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The Larger-than-Normal Edition Monday, November 15, 2021

Monterey’s Memory Leak And How To Avoid It, by Howard Oakley, The Eclectic Light Company

All Macs which appear to suffer this leak are using custom pointer controls in the Pointer tab of the Display, specifically a larger than normal Pointer size and custom outline and fill colours. The latter two items are one of the new features in Monterey, and have proved popular with users.

Apple Is Sticking Taxpayers With Part Of The Bill For Rollout Of Tech Giant's Digital ID Card, by Hugh Son, Kif Leswing, CNBC

Apple is making U.S. states foot part of the bill and provide customer support for its plan to turn iPhones into digital identification cards, according to confidential documents obtained by CNBC.

The company requires states to maintain the systems needed to issue and service credentials, hire project managers to respond to Apple inquiries, prominently market the new feature and push for its adoption with other government agencies, all at taxpayer expense, according to contracts signed by four states.

Music Pods

First Impressions Of The Third-Generation AirPods, by Julio Ojeda-Zapata, Josh Centers, TidBITS

When we set out to review Apple’s new third-generation AirPods, we struggled with how best to evaluate such a personal device. Given that the AirPods are the only Apple product (so far) that you actually insert into your body, questions of comfort and sound quality are highly subjective.

Beats Fit Pro Are Good Alternatives To Third-Gen AirPods, by Julio Ojeda-Zapata, TidBITS

Exterior appearances aside, the Fit Pro buds feel like Apple products through and through, thanks to the H1 chip found in all AirPods models. Their wingtip design ensures they’ll stay in your ears during workouts and while their charging case lacks moisture protection and MagSafe, neither of those is a dealbreaker.

Stuff

Why I Use A Simple Analog Face On A $800 Apple Watch, by Roshan Dash

And when I work or in general I don't want to be bogged down by random notifications and random information which definitely is not meaningful and disturbs the inner peace of the mind. I have all my notificaitons switched off on the watch (except for the calls/facetime) because I have come to the realization that nothing is actually urgent and everything can be attended to later.

Improve Your Mac's Speed By Adjusting Spotlight's Settings, by Glenn Fleishman, Macworld

Spotlight’s “polling” can have a significant performance toll. For example, cloning speed might be half the rate you expect or even lower. But you can tell Spotlight to keep its hands off while performing operations that it might otherwise slow down.

5 Things To Try With Your Phone's Camera When You're Bored, by Andrew Hoyle, CNET

Trying new creative challenges can not only help keep your mind focused, but it can also teach you new skills you can use later on. And what better tool to get those creative juices flowing than your trusty phone? Whether you're trying to get inspired after months of lockdown or you're just after a fun project to try at home with the family, there are loads of ways your phone -- specifically, your phone's camera -- can help you get those brain cells firing on all cylinders. And the great thing is you don't even need to leave the house.

Notes

If Apple Keeps Letting Its Software Slip, The Next Big Thing Won't Matter, by Dan Moren, Macworld

We’ve all encountered a slew of problems—some simple (if ridiculous) to fix, others are maddeningly difficult to troubleshoot. As our devices get more and more complex, it’s all too easy for some of those problems to persist for years. And though the best part of the Apple experience has long been “it just works,” the question is…what happens when it doesn’t?

Apple’s Rivalry With Meta Isn’t About Privacy—It’s About AR, Watches And Home Devices, by Mark Gurman, Bloomberg

While Apple is entering Meta territory for headsets, Meta plans to enter Apple’s world of smartwatches. It’s no secret that the Apple Watch—despite some early concerns—is the market leader in internet-connected watches. Now Meta wants a piece of the pie.

[...]

But I think Apple is about to get serious in the home. The company has been testing at least two new home gadgets: a device that combines a speaker and TV set-top box with a camera, as well as a smart speaker with a screen that’s more similar to a Portal or Amazon Echo Show.

Bottom of the Page

I do have a custom pointer size set on my Mac. I haven't gotten the dreaded out-of-memory error message on my Mac though.

Based on my limited understanding of the problem, it does seem like the kind of bug that can easily escape the scrutiny of QA and public betas. It does surprise me a little that such a small image thing -- a simple pointer! -- can balloon up so quickly. It seems like this is the kind of bugs that only surfaces after 49.7 days of continuous use of the operating system.

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I still use the wired EarPods earphones, when I can't sleep in the middle of the night. I do not dare to use my AirPods, as I'm afraid of falling asleep, the AirPods dropping out of my ears, and into my mouth.

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Thanks for reading.