Earlier in the year a patent for a MacBook Touch of sorts appeared, basically it was a MacBook with a touch screen, but that idea was later shot down by Steve Jobs in the Mac OS X 10.7 Lion preview keynote speech who said that touching a laptop screen was ergonomically awkward. Now another patent has surfaced that seems to alleviate that problem, and this time it features a MacBook that converts to a tablet by sliding the screen forward over the keyboard.

According to Patently Apple, a variation of the MacBook Tablet patent first appeared in 2008 but the convertible concept has reappeared in new patents for iOS keyboard detection and a new scrolling API. Patently Apple also points out that the idea of a laptop with a sliding screen has already been adopted by Dell in the Inspiron Duo (shown below next to an iPad):
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AirPrint is definitely one of the more convenient features of iOS and thanks to a new tool you can turn any printer connected to your Mac or Windows PC into an AirPrint compatible printer.

The utility is called AirPrint Hacktivator and it’s very easy to use. Read on to learn how you can make any printer AirPrint compatible with this cool app.

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If you’re new to the world of jailbreaking and unlocking the iPhone, you might be curious what the difference between an unlock and jailbreak is. Jailbreaking and unlocking are two very different things that are commonly confused by people who are new to the concepts, read on to better understand the differences between the two and to find out which you may want to use.

Note that I am referring to the iPhone in particular but this information is relevant for all other iOS hardware, including the iPod touch, Apple TV, and iPad.

Difference between Jailbreak and Unlock

Both jailbreaking and unlocking allow you to do things your iPhone does not normally have the ability to do. An unlock allows you to use other carriers SIM cards, and a jailbreak allows you to use unofficial apps and software on the iPhone. Here are further explanations:
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Did you know that multimedia file icons can serve double purpose as media playback? Yes indeed, you can actually play any mp3 or audio file directly in the Mac OS X Finder by using this little known icon playback trick.

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A white Cydia icon indicates that Cydia either needs to update or have a tethered boot with the aid of jailbreak software to run. If you have recently used redsn0w to jailbreak your iPhone or iPod touch, you may have rebooted the device to find that the Cydia icon is white (meaning no sources), or that Cydia won’t launch.

Fix #1) Perform a Tethered Boot
If you have used redsn0w to jailbreak and you find a white Cydia icon this tethered boot is the first fix to try. You do this by relaunching redsn0w while your iOS device is connected to the computer and then selecting that you just want to tethered boot for now. You can download redsn0w 0.9.6b5 for Mac or Windows if you need it to perform the tethered boot.

Fix #2) Re-download Cydia or Update Cydia Sources
If the Cydia icon still appears white or you did not use redsn0w, Cydia may not have any sources added to the app. You can either re-download or update Cydia, or add sources directly to the app. The Cydia source to add is: http://apt.saurik.com/cydia

Amazon is selling Pixelmator for $17.99 with free shipping, this is a remarkable 70% off the retail price of $59.99. This huge discount is a Cyber Monday only deal with a limited number of copies available, so grab it before it sells out.

Pixelmator is a great image editing application for Mac that has all the features you’d expect from an image editor but without the high price tag. Cropping, selecting, paintbrushes, text tools, layers, tons of color correction and adjustment tools, full iPhoto support, what’s not to love? In many ways it’s like a lighter version of Photoshop, and for most users Pixelmator is probably more than sufficient to accomplish most of the tasks you’d want to complete with an image editor.

If you’re looking for a great deal on an image editor for Mac OS X, Pixelmator for $17.99 is it, this beats any coupon or other online deal by a long shot. Head over to Amazon to grab Pixelmator for $17.99 including free shipping.
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The iPod touch seems to be on everyones shopping list this year, thankfully there’s some great deals floating around for the iPod and its many accessories.

iPod Touch Cyber Monday Deals & Sales

The iPod Touch from Amazon is a particularly good deal at the moment because you get a free speaker dock with the purchase. To get the free Butterfly Speaker Dock, follow an iPod touch link and then add both the iPod touch and this speaker dock to cart. You have to add the two items to your cart otherwise the Speaker Dock system won’t be free.

• iPod touch 32 GB (4th Gen) for $269.99 plus free Speaker Dock – 10% off retail plus a free $69 speaker dock
• iPod touch 8 GB (4th Gen) for $214 – 7% off retail saves you $15 – get the free Butterfly Speaker Dock by adding it to cart as well
• iPod touch 64 GB (4th Gen) for $369 – save $30 off retail and you get the free Butterfly Speaker Dock by adding it to your iPod touch order

The free speaker dock is a little strange looking but apparently it sounds pretty good and hey, it’s free, not bad right?

iPod Touch Case Deals & Sales

These iPod touch cases fit the above 4th gen iPod touch and are so deeply discounted they’re practically free:

• Black Soft Gel Case for iPod Touch 4th Gen for $2.49 – this is 92% off of retail of $29.99, plus it includes free shipping
• Rubberized Hard Crystal Case for iPod Touch 4th Gen for $2.84 – 91% off retail and includes free shipping

iPod & iPhone Speaker Docks

The Altec Lansing deal is deeply discounted for a great iPod/iPhone speaker set, I have another Altec Lansing speaker dock and I really like it.

• Altec Lansing inMotion MIX iMT800 Portable Boom Box for iPhone and iPod for $179.65 – 40% off retail saves you $120, this is one of the best reviewed speaker docks for the iPhone and iPod
• Logitech S715i Rechargeable Speaker Dock for iPod and iPhone for $119.99 – 20% off retail saves you $30 and gets free shipping

There is much more available, so check out more deals on Amazons iPod Store.

Amazon is one of the hottest places to shop this Cyber Monday, they have tons of deals for just about anything you can imagine from TV’s to books to computers. I’ll highlight a few good tech deals but if you’re shopping you ought to head over to Amazon.com Cyber Monday Deals to see everything, there are just too many deals to list.

All items include free shipping from Amazon.com.

External Hard Drive Deals

• Western Digital WD Elements 1 TB USB 2.0 Desktop External Hard Drive for $69 – 47% off retail
• Western Digital WD Elements 2 TB USB 2.0 Desktop External Hard Drive for $89.99 – 41% off retail

Mac Software Deals

• Microsoft Office for Mac Home and Student 2011 – Single License for $79.99 – 33% off retail
• Adobe Photoshop Elements 9 for $46.22 after rebate – 49% off retail

Mac Hardware Deals

Apple hardware is rarely on sale, but Amazon has some pretty good Cyber Monday deals on MacBooks

• Mac Mini 2.4GHz for $612.50 – 12% off retail
• MacBook Pro 13″ 2.4GHz for $1098 – 8% off retail
• MacBook Air 11.6″ for $969.99 – 3% off retail

Check out Amazon.com’s Cyber Monday Deals for tons more

This is a handy Finder tip for those who like to use the Column View of the OS X file manager: you can zoom into the Mac OS X Finder Column View Preview panes. Here’s how this works using either a key modifier or multitouch trackpad:

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Redsn0w 0.9.6b5 jailbreaks iOS 4.2.1 but also provides the added ability to install baseband firmware that can be unlocked for the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G. For other iOS devices, redsn0w 0.9.6b5 will simply jailbreak the device but some models will be a tethered jailbreak.

It’s very important to remember that the 06.15 baseband update for iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G that is required for an update is irreversible and it will void your iPhone warranty with Apple. This is currently the only way to unlock 05.14 and 05.15 basebands. Proceed at your own risk.
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Redsn0w 0.9.6b5 has been released for download for both Mac OS X and Windows, and it allows you to jailbreak iOS 4.2.1 on iPhone. This new version of redsn0w is particularly valuable to those wanting to unlock their iPhone from baseband 05.14 and 05.15 because it prepares the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G for unlocking with ultrasn0w.

Redsn0w might also be considered easier to use since the application will automatically download the iPad IPSW 3.2.2 file from Apple rather than you having to do it yourself, meaning you only have to point at one IPSW file, which is your own jailbroken version.

Download redsn0w 0.9.6b5

You can grab the latest beta 5 version of redsn0w 0.9.6 for Mac or Windows:

• Download redsn0w 0.9.6b5 for Mac – click here
• Download redsn0w 0.9.6b5 for Windows – click here

Note: these links have been updated to download the rc16, the newest version of redsn0w.

Be sure to keep your device plugged in and powered via USB throughout the entire jailbreak process with redsn0w. For Windows 7 and Vista users, be sure to run redsn0w as Administrator in “Windows XP Compatability Mode” to avoid any errors.

The functionality of Redsn0w 0.9.6b5 is similar to PwnageTool 4.1.3 in that it allows you to upgrade to 06.15 baseband (from the iPad) which is vulnerable to the newly released ultrasn0w 1.2 unlock. This is currently the only way you can unlock certain versions of iPhone baseband.

Update: A new version of redsn0w has been released, you can now download redsn0w 0.9.6rc8, the new version is recommended for all.

The ultrasn0w unlock for iOS 4.2.1 has been released and it works to unlock iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G running iOS 4.2.1 on basebands 04.26.08, 05.11.07, 05.12.01, 05.13.04 in addition to 05.14 and 05.15 via updating to 06.15.00 iPad baseband. Using the ultrasn0w unlock isn’t complicated, but it’s a multi-step procedure that carries a few risks and first requires you to jailbreak your iPhone. Before you get started with the unlock, you need to consider the following:

Important notes about iOS 4.2.1 unlock on iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G

• Unlocking your iPhone voids your warranty from Apple
• For basebands 05.14 and 05.15 this iOS 4.2.1 unlock requires you to update to baseband 06.15 from iPad 3.2.2 firmware onto your iPhone, this can not be reversed
• You can not downgrade from baseband 06.15 (the iPad baseband), and you will no longer be able to restore to stock firmware. This means you will forever need to use your custom saved IPSW files!
• And finally, directly from the iPhone Dev Team: “iPhone3GS users with old bootroms who want to go to iOS 4.2.1 should not use PwnageTool! Update to stock iOS 4.2.1 first (through iTunes) then use redsn0w 0.9.6b5 to update your baseband.”

It is important that you understand and accept these risks before proceeding.

How to unlock iOS 4.2.1 on iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G using ultrasn0w

If you have older baseband, you can go straight to using ultrasn0w. You can update to iOS 4.2.1 from iTunes but this will update your baseband and require the use of the iPad firmware. Here are the steps to unlock, the process is basically the same with Pwnage or redsn0w:

• If you are using PwnageTool, Basebands 05.14 and 05.15 need to download this iPad IPSW file in addition to PwnageTool 4.1.3 Unlock Edition (Mac)
• You can also just download redsn0w 0.9.6b5 for Mac and Windows
• If using PwnageTool to create a new custom IPSW, use the aforementioned IPSW download (yes its for iPad).
• If using redsn0w 0.9.6b5, the app will automatically download the iPad IPSW for you
• Jailbreak your iPhone 3G or iPhone 3GS, pointing it at the newly created custom IPSW
• After your iPhone has been jailbroken, reboot the device and then launch Cydia
• Tap on “Manage” and then tap “Sources”
• Tap to “Edit” and then “Add” a repository, and then type the following: http://repo666.ultrasn0w.com
• After the repository has been added, you can search for “ultrasn0w” and download version 1.2
• Download and install ultrasn0w 1.2, this will automatically unlock your iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G
• Restart your iPhone and enjoy your unlock

The process of jailbreaking and unlocking iPhones usually sounds more confusing than it is, just follow instructions carefully. The main problem with this unlock method is that certain baseband versions require the use of an iPad baseband which can not be reversed, this marks your iPhone in an obvious manner to Apple and this is why it voids your warranty with them. Jailbreaking is not illegal but it is frowned upon by Apple, however the difference between a standard jailbreak and this particular unlock is that jailbreaking is reversible, and this unlock is permanent.

Update: the iPhone Dev Team forgot to include the proper bundle for iPhone 3GS users on 4.1 with PwnageTool 4.1.3, but you can fix it rather easily. Here are their comments on the matter:

There’s an error in the bundle for the iPhone3GS 4.1 that prevents the new baseband from being used. If you know your way around OSX, please download the fixed bundle, and unzip it if Safari hasn’t already done so. Then “Show Package Contents” of PwnageTool.app, navigate to Contents->Resources->FirmwareBundles and drop it there. Otherwise, please wait for the updated PwnageTool, or the OSX version of redsn0w coming soon.

Update 2: The redsn0w 0.9.6b5 download is now available for Windows and Mac, it’s an easier method to perform the jailbreak and unlock for many.

Ultrasn0w has been updated to ultrasn0w 1.2 which works to unlock iOS 4.2.1 running on the iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS. If you’re an unlocker that is currently stuck at 05.14 or 05.15 you will need to update to 06.15 (the iPad 3.2.2 firmware) to regain the ability to unlock using the newly available PwnageTool 4.1.3 Unlock Edition or redsn0w update.

Download Ultrasn0w for iOS 4.2.1

You can get ultrasn0w 1.2 from the updated ultrasn0w repository within Cydia, this obviously requires a jailbroken iPhone:

• Launch Cydia
• Add the following repository: http://repo666.ultrasn0w.com
• After the repository has been added, you can then search Cydia for “ultrasn0w” version 1.2

After you download and install ultrasn0w 1.2 you will then be able to unlock your iPhone 3G or 3GS running iOS 4.2.1. This update will allow ultrasn0w to unlock iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS basebands 04.26.08, 05.11.07, 05.12.01, 05.13.04 and 06.15.00 via the iPad IPSW.

PwnageTool 4.1.3 has just been released and includes the ability to unlock iPhone 3G and 3GS with basebands later than 05.13.04 (iPhone 4 is apparently in the works). To do this, you will need to jailbreak using PwnageTool and then download Ultrasn0w for iOS 4.2.1 from Cydia. PwnageTool Unlock Edition works by using the iPad 3.2.2 IPSW file on basebands 05.14 and 05.15, this process is not reversible.

The iPhone Dev Team says that iPhone 3GS users with older bootrom should not use PwnageTool if they want to update to iOS 4.2.1, instead they should use the upcoming redsn0w release to update baseband firmware.

Download PwnageTool 4.1.3 Unlock Edition

You can grab the torrent here or use one of the following download mirrors provided by the Dev Team:

• Mirror 1
• Mirror 2
• Mirror 3
• Mirror 4
• Mirror 5

PwnageTool runs on Mac OS X. There is no PwnageTool for Windows, instead Windows users will want to download redsn0w 0.9.6b5 instead.

If you are not sure what to do, you can learn how to unlock iOS 4.2.1 for iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G with ultrasn0w, the unlock does carry some risks for certain baseband versions, since the iPad firmware based unlock is not reversible.

Update: the iPhone Dev Team attached the wrong bundle for iPhone 3GS users with PwnageTool 4.1.3, you can fix this rather easily. Here is what they say about this: Read more »

Your Mac includes a pretty good video player called QuickTime Player, but by default QuickTime won’t play some of the more unique codecs like DivX. You can enable full DivX support by downloading a free QuickTime Player plugin called Perian.

Using QuickTime as a Free DiVX Player on the Mac

Here’s how to get QuickTime to play DivX video:

• Quick out of QuickTime Player (if it’s open)
• Download Perian from here (it’s free)
• Install Perian by double clicking on “Perian.prefPane”
• Relaunch QuickTime Player, it now has DivX codec support

The DivX video should now play trouble free within QuickTime Player.

Downloading and installing something like Perian to play DivX has several advantages, one it’s completely free, and two, Perian supports tons of other video formats, so you are unlikely to encounter any issues when watching movies on your Mac again. The other great thing about Perian is that it doubles as a video conversion utility, which lets you do things like convert an AVI to MOV amongst other formats.

You may notice an excessive amount of disk activity and high CPU utilization from a process called “find” that runs randomly in Mac OS X. This process has been a cause of concern by some users because of it’s behavior, but this is not spyware and the process should not cause worry. If you see the “find” process running you should let it run its course of operation.

What is the “find” process in Mac OS X?
The “find” process is run by user “nobody” and is a normal part of Mac OS X system maintenance, and according to Apple the process clears caches, updates system databases, and removes temporary files that are used by Mac OS X for a variety of functions.

When does “find” run?
You’ll usually see “find” running early in the morning, it’s scheduled to run at 3:15am daily, and then again on 4:30am Saturdays and 5:30am on the first day of a new month. If you leave your Mac running, you likely won’t encounter the process, however if you sleep your Mac, you may notice the process appear in the task manager or Activity Monitor upon the system waking. Sometimes you will the “find” process running concurrently with “makewhatis” and this is also normal.

Despite the name, ‘find’ is not directly related to Spotlight or the mdworker and MDS process and they usually are not run together.

Advanced: adjusting the periodic update schedule
You can read more about the maintenance schedule of Mac OS X by reading the man page for ‘periodic’, to do so, at the command line type the following:

man periodic

You can also manually run ‘periodic’ which will run the maintenance scripts system wide or on a specified directory basis. Additionally, if you know what you are doing you can modify the periodic schedule by editing the periodic.conf file located at:

/etc/defaults/periodic.conf
Editing the periodic schedule should only be considered by advanced users and systems administrators, and a backup of the periodic.conf file should be made prior to adjustment.

The latest version of TinyUmbrella has been released and it’s compatible with iOS 4.2.1. TinyUmbrella lets you save SHSH blobs from compatible hardware, allowing you to upgrade your iOS version while maintaining older versions of baseband.

TinyUmbrella is of particular interest to those who want to unlock their iPhone, if you are looking to unlock your iPhone you should save your existing iOS 4.1 shsh blobs before downloading and updating to iOS 4.2.1. Here’s why this matters, directly from the TinyUmbrella developer:

Do not update to 4.2.1 for the baseband protection. TinyUmbrella is no longer able to kick you out of recovery for that version. TinyUmbrella still works for prior versions and will be able to restore and kick you out of recovery for those versions but 4.2.1 has a baseband version check that will stop your device from booting if your baseband was not updated.

Download TinyUmbrella 4.2.1

You can download the latest TinyUmbrella 4.2.1 from the developers site here or through the links below:

• Get the Mac version 4.21.01 (direct download link) (4.21.12 beta version)
• Get the Windows version 4.21.01 (direct download link) (4.21.11)
• Get the Linux version (direct download link)

If you’re not sure what to do, you can follow our guide to learn how to save SHSH blobs with firmware umbrella.

Here’s a sweet MacBook Pro setup found on Flickr that functions as a portable editing station. Here are the specs according to the flickr page:

MacBook Pro 15″ Core i5 2.4Ghz
4GB of RAM
500GB 7200RPM Seagate Momentus XT Hard Drive
High Res Screen

G-Tech G Drive mini 500GB Hard Drive
Wacom Intuos 3 4″ x 6″ Tablet
Gretagmacbeth Eye-One Display 2 Colorimeter
Calumet UDMA Firewire CF Reader
Apple Magic Mouse
Garmin eTrex Summit HC

The Momentus XT Hybrid is a fantastic drive that we have recommended in the past as the best MacBook Pro hard drive upgrade for the price. That combined with upgrading RAM to 8GB is a great way to get some killer performance from your Mac hardware.