According to the company, its iOS app will continue to be made available on the App Store. However, the Android and Wear OS apps will be discontinued and the service will no longer work after July 1, 2020. Subscribers active at that time will receive a refund. Likewise, the weather forecast, maps, and embeds portions of the Dark Sky website will be discontinued after July 1, 2020.
There are columns to be written speculating what Apple wants to do with Dark Sky, its well-crafted app, and its very well-crafted system of collecting and making sense of weather data. Will it be built into Apple’s own weather apps? Will it become yet another monthly subscription service alongside so many others that Apple offers?
The time will come to wonder about all of that, in the way we always wonder what these giant companies are up to and what products they’re working on. For now, though, I’m looking forward to what a lot of smaller companies are going to do to fill the gap Dark Sky is leaving on Android.
The updates add support for iCloud Folder Sharing for collaborative files with macOS 10.15.4 installed, plus there are options to edit shared documents offline.
There are also new templates and editable shapes to work with, a redesigned template chooser, and an option to add color, gradients, and images to the background of any document.
All three apps gain iCloud Drive folder sharing for fast and easy collaboration on group projects, a hold-and-drag gesture for selecting multiple objects, drop cap insertion, and an option to include comments in prints and PDF exports. Numbers and Keynote also see the addition of offline editing tools that allow users to edit shared documents and automatically upload those changes once reconnected to the internet.
Apple has updated iMovie for iPadOS with new features including mouse and trackpad support, new keyboard shortcuts, more image format, and more. The new version also prepares Apple’s video editing app for the upcoming Magic Keyboard accessory for iPad Pro.
Apple has announced that its latest version 10.0 updates to Pages, Numbers, and Keynote, has lost a significant feature. If people currently upload documents from these apps to a WebDAV server, perhaps because they run one for their business, they will have to find an alternative —and Apple just happens to provide one.
"After you update to Pages, Numbers, or Keynote 10.0, you won't be able to upload documents to a WebDAV server," says Apple in a new support document. "To make sure you don't lose any changes that haven't been uploaded, save any pending uploads to your device, iCloud, or another location."
Zoom, the video conferencing service whose use has spiked amid the Covid-19 pandemic, claims to implement end-to-end encryption, widely understood as the most private form of internet communication, protecting conversations from all outside parties. In fact, Zoom is using its own definition of the term, one that lets Zoom itself access unencrypted video and audio from meetings.
Apple Configurator 2 makes it easier to deploy iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, and Apple TV devices in an institution or enterprise. The app can be used to configure large numbers of devices with specific settings, apps, and data for students, employees, or customers.
Even though Endlesss is a music-making app, it’s not really meant for making complete songs. It’s a collaborative “virtual musical hangout with a live chat room” that lets multiple users build and change loops of music in real time. Just select a project and start tapping out drum patterns and melodies to change up someone’s loop. You can make stuff just for yourself, but the social aspect is encouraged.
Spotify has launched its standalone app for children in Canada, France, and the United States. Called Spotify Kids, the family-friendly version of the music streaming service is exclusively for Premium Family subscribers and comes tailored for children aged three and up.
There was a Harvard Business Review article a couple of days ago saying that, if you’re feeling constantly exhausted right now, don’t be surprised. This is a common experience of grief. When people feel a low level of anxiety through the day, it does manifest in our physiognomy. It does manifest in us feeling exhausted by the emotional drain of it. So let’s not drive ourselves into the ground right now. Let’s at least use this opportunity to reflect on what’s important, rather than trying to retain unsustainable levels of performance in such a singular and wretched time.
Apple Inc. is asking retail store employees to temporarily become remote technical support staff while stores remain closed.
A subset of retail staff are participating in the program to become work-from-home AppleCare employees so the company has enough workers to handle customer requests.
As shutdowns caused by COVID-19 remain in place, Apple has committed to paying its contractors. The Wall Street Journal reports that initially, some contractors were told their jobs would be suspended without pay during the shutdown, but Apple has clarified that position.