Posts in Linked

Canvas, Episode 22: Workflow – The Basics→

This week Fraser and Federico begin a multi-part series on the iOS automation app Workflow.

For the next several weeks on Canvas, we’re going to focus on Workflow with a series of episodes aimed at covering the basics of the app, its automation features, as well as its more advanced aspects. In the first episode, we explain what Workflow is and its key principles. We have lots more to come, so stay tuned. You can listen here.

Sponsored by:

  • Pingdom: Start monitoring your websites and servers today. Use offer CANVAS for 20% off.
Permalink

Steven Levy Reminisces About the First iPod→

The world in the Fall of 2001 was a very different place and time. Steven Levy went through his email archives for October of that year to tell the story of how he was introduced to the first iPod. Levy who wrote a cover story for Newsweek magazine about the iPod and later, a book, describes what it was like when he received that first iPod from Apple:

The box was striking, with a kinetic photo of Jimi Hendrix. When you opened it, the stark white device — which I’d describe as a thermostat control in a David Hockney painting — sat like a gem in a jewel box. Apple had also provided reviewers with a stack of CDs (presumably to dispel the charge that illegally downloaded music would populate the iPod’s 5-gigabyte hard drive).

In 2001, the iPod wasn’t the first MP3 player, but it combined existing technologies in a simple and stylish way that caused people to sit up and take notice. That first iPod was expensive and only worked tethered to a Mac via FireWire, which it was criticized for by some. But Levy and others saw the promise of the fledgling device.

Fifteen years later, it’s interesting to consider Levy’s interview of Steve Jobs as he legitimately questions who the iPod is for and why Apple made it. Few products reach the heights that the iPod eventually did, but it’s the possibility that one might that makes the introduction of new gadgets and technologies exciting to all but the most jaded.

Permalink

Perpendicular Philosophy→

Jason Snell:

Apple, in contrast, believes that touchscreen interfaces are great and computers are great and they’re not the same thing. Apple has steadfastly resisted adding touchscreens to the Mac, and when you ask the company’s executives why, they have been remarkably consistent on this point for the past few years.

What defines a computer, they’ll say, is that it’s made up of two perpendicular surfaces. There’s a vertical display surface, more or less up and down, right in front of you. And there’s a horizontal control surface—a table or desk or the base of a laptop—that you use for input and control. If you want a Mac, that’s what you get. If you want a touch-based device, get an iPad.

Seen through this philosophy, the new MacBook Pro and its Touch Bar interface fit perfectly. The Touch Bar brings the things Apple loves about touchscreen interfaces—customizability and support for multitouch—and adds it to the control surface of the Mac, right above the keyboard. It doesn’t break Apple’s definition of a computer at all, because it’s a new sort of touchscreen, and it’s part of the keyboard area, not the display area.

I don’t use a Mac as my daily computer anymore, and I don’t plan to switch from my iPad Pro, but the Touch Bar is the first change to the Mac line to pique my curiosity in years. Probably because it borrows from what makes iOS great.

Permalink

Ars Technica on the T1 Chip in the New MacBook Pro→

Andrew Cunningham, writing for Ars Technica, got Apple on the record about the T1 chip and what it does for security and the Touch Bar:

At any rate, the T1 is an interesting chip that does much more than support Touch ID and Apple Pay. Apple tells us that it has a built-in image signal processor (ISP) related to the ones Apple uses in iPhone and iPad SoCs, something which Troughton-Smith suggests could protect the camera from malware hijacking. And its Secure Enclave handles the encryption and storage of fingerprint data and protects it from the rest of the operating system and its apps, much as it does in iOS.

When you interact with the Touch Bar, Apple tells us that the majority of the processing is being done by the Intel CPU, although the T1 also appears to do some processing in specific situations for security’s sake, as when Apple Pay is used. But to keep the Touch Bar from counting toward the number of external monitors you can use (Intel’s GPUs support a total of three separate displays, AMD’s support six), the T1 is used to drive the Touch Bar’s screen. From what Apple told me, it sounds like the image you’re seeing is actually being drawn by the main system GPU but is being output to the display by T1, not unlike the way other hybrid graphics implementations work.

Between A-series chips, the W1, and the T1, Apple’s most fascinating work is happening in the custom silicon space. The whole T1-Touch Bar deal is extremely intriguing.

Permalink

Connected, Episode 114: Two and Half Macs→

Hello again. The Connected trio have just wrapped up watching Apple’s Mac event and are here to talk about the news and share some first impressions.

In the latest episode of Connected, Myke and Stephen discuss today’s announcements from Apple’s ‘Hello Again’ event while I listen and quietly wish for a Touch Bar on the iPad Pro’s Smart Keyboard. You can listen here.

Sponsored by:

Permalink

Logitech Launches Amazon Echo-Harmony Integration→

Earlier this week, Logitech announced support for a new Alexa skill that lets Echo owners control their Harmony hubs and associated devices and services.

Today Logitech announced a new Amazon Alexa skill that enables voice control of your entire living room entertainment experience using a Logitech Harmony Hub with Alexa-enabled devices such as the Amazon Echo or Echo Dot.

When the skill is enabled on Amazon Echo or Amazon Echo Dot, you can start and stop Harmony Activities, control your entertainment devices, or even turn directly to your favorite channels, hands free, using only your voice. Harmony users can simply say “Alexa, turn on the TV,” or “Alexa, turn on Netflix” to control the TV as well as other entertainment and smart home devices, and Harmony makes it happen.

As those who listen to Connected may know, I’ve spent the past few months building a home automation setup based on the Amazon Echo and Alexa (more on this in the future). Connecting my TV to voice commands was the missing piece.

Here’s Dan Moren, writing for Six Colors:

I set up a similar system a while back, using a combination of other services like IFTTT and Yonomi, but Logitech’s first-party integration definitely puts it in the reach of anybody with an Echo and a Harmony Hub who doesn’t want to muck around with nitty-gritty technical details.

Logitech’s integration mostly delivers what I could already do with those other services, but there are a couple of nice additions. For one thing, it gets rid of the “trigger” nomenclature imposed by IFTTT. Additionally, it lets you declare “friendly names” for your devices, so even if your Harmony Activity is “Watch Apple TV” you can just say “turn on Apple TV”, or you can use “turn on game console” or “turn on Xbox.” Other smart home devices that work with the Harmony Hub, like Hue lights, can also be triggered, though of course the Echo already has built-in control for those devices as well.

This sounds great. I ordered a Harmony hub + remote yesterday, and it’s coming next week.

Permalink

Twitter Is Shutting Down Vine→

Earlier today, from the Vine company blog:

Since 2013, millions of people have turned to Vine to laugh at loops and see creativity unfold. Today, we are sharing the news that in the coming months we’ll be discontinuing the mobile app.

Nothing is happening to the apps, website or your Vines today. We value you, your Vines, and are going to do this the right way. You’ll be able to access and download your Vines. We’ll be keeping the website online because we think it’s important to still be able to watch all the incredible Vines that have been made. You will be notified before we make any changes to the app or website.

Vine had the best seconds-to-laughs ratio of any modern social network. Its constraints bred a unique form of creativity I’m sad to see go away.

See also, this story by Brian Feldman:

Most important, the engines of this creativity were groups poorly served by, and often shut out from, mainstream cultural creation and consumption. Vine wasn’t just dominated by teenagers — it was dominated by teenagers of color. Especially black teens, who created a disproportionate number of popular Vines and used the social network to demonstrate wit, intelligence, creativity, and comic timing that was rarely given a spotlight elsewhere. That included dance trends like the yeet.

Permalink

CNET Asks: Does the Mac Still Matter?→

Apple announced a new line of MacBook Pros today that replace the function keys with a Touch Bar, a touch sensitive strip that includes customizable software buttons and Touch ID functionality. CNET, in an exclusive 90-minute briefing with Phil Schiller, Craig Federighi, and Jony Ive, discussed the new MacBook Pros and explored the relevancy of the Mac in a mobile era.

That the new MacBook Pros are thinner, lighter, faster, and brighter is not unexpected for a laptop that hasn’t been updated for a while. What’s special about the new MacBook Pros is the Touch Bar. In a typically understated fashion, a reticent Jony Ive described the Touch Bar to CNET as:

’the beginning of a very interesting direction’ that combines ‘touch and display-based inputs with a mechanical keyboard.’

Phil Schiller was a little more forthcoming about what Apple hopes its new laptops will mean to users:

’We didn’t want to just create a speed bump on the MacBook Pro,’ he says. ‘In our view this is a big, big step forward. It is a new system architecture, and it allows us to then create many things to come, things that we can’t envision yet.’

The Touch Bar is a fascinating blend of ideas from iOS, such as touch tools for straightening photos, and existing macOS toolbars moved to the keyboard. Regardless of how you feel about how long it’s taken Apple to refresh the MacBook Pro, I’m optimistic about this new approach to the MacBook Pro and the possibilities it opens up to third-party developers.

Permalink

Apple Delays AirPods Release→

In a statement to TechCrunch, Apple said that it is delaying the introduction of AirPods:

The early response to AirPods has been incredible. We don’t believe in shipping a product before it’s ready, and we need a little more time before AirPods are ready for our customers.

Beyond the statement to TechCrunch, Apple has given no indication of the reason for the delay. Perhaps we will hear more during the Apple event tomorrow.

Permalink