A recent article on Slashdot about using FireWire’s direct memory access (DMA) capabilities to rewrite memory on a Windows box reminded me a lot of the 1st place winning 2002 MacHack hack “FireStarter” perpetrated by Quinn, which wrote a QuickTime movie of burning flames on the screen of any Mac you plug in via FireWire. As mentioned on TidBITS at the time.
Some of Quinn’s hacks are here.
If you’re interested in comparing Mac OS X and Windows XP check out the XvsXP blog.
For those who don’t mind being in Seattle, Washington (a nice place, aside from its proximity to the evil empire):
Are you ready to dive into a new technology that pushes the envelope to create new markets and products? Do you get stoked by the idea of working in a start-up atmosphere as part of a growing incubation team that bridges the gap between research and product?We are a small incubation team inside Microsoft creating innovative new content visualization technologies. We’re seeking a hardcore Mac developer to work on our graphically rich, highly performance-oriented platform. We’re looking for someone with broad knowledge of the Mac OS X platform (minimum 3 years experience) and at least a passing familiarity with Windows programming, who enjoys cross-platform development. Experience with OpenGL and mixed C++/Objective-C Cocoa projects is a must. Experience with 3D, real-time performance, threading, and networking is strongly preferred, but you would be expected to contribute to all levels of the Mac side of our engine and applications, so versatility is key. Job Post
If you’re up early looking for the keynote coverage (especially if you’re in GMT+9), then you can check out The Unofficial Apple Liveblog (they’ve also got a Twitter feed).Alternatively there’s a feed from Engadget, including a translation in Spanish.Newly on the scene there’s also SteveNoteLive which promises to include pictures.Also, #macrumors on irc2.tecknohost.com if you remember what IRC is :)Also don’t forget JoyOfTech’s handy Unofficial MacWorld Expo Survival Kit.
Microsoft have annouced that Mac Office 2008 will be available on shelves as of 15th January (ie after the MacWorld keynote). Ships on a DVD, includes universal binaries, requires Mac OS X 10.4.9 or later and a recommended 500MHZ machine minimum.
List price is US$399, ff course, there’s always the free NeoOffice as an alternative.
I recently read an article which included a link to the Wikipedia entry about Apple’s 1984 Superbowl ad. I’m going to have to go and re-watch some Futurama and Fight Club now 
Here’s a reasonably complete guide to filenames that Windows doesn’t like. I managed to create a file on an SMB share that ended with a space, which in the Windows world makes it a PITA to delete (as in you can copy the file onto the SMB share from your Mac, but then you can’t delete it again). I’m told one solution is to get the ’short’ filename using “dir /x” under Windows and then delete the short file name…
The shell and the file system have different requirements. It is possible to create a path with the API that the shell UI cannot handle.
Oh yay!
Microsoft’s Mac Business Unit has announced that the Mac version of Office 2008 won’t be available in late 2007 but will have to wait until January 2008. Microsoft MacBU developer blogs here.
Bad news for those relying on good document compatibility with Windows Office in the interim (although there are plugins available to access Office 2007 documents)
Meanwhile the MacBU has released Microsoft Remote Desktop Client v2 beta.
Good news for the NeoOffice crowd whose latest release will be available in August (or earlier if you pay a donation for early access).
