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Apple History: The Apple Credit Card From 2004, and the 90s

Andrew Orr ·

Apple Card, which will be released this summer, isn’t the company’s first Apple credit card idea. Steve Jobs first thought of it in 2004.

The year was 2004…Steve thought the time was right for Apple to offer its own credit card. He would call it … (drum roll)… Apple Card…Alas, the Apple Card never saw the light of day. Steve worked to create a partnership with MasterCard, but apparently he couldn’t get the terms he wanted—so he pulled the plug.

Interesting story. The article also includes marketing materials the company created at the time. Edit: As it turns out, this wasn’t the first Apple Card either. In 1992/1993, The Mac Observer’s Dave Hamilton worked on an Apple credit card during a previous career at Citibank.

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MIT Just Opened a Time Capsule Full of Tech History

Charlotte Henry ·

Staff at MIT opened a time capsule buried 20 years ago Monday. It contained a plethora of tech history, including Sir Tim Berners-Lees original proposal for the World Wide Web and the first Microsoft product, Fast Company reported.

Inside, they found Tim Berners-Lee’s original proposal for the World Wide Web, written in 1992. This document laid out the rules that governed the HTTP protocol and how the HTML language was supposed to work–describing the graphic appearance of content on the internet, and how links would connect everything in a web-like network of nodes that could take you from a page about the mating habits of penguins to one that describes how a steam locomotive work. Basically, the document is one of the primary reasons you’re able to read these lines right now. The capsule also included Microsoft’s first ever product, the BASIC interpreter that Bill Gates and Paul Allen coded for the Altair computer in 1975.

TMO Deals

Mystery 23.7-Inch LG Monitor Appears in Apple Store

Charlotte Henry ·

It is well known that customers can purchase a 21.5 in 4k LG monitor and a 27-inch 5K LG monitor in Apple stores. However, TidBits found a mystery 23.7-inch monitor during a recent visit, one marketed explicitly at Mac users. However, the box does not say that the monitor is 4k.

Here’s the weird thing: I could find virtually nothing about the 23.7-inch LG UltraFine Display online. It’s not listed on Apple’s online store or LG’s Web site. A Google search for its model number, 24MD4KL, turns up little, just a page showing an FCC ID and another showing Energy Star certification. The display is not to be confused with other LG displays that are well-documented online. But this new Apple Store model is different in that it’s explicitly intended for and marketed to Mac users—it says so right on the box. What it doesn’t say on the box is “4K.”

(Article Image: Via TidBits)

Podcast

Protecting Your Mac and Router, New Handy Shortcuts, & Troubleshooting System Lags – Mac Geek Gab 762

John F. Braun & Dave Hamilton · · Add Comment

First things first: make sure your Mac’s XProtect database is regularly updated. With that out of the way, we can have some fun learning some handy new keyboard shortcuts, new ways to filter Mail on your iPhone and iPad, some tricks for truly securing your router, and a discussion about guest networks, just to name a few topics included in this week’s episode. Press play, and enjoy learning at least five new things!

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Google Suspends Some Huawei Business Following Trump Blacklist

Charlotte Henry ·

Google suspended some of its business with Huawei following President Trump’s decision to blacklist the firm. Reuters broke the news Sunday. The suspension affects the transfer of some hardware, software and technical services involving the Chinese telecoms giant.

Google has suspended business with Huawei that requires the transfer of hardware, software and technical services except those publicly available via open source licensing, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Sunday, in a blow to the Chinese technology company that the U.S. government has sought to blacklist around the world…Holders of current Huawei smartphones with Google apps, however, will continue to be able to use and download app updates provided by Google, a Google spokesperson said.

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We Are Digital Renters of Our Own Objects

Andrew Orr ·

I thought this was an interesting angle in the “Our technology controls” us narrative. It’s the idea that we are sort of digital renters of our technology.

Today, we may think we own things because we paid for them and brought them home, but as long as they run software or have digital connectivity, the sellers continue to have control over the product. We are renters of our own objects, there by the grace of the true owner.

 

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New Tool Credder Will Rate News Media Credibility

Andrew Orr ·

A startup called Credder wants to offer a rating system like Rotten Tomatoes, but for news publications. The hope is to offer people a way to check the credibility of a particular website, and rate them.

Startup Credder is trying to solve this problem with reviews from both journalists and regular readers. These reviews are then aggregated into an overall credibility score (or rather, scores, since the journalist and reader ratings are calculated separately). So when you encounter an article from a new publication, you can check their scores on Credder to get a sense of how credible they are.

Sounds like a good idea to me.

TMO Deals

Corel AfterShot Pro 3 for Mac: $29.99

Bryan Chaffin ·

We have a deal on AfterShot Pro 3 for Mac from Corel. This photo editing software is designed specifically for RAW files, utilizing a built-in RAW converter that allows you to upload, edit, and manage extremely high quality photos without inflicting any damage. It’s $29.99 through our deal.

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News+: The Lazy Person’s Guide to Backing Up Data

Andrew Orr ·

In PCMag’s latest issue, Jill Duffy writes about choosing backup services that you’ll actually use, as well as the lazy person’s guide to backing up data.

The joke goes that there are two kinds of people: those who back up their data and those who haven’t lost everything yet. It’s painfully true. Losing your files can be heartbreaking, career-ruining, and expensive if you need to hire an expert to help you recover them. Backing up your data is a preventive measure that avoids all those problems. It sounds like a tedious chore, but it doesn’t have to be. There’s a backup solution for every kind of person—the lazy, the diligent, and everyone in between.

This is part of Andrew’s News+ series, where he shares a magazine every Friday to help people discover good content in Apple News+.