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The Better-Communications Edition Saturday, July 2, 2016

iNSPIRE Dreams Wants To Give iPads To Local Families, by Janelle Walker, Chicago Tribune

Camrin Yaeger, 4, knows how to say things like "mom" and "dad" but understanding some of his other words is harder for the young family, said his mother, Shannon Yaeger.

The Elgin family hopes that an iPad donated this week by iNSPIRE Dreams will help Camrin better communicate his thoughts to those around him.

Shane and Sarah Hamilton, co-founders of iNSPIRE Dreams, know how important a tool like the iPad can be for a family. Like Camrin, their son, Cole, was diagnosed in the autism spectrum when he was 3 1/2 years old.

Running The Store

Apple Slams Spotify For Asking For “Preferential Treatment”, by John Paczkowski, BuzzFeed

In a letter sent to Spotify general counsel Horacio Gutierrez on Friday, Apple general counsel Bruce Sewell rebutted the streaming music service’s June 26 allegations that Apple is “causing grave harm to Spotify and its customers” by rejecting a recent update to Spotify’s iOS app. “We find it troubling that you are asking for exemptions to the rules we apply to all developers and are publicly resorting to rumors and half-truths about our service,” Sewell wrote in a letter obtained by BuzzFeed News.

Apple Says Spotify’s App Already Violates App Store Rules, by Dawn Chmielewski, Recode

In a letter to Spotify, Apple’s general counsel writes that the existing app is similarly at odds with these rules, suggesting it may be at risk of being booted from the App Store.

Spotify’s Apple Dispute Reveals Uneasy Dependence On App Stores, by Alex Webb, Bloomberg

The market for mobile web products is less a megamall of hundreds of shops than it is two supermarkets sitting on opposite sides of a suburban street.

Holding the keys to those supermarkets are two companies: Apple Inc. and Alphabet Inc.’s Google. Should one of them decide not to stock your product, there’s little that you can do persuade them otherwise.

Music-Streaming Peace In Our Time?, by Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic

There would be distinct irony in Tidal selling out to Apple, which has been accused of trying to undermine rival streaming apps via the iPhone interface and App Store. Tidal, infamously, arrived via a pompous press conference and video filled with popular musicians slinging anti-corporate platitudes.

Coming Soon

Apple Releases 4 Animated Emoji iOS 10 Messages Sticker Packs For Beta Testers: Classic Mac, Smileys, Hearts, Hands, by Seth Weintraub, 9to5Mac

Apple last night released 4 apps for iOS 10 beta testers, most of which will look familiar to Apple Watch users.

Apple Maps To Gain Japan Transit Data In iOS 10, by Mikey Campbell, AppleInsider

Apple in a recent update to its Japanese website confirmed local transit data will arrive in Maps when iOS 10 launches this fall, further expanding the feature's reach into Asia.

Stuff

Microsoft’s ‘Word Flow’ Adds Swipe-to-text Functionality To iPhone, by David Schwartz, Geekwire

Word Flow is a fully customizable, super fast, swipe-to-text keyboard that allows iOS users to type easily and efficiently with one hand.

Sharktivity App Debuts July 1, by CapeCodToday

The goal of researchers and town officials is to keep beachgoers safe while maintaining harmony between people and sharks--neither of whom are leaving the waters of the Cape anytime soon.

Develop

Improving Color On The Web, by Dean Jackson, Webkit

The past few years have seen a dramatic improvement in display technology. First it was the upgrade to higher-resolution screens, starting with mobile devices and then desktops and laptops. Web developers had to understand high-DPI and know how to implement page designs that used this extra resolution. The next revolutionary improvement in displays is happening now: better color reproduction. Here I’ll explain what that means, and how you, the Web developer, can detect such displays and provide a better experience for your users.

Notes

Senate Says Goodbye To The BlackBerry, At Last, by Heather Caygle, Politico

The prehistoric smartphone, once a mainstay on Capitol Hill, will no longer be handed out to Senate staffers after the current supply runs out, according to a notice sent out Wednesday. Staffers were put on alert that since BlackBerry has decided to discontinue the device and there is a limited stock on the Hill, the chamber has no way to replenish the phones once they’re gone.

Van Gogh’s World Seen Through The Perspective Of A Tilt-Shift Lens, by Kate Sierzputowski, Colossal

By placing the works into Photoshop and adding a bit of blur to the painting’s backgrounds, they were able to bring a new perspective to the century-old images, simulating the effect of a tilt-shift lens.