here tomorrow sometime. :-)

In the meantime, here's a pretty decent link with rumor "news" if you're interested.

Remote Control = God?

I remember when I was a kid, one of the coolest things in the world was remote control cars. I mean, you could make it go... even though you weren't touching it! How cool is that?!?

Well, last night I noticed that remote control is still one of the coolest things.

I was walking away from our vehicle and needed to lock it as I was going out of sight of it, and all I had to do was press a button on the little key fob and ... voila! It was locked! Like magic!

When I was able to do that, I realized that remote control is a bit like being God. You can manipulate things outside of yourself, like magic. (I know... it's not magic, but... it looks like it is!) Whether it's a toy car, or a boat, or a plane... or a real car that you can lock, unlock, or even start! You say it, or click it, or whatever... and it happens!

And there's so much like that these days! The whole world is going wireless. Cell phones, GPS thingies, satellite radio, key fobs, Wi-Fi computers and other devices... everything is wireless. On our home network, I can log into Jen's computer from my laptop, and send files from there to my computer in the office... without being on either computer! I can even do a "screen sharing" thing where I can use other computers as if I were right in front of it. I can print stuff in the office from any computer... WIRELESSLY.

We have some pretty amazing powers these days... :-)

So, just a little observation. I still believe the next computer interface (probably Mac OS X 10.6) will be a spoken interface. So not only will things be "remote control", but we will speak and it will happen.

And Greg said, "Let there be e-mail" ... and there was e-mail.

Weird. :-)

Mac-Related News

I'm sure you'll remember that we stood in line on the night that Apple released their new operating system—Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard—and got ourselves some snazzy t-shirts... well, we finally got the OS, too! I have installed it on my laptop, and it's pretty neat. There are still many questions I have about it (Safari—the browser—crashes a lot, and the networking seems... fishy, among other things) but overall I do like a lot of the new features. Will be better when I can install it on my main machine here. (Too busy to risk doing that right now!!)

Besides Leopard there are a couple other items of interest I saw come across the RSS feed today...

Macs indeed cheaper than PCs
Multiplying Mac Trojan not epidemic yet

Yes folks, there are rumors of another Mac virus, and though I'll admit to not investigating thoroughly, it's still not the same as a self-propagating virus as you see infecting the Windows world. Not making excuses here, just trying to quell the shouts of, "Macs get viruses too!!!" Apparently there is a LOT of user input necessary for this virus to do anything. (Downloading, clicking, installing, etc.) And again, it's not self-propagating.

So, interesting stuff if you're a Mac fan.

And really... who isn't? :-)

100 Times Faster Than WiFi?

Check this out! CNet is reporting that IBM and MediaTek are working on chips that will wirelessly transmit data more than 100 times faster than wi-fi! Up to 2.5 gigabits/second?!? (Compared to 11 to 54 megabits/second of wi-fi.)

You could transfer a 10GB file in seconds. Wirelessly.

They hope to have something out on the market in three years.

Apple Announces Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard

Just in case you are not subscribed to my Apple blog... thought I would let you know that Apple announced a release date for their long-awaited OS update. October 26th will be the day you can get your hands on the latest and greatest OS! There are links to pages detailing the many new features and upgrades on the article I posted at my Apple blog. Head over and check it out!

(If you already know you just want to buy it, you can click on the software retail box above...) :-)

More on the New iPod Line

I was able to post several articles to my Apple blog yesterday regarding the updates to Apple's iPod and even iTunes line. I mentioned that I would be doing that earlier, and thought perhaps you'd like the links. Some pretty neat stuff. Lots of links off of my pages to great content at Apple's website as well.

And, if you click the photo above, you'll be taken to my GregsApples.com site, where you'll first have a chance to sign up for my Apple eNews. If you're at all interested in the stuff Apple is doing these days - and maybe especially how to get the best deal on some for yourself - I think you'll enjoy receiving the Apple @ BWD eNews. I send it out about 4 times a year, and when there are major Apple updates. (Like, I'll be sending one today.) :-)

Here are the links to yesterday's articles. More to come!

Greg's Apple News:
New iPods: Refreshed & Revealed
iPhone Price Tag Reduced 33%
iTunes WI-Fi Music Store & Starbucks
iTunes 7.4 Brings Custom Ringtones
VIDEO: iPod touch Overview and Tutorial (from Apple.com)
iPod Touch, iTunes Wireless... Wow. (Article @ Newsvine)

Subscribe to Greg's RSS Feeds:
Greg's Apple Blog:
Greg's Newsvine Column:

All New iPods, iTunes Wireless

Apple made their big announcements today. Nothing really unexpected, and most expectations were met. No Beatles announcement, but it won't be long. I'll be writing up much more on my Apple Blog later tonight, but for now, here are the highlights:

• iPod Shuffle in new colors
  
• iPod Nano is shorter, bigger screen, video, larger hard drives
  
• iPod is now iPod classic, and available in 80GB and 160GB.
  
• iPod Touch - the iPhone without the phone! 8GB & 16GB. Built-in wi-fi!
  
• iPhone is now $200 less, only 8GB size. ($399)
  
• iTunes Wireless. Purchase music over wi-fi connection right on your iPod!

Lots more to come. You can read up on it yourself at Macworld.com, they did a nice live update article as the presentation was unfolding today. Or, go straight to Apple's iPod page.

If you already know you want one... you can get one from my Apple store!

Apple Feuding with NBC

Apparently, Apple is sick and tired of NBC's shenanigans! The 3rd largest music retailer in the world (who also sells video content...) is parting ways with all of it's NBC content (30% of it's top shows!) in the month of September! Seems a drastic move by Apple, but they contend that NBC wanted to double the wholesale price of their shows, which would have raised the cost to consumers from $1.99 currently to $4.99/episode.

NBC on the other hand seems to claim almost the opposite... that they wanted to combine some of their content to make the package more attractive to the consumer.

Either way, the consumer is losing in this spat.

You can read more most anywhere on line, but here's a link to get you started.

I hope they make up soon. We got the Knight Rider from iTunes, and NBC also has the Sci-Fi channel as part of their content. And, it's just not nice to fight...

Apple Event September 5th

Another Apple Event is just around the corner. Apple is planning to hold a special event on September 5th, according to Arstechnica. Most rumor sites are expecting Apple's updated line of iPods to be revealed, including a possible full screen video iPod. (The iPhone without the Phone.) Also rumored, iPhone Nanos and video-capable Nanos. (Perhaps the same thing?)

I don't think we'll see a smaller iPhone... but, ya never know.

Stay tuned to my Apple blog for details.

UPDATE: Apple officially sent out invites to the event today, it's pictured above. There are some interesting things about the invite that most likely point to 1) an ipod-related event, 2) an iPod with CoverFlow view (much like on the iPhone?), and 3) the phrase "the beat goes on" was in the Beatles' final press release. Perhaps we'll finally see the Beatles at iTunes on the 5th?

More from MacNN

Apple Special Event

If you'd like to see all this great stuff for yourself, you can watch the entire presentation online! Just click the image above.

New iMacs, iLife '08, iWork '08 and .Mac

As was predicted, Apple announced a new iMac yesterday. And they are beautiful! You can tell from the photos, but in person they are even better. We took a trip to the Apple Store last night to see the new Macs, and it was worth it!

They are a bit leaner (slimmer), and they have lots more power (feautring a new Core 2 Extreme processor in the top of the line model) ... and they just look fantastic.

Enough about looks. What do you get with this new iMac?

Here's a quick overview of the new machines:

• Aluminum case and glossy glass display
• 20" and 24" ($1199, $1499, $1799)
• Great connectivity: USB 2.0, Firewire 400 & 800
• New keyboard - .33"!!! (feels like a MacBook)
• Up to 2.8 Ghz Core 2 Extreme processor
• Up to 4GB RAM, 1 TB!!! Hard drive
• Built-in, Ultra-fast 802.11n
• AVAILABLE TODAY!

Yes, that last point is actually a valid point. Lately it seems every time Apple has a special event, they are announcing something that won't ship for months! (Remember AppleTV and the iPhone??) So, this was nice to be able to see and play with right away.

First thing I noticed was the new look. It is stunning. That glossy glass display does make it look very nice. Jen didn't care for the functionality of it though. In the store with lots of flourescent lights, it was quite reflective. But to my eyes, it still looked very nice.

It's also super fast! When I tried to import photos into iPhoto to play with its new features, it was nearly instantaneous. Incredible. Everything opened very fast, and the new skimming feature worked transparently in either photos of videos. Fantastically fast machines.

Then there were the new features. Not enough time to play with them with more folks wanting to play with the one display model, but what I saw, I liked. The new Events feature in iPhoto (and iMovie, I believe) does make it easier to sort/find photos. I would have liked to see it work with a much larger library. But, with what I did have, it seemed like it will be a great tool for organizing our photos and movies. iMovie looks totally different, and to be honest, at first glance was a bit overwhelming. Perhaps it would not take long to learn the new features (supposed to be able to make a great movie in 20 minutes). I did not have enough time to play with it, though.

Actually, one of my favorite new features announced at the special event yesterday is the upgrade to .Mac. Along with the "Back To My Mac" feature that will be part of Leopard once it comes out in October, they announced a new way to use .Mac, and some capacity increases.

First, subscribers will get 10GB of storage, and 100GB of monthly bandwidth (versus 1GB and 10GB currently, respectively). That is a decent upgrade. Greater space was needed for one of the main new features announced yesterday as part of the iLife '08 upgrade, the .Mac Web Gallery. This is a superbly formatted, one-click way to publish photos and now videos as well. (Note... iMovie also offers an easy one-click publish option to YouTube as well! That's great!) .Mac Web Gallery is even better than sending stuff to iWeb, which is what you would do in iLife '06, from iPhoto. Check out this working model of a .Mac Web Gallery.

iWeb also got the enhancements I was hoping for. Now you can embed code (like YouTube videos, GoogleMaps, etc) into your iWeb/.Mac pages. iWeb has also been upgraded so that the features that used to only work with a .Mac address will now work with your own personal domain. (Like GregsApples.com!) :-)

Apple also announced a speed increase for the Mac Mini, a new application for its iWork suite called Numbers, and some other fun stuff. But I'm tired of writing about all this stuff! :-) The best thing to do is FIRST, visit my GregsApples.com blog, then click the links I have provided there to some GREAT content at Apple's website.

Some really great new stuff, and as I've said before... there has never been a better time to get a Mac!

Fusion from VMWare

I found this article yesterday, (which includes the video above) about an upcoming release of another virtualization option for the Mac. This software will allow you to run Windows apps as separate windows on your Mac, with icons in the dock... just like they were native Mac apps! Sweet! I think you still need to buy/install Windows, but sounds like the UI is much better.

(Articles on yesterday's Apple announcements are forthcoming. Some have been posted at GregsApples.com, but I am currently writing a newsletter, and will detail my hands-on experience with the new iMac here at GregsHead.net later today. Stay tuned...)

.Mac Update Tomorrow?

Well, it seems that along with the possibility of a new iMac, perhaps Apple will also announce a new version of .Mac, it's internet service. For a long time now, people have not been too impressed with .Mac, because without much effort, you can find better versions of most of what .Mac offers across the world wide web - for free. What .Mac offers (and the reason we currently have two accounts) is integration of all of those things, for $99/yr.

At this year's WWDC, some great new .Mac features were announced. The main one that caught people's attention was the "Back To My Mac" feature that will allow users to access all the files (they choose to make availble) on their Mac - from anywhere! This will be extremely useful to anyone who travels with their laptop. (I'll use it!!)

So, tomorrow morning, look for the planned .Mac updates, as well as, I suppose, those shiny new metallic iMacs!

Fun!

(And, don't forget, if you want one... let me know!) :-)

New Macs?

Apple announced a special event to be held on August 7th, calling it "a presentation focused on the Mac." Most speculate that we will see a new version of the iMac with the brushed aluminum look, perhaps bigger screens (at least dropping the 17" model) and a new keyboard similar to the one on the MacBook. We can't be sure, but this would make sense with it being back to school time, and the iMac is the best overall value (for the desktop lines).

Stay tuned...

It's Got To Slow Down Eventually...

Yesterday Apple announced it's third quarter earnings, and actually it was astounding. They broke all kinds of their own records, and beat whatever estimates smart financial guys had predicted. Basically... they rock. Way more Macs sold than ever in one quarter. More iPods than this quarter one year ago. Tons of iPhones (and that was in just TWO DAYS) and I think iTunes is even doing better than ever.

When does it end? It's got to... but... when? They just keep doing better!

If you can afford their stock... I'd say it's still worth buying! It just keeps going up!

Ubiquitous WiFi

An article came out this past weekend regarding Google's potential bid for the soon-to-be-free radio wave frequencies. If you didn't know, by 2009, there will be no more analog TV signals... everything will be digital. This is to free up the frequencies around the 700Mhz range. One of the benefits of this range of frequencies is its ability to penetrate walls.

Google has said some interesting things about keeping the market competitive by keeping it open. Speculation ranges from Google getting into the cell phone business to ubiquitous WiFi. (The latter is something I heard about quite a while ago, but this latest news from Google seems to make it more of a real possibility than just wishful thinking.)

Just imagine... anywhere you can get a TV signal now, you will have full access to broadband internet, as well as the ability to make VOIP calls, or cell phone calls... FOR FREE! Wow. That would be impressive. I hope they can pull it off!

Read that linked article for more, or just check out the latest news from Google.

Virtual Reality... Reality?

A friend sent me this link the other day... it's to a new/different version of Nintendo's Wii. Check out the demo video on that page. Incredible. Virtual reality may not be a (perfect) reality, but it's getting close. There is technology coming (or maybe already in use) that will allow a screen to also be a camera. (Like Star Trek!) where one pixel is a screen pixel and one is a camera! Side by side! I can see how that will allow virtual reality to be much more real. Interacting with a virtual world with no extra devices. It's certainly coming...

Check out the video.

iPhone... Without the Phone?

This is interesting... Some folks have already found a way around the "required" activation of the iPhone and are able to use it as a 6th generation Wi-Fi iPod. Intriguing...

iPhone Review

I found this review on the AppleInsider.com website today. Quite thorough and really explains all the greatness of the iPhone (as best as you can with words... you really have to actually hold it and use it to understand how amazing it is.)

He covers all the features (and missing features) in a very in-depth article. If you're interested in the iPhone, I'd say it's worth the read. Don't forget to check out all the great videos Apple has posted as well. Links at my Apple site (visit the Blog section...)

iPhone-mania

In case you haven't heard... Apple will be releasing what they think is the next "iPod". (That's not what they're saying... they are just super excited about this device.) It's a phone, but way more than that. If you haven't seen the commercials, or read or heard much about it, you can visit Apple's website for a great collection of information, photos, videos, tutorials, etc. They have upgraded it this week in anticipation of the Friday release of the new device.

We will not be getting one because 1) we don't have five or six hundred dollars to spare, and 2) we don't use cell phones :-) But MAN do they look amazing. Really, check out the site if you have not visited it yet.

I sent out a newsletter to my Apple mailing list today (you can sign up for that here), and put up a couple updates on my blog (that's here). But most of them link back to that iPhone site. So, stop by and pay them a visit why don't ya.

And, if you want one... you know where to find me. I'll be happy to help.

Replicator, Anyone?

A friend sent me this link today, and I thought it was a joke. But it's for real. There are printers that make full-color, 3-D models!?! That's like Star Trek! Wow!

Shopping List

We are really not spending any extra money at the moment. We are paying bills, buying food and other necessities, investing in our house a bit, and then just GAS to visit family and such. But no extra "toys" at the moment. It's kinda hard... but, OK. We're dealing with it... :-)

IF I WERE to make a little list of what we'd buy (had we the cash...) it might look something like this...

• AppleTV (refurbished) - $249 [reg: $299]
  
• Airport Base Station (802.11n!) (refurbished) - $159 [reg: $179]
  
• 20" Cinema Display (refurbished) - $499 [reg: $1299]
  
• Quicktime Pro (software) - $29.95

Refurb is the way to go, since it comes with the same warranty from Apple, for less!

If anyone is interested in getting me a Father's Day present..... now you know what to get!! :-) :-)

AND, if you want any Apple stuff yourself, don't forget to ALWAYS SHOP HERE. Thanks. :-)

(Stop by my Apple site for more info, or to contact me about getting Apple stuff...)

Steve Jobs Keynote... Coming Up!

Just to remind...

This Monday, out in San Francisco, CA, Steve Jobs will be taking the stage once again to reveal all the fun new Apple products. It's so funny. People pay THOUSANDS of dollars (well, I think a ticket to this event is $1595) to go see this hour or hour and a half speech, and everyone else sits at one or two websites that refresh every 60 seconds, following along as bloggers post text comments about what Jobs is saying. Hilarious.

But, that's where I'll be Monday at 1pm EDT! :-)

Just wanted to let you know.

If you want a ticket, go here. If not, check out this site for live updates as the event is happening...

I predict we'll see new displays (agreeing with a friend's prediction), and an update to iLife and probably iWork '06. Not sure what computer might be updated as they just refreshed the Mac Pro, MacBook and MacBook Pro lines. We'll see.

Even with my full weekend, I'm sure I'll find time to be at least a little excited/curious about what we'll see on Monday. :-)

Complete Video of Steve Jobs & Bill Gates from D5

Apple just released the full video of the conference that featured the interview with Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. It's about an hour and a half, and very good quality video. It's available free through iTunes, just click on the photo above! Sweet! :-)

Bill Gates & Steve Jobs

Forgot to post this, too. Saw this over at Chris' blog. I was laughing out loud when I saw it! It's 8 min long... Enjoy!

Microsoft Surface & The iPhone

Microsoft announced last week a revolutionary "new" interface for computing. I really wanted to comment on it last week, but with a very shortened week, did not find the time to do so. A friend posted a link on his site, reminding me to comment... so, thanks Steve. :-)

This really looks phenomenal. It's a real interface. No mouse... no keyboard. You just use your hands. You can even have multiple touch points. It's fantastic.

And looks A LOT like the iPhone.

When the iPhone was announced (and demoed) in January, Steve Jobs said they had filed LOTS (he said a number, but I forget what it was) of patents for this phone, and that they would be enforcing them vigorously. And after seeing the Surface demo online last week... I can see now why he said that. :-)

Microsoft claims they have been working on this project for five years. I believe Apple claimed a similar time frame for the iPhone. It will be quite interesting to see what happens here... :-)

So, if you'd like to check it out... it really does look fantastic. (Link below...) I love the way you can set stuff on top of it and it automatically recognizes it as a device to read or save to! Fantastic.


In related news... Apple announced today that iPhone will be released to the public on June 29th. They also released some ads. Neat stuff.

Technology is pretty cool!

But of course... Apple's is just a tad better. (And Microsoft is a LOT better at copying it...) ;-)

LINKS:
microsoft surface
apple iphone ads

YouTube on AppleTV

One more thing before I go...

Apple announced yesterday that coming this month there will be a new item on the main menu of your AppleTV. YouTube videos will be accessible right on your living room TV. :-) Pretty cool idea. You even have access to some dynamic content like your History, Most Watched videos, Most Recent videos posted, etc. And right on your TV.

Good job Apple. Click the photo above for a demo.

iTunes "Releases" Music

iTunes has announced today the beginning of their move to DRM-free music (meaning, no copy protection... which has been really annoying to digital music purchasers for quite some time). This also means that people who don't have iPods can purchase stuff from iTunes and just put the song right on their non-Apple MP3 player now. (I still recommend iPods though...) :-)

Read the linked article for more.

They also announced they have added Paul McCartney's catalog (I believe DRM-free?) to the store. Another first. The Beatles have been scarce to say the least at the iTunes store. But more will be coming.

So, just wanted to let you know... click over to iTunes and have a look!
iTunes Music Store (iTunes link)

NEStopia

While reading an article on some Mac software releases and such, I happened upon a link to a Nintendo NES Emultaor for Mac OS X!!! I checked it out, and it was super easy to install and I found a game that will run on it that I have been wanting to find for a LONG time (Since I had it over a decade ago. Or two??)

A LOT of yesterday was spent playing Mike Tyson's Punch Out. :-)

Now I think I have the boys hooked too. Good stuff.

So now I can play vintage (1987) video games on my Macs!!! Classic.

Various Things

• Kirsten joined us for reading the Bible today (usually it's just Dad & the boys...) and in today's story, Jesus was going to have dinner with one of the Pharisee's named Simon. Well, we had just been talking about how we'd like to go to Wendy's for dinner, so I said, "Maybe they went to Wendy's!" The kids all thought that was cool, but the next line said, "So they went to his house for dinner." I said, "Oh, I guess not Wendy's. They went to his house. So, they probably had Skyline." Kirstie replied, "Like us!!!" :-) (Which, though I'm 100% certain they did not have Skyline, got across the point that they were peoples just like us.) :-)
  
  
• Jen wants to make resurrection rolls. That's awesome. :-)
  
  
• The Buffalo Bills schedule comes out today (along with the rest of the NFL). It will be announced at 4pm on the NFL Network (which we DO NOT get!!!) and around the same time on the Buffalo Bills website.
  
  
• The Buffalo Sabres have three games to go, and are 1 point behind the Detroit Red Wings for the best overall record in the NHL. Detroit only has 2 games left, so the Sabres are definitely in the driver's seat. And with games against Boston, Washington, and Philadelphia, they stand a very good chance of winning all of those. Tonight's game is against Boston, whome the Sabres have a 5-0-2 record against this season! Go Sabres! We could have home ice through the whole playoffs!
  
  
• My wife loves to give gifts. Today I opened my drawers to get my clothes for the day and found an Almond Joy (one of my favorites) on top of my shirts and some travel cups for hot drinks that I enjoy on top of my socks. A fun surprise to begin the day.
  
  
• Mac sales of late have been going at a pretty good clip. At least interest has increased. I am getting calls/emails from folks I don't even know :-) Pretty fun. I love hooking people up with Macs! And the bonus is, now I also get paid by Apple to do it! It's not a lot, but it's definitely a nice bonus! Lemme know if you need one... :-)
  
  
• We are Bills season ticket holders once again! It's a pretty expensive endeavor for us to go to Bills games (tack on another $50 to even $100 on game day for gas, tolls, parking, food, etc.) so a friend reminded us of the wonder of StubHub. It's a site where you can buy (and sell!) tickets of all sorts. He's pretty sure we can cover the cost of our tickets to a game or two we want to go to, by selling the games we don't want to (or, can't as it were) go to. SO... we have four seats in the Family section, 225 I believe. See ya there! :-) (Guess we'll find out today WHEN we'll be going to these games!!!)
  
  
• Jen also surprised me by getting a baby sitter and "taking me" to El Pacifico for dinner last night. It's our new favorite place. She and I can eat for $15-20 and it's AWESOME, authentic, Mexican food. Great stuff!

Mac OS Ken

After a funny little incident involving my iPod Shuffle and a podcast I listen to, I decided to e-mail the dude who does the show, and my email made today's podcast. :-) I clipped the show and have uploaded the audio here, if you'd care to listen. Click on Ken's face to visit his site and subscribe to his show. Good stuff for Mac fans.