Snow Leopard

Though users of older Intel-based Macs were led to believe they would have to spend $169 to migrate from Tiger to Snow Leopard, new reports state the $29 upgrade disc will work just fine.

In his review of Snow Leopard, Walt Mossberg of The Wall Street Journal, Mossberg reveals that those who have been hesitant to upgrade their Mac will be able to take advantage of Snow Leopard's bargain price, without the need to install the intermediate Leopard operating system first.

"For owners of Intel-based Macs who are still using the older Tiger version of the Mac OS, Apple is officially making Snow Leopard available only in a "boxed set" that includes other software and costs $169," Mossberg said. "The reasoning is that these folks never paid the $129 back in 2007 to upgrade to Leopard. But here's a tip: Apple concedes that the $29 Snow Leopard upgrade will work properly on these Tiger-equipped Macs, so you can save the extra $140."

Wired also confirmed that they were able to upgrade a system directly from Tiger to Snow Leopard. In addition, it is possible to completely erase a hard drive and install Snow Leopard without a pre-existing operating system in place, enabling users to bypass the possible headaches of an upgrade and go with a clean install instead. Wired said many users upgrading from Tiger should probably consider backing up their files from Tiger and doing a clean install instead.

"Of course, the transition isn't guaranteed to be as smooth as it would be from Leopard to Snow Leopard," the report said of the Tiger to Snow Leopard upgrade, "and that's because some older, Tiger-only third-party applications need to be upgraded to newer versions that work with Leopard or Snow Leopard."

Originally released in April 2005, Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger is more than a little long in the tooth at this point, especially considering the astounding success of its follow-up, Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard.

Start using the Internet wherever life takes you with TetherBerry - now almost 50% off

A special offer from SWREG and TetherBerry     Specifications Price: $49.95 $25.95 Platform: · Supports 64 bit machines · Supports VPN connections as well as PC control software/websites · One license is valid for one BlackBerry but multiple PCs · Only supports USB based connections · Please review your carrier's contract and review our Terms of Service "One of the biggest reasons I like TetherBerry is it helped my cut communication costs for my daughter. I was paying $60 a month for a wireless card on her laptop and TetherBerry not only took the place of the wireless card, thus saving me money but the download speeds were much better. TetherBerry also provides me with an outstanding connection whether I'm on the road or at the office and since it's a part of my Blackberry it's with me everywhere I go. And finally it works as advertised. So many programs make promises but sadly only a few really deliver and TetherBerry has definitely delivered. Thanks TetherBerry!!!" - Paul R. "Try it and be amazed. TetherBerry is awesome! I like TB because its works! Plug my BlackBerry in and is seconds up and running. Can't get any easier." - Randy   TetherBerry Imagine the freedom of the web anywhere – on your laptop from your BlackBerry® Have you ever been stuck in an airport, hotel room, coffee shop, or on the road with no Internet? Frustrated paying $9.95 for 30 minutes of Internet service? Resorting to your BlackBerry but wished you could use your laptop? TetherBerry is here to provide a solution to all those worries! TetherBerry is an application that allows your PC to take advantage of your BlackBerry Smartphone's data plan, allowing you to access the Internet on your laptop anywhere there is cellular coverage from your BlackBerry. TetherBerry is easy to install, easy to use, works practically anywhere and is cost effective. Now, through this exclusive limited time offer, you can buy TetherBerry for only $25.95 – that's a savings of almost 50% off the regular price. Features Internet Anywhere You can use TetherBerry anywhere you can make phone calls.   Easy Setup Download our software to your Blackberry and another for your laptop. Then surf the web and email just like you would with any Internet connection.   Fast Speeds Download speeds that are impressive. Our users download at speeds up to 1,800 kbps.   No Tethering Fees TetherBerry uses your phone's data plan and we do not charge tethering fees.*   All Blackberry Smartphones TetherBerry is compatible with all Blackberry Smartphones.   All Carriers TetherBerry has been used by carriers all over the world. Some carriers do require APN settings, though. Note: it appears TetherBerry product does not work on the iDen Network.   Windows & Mac Compatible TetherBerry is compatible on Windows and Mac.   If you hate being without the Internet, or are frustrated of ridiculous fees for Internet service, then TetherBerry is your solution. Buy TetherBerry today for only $25.95 – that's a savings of almost 50% off the regular price. And it's a small price considering you can access the Internet anywhere, anytime. If you break, lose, or damage your phone, you can replace TetherBerry at no extra charge. Get started with TetherBerry today and start using the Internet wherever life takes you! Click on the Buy Now button to get started. *TetherBerry uses your phone's data plan and we do not charge tethering fees. Please refer to our Terms of Service. BlackBerry®, RIM®, Research In Motion®, SureType® and related trademarks, names and logos are the property of Research In Motion Limited and are registered and/or used in the US and countries around the world. IMPORTANT: this offer is only valid for a limited period of time!

T

TidBITS Problem Solving: Apple Acknowledges Guest Account Data Loss Bug

http://db.tidbits.com/article/10642

New Apple Products Introduced TODAY

Tuesday, October 20th, 2009

Apple unveils new iMacs with 21.5 and 27-inch displays

Apple on Tuesday unveiled an all new iMac line dual- and quad-core iMacs featuring LED-backlit 21.5 and 27-inch widescreen displays in a new edge-to-edge glass design and seamless all aluminum enclosure. ( 259 comments )

Apple intros MacBook overhaul with LED display, 7-hour battery

Apple Tuesday released a newly redesigned MacBook with a polycarbonate unibody design, LED-backlit display, multi-touch trackpad, and built-in battery with 7 hours of run time. ( 66 comments)

Apple takes wraps off new multi-touch Bluetooth Magic Mouse

Apple on Tuesday released what the company heralded as the first-ever multi-touch mouse, a new product called the Magic Mouse, the successor to the Mighty Mouse. ( 86 comments )

Apple quietly unveils new hardware remote

Amidst a number of new product launches Tuesday, Apple also released a new aluminum remote that can be used with any Mac or iPod Universal Dock. ( 11 comments )

Apple's offers faster Mac minis and new server-oriented model

Three new Mac mini models were released by Apple Tuesday, with a 1TB Mac OS X Server option accompanied by two faster, upgraded consumer-level versions. ( 29 comments )

Apple updates Time Capsule, AirPort Extreme with speed boost

Both the AirPort Extreme wireless networking tool and Time Capsule backup appliance were given speed and performance upgrades by Apple on Tuesday. ( 3 comments )

MacSTAC (October Meeting - TOMORROW, 6:30 Pm, Vestal Library

Come rain or SNOW (no way - not until Halloween), we will meet
tomorrow night. Sorry for the late notice.

We have a group of interesting topics to tickle your interest plus
Questions and Answers, no news from Apple (where ARE the new iMacs and
Mac Mini's?), and of course good sociality with soft drinks and yummy
cookies and popcorn, plus a bit of free software to give away.

Hope you can make it.

Ben

Dyson launches the bladeless electric fan

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/5ba62a00-b755-11de-9812-00144feab49a.html?nclick_check=1

Make Your Own Handwriting Fonts

YourFonts.com is an online service that allows you to
make a TrueType font out of your handwriting. Just print
out a template, write each character in the predefined
boxes, scan, and upload it. As soon as your font is
generated, you'll be able to preview, download, and
install your font and start using it in your Windows,
Mac OS X and Linux applications.

http://www.user-groups.net/news/YourFonts.html

Let Me Google That for Yo

One of my pet peeves is having someone send me an email
about some thing that at least to me is an obvious urban
legend. Of course some of my friend actually send it to
me expecting me to do the Snopes search.

http://www.ugnn.com/2009/10/let_me_google_that_for.html

DrawIt Vector-Drawing for Mac

The latest version of this easy-to-use, powerful
vector-drawing application for Mac, is unique in that
it presents the user with a simple and clean interface,
yet packs an impressive assortment of useful,
professional features

http://www.user-groups.net/news/DrawIt.html

Nigerian scams on Craig List

The Internet Spam Police Twitter account has tweeted about the
spread of Nigerian scams into Craig's List.  She'll give you a sure
way to see if the answer to your Craig List advertising is spam or not
... http://bit.ly/pdXOF
... Also see Craigslist spam rules

http://www.craigslist.org/about/scams.html

Bento 3

Apple subsidiary FIlemaker today announced the release of Bento 3, a significant update to the company's personal database software. Priced at $49 for a single-user license or $99 for a five-user family pack, Bento 3 adds integration with iPhoto, sharing of libraries over local networks, and new options for viewing information.

"Think of Bento 3 as a powerful, easy way to bring together all of your key Mac information and photos," said Ryan Rosenberg, vice president, marketing and services, FileMaker, Inc. "With Bento 3, we're providing new ways for you to view and interact with your information so you can organize contacts, projects, events and even more details of your life."

Filemaker is offering a $20 instant rebate through January 28th, 2010 for users upgrading from Bento 1 or Bento 2, and is offering a free upgrade to any customers who purchased Bento 2 between August 30th, 2009 and October 14th, 2009.

Bento was introduced in November 2007, and a companion iPhone application was launched earlier this year. An update to the iPhone application is due to be released today, bringing compatibility with Bento 3.

Printer on the fritz? Need help? See below............

http://www.fixyourownprinter.com/

Weekly Utilities Update: Peek-a-Boo, CleanMyMac, BackupLoupe, more...

October 9, 2009 12:05 AM PDT

by Topher Kessler

Our Weekly Utilities Update report is a list of all the updates for many Mac utilities that have been released in the past week. While utilities can be any tool that helps you perform a routine task (including image manipulation and synchronization), our main focus in this column is to bring you those that help in troubleshooting Mac hardware and software problems.

Weekly Review: Peek-a-Boo

There are a number of Activity Monitor alternatives out there, and when you see the brief description of Peek-a-boo it may appear as yet another process viewer. While this is technically true, it strives to display processes and system events in unique ways that are rather useful as well as fun.

The idea behind Peek-a-Boo is to give you another angle on interpreting what is happening in your system. Most process viewers show processes, statistics, and attributes in lists, but Peek-a-Boo goes one step further to visualize the same data in a window they call the "Throb" window. This visualizer is a window that combines the CPU usage and Virtual Memory usage of applications in a large field, where each process is represented by it's icon (if available), with the size of the icon representing the amount of CPU being used, and the speed at which it moves around the field being the amount of virtual memory being used.

The throb window is an active view with icons zooming around and changing sizes as they use different amounts of CPU and VM.

(Credit: Screenshot by Topher

In addition to just the Throb window, the developers have gone so far as to enable a full-screen view of this field, allowing for more processes to be seen at once. It's an amusing way to look at your system activity, and you can immediately see what applications are using more resources than others.

The "Throb" view can be shown at full screen, where the icons overlay your desktop and zip all over your screen.

(Credit: Screenshot by Topher

One minor change I'd suggest is to switch the representation of the CPU and VM usage in the Throb window. It would be more intuitive to have the virtual memory usage be represented by the size of the icon, and the CPU usage being represented by the icon's speed in the field, but the idea is great and works.

Overall the program feels a little unfinished, but this is mainly from a trivial aesthetic point of view. There are some visual artifacts and odd window sizes, but is quite useful as it stands. While it is a work in progress, it has great potential as a troubleshooting utility (especially for visual people), and is worth checking out, even if just for the fun of seeing the representation of processes in the "Throb" window.

The program is $29 shareware, and the latest version (v2.8.2) can be downloaded from the developer's website:http://www.clarkwood.com/peekaboo/

Other Recent Utility Updates:

• iPulse 2.1.10 - Compact system monitoring tool.
• dupeGuru 2.8.1 - Find duplicate files on your computer and get rid of them.
• CleanMyMac 1.6.1 - Clean up your Mac & free up hard drive space with a few clicks.
• MacCleanse 1.4.9 - Scan and delete unnecessary files on your Mac.
• TimeMachineEditor 2.5 - Change your Time Machine backup schedule & more.
• GrupaDupa 2.0 - Find duplicates on any folder or hard disk very fast.
• A Better Finder Attributes 4.42 - Change EXIF timestamp, file dates and other attributes.
• A Better Finder Rename 8.32 - Powerful file, photo, and MP3 batch renamer with advanced features.
• BackupLoupe 1.8 - Browse Time Machine backups & find frequently copied items.
• VirtualBox 3.0.8 - Virtualization package for Windows and Linux.
• Display Maestro 1.0.7 - Access all display resolutions and bit depths.

Keep in mind that while utilities can help in a vast majority of cases, as with any software, they can be buggy. Since these utilities were recently updated, these are actively being developed and are currently assumed to work. However, developers cannot take into account all system configurations, so be sure to back up your system before running any utilities for the first time. Additionally, double-check with the developer's Web site to be sure they are compatible with your system version. Incompatibilities with system software are the main reason why utilities and programs function improperly.

Apple and Skype React to AT&T's Announcement of Support for iPhone VoIP Service

Written by Eric Slivka

Following AT&T's announcement that it will now allow iPhone Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services over its mobile network, Apple and VoIP provider Skype have issued public statements reacting to today's announcement.

The Associated Press reports that Apple will be moving forward as quickly as possible to enable customers to take advantage of the functionality.

Apple welcomed the announcement. "We are very happy that AT&T is now supporting VOIP applications," said Apple spokeswoman Natalie Kerris. "We will be amending our developer agreements to get VOIP apps on the App Store and in customers' hands as soon as possible."

Skype president Josh Silverman also applauded the move, as his company will now be able to expand the usability of its iPhone application, which has been limited to Wi-Fi access only for VoIP services.

All of us at Skype applaud today's announcement by AT&T (in an FCC filing to be published shortly - update, it's here in PDF format) that it'll open up its 3G network to Internet calling applications such as Skype. It's the right step for AT&T, Apple, millions of mobile Skype users and the Internet itself.

Silverman notes, however, that the company still hopes to see government policies enacted to provide for the openness necessary for Skype to be available throughout the industry.