shownotes_20181210

Opening
  Opening Music
    Music is Say Anything by Manda and the Marbles
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News
  Apple Muzak
    AppleInsider pointed out that Apple filed a US trademark application for the term "Apple Music for Business"
    The filing happened on November 29th, but also notes other filings including one in Jamaica back in June.
    The assumption is a service like this would be aimed at businesses and enterprises who want to play Apple Music in the background
    In that case the service would need to provide licensing with public performance rights.
    If purchased separately these licenses typically can cost a few hundred or thousand dollars per year, depending on usage and the size of the business
    Apple also reportedly a London-based music startup called Platoon according to Music Business Worldwide
      The company was co-founded by iTunes veteran Denzyl Feigelson and LoveFilm co-founder Saul Klein.
      Platoon was focused on developing early-stage artists in the UK and the US discovering artists like Billie Ellish, sho is featured in Apple's latest holiday ad.
    Feigelson had worked with Apple for 15 years and was responsible for artist relations and live events including producing Apple's famous iTunes Festivals in London.
    The report says the company will continue to operate with the same team out of London.
    A source also told the publication that the deal "gives Platoon the backing and resources to accomplish its vision and continue its goal to develop original music and visual content - while leaving artists free to sign with who they want and distribute their music where they want".
    Easy to see why Apple would have an interest in Platoon. The ability to spot and highlight new and upcoming talent is critical in keeping Apple Music relevant and competitive in the streaming music space.
  Apple Video goes MA?
    CNBC is reporting this week that Apple Worldwide video in advanced talks to purchase the rights to Israeli drama series "Nevelot" (or, "Bastards")
    It's described as a violent and mature drama series and being reformatted for a US market by "Homeland" creator Howard Gordon and "Law and Order: SVU" show-runner Warren Leight and possibly co-staring Richard Gere
    The show centers around two military veterans who go on a killing spree targeting young people, "because they believe today's kids don’t understand the sacrifices of their generation."
    Dark and grim indeed and directly in contradiction of what we've been hearing today about Apple requiring it's shows and series to have a wider and more wholesome "general audiences" appeal.
    Back in September The Wall Street Journal claimed that Apple would be unlikely to produce original content that contains gratuitous sex, violence, profanity, or risqué storylines in an effort to avoid tainting its wider brand image.
    Zach Van Amburg and Jamie Erlicht, heads of programming fro Apple, have been working overtime to dispel the myth that Apple is interested only in family-friendly material.
    Newer reports seem to be indicating that Apple is Apple is interested in finding "different" content some of which may not fit "traditional" formats
      They are apparently open to most things as long as they have substance and are not gratuitous
      Apple wants high-impact content based on things people have heard of, like books, franchises or ideas that have resonance
      They are also considering shows that don't fit a 30 or 60 minute format and stuff that could be more interactive and immersive.
    While a bit disappointed personally I think Apple going after a wide range of content is a much better move
      They should have good parental controls in place to control access to appropriate content.
    The recent report also gave a title to the morning show drama starring Reese Witherspoon and Jennifer Aniston. "Top of the Morning" which is the same as the title of the book the show is based upon.
  ECG comes to Apple Watch
    Apple released watchOS 5.1.2 and finally enabled the Electrocardiogram feature for Apple Watch Series 4 owners in the US
      And yes, it's ELECTRO, "echocardiogram" like I said on the last show (thank you Lily)
    Series 4 owners also get new complications for the Infograph watch faces
      Mail, Messages, Home, Maps, Apple News, Find My Friends, Phone, and Remote
    The update also will detecting an abnormal heart rhythm (a-fib) and can give owners an alert to possible issues. The Afib feature works on all models that support watchOS 5 (US only)
    In setting up both the ECG and a-fib notification you are asked your age and alerted that the features are "not intended for use by people under 22 years old"
      Apple also says they are not to be used as the only method for detecting heart issues only that the Apple Watch can serve as an aid in the first detection of possible issues.
      Apple says people already diagnosed with atrial fibrillation should not use the app
      Apple Watch can’t currently detect things like strokes or heart attacks.
    You cannot trick it by changing your region settings. It only functions on models purchased in the United States.
    If your in Canada you might have a wait.
      Someone asked Health Canada on twitter and the response was they had not received an application for the Apple Watch Series 4
      They also stated, "The decision to submit a medical device license application rests with the manufacturer."
    Apple does plan to bring the feature to more Apple Watch owners, but how and when is the bigger question.
    Other new features:
      Direct access to supported movie tickets, coupons, and rewards cards in Wallet when tapped to a contactless reader
      Receive notifications and animated celebrations when you achieve daily maximum points in a day during an Activity competition
      Manage your availability for Walkie-Talkie from Control Center
  US Carriers begin offering eSIM setup
    AT&T and Verizon rolled out it's eSIM support last week with the release of iOS 12.1.1
      They support both pre and post-paid plans
    Verizon's activation seems to be enabled through the "Join Now" option in their MyVerizon app.
    T-Mobile showed off it's app to PCMag
      Won't be available until later this year
      Uses an app vs going into the carrier to activate via a QR code
      Seems to be limited to activating pre-paid plans on the second line.
    Once you have two lines enabled you can use Control Center to get the status on each line.
    eSIM is an option available on Apple's latest iPhones the iPhone XS series and iPhone XR
  New Apple case for XR
    We heard it rumored that Apple was planning to offer a clear case for the iPhone XR, but now it looks like they released it.
    There are also some indications they might have a new iPhone battery case for the iPhone XR and XS series soon.
      Guilherme Rambo at 9to5Mac uncovered references to three new battery case model identifiers in iOS
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Feedback, commentary, opinions
  Customizing Podcast App Stations
    Listener Dick was frustrated iTunes and syncing podcasts to his old Nano using a "smart playlist" to display podcasts by release date.
      There appears to be no way to play "all" episodes in order
      The iPod software only allows playback by "Show"
      You can create and sync a "Smart Playlist" that is sorted correctly, but you have no way to access it from the iPods interface.
      You could manually change the media type of each episode from "Podcast" to "Music" and then make a music playlist, but what a PITA.
    With Apple's Podcast app on iOS you can do it, but there it's not simple either. By default You can use the "Episodes" list sorted by "Date Added" with the "continuous playback" option on, but then you can't get Oldest to Newest order.
      The default "Episodes" list seems to only let you sort one way.
    The Podcast app has something called "Stations"
    With these you can create multiple lists that filter and sort shows in a number of ways.
      You find them in the "Library" section and you can create and edit them by tapping the 'Edit" link.
    Tap "New Station" and give it a name, say "By Release Date"
    Then you are given several options to control
      Play: this is the order they will display and play in
      Group by Podcast, if you want the filters applied by each podcast individually
      Episodes: which episodes to include, "X most recent"
      Media Type (audio or video)
      Unplayed Only (toggle)
      Podcasts, you can choose which shows to include in this Station.
    So for your scenario Dick:
      Play: Oldest to Newest
      Group by Podcast: Off
      Episodes: All Episodes
      Media Type: All (maybe audio?)
      Unplayed Only: Off
      Podcasts: All Podcasts
    You can create as many stations as you like and then access them under Library.
    I have One for just the most recent episodes, just my Mac podcasts, and just my favorite podcasts.
    I always prefer sorting oldest episode to newest because i fall behind.
  Shake to undo without a shake
    Play question from Brett
    If the app only supports shake to undo you can use the Accessibility options and set up “Assistive Touch”
    Go into Settings > General > Accessibility > Assistive Touch and toggle "On"
      You'll see a white "dot" on the screen you can drag it around to position it.
      Tap the dot to get the assistive touch menu (lets you activate other "gesture" controls)
      Tap ‘Devices’ > ‘More…’ > ‘Shake’
    You could also go to Accessibility > Assistive Touch and under ‘Customize Top Level Menu…’ add the ’Shake’ to the first menu if you don't want to have to drill down more levels.
    In the Assistive Touch options you can also set a “Custom Action” like “Double-top” and set that to shake.
      Then when you double tap the Assistive Touch icon it will initiate the shake gesture
    Finally, I like to enable Assistive Touch under the Accessibility Shortcut.
      Then I can triple-tap and select the “Assistive Touch” option to toggle Assistive touch on and off when I triple press the side button.
Closing
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