∞ Adobe unveils Creative Suite 5.5, new CS release schedule

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Adobe unveiled the latest major release of its Creative Suite product line, introducing many new features in the applications. The company also changed the release schedule for future major releases of the suite.

Calling Creative Suite 5.5 a “mid-cycle product release,” Adobe said it focused on three main areas: Proliferation of Devices; Design and Interactivity; and Monetization.

“Our customers are faced with the opportunity to reach more customers through mobile devices than the desktop,” Dave Burkett, Vice President and General Manager, Adobe Creative Suite Design and Web Segments, told The Loop. “That’s a real game changer.”

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∞ The iPhone platform cycle

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John Paczkowski has an interesting article at AllThingsD today that says that Apple’s iPhone product cycle may be turning into a platform cycle. He also notes that a fall launch of the iPhone would fit in nicely with AT&T’s launch of its LTE network.

And, more importantly, it gives Apple a few more months to align the device with some significant upgrades to the iOS platform, which, as Caris analyst Robert Cihra observes, is increasingly becoming the real “what’s next?” for Apple.

iPhone Product Cycle Now More of a Platform Cycle [AllThingsD]

∞ Best Buy confirms 'upcoming promotion' for iPad 2

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Employees at Best Buy stores were told by managers that they were only to sell iPad 2s to customers that pre-ordered the devices. They were also told to misinform customers about holding the iPad 2 until further notice. In an email to BGR.com today, Best Buy said they were holding the iPad 2 inventory for an upcoming promotion.

Pre-announcing an upcoming Apple promotion is not such a good idea for Best Buy.

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∞ When is a product like the iPhone 5 actually delayed?

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The Internet has been buzzing with stories that Apple’s iPhone 5 has been delayed, but is it actually? Not really.

The Loop first reported last month that Apple’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) would not feature any major hardware news. Instead, the conference would go back to its roots and showcase what’s new for iOS and Mac OS X. In other words, things that are relevant to developers.

Coupled with Apple’s recent history of introducing a new iPhone at WWDC, many news outlets have determined that Apple has delayed the iPhone 5.

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∞ Apple sued for sharing iPhone information with advertisers

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Apple is being sued by two iPhone users who accuse the company of sharing identifying information from their iPhones with third-party advertisers.

Filed in the District of Puerto Rico by Natasha Acosta and Dolma Acevedo-Crespo, the lawsuit claims that Apple and a number of app developers capture the iPhone’s Unique Device ID (“UDID”) — the unique identifying number that Apple assigns to each of its iPhones and iPads — and transmits that information along with the device’s location data to third-party advertisers.

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∞ BGR: BlackBerry Bold Touch hands-on

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Jonathan Geller had a look at the BlackBerry Bold Touch today over at BGR.com. I used the BlackBerry for a couple of years before the iPhone came out — once I made the switch, I never looked back. This one looks a lot like the phone I had years ago, except with a touchscreen.

The BlackBerry Bold Touch also uses a new battery from RIM, so hopefully the addition of a touchscreen to this famous BlackBerry form factor won’t have too much of a negative impact on battery life.

BlackBerry Bold Touch hands-on [BGR]

∞ Open or closed, what's better Android or iOS?

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Everyone seems to be debating the benefits of Google’s Android OS versus Apple’s iOS and which mobile operating system is better.

There are reasons that both sides contend make their operating system the best one to use, but for the most part it’s a personal choice to allow you to get things done. At least that’s what I thought.

I got a call from a friend of mine the other night and we talked for a while before the conversation turned to Google and why he thought it they made a better operating system. I’m paraphrasing, but the conversation went something like this.

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∞ RIM's PlayBook was delayed a month because of Apple

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A report on Monday says that RIM’s PlayBook tablet release was delayed because Apple bought all available touch screen displays.

RIM had apparently planned to release the PlayBook sometime in mid-March, but because Apple had already book all the touch panels, the company had to postpone the launch, according to DigiTimes.

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∞ Google's Andy Rubin defends Android, maintains it's open

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Google’s Vice President of Engineering, Andy Rubin, on Monday posted his thoughts on recent news that Google was clamping down on its partners that want to change Android.

Last week reports surfaced that Google now required a partners changes to Android to be approved by Rubin. The change affected many big names like Facebook and Verizon, but more importantly seemed to go against Google’s openness.

In response, Rubin says that device makers are free to modify Android, but then adds a caveat.

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∞ Zapd lets you create Web sites on your iPhone

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It’s not very often that you hear good customer service stories, so a friend told me how good he was treated by PressPlane, I decided to give them a shout out. The company makes an app called Zapd that allows you to make Web sites or “Zaps” directly from your iPhone. It’s a free app and they say that you can create as many sites as you like.

Zapd has over a dozen “themes” to choose from that change the website’s colors, fonts, layout and overall look and feel. New themes are released all the time. The results are gorgeous and are optimized for use on a phone, tablet, and of course, a computer.

Zapd on the App Store

∞ Line 6 unveils the Pod HD Desktop

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Line 6 on Wednesday introduced the newest device to its HD line of Pod products, the Pod HD Desktop.

The new Pod will be familiar to users of Line 6’s older units — it has the same shape, but newer technology. The uses the HD technology that Line 6 developed for its floor model HD units released late last year.

The Pod HD Desktop has the ability to deliver great tone with models of the Fender Twin Reverb, Hiwatt Custom 100, Supro S6616, Gibson EH-185, Divided by 13 JRT 9/15, Dr. Z Route 66, Vox AC-30 (Top Boost), Marshall JTM-45 MkII, Park 75, Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier, ENGL Fireball and many more.

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∞ Office for Mac 2011 SP1 coming next week

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Microsoft will release Office for Mac 2011 Service Pack 1 sometime next week, the company told The Loop on Wednesday.

The SP1 update will be big for Mac users and will contain increased stability, security, performance enhancements, and some new features. The biggest new features will come in Outlook.

The update will enable calendar syncing between Outlook for Mac and Apple’s Sync Services. This means you can now sync your Outlook calendars, as well as your contacts, notes and tasks with any service or device that supports Sync Services.

That includes your iPhone and iPad. Microsoft’s Senior Director of Product Management, Pat Fox, told The Loop that this was one of the most requested features from Office for Mac 2011 users.

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∞ Universal Audio to release Lexicon 224 Digital Reverb plug-in

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Universal Audio (UA) on Wednesday said it would release a new plug-in that is sure to excite musicians and engineers — the Lexicon 224 Digital Reverb.

The Lexicon 224 hardware unit was first introduced in 1978 and has remained a standard for reverbs ever since.

Universal Audio captured all eight reverb programs for its newest plug-in. Typical of the precise modeling it exhibits with all of its plug-ins, UA included every tunable parameter and the original unit’s input transformers and early AD/DA converters.

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∞ iPad 2 tops Consumer Reports tablet ratings

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Consumer Reports on Tuesday said that Apple’s iPad topped its ratings of 10 tablets.

“So far, Apple is leading the tablet market in both quality and price, which is unusual for a company whose products are usually premium priced,” said Paul Reynolds, Electronics Editor at Consumer Reports. “However, it’s likely we’ll see more competitive pricing in tablets as other models begin to hit the market.”

The consumer watch-dog said the iPad’s closest competitor is the Motorola Xoom. Consumer Reports tested tablets from Archos, Dell, Motorola, Samsung, and ViewSonic, as well as a number of models from Apple.

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∞ Apple wins $625 million patent lawsuit appeal

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A federal judge overturned an earlier ruling that would have cost Apple $625 million.

Apple filed the appeal in October 2010 after losing the patent case to Mirror Worlds. The jury found that Apple infringed on three patents and awarded over $200 million per patent, but the judge didn’t agree, according to a Bloomberg report.

“Mirror Worlds may have painted an appealing picture for the jury, but it failed to lay a solid foundation sufficient to support important elements it was required to establish under the law,” wrote U.S. District Judge Leonard Davis.

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∞ Vox offers rebates on Joe Satriani guitar pedals

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Vox Amplification on Monday announced it is offering users a rebate on select Joe Satriani guitar effects pedals.

Starting today and running until April 30, you can get a $30 rebate on the Satchurator, Time Machine, and Big Bad Wah. The rebate is available as a download on the Vox Web site.

The Satchurator is a distortion pedal that Vox says is capable of very high gain levels, but operates quietly. “The Satchurator is the most musical, most dynamic, multi-function distortion pedal I’ve ever played through,” said Satriani.

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∞ MacScan 2.8 adds support for Firefox 4

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SecureMac on Monday released an update for its anti-spyware application for Mac OS X, MacScan.

MacScan 2.8 adds support to scan Firefox 4 for Tracking Cookies and the ability to clean Firefox 4 web files like browsing and download history. A bug that caused some Firefox files to not be cleaned under certain conditions was also fixed.

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∞ Julien's win lawsuit in Michael Jackson Neverland auction

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Prestigious auction house, Juliens, on Monday said it won a lawsuit brought against the company by a French Canadian after Michael Jackson’s Neverland auction was canceled.

Richard LaPointe said he was a collector of Jackson memorabilia. Apparently he placed absentee bids which totaled $6,500 for 14 items when the auction was first announced.

However, Jackson decided to cancel the auction, so none of the items were sold. LaPointe said he suffered $126 million in damages because he didn’t get the items before Jackson died.

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∞ Pandora says federal grand jury probing Apple, Android apps

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Music service Pandora disclosed that it has been served with a subpoena to produce documents for a federal grand jury looking into Apple and Android apps.

“In early 2011, we were served with a subpoena to produce documents in connection with a federal grand jury, which we believe was convened to investigate the information sharing processes of certain popular applications that run on the Apple and Android mobile platforms,” said Pandora.

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∞ Man shot in the head trying to rob Apple Store

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One of three people who tried to rob an Apple Store on Monday morning was shot dead by a security guard.

The Apple Store, located in the Otay Ranch Town Center in Chula Vista, was the scene of an apparent smash and grab by two men and one woman, according to Police. According to 10news.com, a private security guard interrupted the trio in the middle of the robbery.

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∞ Album recorded entirely in GarageBand for iPad released

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You knew it was going to happen. Someone was going to release an album recorded on the iPad using GarageBand.

Pop punk band The Ultramods on Monday released its latest album that was done using GarageBand for iPad’s eight-track recording studio. All of the instruments used to record the album come bundled in GarageBand, according to the band.

Even the vocals were recorded using the iPad’s built-in microphone.

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∞ Apogee unveils the Duet 2

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High-end audio company Apogee released a video showing off its newest product, the Duet 2.

Apogee makes audio gear that’s used in studios and live performances by some of the biggest names in the business. However, with products like the Duet 2, you get the quality of Apogee in your home studio.

The Duet 2 features two combination mic/instrument connectors (XLR and 1/4-inch) built into a single connector and two balanced 1/4-inch connectors for speakers.

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∞ Patent shows iWeb could come to the iPad

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A patent filing from Apple shows the company could bring its Web site building tool, iWeb, to the iPad.

Apple lists apps that have been designed to work with gestures, including Keynote, Pages and Numbers, all part of the company’s iWork suite. One other app is mentioned too — iWeb, according to Patently Apple.

The iWork suite of apps has already been brought to the iPad, but iWeb has not. In fact, on the Mac, iWeb is one of Apple’s least updated apps. Part of the iLife suite, iWeb was basically ignored in the last round of updates for the suite.

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∞ RIM has two CEOs and three COOs

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Purchasing a product from any company shows a level of trust by the consumer, but how are we supposed to trust a company like RIM.

I had a look at RIM’s executive team over the weekend and was surprised to find the company has three Chief Operating Officers. Of course, we all know they already have two Chief Executive Officers, which adds up to a corporate structural mess.

Seriously, how is the buying public supposed to trust a company that can’t even decide who the hell is running the place? It’s like the hierarchy of the company is a straight horizontal line.

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∞ Apple releases 'We Believe' iPad 2 commercial

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Apple’s TV commercials are almost as legendary as its products and there is a new one released for the iPad 2.

Dubbed “We Believe” the commercial talks about what Apple believes about the iPad 2. It’s quite a different approach for Apple, who usually highlight the apps in their commercials.

The commercial’s text is:

This is what we believe. Technology alone is not enough. Faster, thinner, lighter — those are all good things. But when technology gets out of the way, everything becomes more delightful, even magical. That’s when you leap forward. That’s when you end up with something like this.

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∞ Sony CEO reveals details of the iPhone 5

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Apple’s new iPhone 5 will come with camera sensors built by Sony, according to the company’s CEO.

Speaking with Walt Mossberg last night, Sony CEO Howard Stringer said that its camera sensor facility in Japan was affected by the recent earthquake and tsunami. The end result is that anyone getting sensors from that factory will experience delays, according to 9to5mac.com.

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∞ Verizon iPhone 4 most acquired handset in February

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New data released on Friday shows that Apple’s iPhone 4 on Verizon was the most acquired handset in February.

According to the report released by comScore, the Verizon iPhone helped Apple push its three month average percentage of mobile subscribers up 0.9 percent, the largest of any manufacturer.

According to the data, the top mobile OEM is Samsung with 24.8 percent (up 0.3), LG at 20.9 percent (same as last period), Motorola 16.1 percent ( down 0.9), RIM 8.6 percent (down 0.2) and Apple at 7.5 percent.

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∞ Eleven Rack: Toughest piece of gear in music

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I’ve been using Avid’s Eleven Rack for the last couple of weeks and have been enjoying my time with the unit. I’ll have a full review in the next week, but something happened last night that I just had to share.

I always tell people that I don’t baby my gear. Whether it’s computers or music equipment, I use it like it’s meant to be used. I don’t abuse anything, but if I plug my guitar into it, there’s going to be some punishment coming.

Little did I know just how much.

So far, my time with the Eleven Rack has been spent in the studio at fairly low volume. However, last night the drummer came over and we spent a couple of hours jamming. It’s one of those jams where you just play whatever comes into your head — some Ozzy, Sabbath, or stuff we make up.

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