TidBITS#927/05-May-08
=====================
Issue link: <http://db.tidbits.com/issue/927>
This week brings an eclectic set of news and reviews, starting off
with Microsoft not purchasing Yahoo for $50 billion and running all
the way through Joe Kissell's review of the Nabaztag Internet
Rabbit. In the middle Joe also covers the release of the MozyHome
online backup service, Jeff Carlson looks at movie purchases on the
Apple TV, and Glenn Fleishman examines AT&T's new iPhone plan for
the hearing and speech impaired. Glenn also reflects on the
outpouring of support for handcrafted HTML and reports on
Microsoft's ending of support for its PlaysForSure DRM, and Matt
Neuburg contributes a glowing review of Vara Software's new
ScreenFlow screencasting software. In the TidBITS Watchlist, we look
briefly at updates to TextExpander, DiscLabel, Microsoft Messenger
for Mac, Tinderbox, MacPilot, Infovox iVox, Synchronize Pro X,
1Password, the iMac ATI Radeon HD firmware, and Java for Mac OS X.
Articles
Microsoft Pulls Yahoo Acquisition Offer
MozyHome for Mac Online Backup Service Reaches Version 1.0
Apple TV Gains Movie Purchases and DVD Date Releases
AT&T Adds iPhone Plan for Hearing, Speech Impaired
Lovingly Craft Your HTML
DealBITS Discount: Save 20% on HoudahGeo
Thank You for Not Playing: Microsoft Expires DRMed Music
ScreenFlow: Screencasting on Steroids
Getting to Know the Nabaztag Internet Rabbit
TidBITS Watchlist: Notable Software Updates for 05-May-08
Hot Topics in TidBITS Talk/05-May-08
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Microsoft Pulls Yahoo Acquisition Offer
---------------------------------------
by Adam C. Engst <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/9596>
According to a story by Ina Fried in CNET's Beyond Binary blog,
Microsoft has rescinded its offer to purchase Yahoo. In early
February, Microsoft offered Yahoo $31 per share (see "Microsoft Bids
$44.6 Billion for Yahoo," 01-Feb-08). Although speculation about the
offer provided fodder for innumerable news stories and blog posts,
in the end, it came down to money. Microsoft upped its offer to $33
per share, adding another $5 billion to the purchase price, but,
according to Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer's letter to Yahoo CEO Jerry
Yang, Yahoo's board of directors held out for $37 per share, a level
to which even Microsoft wasn't willing to go. In theory, Microsoft
could have taken the offer directly to Yahoo's shareholders, but
Ballmer felt Yahoo would take steps during the process (most
notably, forge a closer relationship with Google) to make the
company undesirable as a takeover target for Microsoft.
<http://www.news.com/8301-13860_3-9935099-56.html>
<http://db.tidbits.com/article/9434>
<http://www.news.com/8301-13860_3-9935101-56.html>
So we're back to where we started, with Microsoft still looking for
ways to fend off the hard-charging Google while still raking in
$14.1 billion in profits on $55.1 billion in sales in 2007, making
it the most profitable technology company according to Fortune.
That's well ahead of Google ($4.2 billion in profits) and Apple
($3.5 billion).
<http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2008/fortune/0804/gallery.tech_profits.fortune/>
<http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2008/fortune/0804/gallery.tech_profits.fortune/7.html>
<http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2008/fortune/0804/gallery.tech_profits.fortune/8.html>
Whatever problems Yahoo may have had before, the company's handling
of the Microsoft offer would seem only to have worsened them - see
Kara Swisher's report on the mood of Yahoo executives in All Things
Digital.
<http://kara.allthingsd.com/20080505/yahoo-execs-reaction-i-need-some-prozac/>
MozyHome for Mac Online Backup Service Reaches Version 1.0
----------------------------------------------------------
by Joe Kissell <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/9601>
Online backup provider Mozy (now part of EMC, which also owns
Retrospect) has announced that their Mac software has reached
version 1.0 after more than a year of public beta testing (see "Two
Online Backup Services Announce Public Betas," 2007-04-30). MozyHome
for Mac offers _unlimited_ online backups for a flat fee of $4.95
per month (a free 2 GB account is also available). The Mac MozyHome
software is a 4.8 MB download.
<http://db.tidbits.com/article/8968>
<http://mozy.com/mac>
<https://mozy.com/registration/free>
MozyHome uses 448-bit Blowfish encryption for your files as well as
128-bit SSL to protect data while in transit. During incremental
updates, the software copies only the portions of files that have
changed (block-level incremental backup), reducing the time backups
take to complete - a particularly welcome feature for those who want
to back up large files that change often, such as Entourage
databases and disk images used by virtualization software. Mozy also
stores multiple versions of each backed-up file so that you can
restore it to its state from any point in the past 30 days. Users
can restore files using the Mac client software, download them from
the company's secure Web site, or order DVDs (at an extra charge)
containing their data.
Version 1.0 contains many changes from the beta versions, including
support for Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard, Mail messages, and files with
resource forks. Formerly, backups ran automatically, whenever files
changed; now, you can opt instead to run backups on an explicit
schedule. You can also now throttle the program's bandwidth (at all
times or during certain hours). In addition, version 1.0 features a
long list of bug fixes and performance improvements.
MozyHome, as the name suggests, is for individual users. Mozy also
announced that business versions of its service, MozyPro and
MozyEnterprise, will become available later this year. Pricing
details were not released.
I've become increasingly enthusiastic about online backup services
as their costs have come down and feature sets have improved (see
"Online Backup Options Expand," 2007-04-09), though speed will
likely always be a concern, given the significant amount of data
most of us have to back up and the limited upstream bandwidth of
most consumer-level broadband services. I'll be interested to see
how the new version of Mozy stacks up against competitor CrashPlan,
which has so far held the lead in both breadth of features and
performance.
<http://db.tidbits.com/article/8923>
<http://www.crashplan.com/>
Apple TV Gains Movie Purchases and DVD Date Releases
----------------------------------------------------
by Jeff Carlson <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/9602>
The Apple TV, the company's "hobby" (according to Steve Jobs) media
playback device, added to its appeal last week with a pair of
movie-related announcements.
<http://www.apple.com/appletv/>
First, it's now possible to purchase movies directly from the Apple
TV; before, they could be bought only from the iTunes Store on a
computer. Movies for sale are available only in standard-definition
resolution, not HD, even when an HD rental is available for the same
title.
This feature appeared briefly several weeks ago, inconveniently the
day I submitted the final version of my latest book, "The Apple TV
Pocket Guide, Second Edition," to Peachpit Press. I wasn't able to
successfully purchase anything on my Apple TV at the time, however,
and Apple didn't get back to me with an answer before the capability
disappeared.
<http://www.amazon.com/dp/0321563158/?tag=tidbitselectro00>
The other news from last week goes beyond the Apple TV. A collection
of movie studios announced that movies would be available for the
Apple TV and other on-demand services on the same date that DVDs are
released. Previously, Apple's position was that movies would be
available for rent or purchase 30 days after the DVD release date
(no doubt a limitation imposed by the studios at the time). The
participating studios include 20th Century Fox, The Walt Disney
Studios, Warner Bros., Paramount Pictures, Universal Studios Home
Entertainment, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Lionsgate, Image
Entertainment, and First Look Studios.
<http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2008/05/01itunes.html>
The new policy has been slowly adopted for weeks. The
Oscar-nominated film "Michael Clayton" appeared for rent at the
iTunes Store and on the Apple TV when the DVD was made available,
but the timing also coincided with the Academy Awards. I'm guessing
the success of that movie on iTunes (where it remained the top
rental for several weeks) helped convince other studios that the
30-day limitation was silly.
Could this be the start of a clue among the movie studios? I'm not
holding my breath. But it does show that they're finally realizing
that although the main content may be the same - the movie - a DVD
and a digital download are different offerings. People who purchase
DVDs want higher video quality, something they can grab off the
shelf that doesn't require an Internet connection, and the multitude
of extras available on some DVDs. People who rent or purchase movies
from direct services like the Apple TV are looking for near-instant
gratification (depending on the capacity of one's Internet
connection) and, most of all, convenience.
AT&T Adds iPhone Plan for Hearing, Speech Impaired
--------------------------------------------------
by Glenn Fleishman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/9591>
The iPhone may not be any more accessible to those with hearing or
speech impairments, but it's now more affordable on a monthly basis.
AT&T has introduced a $40-per-month Text Accessibility Plan
available through the company's National Center for Customers with
Disabilities. The plan includes unlimited SMS messaging and
unlimited EDGE data, along with 40-cent-per-minute voice usage and
Apple's Visual Voicemail.
<http://www.wireless.att.com/about/disability-resources/text-accessibility-plan-for-iphone.jsp>
Customers who qualify can purchase and activate an iPhone as if they
were applying for a regular service plan, and then contact AT&T's
center to have the plan changed to this new offering.
This plan is essentially the same as the most expensive messaging
package available as an add-on for existing AT&T customers who
upgrade to an iPhone - that unlimited messaging plan also costs $40
per month - without any requirement for a voice plan. For other
customers, AT&T requires at least a $40-per-month voice calling
plan, which would be the equivalent of 100 minutes of calls made per
month using this new offering.
<http://www.apple.com/iphone/easysetup/rateplans.html>
A separate iPhone TTY (teletype) adapter ($19) allows the use of
standard TTY equipment for relay calling, although relay calling
requires the use of voice minutes. Apple documents its iPhone
accessibility features, although the iPhone lacks a common feature
ensuring hearing-aid compatibility that is not yet mandated by the
U.S. Federal Communications Commission.
<http://www.apple.com/accessibility/iphone/index.html#tty>
The FCC apparently started enforcing a requirement on 18-Apr-08
after cellular telephone carriers failed to hit a mark that 50
percent of all cell phone models offered have one or both of two
forms of hearing-aid compatibility.
<http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/hac_wireless.html>
Lovingly Craft Your HTML
------------------------
by Glenn Fleishman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/9599>
My article about New York Times's design director Khoi Vinh's
comment that he and his staff still hand code their HTML stirred a
fair amount of both nostalgic and contemporary reverie among TidBITS
readers (see "Hand Coding HTML Is Still in Vogue," 2008-04-28).
Slashdot picked up Vinh's comment separately, and many readers there
seemed to misunderstand - they thought Vinh was saying that every
page on the New York Times site was being created by hand. One
commenter wrote, "Handcoding takes far more time than is necessary
in a changing scenario of today's news. Effort not proportional to
returns. As a shareholder, i [sic] would sue them for wasting
money."
<http://db.tidbits.com/article/9569>
<http://news.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/04/30/009245>
<http://news.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=538510&cid=23247618>
Of course, as other Slashdotters contemptuously replied, the New
York Times is database-driven, and Vinh and his staff are hand
coding templates, not pages. Readers at Lifehacker were much more
clued in when they commented on my article. It's fascinating to see
people cast off the opprobrium that sticks to hand coding HTML, and
proclaim how great it is.
<http://lifehacker.com/384257/do-you-handwrite-html>
But this set of responses made me realize that my headline was
perhaps confusing: Hand coding seems to imply that every page is
written by hand. In fact, we at TidBITS, the folks at the Times, and
people at millions of sites around the world are _hand crafting_ our
HTML. We use HTML like a chisel, and enjoy the feeling of manual
tools. Others may use jackhammers, and that's their choice.
Stand up today and be counted as an HTML handcrafter. I feel a "ye
olde" coming on.
DealBITS Discount: Save 20% on HoudahGeo
----------------------------------------
by Adam C. Engst <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/9587>
Congratulations to Paul Schumann of mac.com, Kelly Greenwood of
juno.com, and Rachael Watson of hotmail.com, whose entries were
chosen randomly in last week's DealBITS drawing and who received a
copy of the $40 HoudahGeo photo geocoding software, as did Aleta
Watson of cox.net, who referred Rachael to this DealBITS drawing. If
you didn't win, don't fret, because you can save 20 percent on
HoudahGeo; it's only $32 through 18-May-08 if you use coupon code
"DEALBITS08" when ordering from Houdah Software. Thanks to the 480
people who entered this DealBITS drawing, and we hope you'll
continue to participate in the future!
<http://db.tidbits.com/article/9586>
<http://www.houdah.com/houdahGeo/>
Thank You for Not Playing: Microsoft Expires DRMed Music
--------------------------------------------------------
by Glenn Fleishman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/9595>
Microsoft plans to break their customers' ability to play MSN
Music-purchased songs on computers other than those that are
currently authorized after 31-Aug-08. When the Zune was introduced
in late 2006, Microsoft abandoned its long-time PlaysForSure digital
rights management (DRM) system that embeds information in media to
control playback. You can read a lovely, snarky annotation of
Microsoft's letter to its MSN Music purchasers at eWeek Microsoft
Watch.
<http://www.microsoft-watch.com/content/games_consumer/my_dear_john_letter_from_msn_music.html?kc=MWRSS02129TX1K0000535>
The Zune Marketplace uses a different DRM system that's compatible
with only the Zune. Microsoft currently sells no unprotected music,
while Amazon's entire digital music catalog is DRM-free, and a
subset of the iTunes Store is sold without device and playback
locks. Geoff Duncan wrote about the new and old DRM systems in "Of
the Zune, DRM, and Universal Music," 2006-11-13.
<http://db.tidbits.com/article/8751>
Users can continue to play MSN Music audio indefinitely on any
machine authorized before 31-Aug-08, and can transfer and authorize
songs on up to 5 computers total for any one song until that date.
However, because Microsoft's system works on a per-song basis, if
someone transferred a large library to another computer, they would
need to authorize each song - one source says by starting to play
each song, which must be an overstatement - before the August 31st
deadline. After that point, music will continue to play only on
previously authorized computers. Anyone forced to reinstall Windows,
upgrade, or add a new machine is out of luck.
Microsoft suggests burning songs to audio CDs, although it doesn't
mention the necessary second part of that transaction, which is to
rip the music back as unprotected MP3, AAC, or even lossless music
files.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has challenged Microsoft's
action as part of their long-running battle against DRM. The EFF is
not against copyright, ownership, control of usage, royalties, or
reasonable limitations. Rather, they believe DRM is an ineffective
method to provide such controls, because DRM punishes only those who
opt into it by broadly restricting personal use rights that are
encoded in both law and judicial decisions. These rights include
being able to make reliable backups, play media on any device one
owns, and choose when and how to pause and resume playback; various
DRM systems restrict different sets of personal use rights.
[Editor's note: For a detailed academic look at the implications of
how the content industries are encapsulating intentionally fluid
laws into rigid DRM technologies, see Tarleton Gillespie's "Wired
Shut." -Adam]
<http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2008/04/28/microsoft-open-letter>
<http://www.eff.org/pages/customer-always-wrong-users-guide-drm-online-music>
<http://www.tarletongillespie.org/wiredshut/>
Microsoft is engaged in what many opposed to DRM view as the
worst-case scenario: a company sells a lot of media with DRM, then
prevents users from continuing to use the media within the
constraints imposed on the system, and offers no recompense or
reasonable option to work around the shutdown.
What's odd, of course, is that Microsoft is neither going out of
business (obviously) nor shutting down MSN. Rather, they made a
business decision to shift their entire protected music approach to
a new one because PlaysForSure wasn't reliable enough for them to
eat their own dog food. This also left in the lurch lots of their
partners who had stuck with PlaysForSure through thick and thin.
It's a crummy decision. Microsoft could have used technology to
unlock all the music purchased, even if that required them to make
additional payments to the copyright holders. They could have chosen
to run their DRM authorization servers indefinitely. They could have
done lots of things. Instead, they chose the worst possible
solution.
The EFF suggests that Microsoft either refund all purchases or
provide DRM-free replacements. They also make the implicit point
that given the aggressive tactics used by the Recording Industry
Association of America (RIAA), which includes filing suits against
dead people and grandmothers without computers, Microsoft should
provide full documentation of purchases so that if their users
choose to burn music to CD, they could later prove that they
legitimately purchased that music.
I don't know of any individuals who enjoy DRM; this move certainly
strengthens the hands of all DRM opponents by providing a case in
point: the day the music died.
ScreenFlow: Screencasting on Steroids
-------------------------------------
by Matt Neuburg <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/9593>
There used to be an advertisement - I forget what it was for,
exactly - that portrayed the user sitting in an armchair facing his
computer, with his hair, his dog, and everything else in the room
streaming backward, blown by the metaphorical force of whatever was
happening on the computer screen. Well, that user is me using Vara
Software's ScreenFlow. It isn't just good: it's eye-opening. I quite
frankly had no idea that an application could look and act like
this. This program has knocked my socks off - with my shoes on.
<http://www.varasoftware.com/products/screenflow/>
ScreenFlow makes screencasts. A screencast, in this context, is
simply a screen capture movie - a movie of your computer screen,
capturing what you do (and, optionally, what you say). This might
not seem sexy to you, but please accept, for purposes of discussion,
that to some of us, screencasts are very, very important. As a
documentation writer, I have to explain to users how to work with
software. As a beta tester, I have to describe to a developer how to
trigger a bug. As a dutiful son, I have to show my mother how to
remove Bookmarks Bar items in Safari. In all these cases and many
more, I find that one moving picture is often worth ten thousand
words.
In the past, I always made screencasts with Ambrosia Software's
Snapz Pro X. But without prejudice to Snapz Pro - a wonderful
utility, which I use constantly - it has never worked as well as it
should have for movies. It has no option to compress sound, so
narrated movies are always huge; therefore, I always have to
recompress afterwards (I use the wonderful QTAmateur for that, as
I'm too stingy to pay for QuickTime Pro). Plus, I've never found a
setting where onscreen text appears in crisp focus in the resulting
movie.
<http://www.ambrosiasw.com/utilities/snapzprox/>
<http://www.mikeash.com/?page=software/qtamateur/>
With ScreenFlow, these problems are gone; but that doesn't begin to
explain what's great about ScreenFlow. Let me talk you through the
process of making a screen capture movie with this amazing program.
**Ready When You Are, Mr. DeMille** -- With ScreenFlow running, and
with your recording options set up, you signal to ScreenFlow that
you want it to start recording. (You can use a status menu, the Dock
menu, or a global keyboard shortcut for this.) Your screen is
momentarily covered by a dark transparent curtain, along with a
window that counts down ("5, 4, 3, 2, 1") to the moment when
recording will start. The curtain vanishes, and the "camera" is
rolling. You do and say whatever you want to make a movie of, and
then signal to ScreenFlow to stop recording (in any of the same ways
whereby you signaled it to start).
Now, with most screen capture programs, that's effectively the end.
(Snapz Pro, for example, when you finish recording, puts up a window
where you can enter your QuickTime export settings; at this point,
you either save the movie or you don't, and that's that.) But with
ScreenFlow, things are only beginning. You suddenly find yourself
rocketed into a window that looks very much like iMovie HD - the
good old iMovie, the one with timelines at the bottom, remember?
There, top and center, is the screen capture you just made. Below it
are simple video controls to play, rewind, and advance the movie,
and a sound level meter. Below that are your timelines: typically,
one for the video, one for the narration.
What's happening is that you're now in a _document_, within a movie
editing application. ScreenFlow is offering you a chance to edit
your movie before exporting it. You can edit now, or you can just
save the document (and even quit ScreenFlow) and return to it later.
What sort of editing can you do within ScreenFlow? Well, for
starters:
* You can select a region of the timeline and cut it - good for
removing that unnecessary throat-clearing at the start of the movie.
* You can split a timeline, grow or shrink a timeline segment, and
move timeline segments around. You might use this to improve the
synchronization of narration and video, or to remove poor narration.
* You can add existing media, such as MP3 music or a JPEG picture, to
the document. Newly added media appear in a media area at the upper
right, much as in iMovie, ready to be dragged into a timeline. Thus
you might add background music, or a title.
* You can create a new recording - sound, video, or both - and add it
to the file as new media. Thus you could redo segments of the
narration, or possibly the entire narration (in fact, you can watch
the existing video in ScreenFlow while recording new narration).
* You can crop the movie frame. Unlike, say, Snapz Pro, where you
specify a screen region before recording, ScreenFlow records the
whole screen and lets you crop later. Even when you crop the movie
frame, ScreenFlow still remembers the entire captured screen (this
point will be important later).
* You can make other adjustments to your timeline media. For example,
you might alter the audio volume, or change the video scale. You can
also change video transparency (good for that title we added
earlier).
* You can make adjustments to video media within the movie frame. For
example, suppose that as you recorded the screen, you also had
ScreenFlow record an image of _you_, using your computer's built-in
iSight. (Oh, did I neglect to mention that you could do this? Silly
me.) When you watch the resulting movie in ScreenFlow, the image of
you is a small frame at the lower right, superimposed on the image
of your computer screen. If that isn't where you want it, you can
reposition it. You can also resize it, rotate it in three
dimensions, and even add a reflection and a shadow. But please,
don't get carried away. Okay, fine, get carried away!
**Lights, Camera, Actions** -- But wait, there's more - a lot more.
You can also add "Actions" to your movie. To understand, imagine
that you are a music engineer. As the musicians play, you are
twiddling dials to raise and lower the sound level on various
tracks. Now imagine that this twiddling is itself somehow recorded.
That's what an Action is: it's a specification of a twiddle, to be
applied as the movie plays.
For example, earlier I said that you could alter the audio volume.
But what if you want to _duck_ the audio volume - lowering it, not
as a whole, but starting some distance into the movie? Simple.
Position the playhead at the point where you want the volume to
duck, select the audio clip in its timeline, and click Add Audio
Action. Now lower the audio volume with the slider. Done! To change
the rate at which the volume reduces, widen or narrow the Audio
Action, which appears as an overlay on the audio timeline.
You can do the same thing with video. Recall my example where
there's a small image of you superimposed on the image of your
computer screen, and you reposition it. If you reposition it as part
of a Video Action, the resulting movie will show the image of you
moving from one spot to another.
Similarly, earlier I mentioned that the whole screen is captured.
But suppose you want to zoom in on one area of the screen, or pan a
cropped movie from one area of the screen to another. Again, you can
do this with a Video Action. To pan a cropped movie, for example,
you'd add the Video Action, then slide the crop region to the
desired part of the screen.
Thus, by splitting your video into multiple clips and using Video
Actions, possibly along with additional media, you can get some very
cool transition effects even though ScreenFlow lacks QuickTime
"transitions" in the iMovie sense.
**I'm Ready For My Close-up** -- But wait, there's _still_ more. It
turns out that while it was capturing your screen, ScreenFlow was
also recording a lot of extra information. You can manipulate that
information, as desired, in parts of the movie.
For example, ScreenFlow has remembered all the keys you pressed
during the screen capture. Suppose you want all or part of your
movie to show the viewer what those keys were. To do so, you add a
different kind of Action - a Screen Recording Action. One of the
options here is "Show Keys Pressed"; the result is that, once this
Action takes effect, key presses are represented textually in a
rectangle in the middle of the movie.
Similarly, ScreenFlow has remembered the cursor position and mouse
clicks throughout the screen capture, so if you want an enlarged
cursor in your movie, or if you want mouse clicks represented
visually or audibly, you can have that too. Thus, instead of using
another utility such as Mousepose and setting it up beforehand to
get these effects, I can just make my screen capture and then
include the effects later.
<http://www.boinx.com/mousepose/overview/>
Coolest of all the effects you can add during editing are
"callouts." Here, a region of the movie is isolated, to call the
viewer's attention to it; the rest of the screen can be darkened and
blurred, and the isolated region can be enlarged, as if someone had
stuck a magnifying glass over it. You can isolate in this way a
circular area around the mouse cursor or a rectangular area matching
the frontmost window portrayed in the movie.
**Closing Credits** -- When you're ready to export your movie, you
have access to the full range of QuickTime compression codecs and
settings for video and audio, as well as scaling; you can also elect
to chapterize your movie using markers you've placed in the
timeline. This is only an export and your ScreenFlow document is
still a saved document, so if you're not satisfied with the
resulting movie - the exported movie is too big, the scaling is too
small, you'd like to change some editing decisions, whatever - you
can always alter the document, export again with different settings,
and so on. And by the way, the exported movies are gorgeously,
perfectly focused; the viewer can see every detail of what was on
your screen.
ScreenFlow is a stunning, clean, clear, beautifully designed
application. I understood most of it within about 10 minutes of
trying the demo (whose limitation is that exports are watermarked);
but the application also includes very good online documentation,
including a tutorial that corresponds to a tutorial document
embedded in the application. Also, there are (of course!) some
online screencast tutorials, created with (of course!!) ScreenFlow
itself.
<http://www.varasoftware.com/products/screenflow/screencasts.html>
ScreenFlow costs $99.99. It requires Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard, a G4 or
better (or Intel), and Quartz Extreme capability; and the
availability of some features may depend upon the quality of your
graphics processor. The demo is a 4.7MB download.
<http://www.varasoftware.com/products/screenflow/download.html>
Getting to Know the Nabaztag Internet Rabbit
--------------------------------------------
by Joe Kissell <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/9584>
Shortly after I moved to France last year, Glenn Fleishman offered
to introduce me to his contacts at a company called Violet that's
based here in Paris. (And thus, by the way, it's pronounced
"vee-oh-LAY.") Violet is best known as the developer of the Nabaztag
Internet-enabled rabbit, and this product sounded sufficiently wacky
that I was delighted to pay its creators a visit. It turned out
they're located just down the street from me, about a ten-minute
walk away, and I'd unknowingly passed their offices dozens of times
already. So I set up an appointment, and Morgen and I met with Rafi
Haladjian (one of the Nabaztag's inventors) and Jean-François
Kitten (yes, apparently his real name) for a personal, hands-on demo
of the Wi-Fi bunny.
<http://www.violet.net/>
<http://www.nabaztag.com/en/>
<http://www.tidbits.com/resources/2008-04/nabaztag_add4.jpg>
That was more than seven months ago. Ever since, I've intended to
write about the Nabaztag and the philosophy behind it, but every
time I've started pondering what to say, I've gotten profoundly
stuck. Even now, I'm not entirely sure what to think of it. I
believe I could argue with equal conviction that this device is
surprisingly useful or a ridiculous waste of $165. In any case,
there's certainly more to this gadget than meets the eye. Luckily
(or unluckily, depending on your point of view), little appears to
have changed in the Internet rabbit arena since last fall, so I
believe my observations are still pertinent.
**Nabaztag Basics** -- First things first: how does one pronounce this
strange word? I wrote it phonetically in my notes the way its
designer said it - roughly, "NAB-us-tag," where the stress is on the
first syllable and the middle vowel is a schwa. It's the Armenian
word for "rabbit," and it seems to make as little sense to
French-speaking people as it does in English.
In case you've not kept up with the news in rabbit technology over
the past few years, let me give you a quick description of the
Nabaztag. It's a rounded conical hunk of plastic about 9 inches (23
cm) tall (including the two protruding ears), with eyes and a nose
painted on front, a belly-button microphone, and a single button on
top - but no other visible user interface. You plug in the AC
adapter (it doesn't work with Energizer batteries, sorry) and it
connects to the nearest open Wi-Fi network. (There are provisions to
use password-protected networks, too, though they require a bit of
fiddling to set up.) When the bunny powers on, several multicolored
LEDs glow from behind the plastic case, and the motorized ears spin
around in a manner that would surely be quite painful for a real
rabbit.
Then you go to a Web page to register your adopted rabbit - yes,
they say "adopt" to mean "buy" - and specify a bunch of preferences
and personal information such as where you live and what kinds of
news and music you're interested in. From then on, your Nabaztag
becomes an interactive network appliance that can do any or all of a
long list of things. For example, various combinations of lights
(solid or blinking, in different configurations and colors) could
indicate:
* The current or predicted weather
* The status of stocks or other financial indices of interest to you
* The air quality outside
* How many new email messages you have in your inbox
* Whether someone has left you a voice message
The built-in microphone and speaker extend the list of capabilities
much further. To mention just a few examples, the Nabaztag can:
* Read headlines from your favorite RSS feeds in a synthesized voice
* Play Internet radio stations or podcasts
* Announce the current time periodically
* Act as a non-real-time intercom with another Nabaztag - press the
button, record a message, and it's sent to someone else's rabbit for
playback
* Respond to spoken commands (a recording of your voice is sent to
Violet's servers, where it's run through a speech recognition
algorithm and the resulting command is sent back to your Nabaztag)
Oh, and let's not forget the ears! Normally they spin at various
times without any particular meaning. But you can configure them in
arbitrary positions and send them to your friend's Nabaztag (alone
or along with a voice message) - and your friend's Nabaztag's ears
will assume the same positions. (For example, point both ears down
to mean "I'm sad" or whatever.) Hey, who needs video, voice, text,
or even flashing lights when we have digital semaphores! For some
reason, this capability tickled me more than anything else the
little bunny can do. (Oh, and if you pair your Nabaztag with someone
else's to "hard-wire" messages like ear positions between the two
rabbits, that's called _marrying_ them. Yep. To the best of my
knowledge, though, they only reproduce within Violet's factory.)
Last but not least is a built-in RFID reader. The idea is that you
buy special RFID tags called "Ztamps" to stick on your keys,
glasses, and other objects. When these objects come into proximity
with your Nabaztag's nose, it notices they're there and can take
whatever action you want, such as playing a sound or sending a
message. As far as I can tell, the Ztamps aren't yet available
separately, but Violet does sell a variety of Ztamp-equipped
children's books (in French only, for now). When your child holds
one of these books up to the Nabaztag, the rabbit reads the book
aloud. That's right: your robot rabbit can relieve you of the tedium
of bonding with your kids by reading them their bedtime story. (I
have yet to see a child interact with a Nabaztag in person, and I'm
thinking it's possibly best that way.)
Although the Nabaztag comes pre-configured to deliver certain kinds
of information right out of the burrow - um, box - the company
expects and encourages extensive personalization and even hacking;
they also offer an API for third-party developers to create their
own applications and services. (Some Nabaztag services are free, by
the way, while others require a paid subscription.) There's even a
healthy aftermarket for replacement ears in a variety of colors and
patterns.
By the way, I should mention that the current generation of Internet
rabbit is called "Nabaztag/tag" - I guess that's Armenian
rabbit-speak for "rabbit 2.0" - the original Nabaztag, which is
still available for about $95, doesn't include the microphone or
RFID reader, and doesn't support WPA encryption or streaming MP3
audio. The company representatives I spoke to said that future
generations would be designated with additional "/tag" endings.
Perhaps they'll come with a selection of RFID Nabaztag/tag/tag tags.
**Down the Rabbit Hole** -- All right, so you can buy this groovy
little bunny appliance thingy that can do a million and one things,
but who really needs one? The candid answer, according to Violet's
Haladjian, is no one. He'd be the first to admit, he says, that
Internet rabbits aren't going to change the world, that he's not
looking to build the future of his company on plastic bunnies. The
Nabaztag is simply the first example of a larger idea Violet is
trying to promote - that of leveraging the power of ubiquitous
wireless Internet access to turn ordinary objects into smart
objects. We're accustomed, he explained, to having a computer screen
(or, at least, some kind of screen) mediate our experience of the
Internet. But although computers make good all-purpose tools,
there's life beyond the PC - and there are other, simpler and more
direct ways to use that near-universal connectivity. So think of the
Nabaztag as a rather elaborate proof of concept for a future in
which lots of friendly little objects can do lots of useful things
by virtue of being connected to each other and to a global source of
infinite data. Violet's ambition is to connect everything in the
world, and they're starting by connecting small, familiar-ish
objects.
That word "friendly," by the way, is key. As an example, Haladjian
cited home automation systems, which have been around for decades,
but which, he says, are still complex and intimidating enough to
scare away many people. A little rabbit with funny ears and a single
button, on the other hand, isn't intimidating. You interact with it
in natural ways like talking to it and holding objects in front of
it rather than by connecting wires and looking at a screen and
typing or mousing. So it hints at a more user-friendly future of
invisible computing in which much simpler objects with embedded
computers replace many of the functions for which we currently rely
on full-blown desktop or laptop computers.
<http://itotd.com/articles/221/invisible-computing/>
This idea, of course, is not unique to Violet or the Nabaztag. For
example, a company called Ambient offers a number of small
Internet-enabled devices, such as the $150 Ambient Orb, which glows
in different colors to indicate information like traffic, weather,
and stock prices; and the $124.99 Ambient Umbrella, whose handle
glows when rain is expected. You can buy standalone devices to
stream Internet radio, and even the Apple TV is a type of Internet
appliance. (There's also the $179.95 Chumby, a little
Wi-Fi-connected gadget that can serve up the time, weather, traffic,
news, music, and so on - though unlike the others mentioned here, it
still relies on a conventional LCD screen to display data, making it
more like a keyboard-less computer than an appliance; see "Chumby:
The Beanbag Computer," 2007-12-14.) In any case, the Nabaztag is the
only one I can think of with anthropomorphic (or, uh,
kuniklomorphic) characteristics.
<http://www.ambientdevices.com/>
<http://www.ambientdevices.com/cat/orb/orborder.html>
<http://www.ambientdevices.com/products/umbrella.html>
<http://www.apple.com/appletv/>
<http://www.chumby.com/>
<http://db.tidbits.com/article/9361>
The question is why someone might find a Nabaztag (or any other such
appliance) worth buying when their existing, conventional computer
can do almost all the same things (though I've never seen a Mac with
motorized ears). The Violet reps suggested that the Nabaztag is
especially good for applications that aren't worth your full
attention - for providing information in the background, perhaps
even while you're focused on some other task on your computer. I
think that's on the right track. I can attest that as an introvert,
I'd be much less distracted by unobtrusive glowing lights on a
device over on the table than by something popping up on my screen
all the time, and I might even be more inclined to report my status
or mood using rabbit-ear semaphores than typing a tweet or changing
my iChat status (see "Instant Messaging for Introverts,"
2008-04-04).
<http://db.tidbits.com/article/9544>
**Multiplying Like Bunnies** -- Apparently enough people have seen
past the weirdness of the Nabaztag's design to make it quite a
successful product. In fact, according to Violet, when the original
Nabaztag was introduced in 2005, their first 5000 units sold out in
10 days, even though it was the middle of the summer and the device
had been advertised only by word of mouth.
However, I must confess that I am not myself a Nabaztag owner.
Though I left the Violet offices fully convinced of the coolness and
usefulness of the Nabaztag, it didn't meet my
"can't-live-without-it" test, and I'm not inclined to collect toys
just for their conversation value. (Plus, you know, $165 buys a lot
of French pastries. Gotta have your priorities.)
My sense, from looking at the activity level of various blogs and
forums devoted to the Nabaztag, is that the device's earlier
popularity is waning. Violet has been slow to release promised
improvements (such as the Ztamps, which had been scheduled for
delivery last October), and I've seen no sign of the impending
arrival of a Nabaztag/tag/tag. But that may be a moot point, because
Violet's stated intention is not to put a Nabaztag in every home.
They've got loftier goals, and for all I know, they may be well on
their way to meeting them.
As for me, I can certainly get behind the concept of invisible
computing, and I can see the value of having lots of smart objects
in my home. They may even enhance my communication with others in a
way that ordinary computer software never could. The Nabaztag in
particular may not quite scratch my itch, but I'll be watching
future developments in this area with great interest.
TidBITS Watchlist: Notable Software Updates for 05-May-08
---------------------------------------------------------
by Adam C. Engst <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/9592>
* Java for Mac OS X 10.5 Update 1 from Apple installs Java SE 6
version 1.6.0_05 on your Mac, making it possible to run Java
applications built for Java 6. Or rather, it does if your Mac is a
64-bit Intel-based Mac that's running Mac OS X 10.5.2, since it
won't install on any PowerPC-based Macs or older Intel-based Macs
using the Intel Core Duo (versus the Intel Core 2 Duo). Java 5
remains installed, and remains the default version, even though Java
6 has been out since December 2006. (Free, 57 MB)
<http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/javaformacosx105update1.html>
* iMac (Early 2008) ATI Radeon HD Graphics Firmware Update 1.0.1
updates the firmware of the ATI Radeon HD 2600 or 2400 XT graphics
card in certain recently released iMac models to improve system
stability. Apple's download page explains how to determine if your
iMac needs the update, but I suspect that it's best to assume that
Software Update will give this update to you if you need it. The
updater requires Mac OS X 10.5.2, and won't do anything if its not
necessary for your computer. (Free, 848K)
<http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/imacearly2008atiradeonhdgraphicsfirmwareupdate101.html>
* 1Password 2.6.1 from Agile Web Solutions enhances anti-phishing
features and Web browser support in the password management and form
filling utility. 1Password 2.6 provides optional integration with
the PhishTank anti-phishing service, adds automatic detection of
changed online passwords via Change Password pages, and optionally
makes pronounceable passwords via the Strong Password Generator. The
update also adds, restores, or improves support for OmniWeb 5.7, the
site-specific browser Fluid, the latest Camino nightly builds, and
Firefox 3. ($34.95 new, free update, 14.5 MB)
<http://1password.com/>
<http://www.phishtank.com/>
* Synchronize Pro X 6.0 from Qdea makes the file synchronization and
backup utility significantly more aware of changes that require
backup. The new version uses Leopard's FSEvents technology to speed
up filesystem scanning time, can trigger backups whenever a folder's
contents change, and provides a Web-based interface for monitoring
of backup status. ($99.95 new, $49.95 for a two-year license
renewal, 2.9 MB)
<http://www.qdea.com/pages/pages-sprox/sprox1.html>
* Infovox iVox 1.2 from Acapela Group and AssistiveWare adds new
voices and a pronunciation editor to the collection of international
voices that works with any Speech Manager-compatible application
(see "Macs Speak Clearly with Infovox iVox," 2007-09-06). The update
includes new voices for Finnish, Swedish, Czech, Icelandic, Polish,
and Turkish; the final four require Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard, whereas
the first two work with 10.3.9 and later. The pronunciation editor
enables users to add abbreviations or change the pronunciation of
individual words. (Prices vary by language)
<http://www.assistiveware.com/infovox_ivox.php>
<http://db.tidbits.com/article/9155>
* MacPilot 3.0.1 from Koingo Software adds hundreds of new
customization options to the system tweaking utility, bringing the
total to over 600. MacPilot helps users customize the Dock, the
Finder, Safari, and many other applications by providing a graphical
interface to settings that would otherwise require entering commands
in Terminal. MacPilot 3 is fully compatible with both Mac OS X 10.4
Tiger and 10.5 Leopard, documents all the changes it can make, and
can reset options to the default. ($19.95 new, free update for
purchases after 31-Oct-07 or $9.95 otherwise, 8.1 MB)
<http://www.koingosw.com/products/macpilot.php>
* Tinderbox 4.2.4 from Eastgate Systems fixes some cosmetic bugs in
the flexible note taking and outlining utility, and fixes some
problems with opening old documents on new machines. See "Light Your
Fire with Tinderbox," 2002-10-14, for a review of an early version;
check the Related Articles list on our site for additional coverage
of Tinderbox and similar programs. ($229 new, free updates for
purchases in the last year or $90 otherwise, 16.5 MB)
<http://www.eastgate.com/Tinderbox/>
<http://db.tidbits.com/article/6959>
* Microsoft Messenger for Mac 7 enables Mac users to participate in
corporate messaging systems run by Microsoft Office Communications
Server 2007, complete with audio and video support. (The audio and
video support is available only for the corporate service, but not
when chatting directly with other Windows Live users using the
personal service.) Messenger 7 also makes it possible to search an
address book, adds Bonjour support for detecting presence, and more.
Messenger 7 won't replace iChat, but it will make using a Mac in a
corporate environment easier, and will simplify chatting with
Windows Live users. (Free, 21 MB)
<http://www.microsoft.com/mac/products/messenger/default.mspx>
* DiscLabel 5.2.1 from SmileOnMyMac adds support for the Dymo
DiscPainter direct-to-CD printer, along with other unspecified
enhancements and fixes. ($35.95 new, free update, 12.6 MB)
<http://www.smileonmymac.com/DiscLabel/>
* TextExpander 2.1.1 from SmileOnMyMac fixes bugs in the recent
release of the typing shortcut and abbreviation expansion utility.
Bugs fixed include problems with post-expansion cursor positioning,
delimiters that use the Shift key, and more. ($29.95 new, free
update, 3.9 MB)
<http://www.smileonmymac.com/textexpander/>
Hot Topics in TidBITS Talk/05-May-08
------------------------------------
by Jeff Carlson <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/9603>
**iPhone Effect** -- An AdWeek article argues that the iPhone is
pushing companies to take mobile marketing seriously. (4 messages)
<http://emperor.tidbits.com/TidBITS/Talk/1971>
**AppleWorks Replacement** -- A reader discovers a replacement for
AppleWorks Spreadsheet in DataGraph. (2 messages)
<http://emperor.tidbits.com/TidBITS/Talk/1972>
**How long is AT&T's Exclusive Contract with Apple?** Is Apple's
five-year exclusivity deal with AT&T a lock, or will the provider
market open up once owners' two-year service contracts are up? (13
messages)
<http://emperor.tidbits.com/TidBITS/Talk/1973>
**Skating Now Possible on the River Styx!** Canada is finally getting
the iPhone. (1 message)
<http://emperor.tidbits.com/TidBITS/Talk/1974>
**First Look: The Linux-Based Paragon Rescue Kit for Mac OS X Lite**
-- Joe Kissell solicits feedback on an article about this new data
recovery software. (16 messages)
<http://emperor.tidbits.com/TidBITS/Talk/1975>
**Selectively Pruning Time Machine Backups** -- The mechanisms for
deleting portions of a Time Machine backup are confusingly opaque.
(5 messages)
<http://emperor.tidbits.com/TidBITS/Talk/1976>
**OmniFocus: the interface is weak but the project is willing** --
Readers respond to Matt Neuburg's review of OmniFocus. (5 messages)
<http://emperor.tidbits.com/TidBITS/Talk/1977>
**auto-filing of read mail in Apple Mail** -- More Eudora-to-Mail
woes, this time the inability to automatically file read messages.
However, the solution might be tackled from the opposite direction.
(3 messages)
<http://emperor.tidbits.com/TidBITS/Talk/1979>
**Using MacBook power adapter with MacBook Pro** -- The two adapters
output different power levels, but seem to work fine on either
machine. What's the difference? (8 messages)
<http://emperor.tidbits.com/TidBITS/Talk/1980>
$$
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