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The Best of Macworld SF 2006
ptorrone writes "We podcasted live, we posted over 100 photos real time via a WiFi camera + EVDO as we walked around and now we've picked the top 5 products we liked the most at Macworld San Fran 2006. It's safe to say our picks aren't likely to be the same ones you'll see in the usual "best of" lists. We gave top marks to products, services and software that we think fit the "Maker" mindset - technology on your time and a bit of news from the future... Here they are..."
sketchup is $495: http://www.sketchup.com/cgi-bin/store/trybuy.html
Erm... how was this list a super Mac related list? Only the first and last items (the Sketch thing and the iPod dock) are specifically for Apple products, the other three are general use USB and video items that have to alegence to Mac or PC specifically...
And Sketchup has been a cross platform app for several years. It might have been Windows first, but I can't remember. Oh, and the Google Earth plugin for Sketchup has been available for the Windows version since mid-November.
I'm out of my mind right now, but feel free to leave a message.....
I think the best part of Macworld so far, for me, we hearing that Apple's stock closed at $80.86 on the day they unveiled Intel Macs.
Biologists use these to monitor environmental conditions at research sites. I used them 8 years ago as an undergrad, so I am rather surprised they are being treated as "new". These guys have been around forever, and their product was exceptional 8 years ago. WIFI would kick ass since you could also use it to find the sensor rather than flagging it and have to worry about somebody wandering off with your 200 dollar thermometer/humidity sensor (they do other things too like light level).
And who needs something like that anyway? Weather fanatics?
Scientists and science students. I spent many many hours of my college life driving/walking/travelling into a field to check the rainmeter and temperature. This would have saved me a ton of time, if I could afford them.
And to emphasize what the other poster said, wireless is very power hungry and would increase the battery requirements by quite a bit. Those little sensors wouldn't be so little anymore.
"Can of worms? The can is open... the worms are everywhere."
Indeed, it is a direct port from Windows. A real Mac developer sane in their mind would break all the OS X design conventions like Google does with Google Earth. It is not only the UI, but also everything underneath.
The dialogs are bundled in the executable instead of being attached as Interface Builder files. There are a bunch of icons, like the "info" icon (i in a speech bubble), take right from Windows 2000. The buttons are placed at the wrong locations in dialogs and the default buttons are not always selected like they should be. There's more but my eyes bleed because of this Windowish UI so I'll just say that it is a beta and stay optimistic.
Microsoft seems to have given up on Windows Media Player for Mac, and instead released a free plugin for QuickTime. Unlike WMP/Mac, this supports WM9 and the latest stuff.
y er/flip4mac.mspx
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/pla
Supposedly some incompatibilities with QuickTime 7.04 (released yesterday).
Whenever I hear the word 'Innovation', I reach for my pistol.
It should also be noted that SketchUp has Ruby bindings -- so you can write an extension script.
So far, I've got 6 beefs with the new laptops:
1) MacBook Pro? That's what you're calling it?
2) Remote - cool (if of limited use); no cleverly designed place to stow it on/in the laptop - not cool (it will get quickly misplaced)
3) No FW800? I thought this was the pro model?
4) No PC card slot, just ExpressCard? (see #6)
5) No S-Vid out? I have to buy an additional adapter?
6) No modem?? I have to buy the external USB modem. I can't even use a PC card.
Yes Google Earth is free. But if you look the reason is that Google would very much like me to purchase Google Earth + for $20 (or a pro version for $400).
If it looks bad it's a damn poor enticement for me to spend more money. Not to mention that parts do not even work, like To and From hardly ever working with addresses that are valid for "Fly To".
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
Well thanks for pointing that out Captain Obvious.
I was trying to point out that OSX is not just linux with lots of polish - because it lacks the one of the things that makes linux really great - access to the source.
Your arguments that I don't want the source, have no need for the source, etc are not relevant to this thread.
Now, on to your point.
I think Apple's GUI is way too high-overhead for a portable device, so I think the desirablity of such in embedded environments would be questionable at best.
Embedded is not the same as portable. Wikipedia says An embedded system is a special-purpose computer system, which is completely encapsulated by the device it controls. And lists ATMs, Security monitoring systems and DVD recorders amongst embedded devices. OSX would be suitable for many of these - if you had access to the Aqua source.
My pics.