Nisus Software is joining in the holiday tradition of pushing big releases out just before the end of the year with Nisus Writer 6.5, a significant revision to the company's powerful word processor

Bare Bones Software yesterday released BBEdit 6.5.1, adding a number of small features such as support for JSP (Java Server Pages), modified keyboard navigation, interface tweaks, and minor scripting improvements

Apple yesterday released an update to Mac OS X 10.1.2 via Software Update, building in a number of useful enhancements and fixes (and providing better release notes than for previous updates)

In a welcome, though slightly unusual move, Microsoft has released Internet Explorer 5.1 - currently available only for Mac OS X - for Mac OS 8.1 through 9.2 as well, adding a few minor features and enhancing reliability

Consistent with our coverage of the PowerBook G4 Titanium's new Combo drive, Apple has now announced the PowerBook G4 Combo Upgrade Program. Under this program, owners of PowerBook G4 Titaniums with either 550 MHz or 667 MHz processors (check Apple System Profiler if you're not sure) can swap their existing DVD-ROM or CD-RW drives for a DVD-ROM/CD-RW Combo drive for $300

"Information is the currency of democracy." - Thomas Jefferson At least since the U.S. Constitution explicitly granted Congress the power to protect copyright, an intellectual foundation has been built up regarding intellectual property

PowerBook G4 Titanium Gains Combo Drive -- Tired of making trade-offs in its high-end laptop, Apple today refreshed the PowerBook G4 so all models now come standard with a slot-loading DVD-ROM/CD-RW Combo drive that lets you watch DVD movies, burn CDs, and (of course) read standard audio and data CDs

IPNetRouter 1.6.3 Gets Dynamic -- Sustainable Software has released version 1.6.3 of IPNetRouter, their popular Internet sharing software, adding one significant feature

Earlier this month, Connectix Corporation shipped the latest version of Virtual PC, their Pentium emulation software for running Windows (and other PC operating systems) on a Power Macintosh

So Long 2001, and Thanks for All the Fish -- It's been a long and unsettling year, but it's coming to a close with a holiday season that we hope is calm and restful for everyone

PowerMail 3.1 Beefs Up IMAP Support -- CTM Development has released PowerMail 3.1, the latest version of their capable email client, with completely rewritten IMAP support

The main event of the Macintosh world looms large in our calendar - Macworld Expo San Francisco will be held from 07-Jan-02 through 11-Jan-02. PC-oriented trade shows were hemorrhaging even before the terrorist attacks of September 11th, and it only got worse afterwards, with attendance at Fall Comdex in Las Vegas down 40 percent and all exhibitors fitting into a single venue

Users of Mac OS X, when Apple releases version 10.2, will find a little something extra in their holiday stocking - AppleScript Studio. Since its announcement in September, though it immediately won a Macworld award, AppleScript Studio has been mostly just a name; beta-testers weren't allowed to tell what it was

Perhaps it's a part of getting older, of becoming ever busier, or perhaps - for Adam and Tonya - just having a three-year-old around the house, but immersive computer games haven't been a large part of our lives for years

Give the Gift of Giving -- It's a tradition. At the end of every calendar year, we collect gift suggestions from TidBITS readers and staff, assemble them into semi-consistent categories, and publish the results as a special TidBITS issue