Archives for May, 2011

Apple’s WorldWide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2011 starts next week and it will once again be kicked off by a Stevenote. Monday, June 6th at 1:00PM East Coast time (10:00AM Pacific) Apple will unveil its next generation software – Lion, the eighth major release of Mac OS® X; iOS 5, the next version of Apple’s advanced mobile operating system which powers the iPad®, iPhone® and iPod touch® and iCloud®, Apple’s upcoming cloud services offering.

• Apple to Unveil Next Generation Software at Keynote Address on Monday, June 6
• ars technica Liveblog: WWDC 2011 keynote on June 6

Presumably there won’t be a live video feed of the keynote however you can bet all the usual sites will be live-blogging it (ars technica, Engadget, etc.)

There is some speculation that Mac OS X 10.7 Lion could actually be released next week and installable via the App Store but that remains to be seen.

When 10.7 is released you might want to take a few extra steps before upgrading to ensure your essential software will run on it. Current indications are that Apple is removing Rosetta, the software technology that allows us to run older PowerPC processor based applications on Intel Macs which would mean any of your older apps that have not been upgraded to Intel compatible versions will not run.

As promised, Jason has posted his (even more) definitive list of favorite iPad apps on The Apple Core blog at ZDNet:

• My favorite iPad apps – Spring 2011 Edition

Head on over and check it out. And be sure to click the Recommend icon at the top/right just below the article’s title banner.

Thanks again to Jason for a fun, informative talk. I know my App Store shopping list grew by more than a few items.

A fake anti-virus application called “MAC Defender” is making the rounds. DO NOT DOWNLOAD OR INSTALL IT as it is a fake. It reports bogus virus infections and requests your credit card number to remove them. Details are here:

• Apple: How to avoid or remove Mac Defender malware
• ars technica: Fake “MAC Defender” antivirus app scams users for money, CC numbers

You can’t be spontaneously “infected” by this piece of garbage, you have to run it and enter your admin account password before it can install itself. Don’t!

To repeat, MAC Defender is a fake. Do not install it!

2011-May-31 Update

Security Update 2011-003 is now available via Software Update in the apple menu. This update detects known instances of the Mac Defender malware with the list of known instances automatically updated as needed.

If you use Skype for your audio and video conferencing make sure you’ve got the latest and greatest version as it contains a fix for a bug that could potentially allow malicious persons full access to your machine:

• The Register: Skype bug gives attackers access to Mac OS X machines
• Skype: Security Vulnerability in Mac Client Has Been Addressed
• Skype: Download Skype 5.1 for Mac

The fix was released about a month ago so if you haven’t updated your Skype application since then be sure to do it soon.

NOTE: PowerPC Mac users still using Skype 2.8 don’t have to worry as that version never had the problem.

Without much fanfare Apple has updated the iMac line with some juicy new features:

• The latest Intel Core i5/i7 Sandy Bridge processors with a Quad-core option
• Improved graphics
• Thunderbolt I/O: 1 port on the 21.5 inch iMac, 2 on the 27 inch model.
• FaceTime HD camera
• IPS LED-backlit high resolution display

Base prices haven’t changed from the previous models.

• Apple: iMac Product Page
• engadget: Apple iMac refresh official – Thunderbolt and next gen quad-core processors
• engadget: Apple iMac hands-on, with dual 30-inch displays!
• ars technica: Apple adds Thunderbolt, faster processors to iMac line

If you get one of these new beasties be sure to post your impression in the comments.