Everyone’s favorite open source FTP and SFTP, WebDAV, Cloud Files and Amazon S3 client for Mac OS X is now available for Windows, too.  Cyberduck is available from the developer’s site here.

Release notes show the following changes:

- [Localize] Ukrainian Localization
- [Feature] Version for Microsoft Windows XP, Windows Vista & Windows 7.
- [Feature] Replaced protocol implementation (FTP)
- [Feature] Connecting to Windows Azure Blob Storage (#3938)
- [Feature] Connecting to Dropbox
- [Feature] Copy and paste files using menu item to duplicate
- [Feature] Multipart Uploads with parallelism (S3) (#5487)
- [Feature] Support new 5TB Object Size Limit (S3)
- [Feature] Upload item in Finder context menu to upload selected file (Mac)
- [Feature] Upload item in Services menu of thirdparty programs main menu supporting files and folders (Mac)
- [Feature] Select bookmark to upload to when dragging files to application
- [Feature] Invalidation (Purge) of files in CDN (Cloudfiles/Akamai)
- [Feature] Skip option not available in transfer prompt (#1159)
- [Feature] User interface to create symbolic links (SFTP) (#1724)
- [Feature] Support for Asia Pacific (Tokyo) location (S3)
- [Feature] Website endpoint configuration option for buckets (S3)
- [Feature] CDN configuration for website endpoints as custom origin (CloudFront)
- [Feature] Open connection in PuTTY Terminal for current working directory (SFTP) (#5593)
- [Bugfix] Limit number of concurrent transfers (#5539, #5624)
- [Bugfix] Qeued transfers start in random order (#5632)
- [Bugfix] Dragging into topmost folder in browser (#1945)
- [Bugfix] ACLs getting dropped when updating metadata (S3) (#5571)
- [Bugfix] .CDN_ACCESS_LOGS folder listing is empty (Cloudfiles) (#5350)
- [Bugfix] Unicode normalization for filenames in upload (#5162)
- [Bugfix] Duplicate file breaks editing (#5524)
- [Bugfix] Large transfer history causes slowdown (#2889)
- [Bugfix] List all files regardless of document ownership (#5570) (Google Docs)
- [Bugfix] Images always converted to documents (#5601) (Google Docs)
- [Bugfix] Preserve symbolic links in transfers (#1860) (SFTP)
- [Bugfix] High CPU usage after transfer has completed (#5640)
- [Bugfix] Multiple distributions created (CloudFront) (#5675)
- [Bugfix] Passwords not saved when custom port set (#5623)
- [Bugfix] Switching application interface language (#5718)
- [Bugfix] Uploads with reduced redunandency fail (#5694) (S3)

Most of the rumors turned out to be true. The iPad 2 is thinner, faster AND lighter! It does indeed have TWO (2) cameras on the front and the back (FaceTime for iPad!). The new 1GHz dual-core A5 chip is supposed to be twice as fast as the original, with ultra fast graphics up to nine times (9x!) faster.

While we were a bit disappointed that there’s no Thunderbolt connectivity on the new iPad 2, we were pleasantly surprised to see HDMI output on the new tablet (it does require an Apple Digital AV Adapter).

The iPad 2 will be available for order on March 11!

The Apple Store is down, which is a definite sign that a new device is going to debut. All reports point to the release of a second-generation iPad, since the invitation to today’s media event shows this image:

The new iPad 2 is purported to be thinner, have more RAM and a faster processor and one or even two cameras.

Full coverage of the event begins at 1:00pm NYC time and you can tune in by visiting Macworld.

Photos of the low-end 13″ MacBook Pro have been revealed by MacRumors (via the German site fscklog), who confirms that the images are legitimate.

The specs (in German) for the 13″ MacBook Pro are as follows:

Core i5 two cores at 2.3 GHz 3 MB cache
4 GB of DDR3 1333 MHz
Hard Drive 320 GB 5400 rpm
Screen 13.33 “glossy 1280×800
Intel Graphics GPU HD 3000 with 384MB of RAM shared with main memory
Camera HD FaceTime
Superdrive 8x
Thunderbolt yet compatible with the I / O devices and high speed MiniDisplayport
SDXC Card slot, Firewire 800 and two USB 2.0
Digital Audio Output
Integrated Ethernet
Backlit keyboard
Size and weight 32.5 x22, 7×2, 41 cm, 2.04 kg

The mysterious Thunderbolt could be Apple’s answer to Light Peak.

Yesterday TUAW posted an update on the new MacBook Pros that are rumored to be released next month. TUAW’s post cites several sources that point to a February 24 announcement.  The report also mentions that the new MacBook Pros may include a new “high-speed connection technology” based on Intel’s Light Peak, which means data transfer speeds will exceed those of USB or FireWire.

We’ve had a lot of clients ask us about the new MacBook Pro rumors that have been circulating lately.  For our clients who are in the market for a new MacBook Pro and ask Need Mac Help for our Macintosh tech and equipment recommendations, we’ve been asking them to hold off buying one until March (unless they absolutely, positively have to have an MacBook Pro right now, of course), because there’s a strong possibility that Apple will announce a new MacBook Pro lineup on March 1st.

The last MacBook Pro 13-inch, 15-inch and 17-inch models were introduced in April 2010, and this is the longest that Apple has gone without releasing an update to the line since its introduction in January 2006.

Several tech blogs have speculated that Apple will unveil quite a few major upgrades to the MacBook Pro line, such as better displays, better battery life, and updated designs.

The folks at Apple Mac blog Mactrast claims that the new MacBook Pros will have a new battery technology that provides 20% more battery life. They also state that the new line will be significantly lighter than the current models, which begs the question — would Apple get rid of optical drives entirely in its line of MacBook Pro notebooks?

I guess we will have to wait until March 1st to find out…

As we mentioned in a previous post, Adobe released Flash Player 10.2 last week and users can download the update by going to Adobe’s website.  However, for users out there who would like to decrease the battery drain they experience when using Flash Player, an alternate path would be to uninstall Flash and use Google Chrome browser for Flash sites.  Google Chrome has Flash built into it, which eliminates the need for users to download, install and update it separately.  When Adobe released Flash Player 10.2 last week, Google Chrome users received the new version of Flash in an update to the browser the same day.

Click here to uninstall Flash Player Mac OS X 10.4-10.6.

Yesterday, the Iconfactory released a significant upgrade to its super popular Twitter client, Twitterific.

According to the press release from the Iconfactory, some of the new features of Twitterific 4.0 include:

• True multi-account/multi-window support

• View mentions, messages and favorites quickly and easily

• View Twitter trends, searches and lists

• Browse conversation threads between users

• Fully customizable toolbar

• Translate tweets to your native language

The ad-free version is $9.99 at the Mac App Store. If you already own Twitterific 3, you can upgrade at a discounted rate. There’s also the free (but not ad-free) trial version available.

Adobe launched Flash Player 10.2 yesterday for Mac, Windows, and Linux. Included in the release is Stage Video, which Adobe describes as “a full hardware accelerated video pipeline for best-in-class, beautiful video across platforms and browsers.”

According to the release notes, YouTube, Vimeo, Brightcove and Epix have been working on enabling support for Stage Video, but apparently are not quite there yet.

Additional new capabilities as reported from Adobe’s site:

• Video at its best is immersive, so Flash Player allows you jump to true full screen playback with one click. With multiple display full screen support in Flash Player 10.2, you can now easily watch your favorite videos  in true full screen on one display while you multitask on another and get some work done (or not).
• Added support for custom native mouse cursors lets designers and developers create their own static or animated cursors with silky smooth responsiveness, enabling richer game and application interfaces.
• New sub-pixel text rendering enhancements leverage Adobe typography research to further enhance text readability, especially for complex character-based languages.
• Support is included for the GPU rendering technology in Microsoft’s upcoming Internet Explorer 9 browser.

Adobe Flash Player 10.2 is available for download here.

A lot of people were excited when Verizon announced two weeks ago that it would be getting the iPhone. With AT&T’s less than stellar service (dropped calls, spotty 3G connectivity), we can completely understand why people would want to switch to Verizon.

Before anyone rushes to change their plan to Verizon OR wants to get their first iPhone with Verizon, here are a few things you should all be aware of…

The AT&T iPhone is a UMTS/GSM device, whereas the Verizon iPhone is a CDMA device.

One of the best features of the iPhone is that you can browse the web, send email, etc. while you’re on a phone call — only if you are on the AT&T UMTS/GSM version of the iPhone.  Verizon’s CDMA iPhone is unable to carry voice and data simultaneously.

Although GSM and UMTS is used worldwide and make them ideal for international use, UMTS devices are more susceptible to dropped calls. CDMA devices, like Verizon’s, will in general drop less calls but it can’t use a SIM card which makes it difficult to switch devices.

It seems that most people agree that AT&T has the faster 3G network, so this is a big advantage when you’re trying to upload / download data.