[MyAppleMenu] Feb 8, 2001

[applesurf at myapplemenu.com]

MyAppleMenu Newsletter

== AppleSurf (Top Stories) ==============

 Sixth-Graders Road-Test Laptop In Pilot Project (San Jose Mercury News)
<http://www0.mercurycenter.com/partners/distribution/docs/laptop020701.htm>
For the next three months, much of what the students usually keep in thick notebook binders will be stored in the iBooks, which they can take home. And instead of having to trek to a library or compete for time on a PC in a crowded computer lab, they'll be able to turn to the iBook for research or homework help.

== AppleSurf (News) ==============

 PowerBook Essential Tool For Neurosurgery (PowerBook Zone)
<http://www.pbzone.com/pbjob4.shtml>

 Netscape 6.01 Available On Netscape (MacNN)
<http://www.macnn.com/news.php?id=3184>

 'World's Tiniest' Drive Is A Clip-On With Flash (The Modesto Bee)
<http://www.modbee.com/technology/story/0,1161,236821,00.html>
Using its built-in clip or ring, the Flash USB Drive clips into a shirt pocket or can be attached to a key chain.

 Sixth-Graders Road-Test Laptop In Pilot Project (San Jose Mercury News)
<http://www0.mercurycenter.com/partners/distribution/docs/laptop020701.htm>
For the next three months, much of what the students usually keep in thick notebook binders will be stored in the iBooks, which they can take home. And instead of having to trek to a library or compete for time on a PC in a crowded computer lab, they'll be able to turn to the iBook for research or homework help.

 3-D Graphics Get Flashed (MacWEEK.com)
<http://macweek.zdnet.com/2001/02/04/0207flash3d.html>
3-D graphics applications are getting Flashed, as developers of modeling, rendering and animation programs are adding Macromedia Flash export capabilities.

 Titaniums Trickling In Slowly, Some Delayed (MacNN)
<http://www.macnn.com/news.php?id=3173>

 The Readers Speak: QuarkXPress (MacWEEK.com)
<http://macweek.zdnet.com/2001/02/04/0207rsquark.html>
Our recent coverage of Quark's plans for QuarkXPress 5.0 generated many heated comments from readers, some of whom are miffed by Quark's intention to hold off on natively supporting Mac OS X in the forthcoming upgrade.

 Interview With Bill Amend, Author Of Foxtrot Comic Strip (The Mac Observer)
<http://www.macobserver.com/article/2001/02/06.11.shtml>

 CoolPad Reconfigured For Titanium PowerBook (MacCentral)
<http://www.maccentral.com/news/0102/07.coolpad.shtml>
"We've added extra supports to the Podium for more stability with these widebody laptops," Jim MacEachern of Road Tools told MacCentral.

 Good News For Marathon Nuts (Macworld UK)
<http://www.macworld.co.uk/news/main_news.cfm?NewsID=2456>
Rubicon is the largest Marathon project ever, its new content including an extra 360 new textures, 12 characters, different sceneries and eight weapons.

== AppleSurf (Opinions) ==============

 Will OS X Entice PC Users (Macinstein)
<http://www.macinstein.com/pressrelease.cfm?ID=778>

 Apple Vs. The Skin Trade (ZDNet)
<http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/comment/0,5859,2682938,00.html>
"Taking the beauty that is Aqua and wrapping it around the ugliness that is Windows is a degrading insult, no matter how much the uncreative try to convince you that it is the sincerest form of flattery."

 Will OS X Succeed? It's Up To Application Developers (Macworld)
<http://macworld.zdnet.com/2001/02/07/osxdiary8.html>
I have been dazzled by the many rabbits Steve Jobs and company have pulled from their hats in the past, and I certainly hope this software problem is just a bunny waiting to get yanked up by the ears at another Steve Jobs faith-healing session. We're ready for a new operating system and the new operating system seems (mostly) ready for us, but are the software companies ready in the wings with their applications?

== AppleSurf (Reviews) ==============

 TurboTax Simplifies Tax Filing Chores (The Detroit News)
<http://technology.cincinnati.com/cgi-bin/technology/techwrapper.pl?URL=http://www.gannettonline.com/e/newproducts/10000686.html&AFFIL=CIN>

 Rewind (CNET)
<http://home.cnet.com/software/0-3747-8-4684184-2.html?tag=st.sw.3747-8-4684184-1.arrow.3747-8-4684184-2>
Rewind is one of those rare applications that breaks new ground. At $99.95 ($89.95 for the downloaded version), Rewind will prove its value the first time you have to use it.

 NetBarrier 2 (MacNN)
<http://reviews.macnn.com/reviews/netbarrier2/netbarrier2.phtml>
There are countless situations when NetBarrier 2.0 is must-have utility, but the average Internet user generally isn't one of them. If the features and cost fit your needs, NetBarrier 2.0 is a valuable utility, but certainly not one that everyone needs.

== The Wintel Empire (Top Stories) ==============

 IBM: We Don't Need No Stinking Clamshells! (ZDNet)
<http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/news/0,4586,2683196,00.html>
The Armonk, N.Y.-based computer maker is working to redefine what people view as a notebook computer by moving away from traditional forms to exotic but more functional designs.

== The Wintel Empire (News) ==============

 IBM: We Don't Need No Stinking Clamshells! (ZDNet)
<http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/news/0,4586,2683196,00.html>
The Armonk, N.Y.-based computer maker is working to redefine what people view as a notebook computer by moving away from traditional forms to exotic but more functional designs.

 Windows 2000 Sales Figures Only Tell Part Of Story (CNET News.com)
<http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1003-201-4745235-0.html?tag=cd_pr>
Many analysts, Microsoft partners and customers are largely in agreement that Windows 2000 Server is one of the most stable and reliable products Microsoft has released. But they also agree that Active Directory has been such a bear to implement that very few Windows 2000 Server customers are using it.

 MSN Messenger Calls For The Cavalry To Fight AOL (ZDNet)
<http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/news/0,4586,2683049,00.html>
Microsoft is close to launching a new version of its instant messaging service that could link its network with rivals such as Yahoo, according to sources familiar with the plans.

== Breaking Barriers (Top Stories) ==============

 IM Interoperability Remains In AOL's Hnads (Gartner Viewpoint)
<http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-201-4746338-0.html?tag=owv>
Without AOL's participation, "interoperability" will have a small impact: AOL's three services--AOL, AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) and ICQ--account for a huge preponderance of the market, with more than 50 million consumers. An aggregation of three small fractions of the market will make little difference.

== Breaking Barriers (News) ==============

 Tme For Change (Far Eastern Economic Review)
<http://www.feer.com/_0102_08/p040innov.html>
If at first you don't succeed, consult. That's what dotcoms desperate for revenues are doing.

 Internet Age Becomes The Dark Age (New York Times)
<http://partners.nytimes.com/2001/02/08/technology/08POWE.html?Partner=UserLand&RefId=gPj_EFnnunFn2>

 CNET Shuts Gamecenter (The Register)
<http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/50/16701.html>
The move is part of a streamlining plan announced today that will see around 190 people, 10 per cent of CNET's workforce, lose their jobs.

 Stephen King Reveals The Plant Profit (The Register)
<http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/16728.html>
Horror maestro Stephen King has revealed he made nearly half a million dollars from his e-book experiment The Plant.

 Murdoch Didn't Like The Interent Years Ago; He Must Really Hate It Now (The Industry Standard)
<http://www.inside.com/jcs/Story?article_id=22994&pod_id=7>
After pouring 1.5 billion pounds worldwide into online ventures, Rupert Murdoch's shifting his attention to satellite TV. What went wrong?

 Is The Web The Only Place To Place Newspaper Ads? (BusinessWeek)
<http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/feb2001/nf2001028_806.htm>
A startup is betting its future that it is. The odds -- and the competition -- are stacked against this strategy.

 Revisiting Amazon's Business Plan (osOpinion)
<http://www.osopinion.com/perl/story/7337.html>
Is it time for Amazon.com to cease pretending to be a discount bookstore and change its prices to reflex its true business model?

 Netscape 6.01 Available On Netscape (MacNN)
<http://www.macnn.com/news.php?id=3184>

 IM Interoperability Remains In AOL's Hnads (Gartner Viewpoint)
<http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-201-4746338-0.html?tag=owv>
Without AOL's participation, "interoperability" will have a small impact: AOL's three services--AOL, AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) and ICQ--account for a huge preponderance of the market, with more than 50 million consumers. An aggregation of three small fractions of the market will make little difference.

 Barnes&Noble.com Writes Another Sorry Chapter (CNET News.com)
<http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1007-201-4747630-0.html?tag=owv>
Online bookseller Barnes&Noble.com fell woefully short of analysts' estimates in its fourth quarter Wednesday and announced it will lay off 350 employees, or 16 percent of its staff. It also slashed its sales outlook for 2001.

 Is Amazon's Biggest Critic Crying Wolf? (News.com)
<http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1007-201-4748004-0.html?tag=owv>
Lehman Brothers bond analyst Ravi Suria, one of Amazon.com's biggest critics, issued his third and potentially most scathing research report this week, leaving Wall Street to debate whether the e-tailer will face a lethal credit squeeze or prove Suria to be the analyst who cried wolf.

 MSN Messenger Calls For The Cavalry To Fight AOL (ZDNet)
<http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/news/0,4586,2683049,00.html>
Microsoft is close to launching a new version of its instant messaging service that could link its network with rivals such as Yahoo, according to sources familiar with the plans.

== PenguinSurf (News) ==============

 Big Players Won't Dim Linux Bulbs (InternetWek)
<http://www.internetweek.com/reviews01/rev020501-4.htm>
Barring any hidden profitability goals (and I'm hoping someone in the OS community has floated this already), the more development IBM does for Linux and open source in general, the better.

 From FUD To Trash Talk (Linux.com)
<http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/comment/0,5859,2682654,00.html>
A big part of Microsoft's problem is that the Linux community doesn't see the need to counter-attack or even play the game. While certain parts of the community will never let a bad word about Linux go unchallenged, most folks have come to realize that while the new "recognition" by Microsoft is bound to turn up some legitimate flaws, it also establishes Linux and open source as the alternative.

== The AppleSurf Reader ==============

 Stephen King Reveals The Plant Profit (The Register)
<http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/16728.html>
Horror maestro Stephen King has revealed he made nearly half a million dollars from his e-book experiment The Plant.

== SingaporeSurf (Top Stories) ==============

 SingTel's Connections May Be Costing It Plenty (BusinessWeek)
<http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/feb2001/nf2001028_695.htm>
It actually seems to hurt SingTel's case that 44-year-old Lee is the youngest son of Singapore's globally recognized elder statesman, Lee Kuan Yew. Having such a well-connected CEO at the helm of SingTel makes other governments nervous.

 KL Seeks More Time; PM Agrees (Straits Times)
<http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/primenews/story/0,1870,22106,00.html?>
Feb 10 deadline for railway-land issue is extended; after meeting DPM Abdullah, Mr Goh agrees in principle to moving Keppel station to Kranji.

== SingaporeSurf (News) ==============

 SingTel's Connections May Be Costing It Plenty (BusinessWeek)
<http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/feb2001/nf2001028_695.htm>
It actually seems to hurt SingTel's case that 44-year-old Lee is the youngest son of Singapore's globally recognized elder statesman, Lee Kuan Yew. Having such a well-connected CEO at the helm of SingTel makes other governments nervous.

 JBJ Closer To Losing Seat In Parliament (Straits Times)
<http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/singapore/story/0,1870,22110,00.html?>
The judge had ruled that the opposition leader was bound by an order made on Nov 3 last year consenting to be made a bankrupt if he failed to pay, on time, the instalment payments for the defamation damages he owed to eight people.

 KL Seeks More Time; PM Agrees (Straits Times)
<http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/primenews/story/0,1870,22106,00.html?>
Feb 10 deadline for railway-land issue is extended; after meeting DPM Abdullah, Mr Goh agrees in principle to moving Keppel station to Kranji.

 Sentosa Residential Plans Put On Hold -- Again (Business Times Singapore)
<http://business-times.asia1.com.sg/4/news/nfrnt01.html>
Plans to develop residential properties on Sentosa island have again been put on hold in view of the weak market, sources said.

 Singapore Opposition Leader Considers Bankruptcy Appeal (BBC News)
<http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/asia-pacific/newsid_1158000/1158869.stm>

== SingaporeSurf (Technology) ==============

 Autodesk Moves To Singapore (IDG)
<http://www.idg.com.sg/dev/idgnew.nsf/UNID/78E3B0A2A4897CE0482569EB0009BE60!opendocument>

== SingaporeSurf (Entertainment) ==============

 Cheers To Right Spots For Imbibing (Project Eyeball)
<http://eyeball.asia1.com.sg/Eyeball/Story/1,1381,13119,00.html?>
Eyeball embarked on a reconnaissance mission, and after countless vodkas and Red Bulls, we have come up with a list of places you could head out to the next time you need a drink, whatever the reasons for imbibing.