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The Low End Mac Link Archive, August 1999
Low End Mac Reader Specials
Memory To Go Special: MacPro 8 Core 8GB kit $232 / 4GB kit $116 / 2GB kit $72. New Macbook 2GB DDR3-$65. HARD DRIVES available -- Free shipping / LIfetime warranty.
LA Computer Company: Specials on AppleCare, iMac's, Apple Batteries and Apple A/C Adapters. Also Great prices on Used Apple Computers. Call 1-800-941-7654 Click Here.
External news links are listed below by the date of publication
with the most recent articles listed at the top, older ones below
them. Other monthly archive indexes are linked on the right. Links
were correct when originally posted. However, we cannot guarantee
that these links are still active.
News: Newer
announces G4 upgrades, PowerBook Zone, 8/31. Upgrades available
in daughter card and ZIF configurations. Blue G3 with most recent
Apple ROM is incompatible.
Opinion: Processor
wars, part 1, Philip Machanick, Mac Opinion, 8/31. Athlon about
the same level as G3 at same clock speed. (Of course, today we have
G4!)
News:
Hotmail cracked badly, Slashdot, 8/30. "Hotmail has been
cracked . . . there is a web page with a form that allows you to
login as anyone and read/write/delete their email."
Opinion: Mac OS 8.6 hides
much of its beauty, ZD Journals, 9/99. "Mac OS 8.6 is probably
the first release from Apple in quite a while that concentrates
solely on the performance of the operating system."
Review:
PowerBook G3/333, PC World, 9/99. "All in all, with its lighter
weight, outstanding display, and long battery life, the new
PowerBook is a good read."
Review:
Apple iMac, FamilyPC, 9/99. "The iMac lets you concentrate on
your work, not on how the computer works."
Review: Quantum Atlas 10K
drive, Accelerate Your Mac!, 8/27. Faster, less expensive than
Seagate Cheetah.
Opinion: It's
a Mac, Mac, Mad, Macworld, Kurt Hiner, Applelinks, 8/27. "...I
can honestly say that I haven't wanted an Apple product as badly as
the iBook since the eMate first appeared. But perhaps that's
because I don't obtain my sense of manhood from the computer I
use...."
Opinion: Low-down on
the rip-off: Hands on the eOne, Eliot Hochberg, Mac Junkie,
8/27. "If they could be seen side-by-side, however, even the most
novice computer buyer would notice the difference in fit, finish,
and quality of plastics...."
Opinion:
It was love at first byte, Bill Taylor, Toronto Star, 8/26.
"...call me a computer idiot for buying an iMac and you'll have a
fight on your hands. That's not just me you're slandering, it's my
baby."
Opinion:
After the iMac, the revolution will be colorized, c|net, 8/25.
"More than any other feature, the iMac's turquoise (and purple,
green, blue, orange, and red) translucent plastic steals the
spotlight."
Dark Side: Microsoft
admits NT has serious security flaws, TechWeb, 8/26. "Microsoft
has acknowledged a serious security flaw in NT when used with
Service Pack 4 - probably the most commonly deployed version of its
operating system."
Opinion: Miscellaneous
Ramblings #27, Charles Moore, MacOpinion, 8/26. "The question
occurs as to whether today's G3 PowerBooks and iMacs will be as
usable when they're 10-12 years old as the ancient compact Macs
are."
Opinion: Why
every kid needs a Mac, Grayson Steinberg, Arizona Central.
"Unlike Windows, the Mac OS was designed so an average person would
never have to run into the core of the operating system."
Tech/Gaming: The
16-bit vs. 32-bit video debate, Monkfish, FullOn3D [Mac3dfx] Excellent discussion of 16-
vs. 24-bit (a.k.a. 32-bit) video. Most images are in PNG format,
though, so Mac visitors can't see them. :-(
News:
Flash hits 83% market penetration, Mac Observer, 8/24.
Remarkably high penetration for a brower plug-in is partially due
to inclusion with QuickTimes 4.
Opinion: Send in the
lawyers, MacWeek, 8/24. "[eMachines] has been feeding stores
stocking the eOne with a list of 10 points why customers should
choose one of the machines instead of an iMac."
Media:
Card adapting Ender screenplay for Lloyd, Sci Fi Wire [Slashdot]. With Jake Lloyd (Anakin
Skywalker) interested in playing Ender, Orson Scott Card is
adapting his screenplay of Ender's Game. (It's not Mac news, but it
is one of my all time favorite books.)
Field report: Canon MultiPASS 635,
iMacInTouch, 8/23. CompUSA employee explains steps to get first Mac
multifunction peripheral working under Mac OS 8.6. (Note: I've
ordered a MultiPASS C635 for use at home. Expect a review a few
days after I receive it, a XLR8 DualPort USB, and Mac OS 8.6.
dk)
Opinion: Now you are
an enemy of the state, Jesse Berst, ZDNet, 8/23. "...the U.S.
Department of Justice wants the right to break into your home and
(without your knowledge) disable the security precautions on your
computer. Then it can track and trace everything you do."
Opinion: Back to
cool, Wired, 8/23. "The iBook may prove to be an even bigger
hit for Apple than the iMac."
Opinion: OmniPage,
Fred, and..., Steve Wood, Busman's Holiday, 8/23. "While still
early in the school year, the results from having kids use
Text-to-Speech to read the stories to them seems to be
helpful."
Opinion:
Save the Palm Pilot, Silicon Valley, 8/21. "Over the past few
months, Microsoft has made a series of moves to position Windows CE
as the winner of the next operating system war."
Opinion:
IBM PowerPC motherboards: Apple's biggest opportunity yet,
Bryan Chaffin, Mac Observer, 8/20. "...it will offer some great
exposure for the PowerPC processor to lots of places that would
probably not even consider running a Mac or MacOS X Server. That
exposure will help Apple eat away at the Wintel hegemony...."
Review: 56k
USB modems, MacNN Review, 8/20. "...56K USB modems simply do
not perform as well as they should."
Opinion: The
iMac difference, ZDNet, 8/20. "...the iMac's primary charms lie
in its ability to lead the long-awaited expansion of the PC from a
technology tool for hardware tinkerers to an Internet-driven home
appliance."
News: Furor
rising over PC wiretap plan, ZDNet, 8/20. "The plan is 'an
unprecedented attempt by the Clinton administration to impose "big
brother" monitoring powers over American citizens.'"
News: DOJ
wants to bug PCs, ZDNet, 8/20. "Under the proposed 'Cyberspace Electronic Security
Act,' investigators armed with a sealed warrant could comb
computers for passwords and install devices that override
encryption programs...."
Analysis: PC laptops cheaper
than iBook?, The iMac, 8/20. Seemingly lower Wintel prices
based on $400 ISP rebate.
Consumer: PowerLogix G3/233 for
7300, 7500, etc., $189.95, limited supply, Bottom Line
Distribution. Thanks to Accelerate Your Mac! for pointing
this one out. This card works in many Power Macs, as well as
several Power Computing and Umax SuperMac clones. A recent review on Low End Mac showed how
a 250 MHz G3 could improve performance over an older, slower 604
processor.
Opinion:
Pseudo Clones, osOpinion. A way Apple could reintroduce clones
without damaging sales.
Dark Side: Intel
to boost Celeron in Y2K, ZDnet, 8/20. Will move "economy" CPU
to Pentium III core, copper technology, integrate L2 cache.
Analysis: A
PC in every pot, Salon, 8/19. Cheap and free PCs open market to
non-Windows operating systems. (Win98 costs manufacturers about $85
per machine.)
Opinion: Nothing
wrong with free, Mac@Ya, 8/19. "Should IBM's free design catch
on, demand for the PowerPC processor should go up, triggering more
manufacturing and eventually dropping prices"
Opinion: The Yugo of
computers, The iMac, 8/19. "Is E-machines the Yugo of
computing?"
News: Apple
sues eMachines for iMac look-alike, c|net, 8/19. "A major issue
in both cases is the concept of 'trade dress,' that is, the
distinctive style or look of a product."
News: Apple
sues eMachines for illegally copying iMac design, Apple
Computer, 8/19. "There is an unlimited number of original designs
that eMachines could have created for their computers, but instead
they chose to copy Apple's designs."
Opinion: Strange days
for AIM, MacWeek, 8/19. "...a combination of third-party
PowerPC boxes and Apple's open-source Darwin OS is just a short
step away from running Mac OS X on non-Apple hardware."
Opinion: What's
wrong with beige?, Mac Soldiers, 8/19. How about Macs for those
who don't want fruity flavors?
Virus: Christmas
virus can destroy PCs, ZDNet, 8/19. This Dec. 25 Windows virus
can erase files and wipe out a PC's flash BIOS. (Windows users have
all the fun.)
Opinion:
Two mac success stories, My First Mac Was a Typewriter, 8/18.
"She was amazed at what she could do and how user friendly the Mac
turned out to be."
Opinion: Farewell to
the desktop?, Jason D. O'Grady, MacWeek, 8/18. "Many people I
talk to are at the point where they will probably never buy a
desktop computer again."
Opinion: iMac with Voodoo
3?, The iMac, 8/17. "...we hope that Apple will take advantage
of the industry leading Voodoo3 in the next revision of the
iMac."
Review: Star Trek
DVDs, DVD Resource Page. Two disks, two episodes from the
original series on each. (You can order Star
Trek #1 and Star
Trek #2 from Amazon.)
Analysis: Why kill
products?, MacKiDo, 8/16. Why Newton died and Apple II wan't
"forever."
Opinion: Big
monitor for iMac, Magazine Street [Macs Only!]. Jim Stone makes the
case for an iMac with a vertical 17" monitor.
Review: iPresenter,
iMac external video adapter, Macs Only!, 8/16. "Give me an
iMac, hook up my 21" monitor, and that's all the computing
equipment that I need!"
Rumor: Universal
motherboard architecture, Think Secret, 8/16. "By the end of
this fiscal quarter, with an October launch at the latest, Apple
will launch all products with 2x AGP, at 133Mhz, and Ultra ATA
66...."
Analysis: iMac's
first year, ZDNet, 8/15. "So far, about 2 million iMacs have
been sold."
Opinion: State of the
Newton, Macville, 8/15. "I am here to tell you today that the
Newton is still alive and well."
Connectivity: New flavor
of DSL brings faster, cheaper net access, CNN, 8/13. G.Lite
will reach 1.5 Mbps downstream and 384 kbps upstream - over 25x
faster downloads and 11x faster uploads than 56k modems!
Opinion: More
punch in Apple portables, Business Week. "With the debut of the
iBook, the first portable designed from the ground up as a consumer
product, Apple is making a bid to reclaim technological and design
leadership."
Opinion: Apple
failing to exploit Y2K advantage?, MacSoldiers, 8/13. "There is
also an advantage to targeting an advertising campaign to computer
owners whose computers have actually stopped working."
Opinion: FreeMac.com's
forbidden fruit, Robert Morgan, MacWeek, 8/13. "The more I hear
about them, the less I like any of the free-PC offers and business
models."
Opinion:
Why iMac knockoffs are good for Apple, Bryan Chaffin, Mac
Observer, 8/13. "...being copied like this puts Apple back into the
unquestionable role of market leader and innovator."
Dark Side: Microsoft:
Resistance is futile, c|net. They've destroyed DR-DOS, Borland,
Lotus 1-2-3, Word Perfect, and have almost finished off Netscape.
Is AOL next?
Review: SimCity
3000, Mac Junkie, 8/13. Hardware intensive sequel to SC2K a
winner.
Consumer: Boycott Who
Framed Roger Rabbit, DVD Resource Page, 8/13. "I want to
send a message to Disney that the alteration of Who Framed Roger
Rabbit is unacceptable, and that we will not purchase or rent
this altered DVD."
Review: SurfDoubler
Plus, Applelinks. Share an internet connection among two
computers.
Opinion: Demise of
the Macintosh web, Warp Core, 8/13. "The Macintosh websites
that are run by a few individuals will be the first to go."
Opinion: Fight first,
sue later, Mac@Ya, TechWeb, 8/12. "While the iMac looks clean
and futuristic, the eOne looks cheap and slapped together."
Web:
Don't link or I'll sue!, Salon, 8/12. "Links are the Web's
essence and its genius. Every public Web page's URL, its address,
is available to all; we can point any Web page to any other."
iMac: iMac CD Update 2.0, Apple Computer, 8/12. Updates
firmware on iMac CD-ROM to reduce vibration, improve reads.
iMac: Apple's
38-pound gorilla, Forbes, 8/12 [Macs Only!]. "Within a month of its
release, Apple's slice of consumer computer purchases tripled to
7%...."
Opinion: iBook
revisited, Mac Opinion, 8/11. "Apple has managed to produce a
flawed design once again, but as with the iMac, I predict that the
flaws will not matter too much."
Tech: Analog vs.
digital, MacKiDo, 8/11. By going digital we've increased speed,
decreased heat and power consumption, simplified the design, and
increased reliability.
Opinion: Trademark
confusion, macRelations 2000. "Its really the same argument
Apple is using against the makers of iMac rip offs; that these
companies are using a trademark of [Apple's] in order to subvert
customers into buying their machines...."
Rumor: OS X
user-friendliness, Mac OS Rumors, 8/10. "OS X Consumer will
never, ever require the user to use a command line for any
reason."
Opinion:
Mac's stylish image polishes Apple sales, Seattle Times, 8/10.
"In a sector obsessed with high power and low cost, Apple has
provided something else altogether: style."
News: AirPort
waiting on FCC approval, iBook Zone, 8/10. "...it seems
everything will be ready to go when iBook ships in September."
Opinion: iMac
copycats? Don't worry too much, MacBC, 8/10. "It is only
fitting that the first "copy" is coming out around the same
(rumored) time as the new iMac. Apple is staying one step
ahead...."
Opinion: Meet PowerBook X,
Terra, Mac Junkie, 8/10. Not real Apple designs, but possible
future PowerBooks.
Opinion: FireWire
rekindles on Windows PCs, PC World, 8/9. "I think we'll see it
pretty much in all PCs within the next five years."
News: A nearly 100% Mac college, Mac OS Commerce, 8/9.
Web:
Is linking always legal? Experts aren't sure, New York Times,
8/6. "Especially controversial is the use of so-called "deep"
links, which point directly to Web pages or other content within
another site...."
Opinion: Impressions of the eOne, Macs Only!,
8/9. "The impression when walking up to the eOne is that it is an
iMac."
Rumor: More
iBook pre-order stats, AppleInsider, 8/9. "To date, Blueberry
iBook presales are outnumbering Tangerine at a ratio of about 3 to
2."
Review: DiskWarrior,
MacCentral, 8/9. "Putting all technospeak aside, DiskWarrior plain
and simply improves the performance of your Mac." ($64.95 from
Outpost.com)
Rumor: Apple
seeds Mac OS 9.0 beta 5, AppleInsider, 8/9. "According to
sources, beta 5 will be the last of two releases before the system
officially hits the Final Candidate stage."
Opinion: Why USB is
a failure, MacCPU. "But when you tried to actually buy a [USB]
floppy drive or hard drive or CD burner, they all seemed to be on
perpetual backorder."
Opinion: There
goes Apple - let's follow them!, Mac Junkie, 8/7. "Wintel
notebooks have always been cheaper than PowerBooks, and that hasn't
changed with iBook."
Software: vMac - run Mac Plus
software on newer Macs.
Rumor: New
iMac in September?, ZDNet, 8/6. "...two Mac retailers say they
expect to start selling a new, upgraded version of the iMac
sometime next month."
Rumor: New iMac in
September, MacWeek, 8/6. "By last month's Macworld Expo, Apple
said, more than 1.9 million iMacs had been sold, making it the
best-selling computer in Apple's history."
Opinion: Apple's
dumb move, Don Crabb, ZDNet, 8/6. "When it comes to
shortsighted product design decisions, of course, Apple has too
many to count in a single column." (see Road Apples for more)
News: Apple may
sue eMachines, MacCentral, 8/6. The eOne (right) is a less
blatant rip-off of the iMac design than the Future Computing
E-Power (left), but the look is definitely iMac inspired.
Opinion: Apple takes
the internet plunge, TechWeb, 8/5. "The company is showing
signs that it is ready to tackle the internet."
Review:
Add USB to older (PCI) Macs with ease, Mac Observer. "In a
climate where USB devices are being released almost daily, it's
well worth the $50 to have it available on an 'older' Mac." ($47.95
from Outpost.com)
Opinion: iBook
reality check, iBook2Day, 8/6. "Apple has no reason to change
the feature set of the iBook before its launch."
Opinion: More on
the "feminine friendly" iBook, Charles Moore, MacOpinion, 8/6.
"...only one-tenth of computer purchases are currently made by
women...."
Opinion: PowerBook
X, Mac Junkie, 8/6. Ben Apple speculates on what Apple's
thing-and-light PowerBook may be.
Special Report: Early Mac software,
MacInTouch. Some older applications now available for free on the
web.
Link of the day: Win
NT / Macs im Jahre 2000, MacNews.de. "Einen interessanten
Artikel über die Verwendung älterer Macs als Ersatz
für die mehrfache Anzahl von Windows NT-Rechnern hat das
amerikanische Online-Magazin "Low End Mac" veröffentlicht. Der
in englisch verfaßte Artikel findet sich unter <Macs vs. Y2K>."
Web: Mac3dfx.com, the
source for Mac 3dfx news, reviews, tips, and tricks.
News: IBM to unveil
Power4 processor, EE Times, 8/4 [Slashdot]. Forthcoming 1000 MHz
dual-processor chip, a cousin to the Mac's PowerPC, includes a
built-in L2 cache. Similar designs are anticipated for some
versions of the G4.
Dark Side: What's
up with Win98 Second Edition?, Fred Langa, Windows Magazine
[Slashdot]. Langa lists seven
variations (and they're not all the same): OEM, full retail
version, upgrade from 3.1 or95, upgrade from Win98....
Opinion:
Macintosh computers, the great equalizer, Mac Observer, 8/4.
"The Mac became a tool that supported my needs and goals rather
than requiring me to conform to its limited parameters."
Dark Side/Humor: Microsoft
to hackers: Crack this!, ZDNet, 8/4. More ironic than Bill
Gates' blue screen of death demo, the Win2K server crashed before
hackers could even attempt to crack it.
OS: Linux
on a Mac, iTeen Online, 8/3. Unix, Linux, BSD, and OS X.
Opinion: Apple's product
triangle?, Jason O'Grady, MacWeek, 8/3. "When the PowerBook 100 was introduced in October 1991 it
was little more than a high-priced novelty item; today's PowerBook G3s are rip-snortin' tools of
the pros...."
Advice: Cheap Macs: how do you get them?, Mac Junkie, 8/3. "At
one point or another, you realize that your current Mac is, well,
not current."
News:
Startup offers free iMacs for only $718.20, New York Times,
8/3. Subscribers must qualify for First USA Visa, agree to three
years of $19.95 internet service via EarthLink.
Opinion: Why the iBook?,
MacKiDo, 8/2. "It has simple styling and will be exactly what it is
sold as - the iMac of PowerBooks."
OS: Mac OS 9.0 best special
report, Mac OS Rumors, 8/2. "OS 9's performance appears to be
significantly improved since 8.6...."
Opinion:
Where is myapple.com?, Mac Observer, 8/2. "Apple needs to
develop a serious Internet strategy!"
Opinion: The
truth about Dvorak and the iBook, Don Crabb, ZDNet, 8/2. "If
he's right, he claims place of primacy as the first serious
naysayer. If he's wrong, no one will remember."
Opinion: iBook
will popularize wireless networking, PC Week, 8/2 [Macs Only!]. "Apple has proved time
and again that despite what the market-share numbers report, the
company has an undeniable influence on the design and function of
PCs."
Hardware: G3/400 matches
PIII/500, Linux benchmarks. Performance of 400 MHz G3 almost
indistinguishable from 500 MHz Pentium III under Linux.
Analysis: The "girly" iBook controversy continues, Charles
Moore, MacTimes, 8/2.
Opinion: Apple's
iBook not good enough, Macattack, 8/2. "...while I believe that
the iBook is the best low-cost portable I have heard of yet, I also
believe that it is not sufficiently better than its competitors to
enable it to prosper in a Wintel-dominated world."
News: California ISP
sues spammer, wins, Slashdot, 8/2. "... Los Gatos Small Claims
Court awarded Kepnet $600 compensation plus court costs for damages
caused by a spammer's unauthorized use of its network."
News: MacWarehouse Mac unit sales up 77% over last year,
MacTimes, 8/2. Remember, last year the iMac hadn't yet been
released.
OS: Mac OS X Server
support, Xappeal, 8/2. "I think the knowledge and easy, free
available support gives Linux an advantage."
: 
MacCentral, 8/6. The eOne (right) is a less
blatant rip-off of the iMac design than the Future Computing
E-Power (left), but the look is definitely iMac inspired.