ANTenna Blog -- Alan Zeichick

Alan Zeichick covers Apple and Mac issues for bMighty.com. He's also principal analyst at Camden Associates, advises enterprises about technology challenges, writes for technology print and online publications and speaks at industry events on enterprise IT, networking, security, software engineering and consumer electronics. Meanwhile, as editorial director of BZ Media’s SD Times, Zeichick drives forward the industry newspaper for software development managers.

A former mainframe developer and systems analyst, Zeichick became a technology analyst and journalist in 1984. He has authored more than 3,000 articles, worked with consulting groups, including PricewaterhouseCoopers, IDC and Anderson Consulting, and has spoken at numerous events such as COMDEX, Networld+Interop, Microsoft TechEd, JavaOne and the Software Development Conference.

He has launched several publications, including Network Magazine, 3D Design, Communications Systems Design, SD Times, Software Test & Performance and Systems Management News. A former columnist for The Red Herring, Zeichick is currently a Senior Contributing Analyst to InfoWorld and a member of the Editorial Board for American Business Media.
Read his personal blog at ztrek.blogspot.com.

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Rumors of Mac's FireWire Demise Continue...

Posted by Alan Zeichick 01:46 PM ET | Jan 22, 2009

Apple is moving away from the FireWire peripheral interconnect that it championed, and is tightening its embrace of Universal Serial Bus. We saw early indications of this with the release of the new MacBook notebook computers last October. The trend continues.

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Happy Birthday, Mac — Here's $1.6 Billion Profit

Posted by Alan Zeichick 01:30 PM ET | Jan 22, 2009

As the Macintosh turns 25 years old this week, Apple Inc. announced its latest quarterly earnings — a whopping record profit of $1.61 billion.

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Hardware Problems Plague Some Older MacBook Pro Notebooks

Posted by Alan Zeichick 02:14 PM ET | Jan 19, 2009

The heart of a modern personal computer consists of two powerful microprocessors — the central processing unit and the graphics processing unit. Problems with either of these critical components can lead to frustration, or worse, for users. Sadly, problems with the GPU seems to be common among users of some older Apple MacBook Pro notebooks.

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Macworld Ended An Era With a Whimper, Not With a Bang

Posted by Alan Zeichick 08:34 AM ET | Jan 15, 2009

I've gone to many Macworld conferences, but rarely was I was bored as at Macworld 2009 in San Francisco. To be honest, the conference has outlived its usefulness. However, that is a statement about Macworld — not about the Mac. Like a booster rocket on a space shuttle, Macworld has done its job, and can be safely dropped.

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Apple Delivers Next-Gen 17" MacBook Pro

Posted by Alan Zeichick 07:05 PM ET | Jan 6, 2009

It's been nearly three months since Apple revamped most of its notebook line, offering new versions of its MacBook, MacBook Air and 15" MacBook Pro models. Copious missing from the Oct. 2008 update was the 17" MacBook Pro. Today, at Macworld Expo, Apple filled in the missing piece.

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Apple Reworks iWork for Small Biz

Posted by Alan Zeichick 03:43 PM ET | Jan 6, 2009

Just about the biggest small-business news out of Apple at Macworld Expo — which opened today in San Francisco — is a whole lot of improvements to its iWork software suite.

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AppleScript Made Easy as 1-2-3

Posted by Alan Zeichick 07:54 PM ET | Jan 1, 2009

AppleScript is the built-in end-user programming language found in Mac OS X. AppleScript — designed for people like you and me — is designed to help you learn how to automate everyday tasks. Unfortunately, AppleScript can be a little hard for a complete neophyte to work learn, unless you have a friend who can help you, or maybe take a class. I'm happy to report that a new AppleScript book has come out that I think every Mac user would enjoy, and learn from.

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It's Time To Install Mac OS X 10.5.6

Posted by Alan Zeichick 11:40 AM ET | Dec 24, 2008

Last week, Apple introduced the latest update to Mac OS X 10.5 "Leopard." As with other recent Leopard updates, the 10.5.6 update focused on bug fixes and security patches. However, there are some welcome feature upgrades — including improvements to MobileMe's "push" synchronization for contacts, calendars and bookmarks.

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Hardware & Software

iPhone to Penetrate 10% of Small Businesses, Says Forrester

Posted by Alan Zeichick 04:50 PM ET | Dec 18, 2008

No surprise: In a report of IT predictions, Forrester Research says that the iPhone is going to do well over the next year. However, the shock is exactly how good Forrester analyst Michele Pelino thinks that the iPhone will fare in the next year — and how much impact its touch-screen competitors will have.

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Apple Flips IDG the Finger over Macworld

Posted by Alan Zeichick 05:33 PM ET | Dec 16, 2008

What an in-your-face insult! Apple announced today that its appearance at the next Macworld Expo — Jan. 5-9 in San Francisco — will be its last.

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