Author: A.P.P.L.E.
The Virtual II Emulator, an Apple II Emulator for Mac OS X, has been updated. Version 9.3.1 is an effort by the author of Virtual II to correct an issue that was introduced in the previous release, version 9.3. The bug could cause double high resolution screens to be rendered incorrectly during emulation. If you have Virtual II Version 9.3 or older installed, it is highly recommended that you install this latest update. You can download the latest update from…
Denis Molony has released an update to his Apple II Diskbrower program. Diskbrowser which was originally developed for Mac OS X also will run on Windows and Linux platforms with Java installed. Diskbrowser 1.45 introduces a few bug fixes including one which was causing the program to freeze on Mac OS X. You can download the latest version of the Diskbrowser App from Denis’ Github page at: https://github.com/dmolony/DiskBrowser
The guys over at the Eaten By A Grue Podcast take on Infocom’s Planetfall with this months episode # 34. According to their website: Kay and Carrington foray into the future to face the mishaps and misspellings of Planetfall, Infocom’s rib-tickling romp about a boy and his bot. Star Patrol: it’s not just a job, it’s an adventure game. Blurb from the EBAG website If you would like to listen to the podcast or check out their resources list for…
The Clock.Signal Emulator for Mac OS X, which emulates a host of platforms has been updated. The latest release by Tom Harte, Clock.Signal’s curator, includes the following fixes: adds volume controls; corrects a bug in Apple II NIB handling that could cause a crash for some track layouts; and introduces a preliminary attempt at OPLL emulation, bringing an initial version of FM audio to the Master System. Platforms supported by the Clock.Signal emulator includes the Acorn Electron, Amstrad CPC, Apple…
Onyx, the Mac OS system maintenance software produced by Titanium Software, has been updated. Version 3.8.1 includes a variety of fixes and updates including : • Issue corrected that occurred when rebuilding the LaunchServices database• Deleting the applications cache improved• Some issues in the Parameters pane corrected• Issue corrected when verifying the volume from a standard user• Some parts of the source code have been optimized Onyx takes care of a number of the cleanup of a number of functions…
Applesauce Floppy Disk Controller Client Software has been updated. Version 1.36 of Applesauce FDC includes the following improvements and fixes: Support for imaging/validating/exploring 3.5″ PC (FAT12) disks is now officially supported! Imaging these disk requires an Apple SuperDrive connected to your Applesauce. I know this isn’t Apple-related, but some folks really wanted me to get this together. Additional support for exporting disks from the Disk Analyzer in Raw Sector Image (.img) format. Loading of IMG files is coming soon. Applesauce…
Apple programmer, François Vander Linden , has created a version of the Synergistic Software game Bolo, completely in Applesoft. The original Apple II game was produced in 1982 and has remained one of the favorite games ever played on the venerable platform. You can download the Disk Image of Bolo in Applesoft from here:https://www.callapple.org/soft/ap2/games/bolo_fvl.dsk The Disk Image for Bolo in Applesoft includes: a BOLO MAZE GENERATOR in 2 lines a full screen BOLO in 3 lines with tank display a…
The RetroMacCast Episode number 524 is now available. In this episode of the RetroMacCast, James and John discuss eBay finds: G3 beige tower, IIfx, and develop’s original Mac. They discuss the history of iTunes, and news includes the Worldwide Newton Conference, Apple race car, and how the Mac has thrived since 1984. To see all of the show notes and or to listen to the podcast, go to www.retromaccast.com. You can also check out the RetroMacCast Facebook page.
Little Snitch, the app which shows users outgoing network connections, has been updated. Version 4.5.1 of Little Snitch includes the following fixes and changes: Improvements in the Connection Alert Fixed an issue causing the Research Assistant to be shown without any visible content. Fixed an issue causing the “Accept Modifications” button not to work. Improved keyboard control of the connection alert window. Rules for connections that are established via a helper tool (“Some.app via Helper Tool”) are now created for…
Mactracker, the app which allows users to get information on all products Apple related, has a new update. Version 7.9.1 of the Ian Page programmed Mac OS X app includes several new bits and pieces as well as application fixes including the following: Adds Magic Keyboard for iPad Adds performance scores for additional models from Primate Labs Geekbench 5 Updates Support Status for Apple’s latest Vintage and Obsolete products Fixes an issue where user data would fail to load Other…
A.P.P.L.E. member Dr. Marc A. Golombeck has developed a Double Low Resolution graphics amper-library for the Apple IIe Enhanced, IIc, and the IIgs. This library allows users to perform many advanced graphics functions in Double Lo-Res mode (80 x 48 pixels in 16 color mode) with simple to use amper routines all based in Applesoft BASIC. The Double Low-Resolution Amper Library includes a host of routines including: &GR: switches to double LORES mode and clears the screen &TEXT: returns to…
This month, Adam Christianson, the curator of the MacCast, takes us back in time to the very last MacWorld attended where the keynote speech was given by Steve Jobs. MacWorld Expo 2011 was held at the Muscone Center West in San Francisco from the 27th to the 29th of January, 2011 and featured mostly iPad related items. He talks with Cali Lewis from GeekBeat TV and that years featured Tech Girlz Panel in addition to numerous other going ons and…
Apple has announced that the 31st rendidiotn of their World Wide Developer Conference will begin on June 22, 2020. This years event will be held in the digital realm and will begin with first ever Swift Student Challenge. All portions of the WWDC 2020 will occur online, however, further details are a bit spartan at this time. According to Apple’s press release for the event, they will announce the rest of the details on the Apple Developer Website : https://developer.apple.com/wwdc20/
The GBBS Pro Source Code archive has moved. The new location is on the Call-A.P.P.L.E. Github page which is located at:https://github.com/callapple GBBS Pro Bulletin Board System is an Apple II based BBS program which allows users to run their own bulletin board cheaply and easily. The latest version of the publicly available builds from the GBBS Pro website at https://gbbs.applearchives.com/ or order the manual for version 2.2 from A.P.P.L.E. at https://www.callapple.org/documentation/books/gbbs-pro-2-2/
One of the more interesting projects I came across today is Travis DeRose’s iPad replacement for the internals of the Macintosh Plus. While there are Mac 68K users who might get a bit peeved at the sacrilege, it is more pleasing and appealing the some of the other horrid changes and supposed updates I have seen such as fish tanks and beer dispensers. This is one upgrade that allows the coolness of the Macintosh 68K while having a modern computing…
Two hearty Apple hobbyists, divingkatae and maximumspatium, are making a decent attempt at building a new Power PC Macintosh emulator. DingusPPC, as the new emulator is know, is according to the authors, “an attempt to build an accurately performing PPC Mac emulator”. Thus far, there is Basilisk II, SheepShaver and QEMU in the same realm, however, only QEMU comes up to the level which the authors are attempting to surpass. This is still a highly alpha type emulator and any…
SoftMaker Office 2021 Beta from the German software developer, SoftMaker Software GmbH, is now available in a public beta. SoftMaker Office 2021 is intended to be a total replacement of Microsoft Office for less than 90$ USD for a one time purchase. SoftMaker Office is available for MAC OS X, Windows and for Linux. The public beta version of SoftMaker Office 2021 is available as a free download from the SoftMaker Software GmbH website at:https://www.softmaker.com/en/softmaker-office
While many users may have been getting these fake Flash is Out Of Date messages, the trojan which is the most responsible for this is the Trojan-Downloader.OSX.Shlayer.a or the shlayer trojan as it is known. Apparently, the shlayer trojan is so prevalent that it accounts for almost 30% of all infections on MAC OS X. Kaspersky put out a breakdown of the entire package and code earlier this year. You can find that here:https://securelist.com/shlayer-for-macos/95724/
The Handbrake Team has released the latest version of their Handbrake video conversion software. Version 1.3.2 includes a bevy of fixes, changes, and updates, of which a full listing can be found in the Handbrake 1.3.2 release notes on their Github Page at:https://github.com/HandBrake/HandBrake/releases/tag/1.3.2 The latest version of the Handbrake software is available for free from their website at: https://handbrake.fr
Valve is now ending support for SteamVR on Mac OS X so as they say in their posting, “so our team can focus on Windows and Linux.” While the Mac has never really been a real focus for Steam VR, they did make a big bruhaha about their support of Mac OS X a while back but that excitement seems not to have translated to any real dollars for Valve. And just like that, they are dropping the whole Mac…
