Sorry guys, I’ve been a bit too busy to post full-length entries but here’s what’s caught my eye this last few days.

IBM POWER6 chips

IBM has released it’s POWER6 chip series, which it touts to be the “fastest microprocessor ever built” (which one isn’t right?). The chips have 2 to 16 cores depending on the version and runs up to a whopping 4.7Ghz per core. This has led some quarters to wonder if Apple did the right thing in switching to Intel. Personally, I think switching to Intel was one of the smarter things Apple has done because they are not now attracting even more Windows switchers. What do you think?

RIP Mac Mini?

Ladies and gentlemen, AppleInsider believes in all sincerity that the Mac mini is dead.

AppleInsider reports that one of its reliable sources says that the Mac Mini will be phased out. They make a good case too, pointing out that the Mac Mini has only had 4 revisions since its introduction at Macworld 2005. I’ll be sad if the Mac Mini goes. I was going to use one as my home network server when I finally buy a LCD HDTV. Oh well, we’ll just have to wait to see what Steve has up his sleeves.

Linkin Park’s Mysterious Cyberstalker

Wired has a really interesting story on how a cyberstalker made life a living hell in the past year for Chester Bennington, lead singer of Linkin’ Park. Apparently, the cyberstalker guessed his .Mac password (his middle name “Charlie”) which gave her access to his address book, email and subsequently social security number and password. Hmm.. maybe that’s why they’re latest album isn’t quite up to standard eh?

However, this points to a larger issue–many of us don’t use good passwords. I strongly recommend listening to Steve Gibson’s Security Now! podcast Episode #4 and #5 on personal password policies in case you’re still using “qwerty” as your password.

Security Update 2007-005

Last of all, remember to fire up Software Update to receive Apple’s 5th security update of the year. This update patches 17 flaws in OS X including a big one in CoreGraphics. Opening a maliciously crafted PDF file may crash an application or allow an attacker to run malicious code on your Mac under your nose.