Follow up on previous posting re Apple Computer's lawsuits:
Apple sues three for posting Tiger on Net | MacNN News:
Apple has sued three people for illegally distributing test copies of the next version of its Mac OS X operating system on file-sharing services, court records show. Apple claims in its suit that two different versions of Mac OS X, code-named Tiger, were made available on the Web on or about October 30th and December 8th of this year. The lawsuit is the second in recent weeks to thwart the release of its software and details of its unannounced products. Last week, details of Apple lawsuits against multiple people for recent product leaks were revealed.
Apple makes test versions available to certain software developers under strict confidentiality conditions and lets them test the prerelease software and develop or change their own programs to work with the software.The company said in its lawsuit that the two different versions were made publicly available by the men, who were members of the Apple Developer Connection.
"Members of Apple Developer Connection receive advance copies of Apple software under strict confidentiality agreements, which we take very seriously to protect our intellectual property," the company said in a statement.
According to the suit, the men released the software on a Web site that employs BitTorrent file-sharing technology, which is used to rapidly distribute large files of electronic data, and is also widely used to distribute pirated copies of motion pictures via the Internet.
And apparently, this cool new recording toy has drawn some attention to an Apple Rumor site:
Apple is seeking to force three Mac sites including AppleInsider to turn over information about sources for articles regarding a forthcoming music product code named "Asteroid" and "Q97."
I want one!
Apple Computer is expected to introduce a new audio interface for GarageBand users in the coming months. The analog FireWire audio device, the first product of its recently created iPod division, will allow users to directly record audio using any Mac and Apple’s GarageBand music studio application. According to reputable sources, the company is on track to begin manufacturing the device overseas next month.The device, code-named 'Q97' or 'Asteroid,' has been under development at the company for the better part of the year. Typically referred to as a 'breakout box' in the music recording industry, the external audio device attaches to a computer and offers audio inputs and outputs for attaching instruments or other audio sources. Apple is reportedly building the device around GarageBand, its popular application for aspiring musicians.
According to sources, Asteroid will include two XLR/ TRS audio input connectors, two RCA analog output jacks, and a standard headphone jack. The device will draw power through a single FireWire 400 port and include a phantom on/off power switch.
In addition to the aforementioned specs, a more advanced version of the Asteroid device—recently seen floating around the Apple's Cupertino campus—sports an additional S/PDIF optical output port; however, it is unclear which version the company will ultimately send to manufacturing.
More from Cnet
Apple goes to court to smoke out product leaker | CNET News.com:
Apple last week was granted the right to subpoena Powerpage.org, Apple Insider and Think Secret, forcing the sites to turn over all documents related to an unreleased product code named "Asteroid" and "Q97."
In November, Apple Insider and Powerpage.org reported that Apple was developing what's known in the music industry as a breakout box--a device for connecting musical instruments and other analog audio sources to a computer.
This is not the first time Apple has gone to court in an effort to identify a leaker.
Earlier this month, Apple filed suit in Santa Clara County Superior Court against the unnamed persons it says released company trade secrets but added in later court filings that it has been unable to determine who those people are. The subpoenas, Apple said in its filings, are designed to identify the individuals.
"That person (alone or in concert with others) has misappropriated Apple's trade secrets regarding future product information, and those trade secrets have appeared on three Web sites," Apple said in court documents seen by CNET News.com. "Apple's internal investigations have, to date, failed to uncover the identity of any defenda
