Malaysia AppleCenter opens over weekend
Apple this weekend opened an AppleCenter in the Great Eastern Mall along Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur, in Malaysia. "It is a huge store taking up two shop lots in the mall, but it's quite sparse inside. The interior décor is very much like the retail Apple Stores in the US, with wooden floors and black shelves. The layout is pretty simple, once you enter the store, you're greeted by the cashier counter, and behind that is the theaterette which has an unusually curved screen, and black benches for the audience," explains MacNN reader Jonathan Poh. Mr. Poh has also provided pictures from the store opening.
FE77 offers university discount
FE77 Software today announced the FE77 University program in which qualifying teachers and students can order the FE77 Server Suite for $20. The software is offered only to teachers and students for their own personal, education, and/or research use. "With Mac OS X 10.2 running FE77 Server Suite and Server Manager you can plan, develop, test and even deploy high-performance application written in Java, PHP, Perl or even good old HTML," the developer says.
Acme Made releases new PB G4 bags, sleeves
Acme Made recently introduced two cases for the PowerBook G4: a sleek new carrying case called “The Slim,” ($80) and the "PowerBook iCover" ($20). The “Slim” is a hybrid sleeve/carrying case designed specifically for Apple’s new PowerBooks but also fits Apple’s 12” iBook and the small models of the Sony Vaio. The PowerBook iCover is a thin sleeve designed to easily slip over the PowerBook’s display and protect it from indentations the keyboard leaves when the unit is closed.
Forbes CEO ranking gives Jobs 84%
Several MacNN readers observe that Apple co-founder and CEO Steve Jobs has received an 84% "approval rating" for the month of February from the Forbes.com readership. Forbes' CEO approval rating system allows readers to vote on the job performance of some of the country's most prominent business leaders.
MacSoft announces Master of Orion III
Destineer's MacSoft unit announced today that the long-awaited Master of Orion III for Mac OS 9/X will be available for sale on March 19 -- three weeks after the Windows version hit store shelves. "The Windows version of Master of Orion III just launched and is selling spectacularly well," according to MacSoft general manager Al Schilling. "We're also thrilled to see this same level of excitement for the Mac version, as one of the best games ever available for the Macintosh gets Its long-awaited sequel."
Aspyr posts new game trailers
Aspyr Media has made available a trailer for its upcoming SimCity 4 game. Also released to day is a trailer for Medal of Honor: Spearhead. The trailers arecurrently being hosted by ExtremeSims. [View - SimCity, Spearhead]
Apple releases March sec. update
Apple has released Security Update 2003-03-03 for Mac OS X 10.2 via Software Update. The update "addresses a security issue in sendmail where a remote individual could gain access and control of the system." Also included is a newer version of OpenSSL that provides improved data confidentiality.
Juno offers Mac OS X users dial-up Internet
United Online, Inc. a leading provider of value-priced Internet access through its NetZero, Juno and BlueLight Internet consumer brands, today announced the availability of a Mac version of its value-priced Juno Platinum Internet access service. Juno Platinum for Mac offers Mac OS X users easy-to-use, reliable Internet service with thousands of access numbers nationwide, fast connections, compatibility with all of the most popular instant messaging programs, and Web-based e-mail that is accessible from any Internet connection, for only $9.95 a month. Platinum for Mac software is downloadable as of today.
More Apps: Konfabulator, Measles, MyPod...
Arlo Rose and Perry Clarke have released an update to their popular $25 utility, Konfabulator 1.0.2. Version 1.0.1 addressed many user concerns the most important being memory leaks, and incorrect date values in GMT time zones, but introduced a bug in the URL fetching code. Version 1.0.2 is being released to address the URL issue. Measles 2.1 is released by Stick Software. Measles ($10) is a desktop companion that can act as a CPU monitor if so desired. It provides the user with Aqua-style spheres on their desktop that bounce off of windows and each other, adding life and energy to the user's environment. They are highly configurable in their appearance and behavior, and if desired, can change colors to indicate the load on the user's processor, free memory or disk space. Cliché Software released MyPod, a $15 utility for Mac OS X that merges the power of web services with the portability of the Apple iPod digital music player. Previously known as PodNews 3, MyPod allows not only headlines but also movie times, contacts and calendars, stock quotes and weather forecasts to be automatically downloaded to your iPod by attaching it to your computer. Other content, such as driving directions, lyrics and text notes can also be easily saved. Jean Bovet announced a new powerful audio analyzer software for MacOS X. AudioXplorer has been developped to provide real-time and static audio analysis (FFT and sonogram). It is currently in a free beta version. ParanzaSoft releases FinKit 1.2.2 a $15 multi-function financial calculator that lets users solve problems involving the time value of money. The latest version provides seventeen different calculations: including Effective Rates, Equivalent Rates, Periodic to Annual Rates,Inflation and Taxes, plus many more. JAMF Software has announced a public beta of Nocturne, their lab maintenance tool. Nocture works natively in both Mac OS 9 and Mac OS X, controlling what software should go to what machines, information about the computers, and when they should service themselves is all done via a web interface.
Caffeine Software shuts down.
Caffeine Software, Inc. has suspended operations. A notice on their website states: "We regret any inconvenience to our customers as a result of this." No further information was available. Caffeine was the developer of Curator, a shareware image display and organization application for Mac OS X.
Morning Application Roundup
Pedagoguery Software has released Tess 1.51, a $36 Classic Mac application for exploring and creating tessellations and other symmetric artwork. The new version produces smaller SVG files and can also work around limitations of common SVG browsers (e.g., Adobe SVG browser plug-ins) and importers (e.g., Illustrator 10). Tess 1.51 also introduces interactive HSV color controls and works with a wider range of OpenGL drivers when displaying manifolds "in three dimensions". dSoft, Inc. has released a new product called Medical Log, a $15 utility offering the abilitity to track your whole familie's medical and dental information including doctor office visits, medicine taken, medical issues, body measurements and dental office visits. The spyware detection and removal tool MacScan b3 is available for download (Mac OS Classic / Mac OS X). This new version adds support for more spyware detection and also adds administration full scan for Mac OS X to audit the system. Rogue Amoeba announced the release of Audio Hijack Pro 1.0, a $30 enhanced version of Rogue Amoeba's product Audio Hijack. The pro with all the features of the original plus MP3 recording, enhanced Timers, and the ability to hijack running applications. AH Pro also includes the ability to pause recordings, the power to create sets of DSP effects called Patches, support for up to 100 VST and/or AudioUnits plugins at a time, among other features. Peter Ammon has released Charla 2.0, a complete rewrite of the open source Yahoo! Messenger client for Mac OS X. Version 2.0 includes support for chat, a buddy list, viewing webcams, scripting, multiple simultaneous logins, and more. Source and binaries are also available. Thinkertons has released Jotz v1.2.5, which provides a new print mode, "Print With Preview", in which a "live" preview of the print job is displayed in a sheet, with buttons and sliders providing full control over print scaling, margins and alignment. Also provided is the ability to alias the Jotz folder, so that the Jotz folder can be relocated onto other volumes, or onto a removable volume. Spork Software announced the release of Nimbus 2.0, their $25 shareware application. Based on the Cumulus Shell project originally developed by Alan Ramos of Ramos Tech, Nimbusis a GUI controller to Canto's Cumulus Server 5.5 software. It provides an administrator or non-administrator with the ability to perform some of the typical Cumulus admin tasks with the click of a button. Nimbus is useful to those who don't want to use Cumulus' default command-line form.
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Cirrus creates Lightning-headphone dev kit
Apple supplier Cirrus Logic has introduced a MFi-compliant new development kit for companies interested in using Cirrus' chips to create Lightning-based headphones, which -- regardless of whether rumors about Apple dropping the analog headphone jack in its iPhone this fall -- can offer advantages to music-loving iOS device users. The kit mentions some of the advantages of an all-digital headset or headphone connector, including higher-bitrate support, a more customizable experience, and support for power and data transfer into headphone hardware. Several companies already make Lightning headphones, and Apple has supported the concept since June 2014. http://bit.ly/29giiZj
Apple Store app offers Procreate Pocket
The Apple Store app for iPhone, which periodically rewards users with free app gifts, is now offering the iPhone "Pocket" version of drawing app Procreate for those who have the free Apple Store app until July 28. Users who have redeemed the offer by navigating to the "Stores" tab of the app and swiping past the "iPhone Upgrade Program" banner to the "Procreate" banner have noted that only the limited Pocket (iPhone) version of the app is available free, even if the Apple Store app is installed and the offer redeemed on an iPad. The Pocket version currently sells for $3 on the iOS App Store. [32.4MB]
Porsche adds CarPlay to 2017 Panamera
Porsche has added a fifth model of vehicle to its CarPlay-supported lineup, announcing that the 2017 Panamera -- which will arrive in the US in January -- will include Apple's infotainment technology, and be seen on a giant 12.3-inch touchscreen as part of an all-new Porsche Communication Management system. The luxury sedan starts at $99,900 for the 4S model, and scales up to the Panamera Turbo, which sells for $146,900. Other vehicles that currently support CarPlay include the 2016 911 and the 2017 models of Macan, 718 Boxster, and 718 Cayman. The company did not mention support for Google's corresponding Android Auto in its announcement. http://bit.ly/295ZQ94
Apple employees testing wheelchair features
New features included in the forthcoming watchOS 3 are being tested by Apple retail store employees, including a new activity-tracking feature that has been designed with wheelchair users in mind. The move is slightly unusual in that, while retail employees have previously been used to test pre-release versions of OS X and iOS, this marks the first time they've been included in the otherwise developer-only watchOS betas. The company is said to have gone to great lengths to modify the activity tracker for wheelchair users, including changing the "time to stand" notification to "time to roll" and including two wheelchair-centric workout apps. http://bit.ly/2955JDa
SanDisk reveals two 256GB microSDXC cards
SanDisk has introduced two 256GB microSDXC cards. Arriving in August for $150, the Ultra microSDXC UHS-I Premium Edition card offers transfer speeds of up to 95MB/s for reading data. The Extreme microSDXC UHS-I card can read at a fast 100MB/s and write at up to 90MB/s, and will be shipping sometime in the fourth quarter for $200. http://bit.ly/294Q1If
Apple's third-quarter results due July 26
Apple has advised it will be issuing its third-quarter results on July 26, with a conference call to answer investor and analyst queries about the earnings set to take place later that day. The stream of the call will go live at 2pm PT (5pm ET) via Apple's investor site, with the results themselves expected to be released roughly 30 minutes before the call commences. Apple's guidance for the quarter put revenue at between $41 billion and $43 billion. http://apple.co/1oi1Pbm
Twitter stickers slowly roll out to users
Twitter has introduced "stickers," allowing users to add extra graphical elements to their photos before uploading them to the micro-blogging service. A library of hundreds of accessories, props, and emoji will be available to use as stickers, which can be resized, rotated, and placed anywhere on the photograph. Images with stickers will also become searchable with viewers able to select a sticker to see how others use the same graphic in their own posts. Twitter advises stickers will be rolling out to users over the next few weeks, and will work on both the mobile apps and through the browser. http://bit.ly/29bbwUE
