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Filed under: OS, Software Update, Developer

The third major update to Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard is getting closer to appearing in Software Update. A new beta of Mac OS X 10.6.3 (build 10D538) was released to a limited number of Apple developers last Friday.

The Friday beta includes an update to QuickTime X that enhances reliability, security, and compatibility. The release also provides performance-enhancing tweaks for Apple’s 64-bit Logic Pro audio suite, better compatibility with a host of printers, and applications that use OpenGL.

Apple is asking developers to evaluate other core system components in their testing, including VoiceOver, AirPort, and graphics drivers. There’s a known issue with the beta when viewing photo albums using Front Row, but the approximately 670 MB release should arrive for the rest of us within the next six weeks.

Although past performance is not necessarily an indicator of future releases, both 10.4.3 and 10.5.3 were released about 110 days after the earlier versions. That would put the release of 10.6.3 near the end of February, 2010.

[via AppleInsider]

TUAWMac OS X 10.6.3 out to devs originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 25 Jan 2010 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: iPod Family, Odds and ends, Other Events, Developer, iPhone, App Store, SDK

When iTunes Connect returned after its Christmas break, developers noticed that things had changed quite a bit on the App Store approval front. Applications that had formerly taken ten to fourteen days to work through review were now getting processed in a couple of days or less. The upshot? Happier developers, better bug releases for users, and a healthier App Store ecosystem.

There’s another consequence of the new, speedier approvals: the tablet. With the device due to ship March/April (late Q1, early Q2), and no announced 4.0 SDK, developers were left wondering how they’d have the time to bring their software up to date. Under the old review process even a single procedural rejection, which are quite common for small GUI details, would have exhausted nearly all of February in non-productive “wait mode”.

With the enhanced review system in place, it’s likely that developers will be able to spend those extra weeks refactoring their software, allowing it to ship in a timely fashion once the actual device appears on-scene. Apple is expected to push their SDK to developers within two weeks of their late January product announcement, probably by 15 February. Assuming a 2 April product launch, that leaves nearly six weeks to update and test software.

Not that developers are waiting. Many devs are already working on resolution independent versions of their applications. They are tasking their designers to re-imagine screens, to test hand-held cardboard prototypes, and otherwise start the process of scaling their products to new dimensions.

It should be noted that some of the App Store heavyweights have suddenly become quite tight-lipped in recent days, refusing to talk in any specifics about how their upgrade process is proceeding. The rest of us will have to get by on guess work, at least until the product announcement at the end of this month.

Without specific leaks regarding hardware changes (for example, will there really be a front facing video camera? and if so, will expanded Image Picker/Media Player classes support access?), it’s hard to pin down exactly what new features can be leveraged in third party software. But it’s a fairly safe bet that nearly all features available on the current iPod touch line will be in play on the new tablet. And that alone is enough to hedge some safe business bets about pushing forward with large screen development.

It’s still too early for most of us to start playing — those tight-lipped folk have a bit of the wild “Apple will kill me if I speak” look around their eyes — but it’s not too early to begin planning and working. Even without specifics, there are ways to move forward on the development front. Carpe diem. There’s not much time left before the yet-unannounced tablet ships.

TUAWApp Store approvals and the tablet: why it matters originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 12 Jan 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The American Astronomical Society is holding its annual meeting (the 215th!) this week, and the team behind NASA’s Kepler probe has used the opportunity to announce the first discoveries for the new probe. The first and easiest planets to spot are the so-called “hot Jupiters,” massive planets that orbit close to their host stars. And Kepler has indeed spotted them—five in all—in just the first six weeks of data. The probe is budgeted for over two years’ worth of observations, and may be extended beyond that, which should provide some hint of its potential.

The super-Jupiters have (with a stunning lack of creativity) been named Kepler 4b, 5b, 6b, 7b, and 8b. The existence of these five have been confirmed using ground-based observatories, while Keplers 1-3 represent known planets that were used to test the instrument and analysis pipeline .

Kepler spots planets by watching for the decrease in light that occurs as they partially eclipse their host stars. All of the new planets have orbital periods of less than five days, which means Kepler had the chance to spot several of these events during the six weeks of data gathering. The short orbital periods also mean that the planets were very close to their host stars, meaning surface temperatures in excess of 2,000°C.

With more time, Kepler should be able to observe transits by planets that are a bit further from their host stars, meaning cooler surfaces, perhaps extending out into the habitable zone. It’s also likely that smaller signals, originating from lighter planets, will become apparent once signals from multiple transits are combined in the analysis pipeline. NASA’s Jon Morse felt these discoveries were inevitable, stating, “It’s only a matter of time before more Kepler observations lead to smaller planets with longer period orbits, coming closer and closer to the discovery of the first Earth analog.”

What is a “Brief” post?”

Windows: Windows 7’s only been out for six weeks, but that doesn’t mean you haven’t experienced the occasional crash. Previously mentioned utility WhoCrashed has updated with Windows 7 support, giving you detailed information on what exactly caused your computer to go down.

(Note on the screenshot above—luckily my Windows 7 installation is still crash-free!)

Generally, when your computer crashes, your best hope of figuring out what went wrong (and thus preventing future crashes) usually hinges on sifting through complex log files. WhoCrashed aims to make this process easier by summarizing what happened when your computer went down, including specific information on exactly what piece of hardware, software, or driver caused the crash.

We’ve featured WhoCrashed before, but it’s been updated to 2.0, complete with full Windows 7 support (both 32 and 64-bit). So whether you’ve been having issues since the big upgrade or you just want to know what’s causing your XP installation to hiccup, this app’s a handy tool to have when you want to get to the bottom of things.

WhoCrashed is a free download, Windows only.

Reid Hoffman, the founder and chairman of popular professional networking site LinkedIn, is joining venture firm Greylock Partners as an investing partner. The firm also announced today that it has raised a $575 million fund, its thirteenth.

Both Hoffman and Greylock partner David Sze said Hoffman’s new position at Greylock shouldn’t affect his work at LinkedIn — after all, Jeff Weiner took over as CEO in June, with Hoffman scaling back his role to chairman. Hoffman has also been a prolific angel investor during the last few years (he said he made 85 investments in the last six years), having backed Digg, Facebook, Flickr, Zynga, and others.

“I definitely wear too many hats,” Hoffman said. “[Greylock and I] both wanted to make sure we had good, aligned interests. My interest was that I would continue to be massively focused on LinkedIn, and their interest was that I would help provide intelligence on the consumer Internet.”

More concretely, Hoffman said he plans to maintain the same level of involvement in LinkedIn, while shifting the time he spends on angel investing to Greylock. Sze pointed to Greylock partner Aneel Bhusri, who also serves as co-CEO at Workday, as a demonstration that these time-splitting arrangements can work.

As for the new fund, Sze said Greylock has been raising its money from the same partners for several decades, so it didn’t have much trouble signing them up for the current fund — the process only took about four to six weeks, and Greylock XIII is about the same size as Greylock’s past funds. Despite the general decline in money raised by venture funds, Sze said the top-tier VCs are still able to get the money they need. It’s the less-established VCs that are having trouble.

“We’re seeing a flight to quality at all levels — for LPs, VCs, and entrepreneurs,” he said.

As for how Greylock plans to invest the new money, Sze said the firm will continue the path it has been following for the past few years — it will remain focused on early-stage investments, but will also branch out into later-stage deals, if the company is particularly promising.

Greylock’s portfolio currently includes Digg, Facebook, Cloudera, and oh yeah, LinkedIn.

Redmond today sent out an e-mail to participants of the Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 Beta Program telling those who opted in to getting a free boxed copy of Windows 7 will see it delivered in the next four to six weeks. Microsoft also noted that it would not be providing tracking numbers for its testers. The software giant closed the beta program in July 2009, after the two operating systems had hit the RTM milestone. The company is still tying up loose ends though.

DIY virtual reality goggles, Windows 7 in dominoes, and a worst-case scenario for net neutrality.

• DIY virtual reality glasses
  Most of us don’t have augmented reality devices or similar tools, but these DIY VR goggles seem like a fun way to put yours to use if you do. [Make]
• Windows 7 Loads Faster Than 7000 Dominoes
  Video of a Windows 7 launch celebration in India. Love dominoes. [Gizmodo]
• Net Neutrality: Worst Case Scenario
  It’s not an inevitability, but let’s say net neutrality doesn’t work out and ISPs can dish out net access as they please. This graphic offers a worst-case look at what could happen. [Reddit
• Los Angeles adopts Google e-mail system for 30,000 city employees
  The City of Los Angeles has adopted Google Apps for roughly 30,000 city employees. Yowza. [LATimes]
• Free Windows 7 copies for testers on the way
  If you participated in the Windows 7 beta program in return for a free copy of Microsoft’s new OS—but wanted the physical copy—it should be out to you sometime next four to six weeks. [Ars Technica]
• Apple predicted to sacrifice ’sweetheart’ AT&T deal for Verizon
  Everyone wants to get their devices on Verizon’s giant network, and analysts think Apple will break its exclusive blood pact with AT&T sometime next year. [AppleInsider]
• Garmin Ltd. – Google Finance
  GPS navigation company Garmin saw stocks tank after Google announced its slick turn-by-turn GPS app this today. [Google Finance]

We’ve already explained why the push-up belongs in your fitness routine, but if you’ve grown weary of the standard method, weblog Art of Manliness rounds up “the ultimate push-up guide” with 35 variations on the classic, including “The Hindu”.

Concerning “The Hindu” push-up, Art of Manliness says the technique has been used for centuries and “consists of a dynamic full body movement that will build strength and flexibility in your chest, shoulders, back, hips, and triceps.”

Watch the above video to see the method in action. Two things to keep in mind when applying this technique:

• Make sure to get a good stretch in your back.
• The first time you perform a Hindu Push-up you might find yourself falling on your face during the initial descent.

If you’re looking to give your muscles even more of a workout, try “The Dive Bomber” push-up, which is performed exactly like The Hindu, except upon returning to the starting position, “you follow the same swooping motion you make on the descent in reverse”.

A third variation is “The Tiger,” which combines The Hindu and Dive Bomber. The Tiger focuses on your triceps and, if positioned properly, should look like an upside down V.

Browse the full post for the entire list of push-up variations—complete with videos—and if you’re looking for a push-up plan, check out previously mentioned One Hundred Push-Ups for details on how to go from 0 to 100 push-ups in a matter of six weeks. Still prefer doing crunches over push-ups? Here’s why you should switch gears and ditch the crunches now.