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Apple Updates iMac, iLife, .Mac
Apple just announced new iMacs. They are aluminum and come in 20" (two models) and 24". There's a new view called "Events" in iPhoto that should make it easier to deal with large photo libraries. Apple's .Mac service is enhanced with .Mac Web Gallery, which integrates with the new iTunes and also the iPhone. It's a Web 2.0 app now. And iMovie is being replaced by a completely new app of the same name. Steve Jobs claimed that with it you can put together a 5-minute movie in 30 minutes, and he demo'ed that from the stage. iWeb, iDVD, and GarageBand get new features too. And .Mac subscribers get 10 GB of storage. Here is Engadget's blow-by-blow coverage, and Wired's.
(IANAL)
not yet convinced by that keyboard.
You know, I was thinking the same thing.
A lot of people dislike the MacBook keyboards. They look nice, but the keys don't travel far enough for some people, which messes up the tactile feedback. And these new keyboards look very similar to the MacBook keyboards, plus they're extremely thin, which would also suggest a short travel distance for the keys.
But of course, until I check them out next week at the Apple store, it's all speculation.
WARNING: If accidentally read, induce vomiting.
"On the morning of Steve Jobs's keynote presentation, the online Apple store grinds to a halt as Mac-heads set their browsers to refresh every 15 seconds."
(from the Apple Product Life Cycle)
Can we wait until the press event is over before an article is posted about it? At present isn't there still a product on stage under black cloth? Have you ever known something hidden underneath a cloak of black cloth to not be important?
But is it backwards compatible with Web 1.0?
Some of us Luddites are a bit slow to upgrade.
...this quote. "There are some people who still want to make DVDs" I guess these's a fringe movement of people who want to cater to the 100 million or so DVD players out there! ;)
Someone tell these people that DVD is soooooooooooo last year!
Other than that everything looked pretty solid.
In case someone's wondering, the Mac mini will be refreshed today. This was mentioned during their Q & A. But there was no mention of any specs.
Talk short. No long sentence. Simple words. Over soon. Screw verbs. Noun adjective. Adjective noun. Noun, noun, noun. And, articles! So, no prepositions. Adverbs bad. Baaaad adverbs, no-no-no. See Dick run. Run, Dick run!
I can explanate how to administrate your network. You must configurate and segmentate it, so it can computate.
first quote: "What about AMD chips?"
.mac doesn't support HD Jobs goes- Well, we do support HD, well actually slightly less than HD- you know what I call not quite HD- NOT HD! Everything just seemed a little small fry.
Steve: "We use Intel chips"
hehehe, sounded a li'l like the intel chip implanted into his head kicked in there.
second, why is the imac so underpowered in the RAM department, I mean the specs in one of the pictures showed the iMacs, all the way up to the biggest $1800 version only has 1gig- with all the RAM you get in normal PCs now days (4gigabytes not unusual) is this not a little strange?
Finally, is it just me, or have they slighyl repackaged everything, made no huge advances, like for example, why did they bother to minimize a keyboard, which for someone like me, would just be annoying. iLife? It's had nothing added, they just repackaged every single feature, and when asked why
But the more important announcement (IMHO) is iWork which now includes Numbers: http://www.apple.com/iwork/ Finally, I can get rid of Office.
"Let your heart soar as high as it will. Refuse to be average." - A. W. Tozer
And a lot of people, on the other hand, love laptop keyboards in general for the very reasons you listed. Furthermore, a lot of people spend much of their young life with a laptop as their primary rig, so they're actually more used to it than a traditional keyboard. It's kind of a moot point. Some people will be excited by the keyboards. Some people will hate them. And for many, the keyboard will not have a large net effect on their purchasing decisions.
I do give them props for doing something different (or, if it's been done already, making it standard). I just wish they'd also have an option which brings ergonomics into play, even if it might end up looking like Gaudi made it.
I've been considering a Mac desktop for a while, and now that a new one is out, perhaps I'll buy it.
One thing I need, though, is to be able to run Linux and OpenBSD in virtual machines on my desktop. Does anyone have any experience with how the new VMWare Fusion compares to VMWare Workstation? Is there any difference between the two (aside from the price, and that unity view for Windows, which does not affect me)? I mean, in terms of features and running other OSes?
Funny, I love mine, and previously I was a diehard Model M user.
Switch on right-click support in the System Preferences or use the Ctrl key.
Personally, I use Ctrl for right-click even when I'm using Linux on a system with a 4-button trackball.
GCHQ Quantum Insert installed. If only our tongues were made of glass, how much more careful we would be when we speak
Well, first, Apple isn't a monopoly. They have viable competitors in every market in which they compete, and insofar as that is the case, the behaviors you describe (which are called "vertical integration", or "anti-competitive practices" if and only if you already have a monopoly) aren't "brutal" so much as "a business and design choice".
They destroyed the Mac clone market and reseller market because those things were destroying Apple. At that time (the late 90's), Linux wasn't nearly as mature or widely-adopted as it is today and the destruction of Apple would have, as far as almost everyone could predict, led to a total Microsoft monopoly. Microsoft was already starting to displace commercial UNIX in some segments. Other companies had licenses to manufacture Apple hardware designs with Apple software, including the Apple ROM that (at the time) was necessary for the OS to run. Those license payments weren't enough to allow Apple to continue existing and developing their OS, so Apple refused to extend those licenses to future technology (the CHRP common hardware platform, Mac OS 8) and purchased back the licenses it had already granted.
The real question is whether it's acceptable to sell integrated systems that are capable of working together above and beyond the interoperability offered by open standards. When I look across the fence at the hardware support issues Linux and Windows are struggling with, I'm pretty happy with how green the grass is over here. And if I wasn't, I'm still perfectly able to get a new OS and new hardware. That's the difference between a monopoly and a competitor who offers a significantly different solution.
In Repressive Burma, it's not just your connection that dies. slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=314547&cid=20819199
Simple. You're assuming Slashdotters are FOSSies, rather than just adamant about not using crappy products.
.. well, ever.
I don't like Microsoft because they make shit products and force them down our throats. I use them regularly, as I now have an XP laptop at my current job as a Unix SA. I am willing to pay for Microsoft products when I think they are worthwhile -- I have an XBox 360 Elite -- but usually they are not worth paying for. The XBox is the first Microsoft product I have bought
For my own computer, I am happy to pay the extra few bucks for an Apple product that does exactly what it is designed to do, and does it extremely well. It's just not worth hassling with a Linux desktop machine anymore. OS X has the Windows advantages of being "mainstream" and playing all that fancy DVD and audio content with no fuss, no muss, but without the disadvantages of being utter crap. I definitely spent more money on my Mac Pro than I needed to spend on a computer, but mostly that was me buying an overkill machine, and very little of it was the Apple tax. Of course, if they had a mid-range headless system, maybe I would have bought that instead... But the low-end laptops are very competitive with PC offerings, and to some of us it is worth paying money for stuff that works.
By the way, I register all of the shareware I use and enjoy in OS X, something that is far more true of the Mac community than the Windows community. Why? Because we feel the products are worth paying for, rather than Windows users who feel that they use what they use out of necessity, not choice.
I like the idea of free software, but I'm not devoting my life to the cause. If it works best, I'll use it. If not, I'll pay to use whatever works best. Unfortunately for Microsoft, it is almost never their product.
One thing that bothers me is the decision to go with a glass screen. These screens, to me, are nothing more than a fad that help make the display look more impressive on the showroom floor. Once someone has to actually use them day-to-day glass screens are a huge distraction because of all the reflections and glare. This iMac is going to inspire a deluge of crappy glass-covered displays.
Seeing these new Macs, however, I can't help but wonder why in the hell PC makers don't actually start putting some damn effort into the manufacture and design of their machines. Instead they go for quick, cheap gimmicks like Dell and the goofy interchangeable color covers for their laptops. Even worse are the third party case manufacturers.
There are a million ideas out there for very elegant designs that could be just as impressive, if not more so, than anything Apple has designed. But instead what are we going to see? Dozens of crappy clones of the Apple design. Either that or half-hearted attempts that scream of cost-cutting over thoughtful design. Even Nintendo couldn't help but cloning the MacBook design with the DS and to a lesser extent the Wii.
Apple has nice design, but they are far from being the pinnacle of high design. If only other companies weren't cheap and unimaginative.
Apple is slowly phasing tactile response out of their input devices. Started with mice, then the iPhone, and now with keyboards. Soon, we will live in a polished world where nothing lets us know we touched it! I hope Apple never enters the sex industry.
Why bother.
"I hope Apple never enters the sex industry"
...but what the hell... I could always use a spare at the office.
I disagree. Entirely.
I'd be more than happy to wait in line for 6 hours so I can take home a stunningly beautiful iGirl that doesn't give me any feedback no matter how much I touch her, doesn't break when dropped, doesn't scratch easily, is good for up to 8 hours of activity (as long as I turn her wireless off), goes to sleep at the touch of a button and comes with a 2 year warranty.
For sure. Sign me up.
Of course, I'll probably regret it when they come out with a model next year that's a little bit lighter, and a little bit thinner...
Apropos Intel, via Daringfireball.net:
One question that came from the audience wondered why Apple doesn't participate in the "Intel Inside" program, in which PC manufacturers affix the well-known labels to their computers."We like our own stickers better," Jobs said. "Don't get me wrong. We love working with Intel. We're proud to ship Intel products in Macs. They're screamers, and combined with our OS, we've tuned them well. It's just that everyone knows we use Intel processors. We'd rather not tell them about the product that's inside the box."
I hope they don't listen to all the people bashing the MacBook Pro keyboard. I *love* mine, and don't want it to change. It's significantly better than any of the last 3 laptops I've had, and better than any other laptop keyboard I've ever used (at least if you only count reasonably sized laptops and not those DTR monstrosities). That goes for the trackpad too. The trackpad on the MBP is spectacular, and the one button issue becomes a non-issue very quickly. I'm not a fan of trackpads or single-button input devices in general, but I have grown to love the MBP trackpad over the last year.
As a point of reference, at home and at work I use a Microsoft Natural Ergonomic 4000 keyboard and a trackball (logitech marble mouse at work, Kensington Expert mouse at home).
Frag 'em all...
The un-news is the whole "Events" thing. Photo tagging. So what?
Is it just me, or did he not say, "Boom!" once during this presentation?
The Spoon
Updated 6/28/2011
iTunes Compatible Players
Chances are that most USB MP3 players will work with iTunes if they follow the standards set for such devices. If you have an MP3 player give it a try and see if it works with iTunes, it probably will.
You might want to do a bit more research the next time you make false, blanket statements like that.
Sapere aude!
Here in Chicago, MicroCenter is a full-feature Apple dealer. When I used to work on a dual G4, I bought my system, cinema display and all my gear there (at least the stuff I didn't buy online). Their sales staff in that part of the store are pretty knowledgeable too. And they don't have that look you find on employees at the Apple store. The only way I can explain it is that Margaret O'Conner in my grammar school had that look. She was Mary in the May Crowning two years in a row and thus felt that she was closer to God than the rest of us. Her mother used to cut the crust off her sandwiches and she lifted her pinkies when she'd eat them during lunch period.
For some reason, I think of her whenever I see the people who work at the Apple store. They look like someone cuts the crust off their sandwiches for them, and they're proud of it.
But anyway, if you want to buy Apple in Chicago and don't want to pay 18 bucks to park downtown (and get skeeved out by the people who work in the Apple Store), MicroCenter has a nice big parking lot, and there's a PetSmart next door so you can buy kibble for you ferret when you're done.
You are welcome on my lawn.
They did update the Mini. As of today, the only 32-bit computer that Apple's selling is the iPhone.
-jcr
The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
Looks like to me it only supports old creative players (the Rio brand has been discontinued). So iTunes does sync with some mp3 players but if you were to buy a new MP3 player today it shouldn't work (according to the list)
Wireless versions of the new keyboard (without USB ports) and the mighty mouse are available for about $150 total. See the Apple Store for details.
They've got wireless and wired versions. The wireless ones look even MORE like Macbook keyboards.
They did update the Mini. As of today, the only 32-bit computer that Apple's selling is the iPhone.
*COUGH*AppleTV*COUGH*
How would enabling a true right-button support make the experience worse for anyone? Make the trackpad support two buttons the same way the Mighty Mouse does. If you enable right-click as a preference, then the right side of the button is a right-click, if you don't then the whole button acts as one button.
Tada, you've made life better for people who like 2-button mice and you have not hurt the 1-button mouse people in the slightest!
No.
With the tremendous amount of physical real estate that the button takes up, there's no reason why splitting it into two would make things worse for virtually any user.I take it you've never done phone support, then. In my opinion, the second mouse button is one of the single worst physical interfaces ever invented for computers. Your main input device has two unlabelled buttons which can only be discerned by whether they are on the right or on the left of the device? This is just stupid. An astonishing number of people aren't even capable of reliably telling you which side right is, and which side left is (as I find out time and time again when telling somebody where to drive - "to the right. no, the other right").
Not to mention the bad influence the right mouse button has on UI design.
I've been using the two-button "right click" for nearly a year now and do it instinctively, but still think that a right button would be significantly more effective, and less limiting (I do occasionally need right-click+drag, or right-click+very very quick move)Yes, as I've said, it would be, but it would still make it worse for the majority of all users.