Archive for January, 2008
Xbox 360
One of the gaming consoles introduced by Microsoft in late 2005 in the United States was the Xbox 360 which is a modified version of the Xbox and this was compiled in collaboration with other software giants like SiS, IBM and ATI. The Xbox 360 was made available in the market, divided into several kinds according to differences in configuration. The first among these is the Xbox 360 Arcade which substituted the Xbox 360 core which had been introduced primarily. Its features include 256 MB Memory Unit, Composite AV Cable, a Wireless Controller, 5 Xbox Live Arcade titles and HDMI 1.2 output. This is priced around US$279.99. The Xbox 360 having all the constituents of the Xbox 360 Core has a removable 20 GB Hard Disk Drive which is used to store the games and game information. Worth around US$349.99, the Xbox 360 is currently available with the HDMI 1.2 output accompanying a Zephyr motherboard and a GPU heatsink.
The priciest of the Xbox 360 variants is the Xbox 360 Elite released recently which is constituted by a 120 GB hard drive and HDMI 1.2 output along with headsets and controllers and is available at a price of US$449.99. The Xbox 360 can perform a variety of functions like it facilitates viewing of .wmv format videos, MPEG-4, allowing users to listen to music of their choice while playing games and also while watching pictures. The various hardware components of this gaming console include controllers, headsets, memory cards, HD DVD players and webcams, while there are also several system softwares which aid its functioning.
In early 2007, there were some complains that the Xbox 360 had damaged the game discs of some users. It has also been alleged in case of any malfunctioning of the Xbox 360 that while it had a comparatively low failure rate around 30%, any kind of major defect was incapable of being cured.
MacBook
The MacBook refers to the notebook computer series of Mac introduced by Apple for the first time in 2006 and it comprised of the Intel Dual Core chip. The present version which was released recently in November 2007 contains 1 GB memory and which can be upgraded to a maximum limit of 4GB and it includes Intel’s X3100 integrated graphic constituents along with Intel’s GM 965 chipset with 800 MHz front-side bus. The present base model of the MacBook comprises of an 80 GB hard drive and Combo Drive together with a 2.0 GHz Core 2 Duo Processor which can be upgraded from time to time.
The MacBook contains several devices which perform multitudes of functions. It is loaded with the updated new operating system introduced by Apple, the Mac OS X v10.5 OmniOutliner, Front Row, Comic Life, Photo Booth and iLife. There is also an in-built mini-DVI as well as an iSight webcam. Moreover there are USB 2.0 ports, a single Firewire 400port, Sudden Motion Sensor, a Scrolling Trackpad, Bluetooth 2.0 and EDR, Ethernet facilities and AirPort extremes. The MacBook is supplemented with MagSafe power connectors and Apple Remote. The LCD screen of the MacBook is a wide 13.3 inches with a 1280 X 800 resolution and it is the first Apple product to present a glossy screen display. It also possesses built-in stereo speakers and microphones together with optical digital audio outputs which ensure excellent quality sound projection. The MacBook is available in both white and black color models though it is often critiqued for placing the price of the black model as around US$150 more than the white one despite having the same configurations. Unlike the iBook or PowerBook models, the keyboard in the MacBook is not removable. MacBook supports the functioning of various graphic tools like Intel’s GMA X3100.
There has been certain complains regarding sudden shut downs and later restart problems and also the glossy display has also come under fire at times from consumers.
iWork
It is evident from the very name of Apple’s iWork application that it includes a set of functions for aiding professional needs and is somewhat similar to the Microsoft Office application. However, it is definitely a bit different from the Mac version of Microsoft Office as it has a different purpose and concentrates more on the presentation aspect rather than the analytical aspect and is available with a cheaper price tag. The main components of the Apple iWork application includes a spreadsheet function known as numbers, a package containing necessary presentation related paraphernalia called Keynote and a word processing and desktop publishing application known as Pages.
The Pages section constitutes certain application formats like invitations, resume, educational and marketing projects, journals etc and at the same time it also possesses a media browser which allows the inclusion of videos, music files and pictures from iMovie, iTunes and iPhoto. The following formatted files can be saved in Pages- .doc, .pdf, .txt, .html, .pages etc. One of the most significant applications of the Apple iWork is offered by the presentation section called Keynote and while it is a bit similar to the Microsoft PowerPoint functions, it possesses certain individual characteristics. It is adaptable enough to include various file formats like .pdf, .ppt, .key etc and is a slideshow presentation specialist. One major feature of this Keynote application is the fact that in case of slideshow presentation it allows the usage of animation which can at times enhance the quality of the presentation. The spreadsheet application called Numbers is a latest innovation developed by Apple Works which was added to the iWork function in its latest version known as iWork ’08 and is the first of its kind.
iWork ’08 is the latest update of iWork to reach the market and this version included various modifications in the Keynote and Pages applications. However, the hard disk capacity had shrunk compared to previous versions.
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QuickTime
QuickTime is a major multimedia innovation provided by Apple and it is conducive for use in both Mac as well as Windows operating systems. It is a multimedia framework which allows the functioning of different kinds of images in video, sound, text, animation and musical formats as well as certain kinds of interactive panoramic images. QuickTime players are the prevalent software application tools which are included within the package offered by Apple and it can act as a helper application for web browsers to open certain media files which otherwise fail to function. In simple terms, the QuickTime player is a media player launched by Apple and it consists of certain APIs which aid in the programming of audio and video formatted files. There is also the QuickTime movie format or .mov format which is a media container. The QuickTime is an integral and vital component of the Mac OS X while in case of Windows applications it is not obligatory.
The functioning of the QuickTime player is further facilitated by the use of the QuickTime Pro license key which allows to release of certain extra features that are possessed by the QuickTime player in case of Mac and Windows applications. However the use of this Pro key will not assure bonus download facilities. There are certain functions that are carried on buy the QuickTime multimedia framework and these include programming and transcoding of video and audio from one format to another mode of formatting and it also uses a plug-in architecture for aiding the workings of additional codecs like DivX. Some of the audio applications supported by QuickTime include MIDI, AIFF, QCELP, CDDA, WAV and many others while some selected video formatting includes BMP, GIF, AVI, AVC, PNG, TIFF etc. the latest operating system launched by Apple Mac Os X includes the latest version of QuickTime 7.3.
The QuickTime software application is useful in aiding the formation of pother applications like Java and C programming language.