fscklog

Adobe's CEO über Konkurrenz mit Apple und die Mac-Kundschaft

In einem Interview mit pcmag.com äußerte sich der Adobe CEO Bruce Chizen unter anderem sehr positiv zu den Verkaufszahlen mit Mac-Software:
"BC: When you look at our overall revenue, or percentage of revenue, we get somewhere between 22% and 25% of our business from Macintosh customers or software that runs on the Mac. If you factor out Acrobat and the server products, our Mac business has stayed relatively strong, which is good news. And I believe, at least what our customers are telling us and what our revenue is telling us in terms of mix, that those loyal Macintosh users, continue to be loyal to the Mac.
What we don't see are a lot of graphics professionals moving over, back from Windows to Macintosh, but those who are on Mac, because of all the great things that Steve [Jobs] has done, are sticking with Mac. Most of our customers are telling us they have plans to move to G5 this year, which is good news for the industry and good news for us."

Und nimmt Stellung zur andauernden Konkurrenzsituation mit Apples Software:
"MM: Clearly in the video area, you had a product before Apple did. They came in; they did a nice job, no question. FinalCut is a very nice product. Are you at all worried that they're going to do that for Photoshop, or something like that?
BC: Michael, if you look at a category like digital imaging, or now even layout, Adobe has such a strong position in a market that's been around for many years. We continue to innovate, and I'd be surprised if Apple tried to compete with us in those areas. Apple has told us that's not their intent, and I don't believe they will."

Leider keinerlei Hinweis zu Adobe's Reaktion auf Motion, das doch recht direkt gegen After Effects aufläuft.

MacOrama für den 22. April 2004 [Update]

Update:
Spannendes über die neuen Stromspartechnik des G4 (es ist wohl ein MPC7447A) in den neuen PowerBooks bei den MacGuardians:
"Langer Rede kurzer Sinn: Laut den technischen Daten sollten die neuen PowerBooks trotz höherer Taktung eigentlich weder signifikant mehr Hitze abstrahlen, daher auch nicht lauter sein, noch hinsichtlich der Akkulaufzeit schlechter dastehen als die Vorgänger."
Und Apple hat sinnigerweise in den aktuellen 12&15" PowerBooks die Akku-Watt-Zahlen wieder etwas nach oben geschraubt.
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Einige New Yorker Photoblogger waren schon Ende Februar im Apple Store SoHo zugange, nun folgt am 03. Mai um 18Uhr dort in der 'Made on a Mac series':

"At the NYC Bloggers event, the writers and publishers behind some of the city’s most popular sites will talk about the technical, editorial, and business issues affecting the medium in 2004."
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Gestern in der Business Week:
"Apple needs to learn that price is determined by market demand and not its own perception of what products are worth. Its prospects look brighter now than at any point in recent memory, and it still boasts some of the fattest margins -- if not the fattest -- in the business for its PCs. Jobs & Co. has the tools to really turn Apple into a mainstream player if they can boost computers sales by dropping prices. Apple has the cash to reward shareholders with dividends. And it can easily afford to own up to stock-options expensing. It's up to the board of directors to perform the reality check necessary to shore up Apple's future."

Übrigens findet heute Apples Hauptversammlung statt, unter anderem wollen dort die verärgerten und gegen Apple klagenden Händler für Gesprächsstoff sorgen, MacMinute berichtet: "It's time that Apple's conduct is made known to Apple shareholders," said Thomas Armes, president and CEO of Elite. "We look forward to sharing what we have uncovered."
SPIEGEL ONLINE berichtet außerdem über die Calpers Geschichte:
"Ähnlich hoch her gehen wird es am Donnerstag bei Apple. Dort hat Calpers gleich dem gesamten Board seine Gunst entzogen - unter den Direktoren sind auch Firmenchef Steve Jobs und Ex-Vizepräsident Al Gore. Hintergrund ist, dass sich das Unternehmen hartnäckig weigert, Aktienoptionen als Personalkosten zu bilanzieren.
Auch Jobs dürfte den Angriff von Calpers überstehen und seinen Direktorenposten behalten. Um einen Wechsel durchzusetzen, hält der Fonds zu wenig Aktien: Seine Beteiligung an großen US-Konzernen ist auf maximal ein Prozent der Anteile begrenzt. Dennoch ist die Signalwirkung immens, denn Calpers zieht allein auf Grund seiner Größe und seines Ansehens Aufmerksamkeit auf sich."
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Erstaunlich in Anbetracht der zurückliegenden Pixar-Disney Querelen:
"Teaming up to offer the leading collection of digital music for kids, teens and families, Apple and Walt Disney Records today announced that the catalog of Walt Disney Records, including soundtracks from Disney’s classic animated films and Disney/Pixar’s computer-animated films, is now available exclusively on the iTunes Music Store through September 30th.
A new “Disney” genre page within the iTunes Music Store will feature a wide range of family entertainment including the soundtracks from animated films such as Alice in Wonderland, Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, Snow White and The Little Mermaid; Disney/Pixar’s Toy Story, Toy Story 2, A Bug’s Life, Monsters, Inc. and Finding Nemo; plus, Disney audio storytellers, theatrical cast recordings and music from up-and-coming stars Raven and Jesse McCartney." [Pressemeldung]
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Seit den Quartalszahlen Conference Call quasioffiziell, IBM hat Probleme mit seiner Chipproduktion:
"Apple doesn't appear to be happy with IBM's performance in the last quarter, blaming IBM on its own earnings call for the late arrival of the XServe G5 based on the new PowerPC 970FX processor. This is the first generation of Apple processors in which IBM hasn't shared the role of supplier with Motorola Inc.'s chip division, Brookwood said."
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AppleInsider berichtet ausführlich über den zukünftigen Apple Store Osaka:
"Continuing to raise its profile overseas, Apple Computer is proceeding with plans to open its second store in Japan in Osaka during the fall of 2004. The flagship store will be large enough to sport a number of architectural advancements that won't be found in any of the company's U.S. locations."
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Für 90$ kommt von Belkin der Digital Camera Link für den iPod über den sich eine Digitalkamera direkt per USB anschließen lässt:
"Simply connect the Belkin Digital Camera Link to your iPod, and connect your USB mass-storage-class camera device. Using software support that's already built into your iPod (with software version 2.1 or later), your pictures transfer quickly and you're ready to start shooting again. When you get home, just connect your iPod to your computer to retrieve the images. It's like having virtually unlimited storage space for all your photos."
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Außerdem (Halb-)Wissenswertes aus dem Terminal - heute:
04/22 Kant born, 1724
(Nachvollziehen).

Wie viele iPods hat Karl Lagerfeld nun wirklich?

Nicht dass es wirklich wichtig wäre, aber Boulevard muss ab und an mal sein...
In der französischen ELLE tauchte vorgestern ein Lagerfeld Zitat auf, laut dem er 40 iPods besäße, um darauf all seine Musik aufzubewahren, was nicht nur sanfte Verwunderung auslöste, sondern entsprechend breite Beachtung fand, nachdem MacBidouille mit ELLE-Scan und genannter Meldung herausrückte. An der ein oder anderen Stelle keimte dennoch ein leichter Zweifel auf, unter anderem bei engadget: "...but we’re gonna guess that he what he actually meant is that he has the 40GB version, not that he’s spent twenty grand on MP3 players."
Also nur ein 'schnöder' iPod für Lagerfeld, während selbst Chris Rock zwei besitzt?
Praktischerweise schrieb mir vorhin Kay:
"lagerfeld hat 4 ipods: einen für klassik, einen für latin, einen für “das was die assistenten, etc an musik anbringen” und den vierten habe ich vergessen.
jetzt kann man natürlich sagen: 1 ipod pro musik richtung? schon mal was von playlists gehört?
sagt man dann auch..."

OS X 10.3.4 (7H41) ging an die Entwickler

Seit gestern können Entwickler einen Blick auf die pre-release Version von 10.3.4 werfen, meldet macnews.net.tc:
(Mac OS X 10.3.4 7H41...) includes a fix that may result in a performance gain in launching applications that aren't prebound." And about device compatibility: "We have taken a small number of changes that may impact devices (SCSI drives, USB Flash Media, TWAIN scanners, iPods & some PC Cards). Some additional devices include Audio FireWire and connecting an iPod via USB 2.0."
Weitere Änderungen finden sich bei 'Core Audio, OpenGL, Graphics, Core OS, and the High Level Toolbox'.
Nach Angaben von AppleInsider momentan 33,6MB schwer.

MacOrama für den 21. April 2004 [Update]

Der iTunes Music Store wurde für drei Webby Awards nominiert, in den Kategorien Music, Services und Commerce.
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Warum es mir besondere Freude macht, im Apple Store einzukaufen:

Wieviele Nächte habe ich schon geträumt von mein persönliches Mac...
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Vor einigen Tagen erwähnte ich PulpFiction, einen RSS-Reader für OS X, der durch eine Vielzahl an sehr angenehmen Funktionen auftrumpfen könnte (ab 15. Mai selbst überprüfbar) und in klarer Konkurrenz zu NetNewsWire konzipiert ist, dessen Entwickler Brent Simmons entsprechend eine längst überfällige Vorschau auf auf die kommende NNW Version gab, die ebenso mehr als verlockend klingt, dabei unter anderem:
"People who use multiple computers will be able to synchronize their subscription lists and the read/flagged status of news items between two copies of NetNewsWire."
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"Amid all its video offerings this week, Apple's booth at the National Association of Broadcasters show in Las Vegas hosted a demonstration of a new HD video codec, aka. h.264 or MPEG-4 Part 10," PCPro.com reports. "...unlike other codecs, h.264 is scalable, allowing content creators to write their content for everything from 3G phones to HD and everything in between."
"Frank Casanova, Apple's director of QuickTime product marketing, told the website: 'This is a very flexible and very high-quality codec. It's based on a whole new engineering base - it's not today's MPEG-4 tweaked,' before adding, 'We are working on it, as are many other companies - here there are dozens of announcements and demonstrations of h.264. Everywhere except in the Microsoft booth,'" PCPro.com reports.
(via MacDailyNews)
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Ben&Jerry's vergeben 50.000 iTMS Songs, schreibt TMO:
"Here's a new twist on giveaways: free iTunes Music Store downloads to mark the 26th annual Free Cone Day at ice cream retailer Ben & Jerry's with an online commitment from Americans to exercise their right to vote.[...]
When all the free downloads are gone, entrants can then register for a chance to win a sweepstakes with the grand prize of an Apple iPod, Apple iMac and a trip to Vermont to spend a day as an honorary Ben & Jerry's 'Flavor Guru' to create a customized batch of their own ice cream, Heimert said.[...]
"I think the brands - Ben & Jerry's and Apple - are a lot alike," Heimert commented. "There are certainly a lot of the same asperations between these two companies. We have a long history with Macs in our Web team and design department where they all use Macs and there is a deep affinity within our company for the Apple brand."
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Probleme mit AirPort 3.4 bei MacFixIt, konnte selber nichts dergleichen bemerken.
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Simpel, effektiv und Freeware:
"AntiRSI is a program for Mac OS X that helps prevent RSI (repetitive strain injury) and other computer related stress. It does so by forcing you to take regular breaks, yet without getting in the way. It also detects natural breaks so it won't force too many breaks on you."

(via theflow quicklinks)
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Think Secret meldet, dass Office 2004 'Gold Master'-Status erreicht hat:
"Sources were, however, unclear as to the company's release plans for Virtual PC 7, the Windows OS emulator that is to be bundled with Office in its "Professional Edition." Apple's online store allows customers to pre-order Office 2004, but it lists only the Standard Edition, Upgrade Edition, and Student and Teacher Edition, suggesting that Virtual PC 7 will lag behind Office 2004."
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iPod Zubehör Overkill:
"Apple officials estimate there are more than 200 products on the market. Accessory maker Belkin Corp. says one in five iPod owners has bought one of its products." bei Reuters. Die Gucci-iPod-Tasche gabs im gestrigen MacOrama und Karl Lagerfeld mit seinen 40 iPod (oder übersetzungsfehlerbehaftet seinem einem 40GB iPod?) vorgestern.
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Ach ja, Europa und der iTMS:
"Of course, Apple and co. are going to have to give up something themselves, in return for this unfied licensing regime. In particular, they must unifty in turn their DRM technologies, the EC says. "A pre-requisite to ensure Community-wide accessibility to DRM systems and services by rightholders as well as users and, in particular, consumers, is that DRM systems and services are interoperable." meldet The Reg.
Napster hat ebenfalls mit den Kontinentaleuropa Problemen zu kämpfen:
"The picture in continental Europe is cloudier. Gorog described the licence negotiations there as being in the "preliminary stages." He added he had no visibility on when Napster would launch in those markets."
Apple hat sich weiterhin 2004 zum Ziel gesetzt.
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Gähn:
"It's kind of a Soviet model," said Glaser, referring to Apple's closed environment in a remark that drew laugher from the audience at the annual National Association of Broadcasters conference here. "Taking secure music off the PC is a morass of incompatibility. This is not going to fly in the mainstream market."
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Update:
Die Knowledge Base hält PowerBook Artikel bereit:
Learn to identify the input/output (I/O) ports of PowerBook G4 computers (nicht so kompliziert) und für Selbstinstallierer die .pdf-Anleitungen zu RAM-Einbau, Airport Extrem Karten Wechsel und Fußaustausch, einmal für die 12" Modelle und einmal für die 15&17" Fraktion.
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Kleine Apple Galerie zur NAB 2004.
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Außerdem (Halb-)Wissenswertes aus dem Terminal - heute:
04/21 Tiradentes in Brazil
(Nachvollziehen).

PowerBook G5 weiterhin terminlos

Dass die gestern vorgestellten PowerBooks keinen G5 beinhalten würden, war letztendlich relativ absehbar, wenn auch Ende Januar ein kleiner Funken Hoffnung aufkam, da der 970FX durch einen sehr geringen Stromverbrauch glänzte. Allerdings hatte nicht nur IBM Probleme, den Chip bisher in ausreichender Menge herzustellen, sondern wohl ebenso Apple, diesen in einem PowerBook zufrieden stellend einzusetzen. Gegenüber der BBC äußerte sich Greg Joswiak gewohnt vage:
"Mr Joswiak refused to be drawn on when the next generation of notebooks, using the PowerPC G5 processor, would be released.[...]
"In the very long run, the G5 is part of our long term processor roadmap, but it will be some time before that processor will be in a notebook," said Mr Joswiak. He declined to be pinned down to a date for G5 portables, but pointed out that it had taken at least two years for the G4 chip to make it from the desktop to the notebook."
Nichtsdestotrotz ist das gestrige Update eine angenehme Produktpflege geworden, die gut über die Zeit bis zum tatsächlichen PowerBook G5 hinwegtrösten sollte.

Apropos PowerBooks, eine Mini-Information zur späteren Auslieferung des 17" PowerBook Anfang Mai beim Mac Observer:
"Russell said the delay until May on the new 17-inch Powerbooks should not be misconstrued as an issue with a component shortage. "Honestly, this has nothing to do with not having enough parts for something important on the 17-inch PowerBook," Russell commented. "We're just trying to get everything ramped up in product. Some stuff is just available now and some will be available shortly."

MacOrama für den 20. April 2004

Ganz klamm und heimlich gab es gestern noch eine weitere Airport Extreme Base Station, die speziell auf Schulen, Unis usw. zugeschnitten ist:
"The AirPort Extreme Base Station is available in a model that conforms to UL 2043 — the UL standard for products installed in air-handling spaces. This means that you have the freedom to place base stations above ceiling tiles, out of harm’s way. And because it also supports Power over Ethernet — allowing it to receive electrical power over the same Ethernet cabling that it uses to send and receive data — you’re saved the expense and inconvenience of supplying power separately to every base station."
Mehr dazu bei MacCentral.
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Im gestrigen MacOrama hatten wir schon Karl Lagerfeld und seine 40 iPod, nun zeigt Cult of Mac noch die passende Gucci Tasche für den iPod zum Preis von 200$ das Stück:

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Wired über die durchaus geläufige Spezies der Mac Voyeure:
"Mac voyeurs are people who want to know all about my Macintosh project," he wrote on ZDNet, referring to his adoption of a Mac for the first time.
"That's innocent enough, but it grows from there," Coursey continued. "They are intensely interested in knowing everything about how the Mac works. These people tell me -- almost emotionally -- how important they think Macintosh is. They usually say something like, 'It keeps Microsoft honest' or 'Bill Gates stole all his good ideas from Apple.'"
And there's one other thing about these folks, and this explains the voyeur part: They absolutely, positively, would not under any circumstances ever buy a Mac."
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Bastelstunde bei xlr8yourmac.com:
"A friend of mine recently installed a new hard drive into his 17" Al Powerbook. At the same time he modded the keyboard's backlight for a different color."
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'Apple's designs are fine, but its build quality is poor' glaubt The Inquirer in einem lahmen Artikel.
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Bluetooth Firmware Updater 1.1:
"Provides improvements in the update installation process, better performance when waking the computer from sleep, and support for additional key commands during startup."
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AP:
"Japanese electronics giant Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. and Apple Computer Inc. plan to market a digital video editing system that would simplify and lower the costs for TV stations and production companies in creating TV broadcasts, movies and DVDs."
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BBC Technology Integrates Final Cut Pro HD into Colledia Workflow.
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Außerdem Wissenswertes aus dem Terminal - heute:
04/20 Supreme Court unanimously rules in favor of busing, 1971
(Nachvollziehen).

AirPort Software 3.4 und AirPort Management Tools 1.0

AirPort Software 3.4 in der Softwareaktualisierung, 9MB groß:
"This software update provides improved AirPort wireless networking software, and is recommended for all users with an AirPort Extreme and AirPort enabled computer or an AirPort Extreme base station.
New AirPort Extreme Features
• Improved antenna output control.
• Enhanced logging from your base station which is compatible with syslog.
• Performance improvements for WPA security implementations."

Und die AirPort Management Tools 1.0 direkt bei Apple, 1MB groß, Voraussetzung sind 10.3 und obiges Airport Update:
"The AirPort Mangement Utility and AirPort Client Monitor provide powerful tools for planning, setting up, fine-tuning, and managing larger, enterprise-class wireless networks."

Apple stellt neue PowerBooks und iBooks vor

Die Gerüchte waren weitestgehend zutreffend, folgende Laptops sind frisch bei Apple zu haben:

PowerBooks:

PowerBook G4 12.1"TFT/1.33GHz/512K L2/256MB/60GB/DVD-ROM/CD-RW Combo drive/Enet/56K/AirPort/Bluetooth/NVIDIA GeForce FX Go5200 (64MB DDR)
1,599.00 Dollar
1.738,84

PowerBook G4 12.1"TFT/1.33GHz/512K L2/256MB/60GB/DVD-R/CD-RW SuperDrive/Enet/56K/AirPort/Bluetooth/NVIDIA GeForce FX Go5200 (64MB DDR)
1,799.00 Dollar
1.970,84 EUR (Apple Store Preis)

PowerBook G4 15.2"TFT/1.33GHz/256MB/60GB/DVD-ROM/CD-RW Combo drive/Gig Enet/56K/Bluetooth/AirPort/ATI Mobility Radeon 9700 (64MB DDR)
1,999.00 Dollar
2.086,84 EUR (Apple Store Preis)

PowerBook G4 (15.2"TFT/1.5GHz/512MB/80GB/DVD-R/CD-RW SuperDrive/Gig Enet/56K/Bluetooth/AirPort/Backlit Keyboard/ATI Mobility Radeon 9700 (64MB DDR)
2,499.00 Dollar
2.666,84 EUR (Apple Store Preis)

PowerBook G4 (17" TFT/1.5GHz/512MB/80GB/DVD-R/CDRW SuperDrive/Gig Enet/56K/Bluetooth/AirPort/Backlit Keyboard/ATI Mobility Radeon 9700 (64MB DDR)
2,799.00 Dollar
2.898,84 EUR (Apple Store Preis)

Für 50$ mehr bekommt man eine 128MB Grafikkarte (nur bei den 1,5GHz Modellen).
12"&15" sind angeblich sofort verfügbar, 17" folgt Anfang Mai.

Pressemeldung:
"Apple today announced a new line of PowerBook® G4 notebooks with faster PowerPC G4 processors running at up to 1.5 GHz; faster graphics performance; and a 4x SuperDrive™ (DVD-R/CD-RW) for burning professional-quality DVDs—all housed in the industry-leading aluminum enclosures that have defined the latest generation of PowerBooks. All new PowerBook G4s come standard with AirPort® Extreme* 54 Mbps 802.11g pre-installed for wireless networking right out of the box."

iBooks:

iBook 12.1"TFT/1.0GHz G4/512K L2 Cache/256MB/30GB/DVD-ROM/CD-RW Combo drive/VGA-out/Enet/56K/ATI Mobility Radeon 9200 32MB DDR video memory
1,099.00 Dollar
1199 EUR (Apple Store Preis)

iBook 14.1"TFT/1.0GHz G4/512K L2 Cache/256MB/40GB/DVD-ROM/CD-RW Combo drive/VGA-out/Enet/56K/ATI Mobility Radeon 9200 32MB DDR video memory
1,299.00 Dollar
1399 EUR (Apple Store Preis)

iBook 14.1"TFT/1.2GHz G4/512K L2 Cache/256MB/60GB/DVD-ROM/CD-RW Combo drive/VGA-out/Enet/56K/APX/ATI Mobility Radeon 9200 32MB DDR video memory
1,499.00 Dollar
1599 EUR (Apple Store Preis)

Die 14" Modelle lassen sich mit BTO-Superdrive aufrüsten. Sofort verfügbar.

Pressemeldung:
"Apple today updated its popular iBook® G4 lineup for consumers and education customers with PowerPC G4 processors running at up to 1.2 GHz and an optional DVD-burning SuperDrive™. The new iBook G4 lineup includes support for advanced wireless connectivity with AirPort® Extreme* 54 Mbps 802.11g wireless networking and Bluetooth, and a slot-load Combo drive for burning CDs and watching DVDs. The new iBook G4 can now hold up to twice as much fast DDR memory for even greater performance."

Apple Store ist offline [Update]

Die europäischen Stores sind bereits offline, der US-Store zumindest bisher noch nicht, dürfte aber wohl nicht mehr allzu lange dauern. Wir harren der Dinge die da kommen mögen...

Update:
Der US-Store ist ebenfalls offline gegangen.