FUS.NET

Useful piece of plastic

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 00:38:00 +0000

In the "gadgets that hold other gadgets" category, I just got a Matias MiniRizer, two interlocking pieces of plastic that form a stand for nearly any portable gadget. They store flat in the included case for easy travel, and slide back together at either a 40 or 50 degree angle to make viewing video a bit easier on iPods and the like.

iPhone 3G Day

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 22:14:00 +0000

So I did the geeky thing to do and got online at the Apple Store in Marlton, NJ this morning around 7AM. I was about the 80th person in line when I arrived. At 8AM, the first group of 20 or so people went in to cheers and applause, and the first person emerged with his new iPhone 18 minutes later. Unlike the launch of the original iPhone, AT&T requires that all iPhones be activated at time of purchase - in the store, not at home. Through the next hour, customers trickled out and the next buyers let in, until about 9:30 or so. AT&T's activation servers were down, and sales stopped for nearly an hour.

I have to give a lot of credit to the Apple store retail staff - they did a great job. Staffers were walking up and down the line, answering questions, chatting with customers, and passing out bottled water. When activations turned south, managers kept everyone informed about what was going on - and made a run to Dunkin Donuts to get a unbelievable huge quantity of munchkins to keep everyone (relatively) happy during the extended wait.

When it was finally my turn, a rep came to the door and walked me back to a workstation setup along the side of the store where the demo iMacs are. Another rep was a runner and got the hardware to us for activation.

After that, everything was done on the handheld devices they normally use for checkout at the Apple store. He checked ID, got my existing iPhone number, scanned the SIM serial number off the box, and I was pretty much done. The second part of activation was getting the iPhone to talk to iTunes, which he walked me to the genius bar to take care of. This part was still down at the time but could be done from home.

It took a few hours before I was able to sync my new phone due to the widely reported problems Apple had today, but by later in the afternoon all was well and it activated just fine.

The 3G is physically similar to original iPhone. The backside is now plastic, the edges are thinner, but overall the device is a bit thicker, though not by much. The differing dimensions prevent it from fitting into the dock supplied with the original iPhone, but it does fit into a universal dock without much of a problem. iPhone 3G should fit into most cases that are made of flexible material for original iPhone. One other nice improvement is the headphone jack is flush with the case, so an adapter is no longer required to connect headphones.

The two big hardware changes are obviously the 3G radio and GPS. GPS worked great with Google maps, and a few of the apps I tried (more on this in a moment) took advantage of the location awareness of the device as well. 3G is nice - where it works. AT&T's website was recently updated with 3G coverage maps, but in just a few hours of use traveling around there seem to be a lot of coverage gaps where the phone falls back to EDGE.

Many of the cool changes are in the new iPhone 2.0 software, and are available to users of both the original and 3G iPhone. iPhone now supports Apple's new MobileMe service, which is a replacement for .Mac, that among other features, allows full wireless real-time sync of mail, calendars, and contacts. It works very well, and Apple has a great AJAX web interface to work with your data as well at Me.com.

The big addition is the new App Store, which adds 3rd party applications to iPhone. At launch, about 500 apps are available, many for free. A few of my favorites thus far are below:

Remote - Displays a similar interface to the iPod interface on the iPhone, except it connects via WiFi to iTunes or Apple TV, functioning as an interactive remote for whatever you connect it to. It works very well and feels a functional gap that has existed for some time
AIM - AT&T is now charging extra for SMS text messaging, so hopefully I won't have to use it as much any more now that there is an AOL Instant Messenger Client for iPhone
Evernote - see my post on Evernote, this just adds a great iPhone interface to your Evernote database
Jott - no more phone calls to Jott! Just record into the app, Jott transcribes it, and it can then be used as a to-do or reminder

Overall I'm pretty happy with the upgrades. The activation delays were annoying, so hopefully Apple and AT&T can agree to go back to self-activation in the future. I happened to be by the Apple store again this evening around 8:30PM and there was still a line of 30 or 40 people queued up to purchase - so a speedier checkout could only help things.

Happy 4th of July

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 22:24:00 +0000

We shall call him "mobile me"

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 23:47:00 +0000

While there was lots of exciting news in today's Stevenote, the upgraded .Mac, now know as Mobile Me was demoed. .Mac has been long in the tooth for a while, and the upgrade addresses a lot of the shortcomings.

Over-the-air sync for email, contacts, and calendaring is now included - similar to Exchange ActiveSync or Blackberry Enterprise Server. If it works as advertised, this will certainly be the easiest way for consumers to keep data in sync across multiple devices. Mobile Me also has a great AJAX web interface - basically, web versions of Mail, iCal, and Address Book. For Windows users, Mobile Me can sync with Outlook. In other words, you don't need to dock your iPhone with iTunes to get updated calendar, contacts, and email.

It is still $99 a year. Since I already pay that for Mac-to-Mac sync with .Mac, it seems reasonable although it would be cool if this was included in the iPhone data plan similar to the way Blackberry service is sold. While iDisk is upgraded to 20GB in the new plan, I hope there is a new mobile way to access my files stored there - it wasn't clear if you could open documents from there on the iPhone. I'm looking forward to giving the new service a try in a few weeks.

The Netflix Player

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Sun, 25 May 2008 00:11:00 +0000

I haven't really been able to take advantage of Netflix's "Watch Instantly" feature since it came out since it requires Windows and anytime I've wanted to try it I've been using a Mac. I was excited by the announcement of the Netflix Player by Roku last week and managed to order one before they went out of stock. The player is a small box, around the size of a stack of 4 or 5 CD jewel cases, that streams movies from Netflix "watch instantly" selection - about 10,000 movies - and displays them on your TV instead of your PC. The box connects via wired or wireless Ethernet, and has a variety of output options - standard composite, component, HDMI, and optical digital audio.

Setup was very easy; after connecting to the TV, the on screen prompts make it easy to connect to the Internet. A short code is displayed on the screen, which is then entered (via computer) onto www.netflix.com/activate, and then the box is associated with your Netflix account.

You cannot browse the entire catalog from your TV screen; movies are selected from the Netflix website and added to your "instant queue", which you can then select from the menu on your TV. (this really does keep things pretty simple - the remote only has a few buttons and the on-screen menus are quick and easy to navigate)

Movies are of reasonable quality; HD is expected in the future. Its not quite DVD quality but good enough. I tried a few movies and they started playing within about 30 seconds; the device only streams video, there is no local storage. Fast forward and rewind worked pretty well, but there is a slight pause while the movie rebuffers after you select your new scene.

One of the best parts is the price. The box is $100, and there are no additional monthly service fees. As long as you had a Netflix plan that is more than $10/month, unlimited movie streaming is included for free. Most of the selection is not brand new, but there is a good mix of movies and even some TV shows available.

Evernote is back

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 22:28:00 +0000

I wrote about Evernote some time ago, and while I haven't used the tool in a while, they are back with a new version (beta 3.0)

Evernote is a note taking and capture application - by "capture", I mean you can pretty much dump any kind of data (handwritten, images, web, email, etc) into it, and it will track it for you like an electronic notebook.

The new beta is very impressive - it now finally runs on a Mac, but even better, can also run over the web - for full sized browsers as well as little ones like on the iPhone. All of your data syncs automatically - make a change on the Evernote client on one PC, and it shows up on the web, and the Evernote client on your Mac. It works great.

The beta is closed right now, but I have a few invites. Please feel free to drop me an email if you'd like one.

Access Everywhere

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 00:29:00 +0000

One of the nice things about EV-DO is that you can get semi-broadband speeds nearly anywhere and not have to shell out $10 a day at a hotel or airport for access to the Internet. It does, however, mean that one more thing has to be plugged into your laptop, and forget about using two devices at this same time.

I was looking for something a bit more flexible and recently got the CradlePoint PHS-300 Personal Hotspot. This is a portable, battery-powered, WiFi router that is slightly larger than a deck of cards. On one side of the device is a USB port to connect an EV-DO or HSDPA USB modem, a DC power port, and an on/off switch. There are also three indicator lights to show power status, Internet connectivity, and WiFi status. The included battery provides several hours of WiFi Internet access - almost anywhere. Download speeds are consistent with using the modem directly - I get about 800kbps on both Sprint and Verizon's EV-DO network through the router.

The router's software is also pretty powerful, supporting all of the common WiFi router functionality, including NAT and DHCP. The WiFi access point can be set to open, or use WEP or WPA encryption. A unique feature that the PHS-300 offers is web-based login: you can setup a network without encryption and the router will redirect anyone who connects to a login page, where they have to enter a password to continue to access the Internet. It will also do custom port mapping, traffic shaping, and Internet filtering if you so desire.

Its small enough to to fit - and stay - inside a PDA pocket in any laptop bag and can easily operate from inside. There is an active support community at EVDOForums for the device. CradlePoint also manufactures a smaller version, called the CTR-350 with many of the same features, but also will connect to the Internet via wired Ethernet, but does not have a battery. There also recently introduced the MBR1000 router, which is designed for home or small office use as a backup router to a main wired connection. The PHS-300, with battery, sells for $179.

My Flux Capacitor is Broken

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Sat, 16 Feb 2008 16:59:00 +0000

I am no math expert, but I found this error from Time Machine to be rather interesting:

Thankfully, SuperDuper! is now Leopard compatible...

Really small computers

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 01:49:00 +0000

I've been using the Asus eeePC for the last month or so and have been very impressed.

The eee is a tiny laptop style computer that runs a customized version of Linux. If you take a traditional 14" display on a laptop and fold it in half, thats the rough size of the device. Keyboard and screen are both small, and take a little getting used to. I can type fairly easily on it but the keyboard is too large for Blackberry-style thumb typing and too small for traditional touch-typing. There is a built-in trackpad, but an external mouse like the Logitech VX Nano works much better. The screen is 7" and has a built-in webcam (at least on the model I have) The machine has 512mb of RAM, and 4 gigabytes of solid-state flash storage instead of a hard drive.

By default, the eee boots into a customized version of Xandros Linux. It is all point-and-click and very easy to use, you never see a command line (unless you want to, more on that...) Preinstalled are Firefox with flash support, a mail client, Skype, and the Pidgin instant messenger program. Also installed is the Open Office suite, and all applications are easily accessed through a tab-based interface.

There is also an "advanced mode" which loads a customized KDE desktop and has a more customizable start menu interface along with a more traditional desktop environment. There are also instructions for installing Windows XP, but I haven't tried it yet. The machine boots up very quickly into Linux, and programs are pretty quick to startup despite the 900Mhz processor that powers the machine.

It has all of the standard ports you'd expect, 3 USB connectors, wired Ethernet (wireless is also built in), as well as a secure digital card slot for additional storage. The device also works great with the Verizon Wireless USB720 EV-DO modem for on-the-go access.

So while not exactly a powerhouse PC, it is a good machine to carry around and be able to get online, access the web, email, and remote into other computers via VNC or Remote Desktop. It also makes a great portable videoconference device via Skype. It is very easy to customize, and anyone with a little Linux knowledge can have some fun with this very handy device.

Happy New Year!

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 05:00:00 +0000

May you be happy and healthy in 2008!

Amazon MP3 Store

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Sun, 30 Sep 2007 21:02:00 +0000

I just completed my first purchase at the new Amazon MP3 Store. The purchase was painless. They have a plugin you can download to manage downloads, but its not required - I downloaded the song with nothing more than Firefox.

Amazon offers 256kbps, DRM-free MP3 files - pricing varies a bit, but most songs are $0.89. 10 cents cheaper, no DRM anywhere...Amazon is going to give iTunes some real competition.

You are now free to roam about the country...

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 01:09:00 +0000

Not exactly tech news, but as I've traveled a bit lately I've grown fond of Southwest Airlines. They have unbelievably helpful employees and provide a consistent, pleasant travel experience.

The only downside is they don't assign seats - just boarding groups, assigned in the order that you check in. Generally, to get a good seat, you need to arrive at the gate and stand or sit in line an hour or more before the plane boards.

Well, today Southwest announced they still won't assign seats - but boarding will now take place in number order in addition to the 3 boarding groups previously assigned. No more sitting on the floor!

GrandCentral

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 00:33:00 +0000

I previously wrote about GrandCentral, a neato telephone service that assigns a central number that can be customized to ring through to any of your phones. Google has purchased the service, and I just received a beta account. It works as advertised and has a great web-based control interface. I have a few invites to hand out; contact me if you are interested.

iPhoning it in (updated)

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Sat, 30 Jun 2007 02:16:00 +0000

Did anyone know Apple released a new product today? Not sure how they kept it so quiet!

I just returned from my local Apple store - it was pretty busy, but they had plenty of iPhones, and had 10 or so out on the floor to play with.

First, it is definitely cool and generally lives up to the Apple marketing machine. It is very small and slim, much thinner than even the 60GB iPod. The iPhone is built very sturdily and feels solid. The glass screen seems pretty tough too - doesn't feel like it would scratch very easily, and the display seems very high-res for a handheld.

In terms of functionality, it does quite a lot. The home screen is accessed by pressing the sole button on the bottom front of the iPhone. From here, you can access any of the built in applications with a press on the touch screen.

The iPod functionality is phenomenal. The interface is very responsive, and cover flow works as advertised allowing you to browse your library by flipping through cover art. Music plays through the speaker or through headphones. You can flip the orientation of the interface simply by turning the iPhone sideways; the sensor seemed pretty responsive but did get confused at times - still pretty neat, though. I am truly looking forward to a true iPod with this interface. The iPhone only has 4 or 8gb, but an iPod with 80gb+ with this easy to use and attractive interface will be a great product (and is hinted to be in the works already)

The built-in photos app was very smooth as well - browsing through a large library of photos using thumbnails is a piece of cake. You can zoom in and out of a photo by "pinching" the screen. The iPhone also has a camera that can take still photos. The photos can be emailed to others, used as wallpaper, or assigned to a contact as a picture ID.

Finally, you can view YouTube content very easily - videos looked sharp and loaded quickly on the iPhone's display in landscape mode.

The included Safari web browser allows "real" web surfing. Over WiFi, the experience isn't too terribly different from a PC, other than screen size. You can easily zoom in and out to view portions of pages at a larger size. Scrolling through a page is pretty smooth, although I found it best to wait for the page to fully load before doing so.

Turning off WiFi, the iPhone automatically connected to AT&T's EDGE network. The web browser still worked, but was significantly slower. The experience was very similar speed-wise to what is experienced on other EDGE devices like the Treo or Blackberry. Not horrible for quick lookups of information, but not great for heavy surfing. On the plus side, the iPhone does a good job of detecting WiFi networks and automatically switching between EDGE and WiFi. It also supports L2TP and PPTP VPNs for secured connectivity with corporate networks.

Email worked similarly well; there were presets for setting up Yahoo Mail, GMail, and .Mac. You can also manually connect to a POP3 or IMAP server. There is also an option for Microsoft Exchange, but indicated that IMAP support was needed, so I'm not certain of the difference between selecting Exchange and just plain IMAP. One thing I noticed ~~missing was support for SSL mail connections to encrypt communication with the mail server~~ was that iPhone automatically tried to connect via SSL and enabled it automatically.

There is a Google Maps application as well. Overall, it works similar to the Google Maps clients for Treo or Blackberry, but has a bit of Apple flair in terms of user interface - placemarks "fly" in. The iPhone doesn't have a built-in GPS receiver, so it can't do true turn-by-turn directions, but it will provide directions and you can step through each turn with a press. I had a few problems getting routes to download properly, but in general it was easy to use.

The phone functionality is easily accessed using the front screen. One potential issue though is making a call. With the phone in standby, you have to press a small button on the top of the iPhone, and then "swipe" your finger across the display, and then select the phone, and then dial. It is a few extra steps than a typical smartphone. Other than that, phone functionality is excellent - the on-screen controls are easy to use. Visual voice mail is something I wish more devices would use - instead of dialing in and using touch-tones to listen to messages one at a time, visual voice mail displays your messages on a screen, and you can touch any one to listen to it, similar to an email. Conference calling, transferring, and call waiting was significantly easier to use than on nearly any other phone I've seen.

Typing on the iPhone was a bit tricky - I can see it taking some time to get used to it. Without any physical feedback, you have to watch the display as you type. I was mostly successful using my index finger; I'm not sure if I'd be able to type using 2 thumbs on as Blackberry. The key you press does enlarge, and if you hit a wrong letter, you can simply slide your finger over without lifting to correct yourself. It also has a built-in correction routine that can detect words as you type them. It's certainly easier than multi-tap or T9 on a traditional cell phone, but not quite as easy as a handheld keyboard.

Overall, Apple has a revolutionary device on their hands. As a first generation product, there are still a few kinks to work out (keyboard) and features to add (GPS, 3G wireless) but they will have given new life into the wireless industry. Using the iPhone is significantly more intuitive and fun than any other PDA or smart phone out there!

N800

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Sat, 26 May 2007 20:08:00 +0000

I recently purchased a Nokia N800 Internet Tablet. Nokia, which is generally known for cell phones, has a nice device in the N800. It isn't a phone itself but pairs up easily with a Bluetooth enabled cell phone for Internet access, or you can use WiFi. It has an excellent connection-manager: finding WiFi hotspots and changing connectivity profiles is extremely easy.

The device has a version of Opera running on it. Because of that and a fairly high-resolution screen (800 pixels across) you can browse most standard web pages without much scrolling. It has built-in Flash support, so you can even view YouTube on it.

It is running a customized build of Linux, and there is a large open-source community building software for it. You can also use a variety of Bluetooth accessories; I'm typing this post on a Stowaway Bluetooth keyboard paired with the N800.

It isn't completely consumer friendly - there are some rough edges, but if you are a geek looking for a great way to get online quickly and from nearly anywhere without the limitations of a web browser on a mobile phone, this is a great way to go.

One Phone Number to Rule Them All

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Mon, 16 Apr 2007 23:22:00 +0000

GrandCentral is a free service that (tries to) solves the problem of having too many phone numbers. When you sign up, GrandCentral assigns you yet another number, and then allows you to have that number ring through to any number of other phones, or have them all ring simultaneously. It also has web-based voicemail and a number of other call management features, such as the ability to transfer a call from one phone line to another.

Harmony Help

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Sun, 18 Mar 2007 15:19:00 +0000

I am generally a big fan of my Logitech Harmony 880 remote. I recently made some changes to my home theater setup, and needed to make some changes to the remote. I logged into the Harmony members website, changed my configuration, and uploaded the new configuration to the remote.

The remote rebooted, and then displayed Go to Website to update settings. None of the buttons would work, and even pulling the battery and upgrading the firmware wouldn't get it to do anything.

Turns out there is a problem with Firefox on the Mac that causes this. A quick switch to Safari and clicking Update Remote solved the problem.

The beginning of the end of DRM?

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 01:28:00 +0000

Steve Jobs of Apple has posted an interesting article about his thoughts on the state of the digital music industry. DRM is very unpopular among consumers but Jobs states it is a requirement brought on by the major record labels. What's more interesting is that while Jobs offers several options, it seems even he prefers no DRM at all. Some have criticized Apple for using their DRM to ensure iTunes Store purchases can only play on iPods, but through this article it seems even their hand has been forced by the record labels through licensing agreements.

Perhaps now that this is open to the public, DRM will begin to fade away and we'll finally get media without restrictions online.

Backing Up

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 01:53:00 +0000

TechDigs has an excellent article on a good storage and backup strategy for a home network. It is somewhat Mac centric but the techniques will work across platforms. With the increase in digital music, photos, and large amounts of other data, reliable storage and backup for the home is important!

Netflix Offers Online Movies

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 01:57:00 +0000

Well, almost. Netflix has announced Watch Now, a new feature where you can view a Netflix movie in a web browser. There is no downloading, no sharing, etc. You can view any available video and in a unique twist are charged by the viewing hour. For each dollar you spend per month with Netflix, you get 1 hour of online movie viewing. The service will be rolled out over the next few months. The Hacking Netflix blog has some more details.

PayPal adds 2 factor authentication

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Tue, 16 Jan 2007 02:20:00 +0000

PayPal has announced their new Security Key service, which is a small keyfob that displays a code that changes every 30 seconds. After signing up for the $5 (one time) service, you login using your username, password, and whatever code is displayed on the device.

This adds significant security to your PayPal account; even if someone guesses your password, they can't login without the keyfob. And if you loose the keyfob, you still need a password. Many corporations utilize this type of security but very few consumer websites have yet to use a 2nd level of login.

Stevenote

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Tue, 09 Jan 2007 23:40:00 +0000

Today's MacWorld keynote presentation by Steve Jobs was certainly an exciting one. Apple gave some more details on the "Apple TV" (formerly iTV) set top box - it can sync like an iPod and also stream from up to 5 computers. It has a neat Front-Row like interface to make listening to music, podcasts, and watching video very easy in a living room. It'll be available next month.

But the big news was the iPhone. This seems like a great do-everything device but won't be released until June. It looked great in demo - runs on GSM/EDGE networks and has built in WiFi and Bluetooth along with motion sensors and a unique touch interface.

There was no mention of new Macs, OS X 10.5, iLife, or iWork somewhat surprisingly, nor any new iPods (although a 80gb iPod in the iPhone form factor/interface would be great.)

Not part of the keynote but released today was the Airport Extreme base station. This is an 802.11n equipped home router (also does "a", "b", and "g") - fairly similar to previous Airport models. In addition to the speed boost, it also has a USB port for sharing a USB hard drive on a network.

Sling backwards

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Sun, 07 Jan 2007 17:53:00 +0000

The Slingbox is a neato little device that allows you to take your TV/DVD/DVR/whatever with you by "rebroadcasting" whatever signal you feed it over the Internet to a phone or laptop.

Sling Media has a new product coming soon called the SlingCatcher, which works in reverse. Connect a SlingCatcher to a TV, and watch content from another Slingbox on that TV, or watch video from Internet sources. It sounds pretty neat - should have more details soon as it is likely to be unveiled at CES this week.

Wii like to have fun

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Sat, 06 Jan 2007 03:30:00 +0000

I'm not too much of a gamer. I've been known to play a few rounds of Asteroids, spend an hour or two with the Sims, or even fly a Learjet. To be honest though, most games these days seem overly complicated. For my purposes, gaming should be about having fun and relaxing, and not trying to remember what each of 8 controller buttons does.

So I was pretty excited about the Wii. Seeing the early demos of Wii sports made it seem like this was right up my alley - simple, fun games. Thankfully, my wife was able to find one and its been a blast. The included Wii sports disc is as much fun as it looks and is great for multiple players. The "Wiimote" is motion sensitive and most of the games are played by simply moving it around. There are a few buttons, and several attachment controllers that can be used for controlling a game with two hands, for example.

The biggest problem with the Wii is that it is currently impossible to find - it took about a week of searching to get one, and most of the accessories are hard to find in stock. I'm sure this will change as the initial demand is met, but it seems like having an ample supply of Wii component video cables and other accessories shouldn't be that difficult.

The Wii also allows you to download games to its virtual console. For a few bucks you can purchase games from NES, SNES, and Nintendo 64 along with a few other game systems. This is a pretty neat feature and has given new life to some old classics.

The Wii itself is a nicely designed system. As mentioned before, most games and the system itself is controlled using the wireless Wii remote. The remote has a small built in speaker and rumbler. The interface is very well designed; you can see, hear, and feel your way around menus through the remote.

I am also trying out Gamefly, which is similar to NetFlix but for game rentals. It is a bit pricey but seems like a good way to try out new titles. Unfortunately, my first game came out of California and took a while to get across the country. (about a week, but we had two postal holidays in there)

Windows on Mac

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Thu, 04 Jan 2007 02:44:00 +0000

Parallels is an excellent virtual machine environment for Mac OS, allowing you to run a variety of OSes on a Mac including Windows and Linux.

An upcoming release of the software has a feature called coherence, which allows Windows apps to appear to run directly within Mac OS. There are some great shots of this feature in action; this is still a beta version but looks great.