Only Apple. Only Apple could pull off five years of secret underground development for a rival processor, while its marketing arm said something entirely different. Only Apple could spin dumping its major processor vendor as good news — and only Jobs could actually get philosophical about it. (The “universal binary symbol” is yin and yang? […]

In other Macintel news: What about Windows? Developer contacts tell CDM that they think in fact you’ll be able to run Windows apps alongside Mac apps, a la Xwindows. Just don’t expect a dual-boot machine; that would require Apple’s involvement (and they won’t go there.) And, of course, you’ll lose the advantages of the Mac […]

More details are coming in about the Apple-Intel deal. Here’s the really short version: Incompatible with PCs: You’ll probably be able to run Windows and Intel-Linux (unsupported) on Apple’s new Macs, but Apple won’t let you run OS X on PC hardware. Big surprise: Apple wants your hardware cash. (See Apple’s Schiller to CNet.com) Transition […]

Remember when real rumors about Apple used to leak onto the Web? Now, all we get is this lame impression at a press release from someone’s Mac.com account. CDM prediction: when Apple does release new PowerBooks, they’ll spell “availability” correctly. Oh, and they’ll know how to punctuate the possessive “its.” (The site reads “availibility of […]

With Live 5 on its way, it’s a good time to consider Reason, which many people like to pair with Ableton’s host for additional instruments. Macworld has a review I wrote of Reason 3 available online in its entirety. The initial release date for the new Reason caused quite a stir here on CDM — […]

I look forward to releases of sounds captured in outer space the way some people wait for new album releases. Don Gurnett, the University of Iowa physicist responsible for various space-bound audio instruments and the major advocate for space sound, is the Jagger of the genre. Even the Kronos Quartet has gotten in on the […]

Pluggo is a classic sound design tool, with plugins ranging from utterly useful to utterly bizarre and destructive. Now, Cycling `74 is giving away 12 free Pluggos, calling it “Pluggo Jr.” The selection actually looks quite nice; see JDG’s story on em411. Windows-only for now, but Mac promised soon. Free download Of course, the best […]

Available for RTAS, VST, and AU (sorry, no Windows version), the latest plugins from Sonic Finger may just fit the bill: Dead Quietenator: equipped with parameters for “quiet” and “silence,” this plugin is sure to start a war between those who believe in perfect digital silence and those who want the warmer analog sound of […]

We continue to interrupt Moog Week for Weird Plugin Day. Forget parody plugins — truth is nearly as strange as fiction. Just watch the latest on KVR: Turkish Folk Instrument goes Virtual: First, there’s the Volko Baglama (via). The thousand year-old Turkish folk instrument known as a Baglama or saz has been converted to Windows […]

Curiouser and curiouser . . . A reader named Atomic Afro (so glad I’m requiring you to register now!) is more astute than I am (not saying much). Mr. Afro points us to a new SynthEdit-created Windows VSTi called Luxor. Apparently this plugin “contains the magic powers of ancient egypt dietes and pharao’s.” (So, they […]