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My alternative persona is a fat teenage girl so I can collect offers for low-fat and sugar-free products. Big fat, I mean like Orca fat. http://www.methodshop.com/wp-c...

The electric vibrating broom turned out to be a bad idea.

Don't forget that prior to the latest iMac, both used laptop parts exclusively, and should both be treated as such for upgrade purposes. They were never designed for the end user to take them apart.

That said, the iMac makes it easy to do the memory, but not the hard drive or any of the other components. The iMac has a panel on the bottom edge of the display which can be removed to easily upgrade the ram. The panel is the same sort you see on any laptop. The hard drive on the iMac is much more difficult. You have to use suction cups to remove the glass, which exposes the innards. Fortunately you can order 1 or 2 TB 7200 RPM drives right from the factory for the iMac so it's not a big need for most people to upgrade the hard drive. Most of the pre-fall '09 iMacs used only laptop parts (2.5" HD's, slimline optical drives, mobile graphics chipsets). The latest model iMacs are now using some desktop components which is a nice change, although I still don't have the urge to crack the case. That said, I've always had plenty of space due to the large hard drive selections, and I've found the graphics hardware adequate for my needs.

The mini is easy to replace the hard drive and upgrade the memory, however they still use all laptop parts and I don't expect that to change given it's footprint. The mini is easy to upgrade, but again only the parts you can typically replace in a laptop. It doesn't mar the visible parts of case. You simply use a putty knife on the inside edge of the case. I literally had the entire thing apart in 5 minutes. About the only unnerving bit is releasing the clips that hold the case (the noise sounds like the plastic case is cracking). Mine had no scuffs or any other visible damage when I was done. The cover snapped back on firmly when I was done with no apparent damage to the fastening clips.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-zGbcr1eWw
http://www.methodshop.com/gadgets/tutorials/macmini-ram/index.shtml

I just purchase the base model of Mini, and upgraded it to 4 GB for $80 bucks. The hard drive unfortunately, also uses the 2.5" form factor, so the options for larger storage are expensive (I do see that WD now has a $200 1TB 2.5", although it's only 5200 RPM). I opted for an external 3.5" 7200 RPM 1TB drive for $99 bucks and an external USB SATA enclosure for $20 bucks. It makes a good (and cheap) HTPC since it, like every Mac, includes the Headphone Jack/SPDIF Optical combo port. It has no problems with 1080p video.

I've heard of some people upgrading the CPU in these, but I'd be hesitant to do so considering their both similar to laptops when it comes to thermals. In a work environment, I would think either would be fine. For a home power user, the temptation to upgrade components would probably be contrary to the design.

In all cases, they should be considered as laptops when thinking of upgrade options (Ram, Optical Drive, and Hard Drive). I'm hoping the recent shift to desktop components in the iMac will change that, and hopefully spur Apple to make it a bit more serviceable.

Just bumping Handbreak since it's my personal favorite. Here's a nice vid tutorial incase your lazy like the rest of us and don't feel like reading: Methodshop - Handbreak . It is the OS X version but not that far off from what you'd expect to see in Linux

As an aside, I'd appreciate iTunes letting me easily select blocks of music I could keep in the same order, even when listening to randomized music. "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" should always be followed by "With a Little Help from My Friends" (and maybe the album's entirety).

Okay, not a perfect solution and maybe you've heard of it but anyways: Before importing an album, select the songs you want to keep together, and, in the "Advanced" menu, select the "Join CD tracks" option.

More info here. Hope that helps :)

• Out of minutes on a prepaid phone
• Parent confiscated cell phone for overage on a 24-month-plan phone
• Setting the movie in plain people country
• Rural area with "no conexión" as they used to say in commercials for La Quinta Inn
• Cell phone jammer
• Foreigners with a GSM phone in a CDMA country or vice versa
• Cell phone confiscated by movie theater personnel after someone forgot to turn it off and it rang
• Cell phone confiscated by movie theater personnel for fear of using it as a camcorder
• People turned into zombies after being hypnotized by their cell phones

Everyone's got it wrong.
This is the real reason.

"With Youtube, you don't get the option to download something to keep it with you"

"The fact is, Apple hasn't gained markeshare over Windows since OSX was introduced in 2000."

Market share is the same? That's odd, I can find articles that say otherwise. Do you have articles that say your point? Check out the table on this page. Apple's share is growing. It's not meteoric, but it going up. Or by "not growing" do you mean "hasn't gone up 10 points"? I switched, I know many others who have, and I have been asked by many people interested in switching.

"The fact it, most companies are not going to switch to OSX for the simple cost of ownership. [...] Once you switch to OSX, you have to buy a whole slew of applications for it as well, which compounds the cost."

OS X is cheaper. There was an article not too long ago that I read that said that for a business, a Mac costs $1500-$3000 less than an equivalent Windows desktop when you add in all the time with security updates, virus protection you have use, spyware protection, etc. This was for 1-3 years. That means the Macs PAID FOR THEMSELVES, not just the difference between the PC and the Mac. As for the apps, big deal. You are a Photoshop shop? Instead of buying CS 3 (or 4 or whenever you upgrade) for the PC, buy it for the Mac and make the switch then. Office is there too. Most programs are there. Give it a try. And with the Intel transition, it won't be long at all before you can run legacy or custom code under WINE at full speed just like under Windows.

"Application support just isn't in OSX also because the development environment for Windows is so much easier and more robust then OSX. XCode and Objective C, while free, represents everything that is wrong with Apple, their adherance to old philosophies that are failing, but too much ego is involved to let it go."

There is no application problem. I never had one. The one program I haven't found a replacement for in the very short time I looked? Microsoft Project. I'm sure there are replacements though. And have you used XCode and Objective-C? They are a pleasure to use. Objective-C and Cocoa makes GUI programming SO MUCH NICER than other languages. Have you done much Windows programming? A big GIANT HOG of an application (Visual Studio) to do it all for you and lock you in just as much as you seem to think XCode will. Except XCode is built entirely on top of GCC, a standard compiler. Visual Studio is built on top of Microsoft's compiler.

And XCode is free. Microsoft will give you the compiler, but you have to pay out the nose for the IDE.

"If your serious about Mac programming, then you use CodeWarrior instead of Apple's free tools. Without good software tools, then the slew of shareware and freeware apps that PC users get to use just isn't available on the Mac platform."

Can you back that up with examples and proof? Most people I know are happier with XCode than CodeWarrior. And what "shareware and freeware apps" does the Mac lack? What about all the nice things Macs come with (iTunes, iMail, iCal, Address Book, iPhoto, iDVD, iMovie, Garage Band, iWeb) that Windows computers DON'T?

"I will whole heartedly agree that Microsoft has a lot to fear with Ubuntuu and other Linux alternatives."

Agreed.

"But to suggest that people are adopting OSX in droves is just unfounded."

Wrong again. You just have to remember that compared to an installed base of 200 Million or so, droves can still look small.

"Microsoft will never have to worry about OSX, in fact, with people finding ways of running WindowsXP aond the new Macintels, Microsoft is laughing their way to the bank as PC users buy Apple's to run Windows in a fancy box."

Wrong again. Microsoft has to worry about OS X. They have to RIGHT NOW. Why do you think they are adding so much stuff to Vista? The search (see: Spotlight), the sidebar (see: Dashboard), the 3D accleerated GUI (see: Quartz). It's not Linux th

Instead of quoting market share figures that are two years old, how about something a little more recent?

http://www.methodshop.com/2005/12/apple-os-market- share-breaks-4_22.shtml

I have read similar figures elsewhere as well, but please do your own research to find those corroborating numbers.

"...most people can't comprehend."

You mean this stuff?

AC says what: The 1GB shuffle was originally priced at $149. They later dropped the price. The article doesn't say when this happened - it sometimes takes a few months for these cases to come to trial, so it could have been a while ago.

The article states that he used the software November 16; the iPod shuffle price drop was during the summer. The article says he purchased an iPod, then went back and was purchasing another $149 version as $4.99 headphones. He purchased the iPod as a CD player for $24.99. It is likely the second part is mistaken, as the grandparent pointed out.

I wonder if the fathers of capitalism ever imagined the levels of marketing we would have today. I believe it really skews the whole idea of competition...

It didn't hurt Windows 98 sales after Gates got a blue screen during a demo, Ashlee Simpson is still selling albums even though we found out that she really, really, can't sing (SNL + Orange Bowl), and G. W. Bush got the presidency despite being a below average public speaker.

The american public really doesn't hold public figures to a very high standard anymore.

There are music geeks who hate Ashlee for taking away a spot at a record company that some talented band might have had, political geeks who know every single word GW has said wrong, and normular computer geeks who know the design flaws in Windows.

Still, the public doesn't seem to care, and prefer to be sheep following celebrity shepards rather than thinking humans supporting the most qualified public figures.

You have to be a really dedicated researcher if you want to get beyond the multi-million dollar marketing hype surrounding most products and people these days.

Because we all know company demonstrations from CEOs are done in realtime using the current alpha software.

Uh, they are, usually. Didn't you see the keynote from Bill Gates where he's talking up Win98's ability to handle hardware, and he gets a nice fat BSOD. There was much laughter and clapping, as if the audience was saying, yeah now you know how we feel every day. Link here

Check out this web site

Speaking of the C64, have you come across the game called Cubby Gristle? It's just plain weird. You play a fat guy who's goal is to eat as much food as possible with the end coming when you reach a metric ton in weight. All whilst avoiding angry grandmas, annoying kids and shopping trolleys. So far as I could tell from my play time when I was 10 years old, and more recently with an additional 14 years of gaming under my belt, the game is impossible to complete.

I found that 'Dope Wars' for my Palm worked rather well, as I'd have to write numbers for how much I was buying/selling, which looks much different than just clicking and dragging things around.

And when people saw me writing, they just assumed I was taking notes.

There are probably other games out there that would accomplish the same effect.

or does this sound like something the Japanese would invent?

Peter Gibbons: What would you do if you had a million dollars?
Lawrence: I'll tell you what I'd do, man, two chicks at the same time, man.
Peter Gibbons: That's it? If you had a million dollars, you'd do two chicks at the same time?
Lawrence: Damn straight. I always wanted to do that, man. And I think if I had a million dollars I could hook that up, cause chicks dig a dude with money.
Peter Gibbons: Well, not all chicks.
Lawrence: Well the kind of chicks that'd double up on me do.

Source

So, does anyone have a top ten list of their favorite anime movies?

I don't.... But here's one I found.

I mean, even their toys aren't targeted toward kids.

Third-party apps allowing you to do that were out within days of the iPod's release.

See this site for links.

Foxy Cleopatra: "So, what does this thing do?"
Austin Powers: "Well it's called the internet, and it's completely revolutionized the way we live and access vital information. For example have a look at this...
monkey.mpg
Foxy: "Wow... now that's vital information."
Austin: "I know, it's amazing!"

mole.sig

Can you give me some examples of Japanese inventions?