OpenGL 1.1 Plugin for REALbasic

OpenGL Plugin 1.1 for REALbasic, which enables OpenGL 3D graphics for use within REALbasic applications, is now Carbonized for use in Mac OS X and includes more OpenGL functions.

Tech: CD-R media to rise in price, more...

Evening tech news: the cost of CD-R media is expected to rise as much as 350 percent this year as demand increases; Microsoft\'s Windows XP will ship on Oct. 25; and Motorola has released iSketch, a Palm application that allows users to write in their own handwriting and draw sketches.

OS X: 10.0.3 update, browsers compared

osx.macnn.com reports on a new 10.0.3 update for Mac OS X, a comparison of the three primary browsers for Mac OS X, Lexmark\'s Mac OS X drivers for its inkjet printers, and a new open-source Cocoa application for accessing Yahoo! chat. [updated]

Mac OS X 10.0.3 released

Mike Murphy notes that Mac OS X 10.0.3 (Build 4P13) is now available from the Software Update control panel in Mac OS X. The update, which comes little more than a week after the 10.0.2 (Build 4P12) update on May 1, \"ensures full visibility of file lists in directories that contain a large number of items.\" The 10.0.3 update available via Apple\'s web site also includes the changes made in 10.0.2 and will update both 10.0.1 and 10.0.2 systems. [updated]

Max Payne, Stronghold coming to the Mac

Infogrames\' Mac label, MacSoft, has announced that it has acquired the Mac publishing rights to several titles from Take Two Interactive, including Tropico and Fly! II, which will both ship this summer, in addition to Max Payne, Stronghold, and Myth III: The Wolf Age. Tropico, Fly! II, and Myth III were previously announced as titles to be published by Take Two\'s wholly owned PC publishing subsidiary, Gathering of Developers. Additional titles acquired as part of the agreement will be announced at a later date.

Mail Siphon 2.5 fights spam

Mail Siphon 2.5, a new version of the $20 shareware utility for managing email on remote servers, is now Carbonized for Mac OS X, lets users send fake bounces to spammers with one click, and supports many encodings. The utility is also available in French, Danish, and Norwegian.

PhotoCat 3.4.1: photo cataloging

PhotoCat 3.4.1 is a new version of the $25 photo cataloging utility for the Mac. The new version now allows a sound to be played at the end of a long job, add a caption to every image, and retrive the indexation from an item list file.

WebObjects 4.5.1 Update 1 released

Apple has released WebObjects 4.5.1 Update 1, a patch for its application server and development environment. The update is recommended for all users of WebObjects 4.5.1 for Mac OS X, but no changes are documented.

OS X browser wars: comparing the offerings

We have published a feature comparing the three primary OS X Web browsers: Internet Explorer 5.1, OmniWeb 4.0, and iCab Preview 2.5.

CreativePage 2.6.1: Web creation tool

PineHill Products has released CreativePage 2.6.1, a new version of its Classic and Mac OS X web site creation tool. Version 2.6.1 adds the ability to preview in the browser you choose and a number of interface tweaks and bug fixes. CreativePage and SiteToolkit are now available as a $38 bundle. [736 KB -- Classic; 900 KB -- Mac OS X]

Excite Messenger 2.0 available

Excite Messenger 2.0 is a new version of its messaging client, offering support for Buddy Card, which can help share photos, Web links, and always up-to-date contact information as well as custom news headlines, stock quotes, local weather reports, sports scores, and radio and TV listings.

Lexmark OS X printer drivers

Lexmark has released Mac OS X drivers for most of its inkjet printers including the Z22, Z32, Z42, and Z52 Color Jetprinter.

The new iBook vs. competitors

The Rogues\' Gallery of AAPL Investors compares the new iBook to other similiarly priced laptops from Gateway, HP, Dell, IBM, Compaq, and Toshiba. The comprehensive chart compares the laptops in areas such as weight, dimensions, optical media, input/output ports, software bundle, and ISP package.

Earthlink follows Apple to Chiat/Day

Earthlink has transferred its estimated $50 million advertising account to TBWA/Chiat/Day in what sources said was a centralization of ad duties resulting from the \"alliance\" between Apple and Earthlink, according to AdWeek.com. TBWA/Chiat/Day has been Apple\'s advertising agency of choice since the launch of its \"Think Different\" campaign.

FileGeek 3.0: type/creator utility

The $9 shareware utility, FileGeek 3.0, can assign a file type and creator to files, allowing you to associate a file, or entire folder, with the application of your choice.

Architosh: Autocad sales down, more

Architosh reports on Autocad\'s decreasing sales and its implications for Mac users and a Mac version of the Department of Energy\'s MEPcheck.

Red Eye makes commercial fonts free

Red Eye Type has re-released four of its commercial fonts—Atmosphere Neue Light, Angela Sans, Imitari, and Memento Mori—as freeware.

How to get Macs back in schools

Business Week\'s Charles Haddad believes it will take the outcry of community Mac users and supporters to return Macs to the number one computer among schools. \"Reeducating School Boards about Macs\" cites John Droz, Jr.\'s fight against the Carteret County Commission as an instance of where an outspoken community member is trying to convince the board to keep Macs in local schools.

Game Doctor 1.3.1 helps in more games

Game Doctor 1.3.1 is a new version of the $10 utility that offers game hints, cheats, patches, and more. The new version includes hints, tips, and walkthroughs for Avernum, Avernum 2, Escape from Monkey Island, Heroes III: Complete, Hexen 2, Maximum Pool, Monopoly, and Simon the Sorcerer 2.

Samsung releases Mini Yepp audio player

Samsung has announced the release of its 32MB Mini Yepp digital audio player, which is the smallest USB-based digital audio player ever at 1 1/8 x 2 1/4 x 7/8 inches and weighing only 1.13 ounces. The $100 device includes a four-preset graphic equalizer and a powerful bass boost system, and its LCD display shows musical parameters and the current date and time. The Mini Yepp is available now at CompUSA and will be available at other retailers, including Sears and Amazon.com, later this month.

Extensis privately seeds Suitcase 10 beta

Extensis has privately seeded a beta version of Suitcase 10, offering new features such as Global Auto-Activation, Activate on Demand, a control strip module, Multiple Master font support, the ability to \'Collect Fonts\' for Output, contextual menu support, and better Font Conflict Handling. The Suitcase Server also offers new features such as \'Set Level Subscription\' and \'Job Fonts.\' The company has previously promised native support for OS X in a future release as well.

TECsoft\'s new AppleScript Training CD

TECsoft has announced a new \"Workflow Automation with AppleScript Training CD,\" which teaches users and businesses alike to use AppleScript to automate common tasks on their Mac. The CD is available until June 15, 2001 at an introductory price of $100 (a $50 savings).

DealNN bargains: UMAX scanner ($44)

Today\'s bargains at DealNN include an iMac G3/500 DV SE ($999), a PowerBook G3/300 with DVD ($1195), free PowerBook shipping and RAM at MacMall, a Umax 2100U Scanner ($44), a 30GB Western Digital HD ($86), and an External Iomega ZipCD 4x/4x/6x USB CD-RW ($99).

f(x): new Cocoa-based calculator

Scott Nichol has released f(x) 1.0, a Cocoa-based RPN scientific calculator that features a persistent stack, complete support for multiple users, an editable constants list, and flexible numeric display modes.

iCards for Mother\'s Day

Apple has put together a series of nine iCards for Mother\'s Day, which can be found in the Holidays category.

PowerBooks used to map City of Victory

Apple has published an article discussing the use of PowerBooks to map the City of Victory in southern India.

Charla 1.0: open-source Yahoo! chat client

Peter Ammon has released Charla 1.0, the first version of his Cocoa-based, open-source Mac OS X application for accessing Yahoo! chat.

MacDesktops: 14 new pictures

Over the past week, MacDesktops has posted 14 new pictures, including: X flames (Mac OS X), VW Racer (Cars), Film countdown (Movies), and Jessica Alba (Portraits). MacDesktops is updated daily.

New font at Fontosaurus

Fontosaurus Text has posted Nonzero, a new, freely-downloadable ($2 shareware) font.

Smell-O-Mints periodic table of elements

StimpSoft has redesigned its Web site and released Smell-O-Mints 1.0, a free, relatively simple, Carbonized periodic table of elements.

SH Tracker 4.0.5+ improves documentation

Software & Hardware Tracker 4.0.5+ features updated documentation, including Mac OS X compatibility notes, for the database application for tracking serial numbers and other information.

Apple posts English-International updates

Apple has posted several English-International software updates: AppleWorks 6.1.2, iMovie 2.1 for OS X, and iMovies Plugin Pack for Mac OS X. Additionally, a new North America/International Authoring Support Update 1.1 has been posted, although it appears identical to the one released two days ago.

LaCie introduces 180GB hard drive

LaCie today introduced a 180GB Ultra 160/LVD SCSI drive. Operating at 7,200 RPM, the drive is capable of transfer rates of up to 75 MB/sec when configured as a RAID, or up to 47 MB/sec as a single drive. The SCSI drive carries a $2,500 price tag and comes with a 5-year warranty. The drive can also be configured in LaCie\'s 12-bay TX12000, for up to 2.1TB of storage.

FireWire in 40 percent of new systems

The 1394 Trade Association, which regulates the Apple-invented FireWire I/O standard, is reporting increased FireWire IC shipments from major manufacturers such as Texas Instruments. The association claims that FireWire has established itself in more than 40 percent of all notebook and handheld PCs and continues to grow.

swdb 1.1 offers access to ILG Radio database

Ben Mesander has posted an OS X version of his swdb 1.1 shortwave database system, a web search engine interface for the free ILG Radio database of shortwave radio stations. (It is written in the Python, and uses the PostgreSQL database to store the station database.)

MenuStrip 1.8 for OS X adds plugin support

MenuStrip 1.8 is an update to the utility that offers convenient access to frequently used settings, such as the computer volume, monitor resolution, and color depth, from the OS X menubar as well as a menubar clock with chime and alarm capabilities and Classic Mac OS style \'Hide All\' and \'Show All\' buttons. Version 1.8 offers plug-in support and a new a SoundSchemes for playing custom sounds at specific system events. [App--177KB, plugin--64KB]

CMS developing Mac version of backup system

A Macintosh version of CMS Peripherals\' ABS hard drive automatic backup system is currently under development, according to company sources. The PCMCIA or USB solution provides completely automatic installation upon connection and a patent-pending automatic launcher that copies the entire host-drive. A recent upgrade to the tool also allows users to make the device function as a visible, accessible hard drive. Storage ranges up to 30 GB, and prices start at $329. Macintosh drivers should be available this Summer.

AirStation Pro: wireless bridge for LANs

Buffalo Technology today announced its AirStation Pro, a wireless bridge for connecting multiple LANs, offering support for up to six AirStation access points. Using Buffalo\'s directional and omni antennae, the company says that multiple LANs can be connected at distances of up to one mile.

Marketsource looking for Apple reps

MarketSource, a marketing services firm that has been hired by Apple to spread the word about Demo Days and other special events, lists several opportunities in the Employment section of its Web site for \"Apple/Mac Retail Representatives\"—some of whom may be used in Apple\'s (rumored) retail stores: \"We are looking for experienced and knowledgeable individuals, with excellent Macintosh hardware and software support and demonstration skills, who are 18 years of age or older, to work as a part-time, Apple Retail Representative.\" Positions are available in Fresno, California; Modesto, California; Roseville, California; Sacramento, California; and Vacaville, California.

Roundup: McLean, VA Apple store, more

Yesterday we published two reader reports (1, 2) on the McLean, Virginia Apple Retail Store and a reader report on the new Dual USB iBook. Other reports included Apple laptops in Consumer Reports, new Metrowerks CodeWarriors coming at WWDC, incorrect iBook specs at the Apple Store, Logitech\'s Cordless MouseMan Optical now shipping, Tropico progress update, Olympus\' new digital camera, Steve Jobs\' challenge to Michael Dell, and Apple\'s job listing for a microprocessor development project manager. Software releases included IntelliMerge 1.1.2, Label Printer Pro 6.0.1, MacGhostView 2.1, Default Folder 3.1.1, and Mozilla 0.9.