The state of the Mac 2003
There's nothing like good news to bring out the gloom-and-doom bunch. Apple's
sales have been good, the new G5 machines seem to be selling well and G4 systems
are being snapped up because of their new lower prices, the iMusic program
is showing promise, and the iPod devices are popular.
So why are the pundits predicting doom for Apple?
All this good news might be too little and too late. Even Apple stalwarts
such as Adobe tend to create applications for the PC first and, only later,
for the Mac. Increasingly, the PC is taking over graphics intensive tasks
that were once almost exclusively Apple's territory.
Don't look for graphic arts professionals to scrap their Macs anytime soon,
though. Because Kaydee starts school this fall with plans to be a graphic
designer, our house has become a 2-Mac house.
And the more I use the Mac (even though the occasions are still rare) the
more I like what I see.
When I fired up the iBook, my intent was to write a review of the latest version
of Suitcase from Extensis, the type manager of choice for the Mac (and
now available in a PC version). Before starting, I checked the Extensis website
to be sure that I had the latest version. There had been a step upgrade,
so
I downloaded it and installed it. While that was happening, "something" noticed
another update -- for StuffIt. So I downloaded that.
When I restarted the computer, the Update Manager told me that it wanted to
download a security patch for Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.2 (sigh
-- that's the latest version available for the Mac), an operating system update
to version
10.2.6, a QuickTime update to 6.2, a Safari update to 1.0, an iMovie
update to 3.0.3, an iPhoto update to 2.0, and an iTunes update to 4.0.1. It
also
told me that I could download and install iPod upgrades (to 1.3 and
then to 2.0.1) but I don't have an iPod.
I told the Update Manager to do what it wanted to do and started writing about
it. The total download was about 170MB, not including the Extensis updates.
Fortunately, I was connected to a LAN instead of a dial-up connection (I still
haven't figured out how to make the iBook use its built-in modem!)
The entire process took about an hour -- the operating system update (85MB)
taking the longest to install. I didn't have to stop working to reboot the
system several time as I would have needed to do for similar updates on a
Windows PC. At the conclusion of all the updates, a restart was required.
Because the underlying operating system is Unix, I thought that even the single
restart might be something I could avoid. Ah, well.
Following the restart, the Update Manager asked me if it could install the
Java update (to 1.4.1), a QuickTime update (to 6.3), two more security updates,
and an iCal update (to 1.0.2). Having nothing else better to do at the time,
I told it to go ahead with downloading and installing another 62MB of updates.
Then another restart and I'm ready to get to work.
Except that now the Update Manager tells me that I should have it download
and install iSync 1.1. I'm beginning to think that somebody at Apple is getting
paid piece-work rates. This application is needed to synchronize the Mac with
Palm or Bluetooth device. I don't sync my Handspring phone with the Mac, but
I decided to have the application installed -- just in case. It's only 6MB.
So the update process was easy and uneventful, the same as the process usually
is for Windows. It also took quite a bit longer than I'd expected. Apple's
attempt to play the "easier" or "different" card today is ill advised. The
operating systems are about equally easy or difficult. Coming from the PC,
I find the Mac generally harder to understand and harder to fix with there's
a problem. Anyone coming to the PC from a Mac will have the opposite perspective.
Once again I won't argue for or against either platform. Find the one you
like and use it.
I've described previously how OS X gives the Mac parity with what's been available
on Windows computers for -- in some cases -- more than 7 years. And I've mentioned
how the initial release of OS X was underwhelming. Today OS X is a powerful
operating system because it's Unix, but the user never needs to see a Unix
command line or to understand why it's not a good idea to type "rm *" when
you're logged in as root.
Both Apple and Microsoft are working on new operating systems. Apple should
have its next version out before Microsoft's is available. This gives Apple
the opportunity to outpace Windows.
Will that make any difference?
Both operating systems are powerful. Both are complex. If you're not a geek,
you probably don't know much about how the OS works -- and that doesn't matter
whether it's Windows or Mac.
There's no overwhelming reason for a Windows user to switch to a Mac, or for
a Mac user to switch to a PC.
So the current stalemate is likely to continue for a while with Apple having
about a 15% to 20% market share and Windows having most of the rest.
Software developers will increasingly develop applications first (or only)
for the PC
and that will put additional pressure on Apple to justify the operating
system.
What Apple needs is a "killer app"
The only thing close to that is video editing. The Mac is clearly superior
in video editing today, but programs on the PC are catching up fast. The window
of opportunity (sorry) is too small for Apple to exploit it.
For long-term health, something will have to happen. Some users are pushing
for OS X on Intel processors. I hope Apple isn't listening. Yes, OS X is Unix.
Yes, Unix runs just fine on Intel processors. And if Apple ports OS X to Intel,
that will be the end of the company.
Apple is a hardware company. The money comes from selling boxes, not software.
If Apple can continue to hold on and position itself so that it can quickly
take advantage of the "next big thing" (whatever it turns out to be) the company
could regain some market share. It's even possible -- dare I say it -- that
Apple could turn the tables on Microsoft.
Not likely, mind you. But stranger things have happened.
See "Tangent, going off on a"
For an article that began as a review of Suitcase, I've made scant mention
of that application. Along the way, I've predicted victory, defeat, and "more
of the same" for Apple. If you make enough predictions, some of them have
to be right.
DILBERT
By Scott Adams
- Panel 1
IS Guy: Well, I upgraded 3 things and I accidentally broke 3 things.
- Panel 2
IS Guy: In I.S. terms, I came out ahead.
Worker: Does my computer work?
- Panel 3
IS Guy: No, but if it did, it would be much faster.
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Now for Suitcase
If you use a Mac and you do anything that involves printing or graphic design,
you probably have more typefaces than you know what to do with. My little
iBook, for example, has more than 1000 faces; my Windows system has something
like 6000.
You need a way to keep track of those files because having more than 500 loaded
is asking for trouble regardless of which operating system you use. For Mac
users, that way has always been "Suitcase" from Extensis. On the PC side,
the most common tool is the one now owned by Bitstream and called Font Navigator.
But Windows users can now choose Suitcase, too.
I haven't yet seen Suitcase on the PC, but I've seen it on the Mac and I understand
why it's popular: It's easy to use and it works. Extensis quickly updated
Suitcase to work with OS X and updated it again to work properly with version
10.2. (The 10.2 operating system update was overall highly positive, but it
did break a few things. Does this sound like Windows?)
A font manager application should help users find the typefaces that are resident
on their computers and make it easy to activate or deactivate those faces.
And that is exactly what Suitcase does.
OS X has a directory for fonts (just like Windows) and any typeface installed
there is automatically activated. Unix and the Apple GUI need several faces
to be installed. Users are advised to just pretend they don't know there's
a fonts directory and not to remove any of the faces needed by the operating
system.
Beyond that, though, typefaces may be installed in any directory on the system.
Suitcase takes care of telling OS X when to use the faces.
The feature I find particularly appealing is the ability to see samples of
several typefaces simultaneously. Applications I've used in the past show
only a single typeface at a time. If you're trying to compare several faces
to determine which is right for the job at hand, the ability to see several
side by side is a real plus.
Let's say you're a designer who's working on a logotype for the Farnsworth
Delco Company. You're not sure what kind of typeface you want. You could
fire up Corel Draw, load a few hundred typefaces, and try various faces until
you
found a few you liked. Or you could open Suitcase, change the "ABC" display
to text that you type, type "FarnsworthDelco Company", and then view various
faces -- adding and deleting until you narrow down the selection.
Once you've narrowed the selection to a dozen or so faces, you could load
them, then start Corel Draw and start experimenting. You can imagine how much
less time and frustration will be involved if you use the second method.
That's just the start. You can create groups of typefaces that you load and
remove manually depending on the project you're working on. You don't have
to remember which typefaces you needed for the Clown Factory project and which
ones you needed for the Crown Factory project. Files saved in several applications
also have the ability to activate automatically typefaces used in a project
if they're not active when you open the file.
And Suitcase has utility applications built in to help you resolve typeface
conflicts, fix corrupt typeface files, and gather typefaces for output if
you send publications to an outside printer or service bureau.
If you spend much time tinkering with typefaces, you'll consider well spent
the $100 you'll spend for Suitcase 10 Mac (or $60 to upgrade from a previous
version).
Anatomy of a fraud: Identity theft alert
Thursday morning I received a message with the subject line "Incoming
funds transfer notification." It seemed that "my friend" Vanessa Bailey (I've
never heard of her) had sent me $164.95. A link was provided for me
to go get the money.
Is this fraud? You tell me.
Let's look at the clues:
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1. As already noted, I've never heard of Vanessa Bailey and, as
far as I know, she doesn't owe me $164.95.
There is also no entry in the "to" field
of the header, clearly indicating that the
message has been sent to many people via
the "bcc" field.
A quick examination of the header reveals that it claimed to have been
mailed at Geocities.com, but actually came from an xo.com dial-up.
Fraudulent or not, it's spam. CLICK THE SMALLER IMAGE TO SEE MORE DETAIL. |
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2. The "claim" URL was too basic: http://send-money-now.biz/. It had
no information to identify a transaction, but (after donning some protective
armor) I followed it. |
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3. The page (without requesting any information from me) said "You
have received payment." It then asked me for a credit card number, address,
expiration date, the security code from the back of
the card, and (dead giveaway here, folks) the PIN associated with the
card. The PIN is private
and should never be given to anyone!
CLICK THE SMALLER IMAGE TO SEE MORE DETAIL. |
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3a. Oh, there was the matter of the typo "tired" for "tied": "ATM PIN-code
tired to this credit/debit card." |
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4. They also asked for my mother's maiden name, my Social Security
Number, and my date of birth. |
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5. The page has numerous other apparent links (Register for Free,
Why use Send Money Now?, Member Center, Frequently Asked Questions,
Security
/ Privacy, Terms of Service, Banners, and Help). And
there are tabbed regions at the top of the page. They are all linked
to a Javascript "void" function
-- so they don't do anything at all. So we have a
website that consists of ONE PAGE and that one page wants every bit
of information necessary
to steal your credit card number and your identity.
The links didn't work and the status bar explained why:
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6. Digging a little further, I ran a whois enquiry on the domain name
and discovered that it had been registered YESTERDAY (Wed Jul 30 16:02:55
GMT 2003) about noon Eastern time. What are the chances that Vanessa
Bailey, who I don't know, might decide to pay me the $164.95 she doesn't
owe me by using a payment system that was established less than 24 hours
ago?
CLICK THE SMALLER IMAGE TO SEE MORE DETAIL. |
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7. The whois entry lists the domain as being registered by someone
in Dallas, Texas, and the website is hosted in Seattle,
but wait ... a look inside at the HTML shows that everything is being
redirected
to KOREA: FRAME SRC="http://www.hnstech.co.kr/images/index.html".
CLICK THE SMALLER IMAGE TO SEE MORE DETAIL. |
What do you think? Would you fill out this form? If you did, you'd better
call your credit card company NOW. I reported the incident to the website host
and to the FBI on Thursday morning (and I'm sure there were others who
did the same). As of Thursday afternoon, the US host of the site had
disabled the site:
But that's not the end of the story. It won't take long for this group to
put up another site. Until Saturday morning, they could have continued
to use their fake site that's still operational in Korea:
On Saturday morning, the Korean site had also been taken down.
Nerdly News
Disposable digital cameras?
This looks like an idea that nobody thought about very long. You can buy a
passable digital camera for $100 and a decent one for $200. At $300, you'll
have a camera that will rival film. What do you get for about $11? If you
go to a Ritz Camera store or a Walgreens store (Wisconsin only for now) you
can buy a disposable digital camera.
No, this isn't the "digital" camera that some companies are selling -- the
ones that come with a roll of film. The camera company processes the film,
scans it, and sends you the results on CD. No, this is a real digital camera
for $12.
It comes with enough memory for 25 2Mpxl images and you can delete the bad
images. Of course, you won't really have a way to see which images are bad
because the camera has no way to show them to you. But if you think the picture
was bad, you can delete it and do it again.
When you've finished with the camera, you send it along for "processing".
Ritz or Walgreen extracts the images, makes a set of 4x6 prints, and sends
you a CD that contains software both both Macs and PCs along with the images.
Before you buy one of these, do the math. If you go through more than 10 rolls
of film in a year, you'll soon pay more for the disposable cameras than you
would pay for a better digital camera. If you own the camera, you won't have
to send it away to have someone else get the pictures out of it. If you're
going to do that, why not film?
More threats of general Internet-based attacks
The Department of Homeland Security and some computer industry experts warn
that a widespread Internet-based attack will target thousands of computers
soon.
Two weeks ago, I described an uncommonly serious flaw that affects nearly
every version of Windows. Microsoft has patches available, but a lot of corporations
don't bother to obtain them.
Last week, I reported the posting -- on a website in China -- precise instructions
for those who want to exploit the bug and this week security experts say it's
likely that a major attack will happen soon.
US government agencies received warnings this week of widespread scanning
and exploitation of computers as crackers develop better automated tools to
exploit the fault.
The Homeland Security Department says it has detected widespread scanning
for computers that could easily be victimized. That has led security experts
to suggest that users apply the free patch from Microsoft -- a patch that
has been on the company's website since July 16.
Let us know what you think about this program! Write to:
Bill Blinn --
(wtvn@blinn.com still works)
Joe Bradley -- |
