Stan's List

As the iPod, OS X and Mac become ever more mainstream, publications like CoolTechZone are increasingly stating what the “rest of us” have known for years—Apple’s product quality and service delivers customer loyalty.

“When Apple competitors are focused on cost reduction to increase profitability, Apple is investing resources to enhance its relationship with its customers. To me, that’s impressive. Unfortunately, there are too many companies in the market that could care less about their customers, but Apple is determined and committed in delivering the experience and not just the product.”

Mail.app:Three different ways to print emails; scale message to fit; rewrap message to fit; keep the same apparent font size. More …

According to the Associated Press, Apple lawyer Anthony Grabiner said the “distribution of digital entertainment content” was permitted under the agreement, in which the two companies promised not to interfere with the other’s business. More …

According to eWEEK.com, someone is using actual excerpts of BBC news stories to ‘launch drive-by downloads of bots, spyware, back doors and other Trojan downloaders.’ One example is a story blurb masking the download and installation of a keylogger — with no user interaction. More …

Harvard and Berkeley have released a study (in .PDF) that shows why phishing attacks work (pdf). When asked if a phishing site was legit or a spoof, 23% of users use only the content of the website to make the decision! More …

This article discusses how iLife 06 allows you to specify location of themes, instruments and other related items as part of the custom install options. There they must stay. More …

Apple has announced a software update for nano and 5G iPods, allowing customers to easily set their own personal maximum volume limit. The software update also gives parents the ability to set a maximum volume limit on their child’s iPod and lock it with a combination code.

“As the leading provider of digital music players, Apple continuously brings […] customers innovative and easy to use solutions,” said Greg Joswiak, VP, marketing. “With the increased attention in this area, we want to offer customers an easy to use option to set their own personal volume limit.”

The new software update 1.1.1 is available immediately as a free download for nano and 5G iPods. The new Volume Limit feature works with any headphone or accessory plugged into the iPod headphone jack as well as the Radio Remote.

Ars noted that Apple has quietly enhanced the specifications of its high-end 30″ HD Cinema Display.

The display’s brightness, which was previously 270 cd/m2, is now listed at 400 cd/2. Meanwhile, its contrast ratio also appears to have been bumped from 400:1 to 700:1.

Single of the Week

Dedicated crate-diggers, the Swedish production duo known as Create & Devastate have cut and spliced enough beats and found enough hooks to make certified block-rockers back home in Helsingburg. The duo’s talents with beat-making weren’t lost Masta Ace, who responded to the duo’s emails immediately after hearing the sounds that the two had conjured up. That ensuing collaboration, The hip-hop/rap Hit Man, is the “free” Single of the Week.

Discovery Download

Phil Wickham’s uplifting Christian pop recalls the epic grandeur of Coldplay and Jeff Buckley with added hints of adult-oriented radio. Urged on by the strum of his 12-string and a voice that hits all the high points, Phil Wickham’s musical pleas for help from a higher power provide plenty of catharsis and soul-searching. Enjoy Grace, the “free” Discovery Download this week.

Wired’s Blog is hosting a gallery of Apple operating system GUI (graphical user interface) screen grabs from the last 30 years. More …