Apple’s star is rising as other luxury gift brands are falling.
We Are the World was recorded 30 years ago today – Here’s the backstory
USA Today:
On Jan. 28, 1985, at A&M Recording Studios in Hollywood, following the American Music Awards, more than 40 artists gathered to record a song Lionel Richie and Michael Jackson had written to raise awareness of widespread, life-threatening poverty in Africa. Most of that show’s winners — including Cyndi Lauper, Hall & Oates, Bruce Springsteen, Huey Lewis, Willie Nelson, Tina Turner, the Pointer Sisters, Kenny Rogers and the Jacksons — participated.
This was a pretty big deal at the time. Part of the magic is that they managed to keep the whole production a complete secret until the song was released.
Don’t stress about Apple Watch battery life
Kit Eaton, writing for Medium, addresses the recent rumors about Apple Watch battery life, calling the whole discussion silly. A solid read, especially the exploration of the history of the watch.
Tim Cook on iPhone sales
A quick walkthrough of Apple’s numbers, plus some thoughts on Tim Cook’s respond to an analyst question on the iPhone
Transcript of yesterday’s Apple call
Links to the webcast, if you’d like to listen to Tim Cook’s mellifluous voice, or a hand crafted transcript, if you prefer.
Angela Ahrendts recruiting U.S. employees for China
9to5mac:
In video messages to employees in recent days and weeks, Ahrendts has been recruiting employees from United States-based Apple Retail stores to relocate to China to help build up Apple’s retail efforts in the region.
Review of Sling TV, a small, first step on an important path
Jon Healey, reporting for the LA Times, takes Dish Network’s new Sling TV service for a spin.
Free on iTunes
Apple recently shelved their free “Single of the Week” on iTunes, but it has been replaced by a new “Free on iTunes” link on the iTunes Store home page.
On the public nature of your personal iPhone contact info
Apple makes your contact info available via Siri, even on a locked screen.
Apple first quarter results conference call webcast or dial-in info
Here’s how to listen to or watch Apple’s FY15Q1 fiscal results conference call.
Apple’s original Apple Watch
Twenty years ago, Apple introduced the Apple Watch.
Apple’s forking brands and incredibly efficient ad spending
Writing for Monday Note, Jean-Louis Gassée discusses Apple’s brand-forking strategy when it comes to Beats, as well as Apple’s incredible ad efficiency numbers.
The invisible boyfriend or girlfriend
Washington Post:
When you sign up for the service, you can design a boyfriend (or girlfriend) to your specifications — kind of like picking the genes for a designer baby, except for an imaginary adult.
Help return a lost iPhone with Siri
Good tip from OSXDaily.
What’s coming to Netflix in February and what’s disappearing
Some great stuff leaving, some great stuff coming.
How PAPER Magazine’s web engineers scaled Kim Kardashian’s back-end
This is the story of the planning required to host a web site that you know is about to get melted by traffic.
Untold story of the video game cartridge
Think you know the story behind the video game cartridge? Not only was all of this new to me, I never even heard of the RAVEN console. A fascinating read, well written and rich in tech history.
Free patterns you can use in your own designs
There are some incredible patterns here, all Photoshop compatible, all free to use (covered by a Creative Commons license).
Sports Illustrated lays off all staff photographers
This is just another thread in a long, troubling trend.
“There was a decision made through the company to restructure various departments, including at Sports Illustrated. Unfortunately economic circumstances are such that it has cut the six staff photographers.”
Adding subtitles to ripped DVDs
Wait. You can add subtitles to a DVD rip, even of a DVD that didn’t come with subtitles? Sign me up!
Leatherman should bring this new bracelet to the Apple Watch
Dave Aiello spotted this new bracelet from Leatherman, makes the pitch that Leatherman should turn this into a watchband for the Apple Watch.
Apple Watch battery life
9to5mac reports on rumored battery life for the Apple Watch.
Latest iPhone 6 to 6 Plus sales ratio numbers for China and the US
The latest numbers showing relative sales of the iPhone 6 versus the 6 Plus.
iTunes features that have been retired
Kirk McElhearn walks us through some iTunes features that have since been retired.
The Apple Watch and staged notifications
Rene Ritchie, writing about the process of receiving a notification on the iWatch. Apple, per usual, gets it spot on right.
Be My Eyes – An app that lets you help a blind person
Be My Eyes pairs visually impaired and sighted people in video link sessions that let the sighted person help sort out a specific problem.
Watch the video below. Brilliant.
A collection of About Boxes from vintage Mac applications
These really take me back. Nicely put together.
Matthew McConaughey Dazed and Confused audition
The video below shows a very young Matthew McConaughey auditioning for 1993’s excellent Dazed and Confused.
Android Lollipop adoption rate is too small to appear on Google’s distribution chart
Google, like Apple, posts their OS adoption rates. Here’s how Lollipop (Android 5.0) is faring.
On multi-user access to your iOS device
Have you ever wanted to share your iPhone or iPad with someone else? If you share your Mac with someone, you can each have your own account. OS X is designed for multiple users. But iOS is not.
Here’s an idea for a short term fix.