Category Archives for Tech News

Tim Cook is Full of Secrets

On the eve of Apple’s 2020 World Wide Developers Conference (WWDC) Tim Cook was enterviewed by CBS’s “60 Minutes” correspondent John Dickerson about the role of the CEO in this turbulent time (YouTube link).

“There was a time back many years ago where CEOs were just supposed to focus on profits only, and not so much the constituencies. That’s never been my view—I’ve never subscribed to that.” ~Tim Cook

It would be nice to see the unedited interview. This just over eight-minute edit trys to cover quite a bit including the nature of this year’s virtual WWDC, the iPhone’s role in documenting police brutality and protests calling for social justice, Cook’s relationship with Donald Trump, corporate taxes, and giving back to the community during the pandemic. It’s worth watching, though.

Tomorrow (June 22, 2020) you can watch the 31st annual WWDC Keynote live streamed on Apple’s website, in the Apple Developer app, in the Events app on Apple TV, probably on YouTube, and maybe on Facebook. I will be watching while working from home.

I’ve Been Vectorized

Periodically I will share some of my favorite websites, podcasts, videos, and/or blogs I follow to learn about the Apple-centric tech-o-sphere. This is one of those posts. The last time I posted about a podcast was back in October of 2016 after I discovered The Checklist. Today, I’d like to tell you about Vector.

T-Shirt, pin, and stickers with Vector logo

My new Vector T-shirt, pin, and stickers on the dining room table.

Vector is what I call a three-in-one resource by Rene Ritchie from iMore. It’s videos, a podcast, and a blog (or series of articles, if you wish) where Mr. Ritchie provides insight into the world of Apple technology with short, palatable, and entertaining morsels of online media. I say “three-in-one” because his content is provided in any of the three ways in which you want to consume it — as a blog (or article) you read, as a podcast you listen to, or as a video that you watch. I personally subscribe to the Vector channel on YouTube, but you can read, listen, or watch right on iMore.

His latest posts (as of this writing) are reviews of the Watch Series 4 and the iPhone XS and XS Max. They are a little longer than his usual five to 15 minutes, but well worth a look/listen if you are at all interested in the new hardware that Apple introduced on September 12, 2018.

So, check out Vector and let me know what you think in the comments below. As Rene would say, “Thank you so much for reading.”

Apple gives developers a hug.

Apple gives developers a hug.

Dave Wiskus writing for Macworld:

Those of us who make software tend to see our industry through the lens of what came before us: a scrappy group of nerds banded together to start software companies and change the world. It’s easy to continue to cast ourselves as the underdogs, but the truth is that we won. Technology is cool now. People are buying computing devices and software at a rate unmatched in history. All kinds of people like this stuff, and now Apple is empowering and encouraging us to make software for all kinds of people.

As a user (not a developer), I agree with Mr. Wiskus’ take on Apple’s WWDC keynote. Last year I thought we were seeing the emerging of Tim Cook’s Apple. This year it’s beginning to blossom.

Be sure to watch the short WWDC Developer Reactions video.

Two-fer: Verizon sticks it to rival carriers in the US

Two-fer: Verizon sticks it to rival carriers in the US

The offer underscores the competitive nature of the U.S. mobile market, where Verizon faces intense competition from rival AT&T, as well as stepped-up price wars prompted by T-Mobile. Yankee Group estimates AT&T and Verizon are neck-and-neck when it comes to share of domestic mobile phone lines, at roughly 33 percent each.

Two crappy customer experiences for the price of one is good business. Anything is better than paying the higher subsidies to Apple—customer be damned!