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Merriam-Webster's idea of 'sheeple' are Apple fanboys
I'll admit it: I'm an unabashed Apple fanboy. I spent far too much on a Macbook Pro with specs that would cost half as much in the Windows world, I love my pair of ridiculous-looking and easily misplaced AirPods and I may or may not have a box full of old Newtons and Mac 512K parts. There's a term for folks like me, and Merriam-Webster just made it official: "Sheeple." The dictionary's editors just added the term, calling out its sick burn to Apple fans in a tweet.
Apple Newton celebrates 20 years of eating up Martha
History hasn't been particularly kind to the Newton. Apple's early play at the mobile device market has largely been a source of ridicule, considered a low point in the company's catalog. For every suggestion that the device was ahead its time, there are countless "eat up Martha" jokes. It's not hard to see why -- in spite of tenacious commitment on the part of John Sculley and co., the PDA never really took off, a fact blamed, in part, to hardware and software limitations. To mark the 20th anniversary of the device's on-stage debut, Harry McCracken picked a first-gen MessagePad H1000 and some accessories up on eBay, living with the device for six weeks, as part of an attempt to "reconsider" the Newton. So, how does the product hold up in the harsh light of 2012? At the very least, it offered up the opportunity for great shots like the one above.
'What is iPad?' spot deviates little from the days of Newton (video)
It's far from unusual to see Apple ripping off others when it comes to spots, and the same is true in reverse. But copying itself? Head on past the break to catch the similarities between Cupertino's freshest iPad commercial and an eerily familiar Newton ad from yesteryear -- something tells us the former will make a somewhat more indelible mark on the world than the latter, though. [Thanks, Jordan]
Do your planning with a Newton
I'm a huge fan of the Apple Newton, and I've written about it several times here at TUAW. I've also spent time playing with a hipster PDA and the D*I*Y templates. Today I noticed a bit of convergence as dougj at D*I*Y Planner has picked up a Newton 2100 of his own, and is loving it. I won't go into all of the great Newt functionality that I enjoy in this post (look here for some of that), but I do agree with dougj when he says, "The address book and calendar/to-do lists are more than adequate...and the Assistant that correctly interprets 'Remind me to take out the garbage' or 'Lunch with Mary at the club' allows me to manage my time and tasks no matter where I am in any program."Welcome to the club, dougj! I'm sure you'll enjoy your stay.
Found footage: Wireless Newton web server cluster
This one's for the Newton fans out there. Presenting the Newton Wireless web server cluster! The first video is short on details, but the demo speaks for itself. Of course they had to use it to serve pr0n. Silly boys. It runs on four Newton 2100s using NPDS with custom scripts. For round 2, see this clip. Pretty cool!Thanks, Dave!
Share internet between Mac and Newton via Bluetooth
Earlier today I was checking out the new messages in my NewtonTalk mailing list when I came across a very cool how-to penned by Panic's own Steven Frank. Specifically, he described the method he has used to get his Mac (running OS 10.4) to share its internet connection with his Newton message pad over Bluetooth (Newton Bluetooth drivers and specifics here). So, whenever the Newt is within 30 feet or so of the Mac, it's surfing the web, checking email, streaming internet radio, all wirelessly over Bluetooth. Awesome. With his permission, we're able to reprint the tutorial here. Please note, as Steven states, that the tutorial assumes you have several things already in place (like a functioning Bluetooth setup), as getting it to work isn't for the faint-hearted, and if your Newton and/or Mac explode after trying this, well, neither Steven nor TUAW is responsible. That said, on to the goods after the jump.Thanks again, Steven!
Apple Newton takes down the Samsung Q1 UMPC?
'Twas a bloody battle between the cult-classic Apple Newton MessagePad 2000 and the flashy Samsung Q1 UMPC, but in a 10 round bout, the Newton threw two big blows which left the Q1 reeling. The punches started flying on the issues of networking, screen beauty, and application support, where the Q1 stunned the Newton with its high-resolution LCD and Windows-based OS. When it came to usability and synchronization, the two were deemed evenly matched, rendering these two categories a draw. The Newton stole the glory on design, size, and reliability, as CNET UK editors were quite annoyed at the "crashability" of the Q1,and crowned the Newton's OS champion of stability. Although there wasn't a unanimous decision made based on these brawls alone, the Newton pulled out all the stops by landing a mean 30 hours of battery life, while the Q1 waved the white flag at 2.5 hours. To add insult to injury, the Samsung costs well over $1,000 (if you can manage to find one), while the Newton can be acquired for substantially less on the used market. While we realize it may be hard to comprehend that a portable from nearly 10 years ago could best a UMPC, there's no denying that even the most ingenious handheld in the world won't do you much good after the battery craps out, and maybe these results are just the Apple needs needs to make good on all these tablet patents, right Steve?[Via Slashdot]
