New MacBook Unboxing!

We recently took the plunge here at Magna Techa and bought our first Mac. She's a new MacBook (the one released on October 20) and we wanted to share our unboxing adventure with our dear readers. Besides, you guys are the ones that made it possible (BTW we're still waiting for that check from you in the mail. What, you think we would do this for free?).

So here is the collection of our first photographic memories with our new MacBook! We'll have a full review of the beast up soon. (Cue We're Going To Be Friends by The White Stripes)

It arrived in this fashion, straight off the FedEx truck.

 Here be the minimalist packaging that now accompanies new MacBook's. What's good for the Earth is good for us, here at Magna Techa.

Continue on after the break to see more of this exciting unboxing extravaganza!

Happy Ubuntu 9.10 Release Day!

If you haven't heard already (and if you're on Twitter, you probably have!) Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala has been released today!

There's quite a few new features in this release of Ubuntu, including a new Software Center for downloading and installing your needed apps with no trouble. You can see all the highlights here: Ubuntu 9.10 Feature Tour.

We recommend using a torrent to download the Ubuntu 9.10 ISO. It's really easy and it takes a load off of the servers. Just install a torrent downloader (if you haven't got one already) like utorrent (for Windows or Mac) or Transmission (for Linux, Windows or Mac) and click the torrent link here: Ubuntu BitTorrent mirrors.

Happy Ubuntuing from everyone here at Magna Techa!

Review: The Engadget Show Episode 002 with Microsoft's Steve Ballmer

Engadget has just released the second episode of The Engadget Show for download. You can get the video through iTunes, RSS, Zune Marketplace, or simply download it from Engadget's website.

The headliner guest for the episode was none other than Steve Ballmer, the big man at Microsoft himself! Pretty exciting, especially since the show was taped on the very day that Microsoft's Windows 7 was released to the public. We have to say, Ballmer is definitely a step up from the snooze fest that was Palm's CEO, Rubenstein, who was the guest on the the first episode. Watching the interview ran by Engadget's editor in chief, we could tell Mr. Ballmer had definitely been using his characteristic “outside voice” throughout Win7's launch day. He was a bit hoarse.

Engadget's Topolsky hit Microsoft's CEO right out of the gate with Vista's reportedly dismal adoption rates. And as would be predicted, Ballmer shot that belief down and claimed that there is much more than an 18% Vista adoption rate. We're not sure who is correct on this one, we're just happy that Windows 7 is here to put that bad dream to rest...hopefully.

Next, Ballmer went over the upgrade process. We have to give him and old MS props for scaring people with the truth that upgrading to Windows 7 from XP. It is not a walk in the OS park. We wouldn't want to give any grandma's out there false confidence when they plop down the two Benji's for Win7.

After watching the interview with Steve Ballmer, we just might say that the guy isn't too bad. He might be a Microsoft fanboy (which is absolutely and necessarily predictable) and Magna Techa hasn't always been a big fan of the company's products, but it seems as though he's a straightforward guy. He  admitted that Windows Mobile sucks, just as we all have known for about a year now. He even said he knows “they have a lot of work to do.”

Later on in The Engadget Show Episode 002, Bit Shifter came out with some more of their magical Gameboy-screaching melodies. The band was also featured on the first episode and we hope that they will continue being regulars to the fledgling show. After the music, Josh Topolsky came back out with Nilay Patel and Paul Miller to have a week-in-review round table discussion. They went over Apple's recent hardware refresh. The trio went into their complaints about the underside of the new MacBook. Apparently it is quite successful at picking up some of Engadget's dirt that they have lying around their HQ. Maybe they should clean their office instead of dissing the MacBook's bottom?

So that's about it for the second episode of The Engadget Show. Tune in next month for the episode number three.

Top 4 Reasons to Watch The Engadget Show Episode 002
1.To catch a glimpse of the sexiness that is Steve Ballmer
2.You love Bit Shifter as much as we do
3.You want to hear about the Nook by Barnes & Noble
4.You aren't sure if iDoes or Droid Does...

iDoesn't: Droid Shouldn't

The new “Droid Does” advertisements from Verizon Wireless are a perfect example of what is wrong with technology marketing strategies.

Verizon Wireless recently started airing advertisements about its upcoming Android device. Here at Magna Techa, we love Android and we haven't had a problem with Verizon Wireless (even though we use the T-Mobo). Heck, we previously had a RAZR, so we're on good terms with Motorola (who is purportedly launching the “Droid Does” phone with Verizon). But now the two companies seem to be going down the wrong track with their marketing department.

Failure number 1: the ads target the iPhone and its downfalls. Verizon and Motorola point out that the iPhone doesn't run apps in the background, doesn't have a “real” keyboard, doesn't take night shots, doesn't customize and doesn't do widgets, along with a few others. Anyone that has looked into buying an iPhone in the last 2 years knows this already. So when they say “iDoesn't”, we say “iKnow”. Why must the companies throw mud to get their device sold.

 Another thing “iDoesn't” do is point out what the iPhone has over Windows Mobile. There aren't any Apple ads that blatantly throw mud at the Windows Mobile platform and what it can't do. Advertisements for the iPhone show all the apps that you can use with the device and play up its sleekness. We will stand corrected if you can show us an ad for the iPhone that is as attack-filled as the “Droid Does” ads. But as far as we have seen, Apple generally relies on the attractive things about their device to get it sold. And we think it has been working, as the iPhone is the most popular smartphone in the world.

And let us clarify, we love both iPhones and Android devices. Here at Magna Techa, we have a resident iPod touch running the iPhone OS 3.1.2 and a myTouch 3G running Android 1.6. We are very familiar with the workings of each device, including the good and the bad. So there is no bias in this. We merely wonder where all the gentlemen have gone in mobile device advertising. Show us what your device does without dissing the other guy and then we'll decide which one we want.

There is much room in the advertisement to show of what “Droid Does” without whaling on the iPhone. Even this little slogan shows where they could've went with it: “Don't you wish you had a robot sidekick that moved at light speed, could get you out of any problem and lived in you pocket?” Now isn't that perfectly peaceful and eye catching for potential buyers of the device?

Here's the ill-planned ad, in case you haven't seen it: Droid Does ad

Looking to Buy a New MacBook? Wait Just a Minute...

It looks like the word has slipped and we have gotten wind of it here at Magna Techa! Apple just might be introducing a few new machines come tomorrow morning. Is it Christmas already?

So here at Magna Techa, we are wanting to get our hands on a MacBook. We're torn between a Macbook Pro and the base MacBook at this point. We had heard that a refresh of the rigs was coming down the pipes from the omnigods at Apple, but we have been awfully tempted to jump on that student deal (yeah, we have someone that goes to school around here) of $50 off a Macbook.

Well, it seems as though we might just need to hold off for a hot minute while Apple introduces an upgrade for us. A new MacBook or MacBook Pro introduced tomorrow could hit just the spot. Engadget sends word across the interwebs that there could be a "host of new machines, new multitouch input devices tomorrow", meaning 10/20/2009. Perhaps a refreshed, slightly cheaper MacBook is on the way? We've been hearing rumors of the base model dropping to $799...

Update:
They did it! Apple threw the updates on a slew of their machines, from the MacBook to the iMac. The new MacBook is now unibody like the Pros and includes a glass trackpad with all those fancy gesture capabilities. You can check out the video here to see all the new iMac features and Apple's new Magic Mouse: Apple's New iMac

Need to Send a Large File? Check Out SendThisFile!

So we all need to send a file from time to time. But we often run into file limit sizes imposed by your email provider. That's the problem with our normal route of transferring files. We use Gmail by Google to transfer many of our files. The downside to this is Gmail limits attachment file sizes to 25 megabytes. We couldn't even send a short video.

But that hardship is in the past after we discovered SendThisFile. The file sharing service lets you send files of any size to anyone with an email. All you have to do is sign up for an account and you're on your way to sending documents of any type to anyone with an email account!

SendThisFile has multiple plans to fit any file sender's needs. The base plan includes the ability to send up to 500 MB per month, full speed transfers and 6-day file access. And all of these features come at an affordable $4.95 per month.

But you say you are a heavy file sharer? You need to send a lot home videos to a family member or send large files to a business partner? Well, SendThisFile has a plan to fit your needs perfectly. The Enterprise Plan gives you the ability to send 90 gigabytes every month, unlimited users, and two week file access!

This is just a few examples of the options of each of these plans. They also include many other useful features, such as Secure storage with 92-bit TripleDes Encryption for the Enterprise Plan. The top plan even allows you to decide how long the file is available for download. This can help you avoid letting unwanted users from obtaining your file. Security of this level is missing on many other file transfer services.

So if you need a great file transferring service check out SendThisFile!

Disclosure: the writers of Magna Techa were financially compensated for informing you about SendThisFile.

Need a web host? Check out HostNexus!

We all need that special someone to host our website or Internet applications. If you are in the market for a new hosting service, look no further than HostNexus.

The company provides Coldfusion Hosting: on both Linux and Windows platforms at affordable rates ranging from $8.35/month all the way to the top of the line $99.95/month plan. The base hosting plan, fusionBRONZE, includes:

• 3 Domains
• 5GB Space
• 50GB Transfer
• 10 MSSQL or MySQL databases
• 1 IP  

That's a pretty good offer for a mere $8.35 per month. It justs so happens that Magna Techa is looking for a new webhost (our current one is pretty sorry) and HostNexus looks quite promising.

And if you need some serious hosting, you can go with the fusionUNLIMITED plan, which offers:

• UNLIMITED Domains
• 100GB Space
• 1000GB Transfer
• Unlimited MSSQL or MySQL databases
• 10 IPs

Coldfusion Hosting with HostNexus will enable you to rapidly build, deploy, and maintain robust Internet applications at an affordable price. And if you go with Linux as your platform, as Magna Techa would, you might want to now this little tidbit: HostNexus is "the industry leader in Coldfusion Linux Hosting." So get to shopping on their website for the plan that fits you. That application isn't going to host itself!

Disclosure: the writers of Magna Techa were financially compensated for informing you about ColdFusion Hosting by HostNexus.

Do You Chat on the Toilet? [xkcd]

Don't tell us you don't. We know you have texted/emailed/chatted/IMed someone from the commode. It's all good. As long as you didn't tell the person you were talking to. Especially if it was your boss you were having a conversation with. You can share your water closet experiences down there in the comments. We promise we won't tell anyone. Except your boss.
Credit goes to the creator of xkcd.com

Chrome OS at Google Event Tomorrow!

We here at Magna Techa have been waiting on our toes for any word on the upcoming Chrome OS from Google. And tomorrow, it seems, we are scheduled to find out more!

PC World tells us that Google has scheduled an event at their headquarters in Mountain View, California. This event will apparently shed more light on the enigma that is thus far the Chrome operating system. The event kicks of at 6:00 p.m., presumably Pacific time.

That "leak" yesterday must have gotten the old Google a bit flustered. Apparently some snoopers (not us, we would never do such a thing) found a file directory containing a version of the Chrome web browser that is built specifically for Chrome OS. You can read more about that here.

So, will this be the "release of source code in late 2009" that Google so nicely has promised us? We sure hope so! Stay tuned for details, we'll post them up as soon as we hear them.

Update: In the mean time, we have something for you! Check out the Chrome web browser build for Chrome OS! It has a very interesting clock in the window bar, as well as a new logo in the top left corner... Download the Deb file here (installs on Linux OS's): Chrome browser for Chrome OS 
And it appears as though the even is on October 16, not 15. Thanks anyways, PC World!

T-Mobile and Microsoft/Danger Just Got Sidekicked!

Oh, how we bet a few employees at T-Mobile and Danger are sure wishing they had alternative jobs right now. Especially if they were the ones involved with the server meltdown that resulted in thousands of Sidekick owners losing massive amounts of data.

For those of you who don't know, the Sidekick mobile device from T-Mobile "phones home" each time it starts up and syncs its data with a server. Well, Microsoft and their subsidiary, Danger, recently outsourced the oversight of said servers. And they outsourced it to a company that is apparently opposed to backups of vital data. You know, customer data. Who needs that anyways?

So the servers went kaput, and unknowing users rebooted their Sidekicks to sync with a blank server. This got them a fancy new blank Sidekick! No contacts or any other data slowing them down now.

To keep the angry mobs at bay, T-Mobo has offered up a free month of service for Sidekickers as well as a $100 gift card. Can we get a gift card too? Just for being a T-Mobile customer? We didn't think so...

Top 4 Reasons to Drop Your Sidekick
1. It's 2009 (almost 2010)
2. Drop it or potentially drop your data
3. It involves Microsoft and outsourced servers (probably not a good idea to begin with)
4. Seriously, one of the companies that you are trusting your data with is named Danger. Isn't that a bad sign in some cultures?

Update:
It looks like Microsoft is now saying that the lost data will be recovered for Sidekick owners: MS Says All Sidekick Data Recovered, But Damage Done

Do you have spyware troubles? Sunbelt Software just might have something for you!

According to Wikipedia, "The first recorded use of the term spyware occurred on October 16, 1995 in a Usenet post that poked fun at Microsoft's business model." Since then the little buggers have taken on a life of their own.

If you are a Windows user (spyware mainly targets you), then you might need to protect yourself from these harmful pieces of software. Sunbelt Software make "CNET's Number One Antispyware Software", called CounterSpy. Drop by their site today to see how you can better protect your computer and personal information.

Disclosure: the writers of Magna Techa were financially compensated for informing you about CounterSpy by Sunbelt Software.

The Gig Is Up! Apple's iPhone OS 3.1.2 Is Out!

"One of the best aspects of modern day smartphones is the ever increasing pace of updates. These new additions of your phone's OS can bring mighty features and fixes. But they can also make your gadget quite unusable.

Apple pushed an update to the iPhone and iPod touch users on October 8th to fix some shortcomings in its last update (iPhone OS 3.1.1)." Continue reading the review here.

Good job, Apple! We applaud you, here at Magna Techa, for doing all you can to keep those iPhoners happy. So, when you gonna jump ship and find a carrier that can handle your colossal phone? We hear Verizon has "a map for that"...

Top 4 Things the Update to 3.1.2 Does for the IPhone

1. It cure's "iPhone Coma"-- "Does this mean Grandma will wake up soon?" No, Billy.
2. It's free and it's an update, what more can you ask for? You've already got MMS!
3. It changes that version number to a sexy 3.1.2, which is that much closer to 4.0!
4. Hopefully it doesn't bring along more bugs...
   

Surgery: One Man, One USB Port (xkcd)

Golden! This here, son, is one of the best xkcd comics that we have ever seen! Rejoice in its splendor and spread the wealth with all of your friends. As always, all credit goes to the Anti-Raptor genius over at xkcd.com .

Android OS 1.6 a.k.a. Donut Finally Arrives!

After many days of breathless waiting (okay, maybe 5 days) we have at last received the Android update to the resident myTouch 3G! This means we have graduated from the Cupcake (Android 1.5) up to the Donut (Android 1.6) here at Magna Techa headquarters. The update to the Android operating system entails a few nice additions, appropriate for the 0.1 step in the version number. Some of the included goodies one might notice are:

• a new camera interface that allows switching from still to video mode with the app open
• a refreshed look and added functions to Android Market (sort by "Top Free" and "Top Paid" are now available
• Linux kernel 2.6.29 (Temporary Tasmanian Devil)
• Text-to-Speech function that "allows any Android application to 'speak' a string of text with an accent that matches the language"

There are quite a few more features included in Android 1.6, so check out the full list here: What's New in Android 1.6 "Donut"

Our favorite new feature is a "Power Settings" widget that comes with Donut by default. It can place a 4x1 widget on your homescreen that allows you turn on or off or adjust five different features: W-Fi, GPS, brightness adjustment, bluetooth and Google's auto-sync. Pretty nifty for everyone, except for the developers of CurveFish. It seems as though they took a 4x1 widget bat to a bunch of CurveFish's apps (the developing crew makes widgets that manipulate these same features). Oh well, that just frees them up to develop even better apps!

It might have taken a minute for the Donut update to careen down the T-Mobile pipes, but it was worth the suspenseful wait. The update was made to our myTouch 3G over the air, meaning we did not have to plug our phone into a computer. It also only took about 5 minutes or so including rebooting the phone. Pretty efficient, huh? Yep.

Top 4 Reasons to Update to the Donut
1. Magna Techa says so
2. Everyone knows Donuts are better than Cupcakes (but not as good as Eclairs)
3. It's free!
4. We like to be up to date?