MacGraPhoto Bundle: 9 Mac Graphics Apps, $39.99

It looks like bundles of OS X software are back and this time their creators are really focused on providing quality, rather than mere quantity. The MacGraPhoto bundle, launched yesterday, features 9 popular Mac graphics applications worth $444 at the affordable price of $39.99. That’s not a bad deal, is it?

Among the included applications, some real gems I’ve used in the past and reviewed here on MacStories. Sketch by Bohemiam Coding, for example, which we reviewed here. With the bundle you’ll also get Hydra, Posterino, Snapshot, ImageFramer, Layers, AtomicView, Swift Publisher, Sandvox and the bonus app DVD Library.

You can go buy the MacGraphoto bundle here. Again, we think it’s a great deal featuring some really neat apps for OS X.

Apple’s Tablet Computer History→

Apple’s Tablet Computer History

Now that Apple has released the market-leading iPad, with a barrage of other tablet computers and dedicated eReaders flooding the market, it’s worthwhile to look back and see where all of this came from. The focus will be on Apple, and their history with tablet computers.

I didn’t know many of those devices even existed. Great collection.

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Adobe Ideas 1.1 Adds Layers, iOS 4 Support, Goes Universal

A huge update to Adobe Ideas for iPad has been released a few hours ago in the App Store. First off, the app is now Universal for iPhone and iPod Touch, supports the Retina Display and iOS 4 multitasking both on iPhones and iPads. A Universal version of the app was one of the most requested features since the app came out on the tablet, and it’s a great addition to an already popular app.

Then, layers: available as in-app purchase (smart move, Adobe), you can insert up to 10 layers plus a photo layer in each sketch. The user interface for this functionality looks fairly simple and accessible. You can also “redo” actions now. Last, the app is now much faster and optimized for every device.

Adobe Ideas is available for free here. Check out the introductory video below.

A Stun Gun for iPhone

We’ve featured creepy iPhone and iPad experiments gone totally wrong in the past. Don’t remind me of that Japanese weirdo who used to eat off his iPad. For this reason I hope what we have here today is a spoof video, I don’t want to believe the stun gun dock accessory for the iPhone called the “Stun Fone” is real.

The guys you can see in the video below built this dock stun gun which you can use by pressing the volume buttons on the iPhone. No jailbreak required. While it’s fairly easy to build such an accessory and hack it to work with the standard iPhone keys – this looks just wrong to me. Read more

Courier 1.1 Adds MobileMe Support, Plays Nice With Large Uploads

Courier is the latest Mac app by the guys over at Realmac Software which we reviewed 2 months ago here. Through a highly custom and beautiful interface, it allows you to upload files to a variety of online services such as Flickr, Facebook, Ember, Vimeo and Youtube. The first version of the app also allowed you to send files to your FTP server and Amazon S3. All is achieved via “envelopes”, packages the app sends to your selected sources.

Courier 1.1, released today, adds the much requested MobileMe support and improves reliability with large uploads – which could take longer than usual on the older version. In spite of the added functionality, the app is still intuitive and easy to use.

Courier is available at $19.95 on Realmac’s website, with a free trial available as well. We look forward to seeing Courier in the Mac App Store.

An Open Letter to Apple on Server Technologies→

An Open Letter to Apple on Server Technologies

Some of our smaller departmental or lab users may be able to run Mac OS X Server on a Mac Pro or Mac mini. At a campus level, we cannot, because these systems do not have the required mounting, power, management, and other functionality. While it is possible to rack mount a Mac Pro with third-party hardware, it is a non-starter because of the lack of dual redundant power supplies, management capabilities, and spare parts kits, to say nothing of space considerations.

Please allow virtualization of Mac OS X Server in non-Apple virtualization environments, with a commensurate license and pricing model.

Must read. [via Smoking Apples]

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“Apple Doesn’t Actually Deny Much From Their App Store”→

“Apple Doesn’t Actually Deny Much From Their App Store”

Even more from Saurik on Hacker News:

Seriously: Apple doesn’t actually deny much from their App Store. They are occasionally a little anti-competitive, and that sucks, but these really boil down to a handful of high-profile cases: the effect on the market is minimal. Most of what they deny either a) doesn’t work or b) is illegal or morally objectionable to your average American.

So please… PLEASE… I implore you: drop the battle to get Apple to open up their App Store(s). Instead, work on getting Apple to open up their device.

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