Low End Mac Archive for May 16

May 16 in Apple and Low End Mac History

iMac: A second look, Dan Knight, The iMac Channel. "We've had over a week to put iMac in perspective - and it's still a winner."

Raised in a 6-color world, Jeff Brown, My First Mac. "And so that summer (1993) we bought a Performa 450. It was my true first Mac, and I loved every bit of it."

The exclusivist Mac, Stephen Van Esch, Mac Scope. "Some Mac users clearly feel that using a Mac marks them as a different breed."
Low End Mac Cubed, Dan Knight, Mac Musings. We've switched to a G4 Cube while the TiBook is in for repair - our thoughts on Apple's most compact desktop computer.
Troubleshooting your Mac, Charlie Ruggiero, Mac Daniel. Basic Mac troubleshooting with a close look at startup problems.

MP3 and the Mac, part 2, Korin Hasegawa-John, Mac Daniel. An introduction to MP3 players - take your tunes anywhere.
SE/30 catharsis (or not), Jeff Adkins, Mac Lab Report. "I decided that I would get an SE/30 on the internal network surfing the Internet as a cathartic treatment."
Bring out the GIMP, Jason Walsh, PPC Linux. No, Linux doesn't have Photoshop, but it does have GIMP.
More on being Microsoft free, gatekeepers, fighting spam, freezes, OCR, and Redux, Charles Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings. Anti-MS sites, experts and gatekeepers, POPmonitor vs. spam, G4 freezes, OCR software, and problems with Redux.

Don't confuse a pretty interface for an easy or efficient operating system, Adam Robert Guha, Apple Archive. Are Apple and Microsoft sacrificing simple functionality as they attempt to create flashier operating systems?
New OS X disk utility, CharisMac adds AAC support, PB G3 batteries, iBook SuperDrive, and more, The 'Book Review. Also FireWire/USB drive price reductions, three types of laptop cases, and bargain 'Books from $400 to $2,069.
SCSI and OS X on a beige G3, CoreCrib not a good value, tray-loading iMac upgrades, and more, Dan Knight, Low End Mac Mailbag. Also more on the 68000 Dash 30fx clone and how to tell which ROMs your beige Power Mac G3 has.

2 Apple failures: Apple III and Lisa, Tom Hormby, Orchard. Apple's two not-so-great product lines between the Apple II line and the Macintosh.
Bigger, faster, more: Enough already!, Ted Hodges, My Turn. Stop lusting after new hardware. Dust off your old Macs and see what they're really capable of.
Mac vs. PC metaphors, uControl for trackpad scrolling, less costly G4 for iMac A-D, SilverKeeper feedback, and more, Charles W Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings. Free trackpad scrolling utility, $160 G4 upgrade for Rev. A-D iMacs, WallStreet display repair, and more on the best Mac keyboard.
Life beyond Low End Mac. When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.

13" MacBook. Apple's entry-level MacBook uses Intel Core Duo, has a 1280 x 800 display, includes iSight, and replaces both the iBook line and the 12" PowerBook.
The MacBook value equation: Incredible value, Dan Knight, Mac Musings. With a widescreen display, dual-core CPU, fast bus, and $1,099 base price, the MacBook isn't just a great value - it could gut sales of the 15" MacBook Pro.
The PowerBook 3400: Surprisingly useful and spry with the Classic Mac OS, Charles Webb, PowerBook Beat. The last PowerBook before the G3, the PB 3400 actually outperforms the "MainStreet" PowerBook G3 - and it's generally available for under US$100.

The May 2007 MacBook value equation, Dan Knight, Mac Musings. Bigger hard drives, 8% more processing power, 802.11n WiFi, and a faster SuperDrive make the updated MacBook better than its predecessor, but is it a better buy than the close-out model?
3 GB in a MacBook, CRT danger, need for 'Tiger' already a problem, a BeOS for Mac source, and more, Dan Knight, Low End Mac Mailbag. Also a display problem in Safari, MS Office for OS X 10.2, G4 upgrades for Pismo, an improved Extended Keyboard clone, the Backspace key, and how the Enter key puts the Finder in rename mode.
Too stressed to even think about computers, Ted Hodges, Vintage Mac Living. "I've been so preoccupied that I haven't been able to think about computers, much less write about them."

Mac Pro beats HP and Dell at their own game: Price, Frank Fox, Stop the Noiz. Whether comparing the top-end or low-end of Mac Pro options, comparable models from Dell and HP cost more.
Open source virtualization for Macs, iMac shutdowns, Psystar reviews, and more, Mac News Review. Also aluminum iMac USB power concerns, Penryn iMac twice as powerful as fastest G5 iMac, Radeon vs. GeForce in top-end iMac, Odysseus email client in beta, and more.
Limited USB bus power in Santa Rosa Macs, 1 TB in your 'Book, MacBook cooler, and more, The 'Book Review. Also Hitachi first to market with 320 GB 7200 rpm notebook drive, Apple to refund for sparking power adapters, interoffice style sleevecases, 10 hour external MacBook Air battery, bargain 'Books from $150 to $2,699, and more.
BlackBerry's bold challenge to iPhone, Zune sales still flat, 3G iPhone launch nigh, and more, iNews Review. Also a new Google Reader for the iPhone, an iPod-based supercomputer, remote Mac access from iPhone and iPod touch, new cases, and much more.

Mac OS 9 isn't dead yet, Adam Rosen, Adam's Apple. In some areas, the need to run Classic Mac software or the cost of upgrading apps to OS X keeps people using Mac OS 9.
Office 2008 and Adobe CS installers don't require PPC, going to miss AppleWorks, quiet computing, and more, Charles W Moore, Charles Moore's Mailbag. Also the notion of Apple CPUs in future MacBooks, using .docx files with Mac OS 9, favorite mice and keyboards, and more.
iPad 1 and iPhone 3GS outsell Android, tablets put PCs in danger zone, voice recognition, and more, iNews Review. Also 64 GB 3G iPad top seller in Eurpoe, 'light spots' on some LG iPad screens, Queen Elizabeth gets an iPad, Photoshop Touch apps, and more.

The MacBook Legacy: 2006 to 2011, Dan Knight, Mac Musings. Apple's original consumer Intel-based notebook, the MacBook filled an important niche until it was phased out in 2011.