I was stumped for an hour today by trying to get a C++ OpenGL GLUT application to compile on OS X using the Eclipse CDT IDE. (Is that a lot of acronyms, or what? :-) )

It turns out that if you use a web search engine, you can find several other people plaintively asking how to do this, but no actual answers. (This is apparently because most Macintosh C/C++ developers use the Macintosh-specific XCode IDE instead.)

In the hopes of helping out future web searchers, here's the answer:

There are two issues:

• On OS/X the GLUT headers are in a non-standard directory, so you must use:

• On OS/X the way you specify libraries to the linker is to use "-framework NAME".You do this in Eclipse by:
  1. Right-click on your Project's icon in the "Project Explorer" pane.
  2. Choose "Properties" from the context menu
  3. Choose "C/C++ Build:Properties" from the dialog box tree view.
  4. Choose "Tool Settings" from the tab list
  5. Choose "Mac OS X C++ Linker : Miscellaneous"
  6. Add the following text to the "Linker flags" field:

The only thing I haven't figured out yet is how to get the "Outline " browser to understand where the OpenGL and GLUT include files are located.

I finally got my first HDTV. It's a Sony 40V2500, which is Sony's cheapest 1080p model. I paid $1525 from an online computer retailer. I've had it for a week now, and so far I like it a lot.

The reason I chose this model was:

• I wanted a display in the 40 to 42 inches range, because my main TV watching room is not very big.
• I wanted an LCD display because I have a very bright room, and I don't want to bother with blackout curtains.
  
• I wanted 1080p for high-end video games and computer use.
• I wanted a Sony because I like their attention to details in terms of signal processing, analog tuning, and display quality.
• I wanted to spend about $1000. (OK, I went over budget by 50%. :-) )

Things I like about this TV:

• Very nice picture
• It just works.
• Light enough to move by myself.
• The menu is good. This is is the last generation of Sony TVs that doesn't have the pretty-but-hard-to-use "cross-bar" menu UI.
• Nice simple remote control.
  

Things I don't like about this TV:

• Doesn't do 1080p over component inputs, just over VGA/HDMI.
• Doesn't have two antenna/cable inputs; you have to switch between cable and antenna decoding.
• It runs Linux. (Oh, wait, I don't work for Microsoft any more, so it's OK to use Linux. :-) )
  

My tips on online HDTV shopping:

• Information
  • avsforum.com is a great source of advice and tips on the latest models.
  • hdtvtest.co.uk has some good in-depth reviews of HDTVs,
  • cnet.com does good not-in-depth reviews of HDTVs.
  • Unfortunately there are so many HDTV models that nobody is able to review them all.
• Prices:
  
  • nexttag.com is good for finding a low price.
    • I especially liked the graphs they have showing how the lowest price has changed over time.
  • pricewatch.com and pricegrabber.com are good alternatives to nexttag.com, that sometimes include stores that aren't on nexttag.com. (I happened to find the lowest price on pricegrabber this time.)
    
  • Be sure to look at the total price, including shipping and tax. Most of the online price web sites let you enter your zip code and then automatically compute the total price for you.

My Macbook battery died this week. No advanced warning, it just wouldn't charge. As a result my Macbook thought it didn't have any battery installed. I took my Macbook to the Genius Bar at the Apple Store, and they replaced the battery, free of charge, even though my Mac was purchased 13 months ago. They did ask me if I had installed the Macbook Battery Update, but alas I hadn't. (I wonder why they didn't make it a standard download, as part of their system software update.)

I think the Apple Genius Bar is worth it's weight in gold, especially to non-technical users. It's so much easier than mail-in or home service, at least if you live near tan Apple Store. I happen to live 1.5 miles from my Apple Store, which I suspect is closer than most Apple owners. :-)

The Mac store was crowded, as was the whole mall, due to a local heat wave. There was a small crowd around the new iPhone. People seemed to like it. I played with it for a few minutes on the way out. My impressions:

• The UI is great, especially
  • The very flat menu system. One click gets you into most apps.
  • The two-fingered pan/zoom works great for photos and browsing.
  • Snappy response to most user actions. Oddly, launching the video player takes a long time. (Maybe they're doing a pre-roll before showing the UI?)
    
• The touch screen typing works OK, but it's not great. I made plenty of mistakes, especially in the portrait mode with the smaller buttons. None-the-less I think it's adequate.
  
• The screen is very nice. Very good off-angle viewing. No ghosting. Nice contrast.
  
• The physical design is very nice, but I think there are a few problems:
  • It's too slippery. I dropped the phone within the first 20 seconds of holding it. (Admittedly it was greasy from all the other customers.)
  • The phone screen gets smeared up from touching it.
    
  • It's thinner than it needs to be. I think it could be fatter/cheaper and people would be just as happy with it.
• I didn't get to try real web browsing or phone. So no idea how bad the EDGE wireless speeds are.