The vast selection of free 3rd party applications available for Mac OS X always surprises people when they’re new to the platform. Among that abundance of software is a collection of free Mac video converters which can cover nearly any situation you could find yourself in.

[From 6 best free Mac video converters to handle nearly any file format | MacYourself]

BookBook is a one-of-a-kind, hardback leather case designed exclusively for MacBook and MacBook Pro. Available in Classic Black or Vibrant Red, BookBook brings three levels of security to your prized Mac. First, the hardback cover and spine provide solid protection from the rigors of the road. Second, the vintage book design disguises MacBook for superior security. And third, the stylish case protects you from being like everyone else because BookBook is totally original, just like you.

[From BookBook - BookBook - Twelve South]

Free & open-source DVD decryption

Fairmount is a free tool which allows on-the-fly decryption of DVD content for convenient access. Fairmount does not perform the actual decryption, it simply forwards the data to VLC Media Player, which is used for the decryption. Hence, VLC Media Player must be installed for Fairmount to work.

[From Metakine - Fairmount]

Apple CEO Steve Jobs hit the star-studded red carpet at the 82nd Academy Awards yesterday evening.

Oscar night was big for Jobs. He not only traded in his trademark turtleneck for his tux, but his company also debuted its first-ever iPad ad, which was aired twice during the three-and-a-half-hour Academy Award broadcast. (Watch it here).

See photos of Steve Jobs, famous for his California-casual uniform of jeans and New Balance sneakers, in his black-tie ensemble.

Twitter user @WayneSutton was one of the first on the blogosphere to remark of Steve Jobs’ attendance at the awards. ‘OMG it’s Steve Jobs! I’m the only one yelling at him! #oscars #kodakredcarpet,’ Sutton tweeted.

[From Steve Jobs' Oscar Cameo: PICTURES Of Tux-Wearing Apple CEO On The Red Carpet]

If you are a smoker, you can’t help but know the health hazards that come along with the habit. If you are an Apple owner who smokes, you need to be aware that Apple frowns on smoking and is now stating that smoking voids the warranty of Apple computers.

The problem is that the residue that smoking leaves inside the computer is being termed a health risk. One consumer claims that when he took his MacBook into an Apple store for repairs related to an overheating issue the store refused to work on the computer.

[From Apple won't work on Macs owned by smokers]

There are several situations where you might want to dump a DVD to your hard drive to watch later. For instance, I get significantly better battery life when watching a video from my hard drive than I get when watching it from a DVD. If I’m stuck in a plane for several hours, having my movie on the hard drive can be the difference between finishing the show, or running out of power halfway through. I use a PowerBook and in OS X 10.3 and earlier you could just use the built in Disk Utility to copy a DVD to your disk, but it stopped working in 10.4. However with a few free tools you can accomplish the same thing and more.

[From » Travelling with Movies on a Mac]

coconutIdentityCard is a small app that reads out where and when your Mac and your iPod were built by Apple.
Just plug in your iPod while the app is running and it will show you the information about your iPod instantly.
Because it’s UniversalBinary, it will run also on the new Intel-Based-Macs.
Format of the date: dd.mm.yyyy
You also can enter any 11-character Apple serial number and the app will identify the build-location and the date when the product was built.

New since 2.1: coconutIdentityCard is able to check your serials against internet-databases of stolen Apple products. (A negative result is no guarantee that it isn’t stolen)
Currently coconutIdentityCard checks the database of www.powermax.com – if you know other databases, please send me an email with a link to the database – I will try to add it soon.

[From coconut-flavour.com - [coconutIdentityCard 2.4]]

Apple Mac owns 90% market share for ‘premium’ PCs costing over $1,000 with $499 iPad coming soon
Monday, February 01, 2010 – 05:14 PM EST
“Windows 7 did little to slow the Mac’s sales trajectory during fourth quarter, according to NPD. Year over year, Apple doubled US retail unit share — from 5 percent to 10 percent — for PCs selling between $500 and $1,000. More startling, Apple increased its unit share from 79 percent to 90 percent in the market for ‘premium’ PCs, meaning those selling for more than $1,000,” Joe Wilcox reports for Betanews. “In July, I reported that Apple’s revenue share for PCs selling for more than $1,000 was 91 percent, because of higher average selling prices; nearly all Macs sold for more than $1,000. Now Apple benefits from 90-percent unit share, too.”

[From MacDailyNews - Apple Mac owns 90% market share for 'premium' PCs costing over $1,000 with $499 iPad coming soon]

It’s been a long time coming, but the last hurdle is gone — Apple has lifted the restrictions against 3G VoiP calls from the iPhone Software Development Kit.

The implications of this are pretty huge. Not only does this mean that VoIP apps like Skype [iTunes Link] can now be easily updated to allow VoIP access over 3G on the iPhone, it also means that the 3G-enabled versions of the new iPad should be able to take full advantage of VoIP over 3G as well. The iPad does come with a microphone and a speaker, so while you won’t be able to hold the device up to your ear like a phone (although it would be pretty funny to watch you try), calls over Skype or another VoIP program should theoretically be just as clear on the iPad as they are on the iPhone’s tiny speaker. This has the potential to really shake up the wireless industry, especially in the U.S. — with pay-as-you-go 3G on the iPad costing no more than $30 a month, the iPad suddenly seems like a very attractive alternative to the iPhone with its far more expensive (and contractually obligated) carrier plans.

iCall [iTunes Link] has already been updated with VoIP over 3G enabled, and with all restrictions now lifted, it seems like it’s only a matter of time before Skype and other VoIP apps follow.

[From iPhone SDK updated: VoIP over 3G now permitted]

“Yesterday we reported that Google’s long awaited own-brand phone, the Google Nexus One, hadn’t enjoyed the best start in life, having only sold 20,000 units in its first week in the US,” Adam Bunker reports for T3.

The Nexus One “has just had its price slashed,” Bunker reports.

“Up until today, anyone in the US who’d wanted to upgrade to the Nexus One on T-Mobile had to pay out $379,” Bunker reports. “With the price cut in effect, this figure stands at $279… Not only that, but anyone who’s already upgraded receive a $100 refund.”

[From MacDailyNews - And so it begins: Google discounts 'Nexus One' by $100]

Dvorak predicts Apple among 2010’s ‘winners’ and Microsoft, Dell among ‘losers’
Thursday, December 31, 2009 – 10:12 AM EST
“The biggest hint of things to come in 2010 and beyond are tied up with three specific pieces of information that appeared near the end of 2009,” John C. Dvorak writes for MarketWatch. “The first two were the iPhone sales figures and the iPhone Internet usage rate. The third was the fact that Amazon.com Inc.’s Kindle was the No. 1 high-tech Christmas gift.”

HERE

Microsoft CEO Ballmer laughs at Apple iPhone

Microsoft Is Losing Fight for Consumers, Analyst Says

[From Microsoft Is Losing Fight for Consumers, Analyst Says - Bits Blog - NYTimes.com]

The floodgates are beginning to open. Just last week we had the first live streamer, Knocking Live [iTunes link], that worked from iPhone to iPhone. Now, Ustream is offering a free app [iTunes link] that lets you put a live or recorded stream on the web that multiple people can watch from a web browser.

This is a rather stunning turnaround from just weeks ago when Apple did not allow any live streaming of video from the iPhone. This app supports the 3G and 3GS iPhones, and allows streaming over the 3G network and Wi-Fi. You can record the stream to your iPhone for a later upload, and it even works on 3G phones that don’t have built-in video record capability.

[From Stream audio and video live from your iPhone with Ustream Live Broadcaster]

In a series of new ads airing tonight, Apple Inc. [AAPL 205.88 5.96 (+2.98%) ] tries to come to carrier partner AT&T’s [T 26.78 0.76 (+2.92%) ] rescue.

But is it too little too late?

For weeks, Verizon [VZ 31.33 0.90 (+2.96%) ] and Sprint [S 3.90 0.14 (+3.72%) ] have been having their way with AT&T and Apple’s iPhone. One of the year’s best commercials has to be the Verizon ad featuring the iPhone as the newest resident of The Land of Misfit Toys. The issue, and it certainly resonates, is that while AT&T might have a very nice 3G network, its coverage is rather limited when it compares to that offered by Verizon. The two even got into a legal spat because of Verizon’s very clever “There’s a ‘Map’ for That” campaign, com

[From Apple Comes to AT&T's Rescue - Tech Check with Jim Goldman - CNBC.com]

It’s always nice when, as a Mac consultant, I can play with the latest hardware and software and get paid to do it. Last week was no exception, and when I received a call from a new client who wanted assistance with a Mac mini Server, I jumped at the chance. Since the introduction of the Mac mini in early 2005, I’ve been using “regular” Mac minis as servers, and they’ve worked flawlessly. I had two servers of my own at Macminicolo.net for quite some time, and Brian Stucki, the owner of that Mac mini colocation firm, noted in a discussion a few years ago that the failure rate on the mini hardware is phenomenally low. I’ve set up Mac minis with Mac OS X Server for architectural firms, PR companies, design firms, non-profits, and a number of other companies that needed centralized control of digital assets, but didn’t want to spend a lot of money to do so. Usually after setting up these servers, I rarely, if ever, need to go back and fix anything.

[From Working with the new Apple Mac mini Server and Snow Leopard Server]

Known for not buying furniture, Jobs was photographed in his Los Gatos, Calif., living room for Time magazine in 1982.

[From Rarely seen Steve Jobs - Bare essentials (4) - FORTUNE]

Apple iPhone owners wondering if there is a case of swine flu nearby can now find out instantly with a new program that tracks outbreaks of infectious diseases.

Outbreaks Near Me is an application for the popular smartphone developed by researchers at Children’s Hospital Boston in collaboration with the Media Lab of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

[From New iPhone app tracks disease outbreaks | MNN - Mother Nature Network]

As part of its Bearing Witness 2.0 project, the Huffington Post is rounding up a few of the best local stories of the day.

Mable Randon is suffering from the late stages of cancer. She’s bound by a wheel chair and only breathing with the help of an electrically-powered oxygen machine. Rucks Russell of KHOU in Houston reports that the local power company sent her a disconnection notice because of late bills. She applied to the Critical Customer Program, a payment plan seemingly tailor-made for people in Randon’s condition who depend on electric life support — but she was denied.

Her provider, Freedom Power, already had the most complaints of any energy company in Texas. The Texas Public Utilities Commission launched an investigation into Randon’s case on Wednesday, which will keep the power on for the time being. Texas-based Amegy Bank has set up a charity fund to help her keep her lights on.

KHOU also has a video.

******

Darla Tolliver and her husband, Jim, are just $28,000 away from owning their home after making payments since 2001, reports Claire Galofaro of the Bristol Herald Courier in Virginia. But now, after Jim lost his job, they are three months behind on their mortgage, and fearing foreclosure. “It’s like you’re in quicksand, and the more you struggle and try to get out, the more you sink” remarked Darla. “My life is in that house…the thought of losing it is unbearable.”

******

Bessie Mae Berger, 97, is homeless. She lives with her two sons in a Chevrolet Suburban, reports Bob Pool of the Los Angeles Times. Her sons, Larry and Charlie Wilkerson, are both unemployed and get by on disability checks and food stamps. A damaged nerve and degenerative arthritis, respectively, forced them out of work years ago. They now panhandle for extra change — Berger holds a sign reading “I am 97 years old. Homeless. Broke. Need Help Please.” Because they insist on living together, they have been repeatedly denied government-subsidized housing, and are running into brick walls navigating government aid programs. “There’s a million empty homes here in California, but they can’t seem to find one we can live in,” said Larry. The Times also has an affecting audio slideshow, showing how the family lives in their own words.

[From Power Company Trying To Switch Off Cancer Patient's Oxygen Machine]