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Google Blocks MacMall.com |
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Written by Chris Tangora
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Wednesday, 16 July 2008 |
 In a surprising move, Google has blocked direct access to some of the MacMall.com website from Google's search pages. When doing a Google search of "Mac Accessories" MacMall is the first site that comes up, but there is an interesting warning under it's listing, "This site may harm your computer" . At first I thought it was a joke, kind of like voiding the warrranty as you mod your rig. I opened it along with a dozen other links in my tabs. When I got around to the MacMall tab I was surprised to see that it was serious, and how serious Google is about your safety.
Apparently Google checks the the sites fairly frequently and will place this warning on sites that have links to or will install malicious code, see Google's FAQ for more info on this. Of the 27 pages of MacMall's accessories tested, two script exploits were found over the past 90 days resulting in 3 new processes started on a target machine. Since we have not heard of any Mac exploits, I would think that these are PC specific exploits. The exploits were not hosted on MacMall.com, but were on pages linked via macmall.com. If you are on a PC or are not blocking scripts, I would stay clear of MacMall until this issue is cleared up. If you are using FireFox, you can use NoScript to block all scripts you don't want run. If you haven't tried it yet, give it a look.
I really like the fact that Google is checking these things, and will personally be using Google a bit more because of this extra level of security.
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Mac'in Some Money - 2008-0716 |
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Written by Chris Tangora
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Wednesday, 16 July 2008 |
 Still looking for the perfect Mac job? In our second installment of Mac'in some money we take a look at an established Apple consultant for New York City, macexcellence.com. MacExcellence is a small consulting business that takes a one-on-one approach to the IT industry. By treating each client with respect and attention, MacExcellence strives for a win/win approach to business, both sides walk away feeling good and accomplishing something. Read more about MacExcellence on their about us page at their site.
MacExcellence is looking to grow now. In the business for 15 years as a one man shop, it is time to bring it to the next level. If working for clients like Liz Claiborne, Good Times Media or Columbia House sounds interesting, read on. MacExcellence is looking for not only a Mac aficionado, but also a Mac master. If you love the Mac, eat, sleep, play and work on a Mac, this is for you. If all you want is a weekly paycheck, clock-in, clock-out, this isn't the job for you. The ideal candidate has an entrepreneurial spirit and knows that good service and good customer service is critical for future prospects.
If you want to make the Mac your job, then take a look at MacExcellence and contact Anthony via MacExcellence.com or contact him via his contact page on MacExcellence.com.
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Metal Ground Effect for unique feel |
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Written by Chris Tangora
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Sunday, 13 July 2008 |
 There is a simple, yet unique way to turn your case into a unique case. An effect called Ground Metal painting, sometimes called etched metal painting. Usually found around hot-rods or custom cruisers, the ground metal effect can easily transfer to a computer case mod.
The idea is simple. Get some stainless steel that you will be using for the case. Take an angle grinder and make looping or unique patterns in the metal. Come back with a clear or translucent  paint on top of it, and continue with airbrushing a design on top of it. The end result looks really cool. Even with clear paint the details and pattern alone are enough to draw some attention to your mod. Add in the color to the paint and you can achiever great details and textures not available on plain sheets of metal.
There are DVD's for sale on how to do this, or you could just experiment yourself and see where it takes you. The Case Mod Blog is doing it as a workbench, and plenty of modern artist use it as a medium.
Case Mod Blog's Ground Metal Workbench (in progress)
Mark Remling
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Mac'in Some Money - July 10th |
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Written by Chris Tangora
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Thursday, 10 July 2008 |
 Ever want to get out of your job? Maybe you work in Dell Hell all day and you want to get out, or your boss doesn't let you do what you want to do. There are jobs out there for the Mac enthusiast, but they aren't always easy to find. So, let us do the work for you. Every week (or as often as we can find cool jobs) I'll be posting a Mac based job or company for you to check out. For our first Mac'in Some Money article we look at Small Dog Electronics of Vermont.
Small Dog Electronics is a unique Mac based retail store. In the age when Apple is opening up retail stores left and right, Small Dog has carved out a niche in Vermont as a high quality Apple reseller and Mac accessory store. They have dozens of trained Apple specialist on site and do world wide business. Currently they have four openings for a Retail Store Manager, a Purchaser, an Assistant Store Manager and an Apple computer + Technology Retail Sales. Go to Small Dog's Employment site now to learn more and apply.
About Small Dog Electronics
About Vermont
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Finally! An iPhone killer! |
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Written by Chris Tangora
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Tuesday, 08 July 2008 |
 In case you were wondering, the iPhone is not bullet proof. Unlike James Bond's cigarette case, it will NOT save your life if shot by a mad scientist. Apparently this was a big question over at 1337PWN.com, could the iPhone take a gunshot and keep on going. So they grabbed their first generation iPhone (they're getting a second gen iPhone anyways) and went to the firing range with .308 caliber rifle.
The end result is a blown apart iPhone; don't watch if you are sensitive to violence. The shooter actually gets a bullet through the home button, but this was an obvious lucky shot as he emptied the clip in his M1 Garand. A M1's clip holds 8 x .30 caliber rounds, and it looks like he hit it only two times. So he gets a double D as a grade for this project. A D for being a lousy shot on camera and a D for dumb for wasting a perfectly good iPhone.
Watch the video at YouTube, from TUAW
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Network Home Directories for all |
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Written by Chris Tangora
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Monday, 07 July 2008 |
 Found this handy "how-to" and thought I would pass it along as it seems like it would come in handy for people with multiple Macs in their home. A few command line edits and you can have a network home directory for each user. You still have to make a local user account on each machine, but it will pull the home directory from another Mac (via NFS). While this doesn't make much sense for a lab or small office, this would work well for a home with a few networked Macs. It uses bonjour for host resolution and NFS for mounting.
From Protecht.com
On the machine that you want to automount directories on, execute:
dscl -change Local/Default/Users/kate NFSHomeDirectory /Users/kate /home/kate
dscl will change the home directory of kate from the normal /Users/kate
to /home/kate. This step readies for the use of the automounter.
Edit /etc/auto_home to look like:
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# Automounter map for /home
#
+auto_home # Use directory service
kate dining-room.local:/Users/kate
If it works for you, stop by Protecht.com and say thanks.
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Go Vertical with your MacBook Pro |
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Written by Chris Tangora
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Sunday, 06 July 2008 |
 One of the coolest features of the MacBook & MacBook Pro is that you can use them as a Desktop computer with the lid closed. Just plug in your monitor and your keyboard/mouse and you have a fully functional Mac. The only downside is what to do with the laptop while using it as a desktop. If you block the fans you will overheat your machine, and you also need it easily accessible for when you do want to use it as a laptop. Making a home-made laptop holder is great, if you have the tools to do it, but there is an easier way thanks to Balmuda Design.
Balmuda Design's Floater allows you to house your MacBook Pro in a sleek holder in a vertical position. Designed to allow the air vents to work and have access to your optical drive. Made of machined aluminum to a 1/10 of a millimeter precision, it is a true mixture of form and function. We all know that the cases can take a beating and keep on ticking, but they might not be as streamlined as the out of the box MBP's. Balmuda Designs has taken this into consideration by allowing a 2mm give in the design for the occasional dented or warped MBP.
While the price tag is a little bit high ($309.99), if you live by the notebook this is worth the money. As they say on their site, "our biggest challenge was to design something better than two bricks, because two bricks are all you need to keep a notebook computer upright!" They've taken the time to design a great notebook holder, far better than the two bricks needed.
Balmuda Design's Floater via unplggd.com
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The Government Has the Key to your Mac |
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Written by Chris Tangora
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Wednesday, 02 July 2008 |
 Think having a Mac is going to help protect that pesky G-Man from looking in your computer? No more. Apparently SubRosaSoft has developed a flash drive named MacLockPick that will allow any government official to get complete an total access to your Mac. Passwords, encryption, file and folder details, IM, Mail, and much more. Don't worry, this is only available to government law enforcement officials. Your girlfriend or room mate won't be able to get this and blackmail you.
Learn more about the MacLockPick at macforensicslab.com
- From Zootech
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