Low End Mac Archive for January 29

January 29 in Low End Mac History

Blame it on Mac OS, Eric DeStefano, Mac Metamorphosis. One valid reason the Mac OS stinks.
Introduction to drive interfaces, Charlie Ruggiero, Mac Daniel. An introduction to SCSI, IDE, FireWire, and USB drives.
Change at Low End Mac, Dan Knight, Mac Musings. Today marks one of the more significant changes in the history of the site.

Computer elitism, Charles Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings. In order to grow market share, Apple would have to dumb down and compromise the Mac experience to appeal to the broad consumer market.
10 forward, part 2, Steve Watkins, The Practical Mac. An easy, successful upgrade to OS X, and how I crashed OS X in one easy step.
Installing OS X on a SuperMac S900, Bill Rose, Unofficial SuperMac Support Site. The trials and tribulations of installing Mac OS X on an unsupported SuperMac.
An introduction to Unix, Adam Loiacono, Unix & the Mac. A brief look at Unix, why it has emerged as the leading alternative to Windows, and what it means to Mac users.
Lessons from OS X on unsupported hardware, Dirk Pilat, Mac UK. It works very nicely, thank you, but be sure to use a fast hard drive.

The January 2003 Power Mac G4 value equation, Dan Knight, Mac Musings. More performance. Less money. But where is the true value, with the newest Power Macs or the just replaced models?
Coming back to the Mac after years with Windows, Julian O'Connor, My Turn. Early exposure to a Mac Plus paved the way for a Mac addiction later in life.

IBM Model M and Apple Extended II among best computer keyboards ever, Tommy Thomas, Welcome to Macintosh. Interview with Brandon of clickykeyboards.com, who discusses keyboard design and why two (IBM Model M, Apple Extended II) stand apart from the crowd.
OS X 10.3 or 10.4 on a G4/533?, Lombard to Pismo hard drive swap, 'Book repair, and more, Charles Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings. The best OS for a G4/533, migrating by swapping hard drives, WallStreet and iBook repair and replacement options, and upgrading RAM in Lombard.
Just how bad is a $300 Windows PC?, Andrew J Fishkin, Best Tools for the Job. Mac users tend to laugh off sub-$300 Windows PCs, but for most users most of the time, they're all they need.
Lineform: A familiar, friendly, affordable illustration program for OS X, Cortland. This $80 illustration program could be all a lot of Mac users need.

G3 and G4 Power Macs and Clamshell iBooks still useful, Ben Zalutsky, No Windows for Me. Intel CPUs may be blazingly fast, but the old G3 and G4 Macs have plenty of usable life left in them.

Wikipedia: The Missing Manual available as book and wiki, Charles W Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings. If you're at all interested in contributing to Wikipedia, this book should teach you everything you need to know.

Record Apple profits, weathering power outages, Haxies coming to Snow Leopard, and more, Mac News Review. Also USB 3.0 changes external storage, Gmail the best email, Letters app proposed as alternative to Mac Mail, USB device server, and more.
$249 MacBook Air knockoff, ExpressCard SSD boosts MacBook Pro, enterprise SSD, and more, The 'Book Review. Also fastest text input, the Fin cooling stand for newest MacBook, bamboo case for 13" MacBook Pro, and more.
iPad to kill off laptops?, office app with Google Docs integration, SpotACop app, and more, iNews Review. Also iPad pros and cons, AutoPark helps avoid parking tickets, WhiteHouse.gov: Anywhere, Dragon Dictation reviewed, first iPad bags announced, and more.
iPad score card, Frank Fox, Stop the Noiz. Apple's iPad is almost everything expected, but there are areas where it comes up short.
The iPad changes the mobile game, John Hatchett, Recycled Computing. The iPad goes beyond Apple's Newton and iPod touch legacy to create a new and compelling mobile platform.