Macintosh / Apple blog

various | March 20, 2005, first day of Spring | 'Civ

[SunkenCiv]

This is a 'blog for Mac and Apple stuff. IOW, not a 'blog for how wonderful and innovative Dull and Windulls is.

[SunkenCiv]

Does the MacBook Air have a Firewire port? I thought it was only USB.

Also, check out one of the subsequent posts, about a different product, probably of more interest.

[SunkenCiv]

It was message 137. :’)

There are a number of different combined hubs, like this ADS one:

http://www.usb-ware.com/ads-dual-link-hub-usb-firewire.htm

[SunkenCiv]

Gallery: MacBook Air’s ports
http://www.dtgeeks.com/gallery/image_comment/277/
http://www.dtgeeks.com/images/gallery/mwsf08/DSC08289.JPG

[Jet Jaguar]

Thanks for bumping this thread. I had never seen it.

I have a question. Can I install a windows XP OS disk that I own onto my new Mac. (from my last XP computer I purchased) Or, am I compelled to by a new copy of XP for this computer?

Any advice would be appreciated.

[SunkenCiv]

I shouldn't even get started...

Bring back Kaypro! ;')

[SunkenCiv]

MacBook Air Patents - ports! Lots and lots of ports!
Thursday, Feb 28th 2008 by James Allan Brady
http://www.slashgear.com/macbook-air-patents-ports-lots-and-lots-of-ports-2810509/

[SunkenCiv]

Uh-boy. Dunno. It must be an Intel Mac, so you could try it I guess, assuming you mean you want to run Windows as well as MacOS. Better get Swordmaker back in here, but anyhow, there are a a few different ways to run Windows apps on Intel Macs. Click the pic to go to the Codeweavers Crossover Mac differentiation page, basically, their version of a side by side features comparison. They don't claim to run everything Windows, but the way it's done is less obtrusive -- the Windows OS calls are translated on the fly to MacOS calls, so you don't need to install Windows at all, and the apps run similarly to the native Mac apps.

[Jet Jaguar]

Thanks. It is a new Mac that can do it.

I will mess with it tomorrow. If I am successful, I will ping you with news. If I am not, I will ping Swordmaker for help! :0)

[SunkenCiv]

Woz Joins Axiotron
posted on Thursday, December 18, 2008

El Segundo-based Axiotron, a manufacturer of table computers running Apple's Macintosh OS, said Thursday that it has added Steve Wozniak to the firm's board of advisors. Axiotron's tablet PC takes existing Macintosh computers and converts them into a tablet, based on Apple's MacBook systems. Axiotron is angel backed by the Tech Coast Angels, and was a winner of the Tech Coast Angels' Fast Pitch in 2007. The firm allows users to order pen-based, tablet PCs based on Apple's MacBook, or allows users to convert their existing MacBooks into tablet form. Steve Wozniak is the co-founder of Apple.

see Petronski's message regarding a podcast.

[SunkenCiv]

Evidence that Next iMacs and Mac Minis to use NVIDIA Chipsets
Arnold Kim
MacRumors
Friday December 19, 2008 09:12 AM EST

Configuration files buried within some versions of Mac OS X show evidence that the next iMac and Mac Mini will indeed be based on the NVIDIA MCP79 chipset. Apple recently switched their MacBook, MacBook Pro and MacBook Air models to the NVIDIA chipsets in October... Apple will apparently be bringing these improvements to both the new iMac and Mac mini. While many have expected the iMac to receive these upgrades, the fate of the Mac mini has been less certain. A configuration file found in the Mac OS X version that ships with the new MacBook and MacBook Pros reveal entries referencing unreleased "MacMini3,1" and "iMac9,1" models. The relevant lines have been excerpted here... The CFG_MCP79 appears to refer to the NVIDIA MCP79 chipset, which suggests these unannounced models will use this new chipset. The currently shipping iMac and Macmini carry model numbers of iMac8,1 and Macmini2,1.

Mac mini makeover considered likely for Macworld
Kasper's Automated Slave
AppleInsider
12-15-2008

A new source claims that Apple's long-overdue revision of the Mac mini will make its appearance at Macworld Expo early next month.

Claiming to have obtained the information from a "corporate" employee of Apple, Wired has allegedly heard that a refresh of the compact, headless desktop is due at the start of the show.

The rumor is accompanied by little else besides a speculative wish list based on Apple's recent trends in design and components, such as a unibody design and newer Core 2 Duo processors.

Still, the report corroborates things that AppleInsider has privately heard about the matter. It also supports a number of outside claims that an update is approaching; of these, a reported Apple executive care rep's advice to be patient has been the strongest sign of an impending upgrade.

What any new Mac mini would include is still uncertain, though two months ago Macminicolo asserted that it had validated as many as three new features that would make their way into the new system.

Of these, the most feasible were the switch to Mini DisplayPort -- a move Apple has publicly promised for all of its Macs -- and the ability of the mainboard chipset to address more than 3GB of RAM, which is currently limited by the Mac mini's roughly two year old hardware.

The more aggressive claim instead suggested Apple would attempt to please business and server operators by letting buyers replace the optical drive with a second hard drive that could increase the total storage for the computer.

Whether any of this occurs is still up in the air, as Apple has yet to commit to a Steve Jobs keynote at Macworld despite the event being just three weeks away.

[SunkenCiv]

Wal-Mart stores already advertising iPhone 3G availability
AppleInsider Staff
Thursday, December 18, 2008

Adding a bit more confirmation to what is widely presumed, a few Wal-Malt stores have jumped the gun and are starting to advertise availability of Apple's iPhone 3G ahead of an official roll-out planned for later this month. Over the past week, readers have noticed both window decals and cardboard display jackets (pictured below) showcasing an iPhone 3G alongside text that simply reads: "iPhone 3G. Now available at Wal-Mart." As previously reported and further confirmed by one of the discount chain's internal memos this week, the vast majority of Wal-Mart stores will begin selling the Apple handset beginning at 9:00 a.m. on Sunday, December 28th... Apple's existing 8GB and 16GB models, which will sell for $197 and $297 respectively with a two-year AT&T contract.

[SunkenCiv]

RIM nears iPhone's sales with 6.7 million BlackBerries
By Aidan Malley
Thursday,December 18, 2008

that's split across three models.

[SunkenCiv]

Stocking stuffer idea -- Firewire (400) cables can be found at the local Dollar Tree stores, I'd guess they've got them chainwide.

DP (Display Port) Male to HDMI Female Adapter (sez $13.65 as of right now)

DP (Display Port) Male to DVI-D Female Adapter (sez $13.65 as of right now)

Mini-DVI to DVI Adapter (sez $9.69 as of right now)

[SunkenCiv]

Nvidia puts high-def graphics into netbooks
by David Meyer
Dec 18 2008
ZDNet UK

Nvidia plans to introduce chip technology that should let low-cost netbooks run high-definition games and media, and provide full support for Windows Vista graphics. The Ion platform, announced on Thursday, effectively combines Nvidia's GeForce 9400 graphics processing unit (GPU) with Intel's Atom chipset. According to Nvidia, this combination will provide "up to 10 times the graphics performance" of other graphics chipsets currently used with Atom in small, low-cost PCs. The GeForce 9400, which has 16 processing cores and is well suited for graphics-intensive applications such as Adobe's Photoshop CS4, is also used in Apple's latest MacBook, MacBook Pro and MacBook Air... The Atom processor is ubiquitous in the netbook market. Netbooks are, as the name suggests, generally tailored towards internet browsing and light office work but, as yet, are not seen as capable of running resource-hungry games or high-definition video... In addition, it will be capable of running "full-spec 1,080 [pixel]" high-definition video and games as graphically intensive as 'Call of Duty 4'. According to Nvidia, "the GeForce 9400 GPU does all of this in about half of the space of today's Atom CPU-based solutions, with minimal effect on battery life". The Ion platform will also let netbook users experience full Blu-ray playback on the smallest PCs and laptops, according to Alice Chang, chief executive of optical-drive maker CyberLink, who was quoted in Nvidia's statement.

Nvidia claims Ion, which pairs a GeForce 9400 GPU with Intel's Atom CPU, will change the nature of the netbook (Credit: Nvidia)

[SunkenCiv]

http://news.google.com/news?source=ig&hl=en&rlz=&ie=ISO-8859-1&tab=wn&ncl=1280829056

[SunkenCiv]

KansasFest 2009: July 21st to July 26th... 6 months and 14 days to go!
Jason Scott to keynote KansasFest 2009
Thursday, Dec. 18th 2008
http://www.kansasfest.org/

[SunkenCiv]

thanks Ernest, guess I missed this one:

USB 3.0 will crush eSATA, FireWire ( Alex tells us why )
CNET | January 13, 2009 11:21 AM PST | Alex Serpo
Posted on 01/17/2009 9:21:59 AM PST by Ernest_at_the_Beach
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2166445/posts

[SunkenCiv]

See HAL9000’s cool replies, beginning (I think) right here:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2164571/posts?page=88#88

[SunkenCiv]

100+ Free Applications for Mac OS X

[SunkenCiv]

I was looking for the Opera browser, and got a bum link, but hey...