Apple

Apple this morning confirmed it intends opening its Mac App Store on Thursday, January 6.

The store will be available in 90 countries at launch and will feature both paid and free apps in various categories.

“The App Store revolutionized mobile apps,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “We hope to do the same for PC apps with the Mac App Store by making finding and buying PC apps easy and fun. We can’t wait to get started on January 6.”

Oh and Devs? You need to submit apps by Dec 31 to be in the grand opening.

Press Release follows:
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Apple  generates more column inches of coverage than any other firm on the planet. Love or loathe, millions worldwide are fascinated by what happens in Cupertino — and that’s probably why the company is now one of the biggest in the world dominating the smartphone and tablet industries.

What follows are some of the most essential titles any Apple watcher should read and own if they really want to build up their understanding of the company.

We’ve been watching Apple at work and play for a long, long time. We consider these to be the key titles to help boost understanding of the history and philosophy of the company.

We know that Mac website editors across the planet have a few books forever in the shelf behind their desk, and we figured it would be of some interest if told you which books they are.

So, whether it’s to satisfy your own curiousity, or for a Christmas or birthday present for an Apple fan, we think you really can’t go wrong with any one or all of these titles. Read on…

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Apple has introduced a software update designed to fix intermittent audio loss issue experienced by some users of the 27-inch LED Cinema Displays.

A previous tech note describes the problem:
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Some interesting survey results from Changewave today: While the iPad is mopping up in the enterprise today (satisfaction levels above) , it looks like next quarter is going to be even more lucrative for Apple, who have 80% of the market already..

A 1st Quarter Explosion in Corporate Tablet Demand

While 7% of business respondents say their company currently provide employees with tablet devices, an astonishing 14% of businesses report their company will be buying Tablets in 1st Quarter 2011.

In other words, the total number of companies making use of tablet devices is set to double in just the next three months – an explosive surge in demand going forward.

This breaks down into the following usage categories…
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What’s new in iTunes 10.1.1?

This release provides a number of important bug fixes, including:

• Addresses an issue where some music videos may not play on Macs equipped with NVIDIA GeForce 9400 or 9600 graphics.
• Resolves an issue where iTunes may unexpectedly quit when deleting a playlist that has the iTunes Sidebar showing.
• Fixes a problem where iTunes may unexpectedly quit when connecting an iPod to a Mac equipped with a PowerPC processor.
• Addresses an issue where some music videos may not sync to an iPod, iPhone, or iPad.

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As expected, Apple has updated its iBooks app to version 1.2. The new version has just made its quiet debut on the AAPL servers.

What’s new?

Yep, as we exclusively revealed hereand here: better organization and printing and emailing of PDF’s. And that’s only part of the mix.
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Google is about to change the music economy, preparing to hand over huge amounts of cash to win rights to offer the music locker service it has been trying to build for Google Music.  However, confused internal politics and music licensing complexity mean Google, just like Spotify and Apple, isn’t set to launch its service before the end of the year.
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It would appear that NFL Sunday ticket is coming to AppleTV, Boxee and Roku players if a survey dug up by Engadget has any merit.  Not surprising as it is a natural extension of the AppleTV experience.  But will it be delivered as an app or as a built in module in the way Netflix is currently delivered.  Notice there is no mention of GoogleTV?
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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVeKbsFL_tM&w=670&h=527]

While we wait for iTunes in the cloud, we may as well begin using an iTunes in the cloud service that isn’t from Apple, a free service for iPhones from mSpot, the app for which is now available via the iTunes App Store.

What’s it do? Essentially it is like a music locker service to which you upload your music in order to then enjoy streaming access to that music via your mSpot app.
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Here’s an iPad clone from China, a full 9.7-inch affair based on the Freescale iMX515 hardware. It is powered by a 800MHz ARM Cortex A8 processor, 512MB DDRII memory and 4GB Flash. Oh yes, and it is Android-powred with 3G, Wi-Fi and a camera. Cost? Around $277 (in China).  See?  Same Same
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Some may recall Unilever to be one of the big brand names to first jump onto the iAds mobile ads bandwagone way back in June, now Europe’s about to see the first Unilever iAds make their appearance as Apple’s ad system hits Europes this month — and the ads will feature the “Lynx effect”.

Unilever is launching a new campaign for Lynx’s Excite range, with a major push through Apple’s iAds, as part of a £8.3m marketing spend. The “Falling Angels” campaign launches next week and will be supported by print, TV, digital and other activity.
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We’ve come across an interesting Apple job listing today noting the different operating systems which power Apple’s North Carolina data center. The most interesting system mentioned is Mac OS X. With Xserves on the way out is Apple really stacking the place up with Mac Pro/Mac Mini server machines?  Not bloody likely!

Our data center environment consists of Mac OS X, IBM/AIX, Sun/Solaris, and Linux systems.  Though this position is focused primarily on Red Hat Linux and Oracle Enterprise Linux, you should also understand SAN, RAID, file system, and IP networking technology.

So the question is: Is Mac OS X running on Macs (old Xserves?) or is it running virtualized on data center hardware? We’d heard some rumblings of such a virtualized Mac OSX running on vSphere a few months ago.  Such a setup would make sense in this situation.

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At 4:12 ET today Apple updated its AppleTV firmware.  It should be hitting devices shortly or can be downloaded for fun below.  There is no update list as of yet.

Update: According to Apple’s release notes the update resolves an issue regarding 480p playback as well as a video re-downloading issue.

Feature	Summary
TV resolution fix	Addresses an issue that causes some high-definition TVs to incorrectly display at 480p.
Download fix	Addresses an issue that may cause a movie or TV show to be re-downloaded.

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQg046aoV9Y&w=640&h=390]

For those of us who still use a Mac Mini (or other Mac) as a MediaCenter connected to our TVs, today’s hack from Erica Sadun is a blessing.  She created a Mac Application that can catch Airplay from iOS devices and output the video on the screen.  For all intents, AirPlayer lets your Mac do what an AppleTV does naturally.

You can download the Macintosh Application, called AirPlayer.app here.

The interesting question is: Does Apple want us doing this?  They make much more money selling Minis (and other Macs) than they do on AppleTV units.  However, it would seem easy enough for Apple to include this type of Application with Mac OSX.  So why does Sadun have to build it instead?  Are we in for another cat and mouse chase?

(update: it is a .01 release and we did have some trouble getting it to work with a YouTube video over wifi)
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[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4yApx5zyCk&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&version=3]

OK, we’re excited to see this, even if it is just an ad.  Adage says that it is the only iAd we’ll see on iPad this year.  Next year we’ll see plenty more.   On iAds, digital agencies are gushing about the quality even if it takes a lot of time and effort to bring the ads to fruition.

“I think as a media format it has the potential to surpass anything that has come before,” said Carrie Frolich, digital director at WPP unit MEC Global, which bought iAd inventory for Citi, AT&T, Chanel and Campbell Soup. “It delivers all the emotive qualities of television or video advertising with the interactivity of a website, plus the functionality of location and all the bells and whistles of Apple devices like the accelerometer.”

More from Adage:
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I can’t wait until my iPod touch/Mifi  is my only phone. This is another step in that direction.

Google today announced Google Voice for iPad and iPod touch as well as some significant updates.  No VoIP gateway yet, but you know it is coming.

What’s New in Version 1.1.0.636

* Support for iPod Touch
* iPod Touch and iPhone can now make calls using Click2Call
* Do Not Disturb setting
* Text forwarding is automatically disabled when registering for Push notifications
* Added Text forwarding setting to the app
* Easier to make calls from the phone Address Book
* Removed annoying OK dialog every time you send an SMS
* Fixed crashes caused by text messages that begin with a space character
* Fixed bug that caused the entire Inbox to load
* Fixed bug that caused Contact pictures to get mixed up
* Improved access to Contact groups
* Improved speed of Contact search

The Google Voice app is available to download from the Apple App Store today. You’ll need an iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch with iOS 3.1 or later and a valid Google Voice account to use the app. At this time, Google Voice is available in the U.S. only.
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COMPUTERWORLD: If you thought Apple had a busy year in 2010, expect even more in 2011, when at least one analyst is expecting significant acquisitions, a move into 3D, the introduction of its connected TV set and the emergence of multi-core processors in the iPhone and other mobile devices.

Read more

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZNxjBKI0fI&w=640&h=390]

If you are the adventurous type and want 4G wireless (and it is available in your place of residence), you now have a few more options, thanks to your friendly neighborhood hackerz.

If 4G WiMAX from Sprint is what your are after, you can pick up the Clear iSpot for $100 and connect all of your (up to 8 ) iOS devices to it for $25/month (deal!).  However a simple hack allows you to take it a bit further and connect those bandwidth-heavy Macs (and PCs and Androids and Linux if you are into that sort of thing) to your $25/month iSpot.  The hack releases the MAC address restrictions which ironically include the latest batch of iPads…yes that’s right, it will only work as intended if hacked.  Be warned however that Sprint could take it all away with an over the air update to their little iSpot…unless you are savvy enough to change your Mac MAC address.

If, for whatever reason, you were after Verizon’s USB 4G Wireless service on your Macs, you are officially out of luck.  However, a hack developed within the gardens of Howard Forums allows one of the two USB Modems (Pantech) to work on the Mac.  Verizon is said to be working on an official Mac version of the drivers for both modems so this would just be a holdover until the better drivers/setup come along.

Now, is anyone thinking about replacing their Broadband connection with 4G Wireless?
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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=En7cdBhlrGU&w=640&h=385]

(I checked the date.  It says today.)  The NYTimes says that Microsoft is going to announce some iPad competin’ Slates at CES:

Next month, at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Microsoft will present a slew of new slates that it hopes will offer some competition to the Apple iPad, which has quickly become the leader in this market.

According to people familiar with Microsoft’s plans, Steve Ballmer, Microsoft’s chief executive, is expected to  announce a number of these devices when he takes the stage at C.E.S., showcasing devices built by Samsung and Dell, among a number of other manufacturing partners.

This apparently has been an anual event since 2000.
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Look, we want the most awesome iPhone available to be on Verizon’s network ASAP.  But the rumor today about the 4G iPhone waiting in stockpiles isn’t realistic at all.

Remember how Apple’s original iPhone was EDGE at a time when most new phones were coming out with the new 3G technology?  The reasons: Cost, complexity, size, battery life and benefit to the user.

Every single one of those factors also applies to 4G.  The chips aren’t mature, the network is just being rolled out, and the battery life will take a hit.  Have you seen how long an EVO 4G battery lasts with 4G on?  How big it is?

Besides, one of the big benefits of 4G is use as a hotspot, something no un-jailbroken iPhone can do yet.

So iPhone 4G?  Yes!  January?  No.
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We already know that Xserves will be officially discontinued come January 31st and today Apple already started the process. They’ve removed the SSD option from custom ordered Xserves. The option is still listed on Apple’s Xserve promotional literature, but is gone as a configurable option. A 9to5mac reader contacted Apple business representatives and they reportedly don’t know the reason for the change either.

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