Indeed, it's been almost a week since leopard was released, I had to allow myself time to sink into that which is Leopard, so here's my review.
As I've said before, it's a evolutionary update more than a revolutionary update, so the average user will probably only see a few new things they really like, say time machine is helpful, or the coverflow in finder is REALLY helpful.
One of my favorite things from the leopard seeds was probably the ability to instantly connect to all computers in the network, which was only half of why I loved it, the main reason was the screens for windows machines, made me roll over laughing honestly.
If you don't know what I'm talking about, just search Leopard Network BSOD Windows and you'll find out, or check out LockerGnome (Chriss Prillo) on youtube, he has a video showing it, I busted out laughing when I saw it, and any mac user, and windows user alike will as well, :P.
Besides that, I'm really glad that Apple has done a lot of modifications and plenty of improvements on 3d acceleration, etc. Now, these changes really won't apply to a general user, but to a software firm, this is one of the greatest things to happen, especially for 3d and video type software creators, it gives them the tools to make their apps stronger and faster than any other version of OSX could of ever gave them!
Now, there are a few negatives, as everything has, mainly the negatives are easily fixed, for instance I hate the transparent menu bar, it bugs the living hell out of me, as well as the stacks in the dock looking like they're about to fall down. But remember these are easily fixed, so I really don't have a bad thing to say about it.
I really can't say much else about the release other than it's a really great update, and now's a great time to buy a mac, or get one as a christmas gift for someone, this os won't get pulled off the shelfs, so don't worry about that.
Till next time guys,
Toko
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Friday, October 26, 2007
You wanna go mobile!?!
So, a big thing about being mobile is of course a thumb drive, or flash drive.
Most people believe that they are expensive and out of reach for just to have in case you would need it, which in this day in age is false, of course a year ago they were overpriced, but now that the technology has become common place and they have gotten bigger in the storage factor, the price has dropped by 50 or more dollars on 1 gig drives, which while they're at 30 USD right now, this time last year or so they were 80 USD, which isn't a bad drop at all!
Now there are many different types, more than a few can even be found at your local walmart, and for once walmart has some decent brands in this field.
First off, we have the sandisk brand which has many types branching off, the most popular probably being the Cruzer, mainly the Cruzer Micro.
You've probably seen one of these at walmart on the shelf, or even on someone you know. They're pretty good drives, 1 of the 2 I carry around is a Sandisk Cruzer 2 gig model which works great, also as all sandisk devices, it comes with U3 software installed.
U3 is software that is basically a application launcher that uses mobile versions of software or software designed just for mobile purposes, this is how most Sandisk flash drives these days comes with Skype pre-installed, it's just the U3 mobile version, which in truth is the full version but mobile.
There are other brands and types of course, all ranging in different capacities, from 128 mb to 13 gb, or higher, the size determines on what you'll be needing.
I'd say get at least a gig these days, they come cheap at 15 to 20 dollars, sometimes 10.
I myself carry 1 512mb and a 2 gig, the 512 is a older one that I carry to backup anything I need from computers, and the 2 gig is for general use like photoshop lite, etc.
So it all boils down into what you want for the price you want. I'd say anyone should get what I have, a 2 gig sandisk cruzer for around 30 USD from your local walmart, and maybe 25 to 40 USD from a electronics store.
That's all for now, I'll try to post something bigger this weekend, afterall, it is time to round up this week's news, till then.
Toko
Most people believe that they are expensive and out of reach for just to have in case you would need it, which in this day in age is false, of course a year ago they were overpriced, but now that the technology has become common place and they have gotten bigger in the storage factor, the price has dropped by 50 or more dollars on 1 gig drives, which while they're at 30 USD right now, this time last year or so they were 80 USD, which isn't a bad drop at all!
Now there are many different types, more than a few can even be found at your local walmart, and for once walmart has some decent brands in this field.
First off, we have the sandisk brand which has many types branching off, the most popular probably being the Cruzer, mainly the Cruzer Micro.
You've probably seen one of these at walmart on the shelf, or even on someone you know. They're pretty good drives, 1 of the 2 I carry around is a Sandisk Cruzer 2 gig model which works great, also as all sandisk devices, it comes with U3 software installed.
U3 is software that is basically a application launcher that uses mobile versions of software or software designed just for mobile purposes, this is how most Sandisk flash drives these days comes with Skype pre-installed, it's just the U3 mobile version, which in truth is the full version but mobile.
There are other brands and types of course, all ranging in different capacities, from 128 mb to 13 gb, or higher, the size determines on what you'll be needing.
I'd say get at least a gig these days, they come cheap at 15 to 20 dollars, sometimes 10.
I myself carry 1 512mb and a 2 gig, the 512 is a older one that I carry to backup anything I need from computers, and the 2 gig is for general use like photoshop lite, etc.
So it all boils down into what you want for the price you want. I'd say anyone should get what I have, a 2 gig sandisk cruzer for around 30 USD from your local walmart, and maybe 25 to 40 USD from a electronics store.
That's all for now, I'll try to post something bigger this weekend, afterall, it is time to round up this week's news, till then.
Toko
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
A plate of FaceBook please.
Well, it's finally happened, which to me has taken a while, but ah well.
Microsoft according to the Journal (link) has purchased a small chunk of FaceBook a popular Web 2.0 style social networking site for a whopping 300-500 million dollars, which would raise the network of FaceBook to over 10 billion dollars.
Now that's great and all, the site will now be filled with Microsoft endorsements and such, but was this a wise decision?
I've come to understand as many others in the net field have, that social networking sites are as as much a trend as clothing is, which is to say teenagers control it, and usually don't stay on a certain one/style for long.
And when that mass audience leaves, the site would be dead in a fraction of minutes making the net worth and stock value to plummet to nothing, which would create some angry investors.
So with that, I guess that it's obvious what my opinion on the subject matter is, they probably shouldn't dump a nice amount of money into a trend that could last from 10 seconds to 10 years, it's as unpredictable as a earthquake, it shows tremors that might give off a hint of going off, but then after that nothing may ever happen again.
You never know, but that's how the market works, gamble on a educated guess on what will go up and just hope that it will at least earn some profit and not fall to the ground.
Microsoft according to the Journal (link) has purchased a small chunk of FaceBook a popular Web 2.0 style social networking site for a whopping 300-500 million dollars, which would raise the network of FaceBook to over 10 billion dollars.
Now that's great and all, the site will now be filled with Microsoft endorsements and such, but was this a wise decision?
I've come to understand as many others in the net field have, that social networking sites are as as much a trend as clothing is, which is to say teenagers control it, and usually don't stay on a certain one/style for long.
And when that mass audience leaves, the site would be dead in a fraction of minutes making the net worth and stock value to plummet to nothing, which would create some angry investors.
So with that, I guess that it's obvious what my opinion on the subject matter is, they probably shouldn't dump a nice amount of money into a trend that could last from 10 seconds to 10 years, it's as unpredictable as a earthquake, it shows tremors that might give off a hint of going off, but then after that nothing may ever happen again.
You never know, but that's how the market works, gamble on a educated guess on what will go up and just hope that it will at least earn some profit and not fall to the ground.
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Guitar Hero 3 coming to a console,pc, and even a mac near you soon.
Well, 2 stories in 1 day, not horrible, I just was browsing some articles and found out that Guitar Hero 3 isn't the far away, and this time around it's universal, even including Mac in systems it's coming out for.
The PS3 and Xbox 360 version is just Guitar Hero III, while the Wii and PC/MAC version is Guitar Hero Legends of Rock. I'm not sure if there are any differences that would really affect gameplay, but I do find it odd they renamed the title, hopefully it doesn't end up like Tony Hawk's DownHill Jam, which really was FAR away from the traditional concept of gameplay...
Well, the main reason I'm actually writing this is because of the fact the requirements for the Computer Versions are so high, here's a list from the Aspyr Site. (link)
The PS3 and Xbox 360 version is just Guitar Hero III, while the Wii and PC/MAC version is Guitar Hero Legends of Rock. I'm not sure if there are any differences that would really affect gameplay, but I do find it odd they renamed the title, hopefully it doesn't end up like Tony Hawk's DownHill Jam, which really was FAR away from the traditional concept of gameplay...
Well, the main reason I'm actually writing this is because of the fact the requirements for the Computer Versions are so high, here's a list from the Aspyr Site. (link)
Now in my opinion, that's steep for a computer game as simple as Guitar Hero, I mean honestly, it looks like they didn't do a single bit of optimization, and on top of that, many of the newer titles releasing for the PC including Crysis which has outstanding looks, yet I believe that GH3 has higher requirements than it, odd.Guitar Hero® III: Legends of Rock
Platforms: Mac/PC
Genre: Strategy/Simulation
ESRB: Teen
Mac Release Date: Fall 2007
PC Release Date: Fall 2007
MINIMUM SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS:
- Operating System: Windows XP SP2, Windows Vista
- CPU Processor: Intel Pentium D (Dual Core) 2.8GHZ or AMD Athlon 64 3500+
- Memory: XP - 1 GB RAM, Vista – 2GB RAM
- Hard Disk Space: 5.1 GB + 1GB Swap File
- Sound Card: DirectX 9.0c compatible sound card
- Video Card: 3D Hardware Accelerator Card Required – 100% DirectX 9.0c compatible 128 MB Video Memory
- Video Card (ATI): Radeon X800
- Video Card (Nvidia): Geforce 7600
- Media Required: 4X DVD-ROM drive
- Windows XP/Vista compatible mouse and keyboard with latest drivers
- Guitar Hero 3 Official PC Guitar Controller
This product does not support Windows 98/ME/2000/NT/XP x64/Vista x64.
MULTIPLAYER REQUIREMENTS:
- Internet(TCP/IP) play supported
- Internet play requires a broadband connection
RECOMMENDED SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS:
- Intel Core 2 Duo 2.4GHZ or AMD Athlon Dual Core 4400+
- 256 MB 3D Hardware Accelerator Card
- Video Card (ATI): Radeon HD 2600
- Video Card (Nvidia): Geforce 8800 GT
- 2 GB RAM
As you can see, Crysis on the right looks a lot better, yet it's easier to run?
Ah well, personally, I'm adding this title to my Wii Library to hold me over till Super Smash Brothers Brawl comes out, which of course was delayed again.
The Wii version comes out later this month on October 27th at 80-90 dollars, which with all the stuff inside, which shouldn't be that bad, but we'll see.
I'll cover more when I get my copy and have a good hands on experience.
Ah well, personally, I'm adding this title to my Wii Library to hold me over till Super Smash Brothers Brawl comes out, which of course was delayed again.
The Wii version comes out later this month on October 27th at 80-90 dollars, which with all the stuff inside, which shouldn't be that bad, but we'll see.
I'll cover more when I get my copy and have a good hands on experience.
Leopard Is Almost Here And So are 3rd Party Apps!
Well, something I've been waiting for for a while is coming out Friday, and by now, you've probably heard it in the news or on any podcast related to Apple (including some Windows ones as well).
Leopard is upon us indeed, and with it over 300 features Apple is boasting about.
Now the question is, is all the hype worth it in the end?
For the regular user, I'll say there's probably going to be a few that help out, document coverflow and timemachine being 2 of them that will help browse files and even retrieve older versions of anything through a syltish interface.
The main impact is going to be what tools and features developers have now, including optimization for dual core macs, which is what most people have these days, and opengl being faster.
So I predict (as well as many others) that in the future, even if you don't use features in Leopard, you'll have an impact on what applications can do and how much faster and more useful they'll be.
So bottom line, this is a evolutionary update for OSX, not a revolutionary update, which just means it's a upgrade.
Now, onto the 3rd Party apps, what iphone users and itouch users alike have wanted since their gadget has been released.
Of course recently (soon after the iphone was released actually) you could do what is called a jailbreak on your device, or gain root access and add third party applications, and actually unlock the device on the iphone to work with carriers that are decent or at least in your area (I hear ya Canada, it's a shame Rogers is about all you have).
But of course with the udpate of 1.1.1 the third party apps were wiped out along with beginning to brick phones that were unlocked, which is a whole other discussion all together. Anyway, this means that you can't have third party if you want 1.1.1, well, till recently when 1.1.1 was jailbroken through a flaw in the mobile safari with TIFF images that caused the browser to crash and give the user temporary root access.
But not to worry, Apple has answered the call of the users finally and announced that in Febuary of '08 the official iPhone (and hopefully iPod Touch) SDK will be released, but that means that it'll be till May probably before any good type Apps are released.
The Apps will probably be sold through the iTunes store, and hopefully provide a podcast like experience with users being able to give away apps if they want, but hey, if it's useful, or allows me to say, buy Mail and Google Maps for my itouch, then I'll be happy, maybe 1.99 or .99 cents a download just like songs wouldn't be bad considering the price of smartphone software, etc.
Of course recently (soon after the iphone was released actually) you could do what is called a jailbreak on your device, or gain root access and add third party applications, and actually unlock the device on the iphone to work with carriers that are decent or at least in your area (I hear ya Canada, it's a shame Rogers is about all you have).
But of course with the udpate of 1.1.1 the third party apps were wiped out along with beginning to brick phones that were unlocked, which is a whole other discussion all together. Anyway, this means that you can't have third party if you want 1.1.1, well, till recently when 1.1.1 was jailbroken through a flaw in the mobile safari with TIFF images that caused the browser to crash and give the user temporary root access.
But not to worry, Apple has answered the call of the users finally and announced that in Febuary of '08 the official iPhone (and hopefully iPod Touch) SDK will be released, but that means that it'll be till May probably before any good type Apps are released.
The Apps will probably be sold through the iTunes store, and hopefully provide a podcast like experience with users being able to give away apps if they want, but hey, if it's useful, or allows me to say, buy Mail and Google Maps for my itouch, then I'll be happy, maybe 1.99 or .99 cents a download just like songs wouldn't be bad considering the price of smartphone software, etc.
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