Dave Wiskus eviscerates Apple Music Connect:
Opening up the Connect tab of iTunes makes me sad.
Apple should take a look at SoundShare.
How to set up minimal iTunes for music only
Find the iTunes interface on your Mac just too busy? Kirk McElhearn walks you through the process of walking through the setting and trimming iTunes down to its minimalistic best.
Ultimate VR headset buyer’s guide
Thinking about dipping your toes in the water, picking up a VR headset? Or just interested in learning more? This is a good survey article.
New Google Maps adds 3D Touch for directions right from the icon
Great add. This is an existing Apple Maps feature I really like.
Members of Judiciary Committee said to be considering filing brief weighing in on Apple court case
Reuters:
Members of the House Judiciary Committee are considering filing a “friend of the court” brief in Apple Inc’s encryption dispute with the U.S. government to argue that the case should be decided by Congress and not the courts, five sources familiar with the matter said.
Read the post for an explainer on this.
Many Siris
Terrific article, well worth reading. Some thoughtful insights on Siri’s potential.
Apple’s opening remarks in today’s Congressional hearing
Today is a big day for Apple. Today at 1p ET (10a PT), Senior Vice President and General Counsel, Bruce Sewell, will testify in from of the House Judiciary Committee, alongside FBI Director James Comey.
Dan Frommer is Re/code’s new Editor-in-Chief
Congrats Dan! Couldn’t happen to a nicer guy. Re/code is in the best of hands.
Congressman Darrell Issa: Forcing Apple to hack that iPhone sets a dangerous precedent
Congressman Darrell Issa, serving his district since 2001, wrote an op-ed piece for Wired, siding with Apple.
Bill Gates jumping over a chair
[VIDEO] Bill Gates jumps over a chair and other comedies.
Leo
Fascinating creation, homage to Leo winning his Oscar. Absolutely worth a quick look.
How to use iTunes Home Sharing to share music from your Mac to your iPhone
If you are on the same network as your Mac and want to save space on your phone, this is an easy way to use your Mac as a music server.
Inside the Secure Enclave
The Secure Enclave is a mechanism inside your iPhone and Apple Watch, walled off from the rest of iOS, that holds the key to verifying your identity. Read the post for a short explanation of this mechanism by Apple and a link to an excellent, more detailed explanation from Mike Ash.
Two witnesses, 1p ET tomorrow
FBI Director James Comey and Apple Senior VP and General Counsel Bruce Sewell will be testifying Tuesday at 1p ET. You can watch it live, if you have access to C-SPAN.
FBI vs Apple: That core moment
A key meeting where things turned from amiable to adversarial.
Siri and Microsoft’s new Windows vs Mac campaign
Microsoft has launched a series of ads focusing on login via face recognition, Cortana (Windows equivalent of Siri), and touchscreens, three features on modern Windows machines that are not found on the Mac. Interesting timing with the recent Siri rumor. Connection there?
Samsung wins appeal in patent dispute with Apple
This result is incomprehensible to me.
A third party iOS app store that evaded Apple’s official App Store review process
Dave Verwer:
Claud Xiao wrote about an app released late last year which presented one of two sets of functionality based on your location. When launched outside China it showed a fully featured app to help you learn English, but inside China it showed an App Store style app that (ab)used enterprise certificates to install pirated apps.
Wow!
Australian animals that won’t kill you, ranked
Look at how freaking huge that wombat is.
I got hacked mid-air while writing an Apple-FBI story
Pretty incredible story. Be sure to read the Update at the bottom of the post.
Apple’s legal strategy, in a nutshell
Core elements of the motion to vacate. An explainer.
The cost of what the FBI is asking Apple to do
Using the All Writs Act to force Apple to build custom software does not come cheap. When someone says, Apple should just give them to number or disable the encryption, it shows they do not understand the costs involved. Apple lays those costs out.
ASCII weather
ASCII weather page. Cool.
Siri reportedly coming to Mac this fall
Fantastic! I use Siri all the time, especially to create reminders and add appointments to my calendar. This has long been a missing feature for me.
Apple case as a crazy-hard law school exam question
A terrific two-part explainer about the All Writs Act. But more to the point, a terrific analogy about this case, worth reading.
Google demands 9to5Google change their name, then walks it back
An incredibly unfair way to conduct business. Read the post.
Conjecture: Apple as a potential investor in Paramount Studios
Would it make sense for Apple to own a movie studio? A TV Network? How about Netflix? Would an investment as a minority owner of Paramount ever make sense for Apple?
The Tim Cook interview
The video embedded in the post is now the full interview, with a transcription of a few of Tim’s comments.
Bought an app that since added Apple TV support? Now there’s a category for that.
Use “Not on This Apple TV” to spot apps you own that have added Apple TV support that you have not yet downloaded on your Apple TV. Very smart.
What it takes to fool Penn and Teller
If you are a fan of magic, and/or a fan of Penn and Teller, follow the link for a series of links to YouTube videos, showing magicians whose tricks have fooled Penn and Teller. No easy task.