Merry Christmas to all! Now that the presents have been unwrapped we at TUAW want to know what you lucky folks got! A Mac Pro or two? Perhaps an iPod Shuffle in your stocking?

Sure, Christmas is really about being surrounded by loved ones, but getting some cool Apple gear doesn't hurt. Sound off in the comments with your haul.

Anticipating a wave of happy new iPhone owners, AT&T will extend store hours across the US on Boxing Day[1]. The idea is this: After receiving their sparkly new iPhone under the tree, consumers will head over to the AT&T stores to buy unnecessary and overpriced accessories in a post-Christmas wave of spending.

TUAW recommends that you accessorize your new iPhone in moderation. The dollar store is a great resource to pick up inexpensive soft cases and socks.

[1] December 26.

Update: For the literal minded, this is the kind of sock I am talking about: It is marketed as an iPod sock but fits the iPhone as well. Cost: $1 at my local Dollar Tree. It's an excellent value works well in pockets and handbags where keys and other such items threaten the integrity of the iPhone's screen.

The holidays are a time for frivolity, are they not? They are also a time for rhetorical questions, but that is neither here nor there. Today's bit of Christmas cheer comes from iYule.tv. The idea is simple: take that corny old burning fire that some tv stations broadcast for the benefit of apartment dwellers, non-fireplace owners, the aged, and the lonely and put it on your iPod, iPhone, Apple TV, Mac, PC, XBox, or Zune (hey, it is Christmas, so we have to include everyone). iYule offers up several high quality downloadable versions of this roaring fire (with music, without music, widescreen, and so on) for a reasonable price ($5 - $10) and no DRM.

Some of the proceeds will go to charity, so think about that before you fill the comments with things like, 'Why would I pay for that!' or 'I would buy that if it cost $2 and came with a free Mac.' Also keep in mind that a similar, though free, yule log is available.

If, in the Venn diagram of life, you are a person who enjoys traveling and watching PBS Rick Steves is a name that will be familiar to you. Rick is a well known author and host of various travel specials and guides. Unbeknownst to me he is also podcasting like mad. Not only has he released some of his recent "European Christmas," which originally aired on PBS, as a seven part video podcast (free at that), he has also made available a few walking tours of Paris. He covers the Louvre, the Orsay Museum, Versailles, and a historic Paris Walk.

You've learned the language, now learn about the history and culture with the help of Rick.

Christmas will soon be over (at least on the East Coast of the US where I am) and my thoughts turn to all the cool stuff that others got. Tell us, in the comments, about all the wonderful presents that your friends and loved ones got you this year.

Sadly, my family believes I spend too much time with my Mac (is such a thing possible) so they refuse to feed my addiction.

If you got a Mac or iPod this Christmas check out our iPod tips and Mac tips (though I seem to be in the minority with my feelings about the Mighty Mouse).

Someone must love you, since there was a shiny new Mac waiting under the tree for you this morning. I know you're excited to get it up and running, and it'll be easier than you think. There are some tips I would like to share with you, oh newly inducted acolyte to the Cult of Mac, that should make your Mac adventure even more fun.

Toss aside the included mouse: All desktop Macs now come with the Mighty Mouse (except the Mac mini, of course), which is a multibutton mouse that pretends to be a one button mouse. Toss it aside and get yourself a real mouse (the Logitech MX Revolution Wireless Laser Mouse is currently my favorite mouse of all time). If you received a portable Mac you should also pick yourself up a mouse. The included Trackpad is nice, but a mouse is much nicer.

Download Quicksilver and Growl: You might not get why Quicksilver and Growl are awesome. You might not get it for awhile, but when it clicks your Mac experience will become even better. Trust me, would a blogger lie to you?

Enable Tabbed Browsing in Safari: Launch Safari, go to 'Preferences,' 'Tabs,' and check the 'Enable Tabbed Browsing.' You might also want to check out many of the Mac only variants of web browsers: Omniweb, Optimized Firefox, Camino (which is still my personal favorite), and Shiira.

Drag your Applications folder to the Dock: I wrote a post, about a year ago, detailing how to move your hard disk into the Dock for easy access. I have since amended my setup to include only the Applications Folder in the Dock, since that is where I needed to go most of the time anyway. Follow the instructions in my previous post, but just drag the Applications Folder in the Dock instead of the entire hard disk.

Charge the battery, but not too much: If you found a MacBook or MacBook Pro under the tree make sure that you plug it in the first time you use it. Apple has a list of tips for maximizing the battery life of portables, give it a read to ensure many happy cycles on your battery.

Read TUAW: I admit that I am a little biased, but we here at TUAW strive to be that Mac geek friend of yours that knows where to find all the cool Mac stuff on the web. Our knowledgeable bloggers (and me!) are always ready with new tips, tricks, and news to share so make sure you come back often.

'Twas a fortnight 'fore Macworld, and all of the geeks
Were beside themselves, waiting another two weeks
The tickets were purchased, the hotels all booked
And the six-color cookies were thoroughly cooked.

The bloggers had worked themselves into a stew
Over who'd gotten heisted by Phillip Ryu.
And I and the wife, having downed our eggnog,
Were settling down for a midwinter snog snuggle.

When up in the crawlspace there rose such a din
I feared that our leaky old roof would cave in.
I ran to my laptop to figure out why
Via full-motion vid and SecuritySpy.

With compression artifacts clouding my view
I knew there was somebody up there -- but who?
I saw someone slender, lurking in the back
Dressed up in... what looked like a turtleneck -- black.

"Why, dear," I said suddenly, "would you believe,
That our midnight marauder is really Fake Steve?"
And that faux chief executive gave us a smile
And proceeded to polish his glasses awhile.

I shook my head once just to clear out the fog
Was I hallucinating? Perhaps from the 'nog?
Fake Steve gave a yell, "Don't sit there like a lump!
Just tell them all they can read more past the jump."

SAEC, aka "Santas against excessive consumption", targeted an Apple Store in London this year and were not met with open arms. "Sing your own songs to each other this Christmas!" they pleaded, sort of missing out on the point that there's no happiness like the kind you can buy via consumer electronics. Police were called; the protesters stood their ground.

Eventually the police left them, presumably with a warning. Afterward the humbug Santas went to bolster the financial bottom line of a nearby Coffee vendor, spending their money on honest caffeine rather than on the durable goods that the good lord intended.

Some stockings are luckier than others, Apple tells us. They've released a new Busby Berkeley-style Radio City Music Hall-inspired Holiday advertisement that showcases their line of Christmas-worthy gifts. Don't know about you, but I rather like it. Dancing iPods. Dancing laptops. Dancing LCD displays. No more "Silent Nights" once you get an iPod, indeed.

It's the givingest time of the year, so if you're in the mood to be generous, why not donate to some of the best and most useful Mac software projects. Programs like VLC, Cyberduck, Adium and Handbrake all allow you to donate money to support the continued software development effort. Weblog FairlyUseless lists ten of these applications and suggests you put their developers on your Christmas list: "Now is a good time to thank them with a small donation. Can you imagine how much of a difference it would make to the developers if just 1% of users gave $5? It would only set you back $50 (or more if you can) for these ten applications."

Thanks Brian Wente

The Iconfactory does great work, and no self respecting icon enthusiast can disagree with that. Just in time for the holidays they have gathered up a number of their past holiday icons (and other things) for you.

Head on over there and deck the virtual halls of your Mac. 'Tis the season, after all.

On Friday our friends at sister blog Download Squad began a new series titled 12 Days of holiday downloads, rounding up holiday and Christmas-themed downloads for both Mac OS X and Windows. Day 2 was posted today, and so far it looks like a neat series for those of you who like to get their Mac (and Windows PC) into the holiday spirit. Day 1 covered Snö, an app we've mentioned before, can create a snowfall on your desktop (though, as of this writing, Snö's site seems to be unavailable). Day 2 for Mac (today) covers X-MasTree, which we posted about a few days ago.

Frivolous, cycle-wasting apps? Sure. Fun, holiday spirit nonetheless? You bet. Stay tuned to Download Squad for the rest of their 12 Days of holday downloads series for more ways to get your Mac in the holiday spirit.

iPod? or Fruitcake? Let the facts speak for themselves.

10 Reasons why iPods beat Fruitcakes as Holiday Gifts

1. You can't play your music on a fruitcake.
2. Inserting earbuds into your fruitcake? Makes them all sticky and gooey.
3. iPods come in many colors and flavors. Fruitcakes are...brown.
4. You can't play video games on a fruitcake. (Or a Zune.)
5. Fruitcakes do not support smart playlists.
6. You can't really accessorize a fruitcake. Belkin doesn't offer a "fruitcake" section in its online store.
7. You can't watch the latest episode of Battlestar on a fruitcake.
8. Fruitcakes don't fit into your pocket.
9. Fruitcakes are unsuitable items to bring along with you to your workouts.
10. iPods? No crumbs.

10 Reasons why Fruitcakes beat iPods as Holiday Gifts

1. iPod price $249. Fruitcake price $21.99.
2. Fruitcakes need no frivolous accessories. They're usable exactly as produced.
3. You're less likely to waste your spending money at iTunes with a fruitcake.
4. Walk around wearing an iPod and everyone yawns. Walk around wearing a fruitcake and you're a trendsetter.
5. iPod: 2.5-inch color display. Fruitcake: 10-inch multifaceted-crystalized-fruit display.
6. You can't use an iPod as a football. Or a door stop.
7. Fruitcakes have no batteries to replace.
8. iPod: 7,500 songs. Fruitcake: the song in your heart, and the antacids in your medicine cabinet.
9. You can't call your enemy "nutty as an iPod". Well, you can. But nobody's going to understand you.
10. In all likelihood, your fruitcake will still be usable three years from now.

The holiday season is upon us, and it is only 28 days until Christmas. I know this because I just downloaded X-MasTree, a freeware app that puts a Christmas tree (with optional Christmas countdown) on your desktop. X-MasTree has a surprising number of preferences for a one trick freeware app. You can choose the color of the tree, what kind of lights are on, whether those lights blink, and if you want a star on top.

X-MasTree 1.3 is a Universal Binary and requires OS X 10.4.

The Kansas City Star points out that prices have dropped on many consumer electronics this shopping season. Case in point? The updated and redesigned iPod Nano is selling for far under Christmas 2005 prices. Take the 4G model. In 2005, you'd spend $249. This year? $199. That's a 20% price drop right there.

Willing to buy a refurb? $149 and free shipping--at least for now. Refurb iPods are flying out of the Apple store as fast as they're being posted. If you're looking for a refurb, be vigilant. Keep checking the inventory on a daily (or even hourly) basis.

The Star article states that American consumers may spend as much as $21 billion on gadgets during the end-of-the-year shopping season.