| rss2email.ru |
 Культура, Искусство, Арт - статьи и фото  |  Скидки, обзоры и тенденции авторынка  |
 |  TUAWTUAW http://www.tuaw.com рекомендовать друзьям >> |
- Booyah gets 10,000 to download new Nightclub City DJ Rivals
Earlier this week, social game company Booyah (whom we've spoken with before) released its latest game for iOS, called Nightclub City: DJ Rivals. Booyah first found huge success with an iOS social game called MyTown, and then went over to Facebook to create Nightclub City, a social app about sharing music among friends. Now the company is back on iOS with DJ Rivals, and early indications are that it's going to be popular: it's already garnered over 10,000 downloads in just over a day.
Last week at GDC 2011, I spoke with Booyah's Brian Cho about the game and the plan behind it, and he told me that Booyah is "taking the best parts of MyTown and the learning that we had on Nightclub City," and combining those into both a persistent social game, as well as an arcade-style music game to play inside of it. He showed me the app as well -- after creating an avatar in the style of Nightclub City, you then claim locations around you (or around your friends, even if you're not in the same place), and then your DJ can play music battles (akin to Guitar Hero or DJ Hero on consoles) to take over those locations.
Continue reading Booyah gets 10,000 to download new Nightclub City DJ Rivals
Booyah gets 10,000 to download new Nightclub City DJ Rivals originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 11 Mar 2011 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - TUAW's Daily App: VelaClock
Yes, before you ask, we are choosing to spotlight a clock app for the iPhone. And yes, we know that every iPhone already has the time right there on the lock screen. But take a look at the interface on this thing -- it's been thought through so well that just that first page, with the bars and flags, is packed with more information than you'd ever need to know at any one time. Not only do you get the date and time, but you also get day length, countdown to sunrise and sunset and even the timing for dusk and dawn for all of those locations, all relayed in a visually simple and intuitive way. Pretty impressive.
Here's another example of the thought that went into this app: When the creators switched up the UI and their users cried foul, they decided to simply release both the old and the new UI as two different apps, so people could choose what they wanted to use (and for users who wanted the new UI and owned the old app, they're asking to be contacted so they can resolve the situation). I don't care of it's a clock app or a financial planning app -- I like a developer who acts that directly on customer feedback.
So VelaClock is available in two flavors, classic and brand new, and it's US$3.99 for either version. You may argue that that's too much for a simple clock app, and that's fine -- there are plenty of apps on sale this weekend if you'd like one of those.
TUAW's Daily App: VelaClock originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 11 Mar 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - Apple could sell 600,000 iPad 2s in three days
When the original iPad debuted a little less than a year ago, Apple sold a whopping 300,000 in 24 hours. With the release of the iPad 2 later today, analysts are estimating that Apple could sell as many as 600,000 units in only three days. Given the hype behind the iPad 2, not to mention the extremely positive reviews, and the fact that both the Wi-Fi and 3G models will be available on the same day this year, 600,000 units this weekend doesn't seem like an unreasonable estimate.
As Bloomberg points out, the first iPad was the fastest-selling technology product in history, measured by revenue -- and that was when not many people knew they needed a tablet. For those of you keeping track, however, the iPad is not the fastest-selling consumer electronics device in history, measured by unit volume. That award goes to Microsoft's Xbox Kinect, which sold 8 million units in its first 60 days on the market. Even with tablets reaching a tipping point this year -- and the iPad now a household name -- it's unlikely that Apple could sell 133,001 iPad 2s a day for the first 60 days, which is what it would take to dethrone the Kinect. However, if Apple does pull that off, you'll want to stock up on AAPL right now.
Apple could sell 600,000 iPad 2s in three days originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 11 Mar 2011 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - LinkedIn lets you follow social news with updated iPhone app
For those of you not familiar with it, LinkedIn is a social network for your professional contacts. Think of it as Facebook without the keg stand photos. I've been a big fan of LinkedIn for a while now and was excited when it launched its LinkedIn Today social news feature. LinkedIn Today is a social news aggregator for business people. It lets you easily follow news and stories from the industries you and your contacts work in.
In conjunction with the premier of LinkedIn Today, LinkedIn also updated its iOS app to feature a brand new news section that shows you the headlines from your LinkedIn Today industry headlines. The addition of the news section to the app makes it infinitely more useful. Previously, I would only open my LinkedIn iPhone app when I needed to download new contacts, but today I've found myself checking it every half hour to see the latest articles and headlines related to my industry and what news links my peers are sharing. LinkedIn is available for free on the App Store.
LinkedIn lets you follow social news with updated iPhone app originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 11 Mar 2011 06:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - iPad 2 now available online
The iPad 2 is now available for purchase on Apple's US online store. With new features like a faster A5 processor, front and rear-facing cameras and a thinner enclosure, the device improves upon the iPad's already iconic design.
Eighteen different versions of the iPad 2 are available in Apple's store, starting at US$499. They include Wi-Fi only versions with 16, 32 or 64 GB of storage; Wi-Fi + 3G models that will work on AT&T's network; and Wi-Fi + 3G models that work with Verizon. All models come in your choice of black or white.
Apple is offering free shipping on all models, and several new accessories are available for the iPad 2, including Apple's innovative Smart Covers. The iPad 2 will not be available for sale in physical stores until later today, and stocks are likely to be limited... so if you'd rather not stand in line (perhaps futilely), your best bet is to order an iPad 2 online.
iPad 2 now available online originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 11 Mar 2011 03:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - Alleged iPhone 5 engineering diagrams surface
iDealsChina has posted what it says are engineering diagrams representing the forthcoming iPhone 5. As you can see from the image above, the purported iPhone 5 features much the same form factor as the iPhone 4, with the exception of an edge-to-edge screen.
Though iDealsChina doesn't say how it came across the engineering diagrams, it does state that these types of diagrams are mold drawings used by case designers to produce sleeves and cases for the upcoming iPhone. It's important to note that now that the iPad 2 has been announced, you can expect an increasing flurry of rumors around the upcoming iPhone. While some rumors and leaks may be legitimate, it's wise to maintain a healthy skepticism regarding most.
[via Mac Rumors]
Alleged iPhone 5 engineering diagrams surface originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 11 Mar 2011 03:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - iPad 2 case and stand roundup
Last year at the launch of the iPad, there were very few accessories available. Sure, you could pick up an Apple Case for the iPad, and I think there were a handful of third-party cases, but the variety wasn't exactly overwhelming.
After the wildly successful first year of the iPad, everyone in the accessory business is going out of their way to make sure you have a choice of goodies at launch or shortly thereafter. In this article, I'll tell you about some of the cases and stands we've heard about so far.
Targus 360° Rotating Stand / Case for iPad 2
This is the first iPad 2-specific product that I've actually received, and it's a beauty. The Targus 360° Rotating Stand / Case (US$59.99) features a unique design with a 360° swivel that allows the iPad 2 to be displayed in portrait or landscape orientations. Unlike other swiveling stands and cases, the Targus 360° is remarkably thin. The center of the swivel mechanism is open so that the Apple logo is clearly visible, there's a soft velour lining to gently caress your iPad 2 screen, and the exterior is a very attractive black faux leather.
To hold the case closed while in transit, there's a wide elastic band similar to that used on Moleskine notebooks. The plastic "tray" that holds the iPad 2 has a hole in the proper spot for the rear-facing camera, although the device has to be swiveled into portrait mode for the camera to be able to "see."
You can buy one now through Amazon, and Best Buy stores will have the cases available on March 11. Targus will also have the thin Protective TPU Skin for iPad 2 ($29.99) and Vuscape Cover and Stand ($39.99) available to protect that new iPad 2.
Click the read more link to see more upcoming iPad 2 products.
Continue reading iPad 2 case and stand roundup
iPad 2 case and stand roundup originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 11 Mar 2011 02:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - What if you had bought AAPL stock instead of Apple products?
Since 2003, the rise of Apple's stock has been stratospheric. Currently AAPL sits at US$346, but many analysts expect it to be at $450 or higher in the next 12 months. The growth of the stock over the years is attributed to Apple's bottom line, its creative and business teams, the fact that it has zero debt, tens of billions of dollars in the bank, and of course, the fact that it sells the hottest consumer electronics on the planet. But what if instead of buying Apple's products, like a PowerBook or original iPod, those who are most responsible for the stock's increase -- you, the consumer -- bought AAPL stock?
Software engineer Kyle Conroy has compiled a list of how much money you would have today if, for example, instead of spending $5700 on a Apple PowerBook G3 250 when it was released on November 10, 1997 you'd spent that same amount on AAPL stock. The answer? Instead owning of a laptop that's probably worth all of twenty bucks today, you'd own $330,563 of AAPL stock. Makes you cringe, doesn't it?
For those of you who bought an original 5 GB iPod for $399 on October 23, 2001, your money, had you purchased AAPL stock, today would be worth $11,914. Spending $1599 on Apple's original iBook G3 on July 21, 1999 would net you $32,031 in AAPL stock today. The list goes on and on.
The good news is that Apple is one of the strongest, healthiest companies on the planet, which controls many emerging markets that still have a decade or more of growth (smartphones, tablets, etc.). In three years today's closing price of $346 is going to make AAPL stock look cheap.
What if you had bought AAPL stock instead of Apple products? originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 11 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - DaisyDisk 2.0 offers scanning multiple discs, in-app deletion
In a moment of great minds thinking alike, as TJ Luoma was writing up his Mac 101 on tracking down hard drive space hogs, I was contacted by the folks at DaisyDisk to see if I wanted to take version 2 of their data visualization software for a spin.
The core of DaisyDisk is the same as when I first reviewed the software in July 2009. It took roughly six minutes for it to scan my 640 GB drive and display the results in a daisy wheel. The UI was rewritten on Core Animation and it shows. Animation is smooth, and colors are vibrant.
Continue reading DaisyDisk 2.0 offers scanning multiple discs, in-app deletion
DaisyDisk 2.0 offers scanning multiple discs, in-app deletion originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - Instapaper updated to 3.0, now includes social features
Instapaper, the iOS app that lets you save online articles for later offline reading, has just hit version 3.0. Already an app featured on many "must have" lists for both the iPhone and iPad, Instapaper has gained a mountain of new features in its latest update. The app and Instapaper website now have native sharing with Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Pinboard and Evernote; according to developer Marco Arment, "You can post to any of these services from the app offline, and the app will queue up the post to be submitted next time it's online."
That feature alone might make Instapaper worth its US$4.99 asking price, but new (completely optional) social features make it even more powerful. Via links to your Facebook/Twitter accounts or email addresses in your device's Contacts app, you can locate friends who use Instapaper and browse articles that they've "liked" via Instapaper's interface. Similarly, there's now an Editors browser that lets you find recommended articles. Instapaper's built-in browser also now allows you to navigate to any website and save articles from within the app itself.
The full 3.0 feature list is on Instapaper's blog. Bear in mind that if you're upgrading Instapaper from an earlier version, all of your articles will re-download after the update -- so if you have hundreds of articles on your account, you might want to wait until you get home and use Wi-Fi instead of 3G.
Instapaper is a universal app, available from the App Store for $4.99. If you're not already using it, I highly recommend you start.
Instapaper updated to 3.0, now includes social features originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - Mac 101: Six steps for tracking down hard drive space hogs
More Mac 101, our ongoing series of tips, tricks and helpful hints for new Mac users and curious veterans.
"Your startup disk is almost full." This simple sentence can trigger all the stages of grief: denial ("That can't be right!"), anger ("This is a 500 GB drive!"), bargaining ("If I delete the podcasts, will you let me download the new iOS update?"), depression ("Ugh, this is going to take all day. Am I going to have to replace my hard drive?") and acceptance ("I can fix this!").
Before you rush out to buy a new hard drive, here are six simple (and free) steps that may help you reclaim "lost" hard drive space.
Continue reading Mac 101: Six steps for tracking down hard drive space hogs
Mac 101: Six steps for tracking down hard drive space hogs originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - Lots of iPad games go on sale this weekend, likely more to come
iOS developers have realized that there will probably be a whole lot of iPad 2 apps sold this weekend (since there will be so many new iPad 2s wandering around), so they've dropped prices on quite a few iPhone apps. AppAdvice has a good list up -- EA's apps are in there, including Mirror's Edge and the recently released Dead Space, and Firemint's Flight Control HD is down to a buck this weekend. Minigore HD is also on sale for a dollar, definitely worth a purchase if you haven't grabbed it yet. Bulkypix is also putting most of its iPad games on sale, though that sale doesn't start until tomorrow morning.
I doubt this is the last we'll see of these sales -- there's going to be a pretty big rush for the top apps lists in iTunes this weekend, as developers try to take advantage of the incoming flood of iPad 2 owners. The good news is that you, as an iPad 1 owner or someone lucky enough to get a shiny new iPad 2, will get to grab some great apps for cheap.
Lots of iPad games go on sale this weekend, likely more to come originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - VeriFone's FUD meets Square's QED
Yesterday, VeriFone (a $4.2b company) launched a harsh public attack on upstart rival Square (a less-than-fifty-people, $37.5m in funding startup). You may remember Square from previous coverage on TUAW or its impressive advertising last year. So what's going on, exactly?
The basic gist of the Square service is simple. It sends you a free little reader doohicky that you plug into your iPhone or iPod touch's headphone/mic port, and you get an accompanying app for free from the App Store. When you want to charge money from someone's card, you swipe it, enter the amount, and they sign for the payment on your screen.
Square takes a transaction fee of a flat 2.75 percent for a swiped transaction (a little more if you manually key the card details in), but there are no other fees of any kind -- not on the hardware, nor is there a monthly service fee. There are also no credit checks or complicated paperwork to sign up for Square in the first place.
Continue reading VeriFone's FUD meets Square's QED
VeriFone's FUD meets Square's QED originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - Rovio picks up $42 million in first funding round
Rovio, the makers of Angry Birds, has nabbed a total of $42 million in a first round of venture capitalist funding. This isn't necessarily quite that big a payday for the company -- while that's obviously a lot of money, the company has reportedly already pulled in about $70 million from app sales and the various licensing money it's been making off of those frustrated flyers and their grunty pig counterparts. But what this does mean is that any company looking to buy Rovio will have a tougher time of it, since the Finnish mobile game developer is now worth that much more.
Of course, going from what I saw of Rovio's Peter Vesterbacka at last week's GDC conference, I strongly doubt the company wants to be bought anyway. Vesterbacka seems to believe that Angry Birds is more or less vindication for the other fifty games his company made before it, and he's interested in having Rovio ride this franchise for as long as it will carry them. It's possible Rovio could get acquired (if the check gets big enough), but since Vesterbacka believes there's a lot more to do with Angry Birds, my guess is he'll use the money he's already put together to stay his own company.
Rovio picks up $42 million in first funding round originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - Apple changes purchase policy so your kids don't max out your credit card
The Washington Post is reporting that Apple has changed its policy on in-app purchases on iOS devices to protect users from accidentally toting up huge iTunes charges.
iOS 4.3 has a feature that requires a password when any purchases are made within an application after it has been downloaded. This is in response to situations where children were sometimes purchasing hundreds of dollars worth of in-app purchases within 15 minutes after an app was first downloaded. Two games in particular were responsible for numerous occurrences of big purchases by kids -- Smurfs' Village and Tap Zoo.
Now that iOS 4.3 is making its way to many iOS devices, a password is not only required to purchase an app on the App Store, but the password will also be required when you make an in-app purchase. By doing this, the user is made aware of the iTunes charges being made by having to enter their password. Once you've made one in-app purchase and entered your password, you can make other recurring charges within 15 minutes without reentering the password. That makes it possible to quickly make multiple charges without having to reenter your password for every charge.
The changes were added to iOS 4.3 as a response to numerous complaints from parents who were upset that their kids were buying "snowflakes" and "Smurfberries" at $99 a barrel without realizing that their parents were being charged actual money for those purchases. These complaints were beginning to surface in the Attorney General's office in a number of states, forcing Apple to look into the issue and respond. It will also help if developers take some responsibility and take the temptation to purchase expensive "virtual products" away from children.
[via Techmeme]
Apple changes purchase policy so your kids don't max out your credit card originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - Mozilla publishes Firefox 4 Release Candidate
Mozilla unwrapped the release candidate of Firefox 4 for Windows, Mac, and Linux on Wednesday. Firefox 4's newly announced release candidate status indicates its features are finalized and, unless its developers uncover bugs of mass destruction, this version will likely become the official release.
According to Mozilla, the millions of users currently beta testing Firefox 4 will be automatically updated to release candidate 1, featuring a series of stability, compatibility, and performance improvements. Since the first beta became available last summer, the development team has fixed over 8,000 bugs in Firefox 4.
Firefox 4 is Mozilla's latest entry into the increasingly competitive web browser market. The unveiling of Firefox 4 Release Candidate coincides with the release of Google's Chrome 10 and comes as Microsoft prepares to officially release its much improved Internet Explorer 9 on March 14. All three browsers feature better support for the latest web standards and massive performance enhancements.
Mozilla executives don't anticipate seeing any show-stopping bugs or needing a second release candidate; they expect to officially release Firefox 4 later this month.
Continue reading Mozilla publishes Firefox 4 Release Candidate
Mozilla publishes Firefox 4 Release Candidate originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - iMovie and Garageband now available for iPad
As expected, iMovie and GarageBand are now available on the App Store for the iPad 2 when it releases later on this week. iMovie is actually just a universal update, since the app was already available for the iPhone, but it won't run on the original iPad (GarageBand will, however). Both apps are available for $4.99. Note that the GB download is pretty big -- GarageBand will run you 370 MB, so if your iPad is already pretty full, you'll have to delete some apps or media.
GarageBand offers up all of those great in-app instruments to record with, so if you have an iPad 1 or 2, it's probably a must-get. iMovie's improvements for iPhone users have yet to be tested, but it's bound to be a big hit tomorrow once the iPad 2 units hit the street.
iMovie and Garageband now available for iPad originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 14:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - Dear Aunt TUAW: Do I need to upgrade to Aperture?
Dear Aunt TUAW,
I have a ~100 GB iPhoto '11 library. I currently have it on an external FireWire drive because I didn't originally have space on my internal drive. All that has changed, and I am now looking for tips on how best to manage this library and be able to back it up regularly.
iPhoto '11 seems to be working fine right now (takes a little bit of time to start the app, but nothing really excessive). However, I really want to start backing it up on a regular schedule -- would splitting it up make sense (only the latest library would need to be backed up, which would take much less time). It sucks that you can only access one library at a time in iPhoto. Would moving to Aperture seem a natural at this point?
Any and all help including backup/sync progs would be helpful.
Thanks in advance,
Your nephew, Matt "iPhoto challenged" C.
Continue reading Dear Aunt TUAW: Do I need to upgrade to Aperture?
Dear Aunt TUAW: Do I need to upgrade to Aperture? originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - iPad 2 online sales to begin at 1 AM PT tomorrow
Answering the eternal question "Do I need to stay up wicked late tonight/get up at the crack of crack tomorrow so I can get my iPad 2 order into the system as quickly as possible?", Apple has delivered a press release this morning with the details. Online orders will kick off at 1 AM Pacific Time tomorrow -- that's 4 AM on the East Coast of the US, and various other times around the globe.
Keep in mind that only US orders are starting tomorrow; wider international availability for iPad 2 begins on March 25, although if you have a US credit card and shipping address you can order from anywhere.
In-store availability for iPad 2 begins at 5 PM local time on Friday afternoon; in addition to the Apple stores, iPad sales will be ongoing at AT&T, Best Buy, Target, Verizon Wireless and Walmart stores as well as some Apple authorized resellers. Anyone buying their iPad at an Apple retail store will be offered free Personal Setup service, which includes email config and App Store registration -- you can use it on the way home.
Continue reading iPad 2 online sales to begin at 1 AM PT tomorrow
iPad 2 online sales to begin at 1 AM PT tomorrow originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 11:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - Firmware password security improved on new MacBook Air & Pro
ZDNet spotted a new Apple support document which states that only "Apple retail stores or Apple Authorized Service Providers" can unlock a new MacBook Air (late 2010) or Pro (early 2011) protected by a firmware password. If your firmware password is lost or forgotten, you'll have to take it to the shop to get it cleared.
This is significant news, because techniques for circumventing the security features built into the Extensible Firmware interface (EFI) have circulated on the Internet for some time. Even if you set a firmware password, a skilled attacker could still access your machine and your data.
A firmware password will prevent someone from restarting the machine using Target Disk Mode or booting off a DVD/external drive. It will not prevent someone from opening your computer up, removing the hard drive, and putting the drive into a separate computer or case, but it's an extra layer of protection. [As the security maxim goes, "physical access = full access" -- however a firmware password is frequently used by schools or enterprises to raise the difficulty level for casual hacking. -Ed.]
It's possible that as newer Macs are released, they too will have the enhanced security that Apple has provided to the current MacBook Air and Pro lines. Alternatively, Apple might leave the supercharged lockdown as a feature for the portable machines only (seeing as it would be something of a drag to haul your Mac Pro to the mall for a forgotten firmware password).
If you need to set a firmware password, boot your computer from the installation disk (either a Snow Leopard DVD or that cute little USB drive that ships with the MacBook Air which you probably lost already, didn't you?). After selecting a language, go to the "Utilities" menu, and select "Firmware Password Utility."
With the password enabled, you will have to enter it before booting from any method other than the internal hard drive. You can remove the password by following the same steps and choosing "Remove Password."
Firmware password security improved on new MacBook Air & Pro originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - Apple has set up a temporary Apple Store in Austin, TX for SXSW
Apple is leasing retail space in downtown Austin for the upcoming South by Southwest conference. The temporary retail store will be located at Sixth and Congress Street and preparations are under way for a Friday opening. This debut coincides with the launch of the iPad 2 and the SXSW conference which begins March 11. The space is quite close to the downtown Austin Convention Center -- handy if you are attending SXSW and want to get an iPad 2 without using a car or taxi.
Rance Wilemon, a partner of Plat.Form Real Estate which is leasing the space to Apple, suggests this opening is not meant to test the market in downtown Austin, but is a way for Apple to participate in the popular SXSW conference. Apple already owns and operates two full retail stores in Austin, one in the Barton Creek Square mall in southwest Austin and one at the Domain in north Austin. The company has no plans to open a third store in the immediate future.
We will be on hand for the SXSW conference and will snag some pictures as well as take a stroll through this temporary store.
TUAW, TechCrunch and CrunchGear will also be hosting a reader meetup in Austin, which you can sign up for here.
[Via Macstories]
Apple has set up a temporary Apple Store in Austin, TX for SXSW originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - Safari used to hijack MacBook Pro at Pwn2Own 2011
A flaw in WebKit, the engine that underlies Safari, Mobile Safari, and several other browsers, was found to be vulnerable in this year's "Pwn2Own" competition, as reported by ZDNet and many others. This is noteworthy for several reasons: first, because the exploit did not use Flash. You will remember that last year's Pwn2Own winner stated "the main thing is not to install Flash" for browser security. Secondly, it is important because WebKit is used not only by Safari but several other browsers, notably several mobile browsers, although it is not immediately apparent whether this same bug could be exploited on a mobile platform. It's also possible that the exploit could make Windows and even Linux computers vulnerable if they are running a WebKit-based browser, but details are not fully known.
Computerworld noted that Google's $20,000 reward for anyone who could break into Chrome on opening day went unclaimed, as the contestant who had signed up did not appear at the Pwn2Own contest. It is unknown whether Google paid to have him assassinated (that's a joke folks, lighten up). Computerworld went on to note that according to the current schedule no one is even going to try to attack Chrome this year, meaning that it could survive a record three consecutive Pwn2Own contests. That is particularly surprising to me since Google Chrome includes its own version of Adobe Flash, but if you're looking to use the most secure browser out there, Google Chrome looks to be your browser of choice.
[via Slashdot]
Safari used to hijack MacBook Pro at Pwn2Own 2011 originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - TUAW's Daily App: Float
The iPhone is known for casual games, but Float might be a little too simple even for most casual gamers. That said, children and those just looking for a super simple experience may find it interesting. It's a game we've all played before -- you get a balloon and try to keep it in the air for as long as possible. In Float, you get a few balloons that fall down the screen towards a row of spikes at the bottom, and it's your job to tap them up and away from the danger below.
It does get a little more frenzied, and there's a bonus area to play with on the lower half, so there is a little strategy in how far you let them drop before batting them back up. But what's really intriguing about this one isn't in the gameplay, it's more in the presentation. The balloons are colorfully rendered, and the UI is very clean and well-designed. There are quite a few game modes, which originally needed to be unlocked via in-app purchase, but are now available for free. There's no Game Center, unfortunately, but OpenFeint is included, as well as a connection to Facebook if you want to share some scores.
Float is available as a universal app for US$0.99, and there's a free version of the app to check out as well. Again, if you're looking for more complicated fare look elsewhere, but who doesn't love batting around balloons anyway?
TUAW's Daily App: Float originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - OWC introduces 8 GB RAM modules for 2011 MacBooks
If, like many who've just purchased one of the brand new MacBook Pros released last week, you still have US$1,600 rattling around in your change purse, OWC have just the thing for you - a pair of 8 GB SODIMMs.
A 16 GB memory upgrade is just what you need to give your shiny new MacBook the oomph it really needs. Even though Apple says the new machines have an 8 GB upper memory limit, OWC says its testing confirms the MacBooks can use 16 GB of RAM.
Larry O'Connor, founder and CEO of Other World Computing said, "Our initial confirmed results, using the same 'diglloydMedium' CS5 testing parameters employed by macperformanceguide.com, reveals a nearly 50% performance improvement with 16 GB of RAM installed vs. the factory maximum of 8 GB. This upgrade truly lets owners of the latest MacBook Pro models unleash the power of their machine with performance approaching that only previously available in Apple desktop and tower models."
Those with slightly shallower pockets can go for the 12 GB upgrade, a mere $879.99.
[via MacStories]
OWC introduces 8 GB RAM modules for 2011 MacBooks originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - Certain USB hubs could cause system instability on Macs
Stumble up to your Mac first thing in the morning, tap the keyboard to wake it up and -- what? I incorrectly disconnected my Time Machine backup drive? I never touched it, I swear!
Turns out, this is not my fault for once. Apple has just released a support note explaining how, in a certain combination of circumstances, third-party USB hubs may incorrectly disconnect after wake from sleep, causing system instability. Basically, if you have a third-party USB hub that doesn't wake properly, is connected via another USB hub, and you wake your computer with an external USB mouse or keyboard, voilà, system instability.
So waking my MacBook Pro by tapping the Space bar on my Microsoft USB keyboard (wait... OK, I see the problem here) is enough, sometimes, to make my Time Machine drive choke.
The solution Apple offers: connect all USB input devices directly to a USB port on the computer, wake it by pressing the power button instead of waggling the mouse or tapping the USB keyboard connected via a third-party USB hub, and connect USB storage devices directly to a USB port on the computer to prevent third-party USB hubs from affecting them.
All I need now is for the next version of the MacBook Pro to have about 17 USB ports.
[via ZDNet]
Certain USB hubs could cause system instability on Macs originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 06:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - Verizon, AT&T iPhones load web pages at same rate, firm reports
Verizon's network may reach areas that AT&T doesn't, but people stuck with AT&T have told themselves at least AT&T's data network is faster. While this is indeed the case, it doesn't make web pages load any faster on AT&T than on Verizon, according to a phone testing firm.
Metrico Wireless confirmed that data speeds on Verizon's CDMA network are indeed just half those on AT&T's network, but that this made no difference when it came to browsing the Web. Users will only notice the difference if they're downloading large files on their iPhones.
Verizon boasts that its network is more reliable than AT&T's, and Metrico's testing confirmed this. But, without revealing exact percentages, the firm said that the difference in terms of dropped or unconnected calls wasn't that great. Metrico tested with 4,000 calls and 10,000 web page downloads in New York, Seattle, Washington, Baltimore, Chicago and Dallas and surprisingly found that the Verizon iPhone was 10 percent less reliable than the AT&T model when downloading a file in a moving vehicle.
Verizon, AT&T iPhones load web pages at same rate, firm reports originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 05:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - Why Apple.com hosts movie trailers
Here's a pretty interesting story about why Apple.com, of all places, hosts movie trailers. It all goes back to that first Star Wars: The Phantom Menace trailer back around 1998 (which I watched hundreds of times, before I saw the actual, less exciting movie).
Over on Quora, a former Apple employee named Chad Little says that "Lucasfilm had posted a rather crappy trailer on their site, and the team at Apple was appalled." So Apple allegedly went back and looked up DNS records to contact the Lucas team, and it had the movie encoded with QuickTime rather than the RealVideo that was being used. At the time, Apple hosted the trailer with a little company called Akamai, which has since grown into one of the world's biggest providers of web hosting.
The deal worked so well that Apple ended up hosting other movie trailers, and in recent years those trailers have served as great demos for iTunes and the Apple TV service as well. Little claims that Apple doesn't actually pay for content rights, but movie companies get to share their trailers in a common space, and Apple gets great branding and display content for its QuickTime video specs.
[via Slashfilm]
Why Apple.com hosts movie trailers originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 04:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - iPhone app helps the blind ID currency
Identifying different denominations of dollar bills has long been a problem for the sight-impaired in the US. A US$1 bill is the same size and shape as a $100 bill, making them hard to differentiate.
Many use techniques like folding different bills into different shapes, but this doesn't help when receiving change in a store. LookTel now has an app called Money Reader for the iPhone 4/3GS and fourth-generation iPod touch which will check bills and speak their values out loud.
LookTel says its Money Reader can use the iPhone's camera to "read" currency and speak its value aloud in real time, and the app doesn't need an internet connection. It currently recognises $1, $2, $5, $10, $20, $50 and $100 bills, and it costs $2 from the App Store.
The Treasury Department was ordered last year to change US currency to make it easier for the blind and partially-sighted to identify it -- other countries make their notes different sizes and shapes to help with this -- but until then, this could be a big help.
iPhone app helps the blind ID currency originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 03:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - Apple posts new iPad guided tour videos
Apple has posted new iPad guided tour videos on its site. The new videos all feature the iPad 2 and encompass FaceTime, Mail, Safari, iBooks, Videos, Photos, Find my iPad, iPod, iTunes, App Store, Maps, AirPlay, GarageBand and iMovie. The videos follow on the heels of the release of iOS 4.3 earlier today.
Additionally, Apple has added dedicated preview pages for iMovie and GarageBand for iPad. The previews give you a nice walk-through of all the features the two apps offer on the iPad. Both iMovie and GarageBand for iPad should become available for US$4.99 each on Friday when the iPad 2 is released. iOS 4.3 for existing iPads is available for free download now via iTunes.
Apple posts new iPad guided tour videos originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 02:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - iOS 4.3 hints at A5 processor in iPhone 5
iClarified reports that based on evidence found within the iOS 4.3 firmware, the iPhone 5 is likely to have the same dual-core A5 processor as the iPad 2. This is not at all shocking; last year, the iPhone 4 launched with the same A4 processor that debuted in the original iPad.
The iPad 2 is showing benchmark results well over 150 percent better than the original iPad, and we can probably expect the same situation for the iPhone 5. This means that, at least in terms of raw computing performance, the next-gen iPhone may be even more powerful than the first iPad. In terms of how fast the device will "feel," that's anyone's guess -- but it's worth noting that early reviews of the iPad 2 say it feels at least twice as fast as the model it replaces.
[via AppleInsider]
iOS 4.3 hints at A5 processor in iPhone 5 originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 01:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать - Engadget reviews the iPad 2
Our sister site Engadget has spent the past week playing around with its iPad 2 review unit, and Engadget's review is now live. (We'll just assume Apple meant to send one to TUAW, but it got lost in the mail ... along with all of our event invitations.) Engadget gives the iPad 2 a score of 9/10, citing the iPad's speed, design and addition of cameras as its strongest points.
Engadget's review isn't entirely glowing, however. Reviewer Joshua Topolsky was unimpressed with the quality of the iPad 2's cameras, and after viewing the gallery of photos taken with the iPad 2's camera, I agree with him. Topolsky also wished the display had received a resolution increase from the first-gen iPad's 1024 x 768 resolution, something I was also hoping to see. It's been rumored that Apple actually wanted to debut a double-resolution 2048 x 1536 display in the iPad 2, but high cost and production difficulties meant the company had to reserve that feature for a future model.
The money quote from Topolsky's review, which you can expect to see re-printed many times over the next few days: "It might frustrate the competition to hear this, but it needs to be said: the iPad 2 isn't just the best tablet on the market, it feels like the only tablet on the market." So much for the Motorola Xoom saving us from an eternity of white tracksuits.
To me, the part of Engadget's review that truly caught my eye was the iPad 2's Geekbench results. The iPad 2 scored 721 in Geekbench, a vast improvement over the original iPad's 442 score. For comparison, Geekbench's baseline score of 1000 is the score for a single-core, 1.6 GHz PowerMac G5. The iPad 2's score puts it roughly on par with the performance of a 1.5 GHz 12" PowerBook G4, which says to me that these little tablet computers are quickly on their way to becoming much more than a supplement to a traditional computer.Engadget reviews the iPad 2 originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 00:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Переслать
| rss2email.ru | отписаться: http://www.rss2email.ru/unsubscribe.asp?c=6894&u=24004&r=484673635 управление подпиской: http://www.rss2email.ru/manage.asp |
