Brand: MacNews

Nielsen/NetRatings revealed in a study released today that over 498 million people worldwide had Internet access at home by the end of 2001, according to CNN. North America holds the largest share of the global Internet audience at 40 percent, followed by Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (27 percent combined), and Asia (22 percent).

Alias|Wavefront, creators of the Maya 3D animation suite, has closed its Santa Barbara, CA development office, according to Macworld UK. Wavefront Technologies co-founder Mark Sylvester was reportedly opposed to the decision and has left the company after an 18-year tenure. Sylvester will now focus his efforts on the South Coast Alliance of Media Professionals (SCAMP).

Connectix Corporation has released Virtual PC 5.0.2, a new version of its popular Windows emulator for Mac OS 9 and Mac OS X, as noted by MacUpdate. The new version adds significant performance and function enhancements when running in Mac OS X and more than a dozen bug fixes.

Softpress released Wednesday Freeway 3.5, a new version of its Web design software for Mac OS X. Freeway is catered to novices and pros alike, with a particular focus on the design portion of site development. Version 3.5 improves the product’s ease-of-use, improves PHP and drag & drop support, and supports a wider range of file formats. Freeway sells for US$299, with a $149 competitive upgrade also being offered. The upgrade is free to existing owners of Freeway 3; a 30-day demo is also available.

Customers waiting to purchase a new iMac may still have a considerable wait ahead of them, according to a c|net article that discusses the challenges Apple is facing producing the system in suitable quantities. To date, Ingram Micro and TechData — two of Apple’s largest retail distributors in the U.S. — have shipped less than 1,500 of the high-end systems, and have received no mid-range or low-end systems.