windows posts

This seems like the kind of thing that Apple wouldn't want on the App Store (and indeed, it may soon disappear when they figure it out), but then again, after the relaxing of the rules, maybe they're OK with this one. Touch Arcade has discovered iDOS on the App Store -- it's a DOSbox-based disk operating system emulator that runs on iOS. And it apparently does everything that DOS does, including, as you can see in the picture, running Windows 3.0 complete with the Solitaire game.

The app is a 99 cent universal app for iPhone and iPad, and unfortunately, it's not user friendly at all -- if you don't remember your old DOS commands, the app's not set up to make things easy for you. The app also includes what the description calls "freeware/abandonware" like Ms. Pac Man PC, and DigDug, but you can upload other games and files through iTunes.

Honestly, this is awesome, but it seems a little too open for Apple's tastes. I can't see how it would ever hurt the iOS device (you're running everything from within the app, and Apple could simply assume that you own any copies of software that you install on there), but this is one app that may have snuck through the gates. At any rate, iDOS is now available on the App Store -- if it disappears later on, we'll let you know.

Update: We're getting reports that it's been pulled, not unexpectedly so. We'll have to see if the devs want to fight to try and keep it up. It's certainly possible to release an emulator app on the App Store, but Apple's touchy about the subject, to say the least.

Are you a Mac user who is excited about Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 devices? Or a Mac user who is being forced against your will to put away your iPhone and use the company-supplied Windows Phone 7 phone (and forgive me if that one sounds redundant)?

Well, you're in luck. As promised, Microsoft has issued a beta version of Windows Phone 7 Connector for Mac. This software allows you to sync certain selected content with not only "WinPho7" devices, but Microsoft Zune media players as well.

The download is available here -- according to the notes you'll be able to "Sync music, photos, videos and podcasts from your existing iTunes and iPhoto libraries to your Windows Phone 7." Rock on, WinPho fans!

[via Mac Rumors]

Honestly, I haven't been super impressed with anything I've seen coming out of all of the Windows Phone 7 hoopla this week. Sure, the phones look pretty and all, and yes, it's a huge upgrade for Windows Mobile users, but it still seems to me like Microsoft is just trying to match the iPhone rather than actually overcome it. I don't see anything in the offerings that would make me abandon my much-loved iPhone 4. That said, Mac users who have to use Windows Phone 7 (perhaps because it's what you get from work) will enjoy hearing that the system will indeed sync up with Mac computers, a first for Microsoft gadgets. Zune fans can rejoice, too -- the new client will let the Zune sync as well.

Of course, Mac users in Windows Phone 7-land will still be second class citizens, as the client will be a beta release later on this year, and reportedly will only offer syncing for "select content." No idea what that means -- we'll have to wait and find out later this year.

CEO Steve Ballmer is targeting this Christmas season to deliver Microsoft's Windows-based tablet OS into consumer hands. Website Electronista suggests that the HP Slate 500 will provide the most likely platform for the new system.

To that we say: Zune.

No wait, ... we say: "No Comment."

When up-and-coming iPhone company Ngmoco bought old-school Mac game developer Freeverse, one of the big worries was whether the developer would continue to program games for the Mac. But worry not -- Freeverse has released a sequel to its old Hordes of Orcs 3D tower defense game, and it's available now for both Windows and OS X.

The sequel brings new enemies into the mix, plus new towers and a completely overhauled user interface. You've got spells to cast that affect all enemies, and there are six different game modes to play with that range from classic tower defense to capture the flag and maze defense. The first one was a fun desktop variant on tower defense, and the sequel looks like it adds quite a few new gameplay and graphic elements into the mix.

The app is US$19.95 for either platform, and it's available DRM-free from Freeverse's site. Even though we have Steam for Mac and more options than ever for Mac gaming nowadays, it's good to see the distinctly Mac developers still releasing new titles.

Just the other day, I was talking about larger gaming companies using iPhone games to promote their major titles, and here you go: Microsoft and Lionhead Studios' Peter Molyneaux are set to introduce a "smartphone" game next week (presumably that means iPhone, although given that it's Microsoft, it might not be) that will tie-in to the upcoming Fable 3 release on the Xbox 360. The game will be called "Kingmaker," and it sounds like it'll be an augmented reality title, with UK players able to explore their real-world town and "plant virtual flags for the Royals or the Rebels." Every flag planted will earn in-game gold, and that gold will transfer over to the full console title when it is released later this year.

Unfortunately, there are still a few questions -- a release about the game only mentions the UK, and of course, that "smartphone" label means it might not be coming to the iPhone. But there's not long to wait, at least. The official site for the game says it's coming out on October 1st. We'll keep an eye on both the site and the game -- even if this doesn't end up being an iPhone title, there's no question that other developers will be watching to see how it works, and thinking about how they might use this strategy for their own titles.

Good news for all PlayOn users who own an iPad. Engadget is reporting that as of this week, joining the iPhone and iPod touch, PlayOn has released a much anticipated software update allowing you to stream content to your iPad, too.

With the power of Safari and HTML5, you can now watch streaming content from such providers as Hulu, Netflix, Comedy Central, ABC, CBS, MTV and ESPN3 (and many more) over Wi-Fi and 3G by visiting PlayOn's web based app.

To harness the streaming power of PlayOn you need a running version of Windows (to get it setup) as well as a subscription to PlayOn's Premium service. If you haven't used PlayOn before, or you're not sure it's what you're looking for, PlayOn offers a free 14 day trial so you can try before you buy.

[Via Engadget]

Ever since the FaceTime announcement as an 'open platform,' the question's been hanging over us: when do we expect desktop support for the new videoconferencing approach? "Soon," is what French website Mac4ever is reporting today. They have a pretty good track record, so the prediction is worth noting.

The article says Apple will soon release a version of iChat that will allow Apple desktop and laptop owners to video chat to iOS devices with FaceTime. Further, the speculation is that Apple will do the same thing for Windows users wanting to talk to FaceTime users either on Macs or iPhones.

Apple has stated that it expects to see FaceTime protocols widely used. If the rumor is correct, that goal should be well on the way to being fulfilled. I can't wait.

[via 9to5Mac]

Parallels, Inc. has taken the wrappings off of its new desktop virtualization software (yes, the same app which was already spotted on some store shelves -- looks like a few retailers jumped the gun), and provided TUAW with a look. The update adds over 80 new and enhanced features, with better support for 3D apps and games, an enhanced Transporter program that will connect Windows and Mac files to both implementations. Also, integration between the two OSes has been improved to include the ability to use Mac OS X keyboard shortcuts, Spotlight, and Parental Controls across both Mac and Windows on the same computer.

We got a quick demo of the new app, and it looks great -- Parallels has expertly integrated Windows and OS X in whatever form you want, from a full screen switchable setup, to a windows mode, all the way to Coherence mode, which leaves the virtual machine metaphor out of the equation and just lets you run Windows apps straight from the dock as if they were Mac apps.

There's one caveat: Parallels has discontinued support for Tiger, so you'll need to have OS X 10.5 or better installed to run Parallels 6. The app comes in two flavors: Parallels Desktop 6 is the standard app and can be purchased (officially starting on September 14th, we're told, regardless of what's on the shelves at your local Best Buy) for US$79.99, or you can get a Switch to Mac edition (which includes easy file migration and special tutorials for Mac newbies) for $99.99. Previous users of the software can get an upgrade for $49.99. Stay tuned, too -- Parallels tells us it has more even more big news about the new version coming up soon.

My FTP app of choice, Cyberduck, has updated to version 3.6, and as you can see on the changelog, it's a nice, chunky update. The developers have added in support for Google Storage, made things easier for Amazon S3 users, and added a lot of little features and bugfixes that make the whole experience easier and more compatible with other apps and platforms.

I still like Cyberduck as an app -- a lot of Mac users praise the heck out of Transmit, and it's also a very nice app, but I like supporting open source (and don't mind the free downloads, either). And Cyberduck is still growing -- they just recently announced that a Windows version is coming soon, so if you need to do some FTP'ing on Microsoft's platform, but want a Mac-quality app to do it with, Cyberduck could be the one. That version is in beta now, and should be out for release soon.

Cyberduck, as open source software, is a free download, with the option to make a donation to the hardworking developers over here.

No official announcement from the virtualization mavens at Parallels, but it appears that the next version of the company's Mac app for Windows virtual machines is already popping up at retail. Sharp-eyed reader Matthew Fern snapped this shot of Parallels Desktop 6 already on sale at Fry's Electronics in Roseville, CA.

We've got a call into the Parallels press office to find out about upgrade options and actual yes-we-admit-it release info, but chances are we'll have to wait until after the Labor Day holiday to get the final word.

Thanks Matt!

Seems like only yesterday that Linux was vastly outpacing iOS in terms of how many were using it as a browsing platform. Actually, make that last November; at that time, Linux's presence more than doubled the total iOS stake. Now, iOS-based browsers claim 1.13 percent of all browsing platforms, compared to a declining 0.85 percent for Linux.

To the right is a screengrab from Google Analytics, as I see traffic coming to one of my own websites. However, I'm sure the list looks very different depending on the content. For example, I'm pretty sure TUAW's #1 OS isn't any flavor of Windows (but I'll check).

How long before the total of all mobile-only OS clients outranks desktop OS users in this area?

[via AppleInsider]

Steam has released its latest hardware survey results, and there's both good and bad news for us Mac gamers. The bad news first: Mac usage of the gaming service has apparently leveled off since the big debut a few months ago, and while the Mac share was originally around 8%, it appears the novelty has worn off a bit, and Mac usage has fallen down to about 5% of the total Steam audience. That's not too surprising (don't forget that the service kicked off with a free Portal game and a good amount of publicity), and it's important to remember that 5% of Steam's 25 million users is still a significant audience. It'll be interesting to see if Apple ever takes advantage of that -- we haven't heard a single official word from them yet about Steam coming to our platform, although the Snow Leopard Graphics Update was tuned to clear up issues that Valve reported.

The good news, however, is that Valve has separated out Windows and Mac stats in the hardware survey, so even though there are a few less percentage points of people to look at, we have a lot of interesting information about those Mac users. As you can see in the graphic above, the majority of them are actually playing on a MacBook Pro -- iMacs are the next biggest model on the list, but represent 25% of Mac users as opposed to the MBP's 49%.

Steam is also promising a list of most commonly installed Mac applications, but as of this writing, that information isn't posted quite yet. Unfortunately, while Steam is installed on a wide variety of Windows computers, I'll bet that it hasn't quite reached widespread adoption on the Mac side, so these stats will be specifically for Mac gamers rather than the Mac audience as a whole. But it's always interesting to see what stats come out of the Steam Hardware Survey, as a snapshot of just what our technology profile looks like.

[via Joystiq]

How many TUAW readers have ever considered running a Windows server at home? I'm guessing not many. I'm hopefully going to convince you that's a shame because they can offer many features not easily (or cheaply!) replicated with Apple's own products.

Engadget reports that a new beta version of Microsoft's Windows Home Server OS boasts considerably enhanced Mac support. Despite being a Unix-turned-Mac guy, I've had one of HP's MediaSmart servers (pictured) in my house for almost a year now, and it's neatly assimilated itself alongside my Macs thanks to HP's secret sauce add-ons. I couldn't be happier with it.

Read on for exactly how it's all done.

According to the University of Virginia's Information Technology and Communication (ITC), which services the IT needs for most of the campus, 43 percent of first-year students at its residence halls during 2009 were using a Mac.

The figure represents a continuation of a five-year trend that's seeing increased Mac penetration on the campus amongst first year students. Prior to 2004, Mac usage amongst freshmen hovered between three and four percent (with the exception of 1997). 2004, however, served as a watershed year: share increased by four percentage points. A host of theories can help explain this jump. I'd probably point to the release of iTunes on Windows in 2003. While the iPod and the "halo effect" surrounding it had existed for three years, up until 2003 only Mac users were able to fully experience the benefits of hardware and software integration. Or, perhaps it was partly due to the fact that OS X-only Macs began making their way into the market during 2003.

Other significant events that occurred throughout the years include the release of the iPod nano (2005), Intel-based Macs (2006), and the iPhone (2007). But perhaps as influential as anything else during this time frame is the "Get a Mac" campaign. The "I'm a Mac" and "I'm a PC" ads highlighted the benefits of a Mac and contrasted them with the downsides of owning a PC -- i.e., security issues, performance and lifestyle apps.

Data for the University of Virginia ITC is collected by the group's student employees, known as Computing Advisors (CAs), a group of first-year students hired to advise and assist their peers with computing. The data is based on a census of first-year residence halls each fall conducted by the CAs, and can be found here.

Hat tip to Glenn Fleishman.