[MyAppleMenu] Dec 12, 2006

[applesurf at myapplemenu.com]

MyAppleMenu
==================================================
<http://www.myapplemenu.com/>
Mac news for Mac people

[News]

*** Apple A-Quiver Over iPod Vibrator Copyright Clash
<http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2006/12/12/apple_threatens_ipod_vibe/>
Reg Hardware

*** There Are Now Two iPods In Space
<http://www.macworld.co.uk/ipod-itunes/news/index.cfm?newsid=16722&pagtype=allchandate>
Jonny Evans, Macworld UK

Not one, but two iPods on the International Space Station.

*** iTunes Interest Climbs As One Analyst Cliams Falling Sales
<http://www.macworld.co.uk/news/index.cfm?RSS&newsID=16721>
Jonny Evans, Macworld UK

Two separate reports offer contrasting opinion on the health of the digital music market.

*** iTunes Sales 'Collapsing'
<http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/12/11/digital_downloads_flatline/>
Andrew Orlowski, The Register

The leading DRM digital download service, Apple's iTunes, has experienced a collapse in sales revenues this year according to analyst company Forrester Research. While the iTunes service saw healthy growth for much of the period, since January the monthly revenue has fallen by 65 per cent, with the average transaction size falling 17 per cent.

*** Apple's Number Of 'New-To-Mac' Buyers Growing
<http://www.appleinsider.com/article.php?id=2294>
Katie Marsal, AppleInsider

A recent survey of twenty Apple Specialist retailers shows that approximately 25 percent of customers buying Macs are new to the platform and that the figure is likely to keep rising due to the iPod "halo effect" and Apple's Boot Camp software.

*** QuickTime Issues Still Plague Websites
<http://www.securitypronews.com/news/securitynews/spn-45-20061211QuickTimeIssuesStillPlagueWebsites.html>
David Utter, Security Pro News

Similar to the issues that allowed the MySpace worm to parade through the popular social networking site, another flaw in Apple's QuickTime can be exploited.

*** Aperture 1.5.2 Update Is Out
<http://arstechnica.com/journals/apple.ars/2006/12/11/6250>
Jacqui Cheng, Ars Technica

*** iPod Is A Piece Of Art
<http://www.azcentral.com/ent/pop/articles/1211ipodpop1211.html>
Deepthi Hajela, Associated Press

If you think your iPod is a piece of art, you're not alone.

[Opinion]

*** Apple's iPhone... Can It Fail?
<http://podall.blogspot.com/2006/12/apples-iphone-can-it-fail.html>
George Smith, Digital Entertainment

*** The Real Week Of Independent Mac Developers
<http://carpeaqua.com/archives/2006/12/11/support-developers/>
Carpeaqua

Rather than support gimmicks such as MacHeist that hurt the independent Mac software platform why not directly support shareware developers so they earn the full amount of money for all their hard work?

*** What's Behind Apple's Pro Video Spending Spree?
<http://www.macworld.com/weblogs/creative/2006/12/apple_buys_pro_video_apps/index.php?lsrc=mwrss>
Anton Linecker, Macworld

What may be even more interesting for professionals and consumers alike will be the trickle down of Silicon Color and Proximity technology into the entire Pro Apps line-up down the road.

*** Chasing The iPhone
<http://www.macworld.com/weblogs/editors/2006/12/iphone/index.php>
Peter Cohen, Macworld

It's enough to make you crazy.

*** Microsoft Rips Off Apple's Workgroup Manager Icon
<http://daringfireball.net/2006/12/microsoft_workgroup_manager_icon>
John Gruber, Daring Fireball

*** Stock Blogger Should Stick To Stock In Trade
<http://www.macuser.com/itms/stock_blogger_should_stick_to.php?lsrc=murss>
Dan Moren, MacUser

[Review]

*** Ambrosia Has Plenty Of Tasty Features
<http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/tech/drmac/4395322.html>
Bob LeVitus, Associated Press

Having used its utilities and games for a long time, I assure you that every Ambrosia product I've ever used displays an exceptional level of care and craftsmanship.

*** Apple MacBook 13-Inch White (Core 2 Duo)
<http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,2069312,00.asp>
Cisco Cheng, PC Magazine

Among budget laptops, the Apple MacBook 13-inch white (Core 2 Duo) is one of the best. It's ideal for novice users, college students, and frequent travelers who are looking for something that's easyon the wallet and looks absolutely fabulous.

[Sidetrack]

*** More Vista, Less Leopards
Heng-Cheong Leong

APC Magazine <http://apcmag.com/4795/os_x_leopard_will_create_no_new_jobs>: Researchers have discovered that Apple's new operating system will create 0 new jobs when it is launched early next year. This research stands in sharp contrast to the findings of an industry report that Vista release will create 100,000 new jobs in tech support and help desk positions.


:-)


*** notMac For Your Mac
Heng-Cheong Leong

Remember the days before Boot Camp and Parallel? There was a cash prize awarded to the hacker who successfuly create a way for Windows to boot on the shiny new Intel Mac.

Now, another cash prize <http://www.notmacchallenge.com/> is up, to be awarded to the first person who "create[s] a free replacement to dotMac's client-based services that's easy enough for a first-time mac user to install and so fully and transparently integrated that a long-time dotMac user wouldn't notice the difference."

*** Illuminous: Starts With 'Ill'
Heng-Cheong Leong

Could the super-duper secret features in Leopard yet-to-be-unveiled, as promised by Steve Jobs back in WWDC 06, be a change in UI?

The latest rumor: Illuminous <http://www.ewdisonthen.com/aqua-on-the-outs-1110.php>, the successor to Aqua. No details yet, but if this is true, application developers who've designed their applications using non-standard UI components will have to start preparing for a larger workload come this spring.

[Wintel]

*** Windows Development Chief: 'I Would Buy A Mac If I Didn't Work For Microsoft'
<http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9005873&intsrc=hm_list>
Eric Lai, Computerworld

Longtime Windows development chief James Allchin wrote in a January 2004 e-mail to Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and company co-founder Bill Gates that the software vendor had "lost sight" of customers' needs and said he would buy a Mac if he wasn't working for Microsoft.

*** Desperately Seeking Zune
<http://news.com.com/Desperately+seeking+Zune/2100-1041_3-6142291.html?tag=nefd.lede>
Ina Fried, CNET News.com

"Searching for Zune devices," it said, promisingly. I waited, hopeful. "No nearby Zune devices found, or nearby devices have wireless turned off."

The Tomorrow Weblog
==================================================
<http://www.myapplemenu.com/tomorrow/>
Emerging Technologies. Innovative Applications. New Economy

[News]

*** By Some Measures, Blogging May Be Peaking
<http://www.micropersuasion.com/2006/12/by_some_measure.html>
Steve Rubel, Micro Persuasion

*** Microsoft Research Goes To School
<http://news.com.com/2008-1008_3-6142581.html?part=rss&tag=2547-1_3-0-20&subj=news>
Martin LaMonica, CNET News.com

*** New York Times Adds Sharing Tool
<http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/295376_newsvine11.html>
John Cook, Seattle Post-Intelligencer

The New York Times unveiled a new service today that allows readers to quickly post stories taht they find on the newspaper's web site to Digg, Facebook and Newsvine.

*** Microsoft Wins Industry Standard Status For Office
<http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/12/07/yourmoney/msft.php>
Kevin J. O'Brien, International Herald Tribune

A European industry group Thursday approved a bid by Microsoft to have the newest version of its Office file formats declared as industry standards, bolstering the software maker's bid to compete in the emerging era of so-called open-source data.

*** CMU Researchers Developing Tool To Combat Internet Auction Fraud
<http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/rss/16215960.htm?source=rss&channel=siliconvalley_rss>
Associated Press

The CMU software looks for patterns of users who have repeated dealings with one another, and alerts other users that there is a higher probability of having a fradulent transaction with them.

MyAppleMenu Reader
==================================================
<http://www.myapplemenu.com/reader/>
The other things in life

[Tech & Science]

*** Back To The Moon! But Why?
<http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/12/science/space/12essa.html?ex=1323579600&en=3eb7d9bf1b549078&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss>
Dennis Overbye, New York Times

There's water on Mars, so we're going to live ont he Moon. Does that strike anybody as weird?

[Life]

*** Beware The Skyscraper Curse
<http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/12/11/bloomberg/sxpesek.php>
William Pesek, Bloomberg News

A bizarre suggestion, perhaps, and certainly an unscientific one. Yet history shows an uncanny correlation between tallest building projects and financial crises.

[Expressions]

*** At The Window
<http://www.slate.com/id/2152499/fr/rss/>
Linda Gregerson, Slate

SingaporeSurf
==================================================
<http://www.myapplemenu.com/singapore/>
Life in the city

[News]

*** 'Back To School With Dad 2007' Hopes To Build Bonds Between Father And Child
<http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/246713/1/.html>
Dominique Loh, Channel NewsAsia

*** No Word On Singapore Stake In JB Rail Project
<http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/nst/Tuesday/National/20061212091022/Article/local1_html>
New Straits Times

Singapore public transport operator SMRT Corp's equity issue was not brought up during an informal meeting between Malaysia and Singapore yesterday, said Menteri Besar Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman.

*** Malaysia-Singapore Hold Talks On IDR
<http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2006/12/12/nation/16291996&sec=nation>
Meera Vijayan, The Star

Johor Mentri Besar Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman said Singapore now had a much better understanding of IDR.

*** Relations To Ride On Genting High?
<http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/246663/1/.html>
Tor Ching Li, Today

Some analysts are now predicting that Genting's triumph could well be followed by more such cross-border investments flowing in both directions -- and even the opening up of air rights between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.

[Opinion]

*** Middle Class Graduate Sandwich
<http://aaron-ng.info/blog/middle-class-graduate-sandwich.html>
Aaron Ng, Hear Ye! Hear Ye!

The Singapore government must try and alter the mindsets of the young people and get them to aspire for jobs in knowledge industries.

*** Why Some Singaporeans Fear Malaysia
<http://timothytiah.blogspot.com/2006/12/why-some-singaporeans-fear-malaysia.html>
An Entrepreneur I Will Be

Sure... our criminal record isn't anywhere as clean as Singapore's but it's not bad enough to fear coming over to the country.

[Technology]

*** Dad, What's A Chewing Gum?
<http://www.zdnetasia.com/blog/btw/0,39056810,61974360,00.htm>
Elieen Yu, ZDNet Asia

The Shuffle by MyAppleMenu
==================================================
<http://www.myapplemenu.com/podcast/>
Life is random. More tunes, less talk.

[Tunes]

*** No Key, No Plan
<http://www.jagjaguwar.com/mp3/index.htm>
Okkervil River
<http://www.scjag.com/mp3/jag/nokeynoplan.mp3>