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The Few-And-Crude Edition Wednesday, May 11, 2016

Lost Calendar Events, Change Notifications, And iCloud, by Michael Tsai

In conclusion, iCloud Calendar is not as reliable as I thought it was. This is probably not the type of reliability problem that would show up in Apple’s statistics. Indeed, I did not report it to Apple because I did not know how to do so in a useful way. Contacting Apple’s support didn’t seem like a productive avenue, and since my Mac is more than three years old it’s no longer covered by Apple Care, anyway. So I’m hoping this was just a fluke that won’t happen again. More generally, Apple seems to be trying to get rid of the notion of files, but the tools for dealing with non-file-based data are few and crude. And this all becomes more complicated when the data is shared among multiple users.

Pay First

Apple Pay-led Surge In ANZ Card Customers Drives Rival Banks To Renegotiate, by James Eyers, Sydney Morning Hearld

ANZ Banking Group says its recent deal with Apple to provide Apple Pay in Australia has sparked a surge in applications for credit cards and deposit accounts, which has forced the other major banks to re-enter negotiations with the technology giant.

Canadian Banks Got Slightly Better Deal On Apple Pay: Source, by Barbara Shecter, Financial Post

A landmark deal by Canadian banks to embrace Apple Inc.’s mobile wallet payment system Tuesday came on slightly more favourable terms than U.S. financial services firms received, according to a source familiar with the arrangement. [...] The source characterized the arrangement as more in line with the lower fees paid to Apple in Australia and the United Kingdom.

How I Tried, Failed, And Eventually Learned To Use Apple Pay, by Claire Neary, The Globe And Mail

Moments later a young man arrived and asked if he could see my phone. He took a look at the Wallet app, then held my phone, backside down, against the payment terminal’s screen for a couple of seconds. An image of my credit card in the Apple wallet popped up, with a picture of a fingerprint below it that said “Pay with Touch ID.” This was a good sign. “Now put your finger on the home screen button,” the manager said. I got excited and pressed the button with my thumb and of course, the app closed and displayed the home screen of my phone. “No, don’t press it, just touch it,” he said patiently, holding my phone to the terminal until the payment screen popped up again. This time I held my thumb against the button as gently as I could. The image of the finger print on the screen gradually filled in, my phone vibrated, and the price of my bagel – $2.30 – appeared on the screen. The manager, the cashier and I shared a moment of gleeful satisfaction. “Thank you both!” I said, trying to hide from the three people in line as I left.

Stuff

Apple Updates iWork For iOS & OS X With Bug Fixes And Performance Improvements, by Zac Hall, 9to5Mac

Pages, Keynote, and Numbers for iPhone, iPad, and Mac have all received new versions with bug fixes and performance improvements.

Apple News Format Gains New Features For Publishers Including Custom Cover Images, by Benjamin Mayo, 9to5Mac

Apple is rolling out some iterative improvements to Apple News for publishers taking advantage of its Apple News Format to post articles. Apple is adding Map and Place components, to let authors pictographically display relevant locations — complete with pins to highlight POI.

First Click: Mailplane Is The Plainest Of All Mac Email Apps, That’s Why It’s Great, by Thomas Ricker, The Verge

What led me to pay $25 for Mailplane way back in 2009 is the same reason I still use it today: support for multiple Google accounts.

Gemini 2, by Agen G. N. Schmitz, TidBITS

In addition to detecting identical duplicates in archives, folders, apps, documents, videos, images, and audio files on your Mac, Gemini 2 can now find "similars" — files that are not 100 percent identical, but which could be considered redundant (such as photos shot from slightly different angles, or different file formats of the same song).

WhatsApp Launches Native Desktop App For Windows And Mac, by Ken Yeung, VentureBeat

After installing the app, you’ll have to scan a QR code using the WhatsApp app on your mobile device — the feature will be under “Settings” > “WhatsApp Web”. If the QR code is recognized, you’ll be authenticated on the desktop. WhatsApp for desktop connects to your phone to sync messages so potentially quite a bit of data will constantly be transmitted, depending on usage of course. The company advises that you connect your phone to Wi-Fi.

'Disney Infinity' Game Series Officially Discontinued By Disney, by Juli Clover, MacRumors

Disney today announced the end of its Disney Infinity line of games and accompanying figurines, which are being discontinued as of today. Disney Infinity games, such as the one available on the Apple TV and iOS devices, will officially no longer be updated and the studio that developed the games is being shuttered.

Develop

Apple CareKit: Everything You Need To Know About The Medical Care Framework, by Christian de Looper, Wareable

The benefits for patients are clear - there's no extra tech needed. Simply use the iPhone to track progress, keep a list of what you need to do and even let your doctors see your progress.

But the benefits don't stop there.

Should Apple Remove Sandboxing From The Mac App Store?, by CIO

Can you imagine what some users would say if Apple announced that it was removing app sandboxing from the Mac App Store to increase its software sales profits? I can only imagine the hue and cry that would come from some outraged users angry that Apple was putting money ahead of security.

But it’s clear that Apple needs to improve what features sandboxed apps can offer Mac users. This would go a long way toward improving relationships with Mac developers and would encourage more of them to remain in the Mac App Store. It might also help get some of the developers that have left the store to come back over time.

The Plan To Ban Work Emails Out Of Hours, by Hugh Schofield, BBC

Should governments step in to regulate work emails and so rescue harassed staff from the perils of digital burnout? The answer in France appears to be "Yes". President Francois Hollande's Socialist Party is about to vote through a measure that will give employees for the first time a "right to disconnect".

Notes

Three Years In San Francisco, by Mikeindustries

It doesn’t take long for your perceptions of large tech companies to change once you begin working at one. I knew there would be a ton of smart people at Twitter, but I didn’t realize it would be pretty much everyone at the company. I also thought that everyone who had secured a position that involved managing people or products had demonstrated experience successfully managing people or products, and that was just not true in many cases.

Let’s talk about product management first and then we’ll get to people management.

Worried? You’re Not Alone, by Roni Caryn Rabin, New York Times

I’m a worrier. Deadlines, my children, all the time they spend online — you name it, it’s on my list of worries. I even worry when I’m not worried. What am I forgetting to worry about?

Turns out I’m not alone.

Bottom of the Page

One of the things that I've stopped worrying is death. I think I've managed to convince myself that I am satisfied with what I already have all these years. However, I still, of course, worry about the pain and suffering that may accompany my death.

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I don't know why iOS insists on auto-correcting "father" and "mother" to "Father" and "Mother" on my iPhone.

Does Siri know something that I don't?

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Thanks for reading.