The Mac Observer's Daily Observations Podcast

Yesterday’s show about Apple dissolving its wireless networking team got lots of comments and questions from listeners, so today Dave Hamilton and John Martellaro join Jeff Gamet to offer up their responses to your reactions, and share their thoughts on your questions.

Apple’s wireless routers look like they’re headed down the same path as the now defunct Thunderbolt Display. Dave Hamilton and Bryan Chaffin join Jeff Gamet to look at the state of Apple’s WiFi router lineup, and explain why they think it’s fine the AirPort Extreme, AirPort Express, and Time Capsule are heading out to pasture. They also offer up their thoughts on the new Retina MacBook Pro’s Touch Bar.

Bryan Chaffin and John Martellaro talk about Apple’s new Bulbs commercial for MacBook Pro, a spot centered around big ideas. They also take in some listener email about whether or not 4K TV is really something Apple should be worried about on Apple TV.

Apple’s Product Manager of Automation Technologies Sal Soghoian is out of a job, and that doesn’t bode well for the future of AppleScript and Automator. Bryan Chaffin joins Jeff Gamet to talk about what’s likely in store for automation on the Mac, the impact that’s going to have on pro users, and Sal’s efforts to keep automation tools alive.

Apple has a new product out. It comes in two sizes, small and large, at $199 and $299, respectively. And it’s a coffee table book. Bryan Chaffin, Dave Hamilton, and John Martellaro discuss the book and ask if it’s a sign that Apple has lost sight of the game. They also discuss HP’s new Z2 Mini and that company’s efforts to lure Mac users to the world of Windows.

Samsung is buying audio company Harman and it may be in part to compete with Apple’s CarPlay. Bryan Chaffin and Dave Hamilton join Jeff Gamet to look at Samsung’s motives, plus Dave explains HomeKit’s security versus other Internet of Things devices, and they take a look at AT&T’s Stream Saver.

This week we’re diving in deep with authors and writers in the Apple community. Today TMO’s own Bryan Chaffin joins Jeff Gamet to talk about his experiences writing fiction, the evolution of his novel, and finding a publishing agent.

This week we’re diving in deep with authors and writers in the Apple community. Today author and journalist Amy Gahran joins Jeff Gamet to talk about how her books took her deep into research, self publishing, and more.

This week we’re diving in deep with authors and writers in the Apple community. Today science fiction author John L Forrest joins Jeff Gamet to talk about writing novels and short stories, his process for bringing his ideas to life, self publishing, and more.

This week we’re diving in deep with authors and writers in the Apple community. Today David Sparks joins Jeff Gamet to talk about his earlier Apple-focused books and his transition into self publishing with the MacSparky Field Guides.

This week we’re diving in deep with authors and writers in the Apple community. Today long time author, journalist, and blogger Ted Landau joins Jeff Gamet to talk about his history in the Apple community, writing one of the top selling Mac titles, running his own Apple-related website, and more.

The new MacBook Pro’s Touch Bar looks great, but it can’t be the primary way for accessing an app’s features. Bryan Chaffin and John Martellaro join Jeff Gamet to look at how the Touch Bar may fit in to third-party app developer’s plans, and why it may not get adopted as quickly as users may like despite its coolness factor. They also look at the results from TMO’s Twitter poll for new Mac buyers.

Apple’s new Touch Bar MacBook Pro carries the “pro” moniker, but it isn’t clear exactly who the new laptops are targeting. Dave Hamilton and the Maccast’s Adam Christianson join Jeff Gamet to share their thoughts on who will want the new MacBook Pro, what could be coming in future models, and what pro users are saying about Apple’s latest laptop offerings.

Vigilantes may be cool in the movies, but no so much in the App Store. Kelly Guimont and John Martellaro join Jeff Gamet to offer up their take on Apple pulling an app that alerted iPhone users to crimes in progress, plus they have some thoughts on the death of the startup chime in the new MacBook Pro models.

After the Dyn DDOS attack, The Mac Observer started looking into claims that HomeKit smarthome devices were protected from participating. Today Dave Hamilton and Bryan Chaffin join Jeff Gamet to look at what they found. Hint: Internet security is a complicated thing in spite of HomeKit’s strengths.

Apple’s “hello again” media event felt like it was missing something, and that’s really bothering Bryan Chaffin and John Martellaro. They join Jeff Gamet to discuss what they think may have been planned, but pulled at the last minute, plus they question how much time Apple devoted to the new MacBook Pro’s Touch Bar.

Apple and Microsoft are taking different paths into computer touch interfaces. John Martellaro and Dave Hamilton join Jeff Gamet to look at the differences in Apple’s Touch Bar and Microsoft’s Surface Studio, plus they explain how USB-C and Thunderbolt 3 fit together.

Apple used its “hello again” media event to introduce new MacBook Pro models and a new Apple TV app for consolidating the shows we watch in a single interface. Dave Hamilton joins Jeff Gamet to talk about Apple’s announcements, what was exciting from the event, and more.

Apple’s fourth quarter earnings report numbers came out yesterday, and some say they look good while other say they look bad. Kelly Guimont and John Martellaro join Jeff Gamet to share their perspectives on how Apple is performing, plus they offer up their reactions to Microsoft’s just announced Surface Studio ahead of tomorrow’s new Mac launch event.

Give us enough time with an app we really like and we’ll find something to improve. Bryan Chaffin and Dave Hamilton join Jeff Gamet to talk about Apple’s iMessage platform and Messages app, and Bryan has some interface improvements he’d like to see. They also look at the CD collection Apple gave the media with the original iPod, and Jeff notes Apple’s Apple ID Two-Factor authentication setup bug seems to be fixed.

Last Friday we all learned first hand what happens when hackers decide to target DNS hosts with a distributed Denial of Service attack. Dave Hamilton and The Maccast’s Adam Christianson join Jeff Gamet to look at Friday’s attack and how the Internet of Things played a major role in the incident. They also talk about how HomeKit devices may also be susceptible to hackers.

An iPhone 7 in Australia caught on fire in a car, and now the media is comparing the incident to Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7 debacle. John Martellaro and Dave Hamilton join Jeff Gamet to look at what happened, and to sort out whether or not it’s appropriate to compare this iPhone 7 to the Note 7 fires. They also compare Microsoft Surface sales to the current state of the iPad.

Apple is hosting a media event on Thursday, October 27th, titled “hello again.” Bryan Chaffin and John Martellaro join Jeff Gamet to share their thoughts on whether or not we’ll finally see a refresh to the aging Mac Pro. They also offer up predictions on what else may or may not get announced, and generally hammer on Bryan for his Mac Pro hopes.