Apple says it will appeal against a court ruling that bans the company from entering into deals with publishers that could allow ebook prices to be fixed or inflated. The case was raised by the Department of Justice and judge Denise Cote's decision is very much in line with what they were seeking. The Cupertino, Calif.-based company is banned from entering into agreements with five named publishers in ways that might restrict ebook prices.

Having been found to have conspired with publishers to prevent retailers (rather than publishers or Apple) from setting ebook prices, Apple fell foul of antitrust legislation. The company is required to wipe out a controversial 'most favoured nation' clause in its contracts that effectively ensure that Apple's ebook prices would always match the lowest price available online. Restrictions are in place for different lengths of time for various publishers, ranging from two years in the case of Hachette, to four years for Macmillan.

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Over the years, the big knock on OS X was that it lacked the software availability that Windows had. While Apple's operating system has made huge gains, Windows is still the software leader -- especially for business. When Parallels was released in 2006, it solved a problem for many Apple users; it allowed them to run Windows on their Mac.

Today, Parallels announces version 9 of its virtualization software. "Parallels Desktop 9 for Mac customers will enjoy peace of mind knowing that Parallels keeps pace with and supports leading new technologies, such as the upcoming OS X Mavericks, Windows 8.1 and increasingly popular cloud services", says CEO Birger Steen.

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I own several tablets and am always on the lookout for a good deal on a new case for one of them. One place I keep a frequent eye on is Poetic, which manufactures a full line of cases for a number of different devices. As of this afternoon, we can add one more device to that lineup -- the Apple iPhone 5C.

You can imagine the surprise I got upon arrival on the company home page when I was greeted with the image seen above. The company appears to be unveiling its line of bumper cases for a phone that has not yet been released or even announced. In fact, Apple has yet to confirm it will even be holding an event in early September.

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I have been using BitTorrent Sync between my desktop and laptop since it debuted in private alpha form. The service has since matured to beta, and now ages a bit more as it spreads to another platform -- iOS, after landing on Android last month.

"Today, we’re happy to report that BitTorrent Sync is now available for iOS devices on the App Store. iOS fans: you can now sync freely", the company reports.

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A great thing about the iPhone (or iPod touch) is it can be used as a business tool or as a toy. While some people use it strictly for email and work, others use it to play games such as Angry Birds and Candy Crush Saga. For those such users; kids and kids at heart, Belkin has announced new cases to complement the fun aspect of the iPhone -- LEGO Builder Cases.

According to Belkin, "the back of the Builder Case carries a true LEGO baseplate -- this is considered the key foundation to the LEGO play experience. The baseplate is made by LEGO factories to LEGO standards and is integrated into the case in a way that’s durable and comfortable for everyday use. Other features of the case include a semi-flexible outer frame for shock-absorption, button protection, and unobstructed access to audio ports and speakers".

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About 3 months ago, my heart was aflutter for Google's Play Music All Access. I was so enamored that I declared iTunes dead. While it remains my favorite streaming music service, there is still not an iOS version. I am typically an Android guy, however, there is a fourth-generation iPod touch in my family that gets use too -- mostly for music.

This week, I discovered a new addition to the crowded streaming music category, called Radical.FM. The question becomes: is it a worthy addition to iOS?

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Looking at the the biggest stories on BetaNews from August, 18 - 24, 2013. Perhaps the biggest news from the last seven days -- at least in part because it came as such a surprise to most people -- was the announcement that Steve Ballmer intends to resign from Microsoft within the year. The CEO is planning to step down as soon as a suitable replacement is found, but there has been speculation that Ballmer may have been pushed rather than opting to jump.

Getting my hands on a Surface Pro for the first time gave me an opportunity to try out Windows 8 as a touchscreen operating system. Despite loving the Surface in general, I pondered whether the use of the same version of Windows 8 as on desktop machine may have been what's stopping Microsoft’s convertible devices from becoming more popular. At the same time, Brian fell in love with the Lenovo Yoga, citing Windows 8 as one of the computer’s strengths.

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iWork for iCloud beta was originally only available for developers (or people with developer accounts), much to the ire of the fruit-logo company's eager and loyal following. Today, without any fanfare, the cloud-based Office platform is now available to all Apple ID users.

Apple describes the service by saying "iWork has always been the best way to be productive on the Mac. And iWork for iOS made it easy to create beautiful documents on iPad and iPhone. With iWork for iCloud we’re bringing Pages, Numbers, and Keynote to the web -- on Mac and PC. And thanks to iCloud, your work is always up to date on all your devices".

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The myth of Mac invulnerability has been looking shaky for a while and received a further blow in February when some machines used by Apple's own staff were hijacked and used to launch an attack on Facebook.

Growing numbers of Macs mean that the platform is increasingly attractive to cybercriminals and even if the number of attacks remains small compared to Windows it's still a threat that needs to be taken seriously. With this in mind independent testing company AV-Comparatives has been looking at security software for OS X Mountain Lion.

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In a recent ad Microsoft levelled its guns at Google, but this time around it is Apple who finds itself in the crosshairs. The thinly veiled attack pits the Lenovo Yoga against Apple’s iPad in a bid to win favour in time for the ‘back to school season’.

The advertisement is set in a lecture hall and finds the lecturer’s audience divided into three distinct camps -- old-school pen and paper fans, iPad users, and a solitary student with a convertible Windows device. As the cue comes to start taking notes, the Windows user casually stops playing the word game she was engrossed in, flips the Yoga into ‘notebook’ mode and starts typing.

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While Mary Alyce and the boys were in Theater 7 this weekend watching Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters ("Needs more monsters," says Fallon, age 7) I was in Theater 2 watching Jobs, the Ashton Kutcher film about Steve Jobs ("Has enough monsters," says Bob, age 60).

I know the Jobs story fairly well having, well, lived some of it, but people have been asking me about the film so I thought I should check it out. Critics have not been kind and Steve Wozniak said he wouldn't recommend it. I can see why.

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Looking at the the biggest stories on BetaNews from August, 11 - 17, 2013. This week there has been a lot of Microsoft related news setting tongues wagging -- and it's been something of a rollercoaster. Early on in the week we got a sneak peak at what to expect in the upcoming Windows 8.1 update after a new build leaked online. Build 9471 includes a number of changes from the official Preview, including new tutorials, extra personalization options, changes to a few of the built-in apps and integrated Skype.

Not long after the leak version was discovered, Microsoft went on to talk about creating a unified experience across different Microsoft and Windows devices and services. And for anyone who is sick of the Windows 8.1 hype there was some good news -- the official release date is only a couple of months away, after which things should start to quieten down.

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It's easy to learn how many iPads and iPhones have been sold -- sales figures are readily available. But this isn’t enough information for advertisers who need to know what type of demographic makes up their potential market. Research by Flurry helps to shine a light on the types of people who own different iOS devices.

A random sample of over 44,000 iOS device owners reveals that 72 percent have an iPhone and 28 percent an iPad. Plotted on a chart, the figures make for interesting reading but, as ever, the most intriguing results are to be found at the extremes.

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With the upcoming release of the Jobs biopic Apple is set to be in the spotlight in coming weeks. It's timely then that the Finances Online website has released an interesting report tracing the iPhone’s supply chain.

It makes for fascinating reading. The rare earth minerals used in many of the phone’s components are 90 percent sourced in China and Inner Mongolia. Move up to the component level and the LCD panels, chipset, memory and batteries are all made in Korea. The iPhone 5's innovative display -- which eliminates a layer of glass -- is made by LG for example. The gyroscope that works out which way you’re holding the phone comes from STMicroelectronics, a French/Italian company.

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The PC as we know it is dying, and tablets are unquestionably where the sales are right now. As a result, vendors and retailers are clamoring to pull in the consumers by ramping up their advertising spend and exposure.

In Q2 2013, according to data gathered by analyst firm gap intelligence, vendors and retailers placed a total of 771 tablet ads in print media in the US, up 266 from the same quarter last year, and while 83 percent of the adverts were for Android tablets, Windows devices made a big splash, accounting for 12 percent of all ads. When new products launch, or sales aren't great -- both true in this case -- it's quite typical to see an increase in ad spending in order to reach as many consumers as possible.

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