MyAppleMenu

The Vetting-Process Edition Monday, July 9, 2018

How The App Store Changed My World (And Probably Yours, Too), by Leif Johnson, Macworld

Sometimes Apple does come off as too draconian, as in the case of the Steam Link app, which never saw release on iOS.

With Apple’s vetting process, though, I know I can download every little app that caters to my idiosyncrasies without worrying too much about whether it’s going to force me to undertake a fresh OS install next week. That certainly wasn’t as true in the days when my little Windows laptop was my entire life, when I risked the destruction of weeks of work solely because I wanted an app that helped me outline better.

Apple’s Shortcuts Will Flip The Switch On Siri’s Potential, by Matthew Cassinelli, TechCrunch

But to ignore Shortcuts would be missing out on the bigger picture. Apple’s strengths have always been the device ecosystem and the apps that run on them.

With Shortcuts, both play a major role in how Siri will prove to be a truly useful assistant and not just a digital voice to talk to.

My Mac Mini, Kernel_task, And Dusty Hardware: Bring Back My Mini’s Zing, by Erica Sadun

If you want to point at one change Apple made that said to me: “No mini for you, move to the left!” a la that Seinfeld episode, it was the death of the escape key. The escape key philosophically services a self-reliant power user. And I’m just not sure that Apple is in that market anymore.

Stuff

Four New Apple Ads Portray The iPad As The Easier Way To Handle Notes, Paperwork And Travel, by Ben Lovejoy, 9to5Mac

These present the iPad as a better way to handle notes, paperwork and travel.

Apple Shows Off iPhone X W/ Face ID In Humorous Game Show Ad, by Chance Miller, 9to5Mac

This one, like many of the ads we’ve seen so far, focuses on Face ID and how it can be used to log-in to third-party applications.

PSA: If You’re Experiencing Excessive Battery On iOS 11.4, It’s Not Just You, by Chance Miller, 9to5Mac

The primary issue seems to be standby battery life, with users reporting that their iPhone will drain an abnormal amount even when not being actively used.

Nimble Commander Is A macOS File Manager With A Minimalist Design, by Dennis Sellers, Apple World Today

Nimble Commander is a lightweight, small-footprint file manager with an ascetic look and feel. It doesn’t include any bells and whistles, so users who are focused on doing their everyday tasks don’t have to think about how to use it.

Develop

There’s No Such Thing As Motivation, by Aytekin Tank, Medium

But if you’re struggling to do something you care deeply about, go easy on yourself.

Tap into why you started your business, or why you’re flexing your creative muscles in the first place. It’s a much happier way to move through your days.

The Bulk Of Software Engineering In 2018 Is Just Plumbing, by Karl L. Hughes

A small business with 5-10 employees building a software-as-a-service web app needs to have a reliable, secure system, but does it need to be that much more robust than an off-the-shelf service provides? Do you really need AI-powered search, real-time dashboards for every internal team member, microsecond optimizations on your home page, and split testing for every feature you release? Probably not unless you’re just trying to project a facade of success…

Just as a good small business owner should hire a humble plumber who knows the standard tools required for small bathrooms, and will pay him market rate, a good engineering manager should hire humble team players who use industry-standard tools to build reliable software, and pay them market rate.

I Don’t Know How To Create A Website, by Musing Mortoray

The web has been part of my career since the beginning. I’ve created several sites, including apps and games, hell, I’ve even created web development tools, yet I have to admit I no longer know how to create a website. If I sat down right now to create a new site, I’d be even more boggled by the tools and tech than before. I feel like there’s some lesson in programming hiding here.

Notes

We Estimate China Only Makes $8.46 From An iPhone – And That's Why Trump's Trade War Is Futile, by Greg Linden, The Conversation

IPhone imports look like a big loss to the U.S., at least to the president, who argues that “China has been taking out $500 billion a year out of our country and rebuilding China.” One estimate suggests that imports of the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus contributed $15.7 billion to last year’s trade deficit with China.

But, as our research on the breakdown of an iPhone’s costs show, this number does not reflect the reality of how much value China actually gets from its iPhone exports – or from many of the brand-name electronics goods it ships to the U.S. and elsewhere. Thanks to the globe-spanning supply chains that run through China, trade deficits in the modern economy are not always what they seem.

Bottom of the Page

Personally, I don't believe there will ever be any significant updates to the Mac mini line. The idea for a low-cost introduction to the Mac ecosystem for existing Windows customers is no longer relevant since that role has been moved over to the iPad line.

Maybe what we can hope for, instead, is a not-so-low-cost but not-so-high-end version of the Mac Pro?

~

Thanks for reading.