MacSaber Beta4: iBook and PowerBook Test

24 May 2006 | By Ian in Apple, Development, MacSaber, Made by isnoop

Thank you to those who have provided their feedback. I have released MacSaber 1.0 with support for iBook and PowerBook machines. Please read here for more information.

I sure wish I had a PowerBook and an iBook right now. In lieu of that, I am calling on you to test for me.

Beta4 of MacSaber is available below. Please read this whole post before downloading. This is a limited test release that *should* work on iBook and PowerBook model laptops.

To report your results:
1) Please make sure you are running “Version 1.0 BETA4i”
2) Include the second value for “tilt” in your results. This should be either “t1″ or “t3″ if you are running an iBook or PowerBook.
3) Post your results here.

This version isn’t for MacBook users. Please stick with the previous version for now.

iBook Note: Sudden Motion Sensor (SMS) technology only exists on iBooks built after July 26, 2005. These iBooks are either 1.33GHz or 1.42GHz. All 1.42GHz iBooks have SMS. Only 1.33 GHz iBooks with a scrolling trackpad, 512MB RAM (stock), and 40GB HDD (stock) have SMS.

PowerBook Note: Sudden Motion Sensor (SMS) technology only exists on PowerBooks built after January 31, 2005. These PowerBooks are either 1.5GHz or 1.67GHz. All 1.67GHz PowerBooks have SMS. All 1.5GHz PowerBooks without backlit keyboard have SMS. 1.5GHz PowerBooks with both backlit keyboard and the 8X superdrive have SMS.

If your iBook or PowerBook does not meet the specs above, it is not SMS equipped. Otherwise, download MacSaber Beta4i here.

Thank you for your help!

31 Comments on “MacSaber Beta4: iBook and PowerBook Test”

  1. 25 May 2006 | Schlex Said:

    I have a 15″ 1.5 Ghz Backlight + Combo PB and it doesn’t work (like the text says)

    SMS Error: -2
    PowerBook5,6
    ID: 1

    But I know i have SMS.

    See this for more Information:

    http://schlex.org/files/accelerometer.tiff

    http://schlex.org/files/powerbookinfo.spx

     

  2. 25 May 2006 | programmiernutte Said:

    Works!
    PB 15″ 1.67GHz

     

  3. 25 May 2006 | Nathan Said:

    Works here too.

    iBook 12″ 1.33GHz

     

  4. 25 May 2006 | gabriel fraga Said:

    Works fine!
    PB 12″ 1,5 GHZ

     

  5. 25 May 2006 | Eric Rapin Said:

    PB G4 15″ 1.5GHz works fine.

    Very cool!

    I can’t wait to show my boys. I’m just afraid they will try to hit each other with my laptop!

     

  6. 25 May 2006 | Schlex Said:

    After a reboot now, it works.

     

  7. 25 May 2006 | Patrick Smith Said:

    Doesn’t work,… on a 1.67 PB G4. Grat idea though, i can’t wait to show everyone in my next lecture.

    Report this data: SMS Error: -2
    Powerbook 5,7
    ID: 3

     

  8. 25 May 2006 | Matt MacWeeny Said:

    Works great, but now my co-workers will not give me my iBook back
    is there a fix due for this bug? :)

    iBook 12″ 1.33GHz

     

  9. 25 May 2006 | Jan Brašna Said:

    Nope. iB 12″ 1.33 …

    REPORT THIS DATA:
    SMS Error: -4
    PowerBook6,7
    ID: 1

     

  10. 25 May 2006 | theferf Said:

    Beta 4 Works Great.

    Black MacBook.

    SYSTEM OK
    MacBook1,1
    ID: 4

     

  11. 25 May 2006 | marcus Said:

    Works on the 15” 1.67mhz 2 gigs o ram

    “Are you supposed to be doing that?” – my dad

     

  12. 25 May 2006 | MacSaber… at spacebarinmanywords Said:

    [...] Carpenter’s Level Dashboard Widget Bubblegym Bumpalarm MacSaber [...]

     

  13. 25 May 2006 | Jan Brašna Said:

    Wow, after restart the IOI2C is back alive, and now working:

    SYSTEM OK
    PowerBook6,7
    ID: 1

    But… No ’second value for â€?tiltâ€?’, dunno why.

     

  14. 25 May 2006 | chesh Said:

    PowerBook 1.67 GHz PowerPC G4
    2 GB DDR SDRAM

    SYSTEM OK
    PowerBook5,8
    ID:3

    When the machine is “flat” on my lap:

    Roll: 2
    Tilt: -108
    Force: 2 0

    There doesn’t seem to be a second value for tilt, but the saber noises sure work :)

     

  15. 25 May 2006 | Zach Weinberg Said:

    Works fine.

    iBook 1.42

     

  16. 25 May 2006 | Scott in Chicago Said:

    Cool! iBook G4, works well.

     

  17. 25 May 2006 | Jed Said:

    iBook G4 1.33 Ghz (week of 8/10/05) works well.

     

  18. 25 May 2006 | piece of mind » Blog Archive » Uber-geekness Said:

    [...] Here I am in my office desk looking like a total idiot. I just downloaded MacSaber, which uses Apple’s sudden motion sensor to make lightsaber sounds as it senses sudden change in motion. [...]

     

  19. 25 May 2006 | Daniel Said:

    hey i just got a powerbook 1.67
    however i dont see the point with this program???

     

  20. 25 May 2006 | mi(c)i Said:

    1.33mhz ibook: works nice, though could be more ’sensitive’? to get other than the swooshy noise requires quite heavy waving. thanks!!

    SYSTEM OK
    PowerBook6,7
    ID:1

     

  21. 25 May 2006 | SamTheMan Said:

    Its a great idea, I love it.
    but could you use this new found power for something else? mabey…app switching? And are you willing to give out source or teach us how?

    Thanks, its great

     

  22. 26 May 2006 | Parkingtigers Said:

    Glad to see you are working on this for the Powerbook, because this is the coolest thing I’ve ever seen for a laptop. YouTube is now full of videos of MacSaber fights, you should contact Apple because this needs to be turned into a commercial.

    Sorry, on to the results. MacSaber tells me the following:

    SYSTEM OK
    Powerbook6,8
    ID:1

    That’s all, there is no second tilt value. I’m running a 15″ Powerbook, 1.5ghz. I don’t know how old it is, I got it used, but at least a year. It is a model without a Superdrive if that helps.

    It does the swooshy noises very well, but the clashes can be hard to get without flinging the laptop around harder than a laptop should be. A bit more sensitivity there might be nice.

    Good work though, I’ll be back for any updates. Can’t wait to show this off at work tonight.

     

  23. 26 May 2006 | Allan Said:

    i have an 05′ ibook and beta 4 works much better than beta 3 for me, beta 3 did work, however it wasn’t very responsive, and motion detection appeared to be rather random.

     

  24. 26 May 2006 | Cholera Said:

    Works!
    (powerbook 5,8 ID 3)
    1,67 Ghz

    But the sesitivity is quite bad, in comparision to a MacBook..

    just standing the values are:
    roll : -256
    tilt – 104
    force 0 0

    maybe an adjustment bar for the sensityivity would be a nice feature.. ;)

     

  25. 26 May 2006 | Jean Pierre Said:

    Finally works on my 15″ 1.5GHz Powerbook (02/2005) with backlit keyboard and combo-drive (DVD/CD-RW):

    SYSTEM OK
    PowerBook5,6
    ID: 1

    Great work!

    OS X (10.4.6 here) still seems to have a problem with the sudden motion sensor detection. If the SMS does not appear in System Profiler, try to reboot your computer (click on the apple symbol in the menu bar, then on “reboot”). Maybe you will be able to see the SMS status after the reboot (as I did here) and you can enjoy MacSaber ;)

     

  26. 26 May 2006 | Jason Poon Said:

    it doesn’t work…
    PB 1.67GHz, MacOSX 10.4.6
    SMS Error:-2
    PowerBook5,6
    ID: 1

    but it’s a great app!!

     

  27. 26 May 2006 | Ryan Said:

    Truly, truly, this is a wonderful application. The last time I so easily awed PC users was with my first demonstration of Exposé. Bravo!

     

  28. 26 May 2006 | OneSeventeen Said:

    Works great!
    When closing the lid (which puts my iBook to sleep atm) and re-opening, I get the following error:
    SMS Error: -4
    PowerBook6,7
    ID: 1
    Roll: 2
    Tilt: 108
    Force: -4 3

    (iBook G4 1.42GHz)

    Works well other than when it “sleeps” then wakes up

     

  29. 26 May 2006 | G Rom Said:

    Same here…
    February 2005 17″ PowerBook 1.67GHz running 10.4.6 too

    SMS Error: -2
    PowerBook5,7
    ID: 3

    God ! I’ll really have to buy a MacBook ((-:

     

  30. 26 May 2006 | lauren Said:

    it works fine. so awesome!!!!

    1.33 ghz ibook g4
    os 10.4.6

    powerbook 6,7
    id: 1

     

  31. 26 May 2006 | The Marcos Kirsch Experience® » Blog Archive » It’s decided: I’m getting a MacBook Said:

    [...] [Update 5/25/2006] On Tuesday I went to the local Apple Store. They were sold out of MacBooks (but they had black demo units!). In any case, it turns out I may not have to buy a MacBook right away, after all. I’ll try to test it tonight, even though I’m running against the clock on a small personal project. [...]