" Hi Mike,
Thought I'd share some "artsy" high resolution G5 photos with you and your readers:
http://www.billnoll.com/g5/
Bill Noll "

Very well done... this guy should be on Apple's payroll.

" Spiny is pleased to announce Xbench 1.1.1, the newest version of our comprehensive Mac OS X benchmarking application.
Release Notes:

More changes for the PPC 970

Improved vecLib FFT test consistency

Fixed issue causing OpenGL test to hang until clicking in window on certain machines

Fixed L2 cache speed and bus frequency to show in GHz if applicable

Improved optimization on AltiVec basic test

Better optimized stream tests for G4, G5 (thanks Chris Cox)

Added build number to System Version "

" 2GB Memory Upgrades for Apple 17 inch iMacs (1 GHz Flat Panel Models)
Today Trans Intl. announced the worldwide availability of a 2 Gigabyte (GB) DDR266 (Double Data Rate) memory upgrade module (kit) for the Apple iMac G4 17 inch Flat Panel model, which expands the system's main memory up to 2 GB (Gigabytes).
Trans Intl.'s 2 Gigabyte (GB) memory upgrade consists of 1 GB DDR memory module for the user slot and 1 GB DDR memory module for the factory Slot.
The Apple 17 inch iMac G4 1 GHz Flat Panel Model has two memory expansion slots for main memory expansion. Trans Intl.'s 1 Gigabyte (GB) memory upgrade doubles the memory density of the expansion slots (User and Factory) to 1 GB. Before the Trans Intl. upgrade, each expansion slot of the 17 inch iMac was limited to only 512 MB (megabytes) each.
Trans Intl. memory modules conform to Apple's stringent electrical and mechanical design guide lines. The 1GB DDR266 Memory Module operates at a clock rate of 133MHz and transmits data at 266 Mbps. Please click here for pricing and availability
TransIntl has recently introduced 1 GB Memory Modules for Apple Powerbook G4 17 inch and 12in Models "

"Steve ("Woz") Wozniak, designer and developer of the first Apple computer and current chairman and CEO of Wheels of Zeus, an emerging wireless company, is scheduled to speak about his accomplishments and immediate plans at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, September 10 at the Monroe Community College Auditorium, Communications/Theater Building, Brighton Campus, 1000 East Henrietta Road in Rochester, NY. Assistance for the hearing-impaired will be provided.
The event is open to the public. Tickets--$10 for the general public and $5 for students and members of Apple CIDER--are available through www.applecider.org.
Wozniak will be in Rochester to help Apple CIDER, (Apple Computer Information and Data Exchange of Rochester), Inc., celebrate its 25th year of assisting Apple and Macintosh users in western New York... Wozniak is expected to speak not only about his history as a computer-industry pioneer but also about his current venture, which uses wireless technology to track pets, people, and objects. "

" Got my 2GHz DP G5 this morning. It was ordered on 7/3 through the edu channel.
It looks pretty funny sitting next to the old 'Gateway 2000' monitor connected to it; a temporary situation...
Eric M. "

I asked Eric if he could send a photo of the internals/run some real-world tests. (All the dual G5 results I've seen were from pre-production systems - not an actual shipped model.) I know many are going to think this is report is a hoax after having their day 1 orders (even EDU/student orders) delayed.

" I wanted to let you know about a test I did at the Apple Store in Glendale, CA. I called and they said they had a G5 1.6 on display, so I went down there with an audio CD to test the speed of an iTunes AIFF->mp3 conversion against other machines at the store. I ripped an audio CD track to AIFF format on each machine's hard disk to eliminate the bottleneck caused by optical drive speed. Here are the details and results:

Audio CD: Herbie Hancock "Headhunters"
Track: "Chameleon" - funk/jazz tune, 15 minutes and 44 seconds long, ripped to hard disk as an uncompressed 16 bit, 44.1 kHz stereo AIFF file using iTunes.

Task: Using iTunes, convert the AIFF file to mp3 ("Higher Quality" setting, 192 kbps). I didn't have a stopwatch on me, so what I'm reporting here is the highest speed multiple iTunes reported during conversion. Machines tested (all had 256 MB RAM and iTunes 4.0.1 (117), and on all I quit all other applications, turned off every sound effect in iTunes, and unchecked "play songs while importing" and "create file names with track number"):

• G5 1.6: - 23.2x
• G4 Dual 1 GHz (MDD): - 20.6x
• G4 1.25 (single processor): - 18.4x
• iMac 1 GHz: - 13.1x
• iMac 800 MHz:- 10.4x

I'm surprised at how well a single 1.25 G4 holds up compared to a single 1.6 G5. If one speculates mathematically what a 1.6 G4 would do, it's 23.5x, which is the same as the 1.6 G5. I wonder how much of a speed increase we'll see when iTunes is optimized for the G5. Hope the above is useful to other readers of your site.
Yarone
AppleTLC"

If any G5 owners have other real-world test results from production systems (not pre-release Dual G5, etc. - systems they actually own. i.e. iMovie Tutorial export, QT DV->MPEG conversion, FCP or FCExpress tests, etc.) let me know. (Include system details in reports - thanks.)

" I wanted to add to the list of new orders of G5 single processor machines shipping. I ordered a 1.8 with a stock configuration through the Apple Store for members of the Apple Consultants Network early last Friday morning and received notification this morning that it shipped yesterday, September 2.

FYI: This order may have received priority as it was through a special version of the Apple Store that is only available to businesses that are members of the Apple Consultants Network.
-- Richard H.
Apple Certified Technical Coordinator "

The last report on a very quick shipment (within a day or two or the order) was from a reader ordering through the govt. program.
No reports yet of Dual G4 orders shipping to end users however (and as noted last Friday, even orders from Students have been delayed. The Educational shipments were to institutions, not students/end user orders.

" You may have already heard, but the long-awaited public beta of Facespan 4.0 has been released. This AppleScript RAD is the perfect bridge between working with script editor and what can be an intimidating set of developer tools from Apple. http://www.facespan.com - it's ready for OS X, and if it's just as good as its OS 9 counterpart (and I'm sure it's even better) it's bound to be a hit.
Best, Sean M. "

I've not tried it but their main page notes a public beta/limited time trial version of Facespan 4.0 for OS X is available for download.

CDRW Drives:
• IDE Liteon LTR-52327S (52x32x52x) in B&W G3 (OS X)
  (using modified burn support plugin from FAQ, drive sleep problems noted - 2nd report of this from a 52237S owner.)
• IDE Sony CRX225E (52x24x52x) in G4/AGP (OS X)
  (using modified burn support plugin)
  
  Combo DVD+CDR Drives:
• IDE Samsung SM-352B (52x24x52x +16x DVD-ROM) in B&W G3 (OS X)
  (using modified burn support plugin, problems noted w/discburner and booting from CD)
  
  DVD-R Drives:
• IDE Pioneer DVR-105 in eMac (OS X)
  
  DVD+R/RW + DVD-R/RW Drives:
• IDE LG GSA-4040B in G4/AGP (OS X)
  (running Panther beta, edited for burn support per article here on Panther burn support mods)
  (Illustrated CD drive install guide here covers G4 towers up to the Digital Audio Model, Beige G3 MT, and B&W G3 Macs)
  
  Hard Drives:
• IBM Travelstar 80GB in Powerbook G3 2000 (OS 9.2)
  (full review of this drive here as well as comparisons to the 60GB/7200 rpm model here. PB G3/2000 Pismo illustrated HD install guide here)
• IDE Western Digital 120GB in B&W G3 using IDE PCI card (OS X)
  (some problems noted - suggested checking HD is set to single drive and check for Sonnet IDE card firmware/driver updates.)
• IDE Western Digital WD2000JB 200GB in (2001 QS) G4/AGP using IDE PCI card RAID (OS X)
  (Illustrated guide to adding a 2nd HD here in B&W G3 rev2 and G4 towers up to the QuickSilver models.
  IDE articles page RAID section has an illustrated guide for adding 2 more drives in the side bays.)

You can find full owner reports (latest shown first) by searching the database by drive/brand/interface/mac models (the latest reports are shown first in searches). For guides to installing CD/CDRW/DVD drives or Hard drives in many mac models, see the IDE Articles page. The Firewire articles page also has guides on case kits, installing drives, etc.
If you've added a IDE, SCSI, Firewire or USB hard drive, CDRW, tape drive, etc. make sure you add a report to the database. (If you post an updated entry - make sure you use the same name, etc. as you did before so I can find your past entry. Thanks.)
(Incomplete entries are deleted. Do not post questions in the database, it's for drive reports not questions on what drive to buy - for that try searching the database for reports from owners of your mac model on the drive type/brand/interface, etc. you're interested in.)

• Sonnet G4/1GHz in Beige G3 (rated 5)
  (My full reviews of G4 and G3 upgrades w/apps/game tests, install info, etc. are linked here.)

(Warning - Overclocking may not be reliable and could lead to hardware failure or corrupted data.) You can find the full reports by searching the database selecting the indicated Mac model and upgrade card brand/type. If you've upgraded the CPU on your Mac, please post an entry in the database. Search the database for entries from most every upgradable Mac model *before* you buy. (Searchable by mac model/upgrade brand). For detailed reviews with performance tests and install tips, see the CPU Upgrades page.)

• 1 year ago today
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