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Why Virus Is Good For Mac Users
Apple vs. the Hackers, Round 1
MacBook Pro Heat Generation
MacBook Migration Strategies
Memory Price Hikes Ahead For Intel PCs (And Macs)
What Makes a Mac, a Mac???
MacBook Pro: First day, first Lab tests
Apple To 'Launch Full Movie Downloads' Next Week
What The Other Steve Is Saying About Apple's Striking Resurgence
What's New in iWork '06?
eWeek: Exploit for Safari Hole Raises Risk for Mac Users
eWeek: Google's Web Page Creator Crashes on Takeoff
Why Virus Is Good For Mac Users
MarketWatch's John C. Dvorak says:
What is believed to be the first Macintosh OS X-targeted virus was found in the wild last week, and by Tuesday at least three variants had been reported.
While this will probably affect few users, it does mean the Macintosh is vulnerable. But how vulnerable, really? The answer is that we don't know, yet.
This is all about bragging rights in an underworld of introverted hobbyists out to amaze their strange community of nebulous friends.
Counterintuitive as this may sound, I see it as good news for Mac users, since any vulnerability will mean that the operating system, and its users, can grow more hardened to the reality of these threats.
For the full commentary visit here.
[Editor's note: for a bit of perspective, Mr. Dvorak affrms that antivirus-applications maker Panda Software registered more than 46,000 new PC viruses and other threats in 2005, and that's just the new ones in addition to the tens of thousands (hundreds of thousands?) already out there. OS X now has three. Not that Mac-users should be complacent, but the proportional threat is still micro-miniscule in comparison with the PC malware oslaught. CM]
Apple vs. the Hackers, Round 1
BusinessWeek's Arik Hesseldahl says:
Call them the hack attacks that weren't. Late last week and into this week, the sometimes Mac-ignorant media piled on the news that there appeared to be some malicious software circulating that targeted Apple's Macintosh computers.
Even Matt Drudge got into the game, with headlines on his heavily-trafficked Drudge Report Web site that screamed: "Two Viruses Target Apple's Macintosh."
.....Collectively, these two pieces of malicious software -- if you can even call them that -- posed practically zero threat to Mac users, and the third vulnerability caused no reported damage. But they did serve to renew the discussion about how secure the Mac actually is -- and among Mac loyalists, it's a rather rancorous debate. One side is defiant in its absolute faith in Mac security, the other far more skeptical and pragmatic.
For the full commentary visit here:
http://yahoo.businessweek.com/technology/content/feb2006/tc20060223_794862.htm
MacBook Pro Heat Generation
PowerPage's Jason O'Grady says:
With the disclaimer that this isn't at all scientific, I wanted to comment on the heat generated by the MacBook Pro, a frequent question. I tested the PowerBook G4 (1.5GHz, 2GB, 120GB) and a MacBook Pro (2.0GHz, 2GB, 120GB) running all night while sitting on a Podium Coolpad from RoadTools......
For the full report visit here.
http://www.powerpage.org/archives/2006/02/macbook_pro_heat_generation.html#008647
MacBook Migration Strategies
In his latest ZNet blog, Jason D. O'Grady says:
It's no secret the I took delivery of my new MacBook Pro notebook this week, and like many of you upgrading to a new Mac I was faced with a tough decision: how to migrate my data to the new iron.
One tip: I highly recommend that you name the target hard drive the same name as the source as this saved me tons of problems with file paths on the new Mac. Once you've used it for about a week, you can change the target HDD name to whatever you wish.....
Some people recommend copying your source User folder to a FireWire drive then simply copying it over to the target. While this can be done, I don't recommend it. There's a much better solution that's now included with all new Macs (since OS 10.3.4) called the Apple Migration Assistant.
Great tips!
You can check it out at:
http://blogs.zdnet.com/Apple/?p=142
Memory Price Hikes Ahead For Intel PCs (And Macs)
vnunet.com Asia news's Simon Burns reports:
Prices for the DDR2 memory chips commonly used in PCs with Intel CPUs will begin to rise significantly next month because demand is exceeding supply, according to sources in Taiwan's semiconductor manufacturing industry.
While upwards pricing pressure already exists, monthly contracts are creating delays of at several weeks before price changes begin to reach consumers.
DDR2 memory is required for most PCs and notebooks that use Intel's latest CPUs, including Microsoft Windows and Apple Mac PCs.
For the full report visit here:
http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2150873/asia-news-wrap-230206
What Makes a Mac, a Mac???
applematters.com's David Czepanski says:
It used to be that you could rattle off any number of differences between a Mac and Windows PC, but now the differences are dwindling. Taken to its extreme, it may be that there will be no differences between them. So now, when a die-hard PC user waxes lyrical about the virtues of XP, or a complete newbie asks, "What's the big difference between them?" how do you respond? What is the Mac difference?
First, let's have a look at what used to be said:
1. Macs have a RISC processor that is superior to CISC.
2. Macs have a one button mouse.
3. Macs have superior hardware design.
4. Macs have a better operating system
5. Macs are renowned for their ease of use.
So how much of this still holds up in the MacIntel era?
Check out David's commentary to find out, but this comment condenses the anwser:
Even if XP had no bugs in it - and I will pause here so you can think that through - the other hardware and software vendors are not working alongside one another to ensure a pleasant user experience. At times, I wonder if the other guys are even on the same planet.
You can check it out at:
http://www.applematters.com/index.php/section/comments/803/
MacBook Pro: First day, first Lab tests
Macworld's Jason Snell reports:
Our first MacBook Pros arrived yesterday—three 2GHz models bought with our own coin - and the testing started immediately. Macworld Lab has been churning away on benchmark testing, and we'll post a review with complete in-depth results later this week...
So, in the interest of immediate gratification and in advance of our forthcoming review, here are some notes about the MacBook Pro after 24 hours spent in its thrall...
The tests we've done so far tend to suggest that these MacBook Pro models are comparable to the speed of the iMac Core Duo models. When compared to the previous-generation PowerBook G4, they're clearly faster in most tests, shockingly faster in certain situations, and slower when it comes to running apps being translated by the Rosetta emulation technology.
You can check it out at:
http://www.macworld.com/2006/02/firstlooks/macbookfirstlook/index.php?lsrc=mwrss
Apple To 'Launch Full Movie Downloads' Next Week
The Register's Tony Smith reports:
Apple will next week announce that it's going to start selling full-length movie downloads through the iTunes Music Store, if the forecast of a US market watcher is correct. The prediction comes in the week the company passed the 1bn music downloads mark.
For the full report visit here.
http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2006/02/23/apple_itunes_movies/
What The Other Steve Is Saying About Apple's Striking Resurgence
The Globe and Mail's Peter Nowak reports:
After being all but written off by the tech industry in the mid '90s, Apple Computer Inc. has made a startling resurgence. But that doesn't mean its latest strategies sit well with Woz.
Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak -- also known as "The Wizard of Woz," or even "the other Steve" -- made his fortune as the inventor of the Apple II computer more than 25 years ago...
Still, it's hard for Mr. Wozniak not to pay attention to Apple. With the runaway success of its iPod music players and its recent shift to Intel processors, Apple is heading in some drastically new directions. Apple's recent embrace of Intel processors, for one, is something Mr. Wozniak says he never imagined.
"It's like consorting with the enemy. We've had this long history of saying the enemy is the big black-hatted guys, and they kind of represent evil. We are different, and by being different we're better," he says. "All of a sudden we're the same in this hardware regard, so it's a little hard to swallow your words from the past."....
"I hope Microsoft improves and becomes more like Apple."
For the full report visit here.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20060223.TWOZNIAK23/TPStory/Business
What's New in iWork '06?
MacDevCenter's Giles Turnbull reports:
It's fair to say that iWork '06 got a short shrift in Steve Jobs' keynote speech at Macworld last January. With all the excitement about iLife '06 and the Intel-powered Macs, all iWork got was a mere announcement of its existence: "Go and check it out," Steve urged us.
So, that's what we've done. In this article I take a look at some of the new features in iWork, with plenty of screenshots to show you everything as it happens.
You can check it out here.
eWeek: Exploit for Safari Hole Raises Risk for Mac Users
"Software code that can exploit a hole in Apple's Safari Web browser was added to a popular hacking tool on Feb. 22, raising the risks of attack for Apple Mac users.
So-called "shell code" that takes advantage of a security flaw in Safari's "safe file" feature was added to the Metasploit framework on Feb. 22 and a copy of the script was posted on FrSIRT.com, a software vulnerability and exploit Web site."
Read more at:
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1930265,00.asp
eWeek: Google's Web Page Creator Crashes on Takeoff
"Search giant Google's latest feature, a personalized Web page creator, stumbled on its first day.
Google is dealing with an embarrassing capacity problem that forced it on Feb. 23, the same day the service began, to temporarily stop letting people sign up for Page Creator.
The reason? An "extremely strong demand," according to a message found on the site. "Please submit your e-mail address and we will notify you as soon as we are ready to add new accounts.""
Read more at:
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1930703,00.asp
Charles W. Moore
Tags: News ď Tech-Industry ď
