This week on MacStories Unwind, John and Federico discuss MusicBox, one of the newest ways they keep up with newly-discovered music, and Black Bird, a new Apple TV+ mini-series that John’s been watching.
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This week on AppStories, we continue the MacStories Summer OS Preview Series with part one of our in-depth look at changes coming to Apple’s system apps on the iPhone, iPad, and Mac, including Weather, Clock, Safari, Mail, Messages, and Photos.
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On AppStories+, John reports on his Stage Manager and Sidecar experiments on the Mac, Stage Manager’s bugginess on the iPad, Federico is itching to try Ventura, and a discussion of third-party iOS 16 Lock Screen widgets.
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Because Club MacStories now encompasses more than just newsletters, we’ve created a guide to the past week’s happenings:
This week on MacStories Unwind, John escapes with Ambulance, an action-packed Michael Bay movie, while Federico enjoys a classic TV period drama: Mad Men.
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John’s Pick:
Federico’s Pick:
Today, Apple introduced new exclusive live sessions on Apple Music. The music streaming service kicked off Apple Music Sessions with performances by country music stars Carrie Underwood and Tenille Townes.
The sessions with Underwood and Townes, which include both audio-only and video components, were recorded in Spatial Audio at Apple’s Nashville, Tennessee studio. Apple has more coming from other country artists too:
Apple Music Sessions kicks off in Nashville with a host of incredible country artists already lined up, including Ronnie Dunn, Ingrid Andress, and many others.
According to Apple’s press release, the company will also expand the new Studio Sessions exclusives to other music genres in the future.
I’m looking forward to seeing where Apple takes Apple Music Sessions. With music libraries essentially being identical from one streaming service to another, it’s features like this that companies can use to set themselves apart.
To kick off our Summer OS Preview Series on AppStories this week, cover the top new features of iOS and iPadOS 16 and macOS Ventura, that are now available as part of Apple’s public beta program.
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On AppStories+, we talk about the purpose of the OS previews and the approach and process we take to writing them.
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To learn more about the benefits included with an AppStories+ subscription, visit our Plans page, or read the AppStories+ FAQ.
Because Club MacStories now encompasses more than just newsletters, we’ve created a guide to the past week’s happenings along with a look at what’s coming up next:
This week on MacStories Unwind, we dig into the hardware we use to enjoy movies, TV shows, and videogames.
Concepts: An Infinite Sketching App for iPad
Federico’s TV:
John’s TV:
Apple has announced a new Lockdown Mode for iOS, iPadOS, and macOS designed to protect people who may be personally targeted by sophisticated digital threats. In a press release, Apple says:
Lockdown Mode — the first major capability of its kind, coming this fall with iOS 16, iPadOS 16, and macOS Ventura — is an extreme, optional protection for the very small number of users who face grave, targeted threats to their digital security.
Lockdown mode is designed to limit certain features to reduce the attack surface available to spyware. The company said that:
At launch, Lockdown Mode includes the following protections:
- Messages: Most message attachment types other than images are blocked. Some features, like link previews, are disabled.
Web browsing: Certain complex web technologies, like just-in-time (JIT) JavaScript compilation, are disabled unless the user excludes a trusted site from Lockdown Mode.
Apple services: Incoming invitations and service requests, including FaceTime calls, are blocked if the user has not previously sent the initiator a call or request.
Wired connections with a computer or accessory are blocked when iPhone is locked.
Configuration profiles cannot be installed, and the device cannot enroll into mobile device management (MDM), while Lockdown Mode is turned on.
Apple is also doubling its bounty payouts for qualifying findings in Lockdown mode up to a maximum of $2 million.
The company added that its grant of $10 million, plus any damages awarded in its lawsuit against the NSO Group:
will be made to the Dignity and Justice Fund established and advised by the Ford Foundation — a private foundation dedicated to advancing equity worldwide — and designed to pool philanthropic resources to advance social justice globally.
The Dignity and Justice Fund will begin making grants from the funds beginning late this year or in early 2023.
Lockdown Mode is clearly intended for high-profile individuals who feel they may be at risk of a targeted attack. Although the feature will be available to anyone to turn on, doing so will significantly limit the features of the iPhone, iPad, and Mac in ways that most people are unlikely to want to do.
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