If you've got a brand new Apple 802.11n AirPort Extreme (or if you're looking to get one soon), you might have noticed that it doesn't connect with the Xbox 360 - unless you bust out a few tweaks. A recent post on 25experts.com comes to the rescue of gamers who have yet to make the setup work.

There are actually two ways to do this: the easy way, and the safe way. If you don't give a rat's behind about wireless security and all that jazz, this is really easy. Just turn the wireless security feature off and you're good to go. Running an non-secure wireless networks is a bit of a risky move, though, so here's the nifty workaround from 25experts:

In Airport Utility, Option-Click (or alt click on windows keybaords) the radio setting button to get the hidden choices, and select "b/g compatible", NOT "n (b/g compatible), just straight b/g. That will limit each device to 54 Mbps, which is fine.

Next, Option-Click your encryption setting button and select "WPA Personal." Go into the Internet:DHCP settings (I think) and reserve an IP address for your 360 based on it's MAC settings to make sure it gets the same IP all the time. In the NAT options, select that IP as the "Default Host" so as to cause no issues with XBox Live functionality. Restart the Apple Extreme.

After it's up and running, start your XBox 360, go to the last blade of the Dashboard and select your network settings - it should let you select your new WPA-encrypted network and you're good to go.

Try it out and let us know if it works for you. Don't hesitate to leave a comment below.

Looking for a system clutter-cutter application? Look no further than MainMenu v1.7 from Santa Software. This app has been described as a set of powerful maintenance tools that will put the "running like new" back in your Mac. What's even better is that it has a clean, almost-bare interface that does not require fluency in computer geek. With only three function icons how can you go wrong?

MainMenu v1.7 (dubbed as the "Your Make-My-Day" system management app) makes it unnecessary to run the various tools and scripts required that to keep your Mac like a well-oiled machine. Who wants that when you can do all these right from the app's menu bar.

MainMenu v1.7 features faster searching, repairing permissions, cleaning caches to improve application performance, and enabling and disabling the Dashboard in two clicks.

MainMenu v1.7 supports Mac OS X 10.3.9 to 10.4.8.

Download: [MainMenu v1.7]

Apple finally released the latest update for Mac OS X 10.4.7 -- the Mac OS X 10.4.8 Update, also called "delta". Those who are updating from Mac OS X 10.4, 10.4.1, 10.4.2, 10.4.3, 10.4.4, 10.4.5, or 10.4.6  to 10.4.8 should install Apple's "combo" update instead.

Apple offers troubleshooting tips if your installation encounters issues. Basically, you use one of the two methods in updating to Mac OS X 10.4.8: The Software Update or the standalone installer.

The update addresses some important issues in the printing, Finder and other Apple applications, networking and modem, and third party software, and security among other things. It's a leap from the 10.4.7 version, especially when it comes to improving reliability and support with other apps as well as enhancing the software's general performance.

With the latest version, it's now possible to sync iTunes with other iPod models with less hassle. Furthermore, the external Apple USB modem has improved the connection reliability when faxing in France or Belgium. Issues with Microsoft Word's OpenType fonts, Microsoft PowerPoint presentations, Canon EOS Utility and even with the TV Tracker 2 Dashboard widget have also been resolved.

Note that the update applies for both Intel- and Power-PC-based Macs. Download your standalone installer for PowerPC and Intel-based Macs here.

WWDC is a conference for Apple developers that gives the company a chance to show them some love while disseminating important information about the next-gen hardware on Apple's launch horizon. There is no live stream coming from the event floor, so minute to minute coverage (complete with pictures) is all there is until Apple makes the footage available after the event.

Mannymix03, a member of our forums, has been kind enough to make up to the minute posts about the event to keep us all informed about the latest happenings at WWDC 2006. So far, so much information has come out of the event that it would be impossible to detail it all here. I will do my best to give you a brief rundown of the important finds that have been discovered thus far.
 
In his usual style, Steve Jobs kicks off the conference with his enthusiastic rundown of what Apple has in store for us in the near future. He began with his usual optimism by quoting record sales figures and mentioning the unprecedented level of penetration that the company is experiencing in the OS market.

After stroking the developers egos by detailing how much of their work Apple sold the previous year, Jobs goes on to discuss the move to utilize Intel chips and the upcoming move into the next generation of Intel chips known as Core 2 Duo. While all the information about new chips and the smart architecture of the new Mac Pro kept folks interested, the news that kept many on the edge of their seats was about Apple's upcoming OS.

After giving Microsoft some of the spotlight by highlighting the ways the Redmond-based giant has appropriated technology from Apple in the past, the details about the OS (Leopard) were released. Along with 64 bit compatibility at the UNIX layer, meaning you can run both 32 and 64 bit applications smoothly and without the aid of emulation, there was mention of a built in backup feature for the OS called Time machine that backs up "everything" in real time. This new feature is not as cut and dry as it seems however. Apparently, with Time machine you get a robust backup system that is capable of full system restores as well as an ala carte system that allows you to bring back just the files that you need.

When integrated with the Finder disk searcher, we are one step closer to having all of our information stored in a searchable database that is backed up in real time. So now you can search for, and find, a file even if you have already erased it! Wonderful! Even I couldn't lose data if I had a set up like this! One of the things that I found a bit surprising was the fact that every copy of the new OS will ship with Time Machine, Bootcamp, Photobooth and Front Row and Spaces. Each one of these modules provides functionality, like a virtual desktop (Spaces), photo editing and sharing (Photobooth), music, video and other media (Front Row), that is not included with other operating systems like Vista.

Spotlight, Core Animation and Universal Access are additional applications in the works at Apple. Spotlight allows you to search the drives of all of the Macs in your home from any one of them. Core Animation is a powerful program that allows you to deconstruct media into its various parts (video, music,ect) and manipulate it into a new creation. Universal Access is designed to allow all people, whether blind, or otherwise disabled, to use their new Mac with ease. With all the new software being developed and hardware changes galore happening at Apple, you'd think that they would be the ones with all the delays and shoddy releases instead of Microsoft!

Mail, Dashboard and iCal have also been updated and changed! Stationary, Notes and To Do's to mail have been integrated into the new email system that will come with the new OS. Dashboard has over 2500 widgets and with Dashcode users can easily create their own customized widgets. With Web Clip and Dashcode you can turn any part of a website into a widget that will update every day keeping you in the know with your favorites on the web. Then there's iChat and iPhoto, which are integrated and will offer multiple logins, invisibility, animated buddy icons, video recording and tabbed chats.

This is near information overload here so I suggest that you digest this as quickly as you can then can come back and get some more! The conference is more than three days long so you can be certain that Jobs and Co. will continue to hit us with surprises well into this week!

Finally, for those with short attention spans, here is a brief list of the key innovations that were revealed this morning:

• 64-bit
• Core animation
• Universal access
• Enhanced parental controls (who cares about that?)
• iCal
• The complete package
• mail
• Spotlight
• Dashboard
• Web Clip and Dashcode
• Announcing Xcode 3 at the afternoon session
• Spaces
• Time Machine
  

Keep an eye out for updates to follow. For those who got their appetites whet and are looking for ways to satisfy their "Apple" craving, check out the video of the conference's Keynote Address delivered by Apple top honcho, Steve Jobs.

Somebody's been poking around Steve Jobs' computer and got a hold of the features of the upcoming Mac OS 10.5 Leopard. The information is not confirmed but that won't stop us from posting it. This is after all the Leak Department. According to the leaked documents (which will put the Mac security system in bad light if proven genuine) the major MacLeopard changelog will be seen in the following:

• Spotlight 2.0
• Dashboard 2.0
• Safari 3.0
• iChat 4.0
• Automator 2.0
• QuickTime 7.2
• Mail 3.0
• iCal 3.0
• Address Book 5.0

See the details of the "supposed" Mac OS changelog after the jump!

Widgets are fun but were designed to be functional. Now, if you're like most Apple People (the one's who are not widget pack rats, anyway), you probably install the widget first before running it to see if it is something that serves your need. If the answer is no, you go through the uninstall process, unless you don't mind sifting through a sea of widgets on your Dashboard to find the one that you need.

Did you know you can test a widget without installing and uninstalling it? Yes, you can! And here's how. When the widget installer window loads, press and hold Command and Option. This changes the Install button to a Run button:

Hit the Run button and you can use the widget the same way as the "installed" widgets. You can modify settings, move it, view its output plus it appears on the Dashboard and its directory. However, when you close it, the widget wonÂ?t add to clutter your Dashboard bar because it's not there! Just one of those little-known tricks that can make a big difference!

There has been some rumors that had been hitting the forums of numerous Apple-related sites about OS X 10.4.7 adding Â?phone homeÂ? capabilities to Dashboard. Some have been really excited about this backfence talks, while others remain skeptical about this and won't believe anything until it's official. A former Mac Genius named JC, gave his intellectual opinion about this, and according to him, the Dashboard can't do such thing.

According to him, "phoning home" doesn't mean being able to call a landline or something of that sort. Phoning home refers to a secret process that transmits information back to a central location and possibly putting personal information at risk, but he says that Apple does not jeopardize the privacy of personal information, ok, I'm becoming somewhat paranoid (kidding)!

How does this process happen? According to his expert point of view, every 8 hours a process called fetchadvisory is launched. In short, this process verifies the authenticity of your installed Dashboard widgets. This could be done since OS X has a nice little UNIX utility called tcpdump that'll help them figure things out. JC added that  "the following command opens up your interface and listens for anything to or from www.apple.com."

Then again, till nothing is official, we could only say that JC's thought about the Phone Home rumor is just a speculation - but a valued one at that.

Some Dashboard Widgets are making us more prepared for disastrous events and calamities (and making us rely less on FEMA). After someone came up with the Seismac, which transforms your Mac into a seismograph, Apple is now offering a free dashboard widget - the WeatherBug Hurricane Watcher. This app enables you to watch the latest satellite images for current or developing storms. It's features are the following:

-Satellite images of active storms with multiple views.
- Access to an interactive Storm Tracker that tracks the path of current hurricanes, as well as ones dating back to 2000. It also provides interesting facts on each storm.
- Access to the latest weather news stories and hurricane information.
- Access to your local weather conditions.

Download: [WeatherBug Hurricane Watcher]

No, you won't be able to run Xbox 360 games on your Mac - yet. However, this little hack may be handy if your XBox and your cable modem are in separate rooms,  and you don't want to shell out $100 for a wireless adapter.

Step 1:  turn off your Xbox 360 and connect a standard ethernet crossover cable from the network port of the 360 to the ethernet port on your Mac. On the Mac, go to System Preferences>Sharing.  Click the "Internet" tab.  On the "Share your connection from..." drop-down, select AirPort. Check Built-in Ethernet on the box underneath, then press 'Start'. You will get a cautionary dialogue box; accept it. Your window should look like this:

Step 2:  Turn on your 360, go to the dahboard and navigate to the System pane. Select "Network Settings" and then "Edit Settings". Change IP settings to Manual. Back in OS X, enter Terminal and type, without quotes: "ifconfig en0". The first IP address, which is probably 192.168.2.1, is your Gateway address.  Enter this on your Xbox. For IP address, enter 192.168.2.2, and 255.255.255.0 for the Subnet Mask.

Step 3: Save your settings on your Xbox 360. It  may automatically test the new connection; ignore this, because it will fail. Go back into the settings menu and this time choose DNS Settings, making this manual as well. Next, you'll need to go back into Terminal and type in "dig" (again, without quotes) and press enter. At the bottom of the results you will find a line saying "SERVER:" (see below). The IP address following (underlined below) is your Primary DNS server, so enter that into your Xbox. Don't enter anything under Secondary DNS server.

In Network Settings on the Dashboard, select "Test Xbox Live Connection". You should now be able to connect to Xbox Live.

Apple has recently released a maintenance update for the Mac OS 10.4.7, with an added background daemon that reports to Apple information about your computer when you launch the Dashboard. The Widget Advisory could be the nagging girlfriend or the, to quote the now defunct Destiny's Child, your bug-a-boo boyfriend. The feature is so easy to use that there is no obvious way to actually turn it off. But of course, if there's a will, there's a way.

In the OS X Terminal, launch a window and enter:

sudo mv /etc/mach_init.d/dashboardadvisoryd.plist /etc/mach_init.d/
dashboardadvisoryd.plist.disabled

And then reboot.

And then give it the it's-me-not-you excuse.