Friday, October 26, 2007

Tech Pulse 20071018: Amazon.com DRM-free MP3s, eBay Hacked, Zune Adds Podcast Support, and more!

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Lots of news including the Amazon.com DRM-free MP3 store, eBay was recently hacked leading to stolen credit card information, iPhones were unlocked then bricked then unlocked again, Zune adds podcast support, Bungie might split from Microsoft, Mac OS X Leopard is coming, and more!

Notes and links related to this episode:

Tech News
    • Apple seems to have responded to market pressure by dropping the price of iTunes Plus tracks (which are also DRM-free but come in the less ubiquitous AAC format) to 99 cents, the same price as DRM-encumbered iTunes tracks, and down from $1.29
  • Mac OS X v10.5 "Leopard" is nearing release: Friday, October 26th (get $20 off for a limited time through this link!)
Tech Tips
Josh's
  • Task Manager tricks for Windows
    • What happened to my Task Manager?? If your task manager's tabs and buttons seem to have mysteriously vanished, don't worry—you probably just accidentally double-clicked somewhere in the window. This is a feature, not a bug. Double-click in a blank area of the window to restore the default view.
    • Can I go straight to the Task Manager in Vista? Yep; the keystroke Ctrl+Shift+Esc instantly brings up the Task Manager in Windows Vista, without going to a list of options first. The same command also works for Windows XP/2000 PCs, which bypasses the option list screen if the PC is on a domain (of course, if your Windows XP or 2000 PC is not on a domain, then the command does the same thing as Ctrl+Alt+Del).
Anthony's
  • On newer Macs, if you have the volume muted and then plug in headphones, the Mac will automatically unmute so you can hear through the headphones. Then if you unplug your headphones, the Mac will mute again instantly!
Big-O's
  • On Macs with volume keys on the keyboard: Hold Shift while pressing a volume key to temporarily disable the volume-change sound effect)
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