While Apple continues to lag on including even the option to install a Blu-Ray (or HD-DVD) drive on any Mac, FastMac (a third party vendor) has stepped in and is offering the drive for some Apple computers going all the way back to a PowerBook G3.

It doesn’t come cheap though, the $800 upgrade is available for the following Macs, PowerBook G3, iBook/PowerBook G4, MacBook Pro 17”, iMac G5, iMac Intel and even the Mac Mini. It is not available for either the MacBook Pro 15” or MacBook.

The $800 price tag means this is probably aimed at those who created high-definition video content because I really can’t think of anyone else who would plop down $800 for an optical drive upgrade. $800 on a video card maybe, $800 on a monitor, possibly but not an optical drive.

This $800 upgrade package includes all the software and hardware you need to get the drive up and running. Blu-Ray is not a format natively supported by OSX so they have gone to the extra step of including Toast 8 Titanium, for the price you are paying, they had better.

In addition to the Blu-Ray RW (BD-RW) format it also supports DVD+R/RW +DL (Dual Layer), DVD-RAM, CD-R and CD-RW formats. Though, I would consider DVD-RAM to be a dead format, it’s still a nice bonus.

The drive is a drop-in upgrade for your existing optical drive and I’m sure that they will include instructions of some sort. Be advised you have to perform the upgrade yourself and doing so may void your warranty if your Mac is still under warranty. If you have doubts about doing this yourself, take it to the nearest Apple Store where I’m sure they’d be more than happy to charge you an arm and a leg for installing the drive and remember, that’s in addition to the $800 you have already spent (that does not include tax or shipping).

It remains to be seen when Apple will begin offering Blu-Ray (or HD-DVD) drives on their Macs.

For those of you who have 30″ Cinema displays, hooray for you. For those of us toting Macbooks or Macbook Pros, we know all too well how valuable that 13″-17″ display space is. Without buying an external monitor, or engaging in a frenzied maximize/minimize battle, how do you keep all of your documents, programs, and windows neat and organized?

Two words (but one program): Virtue Desktops. Virtue Desktops is an amazing application, free of charge, that simulates multiple desktops that users can quickly and fluidly navigate between to keep windows and applications organized.

To give you an example, how would you like to have 3 13″ Macbook screens instead of one? I like to use one screen for iChat and iTunes, one for iCal and Camino, and one for Pages and iPhoto.

Virtue Desktops resides on your system tray, and has quite a few pretty options for transitioning between your desktops. I assigned my transition keys to “command+right” and “command+left”, which switches between my desktops to the left and right, respectfully.

What does transitioning look like? Anything you want, just about. Virtue Desktops includes many animations (my favorite being Cube, the Apple animation that rotates your desktop on a cube to the left or right. It is quite impressive visually, and it blows Vista users away, which is also fun to play with), including Cube, Slide, Reveal, Fade, Warp, and many more.

You can customize your transition speed, making a slow or fast transition. One unique feature is motion-sensor-based switching, in which simply shifting your Macbook will rotate your desktop. Pretty fancy, and again, let’s see Vista do that.

Virtue Desktops is surprisingly system resource light; currently it is using 12 mb of my real memory. Not too bad.

As I said in my first “Maximize your Mac” entry, you could avoid prying eyes in classrooms or work by pulling the ole’ minimize, or perhaps the Exposé hide, but personally I prefer to rapidly rotate to the desktop you’re supposed to be working on, switching from Camino, iTunes, and iChat over to Pages or Keynote. Eh? Pretty slick.

If you’re a Parallels user, you may have been frustrated from time to time by attempting to run Windows full screen, and having to transition between maximized and window views. With Virtue Desktops, you can simply run Windows full screen on one desktop, and have a couple others assigned to OS-X, with all those flashy transitions in between.

In closing, Virtue Desktops will really add a lot to your organization and timeliness, it doesn’t demand much in the way of system resources, and best of all, it’s completely free! Go try it out, and be sure to send me your own ways to “Maximize your Mac.”

The European Commission (EC) issued a Statement of Objections against alleged territorial restrictions in online music sales to Apple and unidentified record companies, believed to be EMI, Sony BMG, Universal Music and Warner Music. The EC asserts that agreements between Apple and the music labels “violate the EC Treaty’s rules prohibiting restrictive business practices.”

Apple said that it does not believe that it has violated EU law, asserting its hand was forced by the music labels who said the separate stores were necessary for legal purposes.

‘Apple has always wanted to operate a single, pan-European iTunes store, accessible by anyone from any member state,’ the company said in a statement. ‘But we were advised by the music labels and publishers that there were certain legal limits to the rights they could grant us.’

Apple could be found guilty of territorial restriction even if it was made to do so by the music labels, Principal Economist Alena Kozakova told MacNewsWorld.

“It may be true that actually they didn’t initiate it,” Kozakova said. “However, under the European Union law, if you conclude an agreement you know restricts competition, you are as guilty as the other parties involved. It’s extremely difficult to ascertain in whose interest this agreement was, but just a statement by Apple, unfortunately, will not do it.”

Universal Music, EMI and Warner Music said they have been contacted by the EU.

EMI said it doesn’t believe it has violated European law and will make that case “strongly.” The other labels haven’t commented.

Statements of Objections are a formal step in European antitrust investigations. Companies who have received such statements have two months to defend themselves in writing. They can also ask the commission to hear their case at an oral hearing which usually takes place about one month after the written reply has been received.

The commission can fine companies up to 10 percent of their annual worldwide turnover for breaching EU antitrust rules.

Apple must have felt their “wow factor” was a little low; what with their relative silence since the rush of hardware updates; the iPhone being the most recent bit of hullaballoo. Today they kicked it up a notch, releasing an 8 core Mac Pro, as well as lowering the prices of their 20 and 23 inch Cinema displays $100, and their 30 inch $200.

It is generally known through the Mac community as well as the art and entertainment industries that the Mac Pro really is that…designed for the pros. If you weren’t working on the recent movie 300, running a recording studio, or doing intense graphical or image editing, you really don’t need the Pro.

Apple’s new 8 core setup only broadens that gap; the entire setup is listed below:

- 2 Quad-core Intel Xeon 5300 “Clovertown” processors at 3.0 GHz

- 16 MB L2 cache

- 128 SSE3 Vector Engine

- 1.33 GHz front side buses (2x)
Those are the basic processing specifications, and obviously you can customize your Mac Pro to your heart’s content.

Personally, if I was a professional, I would probably want this setup below:

- 2 dual quad-core xeon processors at 3.0 GHz each

- 4 GB DDR2 Memory (667 mhz)

- 1 Terabyte storage (2 500 GB hard drives)

- 4 GeForce 7300 GTs (256 MB each)

- 2 30″ Apple Cinema displays

- Applecare protection plan

This comes in at a lean $9,628. Drop in the bucket, right? But you have 8 CORES!!

As I stated before, Apple also dropped the price of the 20, 23, and 30 inch displays to $599, $899, and $1799, respectively. Most likely this is an incentive to those Pros who undoubtably want something pretty to go with their new Mac Pro…it could also be because their cinema displays are a tad bit overpriced to start with.

No complaints here; now, whoever gets their 8 core Mac Pro and 30 inch cinema display, you call me so I can play the most impressive game of Rome: Total War ever.

Google has just released their desktop application to users of Mac OSX 10.4 or later.  Of course, Mac users already have the advantage of a desktop search application built right in to the OS, Spotlight which is an instant search utility and can launch programs. This is much of what the Google Desktop Search is used for on Windows and now does it on the Mac.

Google has said that it will have no problem coexisting with Spotlight on the same system. “We designed Google Desktop for Mac to be a companion for Spotlight, Google Desktop searches users’ Web history and you can set it up to search Gmail too,” said Rose Yao, Google Desktop for Mac Product Manager.

Google Desktop for Mac will make use of any installed plugins for Spotlight and will respect the Spotlight Privacy list and won’t search those items. There is no need to rewrite the Spotlight plugins for use with the Google Desktop.

Two taps of the command key bring up the Google Desktop search box and as soon as you start typing, results are listed regardless of if it is a program or file.

Also with the Google Desktop installed, you will find a new button available in their online search page labeled “Desktop” which will launch a local search from within your browser. Google does not see or record your local searches in any way using this method. This option can be disabled if you are overly concerned about privacy.

Google Desktop can also find old files or files you might have accidentally deleted since it creates cached copies of files you view using the search and stores copies of these files on your hard drive. Just what I want, multiple copies of the same file (I hope that can be disabled).

Gadget integration will be available in a future version of Google Desktop for Mac. “If you know how to use Google, you know how to use Google Desktop for Mac,” Yao said.

I’ve decided to begin a small featurette designed specifically to keep my fellow Mac users, new and old, in the know about the best ways to get the most out of your Mac. What does that look like? Everything from cleaning tips to third party applications, widgets to WiFi, and anything else that could be of interest.

Also, as part of this little venture, I want to encourage you readers to leave feedback with tips and tricks of your own. Just because it was highlighted somewhere else on the internet doesn’t mean you can’t bring it up, and I’ll most likely run out of ideas and end up using yours from time to time, so please: speak your mind!

Today I want to talk about something I’m sure many of you are familiar with: ways to maximize efficiency through keystrokes rather than troublesome mouse or trackpack navigation.

I can definitively say I was something of a mouse addict until relatively recent. Before I made the beautiful transition to Mac, I was the quickest pointer in the computer lab. Once I entered college, however, I realized that efficiency wasn’t linked to my developing carpel tunnel…it was in keystrokes.

Sure, for leisurely internet browsing and movie watching, using the ole’ mouse or trackpad works fine; however, if your job relies on efficiency, you recognize the need for shortcuts and time-saving devices.

My first “Make the most of your Mac” tip is:

1. Learn to use quick keys in OS X

For you seasoned vets, I know you utilize quick keys better than any, but you surely remember that time when you fumbled around your keyboard, perhaps wondering why “Control+P” wouldn’t print your document (if you were transitioning from PC). This is a quick refresher of how to make the best of those simple quick key commands.

“Command” (again, for new users, this is the Apple key) mixes with many letters to give you easy control of your operations. Below I’ll tag the keys it can be mixed with, and what effect the combo has.

- a – select all

- c – copy selected material

- e – eject disc

- h – hide present program window (I’ll explain why I don’t use this)

- k – connect to server…used in mail programs to connect to server to upload and download messages, synchronize

- m – minimize current program window (I use this over hide because I can still see the document on the dock, and it has that pretty animation. If you’re going for secrecy, go with h)

- n – open new window in current program (blank document in Pages, new Camino window, etc.)

- o – open

- p – print current window

- q – quit current program (note: on Macs, you can either close the current window and keep the program running, or completely quit the program. It is always humorous to encounter new Mac users who have all their programs running, and can’t figure out why all those triangles stay beneath every program they open. Use the “command+q” if you’re done with the program, otherwise your RAM will fill up)
- t – you can use this to add something to a sidebar, or favorites, but I use it to add a tab to my current window browser. Tabbed browsing is old news, but if you don’t use it, start! Save yourself the time of clicking around 8 different browser windows, and save the memory.

- v – paste current selection. Staple quick key, along with copy, quit, etc.

- z – undo last action. If you do any sort of creating (writing, photo editing…anything really) this will be your best friend.

That list seems extensive, and it is; however, once you start using them, you won’t go back to using the Finder bar to browse for these commands.

2. Function keys – these you could generally experiment with on your own, but I’ll outline their uses below.
F1 – brightness down

F2 – brightness up

F3 – mute

F4 – volume down

F5 – volume up

F6 – number lock

F7 – display voice-over menu

F8 – open voice-over utility

F9 – exposé function that separates all open windows so you can select which you’d like. Play with it and see if its your style; some people use it, some people don’t. It’s handy if you’re trying to maximize desktop space

F11- hide all open windows. I don’t know about you, but in my life there are moments when hiding my current windows is adviseable. For instance, when my professor directs his gaze at my screen as he passes by. However, I have a better solution to the secrecy problem which I will highlight later.

F12 – show dashboard. I like to use this key, coupled with setting my dashboard to appear when I move my mouse to the bottom left corner of the screen. Depends on my mood, really.

That’s all I have for today, but I have plenty of other ideas swimming around the ole’ noggin that I will be sharing very soon. Again, please share ideas you have by posting or emailing me! Until next time, good readers…

That is the most requested feature according to Jacobs Media. The FM tuner feature appears to be a more popular option for the iPod Shuffle and iPod Nano. With many other players offering more features than the iPod, why hasn’t Apple included any of these features on their iPods?

I don’t know the real answer, but I can make a few intelligent guesses. There will probably be a slight size increase, especially if this feature were to be included on the iPod Shuffle; there can’t possibly be room for it. As for the Nano, they could probably squeeze one in.

The other problem with FM tuners in most MP3 players is poor reception, especially indoors and I spend a majority of my day inside; even though I do own an iPod, it’s mostly for use in my car. Most of my music is stored and listened to on my computers.

The point of an iPod is to listen to YOUR music when YOU want and HOW you want. I find the point of a FM tuner on any MP3 player a bit pointless. I do like Voice Recording features which can be added to your iPod through various third party accessories. If you really want a FM tuner on your iPod pick up the Radio Remote accessory.

While we are on the subject, instead of an iPhone, I would like to see a touch based widescreen iPod with wireless sharing capabilities and video playback; I would rather have those features than a silly FM tuner. It would be nice if Apple were to include the FM and voice recording features, if only to up the competition but Apple has proven that features are not a deciding factor.

Simplicity, ease of use and reliability seem to be at the heart of their products. Though, that’s not to say there aren’t horror stories regarding Apple products breaking but I’ve had nothing but good experiences when dealing with Apple Support, when I’ve had to…which is not very often.

The murmers were right on the money regarding the purpose of today’s early press release. Steve Jobs made the announcement official today that EMI would be releasing its DRM-free music, at the higher bit rate of 256 kbps, for all of 30 cents more than the DRM-equipped music.

Why leave both options available? Steve aptly pointed out that many people are quite satisfied using iTunes and an iPod to play all of their downloaded content, and might not necessarily feel like spending that extra 30 cents to play their tunes in some other player. Well put, Steve.

In regards to the Beatles, Steve said he hoped that the Beatles would be joining iTunes very soon, but didn’t sound particularly assertive that such an agreement was near fruition.

So, in brief, EMI Records’ music will be available on iTunes for either the standard price of 99 cents, or at the higher rate of $1.30, but DRM-free, and at a higher quality of 256 kbps. Also, Steve, Apple, and EMI all feel like this was the first step towards a completely DRM-free iTunes in the near future.

We certainly hope such is the case, and applaud Apple’s effort to actively combat DRM, as opposed to just hoping and dreaming. That’s the go-get’em attitude we’ve come to know and love from Apple.

As with any Apple news, we were happy to jump on the recent Apple announcement that Steve Jobs would be making some sort of announcement tomorrow in London, England, with a special guest appearance by an unnamed band. We automatically put two and two together, and thought lofty thoughts about the Beatles finally making an appearance in the iTunes repertoire.

Apple has announced that tomorrow will signify something fairly significant to the future of iTunes; EMI Records, the label who has worked with the likes of Iron Maiden and Pink Floyd, will be the first to allow much of its content to be available on iTunes, completely DRM-free.

Though many of us are devote Beatles fans, the first steps down the DRM-free iTunes path are enough to make us squeal like little school-girls. Steve, we’ll take it.

Who knows, we don’t want to jinx it, but maybe we’ll see a bundle package of EMI and the Beatles tomorrow in London. Get your basket of fish ‘n’ chips and key up Apple.Blorge.com for more announcements regarding Apple’s press release tomorrow!

Recent buzz surrounding the possibility of the Beatles’ tunes finally gracing iTunes has grown stronger over the last few weeks. Today, Apple notified certain members of the press that they would be making a press release in London, England tomorrow, April 2nd.

Though press release rumors are always better than gold to the Apple community, the general consensus (or wish) is that the Beatles will be adding their music to the iTunes library. Steve Jobs will be in attendance and there will be a “special live performance,” by a band that has yet to be named.

Hmm. London, England, musical guest performance…we’re betting this press release isn’t about Leopard.

The only other hot Apple topic that might be the press release’s focus would be the iPhone, though the Apple community’s somewhat flaky track on the iPhone’s progress wouldn’t point to any groundbreaking revelations tomorrow.

Either way, Apple always makes the most of press releases, and as long as the release doesn’t pertain to delaying Leopard until 2008, we’re sure it is bound to put a smile on Apple fans’ faces worldwide. Be sure to direct your browser to Apple.Blorge.com for the press release overview tomorrow.