Latest Gear Live Videos
iPhone 2.0 firmware going gold master this week
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Handhelds, Portable Audio / Video, Software, Video Games,
Here we are, at the tail end of June, and it appears that the iPhone 2.0 firmware is right on schedule to achieve the status of golden master on Friday. According to our friends over at Gizmodo, they have a source inside the iPhone software dev team who let them know that the shipping version of the update will follow build 345. Expect a couple of new encryption and code-signing features.
Now, just because the firmware will be finalized and ready on Friday, that doesn’t necessarily mean that we can expect it to show up in iTunes or anything. During the latest WWDC keynote, Steve Jobs said it would be available in early July. Also, as history has shown us, the final version of firmware can be ready weeks before it is released, as was the case with the iPhone 1.1.3 firmware we got our hands on weeks before it was out. Surprisingly, the build number of the version we had matched that of what shipped.
Anyhow, we look forward to getting our hands on the final version of the 2.0 firmware. We are ready for some App Store goodness, Exchange features, iWork support, and most importantly, Super Monkey Ball.
Read More 
| Gizmodo
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Apple let’s MobileMe browser requirements page slip
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Internet, Rumors, Software,
If you had any question of what browsers would play nice with Apple’s upcoming MobileMe service, a slip-up by the company earlier today pretty much answers the question. Until pointed out by my pal Cory over at TUAW, the above image was viewable when trying to access .Mac from an iPhone. Apple quickly corrected the mistake, and you can check out the updated screenshot after the jump, but basically, it’s just a .Mac help page.
On the MobileMe end of things, it’s no surprise that Apple recommends Safari, followed by Safari, and lastly Internet Explorer 7. It will be interesting to see how many downloads of Safari for Windows MobileMe can help push through.
Click to continue reading Apple let’s MobileMe browser requirements page slip
OS X Leopard 10.5.3 update released
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, PC / Laptop, Software,
Apple has just released the latest batch of stability, compatibility, and security updates for OS X Leopard, all wrapped up in the 10.5.3 update. On my Mac Pro, the update is clocking in at 420 MB, so it’s a hefty one. That is understandable though, because there are quite a few fixes in this one. Some that stand out to us include things like improved Time Capsule reliability, screen sharing fixes, and a few Spaces improvements. We’ve got the full list for you after the break, if you are interested. Otherwise, fire up Software Update to get the latest and greatest.
Click to continue reading OS X Leopard 10.5.3 update released
Pixelmator updates to 1.2, adds bunch of features
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Software,
Here at Gear Live, we are big fans of Pixelmator. In case you haven’t heard of it, Pixelmator is an image editor for OS X that takes advantage of a bunch of different OS X features in a way that few apps do. We love it because, while not as powerful os Photoshop, it has just about every feature the average person needs in their image editing/manipulation app, at a price that is far, far easier to swallow at just $59. Oh, and it does support PSD files, and is the world’s first image editor powered by your graphics card. Anyway, they’re calling this one “Pixelmator 1.2 Draftsman,” and there are a bunch of new features that we look forward to getting our hands on. We’ve got the full release notes for you after the jump.
Click to continue reading Pixelmator updates to 1.2, adds bunch of features
Parallels Desktop for Mac update adds complete Vista SP1, XP SP3 support
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: PC / Laptop, Software,
For those of you who religiously use Parallels for the WIndows virtualization needs in OS X, you should be aware that there was a new update released today that has the appearance of being fairly important. After all, it now completely supports Windows XP SP3 and Windows Vista SP1, including full Boot Camp support in both. In addition, MacBook Air compatibility has been greatly improved, too. Of course, there are your other generic bug fixes and and performance enhancements as with any new release. Anyhow, definitely a recommended upgrade.
Read More | Parallels Download
That Zune 2.5 update sure installs fast
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Microsoft, Movies, Music, Software,
Random, I know…but it just had to be said. One of the absolute banes of my history with the Zune software is how freaking long it took to install it. Even when updates were released, those typically took a little while from start to finish as well. So imagine my delight earlier this morning when I fired up the Zune client to download the latest Zune 2.5 Spring Update, and having the entire process last less than two minutes. Fit and finish, indeed.
Zune 2.5 client launches TV downloads, Zune Card social sharing
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Microsoft, Movies, Music, Portable Audio / Video, Software,
As of this moment, Microsoft’s Zune team is deploying the new Zune 2.5 software out to the Internets, with the hopes that it will result in many more people getting down with the Social. We got a sneak peak at some of the new features that the crew is rolling out, and we must say, it’s very apparent that they’ve put a lot of thought and a lot of work into tightening up some of the loose ends.
So, first things first, a huge part of this update is about connecting with friends, and discovering new music. This is being done by way of the overhauled Zune Card, which is a quick snapshot of anyones Zune profile. It auto-updates to reflect the latest music played by a user, their favorite songs, and top songs from most played artists. Even cooler, you can take these Zune Cards with you by syncing them up with your Zune device. This will give you a glimpse into what your friends are listening to, and if you are a Zune Pass subscriber, you automatically get the last 6 songs from each category of the Zune Pass, for each person you add. That’s a new 18 tracks per Zune Card that you choose to sync to your device.
Click to continue reading Zune 2.5 client launches TV downloads, Zune Card social sharing
Read More | Zune 2.5 gallery
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Windows XP SP3 now available
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Internet, Microsoft, PC / Laptop, Software,
A few days ago we told you that Windows XP SP3 would be released April 29. Well, that just happens to be today, so we felt it was our duty to remind you. This long-awaited update to Windows XP is the last, but seriously, we are expecting this to pretty much be the best currently-available version of Windows out there, so get to downloading. If you aren’t seeing it in Windows Update yet, then just go here to grab it manually.
Poll: Does Windows on a Mac affect your PC purchasing decisions?
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Software,
In light of the news that Parallels has sold over 1 million copies of their Parallels Desktop for Mac software, we figured we’d gauge the pulse of the Gear Live community to see what you guys think. The other day, Apple reported some amazing sales figures as far as the Mac goes. Desktops and portable sales are up. We are thinking there is a connection between those numbers and the fact that Parallels - which lets you run Windows inside of OS X - has been selling to well.
So we want to know, how does the fact that you can run Windows right on your Mac, and inside of OS X, affect your PC purchasing decisions?
Parallels Desktop for Mac sells over 1 million units
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Corporate News, PC / Laptop, Software,
If you were one of the Apple fanboy nay-sayers who swore that no one would ever want to run Windows on their Mac, it looks like Parallels just proved you wrong. The company just announced that they’ve surpassed one million units sold across the globe. If you stop and think about that for a second, you’ll realize that software like Parallels must be having a very significant effect to the Mac and computer market. We are guessing that, thanks to software like Parallels and VMWare Fusion, more and more people are willing to stray away from the WIndows PC to venture into Mac territory.
“Parallels Desktop not only broke down the barrier between the Mac and PC worlds, it also broke down the barrier that kept desktop virtualization from becoming a mainstream technology for consumers and professional users” said Serguei Beloussov, CEO of Parallels. “We will continue innovating to extend our position as the desktop virtualization leader and provide our users with the fastest, easiest and most seamless solution available.”
Now, don’t get us wrong - we know that Parallels can also run Linux and other operating systems as well - but seriously, the success if all about the fact that you can run Windows apps right alongside your Mac apps. Congrats are in order. If you haven’t yet tried it yet, here’s a Parallels discount coupon.
