Testing the iMac 27 "2.7 GHz Quad Core i5 Part.I

The model tested is the entry level of the new iMac 27 "Thunderbolt, with its standard configuration. This machine has sold € 1649 i5 Core 2.7 GHz quad core "Sandy Bridge" (i5-2500S), 4 GB RAM, 1 TB hard drive at 7200 rpm and a new graphics card Radeon HD 6770M with 512 MB of RAM. Defining its beautiful screen has not moved with 2560x1440. The working surface is always as comfortable if not impressive for a piece.

The iMac lineup includes, at the base, four models: two 21.5 "(i5 Quad at 2.5 or 2.7 GHz) and two 27" (i5 Quad 2.7 GHz or 3.1 GHz). Performance processor reported here should therefore provide good clues about what we can expect from the 21.5 "high end. Because there are many common points with our machine: processor, memory allocation, hard disk and graphics card. If found the note that 27 "too high or if its dimensions alone are a constraint, we can always turn to the iMac just below. Which may also receive a Core i7 Quad 2.8 GHz if you really want to push performance (allow € 200). Core i7 has this and more on the i5 that supports Hyperthreading (eight cores logic with some applications) in addition to Turbo Boost available to all iMac (able with this machine, on tasks not taking advantage of multicore to push a temporary heart increments, up to 3.7 GHz maximum).

Performance:
In the standard tests, a mixture of consumer applications or not.

- Finder: zip archive of a file of 1.5 GB and 4500 elements.
- GarageBand '11: AAC encoding a 30-minute podcast.
- XLD: converting audio files from FLAC to AAC
- Photoshop CS4 and CS5 two scripts, one mainly composed of filters (DHT), the mixing filters and other common actions (RAT).
- IPhoto '11: export JPEG images.
- Aperture 3: export RAW images to JPEG.
- IMovie '11: 960x540 exports in a HD movie of 10 minutes.
- QuickTime X: export to iPhone format film obtained with iMovie.
- Handbrake: compression format file an iPhone HD 4.7 GB
- Blender 3D rendering of a file.
- Cinebench: measurement of an animation and an OpenGL 3D rendering.
- Starcraft 2: number of frames per second

(Cont.)

iOS 5 Preview

Accessibility side, Apple has added several elements, such as activating the flash of the camera for new notifications on the iPhone 4 or backplane dedicated to accessibility issues. Apple also proposes to change the behavior of the vibrator for calls only. Besides the continuous vibration by default, you can now choose between five vibration proposed by Apple, but also create new ones.

Apple has integrated the system with a vibration pattern generator custom. By tapping the screen, tells iOS when the buzzer is active. We can make a short tap or hold your finger to adjust the duration of vibration, while the intensity depends on the strength of tapping.

Other customization offered by Apple with iOS 5, the creation of custom gestures for use with "adaptive accessories. By default, a horizontal zigzag opens a menu, but the user can register new gestures. A priori, these actions will activate a specific function, but integration does not seem complete: once the action is recorded, IOS does not use it.

Since iOS 4.3, iPad used in development are entitled to a series of additional actions to manage the multitasking. Using four or five fingers can move from one application to another (shift to the left or right), show or hide the recent applications (sliding down or up) or quit an application by squeezing four or more fingers.

In the current beta version of IOS 5, these actions are available to all users and they are enabled by default. We can turn them off in the Settings, under "General", which will be useful for the (few) applications using more than three fingers at once.

MindManager 9 iOS Update in June

MindManager is a tool for creating mind maps. Mindjet, the publisher has scheduled the release of a major update for June 23 next. In this Program, we could find a new presentation mode, an option to quickly add an item, the import and export Office documents and iWork or dynamic content. By purchasing a license of MindManager today, you are eligible for free to version 9. The update will cost $ 129 otherwise.

To accompany this new release, Mindjet propose two applications in the App Store, iPhone (5.49 €) and one for iPad (6.99 €). These applications will be compatible with documents created by the desktop version and incorporates Dropbox for file transfers.

Mac OS X XProtect Update Date Check

The site Macworld gives a tip to force Snow Leopard to check his list of definitions of malware is updated and the check itself. The handling is first to open the Security pane of System Preferences, then in the General tab, uncheck then recheck with the option "Automatically update the list of safe downloads.

As this panel does not indicate the date of last update of this information (associated with this panel does not outright mention this new option). This requires running a command in the Terminal.

Copy and paste this and press the command line:

more / System / Library / CoreServices / CoreTypes.bundle / Contents / Resources / XProtect.meta.plist

In our case, before touching the election, the date returned was that of 26 May, after handling in preferences, the terminal indicates that the last update by Apple file malware of today.


need to check every day what is happening in this file, remember that the malware in question - MAC Defender and its variants - is not a virus, but an application masquerading as something it is not. But until a panel of preference may be more informative, it's always good to take a trick.

Microsoft unveils Windows 8 Part.IV

As for the management of the autonomy of the iPad and responsiveness, precisely because they are unmatched IOS "cut the fat" over "real" multitasking, and a start in record time. What happens when the hard drive goes into tablet mode on Windows 8? What happens to excel, always in the background when you go on reading a magazine? Better yet, what happens if the file open in Excel was stored on the external drive when passing in tablet mode? So many questions that need answers, and we do not know for the time actually little more on this new version of Windows. Microsoft still has time to perfecting his copy and gives all the answers by the system output. However, it seems to introduce here a long transition during which it has perhaps more ways: you cannot take the train when it left the station.

Although the two modes do not live in total isolation: thus it is possible to live a touch application and pre-Windows application 8 to the screen by the method of sharing discussed above. One imagines, too, although Microsoft has not demonstrated that the keyboard can be used with older applications. As such, the touch-sensitive layers of Windows 8 is not a simple overlay, and wait to see the other features that Microsoft will unveil in the future to measure the interpenetration of two worlds. Nevertheless the two approaches, as presented, go together. While it is easy to see that this approach may provide to Microsoft, it is much more difficult to see the benefit to its users. And ultimately, it's still good to them that are: no one will do the update for the sheer joy of giving pleasure to the editor.

As John Gruber points out, this has been the undeniable success of the Apple iPad is well made clean slate. Pages, Numbers and Keynote have been totally redesigned for the touch interface, and this is what works. The simplicity of the iPad also reflects the disappearance of the management of files and their backup. The impossibility of making a direct port of an application for Mac OS X to iOS ensures that third party developers think their application specifically for IOS, which contributes to the strength and consistency of the platform. Microsoft has not had the fortitude to abandon what made his fortune so far, this may well be a shot in the future too heavy to drag.