RocketRAID now supports boot on Mac Pro, Xserve...

HighPoint Technologies recently announced a new firmware update to the RocketRAID 3522 SATA hardware RAID controller, which will support booting to Mac OS X on Apple Mac Pro and Xserve models released from (2006 through 2008). The RocketRAID 3522 is a PCI-Express x8 external hardware RAID controller with Intel IOP 341 (800MHz) RAID engine and will support up to 8 SATA hard drives.

iPhone user crafts recycled car holder...

iPhone enthusiast Bernat Alsina decided to construct an iPhone Car Mounting Bracket using a couple household items, giving him the ability to mount his iPhone or iPod Touch right on the dashboard of the car for easy access while driving. In seven somewhat simple steps Bernat takes a hodgepodge of plastic, velcro, and glue and turns it into something useful. This is not an idea that has never been seen before but the simplicity of the creator's Spanish/broken English step-by-step walkthrough and the low cost factor (recyclable materials) helps his mounting kit to stand out.

Feral ships Battlestations: Midway June 27...

Feral Interactive today announced that Friday, June 27th would be the release date for Battlestations: Midway, Eidos' action strategy game for the Mac. Created by Eidos Studios Hungary, the game invites you to take command of the greatest battles of the Pacific theatre. Players will experience every aspect of combat in a unique blend of action and strategy as they lead a host of US and Allied air, sea and underwater units through intense, action-packed missions in hotspots from Pearl Harbor to the Battle of Midway itself.

C.E.O. Envi sleeve covers MacBook Air in leather...

Marware on Thursday unveiled the C.E.O. Envi, a new high-fashion leather sleeve case for the MacBook Air that protects the ultraportable with a soft interior lining. The sleeve fastens itself shut with a magnetic latch, and wraps the Air in high-quality black leather. The Envi can fit into an existing laptop bag or case, doubling the protection that the sleeve would offer. Marware is currently shipping the C.E.O. Envi, with a price of $90, and is available from the company's website or select retailers.

NI ships KONTAKT Retro Machines library...

Native Instruments has released a new addition to its line of Soundpack libraries for KORE 2 and KORE Player, KONTAKT Retro Machines. The library emulates a number of classic electronic instruments invented in the 1970s and '80s, used in genres such as electro and hip-hop; five digital synths, 11 analog synths and six drum machines are reproduced, across 135 KoreSounds. Each instrument sound also has eight variations, such as pad, percussive and arpeggiated sounds.

Singapore Airlines offers iPod, iPhone integration...

iPods and iPhones are now supported on some flights out of the US, Singapore Airlines has announced. The company says that beginning today, business-class, non-stop A345 flights from Newark to Singapore will offer special 30-to-9-pin adapter cables to go along with its KrisWorld in-flight entertainment technology. This will allow passengers to not only listen to music through KrisWorld, but watch video on a larger LCD, and power their players at the same time.

T-Mobile: 100,000+ iPhones sold in Germany...

T-Mobile has sold over 100,000 iPhones in Germany, according to the head of the carrier's parent company, Deutsche Telekom. CEO Rene Obermann made the statement Thursday as a follow-up to statistics from January, which indicated that it had sold 70,000 iPhones since the device's local debut in early November of 2007. While the figure points to a relative slowdown in sales, T-Mobile board member Hamid Akhavan says that this is "about in line" with corporate targets.

Compass 1.0 organizes, archives email...

Hendrickson Software this week released Compass 1.0, an automated email archiving and viewing tool. Available for Windows, Macintosh (Universal Binary), and Linux, the company claims that Compass works with virtually every email client and that future versions will archive and view Office documents, PDF files, and more. The software offers selective, automated email archiving with Purify, or AppleScripts and the ability to define Compass message stores for email messages grouping using criteria such as "from" address or user defined phrases. Users can also preview HTML and attachments using the built-in email browser and quickly backup the archive with a click of the button.

PulpMotion Advanced 1.0: slideshows based on themes...

Aquafadas has released PulpMotion Advanced 1.0, a next generation slideshow and animation application that creates slideshows based on highly customizable themes. The software allows users to present pictures as well as video in a single animation that can be shared as video, screensaver or executable player. The Advanced version ships with a rich and extensible set of themes, enabling users to simply drag and drop preferred photos or movies, customize the music selection, and apply a visual theme from the PulpMotion slideshow themes menu, It also offers a new way to browse media: users can navigate through standard media repositories, such as iPhoto, Aperture, Lightroom using a full screen mode, while a convenient timeline shows the date and also allows users to select a date range.

Apple files patent for custom iPhone merchant apps...

The iPhone and iPod touch may eventually have custom applications tailored to merchants they visit, a published Apple patent filing hints. As detailed by AppleInsider, the proposed concept calls for a local wired or wireless network at a business, with one or more routers such as an AirPort Extreme. Somewhere on site would be a central server, offering custom information and applications for Apple "media devices" that enter wireless range. "For example, assuming the establishment is a restaurant, local server may provide a menu to media device," the filing reads.

Apps: AliasKeys, Dejumble, Media Catalog

• AliasKeys 1.2 ($15) can assign keystrokes to open files and folders. Any item that the Finder can open may be dragged to the list of AliasKeys and assigned a combination of keys, to open it without touching mouse. It can be used for applications, documents, folders, aliases, preference panels, servers, scripts, Internet bookmarks, and more. The free upgrade, now a Universal Binary, requires Mac OS X 10.4 and brings full compatibility with Mac OS X 10.5 “Leopard.” [Download - 1.5MB]


• Dejumble 1.1 ($20) updates the task management utility for Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard, offering a simple way to create and organize tasks. Via the menubar, users can create tasks with due dates and notes: Dejumble syncs with iCal, and offers keyword tagging along with categorization, enabling users to search by title or keyword tags. Version 1.1 can now view daily events from iCal, offers additional filter and sorting options, can colorize groups, and more. [Download - 2.3MB]


• Speed Download 5.0.3 ($25) is an update to the download manager designed as a central, unified hub for almost all downloading and file transfer activities. Version 5.0.3 includes key improvements, including an updated SD plugin for better performance and for locating the Speed Download application; the ability to download YouTube videos via contextual menu; new Portuguese localization; and more. It is available US English, French, Polish and requires Mac OS X 10.4.11 or later. [Download - 7.9MB]


• CutX Content Filter 4.5b1 (450) is a beta of the extended site blocking plugin designed for Apple's Safari web browser that can block any website using keyword or domains lists. The extension adds a menu to the web browser with various new options. CutX includes a password protection mode so that other computer users can not modify the list of rules and can be automatically enabled for all computer users. It is compatible with all versions of Safari. [Download - 4.4MB]


• Media Catalog 3.9 ($25) is a media indexing application that catalogs all your removable media such as archive CDs, DVDs and removable hard drives; the company claims that the software is 264 percent faster than other media indexers; version 3.9 offers improved keyboard behavior, leverages a streamlined indexing procedure, and offers the ability to exclude words during the "quick-search". Unregistered users can catalog up to 10 volumes. [Download - 1.7MB]

Apple rated among top 'gay-friendly' companies...

Apple is considered to be one of the most gay-friendly brands on the market, according to a study conducted on behalf of ad agency Prime Access and media company PlanetOut. The survey polled 2,259 people aged 18 to 64, divided between 1,502 in the general public and 757 gays and lesbians; Apple ranked second in the survey, with 23 percent of the general population and 39 percent of the gay/lesbian group calling the company "strongly" gay-friendly.

Apple's success due to solid infrastructure...

Some in the industry attribute Apple's recent success with luck or happenstance, while others believe that the company's meticulously laid plans have contributed to the Mac state of mind. Inside CRM reports that Apple's retail stores are a shining example of this, cutting out the oft-uninformed middle man to speak directly to the consumer, allowing it to dispel rumors based on inexperience with the platform. It also provides a face-to-face customer basis, rather than relying on third party retailers.