Maria’s Guides

• The Web Design Survey, 2007
  A survey for Web designers from A List Apart.
  (tags: research survey webdesign)
• Kathy Sierra Case: Few Clues, Little Evidence, Much Controversy
  A summary of the evidence in the Kathy Sierra case. On Wired.com.
  (tags: Wired blogging ethics)
• What’s Happening to Our Lovely Cult?
  Commentary about Apple. From Cult of Mac on wired.com.
  (tags: Apple Mac iPhone)
• Livin’ la Vida Google: A Month-Long Dive Into Web-Based Apps
  An in-depth review of Google’s Web-based applications as substitutes for computer-based apps. On Wired.com.
  (tags: Google web applications)
• 16 Must Read Articles For Bloggers
  A list of articles with links on TheWrongAdvices.com.
  (tags: blogging tips Advice)
• “Well Known” TCP and UDP Ports Used By Apple Software Products
  This is a table of ports used by Apple software. Many of the ports are standard, so it’s also a good list of standard ports. On the Apple Web site.
  (tags: Apple ports network)

Incredible survey results in an article on AppleInsider.

Here’s an interesting statistic from “iPhone could turn technology world on its ear” on AppleInsider:

As of February, awareness of Apple Inc.’s iPhone device had spread to nearly 50 percent of U.S. consumers, with a significant chunk of those people expressing sincere interest in buying the device without having first seen one in person, a broad market survey has shown.

Can you imagine? Developing a product that 50% of consumers know about — and many want to buy — months before the product’s release?

Read the article for more details and marketing survey stats.

As for me, I’d like an iPhone, but have no desire to sign a contract with “the New AT&T” (AKA Cingular). I cancelled all of my AT&T services and sold all of my AT&T stock after a major run-in with their India-based customer service department. I’ll wait until another carrier supports the phone before I get one. By that time, any bugs will have been worked out and the phone will be cheaper, anyway.

Well, it depends on how you calculate that.

I downloaded my inveestment quotes into Quicken today, I noticed the little newspaper icon beside Apple’s name in the list. The icon indicates a news story for the company. I clicked the icon and found the headine “Apple Corners 5% of U.S. PC Market” with a link to the article on Yahoo! Finance. Here’s the intro:

Fueled by a 30 percent year-over-year growth rate, Apple (NasdaqGS: AAPL) shipments hit 741,000 units in the first quarter, up from 570,000 units from a year ago.

And according to Gartner, that tally equates to 5 percent market share in the U.S. PC market, up a percentage point from this time a year ago.

The article includes a table that tallies up the units sold and percentages, making Apple look like it’s ready to overtake Toshiba in the never-ending race for market share. But before you start celebrating, take a moment to think about what the table really represents: First Quarter 2007 units sold. Not total units in the hands of computer users.

I’ve been using a Mac long enough to remember the days when Apple had a 23% of the personal computer market. And then 15%. And then 8%. Heck, I remember the numbers getting as dismal as an estimate less than 3%. So when I saw the 5% figure in the article headline, I had to check it out. Needless to say, I’m slightly disappointed.

The fact that new Macs are being sold at higher rates than before is great. But there’s a long way to go before “market share” celebrations can begin.

I have the champagne on ice, waiting.

Information from Software Update.

Security Update 2007-004 is recommended for all users and improves the security of the following components:

• AFP Client
• AirPort
• CarbonCore
• diskdev_cmds
• fetchmail
• ftpd
• gnutar
• Help Viewer
• HID Family
• Installer
• Kerberos
• Libinfo
• Login Window
• network_cmds
• SMB
• System Configuration
• URLMount
• Video Conference
• WebDAV

For detailed information on this update, visit http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=61798.

Information you can find in System Profiler.

As Apple hardware improves, the latest and greatest versions of different devices are installed in Macintosh models. As a result, some older optical drives may not be able to write to all the formats that current optical drives can write to.

How can you tell which formats your optical drive can write to? Ask System Profiler. Here’s how:

1. Choose Apple > About This Mac.
   
2. In the About This Mac window that appears, click the Move Info button.
   
3. In the left column, under Hardware, click Disc Burning.
4. Consult the lines labeled CD-Write and DVD-Write to see which formats your optical drive supports.
   
5. When you’re finished, choose System Profiler > Quit System Profiler to Quit.

• Change the minimize effect in Mac OS X
  Instructions on how to enable a third minimize effect for Mac OS X: Suck. On OSXDaily. Thanks to Miraz for sharing this link on her blog (mactips.info), which is where I found it.
  (tags: Mac hack howto)
• Call for a Blogger’s Code of Conduct
  Some thoughts on the blogging misconduct that has been getting out of hand lately and what bloggers can do about it. From O’Reilly Radar. Again, thanks to Miraz for sharing this link.
  (tags: blogging censorship community)
• Bloggers’ FAQ: Intellectual Property
  Information about copyright and fair use for bloggers. Includes definition of “fair use.” On the Electronic Frontier Foundation Web site.
  (tags: reference copyright blogging)