Free Republic

As the world descends on Copenhagen this week for the United Nations Climate Change conference, the city’s police must manage protests, secure world leaders, and handle all the other issues that come with a major global event. Perhaps surprisingly, the force is doing it with Macs.The Danish Police Department isn’t using Apple computers on the go, or keeping in touch with iPhones. No, the entire central command is now run by Mac Pros and Mac Minis, with not a single PC to be seen. The Danish police force has been using Macs since 1996, running NeXTStep. But five years ago,...

Apple Bans Another Developer, 1000+ Apps Pulled by Greg Kumparak on December 7, 2009 As the old mantra goes, “Cheaters never prosper”. In this digital age, it may be time to revise that saying. Granted a veil of anonymity by the Internet, cheaters surely prosper from their cheating; it’s just that when they get caught, they go down hard. Alas, “Cheaters may temporarily prosper – but if they get caught, they’re totally boned” doesn’t have quite the same ring to it. Such was the case earlier today, when the development company behind over 1,000 iPhone applications was busted scamming the...

All Hail the iPod touch By Om Malik December 6, 2009 As the competition for smartphone domination starts to heat up, it is becoming increasingly clear that the iPod touch is Apple’s ace up its sleeve, and according to a report by Flurry, a San Francisco-based mobile analytics company, 24 million iPod touches represent about 40 percent of the total 58 million iPhone OS devices. From the time I first laid my hands on the iPod touch, I have been a big fan of it — after all, it is just like an iPhone except that it has more storage, is...

Forget The iPhone: The iPod touch Is Where It’s At Posted 12/07/2009 at 8:33:11am by J.R. Bookwalter Apple may have to fend off a number of competitors for the iPhone’s crown of smartphone dominance, but one area where there seems to be comparatively little competition is the roost ruled by the iPod touch. Based upon a report by Flurry, a San Francisco mobile analytics company, there are 24 million iPod touches in use, which represent 40% of the total 58 million iPhone OS devices, according to Gigaom’s Om Malik. After all, the iPod touch has one big advantage over the...

Analysis: Apple Embraces The Cloud, Positions Mobile With Lala Deal December 07, 2009 - Digital and Mobile By Glenn Peoples, Nashville With its acquisition of online music start-up Lala, Apple appears to have bet on a digital music strategy that places ownership – no matter how ephemeral - over subscription. And more than competing services, Lala best fits into Apple's desire for well-designed applications that complement other Apple products. The iPod wouldn't be the same without iTunes, and the iPhone should be better with Lala. Apple's interest in Lala is not surprising. Compared to other services, Lala has an iTunes-like...

Apple's Base Stations Have Three 802.11n Streams DECEMBER 5, 2009 Apple's October revision to its AirPort Extreme Base Station and Time Capsule lets these units run at up to 450 Mbps, 50 percent faster: I knew that Apple had put a 3x3 antenna array into these devices, which could be argued was intended to improve speed-over-range, a common reason to add antennas. (Read the background in my 20 October 2009 article, "Apple Slipstreams 3x3 into Wi-Fi Base Stations.") But I had heard that Apple had built three streams in, making these devices capable of a raw 450 Mbps operation, or...

Is Apple the Mobile Walmart? Gib Bassett - 1:43 pm on December 5, 2009 Yesterday I came across an article on CNET titled, “In mobile, do developers or consumers matter most?” and immediately thought, “Who cares what developers think, at least the ones who want to make money?” The article describes the oft-cited displeasure that developers have with Apple and its policies, and how it may cause defections to other platforms.  Yet the article also says this about the iPhone: “…for most consumers, their mobile device of choice is a lifestyle decision, a personal, ever-present extension of themselves…” With the...

Apple has the opportunity to do in mobile what Microsoft did on the desktop: Own the standard platform upon which every popular application is based.  The irony of this cannot be lost on Microsoft, which has flubbed its own opportunity to do the same. Google's Android could mount a strong charge here because it's hardware agnostic (the same way Microsoft Windows is, ironically).  But otherwise it's Apple's game to lose. Keep reading at the NYT >

Apple was told to pay $21.7 million in a patent case against OPTi Inc., a semiconductor vendor-turned-patent troll. The patent (no. 6,405,291) regards "pre-snoop" cache memory technology. The decision was made in the plaintiff-friendly U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. Because Apple did not willfully infringe on the patent, it does not have to reimburse any attorney fees. Obviously $21.7 million is couch change to Apple, and they have every incentive to keep fighting a patent troll. So it's possible it will appeal. Here's the release: PALO ALTO, Calif., Dec 04, 2009 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- OPTi Inc...

Mac sales projected to grow 26% in 2010, outpacing PC market By Neil Hughes Published: December 3, 2009 - 09:20 AM EST Apple is predicted to continue its gains on the rest of the PC market in 2010, with Mac sales projected to grow by 26 percent while the industry is forecast to see a 16 percent year-over-year increase. If the predictions of Robert Cihra, analyst with Caris & Company, prove true, it would give Apple a total 4 percent market share for the 2010 calendar year. Cihra goes into great detail on his analysis in a note issued to...

You've loaded up your iPhone with Yelp for restaurants and Shazam for music. Now get ready to download a dose of "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall" from a popular political figure of the past: the Gipper. The Ronald Reagan iPhone app, introduced this week, promises to "deliver Ronald Reagan right to your fingertips," offering the speeches, sayings and photos of the "Great Communicator" to a potentially wider and younger audience, thanks to the popular mobile technology. The efforts of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley (Ventura County) mean that five years after his death, Reagan's appearance on...

Android goes for iPhone weak spot: porn apps Bill Andad - Dec 3rd, 2009, 9:45 am Yes there are 100,000 or so apps for the iPhone, but thanks to Apple policy if it's porn you are after there's not an app for that. The construction of an Adult App Store for Android devices, however, could soon swing this particular market segment towards the iPhone competitor. The MiKandi App Store is strictly an adults only affair, and claims to be the world's first fully mobile adult app store. Although currently only available for Android users, the developers are already talking about...

Internet and television personality Alex Albrecht claimed to have insight on the price of Apple's rumored tablet during the latest episode of Diggnation, which also featured actor John Hodgman from Apple's "Get a Mac" commercials. During the course of episode 231 of the Internet-based show, co-host and Web entrepreneur Kevin Rose asked Hodgman, who plays the bumbling "PC" in Apple's commercials, if he has any inside information on the tablet. "I don't know anything about it," Hodgman said. "You think they'd tell me?" Rose then turned his attention to Albrecht, and insinuated that the co-host had privately revealed supposed information...

Time Inc. released a video walkthrough as well as a working model of its digital magazine format designed for touchscreen tablets. Less than a month after competitor Conde Nast revealed that a digital version of Wired magazine would be available by the middle of next year, publisher Time Inc. released information Wednesday on its plans for making digital magazines a reality. Time announced that Sports Illustrated would be the first magazine to undergo the digital transition, and produced not only a video walkthrough but also a working example. ...various features and capabilities including: multi-touch controls, live links and sports scores,...

Google is closing in on a beta for the Mac version of its Chrome browser, according to a list of still-to-be-addressed issues. Just eight bugs are holding up the release of Chrome for the Mac, Google's bug tracking database showed Monday morning. Of the eight, only two are marked as Priority 1: Both involve crashes when the browser tries to render content for Adobe's Flash media format. Three weeks ago, a product manager on the Chrome team said that Google would deliver a beta for the Mac in early December.

So it seems the CrunchPad is no more... The CrunchPad, which was the brainchild (pace legal settlements) of Michael Arrington, who runs the Silicon Valley-based technology news site TechCrunch, was intended to be a touchscreen tablet computer with a 12.1in screen... it began in July 2008 with the aim of producing a $200 tablet computer... the idea was that it would be open-sourced as far as possible. Except what is there to open source in the hardware? All the things you need to be standard already are; all the things you need to be special aren't -- such as some...

While rumors of a possible Verizon-compatible iPhone in 2010 persist, one analyst has predicted that Apple will instead bring the iPhone to another GSM-based carrier in the U.S.: T-Mobile. In a note to investors released this week, Doug Reid of Thomas Weisel Partners said his firm believes that T-Mobile, and not Verizon, will be the beneficiary when Apple's exclusive agreement with AT&T expires next year... AT&T's exclusive contract with Apple for the iPhone is due to expire in 2010... While the iPhone in its current iteration is compatible with T-Mobile's network, it is not capable of connecting to its high-speed...

Businesses of all sizes have reached out to Apple with interest in its iPod touch-based point-of-sale system, which recently debuted at the Mac maker's stores. Gary Allen of ifoAppleStore has reported that Apple has been "deluged" with inquiries about the system, which utilizes a custom-built shell that encases the iPod touch and adds a barcode scanner and magnetic stripe reader to it. The hardware attachment is partnered with custom-built software that allows Apple retail employees to check out customers quickly and easily from any point in the store... In November, ifoAppleStore and AppleInsider gave an exclusive look at Apple's new...

Hey I need the help of any Freeper Mac geniuses. Is there a program (or any other way) that will allow me to have my mouse "click" constantly without me pressing the button? Don't make fun of me--it's for a game. Thanks in advance! FA

I am looking for an iPhone that I can later unlock and use with other carriers and plans. Let's take, for example, iPhone 3GS, 32 GB. Am I missing something in my analysis? Apple sells this 3GS for $299, provided you commit to a two year plan. If you cancel before that time, you pay a fee of $175. I have looked on the internet and see unlocking software for as little as $30. Given these facts, why then would anyone want to pay more than $299+$175+$30=$505 for an unlocked iPhone 3GS? I see prices of $600 and above on...

Heads up, schmokers: Lighting up near your computer is heresy enough that Apple says it voids your warranty should you need to bring a smoke-exposed computer in for repair. Specifically, in at least two instances in different parts of the country, Apple has voided the warranty and refused to provide repair service on Macintosh computers exposed to environments where cigarette smoke has been present. Calling cigarette smoke residue (tar and whatnot) inside a computer a health risk and a "biohazard," in both cases Apple customers have been denied service despite having time left on a valid warranty. Apple is standing...

In my column this morning on manufacturing (Shock news – Britain still makes things) I didn’t have space to mention one other important misconception about manufacturing: that just because something is “made in China” or somewhere else in the emerging world doesn’t necessarily mean that the money from its construction goes to that place alone. This helps explain why, in broad terms, a developed economy does not need a trade surplus (or even a balance) in order to survive.

Security expert expresses discontentSophos’ Graham Cluley has updated his blog with news that the author of the Ikee worm, emerged earlier this month, has gotten himself places, thanks to his malicious feat. Cluley doesn’t care much for the hacker and would rather see him pay for his actions, rather than get rewarded. “The author of the world's first iPhone worm must be feeling pretty chirpy today, because he's managed to get himself a job as an iPhone application developer,” Cluley writes. “21-year-old Australian Ashley Towns, revealed that he was going to join mogeneration [...] on his Twitter feed earlier today,”...

Windows 7 passes Mac OS X in market share race Weekend numbers for new OS bigger than for all versions of Mac OS X, says Net Applications Windows 7 passed the 5% market share milestone last weekend, which put it, if only temporarily, above the total market share of all versions of Apple's Mac OS X, a Web measurement firm said today.Last Saturday and Sunday, Windows 7 powered an estimated 5% and 5.14% of all computers that were online those days, according to Internet metrics vendor Net Applications. The two-day average of 5.07% was higher than the 5% of the...

A number of complaints are swirling around the Internet today about issues with Apple's new Core i7-based iMacs -- among them, reports of units showing up dead on arrival or even with cracked screens. New iMac users are reporting that their unit chimes as it should when the power button is pressed, but the display is blank and nothing else happens. Adding insult to injury, these customers are discovering that after returning their dead units, they face a lengthy wait of up to two weeks for a replacement. Apple's discussion support forum is filling up with such complaints according to...

Apple is set to files its brief on Monday detailing the damages and injunction details it wants to see imposed on Psystar for building and selling unauthorized Mac clones. Apple filed a lawsuit against Psystar in Northern California several months ago claiming the small PC maker was violating the Mac OS X end user license agreement, and that it was violating the Digital Millennium Copyright Act with the steps it used to install the Mac operating system on PCs. Psystar claimed that it should be allowed to build and sell PCs with Mac OS X pre-installed and that Apple is...

HP's 3rd quarter results hurt by budget PCs updated 05:30 pm EST, Mon November 23, 2009 HP Q3 2009 shipments up, revenue down HP this afternoon revealed mixed results for its quarter ended in October. The company's net earnings climbed 14 percent year-over-year to $2.4 billion, but its revenue dropped by 8 percent to $30.8 billion in the same time frame. It credits the profit boost to cost-cutting measures but saw its revenue drop across the board in every category, including the Personal Systems Group that handles its common PC business. The division shipped 8 percent more PCs than a...

Apple is apparently telling at least some customers that the amount of cigarette smoke residue inside their computers makes it unsafe for the company to perform warranty service on them, despite the lack of such a clause in the company's warranty agreement. The Consumerist says the complaint as been raised as far as Steve Jobs' office, with no relief for the customers involved. The story was reported on Friday, though the Consumerist said it had sought, but failed to receive, any explanation from Apple HQ over a period of months. (The site is part of the Consumers Union/Consumer Reports organization,...

Mr2001 writes "Consumerist reports that Apple is refusing to work on computers that have been used in smoking households. 'The Apple store called and informed me that due to the computer having been used in a house where there was smoking, [the warranty has been voided] and they refuse to work on the machine "due to health risks of second hand smoke,"' wrote one customer. Another said, 'When I asked for an explanation, she said [the owner of the iMac is] a smoker and it's contaminated with cigarette smoke, which they consider a bio-hazard! I checked my Applecare warranty and...

Jobs’ Personal, Terse Reply to Developer Written on November 20, 2009 by Liam Cassidy Gotta love that Steve Jobs. He never was one to hold back, and even now, when he’s the CEO of the Universe (or something like that), he won’t be found spouting corporate speak. CrunchGear tells the story of a small software development company called The Little App Factory. It made an app for the Mac called iPodRip, one of those tools for transferring music from an iPod to a computer. A law firm representing Apple sent The Little App Factory a letter, informing the company it had...

Has Palm finally given up on the great cat/mouse/iTunes chase of ‘09? November 17th, 2009 Posted in Technology The number of times Apple and Palm went back and forth trading clever coding tactics was beginning to wear thin. At first I found myself saying “yay for the little guy”. But after Apple made it very clear from the get go that they weren’t feeling the cross platform love, Palm decided to kick it up a notch. And so began the cat and mouse game that went on for weeks. The latest Palm OS update, 1.3.1, that was released recently failed...

An in-depth look at Psystar’s legal defeat at the hands of Apple Wed, Nov 18, 2009 Last Friday, Judge Alsup dealt Psystar a death blow when it granted Apple’s motion for Summary Judgment while at the same time denying Psystar’s own motion for Summary Judgment.  Summary Judgment is essentially when a Judge dismisses an entire case, or specific issues in a case, because it lacks any evidentiary support. Now that we’ve had time to fully pour over Judge Alsup’s 16-page decision, we’re going to break down much the reasoning behind Alsup’s ruling and pinpoint exactly why Psystar’s legal arguments failed...

I am in the same boat as the developer whose app was rejected (and later approved under pressure) by Apple. So far, our app has been rejected three times by Apple because "... it contains content that ridicules public figures". Our app is a countdown timer to the 2010 midterm elections, 2012 presidential election, and 2013 inauguration. The images are included below. Can you help a fellow Freeper get his iPhone app published by Apple?    

An iPhone application that Apple had rejected as "objectionable" for its caricatures of members of Congress now is available to users, the application's developer told FoxNews.com Saturday. The developer, Ray Griggs, said Apple reversed its initial decision after a FoxNews.com story this week about claims that the caricatures, in particular a drawing of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, were "offensive." The app, now for sale at the iTunes App Store, provides access to a telephone directory that lists the number of every U.S. senator and congressman and features caricatures of the legislators drawn by an artist.

An iPhone application that Apple had rejected as "objectionable" for its caricatures of members of congress now is available to users, the application's developer told FoxNews.com Saturday. The developer, Ray Griggs, said Apple reversed it's initial decision after a FoxNews.com story this week about claims that the caricatures, in particular a drawing of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, were "offensive." The app, now for sale at the iTunes App Store, provides access to a telephone directory that lists the number of every U.S. senator and congressman and features caricatures of the legislators drawn by an artist. Griggs, who thanked the nearly...

A conservative filmmaker in Hollywood thought he had developed a worthwhile iPhone app: a telephone directory listing every U.S. senator and congressman, with caricatures of the legislators drawn by an artist. But Apple apparently didn't see the value, and the computer behemoth said a cartoon drawing of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was part of the reason why. The filmmaker, Ray Griggs, told FoxNews.com that his small firm, RG Entertainment, received a rejection letter from Apple this week calling the caricatures "objectionable." He added that he has received several e-mails suggesting that Apple stock owned by Pelosi's husband may have played...

I've got some sour news for you, Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) shareholders. It doesn't matter how many iPods you buy, iPhone apps you download, or black mock turtlenecks you wear: Steve Jobs couldn't care less about you. And that's why -- despite great products, a killer brand, and mouth-watering growth potential -- I would advise against owning shares of his company. Hey Steve, the Jerk Store called There's plenty of anecdotal evidence to suggest that Jobs is a jerk. Stories of Apple's CEO throwing temper tantrums, berating his employees, taking credit for others' ideas, and even parking his Mercedes in handicapped...

The second half of 2010 could finally bring a much-anticipated Verizon Wireless iPhone. A new hybrid chip developed by Qualcomm makes it possible to communicate with several different network technologies using only one component. This means Apple can manufacture one device, the "world mode" iPhone that will work on all of the networks it's currently compatible with as well as Verizon's CDMA network. Previous reports speculated that Apple would wait until at least 2011 for Verizon's launch of LTE technology.

When you buy an Apple device, you're often locked in to buying other Apple products that are compatible with it. Here are five examples, and some advice on what to do. Oh, wait--there's nothing you can do.Once you enter the Big Tent of Apple, it's exceedingly hard to find the exit. Over its 33-year history, Apple has consistently elected to limit consumer choice, creating a situation known as "lock in." As soon as you start buying stuff from Apple, you'll find it difficult to move to products made by someone else without losing everything you've already paid for. Of course,...

The brand new 27" iMac is suffering from major problems with video graphics while Windows 7 operating on the same machines is working fine. According to Apple bulletin boards, users started to notice that their Macs' pretty screens were running movies in browsers that were choppier than the North Sea in winter. With no help from Apple, Mac Fans have been trying to piece together what could be causing such a kerfuffle. Initially the thought was that it was probably some cheap Chinese component which was failing or overheating. However when Windows 7 appeared on the scene and users started...

My daughter a HS Junior is doing really well in school. I am planning to buy her a new laptop for school. She currently has a Dell 13" XPS that has been ok, but the battery has been replaced twice, the CD/DVD will currently only play CDs and it is getting slower to start up. So I start looking and I know she wants a Mac because they are cool, I however am not a Mac fan. Not that there is anything wrong with Mac, I have a slowly dying PowerMac G5 Dual that has a nice monitor I use...

Long recognized as one of America's savviest -- and most splashy -- advertisers, Apple Inc. is looking to seal another flashy pact with the CTA. A CTA spokeswoman confirmed that the transit authority is in talks with the computer and iPhone behemoth about a deal that could net the cash-strapped CTA as much as $4 million in funding from Apple to pay for an upgrade of the run-down subway station at North and Clybourn, which is adjacent to an Apple retail store now under construction and expected to open next year.

I think the saying goes that those that don’t learn from history are destined to repeat it. This is likely to point with Apple this month as they sit stunned that Windows 7 is doing so well and they are left looking foolish with products priced out of the segment. Their big news this week was a couple of PCs, a new keyboard and a multi-touch mouse. This last will likely go down in history as one of the lamest devices yet as they should know, given the iPhone, that touch is connected to the screen and not anything else....

Everybody failed to predict Cupertino's blowout quarter, but some failed worse than others "Well, that was quite embarrassing!" writes "deagol," a widely read amateur analyst whose estimate of Apple's fourth quarter earnings fell 16% short of the record profits the company reported Monday.... Once again, the amateurs and independents out-performed the professionals in our quarterly Apple analyst bake-off. The color-coded spreadsheet is pasted below the fold.But first, some general comments about why everybody failed to predict that Apple's profits would grow 46% or that the company would sell a record 3 million Macs — up 17% in a quarter in...

Apple today announced financial results for its fiscal 2009 fourth quarter ended September 26, 2009. The Company posted revenue of $9.87 billion and a net quarterly profit of $1.67 billion, or $1.82 per diluted share. These results compare to revenue of $7.9 billion and net quarterly profit of $1.14 billion, or $1.26 per diluted share, in the year-ago quarter. Gross margin was 36.6 percent, up from 34.7 percent in the year-ago quarter. International sales accounted for 46 percent of the quarter’s revenue. Analysts consensus' expectations called for EPS of $1.42 on $9.2 billion revenue. In accordance with the subscription accounting...

Read from bottom up for proper sequential presentation.—Swordmaker MacDailyNews presents live notes from Apple’s conference call discussing Q409 financial results. Live notes will begin today at 2pm PDT/5pm EDT in reverse-chronological order: Conference call ends. Apple again refuses to talk about the anticipated Q110 air freight cost increases in terms of specific products The State of Maine buy helped immensely Student Mac buys significantly helped Apple's online sales. Apple still worried about state education spending. iPhone sell-through up 38% YOY which is a significant multiple vs. the smartphone market growth overall Apple continues to be pleased with the number of...

Today is the 22nd anniversary of Black Monday in 1987 when the Dow lost 22%. While we've had a lot of volatility in the markets recently, I think everyone would be stunned if we had that kind of a day. All three indices were down on Friday and that followed a bad day on Thursday as well. Futures are pointing up modestly this morning. A lot of companies including Hasbro, Texas Instruments, Apple and Boston Scientific will announce earnings before, during, and after the market hours today. Also, Ben Bernanke will give a speech on the economy this morning and...

Book seller Barnes & Noble is expected to announce its own e-reader next week, and a new report states the device will sport both black-and-white e-ink and a multi-touch, iPhone-like color display. New information and photos of the device were provided to Gizmodo, which revealed that a majority of the device will have a traditional e-ink display, much like the Amazon Kindle, which provides superior battery life. It will be a 6-inch screen with an 800x600 pixel resolution. But the bottom portion of the device will have an LCD color display sporting multi-touch technology. It will be used to browse...

Public Discourse: Our energy secretary applauds and encourages companies to leave the U.S. Chamber of Commerce over its position on climate change. Should any Cabinet secretary, with the powers of government behind him, be threatening U.S. companies? Part of the climate-change mantra is that the debate is over and the science is settled. Just to make sure, environmental groups have sought to pressure businesses to go green or at least keep silent. Now it would appear the whole weight of the federal government is being thrown behind this campaign to coerce and silence real and potential opposition. On Thursday, Steven...

In a not-entirely-surprising move, Apple today announced the renaming of its key products, formerly the iMac computer, the iPhone smartphone, and the iPod portable music player, will henceforth be called the "OMac" the "OPhone" and the "OPod". Apple Board of Director Albert Gore, Jr., released a statement on recycled post-consumer paper, using organic soy ink, pointing out that a the name "GorePod" tested much better with key demographic groups than "OPod", and that he is worried about the amount of paper and electricity that will be consumed in rebranding these already successful products. When Apple pointed out the amount of...