Apple Computer Inc

If you're going to gamble, be bold. Last week, in announcing the iMac--Apple's new all-in-one computer for the home and education markets--interim Chief Executive Steve Jobs lived that principle. After ignoring the home market for a couple of years, the Mac is back with a vengeance. The iMac boasts ample power, great features, competitive pricing and a radically new look--curvy, translucent, blue and white.

Have you switched to Mac OS X? Although the older OS 9 remains a better choice for many types of users, OS X is becoming more viable every day. How can you tell whether OS X is for you? Start by determining whether the programs you need are available in native OS X form. Here's an end-of-year report card that grades how well OS X addresses each major program category. Business: B. When Microsoft's Office v.

Last summer, Hewlett-Packard Co. found itself in an awkward position for a premier computer company: It hadn't fielded a single candidate in the fast-growing market of digital music players. HP had gone through numerous music player designs and had built several prototypes to show to focus groups around the country. But people kept saying they preferred the celebrated iPod from Apple Computer Inc. Tom Anderson, HP's vice president of marketing for consumer PCs, couldn't say he was surprised.

Spies. International intrigue. High-tech gadgets. Secret informers. It must be time for Macworld, the annual gathering of the Apple clan in San Francisco. The trade show, beginning today at Moscone Center, is where the innovative computer company traditionally announces its new products. In part because Apple Computer Inc.

Apple Computer's new software operating system for the Macintosh computer, introduced with great fanfare at a conference here Monday, was greeted with enthusiasm by analysts and software developers who said Microsoft and the rest of the International Business Machines-compatible personal computer world would now be playing catch-up. The new software, dubbed System 7, has been in the works for three years and is being released a year later than originally promised.

Apple Computer said Tuesday that it expects slowing sales rates and declining profits for the current quarter, providing yet more evidence of the weakening U.S. computer market. The surprise announcement, coming just two weeks after a top Apple executive said the personal computer maker expected robust sales growth worldwide, sent shares of the company's stock tumbling amid heavy trading. Apple's stock, the most actively traded on the over-the-counter market Tuesday, fell $3.

In a startling turn of events that indicates the company's escalating problems, Apple Computer Inc.'s respected chief financial officer has resigned after telling the board of directors that Apple's future as an independent company is bleak. In a prepared statement released by the company Wednesday, Apple said that Joseph Graziano would leave his job by year's end "due to differences" with Chief Executive Michael Spindler. Graziano relinquished his board seat at Tuesday's directors meeting.

Bowing to slack demand for one of its most innovative machines, Apple Computer on Tuesday pulled the plug on the year-old Power Mac G4 Cube, suspending production indefinitely. The visually stunning 8-inch machine, packaged in a translucent white case, looked more like a sculpture than a personal computer, but reviewers found too much that had been sacrificed in the name of sleekness. The machine turned itself on and off when touched at the top, which often happened by accident.

Apple Computer Inc. has filed to trademark the phrase "Mobile Me" for use in a wide range of businesses, furthering speculation that it could introduce an iPod phone. Apple made the filing with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on Jan. 5. The areas that the trademark covers include computing devices, mobile devices and mobile services such as music, video, games, e-mail and messaging across the Internet, intranets, extranets, and television, cellular and satellite networks, the filing shows.

Best Buy Co. said it was testing the possibility of selling Apple Computer Inc.'s full line of computers in its stores.

Apple Inc. said Tuesday that it would sell the iPhone in Britain with mobile-service provider O2, the first step by Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs to capture a share of the wireless-phone market outside the U.S. The 8-gigabyte handset will go on sale in Britain on Nov. 9 for 269 pounds ($536), Jobs said in London. O2 is owned by Madrid-based Telefonica, Europe's second-largest telephone company. Jobs slashed the iPhone's price in the U.S.

Computer maker Apple Inc. and German automaker Volkswagen are discussing the possibility of building an "iCar" that would feature products by the producer of the ubiquitous iPod personal music player. Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs and Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn met several days ago in California and plan to meet for further discussions, said Hans-Gerd Bode, a spokesman for VW. There are "scores of ideas" but few concrete plans at this point, Bode said.

In a first peek behind the iPhone launch, AT&T Inc. said Tuesday that it had activated 146,000 of the handsets in the first two days of sales, which coincided with the last two days of its second quarter. Analysts had estimated that 200,000 to 500,000 of the highly anticipated Apple products would be sold in the first three days. The nation's largest phone company, the exclusive carrier for the iPhone, released quarterly results, but would not reveal how many of the devices were sold.

The sleek iPhone will shake up the wireless industry and force manufacturers to come up with more user-friendly handsets, industry analysts said Tuesday after Apple Computer Inc. showed off its highly anticipated mobile phone. The handset, to be launched in June by Apple and Cingular Wireless, has a plethora of features that challenge the way handset makers are building so-called smart phones.

In a sign of its growing clout as an entertainment player, Apple Computer Inc. dropped "computer" from its name Tuesday and unveiled two devices that promise further upheaval in the rapidly changing media industry.

Cingular Wireless is expected to be the service provider for a new Apple Computer Inc. cellphone, according to a published report. The new phone and service could be unveiled as early as today, the Wall Street Journal reported on its website Monday night, citing unnamed people familiar with the situation. Cingular representatives could not be reached Monday night, and Apple spokesman Steve Dowling did not return a call seeking comment.

Apple Computer Inc., Google Inc. and Napster Inc. were sued by online movie distributor Intertainer Inc. and accused of infringing a patent on a way to distribute digital entertainment over the Internet. Apple, maker of the iPod music player; Google, the most-used Internet search engine; and Napster, a seller of songs online, are using the patented technology without permission, Intertainer said in a complaint Friday in federal court in Marshall, Texas.

In August 1997, Apple Computer Inc. handed four top executives options to buy a total of nearly 1 million shares. The next day, the value of those options jumped a staggering 48%, or $7.7 million. This was no coincidence, according to a shareholder lawsuit filed against executives and directors of the Cupertino, Calif.-based company in federal court in Northern California. Rather, the options were granted to coincide with good news that would give the four executives an overnight windfall.

Apple Computer Inc. on Friday cleared Chief Executive Steve Jobs of wrongdoing regarding its improper handling of stock options, but new details from an internal investigation only fueled controversy.

Shares of Apple Computer Inc. went haywire Wednesday amid fresh reports that the company's stock options backdating problems could be worse than previously disclosed and possibly ensnare charismatic co-founder Steve Jobs. News accounts that Apple falsified documents to cover up the backdating of options given to executives drove shares down as much as 6% before they rebounded as investors dismissed the reports and took advantage of lower prices. The stock closed at $81.52, up a penny.