Then there was that time the late Steve Jobs taught Guy Kawasaki a life lesson. It comes in the form of a Quora answer posted by Guy Kawasaki and republished by The Huffington Post. In it, he talks about the time Steve Jobs walked up to him with a nameless companion and asked a question about a company. Mr. Kawasaki rattled off his negative opinion of that company, and Steve Jobs then introduced him to his companion, the CEO of that company. “Thank you, Steve.” 😂 There was a lesson in that incident, though, and I think it makes a very good read. So go read it.
Asypr Bringing InnerSpace Game of Exploration to Mac
Aspyr announced Thursday that it will be bringing InnerSpace to the Mac. InnerSpace is an exploration game where players, “soar through the skies and dive through the oceans, and the secrets of Inverse will reveal themselves.” Players can also uncover artifacts throughout the game world that upgrade your vehicle and reveal clues about past civilizations. I’m writing about it today because I think it’s gorgeous. Initially crowdfunded through KickStarter, Aspyr is partnering with the developers to bring it to both PlayStation 4 and Steam (for Mac and Linux). Pricing hasn’t been announced, and the game is expected later this year.
Sonos Puts the PLAYBASE Under Your Television
Today Sonos announced their new PLAYBASE, combining home theater sound and music playback in a low-profile base (just 2.28″ high!) that sits underneath your TV. The PLAYBASE is the result of nearly four years of iterative design work inside Sonos, and is made to complement the wall-mountable PLAYBAR in Sonos’ lineup. If your TV sits on a table, put a PLAYBASE under it; on the wall, put a PLAYBAR there. The PLAYBASE will hold TVs up to 77lbs, which should handle what most of you have.
While I haven’t yet tested the PLAYBASE in my home, I did get a chance to test it at Sonos’ offices last month, and the stereo spread and frequency response are impressive. They were able to fit a subwoofer in the thin design by use of a specially-engineered S-shaped port. It works, too, and really fills a room with sound for both music and video content. Of course, you’re able to use your iPhone or iPad to automatically tune the PLAYBASE to your room with Sonos’ Trueplay technology, ensuring the best possible sound for your environment. The PLAYBASE is priced at US$699 (same as the PLAYBAR), and will be released on April 4, 2017. Existing Sonos owners can pre-order starting today.
NASA Offers Free Code In New Software Catalog
Every year since 2014, NASA has published a software catalog, On Wednesday NASA released a software catalog with over 1,000 free code samples. The free code is divided into 15 categories like robotics, aeronautics, climate simulators, biological sensors and guidance systems. Although the code is free, some restrictions may apply. For some, any U.S. citizen can apply to use it. Others can only be used by other federal agencies. And there is even some open-source code in the catalog. Open-source code can be directly downloaded, but most others require you to create an account, or in some cases sign a government contract or a usage agreement. If you’re in the sciences or like to tinker at home, be sure to check out this year’s NASA catalog.
Apple Bundles Final Cut Pro X, Logic Pro X, Other Pro Apps for Education for $199.99
Apple announced Pro Apps Bundle for Education Thursday. It includes all of the company’s pro software—Final Cut Pro X, Logic Pro X, Motion, Compressor, and MainStage—in one bundle for $199.99. “The industry-leading apps used by professional video editors and musicians are now available at a special price for qualifying college students, teachers, and education institutions,” the company said. Purchased individually outside of the education channel, these apps would total $629.95. This is no substitute for new professional Mac hardware, but it is a statement of support for the pro market, and it comes in the wake of CEO Tim Cook telling shareholders that Apple cares about the pro market. Getting students embedded with Apple’s software is a good way to hook them into the Apple ecosystem.
New Apple iPad Pro Spot Shows the Power of Apple Pencil to Sign Documents
Apple has a new entrant in its iPad Pro commercials where the company responds to tweets from real people. The new one is called No more printing, and shows how you can use iPad Pro and Apple Pencil to sign documents. It’s anchored around a tweet from @ROSESplease about printing personal documents on the company printer. I thought these spots were interesting when they launched, and found it interesting that Apple was interacting indirectly with social media and tweets from real folks. As time goes on, however, I find that I don’t think about these adds at all. That certainly wasn’t true with many other Apple campaigns. Then again, I’m not the target demo for these spots. This is the fifth spot in the series, making it likely they’re performing well for Apple.
Apollo 11 Space Capsule Goes on a New Mission
NASA’s Apollo 11 space capsule “Columbia” took astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins to lunar orbit and safely back home in July 1969. The fiftieth anniversary of that trip is coming up soon, so the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum is going to put the 13,600 pound capsule on display in four major U.S. cities starting late this year and continuing into 2019. This article at NPR has the story, the cities and the dates. (Image credit: Smithsonian.)
New Drone Footage Shows Nearly Complete Apple Park
Apple announced last week its spaceship campus is named Apple Park, and will open in April. Now, only days later, we get to see new drone footage showing the nearly complete facility. The new drone flyover shows the main ring-shaped building with its finished solar panel roof, and construction still underway on other structures. Landscaping is coming along, as are the two miles of trails winding through the park. Matthew Roberts shot the video showing Apple Park’s current state as of the end of February, and the entire campus is looking more impressive every day.
How to Turn Siri into a Metronome (Video)
I love this! Drummer Richy Ramirez posted a video to Instagram where he used Siri as his metronome. Really, he used her as both metronome and backing track. It’s clever and entertaining, both, and I love the beat he lays down on top. Check it out.
Stanford's 'Developing iOS 10 Apps with Swift' free on iTunes U
iTunes U pushed a version of Developing iOS 10 Apps with Swift. The free iOS tutorial series from the Stanford School of Engineering has been updated for iOS 10 and the current version of Swift. Reader Rick Allen turned me onto this release, calling it, “a great and free resource,” which seems like a great reason to pass it on. Reviews on iTunes are overwhelmingly good, too. The description says the 14-part course covers UI design, memory management, a model-view-controller paradigm, object-oriented databases, animation, power management, multi-threading, networking, and performance. And it’s free through iTunes U.
Get $8.62 Off Your Amazon Order (Today Only) Thanks to Harris Reputation Poll
Amazon announced Wednesday a celebratory customer discount. The company told customers they could get $8.62 off their order of $50 or more because Amazon topped the Harris Poll Reputation Quotient with a score of 86.27. This is the second year in a row Amazon took top ranking in the annual survey—Apple was #5 in this year’s results, down from #2 in 2016 and #1 in 2012. Amazon’s score of 86.27 in the survey was a record high score. But who cares, right? The important thing is you can get $8.62 off your Amazon order using coupon code BIGTHANKS at checkout. If you order precisely $50 worth of stuff, that would be 17.24% off your order, which is significant. While you’re at it, use TMO’s affiliate link when ordering.
Han Solo Star Wars Movie Starts Filming
It’s like the whole Star Wars universe has been begging for a Han Solo movie, and it’s finally in production. Filming started this week in London, and the cast photo gives us a glimpse into the movie without giving anything away. The pic includes Alden Ehrenreich (Han Solo), Donald Glover (Lando Calrissian), and Joonas Suotamo (Chewbacca). The cast also includes Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Emilia Clarke, Woody Harrelson, and Thandie Newton all packed into the Millennium Falcon cockpit. Details about the movie are under wraps, but we do know it’s set for release on May 25, 2018. Hey Disney, now that the Han Solo movie is underway how about you get to work on the Boba Fett flick?
Apple Answers Tweets in 4 New iPad Pro Ads
Apple launched four new iPad commercials that respond to real tweets from real folks. The first (included below) is in response to a tweet about iPad not being a real computer. The second spot addresses a tweet about poor Wi-Fi. The third answers whether Microsoft Word is on the iPad (it is), and the fourth notes that iPads aren’t subject to PC viruses. The Twitter accounts are real (Tweet 1 account, Tweet 2, Tweet 3 account, Tweet 4), and The Verge reported that Apple contacted at least one of the tweeters before using their tweets. There’s almost zero chance Apple didn’t do so with all of them. But, Apple used actors to represent the Twitter account owners. It’s an interesting campaign. Some have already noted it’s reminiscent of Apple’s “Get a Mac” campaign. More interesting, though, is that this is the first time I can remember Apple addressing questions like these, especially in an ad. The company is also leveraging social media, an area that hasn’t typically been a strong suit for Apple. They’re not my favorite spots from Apple, but they’re solid. It will be interesting to see if this becomes a major campaign.
WWDC in San Jose Is Closer and Other Apple Insights
We had a good discussion about Apple moving WWDC back to San Jose on Thursday’s Daily Observations. In that discussion, we talked about how much easier it would be for Apple engineers to attend an event in San Jose because it wouldn’t necessarily suck up a whole day and hours of travel. We also talked about proximity to Apple Campus 2.0, and the reality San Jose is less expensive. Daring Fireball‘s John Gruber discussed the move with Apple senior vice president Phil Schiller, who confirmed most of what we thought. Mr. Gruber also pointed out that Apple’s WWDC is a much bigger deal to San Jose than it ever was to San Francisco. He said Apple was working with San Jose’s mayor and others to stage events throughout the week, something San Francisco never did to my knowledge. Check out his piece—it’s a good read.
Pokémon GO Adding 80 New Monsters to Catch
Get ready for Pokémon GO Gen 2 and 80 new monsters because Niantic plans to give us more characters we gotta catch by this weekend. The new monsters come from the Pokémon Silver and Pokémon Gold video games, so if you’re tired of the gobs of characters already available you’ll have plenty more to keep you roaming around your neighborhood. Niantic also rolled in new evolutions and Evolution items to collect, new berries, new avatars, and more. The updates are free, unlike the time we’ll all spend hunting for Chikorita, Cyndaquil, Totodile.
LEGO Batman has the Siri Easter Eggs We Deserve
The LEGO Batman movie is out, and it shows us just how important Siri is: She’s the computer system of choice for Gotham’s elite vigilante crime fighters. Luckily, we don’t have to live in Gotham, become emotionally scarred orphans watching our parents die, or spend gobs of money on devices named bat…something. We can get Siri to treat us like the bat heroes we want to be right on our iPhones. Just press and hold your iPhone’s Home button to activate Siri, and get your Batman on by saying, “Hey, computer,” or “Hey, ‘puter.” Siri will respond with bat-appropriate comments, first try.
Bryan Chaffin Talks about How Politics Intersects with Technology
Chuck Joiner asked me on to MacVoices to talk about Apple, the tech world, and politics. In this video podcast, I make the case that Apple is just plain too big to avoid politics. From regulations, to taxation policy, to international posturing, to the fact that Apple is worth almost US$700 billion, Apple can’t avoid politics. More importantly, the broader tech world itself that it increasingly intersects with tech. I think I spewed off about getting older and struggling to understand Millennials, too. It’s all kind of hazy, but that didn’t stop Chuck from making that part of his title…oh, and check out that key frame he picked. Why did I agree to do this show again? … Oh, right, because I luuuuurve me some Chucky J!
Fox Launches 'Movie of the Day' App on Apple TV
According to Home Media Magazine, “The free Movie of the Day app on Apple TV gives consumers a 24-hour window to buy some of the most popular movies from the Fox catalog for $4.99 to $9.99 — up to 75% off. Fox reports the app, previously launched for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, boasts a loyal following of close to 90% of monthly users returning and engaging with the app daily.” Upcoming dates and titles: Feb. 15-Deadpool; Feb. 16-Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters; Feb. 17-Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates and Feb. 18-Epic. Feb 14th launched with Kingsman.
Photon Strike is a Fun Arcade Scroller for iOS
You may known of my penchant for tower defense games, but I also have a not-so-secret love for arcade scrollers. The good news for your time-sucking pleasure is that I found a new one called Photon Strike. It’s a solid vertical scroller for iPhone an iPad (I played on iPad) with good graphics and fast action. In fact, it’s very fast. It’s similar to others in the genre. You have to steer your ship (with your fingers), firing as long as your finger is on the screen. Waves of enemies fly around the screen, and you have to shoot/avoid them. Powerups are available throughout each level, and you get credits for each enemy you destroy for buying upgrades. It’s free to download, but for real-world cash, you can get yourself a whole heap of credits. You can also watch videos for free credits. Every five waves there’s a boss at the end. It’s ad-supported, but the ads go away with any purchase (the ads are not obnoxious). That said, this is the kind of game where I’m happy to pay to unlock ads to directly support the developer.
Planet of the Apps Trailer Teases Spring Premiere
Apple’s reality TV series Planet of the Apps is coming this spring and the first trailer giving us a glimpse into the show is out. It features Jessica Alba, Gwyneth Paltrow, Gary Vanderchuk, and Will.i.am teaming up with app developers who make it through an escalator pitch phase to work towards landing US$10 million in funding and a featured spot on the App Store. Planet of the Apps will stream on Apple Music without commercials, and could give us an interesting behind-the-scenes look into the app development process. Still, based on the trailer—and keep in mind I’m not the reality TV demographic—Carpool Karaoke sounds a lot more interesting.
Genius Bar Revives 30 Year Old Mac SE
If your Mac isn’t working you make a Genius Bar appointment at your local Apple Store to get some help. That’s exactly what my good friend and British Tech Network host Ewen Rankin did—except his was a 30 year old Mac SE prototype. With the help of friends he got ahold of Mac OS System 3.3 on floppy disks—the operating system the SE originally shipped with—and then made his way to the Apple Store. The geniuses were more than happy to help out even though the Mac was older than some of them, and in the end they got it up and running. Sure, Ewen could’ve taken care of the Mac himself, but enlisting the aid of the Genius Bar wasn’t only cool, it was a great example of Apple’s customer service in action.
Apple Music Trailer for Carpool Karaoke with Will Smith, Metallica, Ariana Grande, More
Apple has pushed the first trailer for Carpool Karaoke, the spinoff series being produced for Apple Music by James Corden and CBS. It features, “James Corden, Will Smith, Billy Eichner, Metallica, Alicia Keys, John Legend, Ariana Grande, Seth MacFarlane, Chelsea Handler, Blake Shelton, Michael Strahan, John Cena, Shaquille O’Neal, and many more.” It’s super fun, and builds a song with short samples from many episodes of the first season. Carpool Karaoke has been a huge hit for James Corden and The Late Late Show, and news broke late in 2016 that it would be spun off as a standalone show for Apple Music. My guess—especially after seeing this trailer—is that it’s going to be a huge hit for Apple Music, too.
Steve Jobs NeXT Keynote in 1992 Is a Must-Watch for Jobs Fans [Update]
Check out this recording of Steve Jobs’ NeXT keynote from 1992 (via Cult of Mac), where he introduced NeXTSTEP 3.0 (which eventually became OS X). Interesting tidbits from the spot include the 51 minute and 32 second mark, where he shows a feature that ended up being cut when Apple bought NeXT, distributed object inter-application and inter network communication. At 59 minutes and 53 seconds, Mr. Jobs shows off fast elliptical encryption built right into NeXT’s email system. That was also cut for the Mac. Then there was the bit about operating system-level the Renderman rending engine (nixed), and NeXTSTEP for Intel processors, which did eventually make it to the Mac. All these observations come courtesy of John Kheit, who used to work at NeXT. He called this one of Steve Jobs’s best keynotes and a must-watch for fans. I agree, though your mileage may vary. One way or another, it’s definitely good.
Tim Cook Speaks at University of Glasgow for an Hour (Video)
Tim Cook spoke to the students of the University of Glasgow this week. The hour long event included questions from faculty and students alike. Topics included President Trump’s travel bans on seven muslim-majority countries, the reach of the App Store, the environment, wealth inequality, education, balancing work and life, technology interacting with our bodies, Apple Watch, idealism, Steve Jobs’s influence over Apple today, styluses, and more. The video was posted by a student. The audio quality is poor, but the rules for the event precluded “dedicated recording equipment.” To that end, this video was recorded entirely on an iPhone 7 in the hands of a student 50-70 feet from Mr. Cook, and is stunningly good considering. In addition, note how quiet and respectful this audience of 800-plus students is.