Macworld08
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Show floor video: Intelliscan Mini does handheld media inventory
We are blessed on the Mac platform with many good ways to keep track of our stuff -- but Intelliscanner takes it to the next level, with a range of integrated scanner and software solutions that will have you tracking your movies, books, wine and comics with barcoded accuracy and ease. We visited the Inteliiscanner booth at Macworld for a demo of the Mini, a handheld scanner that can hold 150 item scans before downloading via USB to the host. The bundle retails for $299 but there's a show special through the end of January (and I'm contacting Intelliscan now to make sure it's still running & get the discount code for you) and unlike some other Macworld vendors, they really mean "show special" -- the offer ended Friday. Video after the jump (and pay no attention to the title card... editing mixup on my part).
20 minutes with Woz
Dutch site One More Thing brings us a serving of Steve "Woz" Wozniak from Macworld. You may or may not be nonplussed by the exclusive interview with Apple's co-founder, but they use the word "computergeschiedenis" in the post, which you have to admit is a pretty fun way to say "computer history". At least that's how KavaServices translated it for me. And Woz, no matter how you look at it, has a place in computer history. Not surprisingly, Woz has a lot of love to share in regards to the Macworld proceedings, the Apple TV Take 2, and other Apple affairs. He is willing to state that the first Apple TV was a "very rare case where a product really wasn't quite done right," but mostly, I'm sure, because it's already been generally acknowledged. The interview is in English, which is good for me as my ability to follow along in Dutch would be somewhere between rusty and non-existent. It's also 20 minutes long, so if you've been wishing for a little time with Mr. Wozniak, for whatever reason, get your fill.
Watch the Keynote in HD
HD is the next best thing to being there, and if you weren't fortunate enough to be in the audience of Steve Job's Macworld 2008 keynote, than this is for you. Apple has just made available a HD stream for your viewing pleasure. The stream is 720p (that's 1280x720, just what the Apple TV supports) and requires a fairly fast machine to watch (Apple says you need a 1.8 GHz or faster G5 at the very least to watch the stream, and at least 256 MB of RAM).I just watched the first few minutes and it looks great.Thanks, Adam.
A sampling of Mac games on display at Macworld 2008
Mike took a tour of some Mac game booths over in Moscone West. Check out a quick review of Tiger Woods Golf, Sims Pool and Sims Bowling for the iPod, making machinima using 'The Movies' (who'd a thunk it), a brief interlude with Aquaria, a true Guitar Hero (seriously, one of the world's best takes on the hardest song on the hardest setting), and a look at EVE Online, now available in PC, Linux and Mac. All this in less than 9 minutes.
Show floor video: Gridiron Flow makes graphic workflows transparent
Among the Macworld Best in Show winners was an application I hadn't heard of before: Flow, from Gridiron Software (makers of After Effects supercharger tool Nucleo Pro). Flow is still in pre-beta, but when it ships this summer it should make the lives of graphics and production professionals much easier by exposing the various components that go into complex documents; you'll be able to track down your source files, roll back to previous versions and perform "super collects" to grab all the files you need for final output in one package.We got a demo of Flow at Gridiron's Macworld booth; it looks very cool, and it will be exciting to see if it lives up to its promise when it's released. Video after the jump.
Sababa Toys shows the iNo
In the Moscone West "first look" section we found Sababa Toys demonstrating their iPod music-trivia game called 'iNo.' Unfortunate naming scheme aside, it looks pretty fun. You push your iPod into the device, it plays a random song while hiding the screen. If you think you know the song (or artist, etc.-- there are cards you draw), you press a little handheld button, which stops the song so you can answer. The iNo is also a speaker/iPod charger, although it uses six AA batteries, so maybe not the most economical charger in the world. Still, if you are tired of playing the built-in iPod music game and have some time to kill with musically-inclined friends this is a unique effort from one of the pluckier vendors we found at Macworld.To see the thing in action watch the video after the break.
Show floor video: Axiotron's Modbook wows the crowd
Who said there can only be one big portable computer announcement at Macworld Expo? The long-awaited Axiotron Modbook -- a FrankenMac adaptation of the MacBook into a surprisingly sleek and functional tablet machine -- was originally shown at last year's Macworld Expo and has finally reached shipping status (available starting at $2290). Does the lure of a touchscreen outweigh the siren call of a MacBook Air? Can you get real work done with Ink gesture recognition?We got a quick demo at the Axiotron booth (video after the jump). For mobile artists, storyboard work or architectural annotations, the Modbook might be just the thing.
Show floor video: Parallels Server virtualizes OS X Server
While VMware's OS X virtualization offering is described as a 'technology preview' (translation: still too buggy for beta), the team at Parallels is beta-ready with the new Parallels Server product, allowing you to virtualize OS X Server alongside your Windows, Windows Server and Linux VMs. The server version from 'Big Red' also features experimental support for Intel's VT-d directed I/O capability (present on the newest Mac Pro and XServe machines), lightweight and 'bare metal/headless' hypervisor modes, and 2-way SMP multicore in a VM (expected to support 4-way SMP in the final version).Feel the power of this mostly operational virtualization station in our brief video demo with Parallels marketing lead Ben Rudolph (video after the jump). Pricing and availability on Parallels Server aren't announced yet but as soon as they are we'll let you know.Update: Commenters have suggested that 'too buggy for beta' was an unfair characterization of VMware's demo, and they're probably right -- I did not mean to diminish the incredible efforts of developers at VMware, who like the Parallels crew have been working very hard on this. Also suggested was the notion that Parallels Server beta is an inferior offering and it can't install an unmodified copy of Leopard Server (as VMware's demo did -- the video linked on Regis' blog was shot by me :-). I can't vouch for the install process, but I can say that the Parallels instance of X Server worked as expected when I had hands-on time with it. Parallels is not new, corporately, to the challenge of enterprise virtualization; the Virtuozzo product line is both reliable and well-regarded, and the engineering talent behind those products is now collaborating on the Parallels Server work.
Reminder, TUAW talkcast at 10 pm ET tonight
Between the jetlag and the general post-Macworld fog, I had almost forgotten what day it was -- fortunately, Talkshoe was kind enough to send me a tickler email and remind me of tonight's talkcast. We'll be live at 10 pm/7 pm ET/PT to take your questions, comments, rants and raves about the past week's news. If possible, we'll do a point-counterpoint between Mat "MacBook Air is a second computer" Lu and Chris "MacBook Air is the one machine I need" Ullrich.As always, you can join the conversation on Talkshoe either with or without an account by using the shiny new browser-only client, no downloading required and no registration needed. Just click the "TalkShoe Web" button on our profile page at 10 pm tonight. You can also listen in on the Talkshoe page or call in on regular or VOIP lines.
Hello, my name is Chris and I ordered a new MacBook Air
As readers of TUAW are, of course, fully aware Apple announced several great new products at Macworld this year. One of those products -- a particular item I was vocally very eager to see come out -- was the MacBook Air. And, putting my money where my mouth is, I ordered one as soon as I could -- sans solid state drive. I am now awaiting delivery of my sleek new Mac in "two to three weeks" from Apple.Sure, some people may question the machine, my decision or rush to point out the MacBook Air's flaws (TUAW's own Mat Lu chimes in with his thoughts on the MBA's strengths and weaknesses right here), but for me the MacBook Air represents a leap forward in the evolution of the notebook and will be the perfect tool for getting my work done. While it may not be for everyone, to me its positives far outweigh its negatives and upon arrival it will take its rightful place as my Apple notebook of choice.First and foremost (and none would dispute) the MacBook Air is really thin and incredibly light. Most of you probably haven't picked one up but I can tell you from my personal fondlings it is even thinner and lighter than it looks. As a person who normally totes around a 15" MacBook Pro (plus more) I can tell you how much of a positive effect the loss of 2.4 pounds is going to have on my shoulders and back. But not only is the MacBook Air thinner and lighter, it also comes with a smaller and lighter power brick as well -- another welcome replacement for the rather large one I currently have in use.Also, my work these days is primarily writing, working with photos and activities of that nature, so this notebook will be perfect for those types of uses. Although I will admit I was skeptical when I first saw the keyboard (I'm not a fan of the MacBook's and on first glance they looked similar) but once I had a chance to pound on the Air's keys a bit I realized that the keyboard is a vast improvement over the one featured on the MacBook and will work just fine for me.The computer will also work well when dealing with photos -- especially if I continue to primarily use iPhoto as I have been lately. However, I'm sure the MacBook Air will also run Adobe Photoshop Lightroom, CS3 and even Aperture should I choose to use them. After all, my "ancient" 12" Powerbook G4 runs Lightroom and even CS3 pretty well considering its 1.5 Ghz G4 processor and 1.25 GB of RAM so I think the MacBook Air will be just fine.In addition, the MacBook Air, although it's a fantastic machine and will be my notebook of choice, is not now nor will it ever be my only Mac. For the real heavy lifting that requires much more horsepower I will turn to my desktop Mac -- the 24" iMac. Keeping the two machines in sync won't be a problem either as I will be using .Mac to keep Address Book and iCal current as well as Mail (where all my email accounts are IMAP and will be the same on both machines). So, this scenario will, I feel, address and overcome many of the concerns expressed about the MacBook Air's design and use.Finally, did I mention how thin and light the MacBook Air is? Sure, I might occasionally miss having an Ethernet port (although I got the dongle) or need an optical drive (got the external one of those too) but for the most part I think I will be okay without those things. I also have 802.11n wireless at home and usually can find wireless access in most places while on the road, so the lack of an Ethernet port won't have that much of an impact on me. But if I need it, I'll have it by using the dongle.Radical change sometimes requires an adjustment in thinking and the new MacBook Air is pretty radical. I, for one, tend to fully embrace the new and look forward to putting the Air through its paces when it arrives -- providing a full report to the TUAW readership in the process as well. Until then, if you have any questions or just want to tell me what a huge mistake I've made, feel free to hit the comments.
A peek inside Cirque Du Mac
What do Mac geeks do after dark? Cirque Du Mac is a traditional Macworld party where Mac luminaries like Chris Breen, Paul Kent, Chuck LaTournous, Duane Straub, Ryan Chaffin and Dave Hamilton rock the house to a fairly inebriated crowd of conference-goers. The Mac Observer hosted the party at the Red Devil Lounge on Wednesday, and despite a long line to get in a good time was had by all. The audio is a little funky due to it being recorded by a handheld camera's condenser mic, but you get the idea: Mac people work hard and play hard.
Reader questions: Can you install XP via Remote Disk on a MacBook Air?
The MacBook Air's idiosyncratic approach to peripheral access and software installation has raised an interesting question: how to do OS installs? My assumption had been that you'll need the external DVD drive (or a NetBoot/NetInstall infrastructure) to reinstall Leopard, should you be unfortunate enough to need to do that. Readers want to know for sure, however, whether or not they can install an OS via Remote Disk -- some even want to know whether they can install XP into Boot Camp via the over-the-LAN disk mounting tool.I felt kind of silly even asking this -- remember, XP installs start in a bootstrap DOS environment a stripped-down XP preinstallation mode, which has as much awareness of Remote Disk as a Siberian yak does of the iPhone -- but I dutifully trooped back to the Apple booth to get a comment on this capability. Here's the scoop as they have it right now (and since the product's not shipping yet, specs are subject to change): You can install Leopard via Remote Disk. The host app for RD creates a miniature NetBoot server via Bonjour, so if you've got a bootable OS X DVD in the host machine you can use that disk to boot your MacBook Air. As for Windows XP install disks... well, not so much. Apple reps would not say definitively that you can't do it, but as far as the three people I spoke with are aware, there's no support for booting XP over Remote Disk. If you've got to install XP in Boot Camp, it's an external drive for you (assuming you can get the machine to boot from a USB device). Otherwise, as pointed out in the comments, you can take an existing XP image and use NetRestore or Winclone to restore the Windows partition; however, since the MBA is new hardware on a different processor, you might need to do some work on the Windows config to achieve bootability. Another (admittedly Rube Goldberg) approach: use Parallels or VMware Fusion's support for accessing the Boot Camp partition as a virtual machine drive, and install Windows that way.
NEAT Receipts for Mac shown at Macworld
The personal-organizer scanner space on the Mac has been fairly quiet since the departure of the Visioneer PaperPort from the platform (we miss you, guys!), but one of the leading new vendors is coming over to the Mac -- NEAT Receipts for Mac is here at the show and will be shipping later this year. NR's slim scanner and software bundle lets you scan and organize all your paper receipts on your computer, keeping records for expense/business and tax purposes without the clutter and mess.The final pricing and availability for NR Mac isn't published yet, but what I heard at the booth is $180/$80 (with the scanner hardware or software only) shipping in Q2; you can use the software in standalone or watched-folder mode with most other Mac-compatible scanners. If you've got an envelope full of paper records that need the scanning treatment, check it out.
Macworld 2008 is winding down, but our coverage continues
From the entire TUAW team here at Macworld (left to right: Chris, me, Mike, Nik, and Victor) a big thank you to all you TUAW readers and fans out there. Covering Macworld wouldn't be half as much fun if no one read/watched what we did.Just because today is the last day of Macworld Expo, that doesn't mean that today will be the last day of our Macworld coverage. We've got lots more footage 'in the can' that we'll be posting in the coming days.
Show floor video: Panic's Coda provides one-stop Web authoring
We've talked about Coda plenty here, but it was nice to find the Panic crew on the show floor and get a quick overview of Coda's interface and capabilities. If you're looking for a single tool to do web authoring, check out Sandvox, Rapidweaver, and Coda for your needs. Video after the jump.
Show floor video: Likewise Enterprise brings Macs into AD
When your corporate IT department says "Sure, we like the Mac, but we can't manage it through Group Policy, so it's inherently evil," you can offer several alternatives: Centrify, ADmit Mac, and Likewise (formerly Centeris) -- all will provide smooth integration of your Macs into AD and give the central command and control guys the feeling of power they crave. We caught up with Steve from Likewise on the show floor and got a quick walkthrough. Video after the jump.
Show floor video: Tilestack aims to bring HyperCard stacks into the future
Sometimes the most interesting ideas are ones that fall out of favor and come back again years later. Witness Tilestack, a technology preview on the floor at Macworld that allows importing and instant web-enabling of vintage HyperCard stacks, as well as advanced interactive web applications with minimal coding. Check out the video and the Tilestack site for more info (video after the jump).
Show floor video: ecamm networks with iLidz and more
The gentlemen at ecamm networks have a slew of products already in production: iGlasses, Call Recorder, and plenty more. Watch the video for demos of iLidz, iPhone Disk, and an unreleased video hack for the iPhone that's got to be seen to be believed. Video moved into the continuation for faster home page loading.
TUAW Interviews Merlin Mann
Wandering the floor of Macworld you're bound to run into all sorts of folks. As we were taping behind the Apple booth we saw Merlin Mann talking to the Panic guys. He was kind enough to take a moment from his busy (but organized) schedule and talk to us.Also available on: YouTube, Metacafe, DailyMotion, Blip.tv and Crackle
Show floor video: Polar Bear Farm demos iPhone search utility
It takes a pretty strong constitution to exhibit native apps for the iPhone on the Macworld show floor (and probably a fairly hefty bankroll -- booths ain't free), but the Polar Bear Farm guys are up to the challenge. We caught a demo of the Search tool for iPhone, available only for jailbroken phones at the moment but expected to ship for unmodified devices shortly after the SDK becomes public. Check out the video for the details.
