Posts in Linked

Apple News Quietly Takes Off→

Apple News got a major overhaul with iOS 10. Part of that was a change in its design, but there were other significant changes like human curation of news stories that have greatly improved the app. According to an article published by The Nieman Journalism Lab, those changes have had a big effect for some news organizations:

CNN… says its Apple News content got 36.5 million unique readers in September, a major increase from August’s 5 million. Its pageviews also increased significantly to 274 million, up from 43 million a month before.

“It’s really quite a remarkable story,” said Alex Wellen, CNN’s chief product officer. While CNN had seen “steady traffic growth” for most of the year,” said Wellen, Apple’s tweaks to its news app have changed the traffic picture significantly.

Bloomberg has seen a similarly significant spike in readership via Apple News. The difference appears to be at least in part a consequence of large news organizations’ regular inclusion in the Top Stories and human-curated Featured Stories sections. Other sites, like Slate, told The Nieman Journalism Lab that their pageviews have been flat.

Notwithstanding the eye-opening increases in traffic for some sites, the jury is still out on whether Apple News can generate significant revenue for news organizations:

Monetization is “still a work in progress,” noted [Bloomberg’s] Havens. Slate, in a similar position, is “not monetizing Apple News very well at the moment,” said Schieffer. Wellen said CNN “has monetized its stories,” though he wouldn’t give specific details. Ads still feel like a rare occurrence for its Apple News content; publishers are still eager for integration with comScore, a major hurdle to getting advertisers interested in the platform.

Permalink

How Slack Is Using Emoji→

After introducing emoji reactions last year, our own Slack team saw a dip in the total number of messages sent. With hundreds of members communicating across a couple thousand channels, it was a welcome change. Before emoji reactions, messages begot more messages: replies, questions, acknowledgment. In a word, noise.

Fascinating look at how Slack is using emoji inside the company. It’s sort of amazing how versatile emoji can be when used in work communications with a bit of creativity. I’m also going to implement this idea for our own Slack:

Speaking of 18F, check out their blog post about using emoji reactions for knowledge management. They tag all “evergreen” content found in channels with :evergreen_tree:, and use a search query like the one mentioned above to find new messages worth codifying in their handbooks. At Slack, we do something similar, where anyone can tag a message with :notebook: to indicate it might be worth adding to the company’s internal documentation.

Permalink

How Apple’s Apps Will Use the Touch Bar→

Good overview by Benjamin Mayo of all the Apple apps that will have Touch Bar integration on the new MacBook Pros. Apple certainly had the time to build extensive support for the new API while waiting for the new Pros to ship.

That’s a total of 23 Apple apps that live in the /Applications root folder with Touch Bar support as of the current macOS 10.12.1 build. The following apps have no Touch Bar integration as far as I could tell; App Store, Automator, Chess, Dashboard, Dictionary, DVD Player, Font Book, Image Capture, Photo Booth and Stickies. I expect all of Apple’s apps to flesh out their Touch Bar integrations in future macOS update.

See also: Steve Troughton-Smith’s utility to grab a screenshot of the currently active app in the Touch Bar.

Permalink

Connected, Episode 115: Out in the Real World→

This week: Stephen’s new MacBook Pro, Federico’s new Amazon Echo Dot and the future of everything.

Myke was away on Connected this week, so Stephen and I talked about pro users and their Macs, plus what we’re doing with Alexa and the Amazon Echo. You can listen here.

Sponsored by:

  • Braintree: Code for easy online payments.
  • Mailroute: a secure, hosted email service for protection from viruses and spam. Get a free trial and 10% off, for the lifetime of your account.
Permalink

Twelve South Introduces Fermata Wireless Headphone Charging Stand→

Mac and iOS accessory maker Twelve South debuted a headphone charging stand, which serves to display your high-end wireless headphones while they charge. The stand has a leather covered pedestal to hang your wireless headphones on and is available in black and silver. The Fermata can be plugged into a wall outlet, saving you from charging your headphones via a port on your Mac and charges via a micro-USB cable that is hidden in the post when not in use. The micro-USB connector is reversible, which should make it easy to plug in your headphones.

The Fermata is available for purchase from Twelve South’s website for $79.99 and ships internationally.

Permalink

New Apple Ad: Dive→

Apple introduced a quirky iPhone 7 ad on YouTube today called Dive. The ad features an older gentleman lounging by a swimming pool at what looks like a resort. As La Virgen De La Macarena begins to play, he turns up the volume, props his iPhone 7 up in a puddle of water on a table, and heads to the diving platforms. He hands his sunglasses to a girl as he climbs to the highest platform, pauses to glance down at a young woman sunbathing by the pool, and executes a perfect dive that splashes his iPhone. The spot ends with the tag line ‘stereo speakers on iPhone 7’ followed by, ‘practically magic.’ The clothing and slightly washed out colors of the video, which highlights the iPhone 7’s stereo speakers and water resistance, give it a vaguely old-fashioned, eccentric feel.

Permalink

Automation Service IFTTT Announces New Functionality and Apps→

A big limitation of IFTTT has been that Recipes could only execute one action. Today, IFTTT launched Applets, which can do everything that Recipes could, but more. According to the IFTTT blog:

In the past, you used IFTTT by adding Recipes, which were “if this, then that” connections between two services. Today, Recipes have evolved into Applets. Applets can do everything that Recipes could — and much more. They bring your services together, creating new experiences that you can unlock with a single switch.

The introduction of Applets includes a redesign of IFTTT.com and the combination of IFTTT’s IF and DO apps into one app called IFTTT, which can be downloaded for free on the App Store.

Applets

Applets

IFTTT is also adding tools for its partners to build services that take advantage of Applets’ multiple action and filtering capabilities and opening its partner platform to anyone with an API, which should help IFTTT add to its library of Applets quickly. Multiple action support is a big deal for IFTTT that opens up a wide array of possibilities. It will be interesting to see what integrations are built.

Permalink

Uber Previews App Redesign that Adds Multiple Service Integrations→

Over the next several weeks, Uber is rolling out a redesign of its ride-hailing app world-wide. The update integrates with your calendar and contacts allowing Uber to anticipate your destinations and locate your friends by allowing them to share their location through the app. According to Uber:

The new Uber app learns from your routines. So if you’re a frequent rider you’ll see “shortcuts” that predict where you could be headed. This means you can get moving with just one tap. Soon you’ll also be able to connect your calendar with Uber. Once you connect, your meetings and appointments will automatically appear as “shortcuts,” saving you the hassle of digging through another app to find the right address.

Uber has also redesigned how you pick your mode of transportation so you can price shop between uberX, uberPOOL, and UberBLACK. The app will integrate with several services too, so you can do things like check transit times and restaurant reviews, look up Foursquare tips for your destination, use exclusive Snapchat filters, order food from UberEATS, and play music in your car with Pandora.

Permalink