Schiller says the success of Apple’s operating system is indicative of the changing fortunes in the tech industry. While less than 20% of Windows users have moved to the three-year-old Vista, more than 70% of Mac users have upgraded to the Apple operating system introduced at about the same time. He has similar hopes for Apple’s four-month-old Snow Leopard OS. Says Schiller: “I expect Snow Leopard will have an amazing upgrade rate, and Windows 7 won’t.”
Category: Apple
On Paying for iPhone Apps
Ever since Apple unveiled the App Store, I’ve heard this sentence more than I can tell you:
I’m not going to pay for an iPhone app.
First, Some Background
When Apple announced the App Store, they offered developers two pricing options: free apps, or paid apps (set at any price above $0.99, with Apple taking 30% to cover infrastructure costs). At first glance, 30% seemed high, but the App Store not only puts every single app in front of every single iPhone and iPod touch user, but Apple takes care of all of the backend to make it possible — hosting, billing, reviews, everything.
10.6 Guest Accounts Murdering Other Users In Their Sleep?
A flurry of reports have surfaced around the web explaining that even an accidental login to one’s Guest account within Snow Leopard could lead to mass deletion of all user files on the primary account, and when we say “mass deletion,” we mean “mass deletion.” The problem goes something like this: if one clicks on the Guest account after upgrading their machine to OS X 10.6, and everything hangs, there’s at least a decent chance that all of your data will be evaporated whenever you surf back over to the main profile.
Like Old Macs? Like Twitter?
Mac Owners Love Their Tech
This report from the NPD group is a few days old, but somehow I missed it. OS X Daily breaks the numbers down:
\* 85% of Mac owners also own a PC
• 72% of Mac owners use a notebook / laptop
• 66% of Mac owners own three or more computers
• 63% of Mac owners own an iPod
• 49% of Mac owners own a navigation device (GPS, but is iPhone included?)
Tethering on Hold
American iPhone owners will not be able to officially tether their devices for some time, AT&T has acknowledged. “Whenever we offer new features, we want to offer the best possible customer experience,” a carrier spokesman claims. “For tethering, we need to do some additional fine tuning to our systems and networks so that we do deliver a great experience.”
Same song, second verse.
MobileMe’s Mail Limits
Apple Support Article #TS2883:
MobileMe Mail has a message sending limit of 200 messages or 1000 recipients per rolling 24-hour period. For example, if you send 100 messages at 8 a.m. and then 100 messages at 12:00 noon, you would reach your message sending limit at noon, but you would be able to start sending messages again at 8 a.m. the next day.
I wasn’t aware MobileMe had any in place. It seems Gmail has them too:
As Spotted on CNN.com
The iPhone is hurting AT&T’s image so much that the stock photo from the AP used with CNN’s story is of a jailbroken device:
‘Ankle-Deep in Icy Cold Water’
The Macalope, on the “Apple tablet will save journalism” story:
Sources at The New York Times told Lam that Apple approached the paper about putting its content on what everyone assumes will be a tablet. Lam doesn’t say what the Gray Lady’s response was, but given the current state of the newspaper business, the Macalope’s advice would go something like this: “When you’re standing on the deck of the Titanic, ankle-deep in icy cold water, and someone asks if you’d like a ride to the future in their time machine, you go.”
iPhone Problems? Use a 9mm
I know it’s frustrating when your phone is borked, but telling an Apple Store staffer that you’re “so mad I could pop a 9mm at it” — before revealing you actually have a real 9mm concealed — probably won’t help matters.
But that’s what a man allegedly did yesterday at the Apple Store in Cincinnati’s Kenwood mall. According to reports, the man continued, “I’ll do it right now. Look!”, and opened the right side of his shirt to show a black 9mm handgun.
Developers Wary of iPhone Projects?
Why the lack of love? The reasons are varied, but many tie back to a central thread—Apple’s emphasis on control. It’s hardly surprising that that might raise the hackles of independent developers, who are used to running their businesses as they see fit—as one presentation put it frankly, “we’re all control freaks.” The App Store puts all the power in Apple’s hands, determining when developers can release updates, what they have to charge, and in many cases even how they market their apps. For independent developers, it’s like handing their baby over for someone else to raise.
Inside an iTunes LP
In the LP we dissected, Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King, the root directory consisted of 12 items. This included seven folders, an .xml and .plist file — which appears to point to full media files inside an iTunes library — an iTunesArtwork file, an .itlp file with a file size of 0KB, and a standard, run-of-the-the mill index.html file. Inside the HTML file, the doctype is HTML 4.01 with meta name properties set to “hdtv-fullscreen” and “hdtv-cursor-off”. This particular one made use of three stylesheets and 34 JavaScript files, which were marked copyright of Apple Computer.