Thursday 14 November 2002

The simple thrills of an Apache/PHP/SQL novice I got a great thrill last night when I finally got my first bit of PHP coding to work as intended. I was working through a tutorial using BBEdit to produce my HTML and PHP and presumed I could use 'Preview With' on BBEdit's Markup menu like I do with my HTML files. I was becoming increasingly frustrated when my PHP wasn't working and all I was getting was either the raw code displayed or blanks in my HTML where PHP output should have been.       It took a very long time before I realised what was wrong: by using BBEdit's Preview facility I was getting a 'file' protocol showing in the browser's location bar rather than the 'http' which I needed. Once I changed this everything worked. When the penny dropped and the intended result was finally displayed I must admit that I literally cheered! As I say, simple thrills. More seriously, though, this one evening's work has been immensely educational. I am surprised at how reasonably straight-forward PHP is, and its so-neat in-and-out slotting with HTML is just amazing. I'm going to enjoy this, I can tell—though I'm sure there will be many further frustrations along the way when I come to adding in a touch of SQL too. Still, there are so many helpful sites out there that I should manage fine. 9:38:28 AM

	Saturday 9 November 2002

I've been very bad in terms of posting updates to this part of my site. Why has this been, I wonder? To a certain extent it's because I became obsessed with a small number of rants on my main page—most specifically US policy since Dubyoo's election and the antics of the Israeli government (whose change of direction so coincidentally coincided with the likelihood of a change of complexion in the White House at the end of Bill Clinton's second term).       But this is all very unfair to my Apple interests, so it's time I rectified the situation. Right now it seems appropriate to do so because of the announcement a couple of days ago of the latest revisions to the iBook and PowerBook range. I invested in a new 17-inch flat-panel iMac about two months ago, and part of my rationale when doing so was that I would follow this move with a trade-in of my old iMac and my old (clamshell) iBook for a new iBook. The revised specification makes this idea all the more enticing.       Meanwhile, I'm enjoying the experience of OS X 10.2.1. I had already installed this on my previous DVD-SE graphite iMac and was very pleased with its performance. Now that I have the added benefit of a G4 processor I'm really seeing the new OS in something like its true potential. As one of the earliest adopters of OS X (I got my copy of the Public Beta back in September 200 when it was released at Apple Expo in Paris), I've been using the new system for over two years now. I've gradually found myself abandoning my other machines which don't run it—indeed my iBook sits on the coffee table downstairs largely unused. I've found myself drifting into a situation where OS X now fulfils most of my casual and business needs, only using Classic now for the occasional times I need to work in Quark XPress.       Now, with Christmas already upon us as far as advertisers are concerned (our streets and stores already have their decorations in place, and cynical ads for kiddy toys have taken over TV ad-slots), I'm becoming infected with the idea of getting something for myself. I'm torn between a digital camera and an iPod. I have legitimate reasons for both, and sometimes even find myself trying to justify getting both rather than just one. Being realistic, I think my instinct is to plump for the camera. I definitely have no need for the iPod's primary function as a portable music device (I can't abide the idea of music on the move), though I'm tempted by its other potential as a super-compact portable hard drive.       Let's be realistic here: a digital camera would be something I could use for work and play. And if I get it within the next couple of weeks I could take it with me on my forthcoming trip to Brussels and be fully familiar with it for my trip to Vienna in April next year. OK. That's decided: I must get a camera and enable my iMac's potential as a real digital hub. 4:16:17 AM

	Thursday 23 May 2002

Well, Apple sure have been busy recently! Not content with giving us a sneak peak at Jaguar, they first fulfil their promise from the WWDC and unveil Xserve, their amazing-looking rack-mount server, and then announce improvements to the iBook specifications with faster processors and upgraded video cards. What remains in store for New York in July, I wonder?       One thing worries me a bit about all this: not so long ago Steve Jobs was making a big thing of the need to rationalise the hardware product line and came up with the famous 'Four Boxes', neatly divided into comsumer desktop, pro desktop, consumer laptop, pro laptop. But now we have the Xserve, the G4 PowerMac, the G4 iMac, the G3 iMac, the eMac the G4 TiBook, the iBook (in two sizes) and the iPod (have I covered everything?). I sure hope Steve knows what he's doing, and that he has a long-term, focused strategy.       But seriously, folks: isn't the Xserve gorgeous?! My immediate reaction when first I saw it on Apple's site was 'this could be made by B&O', and it certainly does continue the Apple design philosophy in a wonderful way. I have never seen any other rack-mount server illustrated, but I cannot imagine anything BA (before Apple) being other than boring and utilitarian compared to this. Way to go! 12:42:38 AM

	Wednesday 8 May 2002

Tidbits covers Apple's new Mac OS X, codenamed Jaguar.  [Scripting News] This is an excellent listing of the Jaguar improvements announced at WWDC. It all sure sounds impressive! Most bets seem to be for a release date of August/September. Once again, I CAN't WAIT! 12:06:03 AM

	Tuesday 30 April 2002

Grads Want to Study on EMacs, Too. News that Apple has a new toy for students has some Mac fans green with envy. How come only students get the new, cheaper Macs? By Farhad Manjoo. [Wired News] I stumbled on the eMac by accident when I learned of the new PowerBook on one of my mailing lists. Imagine my surprise when I went to Apple's site and was greeted with an image of a totally new all-in-one design! My immediate reaction was to think that it was a hoax, and it was only when I delved further that its limitation to the (US-only?) education market became clear.       I must say I like the 17" screen, the specification and the price. If it's successful within its target market, could we possibly see a future general release? 3:02:30 PM

	Thursday 14 March 2002

Linux Journal: Unix under the Desktop. By Doc and Brent.  [Scripting News] An excellent article from an unexpected source. My favourite quote: 'The GUI is called Aqua, named for its watery, gum-droppy look, which includes variably translucent windows and other stuff Microsoft can copy later.' 6:46:35 PM

	Saturday 2 March 2002

Apple DVD Player v3.1 for Mac OS X available [MacNN] Apple sure have been busy lately with updates. No sooner had I installed the AirPort update than I saw this MacNN item in New Aggregator, and that is also safely installed.       I'm really looking forward to trying out the updated DVD Player, because only the other day I had a tremendous experience with a DVD on my iMac. I'd borrowed The Matrix from a friend about a week ago but hadn't got round to watching it. I was delighted when I did. I originally had trouble with this DVD on my iBook running OS 9 (presumably because it was one of those which needed the Cmd-Alt-i key combination to get it to mount). Imagine my surprise when I tried this combo in OS X and I ended up with my iDisk on my desktop! I don't know if this means that the OS X DVD Player is better than the OS 9 one, but at least I was up and running -- and how! I have my iMac connected to a Mission NXT setup (flat-panel speakers and a woofer), and this movie took full advantage of that extra sound dimension. Despite watching on the iMac's relatively tiny screen (which seemed even smaller because of the wide-screen format), I was totally wrapped up in the movie from beginning to end. Now for another DVD so I can test the updated player. 1:07:57 AM

		© Copyright 2002 Jim MacCormaic . Last update: 14/11/2002; 09:38:48 am .