Beta 4 or 5A258f - call it as the coder inside you would, but Apple's fourth build for the iPhone SDK Beta rolled out today. It's reportedly coming out with a plethora of tools, samples, frameworks - some that were present in the previous builds. But most importantly, SDK Beta 4 updates the simulator formerly known as Aspen with Open GL ES support. Find out more on this update at the full story.

A new version has been released for NES.app, an emulator for the iPhone that lets you play games from the classic 8-bit Nintendo Entertainment System. Now on version 2.1.0, the program has several added features, including support for firmware 1.2 (also known as firmware 2.0), which hasn't even been released yet. Check out the full list of changes by following the "read more" link below.

Download: NES.app v2.1.0

Hopeful developers who want to make it big on Apple's mobile device platform should make it a point to check out the latest iPhone SDK beta 2 software released by the Cupertino-based company. The latest build features a host of new changes and additions for both the Xcode and Interface Builder software found in the package. Read more about the newly released build in our full article.

  

We don't know if you still remember the homebrew application Choice from last year. It was created by Xart and is a graphical user interface (GUI) for Fanjita's and Ditlew's groundbreaking eLoader at that time. Well, Xart is back and so is his pet project that has been made compatible with the custom OE firmware.

If you're not well familiar with this kind of stuff, take note that Choice has the following features: launch homebrew, organize homebrew, calculator, USB Connection, Duo Manager, and Lua launch. The program was developed in Xcode and was originally tested on Mac OS X.

Anyway, Xart mentioned that this is not yet the full release as he plans to add more features in the coming days. Despite that, we have to say that Choice is already looking good. Just take a look at its development history:

• Choice Preview 3 for PSP OE "homebrew, and usb"
• Pre-Alpha
• 1A008 BUILD
• PSP Alpha "only homebrew, usb, photo, and other enabled"
• 1A009 BUILD
• 1A010 BUILD Updated EBOOT.PBP file for 1A009
• 1A014 BUILD
• 1A020 BUILD
• 1A021 BUILD Support for HOMEBREW Folder, ms0:/PSP/HOMEBREW

Of course, what we provided in the download below is the latest version which is Choice 1A021 BUILD. To help you get started, Xart also provided a few backgrounds to be used with the application.

Download: Choice 1A021 BUILD
Download: Choice 1A021 BUILD backgrounds
Visit: QJ PSP Development forum

If you've gotten your hands on an Apple TV and want to customize it to fit your exact needs, then this will be good news for you. According to MacNN, an enterprising individual has released an Apple TV plug-in dev kit that could make things easier for all plug-in devs out there.

 

The BackRow Developers' Kit, which can be downloaded from alanquatermain.net, contains headers for BackRow framework, iPhotoAccess framework, and QuartzComposer frameworks. All of these are needed to run appliance plug-ins on the Apple TV as well as the BackRow Test application.

MacNN also notes that the SDK also includes an Xcode project template that has everything necessary to "start a custom appliance plug-in, creating the Info-plist with the required elements as well as Appliance and ApplianceController classes with links in the appropriate frameworks."

If you're new to all of this, a few BackRow programming tutorials can also be downloaded from the developer's website.

Over on our PSP Development forums, Xart has just announced that the Xgraphics part of XSDK is now ready and available. You can get your copy by clicking on the download link below.

According to Xart, XSDK is "a set of C++ Classes for compiling and testing code on a Mac PowerPC/Intel using Xcode" and was developed for the development of easyChoice. This app is in universal binary form so it can also be run on PowerPC and Intel-based Macs. When compiled for Mac, Xgraphics uses SDL to handle the graphics. When compiled for PSP, PSP display functions are used to handle graphics.

Xart also revealed that an improved version that'll include Data Array Scrambling is also in the works. That version is also slated to be released soon so keep an eye out for it. If you have any questions or suggestions, click on the "Visit" link below to discuss this release in QJ's PSP Development forums.

Download: XSDK Cross-Software Development Kit (Xgraphics part)
Visit: QJ's PSP Development forums

The Wiimote's done the PC, the PS3, and WoW. With that hit list covered, we're bringing you news of another gadget that's just been primed to do the Wiimote's utmost bidding -  the Roomba. Chris Hughes' released a guide for prospective mecha fans out there who'd like to get more out of their portable unmanned vacuum cleaner.

Chris wrote this Roomba mod using xcode, along with Tod's Perl script. For the guys who'd like to get into the nitty-gritty of how to pull of this interesting little mod, here's a list of what you'll need:

• MacBook/Pro
• 1 Roomba
• 1 WiiRemote
• Tod's perl script
  

As for the detailed instructions and codes, check out the README located in the bundle that you can check out and download in the read link. To the guys who think they've got the technical know-how to pull this one off, we wish you the best of luck. A Wiimote-controlled Roomba...all we need now's a couple of 20-mm cannons, a rocket launcher, and we've got an OCP winner here...

Xcode 2.4.1 - the latest version of Apple Computer's integrated development environment for Mac OS X - has been released. Xcode is a user-friendly app that contains all the tools necessary to create, debug, and optimize Universal applications for both Intel and PowerPC platforms.

This update features bugfixes for a number of issues found in previous versions of Xcode including:

• Stability and security fixes in the Xcode IDE, cctools, debugger, and compiler
• CHUD has been updated to version 4.4.3.
• The 10.3.9 and 10.4u SDKs have been updated

The full Xcode package is is bundled with Interface Builder, AppleScript Studio, Java development support, and WebObjects development tools, among many others. For the latest Xcode information see the Xcode updated release notes page. It is available free to ADC members.

For starters, Mac's new Office will be redesigned from the Windows version to do away with the ribbon system. That, and they're going to be rebuilding the Windows version to do it justice on the Mac.

According to APC Magazine, the Mac version of Microsoft's Office Suite will be made to work more in sync with the OS, with designers rebuilding the program as a Universal-Binary app. At the same time, they're adding in the XML file format for this version of Mac Office to be more compatible with Windows users. They're already at the halfway point for rewriting the code into Apple's XCode, and while the transition isn't over, it's a big relief for the developers to hit the halfway mark.

Regarding the Ribbon redesign for Office, Mary Starman of Microsoft's Macintosh Business Unit (MacBU) says that the redesign for the Mac will include a reworking of the Ribbon system implemented in the Windows version. As she mentions to APC, the redesign will not be exactly that of Office 2007.

"Apple has got their own very specific set of user interface guidelines and we try to first and foremost to follow those guidelines. If we can innovate on top of that and do some interesting things to make sure that the interface is really discoverable for the Mac user, then we’ll look at doing that. We can get some ideas (from the ribbon) but it still has to fit within Apple’s UI guideline, that’s what a Mac user wants to see."

They'll be doing a lot of testing to ensure the product will be in tip-top shape, but they're optimistic that they'll get the job done well. Let's hope Microsoft's Mac developers can please everyone with their Office redesign.

In 1995 I purchased a first-generation Apple Power PC 8100. At the time, I worked mostly with music and graphic files, and was certain that the 750 MB hard drive would serve me well for many years...

Today, I have a G4 Graphite model with two hard drives - the original 20 GB and an additional 80 GB. And they are fillin' up fast!

Now, a full hard drive isn't necessarily a bad thing... it means you've been happy and productive. You should be proud of yourself. On the other hand, files of all kinds are not getting any smaller, and frankly, its a pain offloading everything to zip drives and other media - or having to buy a new HD at a moment's notice.

We've rounded up eleven ways for you to give your hard drive a break, check them out in the Full Article!