Alongside the addition of Notes and Reminders, iCloud’s Web interface now includes a notification bar and application-specific badge icons nearly identical to their counterparts on iOS. The notifications appear in real time and let users know when a new email message, reminder, or calendar event arrives. The first hint of iCloud Web notifications occurred in…
Jim Tanous
Articles by Jim Tanous
Yahoo! Giving Smartphones to All Employees, Includes iPhone 5
The iPhone 5 is among a list of smartphones that newly appointed Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer is offering to all of the company’s employees, according to an internal Yahoo! memo obtained by Business Insider late Saturday. All part- and full-time employees will be able to choose an iPhone 5, Samsung Galaxy S3, HTC One X,…
Samsung Galaxy S3 Fires Shot at iPhone 5 with National Print Ad
Earlier today we provided a spec comparison between the iPhone 5 and the Samsung Galaxy S3. Starting Sunday, Samsung will make its own comparison between the two best selling smartphones with a large print ad in national and local newspapers across the United States, CNET reported. With the headline “It doesn’t take a genius,” Samsung…
How to Configure & Access iCloud Email Anywhere with IMAP
Apple’s iCloud email is a great free service that is configured automatically on Macs and iDevices. If you work on multiple platforms or with non-Apple email programs, however, you’ll have to manually configure access. Instructions vary based on the specific software, but the following information should allow users to configure iCloud IMAP access in almost…
iPhone 5 International LTE Support: Necessarily Confusing
Apple introduced its new iPhone 5 Wednesday as a “world phone,” capable of utilizing high speed cellular data networks in many countries. Like many things international, however, restrictions and limitations apply, especially when it comes to high-speed LTE support. Thankfully, Apple has updated its iPhone product information to assist LTE-obsessed customers with planning their next…
Verizon Confirms Free Access to FaceTime via Cellular Data
Verizon Wireless will not charge customers extra or require that customers purchase specific data plans in order to use FaceTime over its cellular data network, the U.S.-based mobile carrier stated late Wednesday in a press release. FaceTime over cellular networks will also be available for U.S. iPhone customers on Sprint, although AT&T has controversially restricted…
Apple Announces New 7th Generation iPod nano
Apple’s Greg Joswiak introduced an all-new iPod nano at Apple’s media event today. The seventh-generation of the popular music player features a multitouch display and Apple’s new “Lightning” interface. At 5.8 mm thick, it is the thinnest iPod nano ever. Physical buttons on the side of the device control playback, and a 2.5-inch multi-touch display…
Browett's Subtle Message to Apple Retail Employees: Profit First
Following last month’s controversy over drastic changes to Apple Retail Stores, Apple Retail Chief John Browett addressed retail employees during the company’s quarterly meeting Sunday night, according to an audio recording obtained by 9to5Mac. Speaking to the stores via a video message, Mr. Browett spent most of his three minute speech talking about Apple Retail…
Leaked UDID List Stolen From App Developer, Not FBI
The one million unique device identifiers (UDIDs), unique codes that correspond to individual iOS devices, released by hacker group Antisec last week were likely stolen from the servers of a mobile app publishing company and not from an FBI laptop, as the group claimed, according to NBC News. An analysis of the data released by…
OS X Battery Life Analysis from Snow Leopard to Mountain Lion
Update: The final builds of 10.8.2 and 10.7.5 were released by Apple on September 19. We have put those builds through the same test and the results can be found here. Last month we performed a series of battery life tests on three Mac laptops: a 2011 15-inch MacBook Pro, 2012 15-inch MacBook Pro with Retina…
Apple & eBook Pubs Offer Concessions to Avoid EU Antitrust Case
Apple and several major book publishers caused controversy in 2010 when they agreed to work together on a drastically different eBook distribution model than the one in place with then-eBook king Amazon. Prior to Apple’s agreements with the publishers, Amazon purchased the rights to distribute eBooks at a wholesale price, which was typically about half…
Three eBook Publishers Settle States’ Antitrust Suit
Apple and five book publishers were sued by the DOJ and multiple state governments in April for allegedly conspiring to increase the price of eBooks and remove Amazon’s ability to offer eBooks at a lower price by prohibiting books offered by Apple’s iBookstore from being sold for less anywhere else. Three publishers — Hachette, HarperCollins, and…
Sources Claim Tim Cook Was True Mastermind of Apple Retail Cuts
Following the news earlier this month that Apple Retail Chief John Browett was linked to an aborted attempt to drastically diminish the quality of the company’s retail stores by cutting employee pay and working hours in an effort to improve profit margins, a new report from ifoAppleStore suggests that Mr. Browett’s controversial moves were orchestrated…
How to Find Documents & Applications on Your Mac Using Terminal
Many methods were discussed during the show, but the simplest one was suggested afterwards by Peter Lewis of Stairways Software, maker of the excellent Keyboard Maestro utility. To locate Java applications, open Terminal and type the following command: find /Applications -name “*.jar” Using the find command, this query will search the system’s Application folder for…
Leaked Training Manual Reveals Apple’s True Goal: Sell Stuff
Areas covered by the manual include technical information on repairing Apple computers and devices, guidelines for interacting with customers, and rules for employee conduct. Depending on one’s view of Apple Retail, the contents of the manual are either completely expected or alarmingly distressing. According to the sections outlined by Gizmodo, Apple employees are given training…
VMware Fusion 5: In-Depth Review & Benchmarks
The latest version of VMware Fusion, virtualization software that allows Mac users to run Windows and other operating systems from within OS X, has just been released. If you are already a Fusion user, is the new version worth the upgrade? If you’ve never used virtualization software, is now the time to start? We hope…
7-inch iPad To Be Called “iPad mini,” WiFi Coming To iPod nano
Although originally rumored to hold one large media event in September, it now appears that Apple will hold two separate media events in the coming months; one in September to introduce the next iPhone and iOS 6, and one in October to unveil the smaller iPad and updates to Apple’s iPod line. A smaller, cheaper…
Retina Displays for 13-inch MacBook Pro Already in Production
NPD DisplaySearch analyst Richard Shim told CNET that Apple is planning for a 2560-by-1600 resolution display for the 13-inch MacBook Pro. Such a display would have fewer pixels than the current 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro, which touts a 2880-by-1800 panel, but the smaller screen area on the 13-inch model will create a similar “Retina” effect.…
How to Create and Manage Strong Passwords
Thankfully, we have the tools to stop the cycle; all we need now is the will. Creating and managing secure passwords has never been easier, and the risks of failing to do so have never been higher. It was recently discovered that FileVault 2, Apple’s whole volume encryption technology, can be cracked in just a…
Report: FileVault 2 Takes 34 Years for Brute Force Crack
The researchers found that FileVault 2 on its own is relatively secure compared to competing encryption techniques. Assuming a strong password, it would take up to 230 seconds, or 34 years to break into a FileVault encrypted volume with a brute force attack. However, the security of the encrypted volume is only as good as the…
Can You Trust the Apple Store With Your Devices & Data?
Gizmodo’s sources made the following claims:Managers stole merchandise by giving it away to businesses for free in exchange for personal favors and services.Managers “stole” employee bonuses for themselves.Employees replaced an “unlimited” number of broken iPhones for themselves and their friends.Employees and managers traded free products or replacements to local bars in exchange for free or…
Apple & Samsung Reach Deal to Hide Evidence Spoliation from Jury
The issue over the spoliation of evidence began in late July, when a magistrate judge ruled that the jury would be informed that Samsung destroyed evidence relevant to the case before the trial, and that the jury was free to infer that all of the evidence that was destroyed was damaging to Samsung’s case. Samsung…
Boom Lets You Turn Your Mac’s Volume “Up to Eleven”
Nearly all Macs have built-in speakers but, while Apple is working to improve its sound quality, on most Macs the speakers simply don’t get loud enough. They’re generally fine for close listening in a quiet environment but once you add some ambient noise or move away from the computer, Mac users often find themselves wanting…
New Report Shows iOS Users Spend Money, Like to Check Weather
The August report examines data from surveys conducted in March and, while the overall content is focused on advertising and user demographics, which are aimed at the web publishers that the OPA represents, the report does reveal some interesting statistics about mobile device users in the United States. The vast majority, 93 percent, of smartphone…
