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Thoughtful, detailed coverage of everything Apple for 33 years
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Weekly Issues

Adam Engst

#1662: New Macs, 12 top OS features for 2023, vertical tabs in Web browsers, watchOS 9.5.1

Apple’s whirlwind WWDC keynote led off with a new 15-inch M2 MacBook Air, new M2 Max and M2 Ultra models of the Mac Studio, and the long-awaited Mac Pro with Apple silicon—read on for the…

Adam Engst

#1661: Mimestream app for Gmail, auto-post WordPress headlines to Twitter and Mastodon, My Photo Stream shutting down

This week’s issue kicks off with Adam Engst figuring out how to restart automated posting of TidBITS headlines to Twitter after WordPress was forced to pull that feature by Twitter’s exorbitant pricing changes. As a…

Adam Engst

#1660: OS updates for sports and security, Drobo in bankruptcy, why TidBITS doesn’t cover rumors

In what may be the final feature release of its 2022 family of operating systems, Apple rolled out iOS 16.5, iPadOS 16.5, macOS 13.4 Ventura, watchOS 9.5, tvOS 16.5, and HomePod Software 16.5 with sports-related…

Adam Engst

#1659: Exposure notifications shut down, cookbook subscription service, alarm notification type proposal, Explain XKCD

If you’ve ever been late to an appointment due to missing a notification, you may want to sign onto Adam Engst’s proposal that Apple add persistent alarm-style notifications to its operating systems. Jeff Carlson joins…

Adam Engst

#1658: Rapid Security Responses, NYPD and industry standard AirTag news, Apple’s Q2 2023 financials

Apple has released its first Rapid Security Responses, updates to iOS, iPadOS, and macOS meant to address security vulnerabilities more quickly than would be possible with full updates. Adam Engst explains what’s involved and why…

Adam Engst

#1657: A deep dive into the innovative Arc Web browser

Last week, Adam Engst described an unnamed piece of software as “the most transformative app I’ve used in decades,” a bold statement that demands robust support. That app is The Browser Company’s Arc, a Mac-native…

Adam Engst

#1656: Passcode thieves lock iCloud accounts, the apps Adam uses, iPhoto and Aperture library conversion in Ventura

Wall Street Journal tech reporters Nicole Nguyen and Joanna Stern are back with more details about how passcode thieves can ruin digital lives by locking victims out of their iCloud accounts, possibly permanently. Adam Engst…

Adam Engst

#1655: 33 years of TidBITS, Twitter train wreck, tvOS 16.4.1, Apple Card Savings, Steve Jobs ebook

After 33 years of publishing TidBITS, Adam Engst is more enthused about the work than he has been in years, thanks to spending less time editing news coverage and more writing about personal tech solutions.

Adam Engst

1654: Urgent OS security updates, upgrading to macOS 13 Ventura, using smart speakers while temporarily blind

To address two severe security vulnerabilities being exploited in the wild, Apple has released updates to its current iPhone, iPad, and Mac operating systems, plus the previous versions of iOS and iPadOS and the last…

Adam Engst

#1653: Apple Music Classical review, Authory service for writers, WWDC 2023 dates announced

At long last, Apple has released Apple Music Classical, a free app for Apple Music subscribers that seeks to address the challenges posed by classical music. Kirk McElhearn has written more about dealing with classical…

Adam Engst

#1652: OS updates, DPReview shuttered, LucidLink cloud storage

It’s update day again, with Apple releasing minor feature updates to all its current operating systems with improvements in iPhone voice quality and crash detection, duplicate checking in iCloud Shared Photo Library, notifications for Web…

Adam Engst

#1651: Dealing with leading zeroes in spreadsheet data, removing ad tracking from ckbk

After having a holiday card returned as undeliverable due to an inadvertently truncated ZIP code, Adam Engst investigates the knotty problem of how spreadsheets handle data with leading zeroes. He also shares the story of…

Adam Engst

#1650: Cloud storage changes for Box, Dropbox, Google Drive, and OneDrive; quirky printing problem

Cloud storage services like Box, Dropbox, Google Drive, and Microsoft OneDrive have either switched to or are in the process of switching to Apple’s File Provider extension. The new approach is more coherent but requires…

Adam Engst

#1649: More LastPass breach details and 1Password switch, macOS screen saver problem, tvOS 16.3.3 fixes Siri Remote bug

If you have experienced problems with your Siri Remote on a third-generation Apple TV 4K, update to the just-released tvOS 16.3.3. Password management service LastPass has released significantly more information about its 2022 data breaches,…

Adam Engst

#1648: iPhone passcode thefts, Center Cam improves webcam eye contact, APFS Uncertainty Principle

After the Wall Street Journal’s chilling account of how iPhone thieves obtain users’ passcodes and proceed to take over their digital lives, Adam Engst offers guidance on protecting yourself from such attacks. He also reviews…