Ken Ray of “Mac OS Ken” fame has a new short-form podcast (about 20 minutes per episode). He was kind enough to have me on as a guest recently. We recorded these a couple of weeks ago and life comes at you fast. Back then I was just speculating about how COVID-19 might affect Apple’s product rollouts and WWDC, and, well, here we are.
Category: Tech
Talking Apple with TMO
Had a nice (and quick – less than 20 minutes) chat with Kelly Guimont for the Mac Observer’s Daily Observations podcast. Subjects ranged from the Mac App Store, Twitter polls and how the App Store ranks as a service.
Solving Apple’s problems with Everyday Robots
Had a great time chatting about Apple with Jonathan Ruiz and Mark Fransen recently on their Everyday Robots podcast. We ran the gamut from discussing the idea of changing user default apps in iOS to what an ARM or AMD-based Mac might look like, ruminated on future “universal” app purchases thanks to Catalyst on the Mac, and all sorts of other stuff.
Talking iPad’s 10th and more
My latest podcast appearance with Space Javelin is available for your consumption. I filled in for regular host Mike, talked about the iPad’s recent 10th anniversary, coronavirus and its effect on Apple, cool free iPhone software and much more.
MacBook, Farewell But Not Goodbye
Apple has quietly laid the MacBook to rest following its July refresh of the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro. I don’t think this is goodbye to the MacBook, however. Just farewell for now. It wouldn’t surprise me at all to see it again before too long.
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What happened to the iMac?
The iMac debuted 20 years ago. It’s not hyperbole to say that it’s the computer that saved Apple and set the stage for Apple’s ascendance to becoming the biggest tech company in the world. All that said, Apple’s lost something in the translation – while the iMac is still a fixture in Apple’s product line, it lacks some essential qualities of that first model. Its personality has changed. The iMac has gotten harder. It’s lost the sense of whimsy, fun, and wonder that made the first iMac such a joy to use.
Why it’s OK that Apple killed AirPort products, finally
Last week Apple made official news we’d suspected for a very long time: It’s discontinued the AirPort line of network routers. Apple says once its current stock of supplies is depleted, that’s it. Apple hasn’t needed its own line of networking gear for many years, but let’s remember how truly disruptive AirPort was.
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How to beat fake news: Trust, but verify
All of us of a certain age remember Ronald Reagan’s utterance “Trust, but verify” – a translation of the Russian proverb “Doveryai, no proveryai.” Reagan used it during nuclear disarmament talks between the US and the Soviet Union in the 1980s. “Trust, but verify” is an important maxim to observe on social media as well, as we try to figure out what to do about “fake news.” More thoughts on this after the break.
Facebook and Cambridge Analytica: Is Your Data Exposed?
Facebook is under fire for enabling a company called Cambridge Analytica to obtain information about more than 80 million Facebook users. Until recently there was no way to know if your data was included. Now there is. Here’s how to find out.
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What’s in store for Apple’s Mac?
For decades, pundits have compared Apple’s Macintosh computers to Windows PCs. Recent articles about Apple’s Mac plans provide us with a look inside its hardware and software engineering efforts. They also reveal what Apple is doing to make such comparisons less relevant in the future. I’m going to read the tea leaves a bit to try to figure out what Apple has planned.