Mac Games and More The Blog

From ifoapple:

The 2008 Olympic Summer Games in Beijing (China) have taken years of preparation, including the planning and construction of an Apple store to open before the August 8th opening ceremonies. Now the location of the store has been revealed: Qianmen Street, an historic half-mile long avenue at the south end of Tiananmen Square that is undergoing an extensive $40 million renovation. Construction is underway to improve the utilities, repave the street with green and white marble, restore building façades to their 1920-1930 appearance, re-introduce a tram and rebuild the existing Opera House. When the street re-opens in May, it will be the second pedestrian-only shopping street in the city, and will feature 300 shops filling over 800,000 square-feet, including several international retailers such as Starbucks and Addidas. According to architecture sources, Apple’s store will blend in with the Chinese architecture rather than use its standard storefront designs.

I’m sorry. I know it’s Monday and it’s the last thing you’d like to discuss but the harsh realities of life…well, must be faced head on. Try not to hate me too much.

It’s the beginning of February and you may think you have oh-so-much time to think about filing your 2007 taxes. Next thing you know, and it seems like you have a more time…but you don’t…then,…DOH! They’re due TOMORROW! It’s scramble time, which is no fun. I know!

Here’s something that can help you do your taxes easily for personal finances and business finances. Use Mac tax software! I mean, does ANYONE do it by hand anymore? If so, stop that then use something like:

TurboTax Home & Business Federal + State – for Mac – It’s everything you need for both personal and small business returns. It guides you step-by-step and checks for errors asking you question in plain English then puts your answers on IRS- and state-approved forms, double checks your return for errors, and then alerts you to audit risks to help you reduce your chance of an audit. Ideal for Schedule C businesses, sole proprietors, self-employed, consultants and contractors, and single-owner LLCs. TurboTax Federal + State Home & Business also includes everything in TurboTax Premier.

Turbo Tax Premier Federal and State – for Mac – guides you through your tax return, with simple-to-understand questions to help you finish and file your taxes. Find over 350 deductions, accurately value your investments, and account for life changes like retirement in order to get the largest tax refunds possible, guaranteed. If you need help, you can get advice from the Live Community with millions of taxpayers and experts ready to answer your questions.

I just posted this week’s picks. Since Valentine’s Day is right around the corner and you only have a couple of days to decide what you’ll get your sweetheart, I’ve suggested some things. Here it is: Valentine Gift Ideas for Mac People.

FYI: There’s a separate RSS Feed for the week’s picks, which I usually post on Sundays. Here’s the RSS Feed for that: Mac Games and More Weekly Picks (RSS Feed)

From infoweek:
“Apple has launched a subsection of its site that offers dozens of how-to videos to try to sway Windows users and to help new Mac customers get started.
Called “Find out how,” the site offers video on the use of the Mac OS X and separate sections on how to create and manage photos, movies, Web content, music and documents. For Windows users thinking of taking the plunge, the site offers video on how to move data from a Windows PC to a Mac.

The videos are short, lasting only a few minutes at most. Along with the videos, the site offers text tutorials in all the categories. In the “move to Mac” video, Apple first tells visitors that workers at an Apple store will move data from a PC to a Mac for them. It also gives instructions on how to move data from an external hard drive to the Mac.

Other videos include how to run Windows on the Mac using Apple Boot Camp. It also suggests buying virtualization software from Parallels or VMware, if the Mac user wants to be able to run simultaneously separate windows for each OS. Boot Camp requires the Mac to be restarted when switching from Windows back to OS X.

People who want to take the videos with them can download them to Apple iTunes. From there, the files can be transferred to an iPhone, iPod, or Apple TV.

The launch date of the site was not listed, but it appears to be fairly new. Apple is currently on a roll in selling the Mac. The company last week reported shipping 44% more Mac computers during the fiscal first quarter ended Dec. 29 than in the same period in 2006. In shipping 2.3 million Macs during the quarter, the company took in 47% more revenue than the year before.”

Here’s the link of the “How to” site for new Mac users: Apple

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