Apps: KDX, FinKit, EasyWMA, iStumbler, iTunesCheck...

• KDX 1.5 ($30) brings support for IRC gateways and individual per-folder access controls to the "BBS"-style encrypted internet communications system with functions for voice chat (Internet Telephone), text chat, messaging, news, file and folder transfer, remote access, trackers and more. [client, server]


• FinKit 2.3 ($25) is a flexible and intuitive financial calculator that lets you calculate annuities, bonds, dates, depreciation, interest, loans, leases, rates, and more. Version 2.3 adds new calculations that let you generate depreciation schedules using a wide range of depreciation methods. [1.6MB]


• Tactile Interrogator 1.1 ($50) updates the alternative file manager that uses icon sizes to show the sizes of files, uses colors to show the ages of files, offers keyboard-based navigation, and more. It brings performance improvements, better copy/paste functions, and improved visual feedback during copy/duplicate. [6.7MB]


• EasyWMA 2.1 ("donationware") adds ID3 tag support the audio utility you to convert WMA audio files to the MP3 format for playback via iTunes or other music player. It offers a very simple user interface, full drag and drop support, and batch processing. [1.6MB]


• iStumbler R88 (free) is an open-source tool for finding wireless networks and devices via AirPort or Bluetooth, offering a realtime display of signal strength and complete debugging info. Release 88 updates the UI, implements plugin menu support, reworks the preferences, and more. [672KB]


• iTunesCheck 0.7 (free) is a program that It provides global hot keys for controlling iTunes without switching to it, provides a hotkeyable floating window that shows the currently playing song, and it provides a hotkey for quickly finding a song without switching to iTunes. [258KB]

Briefly: AirPort Express, Phillipines event, Netscape

In Brief: Apple offers advice on configuring AirPort Express on an wired-only Ethernet network and says that Safari may stop responding if the hard disk name has a non-ASCII character... A new tutorial offers instructions on installing an iPod into a Mazda RX-8 using the "CD Player Hack."...The Philippine Macintosh Users Group (PhilMUG) in cooperation with local Apple retail distributor, AppleCenter held the first Discover iLife event in the country over the weekend and has posted a few photos of the 2-day event showcasing Apple's applications...Noting that the "ranks of techno-deficient iPod" are growing, BusinessWeek offers a look at a few iPod services for non-techies....America Online will release Netscape 7.2 later this month performance enhancements, password manager improvements, improved junk mail filters and support for vCards.

Apple to open "mini-store" in Syracuse, NY

Apple will open a new "protoype" retail store in Syracuse, New York early this fall, according to The Post-Standard. The "mini-store" will open this Semptember in Carousel Center mall on the mall's second level, near the food court: "Apple's newest prototype stores are smaller than their first models, and edgier. The Carousel store will be only the second of the newest version; the first is in Apple's home port of Cupertino, Calif." (Editor's note: this may be a reference to the upcoming Stanford Shopping Center "mini-store" in Palo Alto, CA.) Apple is expected open other "mini-stores" in Santa Rosa, CA (in September) and Bridgewater, NJ.