News for Friday, 21 December 2007

If for any reason you had to undergo a MRI, you should have a CD or DVD containing the information of this medical examination in a DICOM format (Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine).
On Mac, two "free" applications are able to use and manipulate such format, iRad, and the well-known OsiriX which is now a reference in this field.
The new version of OsiriX is now available and this third opus is compatible with Leopard. This application is a perfect example how one can benefit from Mac OS X resources and layers while providing a typical easy to use Mac interface. One can even export data to iPod, or MRI specialists can even use iChat share display option to visualize results while lively commenting data.
A 64-bit Pro version of OsiriX is available for 149€, it brings support for larger amount of RAM as well as higher performance (10-20%).

The last version of the PS3 firmware brings support to Blu-ray 1.1, demonstrating that this game console is definitely an excellent standalone BD player.
The main feature of this new version is to manage simultaneously two video streams allowing to display a second window within the main one (HD-DVD supports such feature since the very beginning).
The new PS3 firmware also brings support for DivX, something which should not be consider as a minor option by many users.
Soon, video game capabilities of the PS3 might become optional...

It seems that the iPhone is becoming the most popular platform for many application developers; and the list is getting every day longer, illustrating perfectly why Apple should not delay further the release of its SDK for the iPhone.
One of the recently released application is VNsea, a graphical VNC client for both the iPhone and the iPod touch based on Chicken of the VNC for Mac OS X. It will allow you to remotely control a PC or a Mac from the multi-touch display of your iPhone!

Apple released bout MacBook, MacBook Pro Software Update 1.1, supposed to fix a problem with keyboard responsiveness faced by many users:

This update addresses a responsiveness issue on MacBook and MacBook Pro notebook computers. Some MacBook and MacBook Pro systems may occasionally experience a temporary suspension of keyboard input which can last a minute or longer. The Mac OS X 10.5.1 update is required before installing the MacBook, MacBook Pro Software Update 1.1.

While the official iPhone SDK is not expected before February 2008, a talented developer Lucas Newman decided to make an unofficial version already available to the community, making it possible for iPhone applications to run on Apple-branded mobile phone without any official support.
As reported by Wil Shipley, Delicious Monster's Chief, Lucas Newman has been hired by Apple as an “iPhone engineer” .
Let's hope that Apple start recruiting top-notch developers to strengthen potential of the iPhone and to help third parties to bring their applications to this handheld, and not to block third-party creativity by locking developers in a restricted environment.

Apple did not want to do it, so others took charge. It is now possible to synchronise an iPphone without having to connect a wire to a computer.
It is necessary to install an application called wiSync on the Mac, and wiToggle on the iPhone.
The sync can then be programmed and will work as long as the two devices are connected to the same WiFi network.
http://modmyifone.com/wiki/index.php/WiSync
One can see what will be the next step: to find the means to communicate between two iPhones and to exchange files between the them. In summer to recreate the social system à la Zune. But Apple and surely the record and movie industries might not appreciate this at all.

Following Western Digital, it's now Samsung's turn to announce its 2.5" drive with a capacity of 320 Gb. This disk will only be available in SATA and will cost $249. No release date has yet been given.