Sunday, January 20, 2008

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) (13 сообщений)

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The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)
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  • Mac Automation: notes on your iPod

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    Many iPod users run into this challenge: we are always carrying our iPods, so we want to use them to help us remember things. Well, using Automator, we can easily address this issue. In this how-to, I will walk through creating iPod notes very easily (and all without opening a text editor).

    For this how-to, you will need the following Automator actions loaded into a new workflow:
    • Ask for Text
    • New iPod Note
    • Update iPod

    Read on for the next steps.

    Continue reading Mac Automation: notes on your iPod

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  • OMG OMG Alarums and Excursions: The STORE is DOWN

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    As doth the store not respond

    So doth our hearts leap in excitement.

    Behold. The Store respondeth not.

    Who knows what fearful Mac or iPod.

    Apple has framed with its Ive-like symmetry.

    For verily, it may be maintenance.

    Update It's baaaaaaack. Nothing new to report.

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  • Found Footage: iPhone 1.1.3 jailbroken already?

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    Seems like it was only yesterday that the iPhone was first hacked. But now, it looks like the 1.1.3 firmware jailbreak is a reality! Many have gotten emotional about the 1.1.2 jailbreak getting "broken" after the 1.1.3 upgrade; fear not, you may well have a jailbreak for 1.1.3 soon enough! See the video -- there you have it, Installer.app working with a 1.1.3 iPhone.

    Will this new jailbreak process be released in the immediate future? Who knows, but we can tell you that iPhone Atlas is reporting that the jailbreak requires a hardware modification of some sort -- leading me to believe that this hack isn't for the faint-of-heart. However, it might be worth it to wait until next month, where we should be seeing the official SDK from Apple.

    Special thanks to everyone who sent this in!
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  • Hello, my name is Chris and I ordered a new MacBook Air

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    As readers of TUAW are, of course, fully aware Apple announced several great new products at Macworld this year. One of those products -- a particular item I was vocally very eager to see come out -- was the MacBook Air. And, putting my money where my mouth is, I ordered one as soon as I could -- sans solid state drive. I am now awaiting delivery of my sleek new Mac in "two to three weeks" from Apple.

    Sure, some people may question the machine, my decision or rush to point out the MacBook Air's flaws (TUAW's own Mat Lu chimes in with his thoughts on the MBA's strengths and weaknesses right here), but for me the MacBook Air represents a leap forward in the evolution of the notebook and will be the perfect tool for getting my work done. While it may not be for everyone, to me its positives far outweigh its negatives and upon arrival it will take its rightful place as my Apple notebook of choice.

    First and foremost (and none would dispute) the MacBook Air is really thin and incredibly light. Most of you probably haven't picked one up but I can tell you from my personal fondlings it is even thinner and lighter than it looks. As a person who normally totes around a 15" MacBook Pro (plus more) I can tell you how much of a positive effect the loss of 2.4 pounds is going to have on my shoulders and back. But not only is the MacBook Air thinner and lighter, it also comes with a smaller and lighter power brick as well -- another welcome replacement for the rather large one I currently have in use.

    Also, my work these days is primarily writing, working with photos and activities of that nature, so this notebook will be perfect for those types of uses. Although I will admit I was skeptical when I first saw the keyboard (I'm not a fan of the MacBook's and on first glance they looked similar) but once I had a chance to pound on the Air's keys a bit I realized that the keyboard is a vast improvement over the one featured on the MacBook and will work just fine for me.

    The computer will also work well when dealing with photos -- especially if I continue to primarily use iPhoto as I have been lately. However, I'm sure the MacBook Air will also run Adobe Photoshop Lightroom, CS3 and even Aperture should I choose to use them. After all, my "ancient" 12" Powerbook G4 runs Lightroom and even CS3 pretty well considering its 1.5 Ghz G4 processor and 1.25 GB of RAM so I think the MacBook Air will be just fine.

    In addition, the MacBook Air, although it's a fantastic machine and will be my notebook of choice, is not now nor will it ever be my only Mac. For the real heavy lifting that requires much more horsepower I will turn to my desktop Mac -- the 24" iMac. Keeping the two machines in sync won't be a problem either as I will be using .Mac to keep Address Book and iCal current as well as Mail (where all my email accounts are IMAP and will be the same on both machines). So, this scenario will, I feel, address and overcome many of the concerns expressed about the MacBook Air's design and use.

    Finally, did I mention how thin and light the MacBook Air is? Sure, I might occasionally miss having an Ethernet port (although I got the dongle) or need an optical drive (got the external one of those too) but for the most part I think I will be okay without those things. I also have 802.11n wireless at home and usually can find wireless access in most places while on the road, so the lack of an Ethernet port won't have that much of an impact on me. But if I need it, I'll have it by using the dongle.

    Radical change sometimes requires an adjustment in thinking and the new MacBook Air is pretty radical. I, for one, tend to fully embrace the new and look forward to putting the Air through its paces when it arrives -- providing a full report to the TUAW readership in the process as well. Until then, if you have any questions or just want to tell me what a huge mistake I've made, feel free to hit the comments.
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  • Porticus GUI for MacPorts

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    Porticus is a GUI for MacPorts, the open source command-line utility for installing command-line, X11 and Aqua software. Akin in many ways to PortAuthority, Porticus also provides Growl support, Sparkle updates, and an AppleScript library. It's snappy and light weight, and it's free.

    Porticus allows description searches, auto-detection of outdated ports, MacPorts self-update, and port variant handling with variant selection before installing. If you've got MacPorts working on the command line, MacPorts provides a smooth way to handle finding and installing new ports. If you've shied away from the price of shareware MacPorts GUIs but are still craving a little Cocoa in your open source installations, give Porticus a try. Porticus requires an existing MacPorts install (1.4.x or greater), which can be downloaded from The MacPorts Project.

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  • MacBook Air: greenest Apple yet

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    Apple has received a lot of flack, especially from Greenpeace, for their supposedly less-than-stellar commitment to "green" design and manufacturing processes. However, the MacBook Air might be a sign of changes to come, as it is officially the most environmentally-friendly Apple product on the shelves. The latest, thinnest Apple notebook boasts the following:
    • Fully recyclable aluminum case
    • Apple's first mercury-free LCD display, with arsenic-free glass
    • Circuit boards are BFR-free and PVC-free
    • 50% less packaging than the previous MacBooks
    • Meets ENERGY STAR requirements
    • Receives a EPEAT Silver Rating
    Of course, the MacBook Air isn't quite perfect (it's far from the greenest computer out there), and there are more improvements that can be made. However, this is indeed a step in the right direction for Apple, and hopefully this indicates a new trend. I think it's about time that Apple gets on the sustainability train and starts implementing more earth-friendly materials into their products. Let's hope for more good things in the future.
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  • The missing iPhone e-mail feature

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    Ryan Block from Engadget shot us an e-mail about a blog post that he recently wrote on his personal blog. In his post, he reminisces about Macworld '07 where Steve Jobs first showed off the iPhone's e-mail application. He reminds us about the double-pane e-mail that was demoed -- and never made it into the final release. What gives Steve? Some people actually would like this view to quickly look through their e-mail.

    Many have said that the iPhone's e-mail client isn't the best feature out there, as it lacks smart folders, multiple message deletion, and the double-pane view. Not to mention the fact that there are multiple bugs that still remain, even with firmware version 1.1.3 (Ryan mentions the fact that the iPhone idles while parsing HTML messages for quite some time). Is iPhone's Mail worth your time, or a pain in the finger?
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  • Analysis: What the MacBook Air is and what it isn't

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    We've seen a lot of commentary on the Macweb and beyond since the Macworld keynote revealed the MacBook Air, and several themes have started to become apparent. One of the ideas most often advanced is that Apple simply made too many sacrifices in power to meet the demands of the gorgeous form factor, a complaint against Apple that has long-standing precedent back to the G4 Cube and beyond. Through much of this, however, I get the sense that there's a kind of mistaken, or at least misplaced, assumption at work.

    Frankly, we've been spoiled by Apple's portable designs. After essentially inventing the modern notebook computer form factor Apple has been churning out better and better portable machines, to the point that Mac portables now significantly outsell the desktops, and for many people their only computer is a PowerBook or MacBook (Pro). We've been led to expect a Mac portable to be the only computer you need (so much so that now the phrase "desktop replacement" almost seems quaint). It's in that light, I think, that the Air seems to fail. Whatever else you might say about the machine, it is not really adequate as your one and only Mac if you're anything like the majority of tech-savvy TUAW readers.

    So what is the Air? I think the Air is, and is really intended to be, a secondary computer. It's serious enough to get real work done on while you're away from home or office, but it's not a primary production machine in my view. Looked at in this light, however, the sacrifices Apple has made don't seem so bad. If you've ever lugged a 5-6 lbs laptop (plus accessories!) on your back all day, you know exactly what I mean.

    What's the upshot? Well, if you're only going to have one Mac, it shouldn't be the Air. By the same token, it seems to me too highly priced right now to be a huge success. Its real market is going to be executives and others who have enough disposable income (or expense accounts) to have an Air plus another Mac. Thus, I think Apple should embrace this "second Mac" status more explicitly by introducing some kind of syncing system similar to the iPhone/iPod. It would be great if there were a kind of MacBook Air dock you could set it in and have it automatically sync, say, your Documents folder as well as parts of your iTunes and iPhoto libraries, etc. well beyond what third party software can offer in ease of use. Even more radical would be a kind of workspace syncing, so that you could grab your Air and it would automatically have basically the same workspace you were using on your main Mac, with applications, documents, etc.

    Of course, only the future will tell if the Air is too big of a compromise (like the Cube) or whether it will meet with some success. I'm sure Apple will sell plenty of Airs, but I seriously doubt it will have the success of the regular MacBook lines. Nonetheless, it shows that once again Apple is out in front and (in some respects) listening to its customers (who have been clamoring for a small Mac portable since the 12" PowerBook died). It may turn out, like in the case of the original iPod, that Apple is really creating a new market here that we just don't quite understand yet. But if that's so, much like the original iPod, I think the Air will need to drop in price and expand in functionality to really be a mainstream hit. What do you think?
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  • iPhone 1.1.3 update leads to problems?

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    It would seem that the latest iPhone/iPod touch update is doing a bit more harm than good. There have been reports that the 1.1.3 firmware is far less stable than the previous 1.1.2. Some of the problems with 1.1.3 being reported:

    • Error message during/after install of iTunes 7.6 and firmware 1.1.3
    • Loss of sound output from the iPhone's built-in speakers
    • Bluetooth devices that worked with 1.1.2 no longer work
    • Mail problems
    While these problems certainly don't sound good, there are some remedies that seem to work. For the loss of sound, you can try turning the phone off and then back on or plugging headphones in and out. iPhone Atlas has listed some of the reported iPhone problems and some of the remedies that you can try. As always, be sure to check TUAW often for the latest iPhone news.

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  • Show floor video: Panic's Coda provides one-stop Web authoring

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    We've talked about Coda plenty here, but it was nice to find the Panic crew on the show floor and get a quick overview of Coda's interface and capabilities. If you're looking for a single tool to do web authoring, check out Sandvox, Rapidweaver, and Coda for your needs. Video after the jump.

    Continue reading Show floor video: Panic's Coda provides one-stop Web authoring

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  • Show floor video: Likewise Enterprise brings Macs into AD

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    When your corporate IT department says "Sure, we like the Mac, but we can't manage it through Group Policy, so it's inherently evil," you can offer several alternatives: Centrify, ADmit Mac, and Likewise (formerly Centeris) -- all will provide smooth integration of your Macs into AD and give the central command and control guys the feeling of power they crave. We caught up with Steve from Likewise on the show floor and got a quick walkthrough. Video after the jump.

    Continue reading Show floor video: Likewise Enterprise brings Macs into AD

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  • Show floor video: Tilestack aims to bring HyperCard stacks into the future

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    Sometimes the most interesting ideas are ones that fall out of favor and come back again years later. Witness Tilestack, a technology preview on the floor at Macworld that allows importing and instant web-enabling of vintage HyperCard stacks, as well as advanced interactive web applications with minimal coding. Check out the video and the Tilestack site for more info (video after the jump).

    Continue reading Show floor video: Tilestack aims to bring HyperCard stacks into the future

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  • Show floor video: ecamm networks with iLidz and more

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    The gentlemen at ecamm networks have a slew of products already in production: iGlasses, Call Recorder, and plenty more. Watch the video for demos of iLidz, iPhone Disk, and an unreleased video hack for the iPhone that's got to be seen to be believed. Video moved into the continuation for faster home page loading.

    Continue reading Show floor video: ecamm networks with iLidz and more

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