MacRumors' Mac Blog: Mac Apps, News and Rumors

In support of today's release of iOS 4.3.2, Apple has also pushed out Xcode 4.0.2 for developers, offering updated tools for iOS and Mac OS X application development. Xcode 4.0.2 is available free of charge to members of Apple's paid developer programs, and non-members can purchase the application for $4.99 in the Mac App Store, although the Mac App Store is currently still showing the older ...

Perian, a free open-source plug-in that enables QuickTime support for a wide variety of video formats, has been updated with additional video format compatibility and fixes. Version 1.2.2 of Perian was released yesterday and is available from the download page at Perian.org. This week's update added compatibility with WebM/VP8, FFv1 lossless video formats, and compressed MKV files, as well ...

Developer Flying Meat has released a major update to Acorn, its image editing software for the Mac. Acorn 3.0 was released earlier this week and features layer styles, quick masking for more precise selection and editing, improved gradients and more. In total, Acorn 3.0 is touted to have more than 50 new features. Acorn first debuted as shareware in 2007 with a goal of "simplicity" in image...

Swiss company Mobee today announced the upcoming debut of its new "The Magic Bar" induction charging station for Apple's Wireless Keyboard and Magic Trackpad. Replacing the devices' batteries with induction charging cells, the docking station connects to the user's computer via USB and wirelessly charges input devices sitting within the station. The Magic Bar is the world's first Inductive...

Apple released a Boot Camp update for early 2011 MacBook Pros: This Boot Camp update addresses issues with shutdown, Japanese and Korean keyboards on early 2011 MacBook Pro....

A number of claimed iPhone 5 shots have been circulating today. The images were originally posted to a Vietnamese forum Tinhte on April Fools day. Nowhereelse.fr reports the watermark indicates this is an April Fools joke. So, nothing to see...

Macworld reports on Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak's keynote session at Storage Networking World in California. Wozniak was questioned about how tablets would change the computer industry. The tablet is not necessarily for the people in this room, Wozniak told the audience of enterprise storage engineers. Its for the normal people in the world, Wozniak said. I think Steve Jobs had that...

While Apple had touted the ability to move projects between its new GarageBand for iPad and the corresponding application for Mac OS X, the two versions were not initially compatible, as GarageBand for Mac has been unable to launch GarageBand projects created in the iPad application. Apple today addressed that issue with the release of GarageBand 6.0.2 for Mac OS X, a welcome update for users...

Promenade at Chenal, Little Rock, Arkansas As noted by ifoAppleStore and several eagle-eyed observers who reported the developments to us, Apple is preparing to open a new retail store this October in Little Rock, Arkansas. The store will be the company's first in that state. After an extended four-year courtship, Apple has finalized plans -- for a second time -- to open a store at the...

Alongside yesterday's release of Mac OS X Lion Developer Preview 2, Apple also pushed out a new developer version of Xcode 4.1 in support of Lion. According to MacStories, the new build brings support for fullscreen mode in project and workspace windows, as well as enhancements to the Core Data editor and...

The Jerusalem Post reports (via Forbes) that Apple is moving forward on plans to build a massive new store in Jerusalem, Israel sometime within the next three years. At a claimed 5,000 square meters (over 50,000 square feet), the store would be by far the largest in Apple's retail chain. According to the report, the store will include an "Apple Digital Library" open to the public, but it is...

Alongside today's release of iOS 4.3.1, Apple has also pushed out Xcode 4.0.1, updating the company's tools for iOS and Mac OS X development. What's New in Version 4.0.1 - Improved Assistant editor logic when switching among different file types - Fixed a bug in "Install Xcode.app" that hangs at 99% complete, never finishing - Fixed a bug that prevented indexing of some projects - Fixed a...

Apple yesterday issued an update to its FaceTime application for Mac OS X available in the Mac App Store. According to the release notes, the update brings improved performance for full screen video. What's new Improves performance when FaceTime is taken full screen.While FaceTime had been a free application during the beta testing phase and comes preinstalled on new MacBook Pros, Apple...

Apple yesterday released Aperture 3.1.2, bringing improvements to iPhoto library importation and other fixes. This update improves overall stability and performance, including specific fixes in the following areas: - Importing iPhoto libraries - Reliability and responsiveness when using brushes to apply adjustments - Reconnecting referenced master imagesFull details on the changes included in ...

Apple is paying close attention to all iPad 2 returns during the first few weeks to make sure there are no major production defects. This policy has led to an amusing story that we thought was entertaining enough to share. The story comes by way of an individual close to Apple: [Apple's] focus this week has been to troubleshoot all the iPad 2s that customers are returning to the stores....

Guardian posts a retrospective piece about the original iPod and points out that the Classic iPod design has not been updated since late 2009. The iPod Classic, as the famous scroll-wheel design is now known, hasn't been updated now since September 2009, with a modest capacity jump from 120GB to 160GB. On the Apple Online Store, shipping times have slipped from 24 hours to 1-3 days. Across the...

TechCrunch points out that Apple today approved updates to two major iOS applications that some had feared would be affected by the new in-app purchasing rules that Apple announced in February. The new rules required that any subscription based services must also provide the same service via the in-app purchase mechanism which is subject to Apple's 30% cut. Subscriptions purchased from within ...

Bloomberg reports that Microsoft is canceling future development of its line of Zune hardware devices, shifting the focus of Zune services to Windows Phone 7 smartphones. Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) will cease introducing new versions of the Zune music and video-player amid tepid demand, helping the company shift its focus to mobile phones, according to a person familiar with the decision. The...