November 10 - 4:00pm EST   The United States' 44th President will be a Mac user, as President-Elect Barack Obama and his children have been revealed as having two MacBooks for personal use. Newsweek notes that Michelle Obama, the soon-to-be First Lady, recently purchased the two MacBooks so Barack and his two daughters can video-chat while he is on the road, something likely to be frequent in his new position. [full story]

November 4 - 3:35pm EST   The release date for a Korean iPhone is now dependent on government deregulation efforts, writes The Korea Times. The Korea Communications Commission is currently debating the future of WIPI, the wireless software standard which any phone in the country is obliged to follow. WIPI is said to effectively block the sale of foreign devices, however, and through negotiations the US government has pressured South Korea into opening up its market. [full story]

October 29 - 11:50am EDT   Google, Microsoft and Yahoo are among the founding members of a new anti-censorship group called the Global Network Initiative, reports indicate. The organization also has the backing of investor, human rights and press freedom groups, such as the Center for Democracy and Technology. The GNI is specifically aimed at forming a consistent approach to dealing with countries that block free speech on the Internet, such as China. Many governments around the world filter search results, or simply prevent citizens from accessing certain websites. [full story]

October 28 - 4:05pm EDT   The US House of Representatives is not likely to adopt the iPhone in the near future, according to a press secretary. Recent reports had indicated that Congressional staff were testing iPhones for possible support; phones must not only meet technical needs but qualify for an allowance distributed to each representative's office. Jeff Ventura, speaking on behalf of Congressional chief administrative officer Dan Beard, now explains that while there has been "some interest from offices" for the iPhone, there is little chance of the device becoming standard. [full story]

October 24 - 2:55pm EDT   In an unusually political move, Apple has taken a stance on a ballot issue affecting its home state of California, according to an announcement. The company has declared itself publicly opposed to Proposition 8, a measure which would amend California's constitution to ban gay and lesbian marriages. Such marriages were legalized following a decision of the California Supreme Court, which noted that sanctions against them violated an equal protection clause of the state's constitution. [full story]

August 13 - 5:45pm EDT   Inspired Arts and Media is out with an iPhone app that helps voters learn where John McCain and Barack Obama stand on the issues. Fit 2 Vote is a game that displays quotes from Obama and McCain's speeches. Users are asked to choose which candidate made a particular statement. The game uses the iPhone's motion sensor in a unique way -- a tilt to the left indicates the quote was made by Obama, a right tilt signals McCain. Users are declared "Fit 2 Vote" when they get 50 correct answers. [full story]

June 20 - 5:25pm EDT  Forum roundup: MacNN forum goers' Time Machine questions are answered in The Offical Time Machine Q&A Thread covering everything from how Time Machine works and what it is for, to steps on how to resolve issues with Time Machine when it is not working properly. High pitched noises from one member's CRT monitor sparked a conversation about possible causes for this problem as well as provided suggestions for more energy efficient LCD replacements. One user inquires about Booting OS 8 on a G3 from an external USB DVD drive and gets advice from other members about possible options that they could try. Other users converse about different styles of carrying bags for MacBook and MacBook Pro as ... [full story]

December 13 - 2:55pm EST   Rep. Howard Berman (D-CA), the chair of the House Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet and Intellectual Property, today argued that the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) does not go far enough, despite common complaints about its severity. Berman is overseeing a hearing on the PRO-IP Act, a bill which could increase statutory damages for copyright violation, and even establish an intellectual property enforcement office in the Department of Justice. Before today's witness testimonies began, Berman admitted that there were things he would like to change in copyright law to make the DMCA more strict. [full story]