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Mobile executives at a Silicon Valley roundtable discussion exchanged some colorful comments about the iPhone and its impact on the mobile space. Some application developers, in particular, have been very pleased with the distribution model provided...

Readers of PC Magazine once again awarded top scores to Apple products. iPhone (8.9 out of 10), Mac desktops, (9.1/10), Mac laptops (9.2/10), iPod (8.4/10), and AirPort Base Stations (9.0/10) all achieved Readers’ Choice status and performed “Significantly better than average” in the annual reader survey. Respondents named iPhone the “ultimate smartphone,” and say PC Mag editors of Mac desktops: “No Windows vendor can touch the favorable scores Apple received across the board.”

Watch collectors, astronomers, and those who simply admire a beautiful feat of engineering have been waxing enthusiastic over the Emerald Chronometer. A $4.99 application, Emerald Chronometer models seven “high-end mechanical watches,” offering such “complications” as sunrise, sunset, moonrise, moonset, longitude, latitude, and others.

Businessweek explores the possibility of Apple introducing some sort of touchscreen laptop in the near future. While most of the article rehashes circulating rumors, the author did get some insight from iSuppli analysts regarding the feasibility of ...

If you’re a Stephen King fan — or a fan of graphic novels — you’ll really enjoy Stephen King’s N. You can download the first five episodes of the new animated graphic novel series from iTunes when you purchase a season pass for just $3.99. Then, each Monday over the next four weeks, iTunes will automatically download new episodes, five at a time, as they become available.

Adobe announced today the release of Lightroom 2, a competitor to Apple's Aperture photo software.

“A worldwide community of photographers provided valuable insight and feedback, as part of the Lightroom 2 public beta program, ultima...

When you’re on the road and have no place to plug in, how can you optimize battery performance on your Mac laptop? Find out by watching the latest QuickTip of the Week.

AppleInsider claims that Apple will forgo the use of Intel's Montevina chipset in their next generation laptops. Instead, Apple will either design their own chipsets or could adopt 3rd part chipsets from AMD or Via.

It should be sai...

Seth Weintraub, the author of 9to5Mac, publishes more information at ComputerWorld about what he has heard about the upcoming MacBook updates.

According to Weintraub's sources, the new MacBooks will be thinner than the current MacBoo...

What issues did some MobileMe members experience? How is Apple addressing them? What improvements to MobileMe is Apple delivering? To keep members informed about MobileMe services — and the progress we make addressing issues affecting them — Apple today launched MobileMe Status. There, members will find the very latest information about MobileMe as we strive to improve the service for everyone.

An audio engineer for 33 years, Greg Price offers simple advice to those who’d like to become great engineers themselves. “‘First, you have to play an instrument,’” reports Jim Dalrymple (macworld.com), “‘and second, you have to use a Mac.’” “When it comes to making music, using a Mac isn’t something you should do, Price emphasized, it’s a must.”

Jim Dalrymple (macworld.com) spent his first week with iPhone 3G in Los Angeles, and it “made my trip a little easier,” he says. So much so, that Dalrymple is positively smitten: “I love the iPhone 3G and have already recommended it to many of the people that e-mailed me since its release looking for advice. The addition of GPS made the iPhone much more effective for traveling and MobileMe is a godsend.”

“The big winners in Apple’s new online App Store are gamemakers,” says Ryan Kim (sfgate.com). After all, “seven of the top 10 paid applications, including the top five, were video games,” and he reports that Simon Jeffery, president of Sega of America “expects to sell 1 million downloads of Super Monkey Ball on iPhone.” “This is a very viable platform,” Jeffery said. “We’re just scratching the surface on the iPhone.’”

“It’s hard to be a tech reviewer if products arrive pretty close to perfect,” laments Mark Kellner (washingtontimes.com). But he admits to being “very impressed” with iPhone 3G: “The phone performs very well, e-mail is a breeze, and as a music player, the iPhone-in-iPod mode has no equal.”

Got a minute? Then you have time to enjoy a lecture from a faculty member at the School of Arts and Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania. Speaking on a wide range of topics — from enthography to philosphy to music — the lecturers offer insight, whimsy, and, above all, brevity.

Walt Mossberg and Katherine Boehret (allthingsd.com) consider the new App Store “the single best feature in Apple’s second generation iPhone 3G.” The “easy availability of so many programs,” they say, “makes the iPhone a true computing platform, like a pocket-sized Windows or Macintosh PC,” one that allows iPhone owners to “have a device with fresh, different capabilities every day.”

“Better than the original in almost every way,” iPhone 3G “is an endless source of entertainment — as well as a platform for useful business applications that transform it from a cute gadget into a true hand-held computer,” suggests Mike Himowitz (baltimoresun.com).

Thanks to a “dramatic overhaul,” Aperture 2, “Apple’s all-in-one photography tool, overtakes Adobe’s Lightroom,” reports Alex Singleton (macworld.co.uk). “Much faster than its predecessor,” Aperture 2 has “a new user interface [that] makes it more appealing to first-time users, and over 100 new features means it significantly leapfrogs Lightroom in functionality.”

What makes the App Store “a win for the user”? Andy Ihnatko (suntimes.com) ticks off the reasons: “The entire universe of iPhone software is in one central location.” “Prices start at free.” “Buying and installing an app is dead simple and reliable.” And thanks to the App Store, iPhone and iPod touch now “represent a formidable and legitimate new computing platform.”

WASHINGTON (July 23, 2008)—Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer and National Geographic contributor Jay Dickman will give a group of students from EARTH University and the nearby community of Guácimo in Costa Rica a unique opportunity to document their lives and surroundings during National Geographic Photo Camp 2008. From Saturday, July 26, to Wednesday, July 30, the students will photograph, edit and design a portrait of the university, with special attention to its people, atmosphere and activities. The Photo Camp is presented in partnership with EARTH University, an international, nonprofit institution that aims to build a future in which the humid tropics and their communities achieve social, economic and environmental well-being.

During the five-day workshop, Dickman will brief the students on photographic vision, equipment and technique and guide them through the process of creating a story through photography and writing, working with cameras and laptop computers provided by National Geographic. The students will be assigned to photograph images expressing EARTH University's sense of place and people as well as the nearby farming communities. In addition to Dickman, the young photographers will be mentored by National Geographic magazine senior photo editor Sadie Quarrier and photography students from Veritas University in San Jose, Costa Rica, who will coach the students on the production of a multimedia show and review their work using the photographs as a catalyst for discussion.

Participants, their families and community members are invited to a final presentation of the students' work at 1:30 p.m. at EARTH University's conference room on the final day.

"We hope that Photo Camp 2008 will provide students with a unique lens on the world and help expand their awareness of the environment and their impact on it," said Terry Garcia, National Geographic's executive vice president, Mission Programs. "We are honored to participate in this endeavor."

The theme of the Photo Camp is the environment and conservation, and the aim is to draw attention to youth perspectives on their generation's connection to the natural world.

EVOLT SLR cameras for the Photo Camp have been provided by Olympus Imaging America Inc. Memory cards have been donated to the Photo Camp program by PNY Technologies.

In addition to more than 25 assignments for National Geographic magazine, Dickman has worked on many of the "A Day in the Life" photography books and photographed for various national publications and magazines. His photographic and editorial expertise has earned him national and regional awards, including a Pulitzer Prize in Journalism for Featured Photography, the World Press "Golden Eye" and the Sigma Delta Chi "Distinguished Service in Journalism" awards. Dickman is among an elite group of photographers who are "Olympus Visionaries" and Lexar "Elite Photographers."

National Geographic Mission Programs also is sponsoring Photo Camps this year in Taos, N.M.; Rajasthan, India; Chesapeake Bay; Appalachian Trail; Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, S.D.; Camden, Maine; New York; Santa Monica, Calif.; and Miami, in partnership with VisionWorkshops of Annapolis, Md. For more information, visit nationalgeographic.com/photocamp.

The National Geographic Society is one of the world's largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations. Founded in 1888 to "increase and diffuse geographic knowledge," the Society works to inspire people to care about the planet. It reaches more than 300 million people worldwide each month through its official journal, National Geographic, and other magazines; National Geographic Channel; television documentaries; music; radio; films; books; DVDs; maps; school publishing programs; interactive media; and merchandise. National Geographic has funded more than 9,000 scientific research, conservation and exploration projects and supports an education program combating geographic illiteracy. For more information, visit nationalgeographic.com.

EARTH University's mission is to prepare leaders with ethical values to contribute to the sustainable development of the humid tropics and to construct a prosperous and just society. Founded in 1986, EARTH University focuses on empowering emerging leaders throughout the region by providing them access to a quality education and equipping them with the skills, knowledge and strong values to improve the quality of life in their communities. For more information about EARTH University, visit www.earth.ac.cr.