MacMost: Archives

Text Clippings allow you to save pieces of text as small files in the Finder and drag them into text documents and fields. You can create them by dragging text from an application to the Finder.

Gary Rosenzweig tackles the controversial question of whether you need to buy anti-virus software for your Mac. There are currently no active Mac viruses and anti-virus software could cause unexpected problems. Staying informed and up-to-date is a better option.

Typically, the week of MacWorld Expo is the biggest week of the year for Apple news. But not this year. Without Apple’s participation there is little to report, in fact. The Expo is about half the size it was last year, taking up only one hall in San Francisco’s Moscone Center instead of two. And the press releases and announcements are more of the side-show variety, with new iPhone cases, apps, third-party Mac software updates, and a few new gadgets.
Apple’s only major announcement this week is the release of a new version of Aperture, their professional-level photo management and editing software. This new version catches up with the cheaper iLife application iPhoto by adding Faces and Places. Aperture is more in line with Adobe’s Lightroom software, also meant for the professional crowd. Also new in Aperture 3 are a set of new slideshow creation features that produce HD video slideshows.

Audacity is a free open source sound editor that anyone who edits audio should have on their Mac. It allows you to record, edit, alter and export sounds. It can be much easier to use than GarageBand for simple tasks.

The Sonos ZonePlayers are devices for playing music from your Mac or streaming service through your home network. Take a look at the S5 and the ZP90 ZonePlayers and see how they work. You can also get a ZoneBridge to use your ZonePlayers wirelessly. Sonos Web site. Sonos at Amazon.com.

Go beyond bookmarks by using your Safari History as an endless bookmarking system. The trick is to learn how to search your history to find pages you have visited hours or days ago. This powerful feature of the Web browser is often overlooked by new Mac users and long-time users alike.

With so much hype built up around the iPad before its launch, it is not surprising that the device couldn’t live up to it. Many Apple fanboys turned against their favorite company this week, complaining that the iPad doesn’t live up to their expectations. Specifically, many wish it had a camera, multitasking, longer battery life, and support for Adobe Flash.
Other articles are pushing back against this backlash, pointing out how the iPhone was a success and it didn’t have a ready-to-go App Store like the iPad will have at launch.
A pair of updates came out this week for iTunes and the iPhone OS. iTunes 9.0.3 fixes a bug where iTunes forgets what you specify for “remember password for purchases.” It also reportedly fixes bugs having to do with smart playlists and podcasts. The iPhone OS update, version 3.1.3 improves battery reporting and fixes a number of bugs and security issues.

Since the Magic Mouse's surface is one big touch-sensitive area, it was only a matter of time before third-party developers came up with solutions for adding custom gestures. By installing free and inexpensive system extensions, you can assign commands to various swipes and taps.

You don't need to pay top dollar for Macs, iPods and iPhones. Other sellers besides Apple have the same products for a little less. Plus you can use educational discounts and credit cards to save even more. Here are some useful tips on how to buy Apple products for less.

You can use GarageBand as a simple audio file editor. Just drag and drop a sound file into GarageBand to edit it. You can adjust the volume, cut out parts of the sound and apply filters. You can then export as a standard sound file or a compressed file.

Apple announced a whole new class of device yesterday with the introduction of the iPad. It is essentially a large iPod Touch, but with some interesting features. Here is a summary iPad hardware details:
– 9.5 inches tall, 7.5 inches wide and .5 inches deep.
– Screen resolution is 1024×768.
– Uses a new Apple A4 processor.
– Multitouch screen with more than 1000 sensors.
– Accelerometer, compass, light sensor, WiFi and Bluetooth.
– Optional 3G as well, unlocked. Takes a GSM micro sim card.
– 10-hour battery life.
– Uses iPhone/iPod dock connector.
– Includes built-in speaker and a microphone.
– Headphone jack.
– On/Off/Sleep, Home, mute and volume buttons.
The software for the iPad is version 3.2 of the iPhone/iPod Touch OS. This is not a Mac. To get additional software you will need to purchase it from the App Store. All existing iPhone apps should work on the device, with the ability to pixel-double the size to better fit the screen.
In addition, there will be some iPad-specific apps, such as Apple’s own iWork applications: Pages, Number and Keynote. There will also be a iBooks app for reading eBooks, and Apple will be launching the “iBookstore” for purchashing eBooks.
AT&T will be offering 3G data plans for the iPad in the U.S., including a $30/month unlimited plan. You can prepay for plans, apparantly without a contract.
There are some accessories planned, including a dock stand with a full-sized keyboard and a SD card adapter.
The price for the iPad will be $499 for the base WiFi-only 16GB model, then $599 and $699 for 32GB and 64GB models. Add $130 to each of those for the optional 3G.
The WiFi-only models will be available in late March, while the 3G models will come out a month after that.
In other news, Apple reported quarterly results on Monday which included new records for Macs and iPhones. It was Apple’s best performing quarter ever with record profits.

Apple announced a new product today: the iPad. Essentially a large iPod Touch, the iPad is capable of running iPhone apps at a higher resolution. You can use it to purchase and use music, videos and books. It comes in a WiFi and a WiFi+3G version and will be available at the end of March for prices starting at $499.

Here is a list of the major points announced at this special event.
10:00 — Steve Jobs takes the stage and talks about Apple as a mobile hardware company.
10:10 — Announcement: the iPad!
10:11 — Steve is demonstrating the device. Looks like a giant iPhone or iPod Touch. One-screen keyboard. Basic apps with a similar iPhone interface.
10: 12 — Steve shows off browsing the Web, viewing pictures and video.
10:16 — Includes a large screen email app, closer to the iPhone’s email than Mail on the Mac.
10:24 — Showing off a version of iCal.
10:26 — Show off Google maps, with street view.
10:30 — 1/2 inch thin, 1 1/2 pounds, 9.7-inch display, multi-touch.
10:31 — Apple is using their own processor chip, a 1Ghz Apple A4 chip.
10:32 — Memory options will range from 16GB to 64GB.
10:33 — Has Wifi (802.11n) and Bluetooth. Accelerometer, compass. Speaker, mic, dock connector.
10:34 — Claiming 10-hour battery life, even with video playing.
10:35 — Can run all iPhone apps as-is. Will double pixels and run them full screen.
10:37 — Developers can modify their apps to take full advantage of the larger display.
10:38 — New version of the iPhone SDK today for developers to update their apps.
10:40 — Showing off 3D shooter game running in full screen.
10:43 — New York Times showing off their app.
10:44 — Showing off “Brushes” app that lets you paint.
10:48 — EA showing off Need For Speed on the iPad, a 3D racing game.
10:50 — MLB.com shows off their baseball app, with video.
10:55 — iBooks is an eBook reader app. Can download books direction to the iPad.
10:58 — The iPad uses the standard ePub format, so we might be able to get books from elsewhere or make our own without Apple.
10:59 — A version of iWork will be available for the iPad. Showing off Keynote, Pages and Numbers. Numbers uses a lot of special keyboards for entering specific data types.
11:14 — iWork will cost $9.99 per application.
11:15 — You can also get the iPad with 3G wireless networking.
11:16 — AT&T will offer a 250MB/month plan for $14.99. $29.99 gets you unlimited data from AT&T. Also includes free use of AT&T WiFi hotspot locations.
11:17 — 3G data plans are prepaid. Sign up right on the iPad itself.
11:18 — Plans are for the U.S. only, but they hope to have international plans by June.
11:19 — The iPad is “unlocked” so you can use any GSM micro SIM from any carrier.
11:20 — Prices start at $500.
11:21 — $499 for the 16GB WiFi-only model. $599 for 32GB and $699 for 64GB. With 3G it will be $629, $729 and $829.
11:22 — Shipping in 60 days. First the WiFi-only ones. Then 30 more days for the first 3G ones.
11:23 — Apple will also sell a dock stand, and a dock/keyboard stand with a full-sized keyboard.
12:33 — Looks like the books will be sold through the “iBookstore.” So there will be iTunes for music and video, the App Store for apps, and the iBookstore for books.
You should be able to watch the whole thing yourself at Apple.com soon.
Will have a video up on MacMost shortly…

In 24 hours we’ll find out what the Apple Tablet looks like, what it can do, and what Apple wants us to use the Tablet for. But in the mean time we can speculate and empose our wishes on to this potential device. Plus, it is fun to take the pulse of the community to see what their expections are just before the device is real.
So, by far, the number one task users want from the Tablet is to be able to browse the Web. Nearly 50% of all respondants mentioned this as one of three things they would like to do. And it is pretty certain that no matter what form the Tablet takes that we should have a version of Safari on the device. The iPhone and iPod Touch do, so it would be a no-brainer that the Tablet will as well.
Second, with about 36% was “reading books.” Clearly there is the idea that the Tablet will compete with the Kindle here. In fact, if the sales match up with the hype then it should soon outpace the Kindle as the number one eBook reader.
Email came in third, with 30% of people wanting to read and send email on the Tablet. It’s a sure bet that the Tablet will support this as well, whether it is a Mac or a iPod Touch-like device.
The only surprise at the bottom of the 16-item list is that games ended up 11th, with only 12% interested in playing games. Some analysts have even speculated that games will be the primary function of the Tablet. If there is an app store for the Tablet, it is certain to be dominated by games like the iPhone/iPod Touch App Store.
Here is the original poll with results:

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Before we find out what the tablet looks like, what it does, and what it can be used for, tell MacMost what you think. Based on your guess about what the tablet will be, what would you be most likely to use an Apple Tablet device for? Select 3 answers. If you have a top-3 idea that isn’t listed, answer in the comments section below.

What to do when your Mac slows down. If you are experiencing a slowdown, there are several things you can check before having a pro take a look. Learn how to use Activity Monitor, Disk Utility and the System Preferences to look for obvious problems. There are also some other tips for clearing up trouble.

Learn how to use iTunes on your Mac to arrange your iPhone and iPod Touch apps. You can move them between screens and decide which ones sync. You can get Gold Strike at the App Store.

The popular online game Gold Strike has come to the iPhone. Gold Strike has previously appeared as a Web-based game, downloadable game and smartphone game for the pre-iPhone generation of phones. It has been played by millions since its release in 2003.
Gold Strike is an action puzzle game where you play a miner trying to strike gold in a collapsing mine. You must throw your pick at groups of matching blocks as tremors push the blocks closer to you. The object of the game is to dig as deep as you can, scoring points for hitting gold blocks.
The game was developed by CleverMedia, Inc., a game development company in Denver, Colorado. Since 2003 it has been the top game at CleverMedia’s primary portal GameScene.com. CleverMedia, Inc. also runs MacMost.com.
“We loved this genre of collapsing block games,” said the game’s creator, Gary Rosenzweig. “We wanted to create the ultimate game in that genre, but at the same time make ours unique.”
Gold Strike differs from other block games in that the blocks move in from the left side, rather than dropping down from the top. As the blocks push each other to the right the player must work to clear columns of blocks or risk being pushed off the screen.
The iPhone app includes the original game, plus four alternate game modes: Bottomless Pit, Strategy, Dynamite and Archeology. Each presents a different challenge using the same basic gameplay.
The click-only interface of the original game lent itself well to the touch-only interface of the iPhone and iPod Touch.
“We knew that this game would work well on the iPhone because all you need to do is to touch blocks,” said Rosenzweig. “We didn’t have to mess around with simulating arrow keys or mouse movements like in a lot of other games.”
The game also keeps track of your best scores for each game variation. It is available in the iTunes app store for an introductory price of 99 cents in the United States. It can be purchased through iTunes, or direct on the iPhone through the App Store. The starting price is only 99 cents, though this is just an introductory price.

We might finally be at the end of the rumors and into reality. Apple has sent out a colorful postcard invitation to selected press to hear about their “latest creation” on January 27. It would be shocking to most following the story if this wasn’t the new tablet being announced.
Rumors this week are mostly centered around the name of the device. iSlate and iTablet has been past favorites, but iPad is popular now, with Apple apparently trying to get trademark rights worldwide to the name. A Las Vegas bookmaker has put iSlate as the most likely, followed by iPad, iTablet, iPage, iPaper and iRead.
Most rumors point to only an announcement of the tablet on the 27th, with a release either in March or even as late as June. Predictions for price and capabilities vary greatly. We’ll find out, soon enough.
The event may also bring other announcements. Rumors of iLife 10, iPhone OS 4.0 and a Verizon version of the iPhone are circulating.
There was some real news this week as well. Apple finally released an update to Boot Camp that supports Windows 7, the latest version of Windows. Previously Windows 7 worked in virtualization software, but Boot Camp dual-booting wasn’t supported as Windows 7 drivers for Mac hardware were not included as part of Boot Camp.
AT&T switched up its pricing plans for iPhone users with a $30 price drop for an unlimited voice and data plan. This matches a similar price drop from Verizon earlier. Now only if both companies would stop charging $1,310/MB for text messages.
Apple also released a new iPhone app that provides direct access to MobileMe photo galleries. The free app can be downloaded from the app store.

Take a closer look at Quick Look, the ability to view the contents of a file without opening it. Just select a file in the Finder and press the spacebar. You can also navigate between files with Quick Look active, and browse around inside the contents of a file. Quick Look also works in Time Machine, Mail and iChat.

Since your Mac can handle more than one audio device, it is important to know how to tell it which device to use for output and input. For instance, you can have external speakers and a USB headset, as well as several microphones. You can set this system-wide, or for individual applications like iChat, GarageBand, Audacity and Skype.