Slashdot Mirror


iMac II to have LCD/Firewire/DVD/AirPort/new color

Cheeseman writes "The usually very reliable Japan Apple Watch quotes South Korean sources saying that the iMac II will be launched at the Paris Apple Expo in a couple of weeks. What's interesting about this is that one of the new colors will be the 'graphite and white' as seen on the G4. I suspect that this means that Apple will use the iMac II to get apple back into the business market and sell one G4 together with 10-30 iMacs IIs for about 10 to 25 grand. With AirPort this means that you've got an instant LAN that works out of the box with no cabling. " And the rumours are that the new machine will be less then 1000$US-though I would suspect that's a stripped down machine.

273 comments

  1. BeOS evangelists almost more annoying... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    than Mac evangelists sometimes. Blind OS, computer, corporate loyalty is a very bad path to take. It'll hurt yourself by limiting your choices (since you'll only buy/use a certain product or something from one company), and it won't help the company produce a better product and do whats best for the consumers as a whole. Without public pressure, companies would do whatever the hell they can to make the most profits they can continually. It's because of customer complaints, threats, and actually siwtching that companies get the message, get their act together, or they die.

    Perhaps you don't see yourself as being blindly loyal because Be is such an underdog. This of course is one of the tricks that Apple used to use...good, small guy vs. the big bad guy. Cool vs. Uncool.

    The reason what I say is really valid to you now, is because the CEO of Be was recently interviewed, and when he was asked about porting Be back to the PPC platform now that Apple doesn't have complete control over it, he gave very wordy vague answers that came off as them having no plans to. If you really fucking want Be on PPC, rather than just having a lame argument for why BeOS is the best OS ever, voice your complaint to Be. Encourage others to. Tell them you want it on PPC, instead of sitting on your lazy ass and complaining Apple is the worst corporation to ever exist.

  2. Re:Industrial espionage made easy. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Yes, who knows what great secrets can be mined from Mrs. Smith's 3rd grade history class! Industrial spies will be camped out in the parking lots of elementary schools everywhere!

  3. Re:Industrial espionage made easy. by Millennium · · Score: 2

    One: The AirPort does deliver data through the airwaves. However, it's strong-encrypted, if I'm not mistaken. You can certainly try stealing secrets, but you aren't going to get very far.

    Two: There isn't normally much fuss about connecting wires, if your building has them. However, if your building is not wired (most homes are not, by the way) then it becomes a huge, and obscenely expensive, deal. Besides which, it's just easier if you can literally just bring a computer into the building and it's hooked up.

    Three: There is stuff out for the PC, moreover it works with the AirPort (though due to the limitations in these pre-existing cards, you only get 2 Mbps instead of 11). Perhaps ones which will match up to the AirPort will be out soon; personally I hope they come out (I'm working on convincing my dad to "wire" the house with one and then get ADSL). Not only that, but as long as they follow the open standard which Apple used (and they'd be fools not to, since a card which isn't compatible with an open standard usually gets booted) they'll work with the AirPort too.

    As for cordless-network peripherals which use USB, I certainly hope you're right. That'd be cool, though it would suck USB bandwidth big time; such network peripherals would be better if connected to FireWire, SCSI, an Ethernet port (as an adaptor), or even just a PCI slot.

  4. Bout Time! by jadin · · Score: 1

    Go figure. The OS i disklike creates what i've always wanted. A widescreen computer. It's about time too. just look at how much nicer widescreen tv's are compared to standard. It should be less eyestrain for all of us nutcases!

  5. Re:AirPort is the real story by Millennium · · Score: 2

    Not really. Keep in mind, there's still such a thing as network addresses, even with AirPort. It would take longer to find the device, but it's certainly possible to find the machine.

    Of course, I believe it's also possible to mandate authentication before an iBook can log into an AirPort network, so the kid would need a password to do it anyway.

  6. Yes... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They're targetting a specific market of people. If they know about, and plan on, upgrading often, they can buy a PowerMac. Or what they call the professional desktop line.

    Floppy drives, new mice, new keyboards, new storage devies all can be bought and used on iMacs as well, thanks to USB. Extra RAM can be added, although I've never had the oppurtunity to look inside an iMac to see if that'd be a pain in the ass. It's not upgrade friendly because the audience it's meant for doesn't ever intend to upgrade.

  7. OS issue. by oneiros27 · · Score: 1

    Um....how about MkLinux?
    or MachTen?
    I don't know if AUX runs on PPCs.
    There may be a *BSD for PPC, also.

    I personally prefer MachTen, as it allows me to run Unix-like servers, while I still get the mac GUI.

    --
    Build it, and they will come^Hplain.
    1. Re:OS issue. by Anarchitect · · Score: 1

      There may be a *BSD for PPC, also.

      Yep - Darwin, the open portion of the core of the forthcoming Mac OS X client. I think it's part of the OpenBSD tree, but it may be NetBSD.

      --
      QA implies some kind of quality to begin with.
    2. Re:OS issue. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Mach Ten is alright... I would even say very nice.. . But sadly AU/X doesn't run on PowerPCs... :u( Why did Apple drop it... it was super cool..

  8. Learn to read for content by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Of course it's news, silly. Since Apple has always been known to influence the future of the whole cpmputing industry, it's generally a good idea to keep watching their moves.

    BTW, I don't see you complaining about the three Linux kernel stories per week either.

    1. Re:Learn to read for content by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      >Besides, Apple influenced the computer industry
      > ONCE by adopting the GUI. How many
      >other influential Apple technologies have been >adopted?

      Umm...how young are you?

      Here's a list of technologies that have been adopted primarily because of Apple's inclusion of them:
      Molded plastic case with internal power supply
      Hi-res color graphics
      Sound support
      SCSI
      Postscript
      TRuetype
      Mouse
      3.5" floppy
      many GUI features
      incorporated TCP/IP stack
      Quicktime

    2. Re:Learn to read for content by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Apple made many, many brave decisions in the early years by choosing high end, non-standard hardware for use in Macintoshes. They were compatible with nothing else, but they were chosen for technical superiority. In recent years, the PC world has thankfully started embracing technologies (PCI, USB, multisync VGA, UDMA/66) that equal or best what Apple had been using. In cases like this, Apple would be insane not to go with the flow and reap the benefits of having more hardware support.

    3. Re:Learn to read for content by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Again, you're saying they can't have news posted unless it's something "revolutionary", but do you equally complain about palm pilot updates, updates for every Linux kernal (and popular software) update. 99.999999999999999% of tech news reported everyday, including here, isn't even close to being "revolutionary." Tech news sites would only have like 3 things to report a year. The point of news sites is to report as much news as possible...and the more popular the subject, the more attention it gets. Not to seem like some Apple fan, but my observations are that Apple news pieces rack in TONS of comments. Often 250+.

    4. Re:Learn to read for content by swb · · Score: 1

      Umm...how young are you?

      Old enough to remember using hires color graphics on a TI PC clone in 1984, and to know that a molded plastic case isn't a particularly stunning technology innovation.

      HP was putting 3.5" floppies in their PCs circa 1983-84. Apple had an easy to use IP stack before Windblows did, but too bad none of the MacOS native networking clients could use IP as a transport until very recently (Appleshare IP). Truetype was an Apple *AND* Microsoft development, hardly an Apple technology triumph. Apple standardized on SCSI for disk drives, but that only made them REALLY expensive, and for some reason Apple never modernized the SCSI bus they used in their PCs beyond a lame 5 MB/sec and a totally non-standard SCSI interface with all the grounds tied together. The mouse follows the GUI (which I already give Apple a ton of credit for), and again, it wasn't a technology that Apple developed. Neither was PostScript from Adobe, but I will give Apple some credit for popularizing it in combination with their LaserWriter printers.

    5. Re:Learn to read for content by swb · · Score: 1

      Of course it's news, silly. Since Apple has always been known to influence the future of the whole cpmputing industry, it's generally a good idea to keep watching their moves.

      It's hard to see how new case colors or minor changes in the internals can be considered "influencing the future of the whole computing industry." I know that Apple fanatics would like to believe that this is the case, but I don't see it.

      Besides, Apple influenced the computer industry ONCE by adopting the GUI. How many other influential Apple technologies have been adopted? Is there a general rush on to imitate MacOS advanced process and memory management? Sophisticated filesystem?

      In fact, the truth is that the only "new" technology that Apple has some responsibility for, FireWire, is NOT being adopted en masse by the computer industry. The reverse is actually true, Apple is using technologies adopted by other companies -- like IDE and USB. Hardly a case for industry leadership on Apple's part.

  9. Re:Video Card by Millennium · · Score: 3

    Rage 128 is contemporary; you're confusing it with the Rage Pro.

    They don't use TNT because there are no Mac TNT cards, and as for Voodoo3... well, I don't know. It matters little; Rage 128 can keep up with the other cards if they all render in 16-bit mode. Voodoo3 can't even do 32-bit, and all reviews I've ever seen of the TNT series' renderers states that they look comparatively terrible in 32-bit mode. And by the way, I've read that bit that the person from 3Dfx wrote trying to excuse^H^H^H^H^H^Hexplain why they don't use 32-bit; I've seen a Voodoo3 and Rage128 back to back and I don't buy the article for a second.

    So yeah, you sacrifice 4 or 5 FPS max (most humans can't percieve the difference between 60 and 55 FPS anyway) but in return you get much better-looking graphics. I'll make that trade any day.

  10. Re:iMacs will have AirPort, and here's why.... by Corrado · · Score: 1

    Yea, but will 3Com come out with a Palm that's compatible with the AirPort? I can connect to a Palm with my Rev B iMac; my buddy at work can't. :(

    IMHO, IRDA is out and 802.13 is in!

    --
    KangarooBox - We make IT simple!
  11. Re:don't get to hyped up... LCD is far away in iMa by Matty_ · · Score: 1

    (so when did /. become asTheAppleTurns?)

    Probably about the time it became "As the Linux Turns" ....

  12. More iMac info by bbillian · · Score: 1

    Here is a link with more (true) info about the upcoming iMac (codenamed C2 or Kihei):
    http://www.macosrumors.com/imac.html

    Also "Mac OS Rumors" is running a story today about the upcoming iMac:
    http://www.macosrumors.com/

  13. LCD by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Will the LCD cost $6500 seperate like the G4?

  14. Re:Floppies are dead by Kyrrin · · Score: 1

    Back to the isue at hand, without a floppy drive (and without a cd burner or any other writable device), an iMac user is kinda screwed if they want to take data from one machine to another (if both aren't networked in some way).


    I have two older Macs at home (Performa 6112/Performa 6115), both of whom have been experiencing some floppy drive issues. Rather than keep using Sneakernet or dealing with a Zip drive (basically because of cost; I couldn't afford the Zip), I used an old trick that a former Mac admin taught me: network the two computers using the printer port.


    Not a solution for massive sharing, but it works for the casual user, and while I'm not disputing your point about the machines being networked in some way, I just wanted to point out how *easy* it is to network the little suckers. I can share applications and data between the two machines as easily as if they had been more 'formally' networked.

  15. LinuxMac? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Can either the iMacs or the GX's run linux? I know there are some distros for PPC machines, do they include these machines?

    1. Re:LinuxMac? by Hacksworth · · Score: 1

      Yes. Check out LinuxPPC for information on that. They just recently got it to work on the iMac, and they've had it working on the G3s for a while. The new G4s are a different story. The low-end 400MHz uses the same mobo as the G3, so it is said to work on that one. However, it is yet to be seen if it runs on the new 'sawtooth' mobos. YellowDog may also be working on this, but their site isn't quite as documented.

  16. Re:Iwhack II? by binarybits · · Score: 3

    Having to slap in a primo expensive G4 to play nurse maid to all the wireless Iwhacks.

    A low-end G4 will cost under $2000. A fully decked-out one will set you back $4000. That's pretty trivial to acompany that's going to be serving a dozen NetBoot iMacs, when you consider the money saved on administration. Plus there's no reason that I can see that another iMac couldn't serve as the server for a small office. Hard drive space might be tight, but that's upgradable.

    The learning curve associated with making these 'alien' machines behave on a traditional UNIX/NT network.

    This depends on the company. An engineering firm that has a lot of specialized apps on their NT or Unix machines might not do this too well, but for companies that do web browsing, email, database, graphics, and other more standard apps, this is not a big deal. Plus you can get Office 98 for the Mac, so that'll help the transition. And OS X is a real Unix, and as far as I know all of its networking can be done with TCP/IP. So once that's out, this will be less of an issue.

    The high-price as compared to a traditional x86 PC.

    If they can get a 350 MHz machine for $1000, that's not much of a price savings. If you include the value of a name-brand PC (in terms of support and quality) and the various TCO advantages of the Mac in general, this really isn't that much of a problem. And if NetBoot over AirPort works as advertised, that'll mean no one will have to worry about stringing wires around the office. Just set up the G4, configure it for NetBoot, and the iMac won't need anything but a power cord.

    The cost of training and new Apple-knowledgable IT/IS staff.

    This is an issue, although some aspects of Mac networking (like file sharing) are so simple that literally anyone can be trained to do it in an hour or two. It's certainly true that this would be an expense, but I'm not sure it's all that big a deal.

    Software development costs. You can't chuck a working bit of in-house software because Marketing wants Iwhacks..

    No one is suggesting that this is the right solution for every company, nor that they should immediately throw out all their PC's. But I suspect there are a lot of companies that run 90% standard apps like office and Netscape, and those work cross-platform just fine. Those companies should be able to make the switch with minimal pain.

  17. Re:Industrial espionage made easy. by adamsc · · Score: 1

    According to Apple's FAQ, the Airport has 40-bit encryption built in, which should stop casual attacks. If your security requirements are more rigourous, you need to be using strong encryption software in any case.

  18. Re:Name Problem? They should imitate car companies by GoRK · · Score: 1

    When there were two car "versions" in the same year, car companies just added 1/2 to the end. There were several half-year Ford Mustangs I know of and several other car companies also did this.

    ~GoRK

  19. Re:iMac II, III, 475... LC naming scheme? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It won't actually be called the iMac II, that's just what people on /. are calling it to differentiate it from the currently-shipping iMacs. Apple will probably call it "iMac (AGP Graphics)" or something like that.

  20. AirPort is expensive by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    AirPort cards cost $99 each. For that price, you could probably get a Fast Ethernet switch (about $50/port) and still have money left over for cabling. Plus, you can NetBoot over 100base-T, but it would crawl over AirPort.

    1. Re:AirPort is expensive by Millennium · · Score: 2

      A Fast Ethernet switch for $50/port? Where are you getting this info from; I'd love to buyt a switch from them if it's that cheap.

      I might also add that NetBoot over AirPort actually works quite well; ever seen it? Spiffy, to say the least.

      And yeah, you can get a decent Ethernet card for $50 and spend the extra money on cabling (buying the card would be pointless seeing as how every Mac made in the last ten years comes with Ethernet already). But the switch is still the problem. At $50 a port for 11 ports, that would be $550 (I might add that the AirPort handles the same number of devices for $300; that's quite a bit of savings).

      In short, for a small home network of five devices, AirPort and 100Base-T cost the same amount, assuming $50/port for a switch which could handle the same number of devices as an AirPort, and $50 for good Ethernet cards. However, also consider that 100Base-T is severe overkill for a network of only five devices, and even at ten you're only just starting to feel a severe crunch on bandwidth. Then, of course, there's the ease of use of the AirPort network; 100Base-T can't beat that.

      Consider this also: if the rumors that a single G4 can act as an AirPort are true, then the cost of 11 AirPort cards is the same as that of 11 Ethernet cards and a fast switch at $50/port. This, of course, assumes that you want to use the G4 on the network, and it's already installed (you'd have to buy a machine to act as a server on the 100Base-T network anyway).

      So in the end, for a home LAN the AirPort is actually ideal. For a business LAN... maybe if the business were really small. But businesses should be using higher-end solutions anyway. The AirPort was designed as a home and classroom LAN solution, and at this it excels.

  21. It's gonna rock by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Wow, if this is anything near what it sounds like it will really rock the boat. I'd like a LCD on my desktop computer myself (if I could only afford it :P..)

  22. I agree! by FatSean · · Score: 1

    My all-black Intellistation system looks real cool. If I had the same 2-way, 1 gig all SCSI setup in a beige box it would be just as fast, but not as impressive. Looks are important to me... functional looks are super sweet....

    --
    Blar.
  23. Re:AirPort is the real story by Murphy(c) · · Score: 1

    Are people still using unswitched 10Mbps ethernet extensively?

    Actually, as someone else pointed out, the iMac is not aimed at the "Medium-Heavy" office market (as in more than 10-20 stations). So, as much as I disslike the iMac/Apple thing, I have to say that the AirPort is a pretty brilliant touche for the home users (so no need for switching). Though I doubt that Mom and Dad will be using it to play Quake any time soon ;)

    But what about the *need* for physical separation between networks ? Let's say you live in a building with pretty lousy wall insulation, that means that your private network is going to be *sniffable* form your neighbours bedroom. And that is definitaly something I DON'T want.

    My pr0n is my pr0n ;)
    Murphy(c)

  24. Actually... by SpinyNorman · · Score: 1

    The cost of cabling is in the pulling, not the cable.

  25. Re:iMacs will have AirPort, and here's why.... by Anonymous+Shepherd · · Score: 2

    Considering 3com owns Palm and 3com also develops 802.13(or is it 802.11?) devices, it isn't inconcievable that future Palms will either carry or have as optional upgrades a wireless networking solution



    -AS

    --

    -AS
    *Pikachu*
  26. Re:Stripped down? by the+eric+conspiracy · · Score: 1

    I think that you are exaggerating. Everyone I know with an iMac has upgraded the RAM to at least 64MB. Most mailorder houses throw in an upgrade when you order an iMac.

  27. finally, a new colour by vulcan · · Score: 1

    i must say that what struck me as the dumbest thing about the imac was the colour issue. i'm glad to see that someone at apple realised some users' desire for more conservative tones. now all that's keeping me from buying one is the os issue....

    sc

    1. Re:finally, a new colour by Zack · · Score: 1

      I've got to agree here... while perhaps the average home user doesn't really care or might even like the odd colors of the iMacs, can you imagine one in a real coporate environment?

      Apperance does count... It's like being the best at what you do, but showing up at the office in a clown suit.

      Of course, unless you ARE a clown. Then it would make sense. Clowns are scary. But I digress..

    2. Re:finally, a new colour by dpdx · · Score: 1

      If that's how people feel (need a more conservative tone, the "OS issue"), why don't they just buy Intel boxen?

      They can install Linux on it, run strictly from the command prompt, and treat themselves to a stimulus-free computing environment, devoid of any color whatsoever.

      Of course, they'll have to get rid of any pictures on the wall, any figurines at their desk, and put paper over the windows (small w), but what's a little work when you can keep the rods in your eyes from ever firing?

      --
      _____
      The antidote to bad speech is not censorship, but more speech.
    3. Re:finally, a new colour by Hippie-Artist · · Score: 1

      Doesn't it seem kind of hypocritical to yall that, while at the same time we bash imacs and g3s for their crazy color schemes and toy-ish looks, that /. has million-reply news storys about cool/new/colorful designs for their pc's cases?

      tho i gotta say, that keyboard/mouse sucks horribly. but that's what usb mice from logitech are for.

    4. Re:finally, a new colour by Pope · · Score: 1

      >can you imagine one in a real coporate environment?

      You obviously haven't been to any ad agencies lately. :)

      I'm a designer, and most design places are and have always been heavily Mac-based.
      One of the agencies I freelance for just bought a whole tonne of iMacs for their staff to replace their older 7500's
      Much as I hate the keyboards/mice of these machines, they make great workstations.

      Now, what do you mean by "corporate?"

      Pope

      --
      It doesn't mean much now, it's built for the future.
    5. Re:finally, a new colour by Custard · · Score: 1

      I'm curious. How do you handle the 15" monitor. It is *very* nice, for a 15 incher, but I have a hard time with it.

      To my aging eyes 17" is as small as I can still read an 8 1/2 by 11 document without paging.

      I have recommended against the iMac just because of the monitor size. I can't imagine my mom browsing the web without a *lot* of scrolling.

      Thanks.

  28. Apple lookin good by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I think Apple is finally on their way back as a company with a decent market share. Although it would be nice if their pricing was more in line with the PC market.

  29. Businesses, heh! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Since when would businesses be interested in something as elegant as the Macintosh Manager administration and netboot features of MacOS and OS X Server? Seems to me, most businesses would either just get the cheapest emachines-type box for their desktop system. Either that or get some loaded down, overpowered, overpriced Dell.

  30. Maybe FireWire, Maybe DVD - But Still Not Pro by Erisynne · · Score: 1

    I think that they could put one FireWire jack in the next iMac for those who wish to use their camcorders with a 'consumer' version of FinalCut (notice that they called the first version 'Pro'?). As I recall, there was something similar back on the old Performas where you could plug in your VCR or Camcorder and import small movies into a program that would let you do simple editing, like adding silly sound tracks. (I recall the demo had pictures of an iguana eating a baby at his/her birthday?) Also, DVD is nice. Consider these two articles that I've compiled for my website with the rumors that are abounding arond the next iMacs: http://www.dailyimac.com/articles/fyi/rumors/dvdso rbto.html (DVD Standard or BTO in Next iMacs?) http://www.dailyimac.com/articles/fyi/rumors/kihei .html (General Kihei rumor compilation) Just FYI: Apple makes the current iMacs cheap by making and selling them in such volume, as well as keeping inventory down. Apple sells iMacs to distributors for about $960 or so a pop, and they in turn sell them to small stores -- big stores buy direct from Apple. Apple makes $330 or more off each iMac sold through retail, and around $600 on each sold through the Apple store. That's without any add-ons. They have the money to improve the line without raising the cost! Adding FW is easier if the next iMacs use the UniNorth unified mobo architecture/ASIC combinations. FireWire and AGP 2x, etc, are functionalities already allowed for in UniNorth -- it would be cheaper for Apple to add FireWire than to add Composite video! (And why would Joe Schmoe spend $6k+ if he could or would settle for an iMac? :) More in my articles... (Please, slashdot mee! ;)

    --
    ---- My Design, Code, Ruby on Rails blog: http://www.slash7.com/
    1. Re:Maybe FireWire, Maybe DVD - But Still Not Pro by Erisynne · · Score: 1

      Egad! For some reason, my linebreaks didn't work. And there I could have sworn I had "Plain Old Text" selected. Alas... Sorry for the mess :\

      And here are the HTMLized links: DVD Standard or BTO in Next iMacs?, and General Kihei Rumor Compilation.
      Enjoy...

      Amy

      --
      ---- My Design, Code, Ruby on Rails blog: http://www.slash7.com/
  31. Hopes for new iMac by lukpac · · Score: 1

    I'm not the kind of person that would buy an iMac anyway, but if there is one thing I'd like to see in an iMac, it would be better 3D support. At least a RAGE 128. The RAGE Pro just doesn't cut it for good gaming...

    I really doubt it will have an LCD screen, but who knows...

    And change the mouse and keyboard!

    1. Re:Hopes for new iMac by jedidiah · · Score: 1

      Just what do you think the pedestrian user is going to be using their machines for if not a webtv or an overpriced word processor? The ideal home computer should be something more akin to an Amiga or ST: an overgrown console, something that plays games well and just incidentally runs spreadsheets and net software.

      Apple likes to hark on the superior CPU. It doesn't cost much to include a decent 3D accelerator to go with it.

      --
      A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
    2. Re:Hopes for new iMac by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Clues are in season again Real Soon Now (TM) so pick one up, ok? Did you bother considering the DRIVER issue? This is a Mac, not a PC running Windows.

    3. Re:Hopes for new iMac by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Remember people: iMac is NOT for the super gamer. It is designed for the home user and grandpa and grandma. They don't need a Rage128 and most definately don't need an LCD. If you want real graphics and an LCD machine, buy a G3 or G4 minitower. Sheesh, what the hell do you expect for 1200 bucks?!?

  32. Re:AirPort is the real story by jafac · · Score: 1

    unless he had a hack.

    Worst case, if my hypothetical hacker camped out on an ethernet network, someone could eventually trace the physical connection back.

    In this case, you'd need some kind of directional signal analyzer to physically locate the machine and shut it down, unless the connection could be locked out at the hub.

    Then there's the EM-interference devices. . .

    Sorry. I'm being obtuse.

    "The number of suckers born each minute doubles every 18 months."

    --

    These are my friends, See how they glisten. See this one shine, how he smiles in the light.
  33. denial of access != security through obscurity by TheDullBlade · · Score: 1

    Security through obscurity means hiding the details of your encryption, not preventing access to the data. You always make a system less secure by making it easier to access the communication channel. To crack an isolated cable-based LAN, you need to connect a cable somehow; if there is any sort of security effort, this is a non-trivial obstacle. To crack a radio LAN, you only need to get within connection range, or maybe just use a directional antenna (assuming it's not in a shielded building).

    Even if I had encryption that every expert assured me could not be cracked for the next thousand years, I'd still prefer not to broadcast the encrypted data. Much less if I am not bothering with encryption.

    Geez, next people will be saying that having secret passwords or not broadcasting the private key of public key cryptograpy is "security through obscurity." Something needs to be secret.

    --
    /.
    1. Re:denial of access != security through obscurity by Hobbex · · Score: 1

      Even if I had encryption that every expert assured me could not be cracked for the next thousand years, I'd still prefer not to broadcast the encrypted data. Much less if I am not bothering with encryption.

      What about the /etc/passwd file?

      You are more or less broadcasting the most secret information on the system to every user, yet you trust it.

      Geez, next people will be saying that having secret passwords or not broadcasting the private key of public key cryptograpy is "security through obscurity." Something needs to be secret.

      No people should memorize their private keys (after all, the key is only about keylength/5 (100 - 400 today) characters in alphanumerics, if we start training our children from kindergarten they should manage). :-)


      -
      /. is like a steer's horns, a point here, a point there and a lot of bull in between.

    2. Re:denial of access != security through obscurity by cduffy · · Score: 1

      The passwd file? Some of us use shadow passwords.

      Who said we need memorize our private keys? He's just pointing out that these, like other info (in this case, more like an unencrypted password... given a private key, finding a working password's not nearly so tough) need be kept obscured.

      Or do you not consider files kept in a secure electronic medium (preferably a secure j-ring or somesuch) private?

    3. Re:denial of access != security through obscurity by Hobbex · · Score: 1


      Or do you not consider files kept in a secure electronic medium (preferably a secure j-ring or somesuch) private?

      It was a joke...

      -
      /. is like a steer's horns, a point here, a point there and a lot of bull in between.

  34. Stripped down? by gbsmith · · Score: 1

    Stripped down to what?! A diskless workstation?

    --
    There is no off postion on the genius switch. - David Letterman
    1. Re:Stripped down? by chadmulligan · · Score: 1
      Everyone I know with an iMac has upgraded the RAM to at least 64MB. Most mailorder houses throw in an upgrade when you order an iMac.

      Since dealer margins on the iMac are between extremely low and non-existant, keeping memory below minimum is a well-known trick to give dealers an opportunity to offer something extra.

    2. Re:Stripped down? by jafac · · Score: 1

      32mb RAM would be a mistake. Not that Apple hasn't made that one before - hey Steve, why not NO RAM?

      Even though I think the iMac was a GREAT idea, especially the ballsy "no floppy" part, I'd say that 90% of the people I've talked to who have iMacs, HATE them, they're too slow.
      Why?
      Not the blazing G3 processor?

      No.
      the base 32MB RAM, which most basic users (iMac's main target demographic) won't upgrade. 32MB RAM+MacOS primative VM= SLOOOOOWWW computing experience. For every person who complained I recommended going to 64MB, (the original G3 pro had a promotion to upgrade from 32 to 64 for free, and that worked GREAT for my desktop!). For every person who DID follow my rec. there was a happy camper.

      "The number of suckers born each minute doubles every 18 months."

      --

      These are my friends, See how they glisten. See this one shine, how he smiles in the light.
    3. Re:Stripped down? by Darchmare · · Score: 1

      No kidding. Apple needs to come up with a plan - take whatever the executives decide on for minimum amount of RAM, and add 32 megs on top of that before shipping.

      Luckly, a lot of the resellers out there realized this, as most iMac promotions come with 'free 32 MB RAM upgrade' deals.

      Me? 128 MB in my PowerTower Pro, and 190+ something for my PowerBook G3 Bronze (well, once it gets here). :>


      - Darchmare
      - Axis Mutatis, http://www.axismutatis.net

      --

      - Jeff
    4. Re:Stripped down? by InstantCool · · Score: 1
      32mb RAM would be a mistake. Not that Apple hasn't made that one before - hey Steve, why not NO RAM?

      Geez, I was just speculating. No need to jump down my throat.

      For all I know, the new iMac will come with 500mb of RAM and that'll be the stripped down version.
      --

      --
      InstantCool
    5. Re:Stripped down? by znu · · Score: 1

      I'd guess the stripped down version would be without DVD, Firewire, and Rage 128. You don't need those on a business machine.

      --

      --
      This space unintentionally left unblank.
    6. Re:Stripped down? by InstantCool · · Score: 1

      I would expect stripped down to be 32MB and a normal display. Apple wants to start shipping DVD standard on all machines by the end of the year. FireWire is on the motherboard, so they won't lose that. Rage 3D is the only graphics option I've heard, so they gotta have that to drive the display.

      Stripped down is probably just be the base of what will be a build-to-order machine.
      --

      --
      InstantCool
    7. Re:Stripped down? by BAM0027 · · Score: 1

      I think it'd make good sense to at least keep the FireWire and allow the workstations to make use of the server's DVD/media.

  35. AirPort can be used like most ethernet segments by adamsc · · Score: 1

    First, there's nothing that prevents you from connecting multiple AirPorts to a switch similar to the way some companies will have a 10 or 100Mb segment for a single room or department with only single a connection to a switch to save money.

    Second, I'd bet that the majority of small businesses and homes do not have switched Ethernet - 10Mb unswitched is fast enough for file/print sharing and internet access and it's not like a small business has a shortage of things to spend money on. The AirPort works extremely well for these people as they're also among the least likely to have full-time IT staffers and so the "No Wiring Required" part benefits them considerably more than a large company which already has people to string wires and probably wired the entire building years back in any case. The base station also has IP sharing built in and supports both Ethernet and modem connections for the same reason - it doesn't cause problems for people who do have dedicated IT staff and is extremely handy for those that do not.

    Third, it's huge for portable users. Even places with switched 100Mb Ethernet may have a wireless setup for people using laptops heavily. For them, 11Mb versus the more common 2Mb is a huge win.

  36. sure hope they sell it for under 1,000 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    im 2nd (think i am) i love the new G4's but wish they were a bit cheaper and am really looking forward to see what apple can come up to top the iMac

  37. Re:Not quite a rumor by ryanr · · Score: 1

    "Would the G4 run special calculations on the Velocity engine and 'transmit' on RF that way?"

    Yup, they communicate over hyperspace.

    This is accomplished by modulating the fequency at which the machines divide by 0.

  38. Almost nice... by Xunker · · Score: 1

    Well, if Apple can deliver this for under 1000 USD, I'd even go in for it. I've never been a big iMac fan (I think they look dorky), but with a new colour scheme (and LCD display, perhaps?) running MacOS X Client, BSD or Linux, it would almost rule. But knowing Apple, they ruin this idea as well and make it too expensive, or cripple it in some way. I hope they bring back Mezzanine.

    First Post?

    --
    Hilary Rosen's speech was about her love of money and her desire to roll around naked in a pile of money.
    1. Re:Almost nice... by Lamont · · Score: 1

      I hate to break it to you, but you won't be getting an LCD in an iMac for under $1000.

  39. Re:Don't forget yogh and ash! by Kintanon · · Score: 1

    How the hell do you pronounce yogh??? WTF is with all of the extra letters? Let's clean the language up if we are going to mess with it anymore!

    Hu neds al uv dos axtra ledrs ine wa.
    >:)

    Kintanon

    --
    Check out JoshJitsu.info for Brazilian Ji
  40. Boy won't that be great!!! by jmroberts70 · · Score: 1

    Now you can setup a small office with expensive workstations and slim software choices. I'll have to run out and get this!!!

  41. No Base station needed? by twenty3 · · Score: 1

    One of the cool things about that scenario is that it is also rumored that the new G4 desktops will not require the Airport Base Station to serve as a connnection betrween at least 10 airport enabled devices, and possibly more. I wonder if the new iMac's will also be able to server some number of machines sans hub? That would make a small home network even easier for most, since they may not have to buy any additional accesories...just an iMac and an iBook to get started.

    --
    -- 23
    1. Re:No Base station needed? by jafac · · Score: 1

      hm.
      $2000 for a G4 + Monitor
      $3000 for 3 iBooks
      =family netQuake.

      Versus

      $1600 for four Mountain bikes and a sunny day.

      interesting math.

      "The number of suckers born each minute doubles every 18 months."

      --

      These are my friends, See how they glisten. See this one shine, how he smiles in the light.
    2. Re:No Base station needed? by znu · · Score: 1

      Any machine with an Airport card can act as a base station if it's plugged into the network, even another iBook. So, yes, you'll be able to do this.

      --

      --
      This space unintentionally left unblank.
    3. Re:No Base station needed? by i_lusiphur · · Score: 2

      rumored? it's true! the new G4 can be a basestation via SW - correction- the NEW AGP graphics G4 (with the airport expansion card installed) can be a basestation via SW.

      it's really neat-o if you ask me. iMacs w/ Airport and SW basestation is GO!, too if what i've seen/read is correct.

      if you think about it, it only makes sense. an iMac buzzing along with 10 iBooks strewed about some living room in people's laps, all playing Quake or whatnot... and no wires.

      "one person, one computer"

      --
      In /dev/null no one can hear you scream.
  42. Re:Iwhack II? TCO by grossdog · · Score: 1

    For most companies/organizations, you just can't beat Macintosh's total cost of ownership (tco). Sure, they may cost a little (or a lot) more to begin with, even though this margin is constantly shrinking for comparable hardware (vs x68, windows). But, when you get into training, administration, support, and the like for average users (non-geeks, the majority at any non-tech company), the TCO for Windows machines goes through the roof, to the point of doubling or tripling for Windows boxes vs. Macs per year.

    The point? Sure, you can save a few bucks to being with by going with Windows. Maybe even $100 more per box by going with Linux. But, try giving a secretary a Linux box; intimidation city! Even worse with Windows: it's too easy to break things (or to have them break on their own or not work for some nonspecific reason or etc etc).

    What Macs have going for them is that they tend to work and, when they don't, are usually easily fixable, often by a non-expert.

    I've seen this especially in a graphics company in which I used to work. About half the place (the graphics people) had Macs, the rest PCs with Windows. There was a dozen-person MIS dept keeping the PCs going and they were still frequently down. The Macs were kept up internally by the graphic designers (who, it might be added, were giving their computers more fo a workout than the marketing and sales types their PCs). It should also be added that the entire MIS dept was MS-trained/certified (ha!).

    If one is a computer enthusiast (programmer, administrator, nerd, geek, etc) you might not want a Mac for your own system. But, you definitely want them for any users you're supporting. To be able to recommend and put your users on a platform that is always up and that garners few compliants is a great thing and will give you plenty of time to hone those q3a skills, which is really what it's all bout, right?

    --Andrew Grossman
    grossdog@dartmouth.edu

  43. New Color? I Think Not. by Curt · · Score: 1

    You guys really have to work on your Apple reporting. It makes you look bad. =) First off, Graphite is the least likely color in existance for the new iMacs to be. Steve said that color would be for their professional line. (Wow I want a Graphite/White G4 PowerBook!) And iMacs are not part of their profesissional line. Puut the two lines of code together boys. It may be an option (heck I would like them to be graphite.) , but is ridiculously umnlikely. If you need Apple Info look at www.macosrumors.com. They _seem_ to be the most accurate. (AppleInsider has done so much false info its ridiculous... I know (I'm an Apple Tester... Shhh!)

  44. Re:The usual the-only-thing-that-will-save-apple r by LMariachi · · Score: 1

    Apple has had technical certification for years. You need it to do warranty repairs, and you're supposed to have it if you work for an authorized service provider. But Macs are easy enough to fix that most in-house IT folks never bother to get certified, though.

    And besides the fact that Intel sucks, Mac resistance has never been processor-based. It's always been resistance to the OS itself, and to a lesser extent the nonstandard hardware interfaces Apple used to use. (Nubus, ADB, two different non-VGA video connectors, etc.)

  45. Re:finally, a new colour for boring suits by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Exactly. This is partly because they are fruity-colored spheres that look like they were designed to make sure young children couldn't hurt themselves on sharp corners.

  46. Center vs. centre by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    It is "Centre" not "Center". Are you saying Sen-tear? No, you're saying Sent-rr. Say Centre aloud.

    Yep I'm saying Sent-rr. T-E-R just like INT-rr-NET to use your own funky phonetic spelling. Only the French logically write centre since they say "san-truh". Now, are you going to side with the French? :)

  47. No business is going to use iMacs by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What do most businesses want? Win9X/NT and MS Office, maybe some old DOS apps. They don't need the school-lab-administration features that a MacOS client on a MacOS X server has. They don't want to use the already-outdated Mac MS Office 98 Besides, what self-respecting business is going to buy from -APPLE-, they'll keep using the tried-and-true systems from Gateway, Dell, and Compaq.

    1. Re:No business is going to use iMacs by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      A wise self-respected individual would buy a Mac due to its superiority over junk like Gateway, Dell, Compaq. Office 98? Sorry, Appleworks is sufficient for myself. I am mainly a graphic artist. GIMP? bleh.

  48. UNH's wireless training page (inc. IEEE 802.11) by Sleepy · · Score: 1
    I found a bunch more at this url.

    I couldn't locate the Mac zealot URL that states Apple invented wireless.. do you remember where you saw it?? :)

    Wireless that doesn't suck *is* new tho. Knee-jerk labeling is IMO just as bad as zealotry...

  49. Linux ON a G4 by Egorn · · Score: 1

    If you were to put linux on a G4 I can just imagine how impressive your framerate would be gee it's a supercomputer on a chip, with a sustained performance of over one gigaflop. It has a lot of fun things that Intel-based computers have, like UDMA/66 drives, 2X AGP, and a 100MHz Front side bus. It also has a 1MB L2 cache that runs at half the core speed of the CPU, which runs at 500MHz for now. That's it, If I can run linux quake on there, I'm getting one. Well, and if I ever get any money, too.

    Digital Theatre News
    -------------------------------------------

    --

    Movie News - "Entertainment news, bitch!"
  50. I wish Floppies were dead by the+eric+conspiracy · · Score: 1

    Nah. Steve Jobs has always hated floppies. The NeXT didn't have a floppy drive either, and that was years ago.

    Personally I think it is really LAME that the PC industry hasn't been able to come up with anything better than a floppy as a standard for removable R/W media. Many many files just don't FIT on a floppy - you really need something with larger capacity.

    This is really up to the PC industry to fix, but they won't because whatever the possibilities are it going to cost at least 0.02 cents more than that cheap floppy drive.

    Apple has it right. Leave out the floppy and let the industry come up with a new defacto standard which they can later incorporate into their machines.

  51. addendum by TheDullBlade · · Score: 1

    I'm aware of AirPort's built-in encryption; I've been comparing it only to a theoretical wired system with the same security features.

    --
    /.
  52. Re:Nice idea, but...(better formatted version, sor by mattreilly · · Score: 1

    Hey, hey, slow down there junior. Your post was pretty annoying the first time, posting it again with more paragraph space didn't help it any.

    And no, you don't want an iMac, it would be a fatal blow to your fragile ego if you couldn't show off your arcane computer knowledge at ever turn.

    cheers,

    Matthew Reilly

  53. Re:"colour"? Brits need to learn to spell. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    More of the world speaks British English than American, so get used to it. Geographically, but more PEOPLE speak the American variety of English than any other variant of English.

    Besides, 1 in every 6 people on the PLANET speaks Chinese. Maybe we all should learn that and have a singel, universal, global, language.

  54. One-vendor economics tends to make business sense. by TheGreek · · Score: 1

    I dunno 'bout that. I work for an insurance company. They buy just about everything from IBM. They have two AS/400s (production and Y2K test--they write their own AS/400 software, BTW) and several large IBM laser printers.

    They broke their software during a major upgrade a few months ago, and guys from IBM came up to fix the problem.

    Yes, buying everything (computers, printers, service, tech support, etc.) from IBM (in this case) appears to cost more. That's before you take into consideration the rapport developed between the company and IBM (VPs of divisions are calling the MIS to explain why a problem with a model of printer hasn't been fixed yet) and how it has a way of expediting matters.

    Corporations tend to have money. That's why they can piss millions away on such sundries as Windows 2000 and new versions of Office. It's far easier for accounting to keep track of ONE BILL from ONE COMPANY than it is to keep several different vendors straight. Yes, it costs more, but corporations are dumping enough money in IS today to afford it.

  55. iMac II, III, 475... LC naming scheme? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    As the subject suggests, will Apple use the same naming scheme they used on the Macintosh LC (LC standing for Lowcost Color)??
    Macintosh LC
    Macintosh LC II
    Macintosh LC III
    Macintosh LC 475 (!)

  56. Video Card by ohw3 · · Score: 1

    Why does Apple keep using the ATI Rage 128 video cards. If they want to have the best graphics PC around, why don't they use one of the newer video cards like a TNT 2, or later this month, they could use a GeForce256 based card.

  57. MacOS is a horrible choice for Schools by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1
    I don't see how even ONE iMac was sold to schools over the past year... It really saddens me to see schools use their already limited funding to purchase over hyped, underpowered computers running an ancient and somewhat broken OS. Ok, so spend $1100 on an iMac (or iMac II)....

    Then, once AppleWorks 5.0 gets old, the job of hunting down MacOS software (and at a decent price) can be a chore, especially when you're talking about site licenses for educational software.

    And don't get me started on the need to run Norton Utilities (or at least Disk First Aid) on a regular basis, as well as "rebuilding the desktop" and "zapping the PRAM".

    School wants to get some DVD-based encyclopedias, out of luck there, unless you want to spend a small fortune on USB-based drives, but heck, it's a Mac, school outta be used to spending large amounts of money by now.

    It's really sad to see that schools are buying into the Apple snake oil, especially with our tax dollars.

    1. Re:MacOS is a horrible choice for Schools by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1
      Then, once AppleWorks 5.0 gets old, the job of hunting down MacOS software (and at a decent price) can be a chore, especially when you're talking about site licenses for educational software.

      Why use Appleworks? There are many other choices.

      Also: Since many of the same companies that make PC educational software ALSO make it for the Mac, their same site-license terms will apply. Heck, you can even get cross-platform site-licenses from them in most instances.

      Just can't find Mac edu software? Here's a few places to check:

      Smart Kids Software

      MacConnection (educational software section)

      Outpost.com

      MacZone (educational software section)

      And don't get me started on the need to run Norton Utilities (or at least Disk First Aid) on a regular basis, as well as "rebuilding the desktop" and "zapping the PRAM".

      Regular maintenance, just like PCs, or anything else. Though not quite as often as you seem to think.

      School wants to get some DVD-based encyclopedias, out of luck there, unless you want to spend a small fortune on USB-based drives, but heck, it's a Mac, school outta be used to spending large amounts of money by now.

      Just how much greasy-fingered-kid handling do you think DVDs can handle? Any self-respecting institution is going to have these things on the server, not being tossed about the lab.

      --
      Kyosuke, who wouldn't be AC if /. would e-mail the dang password.

  58. Re:"colour"? Brits need to learn to spell. by Egorn · · Score: 1

    Come on. The Brits are the originators of english so give them a break they made it let speak it any fucking way they want.
    ( Notice the "re" instead of "er" )
    v
    Digital Theatre News
    -------------------------------------------

    --

    Movie News - "Entertainment news, bitch!"
  59. Re: Rhapsody/OSX for intel. by TheGreek · · Score: 1

    Since then, there've been rumors that apple's been keeping OS-X development syncronized on x86 and PowerPC, but Apple's kept completely mum on the subject.

    Remember: Rhapsody/OS X is built on Mach. According to a friend who works in the Apple Enterprise Whatever (The Division Formerly Known As NeXT), all they'd have to do to "synchronize" development is to keep the x86 Mach bits updated. He refused to comment as to whether they were actually doing this, though.

    Yes, abstraction IS a Good Thing(TM).

  60. Rumors... by WiggyWack · · Score: 1

    I'd be really surprised if most of this ended up being true. First off, the iMacs with flat screens aren't due till 2000. They'd just be too expensive right now. Also, who needs Firewire on a consumer machine? It just adds cost and another port which will confuse newbiews. And DVD? Are you going to stick the machine in your living room and watch movies on its 15" screen? It'll probably have AirPort, more RAM, G4 chip, bigger HD, and new design. It'll still be a CRT monitor, although probably a larger viewable screen. As for the color, I think Apple should just stick to the current 5. It's not meant for corporate use, so why should corporate people care what color it is? And why is Slashdot posting rumors instead of actual news?

    --
    Macintosh humor! MacComedy.com
    1. Re:Rumors... by doce · · Score: 1

      As for the color, I think Apple should just stick to the current 5. It's not meant for corporate use, so why should corporate people care what color it is?

      While they're not specifically geared towards corporate use, they're getting a lot of exposure out there anyway. At the ad firm I work for, we typically purchase Blue G3's (and, shortly, G4's) for our artist-type users, and iMacs for general office-type users, as well as receptionists.

      That being said, we love the colors. Our Top Dog wouldn't let our main receptionist have a computer, as the beige didn'd match the marble counter top she worked on. The strawberry iMac matches wonderfully, and she has a computer. Finally.

      Everyone hates the mice though.... we collected them, and hung them off of my bumper when I got married...

      http://www.simonjester.com/wedding/next.cgi?pict =12

      --
      woof!
  61. SFLan by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Check out www.sflan.com for an ISP in San Francisco based on wireless ethernet founded by WAIS inventer Brewster Kahle.

  62. Re:It's interesting about the colors by Tardigrade · · Score: 1

    Does anyone know if SGI sells their cases without any hardware in them?

  63. Re:Schools by Head+Louse · · Score: 1

    Do you really need to have upgradability anymore?
    ie.
    today:
    - imac $1200 (333mhz)
    - tower g3 (350mhz) w/monitor $2100+

    what do you get for that $900?
    - a bigger harddrive and very slightly faster processer (whoopie!?!)
    - firewire only good if you do digital video

    5 years from now:
    imac - sell it for a few hundred and take that $900 you saved and buy the latest version of the imac
    tower g3 - spend another $1000+ on a bigger hardrive, video card, more ram and upgraded processer. All this extra money and you still won't have a machine as fast or as good as the lastest version of the imac because you will be running with slower ram and bus speeds.

  64. A reason why... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The last Apple CEO once asked an editor or someone from the New York Times (in '96 or '97) to answer that very same question.

    The NY Times man said that every time they did a big story on Apple their sales went up 3% for that issue.....so they do stories on Apple.

    I think the main reason is that Apple remains very much an enigma. People (even those who hate it) are drawn to it in some way that cannot be explained. It stands as a cultural force, a underdog that never gives up and has managed to remain distinct in a industry of imitators.

    1. Re:A reason why... by Rax+Morgant · · Score: 1

      They create variations on the standard PC theme, but its not like "Wow, a Mac can do that and my PC can't do anything even close to it".
      Granted, you're right about some of that... but show me a PC in gigaflops. G4 can do that. Because G4 is good. :)

      --
      "That sounds like a tautology to me!.... Book it, I don't care! I meant to say that! I said it sounds like a tautology!
    2. Re:A reason why... by swb · · Score: 1

      I guess I can understand that.

      I don't hate Apple, and I was a really eager Mac user for a long time. What I do hate is the delusions of grandeur that so many Mac users have about the Mac and Apple's technology.

      Every time Steve Jobs steps on a stage somewhere with his Hollywood-style persona and shows a Mac in another color every Mac user I know stops me to ask me what I think about Apple's bold new leadership step in technology, and I run to the bathroom to throw up. Apple simply IS NOT leading technology anywhere. They create variations on the standard PC theme, but its not like "Wow, a Mac can do that and my PC can't do anything even close to it".

  65. Intrenet by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    .

  66. Q3 with the package deal? by Magus311X · · Score: 1

    Hey, if they bundled Quake III with the LAN packages? Instant Quake? Nice thought.

    Rob
    ----------------------------------------------
    2 / 0 = E? Bloody calculator has bugs in it!

  67. Re:Ideal for education - _HAH_ !! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Do the math... how does airport compare to cat5 for price.... :)

  68. What about jamming? by brad.hill · · Score: 1
    I'm no radio expert, and don't know the details of the AirPort spec, but how easy would it be to jam a network that relied on these?

    Can any punk with a 1/2 watt transmitter point it at your office and take down your network? Seems like a great and cheap way to incapactate the competition, and the SOHO market doesn't exactly have easy access or the even the mindset to call the FCC and track down attackers.

    Are they using some kind of spread-spectrum packet radio to make this more difficult?

  69. Re:Industrial espionage made easy. by WiggyWack · · Score: 1

    Everyone's paranoid. Yeah, maybe people out there COULD tap my Internet connection, but who would WANT to? If the government really wants to watch me surf through articles on /., be my guest. Yes, they could maybe steal passwords or credit card numbers if they got through the encryption, but people have been stealing card numbers since credit cards began! This doesn't mean more people will be doing it, it just means they'll go about doing it in a different way.

    --
    Macintosh humor! MacComedy.com
  70. Re:The usual the-only-thing-that-will-save-apple r by WiggyWack · · Score: 1

    Apple is a hardware company, not a software company. Putting Mac OS version whatever on Intel would cause them to sell less Macs, which is just plain dumb. They'd rather sell 2 millions Macs in a year and have 2 million people using MacOS than sell 1 million Macs in a year and have 10 million people using MacOS. Stop thinking like Microsoft! :)

    --
    Macintosh humor! MacComedy.com
  71. Re: Rhapsody/OSX for intel. by um...+Lucas · · Score: 1

    That build is long gone. It was basically OpenStep with a cobbled together Mac-like interface that ran on then shipping powerpc's just to give developers a taste of Objective C...

    Since then, there've been rumors that apple's been keeping OS-X development syncronized on x86 and PowerPC, but Apple's kept completely mum on the subject. They may have just done it when there was a little more uncertainity of IBM and Motorolla's commitments to the PowerPC...

  72. Bring BEOS to the G4!!!!! by Orion2o6 · · Score: 1

    Bring BEos to the G4. I'm sick of the Apple monopoly.

    1. Re:Bring BEOS to the G4!!!!! by Darchmare · · Score: 1

      Blame Be.

      The LinuxPPC people, Debian, Yellow Dog, etc. haven't had any problems.

      - Darchmare
      - Axis Mutatis, http://www.axismutatis.net

      --

      - Jeff
  73. Re:"colour"? Brits need to learn to spell. by gqgreg · · Score: 1

    Whoa, there! Living languages are FAR from perfect, they are ever-changing and dynamic (read adjective again above). The French language has WAY fewer exceptions to rules than English, so don't be slammin' them, yo!

    --
    Powerbook G4/1.5GHz 12", Toshiba Satellite 1135-S1554
  74. Re:Thorn and Eth! by jafac · · Score: 1

    apparently, the prospect of a new iMac isn't enough to keep our brief attentions focussed.

    "The number of suckers born each minute doubles every 18 months."

    --

    These are my friends, See how they glisten. See this one shine, how he smiles in the light.
  75. Re:Sounds Familiar by quasipunk+guy · · Score: 1

    If you count the subwoofer it wasn't...

  76. Re:finally, a new colour for boring suits by RobertW103 · · Score: 1

    As an biege G3 user, I will have to agree here. I was lucky enough to see one of IBM's really big servers not to long ago in person. There were two of them, pitch black with matching monitor, kbd, mouse and rack. That thing just screamed power. Especially when put next to a biege Compaq. If color and style have no place in "serious computing", just take a look at some of the old pictures of mainframes. Supposedly, when IBM was building its first mainframe, Thomas Watson wanted the columns in the room removed so everyone could see the whole machine. That couldn't be dome becuase the columns were holding up the room, so they were removed from all photos of the machine.
    Dark, imposing, something that says "Bow down and worship the raised floor I stand on" really speaks to people in a emotional way that a biege box with a spec list just does not.
    To expend this logic a bit further, I really don't see Joe Average lusting after a Honda Accord, even though that's what he drives. The auto manufacturers know that when he wants is Firebird with the Ram Air Injection and the really big engine. That's the same nerve that Apple has exposed. It's called want.

  77. Re:It's interesting about the colors by kurtras · · Score: 1

    Yes! - but, doesn't the shape matter? I'm sure some people, especially people who want square, beige boxes on their desks, don't like Apple's current designs. But can't that change? Who says that the world can't adapt to rounder shapes, and more colorful designs? I think we need to wait, and see where the world goes as far as computer design is concerned. I, for one, like my iMac in Bondi Blue, and haven't looked back since switching to a more colorful, rounded computer, and as more peripherals come out in colors, it will become harder and harder to resist the overwhelming pressure to buy products that come in colors.

    It's not just computers, too. There are numerous other products now on the market that come in colors.

    Colors are here to stay, and there's no way to stop them!

  78. Re:don't get to hyped up... LCD is far away in iMa by jafac · · Score: 1

    prolly right. While LCD is probably THE ideal technology for the iMac "design philosophy", there is one element of LCD which is counter to that - price.

    LCD is still the denizen of the extremely well-to-do computer hobbyist, or the graphics professional. Until someone can figure out how to really mass produce these things, forget it.

    "The number of suckers born each minute doubles every 18 months."

    --

    These are my friends, See how they glisten. See this one shine, how he smiles in the light.
  79. Incorrect by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Apple created TrueType in response to Adobe's prudence with the licensing of Type 1 (versus Type 3) Postscript fonts. Microsoft licensed this technology for inclusion with Windows 3.1.

  80. Re:Sounds Familiar by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The 20th Anniversary Macintosh was not an all in one unit.

  81. Re:iMAC by gqgreg · · Score: 1

    iMac is definitely a first-time buyer's machine. The whole point of it is that it's cheaper and easier! You get what you pay for. No upgrading. If you think you'll want to upgrade, save a little, wait, and buy a G3 (or a new G4, Yay!).

    --
    Powerbook G4/1.5GHz 12", Toshiba Satellite 1135-S1554
  82. Re:graphite and white? by gqgreg · · Score: 1

    No, better still, they'll strike a deal with Oreo.

    --
    Powerbook G4/1.5GHz 12", Toshiba Satellite 1135-S1554
  83. Re:Airport by npavona · · Score: 1

    There are some wireless LAN solutions available for PCs, but as far as I know they all require you to install a base station.

    Lucent's WaveLan -- at least the first and second generation -- allow for peer-to-peer communication.

  84. Orwell would cry :) by net.ghost · · Score: 1

    If you really want to simplify language, I suggest that you read George Orwell's 1984. One of the consequences of simplifying language was that it removed the possibility for entire concepts to be conveyed. For instance the entire term for freedom was replaced with 'thoughtcrime'. I should think Microsoft would dig Newspeak (The simplified English Language) They could replace all kinds of words with 'thoughtcrime'! Instead of 'picking up an awesome new iMac' you would have 'purchased doubleunplusgood computercrime' Sorry, intentional language modification always makes me think of 1984 ;)

    1. Re:Orwell would cry :) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Theoretically yes, but as someone previously said:

      Check out "The Langauge Instinct" by Steven Pinker for more info on this topic.

  85. Re:Thorn and Eth! by andyf · · Score: 1

    Honestly, it's the only thing nice I could say in anywhere in this article. Remember, "If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all." So that's all I can say. The prospect of a new iMac doesn't pique my attention in the least. Unless they're gonna sell it cheaper than a bargain-basement TigerDirect PC...

    --

    Photos of bits of the past hiding in the present: afiler.com
  86. You still don't understand... by mytdave · · Score: 1

    1) The G4 is not expensive (starting at $1599), and you don't even have to use one. You can use an inexpensive $299 airport base station and connect it to the existing LAN... or just forgo wireless networking, and connect the iMacs directly to your 10 or 100BT network with their built-in 10/100 ethernet.

    2) The machines are not 'alien'. Mac has been around longer than Windows (where do you think M$ got the idea?). Besides, if you really knew what you were talking about, you would know that it is easier to network a Mac into a Wintel network than it is to network a Wintel box in.

    3) Macs are no longer expensive (why does this myth continue to be perpetuated?). There does not exist a single PC that can match the quality and performance of an iMac at that price point. If the iMacII ships at a lower price, all the better.

    4) Since Apple uses industry standards (unlike M$) any Unix knowledgeable IT staff will EASILY be able to work with the Mac (and probably never have to open a manual).

    5) Software is not a problem. If you have someone in-house developing software, I would sincerely hope that they know how to recompile.

    (If you really wanted to, and I don't know why the hell anyone would want to, you can run Windoze and Mac apps on the Mac simultaneously.)

    Also, if you don't like the OS, well, run Linux on it for pete sake!

    1. Re:You still don't understand... by IntlHarvester · · Score: 1

      5) Software is not a problem. If you have someone in-house developing software, I would sincerely hope that they know how to recompile.

      You should be aware that porting between Windows and MacOS is not simply a recompile. And that's assuming you even have a cross platform dev environment, which the two biggest for this kind of work (VisualBasic and Delphi) are not.

      A few weeks ago there was a discussion on Macintouch about how ODBC support for MacOS has essentially disappeared. That pretty much tells one that in-house application development on the Mac is pretty near death.

      --

      --
      Business. Numbers. Money. People. Computer World.
  87. Re:AirPort is the real story by Maserati · · Score: 1
    At my last jobsite, they were running 10Mbps, unswitched. I still don't know how they managed to have hubs crash, but that happened monthly (in a 3 building, 800 user network). And never mind the WAN links, routers and Internet connection .When the proxy server got flaky, the Notes servers start crashing (webmail and SMTP gateway connections start timing out and the server doesn't recover it's resources properly, it's a Lotus thing, not any OS at fault). Yeesh.

    They won't spending the money to upgrade anytime soon. Then again, they need to rebuild their IT department from scratch...

    --
    Veteran, Bermuda Triangle Expeditionary Force, 1992-1951
  88. Re:LCD? Why not?! by hey! · · Score: 2

    Less than one day of inventory in channel? Holee Cow!

    Y'know, a well kept secret is that Apple's past financial problems weren't because people didn't want to buy Macs. The problem was that Apple's assembly lines were doggedly churning out low end models nobody wanted while the models people did want couldn't be had for love or money. I once got one of the few 540c "Blackbirds" to be had because we told Apple we were doing a demo for the President of the United States (kind of a half truth -- he was in the same room as the powerbook doing the demo, but was not interested. We did get some interest from the secret service though.)

    Now if they could only do something to win back the confidence of developers, that would be something indeed.

    --
    Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.
  89. Re:AirPort is the real story by jafac · · Score: 1

    I don't know, the thought of some kid walking into a library with an iBook in his backpack, running an AppleScript he downloaded off of some hacker web board, doing a DOS attack on the whole library network, while he sits quietly and reads a book.

    That would be a problem that would be very difficult to track down.

    "The number of suckers born each minute doubles every 18 months."

    --

    These are my friends, See how they glisten. See this one shine, how he smiles in the light.
  90. back to the business market? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They are already in the offices with their iMac.
    I see a lot more of the iMac than of their G3's

    1. Re:back to the business market? by znu · · Score: 1

      Sure, Macs are in use in some offices. But overall the Mac isn't taken very seriously. Mac OS X and the combination of new iMacs and G4 servers are the products Apple is going to use to push into the business market for real. Buying a $15K package with 10 iMacs and a G4 server all pre-configured would be great for a business. You just plug things together, turn on the server, and boot the iMacs over the network. Instant LAN that costs almost nothing to maintain.

      What people forget (even people who are responsible for computer purchases in companies) is that initial purchase price is a tiny fraction of the cost of a computer. This cost has gone way up since the days of mainframes and dumb terminals, since now every computer's software can fail. But a bunch of iMacs booting off a Mac OS X Server machine can bring it to an all-time low.

      --

      --
      This space unintentionally left unblank.
  91. Color was changed from Colour by Webster ...>??? by chocolatetrumpet · · Score: 1

    In his masterfullness, Webster changed the spelling of some words, just because he could. Colour became Color, etc.

    can anyone verify this? It's what I've heard.

    --
    Spoon not. Fork, or fork not. There is no spoon.
  92. Re:G4 v P3 v K7 SPECfp95 - what about SPECint95? by leiz · · Score: 2

    Wait a minute.... first, the G4 500 numbers are estimated, second, I have actual results for http://infopad.eecs.berkeley.ed u/CIC/summary/local/ where the K7 650's SPECfp score is 0.2 points higher than the one given by Archintosh, third... Maserati failed to mention the SPECint95 results:


    CPU Int FP

    K7 550 23.6/20.6
    K7 600 27.2/21.6
    K7 650 29.4/22.4

    P3 550 22.2/15.0
    P3 600 24.0/15.9

    G4 450 21.4/20.4
    G4 500 23.8/22.6***


    please note: I estimated the G4 500's SPECint score by dividing the G4 450's score by 450 and then multiplying by 500, rounding up

    the SPECfp95 estimate is from the Archintosh website...





    _______________________________________________
    There is no statute of limitation on stupidity.

  93. How tough can it be? by TheDullBlade · · Score: 1

    Well, since there's never any secure connection in which to establish a secret key, it has to be a public key system. A 40-bit public key system. Not exactly my idea of strong encryption.

    --
    /.
  94. Re:Floppies are dead by kgasso · · Score: 1

    Apple would love for you to believe that floppy disks are dead; the only reason they removed the drive in the iMac was to "go out on a limb", so to speak.. they wanted to make a statement that their computer was new, state of the art, and didn't need a piece of equipment that's been around for so long.

    Personally, if I owned an iMac (I'd rather not waste my money), I would spring for an Imation SuperDisk drive.. I absolutely love the things, considering they're also backwards-compatible with old 1.44MB floppies.

    Back to the isue at hand, without a floppy drive (and without a cd burner or any other writable device), an iMac user is kinda screwed if they want to take data from one machine to another (if both aren't networked in some way). Sure, there are ZIP and JAZ drives, but how many people actually own these? Would you rather give someone a $20 high-capacity disk, or a few $.15 floppies? Burning a CD or giving away a large-capacity disk for 1-2 small files is simply wasteful, and most people can't afford to do it.
    --

  95. Re: That's how we say it! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    >So drop all those extraneous "u"'s. Color, not >colour (Color doesn't rhyme with velour, does >it?) Haha, Yes! If you speak with an English accent colour does rhyme with velour!! So yes, we are spelling it how we say it.

  96. don't get to hyped up... LCD is far away in iMac by i_lusiphur · · Score: 1

    DVD yes (i know for sure)
    Airport yes (i know for sure)
    10-13g HDs yes
    Rage 128 (maybe 2x AGP) yes
    new colors yes

    LCD no.

    not at the price point Apple is getting them. I'd like to be wrong, but, knowing Apple, i'm not. Perhaps only if the money Apple plunged into the LCD maker (samsung?) makes them sell to Apple at cost/below cost. Apple's use of ASIC and fewer chipsets (more multi-function chipsets like on the G4) will bring cost down, but not enough to include an LCD.

    IMHO


    (so when did /. become asTheAppleTurns?)

    --
    In /dev/null no one can hear you scream.
  97. Re:Iwhack II? by technos · · Score: 1

    I must say that you offer a comprehensive counterpoint. :)

    --
    .sig: Now legally binding!
  98. It should be easy enough to check by IntlHarvester · · Score: 2


    Since the Mach parts have the source released in Darwin, and apparently the x86 stuff is in there.
    --

    --
    Business. Numbers. Money. People. Computer World.
    1. Re:It should be easy enough to check by TheGreek · · Score: 1
      Since the Mach parts have the source released in Darwin, and apparently the x86 stuff is in there.

      Dunno 'bout that. I read some mails from the Darwin-Development mailing list today, and it appears that x86 stuff is not in Darwin, due to "legal restrictions and encumberances," according to Creed Erickson. Here's the thread.

  99. Re:Iwhack II? by IntlHarvester · · Score: 1

    5)Software development costs. You can't chuck a working bit of in-house software because Marketing wants Iwhacks..

    This problem has always been the killer for Macs in corporations. Most shops just have too many bits of VB and Access and DBase and so on to make Macs really feasible. While most places realize that intranet apps are the 'right way', the only way to solve this problem is emulation which is just another layer of compexity to support.

    Furthermore, historically, most corporate e-mail systems were single platform. Nowdays you have IMAP and Lotus Notes and a cutdown version of Outlook, but there's still a large number of ccMail shops out there.

    And finally, despite the fact that Apple has moved towards open standard networking, there's still a large number of support issues on Novell and Microsoft networks. While Mac support might not crash the server (like it did in the old days of Novell 3), it's something that the administrator needs to support that he'd rather not.

    On top of that add minor incompatibilities in MS Office, getting Mac-savvy technicians, building cross platform remote access solutions, places where you still need to route appletalk, the inevitable missing applications or file converters, and you get the idea.

    So, while I can sympathize with the folks who would really rather have a Macintosh (or even a Linux system) on their desk, it's totally understandable from an IT perspective why it's unfeasible. The concept (standardization) is right on. The execution (usually Windows 9x) is the problem.

    --

    --
    Business. Numbers. Money. People. Computer World.
  100. Heh..iMac II? by Bowie+J.+Poag · · Score: 1


    Welcome to the world of planned obsolescence, kids! :)


    Bowie J. Poag

    --
    Bowie J. Poag

    1. Re:Heh..iMac II? by znu · · Score: 3

      Welcome to the world of the average personal computer user. The person who never upgrades, not even RAM. PCI? What's that mean? The person who isn't going to _ever_ fill up a 10GB hard drive with their Word files and recipe database. The person who doesn't do anything that an iMac can't do in under a second. The person who doesn't do anything that an iMac can't do in under a second. Multitasking? Many of them don't even understand how to use more than one program at once. They don't know what a Zip drive is, and don't know why they'd want one.

      This is the target market for the iMac. This is also the majority of users. They don't want to have to know anything about their computers, and it's easier for them to buy a new computer every 3 years that for them to learn about them to the extent they can upgrade. It's not that they're dumb. It's that they don't care. They want to use their computer like a toaster.

      Upgradability is not something these people are ever likely to care about, and it makes the initial purchase price of the computer higher. Which is something they will care about.

      --

      --
      This space unintentionally left unblank.
    2. Re:Heh..iMac II? by Christopher+Bibbs · · Score: 1

      Exactly! My mother-in-law's 486 lasted 8+ years and would still be kicking if Prodigy Classic wasn't going away. I would have bought her an iMac except the school system where she teaches is shifting from Mac OS to Windows.

      Those kids a really going to have a lot of practice looking at blue screens by the time they go to work.

  101. Re:old hardware with new Macs by Maserati · · Score: 1
    Here's what you can move to a Mac that's replacing an older PC:
    • PCI Cards
    • some RAM (varies widely)
    • SCSI devices (some Macs still ship with SCSI cards, if not they're available)
    • IDE drives (almost all of them work in Macs, and you already wanted a copy of FWB HD Toolkit)
    • monitors
    • USB peripherals
    • Firewire devices

    The major problem with using older devices is likely to be MacOS drivers, not that older devices may not have Win2k drivers developed for them anyway.

    Aside from the motherboard and some ROMs/ASICSsApple is using industry standard parts.

    --
    Veteran, Bermuda Triangle Expeditionary Force, 1992-1951
  102. Schools by alta · · Score: 2

    This is GREAT news for schools. Many schools that can finally afford to have new computers, can't afford the networking. Sure some LUG may volunteer to wire a school, but that usually just doesn't happen.
    Most elementry schools consist of on Mac server, with the librarian as the admin, and a bunch of clients. This is wonderful news for them!

    --
    Do not meddle in the affairs of sysadmins, for they are subtle, and quick to anger.
    1. Re:Schools by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Wouldn't a PC lab be much cheaper? Low-end Celeron 333 Dells are less than $800, that's $200-$600 in savings, plus, they are upgradable. Apple obviously is very anti-upgrades.

    2. Re:Schools by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Cheaper initial cost, yes. But it's been our experience that you have to turn over PC labs about twice as fast as Mac labs in order to keep current. Our PowerMac 7100's are just being turned into G3's now. The PCs bought at the same time as the 7100's are long gone.

    3. Re:Schools by kootch · · Score: 1
      wouldn't a PC lab be much cheaper?


      yea, probably cheaper in the short term, but add in the Windoze upgrade that'll probably be mandatory, add in the tech support (because you know how often pc users need tech support), add in a full-time admin because you know the librarian that's the pseudo-sysadmin will have no clue how to run a PC LAN, and then all those savings are for nil.


      a mac lab is the easiest thing in the world to run. It takes minutes to get all the software installed, a few more minutes to cut people off from restricted areas of the hard drive, or you can even setup software such as Assimilator to make sure that nobody is adding unwanted software and to reverfiy the contents of the drive. Yes, a cheapy Dell will save you $200 to start, but then what's the machine worth in 30 days? about half of what you purchased it for whereas a mac lasts a few years.

    4. Re:Schools by alta · · Score: 1

      You missed my point. LIBRARIANS ARE ADMINS.
      Most librarians aren't going to be able to administer PC's (networking on macs is simplestupid). Also when you ditch the cost of wiring a complete building, you make up a LOT of that 200-600$ per machine. Plus the cost of a network admin or techie to keep the PC's running.

      And VERY FEW people EVER upgrade a machine short of adding a new Harddrive or Ram. Much less in a school sitation.

      Speaking from experience, my mom's a kindgergarden teacher and I helped with their network.

      --
      Do not meddle in the affairs of sysadmins, for they are subtle, and quick to anger.
    5. Re:Schools by doce · · Score: 2

      I used to work for a school district near Dallas. We had 2 Techs and 60 schools. Something on the order or 1000-1500 macs.

      The AIO Macs were a godsend, as they required far less maintenance (2 techs, entire district, as opposed to a single tech for each PC lab we had). And I can only think of one instance where we upgraded anything. We had to stick an extra 16mb RAM chip in all of the AIO LC575's and LC580's so that the teachers could run netscape (on a whopping 24mb of RAM). Our teachers/librarians were able to do anything short of formating the hard drive (minor exceptions applied)...

      When the iMac came along, we rejoiced. The (then) current line of Mac AIO computers were G3's that massed a killer 60lbs and were as unweildy as a wet tuna with KY smeared all over it. My fellow tech and I were able to set up 23 new labs (approx 30 imacs each) in just under a month. Our main bottle neck was waiting for the wiring tech to install Cat 5 wiring for us. With AirPort, .... all I can say is "wow."

      --
      woof!
    6. Re:Schools by Anonymous+Shepherd · · Score: 2

      Why would a PC lab be cheaper? iBook + Airport Card = $1699 or iMac + Airport Card = $1100(hypothetical) and G4 with Station = $1599 + $200 + $500(monitor) so 64 iMacs = $70,400 64 Dells(with networking and monitor) = $56,768 Assume the PC server is priced similarly(it does need more memory, HD, networking, etc!) Apple = $72,609 PC = $59,067 Now, how much does it cost to wire a building for 64(min) connections? How long? How much effort? Also, how much does it cost to hire a sysadmin for the NT/9x network? For the Apple network(with Airport?) If the difference is less than $13,542 the PC networks are cheaper. I don't know that it is... but I suspect not.

      -AS

      --

      -AS
      *Pikachu*
  103. Pretty much anywhere. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You don't need AirPort for other non-Mac machines. Airport is IEEE 802.11 compatible which defines the protocol for which wireless devices exchange data. New Lucent WaveLAN, Aironet ARLAN, and many others are now IEEE 802.11 compatible so they should have no problem working with the Airport assuming of course they use the same modulation type (DSSS or is it FHSS on the Airport?) and the same band. 915MHz cards won't work with 2.4GHz cards and 2.4GHz/915MHz cards won't work with the new ISM band of 5.8GHz. Biggest problem isn't the compatibility issues but rather the price for this equipment. If you just want to pick up 3 cards to network some PCs in the same building I'd just recommend that you forget about it. Most cards are around $250-1000 USD. For building to building, home to home, etc etc then wireless is the way to go.

  104. 10/100 Ethernet switches by Madwand · · Score: 1

    There are two companies offering Fast, FDX Ethernet switches for $25/port, not $50/port. They are:

    The Fast Ethernet switch market has been competing hard lately around the 8-port switch models - that's the sweet spot. Go check out the prices on CNET's Shopper.com; they even show the state where the mail order company is based so that you can avoid sales taxes.

    Enjoy!

  105. Re:Video Card, additional info by _Spirit · · Score: 1

    Actually Mac support for Voodoo 3 has been announced. The announcement stressed the fact that the drivers would be optimized for AltiVec. (or "the velocity engine" as Apple likes to refer to it)

    Message on our company Intranet:
    "You have a sticker in your private area"

    --

    beauty is only a light switch away

  106. Airport inclusion. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    That will definitely be good for consumers if wireless ethernet devices become popular. As it is now wireless networking equipment is at a premium so this will definitely bring down the prices of this stuff. Not to mention the iMac II sounds like a cool machine.

  107. Re:"colour"? Brits need to learn to spell. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Here's a British expression that sums up your post...

    "bollocks"

    It's our language and we're getting rather fed up of your modifications. For example, you use burglarisation rather than burgled. America has an awful trend of adding -isation (or should that be -ization?) to every word. Burgled is the action of a burglar (that is, the removal of property without permission). However, burglarisation would be the process of converting an object into a burglar. When a murderer kills someone, they have been murdered, not murdererised. There are many other cases of inappropriate words (bachelorette rather than spinster) but you already know that you are in error.

    Keep your filthy hands off our language. I suggest you consult the books of your fellow American Bill Bryson ('Mother Tongue' and 'Made In America') to discover more about the history of the English language. Damn colonies...

  108. Re:Where can I get Airport for PC? by hawk · · Score: 1

    >I'd love to move these out of The Oven, which is my computer room. 3 computers running 24/7
    >(distributed.net client of course..) tends to, um, "accelerate" homebrew fermentations. I just
    >had a batch of Chocolate Stout blow the airlock out, shattering it against the ceiling. The brown
    >spot on the ceiling is an interesting conversation piece tho. :)

    \sage{
    Blowoff tubes, my son. For most of us, the little 3/8 inch tubing does it, but in your case go for the wider tube (1.25"?) that fills the carboy opening itself (critical if you have lots of sediment)
    }

  109. Re:"colour"? Brits need to learn to spell. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I count at least 22 words of French origin in your first paragraph. How can this be a bad thing? You seem to fail to realise (yes, with an 's') that the incredible vocabulary, French or not, is one of the best parts of English.

    "Bird" is "oiseau", not "oiseaux". The 'x' signifies plural.

    And if your American spelling is so extraordinarily sensible, how do you spell "exercise"? I don't think "exercize" is *ever* used anywhere in North America. There are so many exceptions to the supposed American "simplifications" to spelling that they're utterly redundant and a Very Bad Idea indeed. If there is to be any kind of spelling reform in English, it should implement fully phonetic alphabets like those of George Bernard Shaw.

    BUT

    Spelling reform is a bad idea. If we were to reform our spelling to some kind of phonetic system, we would *lose* fundamental information embedded in words that are not represented phonetically. For example, the origin of the word "muscular" would be lost because the word "muscle" would be spelt (SPELLED for you Americans) differently. Same for "malign" and "malignant", "resident" and "residential" and "nation" and "national". Check out "The Langauge Instinct" by Steven Pinker for more info on this topic.

    More of the world speaks British English than American, so get used to it.

  110. G4 vs PIII vs Athlon SPECfp95 comparisons by Maserati · · Score: 3
    Okay folks, someone finally did the three-way comparison we've (almost) all been waiting for: this URL contains a comparison of todays three leading processors, the G4, the PIII and AMD's Athlon.

    The centerpiece is the SPECfp95 comparison. At the top of the three lines we have:

    1. AMD Athlon 650MHz: 22.2
    2. Intel Pentium 600 MHz: 15.9
    3. PPC G4 500 MHz: 22.6

    There are a few caveats about these numbers, most notably are the fact that the faster systems aren't currently shipping.

    Honestly, I expected the Athlon to beat the G4. But even an extra 150MHz didn't do the trick.

    --
    Veteran, Bermuda Triangle Expeditionary Force, 1992-1951
  111. Hmm by crayz · · Score: 1

    If it has an LCD screen(which actually is vey possible, Apple didn't spend $100 million of Samsung for nothing), then is it still going to be an AIO(all-in-one?).

    I know a lot of the people they market the iMac to like the fact that there are very few wires. But most AIOs w/ LCD screens look ugly(e.g. Monorail), though there are nice ones(e.g. 20th anniversary Mac).

    Other features:
    Airport is almost definite.
    FireWire is almost definite.
    DVD is very likely.
    New colors are a must.

    Other things: it should have an AGP slot. It doesn't need PCI, but just an AGP slot would be very nice so the iMac users can upgrade to a better video card(I feel sad for those poor iMac users stuck with a Rage Pro, I hope they all get the Voodoo2 upgrade).

    Another rumor is that iMacs will have 350MHz G4s. That would be sweet, but unlikely IMHO.

    I also hope iMac II has:

    much bigger HD
    at least 64 megs of RAM
    drop the modem, have it as an option

    1. Re:Hmm by Henriok · · Score: 1

      The new motherboard on wich iMac II will be based i called C2. C2 is based on the same chipset as G4's and iBook's are, the Uniform Motherboard Architecture, UMA. All UMA-boards have AGP-graphics, Ultra-ATA-bus, Firewire, USB, 10/100 Ethernet, and AirPort-technology. Therefor.. the iMac II will have AGP-graphics. But.. I don't think it'll have a AGP-slot, since the iMAc most definately will be very compact, especially since the rumor states that it'll have a TFT-display. It there are any expansionsolts, it's going to be a PCI-slot, probably 66MHz. The graphics will most likely be ATI Rage 128, since the Rage Mobility witch resides in the iBook isn't that good in a stationary computer.

      - Henrik

      --

      - Henrik

      - when the Shadows descend -
  112. Ideal for education by Yosemite+Sue · · Score: 1

    An airport in every classroom ... :-)


    Seriously, as someone who works at an educational institution, this idea makes a lot of sense. Our project manager was keen on getting a bunch of iBooks just to use the 'airport' ... This will work much better in a lab setting!!!

    YS

    --
    "Arrr! The laws of science be a harsh mistress." -- Bender
  113. Re:lottery by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    or get a life ;)..

  114. Re:finally, a new colour for boring suits by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Well, actually, from a designers point of view, I think the graphite looks stylish (creative etc..). A colored mac might look cool on it's own, but once you hooh up all those transperant periphials, it starts to look like Shyt (unless you like living in a place that looks like a kindegardern classroom). I was thinking of getting G4, but at that price? I don't think so...

  115. Re:"colour"? Brits need to learn to spell. by toriver · · Score: 1

    U wat "kolr", den. Der a:r tu mani leters in de Inglisj alfabet olredi - nider 'c', 'z' nor 'y' hev ani pleis ver dei ka:nt bi substitutid.

    Or you can go back to speaking Danish and Norwegian like in the Old Days. :-P

  116. Re:It's interesting about the colors by el_nino · · Score: 1

    Nope. They won't. Unless you know someone at the local office, of course.

    And if you're an SGI VAR as we are you probably do :)

    Been thinking of getting a big Origin2000 "case" (more lika a wardrobe) and put our PC servers inside it...

    %japh = (
    'name' => 'Niklas Nordebo', 'mail' => 'niklas@nordebo.com',
    'work' => 'www.pipe-dd.com', 'phone' => '+46-708-444705'

  117. I don't like the iMac by Egorn · · Score: 0

    But If you want a mac go G4 all the way.. (does it run linux?)

    Digital Theatre News
    -------------------------------------------

    --

    Movie News - "Entertainment news, bitch!"
    1. Re:I don't like the iMac by HerrNewton · · Score: 1

      Yes, Linux PPC runs fine on all shipping Apple dekstops, powerbooks, and iMac-en. At most, the guys over at LinuxPPC will have to make a few accomodations to get AirPort and FireWire working properly. The new iMacs should be based on Apple's universal motherboard architecture, making it relatively easy. One motherboard across the whole line, with machine specific identity plugged-in via daughtercards.

      --

      ----
      Am I the only one who thinks Microsoft is a misnomer? Perhaps Macrosoft would be a better fit?
  118. AirPort is the real story by geethree · · Score: 4

    As cool as the G4's and the iMacs are, I still believe the AirPort wireless networking is the real coup for Apple. Too many people are focusing on the color and design aspects of the latest offerings and forgetting the breakthrough that Airport affords the SOHO and business project group people.

    People... we're talking about wireless networking at Ethernet speeds. Dosen't anyone else see the implications of this, or is everyone still trying to focus on industrial design and color? Tell me of a competing product that can match this, and forget the whiney assed complaints about the OS.

    Give them a year and M$ will claim that they invented AirPort instead of Lucent and Apple.

    'nuff said.

    1. Re:AirPort is the real story by Paul+Carver · · Score: 1

      Can someone clarify the speed issue? I was thinking that the AirPort's 11Mbps isn't as great as it sounds. Sure most people don't have 100Mbps ethernet, but if the 10Mbps ethernet they do have is switched then it's really 10Mbps per machine rather than the 10Mbps shared. The AirPort's 11Mbps must be shared, not point to point.

      Are people still using unswitched 10Mbps ethernet extensively?

  119. LCD? No way...yet by imac.usr · · Score: 3

    The Paris date has been suggested by several Mac rumor sites, but the LCD part is way off base. Apple just poured US$100 million into Samsung to help ramp up production of the iBook (IIRC, one of the reasons the iBook sells for US$1599 was because of unexpected increases in the costs of flat-panel screens). It's very unlikely that in the middle of a screen shortage now expected to last until 2001 they would add one to their best-selling machine.

    Besides, adding an LCD would pretty much necessitate a total redesign of the machine; after all, what's the point of having a giant empty shell around where the monitor used to be? Again, doubtful in the short term.

    Now, once they've got enough iBooks floating around, and the Cinema Display is unbundled from the G4 machines, then perhaps it will be time to look at this issue again.

    Wouldn't mind upgrading my rev. B to a G4, though, I can tell you that. :-]


    --
    I use Macs for work, Linux for education, and Windows for cardplaying.
  120. Unified Motherboard-Lower Price by batobin · · Score: 1

    I would argue that it would not be a stripped down machine, but actually boost more features for the sub 1000 dollar US price range. I argue this because Apple is working on a unified motherboard, a board that all machines can use (with substitutions of course for bus speeds and CPU) so that costs can go down, etc. With this motherboard, reliability goes up and getting parts for them becomes again, cheaper. For a better explanation than I could give, go to a MacOS Rumors glossary page. http://www.macosrumors.com/terms.html#UMA

  121. Re:"colour"? Brits need to learn to spell. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    murdered or murdererized murdererized is just an over the top murder. Like when someone has a little to much fun on a drunken saturday night. A brit may not appreciate the concept being from an emansculated country.

  122. Re:Iwhack II? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    yeah, binarybits, that was some pretty nice rhetoric. I like the way you partially agreed with him and then presented your points. I'll have to remember that.

    On the whole, this iMac discussion is weirdly civil for /.

    (totally off-topic, moderate me down)

  123. iMac II? Oh man, what's next? by webslacker · · Score: 3

    iMac IIc
    iMac IIx
    iMac IIvx
    iMac IIfx
    iMac LC

    1. Re:iMac II? Oh man, what's next? by Guyle · · Score: 1

      You're forgetting the iMac IIsi =)

    2. Re:iMac II? Oh man, what's next? by lukpac · · Score: 1

      Not to mention the iMac IIci!!

    3. Re:iMac II? Oh man, what's next? by The+Cunctator · · Score: 1

      The above omment shouldn't have been moderated down. Naming issues have been one of Apple's big concerns over the years, as evidenced by the above list. Jobs was able to ride a free wave of simple naming for a little bit, by replacing all the product line with new products, but now he's running into problems again; 3 different laptops with identical names, the multiple iMac revisions with no clear name differential, etc. Product diversification is necessary to growth, but is confusing for consumers.

      --

      --
      Make mine methylphenidate.

    4. Re:iMac II? Oh man, what's next? by oneiros27 · · Score: 1

      IIc was an apple, not a mac.

      Mac had IIci, and IIcx.

      If you were going Apple, though, you should feel shamed for missing IIgs and ][+ references.

      --
      Build it, and they will come^Hplain.
  124. Re:finally, a new colour for boring suits by Xel · · Score: 1

    Those big-ass black-as-the-abyss IBM mainframes arent my style. Yes, they scream POWER (actually, they kind of whisper it in one of those room-shaking baritones) and get my testosterone flowing and make me pause and contemplate just what exactly man hath wraught. But if they were giving them away at the dollar store I don't even think I'd want one. Yeah, I'm one of those slightly-off-center artistic designer guys. I don't want a computer that broods and looms over me like some monstrosity, I havea boss to do that. I want a machine I can work WITH, not for. The new Macs are curvy and friendly and say "hey, pardner! Come on over and lets make some art!"
    I think I like the Graphite G4s because they exude a perfect balance of monochromatic ass-kicking name-taking power and curvy, friendly, feng-shui-y comfortableness I can work with. In fact I just bought a new desk (black and grey, by cooincidence) for my office because when I DO get a G4 I know I'll never be able to hide it under the desk I have now, I'm gonna want it right on top to show it off.

    --
    "Eagles may soar, but weasels dont get sucked into jet engines."
  125. Airport by rmull · · Score: 1

    I'm still amazed by this AirPort thing --
    does anybody know of anything similar that will go in an x86 pc? By similar, I mean cool like AirPort, especially the 11mbs part.

    --
    See you, space cowboy...
    1. Re:Airport by ZenBoy · · Score: 1

      There are several Wireless transport stuffs for x86... I mean, it's an ITTU standard (802.11, I thinks)... Although the FCC don't much care for it.

      --
      -Zen I'm gonna make the _world_ my bitch.
    2. Re:Airport by znu · · Score: 1

      Airport follows a variant of the 802.11 wireless ethernet standard. There have been implementations of this on the PC and the Mac for years, but Airport is the fastest, and it's MUCH cheaper than any other implementation.

      --

      --
      This space unintentionally left unblank.
    3. Re:Airport by Raphael · · Score: 2
      does anybody know of anything similar that will go in an x86 pc? By similar, I mean cool like AirPort, especially the 11mbs part.

      For the 11 Mbps part, I'm not sure. There are some wireless LAN solutions available for PCs, but as far as I know they all require you to install a base station. The nice thing about AirPort is the ad-hoc networking: minimal setup, any machine can talk to any other machine without having to install extra hardware.

      There are some rumours that some motherboards of x86 PCs may integrate BlueTooth chips in a few months. BlueTooth does not provide the same bandwidth as AirPort (100 times less), but it also provides the ad-hoc networking and it is supposed to be integrated in all kinds of devices, so that you could have your phone, your keyboard, your mouse, or any other device connected to your PC without wires and without requiring a line-of-sight like the IrDa stuff.

      --
      -Raphaël
    4. Re:Airport by Millennium · · Score: 2

      The wireless networking cards currently out for PC's should wirk with the AirPort (I know Farallon makes one which does).

      The catch: these cards are only running at 2 MBps, rather than 11. But they'll work until the 11-MBps cards are developed, anyway.

    5. Re:Airport by Anonymous+Shepherd · · Score: 2

      So I looked into this because of the iBook.

      Lucent(and everyone else, btw) is releasing this fall(probably Sept, when iBooks ship) something called Wavelan(???), and industry standard extension to IEEE 802.11 which scales to 64nodes per station and 200ft away from the node. Apple, to cut costs, only does 10/11 nodes per station and 150ft from the node for the iBook. G4s and iMacs may support the full 64 node 200 ft thing, btw.

      Lucent will sell PC Card and ISA adaptors for Wavelan, with 11Mbit(same as Airport) bandwidth. THey can be hooked into peer networks(if small), hubs(around a station), or LANs(stations connected to convnetional ethernet).

      See! Lucent and 3Com both talk about it!


      -AS

      --

      -AS
      *Pikachu*
  126. Re:Name Problem? They should imitate car companies by AppleJuice · · Score: 1

    The Apple iMac Summer Brew!

    --

  127. Re:"colour"? Brits need to learn to spell. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Ding! Wrong! America has about 270 million people, all of whom speak some variant of "American English". If you add up the populations of all the countries with English speakers, you'll find more people speak "British" English than American. You're forgetting that a HUGE portion of Asia is made up of ex-British colonies that count English as an official language and the language of everyday commerce and Government. India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Singapore, Sri Lanka... ... then there's Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Nigeria... ... then there's just about every English-speaking Island in the Carribean and Pacific, Mauritius, Australia, Guyana, Belize... Oh yes, and most of Northern Europe (Holland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Iceland) speaks British English, often as a kind of Lingua Franca. No contest.

  128. Re:lottery by echo-e · · Score: 1

    if every first poster feels the need to brag about it, maybe we should get rid of the first post and just start at #2.

    jeez you guys, nobody cares if yer first, second, or last.


    -james

    My secret: make learning a hobby.

  129. Re:"colour"? Brits need to learn to spell. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Oh just who is the custodian of the English language, you? Ahahahaha.... go buy an airplane ticket and get some culture into you instead of more burger juice.

  130. Good Deal by pavewrld · · Score: 1

    I don't see how a color of a machine can change a market perspective. The mac is a great machine for any business because it can run the MS suite, play Quake2 and still manage to have better looking graphics than the PC market. I was a business machine before the color change and before the iMac II. It just depends on what business.

    -Stephen Schaubach

  131. Hello "out of the box" LAN, goodbye MCSE. by ABEND · · Score: 1

    Could this be the beginning of the end of the MCSE? My gut reaction has always been, that I will live to see the day when hordes of MCSE's suddenly find that their services are no longer needed. Easy come; easy go.

    --
    In all seriousness:
    1. Re:Hello "out of the box" LAN, goodbye MCSE. by Jherico · · Score: 1
      Could this be the beginning of the end of the MCSE?

      It's not really on topic, but IPV6 will most likely make out of the box lans a little more real. On the other hand I cannot help but think of the multitude of problems people will encounter as a single wireless networking technology becomes popular. Network crosstalk in densly populated areas will become a problem as will the fact that it has NO security whatsoever

      --

      Jherico

      What can the average user can do to ensure his security? "Nothing, you're screwed"

    2. Re:Hello "out of the box" LAN, goodbye MCSE. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I am afraid that is *highly* unlikely. System engineers/administrators will always be needed. No business is going to go for the "plug it in and it will work" scheme. Wireless networking is cool as hell... but it is just another tool for an IT department to better deploy their systems.

  132. The usual the-only-thing-that-will-save-apple rant by eyeball · · Score: 1

    They'll never break into any new business markets (besides graphic design/publishing) unless the port their os to Intel (or give away hardware to IS departments). Yeah, I know.. Mac OS/X is supposed to be on Intel, but I'll believe that when I see it.

    The next thing (and I *really* hope Apple is reading this) is Apple has to get into the job-security scam. They need to offer a 'Certified Apple Engineer" certificate, just like the Novell CNA or CNE certificate, or the microsoft MSCE certificate.

    --

    _______
    2B1ASK1
  133. Old News by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    This has been floating around the Mac community for some time now... not exactly a scoop.

    If I'm ever first, I'll spell it right.

    http://www.sixstreet.net

  134. Re:finally, a new colour for boring suits by hedgehog_uk · · Score: 0

    I believe that the colour (& design) of the original iMac is the major reason it sold so well. The Mac's traditional market is to creative people (designers, architects etc), who loved the iMac's looks. The new 'graphite' look is obviously designed to appeal to PHB's and wearers of grey suits - those people who equate 'businesslike' with 'boring'. Having said that, I think that the G4 looks super-cool and I'm a scuffy programmer in jeans and t-shirt.

    HH (dreaming of an metalic purple athlon-linux box)

    --
    Yellow tigers crouched in jungles in her dark eyes.
    She's just dressing, goodbye windows, tired starlings.
  135. Re:The usual the-only-thing-that-will-save-apple r by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Why not call it an "Apple Certified Engineer", or ACE for short? :)

  136. iMAC by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Having to buy a new machine every time, instead of being able to upgrade the old one is a bit of a pain .. Having an almost 15" screen for a business computer is kind of small .. Maybe they should make a 21" screen iMAC :)

  137. Re:Slashdotted already by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Why was this marked as flamebait? For the moderator who did this, that's !Linux, as in not Linux. Offtopic, yes. Flamebait, no.

  138. Re:The usual the-only-thing-that-will-save-apple r by znu · · Score: 1

    There are no announced plans for OS X on Intel, but there are rumors.

    But why does Apple needs to be on Intel? Companies replace computers every few years anyway, so there's no reason not to get Macs. Plus everything is from one source. Companies might like that. You have one source to call about everything from the OS to the hardware; nobody can put the blame on anyone else.

    --

    --
    This space unintentionally left unblank.
  139. Floppies are dead by crow · · Score: 1

    The floppies are dead.

    PC makers would love to do the same thing--I doubt the typical Windows system will have a floppy drive in a year or two.

    If you want removable storage, the issue is Zip/Jazz/SuperDisk vs. CD-R/CD-RW/DVD-RAM/DVD-???. CD-R and CD-RW will be killed by DVD technology once that settles down in a year or two.

    Of course, with everything being networked, who needs removable storage? And with the AirPort, everything should be networked. Long term, I don't see many people using removeable storage except for backups, if that. (Backups via cable modem to commercial data-storage companies may well take over.)

    1. Re:Floppies are dead by Peyna · · Score: 1
      Floppies are far from dead.

      This is much comparable to tapes and cd's. Sure cd's are way more popular now than tapes, but tapes still exist, and people still make their own. Why? It's cheaper and easier to do. Until CD-R's and DVD-writers and other removable storage become alot cheaper (and bootable) Floppies will be around
      I work for a local ISP and many many times we have to use floppies to run out to somebody's house and fix something for them. It is much faster and efficient to format 8 floppies and put the stuff on them you need than to post it to a website and then download it over a modem (Esp. if they can't even get connnected.)
      SneakerNets will never die!

      --
      What?
  140. Re:The usual the-only-thing-that-will-save-apple r by um...+Lucas · · Score: 1

    No... MacOS-X has the capability to run on intel, being that it was based on OpenStep, which ran on x86. The OLD apple said that they'ed release a version of OS X for Intel, but the new Apple has held out on commiting thus far.

    I really think that Apple has a legitimate chance to get into business markets again, based on their own merits. No one wanted to buy machines from a business that may not be around to support them in a year. With Apple stock trading at an all-time high, it's apparent that they're here to stay.

    What really needs for that to happen, is a company like Gartner re-iterating the TCO issues, along with the increased lifespan of Mac's vs. PC's, and to a point, lower training, etc...

  141. Re:Perhaps [floppy drive]... by lukpac · · Score: 1

    I'd have to agree on this one. While I certainly don't use a floppy on a daily basis by any means, there are times when you really need one. Transferring small installers, moving config files from Mac to PC, etc... That's one thing I think should be included, if only by the virtue that everyone else has one...

  142. Apple NCs / LEP by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I reckon it would be fairly smart for Apple to sell OS X Server with 10 - 30 chopped down iMacs as a network bundle. Using X Server, you can basically get a PPC750 based system running as a Network Computer (Agh! Where's that garlic?) and certainly it's one of those propositions that I've put to a fairly good source in Apple UK. He usually replies "That wouldn't make sense because XYZ" or he says "That would be a nice idea." iMac as an NC came out as a "good idea" - I mean, a single, relatively cheap box with 10/100, USB, looks pretty (I think - still not sure, to be honest) etc, well, it's a perfect non-techie network computer for publishing or fancy forward looking offices. Mr Apple bod also said that an iMac revision with FireWire and a consumer version of Final Cut Pro, bundled with a camcorder would be a "good idea." Mind you, he said that last November, and we still haven't seen it, so I don't know... I hope so meself. Apple has in the past talked to people here at my work (Big Anglo-Dutch publishing house) about using a weekly mag as a test node for OS X Server with iMac clients. As for iMacs with LCDs, that may be scuttlebutt. Everyone knows how short TFT supplies are at the moment, even though Apple's invested so much cash in Samsung. The other option, minbd, is that Apple finally launches LEP (Light Emitting Plastic) which has been a bit of a persistent rumour. 50c a sheet, anyone? Ben (Who's getting his a/c set up as soon as his login makes it through the Pipex servers - pleeeese!)

  143. New Colors by bskin · · Score: 1

    Well, it's trivial, but I think the new colors could help. The imac is a pretty good machine for what it is(admittedly not gonna appeal that much to the geekier set), but damn if i wouldn't feel silly having to look at the thing all the time. Personally, I like beige cases just fine...they're more mysterious or something.

    --
    'I love it when somebody's own sig describes how much they suck so much
    more concisely and elegantly than I possibly ever could.'

    --
    hot foreign sheep.
  144. graphite and white? by sporty · · Score: 1

    bet your last dollar they call them coconut coloured.

    --

    -
    ping -f 255.255.255.255 # if only

  145. Hmmmm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Wow, a machine known for it's ability for anyone to work on comes with free networking. Out of the box. Makes me wonder how apples gonna screw this one up. Probably $4000 a unit or something. Later Erik Z

  146. Sounds Familiar by bughunter · · Score: 1
    Hmmm... silver and grey, LCD display, CD ROM, all in one packaging. Could it be the...

    20th Anniversary Macintosh?

    At least this beast's rumored price isn't suicidal. But the whole story is hard to swallow. Rumors surround Apple like flies surround...

    --
    I can see the fnords!
  147. as upgradable as b+w? by flatrbbt · · Score: 1

    Why would anyone want to spend money on these machines when they will simply kill any ability to upgrade it via a mandatory firmware "upgrade" as they did to the g3 owners?
    Do you really want a lan made of disposable computers?

    --
    Ex Libris Veritas
    1. Re:as upgradable as b+w? by Darchmare · · Score: 1

      Apple has no reason to 'kill' the upgradability for the iMac, as it isn't even upgradable to begin with, really.

      They are disposable computers, which suits my mother just fine.

      I'll go for the G4, or a nice Powerbook G3 Series or something. If you can get over the fact that it's a Mac, you'd probably go for the latter too.

      It's all about the market...

      - Darchmare
      - Axis Mutatis, http://www.axismutatis.net

      --

      - Jeff
  148. Redesign? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I hope the rumors are true.

    A new design. Oh yes! Oh the commercials!

    France? I'm French, why do you think I have this outrageous accent you silly king?

  149. Industrial espionage made easy. by TheDullBlade · · Score: 1

    Ahh, Apple, we can always trust you to make life easier for all of us. Now, thanks to AirPort, that includes those of us who want to steal secrets.

    Call me paranoid, but I like my confidential data to stay tucked away inside of wires, not broadcast to anyone who is listening.

    Not this is really a much bigger security threat. I mean, people have been aiming parabolic antennas at monitors to see what's on the screen practically since CRTs were invented. OTOH, you can't crack a CRT radio signature and ask it to dump you the data on the hard drives.

    I still don't see the big fuss about connecting a few wires, though. If they can make a good networking system that works over the airwaves, they should be (and undoubtedly are) able to make a much better, cheaper one that works over cheap co-ax that's as easy to hook up as your VCR.

    BTW, there's already stuff like this for PCs. Maybe not anything this good and cheap on the market, but if history is any indicator, better and cheaper things will be out soon. I seem to remember hearing about a set of cordless network peripherals that just plug into a USB port and go.

    (sorry for the aimless ramble, my brain's a little fuzzy today)

    --
    /.
    1. Re:Industrial espionage made easy. by Anonymous+Shepherd · · Score: 2

      IIANM Aiport uses the IEEE 802.11 Wavelan industry standard. PC compatible devices should be out this month or next month from Lucent or 3com. I'm not sure that wiring a building is all that great, anyway. It means one has to rewire when configurations change, when you go from 10 to 100, from 100 to gigabit, etc. Wireless(though slightly more expensive) offers flexibility and convenience at all levels-but I guess some people don't need/care for it.


      -AS

      --

      -AS
      *Pikachu*
    2. Re:Industrial espionage made easy. by Hobbex · · Score: 2


      In reality, this is probably an obscurity, not a security matter. Unencrypted information is not safe on the office network anyways, so if you are relying on the physical seperation of the network you are not very secure.

      Of course, I am aware 99% procent of all businesses (including everywhere I have worked) DO rely on the physical seperation for all but the most secret information, but still.

      I do agree about the cost thing though. Built in wireless lans are a good thing because they get lans into the households, but for any bussiness that can afford to hire a highschool kid to pull the wires, ethernet will always be faster, cheaper, and easier.

      Standards would be nice to, home lans are all the cooler if they can interact with non computer electronics...

      -
      /. is like a steer's horns, a point here, a point there and a lot of bull in between.

  150. Can Apple do it? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If they pull it off, it will be amazing! First off, I'd like to say I'm a long time mac hater. I've always hated the os, and have always been turned off by their closed hardware. But if they could get a package deal like cheeseman suggested, they could easily get a huge market share again. Lan outa the box w/no required wiring is something businesses will look at. I've been in the networking business, and I know how people don't like to have their office distrupted by wiring work, as well as the high cost that they often are charged. I'd like to see what the answer will be from IBM Compaq et al to this one.

  151. Entirely possible! by Anonymous+Shepherd · · Score: 2

    I dunno, could US$100M get Samsung to build an entire factory entirely for Apple? Just because PCs are experience a screen shortage doesn't mean Apple has to!

    Anyhow, it isn't all that absurd that the iMac use a LCD screen. If I am not mistaken, it's internals are very much similar to the iBook... I think Apple is(internally) using the UMA, unified motherboard architecture, to cut costs. Besides, the iMac/iBook/Powerbook are very similar, actually. Small form factor. Limited upgradeability. Low Power. I mean, how much motherboard, memory, hard disk, speakers, and CPU can one fit inside an iMac shell, with a 15" monitor(and heat source!) in the way? With an LCD they could add larger speakers, remove all fans entirely, and add glowing flashing neon lights inside the case(ugh)

    I myself don't believe there will be an LCD with iMacII (or is it iiMac?) but it isn't unfeasible or impossible by a long shot.

    -AS

    --

    -AS
    *Pikachu*
  152. Wireless LAN resource by kuro5hin · · Score: 1
    Here's a page of wireless resources for linux:
    ht tp://www.hpl.hp.com/personal/Jean_Tourrilhes/Linux /Linux.Wireless.drivers.html

    Check out especially the WaveLAN. It's 1-2 Mb/s instead of 11, but it doesn't (necessarily) require a base station. These are the frontrunner right now for a wireless Linux-based kiosk system my company is developing. Enjoy!

    PS-- obReality check for Apple Zealots: Wireless LAN is not new. Sorry. Their system looks cool, though, I will say :-)

    -------------
    We all take pink lemonade for granted.

    --
    There is no K5 cabal.
    I am not the real rusty.
  153. Convergence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2

    Apple's been pretty reluctant lately about going after the big corporate accounts, but they've been slowly putting the pieces together: NetBoot and Mac OS X Server, the upcoming Mac OS X, migrating from AppleTalk to regular TCP/IP, VGA ports instead of the old Mac ports, standards-based AirPort, and now apparently a more business-colored iMac. It looks like they're trying to put the pieces together first before storming the castle. Good planning.

    --

    not anonymous, just lazy

  154. Anyone notice... by vitaflo · · Score: 3

    Has anyone noticed that Apple seems to be "listening" these days? Seems to me that now, whenever a great number of people want a certain thing, Apple responds. Examples:

    Build a cheap Mac for once: iMac

    Build a cheep notebook for once: iBook

    You're not an open source company!: Darwin

    Your OS isn't "modern": OS X

    Man, flat panel displays are cool: Cinema Display

    I wanna network my house, but I don't want cords everywhere!: Airport

    Beige is boring: iMac colors

    Those iMac colors are too fruity! I want graphite!: Graphite G4 and iMac II

    When I look back just a couple years, it's amazing how far this company has come. I think it's response to the current state of computing in all areas of society (and clever marketing) has really been what's turned Apple around. I just hope they stay with this mindset...

    1. Re:Anyone notice... by Rombuu · · Score: 1

      And these...

      Hey, your stuffs price/performance ratio sucks : Misleading Benchmarks

      Hey, aren't you losing market share : Kill clone market

      Man this is going to be sweet when I pop this G4 into my old G3 Mac : Disable through misleading firmware update

      Yeah, good old Apple...

      --

      DrLunch.com The site that tells you what's for lunch!
  155. It's interesting about the colors by konstant · · Score: 4

    This post is not a knock against Apple. Only an observation.

    What I find most remarkable about the new genesis of Mac's is not the hardware, which is undeniably exciting, but the influence the color seems to have. The poster of this article is probably right - their silver/shimmery grey new color combo is almost certainly aimed towards people who want to believe they have "serious" work to do, much as the bubbly tangerine, etc. hues were directed toward people intimidated by beige. What PHB will feel quite confident in his image with a "lime" ball on his desktop?

    Nearly 40 years along in the development of computer technology and we have arrived at a point where the most potent selling point of a new machine is the way it makes you feel psychologically to have it on your desk.

    May marketing live forever!

    Not that this is very different from what has driven computers in the past few years, namely geeks who believe that there is some sort of ratio between the MHz on their chip and the power in their pants... :) I fall prey to this myself.

    The most peculiar thing about humans is the divergance between what they claim is important to them and what evidence demonstrates they actually care about.

    -konstant

    --
    -konstant
    Yes! We are all individuals! I'm not!
    1. Re:It's interesting about the colors by IntlHarvester · · Score: 3

      Nearly 40 years along in the development of computer technology and we have arrived at a point where the most potent selling point of a new machine is the way it makes you feel psychologically to have it on your desk.

      Like the 1920s when General Motors blew past Ford by offering cars that actually came in different colors and styles? It's actually suprising that computer companies took so long to figure this out. (Although IBM has been trying with it's cool black equipment.)

      It's also no shock that Apple is the first to figure this out. They've probably got the largest user base of people who don't really know or care anything about the inside of the computer. Something has to convince them to replace their crusty old Performas.

      --

      --
      Business. Numbers. Money. People. Computer World.
  156. This is Wrong. by Amgine007 · · Score: 1

    Are you kidding? Firstly, these specs are not realistic for a consumer machine. If Joe Schmoe can get a FireWire/DVD/FlatPanel machine at iMac prices, he'll do it instead of buying a spiffy new G4. Apple would see the professional line losing sales very quickly. That said, a graphite looking machine would have a similar effect; it would confuse the two VERY SPECIFIC product lines. All of these "iMac II" rumors need to be better thought out. A larger CRT is a more realistic possibility; a FireWire port might make it too. But, c'mon, a flat panel LCD? Too expensive and too fancy. Amgine

  157. How can those machines be so cheap?? by icaro · · Score: 1

    I love macs, but i didn't like much some of the iMacs colors, well apple now have a machine that i like ( G4 ).
    But what is really impressive is the target price!!!
    Can anyone answer how realistic is the $1000 tag price is?
    I know that apple is trying to have one single MoBo desing, that could explain firewire and airport in the low-end of their offerings, but LCD???

    How?

  158. Not quite a rumor by Anonymous+Shepherd · · Score: 2

    I heard on the Seybold floor from an Apple rep that(via software???) the G4s could either talk to each other without an Airport card or they could serve a handful of computers without an Airport bay, one of those(or maybe both) options. I couldn't quite figure out what they meant... Would the G4 run special calculations on the Velocity engine and 'transmit' on RF that way? I thought all the G4 had was a pair of antennas?


    -AS

    --

    -AS
    *Pikachu*
    1. Re:Not quite a rumor by bezdomny · · Score: 1

      This sounds awesome. Why wouldn't a small business (small press?) want instant conectivity between all of its machines?

  159. Re:Where can I get Airport for PC? by Rombuu · · Score: 1

    DEC used to make something called the RoamAbout that was the same thing about 5 years ago. It had a PC Card interface but other than that was pretty much this whole Airport thing. You may still be able to find them around, but I believe that the Broadcaster ran around 1,200 and the NICs ran about 2-300 USD a piece.

    Guess that's why Digital was such a powerhouse near the end, cool tech, bad marketing.

    --

    DrLunch.com The site that tells you what's for lunch!
  160. LCD? Why not?! by CPCA · · Score: 1

    Has it escaped everyone that during Jobs' most recent keynote, while professing the company's recent stellar financial perforance, he mentioned that Apple had less than one day of inventory in the channel.

    It seems as though this would give them ability to stop on a dime and change direction with their system design. After all, (theoretically) it's not as if they have warehouses full of empty iMac shells laying about.

  161. Re:The usual the-only-thing-that-will-save-apple r by orabidoo · · Score: 1

    no reason not to get macs, for a company? how about the fact that mac hardware comes only from a handful of vendors (mainly apple themselves), thereby guaranteeing less competition, less availability of replaceable bits, and higher prices? "one source" works if you want to use your computer as a toaster; I do'nt think toaster-computers are a good strategy for a company where computing plays a significant role. why not just use the tools most appropriate to the job? macs for designers and those who ask for them, Linux or Unix for servers, Linux for developper machines, and any-system-will-do for web-browsing/word-processing kind of boxes.

  162. Name Problem? They should imitate car companies. by ravenskana · · Score: 2

    Apple should use the same naming conventions automobiles do, that is, add the year to the end. So you would have iMac 1998, iMac 1999, and iMac 2000.

    The only possible problem is that Microsoft already does that with their OS and software, but for software I always thought it rather stupid, as the shelf life can be significantly longer. For hardware it makes sense, because Apple is doing at least one revision a year.

    But don't ask me what to do when there are two versions in the same year....maybe add season? Powerbook G3 Summer 1999? :)

  163. Re:finally, a new colour for boring suits by Squid · · Score: 2

    The new 'graphite' look is obviously designed to appeal to PHB's and wearers of grey suits

    No.

    Some of us out here prefer the original Casablanca to the colorized. Some of us think a NeXT cube in any color but black would be stupid-looking (even in SGI metallic purple it just wouldn't look right). Some people in this world prefer Akira to Pokemon, Empire Strikes Back to Phantom Menace, Ani DiFranco to Christina Aguilera. Does taste require that we prefer happy cheerful things, or that the only reason someone would offer black as a color is so people with monochrome brains and monochrome lives would buy it? I am an artist, a so-called creative type - should everything I own be painted in dayglo or 70s racecar metallic purple? Or do you just think that the graphite scheme merely represents a lack of color, rather than a color to itself?

    I don't know who Apple designed the Graphite scheme for, but I DO know - and I suspect Apple knows - that there are lots of artists and creative types who like a touch of oomph to things, serious oomph with ass-kicking potential, and would rather have something imposing and monochrome and dark as opposed to a bright happy jellybean. Has nothing to do with PHBs and suits - and in fact a PHB would STILL be unhappy with the brooding presence of a graphite iMac, and would continue to be unhappy until it shipped in opaque beige.

    A hint: PHBs and suits never list black as their favorite color.

  164. iMac II and business use by MDX-F1 · · Score: 1

    While I'm not going to get too excited about the specs until there's an official announcement (LCD for under $1000 sounds too good to be true), a graphite & white iMac would be a great move for Apple. Alot of businesses would probably give a more "respectable" looking iMac serious consideration, especially in conjunction with G4 servers and AirPort. I imagine this would be a tempting combo for many small/medium sized companies.

    I never would've expected it 2 years ago, but Apple really does seem to be firing on all cylinders now. I'm mostly an x86 user, but for the sake of competition, it's good to have Apple back.

  165. "colour"? Brits need to learn to spell. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1
    The worst contribution to the English language was the massive borrowings from French that happened during the dark ages; a language loaded with unnecessary and unpronounced letters in bizarre combinations and orderings for the sole purpose of ensuring that only the aristocrats could be literate. e.g., the French word for bird is oiseaux (pronounced like Wa-zo). This MUST be solely for obfuscatory purposes. Notice that none of the letters from the phoenic spelling are even used in the actual word!

    So drop all those extraneous "u"'s. Color, not colour (Color doesn't rhyme with velour, does it?). Turn those "re"'s around. Spell it center [like it sounds], not centre. And start using more "z"'s. "Organisation?" Why should "s" sound like "z" when a perfectly good "z" is available? And bring back the thorn and eth, to do away with these kluges like "th" (both voiced and unvoiced). It's time to clean up the language!

    1. Re:"colour"? Brits need to learn to spell. by Afrosheen · · Score: 1

      I would've moderated this offtopic at first but agree with AC's points. Funny stuff. Wacky Frogs.

    2. Re:"colour"? Brits need to learn to spell. by Vector+Inspector · · Score: 1

      It is "Centre" not "Center". Are you saying Sen-tear? No, you're saying Sent-rr. Say Centre aloud. Notice how your tongue goes from the front of your mouth along your teeth. Nowhere in the motion of saying Centre does your mouth make a vowel between the T and the R. Therefore, Centre. A message to all you Yanks on /.: Foreign does not mean "Bad" or "Stupid", and goes for languages too. Sure, a lot of French is unneccesary, but it is *Beautiful* (not Beuteeful). It is elegant, and it can express ideas that English can't. BTW I am a Canadian who speaks French as a second language (and quite well, too).

      --


      spoo

  166. Let's hope they aren't anal about colors by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It's nice to see that Apple might release the iMac II with a more conservative color for the office, but I hope they change their minds about forcing retailers to stock up on all of their colors. You shouldn't punish a retailer, or the user, with loading up on green and orange computers, if they really want red and blue. (Or graphite, which I can see will be a very popular color.)

  167. Hate to say it... by swb · · Score: 1

    I hate to say it, but in less than a week we've had 3 Mac related /. stories (new color with speedier CPU, flat panel display, and now new iMacs), which are pretty sorely lacking in news content.

    That there's churn on Apple's product line isn't news, especially when the gist of the churn is that they made some new colors. I don't see anything newsworthy about Dell or Compaq coming out with new colors/forms/CPU upgrades all that newsworthy either, especially on a "techie" web site.

    It's starting to sound to me that /. is just biting on every little tidbit Apple plants.

    1. Re:Hate to say it... by webslacker · · Score: 2

      Well have you considered the possibility that this is interesting to a lot of other nerds besides yourself? Sure, most of the unix news isn't interesting to me, but I understand that there's thousands of other people out there who do care about unix, or open-source issues, palm pilots, etc, so I don't complain when there's news that I don't care for.

  168. Under $1000 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    A stripped down version is not likely. If they will offer it under $1000 it should include the base unit. Currently the only option is the amount of RAM (64 MB base for C2)and the color. iMac II (C2) will likely add airport to the list of options but everything else should be fixed. What would you remove anyway? They've already taken care of the floppy :)

  169. Graphite Rocks! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Finally an iMac with a color I will buy! Graphite & white iMac is just way too cool!

  170. Re:Perhaps [floppy drive]... by orabidoo · · Score: 1

    same here. zip drives are nice and all, but they're expensive, and the standards haven't quite solidified yet (uh, is this a zip100 or a zip250 or a jazz or a syquest or a...??), and netowkring doesn't always work (e.g while you're installing). for the peanuts they cost, I sure think good old floppies are useful.

  171. Iwhack II? by technos · · Score: 1

    It looks like Apple is trying to break into corporate businesses again. I seem to remember them pushing Apple-only networks a few years back, with IIsi and IIfx machines.. Now don't get me wrong, Apple makes a good product, and the promise of built-in wireless connectivity offers an easy 'in' for startups with no existing infrastructure.
    HOWEVER, I see very little appeal to companies with existing networks. Why?

    1)Having to slap in a primo expensive G4 to play nurse maid to all the wireless Iwhacks.

    2)The learning curve associated with making these 'alien' machines behave on a traditional UNIX/NT network.

    3)The high-price as compared to a traditional x86 PC.

    4)The cost of training and new Apple-knowledgable IT/IS staff.

    5)Software development costs. You can't chuck a working bit of in-house software because Marketing wants Iwhacks..


    --
    .sig: Now legally binding!
  172. Useless comments by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    Wow. That was useless. It's "colour" in Europe because that is the traditional pernounciation in old english: col-ew-er

    Besides, who said anything about Perl? Ugh. I mean a language's obfuscatory intentions...

  173. Where can I get Airport for PC? by kuro5hin · · Score: 1
    Currently I run 3 computers on a 10T home lan: Mac, Linux, and Win98 systems. [emphasis added]

    ...

    -Sleepy ------ I am not a number... I am 100% Microsoft free (Linux PPC AND Linux x86 :-)

    Huh?

    As to the actual question, see my other comment on this story.

    -------------
    We all take pink lemonade for granted.

    --
    There is no K5 cabal.
    I am not the real rusty.
  174. No LCD...big deal. by SimJockey · · Score: 1

    What I would sincerely love to see is an AGP port or at least an external monitor port. As I doubt they will ever have a 17" monitor in this form factor, it would be great to plop a 19" Trinitron next to the iMac for games, Photoshop, etc.

    Of course, I own a 6100 so this is just dreaming.

    --
    Laugh while you can, monkey boy!
  175. iMacs will have AirPort, and here's why.... by ravenskana · · Score: 2

    The revision A and B iMacs had infrared (IRDA) technology, same as what is in several of the Powerbooks. This was located in the front of the machine.

    IRDA was removed in the "fruity" iMac line, partly because it didn't market very well. However, the other reason is that Apple was already working toward a synergy with the iBook, which does not have IRDA but does have AirPort.

    Wireless tech will be in all Apple products very soon. iBook has it, the new G4 has it, so both consumer and pro lines are heading in that direction. The next revision Powerbook will probably drop infrared and pick up AirPort too.

  176. Re:finally, a new colour for boring suits by Defiler · · Score: 1

    "Serious oomph with ass-kicking potential" and "iMac" are not particularly synonymous in my mind.

    --Conquering the Earth Since 1978.

  177. Rumor and Speculation by Anonymous+Shepherd · · Score: 2

    But the MacOSRumors site says *not* to expect iMacII(or is it iiMac?) to be unveiled in France...

    We'll see who has the better contacts, eh? Finally able to read the Japan Apple Watch article, it got slashdotted pretty bad.

    On a side note, I don't believe there will be an LCD. Just *too* expensive for the home user/consumer right now. It'd be cheaper to go from a 15" to 19" CRT than from a 15"CRT to a 15"LCD!

    So I'm more likely to believe the conservative 400MHz G3 with Rage128 on board an a 16"/17" monitor and Airport built in...

    My 2 cents

    -AS

    --

    -AS
    *Pikachu*
  178. Apple on a streak... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Man, I can't wait to get those new iMacs into our corporate infrastructure. I am trying like the dickens to get as many Wintel boxes thrown out. I have moved 15% of our large PC base to the original iMac and proved to management that they saved us big bucks on the support side. That 15% only accounts for less than 1/2 of a percent of the company's tech support costs. I can't wait to replace the other 85% with the iMac II. Then, I will be able to start growing that long hair I always wanted instead of pulling it out with Windows 95/98 problems.

  179. I'm not so sure... by The+Other+Dan · · Score: 2
    The usually very reliable MacOS Rumors quotes soruces as saying, probably not at Paris- probably not until November. We can play with rumors all we want, but none of us really know a thing...

    (Besides, Apple has to ramp up production of iBooks and the new PowerMac- where are they going to make iMacs?)

    1. Re:I'm not so sure... by HerrNewton · · Score: 1

      Apple's been outsourcing production like mad. Last I heard, the Cork Ireland plant was running at low capacity, making it a likely source for European iMacs and iBooks.

      --

      ----
      Am I the only one who thinks Microsoft is a misnomer? Perhaps Macrosoft would be a better fit?
  180. Thorn and Eth! by andyf · · Score: 1

    Huzzah for thorn and eth -- two perfectly good letters that disappeared from our language. 'Course if we "do away with these kluges like 'th'" we'd have to dekluge other consonant combinations like CH (ch,sh) SH (sh, zh) SCH (sh, sk). Another proposal -- lets get rid of the letter 'C' altogether. K and S would work just fine. Or maybe (sinse we want to kill CH too, we kould cange the letter C to the CH sound.)

    --

    Photos of bits of the past hiding in the present: afiler.com
    1. Re:Thorn and Eth! by esme · · Score: 1

      We might as well just be done with it and start using the IPA. The only problems we'd have then are dialectal variations in pronunciation (e.g., my wife (a ling grad student) has a book called 'a course in phonetics' which has the IPA representation of both the American and British standard pronunciations, and it's surprising how many differences there are).

  181. The 'iMac Lisa' and 'iMac Macintosh' of course!!! by John+Allsup · · Score: 1

    Then, a little later, Apple Inc. will become iMac inc., later release the 'iMac iMac', and the recursion will continue :-)
    John

    --
    John_Chalisque
  182. No LCD by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    There's no way they're going to fit an LCD into a iMac. Last time I checked, Apple's 15" LCD costs $1000 by itself.

    I also doubt that there will be multiple form factors (cases); Steve likes to keep it simple (the only decision is the color, as he says).

    1. Re:No LCD by Henriok · · Score: 1

      I think you right!

      But.. if the iiMac comes with a TFT-screen then it won't have to have 2 form factors.. just more plastics around the smaller screen.

      - Henrik

      --

      - Henrik

      - when the Shadows descend -
  183. Where can I get Airport for PC? by Sleepy · · Score: 1

    Currently I run 3 computers on a 10T home lan: Mac, Linux, and Win98 systems.

    I've read "Airport" type network will be available for PC's (or already is). Who makes it and what is the cost?

    I'd love to move these out of The Oven, which is my computer room. 3 computers running 24/7 (distributed.net client of course..) tends to, um, "accelerate" homebrew fermentations. I just had a batch of Chocolate Stout blow the airlock out, shattering it against the ceiling. The brown spot on the ceiling is an interesting conversation piece tho. :)

    Airport in the iMac, eh? Maybe I will put the G3 up on eBay...

    Now all they need is portable mice and keyboards - are they available for USB? How about portable power in the form of microwave?

  184. Apple ? Yawn by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

  185. Airport on iMac? by jcr · · Score: 1

    I haven't heard that the new iMac (kihei) machines were going to include an AirPort transceiver.

    -jcr

    --
    The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
  186. spelling flame :-) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    "less than", not "less then"! We can train monkeys to use joysticks and people still can't get this right. It makes "different than" look good

  187. Nice idea, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    No matter what Apple does, people have the same perception of it that goes as follows: "Same old Apple... Same Old Sorry-Ass Apple" No matter how well the G4 Server + x^n iMac II clients run, no business is going to want to use that. Hell, IT departments have a hard enough time now considering Linux vs. NT. What makes Apple think that a serious business would use its server/client setup? What apps could they use? Oh yeah, that's right... I forgot that Steve Jobs already showed off his killer app: 1 Server serving 50 separate Quicktime videos to 50 iMac machines. Sure, the server also served out screens (read: dumb terminals -> server), but that's all they showed off. Must not be too much else to it then...(?) But, with such a client/server (G4/iMac II) environment proposed, I guess Apple can carve a niche in the business market all right. They can hit the multimedia/training department of many companies. The companies could create Quicktime Training videos and then display them on 50 or so separate iMacs. But that's probably it. Unless of course they can do distributed computing... Oops, wrong answer. They don't. Office/IE for Mac? That would work except that it would fight MS's Office/IE for x86. And MS wouldn't want Apple's line to get too popular, now would they? Tell me again why I want an iMac? Because they look cool? I'd only want a G4 if I could run Linux & BeOS on it. Hmm... maybe Apple should follow SGI's example and give up on its OS's and move to Linux. They could contribute to the User Interface department for LInux and make it all work. But given Apple being Apple, I doubt it. Oh well.... Out.

  188. Re:"colour"? Brits need too lern to spel. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    >The worst contribution to the English language >was the massive borrowings from French that >happened during the dark ages; a language loaded >with unnecessary and unpronounced letters in >bizarre combinations and orderings for the sole >purpose of ensuring that only the aristocrats >could be literate. e.g., the French word for >bird is oiseaux (pronounced like Wa-zo). This >MUST be solely for obfuscatory purposes. Notice >that none of the letters from the phoenic >spelling are even used in the actual word! >So drop all those extraneous "u"'s. Color, not >colour (Color doesn't rhyme with velour, does >it?). Turn those "re"'s around. Spell it center[ >like it sounds], not centre. And start using >more "z"'s. "Organisation?" Why should "s" sound >like "z" when a perfectly good "z" is available? >And bring back the thorn and eth, to do away >with these kluges like "th" (both voiced and >unvoiced). It's time to clean up the language! O, gud col! Ol uf us shood imeedeeatlee begin speling foneticaly! Yoo Americans ar just ful uf good aideeas! But how cood ai hav ekspected any less from thu nashun that gave us ebonics!?

  189. Nice idea, but...(better formatted version, sorry) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    No matter what Apple does, people have the same perception of it that goes as follows:

    "Same old Apple... Same Old Sorry-Ass Apple"

    No matter how well the G4 Server + x^n iMac II clients run, no business is going to want to use that. Hell, IT departments have a hard enough time now considering Linux vs. NT. What makes Apple think that a serious business would use its server/client setup? What apps could they use?

    Oh yeah, that's right... I forgot that Steve Jobs already showed off his killer app:

    1 Server serving 50 separate Quicktime videos to 50 iMac machines. Sure, the server also served out screens (read: dumb terminals -> server), but that's all they showed off. Must not be too much else to it then...(?)

    But, with such a client/server (G4/iMac II) environment proposed, I guess Apple can carve a niche in the business market all right. They can hit the multimedia/training department of many companies. The companies could create Quicktime Training videos and then display them on 50 or so separate iMacs. But that's probably it.

    Unless of course they can do distributed computing... Oops, wrong answer. They don't. Office/IE for Mac? That would work except that it would fight MS's Office/IE for x86. And MS wouldn't want Apple's line to get too popular, now would they?

    Tell me again why I want an iMac? Because they look cool? I'd only want a G4 if I could run Linux & BeOS on it. Hmm... maybe Apple should follow SGI's example and give up on its OS's and move to Linux. They could contribute to the User Interface department for LInux and make it all work.

    But given Apple being Apple, I doubt it.

    Oh well....

    Out.

  190. Assimilator by oneiros27 · · Score: 1

    Assimilator rocks!

    it puts those IIci's and SE/30s sitting about to good use, too.

    --
    Build it, and they will come^Hplain.
  191. Re:lottery by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    this is great, at least it will give dell and other computer makers something to copy again.

  192. get a life by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
  193. Here's Apple's Airport FAQ: by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    Yes, it's spread-spectrum. For more info:

    Apple Airport FAQ

    --
    Kyosuke, who wouldn't be AC if /. would e-mail the dang password.

  194. Re:finally, a new colour for boring suits by Squid · · Score: 1

    Why not? In monochrome it would look like the head of some kind of anime monster.

  195. Don't forget yogh and ash! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    Note: p=thorn, 3=yogh, d=eth, ae=ash.

    Now pat 3e have dou3t to bring baec pese fyne cymbols to our scrypt and laengua3e, we caen start to spel all words pr3perly agaen.

  196. Re: Rhapsody/OSX for intel. by oneiros27 · · Score: 1

    Actually, I saw a beta of Rhapsody for Intel.
    (Well more than a year ago), so it definately exists.... to be released is another thing, though.

    Of course, the person who had the Apple developer access has since moved away, so I don't know how many revisions have happened since then.

    --
    Build it, and they will come^Hplain.