mudbug

In a press release from Freescale, details have been given regarding variants on the 600e PowerPC core. Utilizing a 90nm silicon-on-insulator (SOI) copper interconnect technology, three new chips will find their way to market. Variants include a single core MPC8641, a dual core MPC8641D, and the MPC7448 discreet processor, which gives higher performance at a lower power level, able to consume...

According to MacWorld UK, the launch of digital-music subscription service VirginDigital in the US has sparked a debate about the future of the subscription model for music distribution, with Apple admitting it may consider a subscription service in the future. Speaking to the International Herald Tribune Apple's Eddy Cue explained his conviction that there will always be a preference for the a...

Apple has extended its "Add more life to your Mac" promotion which offers a US$50 mail-in rebate with the purchase Mac OS X 10.3 (Panther) and iLife '04 until January 10, 2005, according to MacMinute. January 10 is also the first day of MWSF 05. The promo was originially scheduled to end September 25, 2004, but the extension suggests that either a new version of the iLife suite, or the full...

AppleInsider has noted that Apple has dropped several internation distributors of Emagic's Logic: Emagic--creator of the Logic music production software suite--was purchased by Apple for a rumored $30 million in 2001, and has since operated as a wholly owned subsidiary of the computer company. Frustrated by the most recent move, some former international Emagic distributors are crying foul...

According to MacOSRumors.com, Keynote is about to undergo a rework from Apple. Keynote 2 is expected in January 2005, according to MOSR. More bundled themes -- "ten times more," according to our primary source. More import and export formats, including a streamlined export-to-HTML (web) function. More 2D and 3D transition effects. More chart and table styles to display your data. More optimization ...

Now available via Software Update: Java 1.4.2 Update 2 provides improved behavior for applets in Safari and increased stability for desktop Java applications. Java 1.4.2 Update 2 also includes all the improvements from Java 1.4.2 Update 1. The system will be updated to Java 1.4.2 Update 2. If the system currently has Java 1.4.1, it will be removed. Any previous Java 1.4.2 installation will be...

C|net reports that Sony has confirmed that it is working to add native MP3 support to its flash memory-based portable music players in an effort to gain competitive ground against rivals such as the iPod. Sony's players currently use a proprietary format called ATRAC which uses a different compression algorithm for maximizing the number of songs that can fit onto the devices. Apparently the...

Since the introduction of the iPod, add-ons for the iPod have been the realm of third party product developers only, but now Apple may be looking to broaden the scope of what it can offer. According to AppleInsider, Apple is now looking for hardware engineers to develop its own line of iPod accessories. Last month a job listing was posted for engineering WiFi & video integration into the iPod....

Based on some screen shots posted at AppleInsider, it seems the Apple Online store will be accessible at the system level, offering to link consumable purchases directly from within the new Printer Setup Utility 4.0. The option, when selected, takes the user to the corresponding ink cartridge page within the Apple Online Store. This would eliminate the confusion of buying cartidges from the...

According to various reader reports, the online Apple Store is showing a 1-3 day availability on iPod Minis for the first time since their introduction. Previous wait times have been as high as 4 weeks or more, due mainly to the fact that demand was far outstripping supply. Previous production ramp-ups were met with the release of the Mini on the international market, which again completely...

Thanks to one of our readers, we have some early benchmark results on a 17" 1.8 Ghz G5 iMac. Cinebench results: CINEBENCH 2003 v1 **************************************************** Processor : iMac G5 MHz : 1.8 GHZ Number of CPUs : 1 Operating System : 10.3.5 Graphics Card : 5200 Resolution : 1440x900 Color Depth : millions...

The BBC reports that the UK Consumers' Association is looking into allegations that prices are higher for the UK localization of the iTMS than they are for either the French or German localizations. The group has written to the Office of Fair Trading to investigate a 20% higher rate per downloaded track in the UK compared to either of the other two stores. Apple has defended their UK pricing...

AppleInsider (link, link) has published screen shots of various components of OS X Tiger builds showing previously undocumented features. Among them are support for Jabber accounts in iChat, broadened parental controls for family members with Family Controls, RSS reader preferences for within Safari, Address Book sharing, PDF bookmarking, and incremental Energy Saver settings, Dynamic DNS sharing ...

According to Daily Variety (subscription required) in a story also picked up by Ultimate-Guitar.com, Apple Computer and Apple Corps are on the verge of announcing a huge settlement in their ongoing trademark dispute, one that could "massively dwarf the $26.5 million paid to the Fab Four's company in 1991 in a row over trademark use." A lawyer was quoted in these stories as opining, "People are ...

According to various reader reports, the new iMac G5 which was previously announced at Apple Expo Paris has begun shipping to customers who placed early orders. Email announcements regarding shipment are being sent out as of today. Apparently both the 17 and 20 inch models are both shipping. Standard freight shipping takes approximately 10...

A story published by Wired News reports Transitive Corp. of Los Gatos, California has developed a product called QuickTransit, offering the possibility of emulation at near-native speed. It fully supports accelerated 3-D graphics and 80 percent computational performance on the main processor according to Wired. This means Macs could run Windows-native or Linux-native software with no recompiling...

Microsoft today took the wraps off the beta version of MSN Music, the computer giant's online music sales & distribution site. Many industry analysts have said that this may be the first 'true competitor' to Apple's iTunes Music Store. The interface is similar to the iTMS interface, offering one-click purchase usability and track previews prior to purchase. Tracks are available in WMA format for...

With the introduction of the 2" thick iMac G5, many Mac enthusiasts' attentions have now focused on the PowerBook, and the hope of it moving to a G5 processor as well. In an interview with Tom Boger, Apple's worldwide product development director, The Mac Observer writes that Apple is unable to overcome certain engineering problems faced with making a smaller G5 chip to work in a portable. The new ...

Now available via Software Update: AirPort Card Update 2004-08-31 improves reliability in mixed 802.11b and 802.11g environments and is recommended for all customers with AirPort-capable computers running AirPort 3.4 and later, including AirPort 4.0. After this update, the AirPort Driver and AirPort Extreme Driver will each be upgraded to version 3.4.3. Apple AirPort website at www.apple.com/...

According to the Microsoft website, the Virtual PC 7 Mac Edition with Windows XP Professional is now available for $249. Other flavors of Virtual PC 7 (XP Home, Windows 2000, and OS-less versions) are only available for pre-order at this time. This new version includes many new features to the Mac platform, but most notable is support for the Power Mac G5 and presumably the new iMac G5 as well. ...