Home / tuaw.com rss archive / October-04-2007


CrossOver 6.2 supports Team Fortress 2
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Gaming, Software, Video, Odds and endsThe latest version of CrossOver, Codeweavers' Mac and Linux application designed to get Windows games and applications working on those systems, has been released. CrossOver 6.2, now available, features a number of different updates both to increase compatibility and to make Windows applications run faster than ever.And first among these updates is the fact that it will now run Team Fortress 2 right out of Valve's new Orange Box, as seen in the video above (caution: awkward narrative and bad acting ahead-- skip to about 2:09 to see the actual product). They're also saying it features improvements when working with Outlook, and, in the strangest feature description ever, they say it really will work much faster-- when you install Leopard.CrossOver is available as a free trial on their website, and to promote the new release, you can get it for 10% off when you enter "zomg" as a special deal in the shopping...

Rumor: Mac mini turns Nano in late October
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Hardware, Rumors, Mac miniI've had this plan ever since the mini almost died earlier this year, and I'm sticking to it: as soon as I can buy a Mac mini with Leopard on it, I'll do so. And no one's going to stop me-- except maybe Jobs himself. Mac OS Rumors reports that they've heard that as of October's end, the mini is dead-- long live something new called the Mac Nano. Supposedly, the new low-end Mac will be even smaller than a mini (just tall enough to fit a hard drive in), and the enclosure will have a completely new design.Intriguing idea indeed, even if it isn't quite new-- the Nano name has been floating around for a while. There are four other products sliding out of the rumor mill as well-- AppleTV is rumored to get an update (and a hard drive), and supposedly we'll see a MacBook Nano as well, the long-rumored ultraportable that Apple is supposedly working on-- a.k.a. Rumor #3.The future of Mac, or wishful thinking? At this point, we...

Flickr find: Homemade iPhone Amplifier
Filed under: Humor, iPhoneThe iPhone has a tiny speaker that distorts at high volume. To listen to music without headphones or external speakers, you'll need an amplifier. If you're a cheapskate with disdain for hygiene, check out this homemade version, rigged up by camh. The benefits include: Security. No one will walk off with an iPhone that's been stuffed inside this thing. Eco-friendly. Instead of putting a used, tattered roll of toilet paper into the trash, it goes on your desk. Economical. Enjoy a memorable audio experience at a fraction of the cost of decent headphones. John Williams via a 5 inch cardboard tube stays with you. Chick magnet. Nothing says "I have expendable cash" like an iPhone...in a roll of Charmin.Enjoy your enhanced iPhone.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Analyst: 10% of iPhones sold to unlockers
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Retail, Apple Financial, Apple, iPhoneApple Insider has an analyst saying that 10% of iPhones sold in Apple stores in September were being bought by people who are then turning around and selling them unlocked. That seems like a big number when you picture the situation Gene Munster, the analyst, describes: "one Apple employee acknowledged that customers were buying five iPhones per store visit in order to turn around and resell them unlocked."But is it really that big? 90% of people buying iPhones are sticking with AT&T, so considering that Apple got the support of a network and a slice of the service plan profits, a number like 10% of unlocks actually seems to me like it validates Apple's choice to sell the phone locked. SDKs, jailbreaks, and customer rights (oh my) aside, if only 10% of iPhones out there are unlocked (and the number's probably much lower, as all the iPhones sold before September were probably not unlocked at all),...

Confirmed: Apple component cable works with iPhone
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Multimedia, Video, iPhoneSo first, the iPhone appeared on the Apple Component cable page, and then we heard it didn't run video out, and then it did again, or maybe it didn't. At any rate, we finally have confirmation for you, thanks to punkassjim, that the iPhone will do video out.In fact, he tells us that it will even show a preview of what you're watching on the iPhone itself while the video plays, along with the standard video controls and information. Very slick. I assume the display is the exact same resolution as whatever your video is-- on some TVs that will matter, on some it probably won't. And I'm pretty sure, even though he didn't say, that this is an unhacked iPhone on 1.1.1-- the update to do TV out came with that.Finally, Jim says he was disappointed to find that the cables didn't, however, work with his iPhone's dock-- when he plugged them in, he wasn't asked to display to TV as in the pic above. Good news, though-- he also notes...

Mark 3/21 on your calendar for the Apple Backlash
Filed under: HumorThank goodness there are still genuine journalists out there who are willing to cover the important stories that nobody else bothers to investigate. According to vestigial organ The Onion, Apple Inc.'s goodwill with customers -- already stretched thin by iPhone price cuts and Leopard delays -- is bound to hit a limit sooner or later, and the smart money is on next spring. March 20-22, in fact, are the days pinpointed by Wall Street analysts for the high-flying company to lose the faith of its notoriously loyal consumer base.From to the story in this week's issue:"At the current rate, we believe that at this time a sea change will occur in which people will look down at their glossy white or black devices and feel a sense of embarrassment and gullibility," Goldman Sachs analyst Steven Shore said. "They will realize that, despite all the sleek design, they got caught up in a wave of hype that made them shell out additional hundreds of dollars for options and...

Guitar Hero III previewed, will release Oct. 28
Filed under: Gaming, Hardware, Retail, SoftwareGametap's got a quick look at the new Guitar Hero sequel, coming out for the Mac later this year, and the biggest news is that they've got a date: the PC and Mac versions are shipping simultaneously with the consoles on October 28. Rock on! Apparently you'll also be able to use the mouse and keyboard to play (although, come on, Guitar Hero is all about that guitar controller that ships with the game), and this part is pretty slick, too: PC and Mac users will be able to play against (or with) each other online. Very, very nice.No system requirements yet, but I'm guessing that, like Tiger Woods and Madden, this is going to be for the non-integrated video cards only. Still, if you've got the kit to run it, it'll definitely be a good time. Our sister games blog Joystiq has rounded up the entire setlist for the game, with YouTube links to every song in it. In fact, if you've already got Frets on Fire working, you can start practicing...

TUAW Interview: The Pixelmator Team
Filed under: Features, TUAW Interview, DeveloperAs we mentioned last week, one of the most anticipated OS X applications in a long while finally hit the street when Pixelmator shipped version 1.0. We were fortunate enough to get the two brothers behind the application, Saulius (right) and Aidas Dailide, to contribute our latest TUAW Interview. In terms of their relative contribution to Pixelmator, Saulius is more focused on the UI, while Aidas provides most the heavy lifting on the back end. In this interview they discuss some of the thinking behind Pixelmator, where it came from, and what they are trying to accomplish.Continue reading TUAW Interview: The Pixelmator TeamRead | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Joost releases beta 1.0 to public
Filed under: Software, Video, Freeware, Apple TVThis blew by us earlier in the week, but in case you haven't grabbed it yet, the Joost beta 1.0 is now available for download to the public. So all of us plebians who haven't gotten invites to try it out yet can now inspect the groovy IPTV viewer that everyone's been talking about (and running on AppleTV) for months.There is one catch that will trip up a few of us newcomers: Joost is still only for Intel Macs, so our PowerPC brethren are left out in the cold watching TV the old fashioned way-- on a television (and at normal quality with no lag-- whoops, low blow?). The latest release also adds a few new features, including faster streaming for low bandwith connections (touche), and a few other interface tweaks. Joost is available for free, now to anyone, over on the website.Thanks to everyone who sent this in!Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Rumorland: Bungie leaving Microsoft, Apple gaming on the horizon
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Gaming, Rumors, Software, AppleRumors are flying in Seattle that Bungie, makers of Halo, and much more relevant here, Marathon and Pathways to Darkness (more on Bungie's history in this piece by a talented and handsome young writer), may be splitting from Microsoft. A complete and total rumor, unsubstantiated and unsourced, but like all good rumors, it has just enough good reasoning that it might actually be true. Microsoft certainly has no reason to let go of Bungie, but it's totally believable that Bungie is tired of being the Halo company, and ready to do some developing on its own again.And of course, if Bungie breaks away to work on the platform of its choice, it's almost a given that we'll see a brand new Bungie game on the Mac. And how fortuitous, says Christopher Price-- he cites Bungie's rumored split as part of a trinity of Mac gaming developments lately that all point to one thing: Apple is poised to return to (and take over) gaming.We...

Sneak Peek: WireTap Studio
Filed under: Audio, Software, Video, PodcastingAfter our recent interview, Ambrosia Software's Andrew Welch was kind enough to give us a sneak peek at his company's forthcoming audio recording and editing application WireTap Studio. They've also prepared a series of videos that show off the application's unique features. What's remarkable about WireTap Studio is that it was designed from the ground up to work in lossless mode. This means that WTS creates a high-quality master of all of the recordings it makes. You can then compress and save at any bitrate you like (including live previewing of various compression settings), but the master is always there for you to go back to if you want to export a higher quality version. This also carries over to the editor, which is non-destructive (analogous to the way Aperture works with photos or iMovie '08 with video clips), so all of your edits can be undone and the original audio recovered at some future time. WireTap Studio should...