Maccast 03.06.2013 - Show #434
Links
V Opening
V Opening Music
* Music is Say Anything by Manda and the Marbles
* Mandaandthemarbles.com
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V News
V Apple expands Movies in the Cloud
* Apple added the ability to redownload movie content purchased via iTunes to 11 more countries this week.
* Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway and Sweden have all now have access the service.
* The update is for Movies only except for in France which also gained access to the iTunes in the Cloud service for TV shows.
* That brings the total nimber of countries with access to the iTunes in the Cloud service for Movies up to 80.
* Only Australia, Canada, the UK, the US, and now France have access to iTunes in the Cloud for TV shows.
V Another week more Java updates
* Apple and Oracle released emergency zero-day java patches this past week.
* Oracle released an emergency patch for Java SE 7 —update 17—for its Java browser plugin that addresses two vulnerabilities.
* Apple the quickly followed suite updating Java SE 6, which is the version installed by Apple when you are prompted.
* Apple's latest update is "Java for OS X 2013-002" and it's for OS X 10.7 and later.
* It's assumed that Apple's update fixes the same vulnerabilities that were patched in the Oracle update.
V Panic finds ARM SoC in Lightning adapter
* The folks behind Transmit and Coda, Panic, have been playing around with video out on Apple's latest iOS devices and noticed something curious that they reported about on their blog.
* Sending video out signals via Apple's Lightning AV Adapter using Video Mirroring were yielding a less than 1080p resolution. 1600 x 900 instead of 1920 x 1080
* Worse yet they were noticing compression artifacts in the, what you would assume to be digital, signal.
* When they did the same checks using an old a 30-pin Dock Connector AV Adapter they would get 1920 x 1080.
* The iPad Mini tech specs claim up to 1080p video out support, so what gives?
* The conclusion was that somehow the connector wasn't passing a RAW HDMI signal, but maybe somehow sending out an upscaled 1080p signal, but how?
* A guess was that it in some way used the AirPlay video compression system.
* So they hacked apart the connector and discovered it had a tiny ARM SoC chip with 256MB of RAM
* Regardless, the net result was that the connector is not sending out 1080p because it's streaming internally.
* Why likely has to do with Lightning just having 9-pins which limited Apple from sending a raw HDMI signal.
V The story prompted a comment from an anonymous poster assumed to be an Apple engineer.
* Lightning can't stream a raw HDMI signal, since it is basically just a serial bus.
* That means with Lightning all "adapting" is done in the adapters themselves. Opens up the possibility to build almost any adapter.
* So in the case of the HDMI video adapter they use the h264 encoding technology in iOS devices to generate an output stream that they can fire down the lightning serial connection to the adapters ARM SoC which is dedicate to just decode the packetized data and then send it out as an HDMI signal.
* As for the small loss in quality it was a compromise for versatility and future proofing
* This system essentially allows Apple to output to any device on the planet, irregardless of the endpoint bus (HDMI, DisplayPort, and any future inventions).
* The poster also claims that the adapter firmware is store in the RAM and "will" be updated in the future if they can do something to improve the quality (he claims people are working on it).
V iPhone 5S production may have begun
* Back in January Jefferies analyst Peter Misek told his investors that Apple might begin production of the next iPhone in March with a possible June/July release
* Now the Japanese blog, MacOtakara, is reporting that Foxconn is beginning move the iPhone 5S into production
* They claim there is very little in terms of design changes claiming that they will use the same production lines that they used for the iPhone 5
* MacOtakara also believes that the iPhone may be getting ready to finally come to Japan's biggest carrier, NTT DoCoMo. They say NTT DoCoMo has apparently reduced orders of Android phones for the fall 2013 season, which could be a sign of making room for an iPhone coming to the carriers network.
* KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo also pegs a new iPhone launch in July. He expects an announcement from Apple on iOS 7 and the iPhone in June with a launch date in July.
* Kuo is also supporting the claim that Apple will offer a "lower cost" iPhone along with the updated 5S.
* iMore seems to also be confirming a summer release, but claims the date could be as late as August
V On spec the 5S is looking to be a marginal update to the iPhone 5
* A new A7 processor using a 28nm process
* Smart flash, and maybe an improved camera system (depends on source)
* Thinner design
* Fingerprint scanner on the home button
V The "low cost" iPhone 5
* A6 processor
* 4" 'retina' in-cell touch screen display
* 1.2 MP FaceTime camera. 8MP iSight camera
* Plastic and fiberglass case
* 6 colors.
* Unlocked pricing starting at USD $350. Free with 2-year contract
* MacOtakara claims that the lower cost iPhone has been pushed back to 2014 and would have a 4.5" display.
V For those wondering about new iPads, the standard recent rumor faire seems to still apply
* maybe new iPads around April/May
* 9.7" iPad getting an iPad mini style design update (Black & Slate, White & Silver) and thinner
* The iPad mini is may or may not to see an April update, but some think it will get a Retina display bump around October.
V Edu iMac, not the deal you're looking for
* Since the days of the eMac Apple has offered a specially priced Mac, USD $1099.00, exclusively for the education market
* This year is no different and this week Apple updated the model with the new design.
V At first blush it seems like a nice bump up
* You get the new 21.5" design, 40% thinner.
* RAM is doubles to 4GB (up from 2)
* Hard drive is doubled to 500GB
* A 3.3 GHz dual-core i3 processor, up from 3.1GHz
* It also adds Thunderbolt, USB 3.0, and Bluetooth 4.0
* All while maintaining the same price tag
V The you realize that the EDU price on the base 21.5" model is just $150.00 more
* And there everything is doubled
* There you get an Intel i5 quad-core processor
* 8GB of RAM, vs. 4
* 1TB Hard Drive, vs. 500GB
* and a dedicated Nvidia GeForce 640M graphics processor.
V Would it really kill Apple to just help the struggling EDU market with a REAL deal and just knock the base model down another $150 bucks?
* In 2010 there were 132,656 K-12 schools in the US (public, private, charter)
* Apple could buy 10 iMacs at $1299.00 (full retail) for EVERY K-12 school in the US and it would cost them 1.7 billion dollars.
* Apple's cash hoard currently sit's around $137.1B
V Apple looks to Beats for Music Streaming help?
* Citing three people, "familiar with the situation" Reuters is reporting that Apple met with Beats Electronics LLC CEO Jimmy Iovine to discuss Beats' "Project Daisy" music subscription service.
* Beats announced the service in January, but so far has offered little detail, but is a music service that they said would be "Developed on the back of MOG premium subscription music service acquired by Beats in early 2012".
* The Daisy music project is being headed by CEO Ian Rogers and Trent Reznor (of Nine Inch Nails) who is on board as the Creative Director.
V It's easy to understand why Apple might take an interest
* Apple has reportedly been struggling to get support for a long rumored iTunes streaming media service
* Apple has also struggled with bringing music discovery to iTunes
* A big focus of project Daisy is reportedly music discovery and customized, expert curation. They also have some music industry heavy-weights and insiders who could help Apple break down their stalemate.
* Why a lot is being posted about the meeting it sounds li ke at this point it was mostly just "informational" with the two side chatting over a range of industry related topics.
* Reportedly no actual "deal" was discussed was discussed at the meeting.
* According to Iovine part of the stalemate Apple has had with the record companies was due to him not wanting to pay enough and his firm belief that the price would come down.
* I've read reports that services like Spotfiy are helping curb music piracy, but I find it hard to believe they are doing much to raise industry prices or profits, so maybe Steve was right.
* Regardless I think ever since iTunes changed the industry record companies seems to have decided they would rather do deals with anyone other than Apple.
* So, if Apple does WANT to get into the music streaming business in 2013 (and that remains to be seen), Apple's best hope may be a strategic partnership. Even that feels unlikely though since that doesn't really fit Apple's we "control it all" style.
V US iOS smartphone share up, Android down.
* Android and Apple combined make up 90% of the US smartphone OS market
* But over the last three months Apple's gain has been Androids loss
* According to ComScore's latest MobiLens numbers for the three month period ending in January 2013 Apple's US share of the mobile smartphone OS market rose 3.5% from 34.3% in October last year to 37.8% in January
* Androids still maintained a healthy lead in total mobil OS marketshare, but saw it's lead decline 1.3% from 53.6% in October last year to 52.3% in January.
* Similarly BlackBerry, Microsoft and Symbian all saw their 3 month mobile smartphone OS share slide seemingly at the expense of iOS.
V Among US smartphone manufacturer's Apple's iPhone proved to still be the most popular model
* Apple's share rose from 34.3% in October to 37.8% in January, up 3.5%
* Samsung also saw gains of 1.9%, up to 21.4% in January from 19.5% in October.
* What's odd, as pointed out in a report by 9 to 5 Mac, is that US carriers report that iPhones make up as many as 66-85% of their activations, so you'd think Apple's marketshare numbers would be higher.
* It may be my personal bias, but when I'm out and see what devices people are using it feels like more like 2 out of 3 people are on iPhone's vs. Android which would seem to support the activation numbers, but that observation is far from scientific.
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V Feedback, Comments and Commentary
V Feedback on Apple's future innovation
* Play comment from Todd
* I completely agree, right now Apple is under more pressure than ever to give the world the most amazing, earth shaking, ground breaking, unbelievably outstanding product that will change the fate of the world and everyone in it forever.
V Their only result is failure
* At least in the eyes of some. The media has been salivating for Apple's demise and they will make it true.
* There WILL be those that say this next product, whatever it is, is the sign of Apple's downfall.
* Unless the product is a transporter, a flying car, or a food replicator it won't be good enough.
* The question is does Apple care and should they?
* My gut tells me no.
V And the reason is all the things we discussed on that last episode and more
* Apple feels an obligation only to themselves and their customers.
* I guarantee that the next product they release will be something amazing and something that Apple feels is worthy of having an Apple logo on it
* Does that mean it will be a financial success and something that changes the world? Maybe, but maybe not.
V The thing is it won't matter. At least not to Apple, as long as they meet their goal.
* Not the analysts goal
* Not the media's goal
* Not Wallstreet's goal
* It's about making great products for those who appreciate them, but not about selling the most.
V So people will say, but what about the company, the stock price, etc.
* As Ken pointed out with 137B cash on hand Apple could spend 1million dollars a day for like the next 375 years and not run out of cash.
* They have a little running room.
V Enabling restrictions in iOS
* A couple stories this week prompted me to want to make sure Maccast listeners are prepared to protect their iOS devices, iTunes accounts, bank accounts from the wrath of their 5 year olds
V Apple settled a lawsuit from a parent who's kid ran up over $200 in in-app purchases
* Apple will issue a $5 gift card to folks in the class-action claim.
* If the the claim was more than $5, then they will give an iTunes account credit and for over $30 they are sending out cash settlements
* The BBC also ran a story today about 5-year-old Danny Kitchen of Bristol, England, who ran up a £1,700 (about US$2,500) bill in iTunes after his dad entered his passcode to allow Danny download a free iPad game from the App Store.
* Link in the BBC case, the root of the issue tends to be a parent authorizing an app download, free or paid, but then handing the device to the child who makes in-app purchases in the default 15-minute window that doesn't require re-authorization. An honest mistake, if you are not familiar with the policy.
* So go into Settings > General > Restrictions
* Tap 'Enable Restrictions' and enter a restrictions passcode and then confirm it.
* The scroll down a bit and you can change the 'Require Password' setting from the default 15 minutes to 'Immediately' and you can also completly turn off 'In-App Purchases'
V Getting iOS and iCloud working on Snow Leopard
* Play comment/question from Rich
* It wasn't really clear, but I'm guessing the issue you are having is that because of Apple shutting down Mobile Me your accounts have been converted to iCloud
* iCloud is only supported in OS X Lion and greater, so in Snow Leopard that means that iCloud syncing is no longer working.
* If you turn on iCloud syncing on your devices then they no longer sync to your Mac through iTunes and since your Mac can't sync to iCloud then your data doesn't sync from iOS to your Mac.
V You can disable iCloud syncing on your devices and then sync to your Mac via iTunes.
* If you do that it should work both via Wi-Fi or Cable syncing, but your data will not Sync to iCloud and not be updated on iCloud.com
V So what are your options?
* Easiest, if possible, upgrade your Mac to Lion or Mountain Lion
* As you asked, there is a "work around" for Snow Leopard, but it's not for the faint of heart and I cannot vouch for it's robustness nor reliability although I did try these out on my old Mac mini and can say they do work.
* These methods are unsupported by Apple, but rely on the fact that iCould uses some standard server technology and protocols for connectivity.
V Bookmarks:
* You'll need to sync via iTunes and disable iCloud syncing of Safari on your iOS device
V Turn off iCloud syncing for bookmarks on your iOS device.
* You should be able to choose to leave the data on your device when you turn it off
* Attach it to your Mac and select the device in iTunes
* Under the Info tab, check the option to Sync Safari Bookmarks
* Perform a sync, and then on your device turn on iCloud syncing for Safari back on.
* The down side is you'll need to do this procedure each time you want to sync Bookmarks from iCloud and your Device back onto your Mac.
V Calendars:
* iCloud uses the CalDAV protocol, so the trick here is knowing how to configure iCal to connect directly to iCloud's CalDAV sync server.
* Log in to iCloud.com and click the Share symbol next to one of your calendars
* Click Public and then click Share.
* Make note of the number after the first "p" character in the shared calendar's URL (i.e., p02, p03, p04, etc.). You can unshare the calendar once you have this number.
* Go to iCal and create a new CalDav account using your iCloud username (the full e-mail address) and password.
* Use "pXX-caldav.icloud.com" as the CalDav server URL, replacing "pXX" with the number found previously.
* Enter port 443 and check the option to Use SSL.
* Now you should have an iCal calendar for your @icloud.com (@me.com) account that will sync over the air
V Contacts:
* This again uses the standard CardDAV protocol.
* The set up for this will require storing your iCloud password "in the clear" inside Address Book, so be aware of that.
* First open iCal, go to its Accounts preferences, and select your iCloud CalDav account that you made there (create it using the above instructions if you have not already done so). Then copy the contents of the Server Path field, which should look like the following:
/18347668/principal/
V In Address Book, create a new CardDav account in the Accounts section of Address Book's preferences, and use the following for the username (replace username with your username, and password with your password, and replace "mac.com" with the corresponding component for your iCloud account, which might be mac.com, me.com, or icloud.com):
username%40mac.com:password
* NOTE: if you use special characters you'll need to URLEncode them
* Enter a single space in the password field, which will appear hidden as a single bullet (other password entries may work as well, but you need at least something in this field for it to work).
* Now enter the following for the server URL, changing "pXX" to the number of the CalDav server you used in iCal. For the "/18347668/principal/" component of the address, ensure it matches that which you copied from the Server Path settings in iCal in step one:
pXX-contacts.icloud.com/18347668/principal
* Click Create account. You will get a 404 error (I actually got a 403), but ignore this and click the Create button again to make the account.
* In the account preferences, set a description for the new account (i.e., iCloud Contacts).
* Quit and relaunch Address Book, and your iCloud contacts should now be displayed.
V E-mail and Notes
* iCloud's e-mail services use the standard IMAP e-mail protocol, and can therefore be accessed from most e-mail clients.
* In Mail's preferences, select the Accounts tab and create a new account.
* Supply your standard iCloud username and password, and click Continue.
Change the account type to IMAP.
Use "imap.mail.me.com" as your e-mail server, and "smtp.mail.me.com" as your outgoing server.
V Removing application shortcuts
* Play question from Zack
V The method you are using should work.
* Go to System Preferences > Keyboard
* Click on the Keyboard Shortcuts
* Choose Application Shortcuts on the left and click the "+" icon to add a new Shortcut
* From the 'Application' dropdown choose 'Safari'
V For Menu Title enter 'Close Window'
* Must spell it exactly as it appears in the Safari File menu
* Set a shortcut value you are unlikely to accidentally type and that won't conflict with another shortcut. 'Command+Option+Control+Shift+W' for example.
V You might have run into trouble if you use tabs, as the shortcut changes if you have tabs open.
* Close Window by default becomes: Command+Shift+W
* Close Tab is then Command+W
V You need to repeat the same steps and add a override for 'Close Tab'
* Maybe 'Command+Option+Control+Shift+T'
* You may need to quit and reopen Safari to see your new shortcuts.
* What you cant do via the System Preferences is set a default shortcut to nothing or remove it.
* Turns out there is a way to do that too, but you'll need to resort to the Terminal
* The System Preferences > Keyboard > Keyboard Shortcuts really just runs a command that adds a dictionary NSUserKeyEquivalents entry to the applications Preferences file (PLIST)
V So armed with that knowledge you can use the 'defaults write com.apple.Safari NSUserKeyEquivalents -dict-add' command to add a "Close Window" entry with a value of "nil" to the PLIST
* defaults write com.apple.Safari NSUserKeyEquivalents -dict-add "Close Window" "nil"
* defaults write com.apple.Safari NSUserKeyEquivalents -dict-add "Close Tab" "nil"
V For the Command, Option,Shift, and Control keys you use these in your shortcut value:
* @ = Command (Apple) CMD
* ~ = Option OPT
* $ = Shift SHIFT
* ^ = Control CTRL
* So Command+W would be "@W"
V To see the existing NSUserKeyEquivalents values you can issue this command:
* defaults read com.apple.Safari NSUserKeyEquivalents
V Unfortunately there is no way to easily "delete" an entry from the NSUserKeyEquivalents dictionary
* There is only the add option, no "delete"
* If you want to remove an item from the list, you will need to first read the current list and then write it back without the item you want removed.
V Or you can delete the entire NSUserKeyEquivalents dictionary using this command:
* defaults delete com.apple.Safari NSUserKeyEquivalents
* It probably doesn't need saying, but I will. Hacking in the Terminal like this can have consequences if you make a mistake. You could cause your application or system to become unstable. Backup and be aware you could mess up your system.
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