After you've viewed Jim Hamm's alert (just below) go to this other article at How To Geek (Mac OS X isn’t safe anymore. The crapware/malware epidemic has begun). See illustrated examples of screens that are “like the Old Faithful of bundled crapware.” Examples show Yahoo, CNET downloads, OpenOffice, fake Java messages, MacKeeper, etc. It discusses the plist file, and says to restrict Apps that aren’t from the App store.
App Store Set a New Record
According to Apple Hot News of 1-8-15, "The first week of January set a new record for billings from the App Store. Apple customers worldwide spent nearly half a billion dollars on apps and in-app purchases, and New Year’s Day 2015 marked the single biggest day ever in App Store sales history." Read more here at https://www.apple.com/hotnews/
Learn Via Video, etc.
Helpful PMUG leader John Carter scores big with this link, www.macmost.com/ and you'll want to take a look at this website. Turns out they have more than 900 FREE video tutorials on how to use your Mac, iPad, iPhone and other Apple Technology.
And here's some very welcome news: They never sell, rent or share your email address. Read details at Policies.
No, we're not listing all 900 of their video tutorials. But look at some of these other helpful categories.
Here's another list of pages you'll want to check out.
And this concludes the August PMUG meeting handout that's not getting handed out tomorrow, August 16; it's just posted here for your convenience. Thanks again to John Carter who keeps an eye out for useful info for us.
by Elaine Hardt.
Some iOS Apps Are FREE Today
With the headline of "Top Paid iOS Apps Gone Free on Memorial Day 2014; Grab Them All" we can see what grabbed Jim Hamm's attention. The article goes on to say " . . . several developers have offered their apps completely free of charge . . . seven very highly-regarded titles making our list here today . . . " See here.
Need an Older Version?
"Got an older iOS device? Having a problem downloading an app? Now the App Store recognizes you've got an older iOS device and gives you the option to download an older version of the app that will run on your older device. Nice touch by Apple. Click here for more info," Jim Hamm says.
14 Mac Tips
" Here's an article with some helpful tips (they refer to them as 'hacks') for your Mac," Jim Hamm introduces his latest email to us. "You may already be knowledgeable of these tips, but a new one (to me) I just tried was the terminal command 'purge' to free up memory. I'm not sure what it exactly did, but the command definitely freed up memory on my MacBook Air and my apps and music kept right on running.
"My 'Air' only has 4GB of memory, and free memory tends to disappear after using my Air for awhile, so this tip is helpful and quick to use. The article refers to a video wherein the author mentions a free App from the App Store titled 'FreeMemory,' which purportedly does the same thing. The app gets good ratings in the App Store."
(And if you come to PMUG on Saturday you can chat with Jim. He's the speaker this month.)
New to View
"Here is a free offer for ClipBuddy for the Mac. I've not tried it, but since it's free I will give it a try. Note that it's normally priced at $29.95. This offer expires on October 31st," writes Jim Hamm. Earlier today he'd emailed with mention of a new iPhone - iPod Touch - iPad app called MyRadar Pro which he saw someone use to monitor the severity of the storms in the Memphis area. See it here. Jim will tell us more later . . .
The Future of Apple's Dock Connector
Apple's New Retail Store for iOS to Launch Thursday
We have Jim Hamm to thank for the following news release. Here's what we see so far: "While information about Apple’s new iOS app and retail plans have leaked out in various forms over the past few weeks, we now have the whole story thanks to a trusted source. On Thursday, Apple’s new retail store app for iOS will launch, and it will bring two major features with it. First, it will enable online ordering with retail store pick up. This has already started happening in a few stores in California and New York City Apple stores as well, and more stores will go live on Thursday. Hit the jump for details on what happens when you place an order through the app to pick up in a retail store nearby.
- If a customer orders an in-stock product, pick up will be available approximately 12 minutes after completing the order. Why 12 minutes? Well, the order goes through the system to the designated Apple Store in about 3 minutes. Apple’s back-of-house employees have 2 minutes to set all of the products aside on a shelf from the minute it was ordered. There is then a 7-minute grace period for employees to get everything else in order. Around 12 minutes after purchasing, customers will be able to walk into the Apple Store, skip lines, skip registers, get their products, sign for them and leave. We’re told Apple is really excited about this, and it’s something customers have been seeking for a while.
- If a customer orders something that a retail store does not have in-stock, like a custom-configured machine, an accessory the store does not carry, or something like an engraved or gift-wrapped device, the customer will be a given a pick-up date right after the purchase is completed. Everything will have free shipping when sent to an Apple retail store. Once the order arrives at the Apple Store and is available for pickup, a push notification will be sent to the customer through the Apple Store app, letting him or her know the order is ready. We’re told the same 12-minute timeframe applies here as well: 12 minutes from the time the push notification is received, the customer’s order should be waiting to be signed for.
- We have been told customers who opt to purchase online or through the app will be given priority when they walk into the store over a customer waiting for a retail specialist, and that Apple expects the majority of customers over the next few years to use the in-store pick up option as their default method of buying products. This will help with foot traffic in retail stores while also reducing the cost of shipping for Apple, and possibly even reducing the number of stores Apple needs to open to accommodate sales.
- Apple will offer customers the ability to return items purchased online to retail stores.
- Lastly, we’re told that Apple will be attributing revenue from items purchased in this manner to the retail store where the items are delivered and retrieved. This should help create new job opportunities since hiring at Apple Stores is based on sales. Apple is reportedly expecting a 30% increase in sales at retail stores from this program, and it will only be available in the U.S. for now.
"The other major feature coming in Apple’s new app? Customer self check-out at retail stores. This is a huge deal and Apple is the first to be able to put it together. Here is how this will work: after you find the item you want to buy, like an accessory, you launch the Apple Store app on your iOS device and there will be an option to buy a product in the store. You scan the product with the camera on your device in the app, click purchase, and it will charge whatever credit card is associated to your Apple ID. You then just walk out of the store. Yes, we have been told that Apple will not be checking purchases which seems hard to believe, but this self check-out option will launch Thursday worldwide at all Apple retail stores."
Info on this can be found at Time.com's Techland site.
Free Digital Magazine App
Just released yesterday was a brand new app for the magazine "Distro." It's FREE. Jim Hamm tells us it's for iPhone or iPad, but later will be available as a PDF download for any platform. He comments, "I just downloaded and tried it, and I think I'm gonna like it." Take a look here.
The Lion is Coming
The Mac OS X 10.7 Lion will be released through Apple's Mac App Store, with more to be revealed at this year's Worldwide Developers Conference, June 6-10 in San Francisco. So relates an AppleInsider article forwarded by Jim Hamm. The future without a physical disc and computer Super Drive is mentioned. Looking forward to seeing that Lion.
More on technology advances and how Apple has evolved in this article further inspires Jim to muse about changes he's seen, "So, will CDs eventually die? And somewhat analogous to this, what with the internet and Sirius satellite, it's been a long time since I've even listened to a CD. When I want a song or album, I just download it, or listen on satellite radio, or listen to music from internet radio on my Mac. And books? Printed copies are becoming less and less each year. Lots of trees saved there. Change just keeps coming in technology."