ByMike Moffit

Grace gave me an advance 60th birthday present just before I left for Macworld. She is taking me to Tanzania to see hippos in the wild. After watching the keynote with the new version of iMovie, we have decided to bring along a digicam, too!

Our friend Chet Newbold from Olympus is going to loan me one of their ultra zoom cameras, too, so I hope to bring back some great photos and video from this trip. I am so excited about fulfilling this dream and spending my 60th birthday in Africa!

I think we are going to see a lot of new products coming out of Apple this year. When they are ready on schedule, I am much more optimistic than most about 2009. I think that Apple is well-suited to innovate its way through this economic downturn.

Thank you so much for reading this issue of Kibbles & Bytes!

Your Kibbles & Bytes Team
Don, Kali & Ed

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  • iWork '09: Numbers

    Noted features:

    * Easily create formulas, using *visual placeholders with plain language text.*
    * Perform calculations using *over 250 functions.*
    * Organize your data instantly using *Table Categories.*
    * Check your calculations at a glance with *Formula List view.*
    * Create two-axis charts and combine line, column, and area series in a single mixed chart.
    * Choose from *twelve new Apple-designed templates* (30 total).
    * *Open, save, and email Microsoft Excel files* from within Numbers.

  • iWork '09: Keynote

    Featured updates:

    * Easily create sophisticated animations with *Magic Move.*
    * Add dramatic object and text transitions using *new visual effects.*
    * Visualize your data with *new styles and animations* for 3D charts.
    * Dramatically *reduce file size* without compromising quality.
    * Create dynamic flowcharts and diagrams using *connection lines.*
    * Choose from *eight new Apple-designed themes* (44 total).
    * *Open, save, and email Microsoft PowerPoint files* from within Keynote.

  • iLife '09 Update: iPhoto

    iPhoto has gotten many updates in the iLife ’09 edition. iPhoto is arguably the most-used application in the iLife suite, behind iTunes.

    For starters, there are now three ways to sort your photos:

    * Events
    * Faces
    * Places

    Events was a new way to view and sort photos with the last iLife release, but both Faces and Places are new.

    Faces relies on face recognition, and assists in tagging photos. Amazingly, it will find a face and ask in other photos if it is the same person… I guess we’ll see! There’s also integration with Facebook and Flickr.

    Places works with Google Maps to zoom in on a location. It uses latitude and longitude, and will automatically add a location to your photos. This is great because you’ll be able to ‘geotag’ your entire set of photos. Phil uses the example of “Yosemite” in that if you have just taken a vacation there, it will geotag all of your photos from the trip!

    I’m really excited to check iPhoto ’09 out, especially the tagging and face recognition features. As Don mused, “will it be able to recognize dog’s faces, too?” Unfortunately, apparently not, but we’ll be reporting more on iPhoto’s features in future issues of Kibbles & Bytes!

    “Learn more and pre-order iLife ’09 here.”:http://www.smalldog.com/product/72885

  • iWork '09: New Features

    Some big changes were announced to the iWork suite of productivity applications at Macworld on Tuesday. Like iWork ’08, iWork ’09 includes Pages, Keynote and Numbers. Integration and sharing have been vastly improved across the suite, and it still offers excellent Microsoft Office compatibility.

    The addition of iWork.com is huge. Much like Google Docs, you will be able to collaborate on projects by accessing your files online. Apple has not launched this yet in its full form, but it is available as a public beta once you have purchased iWork ’09.

    In the following articles, you’ll find an overview of the highlighted new features. The Single User edition is available for $79.99 and Family Pack is available for $99.99. *Note that iWork ’09 includes all three applications which are not available for purchase separately.*

    iWork ’09 will ship in the next week or so; reserve your copy below:

    Single User Edition:
    http://www.smalldog.com/product/72887

    Family Pack:
    http://www.smalldog.com/product/72888

    “Read our full coverage of Macworld 2009 on our blog.”:http://blog.smalldog.com

  • iLife '09 New Features and Mac Box Set

    Get the most out of the photos, movies, and music on your Mac with the latest versions of iPhoto, iMovie, GarageBand, iWeb, and iDVD! It has lots of new features, which we’ll highlight below. *Note that iLife ’09 includes all five applications which are not available for purchase separately.*

    On a related note, the Mac Box Set was announced as well: this is one package that includes Mac OS X Leopard, iLife ’09 and iWork ’09 for $169.99 (You’ll save over $100; Leopard alone is $129.99!) Also available in Family Pack: $229.99

    This will ship late this month; reserve your copy below!

    Single User Edition:
    http://www.smalldog.com/product/72889

    Family Pack:
    http://www.smalldog.com/product/72890