Tag: Tech

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Office for Mac Update: “You Don’t Need to Uninstall It!”

Microsoft posted and abruptly pulled the latest updates for Mac Office v. X and 2004 a few days ago. They even advised people who installed the updates to uninstall it. The problem is that there is no easy way to uninstall it. As a matter of fact, it is impossible to uninstall it.
Microsoft Mac Business Unit Team just clarified that there is no need to uninstall the updates.
http://blogs.msdn.com/macmojo/archive/2006/12/17/now-you-see-it-now-you-don-t.aspx

The MSRC team put up a notice on their blog. That post told users to uninstall the patch without giving clear guidance on how to do that. Unfortunately, there is no easy way to uninstall it without going back to the original CD and doing a clean install followed by applying the latest full updater. That’s a really poor user experience for those who installed the update, so the MacBU is working very quickly to rectify the situation. As it turns out, however, the code that went live has no known issues, so while we recalled it because it had not been thoroughly vetted, there’s no urgent need to uninstall the patch.

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If you really want to uninstall the patch (again, you do not need to do so), there are very complete instructions on the Word MVP site, or you can follow these abbreviated steps:

  1. Move the Microsoft Office 2004 or X folder to the trash (make sure you keep any important templates or other documents you may have saved into this folder)
  2. Empty the trash
  3. Reboot your Mac to ensure that the Entourage Database Daemon is not running (or use unix commands to terminate the process from the Terminal)
  4. Re-install Office from your original CD (drag-and-drop is fine)
  5. Run Microsoft AutoUpdate to re-install the 11.3.0 update. (For Office X, you’ll need to download and install the 10.1.8 patch manually)
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MacHeist Raised $200,000 for Charity

Well, it’s official. MacHeist has raised $200,000 for Charity.

From MacHeist.com:

As for the charity, well, $190,000 just doesn’t seem like a round enough figure. You guys have done your part; now it’s our turn. We will be filling out the donation total to $200,000. And as pledged earlier, all donations will be made in the name of the Mac community.

This is one of the greatest way to promote any shareware Applications. While not every developers out there agree if this is a good idea, in the end everyone involves in this event reap the benefit. Be it the developers, the users, and the charity.

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Wikipedia Hacked by GNAA

Approximately around 10:45 PM Pacific Standard Time, Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page) website was being hacked by GNAA (http://www.gnaa.us/)

Another Fellow WordPress Blogger actually got a screenshot of the hacked Wikipedia main page.
http://vondiggity.wordpress.com/2006/12/14/wikipedia-being-hacked-by-the-gnaa/

Wikipedia was actually fixing the page while it was being hacked.

In the meantime, GNAA posts a press release that somewhat explain the reason behind Wikipedia hack.
http://www.gnaa.us/pr.phtml?troll=gnaa-wikidel

The hack was a retalication against Wikipedia for GNAA article deletion.

At first glance, it seemed that it was merely a change made on the frontpage. But such changes could not be found in the page history. It is unknown if Wikipedia administrators/moderators could selectively delete the page history.

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Adobe Photoshop CS3 Beta For Mac and Windows to Arrive on This Friday

Finally, Adobe has officially announced the availability of Photoshop CS3 Beta for public testing.
http://www.adobe.com/aboutadobe/pressroom/pressreleases/200612/121406Photoshop.html

Adobe Photoshop CS3 Beta will be available for:

  • Mac OS X – Universal Binary for PPC and Intel Macs
  • Windows XP
  • Windows Vista

From the press release:

The software can be downloaded at: http://labs.adobe.com , in the early hours Pacific Standard Time on December 15

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Customers who have a valid serial number for all other language versions of qualifying Adobe products can download the software. Without a serial number, users can still download Adobe Photoshop CS3 beta, with the product expiring after two days. Customers must register online with Adobe or have an existing Adobe.com membership account to access the software

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System Requirements
For Adobe Photoshop CS3 beta, recommended system requirements are as follows. For Macintosh: Mac OSX 10.4.8 or 10.5, 1 GHz PowerPC® G4 or G5 processor, Intel based Macintosh. For Windows: Intel® Xeon® , Xeon Dual, Centrino® or Pentium® 4 processor, Microsoft Windows XP with Service Pack 2 or higher, Microsoft Windows Vista. Both platforms require 512 MB RAM and a 1024×769 resolution screen. Photoshop CS3 beta will expire soon after the launch of Photoshop CS3 in Spring 2007. Details on final pricing, system requirements and availability have yet to be determined.

©2006 Adobe Systems Incorporated. All rights reserved.

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Skype 3.0 for Windows and Unlimited Calling Plan

I have been using SkypeOut roughly since it was first announced. I really like this feature. Skype currently offers free SkypeOut calls within US and Canada. This special offer will last until December 31st, 2006. Fear not, because Skype is offering a cheap plan for its SkypeOut within US and Canada. I am signing up for it.

From Skype news:
http://about.skype.com/2006/12/skype_announces_new_skype_unli.html

Skype Announces New Skype Unlimited Calling Plan
Offers 12 Months of Unlimited Skype Calls to Any Phone Within the US and Canada for a Flat Annual Rate

SAN JOSE, Calif., December 13, 2006 – Skype, the global Internet communications company, is now offering U.S. and Canadian consumers the new Skype Unlimited Calling plan, a paid annual subscription service that allows registered users to make 12 months of unlimited SkypeOut™ calls to any phones within the U.S. and Canada.

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The Skype Unlimited Calling plan is available for a flat rate of $29.95 per year. People who sign up for the new plan before January 31, 2007 will receive a special discounted introductory rate of $14.95 per year – 50 percent off the regular price. While Skype to Skype calls will remain free, the new Skype Unlimited Calling plan is an easier and cheaper way for our growing number of SkypeOut users to stay in touch with friends and family over any phone line. Consumers can also choose SkypeOut’s pay-per-minute offering.

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In somewhat related news, Skype 3.0 for Windows is available for download.
http://www.skype.com/download/skype/windows/helloagain.html

What’s new in Skype 3.0

  • Easier to use, more powerful and personal interface.
  • Connect with the world on Skype Public Chats.
  • Do more and share more with Extras.
  • Click to call ordinary phone numbers on any website (optional install).

Features

  • Make free Skype-to-Skype calls to anyone else, anywhere in the world.
  • See who you are talking to with free video calls.
  • Send SMS messages to friends on the move.
  • Group chat with up to 100 people or conference call with up to four.
  • Search the web with the Google Toolbar (optional install).

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Skype 2.5 Beta for Mac OS X is also available
http://www.skype.com/download/skype/macosx/25beta.html

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Microsoft Releases Updates for Mac Office (updated 12.13.2006)

UPDATE (12.13.2006):
Microsoft has withdrawn the update, citing that the release of the update was accidental.
The official announcement from Microsoft regarding the accidental posting of the security updates.

Microsoft is advising those who had applied the update to uninstall them. The problem is that they didn’t specify the method to uninstall the updates.

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Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac 11.3.1 Update
(December 12, 2006)

This update contains several updates to enhance security and stability, including fixes for vulnerabilities that an attacker can use to overwrite the contents of your computer’s memory with malicious code.

Applies to: Office 2004 Standard Edition, Office 2004 Student and Teacher Edition, Office 2004 Professional Edition, Word 2004, Excel 2004, PowerPoint 2004, Entourage 2004.

Before you install this update, make sure that the Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac 11.3.0 Update is installed on your computer

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Microsoft Office v. X for Mac Security Update (2006-12-12)

This update contains several updates to enhance security and stability, including fixes for vulnerabilities that an attacker can use to overwrite the contents of your computer’s memory with malicious code.

Applies to: Office v. X, Microsoft Word X for Mac, Microsoft Excel X for Mac, Microsoft PowerPoint X for Mac, Microsoft Entourage X for Mac.

Before you install this update, make sure that the Microsoft Office v. X for Mac 10.1.8 Update is installed on your computer.