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

Macintosh and iPhone/iPod updates and announcements for June 15, 2009:

Macintosh

• AquilaDigital Partnership has announced DarkAdapted 2.3.5, a major update to their popular monitor brightness and gamma control utility for Mac OS X and Windows. Used by astronomers, planetarium operators, graphics professionals, medical professionals, airline pilots, air traffic controllers, and many others, DarkAdapted provides flexible, dynamic control over any monitor’s brightness and color response. Version 2.3.5 sports many new improvements and is a recommended download.
• Obvious Matter has released DiskLibrary 1.9.3, their easy-to-use disk cataloging application for Mac OS X. DiskLibrary is indispensable if you have a lot of media to keep track of. DiskLibrary catalogs not just your complete file structure, it also creates thumbnails, and stores metadata, for most popular media formats. DiskLibrary is capable of importing export formats from CDFinder, FileFinder, WhereIsIt, DiskCatalogMaker X and DiskTracker. Version 1.9.3 offers bug fixes and improvements.
• BlobmanLabs has announced Blobman 2.0, an update to their golf swing improvement tool for Mac OS X and Windows. Perfect for pros, instructors and fledgling golfers alike, Blobman is a traces based, golf improvement aid which serves to encourage proper motion to better define and polish their stroke. It offers players three perspectives from which to develop an accurate, effective feel to accomplish a fundamentally sound golf swing. Version 2.0 offers a new AngleFinder feature.
• iWebTemplate, in cooperation with theme designer Adam Merrifield, has announced seyDoggy’s full line of RapidWeaver Themes. Perfect for click and mortar, website or online business, the new RapidWeaver Themes collection extends iWebTemplate’s position as a leading internet supplier of themes, templates, and other useful browser based tools. Some Themes are ExtraContent enabled, and feature many additional options not found in alternative themes.
• Audacious Software has announced Shion 2.0, an update to their home automation solution for Mac OS X. Designed for the typical end-user who seeks a powerful automation system, Shion is an innovative program that brings home automation technology to the everyday Mac user. Using commodity X10 and INSTEON devices, the new Shion user can begin controlling their apartment, home, or office in less than ten minutes.
• Synium Software has announced Screenium 1.2, the latest release of their popular screencapturing tool. Having introduced important under-the-hood improvements, version 1.2 further improves the user interface, making Screenium even easier to use. Screenium captures live video from your Mac’s screen, combined with several tracks of audio, including application sound, the built-in microphone or any external audio interface supported by OSX. Screenium 1.2 is a free update for existing customers.
• Macgamestore.com has announced the release of National Geographic’s Plan It Green for the Mac through its web site and digital download service, Mac Games Arcade. The game was created and published by Merscom. Plan It Green gives players the opportunity to plan a green city. As mayor of your hometown, with the promise of changing the old ways of the past, to bring about a new green future. You are working with close supporters to restore this town to former glory and beauty.
• XChange UK, the source for extended technology worldwide, along with fifteen popular software manufacturers, have announced a Summer Promotion that offers users 25% off eligible products from participating developer’s product ranges. The Promotion, which expires 31st July 2009, offers users the opportunity to purchase popular software solutions for a wide variety of workflow needs at 25% off the regular retail cost.
• Mobicip, an innovator of Internet child safety products for mobile devices, has announced Mobicip.com Premium, an easy to use web-base parental control service with four layers of protection that allows parents of children with iPhones, iPod Touches and Netbooks to track Internet usage and ensure they are protected from inappropriate content.
• An Event Apart will feature an all-star lineup of speakers, including Whitney Hess, a leading user experience design consultant and strategic partner with Happy Cog. Hess will explore techniques to help attendees find out who their users are, understand what they really need, and ensure that they are providing the right product for that audience. Hess highlights the best and worst experiences she finds in the virtual world, as well as the real world.

iPhone/iPod

• Use your iPhone or iPod Touch to keep track of your BAC (Blood Alcohol Content) while you’re drinking with the DrinkTracker personal breathalyser calculator app. Quickly and easily keep a record of what you’ve been drinking with the fully editable one-tap drinks list. Even add your own favourite drinks to the drinks list and sort it into any order you want.
• The Idiot Test 3 for iPhone and iPod touch is the third series of the popular flash game, The Idiot Test, made by Ryan Curtis. The very first version of the game was first released on the Internet back in 2006 and has since been played over millions of times. This original production of Ryan Curtis features close to a 100 tasks for you to complete, and, without a doubt, bring you hours of endless laughter between families, co-worker and friends who are playing together. Most importantly, it comes with a Facebook Connect add-on that allows you or anyone else who is playing it to easily publish the gameplay result onto their very own Facebook status message in their profile.
• Muli Mobile Ltd has announced the release of FlowerPedia 1.0, their innovative flower identification engine and encyclopedia for iPhone and iPod touch. FlowerPedia presents 1500 flower photos, organised by family and photo rating. View a slideshow of flowers like roses, lilies, orchids, hibiscus, tulips, daisies and many more. FlowerPedia features user ratings, encyclopedic information and a world-first flower identification wizard.
• Taito has released a new game to the iPhone App Store: WaterWays. The game was the winner of the Netherlands-Japan GameJam 2008 contest, and was developed by Rough Cookie, the studio behind Star Defense, recently unveiled at the WWDC.
• Toughturtle LLC announced at Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference the release of a new version of StockWatch, their popular financial iPhone and iPod Touch App. The new version comes with the free StockWatch Sync Service which will enable users to quickly and easily backup their Watchlist and Portfolio data. The ability to export will enable the user to restore their data in case of emergency or if they would like to share their data over multiple devices running StockWatch.
• One week after Apple’s announcement of the new iPhone 3G S, Pivotal has introduced a bold addition to the Podium lineup, aptly named Carbon for its deep black textured finish. Pivotal points out that in addition to Carbon’s compatibility with iPhone 3G S, it also has been made available to work with iPhone Original and iPhone 3G.