It all starts when Springfield Mall gets a new Mapple store, shaped like a giant cube. “It’s so sterile”, is the first thing Lisa excitedly says upon entering. She goes from display to display looking at the MiPods and MiPhones.

Steve Mobs’, the self-proclaimed “insanely great leader”, makes a live announcement from the Mapple headquarters deep below the sea. Some geeky spectators comment, “he’s a genius” and “he’s like a god who knows what we want” before Mobs even says anything.

Mobs’ says he has something that will “completely change the way you look at everything”. Everyone in the audience now has cash in hand waiting to buy whatever it he says.

Of course, Bart sees this as an opportune moment to hook up a microphone and dub over the lisping Mobs’. “You think you’re cool because you buy a $500 phone with a picture of a fruit on it. Well guess what? They cost 8 bucks to make and I pee on every one!” The hilarity doesn’t stop there, as Bart continues, “I have made of fortune off you chumps and I’ve invested it all in Microsoft. Now my boyfriend Bill Gates and I kiss each other on a pile of your money!”

People are offended and outraged, one employee states “Who dares question the boss we fired 10 years ago and the brought back!” Comic Book Guy is so offended he does his best to recreate the classic 1984 Macintosh commercial (you can see it below), by throwing a sledge hammer which breaks the giant screen.

After getting her Mapple bill in the mail, Lisa travels to Mapple headquarters under the sea in a USB thumbdrive (I’m not making this stuff up). She finds the vein Mobs searching his own name, he geekily rejoices the findings. She’s there to discuss setting up a reduced payment plan for her $1,200 MiPod bill. Mobs then fill Lisa in on the true Mapple slogan “I know our posters say Think Differently, but our real slogan is No Refunds”.

I’m not sure if Steve Jobs did something to piss Matt Groening off, but I’ll be the first to admit… it was very funny. If anyone is interested in viewing the full episode you can check out Hulu (US Only) or MegaVideo.

The tool you need is Aimersoft Mac DVD Copy, which you can download for free from:
http://www.aimersoft.com/mac-dvd-copy.html

It’s very easy to use, just with three simple steps then you can easily copy DVD on Mac.

Step1. Select DVD Source

After you install and lunch Aimersoft Mac DVD Copy, put the DVD disc into your DVD drive. Click the “Select Source” drop-down list to browse your computer and located your source DVD movie (either in a folder or from your DVD-ROM).

Step2: Select DVD Copy Method
Aimersoft Mac DVD Copy allows you to back up DVD to a folder on your hard drive or directly copy DVD to a new DVD disc. In the “Select DVD Copy Method” field, select a method to output the selected DVD movie according to your need:

If you want to back up your DVD movie to a folder on your hard disc, you can select the “Output DVD Folder” option, and specify a directory to save the copied DVD movie.

If you want to directly copy your DVD movie to a new DVD disc, you can just select the DVD Burner where you have inserted a blank DVD disc.

Note: If you are copying a DVD disc from your DVD Burner to a new DVD disc, Aimersoft Mac DVD Copy will ask you to insert a blank DVD disc when the program gets ready to burn. Then you can just take the original DVD disc out and insert a blank DVD disc.
But if you have two or multiple DVD Burner, you just need to change object DVD to another DVD burner and insert a blank disc into it , then Aimersoft Mac DVD Copy will automatically copy DVD movie to the new DVD disc. No need to wait for the conversion to insert a new blank DVD disc.

Step3: Program Settings (optional)
Set Buffer Directory: Specify a directory on your hard drive as the buffer directory to store the temporary files generated during the conversion. We recommend that you select a folder on a hard drive that has relatively big free space.

Select Language: Select an interface language for the program. The currently available languages are English and Simplified Chinese.

Step4: Start Copying DVD
After all things done, click the Start button to start copying your DVD movie or burning it to a new DVD disc. That’s all.

Technorati Tags: dvd, max, osx, copy, backup, for legal use only, wink, wink, technology, geek

What you need is Aimersoft DVD Ripper for Mac; you can free download it from here:
http://www.aimersoft.com/dvd-ripper-for-mac.html

Part1. How to rip DVD to MP4, MOV, AVI, MPEG, 3GP, FLV, M4V on Mac OS X?
Step1. Download and install Aimersoft DVD Ripper for Mac. Insert your DVD disc into DVD drive, then run the software, click “Load DVD” button to import the DVD file. You can also load DVD folders from your hard drive by clicking “Load IFO”, DVD folders files name appear like “Video_TS”.

Tips: This software supports converting by selecting chapters or customizes conversion time. If you just want certain part of the DVD movie, you can check the chapters you want or trim the movie.

Step2. This software can convert DVD to various video formats such as MP4, MPEG, AVI, M4V, MOV, 3GP, MPG, FLV, etc. Click the “Profile” drop down list to select a format you want.

Tips: If you don’t know much about video formats, you can select a format according to the name of your portable player. For example, you can select “iPod Touch MPEG-4 (*.mp4)” when you want to rip DVD movie for iPod Touch, and the default setting works great. This software also includes the DVD Audio Ripper function, so you can extract audio from DVD movie to MP3 or AAC for web using or other portable player.
If you want to customize the output video quality, you can click the “Settings” button next to the format field to open the Settings window and set video resolution, frame rate, bit rate, encoder, etc.

Step3. Select Subtitle and Audio
Regular DVD movies usually have several subtitles such as English, French, German, etc. You can select one you prefer. You can also delete the subtitle by selecting “No Subtitle”. Selecting Audio is the same.
Note: If you want to combine several DVD chapters into one file, on the main interface, there is a check box “Merge into one file”, select it, then you will only get one output file instead of several files by chapters.

After the above steps, click “Start”to start conversion. When the conversion finished, you can click “Open” to locate the file in your hard drive.

Part2. How to edit (trim, crop, join) DVD movie on Mac OS X

If you want to edit your movie before converting it, Aimersoft DVD Ripper for Mac provides your with various powerful functions including:

1.Crop DVD
After you load the DVD file, If you want to cut the black edges of the DVD movie, you can click the “Crop” button, and then you will see a pop up windows (See the figure below). There is a frame in dashed line around the movie video; you can drag it to cut the black edges.
More over, you can click the Crop drop-down list to select a Crop model you prefer, for example: “Cut off top and bottom black edges”. You can even type the number in the box to cut off black border accurately.

2.Snatch Pictures
If you want to snatch pictures from DVD, while you previewing the DVD movie, there will be a small camera icon below the preview window, click it when you want to snacth the picture, it supports output picture as JPEG or BMP format.

3.Effect DVD
You can click the “Effect” button and customize the brightness, saturation, contrast, volume, etc (See the figure below). You can even apply special effects such as “Emboss”, “Negative”
, “Old film” and “Gray” by selecting an effect from drop-down list.

4.Trim DVD
A whole DVD movie might be very large. By default, this software will convert the whole DVD to one file; if you just want several chapters of the DVD, you can just select the chapters you want to convert (you can preview the DVD clip before converting it).
Or you can click “Trim”button to open the trim panel, drag the trim bar to set start time and end time to convert a clip from your movie. You can also type the exact time values in the Set Start Time field and Set End Time field to trim video.

Time to dump Windows?
Can it be done? Is it the right time? Find out what it’ll take to finally switch to desktop Mac OS X or Linux

By Galen Gruman at InfoWorld

InfoWorld’s “Save XP” petition asking Microsoft to keep Windows XP available indefinitely, not end most sales on June 30 as currently planned, has prompted many readers to suggest that maybe the best answer for those who don’t like Vista is to switch to another operating system completely.

“Don’t be afraid. Just switch to Linux and become a member of a really free society,” wrote Carlos Raul Gutierrez.

[ Find out the deployment secrets of early Vista adopters ]

“Windows Vista was the reason I bought a Mac mini. I didn’t want my only choices to be an operating system that would soon be obsolete (XP) or one that was buggy and would break much existing hardware (Vista), and I’m not enough of a geek to use Linux (do things from the command line? Puhleeze…),” wrote “Jack.”

How realistic is a switch to Linux or Apple’s Mac OS X? For some users — often technically savvy people such as engineers, consultants, designers and CTOs — it is clearly an option that already works quite well. In the past year, running Mac OS X or Linux as your default OS has been made easier by the capability to run Windows in a virtual machine, giving you access to both Windows-only applications and Web sites that rely on Microsoft’s Internet Explorer-only ActiveX technology. But in a business environment, switching to a Mac or Linux PC may not be quite as easy.

The Mac OS X option
Of the plausible alternatives to Windows, Apple’s Mac OS X has the largest market share and history. InfoWorld chief technologist Tom Yager has written that the latest version of the Mac OS, Leopard (10.5), is simply the best operating system available. And Macs are indeed popping up more frequently even within IT circles — I’ve seen more MacBook Pros in the hands of CTOs and IT execs at conferences in the past year more than I’ve seen Mac notebooks in such venues ever. Although there are no real numbers on just the business adoption of Macs, it’s clear that Apple is in growth mode, gaining an increasing proportion of all new computer sales for more than a year now.

InfoWorld’s Yager has chronicled the adventures of one PC user who switched to the Mac OS, showing that for an individual, the conversion was ultimately a rewarding one. The TechWeb site has also provided a good guide on how to make the switch to Mac OS X.

A key tool for any Mac OS X switcher is a virtual machine to run Windows for those apps and Web sites that require it. Both Parallels Desktop 3.0 and EMC VMware’s Fusion software will do the trick, as InfoWorld’s comparative review has shown.

Although Macs are compatible with most typical hardware, such as monitors and drives, fitting a Mac into an enterprise’s management systems and ERP applications can be a different story. Yager’s Mac Enterprise blog and the Mac Enterprise user group both provide advice on managing Macs in a traditional IT environment.

The Linux option
The more technically inclined may be attracted to Linux, the most popular form of desktop Unix. Linux desktops typically are challenged by limited hardware compatibility (due to lack of drivers), limited application options, and user interfaces that require active participation to get work done, which tends to keep Linux away from the general user population. But those who work with a Linux server all day may find that using it on the desktop as well actually makes their lives easier.

Just as Mac users need occasional access to Windows, so do Linux users. Because Linux distributions run on Windows-compatible hardware, it’s straightforward to use desktop virtualization software, such as Parallels Workstation, Sun’s (formerly Innotek’s) VirtualBox, and EMC VMware’s Workstation software, to provide access to both environments.

Although some enterprises have committed to wide Linux deployment — such as automaker Peugeot Citroën’s plans to install 20,000 Novell Suse Linux desktops — most have left Linux to the engineering and development staff.

InfoWorld Enterprise Desktop blogger Randall Kennedy argues that desktop Linux is doomed to remain a tiny niche OS, given the Linux community’s lack of interest in providing a UI that regular people could use. Kennedy tried to spend a week working on nothing but the Ubuntu distribution of Linux but gave up on the fifth day.

But Kennedy’s take isn’t the last word on desktop Linux. Frequent InfoWorld contributor Neil McAllister put together a special report on how to move from Windows to Linux, concluding that the effort was not as hard as you might think.

Who’s right? As with any platform choice, they both may be. A one-size-fits-all approach may be unrealistic. And that likely explains why many businesses will have a mix, dominated by Windows XP today (and perhaps Vista in a few years) but not exclusively tied to Microsoft’s OS.

Yes, you too can look like you’re slowly working your way to being a pirate wannabe with this 6×18 optical zoom attachement for your iPhone. Because the iPhone is all things, including your new camera. As an added bonus, you can slip it into your pocket and appear like a dirty creep to any woman or child within a thirty foot radius!

Who wouldn’t want to spend $14.77 for this add on?

Technorati Tags: whackjob, iphone, accessories, zoooooooooom, yes that’s a lens in my pocket

Here’s how to get to the terminal in OSX.  Go to your Finder, then Applications -> Utilities -> Terminal.

Once there, you can try one of these three easter eggs out.

1. Lord of The Ring – Terminal edition.  In your terminal session, type the following:

LOTR /usr/share/calendar/calendar.history

2. Good and Bad singing.  In your terminal session, type the following:

say -v Good

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

then try:

say -v Bad

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

(Those are the letter ‘o’ not zeros).

Lastly,  the history of our world, according to OSX.  In your terminal type:

 cat /usr/share/calendar/calendar.history

There’s a few easter eggs for you!

Technorati Tags: easter eggs, osx, mac, terminal, oh what fun

You can read a long list of features and fixes after the jump, or just go here and get it.

• new feature: Manage API Clients window
• improvement: it is possible to edit the phone number of SkypeOut contacts
• improvement: added a yellow alert message to chat if notifications are turned off (alertsoff)
• improvement: after dialing a number by using the SkypeOut dialer the call window is not moved anymore
• improvement: contact list and history list filtering improved to better match names which include special characters (for example öüäßøæå)
• improvement: improved the way Skype Prime price quotes are shown during video calls
• improvement: it is possible to escape editing chat topic
• improvement: main window can be moved by dragging the bottom bar
• improvement: positioning of call windows on secondary monitors improved
• improvement: SkypeOut dialer window can be moved by dragging the bottom bar
• improvement: warning is displayed if Skype Credit is low

• change: in the API client connection dialog, default choice changed to ‘do not allow to connect’
• change: multi chat participants sorted the same way as contacts in the contact list
• change: Skype Me changed to Skype Meâ„¢
• change: command – C not copying selected text from chat (workaround for ‘Write Room’)
• bugfix: “Add User” window was hidden when opened from profile
• bugfix: “Report abuse” button didn’t work in Skype Prime call window
• bugfix: bonjour not authorized contact was shown as offline
• bugfix: call window was all white when an incoming video call was placed on hold on Panther
• bugfix: chat created from conference with Skype and SkypeOut contacts didn’t show list of contacts in chat drawer
• bugfix: clicking Growl notification about a contact coming online didn’t select that contact in the contact list
• bugfix: crashed on Quit if remote profile panels had been open during run
• bugfix: emoticon handling was broken if alerts string contained words in emoticon file path
• bugfix: it was possible to pay for Skype Prime call without accepting the terms and conditions
• bugfix: main window height decreased after each Skype restart
• bugfix: mirrored Picture in Picture Video (Self Video)
• bugfix: missed calls were sometimes not immediately added to the missed events panel
• bugfix: quote message shown twice in chat context menu for links
• bugfix: recognise computer timezone change for chat timestamps
• bugfix: self video square was only visible on one-way video on Panther
• bugfix: send File and Send Contacts menu items didn’t work as expected in conference call window in case the call included a SkypeOut contact
• bugfix: SkypeFind links were not handled gracefully
• bugfix: sometimes making a SkypeOut call didn’t put another active call on hold
• bugfix: sometimes second call window was placed exactly on top of the active call window
• bugfix: sometimes when a ringing incoming call transitioned into a conference call, the call window didn’t appear after the call was answered
• bugfix: text “Invalid Skype name or Number” not near the wrong number
• bugfix: there was no full screen icon in the call window on Panther
• bugfix: too many preference categories accessible on sign-in if language not English
• Skype API: [SkypeAPI connect] and ConnectToSkype functions are much faster now
• Skype API: implemented OPEN CONTACTS, OPEN CALLHISTORY, OPEN CONFERENCE, OPEN USERINFO, OPEN PROFILE, OPEN SENDCONTACTS, OPEN BLOCKEDUSERS commands
• Skype API: implemented OPEN VIDEOTEST, OPEN SEARCH, OPEN OPTIONS (GENERAL, VIDEO, PRIVACY, EVENTS, SOUNDDEVICES, CALLS, SMS, CHAT, ADVANCED)
• Skype.framework: [SkypeAPI connect] and ConnectToSkype functions are much faster now

What the heck is a Silverlight you ask?  No, it’s not a propriatary super hero or a globe spanning super-bug, but a “cross-browser, cross-platform plug-in for delivering the next generation of .NET based media experiences and rich interactive applications for the Web.”

You can make stuff in it.

See the Silverlight page, or just go download it for your Windows or Mac computer.

read more | digg story

It’s about damned time! Looks like Jobs and at least one music corporation are putting their money where their mouths are and doing the right thing.

Here’s a clip from the press release: “We are going to give iTunes customers a choice—the current versions of our songs for the same 99 cent price, or new DRM-free versions of the same songs with even higher audio quality and the security of interoperability for just 30 cents more,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “We think our customers are going to love this, and we expect to offer more than half of the songs on iTunes in DRM-free versions by the end of this year.”

You can listen to an audio broadcast of this a bit later today here. Catch a .pdf of the presentation here and read the full article here or after the jump.

CUPERTINO, California—April 2, 2007—Apple® today announced that EMI Music’s entire digital catalog of music will be available for purchase DRM-free (without digital rights management) from the iTunes® Store (www.itunes.com) worldwide in May. DRM-free tracks from EMI will be offered at higher quality 256 kbps AAC encoding, resulting in audio quality indistinguishable from the original recording, for just $1.29 per song. In addition, iTunes customers will be able to easily upgrade their entire library of all previously purchased EMI content to the higher quality DRM-free versions for just 30 cents a song. iTunes will continue to offer its entire catalog, currently over five million songs, in the same versions as today—128 kbps AAC encoding with DRM—at the same price of 99 cents per song, alongside DRM-free higher quality versions when available.

“We are going to give iTunes customers a choice—the current versions of our songs for the same 99 cent price, or new DRM-free versions of the same songs with even higher audio quality and the security of interoperability for just 30 cents more,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “We think our customers are going to love this, and we expect to offer more than half of the songs on iTunes in DRM-free versions by the end of this year.”

“EMI and iTunes are once again teaming up to move the digital music industry forward by giving music fans higher quality audio that is virtually indistinguishable from the original recordings, with no usage restrictions on the music they love from their favorite artists,” said Eric Nicoli, CEO of EMI Group.

With DRM-free music from the EMI catalog, iTunes customers will have the ability to download tracks from their favorite EMI artists without any usage restrictions that limit the types of devices or number of computers that purchased songs can be played on. DRM-free songs purchased from the iTunes Store will be encoded in AAC at 256 kbps, twice the current bit rate of 128 kbps, and will play on all iPods, Mac® or Windows computers, Apple TVs and soon iPhones, as well as many other digital music players.

iTunes will also offer customers a simple, one-click option to easily upgrade their entire library of all previously purchased EMI content to the higher quality DRM-free format for 30 cents a song. All EMI music videos will also be available in DRM-free format with no change in price.

The iTunes Store features the world’s largest catalog with over five million songs, 350 television shows and over 400 movies. The iTunes Store has sold over two billion songs, 50 million TV shows and over 1.3 million movies, making it the world’s most popular online music, TV and movie store.

With Apple’s legendary ease of use, pioneering features such as integrated podcasting support, iMix playlist sharing, seamless integration with iPod® and the ability to turn previously purchased songs into completed albums at a reduced price, the iTunes Store is the best way for PC and Mac users to legally discover, purchase and download music and video online.