Thursday, December 11, 2003
Apple - Discussions - Changes to the iBook power supply
Apple - Discussions - Changes to the iBook power supply
I own a 1.5 yo G3 dual USB 600MHz iBook. I have recently replaced the battery (down to 40 min life) and the power supply (crummy cheap plastic sheath came off the end).
The only replacements offered are the G4 power supply and battery. A few comments
1. the new battery is much higher amperage, on a G3 it's good for about 4-5 hours depending on whether one uses wireless or note.
2. The new power supply looks very similar to the old one, but it is improved. The plugs slide on and off and fit both power supplies, but the new power supply does not come with the international plugs that I think my iBook came with. The new supplies power cord is very heavy and has a 3 pronged plug, the old power cord was delightfully light and had a 2 pronged plug. The new cord will NOT fit on the old power supply.
The new 65W power supply outputs higher current.
The old supply was 24V 1.875A.
The new supply is 24.5V 2.85A
I'm a bit surprised that the higher Amp power supply will work with my iBook, but that's what the box and web site say.
The new power supply replaced the frail tip on the old one with a sturdier looking plastic cover, and the the plastic post on the old supply is now metal.
I own a 1.5 yo G3 dual USB 600MHz iBook. I have recently replaced the battery (down to 40 min life) and the power supply (crummy cheap plastic sheath came off the end).
The only replacements offered are the G4 power supply and battery. A few comments
1. the new battery is much higher amperage, on a G3 it's good for about 4-5 hours depending on whether one uses wireless or note.
2. The new power supply looks very similar to the old one, but it is improved. The plugs slide on and off and fit both power supplies, but the new power supply does not come with the international plugs that I think my iBook came with. The new supplies power cord is very heavy and has a 3 pronged plug, the old power cord was delightfully light and had a 2 pronged plug. The new cord will NOT fit on the old power supply.
The new 65W power supply outputs higher current.
The old supply was 24V 1.875A.
The new supply is 24.5V 2.85A
I'm a bit surprised that the higher Amp power supply will work with my iBook, but that's what the box and web site say.
The new power supply replaced the frail tip on the old one with a sturdier looking plastic cover, and the the plastic post on the old supply is now metal.
Wednesday, December 10, 2003
Panther supports JPEG 2000 with iPhoto?
MacInTouch Home Page
This is quite extraordinary. It will be interesting to see how this will work with my Canon G2. I may start shooting G2 RAW images, then importing them and using GC to convert to JPEG2000 for import into iPhoto. Of course with an iBook with limited disk pace, a G3, and USB 1.x this would be strictly for test purposes. However if Apple does put out iPhoto 2.x or 3.x in the next few months, and especially if they put out the rumored thin client slate, I may have to buy a G5 sooner than I'd expected.
Tom Kornack shared some notes about JPEG 2000 and Mac support for it:
Large JPEG 2000 files in 16 bit format with a specialized color profile store my photography. It's the only compressed format that doesn't throw away 4 of the 12 bit dynamic range that comes out of my camera. On this subject I have three related points:
* iPhoto: I was floored when I plopped one of these files into iPhoto on my machine running 10.3 and saw it appear flawlessly, ready for manipulation, classification, etc. This was not possible using 10.2.
* SIPS: sips is a command line program that provides access to all of OS X's image manipulation routines. It is the only command line program that I know of that can handle JPEG 2000, high bit depth images, color profiles and everything else that one could want. All the images on my web site (http://androsace.com/ - while you're there, note the drop shadow css tag in effect if you're on 10.3 in Safari) are generated using this method. I believe that this is the single most powerful yet unadvertised new feature.
* Photoshop: I was surprised that the JPEG2000 plug-in that is provided with Photoshop CS produces files that do not open correctly in Preview or Graphic Converter. To see this effect, you must save a file for which the pixel dimensions are greater than the tile size.
This is quite extraordinary. It will be interesting to see how this will work with my Canon G2. I may start shooting G2 RAW images, then importing them and using GC to convert to JPEG2000 for import into iPhoto. Of course with an iBook with limited disk pace, a G3, and USB 1.x this would be strictly for test purposes. However if Apple does put out iPhoto 2.x or 3.x in the next few months, and especially if they put out the rumored thin client slate, I may have to buy a G5 sooner than I'd expected.
Monday, December 08, 2003
Using USB charging for multiple devices: iPod, Tungsten T PDA, cellphone and Zip-Linq
From: jfaughnan@spamcop.net (John Faughnan)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.hardware.misc
Subject: iPod, Cell, PDA: sharing an external USB power "standard" charger
Message-ID: <5c0dbfb4.0312080754.387af9e6@posting.google.com>
Keyspan and Zip-Linq sell the same devices, all produced in Taiwan.
They're doing some very interesting things, leveraging USB charger standards.
Note this universal charger: http://www.ziplinq.com/pwr.html [1] with a USB connector. If one bought the USB accessory cable for an iPod, I wonder if one could charge with this. Note it emulates a USB power supply, the only "standard" low voltage power source. I also travel with a cell phone and a Tungsten T. Keyspan/Zip-Linq sell USB cables that work with this charger.
So, one could travel with a single charger, a set of Zip-Linq cables, and charge a PDA, Cellphone, and iPod (though not all at once, maybe rotating them one night at a time ... a bit tricky but I think I could do it ...).
Anyone want to try it out and report back?
Come to think of it, another way to so something similar might be to buy a compact powered USB hub. That would also have only one charger, but it could have 3-4 USB connectors. Or combine a passive USB hub with this device to charge multiple things at the same time. Interesting ...
meta: jfaughnan, jgfaughnan, charger, iPod, PDA, Tungsten T, cellphone, mobile phone, cell, charger, adaptor, adapter, travel charger, lithium, battery
[1] AC Wall Plug to 5V USB Adapter
ZIP-PWR-AC / UPC# 724580610137 / MSRP $19.99
This AC power adapter allows you to easily adapt your Ziplinq retractable charging cable to work from any 110VAC outlet. Provides 150-450mA output for super fast charges, even while using your phone. This portable and lightweight adapter rapidly charges NI-Cd, Ni-Mh and Li-Lon batteries in about an hour*.
Specifications:
• Works with any USB charger cable
• Input: 110-240 VAC 50/60HZ (compatible for international travel)
• Output: 5 VDC + 5%
• Min: 150 mA / Max: 450 mA
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.hardware.misc
Subject: iPod, Cell, PDA: sharing an external USB power "standard" charger
Message-ID: <5c0dbfb4.0312080754.387af9e6@posting.google.com>
Keyspan and Zip-Linq sell the same devices, all produced in Taiwan.
They're doing some very interesting things, leveraging USB charger standards.
Note this universal charger: http://www.ziplinq.com/pwr.html [1] with a USB connector. If one bought the USB accessory cable for an iPod, I wonder if one could charge with this. Note it emulates a USB power supply, the only "standard" low voltage power source. I also travel with a cell phone and a Tungsten T. Keyspan/Zip-Linq sell USB cables that work with this charger.
So, one could travel with a single charger, a set of Zip-Linq cables, and charge a PDA, Cellphone, and iPod (though not all at once, maybe rotating them one night at a time ... a bit tricky but I think I could do it ...).
Anyone want to try it out and report back?
Come to think of it, another way to so something similar might be to buy a compact powered USB hub. That would also have only one charger, but it could have 3-4 USB connectors. Or combine a passive USB hub with this device to charge multiple things at the same time. Interesting ...
meta: jfaughnan, jgfaughnan, charger, iPod, PDA, Tungsten T, cellphone, mobile phone, cell, charger, adaptor, adapter, travel charger, lithium, battery
[1] AC Wall Plug to 5V USB Adapter
ZIP-PWR-AC / UPC# 724580610137 / MSRP $19.99
This AC power adapter allows you to easily adapt your Ziplinq retractable charging cable to work from any 110VAC outlet. Provides 150-450mA output for super fast charges, even while using your phone. This portable and lightweight adapter rapidly charges NI-Cd, Ni-Mh and Li-Lon batteries in about an hour*.
Specifications:
• Works with any USB charger cable
• Input: 110-240 VAC 50/60HZ (compatible for international travel)
• Output: 5 VDC + 5%
• Min: 150 mA / Max: 450 mA
Sunday, December 07, 2003
Saturday, December 06, 2003
MadsonLine Portable Power Devices: iPods and Portables
MadsonLine Portable Power DevicesAnother eclectic vendor of OS X/Mac portable hardware. Well known and respected.
Friday, December 05, 2003
Other World Computing: Mac upgrades, odd hardware
Other World ComputingAn eccentric Mac vendor who's been around for 15 years. Quite a selection of useful and plain odd equipment.
Wednesday, December 03, 2003
Installing Panther: bug in 10.3.1 breaks .dmg file mounting on some machines?
MacInTouch Home Page: "My sister just got a new iBook G4 and asked me to configure it. So the first thing I did after going though the setup stuff was to update it 10.3.1. I then tried to mount a .dmg file but it failed. Checking the boards I found this to be a known issue with no fix from Apple. One of the threads put me on the path to the solution, at least for me.
What I found from the threads is that there's a plist file that gets created the first time you mount a .dmg file. This file is called com.apple.frameworks.diskimages.diskimagesuiagent.plist. When I search for the file it was missing. That got me thinking, could this be the problem. The .dmg file won't mount because the plist is missing.
So to test my theory I reinstalled 10.3, but this time before upgrading to 10.3.1, I first mounted a .dmg file. Then I checked to make sure the file com.apple.frameworks.diskimages.diskimagesuiagent.plist was created, which it was. Then I updated to 10.3.1, and now .dmg files mount just fine. So before upgrading to 10.3.1 make sure you have mounted at least one .dmg file so the plist is created.
It looks like I found a bug in 10.3.1 plists; if they are missing they are supposed to be recreated, like 10.3 did, but 10.3.1 failed to do so."
What I found from the threads is that there's a plist file that gets created the first time you mount a .dmg file. This file is called com.apple.frameworks.diskimages.diskimagesuiagent.plist. When I search for the file it was missing. That got me thinking, could this be the problem. The .dmg file won't mount because the plist is missing.
So to test my theory I reinstalled 10.3, but this time before upgrading to 10.3.1, I first mounted a .dmg file. Then I checked to make sure the file com.apple.frameworks.diskimages.diskimagesuiagent.plist was created, which it was. Then I updated to 10.3.1, and now .dmg files mount just fine. So before upgrading to 10.3.1 make sure you have mounted at least one .dmg file so the plist is created.
It looks like I found a bug in 10.3.1 plists; if they are missing they are supposed to be recreated, like 10.3 did, but 10.3.1 failed to do so."
Cat lovers and rare beef eaters may be easy prey for automobiles ...
BBC NEWS | Health | Eat worms - feel better
The BBC news story is a tie in to a BBC broadcast. The broadcast sounds gruesome and fascinating. I've been following the UC/hookworm studies for years and I'm looking forward to the study publications. This Toxoplasma data is new to me though, and it's rather unsettling. It's not good news for people who have pet cats or who like their meat rare. Personally, I'm switching to well done, though it may be too late for me! Good news for dog loving cat hating vegetarians though ... (I think dogs don't get toxoplasma ...)
One third of Britons carry the toxoplasma parasite in their brain.
Its natural home is the cat and it's spread in cats' faeces. It can be picked up by any mammal, from rats to cattle. The main way we get it is by eating undercooked meat (which is why 80% of the French are estimated to have it, with their love of rare meat).
Once we have it we have it for life, there's no way we can get rid of it.
Research shows it somehow manipulates rats' behaviour - it makes rats attracted to cats - their natural predator, so they're more likely to be eaten by a cat and the parasite can complete its life cycle.
For years scientists thought it had no effect on our behaviour, but now the parasite's changing their minds. Recent research suggests that people with toxyplasma have slower reaction times than those without and are also more than twice as likely to be involved in a traffic accident than those who aren't carrying the parasite.
The BBC news story is a tie in to a BBC broadcast. The broadcast sounds gruesome and fascinating. I've been following the UC/hookworm studies for years and I'm looking forward to the study publications. This Toxoplasma data is new to me though, and it's rather unsettling. It's not good news for people who have pet cats or who like their meat rare. Personally, I'm switching to well done, though it may be too late for me! Good news for dog loving cat hating vegetarians though ... (I think dogs don't get toxoplasma ...)
Saturday, November 29, 2003
Thursday, November 27, 2003
Slashdot | Review of inMotion iPod Speakers
Slashdot | Review: inMotion iPod Speakers (updated)
The reviewer has a good point. For the price they should come with a standard iPod power adaptor and a firewire cable, and it's disappointing the speakers can't be angled. The iPod power adaptor is a marvelous travel companion, the inMotion speakers use a typical cheap wall wart.
These are popular, but if they came with an iPod power adaptor and iPod cable ... wow.
Maybe SONY will adapt their superb travel speakers in this way ...
The reviewer has a good point. For the price they should come with a standard iPod power adaptor and a firewire cable, and it's disappointing the speakers can't be angled. The iPod power adaptor is a marvelous travel companion, the inMotion speakers use a typical cheap wall wart.
These are popular, but if they came with an iPod power adaptor and iPod cable ... wow.
Maybe SONY will adapt their superb travel speakers in this way ...
OS X SMB networking '-36 errors' when connecting to Win2K servers
macosxhints - Avoid '-36 errors' when connecting to Win2K servers
Good discussion. I get these when my iBook goes to sleep, wakes up, and can't connect to the win2k server.
Good discussion. I get these when my iBook goes to sleep, wakes up, and can't connect to the win2k server.
Wireless Internet access through cellular/PCS networks
Wireless Internet access through cellular/PCS networks
Rather nice and honest discussion of personal experiences with WLAN services on cell phones.
Rather nice and honest discussion of personal experiences with WLAN services on cell phones.
Usenet/Google Groups: "Why is Palm Desktop Mac so superior to Desktop/Windows"
Google Groups: View Thread "Why is Palm Desktop Mac so superior to Desktop/Windo..."
Turns out the Palm Desktop/Mac started life as Claris Organizer - a well regarded second generation Macintosh PIM from the 1990s. 3Com (just after US Robotics days, before Palm) bought it and created conduits for it. It's a pleasure to use compared to the clunky Windows Desktop app.
I'm one of a very small number of people who use Palm Desktop 4.1
(only available with T|E and T3, supports Date Book/Calendar
categories) on both Mac OS X and Windows. So I can pass on something
that may come as a bit of a surprise.
There's no comparison between the two applications, which look nothing
alike. Desktop/Mac is far superior to Desktop/Windows. One minor
example -- there's no way to export all appointments from
Desktop/Windows, in Desktop/Mac you have 3 export formats, as well as import
and "merge". On Desktop/Win you have a few paltry task filters, on
Desktop/Mac there are filters and views galore.
Turns out the Palm Desktop/Mac started life as Claris Organizer - a well regarded second generation Macintosh PIM from the 1990s. 3Com (just after US Robotics days, before Palm) bought it and created conduits for it. It's a pleasure to use compared to the clunky Windows Desktop app.
Wednesday, November 26, 2003
Updating an iBook to Panther -- the paranoid approach
Updating Panther with Classic
Last night I decided that prior to panther I should upgrade 9.2.1 to 9.2.2 (Panther doesn't contain Classic, you need a prior copy.) Booted Classic, ran update, got updates. Looked fine, booted up, put iBook to sleep, woke it up --- white screen. Had to restart -- got the evil folder with the question mark of doom. Booted off classic boot cd (came w/ ibook), found system folder on hard drive and switched startup disk back to os x. Restarted ok. Bad sign on several fronts. Reaffirmed my dark opinion of Apple's QA capabilities.
Now I'm leaning towards the Panther migration strategy of doom, which will also free up a GB or so of HD space. I'm guided here by a Tidbits ebook I downloaded for $5 (highly recommended), this is the kind of ultra-paranoid path the author took.
0. Do a full Backup 2.0 backup of the iBook to my server in addition to my usual Retrospect backups.
1. Put classic on a disk image (http://googlefaughnan.blogspot.com/2003_10_01_googlefaughnan_archive.html#106717816038176570)
2. Refresh my iPod, cleaning it out totally (so I've got a 30GB external drive). Move classic disk image to iPod. (Maybe try moving iMovie 2 to iPod to see if I can keep it.)
3. Do an archive and install on iBook, then move archive and home folder and applications, etc to iPod.
3. Do a complete HFS+ journaled reformat of iBook, including classic drivers, from Panther.
4. Clean install Panther on iBook then apply updates and install Retrospect client into Panther.
5. Move items back from iPod, refresh iPod and sync to restore music. Keep copy of the classic folder there for future use.
Last night I decided that prior to panther I should upgrade 9.2.1 to 9.2.2 (Panther doesn't contain Classic, you need a prior copy.) Booted Classic, ran update, got updates. Looked fine, booted up, put iBook to sleep, woke it up --- white screen. Had to restart -- got the evil folder with the question mark of doom. Booted off classic boot cd (came w/ ibook), found system folder on hard drive and switched startup disk back to os x. Restarted ok. Bad sign on several fronts. Reaffirmed my dark opinion of Apple's QA capabilities.
Now I'm leaning towards the Panther migration strategy of doom, which will also free up a GB or so of HD space. I'm guided here by a Tidbits ebook I downloaded for $5 (highly recommended), this is the kind of ultra-paranoid path the author took.
0. Do a full Backup 2.0 backup of the iBook to my server in addition to my usual Retrospect backups.
1. Put classic on a disk image (http://googlefaughnan.blogspot.com/2003_10_01_googlefaughnan_archive.html#106717816038176570)
2. Refresh my iPod, cleaning it out totally (so I've got a 30GB external drive). Move classic disk image to iPod. (Maybe try moving iMovie 2 to iPod to see if I can keep it.)
3. Do an archive and install on iBook, then move archive and home folder and applications, etc to iPod.
3. Do a complete HFS+ journaled reformat of iBook, including classic drivers, from Panther.
4. Clean install Panther on iBook then apply updates and install Retrospect client into Panther.
5. Move items back from iPod, refresh iPod and sync to restore music. Keep copy of the classic folder there for future use.
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