I'm a UC Blog
The waiting will soon be over, first in line are TechNet and MSDN subscribers on August 6th followed by volume license customers on August 7th. Soon the worthwhile wait will be over!
Source: here
Taken from eWeek:
Mozilla is downplaying a reported bug in its Firefox browser. According to Mozilla, initial reports that the vulnerability could be exploited to execute malicious code.
Mozilla is pouring cold water on reports of a severe bug affecting its Firefox browser.
Reports of a new stack overflow vulnerability affecting Firefox surfaced not long after the company released a new version to patch a critical bug in the TraceMonkey JavaScript engine’s JIT (just-in-time) compiler. On Sunday, the SANS Internet Storm Center warned the vulnerability could be exploited by hackers to execute code.
Mozilla, however, contends that is false.
When the kind folks at Audials asked if I would review their radiotracker product I was a bit dubious, but agreed to review it. After spending a bit of time with the software I started asking myself surely this concept is illegal?!?
Reports of the RIAA clamping down on music piracy are rife these days and added vigilance is required when you choose to download music from the Internet. Bittorrent (probably the most popular mechanism) is far from safe or secure (as with all peer to peer file sharing your details are visible for all to see) and with sites like The Pirate Bay going legal or even Usenet in trouble it begs the question; is it really worth pirating in the first place?
Radiotracker brings a new legal concept to the table, a “set it and forget it solution” that rips radio streams intelligently. All you do is set your favourite artist or genre and it clips, cuts, ID3s, etc. leaving you with good quality MP3s that can be loaded onto your favourite generic MP3 player or casually listened to via the inbuilt player.
So now on with the review and remember to stay with me because Audials are giving the first three lucky commenter’s free copies of the platinum edition.
The install was extremely straightforward and completed in under a minute on my Asus netbook running Windows 7 release candidate. The download was 58mb (a touch bloaty I know, but no show stopper) and an easy installer. During the install the PIxie codec pack is added, I am not a big fan of installing unnecessary codec packs but as far as they go this one seems to be fairly unobtrusive and can be uninstalled independently from radiotracker (these codecs are used to capture and transcode the radio streams).
There are three editions of the software, the license key unlocks the functionality without the need for separate installers – I am using the platinum version here and if you wish to upgrade later this can be done at the click of a button (and from what I can gather you only pay the difference, which is fair).
Upon opening the radiotracker application you are presented with the first tabbed window in a set of three (see above). At first the interface threw me a little, but within 5 minutes I found my way. This screen is used to set the stations you intend to rip by genre/taste rather than by artist which is set in the second tab (see below).
At first I added Pink Floyd (a personal favourite) and as I was unsure how long radiotracker would take to start building a collection I continued to add from the automatically compiled radiotracker top 20 artists generated via 16,000+ radio stations (see below).
I was surprised to find that within 10 minutes I was already in possession of six MP3 files spanning all my previously added artists (even Pink Floyd which was not a top 20 artist). The downloaded tracks were automatically ripped with all ID3 tagging added (this is artist/album information read by MP3 players) – even lyrics, album art, etc (see example of Pink Floyd’s Welcome To The Machine below).
After a couple more hours the collection just grew and grew, there is also a set of easy access buttons that allow quick access to MP3 player synchronisation, an alternate media player, CD burning, ringtone creation and the MP3 manager (not available in the platinum version).
The last tab incorporates radio and music finder functionality, but with an emphasis on podcasts.
Pros
Cons
Summary – radiotracker is certainly not a replacement for iTunes, but it does provide the best automated radio ripping money can buy, and at under €30 it is not going to break the bank either. Really good concept and recommended rating of 4/5
Competition – the first three people to answer the following question below (use the comment box and leave an address for me to send the license to) get a free radiotracker platinum license, “What is the name of my favourite band as outlined in this review?”
Kingston Technology has just announced the release of a 256GB USB memory stick, a world first.
256 GB of data, allows you to store:
My bug bear is when do companies like Kingston make encryption mandatory? Carrying this amount of data in your pocket can only lead to a data security breach when it falls into the wrong hands. There is a password that can be set using Kingston’s “Password Traveller”, but from what I can see it makes not mention of drive encryption.
My recommendation would be to download a free copy of TrueCrypt, which provides AES-254 encryption.
Source: here
Reasearch in motion have just announced that Mac BlackBerry users will be able to give PocketMac the boot in September when a version of BlackBerry Desktop Manager for Mac will be released
Taken from RIM website:.
With BlackBerry® Desktop Software you’ll be able sync your iTunes® playlists and personal information like contacts, tasks and appointments; install new software, games, and more. BlackBerry Desktop Software will offer the best of both worlds by allowing you to manage aspects of your BlackBerry® smartphone from your Mac1.
BlackBerry Desktop Software for Mac is coming soon in September. Sign up now to be the first to know when it’s available.
Service Pack 2 for Office 2008 (Mac) is due for release later today, uncharacteristically not only will this bring enhanced reliability and performance but also a number of new features.
Taken from Microsoft PressPass:
Microsoft Corp.’s Macintosh Business Unit (MacBU) released Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac Service Pack 2 (SP2) today — a midcycle free update that is designed to improve the Office 2008 experience where it matters most to customers: speed, stability and compatibility. SP2 delivers highly requested features throughout the suite as well as a new tool, Document Connection for Mac, that helps improve access and browsing to documents on SharePoint Products and Technologies and Microsoft Office Live Workspace. These new improvements and features are part of Microsoft’s long-standing investment in delivering excellent cross-platform collaboration and compatibility for Mac users, and the commitment has paid off. According to a recent study, customers indicate that the ability to share files while ensuring document fidelity between colleagues and friends on Macs and PCs is a top advantage of Office for Mac.1 This customer confidence in Microsoft Office compatibility is the biggest reason why nine out of 10 Office for Mac users would recommend the software to others.
“There’s never been a better time to try Office 2008 for Mac — with SP2 we are not only delivering on top customer requests midcycle, but also taking a first step in bringing Microsoft software plus services to Mac users,” said Mike Tedesco, senior product manager for MacBU at Microsoft. “This connection unlocks the door for Mac users to Microsoft services for easier collaboration and file sharing with colleagues, customers and classmates.”
SP2: Speedier Performance, More Reliable
SP2 provides several updates across the Microsoft Office 2008 suite for an improved experience. The team incorporated customer feedback received through a variety of channels to prioritize updates and maximize the potential of the suite with increased compatibility and speed. Highlights of the release include the following:
| • |
Two new highly requested features in Microsoft PowerPoint 2008 for Mac: |
| • |
Custom Path Animation adds the ability to author motion-path animations. Users previously could only play back motion paths. |
| • |
Default Theme lets users define their default theme, including fonts, color scheme and slide layouts. |
| • |
Increased speed in Microsoft Word 2008 for Mac (launch and scroll times) as well as Microsoft Excel 2008 for Mac with features such as calculation performance. |
File Access — When, Where and How Users Want It
Many MacBU service packs are typically limited to feature updates, but with Office 2008 SP2, the MacBU team is releasing significant new capabilities that extend the collaboration and file-sharing abilities of Microsoft Office users:
| • |
Microsoft Office Live Workspace. Document Connection enables a more seamless experience for Office 2008 users to save and open documents to Microsoft Office Live Workspace from Microsoft Office applications, including Word, Excel and PowerPoint. In addition, the Microsoft Office Live Workspace today announced expanded Mac browser support to include Safari 4 along with existing support for Firefox 2.0 (required for Mac OS X 10.2.x or later). |
| • |
SharePoint. Document Connection also improves the SharePoint experience for Mac users, allowing for easier collaboration within a SharePoint environment by simplifying how users can browse, access and manage files online and offline. |
Customers Can Try Office 2008 for Mac SP2 Today
Customers can download SP2 for free today at 10 a.m. PDT http://www.microsoft.com/mac/downloads.mspx, and it also will be available from Microsoft AutoUpdate. Mac users also can access a full trial version of Office 2008 for free at http://www.microsoft.com/mac/products/Office2008/trial-download.mspx.
Source: here
