Apps: LiveController, RouteBuddy

• LiveController 1.0 ($2) is a script that controls up to 15 user assignable commands as well as the Play/Stop toggle in Ableton Live from a cellular handset. LiveController currently only works in conjunction with Sailing Clicker, a Bluetooth-equipped cellular phone, a CPU with a Bluetooth module, and Ableton Live audio software.


• RouteBuddy 1.1.1 ($100) adds numerous features and additional support to the GPS navigation software. Version 1.1.1 adds a GPS status button to the toolbar, includes a preference for coordinate degree formatting, and adds support for .gpx as well as .loc file import. The update also supports dragged URLs from map websites, is compatible with NMEA 2.3 devices, and adds support for NMEA altitude data. [Download - 20.5MB]


• MacMemoriesManager 3.2 ($70) updates the amateur radio memory channel management software, ensuring IC-7000 defaults to filter 2, fixing the TM-V7 write problem, and offering improved Intel USB/Serial input/output support. MacMemoriesManager 3.2 also fixes a bug in the Intel driver. The software features drag-and-drop support for arranging memories, and transfers radio memories to/from disk profile files as well as an interactive list. [Download - 2.5MB]


• KidsBrowser 3.6 ($50) brings a new user interface, improved performance, and numerous bug fixes to the Web browser specifically designed for children. KidsBrowser provides a safe alternative to other Web browsers, maintaining a database of approved sites that children can access, automatically blocking any site not in the database. [Download - 9MB]


• xSort 1.5.1 ($20) fixes numerous bugs in existing as well as previous versions of the Card Sorting tool for Mac OS X. xSort allows users to model and conduct a card sorting exercise in a graphical view that simulates a table with draggable physical cards. xSort also presents the results of the exercise based on statistical analysis and clustering algorithms. [Download - 6.1MB]

Google buys YouTube for $1.65b...

Google today confirmed previous rumors by announcing that it has agreed to acquire online video provider YouTube for $1.65 billion in a stock-for-stock transaction. The new deal gives Google an effective monopoly over Web-based video, and could bear serious consequences for Apple as it provides Google CEO Eric Schmidt -- who sits on Apple's board of directors -- a strong influence over Apple's recent movie initiative. Both Google and YouTube earlier today made moves to legitimize their online content by signing deals with major labels such as Sony-BMG, hoping to minimize the amount of copyrighted material available illegally from both services.

Is Jobs clear of Apple options scandal?...

Legal experts are commending Apple for taking charge to remedy its stock option grant scandal, despite the implication of two former executives which raised "serious concern" during Apple's internal investigation. The investigation of irregularities -- which has plagued investors with worries of company chief Steve Jobs possibly losing his position -- made significant progress last week to clear the air around Jobs' apparent lack of involvement with the shady accounting practices. "The company has taken every single appropriate step that can be expected to be taken to identify and remedy the past problems," said Mike Koenig, a criminal defense attorney. "We think Apple will get past this unscathed - as long as it doesn't impact [Steve] Jobs," said analyst Shannon Cross of Cross Research. Jobs assertion that he did not understand the accounting implications of the illegal backdating may also help his case, according to Reuters.

Quark releases QuarkXPress 7.02...

Quark today announced QuarkXPress 7.02, the latest update to its flagship (Universal) desktop publishing application. The release provides new, up-to-date functionality, including license-transfer features and typographic support for new languages as well as resolution of the most important issues reported by customers since the product shipped, according to the company. The new License Transfer functionality allows customers to deactivate and activate the software without relying on external resources; in addition, the new license agreement allows customers to run previous versions of QuarkXPress in parallel to QuarkXPress 7 on the same machine.

Apps: MacSQL, CoverScout, PictureSync

• MacSQL 3.1 Preview Release ($250) is a Mac database management tool with full AppleScript support. MacSQL 3.1 is a significant upgrade offering a Job Manager to schedule unattended database backups, support for generating E-R Diagrams, and updated support for the latest versions of MySQL, PostgreSQL, Microsoft SQL Server, and OpenBase. MacSQL 3.1 is a Universal Binary running natively on both PowerPC and Intel-based Macs, boasting more than 100 new features and bug fixes. [Download - 33.7MB, updater 6.2MB]


• CoverScout 2.2 ($20) is designed to reunite album artwork with songs. The update enables users to easily copy artwork originally applied by iTunes 7 into the music file as a standard ID3 tag. Covers are attached to single songs as well as complete albums so they are always shown, regardless of which application plays the song. [Download - [form]]


• PictureSync 1.6 ($14) simplifies annotating and batch uploading photos as well as video clips to online services. The application features drag-and-drop integration with iPhoto, iView Media Pro, and Aperture. PictureSync remembers uploads, quickly resizes pictures for faster uploads, supports numerous file formats, and features lossless auto-rotation as well as sRGB ICC color conversion. [Download - 1.7MB]


• Kids GoGoGo 11.1 ($30) enhances the parental control software for internet browsing, offering live monitoring of what children are doing online. Kids GoGoGo 11.1 improves restsriction by category, offers a better favorites window, enhances the movie quality of Screen log, and improves the filtering engine for Russian sites. [Download - 8.3MB]


• xTime Project 4.0.2 ($100) is designed to facilitate project management via the realization of production planning. The update brings improved feedback with the cursor, displays task/process names when users print or export any view, and fixes display problems in month/day/week views. Version 4.0.2 also features enhanced import/export, and fixes various small bugs. [Download - 11.8MB]

Belkin debuts SportCommand for iPod...

Belkin today introduced the SportCommand for iPod (F8Z067), a new device that lets you wirelessly control your music while your iPod stays protected. "Strap the fabric remote to your arm, store your iPod in your backpack or jacket, and then listen to all your jams while you snowboard or bike. With its weather-resistant durability, the SportCommand is perfect for outdoor activities, such as snowboarding, mountain biking, and hiking." The water-resistant design offers protection from rips and malfunctions from exposure to the elements with a durable, flexible design and it works through walls, backpacks, and jackets with a 50ft range. SportComand features big buttons for easy control—even with gloved hands, offering controls for play/pause, next/previous track, and volume up/down. It can be ecured to a user's arm, leg, belt, or another strap with tough neoprene and VELCRO closure strap. The SportCommand will ship in November in North America for $80, while launches in Asia, Europe, and Australia are expected to follow shortly. It is compatible with the iPod mini, first- and second-generation iPod nano, iPod w/click-wheel, iPod video, and iPod w/color display.

Google, YouTube ink video deals

Google and YouTube today both made moves to legitimize their online content by signing video deals with major labels. Sony-BMG and Warner Music will put their own music videos on Google's website, tying them into the AdSense network and placing related ads next to the videos as they play. Sony-BMG, CBS, and Universal Music Group will allow their videos to appear on YouTube with permission, but each have the ability to filter out unauthorized audio and video content. CBS will also be one of the first media outlets to sell videos through YouTube, offering news and TV shows for an undetermined price as well as giving itself the option of placing advertising alongside user-submitted videos it believes should remain, according to Electronista.

Apple to meet, possibly exceed guidance...

Apple will likely report results at the upper-end of or even exceed its guidance of $4.5-4.6 billion in revenue and $0.46-0.48 in earnings-per-share, according to American Technology Research senior analyst Shaw Wu. "We anticipate continued strength in its Mac business (up 6 percent quarter over quarter) driven by MacBook and a rebound in its iPod business (up 5 percent quarter over quarter) helped by new Nanos and initial shipments of its new Shuffle." Wu believes Apple will guide conservatively for the December quarter due to the company's preference for setting reasonable expectations and tough year-over-year iPod comparisons. "For revenue, we believe Apple will likely guide to $5.7-6.1 billion (we are at the upper end at $6.0 billion), up 25-31 percent quarter over quarter." American Technology Research maintains its "buy" rating on Apple shares with a price target of $91 based on strong competitive advantage and growth prospects in large-cap technology.

NI retires FinalScratch, debuts Traktor 3.2

Native Instruments today announced that its DJ Division will completely concentrate its operations on the Traktor platform and retire the FinalScratch product line in favor of its Traktor platform. NI said it will develop integrated solutions for the DJ market based on its own internal hardware engineering capabilities and expertise, as its partnership with Stanton Magnetics based on their FinalScratch digital DJ system will mutually expire in 2006--with both companies expected to focus on their respective product lines following that date. In addition, NI said that will continue to maintain the FinalScratch user forum on its website until December 31st 2006, but will take steps to provide a single software solution to users by offering a Traktor 3 upgrade ($120/€100) to existing users of FinalScratch 1/2 and to Traktor 3 LE. The company has renamed Traktor DJ Studio 3 to simply "Traktor 3," and adjusted pricing to $230/€200. Due in early November, the free Traktor 3.2 will include a range of new features and improvements as well as support for Intel-based Macs.

Target warns studios on DVD pricing

Discount retailer Target -- which accounts for about 15 percent of DVD sales -- has warned major movie studios that it may "reconsider" its investment in the DVD business if it doesn't receive "equitable pricing." In a letter to major studios last month, Target detailed its concern that new movie downloading services such as iTunes will receive lower prices from studios on electronic copies of movies, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal. Target CEO Gregg Steinhafel suggests in the letter that the retailer may cut back on marketing disks, promotional programs, shelf space, and signage. The letter follows a similar warning from retailer colossus Wal-Mart, which reportedly threatened to retaliate against studios if they partnered with Apple to offer digital movie downloads at lower prices than DVDs on shelves. Wal-Mart quickly disputed reports that it had threatened studios, however, and was later rumored to be in talks with Apple over possible digital content offerings.

Gisele "Get A Mac" ads surface on Web [images]...

Apple has begun running three new "Get a Mac" ads on the internet, featuring supermodel Gisele Bundchen. The Gisele ads, first noted in early September, have previously been spotted in Apple retail stores, but were first spotted on the internet on the News.com homepage by Italian website 7BIT. The new "I'm a Mac/I'm a PC" ads humanize a PC and Mac and highlight some of the misconceptions about the Mac platform and its advantages. "Hollywood-Style Movies" touts movie home-movie creation by depicting a real-life model (Gisele) vs. a "work in progress" (a man in drag). A second one called "You can make amazing stuff" depicts a Mac and PC in a therapy session in which a PC "feels" inadequate because he can't do as much as out of the box and can get viruses. The third, dubbed "Macs run Microsoft Office," highlights the work/business functions of a Mac: the PC falls down because he is worried of all the "work" stuff a Mac can do (using Mac Office). Vogue has reported that Apple paid Gisele more than $1 million for the ad spots. [photos after the jump]

Briefly: new Apple store, trademarks

In brief: Apple is set to open another retail store, this time in Boulder, Colorado at the Twenty Ninth Street shopping center on Friday, October 13th.... The European Patent & Trademark Office today published Apple's latest trademark/service marks titled "DashCode" under application number 005348693 and "Time Tunnel" filed under application number 005348917.... Computers Unlimited today announced that it will distribute Intego's NetBarrier X4, VirusBarrier X4, Personal Backup X4, ContentBarrier X4, Internet Security Barrier, and Remote Management Console in single-user as well as multi-user versions in all available European languages.... The state of Minnesota has purchased 26 Intel iMacs for St. Paul's Arlington High School lab with funds provided by an antitrust settlement with Microsoft.

Levelground updates, debuts AU plugins

Levelground Media today today announced the release of updates to Fattenizer and Vintasion, and also introduced two new plug-ins, Super Graphic and Polishizer. All three digital audio processing plug-ins for use in Audio Unit supporting host environments on Mac OS X. Fattenizer 3.0 ($36), Vintasion 3.0 ($36), Super Graphic 1.0 ($36), and Polishizer 1.0 ($36) offer recording musicians and engineers of all skill levels the ability to enhance individual audio tracks and project mixes by adding user tunable vintage-style 'coloration' and character enhancement with Vintasion, 'fattening' and low-end enhancement with Fattenizer, configurable adjustable band width 36-band graphic equalization with Super Graphic, and audio polishing using precise six-band parametric equalization with Polishizer. The LgM Thermal Pack 2.0, which bundles all four plug-ins together in one package, is $100. All plug-ins are available as Universal Audio Units and can be used in any DAW or host supporting Audio Units, such as Digital Performer, Logic Pro, Logic Express, Garageband, etc. Special "50% off" introductory pricing is available until October 31, 2006.

Reldata IP storage for Mac OS X

Reldata today announced that it has successfully completed Reldata IP Storage Gateway 9200 testing with the ATTO Xtend SAN iSCSI initiator package for Mac, providing businesses that use Mac OS X client/server platform with another solution provider for IP storage. The ATTO Xtend SAN iSCSI initiator package is designed to extend Mac OS X platforms with a reliable iSCSI connectivity, while RELDATA’s IP Storage virtualization appliance provides high-speed iSCSI SAN and NAS access to shared storage resources. The open storage interoperability allows users to consolidate industry-standard Fibre Channel, SCSI and iSCSI storage resources into one single virtualized storage volume pool. RELDATA’s powerful virtualization technology also makes it simple for system administrators to tailor RELDATA IP storage solutions to their needs – whether it’s high performance transactional database or storage-centric applications such as e-mail, web, CRM or ERP solutions.

FireWire Depot unveils SATA enclosures...

FireWire Depot today unveiled its S2VR HD 3.75TB SATA II enclosure featuring a PCIe or PCIX host adapter, the newest member of the company's S2VR HD series that supports a 3GB/sec interface capable of sustaining more than 230MB/sec to support 10-bit HD capture and playback. The S2VR is available in capacities from 1.5TB to 3.75TB, enabling users to store up to 7.5 hours of 10-bit HD 1080/60i video or 25 hours of 10-bit SD footage. The S2VR HD includes five removable hard drive trays, and is configurable for performance (RAID 0), protected (RAID 10), or JBOD (Just a Bunch Of Disks). Performance mode utilizes five SATA drives for maximum throughput. The S2VR HD 3.75TB SATA II enclosure ships for $6,000 with either a PCIe or PCIX host adapter. FireWire Depot also introduced its PCI Express FW-PCIE01 2-port internal FireWire Host Adapter and its PCI Express FW-PCIE02 2-port external FireWire Host Adapter for $60 and $70, respectively.

Disney talks about Apple iTunes deal

TVWeek has posted an interview with Disney/ABC exec Anne Sweeney on the video iPod/digital media revolution, how last year's revolutionary deal with Apple became a turning point for networks, how many are looking for growth opportunities via mobile content delivery. "Looking at the video iPod Mr. Jobs gave her, Ms. Sweeney knew she didn't face a choice of whether to makes episodes available online, but a choice of whether to try to monetize online distribution of ABC content. Assembling the deal that Mr. Jobs and Ms. Sweeney's boss, Walt Disney Co. CEO Robert Iger, ultimately announced in October 2005 was tricky. Due to Apple's secretive development process, Ms. Sweeney was allowed to involve only a handful of people. Everyone signed nondisclosure agreements. At the time, the secrecy seemed merely an annoyance. But after the announcement, angry reactions by station owners and advertisers left out of the loop gave the Disney-iTunes deal a worrisome spin."