News Archive for 02/05/14

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Carrara Studio 2 available for pre-order

05/14, 9:30pm

Carrara Studio 2 available for pre-order

Developer Eovia announced today the upcoming availability of Carrara Studio 2, a major update to its flagship 3D solution for Web, print and video. The English version of Carrara Studio 2 will begin shipping on June 5 for Mac OS 9/X users, but customers can pre-order copies beginning today. Highlights of the new $400 release include new highly-realistic render algorithms, and rendering with Radiosity, Photon Map and Subdivision Modeling technologies. Upgrade pricing starts at $150.

Xerox ships two new consumer-grade printers

05/14, 8:40pm

Xerox ships two new consumer-grade printers

Xerox yesterday announced that it would ‘raise the bar’ on economy color laser printers by offering a $1500 color printer that boasts a powerful 300 MHz processor, which allows for a first page out-time of nine seconds, as well as speeds of 16 pages per minute (ppm) thereafter. A more expensive model, the Phaser 6200, offers similar features, but includes a 500MHz PowerPC processor and up to 24ppm print speed; the Phaser 8200 is priced at $2000. Both printers come with CentreWare IS embedded Web server for superior printer management. Additionally, both printers are fully Mac-compatible in a network setting.

Newer Tech to resume operations

05/14, 7:25pm

Newer Tech to resume operations

Bankrupt Macintosh upgrade developer Newer Technology will resume business operations under the lead of a new corporate owner as early as this year. Newer closed its doors well over a year ago in the face of a rapidly-evolving marketplace. A notice on the company's Web site suggests that more information is forthcoming in a matter of weeks. It is not clear, at this point, what portion of Newer's previous operations will be revived; Newer developed motherboard and processor upgrades for several years before its demise.

Photos from Xserve introduction

05/14, 5:55pm

Photos from Xserve introduction

We have posted three photo galleries from this mornings' introduction of the Xserve, Apple's new dedicated server platform: one, two, and three.

Photoshop Scripting plug-in fixes install

05/14, 5:35pm

Photoshop Scripting plug-in fixes install

Adobe Photoshop 7.0 Scripting plug-in v1.0.1 helps automate repetitive tasks in Photoshop using scripting support (JavaScript or AppleScript). The update now fixes installation problems as well as many other small issues.

Sybase announces OS X support of ASE

05/14, 4:50pm

Sybase announces OS X support of ASE

Sybase has announced support for Adaptive Server Enterprise (ASE) 12.5 on Mac OS X. The product will be released within the third quarter of this year. Sybase also announces ASE will provide support for applications developed with Apple's WebObjects. With ASE, users will be able to provide scalable RDBMS' (relational database management system), which support the heavy data processing needs and complex data maniupluation that is needed.

RoadWired releases 3 portable storage devices

05/14, 4:15pm

RoadWired releases 3 portable storage devices

RoadWired has introduced The Pod, a compact carrying case designed to organize and protect a digital camera (and film) as well as portable audio or handheld computer gear. It features more than 20 pockets and compartments and can be used as either a shoulder bag or belt pack. Also released is a new "R.A.P.S" (RoadWired Advanced Protection System) that provides shock protection as well as humidity and corrosion, and a new photo/video convertible bag, which weighs in at only 50 ounces and stores digital media and accessories. The Pod costs $50, the R.A.P.S. costs $13 and the new photo/video convertible bag is available for $125.

QuickPopup 3.0.1: messages across networks

05/14, 3:35pm

QuickPopup 3.0.1: messages across networks

QuickPopup v3.0.1 allows users to exchange popup messages over corporate, school or home networks without being connected to the internet. It is compatible with Mac OS 9 & X as well as Windows. The upgrade improves reliability and speed on the OS X version as well as adding compatibility with the next release of OS X, Jaguar; pricing starts at $15 per license.

Kick-off! 1.5 monitors unattended computers

05/14, 3:25pm

Kick-off! 1.5 monitors unattended computers

Sophisticated Circuits has released Kick-off! v1.5, which brings support for Mac OS X and UPS systems. The software is both a hardware and software solution that contiunuously monitors unattended computers for problems, and automatically restarts the system. It also detects error conditions that cause applications to fail but not crash; the price is $180, upgrades cost $35.

Microtek ships ScanMaker 6700 scanner

05/14, 2:50pm

Microtek ships ScanMaker 6700 scanner

Microtek is now shipping the ScanMaker 6700, its $400 scanner that offers 48-bit color depth and 4800 x 2400 dpi optical resolution, as well as dual FireWire and USB connections. It features an integrated 16-bit ADC (analog-to-digital converter), which converts originals into digital data with high-fidelity, a built-in transparency adapter for scanning up to 4" x 5" transparent originals, and its patent-pending FilmView technology--in which the lid also serves as a light box for previewing slides and film. An optional 50-page automatic document feeder, the ADF-650, is $200.

Addonics introduces new media card solutions

05/14, 2:25pm

Addonics introduces new media card solutions

Addonics has added new products to its DigiDrive line of multi-format Flash Card readers. The Addonics Mini DigiDrive reads/writes to seven mainstream Flash media formats, including CF-I, CF-II, Smart Memory, Memory Stick, Micro Drive, Multimedia Card, and Secure Digital Card. The $50 device measures 3.75 (W) x 3.18 (D) x .6 inches (H), weighs just 5 ounces, and features USB 1.1/2.0 connectivity.

iPrompter 2.0 now available for OS X

05/14, 2:20pm

iPrompter 2.0 now available for OS X

Intelli Innovations has released iPrompter 2.0, an upgrade to its text prompting software that provides OS X compatibility. The $30 utility is also available as part of the iPrompter ProPack ($280), which includes a site/district license for iPrompter, two CD-ROMs for deployment purposes, and a free infrared USB remote control device which can control iPrompter and other Mac applications from up to 35 feet away.

Copy-protected CDs may void Apple warranty

05/14, 2:15pm

Copy-protected CDs may void Apple warranty

Some copy-protected CDs may cause problems and/or damage to your Mac and may not be covered under your warranty, according to a ZDNet article: "some copy-protected audio discs are causing Mac OS computers to start to a gray screen. In some cases, the discs will not easily eject from the computer."

Apple limits bandwidth on iDisk accounts

05/14, 2:10pm

Apple limits bandwidth on iDisk accounts

Several MacNN readers have noted that Apple iTools services is now limiting bandwidth of users' accounts: "I've noticed that my iDisk is giving me a 'broadband has exceeded on this account' error. This is new, I had it the first time yesterday. I've looked whole over the site of Apple to find how much the limitation is per day, but there is nothing mentioned of this...."

Apple introduces XServe dedicated server

05/14, 1:00pm

Apple introduces XServe dedicated server

Apple today introduced Xserve, a new rackmount dedicated server solution that starts at $3,000. The 1U server offers support for dual 1-GHz processors, level-3 cache for each processor, support for up to 2GB of DDR SDRAM, four hot-pluggable ATA/100 drive bays (independent channels with up to 120GB in each bay), two Gigabit ethernet ports, 2 64-bit/66MHz PCI slots, and a CD-ROM as well as other standard ports such as two USB ports, FireWire, and serial port (for consoles). The server is also bundled with special software optimized for SMP, with extensive processor/power supply/networking/intrusion, and other server monitoring tools, software-based striping/mirroring. It is available now at the Apple Store in two models: 1GHz/256MB/60GB for $2,999 and dual-1GHz/512MB/60GB for $3,999. Other notes:

• Xserve will not include Jaguar Server, announced last week at WWDC. It will be a paid upgrade.
• Apple will not be selling the carrier units (for each drive) separately.
• Apple will target four markets: education, creative, biotech, and video. Apple last quarter doubled the number of video VARs (value-added resellers) and grew its platform marketshare in the video market to more than 50%.
• Apple also showcased a technology preview of XServe RAID, a 3U storage platform that offers storage of 14 ATA/100 drives (for up to 1.68TB of storage) and dual 2Gb fibre channel I/O. It offers redundant and hot-swappable power supplies and cooling, and dual-RAID controllers. It is expected to ship by the end of the year.
• Apple announced new AppleCare Premium Support for covering hardware/software issues and AppleCare Part Service Kits for self-serviceability (available through Apple or through the channel).
• Both Oracle and HP have partnered to offer support for XServe.
• Clear Channel has placed orders for 40 servers and Genetech has already seen a "meaningful" improvement when using Xserve.

Gefen extends range of USB peripherals

05/14, 10:45am

Gefen extends range of USB peripherals

Gefen's USB-500, a four-port USB extender, offers the ability to connect USB periphals at distances up to 1650 feet using sender/receiver units. It is shipping now for $950.

Pepper 4.0.4 fixes bugs in text editor

05/14, 10:30am

Pepper 4.0.4 fixes bugs in text editor

The $35 shareware editor, Pepper 4.0.4, adds a new Fortran language plugin and has fixes for a "serious" bug in FTP upload under OS X, the Java function parser, and a problem with newlines and commenting in DOS files.

FileMaker Pro 5.5 Web Companion 5.5v4 posted

05/14, 10:30am

FileMaker Pro 5.5 Web Companion 5.5v4 posted

FileMaker Pro 5.5 Web Companion 5.5v4 fixes a problem where FileMaker Pro database files stored in the "Web" folder (or subfolders) could be downloaded by end user browsers using HTTP requests, regardless of the settings in the Remote Administration options of the Web Companion Configuration, including "Requires password."

Graphic Converter 4.4 enables TWAIN acquire

05/14, 10:30am

Graphic Converter 4.4 enables TWAIN acquire

Lemke Software has released Graphic Converter 4.4, an update to the popular $30 graphics utility, which adds long filename support in open/save of images, URL import from psd files, an option to save files with original date, JEDMICS C4 import, a date/time stamp, TIFF import with zip compression, and enables TWAIN aquire under OS X. [PPC, Carbon]

Utility offers multiple session burning

05/14, 10:25am

Utility offers multiple session burning

James Sentman has released CD Session Burner 1.0b1, which "lets you burn multiple "sessions" to a CDR until all the space is used up. While disk burning is built into Mac OS X, it burns the entire disk, even if you have only used a small portion of it. [It] uses Apples Disk Burner technology so any CD/DVD writer that Disk Burner supports is also supported by CD Session Burner." The beta expires June 4th.

FontAgent X: new Cocoa-based font util

05/14, 7:40am

FontAgent X: new Cocoa-based font util

Insider Software today released FontAgent X, a Cocoa version of its font management application that adds font activation, set management, and support for an unlimited number of font libraries. It offers the ability to find, clean, rejoin and organize all their fonts on multiple disks and also checks for corrupt fonts, partial font families, and font version issues. Upgrades to the $90 utility are $50. A free demo version manages up to 250 font files.

Auto FX releases DreamSuite Series Two

05/14, 7:35am

Auto FX releases DreamSuite Series Two

DreamSuite Series Two is a collection of 12 unique visual effects for enhancing photographs. The $150 package includes both a Photoshop plugin and a standalone application (invidual effects are available for $50 each). It supports both Photoshop 7 and OS X. Purchases before June 30th will receive two free DreamSuite effects (Dreamy Photo and Mosaic).

TFM 1.0 for browsing developer docs

05/14, 7:30am

TFM 1.0 for browsing developer docs

TFM 1.0 is a tool for searching and viewing documentation and source code: "you can search, study or simply browse: Mac OS X developer documentation, framework headers, source code examples, system header files and your own source and documentation." It offers search functions, display of HTML & source code, and "understands" ObjC inheritance.