Re: A convert to Apple says thanks

James Taylor <spam-block-@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> In article <pan.2005.08.31.17.31.57.585295@xxxxxxxxx>,
> Giles <usenet.giles@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> >
> > On Wed, 31 Aug 2005 18:22:37 +0100, James Taylor wrote:
> > >
> > > Susie wants to be able to play DVDs (from various regions).
> > > Will an iBook allow that, or is it limited to just one region?
> >
> > Pass. It used to be that you were limited to 5 changes.
> > I'm not sure now, but there is an application called VLC
> > player that doesn't care about regions.
>
> Where can I get VLC?

<http://www.videolan.org/vlc/>

> > Scanners in particular are limited, you'd need to check
> > with the manufacturer. However, scanners without existing
> > drivers *may* be supported by an application called Vuescan.
>
> Great. Do you have a URL for Vuescan?

<http://www.hamrick.com/>

both of those URLs were just from google, but if you go to
versiontracker.com you will find all manner of Mac software.

> > MP3 players? Tricky. Obviously iPods, I think the others usually
> > load as mass storage devices, but no iTunes integration.
>
> Not being familiar with iTunes, I'm not sure what "iTunes
> integration" actually entails.

iTunes integration is having your music in iTunes and getting it to
either autosync with your music player or just dragging it into your
music player in iTunes.

> Isn't it possible to upload
> individual iTunes-sourced songs in MP3 format to any MP3
> player of your choice?

Indeed it is (unless they are from the applestore, in which case they
wouldn't be mp3s and would be drm'd)


> > In my experience, Bluetooth is fine and usually easy to
> > configure and use. Phones aren't all supported, at least
> > as far as syncing address and calender details, there is a
> > list on the Apple site under iSync,
>
> Yes, I think I found the list you mean here:
> http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/isync/devices.html
> but it doesn't seem to list my phone (Samsung D500), or any
> others by Samsung. Am I out of luck?

I don't know about samsungs

> Maybe I can't sync addresses or calandar events, but surely
> I can upload MP3s and download photos from the phone.
> Can anyone reassure me, or guide me on this?

I would have thought so - generally you can just browse a bluetooth
device, or maybe samsung have some mac software to do it like nokia do.

> > > Can anyone claim success at getting VoIP to work, and how
> > > tricky was it to set up?
> >
> > Skype. Very easy. There may be others, or audio over iChat
>
> Skype isn't an open protocol, so I'm wary of it.

It does however work rather well

> iChat would be better I think. Does iChat audio make a direct
> and private connection between two end users, or does it
> require the use of a server somewhere?

It is direct, allthough it isn't an open protocol either. you have to
find eachother through the server though.

> How about typed messages?

through a server.

> Forgive my ignorance, I've never used IM, IRC, ICQ, AIM, or any
> of those kind of things. In fact, I'm only just aware they exist.

None of them are open protocols, apart from jabber - maybe you are lucky
and know someone who uses it!

> > No spyware is known of in the wild.
>
> Wow, those NSA and GCHQ hackers must be really good then. ;-)
>
> > Graphics - Photoshop, but also GraphicConverter - superb
> > shareware - and the Gimp via X11.
>
> If I'm going to get the Macromedia Suite for my web development
> work, I probably can't justify spending money on Photoshop given
> that I shall have Fireworks. I've not used Fireworks before
> but I assume it's equally capable.

It is completely different for a different purpose. My wife swears by it
to do web graphics, I never worked it out and use photoshop for web
graphics as well.
To be fair, nothing is equally capable as photoshop. Somthings are as
good or better in certain ways, but in general, not much comes close.

> GraphicConverter might be worthwhile though. What's the URL?

http://www.lemkesoft.de/

> Does X11 come preinstalled on Tiger, or do I have to visit
> Fink or Darwinports?

It is on the OS install disks allthough not installed by default. It is
also downloadable from apple.

>
> > Apache is included, but not Apache 2, that is an install away.
>
> I'm not sure what Apache 2 would give me that the earlier
> version doesn't. This probably means I won't need it.
> Correct me if you know otherwise.

You probably won't need it

> In article <1h268ps.1xpddyq9rn1gfN%NEWS@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>,
> Roger Merriman <NEWS@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> > yes apples airport ie wifi supports wpa2 ie so TKIP and AES
> > encription its whats i have running here on my wee network.
>
> You're the first person to confirm that MacOS X Tiger supports
> AES encryption (a.k.a. CCMP encryption). Nobody else I've asked
> has been able to answer that question. TKIP is usually the best
> encryption available because it will work with the RC4 processor
> implemented in hardware on most current 802.11 interface cards.
> Only if the Airport Extreme built-in to the iBook has a hardware
> AES processor can the much better CCMP encryption be used at a
> sensible speed. How certain are you that this is the case?

A quick google confirms it is the case.

> I am in the final stages of choosing an ADSL wireless router.
> CCMP support seems to be quite a new thing and thus still quite
> rare on these devices. I need to know whether it's worth
> struggling to find one that *does* support CCMP. If MacOS
> doesn't currently support it, and the iBook's built-in
> Airport Extreme doesn't even have the hardware AES processor
> necessary, then I might as well go for the nicest TKIP
> supporting router as they are more widely available and
> full featured at a reasonable price.
>
> Can anyone help me find something concrete to confirm that
> the iBook actually does support CCMP/AES encryption?
> Either something in writing on Apple's site, or the precise
> location of the appropriate setting in MacOS itself. Thanks.

http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/wireless/2003/12/18/wap.html

seems to say stuff about it.

> In article <slrn.2005-08-31.17-20-02@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>,
> Ben Shimmin <bas@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
> > On top of that, you can just compile stuff and it'll work.
> > I read mail and news in mutt and slrn, just like I have for
> > God knows how long, and both of which compiled out of the tin.
>
> Usenet is an important resource for me, and it'll only get
> more so as I start using a Mac and bumbling my way around.
> Is there a nice GUI newsreader supplied preinstalled with MacOS?

No.

> I see that many of you are using MacSOUP; is this considered
> the best newsreader? What others should I consider?

Stepping on holy war territory there :-) We have that argument every
month. To save the war, do a google group search over the last month or
two and you will see the options.

> In article <BF3BB01E.EEB4B%chrisridd@xxxxxxx>,
> Chris Ridd <chrisridd@xxxxxxx> wrote:

> > All commercial DVD playing software limits you to one region.
> > (The software lets you switch regions a maximum number of 5
> > times, and that's that. You can often find unofficial firmware
> > updates on the net that get around this limitation.)
>
> You say "software" and then you say "firmware" which leaves me
> confused as to where the code to block region changes is actually.
> Is the block within the DVD drive itself or in the player
> software supplied with MacOS?

The firmware of the physical player. The software in the player lets you
change the region in the firmware until the firmware doesn't allow it
anymore.


> In article <1h26f9z.pfh569l088mcN%peter@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>,
> Peter Ceresole <peter@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> >
> > James Taylor wrote:
> > >
> > > I've heard that it is possible to get a three button mouse
> > > for the Mac but I imagine that the assignments of these buttons
> > > are not well integrated into the operating system or applications.
> >
> > All three button mice work absolutely fine in the Mac.
> [snip]
> > The integration into the OS is absolutely seamless.
>
> Well, RISC OS had a clear standard usage assigned to the three
> buttons from the inception of the GUI and this meant that all
> applications supported the same set of responses. I suspect that
> this consistency isn't quite as prevalent on MacOS given that all
> applications must work with one button mice with various modifier
> keys. The mouse driver then has to emulate the modifier keys, but
> some applications will use different modifiers for different
> purposes. I may be wrong, but this sounds like a potential mess.

You are wrong. The left button is the button, the right button is the
context menu and the middle button is application defined. The scroll
wheel scrolls. That is the function in all application, although you can
get software to change that and make it modify keys if you want.

The mouse driver isn't modifying keys, there mouse buttons are supported
by the OS, with key modifiers that work as well.

> > Many of us will be at MacExpo later this year. If you fancy the idea,
> > come along. We tend to meet in the morning, yawn, have a coffee, slob
> > around the show, break for a local noodle bar and complaints about
> > Apple, then have a proper look at the show, more coffee, solve the
> > problems of the world with special reference to Macs with a sideswipe
> > at the Problem of Consciousness, then go to a (probably Persian) local
> > restaurant.
>
> Sounds perfect! It would be good to put faces to names too.
> What date and where is the expo?

Olympia, 28th oct - http://www.mac-expo.co.uk/

> > Keep looking here for details and cellphone numbers for the day.
>
> I haven't been able to keep as close an eye on the group as I
> would have liked. Have any plans been made so far?

The only planning we do is planning the meal.

> In article
> <1h2b5l0.gt4xniuz4rcoN%southend.unitedfc.5.lukebosman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>,
> Luke Bosman <southend.unitedfc.5.lukebosman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> >
> > James Taylor wrote:
> > >
> > > is it more like RISC OS where nobody can remember the last
> > > time a virus was even seen?
> >
> > Hey, I can. My A3000 was infected by a virus in 1996.
>
> And the virus was probably written back in the eighties.
>
> > I configured my three-button mouse such that the middle
> > button was a control-click (brings up contextual menu) and the right
> > button was a command-click (selects multiple, non-contiguous items).
> > That suited me, as an ex-RO user fine.
>
> Sounds just right for me too. Thanks for the tip.

In which case you will need a separate application to configure the
buttons, as that is not the standard behavior

--
Woody

www.alienrat.com
.

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