All Posts by Paul

Quicksilver Updates, Prepares for Leopard

Paul


Mac OS X only: The keyboard shortcut loving Mac owner’s favorite app, Quicksilver, has received a received a minor updated, presumably in preparation for the upcoming release of Leopard. Aside from the version update (it’s B52 from B51, despite what Quicksilver’s homepage says at the time of this writing), the most significant difference I’ve noticed is what appears to be a very slight refresh of the preferences, triggers, catalog, and plug-ins manager (I saw a spinner when I switched tabs that’s new to me). But there actually is a little more.

The only other new “feature” that’s obvious on first install is the request to help Alcor and the folks at Blacktree improve Quicksilver by sending them a little usage data (see screenshot). Quicksilver saw a somewhat silent new release a week or two ago (to build 3812), but it wasn’t pushing out automatically with the update check and so it mostly floated under the radar. However, posts in the Quicksilver forums (which are down as I write this) indicated that that release was, as I stated above, mostly in preparation for Leopard.

Well, it’s nothing new or especially fancy, but it is very exciting to see some active development for Quicksilver, and it’s good to know that my favorite Mac app will still be running like a dream when I upgrade to Leopard this weekend. To grab the new version, either head to the Quicksilver homepage or open your Quicksilver preferences and check for an update. Quicksilver is freeware, Mac OS X only. Thanks CWB71!

Quicksilver

Yep this is the week for Leopard and everyone is talking about how-to’s. I don’t have a Mac but I play one in my MIND!! 😛

Buffalo expands LinkStation NAS lineup

Paul

f you’ve been yearning for a well-spec’d, feature packed NAS, Buffalo’s latest additions are certainly not what you’re interested in, but for those who just need the basics, these units just might fit the bill. The 750GB LS-L750GL, LS-L750GL / M and 1TB LS-L1000GL / M (the M interestingly stands for “Mac-compatible”) all sport a fairly unexciting enclosure and an even less entrancing set of amenities. Taking a peek around back (psst, it’s after the jump) shows only a fan, lock port, AC plug and an Ethernet jack, but that should be all you need to get an external HDD set up on your network. The 750GB models are set to land early next month for ¥42,300 ($369), while the 1TB iteration will demand ¥63,800 ($557).

[Via AkihabaraNews]

For people like me who doesn’t have enought space, it still quite a bargin!!

SanDisk drops a patent lawsuit bomb, sues 25 companies for infringement

Paul

Apparently SanDisk just noticed that other companies have had the nerve to ship flash-memory devices, because it’s just dropped two lawsuits and an International Trade Commission action against some 25 companies, including Philips PNY, Kingston, Imation / Memorex, LG, and Verbatim. SanDisk is alleging that these companies infringed up to seven different patents, although what those patents cover has not yet been released. The two lawsuits are filed in the Western District of Wisconsin, which is known as a “rocket docket,” so we should hear more about them relatively quickly, but the real action for right now is the ITC case, which is the same type of complaint that halted imports of those Qualcomm chips and could result in a stoppage of flash imports if successful. This just dropped, so we’ll keep you updated as we find out more — and peep the whole list of companies being sued after the break.

Hmm, I thought people should know about Sandisk and how hard it is to find any other good Flash Memory!!

Leopard Review: First Apple OS X Leopard Reviews by The Mainstream (Verdict: It’s Good)

Paul

Three reviews are in from USA Today, WSJ and NYT and they’re all positive (though some more positive than others). That’s Mossberg’s video, above, but the rest of the reviews are summarized below.

USA Today Review: Ed Baig says it “hits all the right spots”—a obvious pun, but it gets right to the heart of his review. He continues to say that OS X is superior to Windows (especially with the latest iteration), but points out the Boot Camp feature for people who need both. Upgrading for him was super easy, as was using Time Machine for backing up or migrating files, the iChat video chat/theater, the upgraded Mail.app, and the improved desktop, Finder (file browser), and .Mac features. It reads like a shortened Leopard feature checklist with the praise preceding or following each item, which shows how much of a thumbs up Baig is giving the new OS. [USAToday]

Mossberg WSJ Review: After his headline (“Leopard: Faster, Easier Than Vista”) and on a short history tour of Apple as a company, Mossberg moves on to say that while Leopard is good, it’s evolutionary, and not revolutionary—but still manages to keep Apple’s “advantage over Windows”. He does have some gripes. He says the menubar is translucent (it’s actually not, in the final version), the icons are “dull and flat and less atractive than Vista’s” (we disagree), Time Machine, although described as “sexy”, has limited backup locations. And that none of Apple’s 300 new features are a major breakthrough. However, Leopard doesn’t have any of the upgrade problems (when upgrading from Tiger) that Vista had from XP. Mossberg then goes into feature list mode, but ends by saying that Leopard isn’t a must-have, it just adds a lot of value on an existing machine. [WSJ]

Pogue’s NYT Review: After spending half the first page (and 1/4 of the whole piece) talking about how Time Machine works, Pogue moves on to Spaces, parental controls, Boot Camp, screen sharing, and iChat upgrades. Although backup features and virtual desktops have been around for a while, Pogue says the point of Leopard is that Apple takes all those apps, improves on them, and integrates them well into the OS. But he too has complaints.

Stacks are a bit awkward and inconsistent, see through menus are hard to see (he may be using an old version because the final version looks fine), as well as occasional glitches in Spaces and program switching. Final thoughts: it’s polished and offers few disappointments. Looks like a buy from Pogue. [NYTimes]

I thought people would like to see the latest reviews on Leopard!