Let’s face it, as convenient as notebook computers are, if you use them in the wrong position, you’re in for a fair amount of repetitive stress injury pain. The guys over at the Core77 blog highlighted ten common usage positions and marked the pain points you’re asking for down the road with each.

Take a gander and let us know if you have a best or worst computing position:

Yet another update appearing in Software Update on Macs Wednesday was the Bluetooth Firmware Update 2.0 (a 1.6 megabyte download).

This update provides bug fixes and better compatibility with the Apple Wireless Mighty Mouse and Apple Wireless Keyboard. It installs on all Macintosh systems with Bluetooth based on the Broadcom chipset.

The update can be applied through Software Update or downloaded as a stand-alone installer from Apple’s web site here.

Software Cellular Network Ltd., makers of Truphone software and call services, released version 3.0 of its popular iPhone app. The new version, available in the App Store (iTunes link), adds the following new features:

• View your call history in real time.
• Instant messenger tool is now integrated into the app.
• Super-clear sound and improved reliability.

The new version requires an iPhone running firmware 2.1 or higher.

Versions of Truphone are also available for the iPod Touch and G1 (Android) Smartphone.

I’m using strongMarsEdit/strong to help troubleshoot some editor issues I have been seeing with the new strongPowerPage/strong web site. I have noticed that there are occasionally some link issues, at least with MarsEdit, which I may have to bring up with the developer.

img src=”http://www2.powerpage.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/resizedimage368447-journalism.jpg” alt=”ResizedImage368447-Journalism.jpg” border=”0″ width=”100″ height=”121″ align=”right” /

The trick now is to see if the tags and image links work correctly with alignment, etc. One of the advantages of a href=”http://www.wordpress.org”WordPress/a is the ability to use offline editors like MarsEdit.

There have been a couple of updates to MarsEdit recently which might have improved compatibility with WordPress 2.7, so maybe emthat/em will solve all the issues.

Processor manufacturer Intel announced on Tuesday that it plans to release two dual-core notebook and desktop processors while juggling manufacturing efforts to cut costs.
According to Macworld UK, the company will ship dual-core processors for mainstream notebooks and desktops made using the 32-nanometer process and skip plans to release similar chips manufactured using the 45-nm process.
The chips in question will ship in the fourth quarter of this year.
Company officials went on to state that such a road map update will bring the latest technologies to notebooks and desktops but did not comment as to exactly when in the fourth quarter the processors would be available.
The 32 nanometer-process chips will be an upgrade over existing 45-nanometer chips that go into current desktops and laptops, will be cheaper to manufacture, work faster and draw less power.
The new dual-core laptop chips, code-named “Arrandale”, will replace the Nehalem-based Auburndale processors according to company officials. Intel will also ship 32 nanometer dual-core desktop chips code-named “Clarkdale”, which will replace the company’s Nehalem-based Havendale chips.
The Arrandale series will boost graphics performance while drawing less power than Core 2 processors, said Stephen Smith, vice president and director of group operations at Intel. The new chips will also be more energy-efficient, which could improve laptop battery life.
The clock speeds will be similar to chips used in existing laptops, but offer better performance at a similar power envelope by running more threads via each core.
The new chips will be part of the company’s Westmere microarchitecture, which is a shrink of Intel’s existing Nehalem microarchitecture. Nehalem, which is used in Intel’s Core i7 desktop, integrates a memory controller and provides a faster pipe for the CPU to communicate with system components.
The new architecture is considered a significant upgrade over Intel’s earlier microarchitectures, as it cuts bottlenecks to improve system speed and performance-per-watt.
Earlier on Tuesday, Intel CEO Paul Otellini said the company will spend US$7 billion over the next two years to revamp manufacturing plants.
The new manufacturing process will also help create tiny integrated chips that can be fit into devices like set-top boxes and TVs, Intel said during its fourth-quarter earnings call in January. This move could help Intel enter new markets and add revenue opportunities.
Intel will begin producing chips with 32-nanometer circuitry in four fabrication plants starting in late 2009.
Stay tuned for additional details and let us know what you think in the comments or forums.

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2009 Count Down App Screen Shot

I’m taking a couple of days off pre-Macworld Expo and while chilling down in Florida with my family my wife suggested looking for an iPhone app that played Auld Lang Syne and/or had a New Year’s Eve countdown timer. I find them all rolled into one – for free.

New Year’s Blowout Horn! (iTunes, free) is a fun little iPhone app to help you ring in 2009. It combines a countdown timer (to NYE obviously) and a blow-up noisemaker that you engage by blowing into the iPhone microphone (think Ocarina). It also plays Auld Lange Syne at the stroke of midnight or when you click on the “i” icon.

The perfect combination of silly and free.

Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!

It’s been remarked that the iPhone is cool.
And a tad expensive.
I don’t own one yet, but my pre-purchase budgeting has me hunting squirrels with a pointy stick as opposed to running out to Safeway to meet my nutritional needs.
As of a few hours ago, Apple recently added the iPhone to the refurbished section of the Apple Store. The handsets are now being offered at US$399.99 for a four gigabyte model and US$499.99 for an eight gigabyte model.
According to MacNN, the offer includes free shipping, a one-year limited warranty and telephone support.
Still, it’s US$100 off and might be worth a gander.
If you have any thoughts or feedback on this, let us know via the comments or forums.

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The iPhone 1.0.1 Update being about a day old, the guys over at MacFixIt have begun exploring fixes and changes that weren’t publicly documented in Apple’s description of the patch. For those of you who haven’t installed the update yet, the piece also offers some good advice as to being patient with the update and by no means stopping or disconnecting the firmware update process.
Other changes noted in the update are as follows:
“-Earpiece/speaker volume reportedly louder: One of the biggest complaints prior to this software/firmware revision was that earpiece and speakerphone volume are too low, even at the loudest setting. Readers noted that compared to most other mobile phones, some iPhones‚Äô sound output ‚Äî for voice functions, at least ‚Äî is sub-par.
Last week we reported that a firmware update from Apple would likely address this issue. Ask and ye shall receive. Several readers report that volume from the earpiece and the built-in speaker (for speakerphone functions) is noticeably and pleasantly louder.
-Improved stability: Though we don’t have any concrete data on the subject, it appears that overall stability has been significantly improved with iPhone update 1.0.1. In particular, MobileSafari appears to crash less often, and an annoying crash that occurred while Safari and the iPod function were simultaneously active happens far less frequently.
Click the jump for the full story…

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There’s a new web-based instant messaging client for the iPhone, and it’s kind of, sort of, from AOL. It’s TinyBuddy, written by AOL employee James Burke and hosted by the AOL Greenhouse.
It’s not an official AOL project, but Burke’s used his up-close knowledge of how AIM works to make a instant-messaging client for iPhone that’s a bit different than all the others when it comes to security.

iPhone Central: TinyBuddy: AIM for iPhone from AOL, sort of

Tags: IM, iPhone, client, AOL, AIM

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