Twitter launches official Mac client

Social networking site Twitter has launched an official Mac client via the Mac App Store. Based on an earlier independent app called Tweetie for Mac, the new title is said to be up to three times faster. Like some other Twitter clients the software updates in real-time, and automatically shortens URLs when composing posts. Keyboard shortcuts simplify some actions. Twitter bought the developer of Tweetie for Mac, atebits, in April 2010. The acquisition was made for the sake of developing an official Twitter iPhone app, and sidelined Tweetie 2 indefinitely. A native iPad app was in fact completed in the interim.  Source : macnnOriginal Content : Twitter launches official Mac cli...

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Disney has delivered 1 million iOS book apps

Parents must be finding it easier than ever to keep kids in the backseat distracted -- Disney Publishing has hit 1 million downloads of its Disney Book Apps for the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. Disney Publishing has nine book apps in the App Store, all of which have been seen in the top 10 paid book apps since the iPad debuted in April. Four of the apps are currently listed in the Top 10 in the iTunes App Store Books category, with Toy Story Read-Along in the Top 5 Book Apps in 35 countries. The highly rated Toy Story Read-Along app lets kids hear the story read aloud or follow the story at their own pace, interspersed with movie clips, finger-painting, sing-along songs, and interactive games. Kids or parents can even record their own voice narrating and hear it read back. In Toy Story...

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First look: Apple's Mac App Store simplifies buying, updating software

Apple's new Mac App Store will be instantly familiar to anyone who has used an iOS device, bringing the same look, feel, features and convenience to Mac OS X Snow Leopard. The Mac App Store was released Thursday morning as a part of the Mac OS X 10.6.6 update for Snow Leopard. Upon applying the update and restarting their Mac, users will find the App Store icon in their dock. The storefront looks and feels just like its iOS counterparts, with a "Featured" section that greets users when it is first launched. From here, a variety of software options in multiple categories are highlighted by Apple. The Mac App Store will be instantly familiar to iOS users, with essentially the same layout, including lists available for the top paid, free and grossing applications. The same sections...

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Google launches Motorola Xoom as rival to Apple iPad

Google has launched its first tablet computer, marking the opening skirmishes in its battle with Apple’s popular iPad. The Motorola Xoom is the first device to feature the new operating system – known as "Honeycomb" – that Google has designed for touch-screen tablets. The device, like the iPad, features a 10” screen which is completely touch sensitive.It will go on sale in the first quarter of next year in America and follow shortly afterwards in Britain. Prices have not yet been disclosed.Although full details of Honeycomb were not revealed during the unveiling at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, it features a new maps programme that offers a full 3D look at major cities.It also offers an email service that exploits the gadget's large tablet screen.Google has previously allowed...

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Presentation Viewer App for iPhone and iPod Touch Hits App Store

Now you can use your iPhone and iPod touch to show PowerPoint presentations on a Projector by using a new app available in App Store. The name of this app is Presentation Viewer. Once you have installed this app on your iPhone or iPod touch then this app will allow you to show PowerPoint presentations on a projector, TV or monitor using your iPhone or iPod touch. The Presenter mode available in this app allows you to preview upcoming slides. Presentation Viewer FeaturesShow directly from app on your iPhone 4, iPod Touch 4G or ipad Show PowerPoint presentations on a projector, TV or monitor Sync files through iTunes Presenter mode lets you preview upcoming slides Supports Apple VGA or Component or Composite cables Export slides to Photos app to display wirelessly on AppleTV using...

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Apple releases Mac OS X 10.6.6 with Mac App Store

Apple Thursday morning released update Mac OS X 10.6.6 for Snow Leopard, bringing the new Mac App Store, along with the usual bug and security fixes. The Mac OS X 10.6.6 update is 114.8MB and is recommended for all users running Mac OS X Snow Leopard. It includes general operating system fixes that enhance the stability, compatibility, and security of Snow Leopard. The update also includes the much-anticipated Mac App Store, which Apple has touted as the best way to discover and buy new apps for the Mac. The Mac App Store, is a new application users will find in the Dock, and it includes the following features: Discover Mac apps: Browse featured apps, top charts, and categories, or search for something specific. Read detailed app descriptions and user reviews, and flip through screen shots. Buy...

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Apple Limits Vacation Time Ahead of iPad, iPhone News

Apple retail store employees probably shouldn't plan a vacation anytime soon. According to AppleInsider, the company has placed a restriction on vacation days for a three-week period starting at the end of January.Does this mean that Apple is preparing for a significant round of product updates? For months, there have been reports in publications likeWall Street Journal, The New York Times, and Fortune that have said Apple is preparing to release a Verizon CDMA iPhone in early 2011, however none of these reports have proven true so far.There are other products that are on track for an update as well, including MacBook Pros and the iPad. The rumor mill has been busy churning out news of a next generation iPad for quite some time now. Reports have said...

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Best Western fills a mobile vacancy with a new iPad app

Best Western has found room for another mobile offering. The hotel chain has launched an app forApple Inc.’s iPad that enables users to book reservations at the more than 4,000 Best Western hotels worldwide.In addition to booking rooms, the iPad app users also can share travel experiences and photos through the app via e-mail, Facebook or Twitter.The iPad app also enables users to plan their travel by inputting addresses of attractions and restaurants nearby and using a GPS-enabled map  to create itineraries.  Additionally, a trip saver tool allows users to save past trips, including favorite locations visited, or to save the itineraries they create for future trips.IPad app users also can add pictures and additional information to the app to help them remember and...

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Apple's Mac OS X hacked to run on Intel's new Sandy Bridge processors

Before Intel formally unveils its next-generation of processors, likely to officially find their way into Apple's line of Macs in the future, hackers have managed to run Apple's Mac OSX on the new Sandy Bridge CPU hardware. The Consumer Electronics Show this week marks the official introduction of Intel's newly redesigned processors, which are the first to combine visual and 3D graphics technology along with microprocessors on the same chip. The product line, codenamed "Sandy Bridge," features newly architected Intel HD Graphics on each 32nm die for significant performance improvements over previous generation graphics. While Intel's latest family of chips, featuring a major redesign, will inevitably arrive in future Macs from Apple, hackers this week wasted no time to install Mac OS X on...

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How To Capture a Screen Shot on the iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch

Did you know you can capture a screen shot from your iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch without having to install any third-party ap  How To Capture a Screen Shot on the iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch ps? This allows you create a picture of anything displayed on the screen, no matter which app you have open. You will need iPhone OS firmware version 2.0 or higher for this trick. To capture a screen shot:Press and hold the menu button (the main button below the screen). While the menu button is held down, press the power/lock button (the switch on the top edge of the device). Note: You can also hold the lock button and press the menu button, or try to press the two buttons simultaneously. Do whatever is easiest, but if you keep both buttons held down too long, you will get the power down confirmation.Your...

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Apple set to open Mac App Store at noon Eastern on Thursday

Apple's much anticipated Mac App Store will open for users of Mac OS X Snow Leopard at noon Eastern time on its previously announced launch date of Thursday, Jan. 6. Citing sources, Jim Dalrymple of The Loop reported Wednesday that Apple will officially open the service at 12 p.m. Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. When the Mac App Store was rumored to have an early launch in December, he correctly reported that it would not arrive until January 2011. Apple first announced the Mac App Store in October, and promised a launch within 90 days. The digital download destination will serve as a Mac OS X counterpart to the iOS App Store for the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad. The App Store will allow users to download and install applications with just one click, like on iOS...

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Apple iPad 2 Rumors Circulate the Web

While almost every technology company in the world descends on Las Vegas this week for the Consumer Electronics Show, one major tech company will be missing: Apple. But even in the absence of Steven Jobs and his iProducts, the technology giant’s intimidating presence will be felt in every corner of the event. This can already be seen in the number of iPad 2 rumors circulating the Web leading up to the show, which officially opens on Thursday. Several weeks ago, the Japanese blog MacOtakara, citing anonymous sources, said the iPad 2 would look more like the current generation iPod Touch, with a slimmer form and a sleek, curved back. The blog also predicted that the new iPad would have a smaller bezel around its edge and a better speaker system.AppleInsider, the Mac enthusiast blog,...

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Microsoft to take on Apple TV with Windows-based set top box

A new report claims that software giant Microsoft will challenge the Apple TV and Google TV platforms when it introduces a stripped down version of Windows for set top boxes and connected TVs later this year. Microsoft TV? The Redmond, Wash., Windows maker is aiming to make further inroads into the connected living room this year, according to a report by the The Seattle Times. "Microsoft's going to make a splash in this market with a stripped-down version of Windows tailored for set-top boxes and connected TVs," wrote author Brier Dudley. "The software is a version of its embedded device software, overlaid with the Windows Media Center interface, with media streaming and remote-control capabilities." The Windows-based set top boxes will reportedly go on sale later this...

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