Appletell | Apple, Mac, iPhone, iPod | News, Rumors, Reviews, How-Tos

Macintosh and iPhone/iPod updates and announcements for April 8, 2009:

Macintosh

• RemObjects Software, LLC has introduced RemObjects SDK for OS X, their new framework for Mac and iPhone developers. RemObjects SDK makes it easy for developers to create networked applications that communicate with each other. As a fully native OS X framework, RemObjects SDK was designed from the ground up to fit in with the tools that Mac and iPhone developers use, such as Xcode, Cocoa and Objective-C.
• ActyMac today announced DutyWatch 10, their Employee Monitoring Software for Mac OS X. DutyWatch record and log everything your employees do, from recording keystrokes typed and website visits, to chats, employee emails and screenshots. DutyWatch is completely invisible to your employees. It runs silently and unobtrusively while logging everything that happens on their computers.
• Macvide is proud to announce iPod Converter 2.4, their video to iPod mp4 conversion utility for Mac OS X. Developed specifically for Mac users, iPod Converter allows conversion of video files to mp4 iPod video. All of the most popular formats are supported, and helps bridge the gap between many video standards. iPod Converter offers an easy-to-use interface that guides the user through the conversion process. Version 2.4 sports a new style Rangebar, as well as a visible selected range time.
• Billeo, Inc. has announced availability of Billeo for the Macintosh. Billeo’s award winning, browser plug-in allows users to set up a “one stop shop” transaction center with stored account information, card data, reminders, saved receipts and much more. Billeo also announced that the company has integrated community learning as part of Billeo’s save receipt feature. With this feature Billeo continuously learns from the community of Billeo users to automatically categorize your web receipts based on the most popular selections other users have made.
• CoreMelt, creators of GPU accelerated video fx plugins, has announced the release of the much anticipated V2 product range. 180 GPU accelerated plugins for motion graphics artists and video editors using Final Cut Pro, Final Cut Express, Apple Motion and After Effects CS3/CS4.

iPhone/iPod

• Lhunath has announced Gorillas 1.2 for the iPhone. Gorillas is a modern open source port of the classic QBasic game. The original was basically a simplistic artillery game with a twist. Instead of artillery shooting missiles, gorillas were introduced that threw exploding bananas. The port adds and extends on the theme while preserving the spirit of the original. Endless hours of gameplay ensured against either an AI or friends.
• LizzardWerks has announced the release of sketchr 1.0 for iPhone and iPod touch. sketchr offers a fun new twist on the classic drawing toy Etch-A-Sketch. Rather than using two knobs to draw, users just tilt and lean their iPhone or iPod touch to control which way the line goes. Drawing with sketchr is simple and intuitive. Yet just like the original Etch-A-Sketch, making a decent drawing takes concentration and persistence. And like the original, to erase and start over, just shake it.
• Sauce Digital has launched Amoebas, the most fun you can have with single celled organisms. Amoebas is an original concept that marries the best aspects of Tetris style play with colour matching games.  It is played by rotating the environment and amoebas, then firing them in any direction, matching clumps of similar amoebas to delete them and score. It is played in multiple directions, so players have to remember what they have put where. The aim is to score as many point as possible, it may seem simple at first but gets crazy when the auto-fire gets too quick!
• No other iPhone stand comes close to cramming as much functionality into such a small package as Seskimo’s new Crabble. Designed for the iPhone and iPhone Touch, the Crabble also supports a variety of other small media players and smartphones (see below), including many cases and skins.
• Scosche Industries has announced the availability of the new “Made for iPod” and “Works with iPhone” certified reCOIL mobile charger. Users can conveniently charge their iPod or iPhone by plugging the reCOIL into their vehicle’s 12V power/accessory outlet. The reCOIL’s retractable cord neatly charges your iPod and iPhone, and its magnetic locking dock connector mounts flush when not in use.
• Coldplay recently teamed up with Tapulous Inc, an iPhone/iPod Touch game developer, to release a new music-game called Tap Tap Revenge: Coldplay Edition. To celebrate, Tapulous is hosting the Tapulous Coldplay Edition Contest. Each day for the next 30 days, one player will win the entire Coldplay catalog which includes the Viva La Vida/Prospekt’s March special edition CD, Live 2003 CD/DVD, A Rush of Blood To The Head, X&Y, and Parachutes. One Grand Prize winner will win a pair of front row tickets to any concert in our Viva La Vida Tour this summer, and an autographed copy of the Viva la Vida/Prospekt’s March album (some exclusions may apply). On top of that - five runner up winners will get signed copies of Viva la Vida/Prospekt’s March album.