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Apr. 30, 1996: A beta version of Apple's Speech Recognition Manager
1.5 supports PowerPC 603-based Macs. It's in a developer's ftp
directory.
Power Computing introduced new Mac-compatible
systems yesterday, running as fast as 180 MHz. There is more information
at the company's news page.
Cyberdog, now at Version 1.0B4,
is getting ready for official release.
Apr. 29, 1996: Netscape Atlas Gold provides for editing as well as
browsing. A pre-release version is in an ftp
directory and there are release
notes.
PageSpinner 1.1b1 has improved searching, toolbar, and audio support, plus
better table creation, including import of tab-delimited text files. Details
and download links are at the web
page.
The Quicken R7 update is now available from an update
page.
Supra has a public beta of new modem firmware, plus a FAXcilitate software
update on a What's New page.
Apr. 28, 1996: Copland, the next generation of the Mac OS, has been
delayed yet again, until mid-1997. MacWEEK
News has the story.
ShrinkWrap
2.0 (346K) is a new release of the utility for working with floppy disk
images. Be sure to delete any 2.0 beta prefs files to avoid Error # -192.
WebSurfer 3.0 is a free web browser from NetManage,
which now has several products for Macs.
Problems with Power 120 systems from Power Computing are detailed in a March
22 letter from Technical Support Manager Kenneth Knotts.
Rob Art Morgan has an addendum
to his article about slow graphics performance on some PowerPC 603-based
Macs.
Apr. 26, 1996: AppleShare
Workstation 3.6.2 (2 Mbytes) fixes a bunch of bugs. There's a description.
HP Background
Utility 4.06 finally may fix compatibility problems with HP's inkjet
printer drivers, if you can get HP's server to deliver the file. It is linked
from the Deskwriter
support web page.
Microsoft Internet
Explorer 2.0 has been released,. Matthew McRae created the Internet
Explorer Sanitizer for it.
Netscape
Navigator 3.0b3 (a.k.a. Atlas PR 2) is described in release
notes, a Read
Me file and in a MacWEEK
story.
Memory mapping utilities mentioned in the recent MacInTouch article include:
Mac
OS Purge, Memory
Mapper 1.3, and OtherMenu.
The Support Group is looking for a good FileMaker programmer on its job
postings page.
Apr. 25, 1996: Apple has a Copland
Q & A page, plus a System
7.5 Update 2.0 overview with a features chart and ordering information.
MacUser is looking for an Associate Editor/Online, and MacWEEK is looking
for an Associate Editor/Reviews. There's a web
page with details.
Rob Art Morgan is back again with an article about slow
graphics. performance on PowerPC 603-based Mac models.
FreePPP 2.5b6 is available at the Fog
City web site, along with a trial version of Claris Emailer and other
goodies.
Bruce Giles' Generic
Icon Page deals with a common Mac problem.
Apr. 23, 1996: Please note that updates to this page will be a little
more sporadic than usual for the next several days.
Henry Norr wrote a review
of the new Macs.
[news through April 22 below...]
About MacInTouch (history and purpose of MacInTouch)
Mac Resources
Catalog
MacInTouch Tips
News Archive
(previous news and links)
Services
(Overview of professional services available from Ric Ford)
Recent News
Apr. 22, 1996: It's official. Apple announced
Apr. 20, 1996: PC Week's Spencer F. Katt claimed that Suitcase 3
caused Type 11 errors, but Symantec says he based the report on a badly-written
"faxback" tech note. The company is re-writing the note and says
it knows of no such problems caused by Suitcase.
We've got important Ram
Doubler tips from product manager Brian Grove. Be sure also to review
the Ram Doubler Read Me file carefully. Readers report that the Ram Doubler
hack for file copies (see below) seems to work. Connectix posts updates
at www.connectix.com.
PageSpinner
is a great HTML editor, but if you're looking for more options, Rick Giles
has HTML Editor 1.1.4, a new version.
Apple Benelux has System
7.5.3 info.
Apr. 18, 1996: Qualcomm is conducting a Eudora
Pro 3 public beta. You need to own the commercial version, Eudora Pro,
and the beta expires June 1. Be sure to read Important
Information before switching to the beta. Eudora 3 introduces a new
address book, better searching and filtering, a new API and other features.
Apple Internet Mail Server
1.1 is available, but it is not supported. Send feedback to aims-bugs@cybertech.apple.com
(and let us know about any clearly-defined bugs, too).
The Apple Internet Connection
Kit 1.1 Upgrade provides new versions of the Apple Internet Dialer (1.1.2),
Apple Internet Status (1.1.2), MacPPP (2.5) and ConfigPPP, (2.5) plus a
new Apple Guide.
Connectix' Jorg Brown has a hack that may work
around problems copying files on 68040 Macs with Ram Doubler 1.6.1 and System
7.5.3. If you try it, please let us know the results.
A similar patch, this time for the copy problem, is to disable
the new 68K SCSI Manager from System 7.5.3. You only want to do this for
68K-based Macs that don't already have SCSI Manager: that is, every 68K
based Mac except the 660AV, the 840AV, and Macs with IDE drives. Anyway,
open a copy of the System 7.5 Update 2.0 file, and change the resource number
of the 'citt' resource from 43 to 430 (or just about any other number, really).
Then swap the new System 7.5 Update with the old one. This should solve
the copy problem, and could cure problems people are seeing with their hard
disk drivers as well.
Microsoft's Internet
Assistant for Word saves documents in HTML format from within Word 6.0.1
on the Mac, but download it at your own risk. Readers report download and
installation problems.
Developers, please make sure Apple knows what you need in AIMED's Copland
API poll.
Apr. 17, 1996: Apple's quarterly financial
results are in. A press
release has Gil Amelio's take on the situation.
There was a bit of confusion yesterday about the unannounced Macs due within
a week. The 8200 models, covered in a January MacWEEK story under the name
Instatower,
apparently are destined for Europe. MacWEEK had details on the U.S. models
in last month's Speed
Bump article. These Macs apparently have new processor cards and new
motherboards. (Maybe Level 2 cache and RAM will work more reliably this
time around.)
AppleVision Software Fix 1.0 cleans up some problems with System 7.5 Update
2.0 installation and apparently also with the original software. The disk
image and documentation are playing hide-and-seek on Apple's server.
NiftyTelnet
is an aptly named application, but distribution is restricted to the U.S.
Apr. 16, 1996: Apple is delivering the new 5260/100
now to buyers in education, but the 5400/120
is about a month away.
Programmer Jeff Moore passed along a description of a problem in Apple's
sound header file,
used by programmers. The result is Type 11 crashes in various places.
Matt Wronkiewicz has a table of Mac
OS Internet server software.
MacWEEK has the story
on David Nagel's departure for AT&T.
The French
System 7.5.3 update page has information (in French) about the free
upgrade for PCI Mac owners.
Apr. 15, 1996: QuickTime
2.5 will bring a standard for Motion-JPEG along with other improvements.
(Don't miss the typical David Nagel quote in the press release. He's leaving
for AT&T, which seems appropriate.)
Novell Netwire has a tech
info document about problems between LaserWriter 8.3.3 and Netware Client
5.1.
If you haven't had enough PPP, there's yet another program, Simple
PPP, now in "alpha test."
For MacInTouch readers who missed it earlier, the System 7.5.3 Ethernet
address change is documented here.
Apr. 14, 1996: You can access Apple
support information, including a folder view of the Tech
Info Library, via gopher.
There's a Macintosh System
Software history.
Adobe has an updated, pre-release "Amber"
plug-in for reading PDF files within Netscape 2.
The Radius SoftPivot 3.2.1 control panel is incompatible with System 7.5.3.
The new system also has problems with some older SuperMac NuBus video cards.
Apr. 13, 1996: RockStar Studios has some FreePPP
news. Another version of the software should be available on various
Internet sites shortly.
Stephen Howard covers the IBM-Apple rumors in a MacWEEK
story.
Apr. 12, 1996: There was apparently some confusion within Connectix
about precisely what problems are being caused by Ram Doubler 1.6.1's incompatibilities
with System 7.5.3. The following is excerpted from a statement by product
manager Brian Grove (grove@connectix.com):
[Connectix tech support person] is incorrect in this assertion
that the problem with copying on 040's (without SCSI Manager in ROM) can
result in a corrupted file. The only result of this problem is a freeze
when attempting the copy.
His speculation is based upon a single unconfirmed user report. We have
had no other similar reports and based upon our understanding of the problem
and the solution, corruption of a file is not a possibility.
Microsoft's MSWRD6&7.HQX
(202K) is an update to the previous Word 6 file converter. This version
imports Japanese Word for Windows, version 6.0, and Japanese Word for Windows
95, version 7.0, files, too. (A description is included.)
Canadian customers apparently will get System 7.5 Update 2.0 free, also,
as U.S. customers do. It should ship in Canada by the end of the month.
RealAudio Player
is reportedly up to version 2.0.2.
Fontographer 4.1's network copy protection has problems with Open Transport.
SonicPPP 1.1 is an Open Transport-compatible PPP client. See the web
page for more details.
Apr. 11, 1996: Is your PPP connection unexpectedly auto-dialing (perhaps
after unchecking Load only When Needed in the TCP/IP control panel)? Just
check "Disable Auto Connect" in the ConfigPPP control panel to
stop it. (With older MacPPP versions, always use "Hard Close",
not "Soft Close.")
Absolute Macintosh
is tracking both American and French prices on Mac systems and peripherals.
They've also got benchmarks and dates when Macs were introduced and discontinued.
Connectix has confirmed that Ram Doubler 1.6.1 can cause crashes or corrupted
files on 68040-based Macs under System 7.5.3, as well as producing Type
8 crashes on PowerBooks when they wake from sleep. Ram Doubler 1.6.1 also
creates problems under System 7.5.3 for Qualcomm's Eudora Pro. You can try
Tony
Andreoli's patcher (with documentation) if you absolutely have to run
Ram Doubler under the new system, and try Qualcomm's sync
i/o plug-in for Eudora.
System 7.5.3 may cause key-disk problems, such as losing installations,
with copy protection common in music applications.
Aladdin's StuffIt Expander has
glitches with System 7.5.3. Updating all your disks with current disk formatters
should avoid problems. StuffIt 4.0
is available now. Aladdin Desktop Tools will need an update for System 7.5.3.
Apr. 10, 1996: M.I.T.'s Info-Mac
HyperArchive is available again (but seems a little slow).
WebStar 1.2.5
should be much faster than previous versions, and it's now compatible with
Open Transport.
LaCie's updates page
has new patchers to create SilverLining 5.6.4, which addresses write cache
issues.
A new LocalTalk
Bridge patch provides an Open Transport hack similar to the earlier
one for LaserWriter Bridge.
EasyServe, a very simple,
freeware web server, requires Open Transport.
Apple put its Developer Catalog
on-line.
Apr. 9, 1996: People started receiving their System 7.5 Update 2.0
orders today, with a note:
"Your credit card will not be charged for
the System Update 2.0. Checks accompanying order will be returned by US
Mail within 3 weeks."
A new LaserWriter Bridge OT Patch fixes LaserWriter Bridge 2.0.1 (from NSI
1.5.1 or System 7.5 Update 2.0) to work with Open Transport. Documentation
is also included. It's at mirrors.apple.com
and mirrors.aol.com.
Apr. 8, 1996: The MIT HyperArchive library is suffering from some
"networking problems," but will be available again when they get
those resolved.
The full AppleScript Software Development Kit is available, between server
problems, at ftpdev.info.apple.com
and at ftp.info.apple.com.
The Macintosh AV FAQ
has lots of information about audio/visual technologies in AV Macs and Power
Macs and in the newer PCI series. The AV
Pitstop is a related file library.
Apr. 6, 1996: You can get PPP 2.5 (the mdev, or network driver) and
an associated Config PPP (the user interface) at cybertech1.apple.com.
Combine Dave Winer's Frontier and Bare Bones' BBEdit for Website
Scripting.
Apple's new QuickTime VR tools are covered in a press
release that links to related resources.
The Quadra 630 page
has reviews, upgrade information, benchmarks and more.
Apr. 5, 1996: The pre-release FreePPP follies have brought us more
e-mail and problems than we can handle. We're now waiting for the real thing,
and the best option at the moment seems to be a FreePPP
1.0.4/PPP 2.5 combo.
John Martellaro created the Mac
ISDN FAQ with a bit of help from Henry Norr.
Apple has a Tech
Info Library article about write cache issues that's easier reading
than Tech Note
1040.
RealAudio Player 2.0 is available from a download
page.
E-mail Miramar Systems at support@miramarsys.com
to get a MacLAN Connect patch for compatibility with the AppleShare 3.6.1
client.
ComputerWare has a nice set of Mac vendor
links and other links.
Today, some people say Apple is still charging shipping and handling on
its "free" System 7.5 Update 2.0. We give up trying to track this
silliness.
Apr. 4, 1996: Our network connection was down at times today because
of glitches installing a faster line.
A new HTML version of Tech
Note 1017 covers System 7.5.3 in more detail, including a description
of the SCSI ID 5 bug. (Did you know that freezing the SCSI bus doesn't cause
data corruption...?)
Tech Note 1040,
about write cache issues during shutdown, has been updated in the official
version.
Here's the story on the System 7.5.3 upgrade: Apple is not charging customers
in the U.S.A. for the upgrade, even if they told you they would. (This apparently
was decided April 2nd.) The free offer runs through May 31st. Call (800)
293-6617 or fax (408) 644-2008. You'll need to provide name, mailing address,
and daytime phone number, but no credit card number.
RockStar's servers (web page
and ftp site) are overloaded
and unavailable, and the pre-release of FreePPP 2.5 is not available elsewhere.
We'll post more news when something opens up.
Apr. 2, 1996: Mac hacker Greg
Marriott was attacked in his apartment in Santa Clara. Luckily, he's
still alive.
Apple is now taking orders for System 7.5 Update 2.0 for free. Phone
800-293-6617 to order (CD or floppies). They quote 2-3 weeks for delivery.
Dealer prices on the Power Mac 8500/120 and 7200/75 dropped about $400 this
past weekend. RAM prices may be headed back up.
Nils Hulth maintains a page about Unix
options for Macs.
A prerelease Version 3.0 Alpha 2 of NCSA
Mosaic is out.
more information
in the news archive...
Copyright 1996 by Ric Ford. All rights reserved.
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