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Apple is planning to unveil a robust new content distribution system in January at Macworld Expo alongside its revamped media-savvy Mac mini, Think Secret has learned. The new content system and related media deals, which will include feature-length content, expanded televisions offerings, and more, will further cement Apple's increasing lead in digital media delivery. In an effort to appease media companies wary of the security of digital rights management technology, Apple's new technology will deliver content such that it never actually resides on the user's hard drive. Content purchased will be automatically made available on a user's iDisk, which Front...

Long-time Expo goers won’t be surprised to hear it, but on Thursday IDG World Expo confirmed that Apple CEO Steve Jobs will headline the 2006 Macworld Conference & Expo with his trademark keynote address. The keynote address takes place on Tuesday, January 10, 2006 at 9:00 AM. Macworld Expo itself takes place from January 9 - 13, 2006, at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, Calif. “Steve’s keynote is always a great way to kick off the biggest Mac event of the year,” said David Korse, CEO of IDG World Expo. IDG World Expo noted that the 2005 San Francisco...

Apple Computer could introduce its first laptop computers based on Intel chips as early as January, which, together with robust sales of video iPods, should drive earnings higher, Citigroup said Wednesday. Citigroup analyst Richard Gardner raised his target on the computer maker's stock price to $71 from $51 and boosted his earnings forecasts for the next two years. For the current quarter, Gardner raised his revenue estimate to $5.5 billion from $4.8 billion and his earnings-per share forecast to 60 cents from 47 cents. He also raised his 2006 revenue forecast to $20.4 billion from $17.6 billion and his earnings...

Apple on Tuesday released Security Update 2005-009, which addresses issues with both Mac OS X and Mac OS X Server. Among the components affected in this release are apache_mod_ssl; CoreFoundation; CoreTypes; curl; iodbcadmin; OpenSSL; Safari;sudo; and syslog. The biggest changes for Mac OS X users are with the company’s Web browser software, Safari. In total, four separate issues have been fixed in this release. The first issue fixes a problem that affects Safari’s download directory, which is normally specified by the user. However, if a web site suggests an overlong filename for a download, it is possible for Safari to...

Apple is planning to release its first entry-level iBook laptops with Intel processors next January at Macworld Expo in San Francisco, highly reliable sources have confirmed to Think Secret. It is not known exactly what processors or price points the new models will debut at, but it is thought Apple will expand the iBook line with one additional model and will lower prices—in some cases possibly $200 or more—to entice current Windows users and prove to the market it will be more competitive with the likes of Dell, Gateway, HP and Sony.

Let me address the inevitable "Ubuntu vs. OS X" comparison. The thing that surprised me most about using the PowerMac was not that OS X's UI was better than Ubuntu's, which I have known for quite some time having used both regularly, but how small that difference really was. As I said, OS X's UI is a step up from GNOME's. However, I wouldn't say it is in a completely different league. In terms of the fundamental UI elements, GNOME is extremely competitive.

The version of OS X that Apple is developing in preparation for its transition to Intel hardware has caught up with the publicly available version for its Power PC-based Macs. OSx86 Project reports that: 'This marks the first time that Apple has released a copy of the OS for the Developer Transition Kits which is identical to the PPC version.' The website adds that this reflects the change in emphasis within Apple's engineering resources toward the Intel (x86) version of OS X. The latest x86 version is said to have much stronger security controls than before, designed to prevent the...

Shares of Apple Computer on Wednesday jumped to a record high as investors made bets on growth in its digital music and video businesses, analysts said. Shares of Apple, maker of the market-leading iPod digital music player and Macintosh computers, closed up $2.45 to $59.95 on the Nasdaq, a gain of more than 4 percent. Apple dominates the digital music business it helped establish, and its growth appears to be accelerating amid concern that industry sales are less than robust. "When everyone else is slowing and you're not, it means share gains," American Technology Research analyst Shaw Wu told Reuters....

Apple's Safari Web browser became the first browser to pass the Acid2 test. Acid2 is a test page, written to help browser vendors ensure proper support for Web standards in their products. Safari's lead was followed by internal builds of iCab and Konqueror, which both passed the test. Currently, Safari is the only publicly available browser to pass Acid2. The latest preview of Opera reportedly comes close to meeting the strict standards, with only one outstanding bug.

In a new (probably a coding screw-up) move, Gap Inc and their associate brand sites (Gap brands include Banana Republic, Old Navy, Gap, Gap Kids and their new brand: Forthe and Towne ) fail to allow Apple Safari users from loading. Users will only receive a continually reloading URL bar with blank pages. Mac users wanting to have access should contact custserv@gap.com and alert them to the problem!

Apple may not be able to roll out its Intel-based Macs on schedule as it had hoped, because Intel won't be releasing its Woodcrest and Merom processors until the third quarter of next year. A report from The Inquirer notes that "Apple is big, but not nearly big enough to bully Intel," and that the company is attempting to put pressure on Intel in the hopes that the chips will be delivered early. Intel is apparently not providing Apple with preferential treatment, despite the pressure, according to the report.

Apple has posted Security Update 2005-008, available for download either by using the Software Update system preferences pane or by visiting Apple’s Web site. Separate versions have been posted for Mac OS X v10.3.9 and Mac OS X v10.4.2. For Tiger users, the security update incorporates changes to the ImageIO, LibSystem, Mail, QuickDraw, Ruby, SecurityAgent and securityd applications. Panther users see updates to the LibSystem, LoginWindow, Mail, QuickDraw, QuickTimeJava, Safari, SecurityAgent and SecurityServer applications. Changes to Mail include a fix that prevents unencrypted responses from being generated by auto-reply rules applied to encrypted messages. QuickDraw Manager has been updated to...

SEPTEMBER 19, 2005 (TECHWORLD.COM) - Mac users are "operating under a false sense of security," according to Symantec Corp., and Firefox users will have to recognize that the popular open-source Web browser is currently a greater security risk than Microsoft Corp.'s Internet Explorer.Symantec's latest Internet Security Threat Report, published today, found evidence that attackers are beginning to organize for attacks on the Mac operating system. Researchers also found that over the past six months, nearly twice as many vulnerabilities surfaced in Mozilla browsers as in Explorer. "It is now clear that the Mac OS is increasingly becoming a target for...

Macworld Daily News Wednesday - September 07, 2005 FEMA locks Mac users from hurricane relief By Jonny Evans Mac and Linux-using hurricane survivors are unable to use Federal disaster relief claim form services online. This is because the much-criticized US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has created a service that only works with Windows and Internet Explorer 6. This acts to the frustration of survivors lucky enough to be able to access a Mac or Linux computer, and to the reported consternation of disaster relief teams on the ground. However, some Mac users exploiting the Opera browser (which by default...

MacBidouille reported late last week that Apple Legal has taken action against the information floating around the web demonstrating successful use of Mac OS X on 3rd party PC hardware. This is exactly what Apple Legal has started to do last night (Central Europe time) by sending us an amazingly aggressive email asking for the immediate removal of all links to the videos showing OSX x86 booting from non-Apple certified SDK PC. MacBidiuille notes that Apple will have a difficult time keeping these efforts under check... especially once Mac OS X for Intel becomes publicly available. At present, it appears...

Apple security update breaks 64-bit applications A security update released on Tuesday by Apple Computer rendered 64-bit optimized applications for Mac OS X unusable. The update, which fixed many issues with the operating system, left some companies scrambling to explain to customers why their applications stopped working. One company, Wolfram Research, contacted its customers via email to explain why their 64-bit optimized Mathematica 5.2 stopped working after users installed the Apple update. “Due to an error on the part of Apple, this update prevents any 64-bit-native application from running,” said Wolfram in the note to customers. “In particular, this means...

Security Update 2005-007 delivers a number of security enhancements and is recommended for all Macintosh users. This update includes the following components: AppKit BlueTooth CoreFoundation cups Directory Services HIToolBox Kerberos loginwindow Mail OpenSSL QuartzComposerScreenSaver Security Interface Safari X11 zlib For detailed information on this Update, please visit this website: http://www.info.apple.com/kbnum/n61798

Does anyone else remember there was a rumor just before the OSX x86 announcement that Steve Jobs was willing to give up a bit of profit for more market share? Well, it looks like that is exactly what is happening and more. If you haven't heard already, the developer kit for OSX on Intel has been leaked and thousands of people all over the world are running OSX on their PCs right now. Now, there are a few different types of people running this pirated version of OSX. The curious type who just want to play with OSX, those who...

Mac enthusiast sites reported Friday that Apple Computer's operating system for Intel-based computers, which is currently in the hands of developers, has both been leaked to the Internet and cracked so that it will run on non-Apple hardware.

MacBidouille posts a claim that some individuals have been able to launch Mac OS X for Intel Processors on non-Apple Developer Kit hardware. According to the unconfirmed claims, any dependancy on the TPM digital rights chip have been "cracked" and specific hardware requirements can be worked around with emulation. These solutions can be slow, so the best solution recommended is simply choosing compatible hardware to start. (Recommendations are listed). The supplied screenshot appears to have been pulled. Videos were also posted, but are presently unavailable due to server load.