Posted on June 28th, 2008 by Alex Sikora
AppleInsider reported today on a new third-party tool by the German edition of ZDNet, called the ZDNet Clock Tool, that allows Mac Pro users to increase the clock speeds of their processors. AppleInsider reported users having had success with this product, some upgrading their 2.4GHz processors up to 3.24GHz. Apparently going farther than 3.24Ghz creates an unreliable system. The tool is still in beta, and carries inherent risks and a couple of bugs, so caution is necessary with its use.
Related Links:
• ZDNet Clock Tool
• AppleInsider: Third-party tool allows Mac Pro overclocking
Posted on June 28th, 2008 by Alex Diener
Last week’s news about Apple’s use of SproutCore triggered a lot of discussion about the future of rich Internet applications, run-time environments, and JavaScript frameworks. While SproutCore has been referred to as “Cocoa for the web,” its developer Charles Jolley says that the framework was “inspired by Cocoa,” not really a port of Cocoa. But what if someone ported not just Cocoa, but also an Objective-C runtime the runs entirely in JavaScript via a browser? Well, the developers at 280 North did just that.
Posted on June 26th, 2008 by Alex Sikora
Today, Apple released the 8th version of their iPhone SDK, bringing it even closer to the final release expected July 11th. To download it, register for free to become an iPhone Developer at Apple’s iPhone Developer page, and download the Beta SDK. Furthermore, Apple has sent out an email to developers to notify them that they are now accepting submissions to the App Store.
Get started by downloading the eighth beta version of the iPhone OS, available in the iPhone Dev Center. With this new version of iPhone OS you can conduct final testing and prepare your application for submission to the App Store.
Posted on June 25th, 2008 by Alex Sikora
iLounge announced yesterday that it is hosting a contest called the “Quest for the Best iPhone App Contest”. It iPhone developers only have to release their app on the App Store and then post a screenshot of the app on iLounge’s iPhone Application Gallery. The three winners will receive one of the three B&W Zeppelin Speakers and a $100 Apple Giftcard.
One winner will be picked from each of three categories: Games, Business/Professional, and Just Plain Cool. We may use the “Just Plain Cool” category to recognize an especially creative or well-executed program that doesn’t fall into one of the other categories, or we might pick a second game or business application that really impresses us.
The contest runs until the end of July 25th. See the link for more details and the official rules.
Posted on June 24th, 2008 by Alex Diener
A few months back a friend asked me if I wanted to help work on a small application for OS X. He figured because I had a long history of Windows based programming I would have no trouble making the transition to writing apps for Mac. Well he was wrong for obvious reasons and I also found (unlike coding Windows apps) that the journey to bring my skills up to par for Mac, was a greatly rewarding, yet somewhat convoluted experience.
Posted on June 24th, 2008 by Alex Sikora
Those new to developing on Mac OS X, or new to programming in general, can have a difficult time finding resources to aid them. Luckily there are some resources for those who need them.
Here are two resources for programming on the Mac. The first is from MacZealots.com, called “Beginning Mac Development: A Solid Foundation”, it is a short article giving a series of steps and tips for those who want to learn to develop software for the Mac. The second is a free eBook called Become an Xcoder by Bert Altenburg, Alex Clarke, and Philippe Mougin, written for non-programmers. It is hosted on CocoaLab.com and has pdf versions in a variety of languages. It is an excellent resource for new programmers. Links to these resources are below.
Related Links:
• Beginning Mac Development: A Solid Foundation
• Become an Xcoder
Posted on June 23rd, 2008 by Daniel Lurie
LÖVE is an open-source 2D game engine which uses the versatile Lua scripting language to create dynamic gaming experiences. It relies on OpenGL graphics and the SDL interface library to allow for cross-platform implementation and is an all-encompassing gaming environment for the development and enjoyment of 2D games.
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Posted on June 22nd, 2008 by Daniel Lurie
Braid Art Labs LLP released GroBoto 2.2.2 for Mac OS X. This version is the first to support the creation of GroMobile Gizmos. GroMobile is Braid’s 3D Desktop Gizmo player based on technologies originally developed for GroBoto. This new release comes with four Gizmos, more are available online. In November 2007, Braid will release a new version of GroBoto that will allow GroBoto owners to create their own GroMobile Gizmos.
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Posted on June 20th, 2008 by Alex Sikora
Recent reports show the games industry in Britain is being threatened. Britain used to be a leading game development country, but fell from third to fourth, behind Canada, in 2006. The BBC News website in the UK has one supposed cause, which is the Universities’ lack of effective video game development courses that are creating unprepared students. Other’s however have a different view on the matter.
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Posted on June 18th, 2008 by Alex Diener
Recent data indicate that Apple engineers have significantly lower salaries than their Silicon Valley peers: $89,000 at Apple, versus $105,000 at Yahoo and $112,000 at Google. Paying lower salaries had a major impact on Apple’s bottom line when it was struggling in the market up until 2004. But now that Apple is highly profitable, these lower salaries are no longer a factor in Apple’s success. Will Apple have to raise salaries to match the market rate, or face defections?
Related Links: