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Post by The Herald on May 1, 2006 21:32:50 GMT
Since the introduction of Intel based Macs in late 2005, many have strived to have Windows running on their Macs. However, they had one problem and that was simply being able to boot the Windows disk, let alone the entire operating system. The reason for this is simple. Whilst Apple's computers run the ultra-modern EFI booting system, Windows users are stuck with the 1980s BIOS system and so the only way for a user to boot Windows on a Mac was to write a custom boot loader. Many tried to create a boot loader which would allow XP to boot on a Mac and many failed until one narf2006 came along and did it successfully. And so, he released the boot loader along with his modified Apple-esq Windows XP SP2 file. Within a matter of hours thousands of Intel based Mac owners were joyful as their dreams had finally come true. narf2006 also collected $13,000 USD as a prize from another Apple on Windows enthusiast and thus all was right and then Apple stepped in. Just over three weeks later, Apple decided that they would release their own officially supported boot loader allowing users to like narf2006's boot loader, dual boot between Mac OS X and Windows XP. However, unlike narf2006's boot loader users will once the software is out of testing have to pay $29.95 USD to have the pleasure of booting Windows on their Mac. And although they are supporting the software, Apple have said they will not be supporting any problems Apple users might face with their XP installations. So, although it might be the official option, it looks like Boot Camp is going to fail. I think this just proves that it is not always official software which wins over the hearts of computer users; it’s the unofficial ones that have had more love inside of them.
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Post by The Herald on May 1, 2006 21:33:13 GMT
As some of you may know I am an avid tester of many programs for the Windows operating system. Today, I am going to be reviewing the latest program I am testing, Messenger Plus! Live by Patchou. I have been given special permission to do so, as only official testers (such as myself) have access to the beta. Messenger Plus! Live is the successor of the world’s most well-known and popular Windows/MSN Messenger add-on Messenger Plus! Messenger Plus! Live includes many of the old features that Messenger Plus! was known and respected for, plus some new ones. Messenger Plus! Live works only on Windows Live Messenger, the successor of Windows/MSN Messenger and thus Patchou decided that a name change was appropriate. As well as a name change comes a new adware based (as always optional) sponsor. Instead of installing a toolbar onto Internet Explorer as CM Media did, the new sponsor developed and released by Circle Development LTD simply places a number shortcuts onto your desktop. These, if installed by mistake, can simply be removed via the Add/Remove Programs panel built into Windows without you having to remove Messenger Plus! Live. In this article, I shall be focusing only on the new and improved features that Messenger Plus! Live includes. Chat LogsWhilst Microsoft are still stuck in the dark ages with their chat logging system, Patchou has stepped into the future. Messenger Plus! Live now generates XML based HTML logs along with the inclusion of emoticons. All messages are time stamped and changes to your and your contacts’ status are noted and highlighted. PolygamyIn the past, the only way to run two instances of Messenger was to illegally patch the client. However, Patchou has now included this feature in Messenger Plus! Live and thus, you can now legally run two or instances of Messenger. ScriptingBefore if you wanted to create new features for Messenger Plus! you had to be able to code in C++ or Visual Basic. However, with the introduction of Messenger Plus! Live - although you can still write in those languages - plugins have been replaced by scripts. Now, all you need is a good text editor or even Messenger Plus! Live's own script editor and basic Javascript knowledge to create or enhance features. FormatingWhilst old IRC type commands are still in Messenger Plus! Live, users now have the option of being able to use BB Code like we do here at SSD. As well as this Messenger Plus! Live now includes a small WYSIWYG editor so that you can format your text with ease. And so my review of the program is over, I have not reviewed all the features that the program has to offer because I think you need something to explore when the product is released in little over a month’s time. Thanks for reading.
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