OK. That was more painful than it should have been. We should now be all moved over to the new server. Please let me know if you notice anything out of place. I had a really hard time with the forum. Even though I did a complete backup, it turned out the new host would not let me upload a backup of more than 8MB and the forum database is approx 30MB!! Thank goodness I found this.

Ok gang, I just changed the DNS for maccast.com so sometime in the next 48 hours we will be moved over to the new servers. I think I have everything in place for a smooth transition, but if not please bear with me. Things could break over the next couple days, but I will try to get them fixed quickly. There also is some possibility of some blog comments getting lost in the transition, so I will apologize in advance if that occurs. Thank you in advance for your patience and we will get through this together.

“You are now entering…”

I finally had the opportunity to sit down and have a discussion with long time MacCast listener and fellow podcaster Colm, from The Colmination. To kick off the discusssion we tried out iLife ’06 and it’s new iChat recording features, we do the Colmination Top 5 Mac-style and talk about our histories with Apple and the Mac. Listen to the AAC here and be sure to checkout the Colmination, which I describe as a “hanging with the guys” lifestyle podcast. Each episode the Colm has a buddy or two over and they talk about life, sports, video games and music. If your lucky Colm’s lovely girlfriend Alissa will also make an appearance and share a gross medical story.

Recently I had the opportunity to do an interview with a couple of teen podcasters. Brandon and Erik are the hosts of the Mr. Mac Geek Podcast and they are probably some of the most articulate and well prepared teen podcasters I have encountered. For my episode we got together and discussed all the recent announcements at MacWorld 2006. There were some slight audio glitches due to Skype, but overall I think it is an episode many would enjoy. Check it out over on http://www.mrmacgeek.com.

Listener Andre pointed out a really cool feature of the new MacBook Pro that many, including myself, had missed. If you carefully read the “Pure Digital Signal” section of the MacBook Pro Graphics page on Apples site you’ll see this:

…you get three options for using your display: dual-display mode, video mirroring, and lid-closed mode.

So apparently the MacBook can be run with the lid shut. This is a BIG change from the PowerBook. With the PowerBooks you can use software like Sleepless, but doing so could cause excess heat and damage your Mac, so it is NOT recommended. I’m sure addition of lid closed operation will be a welcome feature for many new MacBook owners.

OOPS: Looks like I made a mistake on this one. From the comments on this post it looks like PowerBook have been able to run with the lid closed for a while now. The trick is they need to be connected to an external display. I was confused becasue this topic came up on the MacCast in the past, but in that case the listener wanted to run with the lid closed and still have the PowerBook a connected to the network, but with no external monitor attached. He wanted it available for server operation.

Listen to today’s show here!
MC20060112.mp3 [43.0mb 01:33:50 64kbps]

A podcast about all things Macintosh. For Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. Show 114. Macworld. Apple retail sales figures, iPod FM Tuner remote control, new iPod “Jazz” ad with Wynton Marsalis. New Widgets in OS 10.4.4 update.

iLife ’06:
iPhoto: Support for 250,000 Photos. Improved performance. Photocasting (RSS). Full screen editing. Cards, Calendars and improved books. Integration with new iWeb.

iTunes: New TV content from NBC, Saturday Night Live (SNL). New “Mini Store”. Is the Mini Store a privacy concern?

iMovie HD: Really cool themes. Real time effects and titles. Audio effects. Multiple project support. iPod video export, Podcasting and iWeb integration.

iDVD: Magic iDVD wizard. Support for Widescreen DVDs. Autofill dropzones. Improved DVD map view. Support for 3rd party DVD burners.

Garageband: Podcast recording studio. Enhanced podcasts. Auto “ducking”. Hundreds of royalty free elements. Vocal enhancements and noise filters. iChat recording. Video track for adding iMovie scores. Integration with iWeb for publishing.

iWeb: A brand new app. Really nice templates and iLife media integration. Blog and Podcast pages with RSS support. Photo galleries and slides shows using AJAX. Works with .Mac for easy publishing and HTML export.

iWork ’06:
Pages 2 and Keynote 3: New themes. HD Themes. 3D Charts, Tables with Calculations. Freeform shapes curves and masks. Address Book mail merge. Reviewer comments.

New Intel iMac: Same models 17″ and 20″, same prices. Intel Core Duo processors, and 2.0GHz Core Duo, ATI Radeon X1600 PCI Express graphics. Built-in iSight, Frontrow and remote. 2-3 times faster than the current iMac G5. Extended desktop support. Developers eligible to get a free Intel iMac.

New Intel MacBook Pro: Love the machine, hate the name. 1.67GHz Intel Core Duo or 1.83GHz Intel Core Duo. 4-5 times faster than the PowerBook G4. 15.4″ screen that is 67% brighter than G4 display. ATI Mobility Radeon X1600 graphics. Built-in iSight. IR sensor and remote for FrontRow. 4x single layer instead of 8x dual layer SuperDrive??! One FireWire 400 port, Two USB 2.0 ports, ExpressCard/34 slot (new PCMCIA spec). Thinner than the 17″ PowerBook. The power cable is held in place magnetically. MagSafe. Ships in February. No battery life specs?

New Apple Intel TV Ad. Technology may make Intel Mac Dual booting a challenge. Quicktime 7.0.4 released, pulled and re-released. Quicktime on OS 10.3.9 messes up the Macromedia Player 8. Apple Stock closes at an “Intel” Price, $80.86. Levis announces iPod jeans. Google Earth now available for Mac OS X. Apple starts using “Vingle” trademark. Tip: Word complete/lookup in Apple Mail. Review of Logitech USB Microphone. Do Widgets slow down your Mac? In additional to educational discounts, Apple also offers Governmental discounts. 15″ PowerBook update may improve your battery life. Listener feedback on Aperture VS. Adobe Lightroom

New music, Every Little Thing by Valley Lodge

We are fugitives of the law. Idiocy is our only option.

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The MacBook Pro is an awesome display of the latest and greatest technology Apple has to offer, but the old stuff is still pretty good too. A couple of listeners had pointed me to this site which features a music video programmed in Applesoft II on a 1979 Apple ][+ with 48K of RAM. I reminded me of the hours I spent in my youth programming BASIC on an Apple ][ e. This one really took me back. It is a great reminder of just how much an Apple computer can inspire creativity. Technology is only as great as the people who use it and Apple users are some of the best. Enjoy.

[ Apple ][ Music Video Link ]

So what did I think of the new announcements from Apple? Well I was pleased to see that my predictions of podcast support, both audio and video, in iLife ’06 were true. I also am very interested to give the new iWeb app a spin, but for me I am not so sure how useful I will find it. The first part of the Keynote moved terribly slowly. I was waiting in great anticipation for the “BIG” announcement. I can tell you that when Steve said new Intel Macs I was thrilled and then immediately crushed when he said they were new iMacs. No new features, just new processors. Didn’t they just put out new iMacs a few months ago? I think Apple is going to have some seriously pissed new iMac owners to deal with. Is this two revisions since May? Don’t get me wrong, Core Duo Intel based iMacs are a great thing, but I would have preferred a Mac Mini or better yet new Intel iBook. Of course at this point I knew it wasn’t over yet, since the fateful phrase we all know and love had not been uttered yet. And then it came…. “Oh, and one more thing”.

The MacBook Pro. YES. New Intel based Pro Mac laptops. SWEET! These things are seriously cool and have horsepower up the wazooo. Just check the specs page and you will see what I mean. I was getting a bit worried that this MacWorld was not going to live up to the hype and it almost didn’t. Now I only wish I had an extra $3,500 bucks lying around. Apple is ready to go with a new Intel native OS X update (10.4.4) and all iLife offerings in Universal Binaries. The Pro apps are getting updates soon and you can get a DVD with all the updates for $49.00 USD. Adobe and Microsoft say their updates are on the way and Steve claims the Rosetta performance on the new machines is “great”. I wonder if what he considers “great” is the same as what I consider “great”? I’ll let you know when I get may hands on a real system at the Apple Store.

Overall I would say this is nat as big a MacWorld as I thought it would be. I am still disappointed we didn’t see a Mac PVR system and the iWork ’06 update is pretty much a nothing update if you ask me. I know I won’t be upgrading. Personally iLife ’06 is the biggest news in my world. I can’t wait to try the new Podcasting features. I will try to get a post-MacWorld cast up soon. Stay subscribed.

Mac Geek out.

Listen to today’s show here!
MC20060110.mp3 [28.3mb 01:01:43 64kbps]

A podcast about all things Macintosh. For Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. Show 113. The MacWorld predictions and additional MacWorld info. Adobes Aperture competitor, Lightroom. Widgets on your iPod? Next generation Lego Mindstorms, Lego Mindstorms NXT. Apple laptops don’t fair well in “reliability” study. Sandvox, a new web development app from Karelia, iPod Film Festival. Microsoft OS X… oh, I mean Vista. Follow-up: Mac equivalent to Norton GoBack. Follow-up: iMovie HD transitions with “popping” audio. Free Soundseeing Tours of San Francisco. Getting “status” in Apple Mail. Podcasting + Books = PodioBooks.

New music, Country Song by Icepaw.

Promos from the Mac Announcements Podcast and Engagement Headengagementhead.blogspot.com.

You have no idea what you have unleashed.

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Checkout this story from MacCast listener Adam:

This story is so amazing, I hope you believe it. But honest to God, it’s 100% true.

So I bought a Nano for my uncle as a gift when they first came out. About a month ago, I get a phone message from someone at Apple. They say the Houston Police have contacted them and that they (the Houston Police) have my Nano and to please contact officer Richards and they leave me her phone number.
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