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Andrew Orr

Since 2015 Andrew has been writing about Apple, privacy, security, and at one point even Android. You can find him most places online under the username @andrewornot.

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Articles by Andrew Orr

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What Will Happen to Automation in macOS?

Andrew Orr ·

The next version of macOS will include more UIKit (iOS) apps. Rumored to be among them is Apple’s Shortcuts app. So what happens to Automator, AppleScript, and AppleEvents?

So what happens when iOS apps comes to the Mac this fall? It seems impossible that Apple will allow them to be controlled by AppleScript and Automator…Will “classic” Mac apps get the ability to be controlled via Shortcuts, too? Or will there be a schism between the two different classes of apps?

But whatever happens, it’s clear that iOS and macOS are going to face the future of user automation together, not separately.

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Apple Adds HBO to Apple TV Channels in Betas

Andrew Orr ·

Apple adds HBO to Apple TV Channels in the latest betas of iOS 12.3 and tvOS 12.3. Channels lets users subscribe to streaming video services from within the TV app.

The most notable addition is HBO for $14.99 per month, in time for the final three episodes of Game of Thrones, while other recently added channels include Cinemax, EPIX, Sundance Now, Lifetime Movie Club, and UMC.

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U.S. Border Patrol Has ‘Near-Unfettered’ Authority to Search and Seize Devices

Andrew Orr ·

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have “near-unfettered authority to search and seize travelers’ devices at the border.”

The agencies’ policies allow officers to search devices for general law enforcement purposes, such as investigating and enforcing bankruptcy, environmental, and consumer protection laws. The agencies also say that they can search and seize devices for the purpose of compiling “risk assessments” or to advance pre-existing investigations. The policies even allow officers to consider requests from other government agencies to search specific travelers’ devices.

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After Eight Years Apple Obsoletes iPad 2

Andrew Orr ·

Eight years ago Apple launched the iPad 2. Now the company is adding all iPad 2 models to its obsolete products list.

The only exceptions are in California and Turkey, where due to local laws, Apple will continue to service the iPad 2 until March 2021. From that date, the iPad 2 will finally go from “vintage” to “obsolete” worldwide.

The iPad 2 was my first Apple device, and iOS 5 my first iOS. I immediately fell it love with the device, and from then onward I was an Apple fan. May it Rest In Peace.

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iPhone China Sales Down 30% in Q1 2019

Andrew Orr ·

Apple’s iPhone China sales are down 30% in Q1 2019. Huawei continues to dominate, capturing 34% of China’s smartphone market.

Apple’s performance in China is concerning, given that the worst quarter for iPhone shipments is usually Q2 or Q3, not Q1 when new devices are still fresh. Apple has acted to cut iPhone retail prices, which has largely relieved the pressure from its channel partners.

I wonder how much of iPhone sales in China were impacted by Chinese companies encouraging employees to boycott Apple in favor of Huawei.

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Vodafone Denies Huawei Italy ‘Backdoor’

Andrew Orr ·

A report from Bloomberg says software flaws found in Vodafone’s Huawei equipment back in 2011-2012 were backdoors. Vodafone, while admitting that the equipment did have security flaws, denies that Huawei could have used them as such.

The issues in Italy identified in the Bloomberg story were all resolved and date back to 2011 and 2012. The ‘backdoor’ that Bloomberg refers to is Telnet, which is a protocol that is commonly used by many vendors in the industry for performing diagnostic functions. It would not have been accessible from the internet. Bloomberg is incorrect in saying that this ‘could have given Huawei unauthorised access to the carrier’s fixed-line network in Italy’.

The BBC article is worth the read. Also keep in mind that this isn’t the first time Bloomberg has reported on alleged backdoors by a Chinese company. They provided no evidence the first time and so far have refused to issue a retraction.

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Apple Poached Lead 5G Intel Developer Umashankar Thyagarajan

Andrew Orr ·

Just weeks before Apple and Qualcomm reached a settlement, Apple poached Intel employee Umashankar Thyagarajan.

Mr. Thyagarajan’s departure is understood to have been a setback to Intel’s efforts, forcing the company to reshuffle the 5G project. Shortly afterwards, Intel said it would not be able to release a 5G smartphone chip until 2020, more than a year after Qualcomm.

Very interesting. More and more pieces of the puzzle are being revealed.

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Belgian Programmer Solves 20 Year Old Crypto Puzzle

Andrew Orr ·

In 1999, MIT created a puzzle designed to take 35 years to solve. Belgian programmer Bernard Fabrot has solved it early.

The puzzle essentially involves doing roughly 80 trillion successive squarings of a starting number, and was specifically designed to foil anyone trying to solve it more quickly by using parallel computing.

“There have been hardware and software advances beyond what I predicted in 1999,” says MIT professor Ron Rivest, who first announced the puzzle in April 1999. “The puzzle’s fundamental challenge of doing roughly 80 trillion squarings remains unbroken, but the resources required to do a single squaring have been reduced by much more than I predicted.”

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Robots Company Anki Shuts Down

Andrew Orr ·

Robotics company Anki announced that it’s shutting down, and close to 200 employees would be paid a week of severance. The company said it was left without “significant funding” to support its goals.

“Despite our past successes, we pursued every financial avenue to fund our future product development and expand on our platforms,” a company spokesperson said. “A significant financial deal at a late stage fell through with a strategic investor and we were not able to reach an agreement. We’re doing our best to take care of every single employee and their families, and our management team continues to explore all options available.”

Sad to see. I remember first seeing Anki announced at Apple’s keynote back in 2013.

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Silicon Valley Lobbyists Want to Limit California Consumer Privacy Act

Andrew Orr ·

Silicon Valley lobbying groups are trying to gut the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).

The California Consumer Privacy Act, or CCPA, gives residents of California the ability to request the data that businesses collect on them, demand that it be deleted, and opt out of having that data sold to third parties, among other things. But last week, the California Assembly’s Committee on Privacy and Consumer Protection advanced a series of bills that would either amend CCPA or carve out exemptions for certain categories of businesses.

I have a couple of opinions here. I think groups affected by a certain bill or law should have the right to voice their opinion. On the other hand I feel uneasy by corporate lobbying focused on donating or influencing political campaigns where there is a conflict of interest.

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Toyota Retrofits Older Vehicles for Apple CarPlay

Andrew Orr ·

Owners of Toyota’s Camry and Sienna vehicles will be able to add Apple CarPlay and Amazon Alexa as part of a retrofit.

Toyota says it will be notifying Camry and Sienna owners and “encouraging them to contact their dealer” about the retrofit; the installation will be done at dealerships. We reached out to Toyota to ask if the retrofit costs anything, and a spokesperson for the brand said there “may be a small service charge” and that dealers will be able to provide more information. Toyota doesn’t say how long it will actually take to complete the installation.

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This Algorithm Could Erase Your Criminal Records

Andrew Orr ·

This month, a California judge erased thousands of criminals records with the help of an algorithm. The creators of it say they’re just getting started.

It discards any record involving a violent crime, as such records do not qualify. For those that remain, the tool automatically fills out the necessary paperwork. In other words, the algorithm replaced the process being done manually at the expungement clinics.

Working with San Francisco’s raw data, Code For America was able to identify 8,132 eligible criminal records in a matter of minutes – in addition to the 1,230 found manually already. They dated as far back as 1975, the year in which the city started digitising its files.