iTune Player Finally Surpasses RealPlayer!

Websiteoptimization.com has just published that Apple's iTune Player has finally surpassed longtime rival RealPlayer in U.S. broadband penetration. This has been predicted for some time, and now, as of April of last year, iTunes had indeed passed the previous powerhouse in the streaming area, to emerge as the second largest behind Windows Media Player.

Interestingly, they have also reported that of the four major streaming services, only iTunes had any major positive growth. The others, RealPlayer and Apple's own QuickTime either posted declines or, in the case of Windows Media Player, were basically flat.

In fact, in a seperate report, MacWorld reports that half of all American teens now use iTunes (49% to be exact) and testifies to iTune's popularity and I think that we can expect that number to grow far beyond and exceed 50% in the coming months.

Well, there you go, chalk up another one up for Apple. If you add QuickTime to the mix, then Apple's streaming presence looks to be a very real and credible threat to Microsoft's top position. How long before Apple either ties or surpasses Windows Media Player? I can't say, of course - maybe never, but judging by what is being reported then, if I were Microsoft, I'd be a little concerned!

With the Mac market share growing by leaps and bounds and the success of the iPhone and iPod, and what I predict will be an equally huge hit, Apple's TV 2 and it's new movie rental service, I can see the day coming when Apple finally snatches the streaming crown from off of Microsoft's head. 

Will it be two years from now, five years, your guess is as good as mine, but if current trends continue, then I personally predict it is a lot closer then some might think .

And thats my 2 cents and 201 th. posting 4 Thursday, January 31, 2008.

My 200th. POST!

A lot of blog owners love to mention that they just posted their 100 th. post, but I missed that opportunity some time ago. However, I just noticed, as of today, that this is my 200th. post here on my little practice blog - My 2 Cents 4 the Day!

As a sufferer of extreme fatigue syndrome, which results from a genetic liver condition, I never would have thought that I would have made it this far - but, I guess, I surprised myself! Originally, I created this little blog to help me learn to adapt to my fatigue levels in hopes of helping me to return to what I was trained for, that of a children's writer.

My goals here where to also only blog for about five months, which, by the way, came and went some four months ago! However, I most likely will continue to blog for a few months more yet, at least as long as my two or three readers wish me to continue doing so? It's been rather fun even though it can be hard on me and I get so fatigued sometimes that I can get a little confused and screw up at times, but its still quite fun and I recommend blogging to anyone who has an interest in something that they are passionate about, because one can always find something fun and interesting to share with other like minds out there in the cloud.

So, to all you bloggers out there who have either have posted, or are about to post your 100th. blog post, my congratulations! I wish you many more productive posts in the future. Who Knows, maybe I will even still be here posting myself?

And also to anyone thinking of starting a blog - I say go for it! Yes, you will make mistakes - I've made a million ridiculous ones, but the experience and joy that you can derive from blogging can be well worth it. Google's Blogger's is a great way to start, so check them out, as well as the many fine alternatives.

So, happy blogging to all bloggers out there and a happy 200th. to me!

And that's my 2 cents on my 2 cents 4 the day, 4 this Thursday, January 31, 2008.

Are Radically New and Different iPods Coming?

What's next for Apple's iconic iPod? That is a question that a lot of analysts are asking these days and according to several reports the iPod may emerge as device that goes far beyond what any current digital music player does or offers by adding features and services that are radically new, different and cool.

Gene Munster of the firm, Piper Jarray, who has a buy rating of $250 on Apple stock, believes, based on his research, that future iPod's will be able to allow people to use the iPod's wireless capabilities to order food or drinks in restaurants - all from the comfort of their iPod's!

Imagine, if you will, having a restaurant's menu accessible from your iPod. Once you select an item, with a simple click, the iPod would then automatically and wirelessly submit your order to your favorite eating establishment, let's say in my case, Burger King, while you were still on route. Your iPod would, using your iTune's store account, then automatically pay for your purchase and issue you an electronic receipt. All you would have to do is stop by and pick up your order - no more standing in line - how convenient!

Munster is also speculating that Apple is about to introduce new ways of wirelessly streaming music and believes that the iPod Touch is nothing more than the first of a new breed of iPod's that will keep Apple in the lead and it's competitor's in the dust, according to reports from AppleInsider!

MacWorld also pointed out that Paul McGuinness, the manager of U2, who, by the way, just happen to have a very close relationship with Apple and Steve Jobs, also hinted at such new iPods complete with a new music subscription based model, when he recently stated in an interview:

"Personally I expect that Apple will before too long reveal a wireless iPod that connects to an iTunes "all of the music, wherever you are" subscription service. I would like it to succeed, if the content is fairly paid for. "Access" is what people will be paying for in the future, not the "ownership" of digital copies of pieces of music......"

It is obvious that Apple, the most innovated company in the market place these days, will use their considerable design talents and massive resources to not only to remain in the lead in digital music players and legal downloads, but will do so by adding new and different kinds of functionality and services to the iPod that will amaze us just as the iPhone has done thus far. In fact, the iPhone which, as far as I am concerned, is nothing more than the ultimate iPod - an iPod with a phone thrown in!

The iPod has been, without a doubt, not only one of Apple's biggest hit products of all time, but also one of the biggest for any company period! The iPod, more than any single product to date, has lifted Apple's financial market share and, as well, mind share into the stratosphere! Before the iPod Apple was seen as just another so, so, outfit, but now thanks to the incredible success of the iPod Apple's other products, especially the Mac and OS X, it has gotten a lot more attention and recognition and also, as a result, far more market share then it would have done so otherwise.

I can only imagine what will be coming next from this power house known as Apple in the upcoming months, but I'm convinced that whatever new iPod's Apple releases, (including the iPhone) they will include new and radically different approaches that other makers of digital makers will be hard press to challenge!

I'm eagerly waiting such new, exciting and different iPod's, both in the short and long term and, in doing so, I think that I could apply regarding the iPod the old proverbial saying:

"You ain't seen nothing yet!"

And thats my 2 cents 4 Wednesday, January 30, 2008.

Rambling Thoughts on Apple's iPhone, iPod, Mac and Stock

It is being reported by CnetNews and others that some quarter of all iPhone's are now being used unlocked on networks other than AT&T's own wireless network.

Toni Sacconaghi, an analyst at Bernstein Research, said that analysis from Apple's sales numbers indicate that approximately 1.45 million iPhone's were, as he put it, "missing in action," at the close of last year. Approximately 480,ooo of those iPhone's were being held by AT&T as inventory, leaving a whopping 27% phones unlocked so they could work on none AT&T networks.

Such a large percentage of unlock phones begs the question: "Should Apple have sold the iPhone unlocked in the first place, rather than exclusively to AT&T? That is a hard one to answer because, from a corporate stance, even though Apple would have surely sold more iPhone's unlocked, they would not have been able to generate extra revenue from revenue sharing agreements, as they negotiated with AT&T, and I have the sneaky feeling that out weighs any extra profits from selling a larger number of unlocked phones, but I can't be sure on that?

As exciting as the iPhone and iPod's are these days, it seems that biggest excitement and Apple's biggest growth and it's biggest profits are being generated by it's original product - the Macintosh computer, which is growing faster than most people would have ever guessed and resulted in some 40% plus of all Apple's business and still growing at the healthy rate of some 44%.

I have always said that iPhone's and iPod's, as great as they are, are only a spare business for Apple, and that the Mac would be back and really start doing what Vista failed to do - to "Wow" us. The real "Wow" starts and begins with the Apple's Mac and OS business. It seems that Apple's hardware and software business is now the model for not only the entire computer industry, but for many other business's such as movies, music and retail and others, showing just how influential Apple is these days.

Regarding it's stock, AlleyInsider is pointing out that the recent sharp drop in Apple's stock price is, in reality, nothing more than a 35%-off sale off of it's most important and desirable product - it's stock! Today, I am pleased to see it beginning to rally, up by $2.27 at this writing. Steve, in a memo to Apple employee's told them to, "hang in there" as he expects Apple to not only regain it's high stock evaluation, but to even go beyond it's recent high of just over $200. Apple stock now trades, as of this writing, for $132.42 which is not bad, not bad indeed for any stock.

The recent stock panic resulting from the credit crisis and other economic woes has hit a lot companies hard, Apple especially, since it is consider to be like Prada, a luxury seller of goods, and a company that you would naturally think of suffering the most in a recession. However, a lot of people don't realize that luxury providers, be it Mercedes, BM or Tiffany's, Prada, etc. usually ride out recessions a lot better than companies such as Ford, GM or WalMart. People who can afford to pay the higher prices are usually the ones who don't have to worry about recessions in the first place. Homes sales may be down for instance, but not luxury homes - they are up considerably in fact!

Apple's stock decline, resulted, of course, not only from the panic based on the fear of the economy, but also from faulty stock analysts. Apple projected that it would, in the last quarter, generate so many iPod sales, for instance, but the analysts predicted that they would sell slightly more. Apple estimates were not only right, but they also beat them; the analysts, however, simply guessed that iPod sales would be higher - and the analysts guessed wrong! But who paid the price for being wrong? You got it -Apple! If anyone should pay the price it is the analysts who keep getting their estimates (guesses) wrong, time after time. Shouldn't they lose their jobs or something? After all, a lot of people lost a lot of money because of their wrong guesses!

In conclusion, if any company can ride out the current malaise in the market it is Apple. Apple not only is firing on all cylinders, but it is one of the most profitable and best run companies bar none! iPods sales may be slowing down, but what those analysts seem not to notice is that Apple still sold more of iPod's in it's history - some 22 million of them, despite their wrong guesses! The iPhone is selling, but again, not as much as the analysts would like, but who made the them the judge in such matters any way? The analysts forever keep getting their facts wrong, especially with Apple, and anyone who buys or sells stock based solely on their recommendations, frankly deserves to lose their money!

And thats my 2 cents 4 Tuesday, January 29, 2008.

SOON - New Multi-Touch, Penryn Based MacBook Pro's?

Last week Macaround posted what was supposed to be a leaked banner for the latest and greatest upcoming MacBook Pro. Now MacRumors is saying that that a new MacBook Pro will indeed be released soon, in the next two weeks, either this Tuesday or next?

From the banner above, the MacBook Pro design seems to be based on the same form and factor as that of the old, which is both a good and bad thing in my humble opinion. Bad because this design goes back to what seems like a million years now, give or take a few minutes; good, however, because it's one, if not the best design ever conceived for a laptop. I really love the present design and am doubtful as to how one could actually improve upon it, so I won't complain if any new MacBook Pro doesn't dazzle us with an all new design, but I kind of wish it does.

The important thing, according to MacRumors, is that the new MacBook Pro will now support the same Mult-Touch Trackpad as the recently introduced MacBook Air, which, without a doubt, according to this old dog, is by far the best thing about the MBA - yes even better than the incredible "thinnovation" that is the MBA!

Also interesting, if the rumors are true, is that even the 17" model, like that of the 15 incher will now feature a crystal clear and bright LED! I love those babies, but as nice as it will be for lovers of larger screens, I personally will stick with the 15" inch, as for my money (what precious little I have) it is still by far the most practical size for a laptop. The 15 " model is not only much more portable, but frankly, I just happen to think that it looks better for some reason, but again, thats just little old me.

Now, last but not least, what we have all been waiting for - super duper, faster than a speeding bullet, and more powerful than a steam locomotive and longer lasting than a politician's rhetoric on the campaign trail - Intel Penryn processors! Its been a long time coming and finally Mac users should be able to get their hands on a portable version and from what I have read - these babies are awesome in just about every way!

Well, of course, these are all, at the present, just rumors, nothing more and nothing less, but it all sounds possible if not downright probable! At least we can all hope and pray that they are true. If so, I'm not sure where I'm going to come up with money, but definitely a new MacBook Pro, on my part at least, will be hard to resist, according to the above specs, yes - very, very hard to resist indeed! Yes, it looks like I might have to survive on Kraft dinner for awhile until it's paid for, and thats after first breaking into the First National Piggy Bank, but I'm sure such a beast would be well worth it! I have loved these machines ever since the early days when they were called PowerBooks and based on the old PowerPC architecture.

My impression, if the above banner and info is real, is that any new and upcoming MacBook Pro was originally meant for MacWorld, but for some reason or other it was held back, for reasons that we don't know at the present? I think if they had announced it back then, then the investment world would have been a little kinder on Apple and it's stock, which so far today anyway, is up a little and I hope will stay there.

Let's all hope so anyway, not only for Apple's stock, but also for any soon to be released new MacBook Pro, because both would be welcome news indeed!

And thats my 2 cents on the rumored MacBook Pro update 4 this Monday, January 28, 2008.

Image: Macaround

Windlows 7 : Will It Suck Like Vista?

Mary Jo Foley, of ZDNet's blog, "All about Microsoft", states in a recent posting, "Even with Windows Vista’s one-year anniversary launch just a week away, all that anyone in the tech-enthusiast community seems to want to talk about is Windows 7 (Except for those who are already sick of hearing about 7, as one Windows user characterized himself in a conversation I had yesterday.)"

Well, this is quite amazing when you consider that Vista isn't even a year old yet, and all people want to talk about is Windows 7! Could it be that nobody really wants to talk about Vista, because frankly there's nothing really good or interesting to talk about?

Despite what Mary Jo says, Microsoft does wants people to talk about Windows 7 for the simple reason that they know that Vista is a crying shame and embarrassment to the company, and, I might add, for very good reasons. Of course, Mary Jo, who many consider to be nothing more, nothing less than a shill for the Redmond behemoth, has the right to express her opinions, as lame as I think that they are.

According to Mary Jo, as she states in her post, "Some pundits believe Microsoft is trying to stoke the Windows 7 fires to “build excitement” for its next Windows release. I don’t think this is the case at all. I think Microsoft wants to smother the Windows 7 flames and to dampen expectations as much as possible."

To Mary Jo, I say no, no, no! I think Microsoft does want to stoke the fires and, stoke them badly, in hopes of getting people's tongues wagging ON Windows 7 and OFF of Vista and it's failure of not "Wowing" us as they promised it would. Its also an attempt to get people's attention away from talking about the superiority of OS X and Linux as compared to Windows. I firmly believe, if the future of Windows is like it's past, then, no doubt, Windows 7 when, or if, it ever comes out, will be a repeat of Vista, and knowing Microsoft's history of delivering new products, that should be about 50 years from now, give or take five or ten minutes!

Mary Jo might fool some, but I don't think it is by accident that people are posting videos (Click to Play) as the one above, or screen shots of Windows 7 because Microsoft is bending over backwards to dampen expectations for Windows 7 , as Mary Jo wants us to believe. No, Microsoft, in my humble opinion, is deliberately leaking such information to "Stock the fires" for Windows 7 and take the pressure off of Vista and attention away from Linux and OS X as I have stated.

Microsoft has a lot of great talent, but very little vision and leadership, which, in turn, has produced a corporate culture that has resulted in the company constantly putting out half-baked products. They have a "good enough" philosophy that runs throughout most of everything that they have ever brought to market.

However, up until OS X and Linux came along, they really didn't have that much competition to worry about either. In other words, Microsoft was lucky, very lucky. But now their luck is running out. Things have changed and it shows in how Microsoft is reacting these days which is very defensively. Microsoft is scared and they should be. People will only put up with so crap, and only if they think that they have no choice, but give them a choice and their not going to take much crap for long!

Some people are hoping that Apple will mess things up for Windows 7 simply by licensing OS X for generic PC's, but others think that Apple, over Steve's dead body, would ever consider doing that. However, Anton Klotz, writing for OSNews.com, is calling on Apple to open up Mac OS X for PC's, for the simple reason that if it doesn't, others surely will! Well, his post certainly makes some good points, but I'm not sure on this one.

Quoting from his article, Mr. Klotz states: "....... the announcement of a German hacker Alexander Graf at the CCC-congress that he modified the popular open-source emulation software Qemu so it can run an unmodified Mac OS X instance on Linux, but since Qemu is portable, it should work on different platforms (e.g. Windows) as well. In his project description Alexander writes that in the EULA Apple does not mention that Mac OS X is not allowed to be installed in a virtualized environment; that means if somebody installs Linux on Apple hardware and runs a single instance of Mac OS X in Qemu it is perfectly legal. But in the wiki Alexander writes that with his modifications Mac OS X can run on other hardware as well"

Well, I'm not sure if licensing OS X on generic PC box's would, over all, be a good thing for Apple, but I'm sure that such a move would bad for Vista, and, as well, also for Windows 7. I'm not saying that it would kill them both off - but then again it just might! For one thing, it sure would bring their market share down, and I mean by a lot! I would even dare to suggest it would might turn the tables around, putting OS X on top and Windows, be it Vista or Windows 7 at a distant number 2!

In conclusion, I really don't know, nor could I possible know whether Windows 7 will be what Vista and previous Windows versions should have been all along until it first comes out, of course; but one thing I do know - if Microsoft's new efforts are anything like their old efforts, then their future is going to look much as it does now, and Windows 7 will end up like Vista - it will suck just as much, or even more!

And thats my 2 cents 4 my last post of this week, Friday, January 25, 2008

Mac Software: MacSpeech's DICTATE

Dragon Speech, or NaturallySpeaking, is a great dictation program that up untill now was only available to users in the Windows camp. Now, however, thanks to the Mac's increasingly growing market share, the program will be licensed to Mac developer, MacSpeech. The Mac version will be known as, Dictate.

The Windows version will remain, for a short while anyway, the better of the two because it will still have certain features lacking in the Mac version, such as audio playback. These, however, are expected to be added latter to MacSpeech's Dictate, which will retail for $200, the same as the Windows version.

Despite the current bugs and lack of some of NaturallySpeaking's features, Dictate won the prestigious, "Best of the Show," awards at this year's MacWorld 2008, and the program ushers in a new era for Macintosh users, as the program is very easy, fast and accurate in giving you what is essentially a secretary in a box!

According to the Mac's developer, Dictate offers the following advantages:

Amazing Accuracy. In fact, MacSpeech Dictate will astound you with its amazing accuracy. The words you utter are written exactly the way you said them. MacSpeech Dictate gets it right the first time. Accuracy is so good, in fact, you may be tempted to give up typing!

Your Wish is MacSpeech Dictate's Command. MacSpeech Dictate also gives you control of your Mac. It already knows every application on your hard drive. Just say "open" followed by the name of the program you want to use, and it opens. MacSpeech Dictate also works great with AppleScript and Automator, giving you an unprecedented number of ways to control your computer by voice.

Versatility is its Middle Name, as MacSpeech Dictate works with the applications you already have, including word processors, spreadsheets, page layout solutions, email apps, chat programs, graphics applications, and much more. MacSpeech Dictate knows them all. And that translates into greater productivity and time savings for you.

For now, MacSpeech Dictate includes the following Dictation models:

• US English
• US Teens
• UK English
• Australian English
• Indian English
• Southeast Asian English

According to David Pogue , of the New York Times, Dictate has the same amazing accuracy of the Windows version which he found was as high as 99 % straight out of the box! David said that the program gave him a giddy feeling the first time he saw the program in action, it was that good. He also added that, "When I read a 1,000-word book excerpt, the program transcribed only nine words incorrectly — 99.1 percent accuracy. (I had read the four-minute training script and fed the program a folder full of documents I’d written, which is how you introduce special terminology and names to the program’s dictionary.)"

Regarding operating your computer with the program, as stated above, all you need is to simply say, "Open Calculator, or Safari, or any other program you have, and your command is instantly performed. You can speak menu commands and buttons, and as David added, "..... you can select text that you’ve already dictated earlier (“Select ‘five score and six years ago’ ”). At that point, you can delete it, format it or replace the highlighted phrase." Now that is what I call impressive, and something that would benefit a lot of people, especially the handicapped!

So, despite the fact that Dictate 1.0 doesn't have all of the features of the Windows version, for example foreign language support, etc,, the most important thing, for now, is that it gets the big things — speed and accuracy — right. I'm sure it won't long until MacSpeech adds those in a future software update.

Dictate really sounds like the type of program that anybody could love and use, and especially a simple guy like myself, and now, thanks to the ever growing share of the Mac in the marketplace, this and many other fine Windows programs are now making their way onto the Mac on a daily basis, which is a good thing - a very good thing indeed!

As the Mac continues to grow, it will not only continue to add more and more popular Window programs, but it will also continue to add unique Mac only programs, which in turn, will prompt and attract an even greater number of Windows and Linux switchers to the ever growing Mac camp!

In the meantime, while Mac users are waiting for more native Mac versions of Windows programs, they already have the security of knowing that they can run them all now anyway, be it through virtual programs such as Parallels, or VMWare, or by directly booting into Windows via Boot Camp!

The old bragging rights that Windows users used to hang over the heads of us Mac users no longer applies, namely that Windows has more software titles to run. Now its the other way around, as the Mac now has the ability to run far more software than any regular Windows machine!

All-in-all, there has never been a better time to buy or use a Mac. Macs run more software, and the Mac just happens to have to coolest hardware, and might I add, sexiest hardware out there. Yes, I know that Windows and Linux fan-boys still like to brag that they can customize their hardware more easily, but the point is - that the Mac's hardware already is more than up to snuff for the vast majority of all computer needs and tasks! Adding expensive graphic cards, or what not, when the vast number of applications don't really need them seems a little moot to me.

As Apple and the Mac universe continues to expand, at a dizzying pace, more and more hardware choices, I believe, will be coming along to bolster the greatest choice and number of software for the Mac. And its software, more than anything else, that makes a computer worth it's salt.

In-conclusion, I welcome MacSpeech's new Dictate addition to the Mac's ever growing software landscape and, as well, all of the other great software titles that are making the switch with native versions for the Mac's ever growing numbers of switchers.

And thats my 2 cents 4 this sunny Thursday, January 24, 2008.

Comedy: Andy Rooney Screws Up The iPhone!

If you love to laugh out loud, love comedy, Frank TV, Andy Rooney, or the iPhone, then please click on the above comedy sketch that Macenstein.com recently brought to my attention. Its hilarious and made me laugh out loud - a brief escape from the madness that is swirling all around us in the stock markets! 

I guarantee, that whether you like Andy, the iPhone, or not, your just going to love how funny this sketch is from the the genius's at Frank TV  and you going to laugh your head off as I did .... its a hoot, so click on the above YouTube video and laugh yourself out silly.

And thats my 2 cents on this funny, funny sketch, 4 Wednesday, January 23, 2008.

What Google Likes To Snack On!

Thanks to the blog, Enterpriscollab for pointing out what Google employees love to snack on. Apparently, from the pic, seen above, all I can say is that Google's employee's have great taste in snacks, and a healthy one to boot! 

Unfortunately, because of the economic panic going on in the market place, Apple's stock is tasting anything but delicious these days. 

Hopefully, very soon the markets will return to some semblance of sanity, as Apple is, by far, the highest performing company in it's class at the moment - you just wouldn't know it from it's stock that is suffering BiG TiME because of all of the madness now gripping the world's markets.

And thats my 2 cents 4 Tuesday on Google snacks, 4 January 21, 2008

Pics-4-the-Day: The Butterfly Garden

After an absence of more than a month, I am pleased to present another one of my "Pics-4-the-Day" features, and I am honored to present, from Paul G'S wonderful Flickr collection, several samples from his amazing and colorful Butterfly Collection.

The above photo, "Royalty" is of a stunning and magnificent Monarch Butterfly! This picture shows the incredible colors of this "King of Butterfly's" as it munches on lunch in the bright Floridian sun.

Our next butterfly, seen below, is labeled "Asymmetry" and is wonderful in it's sheer simplicity and grace. Look at the design of this little critter, the yellow spots that circle it's outstretched wings is truly a sight to behold and one I could never tire of looking at.

Again below, we have another striking shot and one that I especially love, that of a Flower Under Butterfly. As you can see, it's wings are so streamlined, so aerodynamically designed, that it reminds me of a fighter jet wing's or that of a graceful hang glider. The composition of this photo is extremely well done and that color.......... absolutely gorgeous!

Our next photo above, is one that Paul labeled, "Home Again," and is amazing for the amount of orange and red that this wonderful little fellow has on display. Poor little fellow, he is probably long since gone, but thanks to Paul's photographic talent and sharp eye, we can still all marvel and appreciate it's beauty at our own leisure, any old time we want.

Above, our next butterfly is actually a Polka Dot Wasp Moth! It's bluish wings and blue body are quite striking, especially when considering the contrast of the lighter color markings with that of it's bright and oh, so, so big red butt of his. I also love how his wings are outstretched against the green background and that simple, but beautiful, yellow flower. Nicely done indeed.

Below, Paul's next great shot is of a Spicebush Swallowtail, but I like to call it "Blue Boy" for obvious reasons. Again, I love those outstretched wings and the color. I think it's amazing, absolutely amazing that such a tiny little creature could have such deep and rich colors. I also love how its miniature and slender legs graces the plants so delicately. All-in-all, a wonderful butterfly and photo of the same!


The last two samples from Paul's butterfly collection are again both of Monarch Butterflies. After all, they are the king of butterflies and for good reason..... they are strikingly beautiful to behold. The first photo above is called, "Orange on Violet," and is a great shot for so many reasons.

I especially love how the Monarch's bright colors contrast with that of the flower and the green vegetation behind, while the second shot, "King of Autumn," seen below, is just as equally stunning. I especially appreciate the grey, dark background as it clearly highlights this delightful "King's" finer details and beauty.


And there you have it, some wonderful butterfly's from Paul's "Butterfly Garden" collection. I have always thought of insects as being creepy and ugly, but now, thanks to Paul, I can think of them as the beautiful creatures that they are, and appreciate them more than ever. Leave it to Paul to make an insect look so damn cute!

If you wish to view more of Paul's amazing collection of butterflies, or view any of his other great Flickr photo themes, then by all means, treat yourself by clicking on his link at the beginning of this post.

You will enjoy them immensely, I'm sure of that!

In conclusion, all I want to say is: thank you Paul for sharing your photographic talent with all of us and especially on my little blog. I, for one, truly appreciate such great pictures as the ones you demonstrated here today from your magical, colorful and amazing "Butterfly Garden".

And thats my 2 cents 4 the day 4 this Wednesday 23rd., 2008.

PLEASE NOTE: All photos are the copyrighted works of Paul G, as are all of the other fine photographers presented here in my 'Pics-4-the-Day" feature.

Microsoft Flip-Flops 180 Degrees On Vista Virtualization

It took awhile, but Microsoft has decided that it will now allow anyone a license to use any version of Vista in a virtual setting. Previously, Microsoft said that Mac users could only use Vista Ultimate in a virtual setting. Microsoft said that Vista was too complicated and it couldn't guarantee the performance or stability when using lesser versions.

So, out of the goodness of Microsoft's heart, for our protection, they simply wouldn't allow us to run anything less than Vista Ultimate in a virtual mode. Apparently, the only thing greater than the size of Microsoft's bank account is the size of their heart when it comes to it's customers! Seems to me, if that was the case, they simply wouldn't allow anyone to run Vista under any circumstances, regardless of the version!

To that I say rubbish! I never believe it for a minute. Hell, Microsoft can't promise that Vista will run well normally under any circumstances, let alone in a virtual mode! Microsoft obviously doesn't have enough money already, so it thought it could trick people into buying the more expensive Ultimate version if they wished to use Vista in a virtual setting. Microsoft won't admit it publicly, as it was forced to admit privately, but Vista isn't selling that well, so why not just allow lesser versions to run virtually and see if it helps Vista sales?

I don't know, but maybe, just maybe they thought that if they could sell a few more copies it would help Bill Gates in his retirement? After all, Mr. Bill has two kids and a wife to support. I mean, its hard trying to support a family these days with a net worth of only $53 billion! I say we all take up a collection and send it in to Microsoft so we don't have to worry about the Gate's family going hungry. What do you think?

Kidding aside, the big question is why would anybody want to buy Vista in the first place, in any mode? It's slow as molasses; buggy; it won't play nice with peripherals and older software.... Microsoft's included! I had been playing with the idea of buying Vista just to show off that my Macs could run it, but its so expensive.... forget it! I mean the price is almost $500 CDN for Ultimate and the, worst-of-the-worst, Vista Basic actually costs more than OS X Leopard, a system that has received far more positive press than negative! $500 vs $129 is a no brainer, as is the superiority of Leopard over Vista technically!

What was I thinking?

No, the real reason that Microsoft is now allowing lesser versions other than Vista Ultimate to be used, in virtual settings, is because the software giant from Redmond is getting desperate. Six years and billions of dollars just to release what is basically a dumb down and inferior copy of OS X is pathetic.

Vista is the newest and greatest that Microsoft has been able to come up with and cram down peoples throats, but it ain't selling very well in Peoria and Microsoft knows it! Vista is so bad, that all Microsoft can really do now is try to brag up their next OS named Windows 7 in hopes of deflection some of the nasty criticisms their new baby has and is continuing to receive.

Just yesterday, I helped a lady purchase a new MacBook at a local shop. She gave me several reasons why she wanted to switch, which are as follows:

- She loves her iPod and it made her think: "Wow... my iPod is so great, maybe the Mac is too.?"

- The second reason was because of all of the praise that her friends personally lavished on the Mac. They told her, "Once you go Mac... you never go back!" and it made an impression on her.

- Yet another reason that she decided on the Mac was because of all of the "I'm a Mac; I'm a PC'" ads. Well, there you have it, if you ever had your doubts about Apple's famous television spots, well, you can now put them to rest.

- Positive magazine articles on the Mac and Leopard is another big reason that she told me that made her decide to make the switch. She told me that she was a computer geek and a long time Windows user, and after reading so many, many positive reviews on the subject she knew that she just had to look into the Mac seriously.

- The final and the biggest reason that she gave me was: VISTA! She has it - she hates it, and she will not put up with it any longer! I told her, however, that if she needed or wanted to, she could still always run Vista or XP on her new Mac, but she sharply shot back...... "Are you kidding? Why would I want to run Windows? I had it up to here with Windows!"

Microsoft has said that their about-turn was because of raising customers interest, especially over the past six months, that made them see the light of day in allowing all versions of Vista to be used in a virtual setting. I say they are just getting desperate over the failure of Vista in the market place. If people weren't force to accept Vista when they bought a new computer, or if they had the opportunity to more easily purchase their new machines with XP instead, Vista sales would be a lot grimmer than they are now and Microsoft a lot more desperate. Several manufactures allow XP to be ordered instead of Vista, of course, but the models offered are few and far between.

If OS X was ever licensed to other OEM's, Windows, any version, would be dead out of the water!

So much for the lies that lesser versions of Vista couldn't run in virtual mode, as an excuse to sell more copies of the higher priced Ultimate.

The truth comes out and it ain't pretty!

And thats my 2 cents for this snowy Tuesday, January 22, 2008.


eWeek: Microsoft Allows Virtulization

NBC To Return To iTunes?

Well, if reports coming from several different sources are correct, then the spate between Apple and NBC may very well be soon over. It seems that NBC is willing to kiss and make up after their well publicized rift with the iconic computer, iPod and iPhone maker.

According to Jeff Zucker, Universal's chief, "We’ve said all along that we admire Apple, that we want to be in business with Apple."

This of course is quite remarkable considering that Zucker had not that long ago previously accused Apple of refusing to even experiment with flexible pricing.

Zucker also added, "We're great fans of Steve Jobs."

Some people, myself included, have speculated that Universal's participation in Apple's iTune's movie rentals signaled a softening in position from Universal/NBC. If this is true, then it bodes well for Apple's iTunes, which I personally think was the most important announcement to come out of the recent Macworld.

Yes, I agree that the MacBook Air was sexier, and a little more exciting, but as far as having a lasting and positive impact on Apple and iTunes, it is the strengthening of the iTunes and Apple TV that will go a long way in growing Apple as a company.

Soon, if all goes to plan, most people will be renting their movies from Apple from the comfort of their homes. Netflex and the others are going to be hard press to compete with Apple. This of course will bring a lot of scrutiny by the government and Apple's competitors, but I think Apple will do fine.

Apple already is the largest provider of legally downloaded music, a business that Apple had virtually invented, so its only natural that Apple would bring movies into the mix. In the future, a lot of people are going to be looking at Apple more as an entertainment company than a manufacturer of computers, iPods and iPhones! Apple's name will be up there among the giants of Hollywood, an equal with Universal, Paramount, etc. Hell, it kicked started, (well, at least Jobs did) the whole computer generated animated movie craze with Pixar, so Apple and Jobs deserve to take their place among greats such as Cecil B. Demille, etc.

Hopefully, all of the reports of such a return of NBC to the iTune's catalog will come about, and come about soon. I think it would not only be good for Apple and iTunes, but I think it would be even a better for NBC and Universal. Some thought that Universal would never agree to Apple's movie rental, but hey.... its now history!

Soon after NBC left iTunes, Apple's CEO and spiritual leader, Steve Jobs said, "We hope they'll reconsider their decisions over time and maybe find out that iTunes and iPods are a great way to digitally distribute their content to tens or maybe hundreds of millions of customers around the world."

I, like millions of others, am echoing that sentiment, and it looks, by all accounts, that is just what might be happening? We don't know for sure, but if I had to bet on it, I think that my money would be safe. Let's all hope so anyway?

Inconclusion: Don't underestimate Steve Jobs. To do so, is to do so at your own risk.

And thats my 2 cents 4 this Monday, January 21, 2008.

Mac and Leopard Report Explosive Growth and Satisfaction Ratings!

In a Post-Holiday 'PC Round Up' survey, ChangeWave reported that both Mac Sales and High Leopard Ratings have exploded. This is not surprising as many others are reporting that the Mac, is indeed, back and stealing market share from both the Windows and Linux camps at an ever increasing rate.

Some 4,604 people participated in the survey, which was conducted between the week of January 2nd. to the eighth, which looked at the slug fest between Apple, Dell and Hewlett-Pard, and their results found that Apple sales of MacBook sales skyrocket in the past 90 days! Consumer sales of Apple laptops were up 3 % to 17%, a dramatic transformation market share increase for the Mac maker.

However, projecting intended sales for the next 90 days, it was found that Apple MacBooks were up 4% to a whopping 33%, or one third, of all people intending to buy a new laptop! These are very impressive numbers indeed and shows, without a doubt, that Apple's marketing strategy is paying of - and paying off big time!

As Changwave reports:

"Apple also maintains its big lead in customer satisfaction compared to other major PC manufacturers. Nearly four-in-five Apple buyers (79%) over the past 90 days say they are Very Satisfied with their purchase (another 18% say they are Somewhat Satisfied).
To put this in context, Apple’s two biggest competitors – Dell and Hewlett-Packard – had 59% and 58% satisfaction ratings respectively.

It’s clear that Apple is setting the standard in terms of customer satisfaction. But there’s also a new twist as to why Apple is outperforming the rest of the industry – and why it’s likely to do so for the foreseeable future."

The reason they sight is simple: "LEOPARD!"

According to the survey, a whopping 81% of Leopard buyers, or four-out-of-five, said that they were very satisfied with the new operating system, a very far cry from the reports for Vista, which has been deviled with reports of major dissatisfaction ever since it's release.

Even though all major software updates are bound to have some problems, with Leopard being no exception, the number of such problems, in comparison with Vista, has been minimal. Apple has already patched Leopard, fixing many of those problems, and it is now being reported that Apple is preparing to release a major update to fix any remaining bugs any day now.

Of course, neither Macs or OS X are perfect, but after using both Windows and Mac OS's for the past 15 or more years, it is comforting to know that millions of new switchers are now discovering the superior advantages and features of OS X.

It never ceases to amaze me as they tell of their pleasure with switching to OS X, especially as compared with their Windows or Linux experiences. Hopefully, as the OS X, Macintosh train continues to pick up speed, that we will see more switchers boarding for a speedy and pleasurable trip through the land of computing?

It will be worth noting that when Apple reports, this Tuesday, on it's quarterly results, just how many more passengers that the Mac and OS X train has recently added in the past quarter and the past year? Apple is expected to blow past Wall Street's estimates and may, once again, report that it had the best quarter in its 30 plus years of existence.

I'm predicting that the numbers will show a dramatic increase in profits, margins, and switchers, that will go a long way in helping restore Apple's record breaking market cap and stock price, both of which where hit hard, like many other companies, by all of the worries over the economy and the credit crisis.

Let's hope so anyway?

And thats my 2 cents 4 the day 4 this Friday, January 18, 2008. God willing, I will see you all Monday.

Chart: ChangeWave

Blog 4 the Day: The Excellent "Fix Your Thinking"

Philip Smith is one cool South Carolinian who just happens to be the brilliant mind behind an equally cool Mac blog called, Fix Your Thinking.

As a blog, it is one of my two all time favorites, and is an interesting source of all things Mac. I have learned a great deal from reading Philip's excellent blog, and, as a direct result, my little practice blog is the better for it.

Fix Your Thinking has been a daily reading habit of mine, as first thing every morning, I rush on over to both Fix Your Thinking and my other equally favorite blog, The Small Wave.

Both of these blogs are highly recommended reading and not only for Mac lovers, but also for PC and Linux users, or any one else, for that matter, as well. They are both well written, informative and to the point, offering their readers excellent commentary and informative information on a host of subjects and not necessarily limited to those subjects related just on Macs.

As I posted last year regarding The Small Wave, Fix Your Thinking is blogging done right. There is always something that will peak your interest on this excellent site, as Philip's posting is numerous. My goal for My 2 Cents 4 The Day, is to post at least one post per weekday, or five per week, or about 20 or so each month. Philip on the other hand, already has some 26 posts, in the can, for this month alone, and to think that January is only half over with! I noticed that it is not unusual for Philip to post up to 57 or more posts per month, a very impressive accomplishment to say the least!

Not only that, but as you can read on Philip's blog, he has performed a very valuable service for all of us bloggers. He fought tooth-and-nail in a very grueling court case that, in the end, upheld bloggers rights in a way that we can all appreciate. I personally thank him for slugging it out, at great personal expense, not only in a monetarily way, but also an emotional way as well. Thanks to his resolve and sheer determination, he held his ground and refused to budge, and now, in part to his efforts, we bloggers are a little more secure in our legal rights. Be sure, if your a blogger, to get the full details from his blogs archive.

Some recent and notable Fix Your Thinking posts are:

Top 10 Telephone Tricks

MacBook Air Batter Replacement $129 w/FREE INSTALLATION

Apple Announces MacBook Air - Laptop so thin you can use a manilla envelope as a case!

Apple Announces Tim Capsule Server for Macs

Use your iPhone as a webcam.

I think that you will find a virtual treasure chest of some of the best posts you can find anywhere in Philip's archive and I highly recommend that you check it. Philip covers the whole Macintosh universe in posts ranging from the serious to the downright humorous. There is always something of interest in this wonderful blog regardless of your interests, because he does, from time-to-time, as I already stated, cover subjects from other areas such as the wonderful post on the iPhone marriage proposal.

I started reading this wonderful blog about a year ago and I haven't stop reading it ever since, because, Fix Your Thinking is an award winning blog that will, as it's name implies, make you think!

So, don't take my word for it: go and check out this informative, well written, and amazing blog for yourself and see why it is one of my two all-time favorites!

You can thank me latter.

And thats my 2 cents on another great blog 4 this Thursday, 'I can't believe its January 17th. already, 2008.

Jobs vs Gates - Battle Of The KeyNotes!

ZDNet's blog, The Apple Core did an excellent post on the differences between Bill Gates recent key note at CES and that of Steve Job's MacWorld keynote.

Basically their point was that Apple actually delivers great products and services where as the rest of the industry, Microsoft in particular, merely brag about about future products and services that they may, or may not deliver for years, if ever!

Even when they deliver, as in the case of pen-based computing, they usually fall far short of what they promised. In other words - they over promise and under deliver, the exact opposite of what Apple has been known to do.

ZDNet points out that Microsoft's "Surface" table has yet to see the light of day; its expensive, bulky and despite a lot of applications for it, it seems to have very few buyers! People are getting tired of MS's Surface, as it seems to be mostly talk at the moment. With Vista they promised us that the "Wow Starts Now", but it ended up in a great big "Doh!", to quote Homer Simpson.

As ZDNet stated, "Now, Microsoft likes to think it’s the thought leader in the industry. It thinks big, but often keeps coming up short, meaning that we may or may not wind up seeing a particular technology in a product for sale." Very well said, I might add.

Generally the comments from CES was that it was just another boring show with no real innovations to speak of, or get excited too much about. MacWorld, last year in particular, however, as also the case this year, ended up delivering the goods, as it did with it's new movie rentals, Time Capsule, Apple TV 2 and the incredibly sexy MacBook Air.

Apple and MacWorld actually offered people something that they could actually get their hands on immediately, or, at the very least, in a few weeks, which is in sharp contrast to many of the vender's, Microsoft included, at CES. A lot of what is displayed at CES is nothing more than future concepts rather than shipping products as is the case with Apple at MacWorld.

Not only that, but as ZDNet also pointed out, Apple not only innovates, but they in turn, inspire others to innovate as in the case of Intel. ZDNet quoted Intel's CEO, Paul Otellini as saying, “When we started this project we didn’t think it was possible. The product that we ended up building for [Apple] is about the width of a dime, it’s as thick as a nickel; it has 400 million really fast really efficient transistors. It is state of the art.”

The Duo Core in the new Apple MacBook Air is specialized version of the chip that would not have seen the light of day if it wasn't for Apple. Eventually, no doubt, other manufacturers of Window and Linux machines will benefit from Apple's ability to inspire others with this same chip.

Intel is not the only company that was or is still inspired by Apple - just look at the basic design of virtually all note books - they where all patterned after the venerable MacBook 100. Look further at what is happening in the cell industry - as the every major player is bending over backwards trying to come up with an alternate to last years star of MacWorld - the iPhone.

Even if the Macbook Air isn't your cup of tea, it, none-the-less, raises the bar and expectations for Apple's competitors and thus benefits consumers everywhere. The new iTune movie rentals will revolutionize the movie industry according to the head of Fox's chairman and CEO, Jim Gianopulos, The new iTune rental model looks solid and even surprised many as Apple has landed deals with virtually all of the major studios. Some, like Sony, where thought of as never agreeing to rent on iTunes, but Steve's master brokering even made that possible.

Quoting Randy Newman, who performed at the Mac event, “I always root against corporations, because that’s the way I am, but not this one. Not this one, it’s not the same....” Randy, of course, was referring to Apple Inc., one of only a few gargantuan companies that people seem to have a personal affection for, which is why Apple's MacWorld was so different from CES or any other tech show - Apple is customer driven far more than it is profit driven! When a company concentrates more on making profit, the less they concentrate on their customers and difference can clearly be seen in the two key notes.

Bill Gates is a legend, rich, powerful and a very intelligent person, but some how, compared to Steve Jobs, who is also a very powerful, rich and intelligent legend...... there's really no comparison. Steve is the rock star of CEO's, a man who knows how to dazzle a crowd and really knows how to do a keynote probably better than any other man (or woman) alive.

Even more important, besides his showmanship, Steve can also really deliver the goods - iPods, iTunes, iPhones, movie rentals, OS X, etc. He's been doing it for years, and God willing, he will continue to do so for many more to come.

As Jobs stated, after going through a long list of what Apple has already delivered in the first two weeks of 2008, "... we still have 50 more weeks left in the year!" That says to me that Apple has a lot of really great products and services in the can that we will see throughout the rest of the year.

MacWorld didn't give us everything that some might have hoped for, but hang on because we haven't heard the last from Apple in this regard. I'm looking for a MacBook Air that fits into that iMac like dock that Apple applied for in a recent patent. That was what I was really hoping for at this MacWorld. I still believe it will be coming and a lot sooner than either next year's MacWorld in San Francisco, or, for that matter, the MacWorld Expo in Paris latter in the fall.

In conclusion, as ZDNet said, and said very well, "Microsoft and Bill Gates (and the rest of the captains of the tech industry) are busy showing off their great technologies.

Apple, on the other hand, just shows off great technology in products as well as partnerships that solve customer problems. That keeps being Apple’s differentiator.

Amen to that!

And thats my 2 cents 4 this Wednesday, January 16, 2008.

Photo: CBS News: Gates and Jobs Together Again

The MacBook Air - Deliciously Thin, Deliciously Sexy!

Well, it looks like Wired.com  was correct on the MacBook Air! Yes, its one amazing piece of technology - and beautiful to boot! Like the MacBook Pro, it has an full-size illuminated keyboard, but unlike it, it has a multi-touch type keypad! I think, without a doubt, that it puts all other ultra-thins to shame.

The MacBook Air, however, will be expensive at $1,799, but if you got the money and want the ultimate ultra-lite then there is no other game in town, because the MacBook Air is the thinest ultra-lite laptop bar none. For one thing, Intel created a special Core-Duo CPU for the machine, some 60% smaller than the regular version, or about the size of a dime and thickness of a nickel! Pretty impressive engineering to say the least.

So, if you been hankering for an ultra-lite laptop then check out Apple's site and be prepared to be amazed!

Apple also introduced their new Movie Rental service which looks really sharp and interesting. It should give Netflick a real run for their money and anybody else who wants to rent movies online. One of the most interesting things Steve showed off was Time Capsule, a combination of hard drive and wireless router. All-in-all, the idea that you could, via Time Machine, wirelessly back up your MacBook Air is something that really appeals to me.

My only disapointment with this years MacWorld is that they didn't bring out the iMac dock that they recently submited for a patent. Hopefully, this will be coming later and would make the MacBook Air a real laptop slayer! None-the-less, baring the introduction of the iPhone last year, this was probably one of the better MacWorld's.

Now, we just have to wait for MacWorld in Paris and the Developer's Conference.

And thats my 2 cents 4 the day on the MacBook Air 4 this Tuesday, January 15, 2008.

Is This The MacBook Air?

Wired has received what it claims is "insider" information on the new MacBook Air to be revealed today by Steve Jobs. According to Wired:

"......has an extremely thin profile and is shaped like a teardrop when closed — thicker at the top behind the screen, tapering at the bottom behind the keyboard.

"It's unbelievably thin," said the source.

The device is made of aluminum and glass, and uses the same design language as recent Apple consumer products: black on silver."

Wired is also reporting that the MacBook Air will be cable-free and may have a multi-touch screen. Such a description goes far beyond what you would call a conventional sub-notebook - an extremely super-thin, extremely light-weight device that according to Wired:

 "It will be a purely wireless device, relying solely on Wi-Fi or other wireless technology for its connectivity — hence the "Air" moniker."

Wow! This sounds incredible and just like the type of device that Apple is known for - out-of-the-blue, completely unexpected and one of sheer innovation without precedent!  I, for one, think the description sounds amazing, especially so if it has an iMac like docking station.

This sounds like a device that will set the technological world's tongues a wagging, if true, and I have a sneaky feeling that it just might be. It certainly, sounds like something that, without wires or cables, that most people would go for in a New York minute, but the lack of ports in the traditional sense means that newer approaches are needed, such as putting any missing features into an iMac dock, and syncing with them wirelessly.

Such a device, no doubt, would use a type of the new iMac keyboard, which I really like, and, of course, the latest and the greatest Intel integrated graphics. This is fine for the MacBook Air, but I hope that it would be disabled to allow a high-end graphic card to take over that would be built-into any iMac like dock. 

The above mock-up from Wired certainly looks interesting and I can't but help wonder what Michael Dell and Steve Ballmer are going to think if all this pans out to be true? This would be one more of a monster hit that Apple will have on its hands and will, like so many times in the past, have Apple's competitor's scrambling head over heals backwards to copy! It wouldn't be a good time to be a chair in Steve Ballmer's office right now and thats for sure!

All-in-all, even though most people think it would be hard, if not impossible, for Apple to out do last year's MacWorld's introduction of the iPhone, none-the-less, if what Wired is saying is so, then it will still be one hell of a MacWorld for the history books!

And thats my 2 cents on todays MacWorld 4 Tuesday, January 15, 2008.

FINALLY: A Canadian iPhone at MacWorld?

We heard it before, and could possibly hear it yet again, but according to RBC Capital Markets analyst Mike Abramsky, in a Financial Post article, the iPhone will most likely be announced tomorrow for sale here legally in Canada. If so, all I can say is, "Finally - its about time!"

It seems as if we Canadians have been waiting for ever for the much sought after gadget. I personally, will however, wait until the iPhone 2 comes out later this year. However, a 16 gigabyte version will be, most likely, announced tomorrow which might just tempt me if the iPhone indeed is announced at MacWorld, but that remains to be seen.

One woman I met a few days ago, who, at the time, was getting ready to sign a contract for a Motorola phone, told me that she would cancel it on the spot if she thought that she could get her hands on an iPhone soon. She will be disappointed if Steve does announce the availability of the Canadian version tomorrow, but she did prove to me just how popular the iPhone is here, and not to mention the look on the phone salesman face, which said it all!

Mr. Abramsky in the report also stated that sales of Macintosh computers where, in his words - “ginormous.” Store checks and data from 4,600 respondents suggest 2.5 million Macs could be sold for the last quarter. This would be, if true, the third quarter of historical high sales of the sexy machines. Wow.... 2.5 million Macs sold in the past quarter would surely do wonders for Apple's stock price and capilization which has taken, along with other stocks, a beating lately due to fears over the economy and a real prospect of a recession.

As much as I hope Mr. Abramsky is correct about the iPhone finally appearing in Canada, I will still hold my judgement as I have been disappointed time and time again with such predictions. For one thing, data rates in Canada, as compared elsewhere in the world, are extremely sky-high so even if the iPhone availability is announced tomorrow, the actual cost of using the web and other data services might make it too expensive to to do so? Let's hope that is not the case.

Whether or not the Canadian availability is announced tomorrow, one thing is for sure.... lots of other goodies will be announced! I'm keeping my fingers, legs, arms and eyes crossed in hopes for an iMac/Ultra-Portable laptop combination device. This would be perfect for me, and of course, many, many other fine folks out there.

We just have to wait till tomorrow.

And thats my 2 cents on another Canadian iPhone rumor 4 this snowy Monday, January 14, 2007.

.

Blast From the Past: The TRS-80

Last year marked the 30th. anniversary of a computer I remember well... the TRS-80, from Radio Shack. Tandy's first micro-computer was one of the first on the block, a true pioneer in personal computers. The TRS-80 computer came out around 1977, about the same time as the Commodore Pet and the Apple II computers, which it was designed to compete with.

The TRS-80 was price at $999.00 and, for that kind of money, you got the following components:

- A 1.77 MHz Zilog Z80 processor, which eventually gave way to the Z80 A.

- A keyboard, which also included the "guts" of the computer itself - the entire motherboard, complete with memory, CPU, etc. where included within it's silver and black case. There was no numeric keypad on the original keyboard. The TRS-80 nameplate, on the right side of the keyboard, however, did eventually give way to a numeric keypad later on, as can be seen in the picture above.

- A massive 4k of memory was included in the base TRS-80 model.

- The TRS-80 came with a modified RCA XL-100 Black and White television which it used as a monitor. However, the monitor actually was more of a 'bluish' hue due to the monitor's phosphors which made the system easier on the eyes, but this was later replaced with a green-on-black display.

- The TRS-80, like the Apple II, had a separate cassette tape drive that it used for storage. The Commodore Pet had it's cassette drive built into it's all-in-one enclosure. This method, so laughable today, had the ability to transfer or record information at the rate of 25 bytes per second!

Later on the TRS-80 came out with an expansion interface that allowed its users to add a second cassette port, a RS-232 port (available as an option) and a Centronics parallel printer port. The expansion interface originally resulted in a lot of trouble and problems and had to go through various upgrades before being of much value. The original TRS-80 expansion interfaced caused a lot of frustration for its users with numerous and chronic lockups and crashes. The expansion interfaced had it's own power supply that was identical to the computer itself.

Of course, once they worked out the kinks of the original expansion interface, it allowed the TRS-80 the luxury of adding double density floppy disk drives and, as well, double sided floppy disks. Ah, I remember them well, because I could only afford, as a very young person, at the time, the use of the built-in cassette drive on my old Commodore Pet. Floppy drives were the 'big thing' back then and I was so jealous of all who could afford them, including those offered by the TRS-80 expansion interface, because with the expansion interface, the original 4 KB of memory could go as high 32 KB, which compared to my PET's 8 KB, made me feel a little down in the dumps.

The TRS-80 had the option of adding an electrostatic rotary printer, or a screen printer, which scanned the video memory through the same bus connector used for the E/I, and printed an image of the screen onto aluminum-coated paper. I also remember that paper - it seems so funny to me now. The aluminum paper was all silvery and shinny! If you pressed your hands on it too tightly, the heat of your hand would leave a printed impression, as would any nearby heat source! It was totally unacceptable for business output, but it worked!

When it came to the TRS-80 operating system, it offered it's users two different versions of the BASIC program for the Model 1:  Level I BASIC and Level II. The Level 1 BASIC was included in 4 KB of ROM but the Level II BASIC had three times as much memory, or 12 KB, also on ROM.

The Level II BASIC was from Microsoft, which also provided the OS for both the Apple II and the Commodore PET. It seems rather strange, in retrospect,to think that Microsoft actually supplied the OS for Apple's first hit computer, especially in light of the fact that OS X is now the main competitor and gaining on the dominance held by Microsoft's Windows .

Personally, I never had owned a TRS-80, but I did consider buying one in the early days. There really wasn't that much of a choice if you wanted a personal computer in the later 70's and early 80's. After careful consideration, I eventually narrowed my choice down to an ancient TRS-80, Apple II or a Commodore Pet, which won the day. 

The reasons, as I can best remember them, was that the Apple II was a little more than I could afford and the TRS-80 was, to my thinking, too ugly and the graphics were too primitive. The PET, on the other hand, at $1,200 CDN, was within my price range and, as well, had advanced (for the period) graphics and was the sexiest machine out there to boot.

Even though the TRS-80 originally had many problems, not counting the primitive graphics and the fact that it wasn't very pretty, the TRS-80 was a huge success - much bigger than Tandy had anticipated and it rightfully deserves its place in the history books as one of the first pioneering personal computers of all time.

Wow..... how things change! Back then I looked down on the TRS-80, but now, a quarter of a century later, I fondly look up to the TRS-80 and the early days of the personal computer - one that the TRS-80 help establish.

In conclusion, all I wish to say about the ancient TRS-80 is that I rather miss it and simply want to say, "Thanks for the memories, TRS-80. You'll always be fondly remembered!"

And thats my 2 cents 4 this Friday, January (only 5 days to MacWorld) the 11th., 2008.

Photo DigiBarn: DigiBarn

Please note: Last year the TRS-80 turned 30, not 25 as I originally posted. Typo's, unfortunately, are what you get when you write something in less than 5 minutes without properly double checking. My apologies.

Windows Switchers Respond

Garry Conn is a blogger and long time Windows user. Recently he expressed his displeasure on using Vista and since he needed to buy a new laptop to replace his aging Dell, he decided to ask the readers of his blog the question:

"Apple Mac Book Vs Dell XPS - Help Me Decide!"

Garry's post was shortly picked up by the very popular Mac site, Macsurfer's, and the rest, as they say, was history. He received over 90 comments, which of and by itself, is pretty amazing, but what was really amazing was the number of Window users who made the switch over to the Mac and their comments were very interesting, to say the least, such as this one from Todd, who responded by saying:

"Gary, I just bought a MacBook and for me it was WELL worth the money. Everything is so much easier on this thing I love it. I saved some money and upgraded the RAM on my own, which I recommend you do too if you get the MacBook. Also, I ordered via Amazon and got it cheaper than direct from Apple. (go figure) I posted about it here. Go Mac!"

All-in-all, the comments are fascinating to read and, if you are considering switching from using a PC yourself, be it from Windows or from Linux, then I suggest that you read some or all of the many, many fascinating comments from these former Windows users. 

Of course, there are far and away too many to list here, so if you want to know how these former Windows users feel and think about their switch from Windows to the Mac, then please read their comments on Garry's post on his link above, or the one below, and then you will better understand why they say:

 

" Once you go Mac, you Never go back!"

Yes, all of them are positive in favor of the Mac and reading them helps, in part, to explain exactly why the Mac platform, after coming close to dieing, is now suddenly the cool thing in computers these days and why it is attracting literally millions of Window switchers each and every year. 

When you think about it, all of the money that Apple pays for it's popular, "I'm A PC - I'm A Mac," ads, none of them come near to be as convincing or better than the comments given on Garry's blog. The reasons are simple: these are real people; real switchers and their honest replies are ones that no ad agency can deliver,  no matter how much you pay them!

As for Garry's decision on whether or not to buy a Mac or a Dell, he created a YouTube video where he gives his answer to his question and his thanks to the Macsurfer community who responded wholeheartedly to his simple question.

And thats my 2 cents 4 this sunny, bright and mild winter this Thursday, January 10, 2008.

Is 2008 The Year of the Mac?

Could it be that 2008 will be the year of the Mac? According to many analysts it could very well be.

The growing numbers of Macs sold each quarter, now numbering in the millions of units, should be getting a huge shot in the arm now that Best Buy has announced that they are expanding their Mac sales program from 270 stores to 500, out of their 900 store retail chain.

According to UBS's anaylst, Ben Reitzes, one of the reasons that Best Buy and others are increasing their Mac presence is simply because, as he states:

“Despite some softness in the economy, our surveys & checks indicate that Mac demand remains robust. Even with prospects for a slowing economy, we believe Mac demand can keep going strong given new products.”

Not too long ago I read that Apple had been adding over 9,000 new switchers from other OS's, especially from Windows, each and every day. I'm not sure what that figure is now, but I suspect that it is substantially higher than that. Its certainly seems that way anyway, especially when you look around and see Apple's presence every where you turn, not only from it's award winning, "I'm A Mac; I'm a PC," ads, but also from the incredible media presence that Apple generates from the main street press, and of course, also from the ubiquitous sight of iPods, MacBooks and iPhone's that you see on the corner of just about every street these days.

The media attention also includes a tremendous amount of exposure from Hollywood movies and television spoofs that can be found regularly on hit shows such as Saturday Night Live, Mad TV, John Stewart's, Jay Leno and many others.

Adrian Kingsley-Hughs from ZDNet also recently asked whether 2008 is the year of the Mac. He states:

"Here’s the pattern that I’m seeing “in the wild”. I’m generalizing but I’m finding that people with a basic working knowledge of Windows are migrating to Mac because they perceive it as being simpler and easier Windows. Folks migrating to Linux seem to be those with a really good working knowledge of Windows (and computing in general). While it’s far too early for Microsoft to be worried about this platform migration, it should be having a think about why it’s happening."

He believes that Apple is more of a threat to Linux than Microsoft, but I, on the other hand, think that Apple is a huge threat to the both of them. Even though Linux has doubled it's presence on the web, according to Net Applications, the fact remains that OS X's incredible growth can't possibly be coming from Linux because even after doubling it's market share, Linux still has only slightly more than one half of one percent of the market! With Linux struggling to hit even one measly percent of the market, this obviously means that Microsoft Windows is the big loser each and every time that OS X gains in the market.

There are several reasons why OS X is gaining at the expense of Windows I believe. One of the main reasons, as many writers have pointed out, is simply because of the tremendous bad press it has received, which was fueled by the facts that Vista is so bad, in so many ways.

Where do you even begin with all of the problems associated with Vista. From being gutted with DRM through its whole DNA, Vista's slow performance and a huge list of software and hardware incompatibilities, its no wonder Windows users are getting fed up with Microsoft's "Good Enough" philosophy in software, and are switching to both OS X and Linux offerings.

Just as Vista received so much negative press, OS X, on the other hand, and, Apple in general, has received an equal amount of positive press. Despite some problems, which is to be expected with a major upgrade, the majority of the press reviews and comments regarding OS X's newest version, Leopard, are all singing it's praises, with article headlines such as, "Leopard, Apple's new Mac operating system, hits all the right spots."

With tons of similar headlines, is it any wonder that OS X is gaining in popularity and stealing significant market share from Windows?

However, as great as the press has been in weakening Windows and strengthening the Mac, the main reason that OS X is growing at the expense of Windows and Linux alike, is because, as many have said:

"Macs just work." No fuss, no nagging, no activation protocols, nothing... simply plug it in and get down to business.

OS X gets out of the way, is simpler to use and frankly, down right fun to use. In other words, word-of-mouth, and the personal experiences of OS X users, is as much as anything, helping OS X to grow, and some are now predicting that OS X will hit a 10% market showing in the coming months. At least, that is in the U.S. anyway. Quite the feat considering that it's market share was almost as puny as Linux is today!

Yes, in addition to all of the great press, and Apple's presently well designed, well built products are, I think that after the dust has settled on this years MacWorld, this coming Tuesday in San Francisco, Apple and it's Mac OS X platform are about to get a lot more attention and a lot more "Wow" and, as a direct result, a lot more market share that will amaze many, especially the Linux and Window fanboys who love to dice both the Mac and the company behind it.

If the economy doesn't bomb out too much, then I think...... no I'm pretty sure, that the Mac platform will really begin gain and add huge market share gains all at the expense of both Microsoft and Linux, but especially the former.

And thats my 2 cents 4 this Wednesday, January 9, 2008.
Graph: http://marketshare.hitslink.com/report.aspx?qprid=8

The Power And The Glory - The New MacPro Xeon

Oh, the power and the glory! Yes,  Apple has finally released it's new 8-Core Penryn based MacPro and it is one power house let me tell you. With configurations of up to 3.2 GHz, this is one machine that you won't have to complain about when it comes to the speed dept. Just some of the technical highlights are as follows:

In the processing department, you have up to 3.2 GHz Penryn based Quad-Core Intel Xeon 5400 series processors, with enhanced Intel Core micro-architecture that includes up to 12 MB of L2 cache per processor, or 6 MB per core, and a 128-bit SSE4 SIMD engine; 64-bit data paths and registers; energy efficiency optimization and 1600-MHz 64-bit dual independent front side buses.

In the memory department, the new Mac Pro's feature 800MHz ECC fully buffered DIMM (FB-Dimms) memory; eight FB-DIMM slots on two memory riser cards (four slots per card) which can support up to 32GB of main memory with a 256-bit memory architecture.

In the graphic and display departments, the new Pro's can have multiple graphic card configurations including two, three or four 256 MB, ATI Radeon HD 2600 graphic cards and all the way up to the impressive NVIDIA Quadro FX 5600 with 1.5GB of GDDR3 memory, two dual -link DVI ports, and one stereo port. Apple is also offering a 512MB NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT card with two dual-link of GDDR 3 memory.

You can find more specifications on the Apple site, and I might add, they are really impressive. Apple has priced their 'king-of-the-hill' system starting at $2,799, which even at it's base configuration, puts all that the power and glory out of my reach, until, or less, I can ever get to cash in on my lottery retirement savings plan!

My 2 cents on this monster of a system is that these clearly puts Apple in a league above other manufacturers high-end systems for several reasons. One, the internal design of the MacPro is unlike any other out there, one that most manufactures would be smart to try and emulate. The insides of this machine is a nothing short of a thing of beauty!

Secondly, the 3.2GHz Xeon chip that makes this baby scream to the high heavens, is for the next six months or so, a chip that Intel will supply exclusively only to Apple as Intel has been doing in the past with its fastest chips. I'm not sure why Apple has this special relationship with the chip giant, but I'm sure glad that they do? A little bragging rights, after all, is a good thing some times.

Inaddition to the MacPro, Apple has also introduced it's fastest ever based XServe's, but still, if money where no object, I would go with a fully top-of-the-line MacPro with the NVIDIA top-end card with 1.5GB!  Wow, now thats what I call power and glory, let me tell you.

Of course, as much as I love the internals of this beast, I never really liked the 'cheese grater' style externals of the past case, which Apple is still using, and, as a result I'm a little disappointed that they didn't cosmetically change it - even a little bit! Oh well, for all the power and the glory that this speed demon brings to the table, I guess, I could live with that.

So, if you can afford and can use such a fantastic, I wish I could get my grubby little hands on one of these babies too, then I say lucky you. By all means go out and buy this baby, but just don't tell me that you did, of course, because, well... I just might be a little envious and a little bit jealous and, in a fit of protest, I might just have to stick out my tongue at you !

One final note on the release of both the MacPro and new XServes, one full week, ahead of MacWorld - it indicates to me, that MacWorld will be so big, with so many new announcements, that Apple felt it expedient to introduce them now in order to help clear the deck to be able to cover them all! 

I'm hoping so anyway, and, as a result, I'm really looking forward to this year's MacWorld more than ever. How about you?

And thats my 2 cents on the power and glory of the new MacPro 4 this mild, overcast, Tuesday, January, 2008.

The Second Coming of Apple TV

BusinessWeek is now reporting that more and more big time Hollywood studios, in this case, Warner Bros and Paramount and Lionsgate are in discussions with Apple to feature their movies on iTune's upcoming and rumored rental service for $3.99 a pop.

Apparently, these discussions are in the later stages and hopefully will be announced as early as next week, by Steve Jobs, at the annual MacWorld gathering in San Francisco. Not only are some reporting that Apple will, via iTunes, rent movies, but it will also be offering customers the opportunity to buy them if desired.

These newer discussions are basically the same as the recent deal that Apple concluded with both Fox Studios and Disney and it is further believed that the above studios are just the beginning, with many more to come later on.

Some, however, have speculated that Apple had to compromise on it's pricing in order to accommodate the studios, which, if true, would have been a major change on Apple's part.

Well, be that as it may, it is extremely important, in my view, that Apple does what ever it takes to ensure not only the success of the iTune's position as the world's best and biggest legitimate download service, but also that it ensures, what some are saying, is the success of what will be the second coming of the Apple TV, which also should be revealed at MacWorld. I personally hope that this will indeed be the second coming of the device, which for lack of streaming content, has thus far, limited both its appeal and success.

The basic concept behind Apple TV, of course, is fantastic, but the present lack of content is anything but fantastic. I'm not a movie person myself, but to the millions and millions of people out there who are, an empowered iTune movie rental service could be a very big deal indeed.

The convenience of being able to either buy or rent, at completive prices, a vast collection of movies from most, if not all, of the major studios, anytime of the day or week can't be underestimated. I believe with a huge increase in the available content, plus the hardware and software capabilities, that the day of the Apple TV will have arrived and its impact, not only on customers, but also the competition, will be huge and as just as disruptive as the iPhone was in the cellular area.

With so many rumors (as always) of just what Apple is cooking up to reveal on the 15th. at Macworld, I can already barely wait for it to roll around. This is especially true now that various sources, such as Ars Technica have revealed that Apple has officially invited all of the big European media to a special screening of Steve's keynote speech in London. Naturally, this has fanned the flames of MacWorld rumors to an even greater level. Its not that often that Apple does this, so it leads one to believe that this is going to be a very big MacWorld keynote indeed.

Well, just eight more days and we shall finally get to see exactly how big the next Apple crop will be. Hopefully, and most likely, it will be yet another big bumper crop of innovation that will surprise, delight and wow Apple fans, the industry, media and the financial markets the world over, and for months to come.

Let's hope so anyway?

And thats my 2 cents 4 this cloudy, but mild, Monday, January 7, 2008.