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Apple Future Headline: New Products Including Super Laptop?
Why Apple Needs a Pro Ultra-Portable Again
Ultralight Mac Notebook Rumors Gather Steam
Apple Subnote Finally Emerging For Macworld
Mac Attack For Apple
Switching from Windows to Mac - My Story
Western Digital Drive Is DRM-Crippled For Your Safety Because You Are A Dirty Criminal Scumbag
Multimedia Sharing Off Limits on NAS Drive
One Step From The Top, Essex Boy Who Reached Apple's Core
Will Jonathan Ive Replace Apple's Steve Jobs?
Apple Leopard Users Hit With 'Green Screen Of Death'
Apple's Xmas Gift: Wireless Networking Problems
Update: Google Disables Gmail Accounts By Mistake
Working with Vintage Macs
Apple's $15 Billion Cash Hoard
Apple's Cash: Leave It Alone, Mostly
At the Core of Apple: A Clear-eyed Look at Steve Jobs' World
Save Money This Winter: Five Tips For Low-energy Business Computing
Gene Steinberg's Night Owl: Living Large with the Dell
This Week's Tech Night Owl Radio Update
PC Mag: 10 Web Shows to Watch During the Writers Strike
eWEEK: Four GPSes Get You Where You Want to Go-and More
Charles W. Moore
Apple Future Headline: New Products Including Super Laptop?
CNBC.com's Jim Goldman reports:
A very good source of mine with good connections to Apple's Asian manufacturing partners called me this morning with some news: Seems like Apple will be making headlines in the next few weeks and months with some of its hottest products: the iPod Touch, the iPhone and a new ultra-portable laptop.
First, the item on the Touch: this source is being told that a company involved with its manufacturing has increased production to 5.1 million units for the holiday shopping quarter.,,,
For iPhone, AT&T tipped Apple's hand last week when the company's CEO, Randall Stephenson, reported that a 3G version of the iPhone was coming in 2008.....
And then there's this: this source says he has now heard from manufacturing partners in Asia that Apple is preparing to unveil a new, ultra portable laptop computer at the company's Macworld event next month in San Francisco.
For the full report visit here:
http://www.cnbc.com/id/22132704
Why Apple Needs a Pro Ultra-Portable Again
PBCentral's Joe Leo says:
Everyone keeps talking about what will probably be the hottest ticket at Macworld Expo 2008. No, not the one that gets you in to see Steve-o, but the product that may become known as the MacBook nano, or the mini MacBook Pro. And while rumors have been flying about the return of the ultra-portable Mac notebook for quite some time?
That rumor may have finally found a place to land, with breaking news from a CNBC report yesterday afternoon, which immediately became the top story on Mac news sites everywhere.
I started writing this piece back on November 19th, just days after acquiring my newest Mac portable - a "new" aluminum 15-inch PowerBook G4 - with plans to publish it this month as a lead up to Macworld Expo 2008 (which by the way, we will be covering again this year). Being a 12-inch PowerBook G4 user and loving every aspect of it since day one, the topic was?
Why Apple needs a MacBook Pro mini (or MacBook Pro nano) in its notebook line-up.
So of course, with the news yesterday that Apple is indeed creating a new ultra-portable Mac, or, well, at least a "sub-notebook" Mac, it bumps up the need to publish this story. Like today. (Funny thing is, I totally missed that report and didn't come across it until I read about it on the other Mac news sites... usually I'm watching CNBC and passing on the news to all of you!).
To read more, click here.
Ultralight Mac Notebook Rumors Gather Steam
Computerworld's Gregg Keizer reports:
Rumors that Apple Inc. will unveil a new thin, lightweight MacBook in just over a month gained strength today as the CNBC cable network cited sources claiming the portable was real..
Jim Goldman of CNBC said that the subnotebook system will be 50% thinner and lighter than the MacBook Pro, which is approximately 1-in. thick and weighs between 5.4 and 6.8 pounds, depending on the model
For the full report click here.
Apple Subnote Finally Emerging For Macworld
The Inquirer's Martin Veitch reports:
What do you give to the company that has almost everything? Well, for Apple, that would be a thin-and-light subnotebook and a 3G Iphone, naturally. The theory that a subnote is on its way has been doing the rounds for yonks and for good reason - it's as obvious as robins and holly tipping up for Christmas.
To read more, click here.
Mac Attack For Apple
Forbes' Andrew Farrell says:
Apple's going back to the future this holiday season.
Forget new gadgets like iPhones and iPods. The company expects to get a year-end lift from the product that made it a sensation in the first place: the Macintosh computer, which seems to be winning converts from the Microsoft Windows world.
Shares of Apple rose 2.4%, or $4.46, to close at $189.96, after two analysts lifted their price targets the stock. Both said they expect strong holiday Mac sales.
RBC analyst Mike Abramsky upped his price target of Apple shares to $215.00 from $205.00 on Thursday. He maintained his "outperform" rating on the stock.
Abramsky predicts a "massive holiday" season for Macs. He expects Mac shipments to jump 47% year-over-year during the company's holiday season quarter.
To read more, click here.
Switching from Windows to Mac - My Story
Blogger Terry L. Brock says:
Well, I did it. Yep! This long-time Windows user made the move to "The Dark Side of the Force" yesterday when I cracked open the relatively small box which arrived at my condo. It was packed with my new baby---weighing in at 5.4 pounds---- my new MacBook Pro.....
I was a contented, happy Windows user for a long time. Even as I type this article I'm using my wonderful Dell XPS Gen 2 system. I would have purchased the new Dell M1330 but too many bad things are involved. Things have changed with computers. What happened? A series of things pushed me over the edge. Here's my story.
For the full commentary visit here:
http://yoursuccess.blogspot.com/2007/12/switching-from-windows-to-mac-my-story.html
Western Digital Drive Is DRM-Crippled For Your Safety Because You Are A Dirty Criminal Scumbag
The Register's Austin Modine reports:
Western Digital's 1TB My Book World Edition external hard drive has been crippled by DRM for your safety.
A kindly Reg reader tipped us off that the remote-access HDD won't share media files over network connections. Which is, as you can see here, the entire stinking point of it.
It's a scary world full of potentially unlicensed media. We're fortunate there's a hard drive vendor willing to step forward and do some indiscriminate policing for us.
From the WD site:
"Due to unverifiable media license authentication, the most common audio and video file types cannot be shared with different users using WD Anywhere Access."
You have 20 seconds to comply....
For the full commentary visit here:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/12/07/western_digital_drm_crippled_harddrive/
Multimedia Sharing Off Limits on NAS Drive
IDG News Service's Agam Shah reports:
Concerned about piracy of multimedia files, Western Digital has disallowed the sharing of multimedia files on its 1T-byte network-attached storage drive, the WD My Book World Edition.
Due to "unverifiable media license authentication," the remote desktop software embedded on the NAS device does not share audio and video files, including MP3, MPEG, AVI and DivX files, according to WD's customer support site .
For the full report visit here:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,140386-c,harddrives/article.html
One Step From The Top, Essex Boy Who Reached Apple's Core
The Times' Chris Ayres reports:
He holds one of the most powerful corporate jobs in America. His admirers (and customers) include Bono, George W. Bush and the Queen. This year the readers of Time magazine put him among the 100 most influential people on Earth.
Could Jonathan Ive, the publicity-shy Essex boy who started his career designing toilets and combs, be close to performing one of the most extraordinary coups in American business history?
Could this 40-year-old gym-toned, shaven-headed, Aston Martin-driving Brit, who lives in Twin Peaks, San Francisco, with his wife, who is a historian, and their twin sons, be the next man to run Apple Computer?
For the full report click here.
Will Jonathan Ive Replace Apple's Steve Jobs?
Apple 2.0's Philip Elmer-DeWitt says:
One of the nicest things about Jonathan Ive, chief designer of the iPod, the iPhone and just about every other Apple product since the original candy-colored iMac, is that he has displayed absolutely no ambition to rise to the top of Apple Inc. He seems content to lead a design team that is without equal in the world of consumer electronics.
Which is what makes the two questions at the top of the long profile of Ive in today's Times of London so bizarre:
Could Jonathan Ive, the publicity-shy Essex boy who started his career designing toilets and combs, be close to performing one of the most extraordinary coups in American business history?
Could this 40-year-old gym-toned, shaven-headed, Aston Martin-driving Brit, who lives in Twin Peaks, San Francisco, with his wife, who is a historian, and their twin sons, be the next man to run Apple Computer?
To read more, click here.
Apple Leopard Users Hit With 'Green Screen Of Death'
InformationWeek's Paul McDougall
Computer users are suffering from a rainbow of problems. Beyond the well-known "blue screen of death" that's long afflicted Microsoft Windows, reports emerged earlier this week that Vista has a tendency to display a purple variant.
Now, Apple Leopard users say their systems have taken to randomly flashing the color green....
For the full report click here.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=204702578
Apple's Xmas Gift: Wireless Networking Problems
ITWire's Sam Varghese reports:
In October, the Apple faithful received the latest, greatest update to their much-vaunted operating system, Mac OS X. As with every other upgrade, it has a wonderful name: Leopard.
It conjures up vivid images in the mind, images of a sleek, great cat bounding along, its limbs a picture of symmetry,
The reality could not be more different.
This great cat has one great problem - it seems to have some kind of paralysis in its limbs. It can't handle wireless networking. And 41 days after release, the problem still hasn't gone away.
For the full report visit here:
http://www.itwire.com/content/view/15705/1090/
Update: Google Disables Gmail Accounts By Mistake
IDG News Service's Juan Carlos Perez reports:
Google Inc. this week mistakenly disabled the Gmail accounts of an undetermined number of users due to an apparently overzealous attempt by the company to combat spammers.
A Google staffer writing under the name "Gmail Guide" posted a message on the company's Gmail Help Discussion forum yesterday saying that the problem had been fixed. But today, some Gmail users were still complaining about being locked out of their accounts. The thread devoted to the disabled accounts contained a total of more than 160 postings as of 1:30 p.m. EST.
For the full report click here.
Working with Vintage Macs
Low End Mac's Adam Rosen reports:
A recurring issue that users of all platforms face is how to use older peripherals with newer computers. Printers, scanners, hard drives, and various specialty equipment have long life spans and often remain in use longer than the computers they were originally used with. But as operating systems evolve and new computers lose ports and hardware interfaces they once had, continuing to use those peripherals can present challenges.
For the full report visit here:
http://lowendmac.com/ed/rosen/ar07/1207.html
Apple's $15 Billion Cash Hoard
Pop quiz: Which tech company has the most cash?
(A) IBM
(B) Hewlett-Packard
(C) Intel
(D) Google
(E) Apple
If you picked E, congratulations. Apple's $15.4 billion stash is indeed the biggest of the group, putting the iPod maker in the elite ranks of well-heeled Fortune 500 tech companies. (Only Microsoft (MSFT) and Cisco Systems (CSCO) stockpile more.) And lately the stacks have been rising fast; Apple has added $5 billion to its coffers in the past year alone, according to regulatory filings.
For the full report click here.
Apple's Cash: Leave It Alone, Mostly
BusinessWeek's Arik Hesseldahl says:
In March, I argued first in my online column and then later in a commentary in the magazine that Apple should start doing something with its enormous and steadily growing pile of cash. At that time it was $12 billion. Now its $15 billion, and the question isn't going away.
At the time I argued, that at least one way to use it would be to start a $1 billion venture capital fund, something along the lines of what Intel has done with Intel Capital. The chip giant has invested $6 billion in more than 1,000 companies since 1991. I still think its a pretty good idea. Apple has as much interest as anyone else in influencing the development of the tech economy, whether that's done through its own products, which are the result of its own research and development, or through helping third parties get their own ideas off the ground with equity funding. But $1 billion is only 6% of Apple's cash. What to do with the remaining 94%?
To read more, click here.
At the Core of Apple: A Clear-eyed Look at Steve Jobs' World
FastCompany.com's Adam L. Penenberg says:
This promises to be a joyous holiday season for Steve Jobs and the incandescent Apple. Over the past year, the company's numbers have been stunning: Sales are up 24%, earnings up 75%, margins topping 30%, stock price up 146%. The popularity of the iPod and its snazzy young cousin, the iPhone, has lifted other Apple products, helping boost market share in personal computers in the United States from 2% a few years ago to 8% this past quarter, with Apple leapfrogging Gateway to take third place behind Dell and Hewlett-Packard. The latest upgrade to Apple's operating system--Leopard--is getting strong reviews, in contrast to the indifference that greeted Microsoft's new Vista OS. Apple's market cap is now north of $160 billion; 18 months ago, the crew in Cupertino, California, was worth a mere $60 billion. This $100 billion increase alone equals the combined value of Motorola and Sprint-Nextel.
Yet this is also a dangerous moment for Apple. In a way the company has never seen, the barbarians are massing at the gates. From hardware to software to services, major competitors with serious R&D and marketing budgets are laying siege to the House of Jobs.....
To read more, click here.
Save Money This Winter: Five Tips For Low-energy Business Computing
Computerworld's Robert L. Mitchell says:
First, the data center dialed back its power consumption. Now it's the front office's turn.
Concerned about soaring energy costs, IT organizations have begun to make significant changes to the way their data centers are powered and cooled. But many IT departments haven't yet looked at saving energy by targeting the rest of the company's IT equipment.
Five tips for saving energy in the office
Do an energy audit
Adopt and enforce power management
Dump those CRTs
Slim down the client
Print more efficiently
You can check it out at:
http://www.kxan.com/Global/story.asp?S=7460203&nav=menu73_2_11
Gene Steinberg's Night Owl Newsletter: CompUSA Self-Destructs
I used to joke how few people knew anything over at CompUSA, except, perhaps, how to overcharge. This isn’t to say that the Apple “store- within-a-store” was necessarily bad, though. As it was, some of the CompUSA outlets actually had Mac fans on their staff who made a game effort to understand the products they were selling. More recently, they even had Apple reps on board to make sure that the sales environment met corporate standards.
Here's the URL for today's commentary:
http://macnightowl.com/2007/12/09/newsletter-419-preview-compusa-self-destructs/
Notes: You can also access our new RSS feed, available at:
http://www.macnightowl.com/rss
Or our new Atom feed at:
http://www.macnightowl.com//atom
Gene Steinberg's Night Owl: Living Large with the Dell
When my wife, Barbara, first heard me suggest that I needed a 30-inch display on my office desk, her eyes glazed over. She thought that a 24-inch was a little too big, but I emphasized to her how I could get my work done more efficiently, and have more time to spend with her. That may have been a threat, and not a promise, I thought, but she said I should go for it.
Here's the link to the story:
http://macnightowl.com/newsletter/2007/12/09/newsletter-issue-419/#display
Notes: You can also access our RSS feed, available at:
http://www.macnightowl.com/rss
Or our Atom feed at:
http://www.macnightowl.com/atom
This Week's Tech Night Owl Radio Update
Are we too negative on The Tech Night Owl LIVE? I suppose that’s a fair question, and, in fact, one of our loyal listeners said he had enough of the ongoing complaints about an Apple product or feature or another from one of our regular guests. Certainly, the listener is entitled to his opinion, and there’s nothing to stop any of you from fast forwarding past a segment you don’t like, but we do hope you’ll find plenty worth listening to.
Here's the URL for this week's update on the show:
http://macnightowl.com/newsletter/2007/12/09/newsletter-issue-419/#update
Notes: You can also access our new RSS newsletter feed, available at:
http://www.macnightowl.com/newsletter/rss
Or our Atom newsletter feed at:
http://www.macnightowl.com/newsletter/atom
PC Mag: Google Rules
The G-Force, as I like to call it, is about to rock the tech world…again.
To read more, go to:
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,2229221,00.asp
PC Mag: 10 Web Shows to Watch During the Writers Strike
Screw residuals and unions and strikes. The TV season might be torpedoed, but there are lots of great shows to watch online.
To read more, go to:
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,2229412,00.asp
eWEEK: Four GPSes Get You Where You Want to Go-and More
Review: The latest in navigation technology helps new GPS units make your trip more efficient and more interesting.
To read more, click here.
Charles W. Moore
Tags: News ď Tech-Industry ď
