Posts in news

Apple and IBM Join Forces to Tackle the Mobile Enterprise

A few hours ago, Apple and IBM announced that they were partnering up with each other to “transform enterprise mobility”. The partnership will bring new enterprise solutions to iOS including native apps developed by IBM, unique IBM cloud services for iOS, a new AppleCare for enterprise, and will allow IBM to sell iPhones and iPads packaged with “industry-specific solutions”.

The new IBM MobileFirst for iOS solutions will be built in an exclusive collaboration that draws on the distinct strengths of each company: IBM’s big data and analytics capabilities, with the power of more than 100,000 IBM industry and domain consultants and software developers behind it, fused with Apple’s legendary consumer experience, hardware and software integration and developer platform. The combination will create apps that can transform specific aspects of how businesses and employees work using iPhone and iPad, allowing companies to achieve new levels of efficiency, effectiveness and customer satisfaction—faster and easier than ever before.

The two companies are working together to bring more than 100 mobile solutions, including a number of apps that are designed and developed for the enterprise. These so-called mobile solutions will address specific industry needs including, but not limited to, those in retail, healthcare, banking, travel and transportation, telecommunications and insurance. They will be built from scratch with IBM’s cloud software services for analytics, data security and data management native to iOS. The hope for both companies is that the partnership will “deliver a new level of value for businesses”. These mobile solutions will start arriving later this year and into 2015.

Read more

[Updated] Apple Launches iTunes Pass in Japan, Australia and the US, Lets Users Refill iTunes Credit with Passbook

iTunes Pass promoted on Apple's Japan website (text translated by Google Translate)

iTunes Pass promoted on Apple’s Japan website (text translated by Google Translate)

UPDATE (17 July): iTunes Pass is now also available in the United States and Australia, as well as in Japan as previously reported.

As first reported by 9to5 Mac, Apple has today launched iTunes Pass in Japan (Google Translate). The service allows users to add credit to their Apple ID for iTunes Store, App Store and iBooks Store purchases without purchasing an iTunes gift card. iTunes Pass works by installing a new pass into iOS’ Passbook app, connected to a user’s iTunes account.

Use the iTunes Pass, you can now deposit directly to the account of the App Store or iTunes Store you. Go to the iTunes Store in the iOS device you have, if you tap “Use iTunes Card / Code” button and scroll down, you can get the iTunes Pass. 3 Please tell specialist that then, the Apple Store near you, you want to deposit into account. When you open the iTunes Pass from the Passbook, specialists will scan it, and accepts the payment. Balance is updated on the fly, available immediately.

The pass can apparently be installed from the iTunes Store or App Store for Japanese users. Once installed, employees at Apple Stores in Japan can scan the pass and directly add credit to the iTunes account. Its a small convenience to not have to buy a gift card and then redeem it (which has also become easier with camera scanning of gift card codes), but the impact will probably be limited until this program expands to international Apple Stores and to other stores that sell iTunes gift cards.

A footnote on the Japanese Apple site notes that “iTunes Pass is not available in Brazil, China and Turkey”, suggesting that an international rollout of iTunes Pass is probably imminent (except for those countries).

The End of Our Podcasts and A New Challenge

Today, my friend and co-host Myke Hurley announced that he’s leaving 5by5 to pursue new goals and be independent again. From his blog post:

Today I am announcing that I will be departing 5by5 on July 16th 2014.

The last 18 months have been a tremendous experience, but it is time for me to move on to new things. I have new goals that I want to tackle, and to be able to do this I need to be independent again.

Read more

Apple Publishes 2014 Environmental Responsibility Report

Late on Wednesday Apple published their 2014 Environmental Responsibility Report, detailing Apple’s efforts to reduce their impact on the environment. The company also updated their Environmental Responsibility pages on their website, reflecting the new data contained in this year’s Environmental Responsibility Report.

In the report and on their website, they highlight the significant progress they have made to reducing their carbon footprint. Between fiscal year 2011 to fiscal year 2013, Apple’s carbon footprint from energy use actually dropped by 31 percent, despite overall energy consumption increasing by 44 percent. As for this year’s goal of powering Apple retail stores by renewable energy, they have so far converted 145 of their US retail stores and all 21 of their Australian retail stores to using 100 percent renewable energy (either purchasing from third-party renewable energy providers or participating in
utility green tariff programs).

Read more

Tweetbot for Mac Updated with Support for Multiple Twitter Images

Following an update released on iOS last month, Tweetbot for Mac has been updated to version 1.6 today, adding support for multiple images shared through Twitter’s sharing service. The update also includes a “Play” button for Instagram thumbnails and various bug fixes.

Support for multiple Twitter images mirrors the implementation of the iPhone app, with inline previews for tweets that contain multiple photos and the ability to share multiple images at once by attaching them (up to four) to the compose box. Tweets with multiple images show a carousel in their detail views, and, on OS X, you can click on the image indicators to move across pictures manually. Both on iOS and OS X, Tweetbot still doesn’t support Twitter’s animated GIFs, introduced by the company in June.

Tweetbot for Mac 1.6 is available on the Mac App Store.

“App: The Human Story” Documentary Wants to Capture the Story of Apps and App Creators

Launched by Story & Pixel on Kickstarter today, “App: The Human Story” is a documentary based on a theme that’s extremely dear to me and, I believe, to MacStories’ readers: the story of apps and their cultural impact over the past seven years.

By highlighting what “it means to be human in a world of technology”, the documentary doesn’t simply want to focus on the evolution of the App Store and iOS devices – rather, Story & Pixel (who are Jake Schumacher and Jedidiah Hurt, with Adam Lisagor as executive producer) aim to document the human effort, the stories, and the voice of people who craft software. And not just any computer software, but the cultural and economic phenomenon of the decade – the app.

Read more

Picturelife Launches New Plans, Redesigned iOS App

Picturelife, a photo management and storage service that I’ve been trying since early 2014, has launched a major redesign today that includes a refreshed iOS app, a new website, new plans, and a new free storage tier. While I’m still not sure whether or not Picturelife will become my primary photo management solution (especially considering Apple’s Photos and iCloud announcements at WWDC), I’ve been impressed (as a free user) with the service so far, and today’s updates are noteworthy.

Read more