Skip to main content

Blogs

Skype 2.8 beta for Mac released

Wednesday, 07 January 2009

Just in time for Macworld, those ridiculously talented Estonian engineers have come out with the latest version of everyone's favorite Internet phone and video calling software the Skype 2.8 beta.

Among other extras, this new version includes two all-new features: The first lets you use your Skype credit to pay for Boingo Wi-Fi hotspots on a minute-by-minute basis.

Macworld Team | Cyrus Farivar | Read more...


iLife '09 Guided Tours

Wednesday, 07 January 2009

Words can only take you so far, dear readers, and Apple knows this. That's why they have posted two video Guided Tours that show off all the new bells and whistles in iPhoto '09 and iMovie '09 (the page is called 'iLife '09 Guided Tours' and only those two apps are showcased, but perhaps more will be added with time.)

The great thing about these guided tours is that they really give you a feel for the new features; after all, if you're planning on plunking down your hard-earned cash you want to make sure it's worth it.

Macworld Team | Scott McNulty | Read more...


Macworld Expo Keynote: The recap, in advance

Tuesday, 06 January 2009

(Editor’s Note: Due to the tight deadlines required for publication, Mr. Moltz’s column on the Macworld Expo Keynote was due several days before the event actually took place. Not one to turn down a paycheck, Mr. Moltz agreed to take the assignment anyway, insisting he was “up to the task”.)

Macworld Expo 2009 began under a pall of uncertainty.

Macworld Team | John Moltz | Read more...


Software company press release hints at new Apple Mac mini

Tuesday, 06 January 2009

Sure, Apple tries to keep everything hush-hush when it comes to its product launches, but sometimes the best laid plans of mice and Jobs can be interrupted by the smallest of thing: a web-publishing glitch, pictures of new iPhone cases, or the odd, errant press release. Speaking of which:

New Mac Mini Hardware to Be Supported by Revolutionary SeeFile Web Sharing DAM Software

Macworld Team | Dan Moren | Read more...


What should Macworld Expo do next?

Tuesday, 06 January 2009

As we reported last week, Macworld Conference & Expo is holding a "town hall meeting" this Wednesday in San Francisco to discuss the future of Macworld Expo in a world where Apple isn't an Expo exhibitor.

Our own Jim Dalrymple will attend the event and report on what happens, and we'll also be in touch with Macworld Expo general manager Paul Kent this week to get more from him on the future of the biggest Apple-related trade show in existence.

Macworld Team | Jason Snell | Read more...


Music piracy: Is the RIAA admitting defeat?

Tuesday, 06 January 2009

The RIAA has called off some of its pit bulls, but don't expect a kindler gentler trade org to emerge in 2009.

The Wall Street Journal has confirmed a report that first surfaced on Jon Newton's P2Pnet blog saying the trade group has given walking papers to Media Sentry, one of the firms it hired to infiltrate file-sharing networks and track down music felons.

Macworld Team | Robert X. Cringely | Read more...


The finer points of finding free images

Monday, 05 January 2009

Free - it's my favourite word. It's probably the most popular word found in advertising to get you to buy something. But has free ever really meant free?

The catch is usually that you have to buy something in order to get something else free. Or maybe you have to agree to give up your personal information, forever dooming you to junk mail, to get that free hotel stay in Vegas.

Macworld Team | James Dempsey | Read more...


What Apple Can Teach Nintendo and Sony

Sunday, 04 January 2009

Nintendo, Sony: Let's talk for a sec - just you and me. Look, guys, over the past couple of years, you've had a great run. Nintendo, your DS has tons of games, a wide variety of unique stuff that's a blast to play.

Sony, your PSP is a gadget-lover's gaming tool, with everything from Skype to Internet-radio support (oh, yeah, and you have some cool games, as well). But unless you both do something in 2009, the iPhone and iPod Touch will soon become the top dogs in handheld gaming.

Macworld Team | Darren Gladstone | Read more...


Next from Apple: A large-screen iPod Touch?

Thursday, 01 January 2009

The latest iPod Touch is a nifty little gizmo that does a lot more than play tunes, but I've always found its 3.5-inch screen too tiny for watching movies or serious Web browsing.

After a few minutes of screen-tapping or finger-dragging to view Web pages designed for larger displays, well, things get tedious in a hurry. And movies? Better bring a magnifying glass.

Macworld Team | Jeff Bertolucci | Read more...


Possibly Apple faulty adapters on the loose

Wednesday, 31 December 2008

We waited and waited for Apple’s Mini DisplayPort to Dual-Link DVI adapter to start shipping.

Then we waited some more.

Macworld Team | Dan Moren | Read more...


Intel releases quad-core notebook processor

Wednesday, 31 December 2008

The problem with computer chips? You can’t run just one, these days. Seems like everything’s got multiple chips or dual core - it’s enough to make your head spin.

The current king of the heap for the Mac is, naturally, the Mac Pro, boasting your choice of one or two quad-core Intel Xeon chips.

Macworld Team | Dan Moren | Read more...


Tis the season for breaking and entering

Tuesday, 30 December 2008

‘Tis the season for breaking and entering. Following in the tradition of Santa Claus - the world’s greatest cat burglar - a pair of men appear to be robbing Apple stores in the Silicon Valley area.

The San Jose Mercury News reports that two thefts occurred last Sunday morning: one at the University Ave. store in Palo Alto, and another at the Los Gatos store about half an hour away.

Macworld Team | Dan Moren | Read more...


Teen uses Apple GarageBand, MacBook to record album

Thursday, 25 December 2008

I've had the opportunity to meet and talk music with some great talents in the music industry. Little did I know that a young talent lived only a couple of miles from my house in Bedford, Nova Scotia.

Sixteen year old songwriter Richard Wile contacted me on Facebook after seeing an article a local newspaper did about me last week. A Mac user himself, Wile asked if I would take a listen to a new album he just released.

Macworld Team | Jim Dalrymple | Read more...


Will Google and Microsoft own the Web?

Wednesday, 24 December 2008

It’s something of an open secret that Mozilla, the organization behind the open source Firefox Web browser, gets most of its funding from Google 91 per cent, to be exact. The deal gives Google top placement in Firefox’s search engine bar.

But now that Google is also shipping Chrome, its own branded browser, some critics are asking whether the search engine giant’s deep pockets have allowed it to gain too much influence over the Web browser market.

Macworld Team | Neil McAllister | Read more...


MacHeist spreads holiday cheer with Mac Giving Tree

Tuesday, 23 December 2008

It's that time of the season when kids get crazy excited and grown ups get crazy stressed out. Fortunately, the folks at MacHeist are letting us be kids again.

While MacHeist is generally known for selling application bundles, it's getting very much into the spirit of Christmas with its Mac Giving Tree, which gives registered users of the site free apps just for Christmas.

Macworld Team | David Dahlquist | Read more...


The ever-evolving Macworld Expo

Monday, 22 December 2008

I've been attending Macworld Expos regularly since about 1991 or so, first as a civilian, then as a booth worker, and, for the past decade or so, as a journalist. I've seen the show evolve and change a lot over the years.

Before the ascendancy of the Internet as a commerce vehicle, Macworld Expo was largely a flea market; a bazaar where vendors would go to hawk their wares, where people would come to get discounts on products that they had only read about in magazines.

Macworld Team | Peter Cohen | Read more...


RIAA stops suing individuals: Are we home free?

Monday, 22 December 2008

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has set aside its gavel and will stop prosecuting individuals for pirating digital music files, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Does this mean you should hop on Limewire and fill an iPod with illegal tunes? Not quite.

Instead of its usual strategy of pinning scofflaws and wringing them through the court system, the RIAA will shift the burden to ISPs.

Macworld Team | Brennon Slattery | Read more...


Apple shocks world, reveals it is a huge corporation

Monday, 22 December 2008

I'm just as bummed as you are that this Macworld Expo will be Apple's last (and that last year's Expo was apparently Steve Job's last), but I am a little shocked by the Mac community's reaction to what was ultimately a business decision.

g--

Macworld Team | Scott McNulty | Read more...


Apple co-founder to advise ModBook maker

Saturday, 20 December 2008

There are signs and portents everywhere in life if you just keep your eyes open and know where to look--eldritch harbingers that presage the terror of days to come.

Just such an omen arrived yesterday when an email was slipped over the transom at MacUser HQ from Axiotron, makers of the ModBook, announcing that a shadowy figure had silently glided onto the company's board of advisors on a pair of electrically-powered wheels.

Macworld Team | Dan Moren | Read more...


Ad stats: iPhone users sure love Wi-Fi

Friday, 19 December 2008

Yeah, your iPhone has access to that high-speed cellular data network. But admit it: you use Wi-Fi whenever you can, right? Why, these days I’m tempted to walk into every Starbucks I pass and log in for free Wi-Fi just because I can! 3G may beat EDGE, but Wi-Fi beats both.

Turns out we’re not alone. According to a report (PDF download) released on Thursday by mobile ad network AdMob, iPhone users divide their time almost evenly between cellular and Wi-Fi-based networks.

Macworld Team | Jason Snell | Read more...