In a painfully well-headlined review, Jacqui Cheng takes on Apple's new Magic Trackpad, and finds that it's both awesome and not-so-awesome. She really likes most of the multi-touch shortcuts that the trackpad can use, but says that precision is an issue, as it is with all trackpads. We won't spoil the ending, but the review does attempt to answer not just the question of whether the Magic Trackpad is good, but also whether it's $70-worth of good.

 

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Get more productive with software from SmileOnMyMac: PDFpen for
editing PDFs; TextExpander for saving time and keystrokes while you
type; DiscLabel for designing CD/DVD labels and inserts. Free demos,
fast and friendly customer support. <http://www.smileonmymac.com/>   Copyright © 2010 Lex Friedman. TidBITS is copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

In a painfully well-headlined review, Jacqui Cheng takes on Apple's new Magic Trackpad, and finds that it's both awesome and not-so-awesome. She really likes most of the multi-touch shortcuts that the trackpad can use, but says that precision is an issue, as it is with all trackpads. We won't spoil the ending, but the review does attempt to answer not just the question of whether the Magic Trackpad is good, but also whether it's $70-worth of good.

 

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Get more productive with software from SmileOnMyMac: PDFpen for
editing PDFs; TextExpander for saving time and keystrokes while you
type; DiscLabel for designing CD/DVD labels and inserts. Free demos,
fast and friendly customer support. <http://www.smileonmymac.com/>   Copyright © 2010 Lex Friedman. TidBITS is copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Snapz Pro X, the popular screenshot and video capture utility from Abrosia Software, has been upgraded to version 2.2.3. The update addresses two crashing bugs. One, limited to newer MacBooks, occurred during object selection, and the other occurred for folks using mirrored monitors while attempting to make captures. The updated version of the software also automatically stops capturing video before the movie fills up your hard drive. ($69 new, free update, 10.8 MB)

 

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The MacSpeech Dictate family is growing. Now for everyday use
and the new MacSpeech Dictate Medical with almost 60 specialist
vocabularies, and MacSpeech Dictate Legal for legal professionals.
Learn more: <http://www.tidbits.com/about/support/macspeech.html>   Copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing, Inc. TidBITS is copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Cross-platform backup software Roxio Retrospect (recently purchased by Roxio's parent company; see "Retrospect Backup Software Acquired by Sonic Solutions," 27 May 2010) has been upgraded to version 8.2. Beyond interface enhancements designed to make the software simpler to use, the upgrade makes network backup performance up to three times faster than before. The new version also adds support for 64-bit memory utilization, which can handle backups for volumes with "tens of millions of files," the company says. Additionally, the upgrade reintroduces the capability to restore from backups made using the older Retrospect 6 (those backups are treated as read-only). In the Retrospect 8.2 Read Me, Roxio recommends that you run Retrospect servers on Intel-based Macs, and warns that the software performs more slowly on PowerPC-based Macs. The company also notes that Internet/FTP backups are not yet supported, and optical device support has been deactivated in this release (though you can enable it manually if you don't mind dedicating the drive to Retrospect). Full release notes are available. ($129 new for up to three users, free update, free trial available, 258 MB)

 

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With unlimited online backup, this is one resolution you can keep.
Back Up Your Life Today! <http://crashplan.com/ref/tidbits.html>   Copyright © 2010 Lex Friedman. TidBITS is copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

I received a Magic Trackpad for review from Apple this morning, and immediately ran into a problem: it wouldn't turn on.

I tried pressing the power button once; pressing and holding it; and trying again a few times, but nothing worked. So I opened the battery compartment and discovered that the battery on top, a typical Energizer alcaline AA, was corroded.

Now, realize we're talking about an Apple product, and it's common knowledge that Apple is infallible and everything the company creates is perfect... except of course when it isn't. So what's the obvious response to this situation? Product recall? Class action lawsuit? Angry blog post demanding a redesign of not only the Magic Trackpad, but also everything Apple uses that includes a battery? I suppose I should also include frothing, seething rage in here somewhere.

Or not. Because I like to think I live in the real world.

The batteries in this Magic Trackpad were no doubt installed in a factory in China. Although it came from Apple's public relations department, the box was shrinkwrapped, so any consumer could have gotten this particular Magic Trackpad.

According to Green Batteries, more than 15 billion batteries are produced and sold worldwide every year. When talking about quantities like that, there are bound to be a sizable number that don't work or have some minor manufacturing defect, even considering quality control procedures.

We see this all the time with tech products, and, yes, Apple products too. Someone's iPhone 4 doesn't work correctly or a Mac arrives completely dead on arrival - and some people freak out. As a longtime follower of Apple products and news, I've seen it over and over again.

In this case, because the trackpad came from Apple PR, I sent an email to my contact explaining what happened; she asked for the serial number and I passed that along. In the extremely unlikely chance that there's a wider battery supply problem, Apple can use that information to track down the source. If I had purchased the trackpad at an Apple retail store, I'm sure I could take it back and either be given a new trackpad or just a new set of batteries. End of story, and without a moment of panic.

 

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Fetch Softworks: Do your FTP or SFTP transfers quit on you?
Fetch 5.6 will keep going when other clients give up, to make
sure all your files arrive safely at their destinations.
Download your free trial version! <http://fetchsoftworks.com/>   Copyright © 2010 Jeff Carlson. TidBITS is copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

I received a Magic Trackpad for review from Apple this morning, and immediately ran into a problem: it wouldn't turn on.

I tried pressing the power button once; pressing and holding it; and trying again a few times, but nothing worked. So I opened the battery compartment and discovered that the battery on top, a typical Energizer alcaline AA, was corroded.

Now, realize we're talking about an Apple product, and it's common knowledge that Apple is infallible and everything the company creates is perfect... except of course when it isn't. So what's the obvious response to this situation? Product recall? Class action lawsuit? Angry blog post demanding a redesign of not only the Magic Trackpad, but also everything Apple uses that includes a battery? I suppose I should also include frothing, seething rage in here somewhere.

Or not. Because I like to think I live in the real world.

The batteries in this Magic Trackpad were no doubt installed in a factory in China. Although it came from Apple's public relations department, the box was shrinkwrapped, so any consumer could have gotten this particular Magic Trackpad.

According to Green Batteries, more than 15 billion batteries are produced and sold worldwide every year. When talking about quantities like that, there are bound to be a sizable number that don't work or have some minor manufacturing defect, even considering quality control procedures.

We see this all the time with tech products, and, yes, Apple products too. Someone's iPhone 4 doesn't work correctly or a Mac arrives completely dead on arrival - and some people freak out. As a longtime follower of Apple products and news, I've seen it over and over again.

In this case, because the trackpad came from Apple PR, I sent an email to my contact explaining what happened; she asked for the serial number and I passed that along. In the extremely unlikely chance that there's a wider battery supply problem, Apple can use that information to track down the source. If I had purchased the trackpad at an Apple retail store, I'm sure I could take it back and either be given a new trackpad or just a new set of batteries. End of story, and without a moment of panic.

 

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Fetch Softworks: Do your FTP or SFTP transfers quit on you?
Fetch 5.6 will keep going when other clients give up, to make
sure all your files arrive safely at their destinations.
Download your free trial version! <http://fetchsoftworks.com/>   Copyright © 2010 Jeff Carlson. TidBITS is copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Apple has updated Safari to version 5.0.1, activating new extension capabilities and launching the external Safari Extensions Gallery (see "Apple Extends Safari 5 with Reader, HTML5, Performance," 9 June 2010). The Web-based gallery enables users to search for particular extensions, browse extension categories, and install extensions with a single click and no restart.

While Safari has always supported plug-ins such as Flash Player and has been extensible in unsupported ways, Safari Extensions are different. Most importantly they're more secure due to requiring signed digital certificates from Apple that ensure any updates are coming from the original developer and that no one is tampering with them. The extensions are also "sandboxed," meaning they can't communicate with a user's system beyond Safari, and can't provide information to Web sites not specified by the developer. Safari Extensions are also arguably easier for developers to build as they rely on open HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript Web standards and Apple has provided developers with an Extension Builder application. Finally, they're better supported by Apple in their management and installation (hence the easy one-click installation).

Though Safari 5.0 supported Safari Extensions, the feature was deactivated by default and users were on their own to find extensions on the Web. With Safari 5.0.1 and the Safari Extensions Gallery, extensions are on by default and there's a Safari Extensions Gallery menu item in the Safari application menu. Users can continue to search out and download extensions not listed in the gallery, but Apple's site makes it easy to find those that will likely prove, for most people, to be the most useful or interesting.

Apple's recent press release announcing the Safari Extensions Gallery highlighted a few of the new extensions. Among them is an Amazon wish-list extension that enables users to add items from any Web site to an Amazon wish list; a Bing search engine extension that can provide potentially relevant information when any given text is selected, such as a map appearing when an address is highlighted; and a Twitter extension that enables users to tweet directly from Safari when stumbling across content on the Web.

More interesting to us are some of the productivity extensions, such as SafariRestore, which automatically restores your previous browsing session when launching Safari; Sessions, which goes one step further to provide a browsing history manager; and AutoPagerize, which turns lengthy multiple-page Web articles on sites like Ars Technica and the New York Times into a single scrollable Web page.

Safari 5.0.1 also adds a number of smaller features and addresses a handful of stability issues. Improvements include more precise Top Hit results in the address field, more accurate timing for CSS animations, enhanced stability when triggering the keyboard shortcut for Safari Reader, and better stability when scrolling in MobileMe Mail. Problems that have been addressed include a number of site-specific issues, such as displaying multi-page articles from Rolling Stone Magazine's Web site in Safari Reader and printing boarding passes from American Airline's site. Also, Google Wave compatibility with 32-bit systems has been repaired, a bug preventing Safari from launching on Leopard systems with network home directories has been fixed, and a bug causing DNS prefetching of results to overwhelm certain routers has been addressed. A full list of changes is available on Apple's Web site.

The update also fixes several critical security vulnerabilities. These security issues are mainly related to WebKit's handling of various Web elements, malicious RSS feeds, and AutoFill's implementation and could lead to arbitrary code execution, files being sent to remote systems, and, in the case of Autofill, information being disclosed to Web sites without any user interaction. This final fix addresses the vulnerability identified recently by Jeremiah Grossman, so it's once again safe to turn AutoFill on. Safari 5.0.1 is a 37.57 MB download via Software Update and the Apple Support Downloads page.

Finally, Apple has also released Safari 4.1.1 for Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger users, including many of the same feature updates, stability improvements, and security fixes - though it does not include support for Safari Extensions. It's also available via Software Update and the Apple Support Downloads page as a 29.53 MB download.

 

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THE MISSING SYNC: Take it with you! The Missing Sync makes
it easy to synchronize contacts, calendars, notes, photos
and more from your Mac to your BlackBerry, HTC, Treo,
iPhone and other phones. <http://www.markspace.com/bits>   Copyright © 2010 Doug McLean. TidBITS is copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Amazon is releasing two new 6-inch display Kindles to replace the Kindle 2: a Wi-Fi only model for $139, and one with both AT&T 3G and Wi-Fi for $189. The new devices have 50-percent higher contrast, new fonts, faster performance, longer standby time (a month!), and double the storage, all while weighing less. The new models ship 27 August 2010 in the United States.

 

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Fetch Softworks: Do your FTP or SFTP transfers quit on you?
Fetch 5.6 will keep going when other clients give up, to make
sure all your files arrive safely at their destinations.
Download your free trial version! <http://fetchsoftworks.com/>   Copyright © 2010 Glenn Fleishman. TidBITS is copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

On the New York Times's health blog, Gretchen Reynolds discusses the dramatic increase in heart disease-related death for folks who sit for long periods (whether in front of a computer or television, or in the car). Even more alarming for those of us who try to get away from our screens for some exercise are recent studies that show that adding exercise to your daily routine fails to lessen the negative health impacts of a sedentary lifestyle. Rather, we desk jockeys should find ways to increase our physical activity while we work. Frequent walking breaks, pacing while you're talking on the phone, or converting to a standing desk, could truly be a lifesaver.

 

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WebCrossing Neighbors Creates Private Social Networks
Create a complete social network with your company or group's
own look. Scalable, extensible and extremely customizable.
Take a guided tour today <http://www.webcrossing.com/tour>   Copyright © 2010 Lex Friedman. TidBITS is copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Bare Bones Software has released a minor update to its powerful text editor BBEdit. The update doesn't pack in any new features, but it does offer a host of fixes covering a wide range of issues. For those irked by BBEdit 9.5's changed approach with Capitalize Sentences and Capitalize Lines, one of the two dozen fixes reinstates the behavior from pre-9.5 versions of BBEdit, so that the software now once again lowercases your text before applying the selected capitalization. Beyond that fix, the release corrects an issue with updating HTML markup preferences, addresses a bug with prefixed Emacs commands, and attempts to better preserve file permissions when saving documents. Several other fixes to script attachability enable scripts that run when documents are closed to work properly. ($125 new, free update, 16.4 MB)

 

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Fetch Softworks: Do your FTP or SFTP transfers quit on you?
Fetch 5.6 will keep going when other clients give up, to make
sure all your files arrive safely at their destinations.
Download your free trial version! <http://fetchsoftworks.com/>   Copyright © 2010 Lex Friedman. TidBITS is copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Ever since I wrote about Extensis's Suitcase 10 font management software (see "A Quick Trip with Suitcase 10", 22 April 2002), I've been on the company's physical mailing list. Usually this means receiving an occasional press packet in the mail, but recently Extensis has started a truly strange ad campaign directed at members of the press.

First, a large cube-shaped FedEx package arrived at my door. I opened it to find a life-size featureless styrofoam head. It clearly came from Extensis, but apart from that there was no clue as to its meaning. It was useless and ugly and there was no reason to keep it, so I put it in the recycle bin (I wasn't sure it was recyclable, but I didn't want it clogging the landfill) and dismissed it from my mind.

Then, a week or two later, Extensis sent me another FedEx package, this time rather flat. I opened it and reached inside, and to my surprise (and horror) I found myself touching a mass of wiry hair. Luckily, it was only a wig, and not an actual scalp or piece of roadkill. So now the clues were in place: the first package was a wig stand, and here was the wig. But there was still no explanation of what Extensis was leading up to.

Nor did I wait to find out; I'd had enough. I phoned Extensis's public relations office and asked them to take me off the mailing list. My objections to this ad campaign were five-fold:

• It's annoying. I don't like mysteries and I don't find the supposed question of what new product some software company is about to announce to be particularly intriguing in the grand scheme of things.

• It's unnecessary. If Extensis wants to tell me something, why can't they just tell me? And if it's a new product they want me to consider for review, why can't they just send me a license, like everyone else?

• It's expensive. Someone has to pay for all this FedEx shipment, the purchase of these objects, the labor required to pack them and send them out, and so on. Presumably that someone will in the end be the purchasers of the software. I wouldn't want to buy software from a company that was spending my money in this way, especially in this modern age of email press releases.

• It's wasteful. This is really the part that gets me. These objects arriving at my house are all going right back out of it. That's not good for the landfill and the planet. And what about the resource costs of packing and shipping these things via FedEx to some unknown number of members of the press? Such behavior shows a callous lack of consideration and consciousness.

• It's assaulting. When I described these mailings to Adam, he immediately put his finger on the horror factor I was having trouble expressing: the whole thing is rather like that creepy scene in The Godfather where the Hollywood producer wakes up with a horse's head in his bed.

The really odd part is that this whole campaign seems to me to be utterly misbegotten. Does Extensis imagine that the press is going to give some software a positive review just because it has been sent some pointless objects? Especially pointless objects that are downright disturbing? One has to wonder what they're smoking over at Extensis, or at Extensis's parent company, Celartem. If I were in charge over there, some heads would roll, and they wouldn't be styrofoam.

 

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Fetch 5.6 will keep going when other clients give up, to make
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Download your free trial version! <http://fetchsoftworks.com/>   Copyright © 2010 Matt Neuburg. TidBITS is copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) is an odious piece of legislation that criminalized ordinary behavior around media you have purchased in the name of preventing unfettered piracy of digital music, games, and video. Yeah, well, we see how well that worked.

One of the DMCA's key provisions is its restriction on the use of tools that break encryption designed to prevent the unauthorized copying of media - digital rights management (DRM) is the rubric. The DMCA has been successfully used in lawsuits for its precise purpose, however misguided, but also for ridiculous things like protecting code that prevents the use of third-party ink cartridges.

The legislation had a backdoor: the Librarian of Congress, the poobah of copyright in the United States, may carve out exemptions for cases not covered in the legislation. These exemptions allow non-infringing uses of copyrighted works that are prevented by technological means like DRM.

These exemptions were supposed to be issued every three years; the latest were approved today, nearly four years after the previous rulemaking.

Groups like the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) have used this exemption tool to lobby for the rights of individuals and researchers to have more control over media and devices in their possession. The EFF was widely cited in the new rules, and issued a happy press release.

The latest set of exclusions, drafted by the Registrar of Copyrights and approved by the Librarian of Congress, legitimizes jailbreaking of iPhones. It's remarkably specific, because Apple's phone is the most popular locked device on which you cannot install arbitrary third-party software. The rule applies to other devices; they just aren't enumerated.

The exemptions also include a renewal of a 2006 rule that allows breaking encryption to unlock a phone that is set to work only on a single carrier's network. The new rule allows unlocking only of used phones, which seems to mean a phone that was bought for and used on a given carrier network. Carriers can still charge cancellation penalties, course.

The rulemaking about jailbreaking is rather complicated, but it concludes down to a dense "designation of a class of works" at the end of the rule discussion that I'll pick apart for you:

Computer programs that enable wireless communication handsets to execute software applications, where circumvention is accomplished for the sole purpose of enabling interoperability of such applications, when they have been lawfully obtained, with computer programs on the telephone handset.

If you read through the explanation of why this exemption was approved, it's because the registrar found that all of Apple's copyright-related reasons for locking down the iPhone aren't germane, and that an individual shouldn't be kept from circumvention of the iPhone's locks for the legitimate installation of software Apple didn't anoint.

The designation above means that the iOS (a computer program that enables a handset to run software) can be circumvented to allow installation of other programs that work alongside those provided or sold by Apple. (Note the phrase "lawfully obtained": that's in there to avoid accidentally making it legal to install pirated software.)

The registrar's rule doesn't require Apple to allow jailbreaking, but Apple can no longer claim jailbreaking is illegal. The company has seemingly never sued anyone nor any group for jailbreaking instructions or the act itself.

Apple can also continue to say that jailbreaking voids the warranty (as Apple PR informed Leander Kahney of Cult of Mac), although the exemption to the DMCA might make a consumer-protection action against Apple by customers told their jailbroken phones can't be serviced rather difficult for Apple to defend. Consumer-protection laws often give the benefit of the doubt to buyers who use an item in a reasonable and appropriate way for their own purposes that conform to legal use.

This rule change thus doesn't precisely change the circumstances of jailbreaking. It's unclear whether jailbreaking software or services are illegal under the DMCA, as providing such information or service isn't covered by the exemption. Severe penalties are provided for those that violate the DMCA for "commercial advantage or private financial gain," but a Web site explaining how to jailbreak an iPhone with no fee attached would seemingly not be covered.

So has the landscape for the App Store changed? Will developers now choose between selling apps via Apple or via third-party stores directly to consumers? It seems unlikely at present. Apple might need to work harder to appease developers, but the company also has consistently patched the vulnerabilities exploited by jailbreaking software, and might become even more vigorous on that front.

The exemption sets an important principle, however: that copyright can't be used as a bludgeon to control how people use devices. It won't lead to an open iOS platform, but it will keep Apple on its toes.

 

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CrashPlan is easy, secure backup that works everywhere. Back up
to your own drives, computers, and online with unlimited storage.
With unlimited online backup, this is one resolution you can keep.
Back Up Your Life Today! <http://crashplan.com/ref/tidbits.html>   Copyright © 2010 Glenn Fleishman. TidBITS is copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) is an odious piece of legislation that criminalized ordinary behavior around media you have purchased in the name of preventing unfettered piracy of digital music, games, and video. Yeah, well, we see how well that worked.

One of the DMCA's key provisions is its restriction on the use of tools that break encryption designed to prevent the unauthorized copying of media - digital rights management (DRM) is the rubric. The DMCA has been successfully used in lawsuits for its precise purpose, however misguided, but also for ridiculous things like protecting code that prevents the use of third-party ink cartridges.

The legislation had a backdoor: the Librarian of Congress, the poobah of copyright in the United States, may carve out exemptions for cases not covered in the legislation. These exemptions allow non-infringing uses of copyrighted works that are prevented by technological means like DRM.

These exemptions were supposed to be issued every three years; the latest were approved today, nearly four years after the previous rulemaking.

Groups like the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) have used this exemption tool to lobby for the rights of individuals and researchers to have more control over media and devices in their possession. The EFF was widely cited in the new rules, and issued a happy press release.

The latest set of exclusions, drafted by the Registrar of Copyrights and approved by the Librarian of Congress, legitimizes jailbreaking of iPhones. It's remarkably specific, because Apple's phone is the most popular locked device on which you cannot install arbitrary third-party software. The rule applies to other devices; they just aren't enumerated.

The exemptions also include a renewal of a 2006 rule that allows breaking encryption to unlock a phone that is set to work only on a single carrier's network. The new rule allows unlocking only of used phones, which seems to mean a phone that was bought for and used on a given carrier network. Carriers can still charge cancellation penalties, of course.

The rulemaking about jailbreaking is rather complicated, but it concludes down to a dense "designation of a class of works" at the end of the rule discussion that I'll pick apart for you:

Computer programs that enable wireless communication handsets to execute software applications, where circumvention is accomplished for the sole purpose of enabling interoperability of such applications, when they have been lawfully obtained, with computer programs on the telephone handset.

If you read through the explanation of why this exemption was approved, it's because the registrar found that all of Apple's copyright-related reasons for locking down the iPhone aren't germane, and that an individual shouldn't be kept from circumvention of the iPhone's locks for the legitimate installation of software Apple didn't anoint.

The designation above means that the iOS (a computer program that enables a handset to run software) can be circumvented to allow installation of other programs that work alongside those provided or sold by Apple. (Note the phrase "lawfully obtained": that's in there to avoid accidentally making it legal to install pirated software.)

The registrar's rule doesn't require Apple to allow jailbreaking, but Apple can no longer claim jailbreaking is illegal. The company has seemingly never sued anyone nor any group for jailbreaking instructions or the act itself.

Apple can also continue to say that jailbreaking voids the warranty (as Apple PR informed Leander Kahney of Cult of Mac), although the exemption to the DMCA might make a consumer-protection action against Apple by customers told their jailbroken phones can't be serviced rather difficult for Apple to defend. Consumer-protection laws often give the benefit of the doubt to buyers who use an item in a reasonable and appropriate way for their own purposes that conform to legal use.

This rule change thus doesn't precisely change the circumstances of jailbreaking. It's unclear whether jailbreaking software or services are illegal under the DMCA, as providing such information or service isn't covered by the exemption. Severe penalties are provided for those that violate the DMCA for "commercial advantage or private financial gain," but a Web site explaining how to jailbreak an iPhone with no fee attached would seemingly not be covered.

So has the landscape for the App Store changed? Will developers now choose between selling apps via Apple or via third-party stores directly to consumers? It seems unlikely at present. Apple might need to work harder to appease developers, but the company also has consistently patched the vulnerabilities exploited by jailbreaking software, and might become even more vigorous on that front.

The exemption sets an important principle, however: that copyright can't be used as a bludgeon to control how people use devices. It won't lead to an open iOS platform, but it will keep Apple on its toes.

 

Read and post comments about this article | Tweet this article

CrashPlan is easy, secure backup that works everywhere. Back up
to your own drives, computers, and online with unlimited storage.
With unlimited online backup, this is one resolution you can keep.
Back Up Your Life Today! <http://crashplan.com/ref/tidbits.html>   Copyright © 2010 Glenn Fleishman. TidBITS is copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Today, spread out over several press releases, Apple announced upgrades to its iMac and Mac Pro lineups, and introduced a new 27-inch Cinema Display.

iMac -- Apple has revamped its iMac lineup with faster processors and graphics. The lower-end iMacs see the biggest changes including a move away from the Intel Core Duo architecture to the new Intel Core i3, i5 processors, and a shift away from the Nvidia GeForce 9400M graphics processor to ATI-powered discrete graphics. Now the Intel Core i3, i5, and i7 processors and the ATI discrete graphics processors are standard in iMacs across the board.

The 21.5-inch and 27-inch models remain the standard form factors for the iMac, with the smaller model offered in three separate processor configurations, and the larger model offered in four. The base configurations and their respective configure-to-order options are as follows:

• 21.5-inch ($1,199): 3.06 GHz Intel Core i3, 500 GB hard drive, ATI Radeon HD 4670 discrete graphics with 256 MB GDDR3 SDRAM, and 4 GB of 1333 MHz SDRAM.

• 21.5-inch ($1,499): 3.2 GHz Intel Core i3, 1 TB hard drive, ATI Radeon HD 5670 discrete graphics with 512MB GDDR3 SDRAM, and 4 GB of 1333 MHz SDRAM. Configure-to-order options include a 3.6 GHz Core i5 processor, a 2TB hard drive, and up to 16 GB of RAM.

• 27-inch ($1,699): 3.2 GHz Intel Core i3, 1 TB hard drive, ATI Radeon HD 5670 discrete graphics with 512MB GDDR3 SDRAM, and 4 GB of 1333 MHz SDRAM. Configure-to-order options include a 3.6 GHz Core i5 processor, a 2 TB hard drive, a 256GB solid state drive, and up to 16 GB of RAM. It's also possible to replace the hard drive with a 256 GB solid-state drive, or, in a first for the iMac, add an additional 256 GB solid-state drive to the 27-inch model.

• 27-inch ($1,999): 2.8 GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i5, 1 TB hard drive, ATI Radeon HD 5750 discrete graphics with 1GB GDDR5 SDRAM, and 4 GB of 1333 MHz SDRAM. Configure-to-order options include a 2.93 GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i7 processor, a 2 TB hard drive, up to 16 GB of RAM, and an optional 256 GB solid-state drive.

Additionally, all models come standard with four USB 2.0 ports, one FireWire 800 port, 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, an 8x SuperDrive, a Gigabit Ethernet connector, and an SD card slot that now supports the SDXC format (for higher capacity cards). Also standard is the built-in iSight camera, microphone, speakers (which Apple notes are improved over the previous version), headphone and audio in jacks, and a Mini DisplayPort output that supports DVI, VGA, and dual-link DVI.

While no major environmental leaps have been made with these updated models, Apple continues to uphold its green standards. In its press release, Apple notes that the iMac meets Energy Star 5.0 requirements, achieves EPEAT gold status, features displays that are mercury- and arsenic-free, and is built with highly recyclable materials that are devoid of any BFRs or PVCs.

Mac Pro -- The Mac Pro, Apple's desktop tower of power, is now even more burly thanks to the option to equip it with up to 12 processing cores, the capability to include up to four 512 GB solid-state drives, and improved ATI graphics processors.

The low-end configuration includes a single quad-core Intel Xeon "Nehalem" processor - the type that previously represented the high end of the Mac Pro line - at speeds up to 3.2 GHz. The higher-end configurations include Intel's "Westmere" processors in quad-core or 6-core models. (If 4 cores are "quad-core," would 6 cores be "sex-core"?) The Mac Pro can be outfitted with one or two processors, which provides a 6-core system at 3.33 GHz, an 8-core (octo-core?) system at 2.4 GHz, or a 12-core (duode-core?) system at up to 2.93 GHz. Apple also notes that the Westmere chips include 8 MB or 12 MB of L3 cache per processor, improving performance.

Graphics processing is handled by the ATI Radeon HD 5770 with 1 GB of GDDR5 memory, which Apple claims is faster than the previous top of the line option. Or, move up to the ATI Radeon HD 5870 with 1 GB of GDDR5 memory, which offers a wider memory bus (256-bit and 153.6 GB per second versus 128-bit and 76.8 GB per second) and higher-performance GPU. Each card includes two Mini DisplayPort outputs and a dual-link DVI port. If you equip the Mac Pro with two ATI Radeon HD 5770 cards, up to six displays can be connected.

In terms of storage, the Mac Pro includes four 3.5-inch drive bays that offer up to 8 TB of storage when configured with four 2 TB Serial ATA 3Gb/s drives. Apple is also offering the option to add up to four 512 GB solid-state drives, capable of accessing data at up to 230 MB per second. Or, mix and match hard drives and solid-state drives to fill the bays.

The new Mac Pro will be available in August 2010. The online Apple Store does not yet list it for pre-order, so you can't build a configuration online and see how much the combination of processors and drives will cost. However, Apple's press release for the Mac Pro lists two base configurations:

• $2,499 buys a Mac Pro with a single 2.8 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon W3530 (Nehalem) processor with 8 MB of L3 cache, 3 GB of memory (expandable up to 16 GB), ATI Radeon HD 5770, one 1 TB Serial ATA hard drive, and an 18x SuperDrive.

• $3,499 buys a Mac Pro with two 2.4 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon E5620 (Westmere) processors with 12 MB of L3 cache, 6 GB of memory, expandable up to 32 GB, ATI Radeon HD 5770, one 1 TB Serial ATA hard drive, and an 18x SuperDrive.

All models also include four PCI Express 2.0 slots, five USB 2.0 ports, four FireWire 800 ports, AirPort Extreme 802.11n wireless networking, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, Gigabit Ethernet, and an Apple Keyboard with numeric keypad and Magic Mouse.

27-inch Cinema Display -- The new 27-inch Cinema Display features a 2560 by 1440 resolution with a 178 degree viewing angle (thanks to in-plane switching technology) and offers 60-percent more screen real estate than its 24-inch sibling. It keeps with Apple's standard of the 16:9 edge-to-edge glass display mounted on an aluminum stand with an adjustable hinge, and comes with a built-in iSight camera, 49-watt speakers, microphone, and USB 2.0 hub.

The display also has a built-in Mini DisplayPort connector, an integrated MagSafe connector for powering a Macbook or MacBook Pro, and an ambient light sensor that automatically adjusts screen brightness depending on the lighting conditions.

Interestingly, the 27-inch Cinema Display may be Apple's only external display offered going forward. Apple confirmed with several news outlets that the current 24- and 30-inch Cinema Displays will be retired in sync with the release of the new 27-inch model.

The 27-inch Cinema Display requires a Mac with Mini DisplayPort capabilities, and will cost $999 when it's released in September 2010.

 

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Today, spread out over several press releases, Apple announced upgrades to its iMac and Mac Pro lineups, and introduced a new 27-inch Cinema Display.

iMac -- Apple has revamped its iMac lineup with faster processors and graphics. The lower-end iMacs see the biggest changes including a move away from the Intel Core Duo architecture to the new Intel Core i3, i5 processors, and a shift away from the Nvidia GeForce 9400M graphics processor to ATI-powered discrete graphics. Now the Intel Core i3, i5, and i7 processors and the ATI discrete graphics processors are standard in iMacs across the board.

The 21.5-inch and 27-inch models remain the standard form factors for the iMac, with the smaller model offered in three separate processor configurations, and the larger model offered in four. The base configurations and their respective configure-to-order options are as follows:

• 21.5-inch ($1,199): 3.06 GHz Intel Core i3, 500 GB hard drive, ATI Radeon HD 4670 discrete graphics with 256 MB GDDR3 SDRAM, and 4 GB of 1333 MHz SDRAM.

• 21.5-inch ($1,499): 3.2 GHz Intel Core i3, 1 TB hard drive, ATI Radeon HD 5670 discrete graphics with 512MB GDDR3 SDRAM, and 4 GB of 1333 MHz SDRAM. Configure-to-order options include a 3.6 GHz Core i5 processor, a 2TB hard drive, and up to 16 GB of RAM.

• 27-inch ($1,699): 3.2 GHz Intel Core i3, 1 TB hard drive, ATI Radeon HD 5670 discrete graphics with 512MB GDDR3 SDRAM, and 4 GB of 1333 MHz SDRAM. Configure-to-order options include a 3.6 GHz Core i5 processor, a 2 TB hard drive, a 256GB solid state drive, and up to 16 GB of RAM. It's also possible to replace the hard drive with a 256 GB solid-state drive, or, in a first for the iMac, add an additional 256 GB solid-state drive to the 27-inch model.

• 27-inch ($1,999): 2.8 GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i5, 1 TB hard drive, ATI Radeon HD 5750 discrete graphics with 1GB GDDR5 SDRAM, and 4 GB of 1333 MHz SDRAM. Configure-to-order options include a 2.93 GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i7 processor, a 2 TB hard drive, up to 16 GB of RAM, and an optional 256 GB solid-state drive.

Additionally, all models come standard with four USB 2.0 ports, one FireWire 800 port, 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR, a 8x SuperDrive, a Gigabit Ethernet connector, and an SD card slot that now supports the SDXC format (for higher capacity cards). Also standard is the built-in iSight camera, microphone, speakers (which Apple notes are improved over the previous version), headphone and audio in jacks, and a Mini DisplayPort output that supports DVI, VGA, and dual-link DVI.

While no major environmental leaps have been made with these updated models, Apple continues to uphold its green standards. In its press release, Apple notes that the iMac meets Energy Star 5.0 requirements, achieves EPEAT gold status, features displays that are mercury- and arsenic-free, and is built with highly recyclable materials that are devoid of any BFRs or PVCs.

Mac Pro -- The Mac Pro, Apple's desktop tower of power, is now even more burly thanks to the option to equip it with up to 12 processing cores, the capability to include up to four 512 GB solid-state drives, and improved ATI graphics processors.

The low-end configuration includes a single quad-core Intel Xeon "Nehalem" processor - the type that previously represented the high end of the Mac Pro line - at speeds up to 3.2 GHz. The upper-end configurations include Intel's "Westmere" processors in quad-core or 6-core models. (If 4 cores are "quad-core," would 6 cores be "sex-core"?) The Mac Pro can be outfitted with one or two processors, which provides a 6-core system at 3.33 GHz, an 8-core (octo-core?) system at 2.4 GHz, or a 12-core (duode-core?) system at up to 2.93 GHz. Apple also notes that the Westmere chips include 8 MB or 12 MB of L3 cache on the same die, improving performance.

Graphics processing is handled by the ATI Radeon HD 5770 with 1 GB of GDDR5 memory, which Apple claims is faster than the previous top of the line option. Or, move up to the ATI Radeon HD 5870 with 1 GB of GDDR5 memory, which offers a wider memory bus (256-bit and 153.6 GB per second versus 128-bit and 76.8 GB per second) and higher-performance GPU. Each card includes two Mini DisplayPort outputs and a dual-link DVI port. If you equip the Mac Pro with two ATI Radeon HD 5770 cards, up to six displays can be connected.

In terms of storage, the Mac Pro includes four 3.5-inch drive bays that offer up to 8 TB of storage when configured with four 2 TB Serial ATA 3Gb/s drives. Apple is also offering the option to add up to four 512 GB solid-state drives, capable of accessing data at up to 230 MB per second. Or, mix and match hard drives and solid-state drives to fill the bays.

The new Mac Pro will be available in August 2010. The online Apple Store does not yet list it for pre-order, so you can't build a configuration online and see how much the combination of processors and drives will cost. However, Apple's press release for the Mac Pro lists two base configurations:

• $2,499 buys a Mac Pro with a single 2.8 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon W3530 (Nehalem) processor with 8 MB of L3 cache, 3 GB of memory (expandable up to 16 GB), ATI Radeon HD 5770, one 1 TB Serial ATA hard drive, and an 18x SuperDrive.

• $3,499 buys a Mac Pro with two 2.4 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon E5620 (Westmere) processors with 12 MB of L3 cache, 6 GB of memory, expandable up to 32 GB, ATI Radeon HD 5770, one 1 TB Serial ATA hard drive, and an 18x SuperDrive.

All models also include four PCI Express 2.0 slots, five USB 2.0 ports, four FireWire 800 ports, AirPort Extreme 802.11n wireless networking, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, Gigabit Ethernet, and an Apple Keyboard with numeric keypad and Magic Mouse.

27-inch Cinema Display -- The new 27-inch Cinema Display features a 2560 by 1440 resolution with a 178 degree viewing angle (thanks to in-plane switching technology) and offers 60-percent more screen real estate than its 24-inch sibling. It keeps with Apple's standard of the 16:9 edge-to-edge glass display mounted on an aluminum stand with an adjustable hinge, and comes with a built-in iSight camera, 49-watt speakers, microphone, and USB 2.0 hub.

The display also has a built-in Mini DisplayPort connector, an integrated MagSafe connector for powering a Macbook or MacBook Pro, and an ambient light sensor that automatically adjusts screen brightness depending on the lighting conditions.

Interestingly, the 27-inch Cinema Display may be Apple's only external display offered going forward. TechCrunch reports that the current 24- and 30-inch Cinema Displays will be retired in sync with the release of the new 27-inch model. Apple's press release announcing the 27-inch display said nothing about this. We're awaiting confirmation of this.

The 27-inch Cinema Display requires a Mac with Mini DisplayPort capabilities, and will cost $999 when it's released in September 2010.

 

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Apple introduced something new today: the Magic Trackpad, a wireless touch-sensitive trackpad that brings Multi-Touch gestures to the company's desktop Macs.

Matching the height and depth of the Apple Wireless Keyboard, the Magic Trackpad enables gestures like swiping, pinching, and rotating items in programs that support them. Apple's Web page notes that the "entire surface is a button that clicks," and according to Dan Frakes at Macworld, the trackpad clicks via buttons in the feet.

The trackpad communicates with the Mac via Bluetooth and is powered by two AA batteries. It also reduces its power consumption when inactive, and includes an On/Off button. A Magic Trackpad software update enables the Multi-Touch controls (and offers options for choosing which ones to activate) in the Trackpad preference pane.

The Magic Trackpad costs $69 and is available now.

Apple Battery Charger -- Here's something unexpected. Apple also unveiled the Apple Battery Charger, a $29 charger that includes 6 rechargeable AA batteries and powers two at a time. Apple claims the Apple-supplied NiMH batteries have up to a 10-year lifespan, with a self-discharge rate that retains 80 percent of their original charge even after sitting unused for a year. The charger works with other companies' NiMH batteries, too.

What sets Apple's charger apart is the amount of power it uses once its batteries have been charged: 30 milliwatts (mW), compared to 315 mW for other chargers. The reduction in the "vampire draw," as Apple terms it, promises to reduce your house or office's overall energy consumption. The Apple Battery Charger is available now.

 

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THE MISSING SYNC: Take it with you! The Missing Sync makes
it easy to synchronize contacts, calendars, notes, photos
and more from your Mac to your BlackBerry, HTC, Treo,
iPhone and other phones. <http://www.markspace.com/bits>   Copyright © 2010 Jeff Carlson. TidBITS is copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

We've created a new Take Control account management system that enables everyone who has ever ordered a Take Control ebook to access all their purchased books on our site. The marquee feature is that you can read your ebooks directly from our site on an iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch. You can also re-download purchased PDFs, get free updates, download EPUB and Mobipocket versions, and more.

To celebrate this new system, we're having a 50-percent-off sale on all the ebooks we sell. This is a great opportunity to try your first Take Control title, and our system will automatically create an account for you and register your book with it. And for those who already have numerous Take Control titles, although our account management system also knows what books you can upgrade at a discount, the sale is the cheapest and easiest way to update several ebooks in one trip through the cart.

To take advantage of this limited-time sale, visit our catalog using this coupon-loaded link, select the titles you want, and click the Buy Selected Ebooks button. You'll see the coupon code and the discount on the first screen of the cart. The sale runs through 3 August 2010.

We particularly recommend our iPad-related ebooks, including:

• Take Control of Media on Your iPad
• Take Control of Working with Your iPad
• Take Control of Mail on the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch
• Take Control of iPad Networking & Security

(Don't forget Tonya's "Take Control of iPad Basics," but it's free!)

But we still focus on the Mac and Mac OS X, with recent titles such as:

• Take Control of Permissions in Snow Leopard
• Take Control of Screen Sharing in Snow Leopard
• Take Control of Back to My Mac
• Take Control of Syncing Data in Snow Leopard

And recent application-specific ebooks include:

• Take Control of Getting Started with DEVONthink 2
• Take Control of Apple Mail in Snow Leopard
• Take Control of Spam with Apple Mail

To see a full list and shop with sale prices, use the link above to visit the Take Control categorized catalog, or use this coupon-loaded link to view all our ebooks, sorted alphabetically.

Thanks for the support! We couldn't afford to create useful services like the Take Control account management system without your continued help.

 

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<http://www.tidbits.com/about/support/contributors.html>
Special thanks this week to Harold L. Appel, Joseph Owens,
David Bauguess, and Jerome J. Kashinski for their support!   Copyright © 2010 Adam C. Engst. TidBITS is copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Congratulations to David Gue at telusplanet.net and Nick Robson at gmail.com, whose entries were chosen randomly in the last DealBITS drawing and who each received a copy of PDF Shrink 4.5, worth $35. But don't fret if you didn't win, since Apago is offering a 20-percent-off discount on PDF Shrink 4.5 to all TidBITS readers through 13 August 2010. To take advantage of the discount, order from Apago's store; the discount appears once you've added PDF Shrink to your cart. Thanks to the 732 people who entered this DealBITS drawing, and we hope you'll continue to participate in the future!

 

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The MacSpeech Dictate family is growing. Now for everyday use
and the new MacSpeech Dictate Medical with almost 60 specialist
vocabularies, and MacSpeech Dictate Legal for legal professionals.
Learn more: <http://www.tidbits.com/about/support/macspeech.html>   Copyright © 2010 Adam C. Engst. TidBITS is copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

Apple has announced that, on Friday, 30 July 2010, the iPhone 4 will arrive in 17 new countries, including Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, New Zealand, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland. Customers can purchase the iPhone 4 through Apple's online or retail stores, or from any Apple Authorized Reseller.

 

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The MacSpeech Dictate family is growing. Now for everyday use
and the new MacSpeech Dictate Medical with almost 60 specialist
vocabularies, and MacSpeech Dictate Legal for legal professionals.
Learn more: <http://www.tidbits.com/about/support/macspeech.html>   Copyright © 2010 Doug McLean. TidBITS is copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.

1Password 3.3 -- Agile Web Solutions has released a substantial update to the popular password management utility 1Password. Version 3.3 improves integration with Dropbox, adds support for beta versions of Firefox 4, and adds support for Camino 2.0.3. 1PasswordAnywhere gains search and copy capabilities, and can now be set to lock after 1 minute of idle time. The update also fixes an issue that prevented initial clicks on the Firefox 1Password toolbar buttons from registering, and another issue that would cause the 1Password menu to open and close when pressing modifier keys. Full release notes noting all 28 changes are available on the Agile Web Solutions Web site. ($39.95 new, free update, 15.1 MB)

Read/post comments about 1Password 3.3.

Wiki Server Update 1.0 -- Apple's Wiki Server Update 1.0 (part of Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard Server) is a minor maintenance update that addresses a handful of general reliability issues. Issues addressed include authenticating users with high-bit characters (such as accent marks) in full user names, enabling wiki group calendar access from iCal, enabling wikis and blogs to remain accessible after a migration from Leopard Server, starting wiki services after a page was modified by a user using their full name, and displaying private blogs that have been accessed by their owner. The update, whose changes are also included in the just-released 1.1 update to Snow Leopard Server 10.6.4 (delta and combo), is available via Software Update and the Apple Support Downloads page. (Free, 26.3 MB)

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Firefox 3.6.7 -- Mozilla's Firefox 3.6.7 is a minor maintenance update that addresses a handful of security vulnerabilities and a long list of stability bugs. The 126 stability issues addressed in this update are minor and/or exceedingly technical, though if you'd like to peruse the list it's available on Mozilla's Web site. The critical security vulnerabilities addressed could result in the standard threats of arbitrary code execution and attacker-controlled memory. More specific security notes are available. (Free, 19 MB)

Read/post comments about Firefox 3.6.7.

iTunes 9.2.1 -- Apple has released iTunes 9.2.1 to fix a number of bugs, addressing some minor unspecified issues with drag-and-drop, disabling some older incompatible third-party plug-ins, resolving performance problems that can occur on the first sync of a new device with iTunes 9.2, and fixing a bug triggered by upgrading an iPhone or iPod touch to iOS 4 with encrypted backups. Finally, the update addresses a critical security vulnerability. iTunes 9.2.1 is available via Software Update and the Apple Support Downloads page. (Free, 101.82 MB)

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Get more productive with software from SmileOnMyMac: PDFpen for
editing PDFs; TextExpander for saving time and keystrokes while you
type; DiscLabel for designing CD/DVD labels and inserts. Free demos,
fast and friendly customer support. <http://www.smileonmymac.com/>   Copyright © 2010 TidBITS Staff. TidBITS is copyright © 2010 TidBITS Publishing Inc. If you're reading this article on a Web site other than TidBITS.com, please let us know, because if it was republished without attribution, by a commercial site, or in modified form, it violates our Creative Commons License.