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2008-10-30T14:29:26+09:00

Linux WPA/WPA2/IEEE 802.1X Supplicant

2008-10-30T11:17:20+09:00

http://hostap.epitest.fi/wpa_supplicant/ 에서 퍼온글

Linux WPA/WPA2/IEEE 802.1X Supplicant

wpa_supplicant is a WPA Supplicant for Linux, BSD and Windows with support for WPA and WPA2 (IEEE 802.11i / RSN). It is suitable for both desktop/laptop computers and embedded systems. Supplicant is the IEEE 802.1X/WPA component that is used in the client stations. It implements key negotiation with a WPA Authenticator and it controls the roaming and IEEE 802.11 authentication/association of the wlan driver.

wpa_supplicant is designed to be a "daemon" program that runs in the background and acts as the backend component controlling the wireless connection. wpa_supplicant supports separate frontend programs and a text-based frontend (wpa_cli) and a GUI (wpa_gui) are included with wpa_supplicant.

Supported WPA/IEEE 802.11i features

WPA-PSK ("WPA-Personal")
WPA with EAP (e.g., with RADIUS authentication server) ("WPA-Enterprise")
key management for CCMP, TKIP, WEP104, WEP40
WPA and full IEEE 802.11i/RSN/WPA2
RSN: PMKSA caching, pre-authentication

Supported EAP methods (IEEE 802.1X Supplicant)

EAP-TLS
EAP-PEAP/MSCHAPv2 (both PEAPv0 and PEAPv1)
EAP-PEAP/TLS (both PEAPv0 and PEAPv1)
EAP-PEAP/GTC (both PEAPv0 and PEAPv1)
EAP-PEAP/OTP (both PEAPv0 and PEAPv1)
EAP-PEAP/MD5-Challenge (both PEAPv0 and PEAPv1)
EAP-TTLS/EAP-MD5-Challenge
EAP-TTLS/EAP-GTC
EAP-TTLS/EAP-OTP
EAP-TTLS/EAP-MSCHAPv2
EAP-TTLS/EAP-TLS
EAP-TTLS/MSCHAPv2
EAP-TTLS/MSCHAP
EAP-TTLS/PAP
EAP-TTLS/CHAP
EAP-SIM
EAP-AKA
EAP-PSK (experimental)
EAP-FAST
EAP-PAX
LEAP (note: requires special support from the driver)

Following methods are also supported, but since they do not generate keying material, they cannot be used with WPA or IEEE 802.1X WEP keying.

EAP-MD5-Challenge
EAP-MSCHAPv2
EAP-GTC
EAP-OTP

More information about EAP methods and interoperability testing is available in eap_testing.txt.

Supported wireless cards/drivers

Host AP driver for Prism2/2.5/3 (development snapshot/v0.2.x/v0.3.x; WPA and WPA2)
Linuxant DriverLoader with Windows NDIS driver supporting WPA (WPA, but not WPA2)
Agere Systems Inc. Linux Driver (Hermes-I/Hermes-II chipset) (WPA, but not WPA2)
madwifi (Atheros ar521x)
ATMEL AT76C5XXx
Linux ndiswrapper
Broadcom wl.o driver
Intel ipw2100
Intel ipw2200
Wired Ethernet drivers
BSD net80211 layer (e.g., Atheros driver) (FreeBSD 6-CURRENT and NetBSD current)
Windows NDIS drivers (Windows; at least XP and 2000, others not tested)

wpa_supplicant was designed to be portable for different drivers and operating systems. Hopefully, support for more wlan cards and OSes will be added in the future. See developers' documentation for more information about the design of wpa_supplicant and porting to other drivers.

최근에 Wireless Extension Tools가 28이 릴리즈 되었다.

새로 추가된 대표적인 기능은 WPA I,II, 802.1x를 지원하기 위하여 기존까지 Private loctl로 사용하던 것을 표준 인터페이스로 만들어 져 있다.(Wireless extension 18 헤더파일을 사용)

그러나 WE18을 2.4커널에서 사용하기 위해서 2.6에서 사용되는 wireless.c iw_handler.h등을 2.4로Back Port해야 만 사용할 수 있다.

Wireless Extension 싸이트

http://www.hpl.hp.com/personal/Jean_Tourrilhes/Linux/Tools.html

[출처] Linux WPA/WPA2/IEEE 802.1X Supplicant|작성자 윌리엄

Here is how to unlock your T-Mobile G1

2008-10-30T09:28:43+09:00

Here is how to unlock your T-Mobile G1 !

Unlocking your phone will enable you to use a sim card from any mobile network, in any country. Using the serial number of your phone, we provide a remote unlock code to remove any restrictions currently placed on your handset by your current network provider.

You will get a Service Provider code directly from your current provider.

We also provide Worldwide Unlock Code, compatible with any T-Mobile G1 phone, no matter which current provider it's locked to, Worldwide compliant.

First Android Phone !

source from : http://www.unlock-tmobileg1.com/

Naver2Tistory 옮겨 보자...

2008-10-28T21:01:32+09:00

endlessprogramming.tistory.com 에서 퍼왔습니다.

■ 실행환경

MS Windows 계열 운영체제, MS .Net Framework 2.0
.Net Framework 2.0 다운로드

■ 관련링크

- Naver2Tistory 다운로드

▷ 2007.08.27 처음 작성.

※ 목차

1. 네이버블로그 백업
2. 티스토리블로그 복원

※ 네이버블로그 백업

네이버 아이디 입력
네이버 암호 입력
카테고리 옆 "..."버튼을 클릭하면 ,
1) 네이버 암호를 입력하지 않은 경우 공개된 카테고리만 가져옵니다.
2) 네이버 암호를 입력한 경우 모든 카테고리를 가져옵니다.
가져온 카테고리에서 백업할 카테고리만 지정할 수 있습니다. 전체를 선택할 경우 모든 카테고리를 백업합니다.
백업옵션 선택
- 이미지 파일 처리 : 포스트에 첨부된 이미지를 백업할 것인지 여부를 결정합니다.
  - 처리안함 : 백업하지 않습니다.
  - 백업파일에 포함 : 백업파일에 Base64 인코딩하여 첨부합니다. 복원시 이미지는 Tistory 블로그에 생성됩니다.(링크 형식이 아니므로 네이버 블로그가 삭제되어도 무방합니다.)
  - 다운로드 저장 : 백업파일에 포함되지 않고 백업하고 있는 로컬드라이브에 이미지 파일로 저장됩니다.
- 최대 이미지 너비 : 티스토리 블로그와 네이버 블로그의 포스트 너비가 다르므로 백업시 이미지 너비를 조절하지 않을 경우 티스토리로 복원시 레이아웃이 변경될 수 있습니다. 480px 값으로 결정할 경우 가장 적합니다.
- 마이그레이션 여부 : 마이그레이션 옵션에 체크할 경우 티스토리 복원시 기존 티스토리 블로그의 포스트를 초기화하지 않고 추가되어 복원됩니다. 마이그레이션 옵션에 체크하지 않을 경우 티스토리 복원시 기존 티스토리 블로그의 포스트 뿐만아니라 설장 값, 방문자 기록, 카테고리, 스킨설정 값등이 모두 초기화 되므로 주의하십시오.
- 첨부 파일 처리 : 이미지 파일 처리와 같습니다.
블로그 정보 저장하기 : 네이버 아이디가 저장되어 다음 번 프로그램 실행시 해당 네이버 아이디가 출력됩니다.
시작 버튼을 클릭하여 백업을 시작합니다. 기본 파일명은 "네이버블로그아이디_yyyymmdd.xml"입니다.

저장 버튼을 클릭하면 블로그 백업이 진행됩니다.

백업이 진행되는 상황을 프로그래스바와 숫자로 출력해 줍니다.

※티스토리 블로그 복원

티스토리 블로그 관리자 사이트로 로그인합니다.
환경설정 메뉴에서 데이터관리를 선택합니다.
데이터관리 화면이 아래와 같이 출력됩니다. ( 그림이 깨지면 클릭하십시오. )
먼저 최악의 경우를 대비해 백업 작업(Export)을 먼저 수행하십시오.
백업이 완료되었다면 데이터를 복원(Import)합니다.
백업파일의 크기가 10MB 이상일 경우 대용량 웹메일을 사용합니다. 여기에서는 네이버 메일을 사용합니다.
1. 네이버 메일에서 내게 쓰기 버튼을 클릭합니다.
2. 대용량 첨부를 합니다.
3. 네이버의 네게쓴메일함을 확인하시면 방금 전 보낸 메일을 확인하실 수 있습니다. 해당 메일을 클릭하시고...
  
  파일명에서 마우스 오른버튼 클릭하여 나오는 등록정보 다이얼로그에서 주소URL을 복사합니다.
4. 다시 티스토리 블로그 복원 페이지로 돌아가 IMPORT 메뉴(데이터를 복원합니다.)를 클릭합니다.
  
  * 주의하실 것은 네이버 블로그를 백업할 때 마이그레이션 옵션을 체크한 경우 기존 포스트에 추가되는 식으로 복원되므로 초기화 후 복원하실 경우 티스토리 블로그의 데이터를 삭제(REMOVE 메뉴)하신 후 진행하십시오.
1. 백업파일의 크기가 10MB 미만일 경우에는 로컬 드라이브에 저장한 백업파일을 사용, 직접 복원하실 수 있습니다.

이상으로 Naver2Tistory를 사용한 네이버블로그 백업과 티스토리블로그 복원 매뉴얼을 마치겠습니다.

Stanford Open class

2008-10-28T17:14:57+09:00

아이튠즈에도 iTunes U 라고 하는 곳을 통해서 미국에 각 대학 강의를 보고 들을 수 있는데,

스탠포드에 엔지니어링 강의를 들을 수 있는 페이지입니다. 숙제도 있고 시험도 있네요~^ ^

무료입니다.

Stanford Engineering Everywhere (SEE)

Stanford Engineering Everywhere offers:

Anytime and anywhere access to complete lecture videos via streaming or downloaded media.
Full course materials including syllabi, handouts, homework, and exams.
Online social networking with fellow SEE students.
Support for PCs, Macs and mobile computing devices.

Quite long story about G1

2008-10-28T13:56:51+09:00

(CNET) -- It's been a little more than a year since Google Android was announced and rumors of a little device called the HTC Dream started to leak onto the Web.

The G1 does not support stereo Bluetooth, Microsoft Exchange, or video recording.

We think it's fair to say that the Dream stirred up as much anticipation and hype as the Apple iPhone, not only because it would be the first smartphone to run Google's mobile platform but also because of the potential to overtake Apple's darling.

(Hey, like it or not, the iPhone set a new bar for handset design and convergence, and serves as a sort of benchmark for touch-screen smartphones these days.)

On September 23, the world was officially introduced to the HTC Dream, now known as the T-Mobile G1, and the initial reaction ranged from "That's it?" to "I have to have it!"

Unfortunately, we fell more into the "That's it?" camp. The G1 definitely offers some functionality the original iPhone and the current iPhone 3G do not, including copy-and-paste capabilities, multimedia messaging, a better camera, and Google Street View.

However, there are some serious design flaws and at this time, the G1 does not support stereo Bluetooth, Microsoft Exchange, or video recording. While these features may (and probably will be) added in the future, we feel like HTC, Google, and T-Mobile had the opportunity to really come out swinging and raise the bar, but didn't take full advantage of the opportunity.

Despite these complaints, we did come away impressed with the Google Android operating system. There's huge potential for the G1 (and any Android devices after it) to become powerful minicomputers as developers create more applications for the open platform. Right now, there are only about 35 apps in the store, so we feel the G1 is a bit limited.

Don't Miss

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Obviously, there's enough curiosity about Google Android to attract buyers; and in fact, preorders for the G1 have already sold out. However, it doesn't quite offer the mass appeal and ease of use of an iPhone, so the G1 isn't a good fit for anyone making the jump from a regular cell phone to their first smartphone.

Power business users also might want to hold off until more corporate support and productivity applications are added. We'd say the T-Mobile G1 is best-suited for early adopters and gadget hounds who love tinkering around and modding their devices.

We'll continue to test the G1 and applications as more are added, and though we hope for better hardware in the future, we're excited about Google Android and feel it could change the way we use smartphones. The T-Mobile G1 will be available through T-Mobile on October 22 in black or bronze and will cost $179.99 with a two-year contract.

Design

The T-Mobile G1 is manufactured by HTC and has a similar look and feel to the company's other Pocket PC smartphones, such as the T-Mobile Wing and the Sprint Mogul. Measuring 4.6 inches tall by 2.1 inches wide by 0.6 inch deep and weighing 5.6 ounces, the G1 is definitely not the sleekest device, and we certainly wouldn't call it sexy.

Instead, the words "interesting" and "weird" come to mind. This is mostly because the bottom section of the phone juts out at a slight angle. We asked HTC about this design decision but have yet to hear from them as of press time. Presumably, it's to get the phone's speaker closer to your mouth, which isn't a bad thing but consequently, it affects the ergonomics of the keyboard, which we'll touch on later. In a battle of pure looks, the iPhone would win hands down.

Product summary

The good: The T-Mobile G1 features a full QWERTY keyboard, 3G support, Wi-Fi, GPS, and Bluetooth. The Google Android operating system offers good integration with Google applications as well as access to the Amazon MP3 Store and YouTube.

The bad: The G1 doesn't include a standard headphone jack and lacks stereo Bluetooth and Microsoft Exchange support. There are some annoying design quirks that make the smartphone uncomfortable to hold and difficult to use. The GPS tracking was disappointing, and speakerphone quality wasn't the greatest.

The bottom line: It's not quite there yet, so for now, the G1 is best suited for early adopters and gadget hounds, rather than consumers and business users.

Specs: OS provided: Android; Installed RAM: 192 MB; Processor: QUALCOMM 528 MHzMSM7201A

Keyboard

That said, the G1 has solid construction and features a soft-touch finish on the back that provides a nice rubberlike texture, making it easy to grip the phone and comfortable to hold.

Also, there's a good reason for G1's larger size: a full QWERTY keyboard. There are a number of users who are reluctant to switch to a full touch-screen smartphone because of the lack of a tactile keyboard, so the G1 is certainly an attractive option for such customers.

To access the keyboard, just push the screen to the right. The sliding mechanism is fairly interesting in that it's not a straight up-and-down motion; the screen actually swings out slightly to the left before snapping into place. We were indifferent to this design quirk; we didn't find any particular advantage or disadvantage, just something to note.

The sliding motion was smooth, but after a few days of use, we started to notice a creaking sound whenever we nudged the screen--not good.

The keyboard itself is a reminiscent of the T-Mobile Sidekick, as many observers pointed out during our review period. That's not necessarily a bad thing, since we like the Sidekick's keyboard. The buttons are a bit small, but overall the keyboard feels roomy and there's enough spacing between the keys that we think it shouldn't give too many users problems.

If anything, we wish the buttons were raised a bit more, since right now, they're set flush with the phone's surface. The bigger issue is that the bottom section of the G1 makes it awkward to hold the phone when typing messages, since your right hand doesn't quite have the full range of motion. It definitely affected the speed and accuracy of typing.

Touch screen

When you slide open the phone, the screen orientation automatically switches from portrait to landscape mode. That said, while equipped with an accelerometer, the screen doesn't change when you physically rotate the phone in its closed state.

According to T-Mobile, during testing, people preferred that the screen only change when using the keyboard, which may be so, but we see the benefit of having automatic screen rotation in some instances, such as viewing pictures. This is not to say that this functionality won't be added in the future, and in the future, there will be applications where orientation will rotate with the phone's position, even when the screen is down.

The actual display measures 3.2 inches diagonally and has a 320x480 resolution. It's vibrant and sharp, and like the iPhone and RIM BlackBerry Storm, the touch screen is capacitive, so it will only respond to the touch of your finger and not your fingernail or other objects like a stylus.

The G1 provides haptic feedback, but only for certain actions and not with every touch. First, you'll feel a slight vibration when performing a long press on an icon. Overall, we thought this was fine, but there were times when the G1 didn't register our actions, so some kind of confirmation would have been nice.

To access various functions within an application, you can perform another long press and a window will pop up with your options. It's contextual, so the menu items will always be relevant to the program you are in. You can swiftly navigate through lists with a quick flick, or you can drag your finger for a slower, more precise look.

In addition, you can pan and move Web pages and other documents by holding and then moving your finger around the screen. Unlike the iPhone, however, the G1's touch screen isn't multitouch, so you can't zoom in and out of pages by pinching your fingers apart. Admittedly, we really missed this feature, since it makes viewing Web pages and pictures easy, but it's not necessary.

User interface

Overall, the T-Mobile G1's interface is clean, fun, and easy to use. You have the freedom to customize the Home screen with your favorite apps, and you can do this in a couple of ways. For example, you can do a long press on the Home page, which will bring up a menu where you can add shortcuts, widgets, or change the wallpaper. Alternatively, there's a little tab along the bottom edge of the screen that you can touch and then pull up, which will reveal a full menu of applications.

From there, you do a long press on an icon and then drag it to the Home screen. To remove it, perform the same touch action and then drag it to the trash can. Note that this action simply removes it from the screen and doesn't delete the application from your device.

There are also sliding panels to the left and right where you can add more shortcuts, and there's a notification bar at the top, which you can pull down like a window shade and view missed calls, new messages, downloads, and more.

There's a lot to like about the G1 interface, with its glass touch-screen display, the slide-out QWERTY keyboard (although we don't like the small keys), and the Pearl-like trackball for navigation.

We would even say that the responsiveness of the touch screen is on a par with that on the iPhone's. But we have to say its overall interface just isn't as intuitive.

For example, as with most every other phone, the need to dip into the menu layout every time we wanted to access something can get a bit clunky. Yes, it's possible to drag out your favorite applications as shortcuts, but that means you need to spend quite a bit of time setting that up.

With the iPhone, there is no home screen at all; you're brought directly to the menu. We realize that the iPhone is a very unique phone in this sense, but in a strict comparison between the G1 and the iPhone, the iPhone's interface wins out.

Also, though we like the aforementioned trackball and menu bar, it just isn't quite as smooth as the multitouch gestures on the iPhone, especially for zooming in and out of pictures. This is even more apparent in the browser application, which we'll explore later.

Exterior features

Below the display, you get some tactile navigation controls, including Talk and End/Power buttons, a Home shortcut, a back button, a trackball navigator, and a Menu key. Similar to the touch screen, the Menu button is contextual to what application you're in at the time. For example, if you're in the Web browser and press Menu, you will get options to open a new window, go to a URL, bookmark a page, and so on.

It's a minor issue, but we're a bit annoyed that pressing the End/Power key automatically locks the handset; we're used to having the End/Power key as a shortcut to exit the application. Because of this, we ended up having to unlock the screen frequently, which got annoying.

The left spine holds a volume rocker and a microSD expansion slot. To access the latter, you have to push the screen open in order to remove the protective cover. On the right side, you will find a camera activation/capture button, though you can also press the trackball to take pictures. We actually preferred this method, since the dedicated camera key was a bit small. Plus, when holding the phone horizontally, our thumb had a tendency to keep nudging the screen upward while trying to take a picture.

On the bottom of the unit, there is a mini USB port, which is protected by an attached cover. This is where you can connect the power charger and sadly, this is also your only option for connecting a headset. There's no dedicated headphone jack, 3.5mm or otherwise, which is really disappointing.

We've asked HTC about this decision, but again, have yet to hear back from them as of press time. Yes, there's a headset included in the box, but you don't get the same comfort and quality as you would with a nice pair of headphones. If you want the privilege of using your own 'phones, you'll have to spend extra money to buy an adapter.

Last but not least, the camera lens sans flash or self-portrait mirror is located on the back, and the G1 offers a user-replaceable battery.

Accessories

The T-Mobile G1 comes packaged with a travel charger, a USB cable, a wired headset, a 1GB microSD card, a soft protective case, and reference material. For more add-ons, please check our cell phone accessories, ringtones, and help page.

Features

As the first smartphone to run the Google Android operating system, what does the T-Mobile G1 offer? Well, it delivers a lot of the basic core functions and of course, tight integration with Google's products, including Gmail, Google Maps, and Google Calendar. Wireless options and multimedia capabilities are also well represented on the G1, but there are also some glaring omissions and restrictions that need to be called out.

Voice features

The T-Mobile G1 is a quad-band world phone and offers a speakerphone, voice dialing, conference calling, and speed dial. There is not support for visual voice mail; that's not a service T-Mobile offers anyway.

The address book is limited only by the available memory, while the SIM card can hold an additional 250 contacts. One nice convenience is if you have a Gmail account; all your contacts will automatically be synchronized to the phone book.

Each entry has room for multiple phone numbers, e-mail addresses, IM handles, postal address, and more. For caller ID purposes, you can assign a photo to a contact as well as a group ID and one of 33 polyphonic ringtones.

There's even a setting to send a contact's phone call directly to voice mail every time -- good if you really don't like someone, we suppose. The G1 supports T-Mobile's MyFaves service, giving you unlimited calls to five contacts, regardless of carrier. Individual plans for MyFaves start at $29.99 a month.

Bluetooth is onboard, but the supported profiles are limited to wireless headsets and hands-free kits. However, as with the iPhone 3G, there's no love for stereo Bluetooth or tethering, so you can't use it as a modem for your laptop. The latter is a lesser issue for us, but if we can't get a 3.5mm headphone jack, we'd at least like stereo Bluetooth support.

Wi-Fi and 3G

The T-Mobile G1 is the carrier's first 3G-capable smartphone, operating on the 1700/2100MHz bands. As of this writing, T-Mobile has rolled out 3G to 20 markets. The carrier plans to expand coverage to a total of 27 markets by the end of 2008. And as we know, T-Mobile has now backed off its initial 1GB data usage cap, after numerous complaints.

As we noted in our iPhone 3G review, the 3G experience is all relative and depends on a number of factors, such as the number of people on the network at a given time, the type of Web pages you're trying to load, and so forth.

Before buying and investing in a 3G handset, it's always a good idea to ask any friends and family with T-Mobile service and a 3G-capable phone about their experiences to get a better idea of what to expect. Also, make sure you have adequate T-Mobile 3G coverage in your area. T-Mobile won't be selling the G1 in stores in areas outside of its 3G coverage. In those places you'll have to buy it online.

The 3G speeds were good during our preliminary testing. As we did with the iPhone 3G, we checked out graphic-intensive sites like WorldofWarcraft.com, which loaded as quickly as 32 seconds, while CNET.com took about 50 seconds to fully load.

Downloading applications from Android Market was also swift, with each application taking no more than 10 seconds. Meanwhile, YouTube clips over the 3G network took some time. We'll continue to test in our labs and will update the review as we get results.

As an alternative to 3G, the G1 has integrated Wi-Fi and it can seamlessly transfer between 3G and accessible Wi-Fi networks. In fact, the smartphone's YouTube application will only present videos in high resolution when you're using Wi-Fi and play the low-res version when using the cellular network, in order to optimize the load times.

Note, however, that to download songs from the Amazon MP3 store, you need a Wi-Fi connection (same as on the iPhone).Unfortunately, the G1 does not support T-Mobile's HotSpot@Home service. There is an application in the Android Market called iSkoot for Skype, which allows you to make Skype calls via the phone's radio rather than Wi-Fi, but we imagine there will be VoIP clients added to the database.

There's also a wireless manager under the Settings menu where you can turn on and off all the radios and set up connections. To save battery life, you can turn off 3G and revert to the EDGE network--a good idea if you don't need to surf the Web or download apps or music.

Web browser

The T-Mobile G1 uses Webkit as the basis for its browser, which is also the core of the Safari browser found on the iPhone. It uses full HTML browsing, plus it has Java support, and you can surf almost every Web site--except the ones that use Flash. You can pan across the screen by using your finger, and even though you can't zoom in via pinching as you can on the iPhone, you can bring up onscreen zoom controls at the bottom of the display.

Similar to the iPhone, you can also double-tap on a Web page to zoom in on a particular section. Of course, you're not limited to the touch screen when navigating the browser; in fact, we preferred to use the trackball to scroll around pages at times. You can also tab between multiple browser windows, and we like the fact that the browser settings are easily accessible via the browser menu itself.

With the iPhone, you have to dig into the Settings menu to find the Safari settings. As with the iPhone, you can view the browser in both portrait and landscape modes.

But there are a few hiccups with the G1 browser that keep it from being a totally seamless experience. For example, we didn't like that we had to go in and out of the browser menu to do basic browser navigation such as Back and Forward. Yes, there are keyboard shortcuts for these functions, but we don't want to have to remember shortcuts all the time.

And even though we like having the physical QWERTY keyboard, we wish there was some kind of onscreen keyboard so we can enter text when holding the phone in portrait mode. And though this is more of the fault of the hardware than the browser itself, we found the G1's smaller display makes browsing a bit more troublesome since you need to scroll around a lot more.

While the interface for the browser leaves a bit to be desired, we like that it has quite a number of customizable settings. They include text size, the ability to block pop-up windows, the option of turning off image loading, the option of auto-fitting the pages to the screen, the capability to enable or disable JavaScript, the option of not accepting cookies, and of course, the option to clear out the cache, history, cookies, and passwords.

Perhaps the most intriguing browser option is that you can enable "Gears," which are potential future applications that can extend the browser functionality. What this means is that Google might develop a way for you to take some of your Web stuff offline--imagine being able to edit your Google Docs without a signal, for example, and then sync it back online when you do have a signal. This isn't available yet, but we think it has quite a lot of potential.

Android Market

Perhaps in a move to compete against the built-in App Store on the iPhone, Google has also come up with a mobile application store of its own, called Android Market. It's laid out a bit differently than the iPhone's App Store.

For example, instead of having a page to themselves, the Featured applications are lined up at the top of the Android Market front page. Underneath that are shortcuts to the full list of applications, games, a search function, and a page of your downloaded applications called My Downloads. However, there doesn't seem to be a place where you can download updated versions of your applications as on the iPhone, but perhaps that might not be necessary.

When you go into the Applications list, you will find them arranged in categories, like Productivity, Lifestyle, and so forth. There's also a category called Demos, which will presumably feature demo versions of paid software, which is certainly lacking in the iPhone App Store.

At the time of this review, all the applications in the Android Market are free anyway, so the issue is moot for now. But hopefully the Demos category will be put to use when for-pay applications appear in the future, since it would be nice to try before you buy. Each category then lists the applications by popularity and by the date they were released. We like this a lot, especially since the applications in the iPhone App Store can't be listed by date.

Another nice feature of the Android Market is that each application has a list of warnings stating whether or not it'll have access to the Internet, the phone's GPS functionality, or your personal data.

We downloaded a few applications from the App Store. Since the App Store isn't tied to a program like iTunes, you don't need to enter in any log-in or password information to download the applications. This is a huge plus in our opinion.

Downloading applications was a breeze on both Wi-Fi and over T-Mobile's 3G network--we didn't have a chance to download them over EDGE. After downloading them, the applications will appear in the menu as well as the My Downloads folder.

Since the Android Market is so new, it's hard to compare the applications available with the ones on the iPhone. However, we think it shows a ton of promise. Already there are applications like ShopSavvy that lets you scan bar codes for comparison shopping, and BreadCrumz, which allows you to create routes for your friends using photos as visual aids. We'll update this section as the Android Market develops.

E-mail and messaging

The G1 offers support for several e-mail account types. As a Google product, Gmail, of course, gets top billing, but you can also configure the smartphone to access POP3 and IMAP4. There's full HTML support, so you'll be able to view photos and graphics along with the text. You'll have access to all of your folders and any action that you perform on the smartphone, such as deleting an e-mail, will be reflected in your real account.

To the delight of many, we're sure, you get copy-and-paste capabilities, and there's an attachment viewer to open Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and PDF documents, but note, you can't edit said files (the iPhone is also view-only). We successfully set up our review unit with both our Gmail and Yahoo accounts simply by entering our log-in ID and password. Our Gmail contacts seamlessly transferred to the G1, and mobile e-mail delivery was sometimes faster than on our PC, but attachments took a while to download.

Bad news for business users

Sadly, there will be no Microsoft Exchange Server support at launch, so no synchronization with your Outlook e-mail, Calendar, Contacts, and so forth. You can check Outlook e-mail via OWA (Outlook Web Access), but we would have liked full support from the get-go. We think this is a pretty glaring omission.

We assume all parties involved would want to attract both consumers and business users, and given the inclusion of a full QWERTY keyboard, the G1 would make a good messaging-centric device for the mobile professionals. However, without that Exchange support, it could be a turnoff for a lot of those customers.

The G1 comes preloaded with four instant-messaging clients, including Google Talk, AIM, Windows Live, and Yahoo Messenger. You can keep IM chats in the background while working in other applications. The smartphone also offers threaded text messaging and yes, multimedia messaging.

Productivity and PIM tools

The T-Mobile G1 offers basic PIM (personal information management) and productivity tools. You get Calendar, Contacts, a calculator, and an alarm clock. The advantage of the T-Mobile G1 is that Contacts, Calendar, and Gmail are updated over the air, so you don't have to synch up with your computer every day.

Aside from the e-mail attachment viewer, Google Docs is supported for view only, but we couldn't access a shared Google spreadsheet. Again, the T-Mobile G1 might not be the best choice for corporate users given that you can't really edit Office documents. We're sure as the Android Market expands more productivity applications will become available.

GPS

The G1 offers assisted GPS and network-assisted location. Of course, Google Maps is preloaded on the device with standard map, satellite, and traffic views. In addition, you get Google Maps Street View, and there's a compass mode that provides a 360-degree view of the street by simply moving the phone around (no other phone currently supports this feature).

Basically, you just tap any point on a map and then touch the bubble to get a full-screen view of the street. You can then move the phone in any direction (up, down, left, or right); you can even spin in circles and the view will move with you (check back soon for a video demonstration).

You can search for various businesses and plan trips by entering start and end points. The G1 provides turn-by-turn driving directions, but not in real time like a standalone portable navigation device. Instead, you consult a list of text-based instructions or view the route on the map with step-by-step directions. Again, we suspect a navigation app will appear in the Android Market sooner or later.

GPS performance was mixed during our initial tests. While it was able to provide us with accurate text directions, we found that, more often than not, the G1 was slow to get a fix on our location and we were often greeted with the message, "Your location cannot be determined. We will keep trying but you can also try moving your position." There were also a few times where the G1 placed us in the middle of the San Francisco Bay--yikes. We're still continuing our GPS testing, but this definitely isn't a good start.

Music and video

While Apple had the unenviable task of incorporating a full-blown iPod-like music player into the iPhone, the T-Mobile G1 is made to be more cell phone than music player and does not have that burden to carry. That said, the music player on the G1 is robust for what it is, and will satisfy most casual listeners.

Songs are organized by Artists, Albums, Songs, and Playlists, as you would expect. You get the typical music player functions like shuffle, repeat, and the ability to create playlists on the fly. And even though there's no CoverFlow, you can still view album art in a list format. We especially liked that you can instantly convert any song to a ringtone directly from the music player by hitting the "Use as ringtone" button.

But perhaps the most interesting part of the music player is its ties to the Amazon MP3 Store, Android's answer to the iTunes Music Store. Unlike the iTunes Store, all the songs from the Amazon store are DRM-free, meaning you can do whatever you want to them--transfer them from computer to computer, edit them into shorter tracks, and more. Unfortunately, just like the iTunes Store, you can only download songs over Wi-Fi, and not over the 3G network.

To buy a song, all you need to do is use your Amazon account and then hit the buy button. Songs and albums are typically cheaper than those from iTunes--on Amazon a song is around $0.89 and an album can be anywhere from $5 to $9 (A song on iTunes is typically $0.99 and an album is around $9.99). You can browse the store by Top 100 Albums, Top 100 Songs, by genre, or just search for your favorite song or artist.

Of course you don't have to buy songs from the Amazon MP3 Store if you don't want to. You can upload any of your own music files into the G1. The G1 supports MP3, M4A, AMR, WMA, MIDI, WAV, Ogg Vorgis formats and has 192MB RAM and 256MB ROM. As we mentioned, the G1 comes with a 1GB microSD card, which comes preloaded with 11 songs. The expansion slot can support up to 8GB cards.

Perhaps the most disappointing thing about the G1 music player is hardware related. The G1 doesn't have stereo Bluetooth, and it doesn't have a 3.5-mm headset jack. These are absolutely glaring omissions in our opinion, and it certainly means the G1 is not meant to be a music player replacement.

In addition to the Amazon MP3 Store and music player, the T-Mobile G1 includes a dedicated YouTube application. The clips took quite a while to load via 3G, and quality wasn't the greatest. Though images and audio were synchronized, it was quite blurry, but we were also watching a low-res version since we were using T-Mobile's network instead of Wi-Fi. The screen orientation will go from portrait to landscape mode for videos.

Camera

The T-Mobile G1 is equipped with a 3.2-megapixel camera, which beats the iPhone's 2-megapixel camera, but you can't record video. (Did we learn nothing from the Sidekick or iPhone, people?) Even worse, there are no camera settings, such as white balance, effects, and shooting modes.

We recently reviewed the Motorola Krave, which also stripped these camera features, and Motorola said it was because its customers did not want this feature. We hope this doesn't become a trend as we like having those editing options.

Taking pictures with the G1 was a challenge. You have to have a steady hand to get a clear shot, as the slightest movement will result in a blurry image. We took about 10 to 12 pictures before we could get a satisfactory shot, and by the end, we were fairly frustrated with the experience. Picture quality was mediocre. We found that objects on the outside had sharp definition, but got a bit soft in the middle. There was also a bit of a yellowish hue to the image.

Performance

The T-Mobile G1 does not require extra steps in the activation process like the iPhone 3G. You should be able to pop in your T-Mobile SIM and start using the smartphone right away. We tested the quad-band (GSM 850/900/1800/1900; UMTS/HSDPA 1700/2100) T-Mobile G1 in San Francisco using T-Mobile service, and call quality was good. We enjoyed good sound with minimal background noise, though audio was a bit blown out when the volume was set to the highest level.

We had no problems interacting with an airline's voice-automated response system and didn't experience any dropped calls during our review period. Our friends also reported positive results, saying the sound quality was quite good. Unfortunately, the speakerphone wasn't as pristine. On our end, the voices sounded tinny and garbled at times; meanwhile, our callers said that we sounded far away. We were able to pair the T-Mobile G1 with the Logitech Mobile Traveller Bluetooth headset.

We were impressed by the snappy performance of the smartphone. The G1 was very responsive during our testing period, and we didn't experience any system freezes or crashes. The T-Mobile G1 has a rated talk time of 5 hours and up to 5 days of standby time.

We are still conducting our battery drain tests, but will update this section with a full range of results. Anecdotally, on an average day of using the phone, Web, GPS, and multimedia applications, we noticed that the battery life dropped anywhere from 40 to 50 percent. According to FCC radiation tests, the G1 has a digital SAR rating of 1.11 watts per kilogram.

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이렇게 키우고 싶진 않다....

2008-10-24T18:11:44+09:00

미국에서 한국 학생들이 SAT시험문제를 훔친 것으로 추정되는 사건이 적발됐다. SBS의 24일 보도에 따르면 지난 4일 로스앤젤레스의 그라나다힐스 차터스쿨에서 실시된 대학입학시험 SAT에서 일부 응시생들이 문제를 사전에 훔친 것이 드러났다고 한다.

학생 5명이 시험 전날 학교 사무실에서 문제를 훔쳐낸 뒤 다른 학생들과 돌려본 것으로 파악되고 있으며, 이 학교 재학생들은 문제지 절도를 주도한 학생들이 한국인인 것으로 알고 있다는 것이다.

지난 2월에도 미국의 한 사립학교에서 한국인 학생이 시험문제를 훔치다 적발됐다고 한다. 한국 학부모들의 과도한 성적집착은 이미 유명하다. 학부모는 학부모대로 학생은 학생대로 외국에 가서까지 한국식이 어떤 건지 확실하게 보여주고 있는 셈이다. 재일동포인 추성훈도 한국에서 벌어지는 시험문제 유출사건에 대해 놀라움을 표시한 적이 있다.

우리는 대학에 들어갈 때 성적이 결정적인 변별요인이 되지만 미국은 그렇지 않다. 미국 대학들은 ‘입학사정관제’라는 제도를 통해 학생을 종합적으로 판단한다. 이것이 좋다는 건 아니다. 시험이건 종합이건 어쨌든 선발은 선발이고, 서북부유럽식 평준화 모델보다는 후진적 체제다. 어쨌든 미국은 우리처럼 시험에 목숨 걸지는 않는다.

그런 곳에 가서까지 한국인은 시험점수경쟁에 집착하는 것이다. 미국에서 공부하던 한인 학생들은 방학 때가 되면 한국에 돌아와 수백만 원에서 천만 원까지 주고 SAT 대비 사교육을 받는다고 한다. 이렇게 되면 시험성적이야 올라가겠지만 정작 학습능력은 쇠퇴한다.

- 대학 가면 바보 되는 학생들 -

미 컬럼비아 대학 박사 과정에 있는 김국명 씨가 지난 6월 이 대학에 제출한 교육심리학과 논문에 따르면 미국 내 유명대학 한인 학생들의 졸업율은 56%에 불과하다고 한다. 한인 탈락율이 44%에 달한다는 얘기다. 반면에 탈락율 평균은 34%다. 한국인이 다른 나라 사람들에 비해 훨씬 쉽게 좌절하는 것이다.

고등학교까지 그렇게 수단방법을 가리지 않고 학교에 매달리다가 왜 정작 교육의 완성이라고 할 수 있는 고등교육엔 적응을 못하는 건가? 우리 국내에서도 고등학교까지의 한국인과 대학에 다니는 한국인은 전혀 다른 나라 사람 같다.

고교 때까지는 학력수준, 문제해결능력이 핀란드에 이어 세계 2위다. 그런데 대학에 가면 언제 그랬냐는 듯이 뚝 떨어진다. 툭하면 머리가 똑똑한 민족이라고 자부하면서도, 반세기동안 그 어떤 대학에서의 학문성과도 내지 못하고 있다. 그저 고등학교 때까지만 똑똑하다.

이것이 아이 때부터 시험공부 하나에만 맹목적으로 몰아붙인 결과다. 시험만 잘 보면 되는 구조에서 그런 아이들은 세계 최고였지만, 주체적으로 창의적인 학문연구를 해야 할 시점이 되면 ‘나약한 바보‘가 돼버리는 것이다. 이것이 나라망신까지 감수하며 몰두한 한국식 교육열의 실체다.

- 망신스런 학부모, 학생 만드는 나라 -

한국인이 태어날 때부터 ‘성적집착증후군‘, ‘일류대밝힘증‘ 환자로 태어나는 걸까? 시험지를 향한 사랑이 유전자에 각인되어 있기라도 하단 말인가?

아니다. 그것은 본능이 아니다. 후천적으로 형성된 것이다. 바로 한국사회가 한국인들에게 그런 특이한 사고방식을 주입한 주범이다. 사회가 그런 사람을 만들면, 그 사람들이 다시 그런 사회를 형성하고, 그 사회가 또 다시 그런 사람을 만드는 악순환 구조다.

시험 잘 본 일류대 학벌만 사람대접 받는 사회, 아이를 시험경쟁이란 트랙 안에서만 20여 년을 달리게 하는 경마장 교육제도가 만악의 근원이다.

현 정부 들어 일류대, 일류고 출신자들이 전 정부 때보다 더욱 약진하고 있다. 고위공무원단 출신 학교 비율에서 경기고 출신은 2007년 5.1%에서 2008년 5.6%로, 서울대 출신은 24%에서 30%로 늘었다.

고위공무원단 신규진입자 중에서는 서울대 출신이 2006년 22%, 2008년 31%다. 눈길을 끄는 건 고려대와 연세대의 비율이다. 2006년엔 고려대 1.9%, 연세대 7.4%였다. 2008년엔 고려대 13.8%, 연세대 2.8%다.

이러니 사람들이 자기 자식을 일류대, 그리고 이왕이면 권력자와 같은 학벌의 명문대로 보내기 위해 혈안이 되지 않을 도리가 없다. 그 방법이 시험이니 한국인은 시험에 목숨을 건 괴물이 되어가는 것이다.

대졸자와 고졸자간 시간당 임금격차도 날로 벌어지고 있다. 1997년 19.5%에서 2007년 29.8%다. 아무리 학력주의, 학벌주의 없애자는 캠페인을 벌여도 이런 상황에선 아무 것도 변하지 않는다.

최근엔 특목고, 자사고, 국제중으로 시험경쟁을 더 가열시키고 있다. 일제고사로 전국단위 시험경쟁을 고취한다. 수준별과 우열반으로 아이들이 체감하는 경쟁의 수위를 보다 높인다. 한국인을 더욱 괴물로 만들고 있는 것이다.

오로지 시험만 알고, 교육과 시험을 착각하며, 시험성적을 올리기 위해서라면 수단방법을 가리지 않는 한국인은 이런 구조에서 태어난다. 외국인들에게 ‘몬도가네’처럼 보이는 한국의 경쟁교육, 국제적인 조롱의 대상인 한국 교육산업과 그 속에서 조련된 한국의 교육수요자들. 그들은 원인제공자이면서 동시에 국가제도의 피해자들이다. 언제까지 이 악순환을 반복해야 하나?

NEW MAC BOOK I want to have....

2008-10-22T15:08:34+09:00

Way back in the hazy salad days of 2001, Apple worked up a bold revamp of its flagship laptop line, the Powerbook. The company, in the pursuit of stronger, lighter, more attractive materials, moved from the black plastic casings it had used for its G3 computers to a sleek titanium shell. It was the onset of a new era in Macs. The basic look was clean and simple: squared edges, a roomy and functional layout, a matching pair of stereo speakers to either side of the keyboard, a consistent silver coloring throughout. In 2003, the company refined this design, replacing the titanium with lighter-weight aluminum and heralding in one of the most recognizable and persistent pieces of industrial design in the computer industry. The MacBook Pro (as it became known) has remained largely unchanged in the five years of its existence -- in fact, the look and feel of the laptop has become such a staple of the Apple lineup that it's almost as representative of the company as the Apple logo itself. But five years (or seven in the long view) is an awful long time to see one design, and the user outcry for significant updates has been nearly constant.

Those cries were answered last Tuesday, when the company announced the long-rumored (and badly leaked) refreshes for both the MacBook Pro and MacBook lines. As with most of the modern designs emanating from Cupertino, these are evolutionary -- not revolutionary -- steps, but they're drastic in comparison to the stale, familiar versions of our not-so-distant past. Beyond the spit and polish of the Air- and iMac-inspired casings, the company has re-upped the internals as well; new graphics chips, a completely new motherboard design, and some slashing and burning of familiar ports are part of the new packages. So did Apple deliver the goods on what is arguably the most anticipated laptop release in recent memory, or has it failed to meet the absurdly high expectations placed upon it... and is that even possible? Read on to find out.

Hardware

First and foremost, Apple's event was about design. Not just about the changes made cosmetically to these laptops, but the way in which the laptops are actually produced. It seems that with the introduction of the MacBook Air, there came a refinement (and improvement) in the way in which Apple manufactured its laptops. Instead of using complex, multi-part casings that require far more components, Jony Ive and company have streamlined the structure into a few simple pieces ballasted mainly by a single, machined slab of aluminum which encompasses the entire top and side layers of the laptop. The process has allowed them to produce stronger, more solid laptops with any number of improvements in efficiency of manufacturing, style, and strength.

The new MacBooks / Pros come off as the perfect storm of recent iMacs and the MacBook Air. The edges of the laptops are rounded, smooth metal, and the plastic joining pieces which once held the case together have been jettisoned for the nearly-seamless new design. The bodies of the laptops are laid out in essentially the same manner as older MacBook Pros, though the keyboard has been updated to the MacBook / Air "chicklet" style (resting in a slight depression), the trackpad is now missing its one button (more on that in a little bit), the speaker grilles (on the Pro) are a much finer and more evenly perforated pattern, and there are stylish nips and tucks pretty much everywhere else. Of course, the biggest and most noticeable change is in the displays; gone are the silver-lined LCDs of yesteryear -- they've been replaced with a high-gloss, black-matted glass screen bordered by a thin line of metal that's an open nod to the iPhone. We're going to discuss the displays in-depth, but it can't be overstated how incredibly polished and stunning these look at first glance -- they definitely kick that human instinct of attraction to shiny objects into overdrive.

Along the left side of the MacBook Pro you'll find a MagSafe connection, Ethernet, a Firewire 800 port (yes, 400 is gone), two USB ports, Apple's new Mini Display Port jack, audio in / out (multi-purpose analog and optical), an ExpressCard slot, and a small button and line of LEDs -- the now conveniently placed battery level indicator. The MacBook features all the same ports save for one: Firewire 800. Apple has decided to completely omit its own standard from this model, and the outcry from users has assuredly been heard at 1 Infinite Loop by now. We're not exactly surprised to see a move like this -- Apple has a history of abandoning technology when it sees fit -- though we definitely sympathize with with people who will likely have an entire drawer full of devices rendered useless if they spring for one of these new models. Along those same lines, the company is forcing users into a Mini Display Port jack, an all-but unheard of connector which will require that you spend at least another $30 on an adapter if you hope to use your existing monitor. Apple used to include a VGA-to-DVI adapter with older models, and it feels like a bit of a slight asking buyers to make an additional purchase here. In fact, we hoped to test the laptops out on with a second display, but Apple didn't get us our adapter in time.

On the right side is a standard SuperDrive (DVD±R DL / DVD±RW / CD-RW), nothing too exciting or wild like a "bag of hurt" Blu-ray drive. We would have liked to at least been given that option on the optical drive, but it's clear Apple doesn't have tons of confidence in the platform. Along the front we're seeing a merciful end to that annoying latch -- the laptops now open and close with ease by magnetically locking the base and screen together. It's a minor touch, but a welcome one nonetheless.

On the bottom of the machines there's now a wide, thin metal battery cover that comes up with a quick flip of a release latch (very much like desktop Macs). This gives you easy access to both the battery and hard drive -- a change that will come in handy only about once in the lifetime of a laptop (or less, we hope) -- though it's nice to see Apple's thinking about it. The RAM, however, is a little tougher to get to now; you'll have to remove the whole bottom panel. Still, nothing here is out of reach, and that's a good thing.

Weight wise, the 4.5lb MacBook loses half a pound over the previous generation, but the Pro clocks in at just a tiny bit heavier compared with the last model (5.4lbs versus 5.5lbs for the new one). Still, the ingenious and magical designers at Apple have managed to squeeze it all into tighter packages, with the MacBook shrinking down to 0.95-inches from an earlier 1.08-inch frame, and the Pro at 0.95-inches (practically unnoticeable over the earlier 0.96-inch thickness). For those of you squeezing your Pro into a tight bag, you should know that the new version is slightly wider, so you may find things a little snugger than they used to be.

In your lap or on a desk the new laptops feel incredibly sturdy. Where the previous models had a kind of creaky, plasticky feel in parts, these are just like solid slabs. The new treatment on the aluminum is slightly cooler and more textured than older MacBook Pros, and in the right light you can actually see where the metal was cut away, giving them an industrial, sophisticated look. From a design standpoint alone, the MacBook and MacBook Pro definitely raise the bar in the industry -- but we wouldn't expect anything less from Apple.

Gallery: Glass and aluminum MacBook

Gallery: Glass and aluminum MacBook Pro

Displays

Both the MacBook and MacBook Pro sport that glass display we mentioned. We'll discuss each separately, as there seem to be noticeable differences between the two.

First, the Pro. The LED-backlit display is nothing short of stunning here; the blacks are black, the whites are extremely -- some might say excessively -- white, though the color temperature of the display seems to be warmer and more natural than previous iterations. The viewing angle is improved over earlier models as well, and the display actually tilts back and forward at a greater pitch, allowing you to find the right position without too much strain. Side by side with the previous generation, there's no comparison. The screen is classic, gorgeous Apple... save for one big problem. The company is only offering these laptops with the high-gloss displays, and they are outrageously, ridiculously reflective. Using the laptop in a brightly lit room is actually rather annoying; the reflections are so intense that they can sometimes obscure on-screen activity. If you're in a scenario where you don't have total control over lighting, this could potentially be a nightmare. In daytime use we found the reflection terrifically distracting, though at night (or in dark rooms) the results were extraordinarily good. The results were a bit Jekyll and Hyde. Apple insists that consumers overwhelmingly love this option, and we don't doubt that it's impressive in a showroom or controlled environment, but we take serious issue with the lack of a non-gloss option, and found it intrusive enough to consider it nearly a deal-breaker.

Original MacBook Pro on the left and new version on the right in the same, brightly lit room.

Let's just be clear here -- the screen quality is excellent. It's hampered only by the glass covering.

Now, the MacBooks are a slightly different story. At the outset, things seem to be the same. Same good, same bad -- but this display is different. We can't put our finger on it, but the panel just seems, for lack of a better word... crappier. The viewing angle is reduced considerably; looking even a little bit off to the side or up above can cause a nasty amount of polarization. The brightness levels also don't seem to be what they are on the Pro. Don't get us wrong, compared with the last generation MacBooks, these are stunning -- but compared to the Pros, they're just not as impressive. Again, the reflectivity is an issue here, though coupled with the diminished viewing angle and slightly dimmer backlighting, it left us wanting.

MacBook Pro, new MacBook Pro, MacBook, new MacBook, MacBook Air.

MacBook vs. MacBook (older, newer).

Gallery: MacBook and MacBook Pro comparison

Trackpad

Apple has moved further towards that rumored Steve Jobs "no button" fetish with the new laptops. In addition to replacing the earlier trackpad material with a semi-shiny, smooth glass surface, the company has completely killed the button. The entire trackpad -- nearly entire, actually -- is now a button, which sounds unappealing at first, but comes off feeling remarkably like the previous generation's setup. We said that the whole thing was "nearly" a button, and that's accurate; as you move higher up on the pad, the resistance becomes greater. The design encourages you to keep your thumbs where you normally do, and that's not necessarily a bad thing.

The pad supports multitouch and boasts a number of multi-finger gestures, including some new four finger moves to switch applications and access Exposé. Additionally, corners of the pad can be assigned to act as a right-click, giving you some semblance of a second button. After a week of use, we found the trackpad to be largely comfortable, though at the end of the day we would have preferred a physical button (or two) to this solution. It may be elegant, but it's less functional or natural.

Audio

Sound quality and volume is greatly improved in both of these models. While the MacBook hides its speakers somewhere deep in the guts, the levels are more than adequate. On the Pro, it's practically booming, and the definition between frequency ranges seems noticeably improved. This wasn't a dire situation on the older versions, but other laptops might get green with envy when they hear the new sets.

Internals

The MacBooks and MacBook Pros have totally redesigned guts in addition to revamped shells. The highlight of those changes come in the form of the NVIDIA 9400M and 9600M GT graphics chips. In the Pro, both are featured and can be switched manually (though the process requires logging out and back in). The MacBook sports just the 9400M with 256MB of RAM, though that chip still delivers substantial improvements over the previous offerings. Under the hood of the MacBooks, the CPUs are now available in 2GHz or 2.4GHz Core 2 Duos, while the Pros run from 2.4GHz up to 2.8GHz. Memory on both computers is now DDR3 and expandable to both 4GB of both models. We tested with a 2.4GHz / 2GB MacBook, and the middle-child 2.53GHz, 4GB MacBook Pro (with 256MB / 512MB VRAM). During heavy use, both computers seemed to get far less hot and seemed to be working far less hard to push data. During video playback, scenarios that would have kicked our old MacBook Pro fans into high gear (like full screen HD) didn't make the MacBook or Pro flinch.

Interestingly, you don't see a huge boost in graphics performance in benchmarking between the 9400M and 9600M GT -- though there are clear improvements, noticeably in the Open GL numbers. When gaming, however, the jolt of speed is obvious.

Hard drives are bumped to a minimum of 250GB for each of those, though they can be expanded to 320GB, or you can opt for a 128GB SSD (of course, that'll run you an extra $500). The fact that Apple has made the hard drives so accessible here should prevent anyone with smarts and a little tech know-how from paying the Apple Tax on a drive upgrade. It's easier than it's ever been to swap in your own drive, and it certainly opens up options in both pricing and capacity -- a welcome relief.

Benchmarks (and exponentially expanding product names)

MBP (2.5GHz Penryn)	Air (1.6GHz Core 2 Duo)	MBP (2.2GHz Core 2 Duo)	MacBook (2.2GHz Core 2 Duo)	2008 MacBook (2.2GHz Core 2 Duo)	2008 MBP (2.53GHz Core 2 Duo) 9400M	2008 MBP (2.53GHz Core 2 Duo) 9600M GT
CPU	169.23	79.98	112.93	126.66	147.97	147.73	140.57
GCD Loop	15.33 Mops/s	9.67 Mops/s	13.17 Mops/s	13.43 Mops/s	14.79 Mops/s	14.43 Mops/s	12.89 Mops/s
Floating Point Basic	3.37 Gflop/s	2.03 Gflop/s	2.96 Gflop/s	2.95 Gflop/s	2.90 Gflop/s	2.95 Gflop/s	2.76 Gflop/s
vecLib FFT	3.93 Gflop/s	1.71 Gflop/s	2.98 Gflop/s	3.36 Gflop/s	3.22 Gflop/s	3.22 Gflop/s	3.21 Gflop/s
Floating Point Library	36.64 Mops/s	12.82 Mops/s	14.15 Mops/s	17.80 Mops/s	34.63 Mops/s	34.06 Mops/s	31.79 Mops/s
Thread Test	275.13	148.81	219.18	186.4	228.89	288.67	328.72
Computation	6.93 Mops/s	2.77 Mops/s	4.04 Mops/s	3.58 Mops/s	8.54 Mops/s	6.13 Mops/s	8.21 Mops/s
Lock Contention	9.90 Mlocks/s	7.04 Mlocks/s	10.47 Mlocks/s	8.48 Mlocks/s	6.76 Mlocks/s	11.87 Mlocks/s	11.89 Mlocks/s
MBP (2.5GHz Penryn)	Air (1.6GHz Core 2 Duo)	MBP (2.2GHz Core 2 Duo, Tiger)	MacBook (2.2GHz Core 2 Duo)	2008 MacBook (Core 2 Duo)	2008 MBP (2.53GHz Core 2 Duo) 9400M	2008 MBP (2.53GHz Core 2 Duo) 9600M GT
Memory Test	168.11	140.42	137.1	150.23	180.94	181.52	184.05
System	183.01	143.51	126.92	158.95	207.63	204.56	209.12
Allocate	922.99 Kalloc/s	718.86 Kalloc/s	401.22 Kalloc/s	856.78 Kalloc/s	910.38 Kalloc/s	993.12 Kalloc/s	992.49 Kalloc/s
Fill	7424.09 MB/se	5770.30 MB/s	6490.47 MB/s	6480.99 MB/s	8520.83 MB/s	8135.30 MB/s	8458.71 MB/s
Copy	3522.10 MB/s	2802.78 MB/s	2954.03 MB/s	2914.92 MB/s	4386.65 MB/s	4138.21 MB/s	4217.58 MB/s
Stream	155.45	137.46	149.05	142.41	160.33	163.15	164.35
Copy	3059.86 MB/s	2621.64 MB/s	2923.94 MB/s	2799.64 MB/s	3177.13 MB/s	3170.82 MB/s	3175.85 MB/s
Scale	3008.89 MB/s	2602.03 MB/s	2918.16 MB/s	2797.66 MB/s	3149.02 MB/s	3261.27 MB/s	3285.38 MB/s
Add	3525.00 MB/s	3230.58 MB/s	3359.19 MB/s	3196.17 MB/s	3588.52 MB/s	3652.38 MB/s	3720.07 MB/s
Triad	3523.21 MB/s	3199.37 MB/s	3368.41 MB/s	3211.97 MB/s	3594.99 MB/s	3665.55 MB/s	3675.92 MB/s
MBP (2.5GHz Penryn)	Air (1.6GHz Core 2 Duo)	MBP (2.2GHz Core 2 Duo, Tiger)	MacBook (2.2GHz Core 2 Duo)	2008 MacBook (Core 2 Duo)	2008 MBP (2.53GHz Core 2 Duo) 9400M	2008 MBP (2.53GHz Core 2 Duo) 9600M GT
Quartz Graphics Test	198.29	96.89	141.5	154.32	169.95	181.76	184.82
Line	12.43 Klines/s	6.94 Klines/s	9.23 Klines/s	9.69 Klines/s	10.71 Klines/s	11.68 Klines/s	11.84 Klines/s
Rectangle	70.01 Krects/s	32.23 Krects/s	51.59 Krects/s	51.66 Krects/s	60.89 Krects/s	63.91 Krects/s	65.22 Krects/s
Circle	15.29 Kcircles/s	7.22 Kcircles/s	13.30 Kcircles/s	11.54 Kcircles/s	13.40 Kcircles/s	14.17 Kcircles/s	14.34 Kcircles/s
Bezier	4.92 Kbeziers/s	2.49 Kbeziers/s	3.71 Kbeziers/s	3.79 Kbeziers/s	4.14 Kbeziers/s	4.31 Kbeziers/s	4.43 Kbeziers/s
Text	12.17 Kchars/s	5.53 Kchars/s	6.65 Kchars/s	10.39 Kchars/s	10.21 Kchars/s	11.29 Kchars/s	11.44 Kchars/s
OpenGL Graphics Test	165.99	17.26	129.88	23.36	145.67	174.24	169.39
Spinning Squares	210.57 frames/s	21.89 frames/s	164.76 frames/s	29.64 frames/s	184.79 frames/s	221.03 frames/s	214.88 frames/s
User Interface Test	326.63	105.81	303.98	244.28	272.06	296.46	302.37
Elements	1.50 Krefresh/s	485.60 refresh/s	1.40 Krefresh/s	1.12 Krefresh/s	1.25 Krefresh/s	1.36 Krefresh/s	1.39 Krefresh/s
MBP (2.5GHz Penryn)	Air (1.6GHz Core 2 Duo)	MBP (2.2GHz Core 2 Duo, Tiger)	MacBook (2.2GHz Core 2 Duo)	2008 MacBook (Core 2 Duo)	2008 MBP (2.53GHz Core 2 Duo) 9400M	2008 MBP (2.53GHz Core 2 Duo) 9600M GT
Disk Test	33.08	24.05	38.13	39.64	42.90	41.21	42.75
Sequential	60.60	42.21	59.81	66.07	75.33	73.73	79.31
Uncached Write	52.17 MB/s [4K blocks]	30.96 MB/s [4K blocks]	42.60 MB/s [4K blocks]	53.34 MB/s [4K blocks]	52.84 MB/s [4K blocks]	66.02 MB/s [4K blocks]	66.05 MB/s [4K blocks]
Uncached Write	47.88 MB/s [256K blocks]	31.19 MB/s [256K blocks]	39.19 MB/s [256K blocks]	47.63 MB/s [256K blocks]	48.54 MB/s [256K blocks]	45.33 MB/s [256K blocks]	58.39 MB/s [256K blocks]
Uncached Read	9.89 MB/s [4K blocks]	7.27 MB/s [4K blocks]	11.59 MB/s [4K blocks]	10.83 MB/s [4K blocks]	14.19 MB/s [4K blocks]	12.09 MB/s [4K blocks]	12.64 MB/s [4K blocks]
Uncached Read	39.17 MB/s [256K blocks]	30.42 MB/s [256K blocks]	39.37 MB/s [256K blocks]	49.62 MB/s [256K blocks]	54.67 MB/s [256K blocks]	60.83 MB/s [256K blocks]	60.59 MB/s [256K blocks]
Random	22.75	16.81	27.99	28.31	29.99	28.60	29.26
Uncached Write	0.81 MB/s [4K blocks]	0.57 MB/s [4K blocks]	1.08 MB/s [4K blocks]	1.03 MB/s [4K blocks]	1.09 MB/s [4K blocks]	1.04 MB/s [4K blocks]	1.07 MB/s [4K blocks]
Uncached Write	18.56 MB/s [256K blocks]	18.35 MB/s [256K blocks]	19.24 MB/s [256K blocks]	22.73 MB/s [256K blocks]	26.51 MB/s [256K blocks]	23.03 MB/s [256K blocks]	23.44 MB/s [256K blocks]
Uncached Read	0.41 MB/s [4K blocks]	0.35 MB/s [4K blocks]	0.41 MB/s [4K blocks]	0.48 MB/s [4K blocks]	0.46 MB/s [4K blocks]	0.47 MB/s [4K blocks]	0.46 MB/s [4K blocks]
Uncached Read	18.44 MB/s [256K blocks]	13.28 MB/s [256K blocks]	16.33 MB/s [256K blocks]	19.31 MB/s [256K blocks]	20.84 MB/s [256K blocks]	20.75 MB/s [256K blocks]	20.56 MB/s [256K blocks]

Battery life

We didn't put the laptops through a litany of hardcore battery benchmarks -- we'll leave that to the more minutiae-obsessed critics. Instead, we wanted to see what these performed like in real-world scenarios, say, a day editing Engadget, or scrambling some brains in a deathmatch. On the MacBook, we found we could get around 3 hours of solid use before we needed to plug in again. Those numbers were diminished when gaming or watching video, though the hit wasn't as bad as we thought it would be (then again, these are new batteries). The Pro fared similarly, though there's a palpable hit when you're using the 9600M (did you expect other results?). As our good friend Ryan Block noted, the new batteries sport a 20 percent lower energy rating, (60Wh to 50Wh for the Pro, 55Wh to 45Wh for the MacBook), though there's speculation that the difference is made up by utilizing the integrated GPUs more effectively. Compared to previous models, these seem to get good -- if slightly diminished -- battery life out of the box. Of course, nothing lasts forever, and just like old versions, you'll see those numbers decrease over time.

Wrap up

Apple is offering the MacBooks starting at a base configuration for $1299, or $1599 for the 2.4GHz model with a larger drive. The MacBook Pros start at $1999 and move up from there -- fully kitted out you'll be pushing $3000 or more. These are in no way the cheapest laptops you could buy, but you get quite a lot for your money.

Ultimately, however, you have a call to make if you're due for a laptop purchase and you're looking at Macs. Apple has drawn lines in the sand with these models, and they're asking you to accept a couple of hard facts when you put down your credit card. Though the company has axed the familiar and oft-used Firewire 400 port and you're forced into buying an adapter if you want to use an old monitor (not a huge expense, but a minor annoyance), neither one of those is reason enough to hold off here. The problem lies with the choice (or lack of choice) on the glossy display. Some users will find the glass screens distracting -- we did -- and that's more than a minor niggle when you're talking about something you'll use for years that costs $2000. If you can tolerate (or prefer) those screens, and / or you're a user without a real attachment to older standards or peripherals, these are terrific choices -- not only from an industrial design standpoint, but in specs as well. They're smart, tough, handsome laptops that more than get the job done and look pretty stunning while doing it.

Now Apple, about a matte display option...

Web img editor... 이거 쓸만한가??

2008-10-20T10:22:06+09:00

처음엔 그냥 그저그런 이미지 편집 서비스인줄 알았는데, 쓰다보니 정말 쓸만한 기능들이 많이 포함되어 있네요.

flauntR은 기본적으로 다음과 같은 서비스를 제공합니다.

1000여가지의 포토프레임을 적용시킬수 있는 styleR

간단한 사진 편집과 60여종의 효과를 줄 수 있는 editR

100여가지의 클립아트와 쿨한 타이포그래피를 적용 시킬수 있는 textR

휴대폰 배경화면 이미지를 만드는 mobileR

유명한 화가의 작품 색감을 자신의 사진에 적용 할 수 있는 picasR

다양한 소셜 네트워크의 프로필 사진을 원클릭으로 만드는 profileR

간단히 이름/이메일 등의 개인정보를 입력해서 회원가입을 하고 사진은 컴퓨터에서 불러오거나 Flickr/Picasa/facebook 또는 웹에서 직접 가져 올 수 있습니다.

styleR을 이용해서 이렇게 유명한 매거진 표지에 자신의 사진을 넣거나 상황에 따른 수백가지의 포토프레임을 이용해서 사진을 멋지게 장식 할 수 있습니다. 기본적으로 이동, 회전, 크기조절, 백그라운드 칼라 설정이 가능하네요. 합성 결과가 마음에 안들면 상단의 Reset 버튼을 눌러 언제든지 초기화 할 수 있습니다.

editR을 이용해서 대부분의 온라인 이미지 편집 서비스처럼 간단한 편집 기능을 수행 할 수 있습니다. 사이즈조정/회전/잘라내기, 색상/노출 보정, 레드아이 보정의 편집 기능과 Effects 메뉴에서 세피아/블러/엠보스/샤픈/모노크롬 등의 기본효과, 모자익 효과, 커브 조절, 적외선/비그넷 등의 효과, 스케치 효과 등 여러가지 작업이 가능합니다.

작업이 완료되면 상단의 Save를 눌러서 이미지를 앨범에 저장하고 Download를 눌러 이미지를 컴퓨터로 다운로드 할 수 있습니다.

또 추가 기능으로 flauntR UI를 통째로 아이프레임 형식으로 블로그에 넣기, 윗젯 형식으로 보여주는 기능들도 제공하네요. 자세한 내용은 여기에서..

다만 아직 서비스 초장기라 그런지 아니면 사용자가 몰려서 그런지 몰라도 중간 중간 끊기거나 저장이 잘 안되는 문제가 발생하네요.

버그만 조금 다듬어진다면 Adobe Photoshop Express의 등장 이후 더욱 뜨거워진 온라인 이미지편집 시장에서 확고히 자리 잡을수 있을것 같습니다.

한 번 테스트 해보세요.. 정말 좋네요.. ^^;

Clean mem

2008-10-11T01:34:16+09:00

얼마전에 소개했던 Minimem 보다 설정의 편리함이나 효과에 있어 훨씬 좋은 CleanMem이라는 유틸리티가 나왔네요.

CleanMem은 여타 메모리 청소 프로그램처럼 사용하지 않는 시스템 메모리를 몽땅 써버려.. 윈도우로 하여금 프로세스에 강제적인 메모리 반환을 시키도록 지시하고페이지 파일로 이동시키는 꼼수를 발휘하는게 아니라, 윈도우 API 호출을 통해 사용하지 않는 메모리를 비운뒤에 다시 프로그램의 요구에 따라 반환시키는 방법으로 작동한다고 합니다. 아무튼 페이지 파일을 사용하는게 아니기 때문에, 메모리 최적화 작업시에 생기는 딜레이도 없고 아무리 무거운 게임을 실행중이라 하더라도 상당히 짦은 시간에 작업을 완료합니다.

일단 CleanMem을 설치하면 윈도우의 “예약된 작업”으로 등록되는데요. 기본적으로 30분에 한번씩 실행되게 설정되어 있습니다. 최적화 작업을 자주 하고 싶으시면 일정을 최소화해 1분마다 실행하도록 설정하면 되겠죠.

실행되기 전의 제 작업관리자 모습입니다.

실행하고 나면.. ^^;

물론 프로그램들이 다시 필요한 메모리 반환을 요청하기 때문에 일부 프로그램에서는 메모리 사용량이 다시 증가하긴 하지만.. 그래도 시스템이 이전보다 훨씬 쾌적한 상태를 유지합니다.

CleanMem은 윈도우 2000, XP, 2003, Vista, 2008을 지원하고 32비트, 64비트 모두 사용 할 수 있습니다. (설치중에 선택 옵션이 있음.)

그리고 CleanMem이 정리하기 원하지 않는 프로세스가 있으면, 해당 프로세스의 이름을 cleanmem_ignore_list.txt에 등록시키면 되네요.

다운로드 : CleanMem

USB 드라이브나 네트워크에서 직접 실행시킬수 있는 포터블 버전 다운로드도 가능합니다.. ^^;

(일부 백신에서 바이러스로 오인하는 경우도 있다고 하는데요.. 페이크 알람인 경우니까 걱정하지 말라고 하는군요.)