A recent article in the Wall Street Journal brought the Apple / Adobe Flash controversy up again, this time focused around the soon to be released iPad.  The article brings up the usual points, but also highlights the Apple/Google push for HTML5 over Flash.  Adobe comes out saying they have an iPhone version of Flash that will work with the iPad, but it is Apple that won't let it on the device.  Developers say that HTML5 is to far off, and that the iPad won't be good web experience for the user without flash.  I disagree.  If you haven't seen the Chrome Experiments page, check it out now (chromeexperiments.com).  No Flash required.  No word how well it will work with the iPad, but I have my hopes up and it is a fun example of HTML, Javascript, and SVG.

I've been thinking about getting an iPad, and the lack of Flash on it has turned from a slight annoyance to something I look forward to.  With No-Script & Flash Blocker as standard on all my Macs, I like the lack of Flash on sites.  When I surf on a different browser and the pages come up with moving, flashing, bouncing flash ads I think ... on the iPad, this won't happen.  The flip side of the benefit is that some videos won't show, some pages won't load, and some things just won't work.  But as a former web designer I gotta say this.  BUILD A BETTER WEB PAGE!  If you entire website relies on Flash and you don't have an alternative site for non-Flash users, expect me to skip your site and go to a better designed site.

To me this is a no brainer.  The iPad and the iPhone should never get Flash, at least until Adobe takes Mac development seriously.  As a geek I watch my CPU constantly, and have seen the CPU sky rocket anytime something flash is loaded on a browser.  I have even seen some computers come to a grinding halt due to a web page with multiple flash advertisements, only to return to normal after force quitting the browser.  So why on Earth would Apple want something that kills battery life and causes crashes on their premiere product?  If Adobe were to take CPU utilization seriously in Flash, then my opinion might change.  But the road to the iPad Flash is through the Mac.  If Adobe can get Flash working properly on the Mac, then I might see a use for it on the iPad.

The age old question, which platform is more secure ... Mac or Windows.  We all have some input into this, but The Plain Truth decided to go a bit further and get some professional input on the subject, 32 security professional's opinions.  The hands down answer, the Mac ... for now.  Almost everyone took the lower market share answer, an answer that is legitimate but gets around the real guts of the matter.

The Plain Truth uses Macs, and a few of the respondents claimed they used Macs at home as well.  There were of course the Windows lovers that claimed Macs were horrible at security.  While I'm not trying to say they are lying, I keep on thinking back to the Microsoft Evangelicals (article here) and how they were told to beat the Microsoft war drums, and better yet, let the third parties beat the drums even louder.  The person that gets me the most in the article is Eric Johanson, a security researcher.  His point is this ...

"If you look at the number of published vulnerabilities in software and the number of users and compare Windows versus Mac OS you will discover that Mac OS has far more published vulnerabilities per user than Windows does so I think the data pretty much speaks for itself."

You're right Eric, it does speak for itself.  This is classic re-direct that Microsoft Technical Evangelicals push.  While these magic "numbers" aren't given in the article, I find it highly unlikely that the Mac has 9x the published vulnerabilities that Windows does.  So Eric spins it around and says the high number of vulnerabilities on Windows is okay because it is offset by the high number of users ... huh? That just doesn't make sense to me.

Anyways, there are some good quotes.  The basic answers come down to this ... it's about the user & market share.  The Mac's low market share makes it a less likely attack for cybercrimes.  But no matter what computer or OS you use, if you just click on anything you see in cyberville, you will probably end up someplace you don't want to be.

Read more at The Plain Truth


A slightly off-topic side note.

While researching this article I was looking up Eric Johanson via Google.  Nothing to interesting, doing the usual checks.  Clicked on a link to the MSMVPS.com blog (MicroSoft Most Valued Professionals), as it had a hit on Eric's statement.  But it had already passed by the front page.  However, the new front page did have an interesting post.  I'll post it again here, due to the irony.

Confirmed.  MS10-015 blue screens caused by computers already being compromised or backdoored with rootkit.
If MS10-015 causes you a bluescreen - its time to check to see if data about your or your organization has been stolen.  Best to rebuild teh machine from scratch instead of try to repair it.
Published Fri, Feb 12, 2010 5:39 PM by Rod Trent at myITforum.com
Filed under: Security.
(link here)


Now if that doesn't make you laugh, I don't know what will.

File this one under crazy Chinese companies.

Shenzhen Dragon Brother Industrial  (SDBI) is talking about suing Apple for copying their P88 design for the iPad.  The P88 is a great example of how Apple can take something and make it better.  The P88 runs on an Intel chip and gets about 1.5 hours of life running Windows XP.  The design looks awfully similar to another device I've seen around, the iPod.  Yes the P88 is like a big iPod, which is what the iPad essentially is.

The P88 does have some advantages.  It runs a full OS (granted it is Windows) and has a VGA out and USB ports, and a slightly lager screen.  However, if you only get a 1.5 hours out of it, I don't know how useful it can be.  Really now.  1.5 hours of life on a computer means that it is 1.5 hours of word processing or other low-CPU processes.  If you actually started doing something on the P88, don't you think the battery life would just plummet?

I digress.  SDBI is considering a lawsuit against Apple for patent infringement.  This is the comical part to me.  You have a company that blatently rips off the iPod/iPhone style, and then claims Apple took their desgin.  If you ask me, I see a resemblance ... but I think that it might be Apple wanting to talk to THEIR lawyers.

More info on the P88 available at hkjulong.com



Pictures from hkjulong.com & Apple.com.  NOT to scale.

Apple has announced the iPad, in case you hadn't noticed.  The biggest "WHAT" I had was the announcing of the A4 chip.  Apple has most likely taken the technology they acquired in their purchase of PA Semiconductors and produced their own chips.   Does this mean that the future of the iPhone may be Power-PC as well?

While it's likely that the computers (desktop/laptops) will remain on Intel chips, as running Windows on a Mac is partially what has driven the Mac sales, what about other projects?  Is Apple completing the circle and moving back to Power PC chips for non-computer devices?  Has the student become the master and soon Apple's chips will be competing against IBM's?  Most likely not.  But with Apple building their own chips, it could mean we start seeing other devices that can do things that used to be impossible.

Sources confirmed to MacMod that a MacBook Pro update will be rolled out on January 27th.  While this isn't as flashy as the tablet, the MBP's are due for an update.  This is not to say that the upcoming event won't have a tablet release, but it will more likely be the "one more thing" after Steve shows off the next MacBook Pro.

The question that comes to my mind is what features of the yet un-released tablet will be in the new MacBook Pros?  Will Apple hold off on updating the MBP's with some of the "new" technology in a tablet until the tablet has been able to be tested (like they did with the MacBook Air's battery that eventually came over to the MBP's).

Also, if the technology is shared between the MBP's and iTablet (for lack of official name), does that mean that the tablet will be capable of more than an iPhone on steroids?

These aren't answers, but rather questions that I wait to see answered in two weeks.

Nokia has been at battle with Apple for a while now, and a few days before the ball dropped on 2010 they counter-sued Apple (after Apple counter-sued them).  Where's all of this law suit happiness going?  How many counter-suits will there be?  Well, according to Nokia's own press release (here) I'm not sure if they think they have a leg to stand on.

Taken from Nokia's own press release, "It should be noted that certain statements herein which are not historical facts..." which they then go on to list 9 items including their ability to grow their business (c), their ability to develop products (b), and expectations on markets (e & f).  While this might just be legalize, it does offer lots of back peddling space for Nokia.  The sad part is that this legal section of their press release is 856 words, while the actual press release about the lawsuit is only 172 words.

But here is the kicker (for me at least).  In part of this legal BS that Nokia is now spewing one of their "risks" are violations "that could result in additional actions by government authorities" (#21) and "the impact of changes in government policies, trade policies, laws or regulations or political turmoil in countries where we do business;" (#11).  Maybe this was just legal mumbo-jumbo, but I thought I would dig deeper.

Turns out these statements revolve around Nokia Siemens Networks (SNS), an arrangement between Nokia & Siemens AG.  SNS (which Siemens claims that Nokia controls the day-to-day operations of) sold spy equipment to Iran.  Nokia was working with Iran to allow the Iranian government to intercept and alter content on everything from emails to Internet phone calls to facebook and twitter.

That's right.  Let me repeat this.  Nokia sold spy equipment to Iran (washingtonpost article on it here).  No wonder they are suing Apple, they need the money to pay whatever HUGE fine they are going to be getting slapped with in the near future (hopefully).  Good luck Apple.

The Mac Mini's case is small and compact, able to fit in almost anything.  Even an iMac DV.  But with all of that extra space, what would you do?  Klaus Diebel, a life long modder, decided to make his a bass booming coffee maker.  Why not?  Now Klaus has the iMac CS for sale (each a custom job) for about 400 euros, plus the iMac case and optional Mini.

Take a look at Klaus' site (kiwidee.com) for more info on the iMac CS and his other mods (G4 Power Tower & the iMac RMS, aka mailbox).

Google's Chrome Web browser has been increasing in popularity in the past year, with some reports claiming it now has roughly the same market share as Safari (a little over 4 percent).  One feature that's noticeably absent from the Mac version is support for extensions, which Google says is coming "soon."

Thankfully, the software hacking community has found several fixes for this problem. Read on for more details.

We recently told you about the OS Xbox Pro, an amazing mod that started with an Xbox and ended with an awesome triple-booting Hackintosh.  Last week we were privileged to have Will Urbina, the maker of the OS Xbox Pro, on the podcast for an interview.

To hear the episode, subscribe to MacMod:LIVE via iTunes or RSS, or just download the MP3.

Will U. Design has a new mod out that features OS X (as well as Linux and W7).  Will isn't a Mac guy, but he soon realized that the people he wanted to work for were (video editing with Final Cut Pro).  He couldn't make himself walk into an Apple store, so he made himself a Hackintosh.  The thing that gets me is that the new Microsoft stores mimic the Apple stores so much!  Anyways, back to the story.

Since Will is so anti-Mac he wanted to make his Hackintosh with an homage to his Microsoft roots, so he grabbed an XBox and went to work.  Lots of work later (and an EFI-X dongle) he was able to get a triple boot system, the OS XBox Pro.  Reminds me of the XBox G4 from 2008's Mac Mod Challenge.

(photos from willudesign.com)

System Specs
Intel Core2 Q9550s
GeForce 9800MT
Dual 500GB HD (RAID 0)
160GB Boot Drive
300W TFX Micro PSU


Have fun working on OS X Will.



Lots of images and build info at  willudesign.com



P.S.  If you like it, you can vote for it on Intel's Core i7 Custom Challenge.