MyAppleMenu

The Regarding-Upgradability Edition Friday, December 15, 2017

iMac Pro: The First Shoe Drops, by Jason Snell, Six Colors

If Apple hadn’t announced it was bringing back the Mac Pro earlier this year, this would be a bigger deal; all the weight of expectations of Apple’s high-end user base would be crashing down on the iMac Pro. Instead, the iMac Pro is just the first shoe to drop in a revitalization of Apple’s pro Mac desktop line.

That’s good, because the iMac Pro doesn’t have a lot of features that many people will still wish for in a Mac Pro, mostly regarding upgradability.

iMac Pro's RAM Can Only Be Upgraded By Apple Or Authorized Service Provider, by Juli Clover, MacRumors

There is no rear hatch because the RAM in the iMac Pro is not user upgradeable following purchase, but there's good news -- an Apple Store or an Apple Authorized Service Provider is able to open up the iMac Pro and swap out the RAM.

The Sound Of Music, by Horace Dediu, Asymco

Business models for music will come and go but music consumption is increasing. Access to the long tail has meant genres proliferated and production has spread to everyone who cares to try to make music.

[...]

Apple realizes this and the acquisition of Shazam and the launch of EarPods and of HomePod are to serve music.

Congress Must Act On The ‘Dreamers’, by Tim Cook and Charles Koch, Washington Post

The United States is at its best when all people are free to pursue their dreams. Our country has enjoyed unparalleled success by welcoming people from around the world who seek to make a better life for themselves and their families, no matter what their backgrounds. It is our differences that help us to learn from each other, to challenge our old ways of thinking and to discover innovative solutions that benefit us all. To advance that prosperity and build an even stronger future, each successive generation — including, today, our own — must show the courage to embrace that diversity and to do what is right.

We have no illusions about how difficult it can be to get things done in Washington, and we know that people of good faith disagree about aspects of immigration policy. If ever there were an occasion to come together to help people improve their lives, this is it. By acting now to ensure that dreamers can realize their potential by continuing to contribute to our country, Congress can reaffirm this essential American ideal.

Stuff

Apple Is Finally Selling Its Own Thunderbolt 3 USB-C Cables, by Chaim Gartenberg, The Verge

It’s a 0.8 meter (2.62 feet) USB-C to USB-C cable, and it can transfer data at up to 40 Gbps while charging at up to 100W. It costs $39, or twice what Apple’s two meter long cable that it includes with its laptops goes for.

Logic Pro X Updated To Take Advantage Of High Core Counts In The iMac Pro, Future Mac Pro, by Malcolm Owen, AppleInsider

According to the release notes, the latest iteration is capable of supporting up to 36 cores, more than double the core count offered by the 18-core model offered in the current iMac Pro range.

Apple Pay Promotion Launched, Granting $5 iTunes Gift Card For Some Online Shoppers, by Mike Wuerthele, AppleInsider

To celebrate the holiday season, and boost Apple Pay adoption, Apple has launched a promotion with select vendors that will award online purchasers that use the payment service a $5 App Store and iTunes gift card.

Ode To The Mac Mini: Craving An Update For Apple's Little Box That Can Do It All, by David Gewirtz, ZDNet

Unlike all the other Macs Apple offers, the Mac mini doesn't require you to conform to Apple's view of what a screen should be. This is important, because we tend to hang our screens on monitor arms and stands, and sometimes use very big screens.

Seeing AI App To ‘Narrate The World To Blind People’ Gets Handwriting Recognition And More, by Ben Lovejoy, 9to5Mac

Version 1 already had some amazing capabilities, including recognizing friends, guessing the emotions of people from their facial expressions, reading printed text and identifying products from their bar-codes. But version 2 adds four new capabilities.

Dropbox Paper Update Brings Refreshed UI, Enhanced Editing, And More To iOS, by Michael Potuck, 9to5Mac

Dropbox Paper is the company’s collaborative focused software for teams and businesses. [...] Today’s update brings updates to the UI, editing capabilities, to-do functionality, and calendar integration.

Nail The Guitar Sound Of Any Song With Tonebridge, by Charlie Sorrel, Cult of Mac

The iPad has many, many amazing effects apps for making music, and several high-level apps just for emulating guitar amplifiers and effects pedals. But what if you just want to plug in and play a song, and have your guitar sound just like the one on the record? That’s exactly what Tonebridge is for. Under the hood, this simulator app is as powerful as the others, but it’s way, way simpler to use.

Amazon To Start Selling Apple TV And Google Chromecast, by Ben Fox Rubin, CNET

"I can confirm that we are assorting Apple TV and Chromecast," an Amazon spokeswoman told CNET on Thursday, referring to the company's plans to stock up on the devices. She offered no further statements.

Develop

Apple Launches Its Podcast Analytics Service Into Beta,. by Sarah Perez, TechCrunch

At WWDC this year, Apple announced it would soon offer its own podcast analytics service for show creators who publish on iTunes. Today, that service has launched into beta, offering podcasters the ability to track unique devices and playback metrics for their podcasts, including when listeners drop off in the middle of a show.

Bottom of the Page

The Home screen of the latest iOS can, sometimes, be lacking in responsivness.

Sometimes, especially when I first wake up my iPhone, tapping on a folder does not open the folder immediately. So I thought something was wrong with my finger and I tap again. Which then iOS will open the folder -- responding to the first tap, and then immediately close the folder back up -- responding to the second tap.

And sometimes, the haptic feedback is mising when I do a 3D touch. The 3D touch was successfully execute, sans the vibration that makes me feel I am doing a 3D touch.

~

Thanks for reading.