mac

Psystar, the homegrown computer vendor selling its brand of Open Computers with Mac OS X installed, is back in the news this week, thanks to another court filing claiming that it can do whatever it wants, courtesy of the first-sale doctrine.

Psystar contends that because it bought copies of Mac OS X from Apple and its partners, it has every right to install that software into its own brand of computers and sell the hardware to its customers.

Does it make sense? Not really. Much like Psystar's contention that Apple was operating a monopoly and abusing its copyright, the small firm's pleas to courts have been suspect, at best.

And yet Apple continues to play the legal game with Psystar and pay its lawyers to engage this annoyance in court when Steve Jobs has more pressing issues (like running a public company) to address.

Say what you will about the Psystar's court battle with Apple, but there's really an easy solution to all this, if you're Apple: license Mac OS X.… Read more

It's a common dilemma: you have two computers--perhaps one at work, one at home--but only one iPhone, to which you'd like to sync music and other data from both systems. By default, Apple doesn't allow for this scenario in iTunes. When an iPhone is synced with one computer's iTunes library then connected to another's, all music is grayed out and cannot be synced. Other data are also inaccessible. There are a number of solutions to this problem, some easy but fraught with issues, others more complicated but with more pleasing results.

Trick the library One … Read more

Psystar is still tilting at legal windmills in its battle against Apple, this time asserting its right to do whatever it wants with products obtained legally from Apple.

After a judge rejected Psystar's antitrust argument--considered its best chance of continuing to sell its Open Computers with Mac OS X preinstalled--the Florida clone maker was allowed to amend its claims against Apple to include other arguments. It has already suggested that Apple is abusing its copyright on the operating system, and now it plans to argue that since Psystar legally purchased its copies of Mac OS X from Apple … Read more

Next week marks the 25th anniversary of the debut of Apple's Macintosh--and we'd like to hear from you.

We're putting together a package to mark the 25th anniversary of the Macintosh, and if you'd like to be included, send us your stories, pictures, and thoughts by the end of this week. It could be your first Mac, your favorite Mac, and the Mac you still can't stop laughing about (we're looking at you, Cube).

Please try to keep submissions down to around 250-300 words if you'd like to be considered. We'd especially … Read more

Should Apple release an HDTV with iTunes functionality built-in? I think so.

Even better news: you can now subscribe to this show. Just add it up right here!

And as always, drop me a line or follow me on Twitter!

As of December, Apple's Mac OS X commanded 9.63 percent of the OS market, according to Net Applications, while Microsoft still led the way, accounting for more than 88 percent of the operating-system market.

But the real story behind those figures is Apple's meteoric rise in the market. Just one year prior, in December 2007, Apple controlled just 7.3 percent of the operating-system space--a record at the time.

There are numerous reasons why Mac OS X has become so popular over the past few years. Part of it can be attributed to Apple's success and its status in the industry as the most renowned and respected company to consumers. It can also be attributed to Mac OS X itself, which is easily one of the best operating systems ever made.

And most assuredly, part of the reason for Mac OS X's success is Windows Vista. Although it currently controls 21 percent of the market, it was a failure on many levels for Microsoft. Suffice it to say that compatibility issues, User Account Control annoyances, vendor and enterprise unrest, and poor PR contributed to the blunder that was Vista.

But now, as a new Microsoft operating system starts making its way to store shelves, it's incumbent upon us to forecast its expected impact. And after downloading the Windows 7 beta and immersing myself in its environment, I think I can say, both as a Mac user (I'm writing this on my iMac) and what some may call an Apple nut (I own just about every Apple product released over the past five years), Windows 7 will not only stymie Mac OS X's growth, it will push Apple's market share back down to pre-Vista levels.… Read more

Google is finally acceding to customer demands for Mac and Linux versions of its open-source Chrome browser, promising to release full versions of Chrome for Mac and Linux in the first half of 2009.

According to Brian Rakowski, Chrome's product manager, more work is needed first:

That (Mac development) team now is able to render most Web pages pretty well. But in terms of the user experience, it's very basic. We have not spent any time building out features. We're still iterating on making it stable and getting the architecture right.

So progress needs to be made, … Read more

Intel will bring out a new Core-architecture processor for lower-cost ultra-thin laptops later this year, according to Intel sources at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

The processors will distinguish themselves by targeting a price segment below pricey ultra-portables, which typically start at around $1,500 and range all the way up to $3,000--and higher in some cases. The processors will not compete with the Atom processor that powers Netbooks, which usually top out at $500.

In this sense, the new chips will be comparable to Advanced Micro Devices' recently announced Athlon Neo processor for ultra-thin laptops priced … Read more

A few people came to my house today to watch the Baltimore Ravens steal an NFL playoff game with their usual display of vomit-forward video game violence.

When I say 'people', some, including my friend Ali, were not as fascinated with the game as with checking their friends' breast-feeding pictures on Facebook. So Ali grabbed my MacBook (black, seeing as you ask) with the intention of anti-socially networking.

She tugged at the power cable in order to plug it into the MacBook and seemed to be having trouble. After several attempts she was still not successful in making the magnetic … Read more