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Archive for September, 2005

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Saturday, September 24th, 2005

Now don’t take me too seriously here, but sometimes you wonder whether Apple really makes computers anymore. I mean, the biggest news so far this month could be described in two words: iPod nano. That, the iTunes 5 upgrade (and the fixer-upper 5.0.1 release) and a revised .Mac cover most of Apple’s new products. Oh yes, there was a minor Xserve and Xserve RAID update to expand drive capacity, which is hardly worth a second look unless you’re a systems administrator.

Yet for weeks, we’d been reading almost credible sounding stories that a pair of the new dual-core processors from IBM would find their way into a new Power Mac. Now there is one more Tuesday left in this month, and there’s still time, but I’m feeling skeptical. I’d think that if a revised Mac were in the offing, word would have come at the Paris Expo, even if delivery wasn’t expected for a few more weeks. But that’s just me. Or maybe there are just too many unsold units around to risk a model changeover at this point.

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Saturday, September 24th, 2005

Last I heard, there were over 1,000 accessories available for the iPod. Many carry the “Made for iPod” label, which means they have been certified by Apple to be compatible, and the manufacturers have to pay a royalty for the privilege. These accessories cover the gamut from simple car adapters, to loudspeakers, FM transmitters, remote controls, FM tuner and recording modules, and lots of decorative stuff. You want a fancy case to keep the plastic and steel smudge free, no problem.

I realize, though, that some of you would like to see some of these features incorporated into the iPod itself. Why not a simple line in feature, for example, so you could make your iPod a recording device without the aid of a third party adapter? There’s been talk about the prospects of adding a satellite radio, or just a simple AM/FM tuner, so you could check out the latest news and talk shows, or a commercial-laden music show if you tire of your own collection. What about the FM transmitter, so you could connect to a home stereo or car radio? Why should you have to attach an extra appendage to gain these capabilities?

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Saturday, September 24th, 2005

If someone asked you what’s the most popular alternative to Microsoft Internet Explorer or Apple’s Safari, no doubt Firefox comes to mind. And, in terms of market share, you’d be absolutely correct. Although its growth may have stalled in recent weeks, Firefox has become a surprising success story. But, as you know, there are other browsers out there, and some have rich feature sets that truly set them apart.

Take Opera, which some regard as the best of all. Unfortunately, since Opera Software is a relatively small company, you needed to pay for a user license; otherwise, you’d have to settle for a small ad banner. I’ve little doubt that one factor has hurt its growth in the market, which is why it’s now free. No ad banners, with one proviso: If you want “Premium Support,” it’s $29. I can live with that.

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Saturday, September 24th, 2005

Can you imagine what might have happened as Apple prepared to introduce its new music products last week? Just days before the event, someone knocks at the door of the CEO’s office and asks Steve Jobs to postpone the press briefing. “Why?” he growls, and he’s told that both the Mac and Windows versions of iTunes 5 have serious bugs and need further development. “Release it now and fix it later!” he screams, tossing a black iPod nano at his visitor and barely missing the head.

Now I wouldn’t want to suggest this actually happened. At the same time, I find it difficult to believe that Apple’s iTunes development team didn’t realize there were major problems with version 5. Alas, it doesn’t happen to everyone, but a check of the online chatter, at Apple’s own discussion boards and elsewhere, shows a fair number of troubling symptoms. It sounds like a recipe for disaster, with complaints about the failure of the iPod to mount, loss of Podcasts (this one is particularly irksome for those of us who produce such broadcasts), loss of purchased music, audio dropouts and other irritants. Windows users, who are actually responsible for more iTunes downloads than Mac users, moan about installation difficulties, the inability to recognize their iPods and so on and so forth.

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