TidBITS#976/27-Apr-09
=====================
Issue link: <http://db.tidbits.com/issue/976>
This month marks the 19th anniversary of TidBITS, and Adam takes a
look at how far the industry has come, and where it will likely go
in the future. If that's not enough opinion for you, Adam also
argues that the optimal move for Apple would be to make Mac OS X
Snow Leopard free (or as close to free as is reasonable), given its
lack of marquee features for users. In other news, Apple reported a
$1.21 billion profit for Q2 2009 and, after user protests, pulled
the Baby Shaker app from the App Store. We also look at how
Microsoft's Windows 7 will take a page from Apple's Classic mode,
warn readers about the latest in GPS thievery, and announce a pair
of Take Control ebooks about GarageBand '09. Notable software
releases this week include Mactracker 5.0.7, MercuryMover 2.0.5,
Firefox 3.0.9, and PopChar X 4.2.
Articles
Apple Posts $1.21 Billion Profit for Q2 2009
Apple Yanks Crass "Baby Shaker" iPhone App
Savvy GarageBand '09 Documentation Now Available
Beware the GPS Thieves
Windows 7 Adds Optional Virtualized XP
Why Snow Leopard Should Be (Almost) Free
A Few Thoughts After 19 Years of TidBITS
TidBITS Watchlist: Notable Software Updates for 27-Apr-09
ExtraBITS for 27-Apr-09
Hot Topics in TidBITS Talk for 27-Apr-09
------------ This issue of TidBITS sponsored in part by: --------------
* READERS LIKE YOU! Support TidBITS with a contribution today!
<http://www.tidbits.com/about/support/contributors.html>
Special thanks this week to Neil Green, Hi Oasis Orchards,
Ron Risley, and David A. Steffens for their generous support!
* Fetch Softworks: With Fetch 5.3, FTP and SFTP are simpler
than ever. Use it on Mac OS X to upload, download, mirror,
and manage your Web site, eBay images, and data sets.
Download your free trial version! <http://fetchsoftworks.com/>
* WebCrossing Neighbors Creates Private Social Networks
Create a complete social network with your company or group's
own look. Scalable, extensible and extremely customizable.
Take a guided tour today <http://www.webcrossing.com/tour>
* Bare Bones Software's BBEdit 9.1 -- A burly upgrade introducing new
capabilities like Projects, non-modal Find and Multi-File Search,
editing in browsers, text completion, Scratchpad, new Ruby module,
better JavaScript, ObjC, Obj-C++, YAML <http://barebones.com/>
* MARK/SPACE, INC: If you have a smartphone, we can sync it!
Sync your address book, calendar, notes, music, pictures, and
more from your BlackBerry, Windows Mobile or Palm OS mobile
phone to your Mac. <http://www.markspace.com/bits>
* VMware Fusion. The most seamless way to run Windows on
your Mac. Backed by nearly a decade of proven virtualization
technology. Try VMware Fusion today for only $79.99.
Visit: <http://www.tidbits.com/about/support/vmware-fusion.html>
* Microsoft's MacBU: Supporting Mac users with Office 2008.
Straighten up your Office with the latest updates to Word,
Excel, PowerPoint, and Entourage. Update today at Mactopia!
<http://www.microsoft.com/mac/downloads.mspx>
* ConceptDraw Office adds real business power to Microsoft Office
and Apple's iWork. Whether you need project management, business
graphics, or mind mapping, it's all easily created on your Mac!
Buy today for only $499! <http://www.conceptdraw.com/tb>
* Speak up with MacSpeech Dictate! Get the all-new MacSpeech
Dictate with spelling and phrase training. Speech recognition
so good, about the only thing it can't do is speak for you.
Learn more: <http://www.tidbits.com/about/support/macspeech.html>
---------- Help support TidBITS by supporting our sponsors ------------
Apple Posts $1.21 Billion Profit for Q2 2009
--------------------------------------------
by Jeff Carlson <[email protected]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/10234>
The weak economy is hurting Mac sales to professional and
educational customers, but consumer sales and the iPhone and iPod
touch have lifted Apple to another impressive financial quarter.
Ending the second quarter of 2009, Apple reported a $1.21 billion
profit on revenue of $8.16 billion, or $1.33 per diluted share
(those numbers compare to a $1.05 billion profit on $7.51 billion in
the year-ago quarter). Also contributing to the strong bottom line
were low prices for components such as RAM, better freight and
warranty costs, and better sales of high-margin products, all of
which helped push Apple's gross margin to 36.4 percent (up from 32.9
percent last year).
<http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2009/04/22results.html>
In a conference call with analysts, Apple Chief Financial Officer
Peter Oppenheimer called it Apple's "best non-holiday quarter in
history." The company reported $28.9 billion in cash on hand, noting
that it's focusing on "preservation of capital" with that cash (and
presumably not looking at any major acquisitions).
**Macs and iPods** -- During the quarter ending 31-Mar-09, Apple sold
2.2 million Macs, a 3 percent decline from last year. Apple
attributed the drop to professionals, such as design firms, who are
likely holding off purchases to save costs until the economy
improves, and to educational customers who have seen state and
federal funding dry up. Although U.S. educational sales dropped 11
percent, the company is optimistic that the recently passed U.S.
stimulus package will help in future quarters. The desktop refresh
in early March (which updated all of Apple's desktop models) boosted
sales.
As part of the discussion of Mac sales, the question of netbooks
arose during the call. Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook expressed
Apple's opinion of the current netbook market, saying, "When I look
at what's being sold in the netbook space today, I see cramped
keyboards, terrible software, junky hardware, very small screens,
and just not a consumer experience and not something that we would
put the Mac brand on, quite frankly."
As with his comments during the last quarter's conference call, Cook
pointed out that Apple has "some interesting ideas in this space."
He also pointed out that the features for which people are buying
netbooks - Web browsing and email - can be accomplished with the
iPhone or iPod touch.
Led by strong sales of the iPod touch, Apple racked up 11.01 million
iPod sales during the quarter, a 3 percent year-over-year
improvement. During the call, Oppenheimer and Cook reiterated the
strength of the App Store and the iPhone OS (which also runs the
iPod touch) as fueling those sales, and reminded listeners that they
expected the App Store to mark its 1 billionth download sometime on
Thursday. (The billionth app was indeed downloaded on Thursday, by a
13-year-old in Connecticut.) Apple claims it owns 70 percent of the
market for music players in the United States.
**iPhone 3G** -- The star of Apple's financial results, once again, is
the iPhone, with 3.8 million iPhones sold in 81 countries, a 123
percent growth over the year-ago quarter. Those numbers represent
the GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) results - Apple
spreads the income for the iPhone and Apple TV over their expected
lifespan. Non-GAAP results push Apple's quarterly totals to a $1.66
billion profit on $9.06 billion in revenue (that's money directly
received during the quarter).
Apple is also delaying revenue recognition for sales of all iPhones
after 17-Mar-09, which is when it announced the iPhone OS 3.0;
current iPhones will be able to upgrade to the new operating system
for free when it appears later this year.
Unlike the last earnings call, this one didn't offer any incendiary
questions or statements. Only one mention of Steve Jobs's health
came up, and that was as an aside: Oppenheimer said, "We look
forward to Steve returning at the end of June." Analysts also tried
to elicit comments about possible legal skirmishes over the Palm Pre
and whether it violates Apple's intellectual property (or whether
Apple is infringing on Palm's patents), which prompted Cook to end
the call with a generic statement about how competition is healthy
for the industry and that "we think it's best that other companies
invent their own stuff."
Apple Yanks Crass "Baby Shaker" iPhone App
------------------------------------------
by Mark H. Anbinder <[email protected]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/10235>
Following a day-long eruption of protest on Twitter and in blogs, on
Wednesday afternoon Apple removed an app from the App Store that
allowed iPhone and iPod touch users to shake a picture of a baby to
stop it from crying. The Baby Shaker app, which was posted for sale
for 99 cents on Monday, is just another head-scratching example of
apps approved by Apple for inclusion in the App Store when other
seemingly innocuous apps are held for months, or rejected.
The app can no longer be found in the App Store, but curious readers
can find a screen shot in CNET coverage and even a video on YouTube.
The app, published by Sikalosoft, which also offers an image mosaic
creator app called Dice Mosaic, featured shaded line drawings and
lifelike recordings of a baby's cry. The app's listing encouraged
users to "See how long you can endure his or her adorable cries
before you just have to find a way to quiet the baby down!"
<http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-10225016-37.html>
<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAM9VFM6HzY>
Apple later apologized for allowing the Baby Shaker app through.
Adam was quoted in a Wall Street Journal article on the topic;
reporter Yukari Iwatani Kane focused on the risks that Apple runs in
acting as a gatekeeper for the App Store. Similar situations could
crop up, as apps continue to be developed that fall on one side or
another of any controversial issue. It will be interesting to see
how Apple deals with such situations, or if the company eventually
moves to a "common carrier" approach in which the App Store is open
to all comers.
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124053292641650847.html>
Savvy GarageBand '09 Documentation Now Available
------------------------------------------------
by Adam C. Engst <[email protected]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/10238>
Good documentation can be hard to find these days, and Apple's
GarageBand has particularly suffered in this regard, since
relatively few books have focused on it over the years, with even
fewer titles for later versions of GarageBand. Our guess is that
most publishers didn't sell enough books about earlier GarageBand
versions to make it worthwhile to release new editions. It's also
tricky to find someone who is good at writing about how to use the
Mac, who has time to write book-length documentation, and who is
well-versed in real-world GarageBand usage.
In an example of ebooks breaking the constraints of the physical
world, our two GarageBand titles have been steady sellers, and
interest in them has grown over time, so naturally we wanted to
update them for GarageBand '09. We were relieved that author Jeff
Tolbert found the necessary time while working on his
ever-increasing number of music-related projects. (We're hoping that
we don't regret our flip "remember us when you're famous" line by
having Jeff sucked out of the Take Control orbit when he hits it
big.)
So, we've just released new editions of the 117-page "Take Control
of Making Music with GarageBand '09" and the 134-page "Take Control
of Recording with GarageBand '09." They cost $10 individually or
$17.50 in a bundle. To purchase both books with the bundle discount,
use this direct link or look for the "Buy Both" option in the left
margin of either Web page.
<https://secure.esellerate.net/secure/prefill.aspx?s=STR5625274989&cmd=BUY&_cartitem0.skurefnum=SKU04525874745&_cartitem1.skurefnum=SKU57216496960&_Shopper.CouponName=CPN007890423BUN&_eSellerate.Options=prevalidatecoupon&pt=TB976>
* "Take Control of Making Music with GarageBand '09": This 117-page
ebook provides step-by-step instructions and linked-in audio
examples for using GarageBand's built-in loops to create three
songs, explaining not only how to use GarageBand's editing and
mixing features but also how to be playful and creative while
composing tunes that please the ear. Readers will learn how to plan
a song, get the most out of Magic GarageBand, edit and arrange Real
Instrument and Software Instrument loops, create exciting mixes, and
export projects. The ebook also covers how to change track volume,
tempo, and panning dynamically, and how to work with GarageBand's
effects.
<http://www.takecontrolbooks.com/garageband-music?pt=TB976>
* "Take Control of Recording with GarageBand '09": This 134-page ebook
explains how to create musical compositions with vocals, drums,
guitars, MIDI keyboards, and even the kitchen sink. Readers will
learn how to get the most out of their existing gear or purchase new
equipment that fits their budget and style. The ebook covers how to
plan a recording session, and it discusses real-world recording
studio techniques for tasks such as using a microphone effectively,
getting the best sounds from your gear, applying effects, fixing
mistakes, using the new Electric Guitar track and new stompbox
effects, and recording multiple tracks at once. Two example songs
demonstrate many of the techniques discussed.
<http://www.takecontrolbooks.com/garageband-recording?pt=TB976>
If you own an earlier version of one of the Take Control GarageBand
titles, you may have received an email message about getting a free
(for those who purchased after 01-Jan-09) or discounted update;
otherwise, open your PDF and click Check for Updates on the cover to
get update details.
Beware the GPS Thieves
----------------------
by Adam C. Engst <[email protected]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/10240>
We spent last weekend in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn,
NY, visiting friends and spending a day at the Metropolitan Museum
of Art in Manhattan so Tristan could see the Armor Room. The only
dark spot in an otherwise enjoyable trip was that the passenger-side
window of our Honda Civic was smashed one night while the car was
parked on the street, and the power cable to the Garmin nuvi 255W
GPS that we were borrowing from my parents was stolen.
Needless to say, we weren't so clueless that we had left the GPS
itself, or any other valuables, in the car, so losing a $30 cable
wasn't a big deal. Even having to pay $20 to park the car in a
garage that night and $120 to have the window fixed the next day
wasn't the end of the world. Everyone - from the people who drove by
while I was leaving the parking space to the garage attendant to Joe
of Joe's Auto Glass (highly recommended) - was extremely nice and
sympathetic.
<http://brooklyn.citysearch.com/profile/7356217/>
But the reason I tell this tale of minor woe is because Joe, with
corroboration from others who have suffered similar misfortunes,
told me that thefts of GPSes are exceedingly common in New York City
these days - he had repaired 10 such broken windows that week. The
thieves walk down the street looking for the tell-tale ring left on
the windshield by a GPS suction cup mount, smash a side window, open
the glove compartment, and remove any GPS left there. It's over in
seconds.
So the moral of the story is, if you're leaving your car on the
street in an urban neighborhood overnight - even in a nice
neighborhood like Park Slope - take the GPS with you, hide both the
suction cup mount for your GPS and the power cable, and clean the
inside of the windshield to remove that subtle mark left by the
suction cup mount. You may also be able to get a beanbag-style mount
for your GPS - Garmin sells one that's compatible with the nuvi
series that we picked up from Amazon.
Windows 7 Adds Optional Virtualized XP
--------------------------------------
by Glenn Fleishman <[email protected]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/10241>
Microsoft has revealed that Windows 7 will offer an optional,
downloadable Windows XP virtual machine to provide full backwards
compatibility. Veteran Windows watchers Rafael Rivera and Paul
Thurrott of SuperSite for Windows were given the nod to release the
secret. Microsoft's Windows Team blog later confirmed the feature.
<http://community.winsupersite.com/blogs/paul/archive/2009/04/24/secret-no-more-revealing-virtual-windows-xp-for-windows-7.aspx>
<http://windowsteamblog.com/blogs/business/archive/2009/04/24/coming-soon-windows-xp-mode-and-windows-virtual-pc.aspx>
The Windows XP Mode won't ship with Windows 7, but will be available
as a free download for Professional, Enterprise, and Ultimate system
owners. The XP mode will comprise a Virtual PC 7 virtual machine and
a fully licensed copy of Windows XP Service Pack 3. While this might
weigh in at a couple of gigabytes, that's no longer an onerous
one-time download even for many home users. (I have to download
nearly a gigabyte of Leopard updates if I install Mac OS X 10.5.0 on
a new hard disk.)
Windows XP Mode will be a separate environment, but will allow
running programs to appear alongside Windows 7 programs, rather than
locking them inside a window - this sounds just like the Coherence
mode that Parallels initially introduced for Windows applications
running under Parallels Desktop in Mac OS X; VMware later matched
Coherence with VMware Fusion's Unity mode (see "Parallels Desktop
Ups the Ante," 2006-12-04, and "VMware Announces Fusion 1.0
Release," 2007-08-06).
<http://db.tidbits.com/article/8769>
<http://db.tidbits.com/article/9099>
The strategy is clear. Including XP in a virtual machine enables XP
users to make an immediate leap to Windows 7, buying new hardware
that will run XP far faster, while preserving a functionally
identical operating environment (one that's likely to be more stable
and portable, too). Microsoft can break all the compatibility it
wants with Windows XP (and perhaps Vista, too) in Windows 7,
jettisoning old code, obsolete programming hooks, and other
detritus.
Last year, I wondered why Microsoft hadn't simply coupled its
Virtual PC division with XP for the release of Vista in "Microsoft
Needs to Empty Windows Trash, Reboot" (2008-06-29) when I recounted
how many times Apple repackaged compatibility layers and virtual
machines as it cast off successive older operating systems or
architectures. Apparently, I wasn't alone in asking that question.
<http://db.tidbits.com/article/9674>
This is a brilliant move for Microsoft, and one that's somewhat out
of keeping with a company that has made backwards compatibility one
of the hallmarks of how it moves forward. The move may provide a
compelling carrot to firms and individuals who are concerned about
upgrading applications but might want to take advantage of some of
the advances in Windows 7.
Why Snow Leopard Should Be (Almost) Free
----------------------------------------
by Adam C. Engst <[email protected]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/10228>
At some point in the next two to six months, Apple will unleash
their latest big cat: Mac OS X Snow Leopard. It's no secret - Apple
has been talking about Snow Leopard for ages, with particular
emphasis on how Snow Leopard will focus on performance, efficiency,
and "core innovation" rather than user-focused features.
<http://www.apple.com/macosx/snowleopard/>
Specific improvements promised for Snow Leopard include support for
up to 16 TB of RAM; improved multi-core support for applications; a
next-generation version of QuickTime; out-of-the-box support for
Microsoft Exchange in Mail, iCal, and Address Book; and support for
OpenCL, which is designed to expose the computing power of modern
graphics processing units. Other Snow Leopard promises have included
a smaller memory and disk footprint, a faster installation time, and
a tweak to Stacks to allow subfolders.
Sound exciting? From a developer standpoint, absolutely. From a user
standpoint, not so much. Based on everything Apple has said so far,
Snow Leopard won't, on its own, bring any of the marquee features
that could change the way you use your Mac, much as past releases of
Mac OS X brought us Time Machine, Screen Sharing, Spotlight,
Dashboard, Expose, Automator, Front Row, Spaces, Stacks, and more.
So how much are you willing to pay for an operating system upgrade
that does exactly what your current one does, but uses a little less
RAM in the process?
Don't get me wrong. I applaud Apple for taking a break from the
feature-based rat race to concentrate on the underpinnings of Mac OS
X - along with all those slick features has come bloat. Mac OS X has
grown portly, a change largely swept under the rug by increases in
CPU performance and decreases in hard drive and RAM costs.
I suspect that some of the changes Apple promises in terms of
reduced memory and hard disk footprint are related to the work done
at the core of OS X for the iPhone. The world is moving to
ever-more-mobile devices, and as a result, toward RAM-based storage
that won't compete with rotating disk storage on a
price-per-gigabyte basis for some time. If Apple is to be able to
innovate in the hardware world - perhaps with much-rumored devices
that fit between the iPhone and the Mac in size and capability - a
leaner, more efficient operating system can only help.
All this leads to my main point: Assuming that Snow Leopard will
indeed feature only the under-the-hood improvements promised so far,
Apple should release it for free, instead of the $129 price of most
releases. Although I say "free," I could easily be talked into the
$29.95 charged for the Mac OS X Public Beta (which could be deducted
from the cost of Mac OS X 10.0); Apple's standard $9.95 media cost
for those who want to receive it in the mail on DVD also doesn't
bother me at all. But it should become a no-brainer to upgrade to
Snow Leopard, whether you're running Leopard or Tiger now.
I have no inside information here, and I am not arguing from an
"information wants to be free" point of view. But based on what we
currently know about Snow Leopard, I think Apple - and the Macintosh
industry as a whole - stands to benefit more from making Snow
Leopard free for anyone whose Mac meets the hardware requirements
than from charging for it. The reasons break down into two basic
categories: the benefit of a coherent Macintosh platform and the
difficulty of marketing purely under-the-hood changes.
**One OS to Rule Them All** -- This is the crux of the matter. From a
business standpoint, older versions of Mac OS X do nothing but
create costs for Apple and for developers, but it's difficult to
encourage users to upgrade without an incentive. With the bold move
of making Snow Leopard free or very cheap, Apple would attract not
just all Leopard users, but every user of Tiger (with compatible
hardware) who had put off upgrading to Leopard because the new
features weren't worth $129.
Apple wouldn't earn any money from getting laggard users to upgrade,
of course, but with Snow Leopard as the sole target platform, users
with Macs that were too old for Snow Leopard would have even more
reason to buy a new Mac. Let's not forget that new Mac sales are
still the core of Apple's business.
Why would this be worthwhile? Developers must continually decide how
far back in the evolution of Mac OS X to aim their code. If Snow
Leopard became nearly ubiquitous, developers could concentrate their
efforts on it, rather than spending resources on Tiger and Leopard
as well. That might result in faster development times, better
applications, and more total applications, all of which benefit Mac
users and Apple too. As more applications begin to require Snow
Leopard, the pressure to upgrade would increase on those who had
stuck with much older Macs.
The single coherent platform could have other benefits for Apple
too. I'm going out on a speculative limb here, but if I were in
charge of Snow Leopard, I'd put a lot of effort into improving Mac
OS X's security architecture. Were that to happen, Apple might want
Snow Leopard to be as widespread as possible to reduce the chance of
a high-profile security exploit hurting Mac OS X's reputation for
being relatively free of malware.
The final reason I think it makes sense for Apple to move the
Macintosh to a single coherent operating system platform is that it
has already worked once. Just look at the iPhone and iPod touch,
which have sold a combined 37 million units so far. With them, Apple
has made major operating system upgrades either free or inexpensive
(iPod touch users have had to pay small fees for upgrades). As a
result, there's a single target for developers, and a better
experience for users. As far as I'm aware, almost no one has passed
on the iPhone software updates.
The alternative - charging the full $129 price for Snow Leopard -
could have deleterious effects. Were Apple to charge a significant
amount for Snow Leopard, a high proportion of users wouldn't
upgrade, further fragmenting the installed base, and making it
harder for developers to justify new Mac products that take
advantage of Apple's latest technologies. This could also hurt the
overall reputation of the Macintosh platform, much as the security
problems plaguing Windows XP still count as a strike against
Microsoft's reputation for security, even though Windows Vista
offers much better security.
It's hard to know exactly how the Macintosh user base breaks down
right now. The Omni Group tracks the version of Mac OS X reported by
their Omni Software Update technology, and their stats show that
only in February 2009 did Leopard's installed base overtake Tiger's.
(These stats are specific to The Omni Group's customers, of course,
but other numbers, such as the 87.5 to 12.5 ratio of Intel to
PowerPC processors, seem reasonable. Plus, since The Omni Group's
applications are likely to be used by early adopters and power
users, the stats would seem especially relevant to this discussion.)
If Leopard, with all its user-focused features, managed to capture
only half the installed base in 18 months, a full-price Snow Leopard
would have even more trouble.
<http://update.omnigroup.com/>
**Selling Ice to Eskimos** -- On a more practical matter, I think
marketing a Mac OS X release that doesn't offer significant
user-focused features would be tricky at best. It's not that Apple
couldn't describe the advantages of Snow Leopard - larger RAM
ceilings, better multiprocessing support, QuickTime X, faster
installation time, and so on - but that those improvements largely
address problems most users don't have. When was the last time your
average Mac user thought, "If only Mac OS X installed faster!" or "I
sure wish I could put a terabyte of RAM in this Mac"?
The entire point of Snow Leopard is to focus on improvements that
will make future innovation possible, but it's hard, especially in
this economy, to sell something based entirely on deferred benefits.
Worse, if done poorly, pushing the under-the-hood features of Snow
Leopard could conceivably undermine any benefit-based marketing
Apple might want to use to promote the next version of Mac OS X. In
particular, Apple could risk being seen as nickel-and-diming users,
which could in turn hurt Snow Leopard's adoption rate.
Finally, although a strong case could be made for making Snow
Leopard free for Leopard users and charging Tiger users the full
$129 price that they would have paid for Leopard, I'd argue that if
someone running Tiger hasn't upgraded to Leopard yet, they're not
going to, unless Apple makes the upgrade compellingly cheap. Plus,
many Tiger users are probably running on PowerPC-based Macs, and the
scuttlebutt is that Snow Leopard will run only on Intel-based Macs
(so the only possible way to get Snow Leopard would be to purchase a
new Mac anyway). While splitting the upgrade path would avoid sour
grapes on the part of those who purchased the Leopard upgrade,
anyone who purchased Leopard receives the benefit of using it until
Snow Leopard ships, so it's not like it was wasted money.
**Arguments Against Free** -- There are a number of reasons why Apple
might still choose to charge for Snow Leopard despite the arguments
I've laid out above. And, to be clear, I wouldn't be upset if Apple
charged just enough - somewhere between $10 and $30 - to cover the
materials and distribution costs of a boxed product to the retail
channel.
Some sort of a charge might be necessary if Snow Leopard proves too
large to download. Also, for non-Apple retail stores, a high-enough
price would be necessary for them to carry the box at all. A fee may
even be necessary to meet accounting rules surrounding products like
the Mac that are not accounted for on a subscription basis, like the
iPhone and Apple TV.
We've also become accustomed to paying for major updates, and Apple
may not want to break that habit, even if the price is somewhat
lower than normal. Though of course, selling something for which
people don't see the value could also break that habit and hurt Snow
Leopard's adoption rate.
Lastly, although Apple has never released retail sales numbers for
Mac OS X that I'm aware of, the company undoubtedly makes tens or
even hundreds of millions of dollars on upgrade fees. Despite
posting record profits in recent quarters, Apple may be unwilling to
leave that money on the table, even if there's a chance such a
strategy might not be in the long-term interests of the platform.
It's also possible that Apple's internal accounting requires upgrade
revenue to pay off Snow Leopard's development costs.
**Free the Snow Leopard** -- In the end, I believe that making Snow
Leopard available for as little as is feasible - perhaps a free
automatic-update download and a low-cost mailed media or retail box
option - would help create a single coherent Macintosh platform that
Apple and independent developers could build upon without worrying
about supporting the past. Some short term profit would be missed,
of course, but it would offer numerous long-term advantages and put
the Mac on a firmer competitive footing with the upcoming Windows 7,
especially given Microsoft's recent cost-based advertising and
recent announcement of an optional virtualized Windows XP for
Windows 7 users (see "Windows 7 Adds Optional Virtualized XP,"
2009-04-24).
<http://db.tidbits.com/article/10241>
Besides the simple benefit of a Mac that works better (in theory, of
course), users would also gain from software that would take
advantage of Snow Leopard's features and would be easier and faster
to develop without support for legacy versions of Mac OS X. And
anything that makes users and developers happy benefits Apple in the
end, through the sales of ever more Macs.
A Few Thoughts After 19 Years of TidBITS
----------------------------------------
by Adam C. Engst <[email protected]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/10244>
This month marks the 19th anniversary of the founding of TidBITS,
making it (and us!) almost inconceivably ancient in Internet years.
When Tonya and I started TidBITS back in April of 1990, we
communicated with one another via email and telephone; moved files
around the Internet with FTP; and did our social networking on
mailing lists, Usenet news, and IRC (Internet Relay Chat).
Our Internet connection initially consisted of a slow modem hookup
to one of Cornell University's IBM mainframes and to a Unix box run
by Cornell's Theory Center. Back then, if you wanted an Internet
connection, you just asked someone who had one already if you could
connect to them - there was no Comcast Internet or Road Runner or
EarthLink. We've used the tidbits.com domain for many years, but
well before that became an option, we operated a UUCP (Unix to Unix
Copy Program) node - the first email address I controlled was
[email protected], and messages would hop their way from machine to
machine on their way to me.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UUCP>
There was no World Wide Web - that wouldn't start to become real
until 1993 and 1994. The concept of an affordable always-on Internet
connection in the home didn't start to become common until the later
1990s. We installed the first "high-speed" Internet connection - a
56 Kbps frame relay connection - in our house in 1994 (see
"Mainlining the Internet", 1994-11-14).
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frame_relay>
<http://db.tidbits.com/article/1748>
Apple and Microsoft existed, and would be entirely recognizable to
someone who went back in time, but of course, there was no Google,
no Yahoo, no eBay, no Amazon, no Skype, no Flickr, no YouTube, no
Facebook, no Twitter. Companies like Compaq, WordPerfect, Lotus, and
Ashton-Tate muscled their way around the industry like raging
thunder lizards, but all would eventually succumb to the force of
change and be consumed by other, more successful competitors.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compaq>
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WordPerfect>
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lotus_Software>
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashton-Tate>
Mobile phones also existed, at least in the cars of the well-off,
but their eventual ubiquity was merely in the dreams of phone
manufacturers like Motorola. Portable music players used either
cassette tapes (launched by the Sony Walkman) or CDs (like the Sony
Discman). And the only wireless signals most people were going to
receive were AM/FM radio and UHF/VHF television.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walkman>
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discman>
So we've come one heck of a long way, with our modern Macs, our
iPods, and our iPhones, all using Wi-Fi and 3G data to search the
Web via Google, watch video via YouTube, talk via Skype, and connect
with far-flung friends via Facebook and Twitter.
The TidBITS anniversary rolled around this year while we were in New
York City for spring break, which got me to thinking about some of
these sea changes and what they mean for the future.
**Computing to Communication** -- Perhaps the most significant change
in the face of computing over the 19 years we've been publishing
TidBITS is the extent to which computing resources are used largely
for communication of one sort or another. Perhaps this trend should
have been obvious from the earliest days of computing: after all,
Alan Turing, considered by many to be the father of modern computer
science, was best known for his work on decoding German
communications during World War II.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Turing>
But when the age of the personal computer started, most people
considered computers to be _computing_ devices for crunching numbers
and sorting databases. One significant aspect of the Macintosh, with
applications like MacWrite that offered font-handling and layout
capabilities, was its emphasis on creating print materials for
_communication_. The arrival of Aldus PageMaker and the Apple
LaserWriter cemented that role, but many people failed to see it,
instead thinking about these applications as "productivity" apps,
perhaps because the costs limited their use to professionals who
could justify the expense.
During the 1990s, we all stumbled onto the Internet in various ways,
and looking back, it's fascinating to see just how tentative those
early steps were. Apple may have had an early FTP site in
ftp.apple.com, but it took the company several more years before the
necessary system software was in place for every Mac to be able to
connect to the Internet. Today, a computer that can't connect to the
Internet is nearly inconceivable.
I'm struck by how we continue trying to improve our communications
methods. Every technological method of communication is an effort to
break time and place constraints on in-person talking - postal mail,
the telephone, email, instant messaging, Twitter, and so on. Every
so often, when I'm trying to explain Twitter to someone, I flash
back to the same earnest explanations of email in the 1990s.
All modern Internet communication services are really just
refinements on what email provided from the beginning. Viewed that
way, you can see how email will never go away - it's ubiquitous, the
lowest common denominator, and based entirely on open standards. As
popular as Facebook and Twitter are, they'll never replace email,
being proprietary (not to mention the fact that they come from
companies that aren't exactly stable businesses).
We've even seen computers become our primary news and entertainment
devices, displaying our news stories and playing our audio, video,
and games. For things that don't work quite as well on a traditional
computer, we've seen specialized devices - game consoles, portable
music players, and even ebook readers - appear. But this is all
communication as well - even these forms of mass entertainment are
just particular forms of communication within our culture as a
whole.
Lastly, even those things we once thought of as pure productivity
applications - word processors, spreadsheets, and databases - are
embracing communication technologies, becoming collaborative in the
process. It makes sense - in most cases, there's no point in
_producing_ something unless you'll be _communicating_ the results
to other people, and of course, much of what is done in this world
is too complex for a single person to accomplish it alone, making
collaboration essential.
**Modern Necessities of Life** -- In the decade before we started
TidBITS, personal computers were a luxury of the well-off - the kind
of thing parents bought their kids instead of a set of
encyclopedias, based on the belief that computer literacy would be
necessary for their children's future job prospects. Starting in the
1990s, that changed, as computers become increasingly inexpensive
and capable. When Tonya and I were at Cornell in the late 1980s, we
were unusual in having our own computers, but on my last trip
through a Cornell dormitory a few years ago, every student's desk
had a computer on it. (And when was the last time you heard the term
"computer literacy" used in conversation?)
Those students, once they graduate, don't stop using computers,
since computers have become their connection to the outside world
via email, instant messaging, Facebook, and the Web in general.
Plus, these computers also act as stereos and TVs, and, with the
rise of Skype, allow them to talk with college friends around the
globe for free. In short, the computer has become a necessity of
life in the modern age - almost no one is willing to give up that
ability to communicate and to consume the products of our
entertainment industry.
Want one reason Apple's Mac sales haven't been suffering badly
despite the difficult economic climate? People can't avoid buying a
computer any more - they might put off upgrading or buy a cheaper
one, but an educated individual today simply needs a computer. It's
not just adults - the age at which children _need_ computers is
dropping all the time. (The reason other computer manufacturers
haven't done as well, I'd argue, is that a higher proportion of
their sales come from businesses, which are more likely to delay
purchases until things improve.)
The iPod is in somewhat the same situation - it may not be necessary
in the way that a computer is, but if you've had an iPod and
arranged your life around having it available, you won't go without
if it breaks or you lose it. I don't see Apple's iPod business
slowing for some time because of this.
Similarly, mobile phones, which were an expensive luxury back when
we started TidBITS, have become far more prevalent in the United
States, and even more so elsewhere in the world. As of 2008, there
were 4.1 billion mobile phone subscriptions worldwide, and nearly 15
percent of U.S. households have opted for a mobile phone rather than
a landline. You want to talk about a modern necessity, look no
further than the mobile phone.
The convergence of the computer and the mobile phone into
smartphones like the iPhone further cements the mobile phone's
position of dominance. Computing is communication, and mobility
increases the need for communication. I don't talk or text on my
iPhone much, but on our recent trip to New York City, I found myself
pulling the iPhone out of my pocket constantly. Sometimes it was for
basic calls or text messaging, but other times I was using its
computer-capabilities - viewing a map of the subway system, getting
walking directions to the museum, finding an auto-glass repair shop,
and so on. After that trip, I can't imagine living in an urban
environment without an iPhone.
**The Bar Keeps Rising** -- While it's becoming ever easier to
publish, thanks to the Internet technologies that have sprung up in
the last 19 years, there's a contrary trend as well: the rising bar
of what it means to be professional in your publishing.
When we started TidBITS, email was all that was necessary (and,
largely, was all that was possible). With the advent of the Web, it
became necessary to build a Web site, something done for us
originally by friends at Dartmouth College. Then it made sense for
us to run our own Web site, which involved getting a high-speed
connection and administering a server. Soon afterwards, it wasn't
enough to have a Web site comprised of static HTML files, and the
entire thing had to be served from a database. Now we're to the
point where even a database-driven Web site isn't really sufficient,
and AJAX-style interactivity is necessary.
But it gets worse. Although text won't ever go away, it's become
clear that the addition of graphics, sound, and video are becoming
increasingly important for anyone who considers themselves a
publisher. (That's one reason we have audio versions of our articles
- look for the Listen link at the top of every article, or subscribe
to our podcast.) Some publications are going even further, such as
the New York Times Visualization Lab, where anyone can mix and match
from various data sets. It's clearly an experiment, but this sort of
thing may be far more common in the next decade.
<http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=276986548>
<http://vizlab.nytimes.com/>
I say all this in part to note that although TidBITS may not have
changed outwardly all that much for those who receive the email
edition, we have put a ton of effort into our Web site over the last
few years. Partly we want to do this because it's interesting, but
we also feel pushed - if we can't keep up with the Joneses on the
technology front, we worry that we'll have an increasingly hard time
attracting new readers. It's not easy being in a state of constant
flux and reorganization and improvement, but the world around us is
moving so quickly that we're running just to keep up.
There's another concern hidden inside this worry about the
publication bar constantly rising. TidBITS is a testament to the
fact that the Internet provides everyone with a printing press, and
if you look at the major blogs, they all started out small as well.
But I feel some concern that the difficulty of producing a
full-featured Web site will mean that the number of voices on the
Internet will be dropping - we've already seen blogs falling away in
favor of microblogging services like Twitter. Blogging is becoming
too hard, and very few bloggers even try to produce enough original
content to earn a living any more.
Following this to the next step, are we looking toward the demise of
the publication? Is a publication anything more than an LP album, an
arbitrary collection of articles that made sense to bundle together
largely because of economies of scale when printing? Yes, I know
there are artistic and other reasons for content collections, but
still, how many people read an entire publication these days instead
of just cherry-picking articles from around the Web? Maybe the
Planet Money podcast has a great explanation on the latest move in
the financial crisis, and ESPN has the wrap-up on last night's game,
and comics come from XKCD and Joy of Tech, and... You get the
picture.
<http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/>
<http://espn.go.com/>
<http://xkcd.com/>
<http://www.joyoftech.com/joyoftech/>
In the end, we're happy both that we cover a world that changes as
much as it does and that we do so with original content, since that
hopefully means that people read TidBITS for our perspective on a
wide range of industry happenings.
**A Little Bit Here, a Little Bit There** -- Finally, the last topic
that's been on my mind as I think back through our history is how
we've scraped together a living all these years. The entire content
industry is having conniptions right now about whether content
should be ad-supported, subscription-supported, subsidized by a
government, supported by sales of ancillary products, sponsored in
some other way, or just given away for free.
Our experience since 1990 tell us that the answer is, "Yes." All of
these models can be made to work, and the main thing that
publications must realize is that it's worth using multiple
approaches simultaneously. It's likely that in any given business
climate, one particular approach will generate the lion's share of
the revenue stream, but when times change - and they always do -
other approaches may become more important.
As far as I know, we created the very first advertising program on
the Internet back in 1992, before the Web had even arrived (see
"TidBITS Sponsorship Program," 1992-07-20). We were sufficiently
concerned about the NSF's Acceptable Use Policy that we modeled it
after the PBS sponsorship model, and have kept it low-key all along.
Being low-key, our sponsorship program has never scaled to the point
where it could generate gazillions of dollars, like Google's
search-based advertising innovation did, but it has kept our lights
on. We've supplemented the sponsorship program over the years with
direct contributions from readers, Amazon affiliate referral
earnings, and some Google AdSense income.
<http://db.tidbits.com/article/2995>
<http://db.tidbits.com/advertising.html>
<http://www.tidbits.com/about/support/contributors.html>
The major change for us came with the creation of our Take Control
ebook series, which was possible only because of the skills and
contacts we had built while publishing TidBITS, and it got off the
ground only because of the TidBITS audience. Take Control is a lot
of work, but it has also provided a structure in which some of our
friends can supplement their income. It's great when a business can
build a close-knit community in addition to generating profit.
Just as we're constantly working on our Internet infrastructure
(both the parts you see and behind-the-scenes tools that make our
lives easier), we're also always thinking about things we can do to
help the bottom line. It's tricky, since the lesson of "If you build
it, they will come" is no longer true on the Internet, and the
amount of traffic needed to make advertising, affiliate referrals,
or any other per-visit income stream sufficiently large is nearly
impossible to achieve these days. We have ideas, though, and will
let you know when we're ready to pull the curtains back.
Despite the doom and gloom surrounding the content industry (with
newspapers especially up against the wall), I believe there are
plenty of solid livings to be made publishing content on the
Internet. Publishing hasn't been easy in the past, and it won't be
easy in the future, and serious money will accrue only to a lucky
few. But with an eye toward producing original content and creating
an appropriate scale of business, I think we will be able to keep
publishing TidBITS as far into the future as we can reasonably see.
Another 19 years? Maybe, but considering how far we've come in the
past 19 years, I can't even imagine what the world will be like in
2028.
TidBITS Watchlist: Notable Software Updates for 27-Apr-09
---------------------------------------------------------
by Doug McLean <[email protected]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/10237>
Mactracker 5.0.7 from Ian Page is the latest version of the freeware
utility that provides detailed technical information on Apple
hardware. The update includes information for all early 2009
hardware, country of manufacture information for My Models items,
Liquid Sensor details for notebooks, the capability to determine the
number of recent years in the Timeline, and improved support for
obsolete and vintage Apple products. Finally, a new Mactracker app
for the iPhone and iPod touch with much the same information is now
available from the App Store. (Free, 21.6 MB)
<http://mactracker.dreamhosters.com/>
<http://itunes.com/apps/mactracker>
MercuryMover 2.0.5 from Helium Foot Software is a minor maintenance
update to the keyboard shortcut utility for moving and resizing
windows. Issues that have been fixed include an occasional system
freeze when connecting or disconnecting a second display, and a bug
that could prevent windows from being centered or maximized on a
second display below a primary display. Also, the buttons in the
heads-up display have been refreshed with a new look and feel. ($20,
free update, 1.9 MB)
<http://www.heliumfoot.com/mercurymover/>
Firefox 3.0.9 from Mozilla is a security and stability update to the
popular Web browser. The update addresses a number of security
issues, including one critical vulnerability that caused crashes
possibly leading to memory corruption. Also fixed is an issue
wherein a corrupt local database caused Firefox to lose stored
cookies, a bug preventing inline image attachments from appearing on
webmail services, an issue causing sluggish uploads for large online
forms, and some unnamed stability issues. (Free update, 17.2 MB)
<http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/>
<http://www.mozilla.org/security/known-vulnerabilities/firefox30.html#firefox3.0.9>
PopChar X 4.2 from Ergonis Software is a maintenance update to the
long-standing tool for finding and inserting special characters. A
new feature, Reverse Font Search, enables users to locate all fonts
that contain a specific character. The update also brings a handful
of bug fixes for issues including one that caused a system freeze
when opening PopChar X in combination with certain third party
utilities, one that caused PopChar X to forget license information
when syncing preferences with MobileMe, and one that caused crashes
when PopChar X was used with certain keyboard layouts. (29.99 euros
new, free update for purchases made in the last 2 years, 1.8 MB)
<http://www.ergonis.com/products/popcharx/>
ExtraBITS for 27-Apr-09
-----------------------
by TidBITS Staff <[email protected]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/10242>
**Billionth App Prizes Go to 13-Year-Old** -- Apple passed its 1
billionth download from the App Store on 23-Apr-09, but it hadn't
yet revealed who crossed the mark and won the company's prize. Well,
now we know who to envy. Connor Mulcahey, age 13, of Weston, CT is
now the happy owner of not only a downloaded app, but also a $10,000
iTunes gift card, an iPod touch, a Time Capsule, and a MacBook Pro.
Congratulations Connor! (Posted 2009-04-24)
<http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2009/04/24appstore.html?sr=hotnews>
**Adam Talks about Apple's Q2 2009 Earnings on MacNotables** -- For
additional thoughts on Apple's stellar earnings report, and just why
Apple is bucking the downward trend in the economy as a whole,
listen in on the discussion between Adam and Chuck Joiner in this
MacNotables podcast. (Posted 2009-04-23)
<http://www.macnotables.com/wordpress/macnotables-910-adam-engst-discusses-apples-quarterly-earnings-netbooks-and-why-apples-products-are-a-necessity/>
**Earth to Apple** -- In honor of Earth Day, Jeff Bertolucci reflects
on Apple's
true, err, green, colors. In this three-part series on Macworld
about Apple's position towards the environment, he takes a look at
the company's supply chain, recycling program, and corporate
motivations for environmental change. (Posted 2009-04-22)
<http://www.macworld.com/article/140113/2009/04/greenapple.html>
**Spam's Role in Environmental Damage** -- You can quibble with
particular numbers or with the fact that this report (PDF link) was
sponsored by McAfee, a company that sells spam filtering software.
But its basic conclusion - that spam has a significant and
deleterious effect on the environment - is entirely valid. Just
another reason that spam is evil. Happy Earth Day. (Posted
2009-04-22)
<http://img.en25.com/Web/McAfee/CarbonFootprint_12pg_web_REV_NA.pdf>
**Rich Mogull to Discuss Evaluating Security Stories on Your Mac
Life** -- Tune in to Your Mac Life on 22-Apr-09 at 5:30 PM Pacific
to hear TidBITS Security Editor Rich Mogull discuss his article on
how to evaluate Mac security stories. The live audio stream will
remain available through 29-Apr-09. (Posted 2009-04-22)
<http://www.yourmaclifeshow.com/inthenews/2009/04/21/apple-financials-how-read-mac-security-stories-and-pick-your-topic>
**The Evolution of Apple Design, in One Image** -- Want to see how
Apple's industrial design has evolved over the years? Edible Apple
has a graphic that shows every Apple product released (computers,
iPods, displays, mice, and keyboards), in chronological order.
Someone should make a poster. (Posted 2009-04-21)
<http://www.edibleapple.com/photo-of-every-apple-product-ever-released/>
**Bob "Dr. Mac" LeVitus Says Nice Things about TidBITS** -- Thanks to
the estimable Bob LeVitus for his kind words about our efforts to
provide original, thoughtful content in TidBITS! (Posted 2009-04-21)
<http://blogs.dummies.com/drmac/2009/04/20/how-i-learn-mac-and-iphone-stuff-part-iii-tidbits/>
**Copy and Paste Locations in iPhoto '09** -- Derrick Story has found
yet another hidden feature in iPhoto '09 8.0.2. You can
Control-click a photo with geotags attached, choose Copy, then
Control-click another photo (or selection of photos) and choose the
new command Paste Location. Sneaky, but useful! (Posted 2009-04-21)
<http://www.thedigitalstory.com/blog/2009/04/copy_and_paste_geoda.html>
**Rich Mogull Discusses Mac Malware on MacVoices** -- TidBITS Security
Editor Rich Mogull talked with MacVoices host Chuck Joiner about the
facts and fictions surrounding Macintosh viruses and the recent
"botnet" fuss. Listen to this MacVoices podcast episode for
real-world advice about both avoiding malware and evaluating
security stories in the media. (Posted 2009-04-21)
<http://www.macvoices.com/wordpress/macvoices-964-rich-mogull-discusses-mac-virus-hype-and-fact-and-how-to-tell-the-difference/>
**The Lifecycle of Microsoft Office** -- We recently noted that
Microsoft Office 2004 will hit its end-of-life date (after which it
won't receive any more updates) on 13-Oct-09. You can look up this
date for other Office products at Microsoft's Web site, or just keep
in mind that Microsoft offers "mainstream support" for a minimum of
5 years or 2 years after the successor product is released,
whichever is longer. (Posted 2009-04-21)
<http://support.microsoft.com/gp/lifeselectoff>
Hot Topics in TidBITS Talk for 27-Apr-09
----------------------------------------
by Jeff Carlson <[email protected]>
article link: <http://db.tidbits.com/article/10243>
**Canceling AT&T contracts** -- When your iPhone contract is up, does
AT&T (or other carrier) unlock the device? (3 messages)
<http://emperor.tidbits.com/TidBITS/Talk/2606>
**Spotlight GUI** -- Spotlight strives to stay out of the way, which
is a problem when you're trying to use it. Readers discuss how to
perform better Spotlight searches. (17 messages)
<http://emperor.tidbits.com/TidBITS/Talk/2607>
**MS Word 2008** -- A protected Word file from a Windows user can't be
opened in Word 2008 for Mac. Other software may be helpful. (9
messages)
<http://emperor.tidbits.com/TidBITS/Talk/2608>
**Scanner for slides Recommendations** -- What options or services are
available for scanning slides? Readers make lots of excellent
suggestions. (34 messages)
<http://emperor.tidbits.com/TidBITS/Talk/2609>
**Navigating the Next Generation of Mac Twitter Apps** -- Readers
compare the latest applications for viewing Twitter streams. (10
messages)
<http://emperor.tidbits.com/TidBITS/Talk/2610>
**Two different MacBook Pro problems** -- Booting from older
DiskWarrior discs may not work for the latest versions of Mac
hardware. (3 messages)
<http://emperor.tidbits.com/TidBITS/Talk/2611>
**Why Snow Leopard Should Be (Almost) Free** -- Readers debate Adam's
article questioning whether the next version of Mac OS X should be a
free update. (35 messages)
<http://emperor.tidbits.com/TidBITS/Talk/2612>
$$
This is TidBITS, a free weekly technology newsletter providing timely
news, insightful analysis, and in-depth reviews to the Macintosh and
Internet communities. Feel free to forward to friends; better still,
please ask them to subscribe!
Non-profit, non-commercial publications and Web sites may reprint or
link to articles if full credit is given. Others please contact us. We
do not guarantee accuracy of articles. Caveat lector. Publication,
product, and company names may be registered trademarks of their
companies. TidBITS ISSN 1090-7017.
Copyright 2009 TidBITS: Reuse governed by Creative Commons license.
Contact us at: <[email protected]>
TidBITS Web site: <http://www.tidbits.com/>
License terms: <http://www.tidbits.com/terms/>
Full text search: <http://www.tidbits.com/search/>
Subscriptions: <http://www.tidbits.com/about/list.html>
Account help: <http://www.tidbits.com/about/account-help.html>
--
If you want to unsubscribe or change your address, use this link
http://emperor.tidbits.com/webx?unsub@@.3c557dc4!u=306a67f9
