Bare Feats finds iMacs compare to Mac Pros running Final Cut Pro X

Final Cut Pro X users might want consider an iMac instead of a Mac Pro, according to some recent benchmarks run by Bare Feats.

The graphics and speed testing site recently tested FCP X on three different Macs to see which current model was able to tame the power-hungry app the best. The contestants were a 2011 iMac 3.4 GHz Quad Core i7 with 16 GB of RAM and a Radeon HD 6970M GPU with 2 GB of VRAM, a 2011 MacBook Pro 2.3 GHz Quad Core i7 with 8 GB of RAM and a Radeon HD 6750M with 1 GB of VRAM, and a 2010 Mac Pro 3.33 GHz 6-core Westmere with 24 GB of RAM and a Radeon HD 5870 GPU with 1 GB of VRAM.

The team ran four different tests using the same 32-second HQ video clip. The first test (above) was to apply the Directional Blur effect to the clip, and in this test the iMac beat both the Mac Pro and MacBook Pro by over 3 seconds. The next test applied the Sharpen Blur effect, and once again the iMac was victorious, beating the MacBook Pro by 4.3 second and thoroughly schooling the Mac Pro which came in a full 5.7 seconds behind.

Two more benchmarks measured exporting and streaming speeds. Here the Mac Pro squeaked ahead of the iMac, coming in .4 second faster on a H.264 export. When the project was loaded into Compressor 4 and exported as an H.264 stream, the Mac Pro was a full 2.6 seconds ahead of the iMac, really showing off the power of the 6-core processor.

The results show two things — that the new iMacs are surprisingly capable machines for the price, and that Apple really needs to release a new Mac Pro. The latter is widely expected to happen sometime this summer.

One comment about these benchmarks, though — Final Cut Pro X has full symmetric multicore support and renders in the background, so it no longer really matters how fast rendering is done. You can continue working while your multicore Mac is crunching away on rendering. For further details on the testing, be sure to visit the Bare Feats site.

Bare Feats finds iMacs compare to Mac Pros running Final Cut Pro X originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 11 Jul 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Parallels introduces Enterprise Edition for easy deployment


Parallels has announced Parallels Desktop 6 for Mac Enterprise Edition, giving IT departments a configurable, policy compliant Windows-on-Mac solution.

Corporate IT departments can pre-configure deployments of Parallels Desktop 6 for Mac Enterprise Edition, allowing them to enforce change management requirements with a software update policy. Rather than requiring updates to be downloaded from a vendor website, there’s now a local update server option for additional control.

Parallels has a mass deployment package builder available for enterprise rollouts, and the company says that IT teams can also choose to deploy and manage the software and virtual machines through standardized software distribution and systems management tools. Enterprise Edition is available to organizations with a minimum of 100 annual license subscriptions.

The full press release follows.

Show full PR text
Parallels Desktop 6 for Mac Enterprise Edition Brings Best Windows on Mac Experience to Businesses
Poll reveals most knowledge worker respondents chose a Mac running Windows applications, when asked to pick the most useful computer for work

Renton, WA. July 11, 2010 – Parallels(R) today announced the availability of Parallels Desktop 6 for Mac Enterprise Edition (www.parallels.com/desktop/e), the number one selling and award-winning software for running Windows and Mac applications side-by-side on a Mac without rebooting. The new Parallels Desktop 6 Enterprise Edition enables IT departments to support Windows based business applications for Mac users with a configurable, policy compliant solution that easily fits into existing business processes.

“As Macs become increasingly more prevalent in the workplace, there is a growing need for Mac users to run essential Windows applications that are critical to their business,” said Laura DiDio, Principal of research firm Information Technology Intelligence Consulting. “This influx of Macs has traditionally been a major pain point for IT departments as they have had to maintain crucial Windows-based business applications. Savvy businesses are addressing this issue by deploying desktop virtualization solutions that allow them to easily manage their Windows and Mac environments.”

“Parallels Desktop 6 for Mac Enterprise Edition simplifies end user workflow and extends productivity by running Windows programs like they are native to the Mac, regardless of network connectivity,” said Kim Johnston, Vice President of Marketing for Parallels. “Business users gain the advantages of the world’s bestselling, top rated and most trusted solution for running Windows applications on the Mac while IT departments can simplify the management and administration of the solution on their managed Mac population.”

IT departments benefit from the new capabilities to pre-configure policy compliant deployments of Parallels Desktop 6 for Mac Enterprise Edition. This allows the proactive enforcement of corporate change management requirements through a configurable software update policy and local update server option. As a result, IT departments have the ability to determine when and where software updates are applied to Parallels Desktop 6 for Mac across their organization.

Parallels Desktop 6 for Mac Enterprise Edition fits into existing business processes and helps the IT department to reduce the cost of deploying and maintaining client-based software. IT can simplify administration with the Parallels mass deployment package builder, which dramatically reduces the time and expense of rolling out the solution. IT teams may also choose to deploy and manage Parallels client software and virtual environments through standardized software distribution and systems management tools, extending existing investments.

Thousands of enterprises around the world have adopted Parallels Desktop for Mac to ensure that their employees can use critical business applications and to reduce IT costs across the organization.

Parallels’ corporate customers represent a growing trend. In fact, in a recent survey of knowledge workers conducted by Lab 42 for Parallels[1], 6 out of 10 of respondents (58 percent) said their employers now allow them to choose a Mac or a PC as their work computer. When asked to choose the most useful computer for work, most respondents (53 percent) chose a Mac running Windows applications without rebooting.

In a separate study conducted by Information Technology Intelligence Consulting,[2] the firm predicted that the percentage of large enterprises with more than 250 Macs and/or Apple devices in the organization will grow by 267 percent, increasing from 12 percent in 2010 to 32 percent in 2015.

Parallels Desktop for Mac Enterprise Edition is available as an annual subscription service that simplifies licensing compliance and auditing across an organization through a unified Parallels volume license key. The volume license key includes access for the IT department to priority business class support as well as access to the latest software updates, beta programs and major versions eliminating the burden of managing individual endpoint licenses.

About Parallels
Parallels is a worldwide leader in hosting and cloud service enablement and desktop virtualization. Founded in 1999, Parallels is a fast-growing company with more than 800 employees in North America, Europe, and Asia. For more information, please visit www.parallels.com, follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ParallelsMac and Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ParallelsDesktop
Media Contacts:
John Uppendahl, Sr. Director of Global Communications, [email protected] 425.282.1734
Brittany Hopkins, Bite Communications for Parallels, [email protected], 415.365.0480

Parallels introduces Enterprise Edition for easy deployment originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 11 Jul 2011 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Share your iPhone photos to Google + with Piconhand

iOS owners using Google+ are in limbo until Apple approves the official Google+ application. Users can view their stream and send updates using Safari mobile, but they cannot upload photos via this web interface. Thanks to the tight integration between Google’s online services, Google+ users can use Google’s Picasa online photo service to serve up photos to their circles. This workaround uses Piconhand, a free Picasa client for iOS.

All you have to do is upload your photos to Picasa using Piconhand and they will appear in your Google+ library. You can then pick which photos to share with your different circles. You can grab the Piconhand app here and head over to Mashable for the step-by-step details.

[Via Redmond Pie]

Share your iPhone photos to Google + with Piconhand originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 11 Jul 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple looking to block sale of HTC devices with patent complaint

Apple has filed a second patent infringement complaint against Android handset maker HTC. The details on this second complaint are not yet available to the public so the patents at dispute are unknown.

An earlier ITC complaint filed in March focused on patents for the iPhone UI, hardware and architecture. A final initial determination for this first complaint is due August 5, 2011, but a third-party ITC group (Office of Unfair Import Investigations) claims HTC did not infringe on any Apple patents. This early ruling against Apple may influence the ITC’s final ruling later this summer.

Apple is aware of this possible, impending defeat and may be using this second complaint to bolster its position against HTC. Until the details are made public and the lawyers weigh in on the subject, we wont know whether this second case is stronger than the first. HTC is also refraining from comment until it can review the details of the complaint.

[Via BGR, Electronista and Foss Patents]

Apple looking to block sale of HTC devices with patent complaint originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 11 Jul 2011 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhoto, GarageBand & iMovie updated in Mac App Store (Updated)

A brief moment of confusion overtook us this morning as we got reports of new versions of GarageBand (6.0.4), iMovie (9.0.4) and iPhoto (9.1.5), with minor bug fixes plus tweaks to iMovie’s ability to import projects from the iOS editions of the app.

When several of us fired up Software Update to grab the new builds, the updates were nowhere to be seen — yet our tipster was insistent that the new updates were there. Our friends at MacUpdate also had them listed… and that’s where we figured out the mystery. So far, only the Mac App Store versions of the apps have been revised; the conventionally-installed iLife versions have not yet been released.

While we’re sure the ‘classic’ updates will be forthcoming momentarily, this split-update did give us a moment’s pause. As far as we can recall, this is the first time any of Apple’s products have been available in newer versions on the MAS than via Software Update. Times, they are a-changin’.

Thanks, Jason!

Update: iMovie, GarageBand, and iPhoto updates are now showing up in Software Update.

Update 2: iWeb 3.0.4 and iDVD 7.1.2 are also available in Software Update.

iPhoto, GarageBand & iMovie updated in Mac App Store (Updated) originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 11 Jul 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jailbreak app iMAME4All adds iCade support

The latest version of iMAME4All, a jailbreak app that lets you play retro arcade games on your iOS device, added support for the iCade desktop arcade cabinet for the iPad. It lets you play any MAME (Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator) compatible ROM on your iCade and opens it up to a variety of previously unsupported games.

If you don’t want to go the jailbreak route, iCade recently released a SDK so any iOS game developer can officially support the gaming cabinet. When it launched earlier this year, the iCade only supported the Atari’s Greatest Hits app which has a collection of retro Atari 2600 games. With an SDK and iMAME4All support, the iCade is now a lot more interesting to hard-core gamers with an iPad.

[Via Engadget]

Jailbreak app iMAME4All adds iCade support originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 11 Jul 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dear Aunt TUAW: Help me watch Amazon videos on my TV

Dear Aunt TUAW,

Checking out your apps, you have some major talent, thanks for sharing. I know you probably get a gazillion requests, but one feature that would be incredible that I can’t find anywhere is the ability to ‘stream’ Amazon Instant Videos to the AppleTV. I have these free movies since I pay for an Amazon Prime membership but have no way to view them on my TV. I would gladly pay to see such functionality. Do you have any ideas or know anyway to do this?

Your loving nephew,

Chris W

Dear Chris,

Auntie’s going to go all practical on you here. If you want your Apple TV to work just like a desktop system, consider just…buying a desktop system.

Connect a small Mac Mini or Win PC to the TV. Really. Older low-profile units are perfect for that. You can buy a used netbook for peanuts–or you may have an old system already lying around the house; many modern TVs accept VGA input. You can hook them up using either Ethernet or Wi-Fi and use any number of media center apps on either OS.

Use a simple VNC app like Chicken of the VNC to connect to and control your new TV media center or use it in reverse to mirror your laptop. Sometimes the most obvious solution really is a workable one.

Amazon’s videos aren’t exactly high-definition so be prepared for some fuzziness in your life. You can leave your Apple TV connected as well to take advantage of all that AirPlay yumminess.

Hugs,

Auntie T.

Dear Aunt TUAW: Help me watch Amazon videos on my TV originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 11 Jul 2011 09:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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TUAW’s Daily iPhone App: Kona’s Crate

Kona’s Crate is a fun little physics puzzle game that doesn’t bother too much with a premise — it just gets straight to the gameplay, and that’s a good thing. You control what’s basically a floating platform, and by tapping on either side of the screen, you can make rockets push on one side or the other, carrying the crate across a series of levels. It’s a weird idea (why is a jet-powered platform carrying crates to a voodoo priest?), but the gameplay is easy to pick up, and since the stages ramp up in complexity and difficulty, the premise stays intriguing as you progress along.

Each stage can nab you up to three stars, so there’s a little bit of replayability in going back and trying to do them better and faster. There’s over 60 levels now, with more coming, and one nice thing about the game is that it provides both OpenFeint and Game Center integration, with a really easy screen that allows you to decide where your scores go.

Kona’s Crate is a fun physics puzzler with plenty of content, and definitely worth the US 99 cents it’s selling for in the App Store (either iPhone or iPad, but it’s the same price for each one). There’s a lite version to check out if you’re not sure of the gameplay yet, but I’d even recommend this one sight unseen if you enjoy a good physics game.

TUAW’s Daily iPhone App: Kona’s Crate originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 11 Jul 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A Community for App Developers

The app development process is not always an easy one. Developers must tackle issues such as how to use caching effectively or how to utilize the state machine to make the app more energy efficient. Inevitably, obstacles and unforeseen issues arise along the way.

Turning somewhere for help is also a natural part of the app development process. That’s why sites like Mobile Orchard exist – to provide the latest in news and tips for all the developers out there. That’s also why a new Facebook community, Kickin’ Apps, was started – to create a space where developers can share best practices and tips, as well as work together to build better apps.

Are you bringing out the full potential of your app? I hope to see you on the Page, where developers can provide a fresh perspective to the whole process. Pay a visit to Kickin’ Apps and let’s start collaborating!

Michael is part of the AT&T Developer Program and is an admin of the Kickin’ Apps Facebook Page.

News: Moai SDK Game Development Kit Made Available To All

A few weeks ago I mentioned the Moai SDK.  An open source iOS game development kit allowing for development of iOS apps (and Android apps) in Lua.  What I really liked about the engine that it has already been used in could be extended to support any functionality within the iOS SDK.

At that time Moai  a limited beta, the beta has been extended now to support all developers.

In order to download the latest SDK release and the cloud services you will need to sign up on the Moai website for the dashboard here:
http://dashboard.moaicloud.com/signup.php

You can find the Github project for the Moai SDK Source here:
https://github.com/moai/moai-beta

The cloud services look great, and very easy to code – if you’re interested be sure to check out their 60 second tutorial here:
60 Second Moai Cloud Tutorial

There are numerous improvements since I first mentioned the SDK. Looks like the guys developing the Moai SDK have been very busy!

Read More: iPhone Dev News

©2011 iPhone, iOS 4, iPad SDK Development Tutorial and Programming Tips. All Rights Reserved.

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Tutorial: How To Use The iOS Keychain To Store Names And Passwords

If you have been using the Mac OS for any amount of time then you are likely aware of Apple’s password management system known as the Keychain.  iOS devices also have a keychain system for storing user data securely.

If you need to store username/password data for a web service securely within your apps then you will likely want to use the iOS keychain service.  I’ve found an excellent guide explaining the basics of reading and writing to the keychain.  Also included is a sample project demonstrating keychain usage (you will need to run on an actual device to test real saving/loading to the keychain).

The tutorial is from John Muchow and can be found here:
Using Keychain To Store Username And Password

A nice easy to follow guide in case you ever need to use the Keychain service within your apps.

©2011 iPhone, iOS 4, iPad SDK Development Tutorial and Programming Tips. All Rights Reserved.

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New iPhone commercials feature FaceTime and AirPlay

Apple has aired two new iPhone commercials. The first features the capabilities of FaceTime on the iPhone. It shows users video chatting via FaceTime iPhone to iPhone, iPhone to MacBook Air, and iPhone to iPad.

The second iPhone commercial showcases the iPhone’s AirPlay features. The commercial shows a user streaming music from an iPhone to their stereo, and pictures and video to their TV. The ads are part of Apple’s “If you don’t have an iPhone” series. Both commercials can be view below and are also available on Apple’s YouTube channel.

New iPhone commercials feature FaceTime and AirPlay originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Sun, 10 Jul 2011 22:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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