Picture of new Macbook Pro

If you want to have a look at the new Macbook Pro you can go over to
http://www.tuaw.com/2008/09/17/rumor-german-retailer-might-have-new-macbook-pro/
to see what is believed to be an authentic apple released picture of the new macbook pro.

Enjoy!

Rumors of what Apple will release today

I have just noticed that the Apple store has gone down. Yes, folks its time to get the rumors circulating again. What will apple release today?

It is almost certain that they will release a new lineup of Macbooks. Some pictures have been floating around on the internet and they do seem authentic enough. It appears that the new macbooks and macbook pros will be made from pure aluminium with the new manufacturing process designed by apple called 'the brick'. No technical details of this process is available yet but it appears to be in line with the new environmental conscious drive they are making.

What is also rumored is that the entire Macbook range will include nVidia GPUs. Apparently from what I have read, the Macbook Pro's may actually include two GPUs in SLI configuration. This will definitely be a strong incentive to ditch that old pc and switch over completely to mac.

I am biting my nails in anticipation and will update the blog the moment I find out for myself.

Firewire target disk mode

Target disk mode is a very simple and effective way of accessing or migrating files over to a new mac. I actually use to to access my Macbook from my iMac since it is really a fast access method (400 mbps) and requires no configuration to set up (plug in the cable and hold T on the mac you want to make the target). After the target mac turned on, the drives in it will appear as a removable firewire drives on the other mac. You can then drag files between the macs as if it were directly connected to your mac. Security remains in tact though so you would have to have the correct login credential to access files in the home folder.

I find it a very simple and effective way of moving files to and from my macbook when connected to my iMac. For people switching to a mac or upgrading to a new mac this make the process of migtating files effortless. The built in migration assistant will take all of your data on the old mac and move it to the new one. Even all of your settings will remain intact on the new mac if you use this method.

Just one more feature that makes a Mac a Mac.

My thoughts on the finder

With Tiger, Apple introduced something called coverflow to all finder windows. I cannow tell you how much I enjoy this feature.

Let me make the following case. Say that you are in your office and have to quickly look for a document lying on your desk. Do you go through all of the titles of the documents to find it or do you glance the documents to find the one you are looking for? You glace them. This is the way in which coverflow makes it very quick to find the document you are looking for. The scroll button on the mouse acts as a convenient and quick way to browse through the documents and coverflow draws them in very near real time. It recognizes most document formats in addition to photos, videos, drawings etc. It really is a pleasure to work with.

The finder interface is simple en effective but there is one thing missing in my view. It really needs to have a folder tree view for simpler navigation of deeper folder structures. That said, it is not as necessary on a mac to have deep folders to effectively file documents since spotlight becomes a iron tool in instantly finding documents no matter where they are filed. Another important thing to remember is that you always have quickview under your finger and can instantly enlarge any file you see in finder to reveal its content without having to open it in the application used to create it.

One other difference between the finder and explorer is the way in which you have to copy and move files. It is actually a little difficult to move files to other folders since you don't have a folder tree on the side. You have to either have two windows open to do the move or rely on copy and paste.

I can therefore give the experience as a whole 8 1/2 out of 10.