PC Magazine reviews Apple's updated .Mac services

Apple has updated its .Mac suite of online tools, and PC Magazine has covered the pros and cons in a brief review, covering the yearly fees, increased storage capacity, a new "groups" service, the simplified backup tool, the complete removal of Virex antivirus software, and support for French and German languages. PC Magazine points to the new Groups addition, noting that "Apple has hit on something truly useful with Groups [...] each group includes a shared calendar (which members can subscribe to with iCal or software that supports the Webcal protocol, even on Windows PCs), plus space for messages, links, and files." In summary, ".Mac has always been good, but Apple has never committed the resources to make it great. More storage and top-notch backup and antivirus tools would seem essential. We'd also like to see Apple create a free plan for people who only want e-mail."

Apps: VideoSpace, VelaClock, Plug-in AutoInstaller

• VideoSpace 1.0 (free) calculates the disk space required for a given duration, codec, frame rate and audio setting. The VideoSpace widget works in both directions calculating time to space or space to time as indicated by the direction of the arrow between the two input areas. [Download - 130KB]


• VelaClock 1.3 ($10) updates the widget, adding a bar that displays when the moon is visible for a selected city, increases the height of the light level bar, adds a checkbox to toggle between 12 and 24-hour time formats, adds help text to the back of the widget, and adds a few user-requested cities. [Download - 1.2MB]


• 24U Plug-In AutoInstaller 2.1 (free) simplifies automated installation, registration, and updates of FileMaker plug-ins from FileMaker Server by providing all necessary scripts, ready-to-use. New features include support for updating old-style plug-ins on Mac OS X, an update for FileMaker Pro 8 and FileMaker Server 8, and other minor fixes/improvements. [Download - 2.8MB]


• X2 Print Accounting checkBox 1.3 ($100 for client, $1000 for server) is a free update that provides many bug fixes and speed improvements, advanced batch control, and to the print accounting and document analysis solution for Mac OS X. [Download - 12MB]


• Wx 3.02 ($10) updates the internet weather station software that downloads and processes weather conditions, RADAR, and forecasts for the U.S. Version 3.02 offers 10 add-ons that include ski reports, marine observations, stream flow measurements, and tide tables. [Download - 504KB]

EDGE dock and multi flash card reader for iPod

EDGE Tech today began shipping its EDGE dock and multi flash card reader for iPod, providing access to various formats of flash cards while also charging the iPod, playing music via external speakers, and syncing the device with a computer. Offered in "iPod white", the new EDGE dock works with iPod nano, iPod mini, iPod photo, and the original iPod. The device reads all popular flash card formats including xD Picture card, SD Memory cards, MultiMedia (MMC) cards, Memory Stick, Memory Stick PRO, Memory Stick Duo, SmartMedia cards, Type I/II CompactFlash cards, and IBM Microdrive. Connectivity is provided with a USB 2.0 interface for high-speed transfers. The EDGE dock and multi flash card reader is available for $50 before an (additional) mail-in rebate of $10 with a one-year warranty (external speakers are not included).

Toon Boom ships Solo animation software

Toon Boom Animation this week announced that it has shipped Toon Boom Solo, its two-dimensional animation software designed to meet the needs of small size studios and independent animation filmmakers. Solo offers a simplified workflow to produce animation for film, video, television, web sites, games and mobile devices. The stand-alone animation software offers feature-rich capabilities to create animation for all styles and formats, within one single application and enables users to draw directly into the system, ink and paint, do their compositing, add special effects, lip sync and render in a complete integrated workflow. " Toon Boom Solo ($3,000) comes with a DVD case and CD, a security key (dongle), Keyboard Shortcuts and Installation and Getting Started Guide, tutorials as well as a two-volume user guide.

Briefly: MacNN review; Bare Bones special

In brief: MacNN reviewed the Pacific Design Green Day iPod flip case, a "fanpod" case that fits any 4th generation iPod.... Bare Bones Software announced its special "Oktoberfest" pricing on cross-upgrade licenses for BBEdit.... iPodMods has begun offering new lifetime battery replacement service for iPod owners, supporting all 1st-through-4th generation iPod mini, iPod Shuffle and iPod photo models.... SanDisk has introduced the Sansa m200 series of digital music players, its flash-based player that offers from 512MB to 4GB storage capacities.... ezGear today began shipping its today the ezSkin nano cases (pictured at right) for the iPod nano.... Apple has donated 50 iPods to Gracemount High School in Scotland.

Apple, MS, others accused of patent infringement

Apple is among the companies named in a patent infringement case brought forward by Compression Labs, Inc. Parent company Forgent's intellectual property program has generated more than $100 million in revenues primarily from licensing the '672 Patent to more than 40 different companies in Asia, Europe and the United States. The '672 Patent relates to digital image compression used in digital still image devices that compress, store, manipulate, print or transmit digital still images such as digital cameras, personal digital assistants, cellular telephones, printers, scanners, and certain software applications. Other major companies named in the filling are Creative Labs, Microsoft, Dell, TiVo, Sun, Toshiba, and Yahoo!

iPod accessory market booming, no end in sight

iPod owners spend an average of more than $150 on accessories, and the market has exploded to over $2 billion with companies such as Belkin, Speck Products, Kiwali, and many more fuelling the fire. One company even manufactures multi-colored baby jumpers featuring the iPod click wheel on the front, reporting sales of over 1,000 since it launched just a few weeks ago, according to a report from The Buffalo News. Harman International has also sold over half a million iPod accessories since the fall of 2004, according to the report. During the first quarter of this year roughly 500 iPod accessories were on the market, and Apple posted a record 6.2 million iPod shipments in its fiscal third quarter.

Apple's competitors playing design catch-up

New projects at Dell, Toshiba and IBM among others focus on developing computers and gear that appeal for the sheer beauty of their design rather than just getting a job done, reports Chicago Tribune columnist James Coates. A few days ago Michael Dell went to New York's pricey Ritz Carlton hotel on Central Park South to announce a burnished metal-clad laptop dubbed XPS, which "emulates Apple's to-die-for tungsten-encased PowerBook." Coates also talks about how Jobs made design paramount at Apple, after being "rushed back from retirement [in 1997] to save the company from MBAs run amok." Many subsequent products -- including iMacs, PowerBooks, iBooks, iPods and now Nanos -- have "kept Apple front and center in a game in which its actual footprint is negligible while PCs own more than 90 percent of the market."

FirmTek rolls out 3.0Gbps SATA 4-drive enclosure

FirmTek today introduced its external SeriTek/2eEN4 serial ATA 4-bay enclosure, offering up to 3Gbps transfer rate with hot-swapping technology. Features include eSATA connectors, a whisper-quiet design, and an exclusive heat management system which lights LEDs and sounds a mute-able audible alarm when temperatures rise. The case consists of brushed and anodized extruded aluminum for rigidity and heat dissipation. Additionally, the SeriTek/2eEN4 offers a physical lock-and-key mechanism, a Kensington security slot to secure the chassis, a built-in server-class universal power supply, and support for host adapter, operating system, and software-based RAID or JBOD configurations. The SeriTek/2eEN4 Serial ATA enclosure is available for $500, and specially priced bundles with host adapters are also available.

Apple, others still fighting JPEG patent

Apple Computer along with approximately 40 other companies are still in hot water over a patent infringement case that progressed further yesterday, reconfirming a Markman hearing on claim construction for February 13th next year. Judge Jeremy D. Fogel passed the ruling along in favor of Forgent Networks and its wholly owned subsidiary, Compression Labs, holders of U.S. patent number 4,698,672, or the "'672 patent", which covers technologies used in JPEG image compression. The case names such IT giants as Microsoft, Dell, Hewlett-Packard, Sun Microsystems, Toshiba, and many others. Forgent's intellectual property program has generated more than $100 million in revenues primarily from licensing the '672 patent to more than 40 different companies in Asia, Europe and the United States.

REAL World 2006 to feature over 30 sessions

REAL Software today announced that REAL World 2006, the three-day REALbasic user conference will begin on February 27 at the Omni Austin Hotel downtown in Austin, Texas. The conference features a keynote presentation by REAL Software CEO Geoff Perlman; presentations by REAL Software technical staff and respected industry experts; over 30 sessions covering topics at all skill levels from introductory to in-depth discussions for advanced users; and social activities provided as a venue for attendees to get to know other REALbasic developers, build potential business relationships, and make friends. The schedule has been extended by half a day, based on feedback from past conference attendees. Conference passes are available at an early bird rate of $500 until December 31st, while regular pricing is $600 per person.

RocketRAID 2224 connects up to 8 SATA drives...

HighPoint Technologies on Wednesday released the RocketRAID 2224, a solution that connects up to 8 SATA II or I hard disk drives to a RAID. The RocketRAID 2224 offers a PCI-X@133Mhz bus architecture and 3Gbps transfer rates along with support for Native Command Queuing (NCQ). The RocketRAID 2224 supports advanced RAID features such as Online Capacity Expansion and Online RAID Level Migration (OCE/RLM) and provides advanced RAID levels (0, 1, 5, 10, and JBOD). Other capabilities of the RocketRAID 2224 include SAF-TE chassis management support, S.M.A.R.T. disk monitoring and staggered drive spin up. The RocketRAID 2224 features 1 external Multi-Lane connector to combine four SATA ports into a single connection.

Softchaos releases Yoink widget to monitor sites

Softchaos today announced that Webstractor, its web content capturing and processing application is now available from the Apple online store, as well as several Apple retail outlets. To celebrate, the company has released "Yoink," an automatic web monitoring widget based on Webstractor. Yoink periodically checks the text content of a web page, and if significantly changed, captures the page. The adjustable thumbnail-size window displays a red indicator bar gauging the percentage of changed text. Webstractor captures multiple web pages, removes unwanted content, annotates, organizes, retrieves, and assembles the found materials into effective documents. Webstractor 1.5 adds a "radar" feature to monitor web pages for specified keywords and capture them when an appropriate change occurs. Webstractor ($80) requires Mac OS X 10.3 or later.

Survey finds iPod/iTunes marketshare still growing

Piper Jaffray said a survey of teens regarding buying patterns for digital audio players and online music indicated that Apple's iPod and iTunes had gained market share, rather than plateau or lose share as had been expected. "We believe the teen market is a critical demographic in digital music," said analyst Gene Munster. "Apple appears to be winning mindshare at an early age, which we expect will pay off as students become more significant consumers over the next decade." According to the MarketWatch report, the firm reiterated his outperform rating with a price target of $60.

LockLizard offers secure PDF viewer for Mac OS X

LockLizard has released its secure PDF Viewer for Mac OS X. The Safeguard PDF Viewer enforces PDF controls, including document expiration and instant revocation as well as allows PDFs protected using Lizard Safeguard to be viewed on Mac OS X. Lizard Safeguard protects PDF documents by encrypting them with the AES 256-bit encryption algorithm. In addition, Digital Rights Management controls are embedded into the protected documents, preventing hacking or changing of the information contained in protected PDF files. Owners can prevent others from copying, distributing, printing or saving protected PDF documents--unless authorized to do so. The software also features user and document expiry controls as well as instant revocation, offering complete control of the protected content at all times. Lizard Safeguard, due for Mac OS X in December, starts at $2,500 for a yearly (hosted) subscription license. The secure PDF viewer for Mac OS X is available now for free.

Waterfield debuts new protective case for iPod nano

Waterfield today introduced its iPod nano Case, a protective case for the Apple's new MP3 player. "The slim iPod nano Case weighs next to nothing, and incorporates three layers of protection. The exterior is sturdy Indium nylon which comes in five eye-popping colors, the plastic middle layer provides protection against impact; and the interior layer of cushiony neoprene has a silky liner, making it smooth and easy to slide the iPod nano in and out of the case. An elastic band, cleverly sewn in the back, is for storing the ear buds." It is available for $22 in Blue, Celeste, Checkers, Lead, Taxi. In addition, the company announced that it has re-designed its existing small iPod Gear Pouch and added a padded compartment which hugs the slim iPod nano. The pouch is small enough to hold on the palm of your hand and can fit an iPod nano (with its WaterField case) ear buds, USB power adapter and either an arm band or a power supply, according to the company. The small iPod Gear Pouch ($29) can also still be used with iPod, iPod photo and iPod mini.