A quick recap of Apple news at Macworld 2009

A quick recap of Apple news at Macworld 2009
For all of you who weren't able to follow our live coverage of Apple's keynote address at Macworld 2009 earlier Tuesday from San Francisco's Moscone Center, here's a quick recap of the highlights.•  DRM-free iTunes: As first reported last night by CNET News' Greg Sandoval, Apple announced plans to lift DRM technology from its entire catalog of 10 million iTunes songs by the end of April. Eight million songs are DRM-free as of today, and labels will be allowed to charge different prices for their songs, in a departure from the previous iTunes Store policies.We're not exactly sure at the moment how the details will work with this announcement, but it sounds like a big win for iTunes customers. One downer is that you'll have to pay 30 cents to replace existing DRM-laden tracks with the new DRM-free versions, essentially upgrading those songs to iTunes Plus tracks. Check out this story from Greg for more details. The iTunes Store was slammed in the aftermath of the keynote, and service was spotty. •  New 17-inch MacBook Pro: Apple completed its notebook refresh with this new model, which brings the unibody design, trackpad button, and new displays to the company's largest laptop. It will cost $2,799, the same price as the current 17-inch MacBook Pro.The most interesting part of this announcement, however, is the notebook's battery. Apple is using a new type of battery that it says will allow the notebook to get between seven and eight hours of battery life, depending on which graphics chip is running.Photos: Jobs fill-in touts media, MacBook...See full gallery1 - 4 / 26NextPrevIn order to get that technology into the notebook, however, Apple had to make the battery completely enclosed within the chassis: like the iPod and iPhone, you won't be able to replace it yourself. Apple representatives did not have details on how the battery replacement program will work, although it won't ship until later this month. Apple expects the battery to last five years.Update at 2:08pm: Gizmodo reports the battery will cost $179 to replace, and it can be done at Apple stores or Apple resellers.•  iLife '09: There were some nice improvements with to the components of the iLife suite, such as geotagging support in iPhoto '09, improved editing capabilities in iMovie '09, and rock star instructors in GarageBand '09.Are they compelling enough to upgrade? That probably depends on the individual. Travelers will like the geotagging, budding musicians will like the lesson plans. One sour note: it doesn't appear that anybody who bought the new MacBooks released from October onward will be able to upgrade to the new software without paying the full $79 fee.•  iWork '09: Does anybody actually use iWork? Easily the most underwhelming section of the keynote, the latest version of Apple's office software didn't appear to have anything compelling enough to cause a mass upgrade, other than perhaps Keynote Remote, which lets you use your iPhone or iPod Touch to control Keynote presentations.But iWork.com will be interesting to watch evolve. It's in beta form for now, but if Apple works out the kinks, it could increase the usage of iWork especially if Apple finds a way to hook it into MobileMe.•  The Philnote: Phil Schiller acquitted himself well in the starring role, usually accustomed to playing the role of Steve Jobs' sidekick at these events. He wasn't Jobs, although to be fair I've been covering technology events for eight years and haven't run into an executive with anything even approaching Jobs' presentation skills. But he engaged the crowd, made the proper offerings to the demo gods the night before, and ensured that the show would go on.•  The rest: No Steve Jobs sighting. No new Mac Mini. No new iMacs or Power Macs Mac Pros. The line outside the keynote seemed smaller than in years past, although it also seemed that IDG did a better job moving the line along.And Tony Bennett is the true ageless wonder.The last San Francisco Macworld with Apple's participation saw Tony Bennett close out the show.James Martin/CNET NewsClick here for more Macworld Expocoverage from CNET News.

How to troubleshoot software-update problems

How to troubleshoot software-update problems
Note that in a post on the Apple Support Communities in March 2012, K Gazow described a fix for a failed iTunes update that involves changing Windows User Account Control settings.It turns out "insufficient privilege" and other access-denied errors are associated with just about every piece of software ever distributed, including Office, Firefox, and Windows 8.Change the folder's properties to accept the updateA common suggestion when an insufficient-privilege problem is reported in a forum is to make sure you're running as an administrator. The most common response to this suggestion is a form of "Duh!"Several people recommend changing the attributes of the folder the update is being saved to so that "everyone" has access to the folder. For example, on the Skype Community site, a contributor named Tamim explains how to change the properties of the Skype folder in C:Program Files to enable the program to be reinstalled (the precise location of a program's folder depends on your version of Windows).Tamim provides a link to a Fix-it wizard on the Microsoft Support site that offers to repair the problem associated with the "Error 1606" message. Two other Microsoft error numbers that involve insufficient privileges are 1303 and 1321.Rex Zhang, a moderator on the Microsoft TechNet Office Forum, suggests that if Error 1303 occurs when installing Office Professional Plus 2010, ensure the SYSTEM group and the Everyone group of the destination folder have Full Control privileges.Similarly, Raju S. Das, who moderates Microsoft's Office 2010 Forum, replied to a person who encountered an Error 1321 when attempting to install Office 2010 by recommending they change the permissions of a specific file in the installer's destination folder.The Microsoft Support site provides tips for troubleshooting installation glitches when using Windows Update, Microsoft Update, or Windows Server Update. Windows Phone 7 users experiencing update woes may find a solution on the Microsoft Support page with article ID 2484484.The Xbox support site offers troubleshooting tips for various Xbox 360 system update error codes.Other resources for software update/installation solutionsOn several occasions I have had to uninstall the Firefox browser to update the program to its most-recent version. It hasn't happened recently, but if the problem recurs I'll go to the Mozilla Support page that explains how to fix the Update Failed error message when updating Firefox.Related stories Tackle OS X Thunderbolt firmware update woes iTunes 11.0.3 update beefs up MiniPlayer's album art How to handle OS X firmware updates that won't install Should you encounter difficulties when attempting to update the Thunderbird e-mail program, visit the Mozilla Thunderbird Support page that describes five different potential solutions. The site also explains how Thunderbird's automatic updates work and how to manually update the program.When a Mac OS X software update fails, check the X Lab's Installing Software Updates FAQ for a possible remedy. The Google Chrome support site provides advice for people unable to update the Chrome browser on a Mac.The solution to my system's inability to install the new version of iTunes may not cure your iTunes-update hiccup. Apple's support site explains iTunes update and restore error messages and advanced troubleshooting, as well as how to resolve iOS update and restore alert messages.

Android Atlas Weekly 92- Farewell, until 2020 (Podcast)

Android Atlas Weekly 92: Farewell, until 2020 (Podcast)
Justin, Jaymar, Antuan & Stephen predict the future of the Android Operating System all the way in the year 2020. All that and more on this week's edition of Android Atlas WeeklyThis content is rated TV-MA, and is for viewers 18 years or older. Are you of age?YesNoSorry, you are not old enough to view this content.PlayListen nowYour browser does not support the audio element.Subscribe: iTunes (MP3) | iTunes (320x180) | iTunes (640x360) | RSS (MP3) | RSS (320x180) | RSS (640x360)EPISODE 92Jaymar’s Predictions for 2020Google Play Movies will be re-rebranded as YouTubeAndroid will be available as a standalone desktop OS, and it will come loaded with Chrome Browser (a la Windows & IE). (This, of course, means that Chrome OS is dead)Android@Home initiative will be in full swing: lights, appliances, security systems, etc. will be powered by AndroidAndroid will become self-aware, at which point it will send an Austrian bodybuilder back in time to pre-emptively end any hope for a human rebellion. This bodybuilder will, of course, be wearing Android-powered sunglasses Instagram will announce that it is coming to Android “very, very soon”In the year 2020: by JustinMotorola will cease to exist as a separate entityiOS will just be a skin on top of AndroidZucchini Bread will be released for the Sonysung Nexus QuasarGoogleTV will be 20x better than today, and still no one will be using itMost Android phones will have Lytro cameras built inAntuan Goodwin 2020Singularity happens and we will be powered by Android… or civilization ends on Black Friday 2012 and we don’t have to worry about it.Android custom skins (Sense UI, TouchWiz) grow out of control, morphing into offshoot branch OSes of themselves. OEMs build their own app stores and music markets to get around Google’s rulesGoogle attemps to tighten control over the look and feel of AOSP, there will some headbutting between OEMs and Google and the search giant will need to decide how “evil” it will be.Google self driving cars will evolve into an ad-supported Google Cab service. You’ll be able to call a robo cab with your Android phone and have it automatically come pick you up and take you to a location.Someone finally builds an Android powered iPhone killer… faced with defeat, Apple reverts to full time patent trolling.â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"END OF SHOW DETAILS:BLOGcnet.com/android-atlasTWITTER@androidatlasJAYMAR@jaymarcabebeJUSTIN @notmyrealnameANTUAN@antgooSTEPHEN @stephenbeacham