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Roughly Drafted
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Daniel Eran
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Unraveling The Mac OS X Linux Kernel Myth: Part 1 | 2 | 3 | 4
According to proponents of this myth, Apple will, could, or should shortly replace Mac OS X's kernel with Linux. They're wrong; here's why.
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Unraveling The Copy/Paste Development Myth
According to proponents of this myth, complex software development is a something like making funny madlibs from refrigerator magnets. Pick out features, line them up appropriately, and voila: an operating system! They're wrong, here's why.
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Unraveling the Mac OS X Microkernel Myth
According to proponents of this myth, Mac OS X is in grave danger because it has a microkernel and Linux doesn't. They're wrong; here's why.
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Unraveling the Utopian System that Runs All Software Imaginable Myth
The Utopian System that Runs All Software Imaginable Myth speaks of a hardware or software solution that... does it all. It seems like such a great idea, but is it?
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Unraveling the Office for Mac Withdrawal Myth
According to proponents of this myth, Microsoft is poised to drop Office for Mac, resulting in immediate devastation for the Mac platform. They're wrong; here's why.
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Unraveling the Red Box Myth
According to proponents of the Red Box Myth, Mac OS X will supposedly soon run Windows software natively, perhaps as soon as Leopard 10.5. They're wrong; here's why.

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Will Intel Macs run Windows? - Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3
The answer is No. And Yes. And It Doesn't Really Matter. Read on to find why.
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A Brief History of Data Syndication and Podcasting
Back in the mid 90's, visionaries were inflamed with the idea of converting the web into a television. Their fire was further fueled by PointCast's new syndicated content network.
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A Brief History of Remote Display
There's more than one way to deliver remote display features. Unix, Windows and Mac OS X all approach the problem differently, reflecting the different vendors' motivations. To see what's possible, or at least desirable, in Leopard, let's take a look at what's been developed.
Part 1 - Apple: supporting hardware sales
Part 2 - Microsoft: selling licenses
Part 3 - Selling even more licenses: Terminal Server
Part 4 - VNC: the other thin client
Part 5 - Unix workstations: selling platform solutions
Part 6 - Mac OS X Graphics
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Five Architectural Flaws in Windows Solved In Mac OS X
What was intended to be a short aside about Mac OS X's strengths turned into an entire series on Windows NT/2000/XP flaws! Here is the first of five examples of core Windows architectural problems that relate to process management, applications and security.
Flaw 1 - Windows' Interactive Services
Flaw 2 - Windows' opaque and illogical file system presentation
Flaw 3 - 'Least privilege' is impractical and broken
Flaw 4 - No signal of privilege escalation
Flaw 5 - Windows' expensive processes
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The Apple Wishlist: Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard
It might seem early to be talking about new features for Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard, considering that we just got Tiger, but now's the perfect time to look at ideas Apple could consider in the next major release.
Part 1 - Window appearance and behavior (October 5, 2005)
Part 2 - Process control and feedback services (October 7, 2005)
Part 3 - Remote control and management (October 12, 2005)
Part 4 - New services for workgroups (January 20, 2005)
Part 5 - Security services and products
Part 6 - Communications services and products
Part 7 - Media services and products
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photo Where is the iPod Killer?
Pundits have been busy trying to find an iPod Killer. Suspects have included Microsoft's WMP, Sony's onslaught of reanimated Walkmen, the cheapskate Yahoo, and an aging Napster cat, now on extended life support. This month, it was music executive Edgar Bronfman Jr.
Part 1 - Where is the iPod Killer?
Part 2 - The Killer Piñata
Part 3 - Edgar Bronfman Jr. is a big fat idiot
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photo Is Microsoft's Vista the new QuarkXPress?
Quark has long owned the desktop publishing world. Yet, after a decade of dominance, the company stumbled, leaving the door open for serious competition just as Adobe was introducing a strong competing product. Is Microsoft about to do the same?
Part 1 - Is Microsoft's Vista the new QuarkXPress?
Part 2 - Quark's Strange Top Down Charm Bottom Up
Part 3 - Ready to Fumble
Part 4 - Seriously Underestimated
Part 5 - Competition is Good
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photo Why Apple hasn't used Intel processors before
When Steve Jobs announced the plan to move Macs to Intel processors, Bruce Chizen, CEO of Adobe, joked, “The only question I have, Steve, is what took you so long?”
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photo The Intel Advantage
Apple's transition to Intel was presented as an effort to take advantage of Intel's compelling future road map, not a desperate bid to replace a sagging PowerPC hardware architecture. There is however an immediate advantage that Intel processors provide for Apple now.
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photo Are PowerPC Macs Obsolete?
The comfortable Mac ecosystem seemed completely turned upside down when Apple announced the Intel transition. All of a sudden, it was not obvious how long the newest models would remain useful.
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photo Why Apple won't suffer the Osborne Effect
Tech columnists love to rehash old stories and suggest the future will play out just like a vaguely similar event from the past. But as old stories are retold, they become celebrated legends that eventually grossly distort what actually happened.
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photo Analysts fail to predict Apple's success with iPod
Analysts comfortable with predicting Microsoft's impending takeover in new markets are sweating bullets. For years, they've felt safe in discouraging any potential competition to Microsoft, and instead forecasting an inevitable domination of any and all markets to which the software giant shows any interest in entering.
Part I: Analysts fail to predict Apple's success with iPod, QuickTime, iTunes
Part II: For the record, some facts
Part III: What works and what doesn't
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photo Three Strikes
For the last two decades, legions of industry wags have kept repeating three things Apple needed to do in order to survive. But they were never right, and even when they appeared to be right, they weren't.
Part I: Three Strikes: Analysts Wrong on Apple
Part II: More Right Than Wrong
Part III: Much Ado About Intel
Part IV: Putting the Mac in Mac OS X
Part V: A Shock to the System
Part VI: How Apple And Intel Fit
Part VII: Tears of a Clone
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photo Safari Wars VI : Return of the GUI
Episode V left off with the Finder growing stagnant and Microsoft's empire dominating world's browser. What's next? Answers await!
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photo Safari Wars V : The Internet Strikes Back
Episode IV looked at development of the Mac OS Finder before the Internet became widely available. How has the Finder changed since, where is it headed, and how does its development compare with others? How does this relate to Safari? Answers await!
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photo Safari Wars IV : A New Hope
The Finder has ruled Mac applications for the last twenty years. It's always there, right in front or lurking in the back waiting to help. What new features does the Finder dream of when a Mac goes to sleep? What does it have to do with Safari? Answers await!
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photo Beyond Luxo Jr : The next flat panel iMac
Is the iMac in trouble? Sales are down sharply from last year's, prompting dire screams of Apple-panic from the usual suspects. However, reality is far simpler than any pundits suggest. The next step for the consumer icon is, well, plainly obvious.
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Apple Announces Mac OS X Spoken Interface Technology Preview
Apple announced plans to include a greatly expanded set of spoken interface and keyboard navigation services in the next version of Mac OS X.
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photo Apple Bites the Hands that Picked It
Like the mythical phoenix, Apple Computer experienced a miraculous revival from a pitiful heap of ash in 1996 to become the profitable, premium MegaBrand and industry trendsetter it is today. Apple didn't do it alone; in fact, the Apple of 1996 didn't do it at all.
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Image Apple History X
The new Mac OS X Panther is ready to pounce, but the story on this cat starts a long time back.
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photo Panther at your Service
Apple's OS X 10.3 Panther Server upgrade brings a new look, new capacities, more speed and a nicer interface.
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photo Panther Server : a better NT than NT?
With Microsoft's support for NT drying up, Apple and Samba offer an alternative to Active Directory for thousands of Windows NT shops.
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Image The Secret Weapon Inside iTunes
Apple strikes back in the battle for digital media rights, production, distribution and playback.
Part I: The Secret Weapon Inside iTunes
Part II: The QuickTime Media Layer: Apple's Best Kept Secret
Part III: Microsoft: We hate your baby, please kill it
Part IV: QuickTime Strikes Back
Part V: D.R.M. or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
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Image Flash in the Plan - a DRM Disaster
This summer, Macromedia launched a trial campaign to install DRM software on their customer's computers to lock down software functionality and report back to the company how the software is used.
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