New “Numbers” Spreadsheet Added

CUPERTINO, California—August 7, 2007—Apple® today introduced iWork™ ’08, a significant upgrade to Apple’s productivity software suite featuring new versions of Pages® and Keynote word processing and presentation applications, and introducing an innovative new spreadsheet application called “Numbers.” Numbers introduces the concept of intelligent tables on a flexible canvas, a new approach that makes it easy to organize information, create calculations, analyze results and make spreadsheets look as great as they work. Pages ’08 now features distinct modes for streamlined word processing and flexible page layout, a new contextual format bar and change tracking, and Keynote ’08 now includes text effects, transitions and themes that help users easily compose spectacular presentations, and Smart Builds with easy-to-set-up A-to-B animations that make impressive animations easy for anyone to create.

“Pages and Keynote make it incredibly easy, and even fun, for anyone to create stylish documents and presentations very quickly,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “Numbers rounds out the iWork suite, which is far more intuitive and easy to use than anything else out there.”

Numbers ’08 is a new approach to spreadsheets that allows people to organize their information, interact with their data and calculations and make their spreadsheets easy to understand and print. With multiple intelligent tables on a flexible graphics canvas, users can rearrange information, resize and add columns—all without breaking their spreadsheet. Each table is a full-blown spreadsheet with automatic header and footer rows, easy sorting and filtering, and automatic cell naming so creating, reading and maintaining formulas is easy. Common functions can be dragged to any cell, and a total of 150 functions are available spanning a wide range of calculations, including numeric, date and time, financial and statistical. Interactive checkboxes and sliders let users change cell values easily to explore different scenarios and see their results instantly. Users can create stunning 2D and 3D charts that are automatically updated as data changes, then complement them with rich graphics, photos and text labels. Interactive printing makes it easy to fit a document on a single page or rearrange and resize tables and objects across multiple pages.

Pages ’08 now has two distinct modes: streamlined word processing that makes it easy to create stunning documents in seconds; and flexible page layout, which gives users complete control over the position of objects on the page. Pages includes 140 Apple-designed templates that let users easily create letters, reports, newsletters and brochures. A new contextual format bar gives users the exact set of tools they need at their fingertips whether they’re editing text, creating a table or adjusting an image. Change tracking lets users collaborate with others on a document by displaying each person’s edits in different colors, then accept or reject each proposed change.

Keynote ’08, Apple’s industry-leading application for creating cinema-quality presentations, introduces new Smart Builds to make it easy for anyone to create spectacular animations by simply dropping graphics onto a slide. More advanced users can control every aspect of their animations with new A-to-B animations to define movement, rotation, scaling and opacity. Keynote’s new Instant Alpha feature makes it easy to remove unwanted backgrounds from photos and graphics without needing a graphics department. Users can record their presentations along with a voice-over, then deliver them to audiences in person or over the Internet via podcasting or YouTube. The new Keynote also includes a collection of new text effects, transitions and themes.

iWork ’08 can import Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel and AppleWorks® word processing, presentation and spreadsheet files, and can export documents in Microsoft Office file formats or PDFs for easy sharing.

Pricing & Availability
iWork ’08 is now available through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers for a suggested retail price of $79 (US). A 30-day iWork ’08 trial will be available on new hardware and with copies of iLife® ’08 sold at retail. After 30 days, the trial becomes an iWork ’08 player. iWork ’08 requires Mac OS® X version 10.4.10 or later, a Macintosh® computer with a 500 MHz or faster PowerPC G4, PowerPC G5 or Intel processor, 512MB of RAM (1GB recommended), 32MB of video RAM, QuickTime® 7.2 or later and 1GB of available disk space. iLife ’08 is recommended.

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Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning computers, OS X operating system and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital media revolution with its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store, and has entered the mobile phone market this year with its revolutionary iPhone.

From Apple Hot News

Major New Versions of iPhoto & iMovie

CUPERTINO, California—August 7, 2007—Apple® today introduced iLife® ’08, the most significant upgrade ever to Apple’s award-winning suite of digital lifestyle applications, featuring a major new version of iPhoto® and a completely reinvented iMovie®. iPhoto ’08 automatically organizes photo libraries into Events that let users more easily manage their growing photo collections, and iMovie ’08 introduces an entirely new way for users to quickly make movies and share them online. Both iPhoto and iMovie integrate seamlessly with the new .Mac Web Gallery, Apple’s new service for .Mac members to instantly create and host stunning online websites for their photos and videos. iLife ’08 also features iWeb™ ’08, with live web widgets such as Google Maps that let users create even more dynamic websites, and GarageBand™ ’08, with its new Magic GarageBand feature that makes it fun and easy for both musicians and non-musicians to create great sounding songs.

“Apple has taken iLife ’08 to a new level that is years ahead of anything available for the PC,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “We think iLife ’08 gives Mac users even more reasons to love their Macs, and PC users even more reasons to switch.”

iPhoto ’08 automatically groups all photos into Events, each containing a day’s worth of photos represented by a single picture. Users can simply move their mouse over an Event to instantly “skim” through all its photos. Users can split a single day’s event into multiple events, such as a birthday party in the morning and a wedding in the evening, or merge events on multiple days into a single event, such as a weekend ski vacation. Users can hide photos they don’t want to see every day but don’t want to throw away, and a unified search allows users to instantly find all their photos across all Events by rating, date and keywords. Users can produce frame-worthy prints on a home printer with new Apple-designed photo themes, and order keepsake books with customizable dust jackets and professional quality hardcovers with elegant foil printing, new spiral-bound softcover books that can be laid flat for easy viewing, or new larger wall calendars.

With iMovie ’08, Apple’s movie-making software has been completely reinvented to let users rediscover and enjoy their video library, make movies in minutes instead of hours, and share their movies with family, friends or the entire world in a snap. iMovie ’08 can import video from the latest AVCHD, HDV and DV camcorders, as well as from digital cameras, and displays a user’s entire video library whether it’s stored on internal or external drives. Users can preview any of their video clips by simply moving their mouse over the clip to “skim” through it forward or backward at any speed, including faster than real time. Users can select video as easily as selecting text, make a movie by simply dragging the selected video into a project, then easily add a soundtrack from iTunes®, voiceovers, and elegant effects and cinematic titles. iMovie ’08 makes it as easy as a few clicks to enjoy your movies on an iPod®, iPhone™ or Apple TV®, or share with the entire world on YouTube.

For .Mac members, Apple is also introducing the stunning .Mac Web Gallery. .Mac Web Gallery is fully integrated with iPhoto ’08 and iMovie ’08, letting users share their photos and movies on the web with just a few clicks. .Mac Web Gallery automatically builds a website containing photo galleries and movies that can be viewed on any modern computer or iPhone. Photos can be downloaded to print at sizes up to 16×20, and movies can be viewed at higher-than-DVD resolution.

iWeb ’08 offers new features to make websites more interactive by adding live web widgets such as Google Maps, targeted ads using Google AdSense and photos or movies from .Mac Web Galleries. Users can also add Internet video, news headlines, weather and more from any site that supports HTML snippets. A new “My Album” page template lets users easily organize photo albums and videos into one simple index web page. The new iWeb includes a range of beautiful new Apple-designed themes that users can change at any time to experiment with different web page designs, even after their site has been published. With a .Mac membership, users can also now host iWeb websites using their own personal domains.

GarageBand ’08 introduces Magic GarageBand, an easy and fun way for musicians and non-musicians alike to create a song. Users can pick from nine musical genres and interact with a band of “players” on a virtual stage by selecting an instrument and musical part for each player to create thousands of possible song combinations. Users can play along with a built-in software instrument or record their voice to sing along to their own music. The new GarageBand also offers powerful new features for more advanced musicians, including multi-take recording to capture the best performance, arrangements to cut, copy and paste intros, verses and choruses, and support for 24-bit audio interfaces.

Pricing & Availability
iLife ’08 is now available for a suggested retail price of $79 (US) through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers. The iLife ’08 suite of applications will be included with all new Macs beginning today. .Mac is available as a subscription-based service for $99.95 (US) per year for individuals and $179.95 (US) for a Family Pack which includes one master account and four sub accounts. Anyone can sign up for a free, 60-day .Mac trial from www.mac.com.*

iLife ’08 requires Mac OS® X version 10.4.9 or later, a Macintosh® computer with an Intel processor, a PowerPC G5 or PowerPC G4, QuickTime® 7.2 or later, a DVD drive for installation and 3GB of available disk space. iPhoto print services are available in the US, Canada, Japan and select European countries. A .Mac account is recommended for iWeb. Full system requirements and more information on iLife ’08 can be found at www.apple.com/ilife.

*The .Mac service is available to persons aged 13 and older. Annual membership fee and Internet access required. Terms and conditions apply.

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Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning computers, OS X operating system and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital media revolution with its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store, and has entered the mobile phone market this year with its revolutionary iPhone.

From Apple Hot News

All New Line Features Sleek Aluminum 20- and 24-inch Designs

CUPERTINO, California—August 7, 2007—Apple® today unveiled an all new all-in-one iMac® line featuring gorgeous 20- and 24-inch widescreen displays encased in elegant and professional aluminum and glass enclosures. The entire new iMac line features the latest Intel Core 2 Duo processors and a new, ultra-thin aluminum Apple Keyboard, built-in iSight® video camera for video conferencing and iLife® ’08, making it the ultimate digital lifestyle desktop computer for both consumers and professionals. The 20-inch iMac now starts at just $1,199, $300 less than the previous 20-inch model, and the 24-inch iMac starts at just $1,799, $200 less than the previous 24-inch model.

“This new iMac is the most incredible desktop computer we’ve ever made,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “Our new design features the innovative use of materials, including professional-grade aluminum and glass, that are highly recyclable.”

Redefining Apple’s signature all-in-one design, the new iMac integrates the entire computer system into a sleek, professional aluminum enclosure for a striking, clutter-free desktop. An elegant glass cover joins precisely to the aluminum enclosure creating a virtually seamless front surface. The new iMac’s 20- and 24-inch glossy widescreen displays provide incredibly crisp images, ideal for photos and movies using the all new iLife ’08 suite of digital lifestyle applications that are included. The new ultra-thin aluminum Apple Keyboard is just 0.33 inches thin at its front edge. A new optional Apple Wireless Keyboard is a compact design that, with Apple’s wireless Mighty Mouse, offers a cable-free desktop.

Packing professional performance into the convenience of an all-in-one design, the new iMac includes the latest Intel Core 2 Duo processors running up to 2.8 GHz with 4MB of shared L2 cache and up to 4GB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM memory. The iMac line features ATI’s next generation of graphics with the ATI Radeon HD 2600 PRO with 256MB of GDDR3 memory and the ATI Radeon HD 2400 XT with 128MB of GDDR3 memory. The new iMac now offers up to 1TB of internal storage to accommodate a user’s growing library of digital photos, movies and music.

Providing the latest in high-performance connectivity options to quickly and conveniently transfer digital photos, music and video, the iMac includes built-in AirPort Extreme® 802.11n Wi-Fi networking, delivering up to five times the performance and twice the range of 802.11g;* Gigabit Ethernet; a total of five USB 2.0 ports (including two on the new Apple Keyboard); and one FireWire® 400 and one FireWire 800 port.

The new iMac, with its stunning design, features highly recyclable and durable materials including scratch-resistant glass and professional grade aluminum. The power-efficient iMac also meets the stringent new Energy Star 4.0 requirements.

Every iMac also includes iLife ’08, the most significant update ever to Apple’s award-winning suite of digital lifestyle applications, featuring a major new version of iPhoto® and a completely reinvented iMovie®, both seamlessly integrated with the new .Mac Web Gallery for online photo and video sharing. The new iMac also comes with the world’s most advanced operating system, Mac OS® X version 10.4.10 Tiger, including Safari™, Mail, iCal®, iChat AV, Front Row and Photo Booth.

Pricing & Availability
The new iMac line is available immediately through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers. The new Apple Wireless Keyboard will ship by the end of August and will be available as a build-to-order option with the new iMac through the Apple Store (www.apple.com) for a suggested retail price of $30 (US), or $50 (US) when purchased along with the wireless Mighty Mouse, and as a standalone purchase for a suggested retail price of $79 (US) through the Apple Store (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers.

The new 20-inch 2.0 GHz iMac, for a suggested retail price of $1,199 (US), includes:

• 20-inch widescreen LCD display;
• 2.0 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor;
• 1GB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM expandable to 4GB;
• a slot-load 8x SuperDrive® with double-layer support (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW);
• ATI Radeon HD 2400 XT with 128MB GDDR3 memory;
• built-in iSight video camera;
• built-in AirPort Extreme 802.11n wireless networking & Bluetooth 2.0+EDR;
• 250GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 7200 rpm;
• mini-DVI out (adapters for DVI, VGA and Composite/S-Video sold separately);
• built-in stereo speakers and microphone; and
• the new Apple Keyboard, Mighty Mouse and infrared Apple Remote.

The new 20-inch 2.4 GHz iMac, for a suggested retail price of $1,499 (US), includes:

• 20-inch widescreen LCD display;
• 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor;
• 1GB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM expandable to 4GB;
• a slot-load 8x SuperDrive with double-layer support (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW);
• ATI Radeon HD 2600 PRO with 256MB GDDR3 memory;
• built-in iSight video camera;
• built-in AirPort Extreme 802.11n wireless networking & Bluetooth 2.0+EDR;
• 320GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 7200 rpm;
• mini-DVI out (adapters for DVI, VGA and Composite/S-Video sold separately);
• built-in stereo speakers and microphone; and
• the new Apple Keyboard, Mighty Mouse and infrared Apple Remote.

The new 24-inch 2.4 GHz iMac, for a suggested retail price of $1,799 (US), includes:

• 24-inch widescreen LCD display;
• 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor;
• 1GB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM expandable to 4GB;
• a slot-load 8x SuperDrive with double-layer support (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW);
• ATI Radeon HD 2600 PRO with 256MB GDDR3 memory;
• built-in iSight video camera;
• built-in AirPort Extreme 802.11n wireless networking & Bluetooth 2.0+EDR;
• 320GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 7200 rpm;
• mini-DVI out (adapters for DVI, VGA and Composite/S-Video sold separately);
• built-in stereo speakers and microphone; and
• the new Apple Keyboard, Mighty Mouse and infrared Apple Remote.

Build-to-order options and accessories include: a 2.8 GHz Intel Core 2 Extreme processor, up to 4GB DDR2 SDRAM and up to a 1TB Serial ATA hard drive on the 24-inch iMac; up to 4GB DDR2 SDRAM and up to 750GB Serial ATA hard drive on the 2.4 GHz 20-inch iMac; and up to 4GB of DDR2 SDRAM and up to 500GB Serial ATA hard drive on the 2.0 GHz 20-inch iMac. Additional options include: new Apple Wireless Keyboard and wireless Mighty Mouse; AirPort Express® and AirPort Extreme Base Station (now with Gigabit Ethernet); the AppleCare Protection Plan; and pre-installed copies of iWork™ ’08, Logic® Express 7, Final Cut® Express HD 3.5 and Aperture 1.5.

*AirPort Extreme is based on an IEEE 802.11n draft specification. Actual performance will vary based on range, connection rate, site conditions, size of network and other factors. iChat AV and video-conferencing require broadband Internet connection; fees may apply.

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Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning computers, OS X operating system and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital media revolution with its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store, and has entered the mobile phone market this year with its revolutionary iPhone.

From Apple Hot News

This is  a video from PodTech. I hope you enjoy it!

[podtech content=http://media1.podtech.net/media/2007/08/PID_012145/Podtech_The_New_Imac_Larry_Magid.flv&postURL=http://www.podtech.net/home/3802/apples-new-imacs-and-ilife&totalTime=68000&breadcrumb=61b309542735443aa5b8c0daba9f76df]

With less than 24 hours to go before Apple is scheduled to host a Mac-related media event on its campus, several small tidbits regarding new iMac pricing and the fate of the Mac mini have surfaced.

New iMacs

According to one source, Apple has issued to suppliers three new iMac price points for models that are expected to be immediately available following their introduction on Tuesday.

Apple currently offers two 17-inch iMac configurations (for $999 and $1199, respectively), a 20-inch configuration for $1499, and a high-end 24-inch configuration for $1999. However, the new pricing information suggest Apple will drop one configuration and sell just three models at $1199, $1499 and $1799.

Mac mini rumors

Meanwhile, there are unconfirmed last minute reports that Apple may extend the life of the Mac mini by squeezing another slight revision from the petite desktop’s existing architecture.

According to those reports, such a move would be accompanied by significant price drops that would allow the forgotten Mac to linger for several more months as an extremely low cost, low performance offering.

iLife

Finally, there are also rumblings that a new version of iLife will indeed see some attention on Tuesday (possibly encompassing a new version of iWork to form a more compelling solution).

As with all last-minute rumors, AppleInsider recommends taking this information with a grain of salt and waiting out the last few hours to hear the official word from Apple.

From Apple Insider

If you have ever heard of http://www.open-soft.org, you might like this post. Ever since my BIG interview with Robert Scoble on the Scoble Show, I have gotten a lot of attention for people, as you might think. One of them happen to be Thomas Garwood from OpenSoft.

Opensoft is a technology site that specializes in freeware and open source software reviews. Anyone can sign up and contribute to the site. You can also get us to find freeware for you, or you can search for freeware with Freesearch, the freeware search engine. If you don’t know what freeware is, here are some clues.

Freeware programs are programs that are completely free, and never expire. Open-source programs are not only free, but also come with the source code used to make the program. You are also encouraged to change it and distribute it in any way. See the Free Software Foundation for more details. I have joined the staff of OpenSoft to help them out, and write some intresting posts. Well, that is about it. If you have any questions about OpenSoft, please click on this link.

If you have any questions regarding this, please go to the contact page on my blog, and email me, or IM me. Please keep in mind that I am still on vacation, and it will take some time to respond.

Mahalo,

Daniel