[Mac OS X] 10.4 gives us a peek at another evolution of iTunes, which is the inevitable expansion of the system to carry additional audio file formats. Looking at the unused iTunes icons that shipped with your new version of 10.4, you'll notice icons for currently-not-supported ogg vorbis and Windows Media Audio (wma), as well as several others including a variety of video formats, too.

With this new information we can make a pretty good guess about the evolution of both iTunes and iPod. When Apple feels that the success of iTunes is absolutely assured, which will be shortly, they'll address the user complaint that iPod only supports AAC and MP3 audio by adding these additional formats, leading to increased iPod sales. And at the same time, the video icons strongly suggest that Apple will also have a video iPod this year.

Apple's own downward price pressure on portable media players gives us another element of the probable iPod strategy that hearkens back to my question of a few weeks ago whether iPod is the razor or the blade. Ultimately, what Apple wants to do is make its money through iTunes, where the profit margins are better in the long term and the system is easily scalable. It was necessary to create the iPod platform to make this happen. But downward price pressures will eventually hurt iPod profit margins and affect Apple's stock price, so the trick is to know when to switch the business from being a mix of hardware and software to one that is software-only. That switch, which I believe to be inevitable, will happen shortly after Apple begins to license iPod clones.

But Steve Jobs HATES clones, doesn't he? He killed the Mac clones back in the late 90s.

What Steve hates is hardware competition, but iPod clones will only happen at a point when Apple has decided to get out of the business of making its own iPods. Think about it. If Apple licensed iPod technology, the company would receive from its OEMs a per-CPU license fee of anywhere from $5 to $25 depending on how smooth Steve is as a salesman and how desperate the would-be OEMs are for that license. As Apple's profit drops on each iPod it makes, eventually the per-CPU figure will approach what Apple might receive from licensees. At that moment it makes more sense for Apple to license clones than it does to make more iPods. Licensing clones AT THE RIGHT TIME would lead to huge clone sales, effectively killing any significant iTunes competitor. And in the long run, iTunes is where the money is.

Bonjour lets you create an instant network of computers and smart devices just by getting them connected to each other.
AirPort logo

The computers and devices take over from there, automatically broadcasting and discovering what services each is offering for the use of others. The network could be as simple as two AirPort Extreme-equipped PowerBook users sitting in a hotel meeting room miles from the nearest AirPort Extreme Base Station with some large files they need to share. Before Bonjour, frustration. With Bonjour, your computer will discover others, making file sharing completely simple.

Bonjour works over today’s most popular standard connection technologies, including Ethernet and AirPort (802.11). And it uses the standard, ubiquitous IP networking protocol for its connections, the same protocol that runs the internet itself. Indeed, all of the technologies driving Bonjour are open and part of the standards creation process of the IETF, as is Bonjour itself.

"Actually, we don't think [Unreal Tournament] 2K4 was very successful," Steve offers. Jim and Jeff nod their heads in agreement, while I'm certain mine is spinning in disbelief. Steve continues, "It wasn't a bad game...I just wish it had been a better game than it was."

Apparently, members of the hardcore UT community agree. "We've paid a lot of attention to what the guys in the community are saying, and we take that feedback to heart. We've got guys that troll the forums every day [and read feedback]," Jim says. What's their biggest critique? "I would say mobility. Mobility and weapon balance. That's more for the hardcore guy who plays every day or on a regular basis, but balancing that out overall will make the whole game feel better, and so everybody will benefit."

"We think there's a lot we can improve. This is a completely new game, new engine. All the code is really being rewritten. No assets from UT2K4 appear in here again. In fact, in terms of how the games have evolved, this is more of a leap, I would say, than the original Unreal Tournament to UT2K4."

This is not an iteration, it's an entirely new game -- which is why it's entirely possible it won't be called Unreal Tournament 2006. "Yeah," Steve says, "It's a real generational change."

The polygon jump is going from thousands to millions, courtesy of the Unreal Engine 3. New technology, new engine, new gameplay...new everything. "You can tell from our [demo] levels," Steve says, "we're not trying to make a prettier UT2K4. We're really trying to make a very new game."

The finished product is still well over a year away (there are 13 "milestones" in the creation process, and we're visiting just after the completion of No. 3), but that suits everyone at Epic just fine. Long before the entire game world gets prettied up, Steve and company plan to have put together a gameplay framework that's tweaked to within an inch of perfection.

"We want to have all [the parts of this game] working for probably about a year before we ship. I think a big part of the success of Unreal Tournament will be that we've had such a long cycle of playing the game and improving it based on the idea, 'This is fun, but it would be more fun if' and then really refining it -- tweaking weapon balance, tweaking movement, tweaking vehicles, tweaking gameplay mechanics," Steve says. "We have to have a lot of time where we really playtest it and try all the different kinds of things you can do."

"Our goal is to make a much better UT than anything anyone's ever seen."

Can't stand Mail.app's new look? This app is simple and sweet. Just click the Off button to turn Mail.app's new (hideous) toolbar buttons off. Below is a quick before and after. We've also switched the mailbox selection to be bright blue, like every other application in Mac OS X.

Whether you are an experienced Mac developer or new to the platform, getting going with Mac OS X Tiger development is easy thanks to the many developer resources Apple makes available through the Apple Developer Connection. From our upcoming developer's conference to our website to our membership benefits, you'll find opportunities, resources, and services that can help accelerate your Tiger development. Over a hundred new items have been added to the ADC Reference Library, including brand-new Tiger documentation, systems administrator's guides, updated sample code, and more. ADC members can get access to additional powerful resources depending on membership level, including pre-release software, development tools, SDKs, sample code and documentation, hardware discounts, and technical support.

Apple announces a new iMac G5 boasting up to 2GHz PowerPC G5 processing, built-in AirPort Extreme and Bluetooth wireless connectivity and Mac OS X version 10.4 "Tiger," the latest version of the world’s most advanced operating system. The new iMac G5s also feature faster graphics, a new 8X SuperDrive with double-layer support, built-in Gigabit Ethernet for faster networking, and 512MB of memory across the line. "Reviewers have called the iMac G5 'the most elegant desktop computer in the world' and now it's getting even better," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "With a faster processor, built-in wireless networking, Tiger and iLife '05, the new iMac G5 offers the best consumer desktop computing experience in the world."

Apple Computer may have let its Tiger loose from its cage, but its stock price certainly isn't roaring.

Despite much ballyhoo in the media, and a Friday night retail party launching the latest version of the Mac operating system software, Apple's stock price trickled up to close only 37 cents higher on Monday, or about 1% ... [on] the day it started shipping the iPod shuffle... Apple's share price jumped $1.47, or about 4%.

In its March quarter, Apple's combined sales of laptops and desktops showed a 43% increase in unit shipments. But in real numbers that translates to a year-over-year increase of only 321,000 units.

Analyst Rob Enderle, head of California-based The Enderle Group, says the so-called "halo effect" around the iPod is really just a myth.

"From what I'm seeing, the iPod simply drives people into the stores, and the foot traffic helps move product," Enderle says. "The iPod benefits the entire Apple product line, but Apple could have done the same thing by having Paris Hilton, or some other celebrity, visit the Apple stores."

Another apparent myth is the notion that Apple--despite the protestations of its devoted user base--can reignite the old market-share battle it waged and lost with Microsoft. Of the 178 million PCs sold last year, according to market research firm IDC, some 3.2 million, or less than 2%, were made by Apple.

Apple relies on its users to upgrade their computers regularly. If each of those computers sold last year were upgraded to Tiger, it would represent a $412 million revenue opportunity, which increases to $800 million when you include the 2.9 million Apple computers sold in 2003.

After bouncing around various time slots for three seasons, "Family Guy" was canceled by Fox in 2002, only to enjoy renewed popularity through DVD sales and in reruns on Cartoon Network's late-night "Adult Swim" lineup.

Now, the edgy, fast-paced show is coming back to Fox starting at 9 p.m. EDT Sunday, after "The Simpsons" and before MacFarlane's new animated series, "American Dad."

"I'm excited," Alex Borstein, who provides the voice of matriarch Lois, said backstage. "I've never been on a winning horse before. No matter what happens — even if we, like, get canceled out of the gate — I still feel like we've won."

Borstein, also one of the show's writers, said she's been surprised by "just the consciousness. People who love the show, love the show. We've managed to get inside people's heads with this somehow. Everyone kind of lives it and breathes it and I've just never experienced anything like it before."

HP notebook computer with extended battery
Apple PowerBook 12-inch
Sony noise-cancelling headphones w/ extension cord
iPod shuffle
Microsoft wireless notebook adapter
1 GB USB memory stick
Disk holder with 12 DVDs/CDs

iPod Photo
Standard battery for HP computer
Sony PSP with 5 UMD-based games and 1 UMD-based movie

HP Photosmart R717 digital camera w/ 1 GB and 256 MB SD cards and carrying case
Cell phone charger
Cell phone headset
Power cord for HP notebook
Power cord for Apple PowerBook
Apple iSight camera with case, notebook grip, and cord
HP Photosmart R-series battery charger
Mini tripod
Logitech Notebook camera

Extra battery for HP Photosmart R717
Microsoft IntelliMouse Explorer
Disk holder with 12 DVDs/CDs (backups, etc.)
Apple iPod charger (USB/wall)
HP Photosmart R717 wall charger
USB cable (PC-to-digital camera)
Sony PSP wall charger

This document provides developer-level information about the features of Mac OS X that have been introduced in the current release. The article contains an overview of the key features along with links to documents that describe those features. The article also contains links to “delta” documents that list the new programming interfaces that were introduced with the release.