[MyAppleMenu] Apr 28, 2004

Wed Apr 28 13:15:00 EDT 2004

MyAppleMenu Newsletter
Wednesday, April 28, 2004

MyAppleMenu
==================================================
<http://www.myapplemenu.com/index.html>
Mac News for Mac Users

[iTunes Turn One]

*** In Depth: iTunes 4.5
<http://www.macilife.com/>
by Jim Heid
I've had the opportunity to work extensively with iTunes 4.5. Here's a detailed look.

*** iTunes 4.5 Adds iMix, Videos, Trailers, WMA Import, More
<http://maccentral.macworld.com/news/2004/04/27/itunes/?lsrc=mcrss-0404>
by Jim Darlymple, MacCentral
Apple on Wednesday unveiled iTunes 4.5, a new version of the company's music jukebox software that will contain many new features. Included in the new version will be iMix, Music Videos, Video Trailers, support for importing Windows Media Files, free weekly downloads and Radio Charts.

*** iTunes Turns One; 70 Million Songs Sold
<http://www.macminute.com/2004/04/28/itunes1>
by MacMinute
"... making it the number one online music service in the world with more than 70 percent market share of legal downloads for singles and albums."

*** Apple Releases QuickTime 6.5.1
<http://www.macminute.com/2004/04/28/quicktime>
by MacMinute
Updates include Apple Lossless Encoder, enhanced and support for iTunes 4.5 and other QuickTime-based applications.

*** Apple Posts iPod Update 2004-04-28
<http://www.macnn.com/news/24454>
by MacNN
This update is required to take advantage of new features in iTunes 4.5 and the iTunes Music Store.

*** Apple Makes 'iTunes On Campus' Push
<http://maccentral.macworld.com/news/2004/04/28/campus/index.php?redirect=1083135427000>
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral
The program enables campus administrators to distribute iTunes at no cost and also provides promotional artwork and information to help get the word out.

[Top Stories]

*** Inside The Apple iPod Design Triumph
<http://www.designchain.com/coverstory.asp?issue=summer02>
by Erik Sherman, Electronics Design Chain
No doubt subsequent versions of the iPod will yield a revised design chain as different components and optimizations are discovered and needed. But for now, Apple's first design chain strategy and product have been a success.

[News]

*** Online Music Alters Industry Sales Tempo
<http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-music28apr28,1,1966020.story?coll=la-home-business>
by Jon Healey and Jeff Leeds, Los Angeles Times
The labels could gain if they persuade people to spend more, but some worry that 99-cent singles will beat out more-lucrative albums.

*** Apple Updates iMovie To Version 4.0.1
<http://www.macminute.com/2004/04/28/imovie401>
by MacMinute
iMovie 4.0.1 provides increased reliability, fixes for pixelated video, corruprted Ken Burns clips and loss of audio.

*** Palm Desktop 4.2.1 For Macintosh Released
<http://www.macminute.com/2004/04/28/palm421>
by MacMinute

*** PalmOne Introduces New Handhelds, Reaffirms Mac Support
<http://maccentral.macworld.com/news/2004/04/27/palmone/?lsrc=mcrss-0404>
by Philip Michaels, MacCentral
More important to Mac users, the PDA maker also reaffirmed its long-term support for the Mac platform in the aftermath of reports that the next version of Palm OS would drop native Mac support.

*** Apple Releases Panther Russian Localization
<http://www.macnn.com/news/24450>
by MacNN

*** What's Your Type?
<http://apple.weblogsinc.com/entry/3733175641895052/>
by Gregory Han, Unofficial Apple Weblog
Microsoft's ClearType and OS X's Quartz Extreme type anti-aliasing engines: both are technologies that render text more legibly than previous operating system solutions and are both easier on the viewer's eyes. Very important, considering many of us work behind a CRT or LCD for hours on end. But which one is better?

*** Music Rivals Prepare To Fight iTunes
<http://www.technewsworld.com/perl/story/33551.html>
by John P. Mello Jr., TechNewsWorld

*** New 17-Inch PowerBooks Shipping
<http://www.macminute.com/2004/04/27/powerbook17>
by MacMinute

*** FileMaker Meetings 2.0, Tasks 2.0 Released
<http://maccentral.macworld.com/news/2004/04/27/filemaker/index.php?redirect=1083078455000>
by Peter Cohen, MacCentral

*** iVCD Gets New Menu Features, More
<http://www.macminute.com/2004/04/27/ivcdupdate>
by MacMinute
Version 2.0 adds Video CD Playlists and Menus for authoring Video CDs that include a menu, allowing a more interactive presentation.

[Opinion]

*** Apple's Chip Pain Will Ease -- Later
<http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/apr2004/tc20040428_6850_tc056.htm>
by Alex Salkever, BusinessWeek
Jobs & Co. is suffering from slow progress on speedier processors from IBM. Overall, though, Big Blue is the right partner for the job.

*** Mad Macs And The Unshredder
<http://www.macdevcenter.com/pub/a/mac/2004/04/27/swaine.html>
by Michael Swaine, O'Reilly Network
So just in case Apple has to change its name, I've come up with a few suggestions. Apple could express its feelings toward Paul and Ringo and the heirs by renaming itself BHM.

[Review]

*** GarageBand Or SoundTrack?
<http://www.mymac.com/showarticle.php?id=1722>
by Guy Serle, MyMac.com

*** BBEdit: Its Unix Support Doesn't Suck Either, Part 1
<http://www.macdevcenter.com/pub/a/mac/2004/04/27/bbedit_pt1.html>
by Kevin O'Malley, O'Reilly Network
This article intorduces you to BBEdit's Unix support features. If your background is Macintosh development, you will learn how to take advantage of these features and incorporate them into your development process. If you are a Unix developer coming to Mac OS X, you will learn how to carry over your development techniques using Mac OS X tools.

[Sidetrack]

*** My First Impression of iTunes 4.5 
<http://www.myapplemenu.com/2004/04/28/#20040428bg000004>
by Heng-Cheong Leong
Movie trailers in iTunes? No idea why it's there. Where's the value? Unless, of course, the next version of iPod is capable of playing videos?

Haven't updated QuickTime, so I cannot try out the new Apple codec. But, seeing that I am mostly tone-deaf, I doubt I can tell the difference from MP3 and ACC.

Link to Music Store? Initially, I thought there will be close integration with the music store, allowing the store to analyse what I have on my hard disk and make recommendation. Turns out it's just a link to the search engine. Which is useless anyway because firstly I can buy from the music store (duh!), and secondly, half of my tunes are in Chinese.

*** iTunes Wish List 
<http://www.myapplemenu.com/2004/04/28/#20040428bg000002>
by Heng-Cheong Leong
Tonight (tomorrow morning, for you Americans) we'll find out whether Steve Jobs has anything new in store for music lovers.

What I wish to hear: Apple is able to ramp up production of iPod mini, and they are now available worldwide. Oh, one more thing, the iTunes Music Store is also available worldwide.

Note to self: dream on.

*** What I Like About Windows: USB Disk 
<http://www.myapplemenu.com/2004/04/28/#20040428bg000003>
by Heng-Cheong Leong
This is how I remove my USB disk from my Mac OS X machine without any loss of data:1. Mental check that I am no longer using the USB disk.2. Open Finder window.3. Click on the eject button next to the USB disk icon.4. Wait for the disk to be unmounted.5. Remove the physical disk.

This is how I remove my USB disk from my Windows machine without any loss of data:1. Mental check that I am no longer using the USB disk.2. Remove the physical disk.

Perhaps it's all those defensive programming (ha!) based on years of training from the fact that users can remove floppy disks on Windows anytime they like... (No need to drag icon to trash can.)

*** Rumor Today: What's In The Next iPod 
<http://www.myapplemenu.com/2004/04/28/#20040428bg000001>
by Heng-Cheong Leong
AppleInsider<http://www.macminute.com/2004/04/27/ivcdupdate> believes it will have a 50GB hard disk (i.e. 12,500 songs), color screen for your photos, and video output jack.

Are we expecting a iPhoto for Windows soon?

[Wintel]

*** A Licence To Print Money
<http://news.independent.co.uk/world/science_technology/story.jsp?story=515892>
by Charles Arthur, Independent
There are signs, if you look closely enough, that the Windows licensing engine is starting to make Microsoft a bit, well, sclerotic.

*** Windows Server: What's Next?
<http://www.microsoft-watch.com/article2/0,1995,1573782,00.asp?kc=MWRSS02129TX1K0000535>
by Mary Jo Foley, Microsoft Watch
Microsoft is feting its "best-selling version of Windows server ever." So, what's Redmond going to do for an encore?

The Tomorrow Weblog
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<http://www.myapplemenu.com/tomorrow/index.html>
Emerging Technology. Innovative Applications. New Economy.

[Top Stories]

*** Google
<http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/04_18/b3881001_mz001.htm>
by Ben Elgin, with Jay Greene and Steve Hamm, BusinessWeek
Why the world's hottest tech company will struggle to keep its edge.

[News]

*** Companies Finding Some Computer Jobs Best Done In U.S.
<http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/28/technology/28SOUR.html>
by Eduardo Porter, New York Times
Even as the prospect of high-skilled American jobs moving to low-wage countries like India ignites hot political debate, some entrepreneurs are finding that India's vaunted high-technology work force is not always as effective as advertised.

*** Google's Goal: "Understand Everything"
<http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/04_18/b3881010_mz001.htm>
by BusinessWeek
Co-founder Larry Page talks about the vast possibilities in search and what brought him and Sergey Brin together.

[Linux]

*** Linux Seller Licenses Windows Media Technology
<http://news.com.com/2100-7344_3-5201352.html>
by Stephen Shankland and John Borland, CNET News.com
Turbolinux, a Japanese seller of the open-source operating system, has bridged a philosophical divide by licensing Microsoft technology for playing digital music and video.

MyAppleMenu Reader
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The other things in life

[Life]

*** When It Pays To Complain
<http://www.latimes.com/features/food/la-fo-matters28apr28,0,6391629.column?coll=la-headlines-food>
by David Shaw, Los Angeles Times
At fancy, white-linen establishments where the check is likely to be as big as the chef's ego, I find myself far less tolerant of the old "To err is human" axiom.

*** Take My Recipe, Please
<http://www.latimes.com/features/food/la-fo-amazon28apr28,0,6945758.story?coll=la-headlines-food>
by Russ Parsons, Los Angeles Times
Amazon's search feature makes it easy to lift text. So why aren't cookbook authors up in arms?

[Expressions]

*** Old Boys, Old Girls
<http://www.newyorker.com/fiction/content/?040503fi_fiction>
by Edward P. Jones, New Yorker

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

[Top Stories]

*** Goh To MPs: Keep Public, Private Interests Separate
<http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/storyprintfriendly/0,1887,248225,00.html?>
by Straits Times
Goh Chok Tong on Wednesday reminded Members of Parliament belonging to the People's Action Party that they should keep their business and employment interests separate from their service and duties as MPs.

*** Goodbye Roundtable, Hello Niche Interest Groups
<http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/singapore/story/0,4386,248093,00.html?>
by Laurel Teo, Straits Times
There seems to be little room for groups that do not champion any specific cause or agenda, say civil society pundit.

[News]

*** Are HDB Owners Being Overtaxed?
<http://www.todayonline.com/articles/18224.asp>
by Lee Han Shih, Today
Iras' method of calculating market value overlooks the law of supply and demand.

*** Competition Forces One In 10 Traditional Bakeries To Close Shop
<http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/print/82119/1/.html>
by Channel NewsAsia
Cheaper cakes and buns from neighbouring countries are literally eating into the local pie.

[Entertainment]

*** Bad And Good News For Artists
<http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/storyprintfriendly/0,1887,248078,00.html?>
by Tan Shzr Ee, Straits Times
Overall direct grants to arts groups have dropped, but NAC assures artists that they will benefit through arts-housing and other touring schemes.

*** 4-Storey-Tall Balloon At $1m Carnival
<http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/singapore/story/0,4386,248105,00.html?>
by Straits Times
Giant balloons will be on display at a week-long extravaganza at the Esplanade and the Singapore River from May 8 to 16.