June 2006 - apple-list - University of Manitoba Mailing Lists

INTEREST: Apple technology brings World Cup updates to millions
by billing 26 Jun '06

26 Jun '06

...from: http://www.macworld.com/news/2006/06/22/worldcup/index.php? lsrc=mwweek-0626 June 22, 2006 4:56 pm ET MacCentral By Jim Dalrymple Chances are if you’re watching highlights from the FIFA World Cup matches on television, you are seeing Apple technology hard at work. Highlights from the world’s most popular sport are being prepared using multiple Apple products and technologies. The biggest of the television networks using Apple products is the Host Broadcast Service (HBS), which is a collection of production groups brought together specifically for the 2006 World Cup. From its master control center to the dozens of cameras at each match, the production team is responsible for everything from managing the feeds coming back to the Munich headquarters to quickly delivering highlights to mobile phones within minutes of the action happening on the field. The HBS delivers its highlight clips to 50 networks around the world as the games are happening. To accomplish this the group is using four Power Mac G5s, PictureReady software and AJA Kona cards to DVCPRO HD 1080i50. The feeds from the games are recorded into a 20TB Apple Xsan. A total of three Final Cut Pro systems monitor the games currently being played and recorded—if the production team sees something highlight worthy, a 15-second clip is immediately edited and exported through QuickTime. These clips are then made available to its network subscribers. The Japanese television station NHK is also using Apple technology to produce its HD World Cup coverage. Using the same setup it used to broadcast the Torino Olympics, NHK is using five Power Mac G5s and PictureReady. The five feeds are recorded at at DVCProHD 1080i50 directly to a 36TB Xsan system. One Power Mac is being used with Final Cut Pro to create broadcast pieces and a second machine packages the content ready for broadcast. Finally, the second largest Mexican broadcaster, TV Azteca has adopted a slightly different approach using five MacBook Pros with Matrox MXOs and HDV footage to deliver packages from venues around Germany. Editors for TV Azteca shoot on location, edit the content in Final Cut Pro and then connect the Matrox MXO to an SDI or HDSDI satellite link that will send their final edit from the field to the TV Azteca operations center. The final step is when the operators output their HD sequence to their local VTR for archival and future HD broadcasting

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FYI: quick over view of Parallels - allows Windows or Linux to be run under OS X
by billing 22 Jun '06

22 Jun '06

...from: http://www.macworld.com/news/2006/06/15/parallels/index.php? lsrc=mwweek-0619 June 15, 2006 10:19 am ET Parallels Desktop released for Intel Macs By Peter Cohen Parallels on Thursday announced the release of Parallels Desktop, its "virtualization" software for Intel Macs that enables them to run Windows and other operating systems while continuing to operate Mac OS X simultaneously. Parallels Desktop's full retail price is $79.99, though the company is offering the software for $49.99 for the next thirty days. Unlike Boot Camp, Parallels Desktop doesn't require Intel Mac users to restart their computers to run. And unlike PC emulation software, Parallels Desktop utilizes virtualization hardware on the Intel chip to run faster than you can using emulation -- at what the developers call "near native" speeds. Parallels Desktop allows you to run many different operating systems besides Windows XP [BootCamp officially supports only Windows XP Service Pack 2 and no flavours of Linux]. You can install earlier versions of Windows, for example, Linux, FreeBSD, Solaris, OS/2 and more. You can run several virtual machines at once; expand them to full-screen size, and cut and paste between Windows and Mac OS X. Parallels Desktop also includes Parallels Compressor, which compresses the space used on your Mac's hard disk for Windows. Compressor can shrink that virtual machine hard drive size by up to 50 percent or more. It's offered in Parallels' products for other platforms for $179.99, and is included for free with Parallels Desktop.

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Fwd: Upcoming Courses in Winnipeg
by Doug Hamilton 19 Jun '06

19 Jun '06

Hello, I thought that some of the members of this group would be interested in these courses (see below). Regards, Doug ------------- Doug Hamilton, BA, MA, APP Senior Computer Consultant Computers-on-Campus; Univ. of Manitoba 204-474-6196 (Ph.) 204-474-7556 (Fax) http://www.umanitoba.ca/bookstore/ Begin forwarded message: > Subject: Fwd: Upcoming Courses in Winnipeg > > Hi Everyone, > Just a reminder, we are getting closer to the following training > courses happening here in Winnipeg for the Prairie Region and > Winnipeg area for you and your staff to attend over the Summer Break. > > Below is the course information and assessment guides, along with > pricing and location of the training. > Please take a moment to read about the current training offerings > and think about who in your staff may benefit from this quality > training. > Seating is limited and we are filling up fast, so if you are > interested in attending or would like someone from your staff to > attend, please register for the courses online or by phone > (1-800-848-6398) ASAP. > > Please see below for more information, there are 3 courses being > offered: > > 1. Mac OS X Support Essentials > 2. Mac OS X Deployment > 3. Security Best Practices > > Please feel free to forward this information on to anyone that you > feel maybe interested in attending this event. > > I look forward to seeing you all there > > > ______________________________________ > > Mac OS X Support Essentials > ______________________________________ > > > is a three-day, hands-on course that provides an intensive and in- > depth exploration of troubleshooting on Mac OS X. This course is > designed to give you a tour of the breadth of functionality of Mac > OS X and the best methods for effectively supporting users of Mac > OS X systems. The course is a combination of lectures and hands-on > case study exercises that provide practical real-world experience. > > Who should attend? > ___________________ > > This class is for help desk specialists, technical coordinators, > service technicians, and others who support Mac OS X customers. > This audience could include technical support personnel in > businesses that use Mac OS X systems for general productivity or > creative design, service technicians who support Mac OS X > customers, and technical coordinators or power users who manage > networks of Mac OS X systems for their organization — such as > teachers and technology specialists who manage classroom networks > or computer labs. > > > What you will learn > __________________ > > Students learn how to set up and configure stand-alone Mac OS X > workstations to access network-based services > > > Prerequisites > _____________ > > Students should have the following prerequisite knowledge prior to > attending this course: > Basic Mac OS X knowledge > Basic troubleshooting experience > > Recommended Next Steps > > Demonstrate your knowledge by taking the Mac OS X Support > Essentials v10.4 exam (9L0-401) — US$150. > > The exam covers a practical knowledge of the features of Mac OS X > v10.3 and the basics of managing Mac OS X client systems running > Mac OS X v10.4. For specific exam objectives, see the Skills > Assessment Guide for the Mac OS X Support Essentials v10.4 exam. To > familiarize yourself with the type of questions asked in the exam, > see the Sample Test. The Apple Certified Help Desk Specialist > (ACHDS) v10.4 certification is granted on successful completion of > this exam. > > To register for the exam, call Prometric toll-free at 888-APL-EXAM > (888-275-3926) or register online at 2test.com. You are required to > have an Apple Tech ID number before registering for any Apple exam. > You can apply for a Tech ID by following the instructions at > certifications.apple.com. > > How to pay > ___________ > > Mac OS X Support Essentials v10.4 - > Business $1800 > Education $1620 or 3 Training Units > Course prices listed do not include applicable taxes. Courses are > subject to GST. > Payment instructions are available at: > http://www.apple.com/ca/training or call 1-800-848-6398. > > > Course Date: June 28-30, 2006 > > Location: Red River Community College > 160 Princess Street, Winnipeg, MB > > Register now! > _____________ > > Seating is limited; reserve your seat today. To register, visit: > http://www.apple.com/ca/training or call 1-800-848-6398. > > > > > ______________________________________ > > Security Best Practices > ______________________________________ > > The three-day Security Best Practices course provides system and > security administrators with the knowledge and tools necessary to > secure Mac OS X and Mac OS X Server against local and network > attacks. Solutions covered in the class include Mac OS X specific > features as well as third party tools for monitoring and analysis. > Students will design a security policy template in class to be used > as a starting point for their IT security decisions. This course is > a combination of lecture and hands-on case study exercises that > provide practical real-world experience. > > Who should attend? > ___________________ > This class is for anyone responsible for administering Mac OS X > computers or servers, and providing the proactive security measures > necessary for the integrity and confidentiality of all computer > systems and their data. Some understanding of file systems, > directory services, and networking is necessary. Command-line > options for graphical utilities are covered, so a familiarity with > terminal is also desired. > > > Training Units (http://www.apple.com/ca/training/units/) > > Register for this course by redeeming 3 Apple Training Units, or we > can bring the training to you for 36 Training Units. > > > What you will learn > ___________________ > > • To identify security needs and implement appropriately secure > Mac OS X computers > • How to configure Mac OS X Server Open Directory Masters to > provide secure authentication for an organization’s particular > clients > • How to protect Mac OS X Server Mail and Web services > • How to implement specific security configurations for mobile > computers > • How to audit security using Apple’s Common Criteria auditing > tools > • How to publish and maintain security policies > > > Prerequisites > _____________ > > Students should have the following prerequisite knowledge prior to > attending this course: > > • Experience with LDAP-based directory services > • Completion of Mac OS X Directory Services Administration and > Integration v10.4 (Client/Server) or equivalent knowledge > • Network and Internet topical knowledge > > > Recommended Next Steps > __________________________ > > The Security Best Practices v10.4 Exam (9L0-612) covers the > knowledge necessary to secure Mac OS X and Mac OS X Server against > local and network attacks. Solutions include using Mac OS X > specific features as well as third-party tools for monitoring and > analysis. Successful completion of this exam earns Security Best > Practices for Mac OS X 10.4 certification and also earns 3 credits > toward Apple Certified System Administrator (ACSA) certification. > For specific exam objectives, see the Skills Assessment Guide for > the Security Best Practices for Mac OS X v10.4 Exam. To familiarize > yourself with the type of questions asked in the exam, see the > Sample Test. > > To register for the exam, call Prometric toll-free at 888-APL-EXAM > (888-275-3926) or register online at 2test.com. You are required to > have an Apple Tech ID number before registering for any Apple exam. > You can apply for a Tech ID by following the instructions at > certifications.apple.com. > > > How to pay > ___________ > > Security Best Practices for Mac OS X v10.4 > $1800.00 Business > $1620 for Education customers or 3 Training Units > Course prices listed do not include applicable taxes. Courses are > subject to GST. > Payment instructions are available at: > http://www.apple.com/ca/training or call 1-800-848-6398. > > Course Date: August 2-4, 2006 > > Location: Red River Community College > 160 Princess Street, Winnipeg, MB > > > > Register now! > _____________ > > Seating is limited; reserve your seat today. To register, visit: > http://www.apple.com/ca/training or call 1-800-848-6398. > > > > ______________________________________ > > Mac OS X Deployment > ______________________________________ > > The Mac OS X Deployment course is designed for system > administrators who need to streamline the process of installing and > configuring Mac OS X on large numbers of computers. Hands-on labs > and lectures expose students to best practices and troubleshooting > methodologies, while providing detailed coverage of tools, tips, > and tricks for deploying and maintaining software on Mac OS X systems. > > Who should attend? > ___________________ > This class is for Mac OS X system administrators who are tasked > with installing and configuring a large number of computers running > Mac OS X. > > Training Units (http://www.apple.com/ca/training/units/) > Register for this course by redeeming 2 Apple Training Units, or we > can bring training to you for 24 Training Units. > > > What you will learn > ___________________ > > • Best practices for deploying Mac OS X > • How to create and script custom installation packages > • Effective use of various delivery methods for images and packages > • Testing and troubleshooting methodologies for images and packages > > Prerequisites > _____________ > > Students should have the following prerequisite knowledge prior to > attending this course: > > • Understanding of Mac OS X > • Experience with Mac OS X in a network environment > • Basic troubleshooting experience or Mac OS X Support Essentials > v10.4 > • Experience in shell scripting with a command-line editor, such > as vi > > > Recommended Next Steps > __________________________ > > Demonstrate your knowledge by taking the Mac OS X Deployment v10.4 > exam (9L0-609)—US$150. > > The exam covers the knowledge necessary to streamline the > installation and configuration of Mac OS X on large numbers of > computers, and to maintain software deployments on Mac OS X > systems. For specific exam objectives, see the Skills Assessment > Guide for the Mac OS X Deployment v10.4 Exam. > > Successful completion of the Mac OS X Deployment v10.4 exam > contributes 2 credits towards Apple Certified System Administrator > (ACSA) v10.4 certification. > > To register for the exam, call Prometric toll-free at 888-APL-EXAM > (888-275-3926) or register online at 2test.com. You are required to > have an Apple Tech ID number before registering for any Apple exam. > You can apply for a Tech ID by following the instructions at > certifications.apple.com. > > > How to pay > ___________ > > Mac OS X Deployment v10.4 - > Business $1200.00 > Education $1080 or 2 Training Units > Course prices listed do not include applicable taxes. Courses are > subject to GST. > Payment instructions are available at: > http://www.apple.com/ca/training or call 1-800-848-6398. > > > Course Date: July 31- August 1, 2006 > > Location: Red River Community College > 160 Princess Street, Winnipeg, MB > > > Register now! > _____________ > > Seating is limited; reserve your seat today. To register, visit: > http://www.apple.com/ca/training or call 1-800-848-6398. > >

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Parallels Desktop released for Intel Macs
by Doug Hamilton 15 Jun '06

15 Jun '06

Hi Everyone: Parallels has just officially released their first retail version (ie. NOT a beta or RC) of their "Desktop" product which in their words: "... gives Apple users the ability to run Windows, Linux or any other operating system and their critical applications at the same time as Mac OS X on any Intel-powered iMac, Mac Mini, MacBook or MacBook Pro. ... Run any OS at the Same Time as Mac OS X" At present, this product is only available from the publisher (www.parallels.com) and is not shipping through retail channels. There is a promotional price for the next 30-Days of only $49.99-USD, regular retail will be $79.99-USD. Please keep in mind you'll still need to purchase MS-Windows (if that's the operating system you're intended to run), as Parallels doesn't include any operating system. Should you require pricing on MS-Windows XP Pro or Home O.E.M. versions, please contact me. Regards, Doug ------------- Doug Hamilton, BA, MA, APP Senior Computer Consultant Computers-on-Campus; Univ. of Manitoba 204-474-6196 (Ph.) 204-474-7556 (Fax) http://www.umanitoba.ca/bookstore/

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FYI: need to connect to Windows XP or Windows Terminal Server?
by billing 08 Jun '06

08 Jun '06

The newer versions of Microsoft Windows include a capability called "Remote Desktop" which allows you to connect to your Windows desktop from a remote computer - including from your Macintosh running OS X. The client on the Macintosh is called "Microsoft's Remote Desktop Connection" and it also allows you to easily copy files between your Macintosh and Windows machines over a network connection. To connect to a Windows-based computer, you need network access and permission to connect to the computer. In addition, the Windows-based computer must be running Terminal Services or Remote Desktop Services. The following Windows products support Remote Desktop connections: - Windows XP Professional - Windows Server 2003 - Windows 2000 Server - Windows 2000 Advanced Server - Windows 2000 Datacenter Server - Windows NT Server 4.0, Terminal Server Edition For more information on the Remote Desktop connection procedure or instructions on how to copy files between your machines, please see: http://www.microsoft.com/mac/otherproducts/otherproducts.aspx? pid=remotedesktopclient

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Apple Storage Seminar - Brief Summary
by Doug Hamilton 08 Jun '06

08 Jun '06

I attended the Apple Storage Seminar today, it was well attended. Topics that were covered included: -Methods for storage provisioning -Types of storage solutions for small and medium enterprise -Implementation of zero down time solutions and minimizing single points of failure. Interesting items of note about the Xserve RAID: -Some configurations of Apple Xserve RAID are pre-configured as RAID-5. Thus for some installations, it can be connected and in use in the amount of time it takes you to pull the equipment of the box, put it into the rack and connect the cables. -The Xserve RAID is able to internally format its drives faster than 2Gb Fibre Channel can feed the drives with data. Therefore, it is possible to configure the RAID in the manner your installation requires and start using the RAID in about two minutes after sending the build request via your favourite SAN software. As opposed to waiting the 36 hours it will actually take to fully build the RAID. -The Xserve RAID, when connected via a serial cable to a UPS, will stop using and clear its RAID Controller Cache automatically when its detects that the RAID is being powered off the UPS. This will omit one possible source of data corruption due to power loss. -If the Xserve RAID isn't connected to a UPS but is configured with a Cache Battery Back-up, the battery backup is rated to provide power to the Controller Cache for up to 72 hours. Product links: http://www.apple.com/xserve/raid/ http://www.apple.com/xserve/raid/certifications.html http://www.apple.com/xsan/ http://www.apple.com/xsan/compatibility.html If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. Regards, Doug ------------- Doug Hamilton, BA, MA, APP Senior Computer Consultant Computers-on-Campus; Univ. of Manitoba 204-474-6196 (Ph.) 204-474-7556 (Fax) http://www.umanitoba.ca/bookstore/

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INTEREST: how at risk is your personal data?
by billing 02 Jun '06

02 Jun '06

Many of the security breaches exposing personal information stored on computers happen in the United States - at least that's how it seems from media reports. The most recent of these reports being of the possible exposure of the information for over 25,000,000 American veterans who were discharged since 1975 including names, Social Security numbers and dates of birth which were stolen from a VA employee's home. Here's a quick overview of this month's "State of the Exposure"...... ...from: http://www.privacyrights.org/ar/ChronDataBreaches.htm A list of security breaches exposing individual's information starting with the ChoicePoint incident near the beginning of 2005: The data breaches noted [on this page] have been reported because the personal information compromised includes data elements useful to identity thieves, such as Social Security numbers, account numbers, and driver's license numbers. A few breaches that do NOT expose such sensitive information have been included in order to underscore the variety and frequency of data breaches. However, we have not included the number of individuals affected in such breaches in the total because we want this compilation to reflect breaches that expose individuals to identity theft as well as breaches that qualify for disclosure under state laws. [...] May 22, 2006 Dept. of Veterans Affairs (Washington, DC) Data of all (26,500,000) American veterans who were discharged since 1975 including names, Social Security numbers and dates of birth was stolen from a VA employee's home. The employee was not authorized to take the files home to work on a data collation project. The data did not contain medical or financial information, but may have disability numerical rankings. ================= ...from: http://blogs.zdnet.com/Ou/index.php?p=238 June 1, 2006 300+ Bank homepages hacked and redirected Posted by George Ou @ 12:11 am Goldleaf Technologies, a unit of Goldleaf Financial Solutions, Inc. which provides homepage services for financial institutions and banks had one of its servers hacked last Thursda, May 25th. I was initially alerted to this by a concerned customer who received an email notice from his bank that ALL customer passwords had been reset to their default password. Several news outlets covered the story by merely posting the Goldleaf official press release verbatim which characterized the breach as a "phishing incident" so the details were initially murky. The AP Wire was one of the few that characterized the incident as a security breach and were quoted by a Goldleaf spokesperson that 150 to 175 sites were affected. When I asked Goldleaf's spokesperson, he characterized the AP information as wrong and told me that a little more than half of the 600 hosted bank sites were modified to redirect traffic which puts the total number of Banks affected at over 300. The homepages of those banks were modified so that they would direct all online banking traffic to a malicious site in Madrid Spain to collect login credentials from unsuspecting customers. [...] In Goldleaf's defense, their security administrators noticed and stopped the malicious activity within 90 minutes of the initial compromise and they immediately notified the authorities and all of the banks that they were hosting. [...] ================ ...from: http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=3128&tag=nl.e622 June 1, 2006 Massive, under-reported online banking breach raises serious disclosure and remedy questions Posted by David Berlind @ 11:57 am [...] The disclosure that has so far followed leaves much to be desired. According to a press release from GoldLeaf (one that was regurgitated word-for-word by news outlets such as Forbes under the heading of news and analysis): Goldleaf Chief Executive Officer, Lynn Boggs, said, "We have identified and corrected the problem. We have fully restored our Web site, remote deposit and ACH services. In addition to contacting our customers, we have communicated with our vendor partners, regulators and law enforcement authorities. We are fully operational and will remain diligent in our security efforts." What exactly was communicated isn't known. What we do know is that most of the information that has so far been made public is at best misleading and at worst, wreaks of spin control. The problem starts with the press release's headline which reads Goldleaf Technologies Responds to Phishing Attempt. That's an interesting choice of words to describe what happened here. If it was a phishing attempt, Goldleaf could easily escape any blame by deferring some of it to insecure client software (emails, browsers, etc.) and the rest to a lack of best practices on the end user's behalf. Phishing is a form of email-based social engineering that dupes users into clicking on links (in email) that they wouldn't otherwise click on. eBay is a frequent target of phishers. Even when such phishing attempts are successful, it's hardly eBay's fault. Neither email nor phishing played a role in this exploit. End users were not social engineered. They entered their credentials as they normally would, into Web pages that were served from the domains they should have been served from. At the very least, Goldleaf needs to redisclose so that (a) it's absolutely clear that it's services were hacked and (b) phishing played no role in this attack. [...] Some banks, the ones we know of, notified their customers by both regular mail and email. First State Bank, one of the affected banks, sent two separate notices. The first one, signed by First State E- Banking offficer Christa Walton, has the audacity to include a link that points people to a remedy Web page that isn't even within First State's domain: an absolute no-no that is exactly the same trick used by phishers. Says that first email: …..In an effort to ensure that all customers are aware, this same communication was mailed via US Postal Service. If, at receipt of this mailed communication, you have already obtained access to your accounts through our new Online Banking site, located at <URL masked by ZDNet>, there is no need to take any further action….. [...] ...a second mailing reads: ...On Thursday, May 25, 2006, First State Bank became aware of an apparent attempt by an unauthorized party to gain access to our third- party website host and thus to our Online Banking site……Although there is no current evidence that customers information has been accessed, this incident may have increased the probability of your information being used for fraudulent purposes……Your Online Banking password has been defaulted back to your original password; when you established your Online Banking service….you may not have access to your original login information, First State Bank has established a help center that you may contact at 1-800-527-6335 or by email at info@first-state.net…..A temporary Online Banking login website has been established at <URL masked by ZDNet>. This temporary site is safe…… ===================== ...from: http://www.wired.com/news/politics/privacy/0,70804-0.html Microsoft Is Pushing for Privacy? By Kevin Poulsen| Also by this reporter 12:30 PM May, 03, 2006 [...] "The states have enacted a flurry of legislation [for privacy legislation], a flurry of action," said Daniel Solove, an associate professor at the George Washington University Law School. "Industry is scared because the states are actually doing something." The main prong of the state approach was pioneered by California's anti-identity-theft statute, SB1386, which requires companies to warn consumers of a data breach in which their information "is reasonably believed to have been acquired by an unauthorized person." Microsoft prefers that customers be notified only when a company determines there's a "reasonable risk of a material harm happening to a consumer," said Hintze. "If the trigger is too low ... people will get notice fatigue. People will get notices all the time." Solove argues that regardless of the language, codifying an inflexible federal standard that overpowers any state laws would be bad for consumers. "I think we're going to see a kind of net loss for privacy protection." [...]

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