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Apple TV 5.3 update adds HBO Go, Sky News, other networks

NewsPoster — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 15:16:59 GMT

Apple has issued a v5.3 update for second- and third-generation Apple TVs. The new firmware adds support for several video services, most notably HBO Go, WatchESPN, and Sky News. Also included are Crunchyroll, which concentrates on anime and other Asian content, and Qello, which hosts concerts and music documentaries.

HBO Go and WatchESPN require that people already have paid cable subscriptions. The latter app does, however, include live video from ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN3, and ESPN Buzzer Beater/Goal Line, as well as some original shows.

The lack of HBO and sports content on the Apple TV has sometimes been leveled as a criticism against the set-top. HBO, for instance, has been available for some time on the Xbox 360, Roku boxes, and Samsung TVs, as well as iPhones, iPads, and Android devices.

Dish gives up on Sprint merger attempt, continues for Clearwire

NewsPoster — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 14:50:13 GMT

Dish Network has halted its battle with Japanese carrier Softbank for Sprint, after failing to provide a final offer for a merger. The withdrawal now allows SoftBank to continue in its attempt to acquire Sprint, with a completion of the purchase likely to finish, thanks to Softbank upping its original $20 billion offer to $21.6 billion.

A statement from Dish claims that the ability to supply a revised offer by June 18th is "impracticable" due to Sprint prematurely terminating a period of due diligence and accepting "extreme deal protections in its revised agreement with SoftBank." Instead, Dish will "focus our efforts and resources on completing the Clearwire tender offer."

The original attempt by SoftBank to acquire Sprint was sullied by the $25.5 billion offer by Dish, which occurred relatively late in the acquisition process. A few weeks later, SoftBank CEO and founder Masayoshi Son claimed during a results call that there was not a need for the company to increase its offer as "we believe our offer is above theirs," before going on to detail eleven "key areas" where the SoftBank proposal beat Dish's version, and that the total transaction at the time was worth 21-percent more, despite the higher bid.

Dish chairman Charlie Ergen later attacked the SoftBank bid, commenting in the potential effectiveness of SoftBank employees working on Sprint towers, in a relatively nationalistic statement. "We are an American company, and the modernization of Sprint's network will have to be done for the US," claimed Ergen, continuing "You have to climb the towers here, and you'll have to have US employees who speak English." He found the SoftBank results comments to be "more personal attack and personality than it was about business," and believed that Dish's offer would be found better by Sprint shareholders from the numbers alone, stating "That's the way capitalism works in the US."

SoftBank is said to be hoping to build upon Sprint's current spectrum position, with a view to acquiring more spectrum and acquiring smaller carriers at a later time. A statement from the carrier received by Reuters reads "We look forward to receiving the FCC and shareholder approvals which will allow us to close in early July and begin the hard work of building the new Sprint into a meaningful 3rd competitor in the US market." As part of this, Sprint will be able to save in equipment purchases through SoftBank, along with the network expertise.

Despite withdrawing from the race for Sprint, Dish will still have to deal with both Sprint and SoftBank in its offer to Clearwire. The offer from Sprint for Clearwire was rejected by the board, instead urging shareholders to accept the $4.40 per-share offer from Dish instead of the $3.40 from Sprint. A lawsuit was then filed by Sprint against both Dish and Clearwire on Monday over the decision.

Schematics allegedly show dimensions of low-cost iPhone, iPhone 5S

NewsPoster — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 14:43:37 GMT

Leaked schematics -- allegedly drawn by Apple, and now in the hands of a major accessory maker -- show the dimensions of the iPhone 5S and an "iPhone Lite/Light," according to AppleInsider. The 5S appears to maintain roughly the same design as its predecessor, but with a pill-shaped flash on the back that may fit dual LEDs. The iPhone Light plans match recent rumors and case production surrounding a low-cost iPhone. That includes details like a thicker body, and rounded edges.

Missing from the schematics are some other reported claims about the low-cost phone, such as a plastic back and multiple color options. The schematics are, however, only meant to convey dimensions.

Whether or not the device will actually be called the Lite/Light is also uncertain. The name could just be a stand-in until a formal announcement; at the same time, Apple will need to distinguish the device from its flagship iPhone. A name like "Light" would be consistent with similarly-positioned Apple products like the MacBook Air and the iPad mini.

LinkedIn integration could be coming to iOS 7, code shows

NewsPoster — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:31:14 GMT

Apple is considering LinkedIn integration for iOS 7, beta code references suggest. In particular the references hint that LinkedIn could be supported in the same manner as Facebook and Twitter, meaning single sign-in support, and the ability to quickly post content via a share sheet or hooks in iOS apps. Some essential code strings are missing though, preventing LinkedIn options from turning on in the current iOS 7 release.

The feature could turned on in later betas or in time for the finished iOS 7 release. LinkedIn support may be likely, since integration has already been announced for OS X Mavericks. iOS 7 is also gaining Vimeo, Flickr, and Tencent Weibo integration, which makes LinkedIn a minor addition by comparison.

A closer look: iOS 7 Siri and iOS in the Car

NewsPoster — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:00:11 GMT

Siri is a feature that was unveiled with much fanfare during the iOS 5 launch two-years ago, bringing with it more fully featured voice actions to the iPhone. Although Siri has received a mixed reception from critics and users, Apple has continued to pursue the voice-controlled interface, giving it an all-new look and functional tweaks in the iOS 7 beta that help to refine the user experience. Has Apple done enough with the revisions in Siri to warrant a second look?

Siri gets a complete UI overhaul in iOS 7. The linen cloth look that is a part of Siri in iOS 6 has been replaced, in this instance with a transparent frosted glass pane as the backdrop. This effect can be seen throughout iOS to help users feel a sense of the context in which they are when launching the app - it is an integral part of the new 'layered' approach to the way the OS functions. As with just about all aspects of iOS 7, the new look is contemporary and is more effective at utilizing the available screen space to maximum advantage.

In addition to a new sound wave effect when Siri detects your voice, Apple has extensively used white text to present information. Photos and other images are still integrated in searches adding a splash of color, but the skeuomorphic effects previously seen when sports scores are presented in Siri in iOS 6, for example, have been ditched. As you can see the screen grabs below, the new look is much cleaner and more like what you would expect from a company that produces some of the sleekest hardware in the world.

In Apple's short run down on the updated Siri in iOS 7 during its WWDC Keynote last week, the company highlighted that a new more natural sounding male and female voice has been added to the mix. It also quickly added that Microsoft's Bing now powers Siri search (to some raised eyebrows), as it continues to move away from the integration of Google services as default functions in its mobile operating system. Among its new tricks, Siri can now also pull information directly from Wikipedia and Twitter. It can now also be asked to return missed calls, play voicemail and control the new iTunes Radio among other new capabilities.

Apple also introduced an extension of Siri Eyes Free called iOS in the Car. Sensing an opportunity to gain a foothold in the automotive world as it did with OEM iPod integration, Apple is now taking this to the next level. An iOS in the Car connected vehicle will display variations of the iOS 7 user interface designed specifically for suitability to the driving context. Siri remains a key component of iOS in the Car, allowing users to return missed calls, playback voicemail, while also reading received text messages and allowing you to dictate a reply.

The greatest failing of Siri for me continues to be that it is only really useful in quiet environments (like a car), or with headphones with a built-in mic when out in public. Even then I don't really want to use Siri when other people are around, as I would feel more than a little self-conscious. That said, I do use Siri regularly when driving, when setting reminders, getting directions, checking the weather, scheduling appointments and setting my alarm clock - just as long as I am out of the earshot of others.

Siri in iOS 7 looks better and is more functional than ever before. This is a familiar theme that has emerged in our closer examination of the new features in iOS 7. Apple has done a fantastic job of reinventing iOS with iOS 7, giving iPhone and iPad users a lot to look forward to when it debuts in the fall.

By Sanjiv Sathiah

Briefly: Netflix heading to the Netherlands, Google Drive languages

NewsPoster — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 12:00:09 GMT

Netflix will be rolling out its streaming service to the Netherlands later this year. The new market, the first for the streaming service this year in Europe, joins already-operating versions in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Finland, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, though it has yet to reveal an exact launch date, potential pricing, nor the contents of its launch catalog.

Google supports 18 new languages in Drive apps

Google has added support for 18 new languages to applications included in its Google Drive cloud storage service. The new additions, including Urdu, Zulu, Icelandic, and Swahili, brings the total number of languages available to use to 65, with the extra language options now usable in the Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Forms applications.

Report claims Microsoft switching to Qualcomm for Surface RT processor

NewsPoster — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 11:26:26 GMT

Microsoft is working on a version of its Surface RT slate computer that uses a Qualcomm processor, according to a report. The change in chip comes at the same time as Microsoft drops the price of the tablet for educational users, in what appears to be a clear-out of current Surface RT stock ahead of a device refresh.

Sources of Bloomberg claim that the next Surface RT will be something from Qualcomm, but fails to mention what specific chip is being used. If true, it is probable that Microsoft will opt for a processor similar to the Snapdragon 800, complete with its integrated LTE modem, in order to introduce high-speed mobile broadband. While the change will effectively cut out Nvidia as a main supplier for the device, the same sources state its Tegra chip will still be used "for some versions."

A possible refresh of the Surface RT in the coming months could coincide with the release of Windows 8.1, which will see a number of improvements to both Windows 8 and Windows RT. At the same time, Microsoft could release a seven-inch version of the Surface RT, since it lowered the requirements for Windows tablets using Windows 8 and RT back in March.

On Monday, Microsoft lowered the price of the 32GB Surface RT for schools, from the usual $499 retail cost down to $199. The Next Web writes that the versions with covers will cost $249 when bundled with the Touch Keyboard cover and $289 with the Type Keyboard cover, with all three versions discounted for schools and universities until August 31st.

Budget-friendly Samsung Galaxy Ring reaches Virgin Mobile

NewsPoster — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 10:11:55 GMT

Samsung has released another smartphone in the US, this time a budget offering through Virgin Mobile. The Galaxy Ring has a four-inch screen, which is powered by a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor clocked at 1.4GHz with 1GB of RAM, and despite being a low-cost device, it ships with Android 4.1 instead of the Android 4.0 that is usually provided.

On the back is a five-megapixel camera with LED flash, along with a front-facing 1.3-megapixel version, and has 4GB of storage that can be increased by microSD by up to 64GB. Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, and GPS connectivity are offered, and though the ability to access a 4G LTE network is not present, it does still connect over 3G.

Pre-loaded with Swype and Virgin Mobile Feed music, the Galaxy Ring is on sale now for $180.

Cloudmark debuts Mac version of DesktopOne anti-spam filter

NewsPoster — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 06:13:22 GMT

Security software company Cloudmark has made a version of its award-winning anti-spam software available for Mac users in both a free and paid version. In addition to supporting Apple's default Mail program and Microsoft's Outlook 2011, the company has added support for Mozilla's Thunderbird 17 and later email client, running on Snow Leopard (10.6.x) and later versions of OS X. The program acts as a plug-in to each of the mail programs, allowing users to set filters and flagging any potential spam or phishing emails.

The latest version also offers new usability and performance enhancements for what the company calls its "carrier-grade" anti-spam protection which relies on real-time feedback from its installed base to refine spam algorithms. The free Basic version will protect one email account in any one of the supported programs, while the Pro version ($20 per year subscription) can protect an unlimited number of email accounts.

The Pro mode also offers the ability to trust specific contacts (or the user's entire address book), the capability to manually screen message folders, and automatic spam deletion in older email. The Basic version can be upgraded to Pro by simply enrolling a subscription.

Max Payne 3 coming to Mac App Store June 20; price unknown

NewsPoster — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 05:45:03 GMT

The graphically-violent third-person shooter Max Payne 3 is coming to the Mac App Store beginning on Thursday, June 20. The game is reported to "include a number of advanced graphics options, scaleable high-resolution textures and character models, DirectX11 features, multi-monitor support and 3D," according to the announcement from Rockstar Games, and has exceptionally high Mac system requirements.

The Hong Kong action-cinema inspired series originally began in mid-2001 on Windows, with the Mac port arriving a year later. The iOS version of the original game arrived last year, and the Mac version of Max Payne 3 follows about a year after its original Windows debut. There has been no word yet on whether the Mac version will offer any additional content, but there have been seven add-on downloadable content packs accompanying the release, which comes eight years after The Fall of Max Payne, the second instalment (which was not ported to the Mac due to poor PC sales).

The game's advanced graphics -- its trailer (seen below) is taken entirely from in-game footage -- demands only very recent Mac models with substantive discreet video cards (512MB VRAM or better). The specific requirements call for a an Intel dual-core Xeon or Core series of 2.4GHz or later running OS X 10.7.5 or higher, with an Nvidia 8800GT or AMD Radeon HD 4870 or better. The game also requires systems running at least 4GB of RAM and needs 35GB of disk space.

PlayStation 3 firmware update 'bricks' some consoles, no current fix

NewsPoster — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 04:24:42 GMT

Sony has deployed a new firmware update for the PlayStation 3 console intended to improve system stability. Reports, however, are surfacing of some users who are unable to boot the updated console after the application of the patch, and restoring the console's file system has in those cases failed to fix the problem.

Perusal of the support forum show that many iterations of the console are affected -- both the newer "slim" model and others dating all the way back to launch. Failure manifests in the boot process not progressing past the welcome screen and the "flowing ribbon." No users who are experiencing the problem report an interrupted update process, nor any other problems prior to the application of the firmware patch.

Sony has yet to respond to the reports of trouble. Users are suspecting hard drives may be the culprit for the "bricked" systems, but there seems to be little commonality at this point.

Samsung rolls out industry's first NFC-enabled color laser printers

NewsPoster — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:59:10 GMT

Samsung Electronics today introduced the industry's first Near Field Communication (NFC)-enabled color laser printer and multi-function printers. The new Xpress C410W series allows users to print high quality photos and documents from their smartphones or from a computer wirelessly. The new printers consist of the C410W color laser printer, the C460W color laser MFPs with print, copy and scan functionality, and the C460FW color laser MFPs with print, copy, scan and fax capabilities.

These C410W series devices have been specifically designed with the home and small office user in mind who wants to print content from their smartphones. These three models are able to print up to 18 pages per minute (ppm) in black and white and four ppm in color.

With the free Samsung Mobile Print App, users are able to print everything from PDF files to Microsoft Office documents directly from mobile devices. Samsung phone users simply need to tap the phone on the printer to connect and have the added benefit of being able to print images from the gallery app, documents, email and web browser pages.

Pricing and availability dates of the three printers have not yet been revealed.

Man of Steel (2013)

subego — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 02:54:15 GMT

Is that view count right? More than double the WWDC thread?

Steve Jobs video from 1994 unearthed, shows reflections on legacy

NewsPoster — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 02:30:59 GMT

In apparent response to a question that compared the computer and Internet revolution of the 80s and 90s to a new Renaissance, a never-publicly-seen video of Steve Jobs in 1994 -- while he was still with NeXT -- sees the bearded and reflective Apple co-founder commenting on his likely legacy and the place of the industry he helped create. The video was uploaded to a YouTube channel called "EverySteveJobsVideo" on Tuesday and comes from the Silicon Valley Historical Association.

In the short video (seen below), Jobs appears somewhat dismissive of his overall contribution, pointing out how quickly things go obsolete in the ever-changing world of technology. He pointed out that the Apple II was already obsolete, as was the Apple I -- and added that the Macintosh was "on the verge" of obsolescence "in the next few years." He called the technology field "a very strange business" and said that all the work he had done up to that point (after nearly 20 years in the industry) would be out of date "by the time I'm 50."

"This is a field where one does not write a principia which holds up for 200 years," Jobs continued. "... this is a field where one does one's work and in 10 years it's obsolete, a really will not [even] be useable within 10 or 20 years." He then went on to compare the field to "sediments of rocks ... you're building up a mountain, and you get to contribute your little layer of sedimentary rock to make the mountain that much higher."

He added that people will benefit from the contribution by "standing on that mountain," but that they wouldn't be able to see everything that had gone into making the mountain, except perhaps for "that rare geologist." The remarks paint Jobs as aware that his own contribution would eventually come to be seen as just part of a larger, collective effort towards a general societal achievement versus any single contribution.

While Jobs went on to have a second life at Apple and contribute to the "mountain" in many other ways, the clip shows Jobs with a sense of humility and broader perspective not always associated with the often-mercurial, complex former CEO and his notorious periodic behavior. The excerpt is part of a longer interview the SVHA is making available for download or on DVD entitled Steve Jobs: Visionary Entrepreneur. The film is a 60-minute documentary built around the full 20-minute interview with Jobs at NeXT headquarters.

Nvidia changing tack: commencing Kepler, Logan licensing programs

NewsPoster — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 01:11:16 GMT

Marking a sea change in the company's plan, Nvidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang has declared that his company will license new graphics processing technologies to other companies, in addition to manufacturing the chips themselves. The new move is expected to help Nvidia capitalize on the industry shift to smartphones and tablets and achieve wider market penetration of its products.

"The bottom line is the world has changed and we're expanding our business model to serve markets that we historically could not serve by selling chips alone," Huang said during the Reuters Global Technology Summit in San Francisco.

"This is a way for us to engage customers who don't like to buy chips because they like to create their own, because they have the capacity, creativity and now the scale to build their own," he said, likely referring to Apple and Samsung, powerhouses of the mobile industry.

The first chipset to be licensed will be the new Kepler architecture, used in the currently shipping GeForce, Quadro, and Tesla GPUs. Kepler is also the core of the next-generation Tegra mobile processor codenamed "Logan." Huang believes that revenue from licensing will fall far behind chip sales for many years, with an increase in gross margins as the company is paid royalties from channels it does not currently service.

An official Nvidia blog post marking the new initiative claims that the company invests "more in R&D in this area than any other company in the world - over $1 billion annually and more than $6 billion since our founding." The company holds more than 5,500 patents related to graphics processing.

Problem reports from users about Google Nexus 7 tablet accumulate

NewsPoster — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 00:31:28 GMT

Reports have begun to surface of widespread, but not universal, issues with the Nexus 7 tablet made by Asus for Google. According to reports from early adopters, a possible combination of power-sapping software updates, the Android lack of support for the SSD TRIM command, and potentially poor-quality storage or RAM are taking a toll on some users devices prematurely.

The Nexus 7, on launch, was well-received. Electronista's review of the device in July of 2012 found it "a powerhouse of a tablet." Noted in the review are reports from early adopters complaining about early production glitches, including the screen separating from the body of the device and other relatively minor issues. Users not experiencing problems with the tablet are still generally pleased with the performance of the device.

An editorial at Androidandme brought more attention to the crashing issue, which has been percolating on various Android-focused forums for some time. Some users now report frequent crashing requiring what one user calls "restart voodoo" to restore the unit to functionality, lag between touchscreen contact and device response, and the need to keep available memory as high as possible to avoid system lockups and crashing.

It is important to note that not every user is experiencing issues. Many users claim to have an "out of the box" experience still, nearly a year after initial release. Other users have resorted to "rooting" the device and installing one of a series of hacks to assist Android with the lack of TRIM support for storage. Other users report that disabling social magazine app Google Currents assists with the responsiveness. Yet others are resorting to full device erasure every month or so, similar to a common practice for computer troubleshooting.

Devices brought into service centers for repair are often replaced at the depot level by policy or contract, preventing unaffiliated technicians from taking a look at the device's hardware or software for any root causes. Once started, the problems seem to persist, regardless of Android revision.

Briefly: Facebook, Mavericks for Apple workers, Voice Memos, iSkin

NewsPoster — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 00:08:18 GMT

Social network Facebook has updated its iOS app to v6.2, which brings new access to change who can see something a user has shared, the ability to start a conversation based on photos users receive in messages, and the addition of icons to status updates that show emotions or what a user is reading or watching. The "status update icons" were added to the desktop version of the program in April, but mobile support has been missing until now. The update also includes the usual bug fixes, and the app can be downloaded for free from the App Store.

Apple retail employees invited to test OS X Mavericks

Apple has extended an invitation to Apple retail employees which allows them to receive access to the forthcoming OS X Mavericks (10.9) beta build recently seeded to developers, MacRumors reports. The offer, which is voluntary and requires employees to use the beta on their personal Macs and only work with it on their personal time, is intended to help retail employees get more familiar with the changes and features to be found in the release. The program also uses the employees to help find and document real-world use bugs. The offer is entirely voluntary and not part of the employees' job, and is a repeat of an invitation extended during Mountain Lion testing.

Leaked image suggests that missing 'Voice Memos' app returning soon

The Voice Memo app, which Apple specifically listed as being omitted from the first beta of iOS 7, is likely to return in a future build according to a leaked photo from the WWDC. In the screenshot, the app can be seen listed among the others, sporting a flat iOS 7-style "sine wave" icon to denote its function. The program, which has been included in previous versions of iOS, is a simple voice recorder that syncs to Macs or Windows machines through iTunes. The fact that Apple mentioned the omission in the notes for Beta 1 implied that it was set to return in the future, but had missed the cut for WWDC for unknown reasons. The omission may suggest that Apple is planning to beef up the capabilities of the program.

iSkin announces ProTouch MacBook Air keyboard protector for new 13-incher

Mobile accessory maker iSkin is now offering a new ProTouch keyboard protector skin made of ultra-thin silicon (rather than thermal polyurethane as with most keyboard protectors) for the MacBook Air, compatible with the latest model as well as previous ones. The version for the 13-inch MBA is available now, with the 11-inch version coming later this month. As with other keyboard protectors, the clear-frosted skin shows the letters and backlight of the MBA clearly and includes an antimicrobial coating to reduce fungus or odor-causing bacteria. It can be cleaned with warm water and dish soap and maintains its form after multiple washes. The website hasn't yet been updated to include price information, but the ProTouch for MacBook Air is expected to retail around $25. Similar versions are also available for various MacBook Pro models.

Report: Huawei considering 'synergies' in Nokia purchase

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:50:55 GMT

According to reports, the chairman of Huawei's consumer business group has given some thought to a Nokia acquisition. At the launch of the Ascend P6 smartphone in London, Chairman Richard Yu noted that the topic may have been discussed internally, but there were a lot of factors to consider.

According to the Financial Times of London, Yu said that the company is "considering these sorts of acquisitions; maybe the combination has some synergies, but depends on the willingness of Nokia" and added that as a company "we are open minded." A Nokia spokesperson replied that the company does not respond to market speculation or rumors.

Huawei accounts for four percent of the world's smartphone shipments in 2012, up a half a percentage point from 2011. Nokia's fortunes are falling, with a slip to 4.9 percent in 2012, down from 16 percent in 2011. While Huawei does have a burgeoning smartphone line, it relies primarily on feature phones for market share. Nokia's Windows Phone has supplanted earlier smartphone efforts, to the detriment of the company's market share.

Apple unveils major update to iOS mass-deployment tool Configurator

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:12:56 GMT

Apple has updated its iOS mass-deployment configuration and management tool, Configurator, to version 1.3. The free app works with iPhone, iPad and iPod touch devices, and now offers "significantly improved" reliability, scalability and performance, the ability to cancel scheduled or even in-progress operations, and more. There is a new status view that includes time estimates and error information with recovery suggestions, and administrators can now install apps on devices configured to not allow users to install apps.

Configurator features three workflows to let administrators prepare new iOS devices for immediate distribution, supervise devices that need to maintain a standard configuration, and assign devices to users, according to the company. Adminstrators can update, configure, install apps and data and set limits for as many as 30 devices at a time. It allows devices to be enrolled in third-party mobile-device management solutions, and can be used to personalize devices for specific users.

The free app includes a built-in editor to create and install configuration profiles, the ability to import apps and sync them to new devices (requires membership in the Volume Purchase Program for schools or businesses), can add users automatically via Open Directory or Active Directory, organize supervised devices into custom groups and sync documents between assigned devices and Configurator. Admins can also import and export documents between their Mac and Configurator. The program requires OS X 10.7.5 (Lion) or later.

Apple issues Java updates for Snow Leopard, Lion, Mountain Lion

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:38:33 GMT

Apple has posted twin Java updates for OS X, Java for OS X 2013-004 and Mac OS X v10.6 Update 16. Both deal with security, stability, and compatibility flaws. The first is targeted at Lion and Mountain Lion users, while the second is for Snow Leopard only.

Regarding 2013-004, Apple cautions that the patch will uninstall the Apple Java plugin from all browsers. It also removes the Java Preferences app, which is no longer needed for configuring settings.

Both updates are available either through Software Update or the Mac App Store.

Soundfreaq Sound Step Lightning merges Lightning, Bluetooth support

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:14:04 GMT

Soundfreaq has announced the Sound Step Lightning, a new speaker dock. The unit takes its name from a Lightning port compatible with the latest generation of Apple mobile devices. Significantly, though, it also accepts input via Bluetooth, a stereo cable source, or 30-pin Apple devices connected through USB. The USB port can charge any connected device. Playback is controlled with capacitive touch buttons, an IR remote, or connected hardware.

In terms of output the new Sound Step is a 2.1-channel system with a dedicated subwoofer. Soundfreaq's UQ3 technology attempts to produce "natural" bass, and better stereo separation.

The Sound Step Lightning is on sale online and at Target for $130. Planned for August is a variant of the dock, the Sound Step Recharge Lightning, which will incorporate a rechargeable seven-hour battery. That model will cost $150.

GOG adds 11 titles to Mac library, makes Torchlight free until June 20

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:06:23 GMT

Digital games distributor Good Old Games (GOG) has added System Shock 2, called one of the most influential games in history, to its cross-platform library. In addition to the seminal first-person shooter, the company has also added 10 more titles to its library for the Macintosh, and has made dungeon crawler Torchlight free until 12:59 GMT on June 20 to kick off its "No DRM" summer sale, with daily deals of up to 85 percent off.

The complete list of games made cross-platform for both Windows and Macintosh OS X in this latest update are System Shock 2, Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold, Realms of Arkania 1+2, Return to Mysterious Island, Realsm of the Haunting, Normality, Amerzone: The Explorer's Legacy, Nox, Megarace 1+2, Atlantis: The Lost Tales, and Jack Orlando, all without digital rights management. The newest additions bring the OS X library to 163 titles, out of 576 titles available on the service.

PDF question re: how to make a TOC link to comments?

jprint714 — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:08:25 GMT

Hi,

I've annotated several PDF documents with GoodReaer, and have used their annotation tools to insert comments within certain blocks of text. I've been using the same categories for these comments, so that they essentially function as tags. I'm planning to fuse these PDF documents together into one master document, and then I was planning to create a Table of Contents. I'm wondering how I can create a Table of Contents that can do the following:

-Correspond to all the comments -- i.e., so every time I mention "banana" in a comment, it corresponds with the Banana heading in the TOC

and...

-Have a TOC that is also organized by comment and subject -- i.e., "banana", and a subsection for when it's mentioned by "John," "Mary," Phil", etc.

Ideally, I'd like to be able to group both -- so that I can see all mentions of "banana" as a whole, and then broken down by citaions of "banana" and the subjects that correspond to them (e.g., "John," "Mary," Phil", etc.).

Make sense?

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide...

iHome debuts three Lightning-equipped FM alarm docks

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:59:38 GMT

Peripheral maker iHome has announced three new FM radio alarm docks, all equipped with Lightning docks for later-generation Apple devices. The standard model is the iDL45, which also has a secondary USB port that can be used to play and charge older Apple devices with 30-pin connectors. Some other features include time sync, EQ controls, programmable snooze lengths, and dual alarms with custom day and time settings.

The iPL10 is essentially a more compact version of the iDL45, but also loses some features, namely the EQ and snooze length functions, as well as the secondary alarm and the ability to control which days of the week an alarm runs. Yet to be released is the iDL100 -- the dock will expand on the features of the iDL45, for instance incorporating an additional Lightning port.

The iDL45 costs $100, and the iPL10 is $80. While the iDL100 hasn't been given a release date, it's listed at $150.

Briefly: LG Optimus G Pro milestone in Korea, Blackberry Q10 on AT&T

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:44:58 GMT

LG is celebrating reaching one million sales of the Optimus G Pro in South Korea. The domestic sales milestone for the smartphone was reached within four months, three months quicker than its previous fastest-selling device, the Optimus LTE, and reached half a million sales within 40 days. In comparison, the Samsung Galaxy Note II managed to reach the one million sales barrier in the country within three months.

BlackBerry Q10 to ship on AT&T from June 21st for $200

The BlackBerry Q10 will be going on sale through AT&T from June 21st. The keyboard-equipped BB10 device will cost $200 up-front with a two-year agreement, according to a statement from the carrier received by Engadget, and will discount the price by at least $100 for anyone that trades in their current smartphone. Sales of the BlackBerry Q10 on AT&T follow after launches of the device on Verizon and T-Mobile, both of which occurred earlier this month.

Forums: overheating woes, Safari gripes and more

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:26:40 GMT

On the MacNN Forums, Mac Elite "FireWire" is trying to figure out why his iMac keeps shutting off when the CPU temp reaches 50�C in the thread titled "iMac doesn't adjust fan speed, and dies." Forum-goers are helping "Laminar" troubleshoot a problem in which Time Machine doesn't see his most recent backups.

"Can I expand a MacBook Air at all?" asks Grizzled Veteran "PeterParker," which started a conversation about the pros and cons of owning a MacBook Air. Today, Forum Regular "gregfripp" turned to the forums for some help with a problem he is having with Transmission. Forum-goers gather to discuss the ways in which Apple has changed Safari for the worse in a thread started by one Mac Elite late last week.

Apple deals: iPads, iPods, Apple TV

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:25:54 GMT

Currently at Apple's online store, save on refurbished iPads, iPods and Apple TV. The iPad mini with 16GB of storage space, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, and dual-core A5 chip is now $279 after a $50 discount. A $170 discount is offered on the refurbished third-generation iPad with 16GB of storage, Wi-Fi and Cellular with Verizon, it is now only $409.

The refurbished current-generation 16GB iPod nano is available in yellow, silver, slate, green, purple, blue, and pink for the reduced price of $99. The current-generation iPod touch is available in 32GB or 64GB configurations for $249 and $329 respectively. Refurbished Apple TVs are only $85 after a 14 percent discount.

AppleInsider.com's Mac Price Guide is the number one source for finding the best prices on Apple products. A brand new 16GB iPad mini with Wi-Fi is currently only $329 at most online retailers. Save $34 on the 64GB iPad mini at MacMall.com, it is regularly $659, but is currently $625.

DealNN: QNAP 6-Bay NAS cut to $752

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:24:56 GMT

Currently, Newegg.com has the QNAP high performance six-bay NAS server for the reduced price of $852. That's $78 off the list price of $930, and until June 30, use coupon code 'QNAPNAS030' at checkout to drop the price further to $752 with free US delivery. That's the best deal we've seen by $77. The QNAP NAS system features a 2.13GHz Intel Atom dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, six SATA ports, two eSATA ports, two USB 3.0 ports, five USB 2.0 ports and two Gigabit Ethernet ports. A one-year warranty on parts and labor is included from QNAP.

At Rakuten.com, save 53 percent on the Samsung 21.5-inch LED Backlit Monitor -- it's regularly $249.26, but is now only $109 with free budget shipping. The Epson Expression Photo XP-850 wireless all-in-one printer has been reduced from $299, down to $240 at JR.com.

A whopping 63 percent discount is offered on the GE X500 digital camera in refurbished condition at TigerDirect.com, it was $180, but is now $66. Today's deal of the day from BestBuy.com is on the Dynex 32-inch LCD HDTV, it was $220, but has been reduced to $170 with free shipping.

Chatology searches through Messages, iChat content

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:16:19 GMT

Flexibits has released Chatology, a new Mac app for users of Messages or iChat. The app is designed to search through chat session content more efficiently than Apple's own tools allow. This includes faster search retrieval, and options to narrow searches to a specific time range. Images and links in conversations are automatically filtered into their own tabs for easier access.

Once the app is installed, users can toggle whether hitting Command-F in Messages or iChat will trigger Chatology instead of the regular Find command. The app costs $20, and requires OS X 10.7.5 or later. A free trial version is also available.

HTC One mini screen resolution leaks through HTC-owned website

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:18:47 GMT

HTC has mistakenly confirmed that it is creating the HTC One mini, after leaking the name through one of its own websites. A User Agent profile published on a HTC-owned domain provides the device's name, as well as revealing it will have a 1280x720-resolution display and will use Android 4.2, but does not seem to show much else about the phone.

The model number of the HTC One mini is shown to be PO581, according to The Next Web, with the original HTC One bearing the number PN071. While the page of code does show it as having connectivity over GPRS and 3G connections, it does not immediately appear to have LTE, though this could change by the time it is launched by the company.

Earlier rumors suggest that the HTC One mini will have a 4.3-inch display instead of the 4.7 of its predecessor, a dual-core processor, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of storage, and a four-megapixel rear camera that retains the UltraPixel technology of the full-sized version.

Hidden iOS 7 beta settings point to unused gesture, icon options

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:14:03 GMT

Tweaking the iOS 7 beta reveals hidden settings that hint at Apple plans and/or concepts for the firmware, reports say. These include OS-wide edge- and corner-swipe gestures, which would come on top of edge-swipe commands in apps like Safari and Messages. The edge gestures would reportedly be used for quick app switching.

Other important settings would let people hide pre-installed apps, or create folders within folders, both long-running demands from iOS users. In particular many people have complained about icons like the one for Newsstand, which can't normally be deleted or hidden within another folder. Another potential option would be the ability to close folders by pinching instead of tapping outside the folder or on the folder itself.

Cosmetic options control blur, coloring, and animations. Since these would affect the fundamental appearance of the interface, Apple is unlikely to build them into the finished iOS 7 release, due this fall.

Apple has sometimes experimented with gestures that did make it into later iOS updates. The multi-touch task-switching and app-closing gestures on the iPad, for instance, were once buried in Settings but are now readily accessible in iOS 6.

MacBook Pro or MacBook Air?

FireWire — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 15:46:22 GMT

I'm in the market for a new laptop and I was set on the next revision of the MBP were they announced at WWDC. But the delay and the new MBA made me consider the new Haswell MBA as an alternative. My computer will be used as as desktop 99% of the time (hooked to a 23-24" monitor) so I don't care much about weight, size, battery life or retina display. But I still require a laptop for those occasional times I need it. I'm using it most of the time for normal stuff but I do occasionnal Photoshop editing (basic, small files) but regular iMovie editing (about 15 minutes movies, but several times a week). My 2007 iMac takes about 1 hour per 10 minutes and I want to cut that.

The Air seems interesting because you can put an i7 and the rest is similar to a MBP, besides the graphic card.

Am I missing something? Would I lose something by going with a MBA? It's almost a given the next MBP are going to be very similar to MBA (very thin, no optical drive, soldered RAM, SSD only, etc).

BTW, I noticed all laptops are limited to 8 GB, except for 15". Why is that? Is this 2010? I like to keep my computers for at 5-6 years and I fear 8 GB won't be enough in the near future. I'm already using most of my 6 GB..

Sony Xperia Z shipping in US within weeks, exclusive to T-Mobile

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 15:28:18 GMT

The Sony Xperia Z will be going on sale in the United States on T-Mobile "in the coming weeks," according to a statement from the carrier. The water-resistant smartphone, an exclusive to the phone network, will be made available over the summer online and in stores, with a limited-edition purple version being offered at the same time as the black finish model.

Aside from the protection from water and dust, tempered glass, and anti-shatter film on the front and back, the Xperia Z has a 5-inch 1080p "Reality Display" with mobile Bravia Engine 2, and is powered by a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor running at 1.5GHz with 2GB of RAM. On the back is a 13-megapixel Exmor RS camera with HDR video and a front-facing 2-megapixel Emor R version, while 16GB of expandable storage and LTE connectivity are also included.

While T-Mobile has announced its exclusivity of the device and provided a contact form for more release details on its website, an exact release date and pricing details are not currently available.

Briefly: Goji Smart Lock gains strong backing, Neat iOS update

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 15:26:15 GMT

After only two weeks, Goji has managed to raise more than $100,000 towards the production of its Smart Lock. The Goji Smart Lock is an automatic deadbolt that can be unlocked wirelessly with a Bluetooth-enabled device. On top of basic locking and unlocking functionality, the Goji also includes several tools for monitoring who has access to a home. Every time the lock is activated the Goji Smart Lock snaps a picture and sends a real-time app and get notification to a designated mobile phone. The device also keeps a log of all activity related to the Smart Lock which can be reviewed at any time from the Goji Mobile App or through an online Goji account. Expected to begin shipping this December, the Goji Smart Lock will retail for $278 but can currently be purchased with a $235 pledge.

Neat updates iOS app with new collaboration features

Neat has launched an updated version of its self-titled iOS app. Building on the capabilities of Neat's cloud-based Digital Filing System, the updated app offers a number of enhancements including quick access to important information as well as sharing, reporting and collaborating functionality. Using the camera on a mobile device users can now scan receipts, business cards and documents and immediately file them in the appropriate location. Information pulled from these scans can then be edited with additional details, and synced directly to the desktop software. Users can also now share any document or folder with others and use comments to collaborate. The app is free to download, but requires customers to subscribe for either a $15 or $25 per month NeatCloud account.

Case for rumored low-cost iPhone shows thicker size, rounded edges

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 14:33:27 GMT

A Japanese case maker, MGM Corp., has produced what news site Macotakara claims is a case for the rumored low-cost iPhone. Compared with an equally thin case for the iPhone 5, the new one is said to be 2mm thicker, and use rounded edges instead of flat ones. A rear cutout appears to leave enough space for a camera lens and a flash.

Many of the details of the low-cost iPhone, if it exists, remain ambiguous. It's typically believed that the device will use a plastic back instead of metal and glass, and come in several different colors, instead of either black or white. The product is also expected to sell for $300-400 unlocked, and under $199 when on contract. It could ship as soon as this fall, around the same time as a new flagship iPhone.

Huawei launches Ascend P6 with thin 6.18mm profile, 5MP front camera

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 14:02:11 GMT

Huawei has launched its Ascend P6 smartphone at its London event. Measuring just 6.18mm (0.24 inches) thick, just as earlier rumored, the Ascend P6 has a 1280x720-resolution, 4.7-inch in-cell display housed inside a metallic case, and in a break from the norm, provides a five-megapixel camera on the front of the device.

Running on a 1.5GHz quad-core processor with 2GB of RAM, the Ascend P6 also has an eight-megapixel BSI camera on the back with an F/2.0 lens and capable of taking a 4cm (1.6-inch) macro shot and 1080p HD video recording. It also has 8GB of storage expandable through microSD by up to 32GB, Dolby Digital Plus audio processing, Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth, a 2000mAh battery, and radios for GSM, UMTS, and HSPA+.

Running on Android 4.2.2 using Huawei's Emotion UI skin, the Ascend P6 ships with the comapny's own IMAGESmart software, featuring various shot modes, image enhancements and "instant facial beauty support." A Me widget, Smart Reading, battery optimization and power saving through its Automatic Discontinuous Reception and Quick Power Control options, and the ability to share documents to other devices through its multi-screen AirSharing option are also included.

Huawei will initially be shipping the Ascend P6 to China in June, then to Western Europe from July. While pricing and further release regions were not disclosed, other markets will apparently be announced in the future.

my transmission software has a problem

gregfripp — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 14:01:21 GMT

i am a fairly late user of transmission
i have a problem
it won't/can't show any downloading, but does show uploading activity
what do i have to change?
greg

Apple adds phone calls to Siri suicide prevention responses

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:42:26 GMT

Apple has changed the way Siri responds to suicide references, users have discovered. Until this week, the system would simply display the locations of nearby mental health facilities. In the US Siri will now ask people if they want to talk to someone at the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. On an iPhone, Siri can also ask to dial directly.

The new response is present in both iOS 6 and the iOS 7 beta. Despite being marketed as an iOS feature, much of Siri's functionality is actually hosted on Apple servers, which lets the company change responses on the fly. Apple has gradually tweaked Siri since it was first integrated into iOS 5, adding and improving functions.

A closer look: iOS 7 Safari mobile browser

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:09:43 GMT

While Microsoft rules the desktop browser space with IE, mobile analytics continually show that Apple dominates mobile browser usage with Safari. Like every other pre-installed app in the iOS 7 beta, Apple has given it a complete revision. It still feels familiar, but bears an all-new design and works a little differently to the way it does in iOS 6. Do the changes add or detract from what is the most popular mobile browser on the market?

The changes to Safari in iO7 are comprehensive. As with Safari for the desktop, Apple has added a unified search field to mobile Safari. If anything, taking this approach makes much more sense on a smartphone, particularly as cramming a URL field together with a search field on a 4-inch or 3.5-inch display is on the fiddly side in Safari on iOS6 and previous iterations. Apple has also cleaned up the panes in Safari in iOS 7 so that they stay hidden until a sharper scroll reveals them. A slower scroll keeps them out of view, allowing for the optimal use of the available viewing area. It looks attractive and works seamlessly, making for a much improved browsing experience.

Also transferred from Safari for the desktop to the mobile version is the ability for swipe between open webpages. As its implementation on a mobile uses touch rather than a mouse, it ends up looking very similar to the way Peek has been implemented in BlackBerry 10. That aside, it works much better than aiming for the back and forwards buttons (which continue nonetheless). Tabbed browsing has also been implemented differently in Safari for iOS 7, with a new consolidated, scrolling tab view. Although Windows Vista was lambasted for its functionality, it was pretty; likewise its Flip 3D function certainly looked better than it actually worked in practice when trying to view all open windows. In iOS 7 Apple has taken a similar approach, but has applied it to open tabs in Safari. Unsurprisingly perhaps, Apple's implementation works much better as it provides a better view of all open tabs. Borrowing from Android's Chrome, a swipe sideways will also dismiss a tab.

In terms of additional functionality, Apple has added a more intuitive tab approach when the Bookmarks button is tapped. You can access articles that you have added to the Reading List, while you can now also view all the shared links in your Twitter timeline, including who posted them and what they tweeted about it. Naturally, the Bookmarks tab is retained, which also features a cleaner look. Other new touches include iCloud Keychain, which greatly improves the browsing experience by using 256-bit AES encryption to store usernames, passwords and credit card numbers. These will sync with OS X Mavericks. Safari for iOS 7 now also includes Password Generator that will create a unique and complex password, but will also store and automatically fill the field when the page is visited.

Safari for iOS 7 has been effectively rebuilt from the ground up. Like the iOS 7 operating system itself, Safari has been given a facelift. However, Apple has not stopped there, rethinking how a mobile browser can be full optimized for a smartphone. It makes browsing on the iPhone a much improved user experience and is simply a pleasure to use. The addition of the iCloud Keychain and Password Generator might not be sexy, but they help to make the mobile browsing experience on the iPhone as complete as it is on the desktop.

By Sanjiv Sathiah

AMD plans to ship first ARM-based server processors in late 2014

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 12:38:29 GMT

AMD will be taking its first steps in producing ARM-based processors, according to a new roadmap. The chip manufacturer will be creating "Seattle" processors for the server market which will use ARM Cortex-A57 cores, which could eventually lead to AMD creating ARM processors destined for tablets in the distant future.

The Seattle chips will initially be eight-core offerings that will run at or greater than 2GHz, and is expected to be joined by 16-core versions. Scheduled for the second half of 2014, Seattle will apparently offer between two and four times the performance of AMD Opteron X-Series processors, an improvement in compute-per-Watt, and 128GB DRAM support.

While Seattle will be the first chip that is based on ARM cores instead of the typical x86-based systems, it will not be the first that uses ARM technology. Last year, AMD revealed it would use ARM TrustZone on future Accelerated Processing Units (APU) via a system-on-a-chip (SoC), aimed at embedded systems. The Cortex-A5 used in the SoC would not be employed by user-facing applications, but rather for security.

The same roadmap also shows the x86-based "Berlin", which will be available as both a CPU and APU. Using four "Steamroller" cores and the Heterogenus System Architecture that uses the same memory access for the CPU and GPU, it will give up to eight times the performance compared to current Opteron processors. An enterprise server processor called "Warsaw" is also planned, which will improve performance-per-Watt compared to earlier iterations, and will provide "seamless migration" from the Opteron 6300 Series. Both will be shipping in the first half of 2014.

AT&T sets price of Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 at $400, $200 in bundle

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 11:15:50 GMT

AT&T has revealed its pricing for the Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0, ahead of its launch on the network on June 21st. The tablet with the 8-inch display and access to the AT&T LTE network will cost $400 with a two-year contract when bought on its own, but the carrier will also be offering it at a discount when bought as part of a bundle.

The price of the Galaxy Note 8.0 drops to $200 when bought alongside a new two-year subscription for either the Galaxy S4, the new Galaxy S4 Active, or the Galaxy Note II, and ultimately means that those taking up the offer will end up paying for two contracts every month rather than the cost of just one. AT&T did not reveal how long the bundle offer will be running for, but did state that Galaxy Note 8.0 purchasers would receive 50GB of free cloud storage in the AT&T Locker.

The Galaxy Note 8.0 uses a quad-core 1.6GHz processor with 2GB of RAM, a rear five-megapixel camera with 1.3-megapixel front-facing counterpart, and 16GB of expandable storage. The display has a resolution of 1280x800, can be automatically adjusted in a new Reading Mode, and comes with the S Pen for hand-written annotations.

HTC unveils Desire 200 budget-ranged smartphone with HTC One stylings

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 09:58:46 GMT

HTC is adding to its Desire smartphone collection, by introducing a budget-ranged device with a few design influences from its current flagship. The Desire 200 has a 3.5-inch LCD display with a resolution of 320x480, packed into a metal and plastic case with a top speaker grille that mimics that of the high-end HTC One.

According to specifications on the HTC website, spotted by Engadget, the Android-powered Desire 200 uses a Qualcomm Snapdragon S1 running at 1GHZ with 512MB of RAM, and is supplied with 4GB of expandable storage. On the back is a 5-megapixel fixed focus camera, sound processing is provided by Beats Audio, and it also has 2G and 3G connectivity, GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, and a 1,230mAh battery.

Despite it being listed by the company, there are no details regarding a price nor a release date, but it is likely to be shipping in the next few months.

Adobe formally releases 'Creative Cloud' version of full app suite

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 06:42:49 GMT

Adobe has formally released the full Adobe Creative Cloud software, marking the next generation of its venerable Creative Suite and officially making its subscription-based, cloud-authorized software the default option going forward. Although the company will continue to sell copies of Adobe CS6 -- which features a traditional "perpetual" license -- for the time being, the new "Adobe CC" package features a number of enhancements to each of the programs within that are not available to non-Creative Cloud subscribers.

In addition, the online gallery and creative community Behance, purchased by Adobe last year, has been integrated into the Creative Cloud suite as an optional showcase and storage medium for work produced by the programs. The company is celebrating the new release with a multi-project collaborative art project, called Create Now: A Celebration of Creativity.

The update is available immediately to existing Creative Cloud users, and owners of the latest CS6 software can activate the new updates by signing up for a subscription. New users will need to download the apps from Adobe and activate them with a Creative Cloud subscription, which can be on a flat-rate annual subscription, a month-by-month subscription or on a single-app level if required. Existing customers going back to CS3 can get a discount on annual full and single-app subscriptions for the first year to ease the transition and get up-to-date in one go.

The Creative Cloud apps come with 30-day free trials and 2GB of cloud storage. Single-app subscriptions are $10 per month for the first year for existing customers, $20 per month after that, but do not require an annual commitment. Access to the complete suite starts at $20 per month for the first year for CS6 users and $30 per month for CS3 and later users for the first year ($50 per month for new clients). After the first year, the full suite costs $50 per month on an annual commitment, or $75 per month on a "cancel anytime" subscription. There are separately-priced plans for business and teams, and a discounted price for students and teachers. The annual commitments include 20GB of cloud storage.

The new Creative Cloud suite was first unveiled in May and allows files to be easily shared via Adobe's cloud storage to Macs, Windows computers, iOS and Android apps as well as Behance. In addition to all of the Creative Cloud applications, CC members also gain free access to Behance ProSite to make portfolio websites, the Digital Publishing Suite (DPS) to turn publications into iPad periodicals, and PhoneGap Built to create other types of mobile apps. Also included is Adobe TypeKit for use on websites, and the company says that a future update will bring over 700 fonts to members as well -- along with new ways to manage, buy and sync other fonts.

The release formally introduces Photoshop CC, InDesign CC, Illustrator CC, Dreamweaver CC and Premiere Pro CC among other programs. Together, the new versions offer hundreds of new features.

Adobe says that Photoshop CC includes new sharpening technologies, Camera Shake Reduction, an all-new Smart Sharpen, Adobe Camera Raw 8 and direct upload to Behance among other features. Illustrator also gains direct Behance uploading, along with a new Touch Type tool that allows text manipulation while remaining editable -- and works with a mouse, stylus or multi-touch device. The program can now enable painting with a brush made from a photo, and lets Air, Pattern and Scatter brushes contain raster images. InDesign CC has been essentially re-written with a new architecture that dramatically improves performance, and Adobe Muse offers artists and designers the ability to do in-browser editing, creating HTML-based websites without coding.

Premier Pro CC offers new editing features, customizations and improvements -- including new color workflows, the Lumetri Deep Color Engine for grading, After Effects CC for motion graphics and visual effects, and 3D integration with the new Live 3D Pipeline with Cinema4D integration. In addition, there are all-new versions of Adobe Speedgrade CC, Audition CC for audio editing, Prelude CC and Adobe Story CC Plus. Edge Animate CC works with animated and interactive content using HTML, CSS and JavaScript, along with Dreamweaver CC which now has a much stronger emphasis on CSS and a visual CSS Designer tool. Adobe Flash Pro CC has also been rebuilt to be much faster and more reliable.

Apple TV gains iTunes Radio support, new features in v5.4 beta

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 03:48:06 GMT

Though not explicitly mentioned during the Worldwide Developer's Conference keynote, the Apple TV will also be receiving an update to its differently-numbered iOS software in the near future -- one that supports iTunes Radio and offers a few minor new features. The first beta, which is referred to as iOS 5.4 (notably skipping 5.3 entirely), doesn't yet make any severe design changes but does add support for the forthcoming iTunes Radio, allowing developers a chance to test the service.

It is not yet clear if Apple will update the Apple TV software to reflect the style of iOS 7 in the near future, but in the current beta both the look and functionality are largely the same, with just a handfull of new features, all of which would be considered fairly minor. Users will also see that iTunes in the Cloud is supported alongside iTunes Match, the latter being a paid service that creates a large "virtual storage locker" for iTunes music, centralizing its accessibility and thus allowing all devices associated with an iTunes account to have access to it at all times, provided there is some form of Internet connection.

Interestingly, Apple has not yet merged the "Radio" feature on Apple TV with the new "iTunes Radio" function, though that is expected to happen at some point. The Radio function is largely copied from the similar Radio feature on iTunes and offers hundreds of free broadcast and Internet radio stations for free listening. Home Sharing has improved in the new beta as well, becoming more reliable for in-network iTunes sharing -- and users can finally customize subtitle styles.

Another minor change is a renaming of the sometimes-confusing "Photo Stream" to "iCloud photos," which simply shows a gallery of any photos stored in iCloud. User can have up to 1,000 of their most recent or deliberately-added photos at any one time on Photo Stream. The new "Conference Room" mode should appeal to business users -- it allows users to set a custom background with an overlay of instructions on how to connect their own devices to the network. Users can also specify if they want to prefer iCloud playback of stored presentations, videos, photos and music over locally-stored material -- a great option of the local assets aren't available, say on a business trip to another office.

This is just the first beta of iOS for Apple TV 5.4, so testers and developers can expect further changes and refinements to occur in future betas. The update is likely to be issued sometime just before or at the same time as the upgrade to iOS 7 for other Apple mobile devices -- currently said to be happening this fall.

Report: AT&T enabling FaceTime, Google+ video chat on all data plans

NewsPoster — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 01:09:39 GMT

According to reports, AT&T has commenced the effort to enable Apple FaceTime support and Google+ video chat for all customers on its cellular network, not just those on a capped mobile sharing plan. The move starts to fulfill a promise the company made in May to allow customers even on grandfathered "unlimited Internet" plans to use the service.

AT&T's statement in May said that "for video chat apps that come pre-loaded on devices, we currently give all OS and device makers the ability for those apps to work over cellular for our customers who are on Mobile Share or Tiered plans. Apple, Samsung and BlackBerry have chosen to enable this for their pre-loaded video chat apps. And by mid-June, we'll have enabled those apps over cellular for our unlimited plan customers who have LTE devices from those three manufacturers."

AppleInsider notes that they have reports of service accessibility from parts of New York, Maryland, Georgia, Hawaii, and California. MacNN has confirmed functionality of FaceTime over previously unsupported LTE and HSPA+ in parts of North Carolina, Northern Virginia (but not Richmond or Hampton Roads), Georgia, and Florida. Both LTE and HSPA+ devices have the capability enabled.

Court evidence: Jobs read Apple rumor sites, queried Cue on reports

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 23:22:58 GMT

According to a an email exchange between then-CEO Steve Jobs and Senior Vice President of Internet Software and Services Eddy Cue submitted in court earlier today as part of the Department of Justice's e-book price-fixing trial, Apple's co-founder and then-leader read Mac rumor-and-news sites such as AppleInsider and would question the veracity of items found there. In the exchange, which happened just three months after Apple had launched the iBookstore, Jobs wants to know more about self-publishing options.

He references a report on AppleInsider referring to the iBookstore inking a deal with Smashwords, an e-book "aggregator" that lets authors directly control the transformation of a work into an e-book suitable for Apple, Amazon, Barnes & Noble and other e-book outlets, along with packaging and marketing assistance, for a small percentage. Jobs wanted to know if such companies get the same deal as traditional publishers, meaning that Apple would still get 30 percent of whatever the selling price of the e-book was.

Cue answered in the affirmative, explaining that Smashwords took its own fee out of the 70 percent that it keeps of the selling price, passing the remainder to the author, meaning they get about 85 percent of the net price of the book. As an example, if a "self-published" Smashwords e-book sold for $10, Apple would get $3, and Smashwords would receive $7, of which it would pass $5.95 on to the author. Titles for aggregators can be as low as 99 cents, or as much as the author desires. Apple describes aggregators as "experts in ePub conversion, formatting, marketing, promotion and price optimization" that are able to format e-books correctly to Apple's specifications as well as those of other channels, helping authors that are not well-versed with the technical aspect of self-publishing.

He mentioned in the initial reply that such companies exist for music as well, and that Apple's 30 percent cut applies to all of them. Examples of music "aggregators" include CD Baby and Bandcamp, which are often used by as-yet-unsigned bands to get product onto the iTunes store as inexpensively as possible. At that point, Apple had signed two book aggregators -- Project Gutenberg and Smashwords. The company now handles e-books from some additional aggregators as well, such as Bookbaby, Bookwire, Ingram and InScribe.

Jobs would occasionally make fun of or belittle Mac rumor sites -- and on at least one occasion, sued them out of existance -- but the email exchange shows that the CEO was very engaged in what those sites were saying about the company and potential forthcoming Apple products. The exchange also reveals that Jobs didn't know some of the minutia of the deals the iBookstore and iTunes Store was making with publishers and authors, but wanted to be sure that all deals were as close to identical in net terms as possible.

In a second exchange, Jobs asked Cue if Apple was going to let "anyone" self-publish, and whether Amazon had a similar practice. "Yes and yes," was the reply from Cue, who added that at the time he believed that about half of Amazon's e-book count -- about 200,000 titles at the time -- came from self-publishing aggregators. Cue's "biggest concern" with opening up more self-publishing outlets was that Apple would have to "review each submission." Jobs' reply: "Yep. What does Amazon do [in that regard]?"

The DOJ is using the email as part of its attempt to show that Apple was obsessed with breaking Amazon's monopoly on e-book sales, though the fact that the exchange is dated well after the launch of Apple's iBookstore and the iPad would seem to remove any hints of conspiracy from it. Jobs' questions are the same as any CEO would ask about rivals and how they handle a particular issue to help research what the best solution might be for his own company.

HighPoint debuts 362x series hardware RAID SAS PCI-E cards

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 22:46:17 GMT

HighPoint, an industry leading Storage HBA and solutions manufacturer, has launched a new selection of cost-effective hardware RAID HBAs for PC and Mac platforms -- the RocketRAID 362x series. The new line of PCI-E RAID cards are ideal for large-scale configurations of 6Gb per second SATA hard drives, and were designed specifically for I/O intensive business and media applications that require data redundancy coupled with consistent transfer rates.

The RocketRAID 362x series HBA's utilize a dedicated RAID-on-Chip processor and 512MB of DDR3 cache, which offload RAID-related processing from the host system. A comprehensive management suite delivers storage monitoring, maintenance and recovery features to help secure mission-critical data from the risks of hardware failure. The dual Mini-SAS ports deliver 6Gb per second transfer bandwidth for each of the eight device channels.

RocketRAID 362x Series RAID-on-Chip HBAs were designed to work in conjunction with HighPoint's Rocket EJ340 SATA Expander Modules. Rocket EJ340 Expander Modules quadruple the storage capability of each Mini-SAS port, and enable RocketRAID 362x HBAs to expand from 8 up to 32 hard drives, and support large-scale hardware RAID 5 and 6 storage configurations.

RocketRAID 3600 HBAs and accessories are available immediately from HighPoint's network of distribution and Retail channels. The RocketRaid 3620 retail for $429, with the 3622 coming it at $579. The RocketEJ3440 SATA expander retails for $119.

Report: 'iPhone 5S' display assembly leaked, fits new logic board

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 22:35:23 GMT

Shortly after the publication of what is purported to be an "iPhone 5S" bare logic board that hadn't yet had any chips attached to it, a repair company called iHeart Repair in Florida has revealed new images of what is said to the be the display assembly of the forthcoming iPhone revision. Though the images do not reveal any huge changes, the alternation of where a pair of flex connectors is situated matches the logic board, meaning the parts would fit together correctly if mated and supporting their legitimacy. Why Apple may have made the change isn't clear.

The "iPhone 5S" as it is expected to be known is likely to be unveiled later this year, with current rumors pointing to September. While evidence so far suggests that the outside of the device may not look any different from the present iPhone 5 (in exactly the way that the iPhone 4S is almost identical to the iPhone 4), the small changes seen in these leaked parts -- if genuine -- hint that Apple will be making interior changes just as it did with the iPhone 4S, reports MacRumors.

Among the options thought likely to occur in the next iPhone model, the leaked display board would indicated that a new and larger processor is on the way. Apple has worked remarkably swiftly to iterate and evolve its chip designs, and an "A6X" or even "A7" chip that might go into a new iPhone model should provide a boost on top of the iOS 7 makeover that has already been previewed at the Worldwide Developers Conference. Additional parts that may or may not be intended for the "iPhone 5S" emerged earlier this month.

The leaked logic board revealed earlier from a Japanese parts company also appears to be slightly narrower than the existing iPhone 5 logic board, but this would presumably just make room for a larger battery in the device, perhaps needed to drive the more powerful processor. There is also evidence that some of the connectors have been shifted around in what is likely to be an effort at greater efficiency, though it could also be caused by changing parts suppliers or minor differences in the connectors themselves.

I am looking for....

jbefr — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 22:24:01 GMT

shifuimam, or a member who has made the ibook clamshell LCD XGA upgrade, and i am looking for the pinout of the LG display cable, Apple part #922-5368.
I have a tangerine Ibook upgraded with 466 firewire logic board, superdrive, dual boot Mac os 9.2.2, and Mac os X Tigern Hdd 80 go 7200 rpm, and 576 Mo ram.
The Apple cable display is too old, impossible to find, and i wouls use soldered wires to do the upgrade.
Thanks.
Best regards.
jb

Oculus Rift headset receives $16 million first-round funding

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 21:52:26 GMT

Oculus VR, Inc., a virtual-reality headset manufacturer, today announced that it has closed a deal for $16 million in funding. The round was co-led by Spark Capital and Matrix Partners. Santo Politi, Spark founder and general partner; and Antonio Rodriguez, entrepreneur and general partner at Matrix, have joined the company's board of directors. The funds will be used to accelerate the development of virtual reality hardware, software and services, ultimately creating commercially-available virtual reality platforms.

The Oculus Rift device uses an Innolux LCD panel with a Himax timing controller, while the tracker board uses an ARM Cortex-M3 microcontroller with a 72MHz CPU from STMicroelectronics, an Invensense six-axis motion tracker that combines a gyro and accelerometer, and a three-axis magnetometer. The accompanying junction box has a Realtek display interface controller, and 256KB of Winbond serial flash. A "HD" version of the headset was revealed at the 2013 E3 conference.

Oculus VR previously raised over $2.4 million through its Kickstarter campaign, nearly 10 times its fundraising goal. Developers have begun actively supporting the headset following the first round of shipping headsets from the Kickstarter. No release date has been set for commercial release.

Cue talks Steve Jobs' involvement in iBooks during Monday testimony

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 21:16:18 GMT

Under questioning at the ongoing DoJ v. Apple antitrust trial, the man who negotiated Apple's iBookstore deals with publishers -- Eddy Cue -- today disclosed some minor facts about Steve Jobs' involvement with the iBooks app. The topic came up during examination by Apple attorney Orin Snyder. Earlier in the trial, Cue established that Jobs was heavily into the concept of iBooks and the iBookstore once iPad development started ramping up. During today's testimony, Cue revealed that Jobs had micromanaged some of the smallest details of iBooks.

These included the choice of Winnie the Pooh as a bundled book. Jobs is said to have not only liked the book, but thought it showed off iBooks thanks to full-color illustrations. Up until that point, e-books were typically available only in black-and-white. To demonstrate iBooks and the iPad during Apple's January 2010 event, Jobs specifically chose Ted Kennedy's True Compass; at court Cue explained that the Kennedy family "meant a lot" to the CEO.

Cue's appearance today should mark the end of the Department of Justice's half of the trial. The rest of the week should be devoted to Apple's defense, which will involve witnesses like other Apple executives and Barnes & Noble's head of digital content.

Briefly: Verizon may buy Wind, HTC One Android 4.2.2 update pulled

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 21:04:38 GMT

According to reports, US wireless carrier Verizon is investigating the purchase of Canadian cellphone carrier Wind Mobile. One source noted by Toronto's The Globe says that Verizon is "definitely taking a hard look right now." AT&T, Vodafone, and the Telenor Group of Norway are all potential suitors, according to sources for the Globe. The Canadian government is stalling or blocking VimpelCom's attempt to sell its share in Wind at auction, with a seeking price of more than $500 million. VimpleCom's CEO claims that it will take a billion-dollar investment in Wind to have the infrastructure to turn a profit.

HTC deletes Android 4.2.2 update file for HTC One, return ETA unknown

An initial release of Android 4.2.2 for the HTC One handset has been pulled by the manufacturer. A tweet by Three UK Support confirmed to a customer that HTC had yanked the update file, with no new schedule for release. HTC does claim that the update is coming, but is not providing a timetable for release.

Google expands Chromebook availability to Walmart, Staples

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 20:26:30 GMT

An official Google blog post has noted the expansion of Chromebook netbook sales to additional venues in the US and in Europe. Starting today, Walmart will be selling the Acer Chromebook, and starting this weekend, Staples will be carrying an assortment of makes and models from three different manufacturers.

The Staples expansion includes all 1,500 US stores and include Chromebook units from Acer, HP, and Samsung. In the coming months, select Office Depot, Office Max, Fry's, and Tiger Direct stores will sell the computers.

Overseas, the Chromebooks are available in 116 Tesco stores in the UK. Mediamarket and Saturn carry the devices in the Netherlands. JB Hi-Fi and Harvey Norman stores have started selling the Google-powered computers in Australia. The blog notes that Google is "working hard to bring Chromebooks to even more countries later this year."

Two more Apple patents challenged by anonymous parties at USPTO

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 19:54:56 GMT

Two more "anonymous" patent re-examination requests for Apple patents have been filed with the US Patent and Trade Office (USPTO). The two patents, involving Apple's Visual Voicemail and autocorrect features, are both at stake in the ongoing legal maneuvers between the Cupertino manufacturer and Samsung.

Both patents are alleged against various devices in the second Apple versus Samsung trial, scheduled for 2014. The autocorrect patent was asserted against Samsung in its preliminary injunction motion against the Galaxy Nexus handset. Judge Koh ruled that "Apple has shown that it is likely to succeed on the merits at trial in its claims that the Samsung Galaxy Nexus infringes claims 18, 19, and 27 of the '172 [autocorrect] Patent." The infringements have since been worked around.

Patent analyst Florian Mueller sees the most likely filer of the "anonymous" requests as Samsung, with the possibility of Google to assist with legal defense against assorted Android products. He believes that "Any definitive invalidation of these patents, should it ultimately happen, is years off."

DoJ v. Apple e-book trial moves into defense phase

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 19:44:36 GMT

The Department of Justice's antitrust case against Apple is entering its final four days this week, according to Fortune. The original orchestrator of Apple's publisher deals for the iBookstore, Eddy Cue, is resuming court testimony today, having last testified on Thursday afternoon. Today's topics are expected to include a dinner Cue had with Macmillan's CEO, and disputed emails written to Cue by former Apple CEO Steve Jobs.

After lawyers have finished with Cue the DoJ will rest its case, turning it over to the defense. Apple is slated to call several witnesses, including iBookstore head Rob McDonald, who helped arrange Cue's initial meetings with publishers in December 2009. Another Apple executive on the stand will be Eric Gray, the director of operations for iTunes.

One of the most important witnesses may be Theresa Horner, the head of digital content at Barnes & Noble. The bookseller was suffering heavy losses trying to match Amazon's $10 e-book pricing in 2009, and is said to have been talking to publishers about inflating e-book prices before Apple began any iBookstore talks.

Cornerstone Research's Dr. Michelle Burtis is expected to claim that Apple helped or at least didn't harm the e-book industry with its arrival. Dr. Ben Klein, professor emeritus of economics from UCLA, will argue that Apple price-matching deals couldn't have pushed publishers into renegotiating with Amazon. Finally, University of Chicago economics professor Dr. Kevin Murphy should bring up the Supreme Court's Monsanto v. Spray-Rite case, suggesting that there was no conspiracy if Apple acted purely in its own interests.

Case summations are due on Thursday. After that US District Judge Denise Cote will need time to come to a decision, which could take weeks.

Isaacson's Steve Jobs biography to reach paperback on September 10th

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 18:39:22 GMT

A paperback version of Walter Isaacson's Steve Jobs is going on sale September 10th, according to publisher Simon & Schuster. The new edition will differ little from previous digital and hardcover releases, mainly gaining a new afterword and a new cover. The latter is a photo by Norman Seeff shot in 1984, but with Jobs in the exact same pose as the previous cover, which used an Albert Watson portrait from 2006.

Simon & Schuster has refused to give exact sales figures for the original book releases. The book sold 379,000 copies during its first week in the US, though, and topped Amazon's bestsellers list for 2011. Jobs died October 5th that year.

Sprint enables 4G LTE in 22 markets, brings total to 110 covered

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 18:00:10 GMT

Sprint has expanded its 4G LTE coverage in the United States. The addition of LTE to 22 more markets means that Sprint now covers a total of 110 areas, with the carrier also naming other locations that will have LTE access in the coming months, bringing it closer to its goal of covering 200 million people with its LTE network by the end of this year.

LTE has been activated in Napa, CA; Palatka, Sebring, Tampa, and Miami, FL; Dalton, GA; Warsaw, ID; New Orleans and Baton Rouge, LA; St. Joseph, Benton Harbor, Lansing, and East Lansing, MI; St. Cloud, MN; Raleigh, Dunn, and Henderson, NC; Clarksville and Kingsport, TN; Corsica, TX; Longview and Centralia, WA; and Fond du Lac, WI.

The list of markets that will get LTE in the future includes Grand Rapids, Allegan, Ann Arbor, Battle Creek, Flint, and Mount Pleasant, MI; Corpus Christi, Eagle Pass, and Laredo, TX; Oak Harbor and Aberdeen, WA; and Marshfield, Wisconsin Rapids, Watertown and Fort Atkinson, WI.

While increasing the number of markets covered by LTE to 110 is helpful to Sprint customers, the carrier still lags behind the 263 LTE markets operated by AT&T, and the 497 run by Verizon Wireless. Working with Dish Network or Softbank, whichever gains shareholder approval, could help the carrier speed up its rollout in the future.

Extracted images show iPad version of iOS 7

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 17:16:43 GMT

Screenshots out of a hacked iOS 7 simulator show a facsimile of what the iPad edition of iOS 7 will look like, reports say. The images, captured by Sonny Dickson, depict apps like Maps, Safari, and the Game, Control, and Notification Centers. Buttons appear to be rearranged in some instances, and/or include functions that would only make sense on an iPhone or iPod touch, such as a camera flash trigger.

Although an iOS 7 beta was released to developers last week, only the iPhone interface is currently functional. The iPad code may be in limbo because Apple is still finalizing its design. When it's completed, iOS 7 will be compatible with the iPhone 4, 4S, and 5, the fifth-gen iPod touch, and all iPads from the iPad 2 onwards. It will also appear on unannounced iOS devices widely expected to ship this fall.

Wikimedia Foundation not involved in PRISM, opens up consultation

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 16:52:13 GMT

The Wikimedia Foundation has not been compromised under the PRISM spying program, and has not been asked to collect data on behalf of the National Security Agency (NSA), according to a statement released over the weekend. The foundation is also asking for feedback about what it should do about the threat to the privacy of its users and contributors.

The statement, posted by Wikimedia general counsel Geoff Brigham, claims that the "Wikimedia Foundation has not received requests or legal orders to participate in PRISM, to comply with the Foreign Intelligence Surveilance Act (FISA) or to participate in or facilitate any secret surveillance program." The post goes on to state that Wikimedia-controlled servers have not been changed to "make government surveillance easier," as reported to be the case for some technology companies.

Shortly after the initial leak about PRISM, companies such as Google, Microsoft, and Facebook were accused of providing "back door" access to servers, and issued statements denying any involvement. Apple issued a follow-up statement to the issues, advising of the number of law enforcement requests for customer data, as well as the typical reasons for such requests, and reiterating its stance on customer privacy.

Due to the nature of governmental monitoring of communications, Wikimedia states it is obligated to "further understand (and possibly respond to) this issue." It has asked for Internet users to comment about PRISM, how it affects the Wikimedia Foundation values, and what Wikimedia should do about it, by June 21st. The Wikimedia Foundation has also joined in with an open letter to the US Congress, alongside the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the Free Software Foundation, Mozilla and others, with the letter calling for Congress to stop the surveillance and provide all details about the NSA and FBI's data collection activities.

At the time of writing, the "Stop Watching Us" open letter has reached 200,000 signatures.

Briefly: IGG Software Anniversary sale, XCOM coming to iOS this week

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 16:24:35 GMT

In celebration of its tenth anniversary, IGG Software is offering a $10 discount on all of its Mac apps, including iBank 4, iBiz 4, iBiz Pro, iBiz 4 Client and iPaste. The discount applies to all purchases of full versions of the software through the online store, as well as through the Mac App Store. The discounted prices are already reflected in both stores and will remain in effect until July 15. In addition, iBank for iPad has also been reduced to $10 for the duration of the anniversary sale.

XCOM: Enemy Unknown coming to iOS on Thursday

2K and Firaxis Games have announced that it will be brining XCOM: Enemy Unknown to iOS devices on June 20. The game, which is a port of the original PC strategy game, will be supported on the iPad 2 and later, iPhone 4S and later, as well as the fifth generation iPod touch. XCOM will offer the complete PC experience in a form optimized for touch controls. Game Center and iCloud support will also be included so players can save and access games across all of their iOS devices. While not included at launch, a head-to-head multiplayer mode will be added as a free update at a later date.

47 year old Crown Royal

ort888 — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 16:21:39 GMT

Sooooo...

My father and I recently cleared out my deceased grandfathers house and I claimed his mini-bar worth of booze. Amongst the various items was a one gallon sized jumbo bottle of Crown Royal in a special stand. It is open and I'd say it's about 10% gone.

So, I expected it to be old, but I didn't expect it to be 47 years old, as I have now discovered by looking at the date on the broken cap seal.

Is this still good? I know whiskey is supposed to last forever, but this stuff is like 50 years old. That's freaking old. I have no idea when it was opened. The last time it was opened, etc... Could have been a decade ago, could have been 1967.

It wasn't stored in direct sunlight, but it wasn't in a dark cool place either. The house has been more or less abandoned for the last 6 or 7 years and I have no idea what the AC was set at during that period. For all I know, the house was pretty hot in the summer. Probably not 100 degrees or anything, but I'm sure they didn't bother keeping it cool and comfortable.

Thoughts? What's the worst thing that could happen by drinking 50 year old Whiskey? Is this stuff safe?

Skype Video Messaging emerges from preview in mobile, desktop apps

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 16:01:52 GMT

Microsoft-owned Skype today announced that its Video Messaging feature has left the preview stage and should now be available in most of its native client apps. Desktop support includes OS X and Windows/Windows 8. Compatible mobile platforms, meanwhile, include iPhone, iPad, Android, and BlackBerry.

The feature lets people send short videos to contacts who are offline or otherwise unavailable. Clips can only run three minutes or less, but are free to send, and can be previewed before delivery and re-recorded if necessary.

Ford returning physical controls to in-car entertainment system

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 15:24:57 GMT

Ford will be reverting back to offering in-car systems with physical controls rather than touchscreens and voice recognition, according to a report. The move will remove some of the added complexity of its Sync and MyFord Touch systems, in favor of the buttons and knobs that drivers are used to adjusting while driving.

Global product development chief Raj Nair told the Wall Street Journal that drivers were frustrated by not being able to quickly change the volume or radio station using a traditional knob. Alongside the additional buttons, the control panels will continue to be available to users, albeit in a much simpler form.

It is believed that around 80-percent of customers opt for Sync or MyFord with their purchase, with the company believing that those using the additional control system are more satisfied. "The satisfaction is higher on the vehicles equipped with MyFord Touch than without," said Nair, continuing "We've been able to spend a lot of time with customers to find out what exactly are the areas that are bothering them."

The introduction of MyFord Touch to the Ford fleet hasn't been without its problems. Shortly after its introduction, Ford suffered in its quality survey ratings for both 2011 and 2012, and the company has also spent time working on software updates for existing systems, improving voice recognition and simplifying the layout.

Next-gen iPhone logic board hints at redesign, larger processor

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 15:15:14 GMT

A Japanese parts company, Moumantai, says it has obtained a logic board for Apple's next-generation iPhone, commonly expected to be called the iPhone 5S. The board is similar in design to the one for the iPhone 5, but shows some significant differences in the layout of its chips, circuitry, and holes. While no chips are actually attached, the space for the main processor hints that Apple's next A-series chip will be larger than the A6, which is currently used in the iPhone 5.

One or more new iPhones are expected to ship in the fall. The new logic board could in theory be intended for a low-cost iPhone, but Moumantai specifically suggests that the part is for a 5S. A low-cost iPhone would also, presumably, use a less powerful -- and hence smaller -- processor.

Photo shows alleged Logitech iPhone/iPod game controller

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 14:16:44 GMT

A new photo shows what is claimed to be one of Logitech's upcoming MFi-certified game controllers. The image, obtained by Kotaku, depicts a gamepad with a D-pad and four action buttons; a fifth button's purpose is unknown. The hardware appears designed to fit an iPhone 5 or a fifth-generation iPod touch.

Support for MFi game controllers is a part of the iOS 7 SDK, and iOS 7 itself is slated to arrive in the fall. That's also when the first MFi controllers are rumored to be arriving, along with new iPhones, iPods, and/or iPads. It may be that the pictured controller will fit unannounced iPhones and iPods, in which case Apple appears to be holding to the 4-inch display format established by the iPhone 5.

Samsung launching Galaxy S4 with LTE-Advanced connectivity in future

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 14:03:32 GMT

Samsung hopes to be the first smartphone manufacturer to launch a smartphone with LTE-Advanced connectivity, according to head of mobile business JK Shin. The high-speed smartphone will be another variant in the Galaxy S4 range of devices, and could be shipping to customers in South Korea before the end of this month.

Speaking to Reuters, JK Shin claimed that the company had already spoke to a number of overseas mobile phone networks about offering the device, though he declined to provide names. The new LTE-Advanced version will end up costing more than the currently-offered versions of the Galaxy S4, states Shin, continuing "We'll be the first with the commercial launch of the advanced 4G version of the smartphone."

Quite a few carriers are said to be working on LTE-Advanced networks, with both Sprint and AT&T rumored to be doing so in the United States. The LTE-Advanced connections are expected to allow for speeds as high as 300Mbps for carrier customers, around 150Mbps for US carriers, and while they are being worked on by carriers, it may be some time before they are activated for use by subscribers.

In the same interview, Shin claimed that the store-inside-a-store concept that Samsung is operating within Best Buy branches has helped the company, with sales of tablets up 3.3 times as much as they were before the stores were added. Samsung is now thinking about pushing the store format into other markets, including in Latin America and the United Kingdom.

Apple denies PRISM knowledge, insists most customer data secure

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 13:25:15 GMT

Apple has issued a rare follow-up public statement on the ongoing crisis over the National Security Agency's PRISM spying program. Reports revealed that the NSA is using PRISM to collect communications data from internal servers at major technology companies such as Apple, Facebook, Google, and Microsoft. All of the companies have denied providing a government backdoor; Apple in particular was quick to claim that it had "never heard of PRISM," even though the Washington Post says the company fought against joining PRISM for five years before finally participating. Apple added that it doesn't "provide any government agency with direct access to our servers -- and any government agency requesting customer data must get a court order."

In its new statement, Apple begins by repeating the same position. "Two weeks ago, when technology companies were accused of indiscriminately sharing customer data with government agencies, Apple issued a clear response: We first heard of the government's 'Prism' program when news organizations asked us about it on June 6," it says. "We do not provide any government agency with direct access to our servers, and any government agency requesting customer content must get a court order."

New however is some limited data on how often Apple has turned over data to the government. "Like several other companies, we have asked the U.S. government for permission to report how many requests we receive related to national security and how we handle them. We have been authorized to share some of that data, and we are providing it here in the interest of transparency.

"From December 1, 2012 to May 31, 2013, Apple received between 4,000 and 5,000 requests from U.S. law enforcement for customer data. Between 9,000 and 10,000 accounts or devices were specified in those requests, which came from federal, state and local authorities and included both criminal investigations and national security matters. The most common form of request comes from police investigating robberies and other crimes, searching for missing children, trying to locate a patient with Alzheimer's disease, or hoping to prevent a suicide.

Apple insists that its default position is privacy. "Regardless of the circumstances, our Legal team conducts an evaluation of each request and, only if appropriate, we retrieve and deliver the narrowest possible set of information to the authorities. In fact, from time to time when we see inconsistencies or inaccuracies in a request, we will refuse to fulfill it.

"Apple has always placed a priority on protecting our customers' personal data, and we don't collect or maintain a mountain of personal details about our customers in the first place. There are certain categories of information which we do not provide to law enforcement or any other group because we choose not to retain it.

"For example, conversations which take place over iMessage and FaceTime are protected by end-to-end encryption so no one but the sender and receiver can see or read them. Apple cannot decrypt that data. Similarly, we do not store data related to customers' location, Map searches or Siri requests in any identifiable form.

"We will continue to work hard to strike the right balance between fulfilling our legal responsibilities and protecting our customers' privacy as they expect and deserve," the statement concludes.

Whether Apple is telling the truth about backdoor access is uncertain, as it's believed that participants in PRISM would be legally required to deny the access' existence. Such backdoors are known to exist at other companies; several years ago it was discovered that the NSA was tapping into AT&T communications using machines hosted in an AT&T building.

Netflix signs multi-year DreamWorks deal for 300 hours of animation

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 12:32:56 GMT

Netflix is continuing its drive for exclusive content by signing a deal with DreamWorks Animation. The multi-year agreement has the streaming video service securing the first-run rights for TV shows based on past, current, and future DreamWorks properties, and will add over 300 hours of programming to the Netflix show catalog.

An earlier agreement between the two companies has Netflix airing Turbo F.A.S.T. in December, a series picking up from where upcoming film Turbo leaves off, while the new programming in the agreement could use characters from current DreamWorks franchises. Properties from Classic Media's catalog, which the company bought in July last year for $155 million, are also available to use, which includes characters such as Lassie and Casper the Friendly Ghost.

The new programming will begin to be aired next year, and will be available in all territories Netflix currently operates in, though shows could air in the US first before appearing in other markets. Netflix also signed an exclusivity deal to bring Dreamworks Animation feature films to the service in the US and Latin America, which will bring films such as The Croods and Mr. Peabody and Sherman to Netflix from next year onwards.

The extra 300 hours of animated programs will help Netflix bolster its shows aimed at children, and will add on top of current original content efforts by the service, which currently consists of Arrested Development, House of Cards, and the upcoming science-fiction series Sense8.

A closer look: iOS 7 Multitasking, AirDrop and the Share widget

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 12:22:26 GMT

If you've read Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson, you will know that iOS is built off the same UNIX kernel as Mac OS X. This means that, like Mac OS X, Apple could have given the iPhone more fully featured multitasking than we have previously seen. In Mac OS X, multitasking and fast app switching in the form of Expose and Mission Control have been very popular. This has been emulated in the Android mobile OS and applied successfully. However, for reasons of battery conservation and perhaps even simplicity, Apple has avoided implementing full multitasking and fast app switching on the iPhone -- until now and the advent of iOS 7.

Full-featured multitasking is something that many iPhone fans have been craving for some time and Apple's implementation of it here is excellent, even in its current beta form. It is immediately apparent, however, that Apple has opted to take a design approach that seems to combine its multitasking implementation from iOS 6, with a very similar approach taken by Microsoft with Windows Phone 8 and even the defunct Palm/HP WebOS. As usual, though, when others inspire Apple, it repackages their approach giving its implementation a unique flavor of its own. For example, multitasking in iOS 7 also intelligently schedules updates during power-efficient opportunities such as when your phone is connected to a power source, or a Wi-Fi network. It conserves power, while also pre-fetching data from frequently used apps so they are ready when you typically launch them.

As in iOS 6, multitasking in iOS 7 is invoked with a double tap of the Home button. Where that previously revealed a multitasking app tray with simple icons, it now switches into a new and much more sophisticated multitasking view layered over the iPhone's wallpaper. A screen grab from each app appears in a left to right scrolling view, exactly as it does in Windows Phone 8. The key differences are that Windows Phone 8 shows a black or white background only, while iOS 7 also (very usefully) shows the app's icon below each screen grab. Further, like Cards in WebOS, users can also close any of these apps with an upward swipe, dismissing it if so desired. Tapping on it naturally takes you directly into that app. Frustratingly for Windows Phone 8 users, they cannot currently dismiss an open app, but can scroll through and select the app that they want to switch to.

Does it matter that Apple's implementation of multitasking in iOS 7 is derivative? In the end, that is up to you. It could have taken any number of other approaches to the way it presents the screen grabs, but I find that the layout that Apple has chosen is clean and highly functional -- even if it bears more than a passing resemblance to the way multitasking has been implemented on other devices. Count me as a fan of the way it works. It is certainly much better than the way multitasking worked in iOS 6, where dismissing an app required you to hold down an app in the multitasking tray, wait for it to start jiggling and then fiddle around trying to make sure your finger correctly hits the minus symbol. However, I would still like to see Apple also give users the option quickly kill all apps running in the background without having to dismiss each individually.

Another significant improvement that Apple has made in iOS 7 is the way users can share files with others. Apple is taking its Bluetooth implementation to new levels in iOS 7 with AirDrop, which uses both Bluetooth 4.0 and Wi-Fi to share files. (You can read more about Apple's iOS 7 Bluetooth integration in this blogpost by Suke Jawanda, Bluetooth SIG CMO.) This is different to the way that Apple implements AirDrop on the Mac, which works over a Wi-Fi connection-only. For the time being, Apple's iOS 7 version of AirDrop is incompatible with OS X Mountain Lion, even though they share the same name. The use of Bluetooth 4.0 adds a layer of security to the file sharing process users can select whether their device is visible to their contacts, anyone, or no one. Additionally, files sent over AirDrop are encrypted.

While AirDrop is an iPhone to iPhone proposition, Apple has also enhanced the layout and functionality of its general Share widget. This is most apparent when sharing photos in the Photos app. In the past, iOS users have been limited to sharing one photo at a time directly from the Share widget. You could share photos directly through e-mail, as a message, to Photo Stream, Twitter and Facebook in batches from the gallery edit mode, but it was not as easy as it is now. You could also send images to print wirelessly, copy it to the clipboard or set it as wallpaper. In iOS 7, users can now share multiple photos at once by selecting each image from the camera roll that they want to share much more simply. This is currently limited to five at a time over e-mail, however users can now also share multiple photos directly to iCloud and Flickr with options dwindling as you add additional photos. The option to set a photo as wallpaper has been replaced by the ability to select certain photos and instantly create a slideshow that can be played locally or streamed over AirPlay.

The more closely we have delved into iOS 7, the more we appreciate the fact that Apple has gone well beyond window dressing with its next-generation release. An updated look was important for the 6-year-old operating system, but it has become the central talking point. It might take some time for the masses to realize, however, that Apple also has done a whole lot to make iOS much more functional (and more computer-like in the process) than it has ever been. You'll get more done using iOS 7, more quickly than before and that is a very good thing.

By Sanjiv Sathiah

Samsung confirms $20M deal with Jay-Z, 1M free albums to Galaxy phones

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 11:20:38 GMT

Samsung has signed a deal with Jay-Z to distribute his latest album to owners of select Galaxy smartphones, 72 hours before its retail release. The agreement, announced via a three-minute advertisement during Game 5 of the NBA Finals, involves 1 million albums being given away to Samsung users on July 4th, as part of a reported $20 million marketing deal.

An app for the Magna Carta Holy Grail album will be made available on Google Play on June 24th for Galaxy S4, Galaxy S III, and Galaxy Note II users, promising an "unprecedented inside look into the album" when it unlocks on July 4th. The app will also be shareable with other Galaxy owners over Facebook, Twitter, and S Beam, but this could still be limited to just the three listed handsets, rather than others in the Samsung range.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Samsung is paying $5 per album for the privilege, though it is not clear if Nielsen SoundScan will be counting this in its sales figures. Considering the $20 million figure of the deal, the free albums represent a quarter of the agreement's value, with the remainder most likely going towards other Jay-Z marketing activities over the summer and towards the end of this year.

Intel schedules Haswell-E enthusiast processors for release late 2014

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 09:56:16 GMT

Intel is planning to release a version of Haswell processors for enthusiasts in the second half of 2014, according to details inside a leaked presentation. The enthusiast model, dubbed Haswell-E, will launch with options for six and eight-core processors and up to 20MB of L3 cache, and with continued support for Hyper Threading, will have as many as 16 logical cores.

The slides, picked up by VR-Zone, mentions the 22nm Haswell-E chips will not have an integrated GPU, but it will have support for DDR4 2133MHz memory and have a maximum thermal design power (TDP) of between 130 and 140 Watts.

At the same time as Haswell-E, Intel will be releasing the Wellsburg motherboard chipsets. These will offer support for the aforementioned 2133MHz DDR4 RAM, up to six USB 3.0 ports, up to eight USB 2.0 ports, integrated clock support, and a maximum of ten SATA 6Gbps ports. The new processor socket, LGA 2011-3, takes up the same space and has the same ball pattern pitch as the current LGS 2011, but the updated layout is said to be more efficient according to Intel researchers.

New leak shows Xbox Music redesign, returning apps for Windows 8.1

NewsPoster — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 01:54:48 GMT

Details have emerged over possible updates for built-in apps in the free Windows 8.1 update. A reworked interface for Xbox Music, a redesigned Windows Store, and the reintroduction of apps seen in previous incarnations of the desktop operating system are shown in images, ahead of the update's preview release later this month.

Screenshots on the BAVo Twitter account, spotted by The Verge, shows the new updates, which includes touch-enabled versions of the Calculator, Sound Recorder, and Scan apps that users of earlier versions of Windows will have seen in some form or another. A Help & Tips app will offer Windows 8.1 tutorials to new users, and Reading List keeps track of bits of clipboard data copied from other applications.

Xbox Music will offer a two-panel interface, and will apparently help in track discovery and for quicker locating and playback of stored tracks. The simplified layout adds a search box, support for playing songs outside of Xbox Music's range, and the ability to play music stored on memory cards.

Windows 8.1, set to be released in preview on June 26th and expected to be out as a full release later this year, adds in a number of improvements to the operating system. Updates to the lock screen, overhauled search, and an updated Snap View are included, along with the return of the Start button.

Self-Driving Cats

subego — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 22:41:22 GMT

Who wants one?

Home refinance procedure

OldManMac — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 15:31:12 GMT

My daughter is trying to refinance her house. Is it a normal procedure for the financial institution to take pictures of the rooms in the house, occupied? Sounds shady to me. They sold her house six years, ago, empty, and I see no reason for anyone to photograph the contents.

Google X Labs unveils high-altitude balloon networking project

NewsPoster — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 01:45:12 GMT

Google is working on a way to provide Internet access around the world, using balloons. "Project Loon," the latest "moonshot" project out of Google X Labs, will use a number of balloons to create a high-altitude network, with the aim of users getting 3G-speed Internet connections in the most remote parts of the world.

The project hopes to fly balloons at twice the altitude of commercial planes, while still allowing for base stations at homes and businesses to connect. The fleet of balloons will navigate around the world using solar power and stratospheric winds, with the final project using software algorithms to work out how high to fly to drift in the right direction, and therefore keep the network connected.

While the project is said by Google to be in its "early days," it could have been working on it for some time. A report in 2008 suggested that the search giant was working with a balloon wireless firm to see if it could create a wide-area Internet network.

A pilot program is starting up in New Zealand, with 50 testers attempting to connect to 30 Project Loon balloons over the course of a week, and it is looking towards setting up similar tests in other countries in the same latitude.

A closer look: iOS 7 Control and Notification Centers

NewsPoster — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 23:56:28 GMT

In addition to a wide-ranging design overhaul of iOS in the iOS 7 beta, Apple also highlighted that iOS 7 also contains a number of feature enhancements as well. This is no mean feat. The resources required to pull off a complete UI overhaul while at the same time developing new features for the operating system to extend its functionality in the space of 8 months is impressive. One of the most significant of the functional enhancements is the new iOS Control Center, which brings with it quick access to range of most used settings and other utilities.

For me, this, enhancement was right at the top of my list for my most wanted feature enhancements in iOS. I honestly don't know why it took so long to arrive, especially as Android users have long enjoyed its benefits. For Android switchers, this is often cited as a reason for why Android is more functional than iOS. In some ways though, the ability to swipe to access functions gives the illusion that it is faster than tapping on the Settings icon to access the same functions, when it probably isn't for the most part in reality.

What makes Control Center work so well is the way that key settings and utilities are laid out and the way its interface works. A quick swipe up from the bottom of the iPhone display initiates the Control Center, but importantly, it doesn't take you out of the home screen or from an app, or even the Lock screen, when it is initiated. Using a skeuomorphic frosted glass effect (no skeuomorphism has not disappeared entirely from iOS), users still have a strong sense of the current content without being forced to switch out of it all together to get to frequently used settings or utilities.

Control Center allows you to quickly toggle Airplane mode, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Do Not Disturb, Screen orientation lock settings. You can now also quickly adjust display brightness from the same location as well as music playback including volume, play, pause and song skipping. AirPlay connectivity as well as the new AirDrop sharing function can also be accessed here, while frequently used utilities including the flashlight, Clock, Calculator and Camera app can now be launched from Control Center as well. That's a lot of added quick access functionality, but it is very easy to use.

The only drawback is that the frequently used utilities are not currently user definable. That might still come when iOS 7 is finalized in the fall, or it might be something that Apple looks at for the next version if iOS down the road. Although Control Center may be Android-like, Apple's implementation always is top notch. By comparison, Samsung's TouchWiz implementation to quick access settings bombards users with a confusing array of functions, while stock Android only offers quick access to brightness, Wi-Fi, Airplane mode and Bluetooth, as well as shortcuts to battery usage and wider system settings.

Apple has also given the Notification Center first introduced in iOS 6 a complete design overhaul, but it has also refined its functionality. It has added three tabs to the interface so now you can see not only the day's notifications, but also all notifications from any day that have not been attended to, as well as missed notifications from the past 24 hours only. Default (but adjustable) notifications include the day and date, the weather outlook in plain English, Calendar events and appointments, Reminders and the Stocks widget. As previously, users can also configure which apps they would like to receive from in the notification center - for example, you can receive notifications of new Shared Photo Streams if you choose, while the new background app update function iOS 7 results in notifications of recently automatically updated apps. A useful quick peek at the next day's activities is also presented.

While the new look and enhancements to the Notification Center are excellent, the way Android displays notifications in the top bar of the display is still something I would like to see Apple implement. Apple's Lock screen notifications are good, but in some ways I actually also prefer the way that Windows Phone handles these, with a simple graphic summary of notifications by type and number, rather than by displaying a preview of the full notification. 'Glanceability' in iOS 7 is still not quite there. These are relatively minor gripes and more the side of 'nice to have' rather than almost essential like the new Control Center.

By Sanjiv Sathiah

Plugging in digital camera always comes up with three drives instead of one...?

PeterParker — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 18:20:00 GMT

Hello,

my mum and I have the same camera, a Sony CyberShot DSC WX 100. It works perfectly, but there's one thing strange, though: When you plug it in, on a Mac (different on Windows, somehow), there are always three drives, one is empty, one is the normal one, as expected, containing the photos, and there's also a third one, I never really checked, I think it contains a manual and drivers or so, dunno. Hmm. It's a bit confusing, can't I change this?

Greetings,
Pete

Can I expand a MacBook Air at all?

PeterParker — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 18:16:32 GMT

Hey guys,

I'm considering to get a new MacBook Air - finally! The new ones are so cool, really. What to do, however? Can I expand them? I'm thinking about reconfiguring them in the Apple Store, they offer more processor speed, more RAM, or a bigger hard drive. What do you think? Can I add more RAM in a few years? How about anything else?

Greetings,
Pete

Is it unhealthy to eat more for dinner than for lunch?

PeterParker — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 18:14:06 GMT

Hey everyone,

I'm usually cooking each day for lunch and I'll eat something like salad and bread for dinner. I thought about switching that, though. Is that a good idea? Is it unhealthy to eat like this?

Any thoughts?
Greetings,
Pete

iPad, iPad mini coming to Rogers and Telus

NewsPoster — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 16:30:00 GMT

Canadian customers of Rogers and Telus will soon be able to pick up LTE-connected versions of Apple's iPad and iPad mini. The two carriers have announced that Wi-Fi + Cellular iPads will be arriving "in the coming weeks," though they've offered no additional details on when to expect them. The emergence of Apple's tablets on the two networks will mark the first time that Canadian customers will have the option to pick up an iPad in a carrier's store.

The two carriers announced their plans in separate posts on their respective sites this week. Both say they will keep offering contract-free data plans.

As Engadget notes, another bit of Canadian Apple news emerged this week, with Wind Mobile acknowledging via Facebook that it would begin carrying nano SIM cards to allow owners of unlocked iPhones to use them on its network. As of Friday, Wind Mobile customers can now purchase a nano SIM for a GSM model A1428*: UMTS/HSPA+/DC-HSDPA (850, 900, 1700/2100, 1900, 2100 MHz); GSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz); LTE (Bands 4 and 17) versions of the iPhone. The carrier encourages interested customers to go to an Apple retail location and ask for an unlocked AWS version of the handset.

Favorite Late Night Talk Show Host

Tiresias — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 08:23:44 GMT

Who is your favorite late night talk show host?

I am currently testing a theory, inexplicably refuted by ratings, that everyone on earth hates Leno.

AT&T now pushing iPhone update to add Wireless Emergency Alert

NewsPoster — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 03:16:14 GMT

An FCC mandate for a Wireless Emergency Alert system implemented on mobile devices is now being delivered to iPhones by AT&T, the country's second-largest carrier. The government-issued messages will appear in a manner similar to text messages, reports AppleInsider, but are actually delivered by a different and faster system (at no charge to the user). They will include mandatory Presidential alerts (issued by the White House), and the option to receive Imminent Threat alerts and AMBER alerts.

The carrier notes that customers not on iOS 6.1 or later (a small percentage of the customer base, according to Apple) will not receive the carrier update over the air, but will get it when the user next updates their software via iTunes. So far, reports indicate that owners of the iPhone 4, 4S and 5 are now receiving the updates. Users can turn off the AMBER alerts (which come from law enforcement and assist in locating missing or abducted children), as well as the Imminent Threat alerts (which cover things such as severe man-made or natural disasters where there is risk of severe property damage or loss of life).

Users will receive a short message that informs them that the Carrier Settings have been updated. By default, the message alerts will be turned on, and the program is part of an FCC initiative called CMAS (Commercial Mobile Alert System) and required by law. The alert program has actually been active on WEA-capable mobile devices since April of last year.

Icons from iOS 7 briefly appear in 'rough draft' form with grid

NewsPoster — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 02:24:57 GMT

For a brief period on Friday, a set of what appears to have been "unfinished" or "rough draft" icons for iOS 7 appeared on a mobile version of the page promoting the new beta instead of the icons that are actually included in the current beta. This is not the first time discrepancies between the current iOS 7 icons and alternative versions have been noticed: the presentation during the WWDC keynote on Monday also featured some that are not quite the same as in the beta given to developers. Also discovered at the bottom of the Apple page was a picture of iOS 7 running on the iPad and iPad mini.

The icons were quickly set back to the current icon set, but the slip-up reiterates the idea that the icon set as seen today may undergo further tweaking before a final release, planned for this fall. Some icons, particularly the new Game Center design, have been criticized for being too vague and could well be temporary. One notable difference between the "alternate" set (seen below) and the current icons is the weather app icon, which in its "rough" form features live temperature to match the live clock face in the Clock app and live date in the Calendar app.

The live temperature icon idea has proven to be a popular notion, but Apple Senior VP of Marketing Phil Schiller had noted years ago that the feature was dropped because it could "waste battery." The fact that the design was shown in the "alternate" set, which also features more visible gridlines of the sort featured in the promotional video for the forthcoming iOS release, indicates that Apple is now at least seriously considering the idea.

Study: 0.22 percent of all US iPhones devices already on iOS 7

NewsPoster — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 00:55:21 GMT

Mobile advertising and analytics firm Chitika has noted that some 0.22 percent of the iPhone and iPod Touch US userbase is already running the iOS 7 beta, just a few days following its debut. While reports of iOS 7 testing were seen on most Mac, iOS and technology sites for weeks before its first developer release, the sheer growth of the beta OS has grown steadily since Monday, doubling what was seen in the final beta of iOS 6, for example. On top of that, the iOS 6 beta also included iPads, while an iPad version of iOS 7 is not yet available.

Chitika took samples from its normal polling of advertising impressions of tens of millions of devices between June 3 and June 12 for the survey, and reports that responses from devices running iOS 7 is still increasing rapidly. The company notes that despite a few notes of reservation or dislike by some testers, reaction has been more positive than negative and the growth seems to support the idea that developers have a high interest in putting the beta through its paces.

Some portion of the number of users running iOS 7 likely comes from those who have acquired a pirated copy, as the beta is not meant to be in the hands of anyone but registered developers. Apple has cautioned that the iOS 7 beta is unfinished and has bugs, and early reports from developers reinforces that impression with a growing list of issues. While many are keenly interested in the interface's new look, there are a significant number of changes and improvements "under the hood" as well, say developers.

In part the usage could also be triggered by intensive use as developers prepare and test their software for the new design language. Chitika noted in its analysis that the "radical" design change and its potential impact on app functionality could be driving a trend towards using the beta more for testing. It also said that an increased interest in the new design could be spurring additional web browsing and other activities that would generate more ad impressions, raising the ranking. Another factor in the higher rating is simply the fact that the iOS market has grown by millions since the release of iOS 6 in mid-September of last year.

Seriously, has anyone at Apple used a web browser in real life?

FireWire — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 20:53:49 GMT

I'm amazed at how they manage to make Safari more unbearable with each release.. It looks like they never used a web browser in their daily life. First the top sites: because everyone wants their recent history or frequently visited sites exposed to everybody around everytime they start their browser or open a new tab.. With pictures, nonetheless... Then they removed the very useful "Activity monitor" and the Downloads windows. Then hide the "empty cache" option in the Develop menu, instead of "Reset safari". Then their genius idea of making the tab ultra-wide, forcing us to move the cursor all the way to the right to click on the + to make a new one, instead of just double click it in the bar like before. And to top it off, make the URL bar do search instead of adding ".com" like before. Come on, 99.999999% of websites are .com. Now I have to take the time type .com everytime, or waste time and computer ressources to perform a useless search. Speaking of search, now you can't even copy the URL to share with others when you Google for images. The URL bar just displays your search terms, so you have to tell people "do an image search in google for "xyz"" instead of posting a clickable link.

AT&T adds LTE, new plans to GoPhone prepaid plans

NewsPoster — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 20:50:00 GMT

Starting June 21st, AT&T is officially adding LTE 4G support and a new set of plans to its GoPhone prepaid network. The base tier costs $25 per month, and includes unlimited texting and 250 voice minutes, but no data unless a person pays an extra $5 for 50MB. With a $40 plan people can upgrade to 500 minutes and 200MB of data, expandable to 300MB for $5.

$50 enables unlimited calling, but doesn't include any data except for Wi-Fi. The top $60 tier bundles 2GB; to that subscribers can only add another 50MB for $5. The unmodified plan does, however, double the amount of data AT&T previously attached to a $65 tier. Now vanished are universal 50MB, 200MB, and 1GB bolt-ons, which cost $5, $15, and $25, respectively.

LTE coverage is available anywhere within AT&T's 4G network, which covers 278 markets. Any unlocked GSM-ready LTE phone can be used with the service. Alternately, people can choose to buy a Samsung Galaxy Express (below), which is launching for GoPhone on the 21st at a cost of $250.

Facebook sends printed invitations to June 20 product launch

NewsPoster — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 20:23:12 GMT

Social networking giant Facebook is holding a media event to announce a mysterious new product next week. The invitation, sent in a white envelope to reporters rather than through an e-mail, provides close to zero clues as to what will be revealed on Thursday, June 20 at the Menlo Park headquarters, except that it will be something fairly substantial.

The invitation received by ABC News reads "a small team has been working on a big idea. Join us for coffee and learn about a new product," and is printed to look like a napkin with a coffee mug stain.

It is difficult to work out exactly what Facebook could be revealing at the event. Its last major event was for the Facebook Home interface and HTC First, and while software-only updates have had occasional media attendance requests in the past, it was only for the more-important changes to the service, and not for more-minor items. One possible product could be an RSS reader hosting service to replace the closing Google Reader, as code relating to such a service has recently been found within an API, though this may not be major enough to warrant printed invitations.

Photoshop CS3 displays error message after waking up from sleep

FireWire — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 19:56:42 GMT

I noticed that Photoshop CS3, if left open, always displays an error message when waking up from sleep. Nothing specific, just that it has encountered an error. I don't need to restart it or anything. It's using the startup disk as the scratch disk so it shouldn't be a problem of external HD being slow to wake up. Any idea what's going on?

I'm using 10.8.4 on a mid-2007 iMac with 6 GB of RAM.

[edit] it does this even after a system and CS3 reinstall.

iMac doesn't adjust fan speed, and dies...

FireWire — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 19:51:57 GMT

In 2008, I posted a thread regarding this problem : http://forums.macnn.com/90/mac-os-x/...t-down-itself/ . I installed smcFanControl and that took care of the issue for a while. It's usually fine during winter as it's colder in my appartment, but it started again this summer. The temperature will slowly rise and all of the sudden, the computer will just shut down, without any message. I had upped the minimum fan speed to alleviate the problem, but sometimes it's not enough and the CPU will rise to about 50° C and then die. Shouldn't the computer adjust fan speed in order to avoid such situation? Seems stupid to just let the temp rise and then die.. I have a fresh install of mountain lion and a fresh user (created a new user then dragged files manually), so it shouldn't be a software issue. My sensors seem to be working fine. What could be the problem? The top-left corner is a bit hot but not that much. The problem is happening more frequently while doing CPU-intensive work like iMovie rendering, but sometimes just by browsing the web. I get no warning whatsoever. I can hear the fan very well so they are working fine. I recently opened my computer and there's no dust inside or anything that seems out of order.

This is a mid-2007 iMac with 6 GB of RAM.

Boo

subego — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 19:44:52 GMT

👻

Tired of the hype

mac_in_tosh — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 19:43:53 GMT

I've always used Apple computers - at home at least - and will probably continue for the near future, but I'm frankly getting tired of the hype, especially in the keynote addresses. Everything is magical, revolutionary etc., and the way the people in the audience suck it up is amazing.

Take the new Mac Pro for instance. It's using commercially available processors, memory and graphics cards, so how revolutionary can it be? Okay, it looks different, very nice even, with a cylindrical hunk of metal in there as a heat sink, but is that revolutionary? It seems there's a lot of debate about this announcement, with a fair number of pros lamenting the absence of the old form factor that could be opened up and worked on. Is Ives running the company now?

Dev says it worked with new Mac Pro in Apple 'Evil Lab' prior to WWDC

NewsPoster — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 19:31:36 GMT

Software developer The Foundry had test access to the new Mac Pro well prior to the computer's reveal at WWDC, the company tells AppleInsider. An eight-week-old Mac port of The Foundry's MARI 3D rendering tool was demonstrated at WWDC earlier this week. The developer says, though, that Apple earlier allowed it to work with the new Mac Pro in Apple's Cupertino headquarters, in a room known as the "Evil Lab."

While there, the Mac Pro was hidden in a large steel cabinet, meant to keep its cylindrical appearance a secret. "We were essentially doing a blind tasting of the machine," says MARI product manager Jack Greasley. "All we could see was the monitor, and the Mac Pro was encased in a giant metal filing cabinet on wheels. Experiencing the machine in this way was actually really cool, because I can tell you that the speed and power of this machine really stands up. MARI running on this machine out of the box is the fastest I have ever seen it run."

Greasley and Pixar texturing/shading artist Jonathan Hoffman reportedly spent several weeks at the Evil Lab. The early access came after Greasley visited Apple two months ago, looking into bringing MARI to the Mac. A talk with Apple's Developer Relations team resulted in Greasley making a pitch to feature MARI at WWDC. Apple's worldwide product marketing head, Phil Schiller, then agreed to devote an hour-long session to the software, and also mentioned The Foundry and Pixar -- whose movie Monsters University was used as a MARI showcase -- during the WWDC keynote.

While The Foundry began porting MARI to the Mac, it fed weekly updates to Apple on progress. It took a week to get a functioning port running. Regarding the Pro, Greasley says he was impressed by the PCIe SSDs, dual graphics processors, and six Thunderbolt 2 ports.

Briefly: BlackBerry BBM Channels update, RadioShack Samsung Galaxy S4

NewsPoster — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 19:06:53 GMT

BlackBerry has updated its beta for BBM Channels with the option to search for specific channels and other features. The update for the BB10 social platform, which allows users to create their own channels of content and follow other channels, also adds clickable PINs, allowing others to click a Channel PIN in Facebook or Twitter to directly view the channel, the option to delete created channels, and support for animated GIFs.

RadioShack discounts Verizon Samsung Galaxy S4 this weekend

RadioShack is offering the Samsung Galaxy S4 on Verizon with a $70 discount for this weekend. The smartphone can be bought for $180 on-contract instead of the usual $250 in-store price between today and Sunday 16th June, with the retailer also offering a discount of between $30 and $300 towards any Samsung phone after trading in another functional handset.

Apple deals: refurbished iMacs from $1,099

NewsPoster — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 18:19:36 GMT

Right now find big savings on refurbished iMacs at Apple's online store. The refurbished 27-inch iMac with a 3.2GHz Intel quad-core i5 processor, 8GB of RAM and a 1TB hard drive has been reduced by $300 to $1,699. At the bottom of the price scale is the 21.5-inch iMac with a 2.7GHz Intel quad-core i5 processor, 8GB of RAM and a 1TB hard drive, it was $1,299, but is now only $1,099.

A $230 discount is available on the 21.5-inch iMac with a 2.9GHz Intel quad-core i5 processor, 8GB of RAM and a 1TB hard drive, now $1,269. Save $340 on the refurbished 27-inch iMac with a 2.7GHz Intel quad-core i5 processor, 4GB of RAM and a 1TB hard drive, currently $1,359. For $2,969 is the 27-inch iMac with a 3.2GHz Intel quad-core i5 processor, 16GB of RAM and 768GB of flash storage.

AppleInsider's Mac Price Guide features the lowest prices on Macs across the net. On sale at BestBuy.com is the 21.5-inch iMac with a 2.9GHz Intel Core i5 processor, 8GB of RAM and a 1TB hard drive, it was $1,499, but is now $1,374.99. BHPhotoVideo.com has cut the price on the 27-inch iMac with a 3.4GHz Intel Core i7 processor, 8GB of RAM and a 1TB hard drive from $2,199 down to $2,099.

Forums: OS X Mavericks debates, SD card woes and more

NewsPoster — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 18:18:34 GMT

Today in the MacNN forums, members continue to talk about, as well as debate the usefulness of, the new features in OS X Mavericks. Yesterday Senior User "And.reg" was looking for a way to sync the play position of a podcast on iTunes with their iPod.

Also yesterday, "Waragainstsleep" heard that it was possible to update the firmware on a 2008 Mac Pro to that of a 2009 Mac Pro, and was wondering if anyone knew if this could be done with Xserve. The discussion about the flaws and features of the new Mac Pro continues in the thread titled "Upcoming Mac Pro." Senior User "mkerr64" is trying to figure out why a MicroSD card with video on it is no longer detected by their Mac, a solution has yet to be found. "Time Machine doesn't see my newest backups" reports "Laminar," who is looking for help troubleshooting this problem.

DealNN: VIZIO E-Series Razor 3D smart HDTV, only $780

NewsPoster — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 18:15:45 GMT

Today's deal of the day from BestBuy.com is on the VIZIO E-Series Razor 55-inch LED HDTV which was $900, but has been reduced to $780, a savings of $120. That's also the lowest price we have seen on this HDTV by the same price margin. Free shipping is included, though sales tax applies for residents of most states. The VIZIO E-Series features built-in Netflix, Pandora, Facebook YouTube and Twitter along with 3D playback, LED backlighting and virtual surround sound. A one-year warranty on parts and labor is included from VIZIO.

At Amazon today, save 42 percent on the Sony HT-CT150 3D sound bar system, it was $300, but is now only $175 with free shipping. At eCost.com this week, save $500 on the 13.3-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display -- it was $1,999, but is now only $1,499.

A $34 discount is offered on the Logitech Zagg Keyboard case for iPad 2, it was $120, but has been cut to $86 with free shipping at JR.com. A 67 percent price cut is offered on the Sony 64GB Q-Series Mach micro vault USB 3.0 flash drive, now only $50 with free shipping at JR.com.

Briefly: Blue's Nessie now available, Yahoo! Sports for iOS updated

NewsPoster — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 17:59:07 GMT

First announced at this year's CES, Blue Microphones' Nessie is now available for purchase through Apple's retail and online stores. Priced at $99 the USB microphone features a built-in pop filter and shock mount that can help reduce harsh plosives and other vibrations. Nessie uses a single condenser capsule for recording audio, and provides users with three different recording modes that are optimized for enhanced vocals, instruments, or an option for recording raw audio. In addition, Nessie can also be attached to an iPad or iPhone using Apple's 30-pin or Lightning camera adapters.

Yahoo! Sports now a universal iOS app

Yahoo! has launched a new version of its Sports app for iOS, adding in full support for the iPad. Now offered with universal iOS support, Yahoo! Sports also features an updated design that is supposed to make finding scores and other information much simpler. Support has also been added for syncing favorite teams across devices by using a Yahoo account, and users can now follow live game updates for all supported leagues through the Live tab.

Briefly: Beauty Box Video updated, AKVIS ArtSuite launch Fantasy Pack

NewsPoster — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 17:47:23 GMT

Digital Anarchy released their latest updated photo re-touching software Beauty Box Video 3.0. The latest edition of the plug-in accommodates Adobe After Effects, Adobe Premiere Pro, and Apple Final Cut Pro 7 and X, with support for Assimilate Scratch, Sony Vegas, Nuke, and Avid currently available in beta upon request.

Beauty Box Video uses algorithms that preserve important facial detailing when smoothing and masking undesired lighting or imperfections, made more visible in high resolution film productions. Version 3.0 showcases improved retouching and additional presets to provide a variety of styles and looks, as well as faster rending. The software is regularly priced at $199, but is on sale until June 30, 2013 for $149.

AKVIS Artsuite releases Fantasy Pack of frames as add-on

Image editing software producer, AKVIS, released a new frame pack extension for Artsuite Thursday. ArtSuite enables users to apply framed graphics and image effects onto a photo, creating a wide variety of visual looks. Entitled Fantasy Pack, the add-on includes 55 hand painted fantasy frame designs, such as fairies, elves, and other mystical imagery. A free 10-day trial of AKVIS ArtSuite is available, and the standalone software is priced at $69. The new Fantasy Pack sells for $15.

RSS feed notes in Facebook API could be Google Reader replacement

NewsPoster — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 17:32:48 GMT

The battle to take the place of the soon-to-close Google Reader has gained another combatant, in the form of Facebook. Mentions of RSS feeds buried within Facebook's API coding suggest that it is creating its own RSS feed reader, something that it could possibly launch before Google shuts down its own service on July 1st.

Developer Tom Waddington found the extra bits of code within Facebook's Graph API. The RSS feed is found to be linked to user IDs, contains fields for titles, URLs, and update times, and also has entries and subscribers for each feed. The code itself is not functional, as when run through Facebook's Graph API explorer, it states it needs to be executed from whitelisted addresses. TechCrunch contacted Facebook, but the social network declined to comment about any potential RSS product launches.

The addition of RSS feed reading to Facebook appears to be fairly sound. Users already visit the site to see updates from liked pages as well as users they follow, and RSS is a natural extension to that. While it will be possible for such a feature to be a separate section of Facebook to the main status feed, it is far more likely to be rolled into it. A Facebook RSS reader would also have to compete against a number of other competitors for the Google Reader crown, including efforts from Digg, NewsBlur, and Feedly.

Review: Logitech FabricSkin Keyboard Folio for iPad

NewsPoster — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 17:01:10 GMT

Since the fourth-generation iPad didn't evolve much over its predecessor, the market for iPad accessories has remained somewhat static, to put it mildly. Certainly some new gear had to be produced for the Lightning connector, but even now most iPad cases will still accommodate the old 30-pin format. It takes a little extra to make a case stand out, and that's what Logitech seems to have had in mind with the FabricSkin Keyboard Folio. In our review, we'll see if it's enough to justify the FabricSkin's pricetag -- a colossal $150.