News Archive for 02/11/15

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Apps: iDisk util, Virex, Collaborate, HPIJS..

11/15, 11:00pm

Apps: iDisk util, Virex, Collaborate, HPIJS..

Apple has posted iDisk Utilty 1.01, which allows users to open other .Mac users' public folders, iDisks and manage your own iDisk. Some functions require .Mac membership. It runs on Mac OS X and is available in a combined English/Japanese version. [316KB]
Network Associates has updated its DAT file for Virex 7.x, offering additional support for Microsoft Office v. X and improved handling of encrypted ASP script files, better support for MIME binary files, support for ACE (WinACE) Archiver and additional packers, BZIP compression, additional LHA compression formats, PDF 5.0 files, and improved scanning for MIME formats. [3.1MB]
HPIJS 1.3 is a free, open source printer driver that is prepackaged for Mac OS X Jaguar (10.2 and higher) and Darwin (6.0 and higher). This driver supports 212 printers (Apollo, HP DeskJet, LaserJet, OfficeJet,Business Inkjet, Mopier, PSC, PhotoSmart and more) and uses the open-source Foomatic printing system in combination with ESP Ghostscript, an open-source PostScript interpreter, and CUPS, the built-in printing spooler in Mac OS X Jaguar. [1.3MB]
Collaborate 1.1 is an update to the combination chat and whiteboard program through which "individuals in disparate locations can interact to work out ideas. [It] functions as a distributed network allowing an arbitrary number of individuals to be involved." Version 1.1 ads a pencil tool for freehand drawing, support for more file formats, IP-based restriction, chat and/or whiteboard restrictions, and other enhancements. The $10 sharewarw is free to students, faculty and staff of educational institutions as well as to staff of non-profit and charitable organizations. [1.5MB]
B-Prolog 6.3 is "is a Prolog system with extensions for programming concurrency, constraints, and interactive graphics. The system is based on a significantly refined WAM, called ATOAM, that facilitates software emulation. In addition to an ATOAM emulator with a garbage collector written in C, the system consists of a compiler and an interpreter written in Prolog, and a rich library of built-in predicates written in C and Prolog."

Brother updates MFC printer, scanner drivers

11/15, 6:40pm

Brother updates MFC printer, scanner drivers

Brother has updated its MFC-3100c printer and scanner drivers to include support for Mac OS X 10.2.1. The update addresses general printing problems with OS X, in addition to bringing support for the OS revision. [Download - Printer, Scanner]

Mac OS X tip: conversion via Calculator

11/15, 5:30pm

Mac OS X tip: conversion via Calculator

MacNN reader Callum Duncan notes that Mac OS X's Calculator application is capable of performing currency, length, volume and speed calculations via the 'Convert' menu. Currency exchange rates can be updated via a menu item.

Apps: SolitaireTDX, Impasse 1.2.5, Silhouette

11/15, 5:10pm

Apps: SolitaireTDX, Impasse 1.2.5, Silhouette

Semicolon Software has released Solitaire Till Dawn X 1.0, the Mac OS X implementation of its popular Solitaire virtual card playing game. Solitaire Till Dawn includes countless variations of the classic card playing game. [Download - 6.9MB]
Impasse 1.2.5, from software developer Glucose, is now fully compatible with Mac OS X 10.2. Impasse is a $10 OS X firewall that offers live monitoring of rejected/accepted packets. "Once OS X 10.2 Jaguar was released, we were concerned that our existing Impasse users would just convert en masse to the built-in Jaguar firewall. What happened was just the opposite." [Download - 439KB]
Silhouette is a graphics "vectorization" tool that converts relatively simple bitmap images into vector designs. It is available as standalone software, but is also offered as a plug-in for Adobe Illustrator versions 8,9 and 10 for Mac OS X or Classic. [Download - Classic, OS X, ILL - Classic, ILL - OS X]
Updated:
Alexander Wilson Studios today updated its growing offering of free Internet Explorer Toolbar Icons for Mac OS X and OS 9 to include a set of Canada-specific links and icons.
PandaWare has released TimeCache 5.0.9 -- a minor update that adds new features, improvements, and bug fixes to its $50 time and expense billing application for Mac OS 9/X. [Download - Classic, Classic]
Jotz 1.0.93 is a maintenance update to the multimedia notepad for OS X that adds OS 10.2.2 compatibility and automatic URL conversion. Because Jotz has evolved greatly since its debut, version 1.0.93 also allows users who obtained a trial demo in the past to obtain another evaluation license. [Download - 758KB]

Sterling Ledet launches new training promo

11/15, 1:00pm

Sterling Ledet launches new training promo

Sterling Ledet & Associates today announced a new incentive program for purchasers of its Platinum Client Annual Training Pass, offering any person purchasing or renewing a Platinum Pass Membership a choice of a Canon Elph Digital Camera or an iPod. Platinum Pass Members receive one full year of instructor-led, hands-on training at any of Sterling Ledet & Associates' training centers in Atlanta, Chicago, San Diego or New Orleans in any of the company's hundreds of open enrollment classes. Classes are limited to no more than 8 students. First-year membership is $6,000, while renewal is $4000. One-year of online instruction can be included for an additional $500 per year.

Epson announces PIM II plugin for Photoshop

11/15, 12:50pm

Epson announces PIM II plugin for Photoshop

Epson today released its Print Image Matching II (PIM II) plug-in for Adobe Photoshop 7.0, 6.0, and Photoshop Elements 1.0 and 2.0. The plug-in enables Photoshop users who own a PIM II-enabled digital camera and PIM. II-enabled Epson photo printer to take advantage of the print matching and automatic benefits offered by its Print Image Matching technology. It allows users to import JPEG files containing PIM II information or import Exif 2.2 images with Exif Print technology or import an image with color expansion information only while disregarding other image enhancements for flexible print matching control. It will be available as a free download (as is the original PIM plugin).

Marketcircle updates DayLite 1.2 CRM app

11/15, 12:20pm

Marketcircle updates DayLite 1.2 CRM app

Marketcircle's DayLite 1.2 adds online/offline capability, global find, bulk mail merge and sorting options to its CRM application that includes contact management and scheduling functions. The Personal Edition is $95, while the Business Edition (built on top of a relational database) is $150. [pricing updated]

iPod receives kudos from celebrities

11/15, 12:20pm

iPod receives kudos from celebrities

MacNN readers note that the iPod has received some notable mentions by celebrities:

"The Apple iPod was named a 'Rosie's Pick' in the Gift Guide of the Rosie magazine Farewell Issue. For the 'Music Man' in a woman's life, it says: 'He'll never be at a loss for a tune with Apple's iPod, which holds a thousand downloaded songs ($299). At Apple stores or www.apple.com.'"

"In an interview with breakfast DJ Sara Cox this morning on the UK's Radio 1 station, Robbie Williams (currently the UK's most popular male singer) talked about iTunes and iPod when asked about what CD's he's currently listening to. Hear it from 1m 40s onwards in the following clip."

Andromeda releases red-eye Photoshop filter

11/15, 11:25am

Andromeda releases red-eye Photoshop filter

Andromeda has released its new Adobe Photoshop compatible plug-in: Andromeda RedEyePro Filter offers both novice and expert modes, resizable box and paintbrush tools, support for both RGB and CMYK images, and removes both circular and non-circular red-eye while preserving glints and reflective details as well as preserving iris color and transitions. It is compatible with Mac OS 9 and Mac OS X. It will ship early next month for $40. Preorders are available for $30.

Marathon debuts R'ears for Xserve

11/15, 11:10am

Marathon debuts R'ears for Xserve

Marathon Computer today announced R'ears for Xserve, which allows Apple's Xserve to be mounted in racks tht are less than 29" deep: "R'ears attach to the rear-mounting hardware that comes with the Xserve, and adjust inward so that even a 22"-deep rack can support the rear of the Xserve. R'ears include anchor points for the Xserve's scissors-type cable management arm." The all-steel R'ears (with a clear zinc finish) will be available later this month for $40.

Tech: Napster sale, supercomputer, encryption

11/15, 11:05am

Tech: Napster sale, supercomputer, encryption

Morning tech news: Roxio today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Napster, including Napster's intellectual property and technology patent portfolio (without any of Napster's liabilities, including pending litigation); A Japanese supercomputer that studies the climate and other aspects of the Earth maintained its ranking as the world's fastest computer, peforming 35.86 trillion calculations per second -- more than 4 1/2 times greater than the next-fastest machine; and Scientists at Northwestern University say they have harnessed the properties of light to encrypt information into code that can be cracked only one way: by breaking the physical laws of nature.

Apple posts Keychain First Aid 1.0 util

11/15, 9:00am

Apple posts Keychain First Aid 1.0 util

Apple has posted a new Keychain First Aid 1.0 utility, which can verify or repair your keychain configuration. It resolves issues where a user's .Mac password is not saved in the Internet preference pane, Apple's Mail/iChat apps continue to prompt users for their password, saved passwords could not be read if they were created or modified by certain pre-release versions of Jaguar, and other fixes. [101KB]

Apps: VideoLAN client, breve, MouseWorks

11/15, 8:50am

Apps: VideoLAN client, breve, MouseWorks

The free VideoLAN client 0.4.6 can be used to display video read locally on the computer, including DVDs, VCDs, MPEG and DivX files and from a satellite card. This new release uses a52dec as the default decoder for AC3 sound for improved quality and fixes a hangup in the esd plugin. [1.3MB]
Alco Bloom's URL Manager Pro 3.0.3 adds support for Apple's Mail application and several bug fixes in the $25 shareware bookmark manager. It can store, manage, and organize bookmarks and supports virtually all shipping browsers. It is available for Mac OS 9 and Mac OS X. [2.4MB]
breve 1.4 is a 3D simulation environment for decentralized systems and artificial life. Version 1.4, available for Mac OS X only, adds a new physics engine, added plugin support, major speed improvements and other enhancements. [1.0MB]
Kensington has posted MouseWorks 2.1, an update to its driver software for Mac OS X. It supports all Kensington USB and ADB mice and trackballs except, one-button mice, Turbo Mouse 1.0-4.0 (the older, 2-button models), the Orbit 3D and Orbit Elite, and its ValuMouse products. [3.0MB]

Apple offers RAM with Mac OS X for Education

11/15, 8:35am

Apple offers RAM with Mac OS X for Education

Apple is offering a new promo for education purchases of Mac OS X. X on campus offers a bundle of Mac OS X 10.2 Jaguar (and the "Getting Started with Mac OS X CD") along with 128MB ($100), 256MB ($130), or 512MB ($170) of memory. It offers RAM for virtually any Mac and runs from November 12, 2002, through December 31, 2002.

OpenOSX updates Grass 5.0 CD

11/15, 8:25am

OpenOSX updates Grass 5.0 CD

OpenOSX Grass Update is designed for its Grass 5.0 Version 1 CD and will update the Grass installation to be the same as the (now shipping) Version 2 CD. It fixes a few potential bugs including a "window name 'frameosx_BG' already exists in parent" error and installs Tcl/Tk 8.4.1. GRASS GIS (Geographic Resources Analysis Support System) is an open-source Geographical Information System (GIS) with raster, topological vector, image processing, and graphics production functionality. The CD is $50.

Free Storyboard Pro software available

11/15, 4:25am

Free Storyboard Pro software available

The Atomic Learning Library has released Storyboard Pro, a freeware video and multimedia storyboard software package: "[It] is designed to give teachers, students, and home movie makers a tool to plan ahead when creating video projects. New with this edition, the software now includes tips and tricks that link to online sample videos that are part of Atomic Learning's Video Storytelling Guide." it allows users to add shot titles, descriptions, annoted photos/movies clips/sounds, create templates, camera tips, and other features. The company also offers access to thousands of narrated QuickTime screenmovie tutorials for a $50 (annual) subscription fee. [Classic, OSX]

Griffin updates iMic Control 1.5 software

11/15, 4:20am

Griffin updates iMic Control 1.5 software

Griffin today released iMic Control 1.5, an update to its free software that offers sound control functions for its iMic USB Audio Interface ($45). It provides sound shaping control to applications that previously had none, such as web browsers streaming music or audio and also enables Audio Play-Through monitoring on Mac OS 9. Version 1.5 includes an adjustable input gain control, which allows users to adjust their sound input level when recording music or voice into the Mac as well as Bass and Treble control.

Dr. Bott reduces iPod Connection Kit prices

11/15, 4:15am

Dr. Bott reduces iPod Connection Kit prices

Dr. Bott today announced price reductions on its iPod Connection Kit w/FM Transmitter ($45) and iPod Connection Kit w/Tape adapter ($40). The iPod Connection Kit provides several options for connecting to iPod's 3.5-mm stereo headphone jack to automobile stereo systems, home stereo systems, mic input of computers and other devices, boom boxes, and clock radios.