Bites from the Apple: Tidbits

I've been a bit sidelined this week as my trusty MacBook Pro succumbed to the dreaded NVIDIA graphic processor fail. Thankfully, this has been acknowledged by Apple, and thusly the replacement of the logic board was covered by my AppleCare (an essential investment when you buy a new MacBook). And while I'm also pleased that my backup strategies helped me stay fairly productive (though I had to bear with working from my bootable backup via an underpowered Mac mini), I'm just getting around to sifting through all the Apple-y goodness from the week. So, let's get down to it...

• One of the biggest stories of the week is that the next version of Mac OS X (10.6 Snow Leopard) will borrow some of the non-GPS location awareness tools that were used by the original iPhone. Here's AppleInsider:

  Since Macs don't include GPS technology like the iPhone 3G, CoreLocation will utilize a Mac's existing networking hardware to triangulate the system's location in a manner similar to the way the original iPhone was able to use the technology to emulate a true global positioning signal.

  If you're wondering how this might be useful to you, take a gander at this Lifehacker post from last June that explains how a location-aware iPhone would change your life.

• On the rumor watch, Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster says that Apple might introduce a real Apple TV in the next two years--i.e., one with a screen and not just a set-top box (via AppleInsider). Speaking of the set-top box version of the Apple TV, Roughly Drafted has some suggestions for the Take 3.0 revision, which includes the standard wishes for a DVR or an optical drive. But it also suggests bringing in streaming Internet radio or adding apps and games.

• Last week we told you that the 17-inch MacBook Pro was shipping imminently. Tom's Hardware reports that it's now delayed for a few more weeks.

• I now feel older and more useless: a 9-year old has created a painting app for the iPhone, called Doodle Kids.

• Because my laptop was in the shop for a good portion of the week, I wasn't able to play around with iMovie '09. However, my pal Jeff Carlson just finished and posted his review of iMovie at Macworld and gives it a very solid 4-mouse rating. He's also included a video sample in the article showing off iMovie's image stabilization, which provides you with a measure of control:

  Analyzed clips are not re-rendered, but rather iMovie keeps track of how much zoom and rotation is applied to every frame in order to minimize the amount of movement. That enables you to control how much shake is suppressed, using a slider on the new Inspector HUD.

  Jeff also posted a collection of 10 secrets of iMovie '09 over at TidBITS to help you get going with the new features

• A very cool fanboy mock-up of a concept iPhone 4G, via MobileWhack:

  

• The Digital Urban blog gives us a quick tutorial on how to use the TimeLapse iPhone app--which, as the app title would suggest, snaps photos at automated intervals to create a time lapse sequenze--and create your own movies:

  
  iPhone TimeLapse Test from digitalurban on Vimeo.

• And finally, take a geektastic trip around tech/productivity/creativity writer Merlin Mann's desktop and learn about a few new tools to add to your arsenal:

  
  Merlin’s First Desktop Tour from Merlin Mann on Vimeo.

• Breaking Woz Watch News: If you haven't heard the news, Steve Wozniak will be hoofing it on the next edition of Dancing with the Stars (starting in early March).

--Agen G.N. Schmitz