Version 0.81 of fink, the Unix package manager for Mac OS X, has been released. fink is critical software for all of us who bought PowerBooks because they run Unix with a decent GUI and promptly added the terminal to our docks. This release is the first to support Intel Macs, though a “number of packages (particularly packages in the ‘unstable’ tree) either do not compile, or compile but do not run. Work to improve this situation is ongoing.”
Seems FreeBSD wants to reach feature parity with desktop Linux. Excuse me while I guffaw for a minute. That’s like saying you’re designing a car and want to reach feature parity with a Yugo. When FreeBSD starts aiming for feature parity with the Mac, then I might take them seriously.
Why, oh why, do so few developers of free software know or care about user interface design? Or reversing the question, why do so few developers who know how to design user interfaces have any interest in working on desktop Linux? What little effort there is, is simply applied to imitating Windows. For a couple of years I saw some hope at Eazel, but then the money spout got turned off and the developers who actually knew what they were doing lost interest and moved on to other things.
Roxio (or Sonic Solutions, or whatever they’re calling themselves these days) is running a survey about Toast. Perhaps because of the options I chose, the survey was refreshingly brief. The main thing I told them was that they still owe me money from unfulfilled rebates on previous versions, and they won’t be getting any more of my money until they pay up. Perhaps if enough people tell them that, they might get the message that upgrade rebates are a good way to lose loyal customers.
They may have already gotten the message. Popcorn 2 is the first product I’ve seen from them in a while whose upgrade price (though still excessive) doesn’t require you to first pay full price and then apply for a rebate. On the other hand, it’s electronic only and you have to pay extra (nearly full price in total) if you want a CD or a little less if you’d like to be able to download the software more than once.
Something weird happened on my TiBook running Tiger sometime in the last day or two. Somehow my home directory got locked. I can see it and read files, but whenever I try to delete anything I’m asked to type in my password. And simple shell commands like “cat > test.txt” fail with a “Operation not permitted” message when executed within my home directory. The same command works outside that directory, both above and below it. That is, I can create new files inside directories inside the home directory. It’s just the root level of the home directory that’s giving me troubles. The directory is encrypted with FileVault for whatever that’s worth.
Has anyone seen anything like this before? Any suggestions?
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The first Macs to get the Intel treatment were the low-end iMac and the High-end PowerBook (excuse me, MacBook). Next out the gate was the Mac Mini. Rumor has it that the next part of the product line to be X86’d will be the iBook. The final Mac to be intellified is likely to be the PowerMac, possibly in the late summer/early fall.
I’m just curious why this order? I would have guessed the PowerMac would have been one of the first systems to go Intel because:
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I’ve heard studies claiming vastly increased productivity from dual-monitor setups and arguing that companies are being penny wise and pound foolish by refusing to buy extra monitors for their programmers. That may well be true, though I mostly work with one large monitor myself. However in my experience many companies and individuals are being even more foolish by limping along with old, grody keyboards and mice.
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