News Roundup for December the 2nd

I know I should treat this as good news — like, say, the position I’ve held these last fifteen years is finally being validated as correct — but there’s a part of me which can’t help feeling that the Mac’s increased market share means that it’s getting a little less exclusive than it used to be. We now account for 8.81% of the operating system market and Safari has an 8.52% share in the browser space. Not bad, especially considering that these gains came at the expense chiefly of Microsoft and Internet Explorer. (Although these figures are from Net Applications, so the usual generous shovel of salt needs to be applied.) But it is starting to get a little crowded in here. Hell, they were adding new Mac owners at the rate of 13 an hour last Friday. Maybe we should start thinking about applying some kind of minimum entry requirement to our exclusive little club?

To legal news, and for a change we’re looking at the case of the Alabama woman — and if that isn’t the name of a classic blues track then it should be — bringing a suit against Apple for a defective iPhone 3G. Hit the link for the full back story. The latest move comes from the judge, who enquires of both parties whether they’d like to ‘give alternative dispute resolution’ a go — which I think translates as “Is there any chance you could please stop wasting my time?”

Got a new MacBook? Tired of waiting for Apple to deliver that Mini DisplayPort to DVI connector you really need? Then why not make one yourself, using the Mini DisplayPort specs which Apple have generously released with a no-fee licence. Only, since Mini DisplayPort is an open VESA-approved standard, this is a bit of a non-story. Still, FREE! You can’t beat that price, can you? And while you’ve got that soldiering iron out maybe you could knock up a copy of Apple’s new Audiophile headphones, which have been delayed due to design problems.

Those of you with sickeningly busy schedules will be pleased to hear that Google has added iCal and CalDev integration to Google Calendar. Us? We’re still sat waiting for the phone to ring.