Each time Rogue Amoeba exhibits at Macworld (don’t forget, we’ll be there this year, in booth #742), we met thousands of excited, interested Mac users. And every year, we hear the same excited question: “What other Mac developers are here?”. While iOS has risen in popularity (to the point that it’s now part of the show’s name), users still love the Mac and want to learn about Mac software. I share the desire to see more Mac developers at Macworld. I love getting a chance to see what’s new and what’s cool, to meet with new developers and catch up with old friends too.

This year, it’s easier than ever to exhibit. There’s a special area of the show floor called the OS X Zone, and it already features several dozen Mac developers, including our friends at BusyMac, Flexibits, and Smile. For $2000, you get almost everything you need – just bring a laptop, and a friend or two to help exhibit. Print up a simple flyer to hand out, and you’re all set.

With the ascendency of the Internet, and now things like the Mac App Store, a lot of folks think trade shows have lost their relevance. They may not be as big as they once were, but they still have plenty to offer. Demoing your product on the show floor is a great way to get exposure while simultaneously learning all sorts of new things about your own work. If you’re a Mac developer, exhibiting at Macworld is the way to get face-to-face contact with both tens of thousands of users and hundreds of members of the press. If you’re interested, there’s still time to sign up. I certainly hope to see many Mac OS X developers at the end of the month.

It’s time for some more Airfoil for Windows news today. We’ve been hard at work on revamping a lot of the underpinnings, and it’s time to expose that work to a larger audience. If you’re ready, you can start using the future, today!

What’s New?

When we updated Airfoil to version 3, we revamped its interface as well. While this update was most welcome, it unfortunately didn’t work perfectly on systems which make use of Windows text scaling. Airfoil 3.2′s interface will be fully resolution-independent, and this beta is 99% of the way there. So, if you’ve had issues with Airfoil’s interface since version 3, give this beta a try.

Beyond that, almost all of the updates in this beta are under the hood. They’re important, and they’ll make Airfoil work better for nearly all users, but they aren’t flashy. Nevertheless, after weeks of internal testing, we need more folks to use the app and make sure everything works as expected. That’s where you come in! Just grab the download, and use it as normal.

Get the latest Airfoil for Windows 3.2 Beta here.

With the latest update, we have very few known issues left. Grab the latest beta from the link above.

Feedback

If the beta works, excellent – that’s just what we expected! Keep using it until the official Airfoil 3.2 arrives (you’ll be alerted to the update when it ships). However, if you run into any problems, use the in-app support form in the Help menu to let us know.

We’re not quite to Christmas, but 2012 is just around the corner, and it’s once again time for Rogue Amoeba to pack up for San Francisco. We’ll be exhibiting in booth #742 of the exhibit hall at Macworld-iWorld 2012, and we’d love to see you there.

Details
Dates: January 26th – January 28th, 2012
Times: 12 PM – 6 PM (Thursday), 10 AM – 6 PM (Friday, Saturday)
Location: Moscone Center, San Francisco

If you’ve been to Macworld’s exhibit hall before, you’ve got a decent idea of what to expect. As always, there will be hundreds of Mac and iOS vendors coming together with tens of thousands of Mac users to talk about the software and hardware we all use every day. This year there will be a whole lot more going on, from musical performances by big name bands like Modest Mouse, BT, and Moe, to great tech talks, and much more.

If you’re going to make it, we’ve got a great deal for you – a limited number of free Exhibit Hall passes! You can register here to get in for free. Once the free passes are gone, they’re gone, but it’s still just $25 to get in.

Once you’ve registered, mark down 1/26/2012 through 1/28/2012 in your calendar, and put our Booth #742 in there too. We’ll see you in San Francisco!

Two weeks after it was unveiled to the world, our charmingly simple audio recording app Piezo already has its first major update. The just-released Piezo 1.1 provides full support for recording from VoIP apps like Skype, iChat, and FaceTime. If you’re looking to make quick recordings of a VoIP conversation, Piezo is now ready to assist!

When recording VoIP conversations with previous versions of Piezo, you would hear your own voice fed back to you while you spoke. This was somewhat disconcerting at best, and after hearing from many users, we worked rapidly to solve it. We’ve now fixed that issue for Piezo 1.1, and also split audio onto two channels, with your own audio saved to the left and the other party’s audio on the right (you can even see this reflected in the VU meters). With Piezo, recording from Skype and other VoIP apps couldn’t be simpler.

What about Audio Hijack?

A lot of folks have asked us how Piezo compares to our powerful audio recorder Audio Hijack Pro. The shortest answer is that Piezo is great for simple recordings, while Audio Hijack Pro is great for users who need more power. We’ve got a more detailed comparison over in our Support center, and you can always download the free trials of each to see what works best for you.

When it comes to VoIP recordings specifically, both apps are now capable of providing great results. If you’re looking to create a professional podcast, it’s likely you’ll want the power Audio Hijack Pro provides. For many users, however, Piezo is likely to be all that’s needed.

Details

Piezo 1.1 is a free update for all users. To update from an older version, either launch the App Store app, or (if you purchased directly) choose Check For Update from the Piezo menu.

New users can purchase and download right through Apple’s App Store. Of course, we’ll always sell it directly as well. Whichever way you choose to buy, you can download Piezo first to take it for a test drive.

On Wednesday, I had the chance to speak with my friend Chuck Joiner over at MacVoices, about Piezo, the Mac App Store, and more. That interview is now live, so go have a listen!