MacRumors' Mac Blog: Mac Apps, News and Rumors

Apple today released minor updates for its three iWork applications for the iPad. The new versions can be obtained in the usual manner by updating through the App Store either on the users' device or in iTunes. The updates bring support for a number of new languages, as well as several other enhancements. Keynote - Support for French, German, Japanese, Dutch, Italian, Russian, Simplified...

MacDailyNews posts an unconfirmed rumor that Apple is planning to make its MobileMe syncing service free for all users. We have received a tip that we cannot confirm, hence our "RUMOR" designation, that nonetheless has at least an air of credibility about it that says "Apple is planning to make MobileMe free." . . . No timeframe was given for MobileMe to go free, other than: "sooner than later......

Yesterday, as part of its announcement regarding the release of the Google Chrome 5 beta, Google teased a series of "speed tests" it had conducted using high-speed cameras synchronized to show various events alongside Chrome loading a webpage. Well, Google today announced that it has posted a new video showing the speed tests in action. The video highlights three speed tests: - A...

Dropbox, the popular document syncing and sharing service, has updated its iPhone application originally released last September to add iPad compatibility. The new universal Dropbox application now supports all three iPhone OS devices with the iPad gaining access to a customized interface able to take advantage of the much larger screen size. What's New - iPad support - Take advantage of...

Apple today released Mac Pro Audio Update 1.1, addressing a specific audio issue being experienced by users of the company's "Early 2009" Mac Pro models under Mac OS X 10.6.3. This update addresses an audio anomaly that some customers may hear coming from inside their Mac Pro computer when using FireWire audio devices. This update is for Mac Pro (Early 2009) computers running Mac OS X v10.6.3.The...

Apple today released Epson Printer Drivers v2.3.1 for Mac OS X v10.6, bringing updated support for a number of Epson printers and multifunction devices. The full download, which weighs in at 688.23 MB, requires Mac OS X 10.6.3. Apple maintains an extensive list of current printer support for Snow Leopard, with the latest changes to Epson's drivers included in the appropriate section....

With all of the recent excitement surrounding Valve's plans to bring Steam and its games to Mac OS X, it pays to remember that other game developers are still putting out Mac versions of their releases. As noted by Kotaku earlier this week, Blizzard has released a beta version of StarCraft II for Mac OS X. StarCraft II is a highly-anticipated sequel to the popular StarCraft title originally ...

Apple today released Aperture 3.0.3, addressing a number of issues with the company's professional-level photo management and manipulation software. This update improves overall stability and fixes issues in a number of areas. The key areas addressed include: - Applying adjustments such as Retouch or Chromatic Aberration - Creating and using Raw Fine Tuning presets - Viewing, adding and...

Jon Stewart, host of the comedy news show The Daily Show, offered an extended segment on yesterday's show addressing the ongoing saga of the lost next-generation iPhone that was acquired by Gizmodo. The clip has been receiving a fair bit of attention today due to the show's popularity and Stewart's angle on the story taking Apple to task for its role in events. Stewart's monologue, which...

Apple CEO Steve Jobs has been receiving a fair amount of attention of late for his email replies to customers. The replies are typically very short and to the point, but still demonstrate an unusual level of customer interaction for a customarily private CEO of a major company. Popular comic site The Joy of Tech this week has taken advantage of Jobs' responses to create an amusing Steve...

Alongside yesterday's release of iTunes 9.1.1, Apple also pushed out an update to MobileMe Control Panel for Windows. Version 1.5.2 of the utility brings compatibility with the new version of iTunes. MobileMe Control Panel is required to manage iDisk settings and to sync contacts, calendars, and bookmarks on a Windows PC. This update is required for Windows computers running iTunes 9.1.1.The ...

Apple today released iTunes 9.1.1, offering several minor fixes to the company's software hub for media and associated devices. iTunes 9.1.1 provides a number of important bug fixes, including: - Addresses several stability issues with VoiceOver - Addresses a usability issue with VoiceOver and Genius Mixes - Addresses issues with converting songs to 128 kbps AAC while syncing - Addresses...

On its Malware City blog, antivirus firm BitDefender notes that malware creators have begun to take advantage of the hype surrounding Apple's new iPad tablet device as a means of social engineering to encourage users to download their malicious software disguised as an iTunes update. Identified by BitDefender as Backdoor.Bifrose.AADY,the piece of malicious code inadvertently downloaded injects...

According to the Chitika Labs iPad tracker, over one million iPad devices are now estimated to be in use on the Internet, suggesting that Apple may have surpassed a major milestone less than a month after the device's launch and before 3G-capable models even go on sale later this week. Chitika's iPad tracker gained some fame in the days after the iPad launch as it tried to estimate sales...

Apple yesterday released Digital Camera Raw Compatibility Update 3.2, adding RAW image support for a number of digital cameras, as well as addressing issues with existing support for several other models. This update extends RAW image format compatibility to Aperture 3 and iPhoto '09 for the following cameras: - Canon EOS Rebel T2i / 550D / Kiss X4 - Leica S2 - Olympus E-450 - Olympus E-600 ...

MarketWatch reports that Apple today passed Microsoft for second place in weighting on the S&P 500 index of large U.S.-traded stocks. Apple's float-adjusted market cap reached $241.5 billion, surpassing Microsoft Corp.'s index market value of $239.5 billion, said Standard & Poor's. Exxon still remains in the top spot on the S&P 500 with a market cap of more than $300 billion, said S&P.The...

Late Show host David Letterman last night used his "Top Ten" segment to highlight the case of an Apple engineer who last month left his next-generation iPhone in a Redwood City, California bar, only to have it leaked by Gizmodo earlier this week. Letterman's "Top Ten Excuses of the Guy Who Lost the iPhone Prototype" pokes fun at a number of targets, including Apple's 'i' naming scheming for...

9 to 5 Mac reports that Apple CEO Steve Jobs has once again taken the time to respond to customer email, this time offering up a short response to a question about the leaked next-generation iPhone's effect on its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) presumably scheduled for this summer in San Francisco. In response to the customer's hope that WWDC will still be exciting even though the essen...