Tag Archives: apple

Two exciting new things from Apple

Posted on March 30, 2023 | Leave a comment

First up, the new iphone 14 plus in yellow. Love it! Apple is wise to assign unique colours to new hardware. It’s a smart way to attract people to a new product, and all those new selfies with the new yellow phone is likely to drive up more sales. (I have been known to fall for this sales approach. :))

Also new is Apple Music Classical. I confess, I didn’t understand why Apple was splitting off Classical music this way. After I read more about it, it makes sense. I hope it will lead to people listening to more classical music.

Good work, Apple!

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Some thoughts on Palm and the rise of the handheld computer

Posted on March 3, 2023 | Comments Off on Some thoughts on Palm and the rise of the handheld computer

This tweet yesterday got me thinking:

Two big tech things happened in the late 90s: one was the adoption of the Web, and two was the adoption of handheld computers. While Apple and its Newton may have been the first to go big in this area, it was Palm and its Pilot device that was truly successful. The Newton came out in 1993 and was killed by Jobs in 1998, while the Palm came out in 1997 and sold like gang busters. (Interestingly the Blackberry came out in the late 90s too.)

To appreciate why the Palm Pilot was so successful, it helps to know how things were back then. In the 90s we were still in the era of rolodexes and Dayrunners. Every year I would head down to the local paper shop (in Toronto I went to the Papery on Cumberland) and get my latest paper refills for the year and manually update my calendar and pencil things in. (And god forbid you ever lost it.) The Palm Pilot promised to get rid of all that. You could enter it all in the hand held device and then sync it up with your computer. It solved so many problems.

It also avoided the problems the Newton had. Unlike the Newton, it’s recognition of handwriting was simpler which made it better. It was relatively cheap and much cheaper than the Newton. And it worked on the PC.  All those things also helped with its success.

What did not help Palm was a deluge of competition in this space, with everyone from Sony to Microsoft to RIM to deal with. They continued to make good devices like the Tungsten, but by then I was already moved over to the Blackberry. I wasn’t alone in this regard.

I still have a Palm Pilot. It’s a well designed device, even if the functionality it possesses seems quaint now. But back then, it was a force of change. It led the revolution in computing whereby instead of sitting in front of a computer, we carried one around in our hands. I would not have guessed it at the time, as I looked up my calendar or made my notes. I thought it was just a personal digital assistant. It turned out to be a world changer.

 

 

 

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The rise and fall of the iPod

Posted on February 8, 2023 | 2 comments

Last week I wrote about the Lisa and the rise of the Macintosh. While I was doing that, I came across this list of iPod models, which included these fun facts:

iPods …were once the largest generator of revenue for Apple Computer. After the introduction of the iPhone, the iOS-based iPod touch was the last remaining model of the product line until it was discontinued on May 10, 2022.

It’s remarkable that something that was once the leading generator of revenue is now dead. Blame the iPhone. More accurately, blame streaming. Whatever the real reason, a once great set of products are now gone.

I loved all the iPods I had, from the smallest Shuffle to an iPod Touch that was all but an iPhone. Of all the technologies that I’ve owned, they were among my favorites. Thanks for the songs and the memories, iPod.

(Image of 1st gen iPod Shuffle in its packaging. Via Wikipedia.)

 

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Whatever happened to Pascal (the programming language)

Posted on February 4, 2023 | Comments Off on Whatever happened to Pascal (the programming language)

In reading and writing about The Lisa computer yesterday, I was reminded of the Pascal programming language. As part of the development of the Lisa, one of the engineers (Larry Tesler), who was working on the user interface…

 …created an object-oriented variant of Pascal, called “Clascal,” that would be used for the Lisa Toolkit application programming interfaces. Later, by working with Pascal creator Niklaus Wirth, Clascal would evolve into the official Object Pascal.

Likely very few if any devs think about Pascal these days. Even I don’t think about it much. But back in the 70s and 80s  it was a big deal. As Wikipedia explains:

Pascal became very successful in the 1970s, notably on the burgeoning minicomputer market. Compilers were also available for many microcomputers as the field emerged in the late 1970s. It was widely used as a teaching language in university-level programming courses in the 1980s, and also used in production settings for writing commercial software during the same period. It was displaced by the C programming language during the late 1980s and early 1990s as UNIX-based systems became popular, and especially with the release of C++.

When I was studying computer science in the early 80s, Pascal was an integral part of the curriculum. Once I started working at IBM, I moved on to develop software in other languages, but I had expected it to become a big deal in the field. Instead, C and then variant languages like C++ and Java went on to dominate computer programming. My belief at the time was universities had to pay big bucks for operating systems and Pascal compilers while they did not have to pay anything for Unix and C, and that’s what caused the switch. I can’t believe they switched from Pascal to C because C was a better language.

Forty years later if you search for the top 20 programming languages, Pascal is towards the bottom of this list from IEEE, somewhere between Lisp and Fortran.  It’s very much a niche language in 2022 and it has been for some time.

For more on Pascal, I recommend the Wikipedia article: it’s extensive. If you want to play around with it, there’s a free version of it you can download.

(Image is an Apple Lisa 2 screenshot.  Photo Courtesy of David T. Craig. Computer History Museum Object ID 500004666)

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It’s Lisa’s 40th birthday. Let’s celebrate!

Posted on February 3, 2023 | Comments Off on It’s Lisa’s 40th birthday. Let’s celebrate!


The great Lisa has just turned 40! Apple’s Lisa, that is. To celebrate, the Computer History Museum (CHM) has done two great things. First, they have released the source code to the Lisa software. You can find it here. Second, they have published this extensive history on the ground breaking machine, The Lisa: Apple’s Most Influential Failure.

Like the NeXT computer, the Lisa computer was a machine that tried to do too much too soon. And while it was not the success that Apple had hoped, it did lead to great success later.  That definitely comes across in that CHM piece.

It’s fascinating to compare the picture above with the one below (both from CHM). In the one above you can see the original Lisa (1) with “Twiggy” floppy drive that was unreliable and ditched in the later models, seen below. You can also see how the machine on the left (the original Macintosh) would come to take over from the machine on the right (the Lisa 2). It has many of the same features but at a much reduced price.

When you think of Apple computers, you likely think of one of more of those found in this List of Macintosh models. While not a Mac, the Lisa was the precursor of all those machines that came later, starting with the original Mac. It was the birth of a new form of personal computing.

Happy birthday, Lisa! You deserve to be celebrated.

For more on this, see this Hackday piece on  Open-Sourcing The Lisa Mac’s Bigger Sister.

 

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Would you pay $200,000 for a Mac SE??

Posted on October 25, 2022 | Comments Off on Would you pay $200,000 for a Mac SE??

You might not but I bet someone might. Because it’s not just any old SE….it’s Steve Jobs’ Macintosh. Uncreate has the details:

(Jobs) didn’t stop using Apple products, though, instead working on this Macintosh SE until 1994. Amazingly, it still has files from its days on Jobs’ desk on its drive, and as an incredibly desirable artifact from his “Wilderness Years”, is expected to bring over $200,000 at auction.

For rich fans of Apple, this would be some crazy good thing to have in your collection.

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On the new Apple watches, from SE to Ultra

Posted on September 15, 2022 | Comments Off on On the new Apple watches, from SE to Ultra

So Apple released its latest round of products recently, including the new Apple Watches. My two cents? They seem to be going after a bigger market with the watch, for on one hand (wrist?) you have the new high end Ultra while on the other you have the new low cost SE. Maybe there’s only so much of a market for such digital devices: Apple is looking to see just how big that is. Good on them. I can’t ever see me getting the high end version, but I’ve always been a fan of Apple’s SE products so maybe that watch is in my future.

For more on things Apple, here’s something on Apple Watch cases. Here’s a piece on the psychology of Apple packaging.

For fans of all things Apple, here’s a story on the design tools of John Ive.

Finally, for those of you with old iPhones, you will want to read about this on
new security patches.

P.S. I’ve been writing about the Apple Watch since it came out in 2014 (?). You can read more here.

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The Marvel Juggernaut

Posted on August 6, 2022 | Comments Off on The Marvel Juggernaut

It’s hard to believe that Marvel Studios were once far from a sure thing. (I wrote recently about that, here.) Now that they are a part of Disney, they are a Juggernaut, with rollout plans going on well into the future, as you can see, here: Marvel outlines Phase 6 with Fantastic Four and two new Avengers movies – The Verge.

In some ways the journey is not unlike Apple’s. Apple is such a dominating player now, but back in the 90s it was hanging on by a thread.

It’s possible that both companies could falter, but I suspect we will be getting our fill of Apple Devices and Marvel Entertainment for the rest of this decade. I’ll be curious to visit this post in 5 or 6 years and see if this prediction held.

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How to Download Apps on Your Old iPad and iPhone in 2022

Posted on July 6, 2022 | Comments Off on How to Download Apps on Your Old iPad and iPhone in 2022

If you happen to have an old iPad and you are thinking of using it, you will find this post of interest.

Like you, I have a very old iPad. It still works fine. However, one of the problems with old iPads is that Apple limits them in terms of upgrading the iPads operating system (iOS). My device cannot upgrade past iOS 9.

The problem with having an older version of iOS is this: if you try and download apps for it from the App Store, you will get message after message saying this application needs a later iOS to download. There are a few apps that you can still download directly, but not many, and not the common ones you likely use and want.

There is a work around for this problem. (I found out about it through the video below.) First, you download the apps you want on a iOS device that has a new OS. I did this on my iPhone. Then you go to your old iPad and look for apps you purchased. Voila, the app you just downloaded is there. NOW, when you try to download it, the App Store will say you don’t have the right iOS, BUT it will ask if you want to download a backlevelled version. You say YES and now you have the app running on your iPad.

This will only work for apps that have been around for a long time. So I was able to download apps like Twitter and CNN, but not Disney+. Still you can get quite a few apps downloaded that way, and suddenly mine (and soon your) iPad is much more useful.

For more on this, watch the video.

Thanks, Jishan.

 

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On Apple, the Newton, the 90s and me

Posted on June 17, 2022 | Comments Off on On Apple, the Newton, the 90s and me

500

For people in this time, it’s may be hard to imagine Apple as anything other than a tremendously successful company. But in the 90s, it was the opposite. Under John Sculley and others, it was a company in major decline and all but at death’s door before Steve Jobs came back.

In some ways the Newton you see above was emblematic of that time. It was a device that Apple tried to use to regain the magic that it once had. It failed, but in some ways it was a glorious failure. (The Powerbook also came out at that time and it was a fine machine but the problems of Apple were baked into it.)

I’ve always had a fondness for the Newton, and wanted one for a long time, even though I could not justify getting one. And then Jobs returned and tossed it in the bin like so much crumpled paper. It was a smart decision, but a sad one for me.

That’s why I was really interested to read this recently: The Newton at 30. It’s a great rundown on that device. Reading it, I was happy to see that some of the original ideas found in the Newton later made their way into other mobile products from Apple. Good ideas deserve a home, even if they were never going to find that home in the Newton.

In the 90s I had a small role in developing IBM software that ran on Macs and that allowed our customers to access our IBM Global Network via a Mac. I loved building Apple Software, even if it was a nightmare at times. (Writing software for a rapidly declining company is no easy thing.) At the time I got to work on the Powerbook 1400 and 3400 and hang out at Apple and play around with the emate 300. It was a good time despite the difficulty. I never got a Newton then, thought I got close.

Later in the second decade of the 21st century I finally got to buy my own Newton! Mint condition, from Kijiji. 100+ bucks! Funny, a device that was so cutting edge when it first came out seems so limited now! It was a good reminder how fast technology moves. I was still glad to have it. It’s a wonderfully collectable device.

For more on the Newton, click that link.

Happy Anniversary, Newton. You were truly ahead by a century.

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The end of an era: the iPod Touch is being discontinued. Here’s why you still might want one.

Posted on May 10, 2022 | Comments Off on The end of an era: the iPod Touch is being discontinued. Here’s why you still might want one.

I’ve been a fan of the iPod Touch since I wrote this in 2008: Why I love my iPod touch. It was a great device then, and 14 years later it is still great. Which is why I am sad to hear it is being discontinued, according to AppleInsider and others.

However, there are several reasons y0u still might want to buy one. At the time I first bought mine, I was locked into using my Blackberry device, but I wanted to experience what Apple devices could provide. If you have an Android phone, you can still get that experience today.  You can have the best of both worlds: an Android device for some things and an Apple device for others.

If you are a parent, you likely have experienced your kids wanting to use your phone to play games, etc. With the Touch, you can give them that to use instead. Much cheaper than an iPad.

If you want to cut the cord — somewhat — on your technology use, a Touch can help you. You can take it with you on outings and from time to time connect to a wireless signal to check on things, but the lack of a cell phone signal means you are much less tethered than normal.

The iPod Touch is still a great device. Get one new, while you still can.

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On why Jony Ive left Apple

Posted on May 10, 2022 | Comments Off on On why Jony Ive left Apple

Jony Ive did not leave Apple because of the ‘Accountants’, or at least that’s not the only reason, despite what this The New York Times piece says. I think that’s one of the reasons, sure. After Steve Jobs died, I am sure Ive felt less important. Plus he already had made a significant difference and he made a lot of money.

I believe one of the other reasons was simply because he and Apple have designed themselves into a minimalist corner. Jony Ive’s career rose on the design of the machine that saved Apple…this:

Since then the Apple computers have gone from that to this:

It’s a great computer,  but very little in the way of physical changes year over year. The engineers still get to do a lot, but there’s very little for Ive and the design team to do there.

Sure he got to design some of the higher end devices, like this:

But the Macbooks and the iMacs are very simple now. (Never mind the iPhone.) They are all wonderful engineered and fantastic minimal designs. But that’s the point: they are minimal to an extreme. And that, I believe, is one of the main reasons that Ive left.

The book that inspired that article is supposed to be really good. Apple fans, get a copy if you can.

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A better dock for your Apple Watch

Posted on January 8, 2022 | Comments Off on A better dock for your Apple Watch

I love this! Not only can you charge your Apple Watch easily, but you can also use this device to easily see the time and your alarm. Brilliant. More on it, here:
Nightwatch Magnifying Clock Dock.

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What this potentially leaked image of the iPhone 14 tells us about the flaws of iPhone design

Posted on September 18, 2021 | Comments Off on What this potentially leaked image of the iPhone 14 tells us about the flaws of iPhone design

I’ve complained before about the design of the iPhone with it’s bulges, not to mention the notch. Apple and it’s fans have continually made excuses for them, but that’s doesn’t excuse these flaws imho. This potentially new design of the iPhone 14 (below) shows that they may be finally dealing with problems by eliminating the notch and smoothing out the back of the phone.

Now who knows? Maybe this leak is fake and that’s not something Apple is going to do at all. Read this piece over at Yanko Design and decide for yourself.

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Apple and the limits of minimalism as a design quality

Posted on July 24, 2021 | Comments Off on Apple and the limits of minimalism as a design quality

I like minimalism as a quality in phones. But when I look at the phone above, I see two bulges. One is the camera, and two is this battery pack. It’s as if companies want to have the best of both worlds: minimal design and maximum capacity. But rather than designing for it, we get….well, what you see above.

I understand the economics of it. I just don’t see why Apple doesn’t spend more time to design a battery pack and a camera that incorporates better into the phone.

For more on the battery pack, go here: Apple’s ‘Camel Hump’ battery pack is back… this time in a wireless MagSafe avatar | Yanko Design

(Image: link to image in the article)

 

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Smartwatches: more than just the Apple Watch

Posted on February 13, 2021 | Comments Off on Smartwatches: more than just the Apple Watch

 

There was a flurry of smart watches coming on the market a few years ago. But that seemed to have died down. Now after reading this,
Innovative smartwatch designs that are the perfect culmination of form, functionality and style! | Yanko Design, I wonder if there will be a new outbreak of smart watches. Apple’s Watch is great, but it can’t be all things to all people.  To see what others are doing, check out that Yanko Design post. (The braille watch, shown above, is one example of smart watch design that is unique and brilliant.)

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Did you or your teen damage their phone and need to reset it?

Posted on December 18, 2020 | Comments Off on Did you or your teen damage their phone and need to reset it?

iphone problemsIf so, then you will find the next two links handy. I did.  My son broke his screen and while I was able to repair it, other damaged occurred because it was so badly broken. Fortunately while he lost data, I was able to restore the phone to “new” state using these links. From there he went on to add his favorite apps, etc.

Important note! On the later versions of MacOS, you no longer have access to iTunes and you cannot download it and install it. So don’t waste your time doing that like I did. 🙂

Links:

If you forgot your iPhone passcode – Apple Support
If you see the Restore screen on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch – Apple Support
If you can’t update or restore your iPhone or iPod touch – Apple Support
If you see the Restore screen on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch – Apple Support

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A reminder of how to cancel an Apple app subscription

Posted on December 16, 2020 | Comments Off on A reminder of how to cancel an Apple app subscription

Just follow these six easy steps:

  1. Go to Settings > [your name] > iTunes & App Store.
  2. Tap your Apple ID at the top of the screen.
  3. Tap ‘View Apple ID’. You might need to sign in or use Touch ID.
  4. Tap Subscriptions.
  5. Tap the subscription that you want to manage. …
  6. Use the options to manage your subscription.

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On the new products from Apple

Posted on December 15, 2020 | Comments Off on On the new products from Apple

The new Apple AirPods came out, and some critics flailed them for being too expensive. A fair criticism. Some new products are terribly expensive but allow Apple to enter a market and gain share and work out aspects of the product before they move to make cheaper versions that dominant more.

Perhaps the AirPod Maxs will be like that. Some Apple products are strikeouts, and some are grand slams, but more often than not many are singles and doubles: not terrible, not great, but good to very good.

An example of that is the Apple HomePod Mini.  This is one of those not bad not great products. Like the HomePod, it isn’t a failure, but it will not likely take the speaker market by storm either. Apple used to do that: wait and see what others in the marketplace were doing, them come out with something so much better and blow them away. But that was then. They are still great at what they do, and they are still financially world beaters, but I haven’t seen anything that has transformed the market like the iPod or the iPhone. And that fine.

For more on the HomePod and the AirPods Max, see these two pieces:

One product that year after year does great but is underappreciated is the Mac Mini. Apparently it is better than ever. You can read about it, here: Apple Mac Mini Review (2020): Brawn on a Budget | WIRED

Like the iPod Touch, it’s a product that Apple keeps refining and keeps make it better through each iteration. People tend to focus on the big new things from Apple, but they have some golden oldies that are always worth revisiting.

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Need a temporary Mac? Now with AWS, you can get one!

Posted on December 7, 2020 | Comments Off on Need a temporary Mac? Now with AWS, you can get one!

How? By using their cloud service: AWS brings the Mac mini to its cloud.

Perfect for those times you need access to a Mac for a short period of time (e.g. testing software).

Throughout my career I have been involved with Macs and cloud technology. I remember when Apple made Mac servers. There was even a separate MacOS for them. So I am loving this evolution and the repositioning of Macs in a data center.

Image from here which also has a write up on this.

 

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Online Privacy Should Be Modeled on Real-World Privacy (or, Stop Following Us Around Constantly!)

Posted on September 9, 2020 | Comments Off on Online Privacy Should Be Modeled on Real-World Privacy (or, Stop Following Us Around Constantly!)

I’ve been saying that for some time — years — so I am glad to see someone like  Daring Fireball come out and say it too. I don’t know about you, but I am sick of the degree of tracking that occurs. I was talking to someone about Birkenstock shoes last night and the next day, Instagram/Facebook put a Birkenstock ad in my IG Stories. It is likely a coincidence, or the fact that the person I was talking to may have been searching on info about them and IG put 2 and 2 together, but it is freaky. 

Needless to say, there is a whole INDUSTRY of companies that track the hell out of us, and it has to stop. Here’s to Apple and others giving us more control over this.

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A collection of simple Apple scripts that I find useful to provide me encouragement during the workday (and you might too)

Posted on August 25, 2020 | Comments Off on A collection of simple Apple scripts that I find useful to provide me encouragement during the workday (and you might too)

A long time ago, Sam Sykes tweeted this idea:

Roomba, except it is a little robot that comes into your room and says “hey, man, you’re doing okay” and I guess maybe he has a glass of water for you

I thought: what a great idea! Now I didn’t build a special Roomba, but I did build a list of Apple Scripts that offer something similar. If you are curious, you can see them here in github.

I found them useful when working from home during the pandemic. Hey, every little bit helps.

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On the Apple Cube, a wonderful failure

It’s hard to believe that this computer (see above), that is in the MoMA no less, was a failure. But as this piece shows, it was one of Apple’s least successful computers for a number of reasons: 20 Years Ago, Steve Jobs Built Apple’s G4 Cube. It Bombed | WIRED.

Beautiful design, but not a great product. Every company has those from time to time. Apple was no exception.

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Posted on August 4, 2020 in IT, new!

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Two interesting IT trends and one novel thing: iPhone 11s in India, Siemens doubles down on WFH, and you can run Windows 95 PC inside Minecraft and play Doom with it.

The good folks at itbusiness.ca have a podcast called Hashtag Trending and today they talked about two interesting IT trends and one novel thing: iPhone 11s in India; Windows 95 PC inside Minecraft; Siemens doubles down on WFH. Here’s an excerpt:

Apple is building iPhone 11s in southern India. The move comes as Apple has been looking to shift some of its manufacturing away from China amid US-China trade war and disruptions stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. Apple already assembles two other models in India — the iPhone XR and iPhone 7. ….

… A new modification has been created for the game Minecraft allowing players to order computer parts from a satellite orbiting around a Minecraft world and build a computer that actually runs Windows 95 and other operating systems. According to the Verge the mod uses VirtualBox, which is free and open-source virtual machine software, to run operating systems like Windows 95. All you have to do within Minecraft is place a PC case block and then use it to create virtual hard drives to install operating systems from ISO files.

And lastly, Reuters is reporting that German conglomerate Siemens says it’s going to allow employees to “work from anywhere” for two or three days a week, and focus on “outcomes” rather than time spent in the office. Days after the recent announcement, the company says it was giving its over 100,000 employees access to a new app that provides local data on the COVID-19 situation, shows office occupancy levels and acts as a contact tracing tool. This of course is just the latest enterprise announcing its intentions for the post-COVID-world, following in the footsteps of Twitter, Facebook, OpenText and others, which have made their own announcements around remote work for employees moving forward.

It’s really remarkable how much thought provoking stuff is jammed in here. I find itbusiness.ca a good way to keep up with IT business news, regardless of what country you live in. Worth subscribing too for sure.

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Posted on July 27, 2020 in IT, new!

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If you are struggling with your iPhone because of the pandemic…

Then you need to upgrade your phone. Why? This:  Apple rolls out iOS 13.5 with COVID-19 features | Engadget

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Posted on May 22, 2020 in IT, new!

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How good is the new iPhone SE


According to this, it is shockingly good value. You might find that hard to believe, since if you think it looks an iPhone 8, you are right. As the Verge writes, the new SE has…

the iPhone 8’s body, the iPhone 11’s processor, and the iPhone XR’s camera system with a few new capabilities.

So a bit of a combo of different features, all adding up to something many people will be happy to move to.

I have always been happy when Apple puts out lower cost products, because they are never bad, and they put more Apple devices in the hands of people who otherwise might not be able to afford them. I think the new SE will be no exception.

Good phone to get if you are due for an upgrade.

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Posted on April 17, 2020 in new!

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How to keep an eye out for unwanted App Store subscriptions

App Store subscriptions can add up financially if you are not careful. They are also easier to sign up for than you might think. It can be especially bad if your kids have the ability to download apps on iPhones or iPads; kids will not even be aware they are signing up for subscriptions. (Heck, that is also true of adults.)

To check on and cancel subscriptions, follow this guide: How to Cancel App Store Subscriptions – MacRumors

If this saves you any money, let me know! 🙂

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Posted on February 14, 2020 in apps

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Some brief thoughts on the 10th anniversary of the iPad

It’s odd how people perceive the iPad after a decade. From what I read, the view overall seems negative. Even smart analysts like Stratechery call it “tragic”.

I can see why reviewers see that. They had an expectation of what the device could be, and lament that it never became that. That is one way to perceive it.

I think there are two different and better  ways to view it. One way is seeing the iPad as a secondary device. The iPad will be always secondary to the iPhone, just as the Touch will always be secondary to the iPhone. The iPhone is the premier Apple device, and all other devices do and even should be secondary to it.  The iPhone sits at the center, and the Watch and the Airpods and the other devices sit outside of that.

Another way of looking at it is that perhaps the MacBook, the iPhone, Apple TV and the iPad will merge over time. Perhaps in the future there will be no separate MacBook and iPhone. Instead there will be a Display, a Keyboard or UI of some form, and and a Network Device. Underneath it all will be software that brings them all together. That’s my long term expectation.

The iPad is a great device. It’s not the iPhone, and it’s not a Mac. It does what Apple needs it to do right now, and it will continue to do so over time.

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Posted on February 5, 2020 in IT, new!

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You’ve upgraded iOS and now you have those ugly memoji icons. Here’s how to get rid of them

You can do it in 10 seconds:

go to Settings > General > Keyboard, scroll down and tap the slider next to “Memoji Keyboard” to disable Memojis in all apps. This is much easier compared to disabling Memojis in earlier versions of iOS and iPadOS 13.

Via this: How to Hide Memojis in iOS 13 and iPadOS 13

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Posted on January 10, 2020 in IT, new!

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The iPod Touch lives!


And as someone who is a fan of it since a long time, I was glad to hear about it here:  There’s a New iPod Touch. Yes, in 2019, and Yes, It’s Worth Looking at. – The New York Times

Back in the day when Blackberries were the rage and I needed one for work, the iPod Touch was my way of tapping into the world of Apple. Today if I had to use Android for whatever reason, I’d be inclined to get a Touch again, just so I could do things the Apple way. It’s a great device still, and if you read the article, you’ll see it is not obsolete.

Now if Apple would only bring back the Nano! 🙂

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Posted on September 26, 2019 in IT, new!

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Apple Watch 101

I continue to be a big fan of the Apple Watch. For one, it allows me to put away my phone and still not miss notifications. It’s the remote control for your phone you didn’t think you need. Still I am glad for this, because I need to get more out of my watch: 20 Most-Wanted Apple Watch Tips and Tricks – Hongkiat. 

If you are maxing out all the features of your watch, that’s great. Otherwise, take a peak at that link and get more out of it.

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Posted on June 24, 2019 in new!

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The $999 monitor stand, or how Apple takes its eye off the ball sometimes

Reading this piece about how  a $999 monitor stand is everything wrong with Apple today, and while my judgement isn’t that harsh, I agree that Apple has missed a step with such a stand. There is a premium that Apple can and does command for its products, but when they are so far outside the range of the market, they start looking ridiculous.

Is this iMac great? No doubt. Is the stand price ridiculous? Also no doubt. Do better, Apple.

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Posted on June 10, 2019 in IT, new!

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One quick thought on the new Mac Pro

One thing that struck me about the new Mac Pro is that Apple has finally gotten to do design again for a hardware. Most of their products these days are as minimal as can be when it comes to design. With the Mac Pro, at least, they can apply new design ideas to their product. I like it, even if it is compared to a cheese grater. But I liked the previous model, even though it was compared to a garbage can.

For more on the device, see:  Apple announces all-new redesigned Mac Pro, starting at $5,999 – The Verge

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Posted on June 3, 2019 in design, new!

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Are the new iPhones more expensive than ever?

That’s been a question I have been asking myself for some time. I felt like the price just keeps going up. And if you read articles like this, it’s easy to conclude it’s true.

But here’s some numbers on the least expensive models over time, taken from this:

iPhone (4GB): $499
iPhone 3G (8GB): $599
iPhone 3GS (16GB): $599
iPhone 4 (16GB): $599
iPhone 4S (16GB): $649
iPhone 5 (16GB): $649
iPhone 5s (16GB): $649
iPhone 6 (16GB): $649
iPhone 6 Plus (16GB): $749
iPhone 6s (16GB): $649
iPhone 6s Plus (16GB): $749
iPhone 7 (32GB): $649
iPhone 7 Plus (32GB): $769
iPhone 8 (64GB): $699
iPhone 8 Plus (64GB): $799
iPhone X (64GB): $999

Looking at that, I have to think that the phones are getting more expensive, but likely they have always been that way. (And note, this doesn’t account for inflation or the improved quality of the phones, including greater storage.)

Occasionally Apple will make a cheaper phone like the 5C or the SE that are essentially remixes of older models. Or they will continue to support a wider range of phones, like continuing to sell the 7, the 8, and now the X. But it seems the high end was never inexpensive and likely never will be.

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Posted on November 27, 2018 in IT, new!

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Some thoughts on the 10th Anniversary of the App Store

  1. I remember what a big deal it was that Apple was going to support third party software developers. That was by no means a given: Apple could have restricted the iPhone to only their apps and a handful of third party software vendors. By being much more open, they made the iPhone so much more than it could have been if they had not.
  2. I believe iTunes had a big influence on this. It was a model, in a sense, for what the App Store could be. And as iTunes helped make the iPod a success, so would the App Store help make the iPhone (and the iPod Touch) a success.
  3. One influence iTunes had on the App Store was software pricing. Before the App Store software was either free or pricey. Suddenly the App Store came along and software was the price of a song. The few vendors that wanted to charge more could not compete with those who were fine with the low cost. The App Store changed the way people thought about what they should pay for software.
  4. Another effect the App Store had on software was time to market. With mobile apps, people expected updates regularly and bugs to be fixed right away. Companies that used to ship annually now were shipping weekly or daily. This had a huge effect on how software teams developed software. Everyone had to have a mobile app, and every mobile app had to keep up with the new pace. This effect rippled through companies. Software developers adopted the pace for mobile apps to other software being created and released that frequently as well.
  5. The App Store also improved software quality. If you released bad software, you would hear from users immediately via the ratings. There was no hiding bad apps. As well, if your app sucked, other people would come out with better apps and steal whatever market share you had.  Software development teams were on tighter leashes because of the App Store.
  6. The App Store allowed software developers to make money in ways they could not before. You had a direct channel to consumers of software via the App Store. And lots of developers made a good amount of money as a result.
  7. Apps  became part of our culture. Games like Angry Birds found an audience because of the App Store.
  8. We downloaded so many apps we lost track of them. And some of them turned out not to be good for us. Speaking of that, if you want to do a bit of spring cleaning on your apps and make sure that the ones remain are good, I recommend you read this: On the 10th anniversary of the App store, it’s time to delete most of your apps (Popular Science)

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Posted on July 16, 2018 in IT, thoughts

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iPhone 6s: still a great phone in the era of iPhone X

If you are skeptical about the greatness of the iPhone 6s, this piece makes a good argument for it: Reasons you should buy an iPhone 6S instead of an iPhone 8 or iPhone X – Business Insider. If money is a prime concern, you can find refurbished 6s phones for a fraction of the cost of a new iPhone 8 or X.

If you want an iPhone and you are fine with refurbished — and some places give good warrantees on such phones — then consider making an iPhone 6s your next phone. Or get a new one from your mobile phone carrier or buy one outright from Apple.

 

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Posted on July 5, 2018 in IT, new!

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In an alternative universe this is the next hot smartphone

Posted on November 27, 2017 | Comments Off on In an alternative universe this is the next hot smartphone


I am unexcited about the direction in Smartphone design. The key design idea that less is more in a phone is becoming Less is a Bore. Perhaps that’s why this design of a Blackberry got me thinking about it. While it still has a gorgeous screen, the phone itself is worthy of looking at and touching. It strikes the right balance. The phone as a design object is worthwhile.

It would have been good if Apple had struck out in a new design direction with the iPhone X. Instead they went with Less is More. Instead we have a phone with the Notch and a camera on the back that sticks out. It’s as if Apple would have preferred not to have these cameras and sensors,  so rather than design the phone to incorporate them into the design, they stick out, figuratively and literally. In a few years from now when Apple has gone in a different direction, Apple fans will look back and exclaim how poor that aspect of the phone design is.

As for now, we live in an age where the screen dominates design, from TVs to smartphones. In the future that may change and the technology that we interact with will be contained in objects that have noteworthy design in them.
For more on this beautifully designed phone, see If BlackBerry Ditched the Keyboard | Yanko Design.

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Posted in design, IT

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The home speaker / AI market heats up as Sonos makes advances

Posted on October 24, 2017 | Comments Off on The home speaker / AI market heats up as Sonos makes advances

Sonos One

WIRED has a good review of the latest product from Sonos, here: Sonos One Review: Amazon’s Alexa Is Here, But It Still Has Some Growing Up to Do

What makes this development significant to me is that it signals that Sonos is concerned with Apple and others coming and taking away market share. Sonos has a great line of products already, but Apple is threatening to take a piece of that with their new home speaker with Siri/AI capability. Sonos has beefed up their AI capability to meet the challenge.

I expect that the next big thing in IT will be the vocal interface tied in with a speaker system in some form. I expect we will see them everywhere. Perhaps not for extended communication, but for brief and frequent requests.

If you are an IT person, I recommend you learn more about chatbot technology and how it will integrate with the work you are doing. More and more users will want to be able to communicate with your systems using voice. You need to provide a vocal interface for them to get information and send information.

Most homes will have one device acting as an aural hub. Sonos wants to make sure it is one they make, and not Apple.

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Who are The Frightful Five?

Posted on October 23, 2017 | Comments Off on Who are The Frightful Five?


According to the New York Times, the Frightful Five are Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Microsoft and Alphabet, Google’s parent company. What makes them frightening?

(The Frightful Five) have experienced astounding growth over the last few years, making them the world’s five most valuable public companies. Because they own the technology that will dominate much of life for the foreseeable future, they are also gaining vast social and political power over much of the world beyond tech.

These companies are getting alot more scrutiny lately. Any organization as wealthy and powerful as they are warrant it. Especially so because we aren’t even certain what impact they have on our societies. I hope the Times and other newspapers continue to give them focus and question their power. And I hope more writers like Scott Galloway examine what these companies do in books like the one he has just written. Most importantly, I hope you continue to seek out information on these companies and question how you interact with them, either directly or indirectly as a member of society.

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Posted in culture, IT, socialmedia

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The iPhone 8 is really the iCamera 8

Posted on October 4, 2017 | Comments Off on The iPhone 8 is really the iCamera 8

iphone
Great review of the latest iPhone*, here: The iPhone 8 is a look into the augmented future of photography | TechCrunch. I had heard that the iPhone 8 had a great new camera, but this article really drives that home.

If you are thinking of getting an “8”, this could be the reason you need. On the other hand, if you rarely take photos or don’t care too much about the quality, I think the case for an upgrade gets weaker.

*  I don’t consider the iPhone X the latest phone so much as a promise of where the iPhone is going. To be honest, I think the iPhone X is as much an attempt to celebrate the 10 years of the iPhone and Steve Jobs’s legacy, not unlike the Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh. Not that there is anything wrong with that.

 

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Posted in IT

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