After recalls and fires, Matsushita to offer new lithium battery

It ha 't been a really good year battery-wise. Battery defects made the news with overheating and ontaneous combustion. Today, Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. said it will begin ma producing a new and improved lithium-ion battery, one that presumably will not melt your PowerBook. Good news for co umers, even at the slightly higher prices anticipated for the more advanced technology. This DFW article does not reveal exactly how the new batteries will be changed in order to minimize the risk of ontaneous combustion, but "not bursting into flames" would be a good start.

TUAW Best of the Week

Time, it rushes by so quickly. And sometimes you just don't have time to read the entire TUAW feed. So once again, we bring you our favorite posts of the week, so if you weren't able to catch them the first time 'round, you'll have some good reading for the weekend. Enjoy!

C and R feature iPhone humor
The new iPhone. It does everything. It's a phone. It's an iPod. It's a...sonogram?

Reverting your iPod back to 1.2 from 1.2.1
Sometimes you've got to move back in order to go forward with a more stable i tallation.

Did Cisco lose its right to iPhone trademark last year?
Sla ing the word "iPhone" onto an already existing shrinkwra ed box? Not a really great defe e of "use" in our opinion.

Scree hots of Office 2008 for Mac
Nice fresh hot Office screen shots. Get 'em while they're hot.

Actiontastic 0.9 raises GTD bar with iCal syncing
Why wait for OmniFocus when Actiontastic does iCal synching today?

iPod + Nike Di ected
t. It's a simple piezoelectric switch i ide. It's a bit le sophisticated than Mat expected, but it's still fun to peek.

What about NAB2007?
Are we going to see Final Cut 6 this year?

TUAW Video: A Mac Moment with David Pogue
TUAW goes one-on-one with David Pogue.

The Keynote boom count
We find this endle ly amusing. Hopefully, you will too.

iTunes: Free Tuesday
Get your downloads while they're still free.

iTunes Producer updated to 1.5.1
It's all about the back end of iTunes.

A le Financials Q1 2007 Liveblog
A le's First Quarter report.

SuperBowl Bom hell?
Word is that A le's going to make an a ouncement. Will it be the Beatles?

A le to charge $1.99 for 802.11n enabler
A le confirms they'll charge only two bucks to enable 802.11n for many already-shi ed Macs.

Macworld 2007 Show Floor Showoff: Griffin Technology
They're one of our favorite acce ory makers. See what they had to offer at Macworld 2007.

Ha y Birthday, Woz

A le co-founder Steve Wozniak was born on this date in 1950. That would make him 55 years old. Before the age of 30 he'd already created the software and hardware for what became the A le II. Today he has a collection of Segways and ends his days educating kids. Me? I'm on the verge of 35, I don't even have a pogo stick and I am blogging in my pajamas. How depre ing.

Ha y Birthday, Woz!



Thanks wirobro and others who reminded us.

Griffin a ounces iTrip Auto Universal

Those folks at Griffin Technology never sleep. This week, they a ounced the pending availability of the iTrip Auto Universal. Why "universal?" Because it will work with any portable music player that has a 3.5mm audio out port, and doe 't require a dock co ector. Once you've co ected the device to your vehicle's 12 volt acce ory outlet (remember when we could just say "cigarette lighter?") on one end and your iPod's 3.5mm headphone port on the the other, you're set to select a free FM frequency and enjoy your own music. Sounds good to me.

No pricing or pending shi ing date information was available as of this post.

[Via iLounge]

o ored Links

Store all your documents, emails, images, and links in one place. www.devon-technologies.com

Starbucks Entertainment now in iTunes Store

We interrupt your late day latte to bring you the news that Starbucks and A le have brewed a deal that brings the soothing sounds of the Starbucks Hear Music catalog direct to your desktop and/or iPod via iTunes. They're serious too... there's an entire Starbucks Entertainment area within the iTunes Store now. Starbucks knows prime real estate when they see it!

I just checked it out [iTS link] and it's off to a good start. You'll find most of the collectio and releases that you'd typically find in CD form next to the cash register at Starbucks, along with a handful of suggested playlists, including several "Artist's Choice" collectio (Mick Jagger digs Sade.. who knew?). There will also be exclusive content that even XM Radio su cribers like me probably won't get on the Hear Music cha el.

Any time there's a convergence of two of my favorite things from two of my favorite companies, I wish it well.

Melman Quicksilver User's Guide

As regular readers know, we here at TUAW are huge fa of Quicksilver from Blacktree. The great thing about Quicksilver is how much functionality it puts at your finger ti . Of course the main problem with Quicksilver is how much functionality it puts at your finger ti ! Even those of us who having been using it for years regularly find new and interesting things. There's just so much in there (e ecially with third-party plugi ), but the documentation has been, to be frank, somewhat lacking (though it is getting better). Well now Howard Melman has decided to do something about that, releasing this beautifully illustrated 89-page users guide as a free PDF (Creative Commo ). Anybody remotely interested in Quicksilver should have a look, and a big TUAW 'attaboy to Mr. Melman!

[Via Lifehacker]

A le named 'Marketer of the Year'

Love 'em or hate 'em everyone agrees that A le can market itself well. The Queen of England has an iPod and yet they are still cool. That, my friends, takes talent. MediaPost has awarded A le their 'Marketer of the Year' award not only for their succe with the iPod, but in large part thanks to the 'Get a Mac' ad campaign.

MediaPost points out that i tead of projecting the image that Macs are for everyone A le continues to sell the idea that Macs are for an 'elite few,' even though A le is now selling more Macs than ever.

iLink dock provides iPod digital output

We have to start waking up earlier if we're going to scoop "best tech blog" Engadget (congratulatio y'all!) on the iPod news. Conrad is reporting that M Technology has released the iLink digital output dock for current full-size iPods, providing true digital-out for the audiophiles among us.

There are a few caveats for this product: first, you need to upgrade your iPod to work with the dock ($200). Second, the dock package, if bought with an iPod upgrade, is a screamingly expe ive $1,995. Third, if you've already ri ed your music as AAC or MP3, you'll want to go back to the original CDs and redo all the songs in A le Lo le format for optimal sound (not to mention that anything purchased from the iTunes Store will sound le than ideal). What price perfection? I gue we know.

Carbon Fiber G5 PowerBooks?

This post from Mac OS Rumors might be some of the coolest newsI%26#8217;ve heard all week.

We%26#8217;ve been hearing reports very similar to what has been making the rounds on the Mac Web like wildfire %26#8212; eculation about a Powerbook G5 enclosure co tructed from carbon fiber.

One ecific type of carbon fiber mentioned by our sources is high-resin thermoplastic.

This material lends itself to sub-milimeter moulding precision at relatively reasonable costs and would allow forsurprisingly sleek lines while retaining the kind of thin enclosures we%26#8217;ve seen since the introduction of the PowerbookG4. It could also allow for many pa ive cooling vents without sacrificing attractive looks.

Anyone who has ever seen bare, u ainted carbon fiber knows the beauty of its black-on-black weave and can imaginemany ways in which it could be made to bring back the days of the %26#8220;Armani Suit%26#8221; Black Powerbook with post-modernstyle.

List of Leopard-only a is growing

Cocoa Blogs has linked a blog post from Gus Mueller, developer of such a as VoodooPad, that an upcoming FlySketch 2.0 update will be Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard-only. This adds to a growing list of upcoming a releases such as TextMate 2 and Delicious Library 2 which will only play with A le's next big cat.

So what does this tell us about 10.5 and its impact on the Mac, both for developers and users? Sounds to me like there are some pretty ground-breaking changes in Leopard since, from what I understand, developers typically try to keep theirs doors as open as po ible by maintaining backwards compatibility with at least one previous version of the Mac OS. Of course, this can vary depending on how difficult it is to keep these doors open, as well as whether the developer works out of an office or a living room.

Personally, this boosts my excitement for Leopard. If it changes things as much as developers keep hinting, 10.5 sounds like it'll be a fun ride.

Live ortWrap demo at MacWorld

The live demo of XtremeMac's ortWrap iPod armband sto ed alot of guys in their tracks at MacWorld. This model, jogging on a treadmill at a busy intersection of the Expo hall,had quite a crowd around her when I walked by. The only trouble was that she couldn't hear visitors' questio aboutthe product because she really was listening to her iPod. The demo put me in mind of girl models at car shows in Vegas.It's a tried and true advertising practice that seems to work just as well here as anywhere else--particularly given theratio of men to women here at MacWorld. (You can gue which way that plays.)

But getting back to the ortWrap -- it sells for $29.95 and looks like a solidcase for the orts-minded. It's got a neoprene body, an adjustable velcro strap to fit your u er arm or forearm, anda moisture barrier to keep your iPod dry during a hard workout. It's compatible with 30GB and 60GB video iPods, as wellas older generation iPods. XtremeMac also makes a ortWrap for the iPod nano.

Mac software purchases help Child's Play charity Dec 7th

Buying software from select Mac developers on December 7th, 2006 will do more than just add another icon to your A licatio folder. It'll make the holidays a little nicer for sick kids in children's ho itals all over the world by providing them with toys, games and other seasonably charitable goodne .

A group of independent Mac developers are donating all of the proceeds from their sales of select a licatio on December 7 to Child's Play is a Seattle-based charity started in 2003 by the guys at Pe y Arcade, the gaming company folks who make the gaming-oriented webcomic (thanks for the correction, Samuel!). All you need to do is buy the a , just as you normally would. Your contributio will help make a kid's life a little cheerier, and you'll get some great software in the proce .

There are some really great titles, too, so if you were co idering treating yourself to some cool software, Dec 7 (tomorrow, for most of us) is the day to do it. Heck, you could even continue the irit of giving by buying an a or two as a gift for someone else. Software Stocking Stuffers anyone?

The complete list of participating Developers and their participating a are listed on Ironcoder. Highlights include iRooster, Billable, Freeze Frame, VoodooPad, Houdah ot, LifeBoat, iDictionary and more!

This is a great effort for a great cause and I a laud the participating developers for their efforts.

A le a ounces iPod Hi-Fi

A le a ounced the new iPod Hi-Fi at this morning's ecial event. While it's notterrifically exciting, it's an alternative (albeit a pricey one at $349) to third party iPod eakers. The Hi-Fifeatures a Universal Dock into which you can slide your iPod and another ot on the back for an iPod shuffle. (Ifyou've got an iPod model without a dock co ector, you'll have to buy a separate audio cable to integrate your iPodwith the Hi-Fi.)

The iPod nano and the iPod with video will di lay a new eakers menu for the iPod Hi-Fi.The menu will let you control tone (with settings like normal, treble boost, and ba boost), di lay large album arton the iPod while the Hi-Fi is playing, and set the iPod backlight to remain on so you can see the album art. Sorry,but a arently there won't be a eakers menu or tone control for older iPods.

Theoretically, the Hi-Fi isportable. It will run on six D-cell batteries "for several hour quot; according to Steve. However, the size andrectangular design of the Hi-Fi makes it look like it will be awkward to haul around. It's about as big as a breadbox:17" x 6.6" x 6.9%26quot with hand gri built into the plastic shell.

The Hi-Fi will chargeyour iPod while you're playing music. It includes an A le Remote to control music playback from acro the room. Andit's got a combined analog and digital optical i ut jack, so you can co ect it to your computer or to an AirportExpre to use as a eaker system for those devices. However, the requisite audio cable is a separate purchase, whichis too bad.

I'm no sound expert, but I can tell you that Steve was hyping the sound quality of the iPodHi-Fi during the a ouncement, and the A le site touts the Hi-Fi's sound quality acro a range of frequencies. It'sgot two 80 mm eaker cones in dedicated chambers, and a 130 mm woofer for ba tones.

To be honest, I'm notlikely to run out and buy this updated boombox. I'm ha y with my Logitech mm50 portable iPod eaker for now. Have yougot a big check left over from the holidays that you're just itching to end? Will you end it on this?

New iTunes Gift Card desig from A le

iTunes Gift Cards are great gifts for music, movie and/or TV-loving friends and family on your Christmas list. And now you have a wider variety of desig to choose from when you pick one up at your local A le Store.

ITunes Gift Cards are $10 and up and are no longer Music Store-centric. Now there are Movie and TV gift cards and additional genre- ecific desig to fit the bill. There's even a iffy new iTunes Premium card, which comes in "beautiful gift packaging," for $100.

You can still order Gift Certificates worth up to $500 from the A le Store online and have them sent via email for i tant gratification, or have Gift Cards sent via postal mail, but the best selection of card desig is available in A le Retail stores.

MacBook SMC Firmware Update 1.0

Attention MacBook owners: fire up Software Update to get the latest MacBook SMC Firmware Update. From the updater: 'The SMC Firmware Update adjusts fan behavior in the MacBook. The updater a lication will be i talled in the /A licatio /Utilities folder. Please follow the i tructio in the updater a lication to complete the proce .'

Could this ell the end of the Mooing MacBooks? Only time can tell.

Thanks to everyone who sent this in.

Steve Jo will not give A le Expo Paris keynote

Our hearts go out to all the A le Expo Paris attendees in the audience, for Steve Jo will not be giving a keynote yet again this year. In fact, there won't be any keynote at all. A show representative confirmed this keynote-le a ouncement with Macworld UK, citing that, while A le has seen "significant" market share gai in France lately, they also mention the whole 'open up your FairPlay, or else' i ue the French government is trying to force on A le.

That doe 't seem like a very good reason for Jo to stop delivering his theatrical keynotes, though he was having surgery during 2004's paris expo, and for some odd reason didn't give a keynote at '05's Expo either. I gue the closest you'll be able to get to Mr. Jo this time around is some hi-res desktop wallpapers.

Hands on with the ecktone Retro

iProng, the unfortunately named iPod site, has a hands on review of the newest product from eck, the makers iGuy. Is this new product another whimsical iPod case? Nope, it is a whimsical iPod eaker system. $149 will get you the ecktone Retro (when it shi in June). This 50's i ired eaker system delivers the goods, says iProng, though it does lack some features that you would get with similarly priced eaker systems (i.e. a remote).

It comes in white, black, and lime green.

Most. Effusive. MacBook Pro. Review. Ever.

SF Gate columnist Mark Morford really loves his new MacBook Pro. He loves it so much he wants to lick it. He says so in the very title of his most recent column: "When A le Rules The World - What does it mean when you really, really want to lick a new MacBook Pro, and swoon?" And the gushing doe 't stop there... In one of the most erotic reviews of a computer you'll ever read, Mark calls his new, um, friend (with benefits, a arently), a "lick-ready smooth-as-love A le MacBook Pro Core 2 Duo Super Orgasm Deluxe Ultrahard Modern Computing Device Designed by God Herself Somewhere in the Deep Moist Vulva of Cupertino Yes Yes Don't Stop Oh My God Yes."

And he gushes on: "silky hunk of aluminum and wire and divine Chinese factory-made love," "delivered into my hands by a squad of naked cooing angels who all ha ened to look exactly like Je a Jameson or perha Eva Green and who also gave me a free foot ma age and four hits of premium Ecstasy and a complimentary 3-hour tongue bath, all at the same time," "coated in some sort of hot golden fairy dust," "as an owner of one of these new Core 2 Duos I am here to tell you these hot little MacBook bitches are full of sound and fury, signifying everything."

Of A le products in general he says they are "freely adorned with a luminous halo that tastes of hope and sex and candy. Their incandescent tech junk po e es a reek, a perfectly intoxicating stench that heralds another world, some sort of sleek well-lit utopia where people never steal and vibrators are free and dolphi teach babies to sing," "you swear you hear some sort of harmonious cosmic hum when you open their surprisingly gorgeous packaging," "merely rub your hand acro the top of a MacBook or whip your thumb around the click wheel of an iPod and notice: Feel that throb? That's your id saying mmmmmmm."

Ah, poetry.

What Mark has written i 't really a review, though. Other than some raves about the impact of iMovie and the iLife suite on his social life he hardly talks about the performance of the M at all. Like a lover in the first blush of romance, Mark is blind to the temptre es potential faults and flaws. He ha 't thought about how quickly those hot nights can turn cold when his baby shuts down on him. He doe 't yet know how hot is too hot. And it won't be long before he realizes that the noises coming from her side of the bed aren't moa of pleasure, but whines of pain.

Yeah, ok - so I'm jealous and bitter and jaded. Still, I'm rooting for Mark and his new paramour. She obviously makes him ha y and he gets along well with her family, which is nothing to scoff at. But seriously, Mark - get your hands off your id and go take a cold shower. You're starting to freak people out!

Thanks, Troy!

Project management a Merlin goes 2.0

When podcasting jumped the shark: QE II

Mark well this day, for it is the day the music died -- or at least, the day podcasting sto ed being cool. This year's Christmas me age from Queen Elizabeth will be podcast for the first time. You don't get any more old-media than the Queen, but a arently her royal majesty now is ready to have an R feed.

Co idering that The Queen is the 40th British monarch since William the Conqueror, I su ose it is high time that her Christmas me age gets delivered in 21st-century fashion.

[via Macworld/PlayListMag]

ShelfMenu - a menubar cli oard utility

ShelfMenu is a menubar cli oard a that can store just about anything you can copy to Mac OS X's cli oard; images, URLs, text i ets, etc. Your cli ings are stored into folders which you can create, rename and move - all while preserving anything you've already cli ed to them. ShelfMenu offers two i ut methods: a simple text editor window, and simply adding the last thing you copied to Mac OS X's cli oard.

This looks like a handy utility for anyone on the hunt for a cli oard a lication, as it offers an out-of-the-way, yet acce ible cli oard that can handle more than simple text i ets. I personally prefer the Quicksilver cli oard plugin, since we're such Quicksilver nuts here at TUAW, but I would probably give ShelfMenu a try if Quicksilver were ever to to be i tantly erased from the internets and my Mac overnight.

ShelfMenu is donationware and available from CeMacSoft. I can't track down any information as to whether it is a Tiger-only but it is a Universal Binary. Feel free to let us know in the comments.

MacBook Marionette

Most pu ets scare me. Horrid little creatures, only coming alive when controlled by some being of perceived omnipotence manipulating every a ect of their pathetic little lives. But enough about my pu et paranoia, and on to this awesome hack. Some cu ing (and brave! I'd never swing my notebook around like that!) soul has created a piece of digital artwork using the motion se or built into his PowerBook. When he swings the machine, a little animated man on the screen reacts with realistic physics to the movement. Hooray for digital inertia!

[via UneasySilence]

Steve Jo on Nightline

Steve Jo was on Nightline last night, and he had an iPhone with him (and his stool, but I think you might be more interested in the iPhone). Steve talks about why an iPhone, the optio scandal, and you even get to see one of the only working iPhones in the wild being used, for a brief moment.

[via Everything iPhone]

A le close to a ouncing wirele iPod?

It looks like I might be replacing my 3 week old iPod sooner than I anticipated. Several ti ters to Engadget are saying that A le is going to be launching a wirele iPod, with a widescreen, 'very near future.' WiFi enabled, widescreen, video iPods? Sounds good to me, but let's hope they get more than 10 minutes of battery life.

Oh, and as always, this is a rumor. TUAW is not re o ible for any se e of hopele e or e ui a ociated with finding out this rumor is unfounded. Believe at your own risk.

FretLight plugin for GarageBand

The FretLight plugin for GarageBand is one of those Mac releases that will get a small number of Mac users very excited. This plugin allows you to use a FretLight guitar, which lights up showing you what to play interactively, with GarageBand to make teaching the guitar a ap.

Thanks, Lloyd.

Joystiq recommends Mac games for the holidays

Yes, I did just say that Mac gaming doe 't really matter anymore, but I am willing to believe that some people might not agree with me. If you're looking for some great games to play on your Mac, then Joystiq has you covered. They have a short round up of the best of the best Mac games on the market, just in time for the holidays.

What are you listening to?

I need your help. I have 7 iPods and not nearly enough music to fillthem all. As I have admitted in the past, there are very few songs in the universe that I can tolerate listening to ona regular basis - but I am sure there are more out there, worthy of my attention. Problem is, the only free time I haveis the time when I am already on the subway or walking the streets of NYC%26helli listening to the same songs I already knowabout, i tead of sitting in front of my XM radio looking for new ones. Granted,there are hundreds of songs I like well enough, but not enough to listen to more than once in a blue moon.

I rarely have the patience to browse and sample songs in the iTMS and Ionly head over to allofmp3.com when I am looking for something ecific thatiTMS doe #8217;t have. So I am asking you to do my homework for me, k?

If everyone reading this would please list (via the comments) the 5 most-played songs in their iTunes library, I%26#8217;da reciate it :) I figure TUAW has a pretty broad readership so I should see a rather eclectic mix of stuff.

If I end up with enough songs that I really dig, I%26#8217;ll even publish a TUAWiMix of them and credit all the contributers. Deal?

[thanks to C.K. for helping me find the perfect image forthis post.]

iTunes: Free Wednesday UK Edition

The UK store finally got updated today with the free download/Single of the Week. It's odd that it took so long this week. Even Japan's free single a eared before the UK's, which was very unusual timing wise. Leona Lewis still rules at #1--but my heart belongs to Eton Road and the Unconventionals.

UK: The Nutcracker, Op. 71: Overture by St Peter urg Kirov Orchestra %26am Valery Gergiev
This month, the C will begin its celebration of the genius of Tchaikovsky, one of music's great melodic geniuses. As we end the festive season and move into the new year, iTunes and new LSO Chief Conductor Valery Gergiev preview the "Tchaikovsky Experience" with a free download Gergiev's famous recording of "The Nutcracker," our Single of the Week.

A le to introduce iTunes Movie Store, new iMac, iPod nano, and video streaming device?

Wow, that's a long title. Blame it on A leI ider, who believes most -- if not all -- of those yummy goodies will be delivered to us in a nice wra ed package by The Jo himself at next week's su osed media event. According to the rumor peddler, at the yet-unconfirmed September 12th event Jo will take the wra off...drumroll please:

• An $9.99-a-pop movie download service with films from at least one major studio. The idea is that the rest will see how Freakin' Amazing it is and follow suit -- a la TV shows.
• A new 23" iMac that we reported on earlier.
• A new non-scratch metal iPod nano with "at least double the storage capacity of today's models."
• What they believe is a new Airport Expre -like device designed to stream video content from your Mac to your TV/home entertainment system. AI says "it's arguably been one of the most closely guarded secrets at A le since the evolution of the first iPod digital music player."
  

That list makes this year's Macworld seem lacking.

I'm most interested in that streaming device. This i 't in the article, but imagine: plug your Airport Expre to a TV and be greeted by a Front Row-like interface that streams videos/music/photos directly from your Mac, controllable by the included A le Remote. Pipe dream? Maybe. But I gue we'll find out next week.

Check out the article for more in-depth information and AI's standard "it could be pushed back a little" disclaimer.

Arcade Daze from the Iconfactory

I usually don't write about new ico , but when they are so... iconic I feel it is my duty to share them with the good readers of TUAW (I am too kind, I know). Arcade Daze from the Iconfactory revisits those halcyon days of yore when one could fritter away the afternoon, and a roll of quarters, in the local arcade.

Mario, Pac Man, and several others make a earances in this free (for personal use) icon set. Get it while the getting is good.

A le online stores down for updates

The A le store online order status system has been down all morning and the pre event is scheduled for 12 noon ET, so this was to be expected...

Adobe shi ing Acrobat 8

Adobe today a ounced the immediate availability of Acrobat 8 (Universal Binary!), both Standard and Profe ional versio . Acrobat 8 Pro costs $449 USD, or $159 for qualifying upgrades, while Acrobat 8 Standard is a$299 or $99 for upgrades. You'll need Mac OS X 10.4.3 or later.

This version "introduces several major i ovatio for profe ionals in a wide variety of areas, such as architecture, engineering and co truction (AEC), IT, legal, marketing, manufacturing, and publishing" and enables users to "effectively engage with the rich, high-value information in PDF documents and forms, and more reliably and securely drive their work to completion leveraging the ubiquitous, free Adobe Reader software."

The free Adobe Reader 8 is expected to be released in early December 2006 and Adobe Creative Suite 2.3 Premium will include Acrobat 8 Pro, as well as Dreamweaver 8 when it shi this month - although the rest of the Suite i 't UB yet.

The Acrobat family has 4 versio now - Acrobat Pro, Acrobat Standard, Acrobat Elements (Windows) and Acrobat 3D (Windows). Plus, the free Adobe Reader. Figuring out which one is really the best for your needs involves using this product comparison matrix. If you want to be able to create forms, for example, you'll need to ring for the Pro version. UPDATE: An older pre release indicates that Acrobat 8 Standard i 't even available for the Mac, but it's not really clear to me on Adobe's we ite. If true, that really sucks. Way to show your continued su ort for Mac users, Adobe! Care to defend that, John Nack? More details as we get them...

Adobe also a ounced the immediate availability of a free trial of the Acrobat Co ect, a hosted service and the first web conferencing and collaboration solution to offer "always-on" personal meeting rooms.

ScreencastsOnline Demos Flock Beta 1

I've been trying out Flock Beta 1(v 0.7) which, as we told you last month, has been released as a free beta download. First, I've got to tell you that I'm really loving Flock. My favorite features are the built-in blog editor, to which you can drag and drop text i ets from any web site or photos, and the easy-on-the-eyes built-in R reader. I also like the developers' a roach, which is to try to make the social dime io of the web (like sharing photos, sharing bookmarks, acce ing R feeds, blogging, and searching) easier for mere mortals to discover and use.

But back to the point of this post, which is to point you to an excellent movie at ScreenCastsOnline in which Don McAllister demos Flock's features. McAllister does a great job, as usual, of explaining how things work and what they do. I like this screencast and others so much that I rung for the $25 to become a member of ScreenCastsOnline, so that I could view its extra, members-only content. If you don't have $25 to are, there's still plenty of good stuff to see for free at ScreenCastsOnline.

An iPod jacket for the white collar set

So you want towear a jacket with integrated iPod controls to work, but you aren't exactly Tony Hawk. Enter the Koyono BlackCoat Work. It's something you could easily wear to the office, andfeatures a hidden, five-button control pad that allows for full acce to the iPod's functio . Koyono describes it asa "denim jacket/ ort coat hybrid," and is one for four new iPod coats the company pla to releaseduring the 2nd and 3rd quarters of 2006.

The BlackCoat Work will cost $179US, and you can sign up to benotified of the official release date. If they could only find a way to hide my headphones so I could wear this duringstaff meetings, I'd be all over it.

[Via Engadget]

Fi ion 1.0

Rogue Amoeba, masters of Mac audio, has unleashed a brand new product onto the Mac populace: Fi ion. Fi ion is a very easy to use audio editor that lets you do a number of things to su orted audio files (MP3, AAC, A le Lo le and AIFF).

Fi ion makes is a breeze to edit out unwanted audio (like all those 'ums' that eak into podcasts) or lit one audio file into multiple files, without any lo in fidelity. You can even use this to make MP3 ringtones for your cell phone.

There is a free trial while the full version will cost you $32 (though owners of Audio Hijack Pro can get it for $18).

Keyword A istant updated for iPhoto 6.0.5

A le updated their a for Aperture 1.5's arrival, and Ken Ferry stayed right in step and updated his fantastic Keyword A istant plugin for iPhoto, which we've mentioned before. Version 1.9.3 also brings a Ru ian localization to the table, meaning it now works in English, Danish, Dutch, French, German, Italian, anish and Swedish.

Ken offers Keyword A istant for free from his .Mac homepage.

TiVo and Netflix (and A le!): Great minds think alike

When I%26#8217;m not sitting in front of one of my many Macs, I%26#8217;m usually e conced on the couch, feeding my Law %26am Orderaddiction, compliments of TiVo, or watching last month%26#8217 hit movies, compliments ofNetflix.

TiVo and A le have been chummy for a while now. TiVo offers a chance to earn ecial edition iPods as part of theirTiVo Rewards program and you can purchase a TiVo inselect A le retail stores. TiVo%26#8217 Home Media Option even allows you to integrate your iLife with your TV.

Now Netflix is joining the fold, creating a holy digital Trinity of my favorite things. Although thedetails are still vague, a deal has finally been signed thatwill enable TiVo to offer Netflix-on-demand over a broadband Internet co ection.c|net news has a fewmore details today.

This is an i tant gratification lovers dream. Netflix is already pretty eedy for me, since they have a depot only afew miles away, but I still want it faster. I want everything faster and I am just lazy enough that I do #8217;t even wantto have to go to the mailbox in my lo y to get it.

Perha an iMovie upgrade from A le i #8217;t too far off%26#8230; imagine an iMovie Video store similar to the iTunes Musicstore!

My weekend with Boot Camp and Windows

So I've got a friend who just purchased a shiny, new MacBook. It's packed with RAM and beautiful (she went with the cla ic white). She's a long time Mac user, and has been ha y with her G3 iBook since she bought it. Recently, however, she had been charged with using some proprietary Windows-only software for work (sound familiar, anyone?). So, enchanted by Boot Camp and the Windows-friendly Intel Macs, she made the big purchase...and convinced me to get everything off the ground for her. I accepted the challenge, as I had never played with a Macbook or i talled Windows on any machine. Even though this story has a ha y ending (the aforementioned Macbook is currently a dual-boot machine), getting from Point A to Point B wa 't easy.

First the good news. Boot Camp i talled without a hitch. If you haven't done this before, I can tell you it's pretty straight forward. At one point, you're asked to burn a CD of Macintosh- ecific Windows drivers, which I did. When the i tallation of Boot Camp was complete, you're asked to put your Windows i taller CD (XP with Service Pack 2 on a single disc) into the machine and click the "I tall Windows" button. It's very creepy, and the machine then reboots and starts the next i tallation, this time Windows XP. Or, at least, that's what the i tructio say (Note: PRINT OUT the i tructio that are bundled with the Boot Camp i taller. Trust me).

I got the initial blue screen and watched as the i taller "checked" a number of files. Eventually it hung up and froze. After staring at it for ten minutes, I turned to my printed i tructio . "If i tallation fails," it says (I'm paraphrasing here), "restart the machine with the option key down. Select the Windows CD as the startup disc and i tallation will resume." "Ok," I thought. I forced the machine to turn off by holding down the power button and then turned it back on, as the i tructio suggested. The Macbook's hard drive and the CD a eared for me, I selected the CD and the machine returned to the same blue screen. Gue what ha ened?

The same thing. I repeated the reboot proce , and this time it failed again, but with a different excuse: File such-and-such had been identified as "corrupt." How a file on a read-only CD could become corrupt is beyond me, but I initiated the reboot for a third time, and just as inexplicably it worked perfectly. I got her software up and ru ing, booted back and forth between Windows and Mac OS X a few times just to see it work and called it a done deal.

After wra ing up a few niceties (like the driver CD I burned earlier and getting her printer working under Windows) everything seemed to be in order. I know that many have said this before, but it was kind of creepy to see XP ru ing on that gorgeous Mac. I should also note that my trouble seemed to have been with the Windows i taller, not Boot Camp (go figure). Now, you may be wondering why we went with Boot Camp over Parallels or something like Q? Well, cost was a concern, and Boot Camp is free. She bought XP on "Tax Day" (which is a tax-free holiday we have here in Ma achusetts), and Parallels was $70US at Staples (an office su ly and gadget store for the unfamiliar).

WinXP on a Mac Contest is Over; Dual-Booting Succe

It's over, folks, and the rumors, scree hots, andvideos all a ear to be true. Windows XP will soon be able to be i talled on several models of Intel Macs and you'llbe able to dual-boot between the two operating systems. From the contest site:

Contest has been won -updates to follow shortly. All further donatio will go into an account to sustain the open source project that willbe launched with the initial solution.

%26quot arf2006" and %26quot lanka", the two programmerswho claimed a few days ago to have cracked this nut, a ear to have written their own bootloader which allows you toselect which OS you want to boot from. Scree hotshere.

MacRumors is reportingthat the solution will soon be available for download and that it will work with the 17" and 20" iMacs, theMacBook Pro, and the new Mac mini.

Battle of the (battery) bulge

iPod shuffle 2G and Radio Remote - separated at birth?

I was rooting through a friend's treasure trove of iPod acce ories yesterday when he whi ed out his Radio Remote for the iPod. He then pointed out the striking similarity it has to the new iPod shuffle 2G he just picked up - and behold! They clearly must be related; po ibly separated at birth - long lost siblings, ha y to be reunited after many long quarters of product updates. Look! I think the shuffle is smiling!

"Gee, you've really let yourself go," said the Remote. "But who cares! C'mere, gimme a hug big guy!"

Ahhh... ain't a silly o e ion with A le products love grand?

Mac Pro sales waiting on Adobe

During Wednesday's Financial Results conference call, some i ights came to light regarding the sales of A le's Mac Pro. Were potential purchasers waiting on the release of Leopard before buying, in what they call a "Leopard related pause"? A le said no. It wa 't a factor now and it didn't ha en when Tiger was about to be released either. So why have Mac Pro sales have been under-performing? A le thinks there is a major factor keeping people from ho ing onto the Mac Pro bandwagon: Adobe.

The lack of an Intel-ha y Creative Suite, whose release is due during the 2nd quarter of the year (calendar year, that is), will probably open up a new stream of Mac Pro sales that have been delayed because of software incompatibility. I personally ca ot begin to count the amount of money I have sent towards both Adobe and Microsoft for their software, particularly for Photoshop, Word, and Excel. And I can't imagine a time where we ever see A le software di lace these software e entials. So for me, having Intel-friendly Adobe and Microsoft Universal Binaries is totally a precondition before laying out the cash for a major Mac upgrade.

iPod.iTunes: powerful library synchronization

iPod.iTunes offers 8 different ways of synchronizing your iTunes library and playlists between both devices, giving you powerful control over what files are moved where and how. All formats are su orted, including MP3, AAC, protected AAC (iTMS purchases), Audible books, and video files. PC-formatted iPods are compatible, and all metadata such as your song ratings, play count and album art are preserved in the tra fer. This is a great utility for anyone in need of an easy method to clone an iPod, keep iTunes libraries on different Macs in sync or simply back up your iPod's library if it's the only place you keep all your media (A le sadly doe 't provide a way of doing this).

Check out the full list of features of everything iPod.iTunes is capable of. Another handy trick this a performs is that it can live and run directly from your iPod, in which case your registration ($35 USD) travels with you. A demo is available from cri ofties.

Your MacBook Pro is a Windows eed demon

According to Macworld's benchmarks it looks likethe MacBook Pro is a Windows XP eed demon, of course, C.K. already told youthis. In particular, they found Office 2002 in XP on the Pro a olutely flew. I thought that laptop was a littletoo busine like. Maybe the revamped iBooks will have some color (and be single core no doubt). Macworld and theirsister pub PC World tested the iMac and MacBook Pro agai t a couple of Windows machines to see who was faster. Everymachine was pretty darn close, really. Maybe the aerodynamics of A le's gear gives it an edge?

NAB kicks off this Sunday

LA's Final Cut Pro User Group has a detailed article on what we might expect from A le and friends at next week's NAB trade show.

Look for lots of Pro video and Pro audio software-related a ouncements and maybe even some new hardware configuratio .

The NAB kick-off is this Sunday and ru through April 21. We'll keep you posted so that what ha e in Vegas doe 't stay in Vegas.

Download watch: iStumbler update

For the nomads out there, there is a new public version of iStumbler, the open source OS X 802.11a/b/g, bluetooth, and mD stumbler, out this week. iStumbler 94 has improved staus me ages, more readable log formatting, a smaller memory footprint, and, most importantly, a fix for the nasty memory leak in earlier versio when ru ing under Tiger.

iStumbler i 't a hard-core wardriving tool--you'll probably want KisMac, which handles pa ive networks better, for that--but it's a great little tool for checking email from the airport or finding a co ection to blog from the park on a su y afternoon. With its built-in bluetooth stumbler, it should be a convenient way to find open printers around the office, too.

Tables 1.1 - readsheet for Mac

Those of you who are tired of waiting for a Universal Binary of Excel and need a basic readsheet should check out Tables. It's a relatively new Universal Binary readsheet for OS X which has just been bumped to version 1.1. It's true, this is far from a real Excel replacement, lacking as it does much of Excel's advanced functionality (e.g. graphing and Macros). However, if you're only doing light number crunching then Tables might be just the trick. It is a nice looking program, but IMO entirely too expe ive at %26euro; 39 (~$52).

[Via Macminute ]

Standup and Disko iPod case from Griffin

The good folks at Griffin Technology are all about iPod acce ories, and they are ramping up their product line for the holiday season. The Disko (pictured) and the centerstage are the two newest cases for your iPod.

The Disko a wers the question, 'Is there a way to make this elegant iPod look gaudy?' A polycarbonate case with 3 different colored lights and 5 different light sequences. The nicest touch? It has a motion se or with tur it on automatically.

The Centerstage is a little more practical. It is a stand that allows your iPod to stand up, making viewing videos easier and le stre ful on your dainty hands.

The Disko costs $29.99 while the centerstage will set you back $24.99.

A le's ecial Committee Reports Findings of Stock Option Investigation

Back in August, A le a ounced they had found some stock option irregularities and launched an internal investigation to get to the bottom of things. This voluntary audit netted a warning of de-listing from NASDAQ because they had to delay filing their Q3 earnings results (fortuately, NASDAQ cut A le a break). Today, the big fruit has i ued a pre release with the findings of this audit, which was performed by a ecial committee of outside directors, independent cou el and accountants. This crack team had to shuffle through over 650,000 emails and documents ( otlight to the rescue!), as well as conduct over 40 interviews of current and past employees.

In summary, the investigation's results go a little something like this:

• No misconduct by current members of A le management was found
• The most recent evidence of 'irregularities' points to 15 stock option grants made between 1997 and 2002. Said grants were a arently i ued before their a roval dates
• Steve Jo knew about the grant dates, but he a arently didn't know about the slight-of-hand accounting implicatio , nor did he benefit from any of them
• The data found 'raises serious concer ' of two former officers related to the accounting, recording and reporting of these grants. A le will provide details to the SEC

Mr J is quoted apologizing to A le's shareholders and employees for these problems, e ecially since they ha ened under his watch, saying "They are completely out of character for A le." He continues saying "< an style="font-size: 10pt;">We will now work to resolve the remaining i ues as quickly as po ible and to put the proper remedial measures in place to e ure that this never ha e again," i.e. - somebody's in for a whole lotta iButt woopin'.

In the collateral damage department, Fred Anderson, A le's former CFO from 1996 to 2004 who now serves on the company's board of directors, has decided now might be a good time to resign from said board.

Finally, A le and the audit committee agree that the company will ultimately have to restate their historical financial statements to "< an style="font-size: 10pt;">record non-cash charges for compe ation expe e relating to past stock option grants." At this time however, the company is still working to analyze their findings and determine which periods will need restating, as well as the differential amounts.

iTunes Thanksgiving Week Freebies

iTunes offers some of the best and most exciting freebies on the web. Each week, our intrepid researchers dig through a number of the iTunes stores to find and report on the exciting offerings that you can pick up for nothing more than a few clicks of your mouse.

Once again, let me apologize for the latene of this update. But how often do your parents celebrate their fiftieth wedding a iversaries? (Hint: if you add a note of congratulatio to the comment section, I'll be sure to forward it on to them!)

US Video

US: American Gangster, Episode 101
Think crime pays? This searing BET original program will demand that you think again. Six hour-long episodes chronicle the lives and demises of the nation's most ruthle and newsworthy kingpi . Watch how Nicky Barnes goes from heroin druglord to mercile itch; uncover the links between "Freeway" Rick Ro , crack cocaine, the U.S. government, and the Contra and find out more about some of Black America's most notorious criminals.

US: Frisky Dingo/Meet Killface Episode
Killface, the most evil villain of all time ever, is halfway bent on destroying the Earth. Meanwhile his nemesis, Awesome-X, is ambivalent about sto ing him, as it might just crush toy sales.

US: 2006 PGA Grand Slam of Golf: Episode 1, Golf Strategies, Tough Shots and Around the Green
The PGA and iTunes have paired up to bring you exclusive acce to profe ional golf's hardest tournament to qualify for: The 2006 PGA Grand Slam of Golf. This season-ending showcase of major champio features 4 of golf's elite as they vie for a $1.25 million purse and recognition as the "best of the best." Competing will be the reigning British Open and PGA champion Tiger Woods, 2006 U.S. Open champion Geoff Ogilvy, Major Champio Points List leader and wi er of the 2003 U.S. Open and 2003 PGA Grand Slam of Golf Jim Furyk, and Canadian Mike Weir, who finished third in the Major Champio Points List and won his first major champio hip when he captured the 2003 Masters.

US: Real World Casting ecial, Season 18
We're heading to the Mile High City where our 7 strangers will not only discover a Rocky Mountain high in the trendy nightlife scene, but will work as Outward Bound cou elors for kids who were affected by Hurricane Katrina. Get ready for a season packed full of adventure as The Real World reaches new heights, literally, as the roommates scale mountai and learn how to live in the wilderne .

US: 30 Rock, Episode 103
Jack plays matchmaker, setting Liz up on a blind date - Confident he can fix both Liz Lemon's (Tina Fey) sketch show and sex life, overbearing bo Jack (Alec Baldwin) sets Liz up on a blind date with his friend Thomas. With Liz readying herself for her blind date, Jack infiltrates the writers' weekly poker game.

More freebies after the jump...

US Music

US: Nothing At All by Wired All Wrong
Wired All Wrong is the project of Jeff Turzo (God Lives Underwater) and Matt Mahaffey (Self). "Nothing at All" is taken from their debut, Break Out the Battle Tapes. This track shows that the group knows how to chop and stutter beats under a layer of scratched-up, dirty guitars. Vocally, the band alternates between unabashed angst and iky hip-hop phrasing. This track is our free Single of the Week.

US: Tamacun by Rodrigo y Gabriela
Rodrigo y Gabriela hel to bridge that divide between Dublin and Mexico with its fluid, acoustic workouts. The group (who is from Mexico City, but has been in Ireland for years) has a se e of drama inherited from its love of both cla ical and metal, but its music falls under neither category, i tead focusing on Latin styles performed mainly on acoustic i truments. "Tamacun" is our free Discovery Download this week.

US: Via L%26aacute;ctea by Zoe
Mexico's Zo%26eacute; give us this free Single of the Week. "Via L%26aacute;ctea" starts with a moody underpi ing of atmo heric sounds before lurching into a detached, glam-rock stomp. The track takes a cue from the acier side of the Brit-pop world, but infuses its own murky noise into the blend. This tune also ha e to be the first single from the group's recent album, Memo Rex Commander y el Coraz%26oacute At%26oacute;mico de la V%26iacute;a L%26aacute;ctea.

International

Australia: We Lost Everything by The Nation Blue
Yes, this is indeed the band that can lay claim to have broken bones and bled live on stage in front of thousands of Foo Fighters fa . Misha aside, the group has ent the last few months recording a range of angry songs in relaxed environments. The album, aptly entitled Protest Songs, will be available in 2007. But we're pleased to present the first fruit of their labor, "We Lost Everything," as an iTunes exclusive that's free for a week. U erving, agitating . . . yes, maybe . . . but it's also good old fashioned slammin' Australian rock done the way it should be!

Canada: Dear Confe or by Immaculate Machine
Indie po ers Immaculate Machine conjure up their best John Doe and Exene Cervenka on "Dear Confe or" - a track you won't find on any of their albums. The tune is all power pop rhythm, with crunchy guitars and those intertwining boy/girl vocals that set the heart all aflutter. "Dear Confe or" was recorded exclusively for CBC Radio 3. It's our third of three tracks from the Radio 3/Mint Records archives, as we celebrate Mint's 15th a iversary. In the meantime, enjoy this free Single of the Week.

France: One of You by Stoney
Cet i trumentaliste de Sheffield vous flotte da la t%26ecirc;te avec un m%26eacute;lange de cru ych%26eacute;d%26eacute;lique des a eacute;es 60 et d'un modernisme bouillo ant. Stoney chante avec un air de confiseur, mais ses ch%26oelig;urs sont super solides. %26laquo; One of You %26raquo; est un petit joyau de la couro e folk, pourvu d'une nature modeste et charmante qui ra elle les Beach Boy du tem de... C'est notre Single de la Semaine.

UK: Billy Brown by Mika
"Billy Brown" is a pretty remarkable tune. There, we said it. It's a simple piano line with light orchestral accompaniment, but with MIKA's voice taking the otlight with a more suburban Freddie Mercury feel and a touch of Gilbert O'Sullivan's su ine . It sounds completely out of step and yet it sounds like just the amount of su hine we need. Get this track as our free Single of the Week.

Japan: Toilet Guitar by a le fish Monday
鍖椾節宸炪伅灏忓€夊湪浣忋€併償銈儙/銈偪銉?銉夈儵銉?銉欍兗銈广伀銈堛倠銈ㄣ儸銈儓銉儩銉冦儣锛嗐儣銉偆銉曘儷銇笘鐣屻倰绻般倞搴冦亽銈?a le fish Monday銆備粖鏈?st 銉曘儷銈儷銉愩儬銇с亗銈嬨€孋'MON MUSIC銆嶇櫤澹层仐銇熴伆銇嬨倞銇儠銉儍銈枫儱銉炪兂銇犮亴銆併儛銉炽儔銇ㄣ仐銇︺伄绲岄〒銇眾銇嬨仩銆傘儻銈裤儕銉欍偆銉撱兗銇儎銈兗銇儛銉冦偗銉愩兂銉夈仺銇椼仸鍙傚姞銇椼€佷節宸炲悇鐪屻倰涓績銇北鍙ｃ€佹澅浜仾銇┿仹娲诲嫊銇椼仸銇勩倠褰笺倝銆?銉堛偆銉儍銉堛偖銈裤兗"銈掋儠銉兗銉€銈︺兂銉兗銉夈仹锛?/em>

Control iTunes from within World of Warcraft

Well here's something I mi ed last week. This past Tuesday was "patch day" in the world of Warcraft. The latest patch, v. 1.12, brought several changes to the game, including the ability to control iTunes. From the Key Bindings preference window you can set up keys to control play, pause, next, back and volume from within the game. Why would you want to do that? Because that song you hear in each of the i can get stuck in your head for a long, long time.

TEN releases naviPlay Bluetooth Stereo Headset for iPod and cell phones

Imagine this: you'rewearing a set of bluetooth stereo headphones and listening to your iPod, enjoying the freedom of no wires dangling fromyour ears. A call comes in on your bluetooth-enabled cell phone. You hear the phone ring through the headphones, so youpre one button on the headphones to both pause the music and a wer the phone. You eak through a microphoneembedded in the headphones. When the call's over you pre the button again to go back to the music playing on youriPod.

This is all po ible now if you've got $200 to drop for a naviPlay Bluetooth Wirele Stereo HeadsetKit. The kit incorporates iPod controls (although it's not clear where), and cli for all current iPod modelsincluding the iPod nano and the 5G iPod. TEN Technology a ounced that the kit, which pairs its newbluetooth headset with the naviPlay Bluetooth Adaptor for iPod, will be available at the A le Store. The naviPlayHeadset also can be used with Bluetooth-enabled PCs su orting A2 < ancla ="hotlink">DP profile for stereo audio or headset profile for VoIP calling.

[via Engadget]

Did A le change the signal strength scale with AirPort 4.2?

Since I am in a hotel room with a reliable, but fluctuating wifi signal, I can't verify this, but Avi Flax wrote in with the following:

"I just i talled the just-released Airport Software 4.2 update, and after rebooting I noticed that A le seems to have changed the scale that the Airport icon uses to di lay signal strength. Before reboot, the icon was co istently at 2-3 bars. Afterwards, it's steady on 4, which should indicate a 100% signal, which made me a bit dubious. I doubted that the software update would have improved signal that much. So I launched the always-handy APGrapher, and verified that the signal strength hadn't changed at all, and was still around 40-45% - a far cry from the 100% that the Airport icon now implies.This doe 't actually bother me or anything, I just think it's worth noting. It reminds me of automakers removing oil pre ure gages from car dashboards because of people worrying about their oil pre ure, or making engine temp gages stay in the middle except in the case of emergencies. These changes were only made po ible by engines becoming much more reliable, so wirele technology may one day be able to eliminate signal gages in the same vein."

Can anyone else confirm this behavior?