Mac

Access iCloud files from the Finder

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iCloud documents are cached on your local machine so that you can open them even if you don’t have Internet access. The files can be accessed in the Finder in addition to the Apple application dialog boxes.

Great tip.

[Via Ben Brooks]

Using the right tool

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John Kirk for Techpinions:

I do not ask silly questions, like whether a tablet is a consumption device. I do not ask whether a phone or a tablet does “real” work. I do not obsess on the exceptionally rare times when I may use my phone as a tablet, my tablet as a notebook or my notebook as a tablet. Instead, I simply use the right tool at the right time.

That’s exactly what I do.

Apple regains worldwide lead in PC shipments

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Global PC shipments rose 12 percent in the second quarter of 2012 compared to the same period a year ago, according to a new report from market research firm Canalys. Leading the way is Apple, which regained the top spot from HP. […]

Hulu Plus on Apple TV

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Arnold Kim:

Apple has quietly launched a Hulu Plus channel on Apple TV this morning.

You have to reboot for the channel to appear.

The stupid, lame and lazy Mountain Lion headlines

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In 2001 when Mac OS X was first released, it was forgivable. In 2012, it’s not only old, it’s just downright lazy. I’m talking about those pathetic headlines that Web sites use to usher in a new release of Apple’s operating system. You know the ones I’m talking about — “Mountain Lion roars” or “Mountain Lion leaps.” […]

Mac App Store relevance

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Marco Arment:

But now, I’ve lost all confidence that the apps I buy in the App Store today will still be there next month or next year. The advantages of buying from the App Store are mostly gone now. My confidence in the App Store, as a customer, has evaporated.

Marco brings up many good points in his article. I’ll admit, I’m not at the same point of frustration that he is, but I can see where he’s going with the argument. I’ve talk to a number of developers that removed their apps from the Mac App Store and none of them wanted to do it, but they felt it was their only choice.

The vast majority of people will go where the apps are and where it’s most convenient for them. Currently, that’s the Mac App Store. However, if Apple forces developers to leave that could change quickly.

Pro Tools and Mountain Lion

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Avid have posted a knowledge base article on Pro Tools compatibility with Apple’s OS X Mountain Lion. While the article talks about Gatekeeper, it doesn’t say that Pro Tools will not work with the new operating system.

I’ll be installing Pro Tools on Retina MacBook this weekend to see how it works.

Apple TV outsells Xbox

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Todd Bishop:

Apple sold 1.3 million Apple TV devices during the June quarter, an increase of 170 percent over the same quarter a year ago.That still qualifies as a “hobby,” according to Apple CEO Tim Cook, who disclosed the number in response to an analyst’s question on the company’s earnings conference call. But here’s an interesting data point: Microsoft sold 1.1 million Xbox 360s worldwide during the same time period.

Doesn’t mean anything, but still interesting.

Mountain Lion e-book

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MacStories is pleased to announce their first eBook, MacStories Features: OS X Mountain Lion, for $6.99. With a detailed review of Mountain Lion, numerous sections covering its new apps and features in depth, and 30% of its proceeds going to the American Cancer Society, MacStories Features: OS X Mountain Lion is a great way to learn about Mountain Lion, support MacStories, and fight cancer all at once.

Apple releases OS X Mountain Lion

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I flew to New York last week to meet with Apple executives and talk about Mountain Lion, the company’s next major version of OS X. I also picked up the final version of the operating system before it was released to the public and have been using it on a Retina MacBook Pro, doing my final evaluations.

There will be tens of thousands of words published on Wednesday when Mountain Lion hits the Mac App Store, but what you really want to know is whether Mountain Lion is worth the upgrade. Let’s get that out of the way now — yes, it is definitely worth it. […]

Apple and Microsoft’s vision of the future

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Kyle Baxter:

Microsoft, then, is attempting to extend the PC into different areas through new form-factors while maintaining the PC interface (both software and hardware) as we’ve known it for its power. This fundamentally maintains the PC’s intent as we’ve known it, whereas Apple’s vision is to change it altogether.

I could not have said it better myself.

How the Retina MacBook Pro got its EPEAT Gold rating

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“It’s important to understand that the manufacturers grade themselves against the EPEAT criteria first, and then EPEAT conducts a review of this grading. That EPEAT review has not yet occurred. They can require the manufacturers to remove any product from the registry if it is not found to conform to the IEEE standard.”

Okay, so Apple gave itself a gold rating. If the Retina MacBook Pro didn’t pass muster before, it certainly can’t pass now — nothing changed. If the gold rating sticks then we call bullshit. Maybe Apple saw the advantages of having the remainder of its product line on EPEAT even if the Retina models don’t make it. Seems odd though if you think that Retina is the future of the product.

EPEAT gives Retina MacBook Pro a Gold rating

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The sudden pullout — and subsequent return — of Apple from the EPEAT certification program it helped create increasingly appears to have been a dispute over the status that have been given to the Retina MacBook Pro if it were submitted, as the two 15-models with the high-resolution display may have been threatened with a lower-than-top ranking, a first for the company. The Retina models now appear on the EPEAT website with Gold rankings.

How is that possible?

The Apple tax

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The Apple tax, as it is commonly called, is the belief that Macs cost more than PCs. I won’t ruin it for you, but Harry Marks nailed it.

All PC makers sales drop dramatically, except Apple

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HP dropped -12.7 percent, Dell dropped -9.5 percent, Acer -14.1 percent and Toshiba -19.5 percent in the U.S. market for the second quarter of 2012.

Apple was up 4.3 percent.

Note that the numbers include “desk-based PCs and mobile PCs, including mini-notebooks but not media tablets such as the iPad.” So they included everything that would make the PC companies look as good as possible. Imagine if they included the iPad in Apple’s numbers.

I think that says it all.

Adobe acknowledges InDesign issue with latest MacBook

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“We’re taking this issue very seriously,” he said. “I wish we had more to share at this time but I’ll be sure to share what comes down the line from the engineers relating to solutions or any workarounds they can find.”

Good for them for acknowledging the issue.

Stupid San Francisco

Written by

Erica Ogg:

Just days after news hit that Apple no longer wants its computers and monitors evaluated for EPEAT certification, the first public agency has said it will no longer be allowed to buy Macs as a result.

Instead of looking at a certificate, why not visit Apple’s environmental Web site and see what the company is actually doing with its products to help the environment.