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Filed under: Utilities, Windows, Macintosh, Linux, Apple

Apple receives patent for the OS X dock

OS X dock
Apple has received a patent for the dock utility for launching applications in OS X. Yes, the dock has been around for the better part of a decade, but Apple applied for the patent back in 1999 and didn't receive it until this week. The patent describes an interface for consolidating frequently used items in a "userbar." It also covers the way that items are magnified when you scroll your cursor over them.

In other words, it looks like Apple may be able to go after the makers of ObjectDock, RocketDock, sTabLauncher, Avant Window Navigator, Cairo Dock and others. Sure, those applications may not steal any code from Apple, but they're based on the same concept.

Now, I'm not saying Apple shouldn't have been able to patent the dock concept. I'm not going to take a position on that, one way or the other. But this is the sort of thing that can happen when it takes the US patent system 9 years to rule on a patent application.

[via The Register]

Filed under: Utilities, Linux, Open Source, Canonical

Spice up your Linux desktop with AWN

AWNOver the past year or so, there has been an explosion of eye-candy type apps for Linux. With show stoppers such as Compiz Fusion, nerds have plenty to grin about these days.

With Avant Window Navigator, you can have a beautiful dock on your system, similar to the one in Mac OS X. AWN is very themeable and customizable, with many animations and applets available. And hey, it's pretty! Unlike other dock clones, AWN is very simple and intuitive. Users can simply drag-and-drop any application short cut to the dock, just like in OSX.

AWN is a free download, and installs very easily on Ubuntu thanks to this DEB package. AWN is only available for Ubuntu, so users of other distros will need to compile it themselves.

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Graveyard Shift - zombie-busting Time Waster

With Halloween fast approaching, it's a great time to get in some practice defending your territory against zombies. In Graveyard Shift, you take aim at zombies and other creepy-crawlies, blasting them into splatters of cartoony green guts. It's a casual first-person shooter, and it's very easy to get the hang of - use the mouse to aim, click to fire. Graveyard Shift has at least 15 levels, and it might even have some secret stages I haven't unlocked yet. They key to getting good at Graveyard Shift is learning to use ...

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