OS X Fanatics

Behold The Power Adapted

Matt Hartley — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 07:40:04 +0000

I suppose that most people buy what is cheap when it comes to power adapters. After all, who really cares so long as they do not cause a fire or somehow lesson the life of a device that it is being used for.

Well if that adapter is potentially in violation of another company’s IP (intellectual property), then there may be a problem. And that appears to be the case between Apple and Media Solutions with a power adapter for the Mac. Seems that it is bad enough that there is going to be a court hearing over this.

What struck me as most fascinating about the entire article though, was the fact that apparently there are even companies out there that exist for the single purchase of collecting patent royalties. This may sound wild, but I see this everyday in the entertainment industry. So this idea is hardly far-fetched.

Apple Is holding A Commanding Share

Matt Hartley — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 07:30:42 +0000

Honestly was taken back by this number. Apple apparently, is commanding 47.71 percent on the computer retail sales market share. Mind you I am not speaking of operating systems, I am talking about the computers themselves.

Clearly this is great news as previously Apple was enjoying a lesser 33.44 percent share only a year before. And this is certainly great news for Apple, but there is a dark side that I feel is not being addressed by Apple specifically…least not yet.

Apple needs for their Tablet to be a big hit. Because they are slipping in laptop sales from 38% down to 34%. Anyone with a clue realizes this is obviously due to the netbooks that Apple was so quick to dismiss. But the fact is that these numbers could again change if the Apple Tablet is half as great as folks are hoping it is.

Blog Tracks App Store Rejections

Matt Hartley — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 07:15:42 +0000

Personally I think this is just awesome. Not that developer’s hard work is turning up bogus with app rejections, rather seeing a site actually working to track what is being rejected. Even more exciting is when a post shares some of the reasons why this might be happening.

I have been to the site and I must say, it is rather simple. Nothing too complicated, but I’ll say this much. When you read those posts, you know someone had to be hurting when they received that rejection notice. Because something that I think so many of us fail to realize is that one person’s app is another person’s blood, sweat and tears.

As the above article points out, the site in question really proves to be a tool that can be used to demonstrate what is not going to fly and what is. This is especially true when the changes requested by Apple are nearly impossible to do.

DOA Macs?

Matt Hartley — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 01:55:17 +0000

No one ever wants to hear that their brand new Mac is going to be dead on arrival right after purchase. Despite this obvious reality, it appears that this is exactly what is taking place with the Core i7 based iMacs.

I am not saying that this is reflective of Apple dropping the ball so much as there does appears to be a trend developing here. I have been hearing of similar issues elsewhere on the Web. Sadly, I am not hearing much from Apple on the matter.

So what are people recommending? Honestly, take it out of the box and test it. This is the advice coming from Engadget in the best approach to avoiding a very un-merry holiday season should you giving away one of these Macs as a gift.

Apple Goes Live With Live Music

Matt Hartley — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 01:53:45 +0000

It’s an interesting idea, but I remain skeptical as to how popular it is going to be seeing live events taking off via iTunes. Don’t get me wrong, I fully believe that live events over the Web tend to do very well. My concern is trapping people into enjoying them with iTunes.

Outside of the content provided, iTunes is not anything all that impressive. And I am willing to bet that I am not alone. While the presentation does appear to be a pleasant one for iTunes users, I would much rather watch the same event in the browser of my choice using something like Ustream or another service.

In the end, right idea with the wrong software. There is no doubt that movies and music can be a great experience from iTunes, but watching live events in my mind is just not a part of the package. Then again, I am not all that fond of iTunes, so your mileage may vary.

Apple Seeks To Close Lid On Psystar

Matt Hartley — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 01:50:08 +0000

I know, it’s difficult to believe that we are still talking about Psystar after all of this time and the various court battles. Yet despite this, here we are. Not only is Psystar not a real threat to Apple in any way, they are not even a PC seller that anyone in their right mind would bother with at this stage.

The fact of the matter is the most harm that was done happened to those who run the company in my estimation. And Apple’s biggest problem is the time and money they had to waste on this entire thing. So Apple seeking an injunction, is really not going to mean anything.

No, it is all but likely that Psystar is going to continue to what they have been all along. They will likely continue to sell PCs running OS X. And Apple’s world outside of a thorn in their legal dept.’s side, will remained largely un-phased.

Web Apps The Answer To Apple App Store Approval

Matt Hartley — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 01:14:37 +0000

Oddly enough, this makes a bit of sense. Rather than working hard, work smart. Stop fighting with Apple’s insane approval process and instead, develop a web app that can be promoted regardless of what Apple happens to think of it.

Yes, it is really this simple as pointed out in this piece here. Even better is regardless of whether you agree with this or not, the fact remains one can get an app out faster using the web approach.

The downside to all of this is that there is still a belief that applications for the iPhone must be installed. Merely offering up a shortcut is not enough. Wrong. As Google has shown us, we do not need to rely too heavily on the app store. As a matter of fact, you can use one link as a portal for a multitude of apps. It’s really not that big of an issue it would seem.

Apple Sounds Off On The iPhone Worm

Matt Hartley — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 01:13:38 +0000

Tell me this does not sound suspicious to you at all. Quote: “The worm affects only a very specific set of iPhone users who have jail broken their iPhones and hacked it with unauthorized software”. Yeah, you read that right. Apple clearly is not worried about this at all.

Honestly I might go so far as to say that Apple is quite happy about all of this. Think of it this way - who wants to jail break their phone and risk this worm going around! Now I will not go on record as saying that Apple is behind it, but man this does seem awful convenient for them.

Other people however, have gone on to point out that this worm only affects people with jail broken phones that are using the default password. So allegedly, a non-default password will make you safe. Personally, I will opt to not assume this is accurate and I have not jail broken my iPhone nor do I plan to.

Deals On Mac Prices On Black Friday

Matt Hartley — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 01:13:27 +0000

Today I learned that there are to be some pretty sweet deals for Apple fans, assuming they are able to handle the fact that the big savings are hardly worth getting out of bed for. A whopping 8% savings to be exact. Sorry, but I would not even get me to drive across town much less deal with the Black Friday mess!

On the flip side however, it does mean that people who were on the fence for making their latest Mac purchase. And even though these are considered entry level deals, for many people this might be just what the doctor ordered this holiday season.

With so much seemingly out of reach and things getting to be so expensive, at least we are able to see various aspects of retail cutting prices all over the place. And this time, it looks like computer companies are pulling out the stops as well.

Auto-Approval Hits The App Store

Matt Hartley — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:50:53 +0000

Like many others, I am skeptical as to how the news of automatic approvals will affect both the end users and the developers of individual iPhone apps alike. For many, it is suspected that this new procedure is going to lead to a number of false pstivies that could lead to app rejection.

Does this mean that app submissions could potentially become a round of Russian Roulette? I think it is possible, if not likely. Bad apps being allowed in while the good ones are not. Clearly the answer might not have been to automate this at all.

Personally, I would be very wary of this new system. Because no algorithm is going to be anywhere near as good as a real person, I believe this entire thing is going to turn into a big headache. Call it a hunch.

Apple Paying Their Fair Share of The Fare?

Matt Hartley — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:40:16 +0000

So how did Apple manage this sweet deal? How did they do it? Being able to hit a cap on how much royalty Apple owes to Qualcomm is something for the history books when you consider how much revenue is being generated through the iPhone these days.

Further investigation shows that more than anything, Apple has found themselves a really great loophole that is working well for them. The downside of course, is for Qualcomm in which Apple apparently has no direct relationship with their royalties.

Now the big question will be whether Qualcomm decided to press Apple for future royalties or worse, go retroactive on them. Some might point out that this is unlikely, but other still will remind all of us that the mobile industry is no stranger to lawsuits. And Apple is certainly an attractive target.

Smoke Around The Mac And Void The Warranty

Matt Hartley — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:32:40 +0000

Sorry to be the one to point this out, but as a reformed smoker from YEARS ago, if you smoke around any electronic appliance, you are an idiot if you expect the warranty to hold up.

Back in my PC repair days, I found countless computers caked in yellow nastiness from smokers, often creating issues with the PSU and the motherboard. So if Apple refuses to honor the warranty due to smoking around a computer in which visible evidence is there, then I see no issue here.

That said, calling it a bio-hazard without being able to quote a medical source is just dumb. Not saying that it isn’t mind you, rather I would take the statement a bit more seriously if they can provide their refused customers with a source.

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RadioShack To Sell The iPhone

Matt Hartley — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 07:58:21 +0000

Okay, I am lost here. Why is RadioShack going to be selling the iPhone? How in the heck is this any good to the consumer? Ah, it actually leaves them largely unaffected as we are still stuck with the same old AT&T network until Verizon gets things finalized.

So once again, why would anyone care about the iPhone coming to RadioShack? Greater availability? Hardly. No, the only people likely to give a rip sadly will likely be the shareholders.

And as expected, RadioShack shares are doing quite well due to the announcement. Clearly this is a good thing financially for RadioShack, despite my skepticism about whether or not the casual consumer will see any real benefit.

No More Guest Account Frustration

Matt Hartley — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 07:58:13 +0000

Finally, some relief from that nasty guest account bug is here. For many OS X users, this did not come a day too early. Other fixes include Spotlight not showing exchange contacts, four finger swipe gesture, VPN headaches among other items of interest that were fixed.

In my mind, I see this OS X update acting as a reminder that not all updates are created equal. Some of the bugs presented here are almost show stopping for some people, just annoying for others.

Yet in the end there is good news. Apple managed to get these things dealt with and that is just good news for everyone. It also means that Apple can once again focus their attention on coming up with features of the future vs cleaning up unfortunate bugs.

AT&T On The Defensive

Matt Hartley — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 07:58:04 +0000

If you own a TV, you have seen the countless commercials by AT&T’s biggest competitor hitting them with everything they have. And who can blame the,. just a few years ago they were in hot water as they lacked the iPhone while AT&T could provide it.

Today the playing field is fast becoming less about the iPhone and more about network reliability. Verizon has charged on a number of occasions, that they have the better setup. And if you ever go driving through rural areas like Montana, you will find that Verizon is right - AT&T is spotty at best in these regions.

Here in the near future, I suspect that we will once again see AT&T get their network up to snuff and potentially, give Verizon a serious run for their money in the PR field. Mind you they are a ways off for this, but it could happen.

Parallels Reups On VMWare

Matt Hartley — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:30:53 +0000

The idea that Mac users would utilize Parallels to move themselves off of Windows is unlikely at best. Don’t get me wrong, the Mac user is clearly going to prefer their desktop to that of a Windows one.

Despite this, in order to use products like Parallels translates into needing a copy of Windows. All virtualization really does is help two blend two operating systems a bit. Does nothing for saving money on Windows licenses.

And considering the popularity of products from VMWare, also for the Mac, I am wondering how all of this is to play out. One thing is for sure - if Parallels can now run Windows faster than VMWare, then clearly someone involved there had better be worried.

So Many Apps - So Few Used

Matt Hartley — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:29:31 +0000

So many apps, so difficult to find just the app you really want. Unlike my wife and others, I find that locating apps that I actually want to use is not as easy as I might like. Installing and using them on the other hand, no problem.

Despite this, it seems that roughly 80% of the available apps out there ever see the light of day. Based on my experience with discovery, I am hardly surprised. With such a great product and cool apps available, things might be a whole lot better if the average person could discover new application besides relying on random blog posts to help out.

So what is being done about this? Well, nothing, as it is the responsibility of the developer to get the word out. And I can totally understand this. Still, it would be a lot sweeter of a deal if there was a bigger push to make new and cool apps better known. But hey, whatever!

What The Heck Are Music Themed Videos?

Matt Hartley — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:29:16 +0000

Apple lost me on this one? Are they talking about music videos, MTV style? Or am I becoming so old that I am no longer in tune with the pulse of today’s music? The latter, does seem likely.

No, Apple is apparently going to be promoting documentaries that are featuring musical artists and making them available for distribution before the DVDs are released. Seriously, who the hell cares? Look, I like Apple’s iTunes content. I even enjoy music and documentaries. But this is clearly a case of mixing peanut butter with my chocolate.

Maybe I am all wet here, but I am not entirely sure there are THAT MANY music enthusiasts that are going to jump all over this. Some, sure. But I am highly skeptical that this even makes any sense.

Apple Tablet Is Not The eBook Reader You Wanted

Matt Hartley — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 01:33:23 +0000

The grand idea of the Apple Tablet becoming the next big eBook reader might not happen the way many of us thought according to this piece. Apparently this is simply not a market in which Apple wishes to spend much time with.

At the same time, with the video and music market already having Apple’s boot print firmly established, why would the company break what is already working so well for it? Are eBooks really that profitable? I would say yes, but it depends on the distribution.

In the end, the only one that comes out a loser are those hoping to see Apple embrace the written word anytime soon. But who really cares? The iPhone already has the Kindle application. So would it not stand to reason that we would already see the same thing thing for the Apple Tablet? There, problem solved.

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VMware and Parallels for Virtual Machines

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