Moore’s Tech Web Reader - Monday, October 22, 2007
Apple Market Value Soars Past Dell's on Mac, iPod
Mac, iPhone sales to lead Apple report
Leopard-related .Mac enhancements made, Mac OS X 10.3.9 support degraded
If a Mac Plus Can Run System 7.5.5, Why Can't an 800 MHz G4 Run Leopard?
MacPorts, Up and Running
OS X Leopard: Apple's Official Guided Tour
Apple, Tesco 'Most To Blame' For Music Biz Crisis
Record Labels To Ditch CD Singles For USB Flash Drives
Analysts Expect Strong Fourth Quarter for Apple
FAQ: Switching from Mac OS X Tiger to Leopard
How To Get Windows Media To Run On Your Mac
Vista: Cat-Scratch Fever
It Just Keeps Spinning And Spinning And Spinning And Spinning And…
Canada To Tax Legal Digital Music Downloads
Apple iTunes Store Expands Free Educational Content
God Is On Side Of Web's "Fastest-growing Site"
No Rotten Apples Here?
The Tech Night Owl Newsletter: Waiting for Leopard Book III: Just a Point-One Upgrade?
The Tech Night Owl: The Hotmail Horror Show
This Week's Tech Night Owl Radio Update
Apple Market Value Soars Past Dell's on Mac, iPod
Bloomberg's Connie Guglielmo reports:
Ten years ago this month, Dell Inc. founder Michael Dell said Steve Jobs should ```shut down'' Apple Inc. and return the money to shareholders.
Dell then had a market value of $4 billion to Apple's $700 million. Apple's valuation has since soared to $150 billion, more than double that of its personal-computer rival. Last month, Apple passed PC leader Hewlett-Packard Co. in market capitalization for the first time.
Jobs changed Apple from a company dependent on the Macintosh computer to a consumer-electronics innovator. He introduced the iPod media player, and built sales to more than 110 million units by updating features. This year Apple entered the wireless-handset market, drawing more than 1 million customers to the iPhone at an initial price of as much as $599.
"It's not a one-trick pony anymore,'' said Jeffrey Krumpelman, portfolio manager at Fifth Third Asset Management in Cincinnati. ``It really is a cash-flow machine.'' He helps oversee $21 billion in assets, including Apple shares.
For the full report visit here:
http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=aekh6rI3r3Ao
Mac, iPhone sales to lead Apple report
MarketWatch reports:
One of the season's most-anticipated tech earnings reports is set to be delivered Monday when Apple Inc. gives its fiscal-fourth quarter results amid high expectations for Macintosh sales and new insights into the market reception of the iconic iPhone.
Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial estimate Apple will earn 85 cents a share on $6.05 billion in revenue for the quarter, compared to a profit of 62 cents a share on $4.84 billion in revenue in the year ago quarter.
When it comes to Apple's earnings report, there are few secrets that can be hid. The company's Mac computers and iPod digital media players are now joined by the iPhone, which is without question one of the most-hyped tech products of the last few years.
For the full report click here.
Leopard-related .Mac enhancements made, Mac OS X 10.3.9 support degraded
MacFixIt reports:
In preparation for Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard)'s ability sync Dashboard widget preferences, Dock items, application and system preferences, and Mail notes across Leopard-based Macs, Apple has (as of October 19th) made some back-end enhancements to the .Mac sync infrastructure. Along with the changes, Apple is upping the OS version requirements for Tiger (Mac OS X 10.4.x) users and degrading some functionality for Panther (Mac OS X 10.3.x) users.
Apple says "to ensure (.Mac) uninterrupted service," users should be running Mac OS X 10.4.10 or later. If you are running a previous version of Mac OS X 10.4.x (Tiger), you may receive the message ".Mac Sync Client is out of date."
For the full report visit here:
http://www.macfixit.com/article.php?story=20071019091338753
If a Mac Plus Can Run System 7.5.5, Why Can't an 800 MHz G4 Run Leopard?
Low End Mac's Ted Hodges says:
It seems that my last article, 60 Mac Models Left Behind: The Ridiculously High Cost of Leopard, was a smash hit, receiving over 4,000 hits since it was posted on Wednesday.
A number of readers have emailed me, some say that I'm being irrational, that 4+ year old machines just don't have what it takes to run Leopard. Others have said that we are lucky that Apple gave us any PowerPC support, and that they should have made it Intel only.
Many who wrote seem to think that machines that are more than four years old shouldn't be supported, because they aren't up to the task, and I disagree with that. The way I see it, they could be supported for ten years without any issues. I can even give you the perfect example, a Mac that was supported for more than ten years, the Mac Plus.
System 7.5.5 was released in late 1996, and it ran on every Mac from the Mac Plus (introduced in 1986 with an 8 MHz Motorola 68000 processor, no expansion slots, and no internal hard drive) all the way up to the Power Mac 9600/200MP (introduced in 1997 with two 200 MHz 604e processors, 6 PCI slots, 12 RAM slots, and 6 drive bays), just as long as it had 4 MB RAM and any size Hard Drive connected to it.
[Editor's note: Yes, but System 7 was a lazy performer on the Plus. I installed System 7 on mine basically to get Internet support for email, but I kept System 6.0.8 installed on another partition for actually using the machine for work. CM]
To read more, click here.
http://lowendmac.com/hodges/th07/1019.html
MacPorts, Up and Running
commandlinemac.com reports:
MacPorts is a system designed to let you easily install and manage free, open source software on OS X. Until late in 2006, the project was named DarwinPorts. There are disk image downloads available for 10.3 (Panther) and 10.4 (Tiger). If you have a different version, you can download the source code and compile it.
If you are new the "ports" concept, the way the system works may be hard to grasp. The ports system was developed in the BSD community as a way to easily install and manage software on any BSD system. It was designed to automate the manual process programmers followed to port software from one Unix-like system to another. Most of the software in the ports repository is written in the C language and requires a C compiler.....
An Apple enhancement to the original ports system allows some software to be built (compiled) as universal binaries. This option may be desirable if you share binaries between Intel and PPC Macs, or plan to upgrade soon and don't want to install your ports again.
To read more, click here.
http://www.commandlinemac.com/article.php?story=20071004113718833
OS X Leopard: Apple's Official Guided Tour
Apple 2.0's Philip Elmer-DeWitt says:
With less than a week before OS X Leopard ships, Apple (AAPL) has published a video guided tour of the latest version of its flagship Macintosh operating system. It's available... as a Quicktime download or streaming file.Clocking in at more than 27 minutes, it's a long slog, delivered by a black-shirted actor in the cloying up-beat tone that has become Apple's house style for these presentations. This actor has unusually expressive hands; try not to be distracted by them.
Despite its glacial, Mister Rogers pace, the video is worth watching, especially if you haven't had the pleasure of seeing one of Steve Jobs' Leopard demos......
For the full review visit here:
http://apple20.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2007/10/20/57/?source=yahoo_quote
Check out the tour here:
http://www.apple.com/macosx/guidedtour/small.html
Apple, Tesco 'Most To Blame' For Music Biz Crisis
The Register's Andrew Orlowski says:
A new report suggests that Apple and Tesco, not P2P file sharers, should take the most blame for the woes of the British music industry.
The report, prepared privately by consultants Capgemini for the Value Recognition Strategy working group, set out to examine the "value gap", the amount sound recordings revenue has fallen in the UK since 2004. The report remains confidential, but details are starting to emerge.
The consultants suggest that "format changes" and price pressure from discounted CDs on sale in supermarkets, are most to blame for this "value gap".
However, the report gives lie [not "life", as a typo suggested - ed.] to the idea that P2P file sharing stimulates demand for sales, or is even a neutral factor. This idea has given comfort to the powerful anti-copyright lobby, backed by internet users who want digital music for free - and find endless justifications to avoid paying for it.
Capgemini calculates that of £480m lost to the industry since 2004, £368m was the result of format changes: principally the unbundling of the CD into an "a la carte" selection of digital songs. Of the remainder, 18 per cent was lost to piracy.
For the full report visit here:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/10/19/vrs_value_gap_report/
Record Labels To Ditch CD Singles For USB Flash Drives
The Register's James Sherwood reports:
USB Flash drives will soon appear in record stores in a bid by major music labels to build up sales of physical media in the post-CD era.
Universal told The Times this week that by the end of this month it will release USB singles holding several songs, videos and multimedia content. However, it'll charge around £5 (7/$10) per stick - around £2 more than CD singles currently cost.
For the full report visit here:
http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/10/19/universal_replace_cd_music_with_usb/
Analysts Expect Strong Fourth Quarter for Apple
AP reports:
Apple Inc. reports earnings for its fourth fiscal quarter on Monday. The following is a summary of key developments and analyst opinion related to the period.
To read more, click here.
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071019/apple_earns_preview.html?.v=1
FAQ: Switching from Mac OS X Tiger to Leopard
Computerworld's Gregg Keizer says:
The next version of Mac OS X will go on sale on Friday 26 October, and Apple is already taking pre-orders. That means Mac users finally have a decision to make.
Is a move to Leopard smart? Everyone will have different reasons for considering the switch, but assuming you give Apple a nod and your £85, here are the questions to ponder as you prepare for next Friday. We'll start with the basics first.......
Why would I want to spend £85 on a new operating system? Tiger is working fine. We're betting you're taking a subtle shot at Windows Vista here. If not, Apple says it has more than 300 reasons for upgrading, citing the number of new features it claims that Leopard has. Many are under the hood and hard to spot for all but the most dedicated - as in the Apple Dictionary, which the company says now includes "a dictionary of Apple terms." Feature or market-speak - you decide. But there are several that make most everyone's justification list, including these five: Time Machine, Boot Camp, Parental Controls, a revamped Desktop and a more powerful Spotlight search.
Whether the changes are worth the £85 is, of course, between you and your bank account.
For the full report visit here:
http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/news/index.cfm?newsid=11075
How To Get Windows Media To Run On Your Mac
Mac 360's Alexis Kayhill says:
Windows MediaStandards help make the world go round. Unfortunately, standards are not always so standard and don't always work everywhere....
The big daddy of media players still belongs to Microsoft's Windows. To be fair, Microsoft does have a version of Windows Media Player for the Mac. It was last upgraded sometime in the late 1800s. Or the late 1900s. Or, a long time ago. Microsoft's dominatrix-like fetish for controlling the behavior of everyone means Mac users won't see a new Media Player from Microsoft. Ever.
Enter Flip4Mac, the free utility that lets Mac users play Windows Media files, both audio and video, within QuickTime and within a browser window. Guess what? For the most part, Flip4Mac works very well. Did I mention that it's free?
For the full review click here.
Vista: Cat-Scratch Fever
microsoft-watch.com's Joe Wilcox says:
Next week's release of Mac OS X 10.5, or Leopard, will make for an interesting holiday face-off between Macs and Windows Vista PCs.
The differences between Leopard and Vista may not be all that obvious to average consumers or even small business owners. Leopard's feature set bears striking similarities to Vista.
The more immediate differences will be the new computer packaging. There, Microsoft must depend on its OEM partners to deliver striking, compelling designs that take advantage of Vista features. Dell has added color to its laptop lineup, while Sony has taken a decidedly splashier approach with designer lids.
How a computer looks is an increasingly important purchasing factor, particularly as more people buy notebooks, which are personal computers with a capital P.....
Leopard will have the advantage of being the new thing, and it comes at a time of great Apple brand resurgence. More importantly, Apple retail stores offer a terrific shopping experience, in stark contrast to many computer or electronics stores....
To read more, click here.
It Just Keeps Spinning And Spinning And Spinning And Spinning And…
MacUSer's Dan Pourhadi says:
The marble. The beach ball. The pizza. Whatever you call it, the little rainbow spinny thing has horrified and infuriated Mac users for ages. Some compare it to the Windows Blue Screen of Death (though it's not nearly as debilitating). It's like the alarm noise that has woken you up every morning for six months - whenever you hear it, you're filled with an epic rage, not because it has done anything wrong or is itself responsible for your morning misery, but just because it is the relentless bearer of unwanted reality.
They say don't kill the messenger. But if that messenger won't leave you the hell alone, constantly coming back, over and over and over again, sometimes you feel like you don't have a choice but to bash him over the head with an old lead skillet.
That's just how I feel about the Spinning Beach Ball of Death. It's not evil; it's just asking us nicely to wait while our computer does what it's supposed to do.....
For the full commentary visit here:
http://www.macuser.com/humor/it_just_keeps_spinning_and_spi.php?lsrc=murss
Canada To Tax Legal Digital Music Downloads
macnn/electronista reports:
Canadians may soon pay a small tax on every legal music store download, says a new measure sanctioned by the Copyright Board of Canada. Requested by the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN), the tax would apply at least 2.1 cents to every individual song download and 1.5 cents per track for complete albums. Subscription download and streaming services would themselves be charged between 5.7 and 6.8 percent of a user's monthly fees. Minimum fees would also apply for every larger download or subscription.
The surcharge would help compensate artists for piracy, according to SOCAN's reasoning. The publishing group draws similarities between this and a 21-cent fee already applied to blank CDs in the country; the right to copy a song from an online store demands the same sort of levy applied to copying a retail CD, SOCAN argues.
For the full report visit here:
http://www.electronista.com/articles/07/10/19/canada.taxing.music.sales/
Apple iTunes Store Expands Free Educational Content
The Associated Press reports:
Apple Inc. is expanding the free educational content available on its online iTunes Store beyond lectures and videos from universities.
Materials ranging from recordings of Supreme Court arguments and public radio broadcasts on the civil rights movement to video interviews with sculptor Richard Serra are among the offerings under a new category called "Beyond Campus."
The section can be found within iTunes U, a free service which Apple has offered to universities since 2006 to distribute their course lectures or other digital content through the iTunes Store. The schools decide whether they want to open the free materials to the public or limit access to students and alumni.
For the full report visit here:
http://www.bostonherald.com/business/technology/general/view.bg?articleid=1039178
God Is On Side Of Web's "Fastest-growing Site"
valleywag.com's Nicholas Carlson reports:
Are even the mildly lewd antics of Lonelygirl15 too risqué for your tastes? Then GodTube is your answer. GodTube may not be as sexy or well-edited as say, a rap dedicated to Harry Potter, but it's still reported to be the fastest growing site on the Internet.......
For the full report click here.
No Rotten Apples Here?
AppleMatters' Tanner Godarzi says:
A recent report has claimed that Apple has dropped in quality and their consumer image has been slightly tarnished. I am not defending Apple - no company is immune to bad customer service - but there is some FUD that needs to be cleared up.
You may have had your excellent experience with Apple, like getting a new iPod after your previous one broke, or even the downright ugly, like having an iMac with numerous hardware faults.
Now, to remind you, I am not defending Apple and flaming anyone who dare speaks against the cult of Apple, or attempting to convince everyone that Steve Jobs is a demigod. Like I said, no company is immune to having faulty customer experiences. I'm a huge believer that a problem will occur with any tech product; my faith in a company is established based on the following actions and responses in fixing my problem.
However, I've had my share of bad and good Apple experiences. I had my PowerBook's Hard Drive replaced after it failed because it was chucked from a desk (not my fault, put those pitchforks down). I was not only denied a fix for my iPhone polka dot screen problem, but it was not even fixed after returning from Apple Care.
For the full commentary visit here:
http://www.applematters.com/index.php/section/comments/no-rotten-apples-here/
The Tech Night Owl Newsletter: Waiting for Leopard Book III: Just a Point-One Upgrade?
As Leopard approaches, you have to wonder whether even 300-plus new features and enhancements will be sufficient to sway the skeptics about its potential. You see, as far as software numbering schemes go, incrementing a single tenth of a point usually signifies a pretty insignificant update.
To read more, click here.
Notes: You can also access our new RSS feed, available at:
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Or our new Atom feed at:
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The Tech Night Owl: The Hotmail Horror Show
If you want a free email account, you have lots of options, both small and large. Most of you are probably familiar with the big players in the business, such as Google, Yahoo! and, of course, Windows Live Hotmail or whatever they are calling it these days.
For the full report visit here:
http://macnightowl.com/newsletter/2007/10/21/newsletter-issue-412/#show
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
So is Steve Jobs becoming a devoted blogger? Well, with three under his belt so far this year, you'd think so. True, the writing style doesn't seem so smooth, so maybe he did write that stuff himself. Or maybe he rounded up his corporate communications department and had them prepare the blogs, and then took his blue pencil to fix the prose.
For the full report visit here:
http://macnightowl.com/newsletter/2007/10/21/newsletter-issue-412/#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
Charles W. Moore
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