Hot Mac News

[Panag]

hi ,

some new hot mac news



the most affordable MAC notebook ever


Perfect for everything from doing your homework to playing games, and from watching DVD movies to burning your own music CDs, the 4.9-pound iBook fits in your backpack — and your life.

With its extra long battery life, compact size and ultralight weight, the iBook can accompany you everywhere. And with a choice of 12.1-inch or 14.1-inch displays, 800MHz or 900MHz PowerPC G3 processors, 30GB or 40GB hard drives, 128MB or 256MB of RAM expandable to 640MB — plus optional AirPort (802.11b) wireless networking and FireWire, USB and Ethernet ports — the iBook gives you world-class performance in a slim, stunning design.

iLife. Suddenly, it all connects.
The iLife software applications that come on your new iBook include iTunes, iPhoto and iMovie. They let you do fun, creative things with your pictures, music and movies — and share them with family and friends — in ways that PC users can only dream about. And whether you’re creating your own music CDs, publishing your digital pictures online, or editing digital video, you can do all these things and more intuitively and with ease. It’s all part of the iLife experience.

Enjoy the digital lifestyle
Pop open the lid and you’ll find everything you need to surf the Internet, create cool websites, share digital photos, build a music library, edit your own movies, send emails, write reports and more. And if you get an iBook model with a Combo drive (DVD-ROM/CD-RW), you can burn your own music CDs.

The 12.1-inch iBook slips easily into a backpack — perfect for school. But if you’re looking for more space to work and play in, feel free to pick the iBook with a brilliant 14.1-inch TFT XGA active-matrix display. Both models have brilliant 1024-by-768-pixel resolution — ideal for doing everything from working on spreadsheets to displaying your movies and digital pictures in millions of colors (incidentally, the iBook display scales down beautifully, again with millions of colors, for special games and applications optimized for 800-by-600 or 640-by-480 pixel resolutions). It’s astonishing that such a wide screen fits into a notebook computer that measures just 12.7 inches wide, 10.2 inches deep and 1.35 inches thick.

Performance for graphic details
The 12.1-inch iBook gives you a choice of 800MHz or 900MHz PowerPC G3 processors, a system bus speed running at 100MHz, and 128MB of RAM. Not to be outdone with a 900MHz PowerPC G3 processor and 512K on-chip level 2 cache running at full processor speed, a 100MHz system bus and 256MB of RAM, the 14.1-inch iBook packs some serious power. All models support up to 640MB of RAM, and come with the ATI Mobility Radeon 7500 graphics processor with 32MB of dedicated memory and AGP 2X support for stunning 3D graphics that bring games to life.

Winning combo
Pick an iBook model with a Combo drive (DVD-ROM/CD-RW) and you can not only play DVD movies, you can also burn your own CDs (the Combo drive reads all the same formats as a CD-ROM drive, including audio CDs, Photo CDs and software CDs).

Hefty hard drives
The iBook is surprisingly roomy on the inside, with ample space for your MP3 music library, digital images and desktop movies: The 14.1-inch iBook model comes with a 40GB Ultra ATA hard drive, the 12.1-inch iBook ships with either a 30GB or 40GB Ultra ATA hard drive, and you can even upgrade to an optional 60GB hard drive through the online Apple Store.



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some 17 inch powerbook news > http://www.creativemac.com/2003/04_a...ok17030421.htm


more from mac world > http://www.macworld.com/2003/04/revi...inchpowerbook/


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have a nice day

[Panag]

Mac & Music

hi ,

some music on your Mac , .....


The new super-slim iPod once again redefines what a digital music player should be. It’s lighter than 2 CDs, can hold up to 7500 songs, and downloads music at blazing speeds. Now you can take your entire music collection with you wherever you go. Available for Mac and Windows starting at $299.


Compared to 2 compact discs, iPod is 15% lighter, 65% smaller and can hold over 7,000 more songs.
Three lighter thinner models
Smaller than ever (just 0.62 inches thick), the new iPod fits comfortably in the palm of your hand and slips easily into your pocket — and your life. At 5.6 ounces, it weighs less than 2 compact discs, and even many cell phones. And yet the iPod gives you a huge 10GB, 15GB or 30GB hard drive. Do the math: that’s space enough to store three weeks of music — played continuously, 24/7 — or one new song a day for the next 20 years.


Ahead-of-the-curve design
Once again, Apple turns the portable digital music player market on its ear with hassle-free functionality and stunning, well-considered design that place iPod far ahead of the curve and the competition. Building on the success of the touch wheel (which made scrolling through an entire music collection quick and easy), the new iPod has been re-engineered with a all-touch interface for enhanced durability and sensitivity. With an LCD screen and buttons that feature a backlight for clear visibility in low-light conditions, iPod is designed for easy one-handed operation. So the best way to take an entire music collection anywhere is now even better.

Downloads done right
The perfect companion to iPod, the iTunes Music Store is a groundbreaking new way to preview, buy and download music. Within a minute of finding a song you like, you can own it. Make unlimited playlists, burn individual songs to CD as many times as you like, and take all your music with you.

The iPod Dock
The 15GB and 30GB iPod models come with a dock that makes charging and syncing easier than ever — no more reaching around, looking for the right port. An elegant, convenient home base for iPod on a desk or connected to a home stereo system, the dock provides syncing via FireWire or USB 2.0*, charging via FireWire and audio line out for connecting to powered speakers or a stereo system.

High fidelity
Designed to give you the best portable digital music experience ever, the iPod delivers the highest sound quality from input to output. iPod supports the most popular audio formats — including MP3 (up to 320 kbps), MP3 Variable Bit Rate (VBR) and WAV — giving you access to a wide range of audio file types. And iPod is the only portable digital music player that supports the AAC format (Mac-only), which features CD-quality audio in smaller file sizes than MP3, so that even more songs fit on your iPod.

More ways to have fun
The iPod now lets you do a whole lot more in addition to maintaining your contacts, calendar and to-do lists. iPod now includes Solitaire, Brick and Parachute, three great games you can play anywhere (a feature you’re sure to appreciate the next time you’re standing in line or waiting for someone). You can even use your own music as the soundtrack to a game.

iPod also includes a notes reader that lets you download text-based information and read it on the screen. This way you can have the information you need — on everything from restaurant reviews to nightlife guides, and from news articles to exercise routines — at your fingertips.

The perfect travel companion
The iPod features a sleep timer, so you can fall asleep to your music. And with the iPod’s new alarm clock, you can choose either an alarm tone or your favorite music to wake you up.



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Made for Mac and Windows

The new iPod was designed for listening to digital music away from your computer — whether it’s a Mac or Windows PC. One simple connection does it all. A handy new dock connector on the bottom of the iPod enables the device to link to a computer and sync files via FireWire 400 (Mac or Windows) or USB 2.0 (Windows only). The result? Blazingly fast transfer speeds that let you load an album in as little as 10 seconds.

iTunes 4
For Mac users, iPod ships with iTunes 4. iTunes 4 supports ripping music into the new AAC format which combines pristine CD-quality sound with smaller files sizes, compared to MP3s. And iTunes 4 lets you share and stream playlists from your personal music library to up to three other Macintosh computers for personal use.

MUSICMATCH
For Windows users, iPod includes the award-winning PC media player MUSICMATCH Jukebox Plus. As you add new songs or rearrange your playlists in MUSICMATCH Jukebox, the music will automatically update on iPod the next time it is connected to your PC.




See the iPod in action
Take it for a spin: see a QuickTime VR.

iPod Software 1.3 Updater
iPod Software 1.3 updater adds iTunes 4 support including AAC playback (Mac-only), audio and user interface improvements, and more.

iPod Scripts
Create and manage text notes on new iPods with this free downloadable set of AppleScripts.

On-The-Go playlists
Have a particular set of songs you want to hear? Queue up as many songs as you like in a playlist while away from your computer.

Customizable menus
Want to customize the iPod interface to fit your musical leanings? Now you can. Just look under settings in the Main menu.

Wired remote control
The 15GB and 30GB models come with a wired remote control that lets you fast-forward or rewind a track, play, pause and adjust volume — using just one hand.

Carrying case with belt clip
The 15GB and 30GB models include an elegant carrying case with belt clip that protects your iPod from the elements. Clip it to your belt, purse or backpack for hands-free operation.

Best buds
The iPod’s earbud-style headphones offer a strong 20Hz to 20,000Hz frequency response range for high-quality sound with minimal distortion. Thanks to their Neodymium drivers, these headphones are five times more powerful than digital music player headphones that use aluminum, cobalt or ceramic drivers.



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The revolutionary iTunes Music Store puts 200,000 songs at your fingertips. It’s built right into iTunes 4 and lets you search or browse genres, new releases, exclusives and more. Preview any song for free, when you find a song you want, buy it for just 99¢.

What you’ve been waiting for
It’s what music lovers have been waiting for: a music store with Apple’s legendary ease of use, offering a hassle-free way to preview, buy and download music online quickly and easily. The iTunes Music Store has virtually every category of music to choose from. And whatever your tastes in music are: Rock, Rap, Jazz, Blues, Pop, Latin, New Age, Folk, Inspirational, R&B, Reggae, Electronic, Classical or something in between — chances are you’ll find the tunes you’re looking for. And the iTunes Music Store’s catalog of songs is growing every week. So if you don’t find a track you’re looking for, come back tomorrow.

Know when new songs are available
Be sure to sign up for the free “New Music Tuesdays” email bulletin (available when you create your account) to keep current with all the new releases and newly added back catalog selections.

High-quality tracks
One of the first things you’ll notice about the music is the stunning sound quality. In fact the sound was so good that audiophiles who beta tested the iTunes Music Store were astonished to learn they were listening to 128 kbps sound files. The secret? It’s the new AAC format, which combines sound quality that rivals CDs with smaller files sizes (compared to MP3s). So not only do the songs take up less space on your hard disk, they can be downloaded faster, too.

Easy and free music previews
To hear what a song sounds like, simply double-click on a music track just as you would a song stored on your hard disk. You’ll hear a 30-second sample that rivals CD quality sound. The iTunes Music Store also lets you to view an artist’s discography. What’s more, you get the album cover art as well. As you’ve probably experienced, there are times when a hot new album is sold out. The great thing about buying music in the iTunes Music Store is it’s open 24/7 with unlimited availability of our catalog of songs.

Instant gratification
Apple has made the music-buying experience a whole lot easier. Our agreements with the major record labels make a huge selection of music available to you. You can buy an album or only the songs you want. And once you buy the music, you own it — no complicated rules, no clubs to join, and no monthly fees. If you like a song, you buy it for just 99¢, and it downloads directly to your music library in seconds. In fact, you can buy a song or a whole album with just one click.

A treat in store for music lovers
If you have a broadband connection, enjoy exclusive full-length music videos that you can watch right in the iTunes Music Store. Choose from over a dozen top artists that also have exclusive tracks in the Music Store.

It’s easy, it’s fair and it’s legal
The iTunes Music Store is fast and convenient for you, and fair to the artists and record companies. In a nutshell, you can play your music on up to three computers, enjoy unlimited synching with your iPods, burn unlimited CDs of individual songs, and burn unchanged playlists up to 10 times each.

Getting started
The iTunes Music Store is only available in the U.S. To get running all you need is a Mac with Mac OS X (version 10.2.5 or later recommended), and an Internet connection (DSL, Cable or a LAN-based connection recommended for streaming and downloading music). Just download iTunes 4, click the Music Store icon, and you’ve got the world’s most accessible music store, right on your screen. Feel free to browse for as long as you want. There’s no pressure to buy, no annoying pop-up ads, and no confusion about what’s offered.


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from forbes ;



Ten O'Clock Tech
Apple Tunes Up
Arik Hesseldahl, 04.29.03, 10:00 AM ET

NEW YORK - Coming soon to a TV screen near you will be a series of commercials depicting people singing while listening to an iPod. You can't hear the music they're singing along with, you hear only their voices. The ads are memorable--and there is little chance they won't make an impression: You will be curious about the product being advertised.

This is standard operating procedure from Apple Computer (nasdaq: AAPL - news - people ), which just made a series of announcements on the digital music front. Long rumored and much anticipated, Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs opted not to become a heavy-hitting music company executive, as some reports had suggested he had sought to purchase or take a stake in Vivendi's (nyse: V - news - people ) Universal Music.


Apple's latest iPod

He didn't. But in a press conference in San Francisco beamed by satellite to Apple stores around the U.S., Jobs did unveil Apple's new online music store. And after a short tryout and a tad of obligatory skepticism, we can honestly say we're impressed. The iTunes Music Store, an online music download service that is integrated into Apple's iTunes 4 digital jukebox software, is enormously easy to use and dangerously addictive.

After a few downloads, including iTunes 4 and a new version of Quicktime, we were ready to roll. Click on the Music Store link in the left-hand column--and you're taken to a virtual record store with a collection of some 200,000 songs. Search for a song you like and chances are it will pop up on the screen. Double-click on the name of a song and you can hear a 30-second sample to see if it's the version you like and use a credit card to buy a digital copy for 99 cents if it is.

And once you you've downloaded it, it's yours. You can burn it to a CD that you can play elsewhere, mix it with others or move it to an iPod digital music player.

Why does the recording industry allow it? Because they're getting paid, and because they're signing on with a service that Apple is just crazy enough to make work. And because of those TV ads that are about to pop up everywhere, they're afraid not to be on board.

Also, there is some new Apple-made technology at work that protects their interests. While Jobs didn't talk about it much during his speech, Apple has over the last year been quietly developing a digital-rights management software technology called Fairplay. What it does is allow you to do things that generally you're already allowed to do with CDs. You're allowed, for example, to make a copy of a CD for backup purposes should the CD be lost or damaged. The hard drive of your computer in this case simply replaces the cassette tape that many used to rely on for creating a backup.

You're also allowed to create a custom mix which, again, many used to do on cassette tapes, but in recent years has been the domain of the CD-R disc and the MP3 file. But with the new iTunes, you're limited to ten copies of a single playlist before you have to change it. That's Fairplay at work.

You're also allowed to listen to the music pretty much wherever you want. That may be on an iPod--you're allowed to put a song on an unlimited number of iPods--or on other computers. In the case of computers, you're limited to three, which should be enough for a computer at home, a computer at work and the laptop you travel with. Again, that is Fairplay at work.

Other interesting features of the new software include support for a new audio format called AAC, or Advanced Audio Code. Songs in this format sound terrific and are supposed to take up less space than MP3 files. We can confirm that they do sound great.

Buying is easy. Set up an account with a credit card and click on the song. It downloads--and quickly you're listening. We bought six songs and they all appeared right away on the hard drive. (A broadband connection like a DSL line or cable modem likely makes a big difference. We didn't try it on a dialup connection.) If only a trip to the music store was so easy.

So far the only limitation seems to be the library of available songs. Indeed there is a great deal of music within the 200,000 already available, and Apple is adding more songs on a daily basis. We found a fair selection of Van Morrison albums available, but were unable to locate, for instance, anything by The Doors. Turning to tastes both popular and esoteric, we found a nice selection of Miles Davis records but nothing from Dave Frishberg.

On this point Apple Vice President Phil Schiller conceded that the bigger the catalog of music offered, the better the service will be. And while it's hard to criticize what's available now, it would be very interesting to see the occasional rare and unusual or out-of-print recording show up in digital form on the iTunes Music Store. Hard-core fans searching for unusual recordings might like the ability to search for songs and albums by label, and catalog number would be a useful feature to add in the same way that Amazon.com (nasdaq: AMZN - news - people ) and other book retailers have a feature to search for books using the international standard book number.

The service is also being made to work with existing iPods that are connected to Macintosh computers, though a version of iTunes and access to the related store are expected for users of Microsoft's (nasdaq: MSFT - news - people ) Windows by the end of this year.

New iPods are also on tap for release later this week. They're thinner and lighter than before, and the four buttons have been moved. They start at capacities of 10 gigabytes and go up to 30 gigabytes. And each iPod will work with either a Windows machine or a Mac. Some Windows users will need to buy an additional cord to connect to their machines via USB.

One other new feature of the iPods is a desktop cradle that both synchronizes the music on the device and charges its battery. On the back of the cradle is a line-out port that can connect to external speakers or to a home stereo system. That ability isn't new per se, but the elegance of the solution this time around is an improvement. Previously the best way to connect an iPod to a stereo system was to use a cassette tape adaptor. Now all you need is a cradle near the stereo, and additional cradles will be sold on their own for placement wherever you might want to put the iPod.

On the whole, Apple's musical moves look like the right ones. Now that they're made we have to wonder why no one else had thought to make digital music services so straightforward and easy--and above all, legal.


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from salon


I have seen the future of music and its name is iTunes
Apple's new online music-buying system is everything Napster promised to be -- cheap, easy and, best of all, legal.

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By Farhad Manjoo



April 29, 2003 | Hunter S. Thompson never actually said that "the music business is a cruel and shallow money trench, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free, and good men die like dogs." The quip, from Thompson's 1988 "Generation of Swine: Tales of Shame and Degradation in the '80s," was in fact meant to describe the TV business.

But in a post-Napster world, one in which both musicians and music lovers have come to harbor a deep animosity toward record labels, the Thompson misquote has taken on the patina of truth -- which is why, in his introduction of a new online music-buying service on Monday in San Francisco, Apple CEO Steve Jobs elicited a rousing response by flashing the quote up on the giant video screen behind him. Probably the only folks in the room who weren't applauding were the industry executives in attendance, but they, too, might have been OK with Jobs' insults. Indeed, the execs ought to have been pleased with Apple's geek-chic CEO: That's because Jobs is being nice enough to save the music business from itself.

The music service Jobs unveiled is a delight. Called the iTunes Music Store, the service -- it's available only on Apple machines for now but will be ready for Windows "by the end of the year" -- is fully integrated into the company's jukebox software. Users can search for songs to purchase in the same way they'd look for songs they already have on their machines. The system is foolproof: You type in a name, a song comes up, and you press a button to buy it. That's it. You're in the hole for 99 cents for each song you download ($10 for each album), but you see none of the transaction details; all the purchases are "one-click." And here's the stunning thing: Once you've bought a song, you own it. You can do (pretty much) whatever you want to do with the songs you download, including burning them to CDs, transferring them to iPods, or sending them to other Macs.
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[Panag]

I pod & mac music , second part

Apple's New Service Beats Illegal Free Sites
By WALTER S. MOSSBERG

For several years now, the music and technology industries have been casting about for a legal Internet music service that might rival the wildly popular bootleg services, like Napster and Kazaa, where songs can be grabbed for free. But the results have been dismal -- until this week.

Early services with access to major label catalogs, like MusicNet, pressplay and Rhapsody, have been pathetic. They all require monthly fees, and they mainly stress "streaming" music, which you can listen to, but can't download. They don't sell downloaded songs that remain on your hard disk and can be used freely. Instead, their downloads expire if monthly fees aren't paid. Playback of songs is usually restricted to one or two PCs, and the songs often can't be used on portable music players. The ability to burn songs to CDs is either very limited, or requires a per-burn payment on top of the service's monthly fee.

In short, these services treat everyone like a potential criminal, and they take all the joy out of buying and playing music.

But, this week, Apple Computer launched the first really useful, and enjoyable, legal music service, the iTunes Music Store (www.applemusic.com). It's an enormous step forward, and the first online music service I can recommend.

This new Apple service also is bound by some restrictions insisted upon by the big labels. But these limits are so much more liberal than the ones imposed by the earlier ventures that it's as if the other services never existed. Only Apple is selling major-label downloads that a typical consumer or family can freely use, in any common scenario, without running into restrictions.

Like most other Apple products, Apple's iTunes Music Store is beautifully designed and easy to use -- although for now, it only works on Macintosh computers, a tiny species in a world of Windows machines. I've been testing it heavily over the past couple of days and it works very well. I have downloaded more than 50 songs, burned them to CD, copied them to multiple computers, and loaded them onto multiple iPod portable music players. There were a few minor hiccups, but the service basically worked as promised, easily and well.

There are no monthly fees for Apple's music store. You just pick the songs you like, and buy them for 99 cents apiece. You can buy as many or as few songs as you like. You can play a free 30-second preview of any song, and if you like what you hear, you just click a single button to buy it. No shopping-cart screens appear. The songs you buy begin downloading to your computer immediately. That 99 cent price will have to come down eventually, if online music buying is to become a mass phenomenon, but it's low enough to get the business off to a strong start.

Entire albums can also be purchased for download, at prices that range from about $8.00 to over $11.00. But most albums are $9.99 -- well below the price they fetch in stores. The music store doesn't require a Web browser or any new software. It shows up as a feature of Apple's excellent iTunes music jukebox software, which comes free with every Mac. Every purchased song includes a picture of the album cover, which shows up in iTunes when you play the track.

Forever Yours

Once you buy a song, it's yours to keep. It never expires. You can copy it to as many as three computers, which don't have to be owned by the same person, or even be in the same location. You can copy each song to an unlimited number of iPods, and burn each song to an unlimited number of home-made CDs. However, you can only burn the same list of songs to 10 CDs. After that, you have to change at least one song on the list. This is to prevent someone from creating hundreds or thousands of copies of an album for mass distribution.


With Apple's new iTunes Music Store, users can download individual songs, or a whole album like Elvis 56.



These limits are so loose that they allow essentially full and free use of the music by any typical family, which is unlikely to own more than three computers. In fact, Apple's rules allow the kind of small-scale sharing of music that the record labels have previously condemned as piracy, but which most honest people consider routine and allowable, even if it technically isn't.

For instance, you could designate computers owned by friends and relatives as part of your group of three, and e-mail the songs you buy to them. They will be able to play them, burn them, and copy them to iPod players. Or, you could burn 10 copies of an album or mixed play list and pass them out to your friends. Or, you could simply invite all your friends with iPods to come over and load the songs you've bought. Finally, if you burn a CD of your purchased tracks, you can use common, simple software to "rip" the tracks into unrestricted MP3 files in minutes, even on a Windows PC.

Why would you use Apple's store instead of bootleg services like Kazaa, where the songs are free? Well, on Kazaa, the songs can be hard to find, especially in the version you want. There's a lot of trial and error. Also, the quality can be poor, with pops and hissing and the endings cut off. There's no album art included. And lots of people using Kazaa have received viruses and spyware along with their music.

But, most of all, downloading songs from Kazaa is at the very least unethical, and probably illegal, because the people who upload the songs to those services don't own the copyrights, and don't pay anything to the artists or songwriters. With the Apple store, you do have to pay, but your conscience can be clear.

Every major genre and era is represented among the more than 200,000 tracks in the Apple store. I downloaded songs by James Taylor, Bette Midler, Paul Simon, Van Halen, Billy Joel, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Linda Ronstadt, Bill Haley and his Comets, and Peter, Paul & Mary. I also got an alternate mix of Bob Dylan's song "Everything Is Broken." All of these went onto my iPod. My wife asked for some music by Louis Prima, so I downloaded an album of his and burned it onto a CD she could play in her car. My assistant Katie downloaded a couple of tracks from Coldplay.

There are two big downsides to Apple's new music store, but both promise to be temporary. First, the store only works on Apple's own Macintosh computers. But the company is planning to release a Windows version by the end of the year. Secondly, many albums are only partially present. There are lots of gaps. The company says it is loading songs into its servers as fast as it can, and that the partial albums should fill out over the coming weeks.

There is also another oddity about Apple's venture: The songs it sells aren't in the common MP3 format, but in a newer format called AAC. This is a standard, recognized format, but it hasn't been used much, and there are few software programs that can play it, especially on Windows PCs. Apple insists that it chose AAC because, at any given quality level, it sounds better than MP3 files, and yet takes up slightly less room on a hard disk. The company swears that the choice of AAC had nothing to do with security or anti-piracy, or with locking out Windows software.

In my tests, however, I found Apple's claims for the superiority of AAC to be exaggerated at best. On the kind of rock and pop music most people buy, Apple's AAC tracks sounded fine to me, but no better than the same songs rendered in MP3.

When I reported this to Apple, the company said middle-aged ears like mine couldn't tell the difference, but younger ones could. So I asked Katie, who is in her 20s, to compare 11 identical songs recorded at the same quality level, 128 kilobits per second, in Apple's AAC format, and in the MP3 format. Her verdict: The AAC songs may have been very slighter sharper and crisper, but the difference was minuscule.

As for the size of AAC files versus MP3s, I found that the AACs were only very slightly smaller than MP3 files at the same quality level, and in some cases the AAC files were the same size, or even slightly larger.

Fortunately, Apple isn't abandoning MP3s. The iTunes software still handles and plays MP3 files, along with AACs, and you can mix the two formats in play lists, and when burning CDs, or downloading tracks to an iPod.

The service is well designed, with minimum clutter and maximum usability. You can quickly search for any artist, album, composer or song title. Or, you can browse the collection by genre, artist and album. There are artist pages that group all of an artist's albums, and you can view the album cover for any song or album. These album covers get downloaded with any song you buy, and are displayed in the iTunes player when you play the song.

Making the List

When you buy a song, it is automatically added to a special play list called "Purchased Music," but it also shows up in your regular song library and can be added to any other play list, along with songs you already own.

I ran into a few glitches with the store in my tests. A couple of song downloads were interrupted, but I was able to resume them later. In one case, the store said I had bought a song, but it never got delivered. In another case, one song had a gap in it. And another didn't burn properly to a CD.

Apple attributed these problems to opening-week jitters in its service, or to flaws in the files provided to it by the record labels. It said customers can report these problems, and get refunds, via a customer-service option under the iTunes Help menu.

With Apple's new music store, honest music consumers finally have a decent alternative to the bootleg services.

--With reporting by Katherine Boehret

Write to Walter S. Mossberg at mossberg@wsj.com





The iPod
In two years, it has changed how we listen to music

I have a fifteen-year-old cousin who has never once purchased a CD, and he has a huge music collection. The iPod makes the days of portable CD players seem like a bad, distant memory. I love the novelty of having all of my favorite CDs in one tiny little box, all just waiting to be heard. Having 5,000 songs on something the size of a cigarette pack. Two years ago, I had a meeting with some people from Apple wherein I was singing the praises for iTunes. My only problem with iTunes, I said, was that there wasn't a portable MP3 player that was proprietary for the Mac. They kind of looked at each other with shifty eyes and said, "Well, we shouldn't show this to you, because it's only a prototype, but here it is . . ." and they handed me the first-ever iPod. I couldn't get my hands off of it. Now you can't imagine music any other way. I can be sitting on an airplane and think to myself: "Self, wouldn't you like to listen to the first Roxy Music record?" And there it is. I would have burned out the first four Roxy Music albums on vinyl by now.


well , soon this thing is going to be our PDA , cell or GSM phone , ..... you name it

when doing sports this thing is great , at last a way to listen to great music while running or biking

still far from perfect but worth every dime it costs

more info at www.apple.com/ipod or www.apple.com/Music/store or www.applemusicstore.com enjoy


have a nice day

[Panag]

I tunes

iTunes Music Store Sells Over One Million Songs in First Week
CUPERTINO, California—May 5, 2003—Apple® today announced that its revolutionary iTunes® Music Store sold over one million songs during its first week. Over half of the songs were purchased as albums, dispelling concerns that selling music on a per-track basis will destroy album sales. In addition, over half of the 200,000 songs offered on the iTunes Music Store were purchased at least once, demonstrating the breadth of musical tastes served by Apple's groundbreaking online store. Apple also reported that over one million copies of iTunes 4 have been downloaded, and that it has received orders for over 110,000 new third-generation iPods since their introduction a week ago, with music lovers snapping up more than 20,000 of them from stores in the U.S. this weekend.

“In less than one week we’ve broken every record and become the largest online music company in the world,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “Apple has created the first complete solution for the digital music age—you can purchase your favorite music online at the iTunes Music Store, mix your favorite tracks into playlists with iTunes, and take your entire music collection with you everywhere with the super-slim new iPods.”

“Hitting one million songs in less than a week was totally unexpected,” said Roger Ames, Warner Music Group’s chairman and CEO. “Apple has shown music fans, artists and the music industry as a whole that there really is a successful and easy way of legally distributing music over the Internet.”

“Our internal measure of success was having the iTunes Music Store sell one million songs in the first month. To do this in one week is an over-the-top success,” said Doug Morris, Universal Music Group’s CEO. “Apple definitely got it right with the iTunes Music Store.”

Apple also announced that tomorrow, May 6, the iTunes Music Store will be adding over 3,200 new tracks, including major new album releases such as Jack Johnson’s “On and On,” Andrea Bocelli’s “Tosca” and Fleetwood Mac’s “Say You Will,” as well as pre-release tracks from upcoming albums by artists David Sanborn, The RH Factor, John Scofield, Jesse Harris and Lizz Wright. Also to be added tomorrow are additional albums from the Eagles, Michelle Branch’s album “The Spirit Room,” and new Featured Artist pages for Coldplay, including an exclusive track and music video, and Alanis Morissette, with her catalog of music.

The iTunes Music Store features over 200,000 songs from major music companies including BMG, EMI, Sony Music Entertainment, Universal, and Warner and lets customers quickly find, purchase and download the music they want for just 99 cents per song. The iTunes Music Store offers groundbreaking personal use rights that allow users to burn songs onto an unlimited number of CDs for personal use, listen to songs on an unlimited number of iPods, play songs on up to three Macintosh® computers, and use songs in other applications on the Mac®, including iPhoto™, iMovie™ and iDVD™.

Music lovers can easily find the hits they love and discover gems they’ve never heard before by listening to free 30-second high-quality previews of any song in the store, then purchase and download their favorite songs or complete albums in pristine digital quality with just one click. Users can explore music in an entirely new way by easily searching the entire music store to instantly locate any song by title, artist or album, or browse the entire collection of songs by genre, artist and album. The iTunes Music Store is fully integrated into iTunes 4, the fourth major release of Apple’s popular digital music jukebox software, allowing users to purchase, download, organize and listen to their music using just one application.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Apple is committed to bringing the best personal computing experience to students, educators, creative professionals and consumers around the world through its innovative hardware, software and Internet offerings.

Press Contacts:
Natalie Sequeira
Apple
(408) 974-6877
nat@apple.com


Lara Vacante
Apple
(408) 974-7142
larav@apple.com


NOTE TO EDITORS: For additional information visit Apple's PR website (www.apple.com/pr/), or call Apple's Media Helpline at (408) 974-2042.

Apple, the Apple logo, Mac, Mac OS, Macintosh, iTunes, iPhoto, iMovie, iDVD and iPod are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Apple. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.


hi ,

who - ah , this baby rocks

the quality is better then any other site

that new Ipod has to get full

have a nice day

[monolith94]

Hey panang - any news on the latest processor?

[Panag]

double post

[Panag]

Originally posted by monolith94
Hey panang - any news on the latest processor?

hi ,

, surprise surprise , heard that one a couple times in the last weeks , ... but no , nothing , not even a rumour , .... in january some rumour control but then nothing anymore , ....

it has to be something top secret or so , ...

news expected around juni on the new chip

anyway , it looks like we are going to be seeing a whole bunch of new things again in the next couple of months , nine out of ten in june and january , ......

have a nice day

[Panag]

hi ,

the new g5 > http://www.apple.com/powermac/

> http://www.apple.com/g5/


the prize ranges from 1 999 to 2 9999 usd / eur but if you read the specs you are going to spend this money , simply because its worth it , .....


have a nice day

[CivPatriot]

Even inspite of the rumormill buildup to this event, I am quite excited(and plesantly surprised) about the new PowerMac, its the best news we've had on the hardware front in a long time. Hopefully, IBM will not fumble the advancement of this chip like Moto did. The G5 Powermac is a killer system(virtually making every Mac older than two years a vaccum cleaner). What i'm looking forward to is this getting into the mobile end(since thats where i spend my money at). I would like to see a G5 powerbook(if only to get a fast g4 or g3 in the ibooks) very soon.

Panther looks like its going to be as much of a leap from jaguar as jag was from 10.1 or 10.

Well with all this news i am surprised by the quietness of the forum(every one must still be in shock from the announcements). anyway.

[Agathon]

No - all the mac heads were flaming Asher for his trollish comments about the G5.

[CivPatriot]

interesting must have missed the action, i take it this occured in the OT?

[Panag]

Originally posted by CivPatriot
interesting must have missed the action, i take it this occured in the OT?

hi ,

this is the thread , but dont even bother > http://apolyton.net/forums/showthrea...73#post2126173

have a nice day

[Panag]

APPLE SUPERDRIVE UPDATE


Important information about using high-speed media with your SuperDrive-equipped Power Mac G4 or iMac.

Apple is the industry leader in providing affordable and easy-to-use DVD authoring systems. All SuperDrive equipped Macs are compatible with all currently shipping 1x and 2x DVD-R media. With the new 4x media, it is important that your SuperDrive be up to date before using this higher speed media.

Using new high-speed media.
The DVD Forum recently released specifications for new high-speed discs for DVD recording (4x for DVD-R and 2x for DVD-RW). Media based on this new specification is now available. All older SuperDrive equipped Macs can easily be updated to be compatible with this new media. Apple is providing a quick and easy way for customers to update their SuperDrive. The update is available as an automatic update and as a manual update for both Mac OS 9 and Mac OS X.




Why do I need this update?
We recommend that all SuperDrives have this update. Some SuperDrives may already have it installed (see the section below which explains how you can check to see if your SuperDrive needs this update). One of our suppliers, Pioneer Electronics, Inc., has advised that some of its older DVD-R/CD-RW drives (including some Apple SuperDrives) may be unable to recognize the new high-speed media, and that using this media may permanently damage the drive. Additionally, this update enables you to eject discs that do not comply with the CD specification or have mastering errors.

How do I know if my SuperDrive needs this update?
That’s easy: If you have a 17-inch flat-panel iMac, an eMac with SuperDrive, a Power Mac G4 (introduced on or after August 2002) with SuperDrive, or a new PowerBook G4 with SuperDrive, your system is already compatible with the new media. Models that do not have a SuperDrive do not need the update. If you have any other SuperDrive equipped iMac or Power Mac G4, you may need the update. You can easily verify if you need the update via the Apple System Profiler application. In Mac OS X, you’ll find the Apple System Profiler in the Utilities folder inside the Applications folder. In Mac OS 9, you’ll find it in the Apple menu.

To verify if your SuperDrive-equipped Power Mac G4 or iMac needs the update, click the Devices and Volumes tab of the Apple System Profiler application, and then click the CD-RW/DVD-R disclosure triangle to see information about the device. If the Vendor Identification field names a manufacturer other than Pioneer, you don’t need the update. If the Vendor Identification field names Pioneer as the vendor, you may need the update. For drives with the Product Identification DVR-104, no update is required if the Device Revision number is A227 or higher. For drives with the product Product Identification DVR-103, no update is required if the Device Revision number is 1.90 or higher.


How do I install the Update?
If you own an iMac or Power Mac G4 system that requires the update, you can automatically update your SuperDrive via the easy-to-use Software Update feature (in both Mac OS X and Mac OS 9).

To get this update via the automatic Software Update feature in Mac OS X, go to Software Update (in System Preferences) and click Check Now. In Mac OS 9, open the Software Update control panel and click Update Now. Then simply follow the onscreen instructions to perform the update.

If you have turned off automatic Software Update or have an environment that doesn’t support automatic Software Update, you can download a manual update — just click on the appropriate download link on this page.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What DVD-R media is compatible with my SuperDrive-equipped system?
All SuperDrive-equipped Macs are compatible with all currently shipping 1x and 2x DVD-R media; this update relates only to the new high-speed media (4x DVD-R and 2X DVD-RW).

If I buy a new Macintosh with SuperDrive today, will I need this update?
All of Apple’s currently shipping SuperDrive-equipped Macs (that is, the 17-inch flat-panel iMac, the eMac with SuperDrive, the Power Mac G4 with SuperDrive, and the new PowerBook G4 with SuperDrive) already have the latest update, and are ready for the new media.

What will happen if I use the new high-speed media in a SuperDrive that does not have this update?
Pioneer reports that this may damage the drive. So why take a chance? Apple has made it really easy to update the drive, and we highly recommend that you take this step to protect your equipment.

Will this update enable my 2x SuperDrive to write at a higher speed?
This update enables you to read from and write to the new media, but it does not increase the speed of the drive. In fact, the updated 2x SuperDrive writes to this new media at 1x. So to obtain the highest performance from your 2x SuperDrive, we recommend that you continue using 2x DVD-R media just as you do today.

What about third-party DVD-R drives that I can buy for my Mac?
You should contact the device manufacturer or Pioneer with questions about such a drive.

hi ,

well the above is clearly an important update , if you have further questions ; >>> http://www.apple.com/hardware/superdrive/

have a nice day

[Panag]

Hell froze over

hi ,

" Hell froze over " , ....... héy , thats whats written there , .... >>> http://www.apple.com/itunes/ , take a good look at the free burning and encoding , .....

http://www.apple.com/macosx/overview/

Panther , the worlds most advanced OS , but still not enough games for it , .....

take a look at its new features >> http://www.apple.com/macosx/newfeatures/ , they are just great , one needs 30 minutes to read it all , .....

enjoy

have a nice day