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How to Upgrade Your MacBook Pro's RAM
Mozilla.org Ponders Dropping OS X 10.5 Leopard Support For Firefox 13
Refurbished Mac Buying Guide Posted
eSleeper 21st Century Cat Basket In eMac Case
Acer To Cut Ultrabook Prices To US$799-899 In 2Q12 - Company President
Samsung Announces High-Performance mSATA SSDs for Ultra-Slim Notebook PCs
Mailplane Gets A New Brother: Replies 1.0
How to Upgrade Your MacBook Pro's RAM
MacInstruct's Matthew Cone has posted a handy tutorial on do it yourself MacBook Pro RAM upgrades. As Cone notes, adding more RAM is one of the cheapest and most effective ways to boost your computer's overall performance, since it's where the machine dynamically stores the code and instructions for OS X and any open applications on your Mac.
Consequently, installing higher capacity RAM modules in your MacBook Pro will allow you keep more applications open at once and perform more tasks simultaneously without the system having to dip into memory swap files on your hard much slower hard drive. For example, you could open a bunch of memory-hogging applications while ripping a CD, watching a DVD, and uploading photos to the Internet - all at the same time - without the computer bogging down. Installing more RAM in an older MacBook Pro, should yield a big difference in the way your computer performs everyday tasks, like loading websites, and by historical standards, RAM is amazingly cheap these days.
Your editor notices a substantial performance boost from upgrading his workhorse Core 2 Duo MacBook from two to four gigabytes a couple of years ago, and is finding the prospect of doubling it again to 8GB, currently possible for less than 50 bucks, enticing. Note that if you have a middle-aged Mac like mine, a firmware upgrade may be necessary (free download from Apple Support) to support a higher RAM limit.
Also note well that Cone's tutorial is for the MacBook Pro only. The MacBook Air's RAM modules that are hard-soldered to the logic board, so and non-upgradable, so you're stuck with whatever the machine shipped with originally.
For compatibility information and pricing, it's hard to beat Other World Computing's website (http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/memory/Apple_MacBook_MacBook_Pro/Upgrade)
For Matthew Cone's full, illustrated tutorial on MacBook Pro RAM upgrading, see:
http://www.macinstruct.com/node/392
Mozilla.org Ponders Dropping OS X 10.5 Leopard Support For Firefox 13
In a a mozilla.dev.planning discussion, Mozilla's Josh Aas proposes termination of support for Mac OS X 10.5 in Firefox 13, expected to ship on or near June 5, 2012.
Aas notes thst Mac OS X 10.5 was released in October of 2007, 10.6 was released in June of 2009, 10.7 was released in July of 2011, and that as of November 8, 2011, Mac OS X users made up 6.6% of all Firefox users across all versions going back to Firefox 3. Of those Mac OS X users, 9% are on Mac OS X 10.4, 24% are on Mac OS X 10.5, 53% are on Mac OS X 10.6, and 14% are on Mac OS X 10.7, but if you limit the scope to the more recent Firefox 7 release, then only 20% of Mac OS X users are on Mac OS X 10.5, declining by 1-2% per month (as a share of total Firefox Mac OS X users). That means when Firefox 13 ships, Mac OS X 10.5 users will likely make up about 13% of Mac OS X users across all versions of Firefox, and roughly 9% for users of the most recent version of Firefox.
Aas points out that maintaining Mac OS X 10.5 support consumes a non-trivial portion of the resources Mozilla has available for Mac OS X development, and discontinuing Mac OS X 10.5 support would allow devoting more resources to the product used by the majority of our Mac OS X users (those on Mac OS X 10.6 and 10.7).
Moreover, he points out that there are already significant ways in which Firefox on Mac OS X 10.5 has fallen behind Firefox on newer versions of Mac OS X. Accelerated compositing and WebGL are not available on Mac OS X 10.5. Users cannot run plugins out-of-process on Mac OS X 10.5, and Apple has stopped supporting Mac OS X 10.5 with security updates and updating applications like Safari.
For the full report and discussion feedback visit here:
http://bit.ly/uuC0Bw
Refurbished Mac Buying Guide Posted
Macworld's Joel Mathis says that if you're on a budget and need a new computer, but you're an Apple fan and even with limited cash you'd rather not buy an inexpensive Windows-based PC, the solution is easy: Buy a refurbished Mac.
Mathis notes that the Apple Online Store has a section where you can buy refurbished Macs, as well as refurbished iPads, iPods, and other Apple products. (The refurbs are listed under the Special Deals section of the left column of the online store.), with the Mac selection running the gamut from laptop computers to Mac minis to iMacs with giant 27-inch monitors. Some of the machines are pre-owned, while others were returned to the company because of technical defects. But all of them share two characteristics in common: They've been buffed, restored, and repackaged to meet Apple's exacting standards. And they're cheaper than buying new, yet carry the exact asme warranty and AppleCare eligibility as new. Macs.
The last two Mac systems your editor has purchased have been Apple Certified Refurbished machines, and both arrived cosmetically indistinguishable from new and have been flawless performers (the newest one now being nearly three years old). Likewise for two Certified Refurbished iPods.
Mathis notes that before re-sale, Apple cleans the machine, replaces any defective or sub-standard parts, re-installs software that originally shipped with the unit, tests the Mac for quality-control issues, then repackages it with fresh cables and a users manual. The company even stamps the machine with a new serial number. Arguably, an ACR unit is more thoroughly vetted for issues and defects than a new one is, and meet's the company's Finished Goods testing procedures which means that it should be up to the same technical standards as the exact same unit purchased brand-new.
For the full tutorial, visit:
http://macw.us/t69rvs
eSleeper 21st Century Cat Basket In eMac Case
Samuel Cox says eSleeper is a 21st century cat basket, an ideal resting location for any cat.
When the feline decides its nap-time, eSleeper's automated lighting control turns on a relaxing wave of color inside an eMac, while greeting the cat with the iconic Macintosh start-up chime (keeping the legacy of the eMac). When the cat walks out, eSleeper turns off the lights and tweets to @eSleeper1, displaying various phrases along with how long the cat has occupied eSleeper.
How did eSleeper start life?
Cox says his cat loves sleeping, preferably in one location. His old basket suffered from overuse and had to be discarded. Instead of buying him a replacement, Cox decided to bring cat baskets into the digital age and build eSleeper. The cat reportedly now loves eSleeper (and is sleeping even better).
How does it work?
An Ethernet Arduino is used to control eSleeper. Data is sent to the Arduino from an infra-red beam attached to the inside of the eMac. When the beam breaks, the Arduino turns on the RGB LED, talks a sound shield to play the Macintosh startup chime and records how the cats been inside. When the beam is broken again, the Arduino turns off the LED and tweets a random phrase with the time spent inside.
eSleeper, because cats like automation too.
You can check it out at:
http://samuelcox.net/esleeper/
Acer To Cut Ultrabook Prices To US$799-899 In 2Q12 - Company President
Digitimes' Aaron Lee and Joseph Tsai report that Acer expects its ultrabook prices will be able to drop from US$1,000 currently to US$799-899 in the second quarter of 2012, a decline of 20%, and then drop further to US$499 in 2013 as other PC brand vendors ramp up production and mass shipping of ultrabooks in 2012, according to company president Jim Wong.
The report says that Acer currently ships 100,000 ultrabooks each month and is expected to achieve its goal of shipping 250,000-300,000 units by the end of 2011.
Addressing the current issue of hard drive shortages caused by flooding in Taiwan, Wong told Lee and Tsai that he expects Acer to only suffer a supply gap of 10-15% in the fourth quarter, far less than the overall supply gap of 30-35% estimated by hard drive players, which market watchers believe is due to hard drive players providing supply priority to brand vendors.
Although Acer's notebook sales share has dropped from second place to fourth, Wong told Digitimes he expects the company to still have a chance to return to its prior position in 2012 based on performance in the Chinese market.
For the full report visit here:
http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20111130PD226.html
Samsung Announces High-Performance mSATA SSDs for Ultra-Slim Notebook PCs
Samsung Electronics Co. has announced volume production of SSDs (solid state drives) that support the Mini-Serial ATA (mSATA) interface. The drives are designed for use in ultra-slim notebooks such as Ultrabook PCs.
"Samsung's compact mSATA SSDs will provide performance of the highest quality in helping to deliver the advanced ultra-slim PCs that consumers have been wanting," says Myungho Kim, vice president of memory marketing, Device Solutions, Samsung Electronics. "Samsung plans to continue providing timely delivery of advanced SSD solutions, while preserving its leadership position in the SSD market for notebook PCs."
Combining Samsung's new high-performance mSATA SSDs with the latest multi-core processors will help PC manufacturers to substantially improve performance of their Ultrabook-class portable PCs up to that of notebook PCs, in meeting ever-increasing consumer needs.
The new Samsung mSATA SSDs will be available in 256, 128 and 64 gigabyte (GB) densities as main storage devices, and also at 32GB for caching. They measure 50.95 x 30 x 3.8 millimeters and weigh a mere eight grams.
The new SSDs will be part of the Samsung PM830 product family that was introduced earlier this year. They make use of Samsung's advanced 20 nanometer class NAND flash memory components which incorporate the toggle DDR interface.
Utilizing high-performance SATA 6Gb/s controllers based on Samsungs own technology, the new mSATA SSDs can operate at the industrys highest sequential read and write speeds of 500 megabytes per second (MB/s) and of 260MB/s respectively, under optimum conditions. This is, more than six times the speed of hard disk drives typically offering a data transfer rate of 80MB/s. The Samsung SSDs also enable faster system boot-ups (in the 10-second range) and will transmit five DVD files in about a minute.
In addition, the Samsung mSATA SSDs feature an advanced hardware-based security solution including 256-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) protection, which will prevent unauthorized access to data on a lost or stolen notebook PC.
Beginning this year, the market for Ultrabook-class mobile PCs has been growing rapidly and is expected to expand beyond that of tablet PCs as early as next year due to outstanding performance characteristics, more advanced processors and use of the Windows 8 operating system. According to market research firm IHS iSuppli, the Ultrabook share of global notebook shipments will exceed 40 percent in 2015.
For more information about Samsung Green SSDs, visit:
http://www.samsung.com/GreenMemory
and
http://www.samsung.com/us/oem-solutions
Mailplane Gets A New Brother: Replies 1.0
Are you providing email or sales support, or interacting with many customers? Are you tired of answering the same emails over and over again?
Check out Ruben Bakker's Replies, Mailplane's new brother application. Watch the 1 1/2 minute explainer video for a quick intro:
http://uncomplex.net/lists/link.php?M=498&N=68&L=53&F=T
Replies 1.0 saving you from rewriting the same email replies over and over. And, because Replies is a time-saver, your answers can be more personal than before. This allows you to serve customers better.
The Benefits of Replies
Replies will not only increase your productivity, but also generate better and faster responses:
(*) Replies indexes all your sent emails so you can quickly find an answer and insert it into email messages.
(*) You can respond quicker to customers.
(*) You stay informed through conversations and smart folders.
(*) Your email box is manageable.
(*) Replies automatically archives older messages, clearing them from your inbox.
For more about Replies 1.0, visit:
http://uncomplex.net/lists/link.php?M=498&N=68&L=53&F=T
More information:
http://uncomplex.net/lists/link.php?M=498&N=68&L=20&F=T
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