MacsFuture

Update to My blog

Lexstar — Mon, 26 Oct 2026 04:53:13 -0400

This is a test of an app that Claude created on my Mac Mini. The app is called MacsFuture Writer. It is connected to my account on spaceship.com. I am testing it to see if it works with my blog, MacsFuture.com. Well it totally works with my blog on Macsfuture.com.

Headless MacBook Air M2 With Apple Vision Pro As Monitor

Lexstar — Sun, 18 Feb 2024 12:39:02 -0500

If you are into the Apple Vision Pro, you have to check out this YouTube video by Luke Miani.

Luke Miani's "headless MacBook Air with Apple Vision Pro

The Apple Vision Pro can act as a monitor for a Macintosh computer. But then you can't use the builtin-monitor for the Mac. Luke Miani removed the monitor part of the MacBook Air and then the headless MacBook Air worked using the Apple Vision Pro monitor. At the end of the video, he made a funny fake advertising for the headless MacBook Air. But you know what? I think Apple should make its own headless Macbook Air for the Vision Pro. The Raspberry Pi Foundation several years ago made a keyboard with a Raspberry PI embedded in the keyboard. It is called the Raspberry Pi 400.

Apple should make a keyboard with a builtin trackpad that also has a Mac built into it. They could easily sell it with the Apple Vision Pro. Great idea Luke Miani!!.

Apple Vision Pro: First Reactions!

Lexstar — Sun, 04 Feb 2024 16:59:11 -0500

Okay, these are my reactions after one day of using the Apple Vision Pros. So my first reaction was, "Wow, this is like amazing." I mean, anyone who tries it, you feel like you're in another world, you're entering another universe, and it's incredibly cool. Now after I created my account, I created a guest account for my wife and my daughter and my daughter's friend. They all used it, and all of them had the same reaction, which was, "Wow, this is like unbelievable. This is like amazing." They felt like they were in a different world.

Now why is that? And I'll tell you, the thing that's the most interesting thing about creating a new computer paradigm here with the Apple Vision Pro is that instead of using a mouse or a touch to go through the operating system and get to apps, this operating system uses your eye contact to see what you're going to click on. And it's incredible because it tracks your eyes. And so the way you go and navigate through this operating system is you look at an app or a button or something with your eyes, and then you click on it. Now how do you click on it? Now you don't have to raise your hand and click on anything. Rather, you just click your two fingers together like that. And even though you're keeping your hand way down near your waist and your Apple Vision goggles are way above it, the cameras on the glasses can see you click.

And why does Apple do it like that? Because remember, years ago, people would complain that, "Why doesn't Apple with its MacBook Pro or iMac have a touch on the computer?" And that's because you'd have to raise your hand up and your arm would get tired if you kept raising it. And that's why with the iPad, you can put it flat, and then when you do touch, you're not really raising your arm. But they figured out if you raise your arm, it's going to hurt your arm. So what Apple cleverly did is they figured out how, by putting a lot of cameras on the Apple Vision glasses, using machine learning, they could see when you click your fingers like this, even though it's way down near your waist or resting on your legs or your lap. And so the beauty of this thing is you navigate around by looking at what you want to click on and then clicking by putting your fingers together. Now here's the wild thing. Once you get used to this, it feels kind of natural.

And the crazy thing is it's actually faster than navigating with a mouse on a regular Macintosh or PC because your eyes can move around the screen or what you see much quicker than a mouse can when you're trying to move it around and click on something on a regular computer. So the weird thing is, once you get used to it, you look at this, you look at that, and you click, you click, and click. Now what's interesting is, even with putting in my password, a keyboard comes up and I look at a certain letter, click, look at the next letter, click, look at the next letter, click. And once you get used to it, like the passcode on an iPhone, a six-number passcode, I can do that really quickly just by looking at it, going like this, click, click. But remember, the click is down near my waist. I'm not holding it up. And so that part is crazy. It's a crazy, it's a new paradigm, right? Because remember, before the Mac came out with the GUI interface and the mouse, regular PCs you just would type. There was no mouse. You would just type on lines. There was nothing virtual like something that looks like a folder.

If you think about it, the GUI, the graphic user interface on a Mac and a PC, that's a virtual world too because the apps and the folders and the trash can to throw, or a garbage can to throw something away, that's like a representation of a garbage can. It's a virtual world. So now what we're doing with Apple Vision Pro is there's a virtual world. And so the wow part, that's like one of the parts of the wow part. The other part is there's actually like a screen in front of you, this incredibly high definition screen, but because of the cameras like that look through it, it appears pass-through. So you can make it so you don't see anything, but also you can see the real world. Now it's not like a 90, it's not a hundred percent pass-through like regular glass, but it feels like it and it's close to it. Obviously there's room for perfection, but apparently this is the best pass-through than anyone's ever done through such glasses. And the idea is that it's not completely, you're not completely shut off that you can see the rest of the world.

Now the really other craziest thing is how 3D is in this thing. Like when I was a kid, we used to get those like glasses, whatever those are, those cards, you could go through and see 3D versions of like, you know, when you were going on vacation somewhere, like what Europe looked like or someplace in other parts of the world. Well this thing is crazy because if you have an iPhone 15 Pro like I do, you were able to take 3D videos for the Vision Pro glasses before they came out. So I took some 3D videos before and I was able to see them in the Vision Pro glasses now. And it's crazy. It's like you're going back into some memory, some like, and reliving some memory, like, and like you're there. So I had gone up and visited some relatives and I went with them to a store and then like watching the 3D video, it's like I'm there.

The other thing is, remember like years ago, Apple on the iPhone created panoramic photos? Well I took a whole bunch of panoramic photos years ago when we're on vacation. Well now when you put these panoramic photos and look at them in the Apple Vision Pro, they're truly panoramic. They're truly, the photo now is all around you. And so it's pretty amazing. So that part's also amazing. The other part that's amazing are like watching screens. You know, you can make like a 20 foot movie screen in front of you and it feels like it's a 20 foot movie screen. So you know, in terms of watching movies, you can, and you can have it all darkened out or have some other like experience surround you. Like you could be on the moon watching a video. You could be in a castle watching a video. And you can make it as big as you want. And also the sound is very good. There's built in surround sound through it. It's not plugged into your ear, but it's right above your ear. And it does a good job of creating this surround sound around you.

But there are these 3D experiences which are just wild. Because like for example, they have this dinosaur experience where like you're in this 3D world and the dinosaurs come up really close to you. This is the one where actually a butterfly flies in and it lands on your hand. It knows. So the 3D can know where you are and then like react to you. The other thing is there was like a Alicia Keys music video where like you're in the session with Alicia Keys. You're like standing next to her as she's singing and then as her team is playing instruments. And you know, my family, when they tried it in guest mode, they were just blown away. My wife was blown away. My daughter was blown away. Her friend was blown away. This part is truly like a blown away experience. The thing is there's already like a lot of apps like Microsoft Office is now part of this. But even like Apple's own like iWork apps like Keynote. Here's the crazy thing with Keynote. Apple's got it built in there so that you can practice your Keynote presentation as if you're in the Steve Jobs auditorium. Now these are all the wow parts, the wow parts of the experience.

Now this is a first generation product just like the first Mac was a first generation product. Just like the first iPhone was a first generation product. And there are limitations here. One is the battery life. So you get this big battery here. I'll hold it up. This is the battery. You know, it's like about as big as an iPhone, but thicker than an iPhone. And it basically can run like two and a half, three hours while it's not charged. But you can charge it like here is it's charging it. And so you can, it's a pass through connector so you can like run it just sitting down without losing any power. But you have to have that like, you know, if you're going away from where you're plugged in, you have that battery in your pocket. And it weighs a decent amount. You can see that's why they didn't put it in the vision glasses.

The other thing is the vision glasses, they are heavy. I mean, this is what they look like. But they're not, they're not like really light. And like I have the band, the double band here, because I found that to be more comfortable. But the thing is, like when you wear this, after a while, you get tired. It feels kind of heavy on your nose as it's resting on the nose. And you can't like use them, let's say more than two or three hours. So like you could watch a movie, you could do your work, but after two or three hours, you're going to get fatigued, because they are kind of heavy. I mean, one thing that I noticed is like, if I lean back, if I'm on a couch and watching a movie, and I lean back, or I'm on my bed, I have a nice bed rest, if I lean back, that takes off some of the pressure, and maybe I can use it longer. So the thing is, they are eventually going to make other iterations of this device, you know, they're coming up the second version, the third version, look at the iPhone, we're now on to, I don't know, 15, 16, 17 versions, actually more, because they had the S version, remember like 5S, 3S, well, we're probably up to like the 20th. Well, actually, we've got to be, the iPhone was created in 2007, we're in the year 2024. So there's probably every year, like there's been a new iPhone. So there's been maybe 17 iPhones, I think, you know, something like that. But the point is, Apple's going to iterate on this thing, and it's going to get better, and better, and better.

The key thing is the operating system, and the technology that creates the 3D world, and the microphones, and the camera, all of that. Apple is going to work on this, it's going to make it lighter, it's going to find ways to make the battery last longer, and it's going to get better and better. And so this, you got to think of this as a new computer paradigm. I mean, you know, like when the mouse came out with the Macintosh, people like John Dvorak said this is a toy, this is ridiculous. He liked the old version of PCs that had come out, you know, just typing characters on the line MS-DOS. And who does that now? Like, you know, other than people using Unix commands on a terminal, most people are using, they're not even using that, they're not even using the mouse. Most computer work is done now through touch, through the iPhone, or Android computers, or iPads. But what I'm saying is, this eyeball tracking and clicking thing actually works really well, and it's really quick. And so I can see eventually this becoming the new paradigm. And who knows, I mean, we might have contact lenses from Apple that have all this technology in it. We may, who knows, Apple maybe could build this contact eye tracking technology into a Mac. Imagine if you could navigate around a Mac without a mouse, but just using cameras to track you and then clicking on apps. And who knows, maybe the iPad will have this eye tracking technology. So it's pretty amazing.

So overall, I am extremely impressed by this new technology. It's not cheap. I mean, I got it with like one terabyte, so it's close to $4,000. But it's basically a preview of where we're going, where we're going in terms of how computers are run, how we use computers. And it is the future. So overall, I give it a big thumbs up.

I’m Getting the Apple Vision Pro Today And Entering An Exciting New Computer Paradigm: The World Will Never Be the Same Again!

Lexstar — Fri, 02 Feb 2024 11:39:44 -0500

Apple Vision Pro

I am very excited. Later today, an Apple Vision Pro will be delivered to me. Yes, I invested around $4,000 to purchase this device. I can afford it because years ago, I invested in Apple (as well as other technology companies like Google, NVDIA, Microsoft, Facebook and Amazon). I totally understand that the Apple Vision Pro will not be perfect. But like in the past when Apple created other devices, it will change how we use computers. And while $4,000 is a lot of money, guess what? For what we are getting, it really is not that expensive. How can I say that? Well, way back in the 1980s my first computer was the Macintosh Plus. In today’s money, that cost around $7,000. The Macintosh Plus back in 1986 had a small black and white screen. But it was totally cool and changed how people use computers. See this wikipedia article. The original Macintosh created a new computer paradigm because it made the graphic user interface and mouse popular. Before this, even the prior Apple computer and MS-Dos computers that IBM and others created just used words typing on a line to control the computer. Now, we take for granted the GUI-based computers. Even Microsoft after the Macintosh was created a GUI operating system: it was Windows!! For years, with Windows PCs and the Macintosh, the GUI computer paradigm using the mouse and keyboard dominated how people used computers. But that paradigm did change. How?

The iPhone. Apple’s IOS system based on touch changed everything. Apple’s iPhone together with the iPad dominate the way people use computers. Look what happened to the stock of Intel. Intel stock is way down because regular computers like Windows PC and Macintosh are not growing like the way smartphones and iPads are. Touch has taken over as the better computer paradigm than GUI with mouse and keyboard. Touch computing is why Apple is worth three trillion dollars.

But now we are entering a new paradigm: spatial computing. With the Apple Vision Pro, and its new spatial operating system, Apple has created a 3 dimensional operating system. We live in a 3D world. Yet up to now, we have been operating computers in a 2 dimensional world. (Arguably, prior to the GUI and mouse, the computer paradigm was just 1 dimensional. For example, computers worked with punch cards or with MS-Dos, with words typed on a line.)

Spatial computing is what Apple has created with the Apple Vision Pro. Yes, other tech companies, including Google and Facebook, have created devices already that look like spacial computing. But what Apple does, based on creating devices and programming and operating systems, is take such technology to another level that will make all people go forward in the new paradigm. Remember, the GUI that Apple created in the Macintosh was actually created previously by a Xerox lab. Apple, under Steve Jobs, saw what Xerox created, and then used it to create the new computer paradigm. What Apple is good at is taking cutting edge technology and figuring out how to make it great and easy enough for everyday people to use. Remember the iPod? Before the iPod there were several good MP3 devices. But Apple took that technology and made it much better with the iPod. It was much better because it had much more storage with a 5 gb small hard drive. Then it became much better by working with the iTunes program to easily buy sons and load it on the iPad. Similarly, the concept of smart phones that were also computers existed before the iPhone. Remember early Windows phones in the early 2000s? They weren’t good. They weren’t good because Microsoft didn’t really make devices and also Windows was made for regular PCs, not really smartphones. When Steve Jobs introduced the iPhone in 2007 he created a new paradigm for all people who wanted to use a computer: touch.

Some people are skeptical. It is understandable. Many people thought the Macintosh would fail. That using a mouse and GUI was stupid and for little kids. Similarly, when the iPhone came out some telephone company executives said it would fail. They said it was too expensive. Remember the RIM guys who created the Blackberry? The Blackberry was the dominant smartphone at the time with a real physical keyboard. Those founders of RIM said the iPhone would never replace Blackberries because a touch keyboard could not replace a physical keyboard. Look how popular the iPhone and Android phones are now. And RIM no longer exists.

So yes, for many, the first model of the Apple Vision Pro is too expensive and also not perfected enough. But the 1st generation of the Apple Vision Pro is the future just like the Macintosh was, just like the iPod was, and just like the iPhone is.

Top Ten Shortcuts For Apple’s Shortcut App.

Lexstar — Sat, 28 Jan 2023 15:14:05 -0500

If you're an Apple user, you're probably already familiar with the convenience and efficiency that comes with using keyboard shortcuts. But did you know that there's an entire app dedicated to creating custom shortcuts for all your frequently used actions and tasks? It's called the "Shortcuts" app, and it's a game changer.

Here are my top ten favorite shortcuts available in the Shortcuts app:

1. "Travel ETA" for quickly texting your estimated time of arrival to a friend or family member. This shortcut uses your location and traffic data to calculate your ETA and sends it in a text message with just a tap.
2. "Heading Home" for automating your commute home. With this shortcut, you can set up a series of actions to be triggered when you leave work, such as turning on your house lights, setting your thermostat, and sending a text message to your spouse.
3. "Order Takeout" for quickly placing an order at your favorite restaurant. This shortcut allows you to select your preferred restaurant, menu items, and delivery or pickup options, all with just a few taps.
4. "Create Event" for quickly adding an event to your calendar. This shortcut allows you to specify the details of your event, such as the name, location, and duration, and automatically adds it to your calendar.
5. "Add to Reading List" for quickly saving articles to read later. This shortcut allows you to add a webpage to your Reading List with just a tap, making it easy to save articles or websites for later.
6. "Send Message" for quickly sending a pre-written message to a contact. This shortcut allows you to create and save a message template, and send it to a chosen contact with just a few taps.
7. "Create Note" for quickly adding a note to your Notes app. This shortcut allows you to specify the details of your note, such as the title and body, and automatically adds it to your Notes app.
8. "Search YouTube" for quickly searching YouTube for a specific video. This shortcut allows you to specify your search term and opens the results in the YouTube app.
9. "Create Reminder" for quickly adding a reminder to your Reminders app. This shortcut allows you to specify the details of your reminder, such as the name and due date, and automatically adds it to your Reminders app.
10. "Play Podcast" for quickly playing a specific podcast episode. This shortcut allows you to specify the podcast and episode you want to play and opens it in the Podcasts app.

The "Shortcuts" app is a powerful tool that allows you to automate and streamline all your frequently used actions and tasks. Give it a try and see just how much time and effort you can save with these handy shortcuts!

Top Ten Obama-like iOS Tips!

Lexstar — Thu, 05 Jan 2023 06:55:22 -0500

As a proud owner of an iPhone myself, I often find myself marveling at the endless possibilities and features that come with my beloved device. But with great power comes great responsibility, and as any iOS user knows, there are a multitude of tips and tricks that can help you get the most out of your iPhone.

Without further ado, here are my top ten iOS tips, spoken with the rhetorical flourishes of a certain former president:

1. "Yes we can" save battery life by going to the "low power mode" in your settings. This handy feature helps conserve battery when it's running low, so you can keep your phone running smoothly throughout the day.

2. "Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time" - so take control of your notifications by customizing them in the settings app. This way, you can choose which apps are allowed to send you notifications and which ones aren't, giving you greater control over your phone's alerts.

3. "The future rewards those who press on" - so keep pressing on with your updates! Keeping your phone up to date with the latest software ensures that you have access to all the newest features and security patches.

4. "We must be a source of hope" - and with the "find my" app, you can rest easy knowing that you have the ability to locate your lost or stolen phone.

5. "We can't stop living our lives because of the worst-case scenario" - but with the "emergency SOS" feature, you can feel secure knowing that you have a quick and easy way to call for help in case of an emergency.

6. "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself" - and with the "screen time" feature, you can conquer your fear of phone addiction by setting limits on how much time you spend on your phone and which apps you use the most.

7. "Fidelity to our founding principles requires new responses to new challenges" - and with the "dark mode" feature, you can save your eyes from strain and reduce your phone's energy consumption.

8. "We are not a collection of red states and blue states; we are the United States" - and with the "unified inbox" feature, you can unite all your email accounts in one place, making it easier to stay organized and on top of your communication.

9. "The best and brightest are not confined by geography" - and with the "continuity" feature, you can seamlessly switch between your iPhone, iPad, and Mac, making it easier to work on the go.

10. "We cannot solve our problems by laying blame at the feet of others" - and with the "offload unused apps" feature, you can take responsibility for the apps that are taking up space on your phone and free up some much-needed storage.

I hope these iOS tips help you get the most out of your iPhone and make your experience with your device even more enjoyable. Go forth and conquer, my fellow iOS users!

Apple Will Continue to Grow in the Office

Lexstar — Mon, 27 Dec 2021 07:22:54 -0500

2021 has almost come to an end and I realize I haven’t written any post to my website this year. So here goes

Apple is a behmoth. It has a market value of nearly $3 Trillion. Amazing. The most valuable company in the world. I remember way beack in the last 1990s when Apple was hanging by a thread. About to go bankrupt. Things looked glum.

Now, Apple is so massive and so successful I feel that governments and other companies are afraid of Apple and now going after it as a “monopoly.”

I feel that Apple can still grow. For example, while many people in the U.S. have an iPhone, maybe 50% or so, not many people have a Macintosh. Nor do the majority of the people have an iPad. In most offices most businesses ae still using Microsoft Windows. The strange things is that most businesses are using iPhones for their employees as Microsoft missed the boat on smartphones. Many businesses are using iPads.

I think going forward, more businesses will drop using Windows computers and switch to devices that are iOS or MacOS. iOS devices, particulary iPads, or now so powerful that most people working in an office can use an iPad to get work done. The iPad is actually better to use than an Windows computer because 1) the iPad makes less noise, and 2) the battery life of an iPad last much longer than any Windows computer. But now, the Macs, with the M1 chips that are similar to the chips that the iPhone and iPad uses, are also really quiet and have batteries that last much much longer than any Windows computer. This is a game changer. When the people in offices realize how quiet and battery life Apple’s devices have, they will want to switch to Apple. Its a better experience.

But what about Windows? Well the thing is, Microsoft realizes that the life of Windows is coming to an end, so Microsoft if moving to the cloud. You can get Windows 365 on the cloud. More importantly, during the pandemic, many office workers accessed their Windows network virtually over vpn. I did so through my 27 inch iMac and the experience was good. As the internet gets faster and as office networks get faster, officer workers will wont care what device they are using as long as they can easily access there office network through vpn. Because Apple’s processors are so better than Intels in terms of not giving off heat and being powerful, workers will seek to switch to having such device.

Bottom line, I think Apple will continue to grow in the office space because its devices are better experiences for workers.

With the M1 Processor, Apple Will Further Dominate Computing, Including Enterprise and the Cloud

Lexstar — Sat, 19 Dec 2020 17:03:31 -0500

I am excited about Apple’s new M1 processor for its Macintosh Computers. I am excited about them even though this past late summer I purchased the 27-inch 2020 iMac for over $4k which has Intel processors. This iMac may be the last Intel computer that I ever purchase. That is because Apple’s M1 Processor is totalling kicking the ass of Intel’s processors. The M1 processor is currently in Apple’s newest MacBookAir, 13-inch Macbook Pro and Mac Mini. And from what people who purchased it are saying those Macs are as powerfull as the latest 16-inch Macbook Pros and iMac Pros. Crazy stuff. They probably already compete with my 2020 27-inch iMac which I loaded up with the i9 intel processors and best AMD video card and 128 GB memory. Crazy powerful. That is until Apple created the M1 processor based on the amazing processor chips in the iPhone and IPad.

The computer world, particularly Intel and those who rely on Intel should be shaking in their boots. Apple’s M1 processor uses less electricity and gives off less heat than Intel’s processor while being even more powerful. That spells big trouble if not death for Intel and those who rely on it.

During the pandemic, I have been using various computing devices at home. My work computer, which work has given me, is a relatively new HP laptop that has i7 Intel processors in it and anS SD drive plus about 16 gb memory. This is a pretty powerful computer given that I mainly use it for Microsoft Word, Adobe Acrobat, browsers and Microsoft Word. But I hate it. I hate it because it is constantly using the fan because it gets really hot underneath. It is noisey and hot. Plus, I have to pretty much always keep it plugged in for power because the battery doesn’t last long — at most, 2 hours.

With the new M1 Processor that uses less electricty, the Macbook Air gets 18 hours without a charge and the 13-inch Macbook Pro gets 20 hours. The Macbook Air makes no noise as it doesn’t have to use a fan. The 13-inch Macbook Pro has a fan but it hardly ever kicks in. People in enterprise are going to be purchasing these M1 computers that Apple makes because they are quiet, give off no heat and have batteries that last very long as well as being very powerful.

This will break the Windows-Intel hold on computers in the work place. For decades, Microsoft and Intel held a monopoly on computers in the work place. Apple Macintoshes had at most a modest slice of that business, maybe 3% or 5% at best. But that grip is going to be smashed by Apple. The time is ripe as Microsoft sees the writing on the wall particulary as Apple dominates smartphones and tablets with the iPhone and iPad. In enterprise, most businesses use iPhones and iPads. Microsoft completely supports Apple’s devices. Microsoft is now going to the cloud for its business. Office 365 is in the cloud. So Enterprise has aleady been used to dealing with Apple devices, i.e. iPhones and iPads. With the Macs now using the M1 processors, Enterprise will probably start switching to Macintosh computers. Afterall, the Macs work well now with the iPhone and iPad. Among other things, the millions of apps on iPhones and iPads will now work on the M1 Macs. For enterprise, it will be easier to support Macs with M1 when they are already supporting iPhones and iPads rather then continuing to support Intel laptops. In addition, since the future of Intel is in doubt now, enterprise will probably rely on Apple, the most successful company in the United States.

These M1 chips growth will not stop in the enterprise. They will also grow and domominate in the cloud. Right now, Intel processors dominate the servers that run the web and the cloud. But the problem for Intel is that Apple’s M1 processors are much more efficient in terms of power versus electricty consumption compared to Intel processors. Anyone running a lot of servers will be compelled to purchase the more powerful and power efficient M1 processors from Apple. Apple sells MacMinis with the M1 processor for under $700. Look for these MacMinis ending up being used as servers.

Epic Games Antitrust Case Against Apple Will Fail

Lexstar — Tue, 18 Aug 2020 11:08:47 -0400

Here is a video I made explaining why Epic Games recent federal court Antitrust case against Apple in the Northern District of California will fail. Check it out.

Here is what I state in the video.

Okay, so here's the thing a couple of days ago, Epic Games sues Apple, and it seeks declaratory injunctive relief in federal court in the Northern District of California. And what my YouTube video is about is how this claim by Epic Games is not really an antitrust violation. There's really no basis for this. And if you understand what antitrust is all about, you'll see why this doesn't make sense.

Now, here's the thing with antitrust. So antitrust is when a company has a monopoly in a market and it takes that monopoly in the market and uses that to destroy some other market or to destroy some other entity that is trying to compete. And that's what antitrust is all about. This goes back to the Sherman act way back at the beginning of the 20th century.

So Fortnite — that's the game that Epic Games is famous for. So they released Fortnite which is the shoot 'em up game, multiplayer game and actually had it's probably its greatest success on the iPhone. And what Epic Games is claiming is that it's unfair for Apple to take 30% from selling the game in the App Store. So Epic Games is basically trying to get a court to say it's illegal for Apple to charge 30% to any app that is being sold through the app store or 30% of the services. Also, what's going on is Epic Games is trying to claim that Court should then tell Apple that they have to allow other stores to enter to sell apps on the iPhone. And they're claiming that, you know, Apple has a monopoly over the iPhone.

Okay, let's think about this. What does that mean? First you have to establish what is the relevant market? And does a company have a monopoly power in a relevant market? Right, but the key is what is the relevant market? Right. And monopoly power historically had been, you got to be significantly over 50% usually 60%, 70%, 80% or maybe 90%, dominating the market. Okay.

So what are things that are typically monopoly power? Well, your local electricity company like the one where I live in New York City: Con Edison provides electricity. The relevant market for electricity is New York City because I can't really buy electricity from California. That is because Con Edison owns the wire lines, and I have to get it through Con Edison in New York. Now, the government regulates Con Edison, because otherwise Con Edison could just raise the price a lot. And we don't have any real choice.

The fact that a company created a product doesn't mean that it has a monopoly in the market. That wouldn't make sense, right? Think about it. Does Nintendo have a monopoly power? Because it makes the Nintendo Switch or other Nintendo devices? No, because the market isn't just Nintendo's switch. Similarly, Microsoft doesn't have a monopoly power because it has the Xbox because, you know, yes, it controls the Xbox. But the Xbox competes with other things. So Microsoft doesn't have monopoly power over the relevant market.

So you have to figure out what is the relevant market. And one way economists historically have tested monopoly power is to do an analysis of, could the monopolist significantly raise prices, and its customers couldn't leave, there is no place to go. So for example, we need electricity, where we live in New York City. Now Con Ed, if it wasn't regulated by the government, they could raise the power and maybe some people couldn't afford it and would have to shut off the electricity. But a lot of people would have no choice and would have to pay much higher electricity. And there's really no other product that they could get in New York City. We don't have fireplaces for heating up and it's not really practical to use candles for light That would be an entity that would clearly have monopoly power.

Buried in Fortnite’s complaint against Apple — I'm reading it, it's, well, it's on the web, you can find it, I found it at unrealengine.com. But if you look in the complaint, a lot of it is how users don't have choices. And it sort of puts down the quality of the App Store. Let me let me take some of the arguments one by one. Here's the key thing. If you go to Section three, paragraphs 156 157 and 158. These are the paragraphs that are alleging that, you know, trying to convince the court why just the iPhone is the market. The Complaint alleges this heading entitled Competition In The Sale of Mobile Devices Cannot Discipline Apple's Conduct in the iOS distribution, or iOS in an app payment Process market. So basically, it's saying Apple's mobile device customers face substantial switching costs and iOS lock in. So that's one argument that they make. The second argument is that Apple's sticky iOS ecosystem protects its dominance in the sales of mobile devices. And then the third point they make is information costs and other market inefficiencies in iOS, iOS distribution iOS in that payment process market.

So basically what they're saying to the court is people who are iPhone users can't switch can't switch away from the iPhone can't switch away from Apple's devices, because they're locked in and you know, they're locked in because they have a lot of devices. They can't switch. Now, I think this argument is ridiculous stretch and is kind of crazy. Okay, let's take the situation with Fortnite.

First of all, I think most people would agree Fortnite the game is played by kids, a lot of teenagers, young kids, maybe even under 10 a lot of teenagers and maybe young adults. These kids are if they're really passionate fortnight fans, they're going to lobby their parents for an Android device. Now here's the thing, Google kicked out Fortnite from the Google Store and Android, but Android allows you to side load apps and also Samsung has its own store and Fortnite is in the Samsung store. So, if you want to play Fortnite on a smartphone, you don't have to stay with Apple, you can switch to Samsung phones and to other Android phones and get them on your device. This isn't like the electric company, the electric company can raise the price a lot if its not regulated. There's nowhere for me to go.

If I really want to use Fortnite and it's not offered on the App Store for Apple, I can switch to an Android device and Android devices can be very cheap. And I can use it that way. So even now their complaint goes on at length trying to make arguments about how that's impossible. Let's take the first argument Apple's mobile device customers face substantial switching costs and iOS locking. This is what Fortnite’s attorneys, a major law firm, is trying to argue:

So it's Apple's power and iOS app distribution market. And iOS in app payment processing markets is not constrained by competition in the sale of mobile devices, because Apple's mobile device customers face high switching costs in are locked in to Apple's ecosystem for at least six reasons. These costs make it more difficult for users to purchase a mobile device from a competitor after having committed to Apple's mobile devices, thereby bolstering Apple's market power.

So they're basically saying again, that it's very high switching costs. Now, I don't think that's the case. Okay. First of all, most people anyways after a couple of years, or if not every year, are upgrading their smartphone. It's ike in some ways these smartphones are accessible luxuries that even people who are economically challenged go for, as well as middle class and upper class people. I remember years ago, I used to stand in line for the Apple store, you know, when that was a thing here in New York City and across the country. And I gotta tell you, it seemed to me there are a lot of people who were economically challenged, who are waiting for the 500 or $600 or $700 iPhone, and for good reason, because these devices are an incredible Information and Communication deal for people.

A lot of people who didn't have a regular computer can afford a smartphone and particularly the iPhone. And even today, I think a lot of people upgrade every year or every other year or maybe every three years. But the thing is they have it's not that expensive. The cell phone carriers are still doing these promotions where you get a free phone if you switch. So if you really wanted to switch, you could switch carriers and get a subsidized practically free Android or iPhone. T Mobile has these deals. So I'm not sure what switching costs now, in terms of the apps.

Well, one of the things this complaint doesn't point out, you know, and what's interesting that complaint at some point tries to compare the iPhone to the Apple's Macintosh. And you know, the current Macs and long history of Mac's Apple has an app store but also Apple allows people to download programs for the Mac from, from the web, or from alternative stores. Epic Games is saying that's the way it should be. But here's the thing for consumers. Apple's App Store on iOS, which is exclusive has been better for consumers. Then this open system on the Mac, and the open system that was on Windows PC. And the best evidence of that is, look how cheap the programs are on the iPhone, compared to programs on the Mac. Programs on the Mac are much more expensive. You typically pay $10, $20, $30, maybe even $100. Well, you know, on the on iPhone, the biggest complaint has been a sort of, you know, the prices of apps keep going down and down and down and down. And developers can't really charge that much money for an app like you can't really, you never see somebody selling an app really for 100 bucks or 50 bucks on the iPhone. Instead, there's a lot of free apps or $5 apps or a $10 app. And maybe if there was a really great you know, professional app Like, like ferrite, you know, that people use to edit audio and podcasts, you know, that might be $15. But if anything, these apps are really cheap. And, you know, I don't use Android devices. But my sense is that the Android counterparts to a lot of these apps are also cheap. And don't cost much. So if I wanted to, you know, if I really wanted if I was really into gaming, and you know, Epic Games basically says in its complaint that it wants to create, like its own store, on iPhone and sell other apps directly to people. Well, let's say if they couldn't do that. And they did that on Android, and I really loved Epic Games. I could easily switch. And I think a lot of people could just buy another Android device. It's not that expensive to to play these games.

Let's look at Section B in the complaint where Fortnite alleges that: Apple sticky iOS echo system protects its dominance in the sales of mobile devices. This is kind of a rehash of the other one, but it says Apple's ability to raise customer switching costs creates customer lock into its ecosystem. iOS ecosystem is reflected in Apple's ability to maintain its dominance in the sale of premium smartphones as well as in the sale of tablets. First, Apple's iPhone dominates sales of premium smartphones. In 2019 alone, Apple's global iPhone sales generated more than $150 2 billion in revenues. And in the first quarter of 2020, Apple was able to capture 60% of global premium smartphone revenue. Okay, so then it goes on to say that Apple maintains substantial operating profits ranging from 62 to 90%. And it goes on to say Apple has also been able to maintain its pricing power over many years. It's then it's then it sort of segues into that. But to say the high switching costs are obvious from empirical evidence. According to 2017 survey by Morgan Stanley 92% of iPhone users intending to upgrade with the next year indicate they would stick to an iOS device.

But wait a second, this evidence is not evidence of high switching costs. See, this logic doesn't make sense. This is a survey that says a lot of iPhone users tend to stick to iOS devices and upgrade to a new one. And and then they're arguing that's a switching cost. It's not a switching costs. People are happy with iOS devices. Apple makes a premium product. And the irony is the reason that Apple is making a premium product is because it curates the App Store and prevents crappy apps from coming in there. The curating prevents third party apps from over your device and hijacking it. Now what do I mean by that? Okay, now the Mac. And just like the PC for years was around before the iPhone, right? But the Mac just like the PC was susceptible to malware taking over your PC or Macintosh.

And even recently, you know, my teenage daughter I gave her gave her and my son 13-inch MacBook Pros a couple years ago. And my daughter, you know, who probably learned when she was younger how to use an iPhone before she used the Mac. She was clicking stuff on the internet with her MacBook Pro. And I'm telling you, malware got into her to her MacBook Pro, because she clicked on the wrong thing. And next thing you know, both browsers, both Chrome and Safari. were sort of hijacked by this fake Google thing that made it look like you were using Google. But you weren't using Google, you were using some third party unrelated to Google hijacking your browser to think that it was using Google when it was using its own stupid malware.

This argument in the complaint that because so many people want to stick to the iPhone, there's high switching costs, there's no basis to say people are sticking with the iPhone because they don't have a choice. This is kind of a logical if you think about it, right? What they're trying to argue is, people don't want to stay with the iPhone, but they're forced to stay with the iPhone. But how are they forced to stay with it? Apple's coming out every year with expensive iPhones for a premium and people they're not getting the deal. No one's giving like if there was a subsidy, right? What if If you could like somehow, you know, turn in your iPhone and get a huge subsidy for the more expensive iPhone, that's why you would stay for it. That would be cheaper than buying an Android. But that's not the case.

For iPhone users, they can now go to Android. You could go out right now and get a much cheaper Android device that will do a lot of the basic stuff that an iPhone does, right? But a lot of people are finding that it benefits consumers to use an iPhone, right? And how does it benefit the consumer? it benefits the consumer because Apple is investing a lot of its profits into creating better processors. So you get a much more powerful processor for your bang for your buck with an iPhone than you do with an Android device. I mean, now that's well documented. I don't know if the average consumer knows that. But the other thing is Apple does a really good job with the camera but then look the Google does with its with its camera, the Google phones right that are androids.

So what is it? I mean, the other thing that they don't really talk about is great customer service. Apple has all these Apple stores, right? So you know, if you have a problem with your iPhone, you just go to a Genius Bar, and they take care of it. Android doesn't have any genius bars. There's no Google stores. There's no Samsung stores, that you can just go in that that I know of, and solve that. So what is going on is that, to the extent people are sticking with the iPhone, it's because there's better customer service. And I'm telling you one of the better customer services, that Apple is curating the App Store.

Now remember, Apple has kicked off a lot of things from the App Store. Apple has, there's no pornography in the App Store. There's no you know, crazy apps that are like for like Nazis or something like that. Or, you know, Holocaust denying apps or anything like that. Now on a Foogle device, you can't get it through Google Store because Google stores is trying to do curating just like Apple's trying to do. But Android is an open system. So you could side-load pornographic apps. But here's the other thing, an Android phone is more susceptible to malware being installed into it, because it can be side loaded. And by side loading it you can get into the system. And so that is a risk. That's why if you see a lot of a lot of businesses and enterprise and government are using iPhones instead of Android phones because of the security.

So one of the reasons that the app store is closed is for that security and for that peace of mind. Take also an example customer service. Now remember a while back, Apple went to you know, allowing service by some games. Games like Fortnite, frankly, you know, make more money by selling points or coins or, or something in the game. And we know, you know, many years ago, there were these horror stories of kids buying games in the app store, and racking up huge, huge fees that with their parents credit cards, buying gold coins or something stupid like that in games, people were upset and people reached out to Apple, and Apple is the one who refunded those monies and cracked down on that practice.

Now, here's the thing. Epic Games has its own store. Parents are going to have to rely on Epic Games to prevent that kind of abuse of children, where kids rack up and waste money on points on games. And, I mean, with me, I'm very strict with my kids in the sense that I don't let them play games, where they're gonna have to buy coins and wrap things up. Okay.

And so you know what Epic Games wants it? So Epic Games wants to do two things: it wants to not have the 30% fee. But let's go back to that. If Apple has doesn't have monopoly power, it can do whatever it wants. If Apple doesn't have monopoly power over smartphones, it can if it wanted to kick out everybody out of the App Store, Apple could decide. Remember, the original iPhone didn't have an app store. It just had a few of Apple's own apps. And Steve Jobs said, Oh, people can download from a website, make a website, be an app on the iPhone, and you can still do that you can save any website, you know, look like it's an app, but it can it can't do much other than what the website does, because it can't go into everything that's in the iPhone.

If Apple doesn't have monopoly power, it can do anything it wants. It doesn't have to be fair to anybody. Apple can make deals and say okay, you know, Netflix is a big provider. I'll give you a special deal. You guys are smart. All developers, they'll give you a different now, people aren't gonna like that maybe developers weren't like that. And so for business reasons. Apple wants to be fair, but that's for business reasons for you know, for the company.

Now, if you remember companies before they're a monopoly, the whole point is to compete with the competition. And Apple has lots of competition. Lots in the sense of Apple is competing with Amazon. Apple is competing with Microsoft. Apple is competing with Google and Apple is competing with Facebook. Okay. And Apple has a lot of other count competition. Spotify is competing with Apple. But let's take these other big entities. These other big entities are worth over a trillion dollars, just like Apple is worth over a trillion dollars. Apple is in ferocious competition with them and Apple does not have dominant market share of the smartphone market.

And here's what I'll point out to you. Okay, so a little while back when another app was trying to claim, you know, antitrust violations. I did an article on my blog, MacsFuture.com Apple does not have monopoly power in the smartphone market. And that is the relevant market. There are charts. And so if you look at smartphone sales from the third quarter of 2007, through the fourth quarter of 2019, which is last year, you could see that Apple has anywhere from under 15% to a little over 20% of all smartphone sales, globally. Right. So I mean, the world is kind of integrated economically, and smartphone sales Apple is every year more than 23% in some quarters, it's down below 15 or 12%. Obviously, its fourth quarter around Christmas time is the big one.

Now in terms of worldwide smartphone shipments, market share forecast, Apple is listed as having less than 15%. And the rest is really dominated by Android. Android has 85% of the market in terms of mobile operating system market share. Apple has less than 20% of the market share.

Now one thing that is true is in terms of profits made in the smartphone market. Apple, does have a majority of the profits, but that's because it's making premium phones and it's making its own chip and It's integrated. In other words, there's no other company making its device, and also the operating system. I mean, Google is trying to do it. But in very small quantities, only a small quantity of the Android phones or pixel phones. And Google, I think, is outsourcing the actual manufacturing of the hardware. But Apple is making the hardware. It's making the chips, it's making the operating system and so it has more efficiencies in making these devices.

And I think because of that, it's garnering more profit. It's the premium now, but is that the relevant market, that they have a majority of the hardware profits in the smartphone market? I don't think that's the relevant measure of market and think about it. Think about it from Epic Games perspective. Epic Games, wants to be able to get to as many customers as It can. But Apple only has 20% of all smartphones. If Apple kicks it out, they're still 80% of the other smartphones, right that Epic Games can sell to. So Apple can shut out Epic Games from a majority of all smartphone users, because it only controls maybe 20% of all smartphone users.

So then what's the argument for Epic Games Epic Games? And I don't think they're arguing this in the complaint because they can't, because they also sued Google. Right? But they can't argue that the people who use iPhones are more likely to pay for games. And so that's the more lucrative market and we're being shut out of the more lucrative market. Well, I'm not sure for gaming if that's true. I mean, I think there are a lot of gamers on Android.

And so that's not the relevant market. But then here's the thing. It's not just smartphones and for gaming, right? mean, Epic Games a little too cute by half here. But the gaming market isn't just smartphones, right? A lot of people play Fortnite on the PlayStation, on the Sony PlayStation, the Microsoft's Xbox, I think even maybe Nintendo Switch, the Mac, the PC, all these other devices are gaming platforms. Windows is a huge gaming platform. And I'm sure a lot of people play Fortnite on that.

So when you factor that in, in the universe of gaming devices, Apple has only a teeny percent of installs. So can't really shut out and dominate, right? Like if Apple was a monopolist truly in this market. For games, Apple would be able to dominate 80% of the market for games of the people playing in games and then shut out for it. Right, but it can't.

What this really is, is that Epic Games, which grew in Apple's App Store, and is now making hundreds of millions of dollars, if not billions of dollars, is greedy, and doesn't want to give Apple its cut of activity in the App Store. Now, regarding Apple’s app store, something like 80%, or 90% of the apps in the app store are free. And Apple's doing all this backend work in terms of developing the technology for the developer tools like Xcode, and the API's that come out every year that are revealed WWDC, lots of money is spent to do that. And for every game like Fortnite that makes money, Apple has all these free games that it's supporting and those developers. Apple has an economic basis for charging 30%.

And then the other thing is if you look at this 30% cut, it's not high. You know, if you go to Walmart and try to sell some product through Walmart, Walmart, I'm sure Walmart's taking a significant cut out of that. And I'm sure Amazon takes a cut out of products that you're trying to sell through Amazon. And you know, if you want to go in if I want if somebody wants to release an app into into Nintendo store, sure Nintendo's taking a cut, Microsoft is taking a cut. Everybody's taking a cut. So 30% is appropriate where Apple's doing all the work in terms of collecting the money from users, providing the support is a reasonable fee.

Look, I think when a court looks at this case, the first thing they're going to do is look at whether or not what first they're going to decide what is the relevant market and I just think that the arguments that Epic Games is making — basically saying that the iPhone is itself a relevant market — are a big, big, big stretch. And I am going to follow this case, but I have a feeling that Apple is going to prevail on this. Apple may be worth close to $2 trillion. But it's facing competition from other trillion dollar companies. And we're not even talking about the Chinese companies that are out there that are worth, you know, maybe close to trillion dollars and are giants that are going to compete with the American companies. Apple's a big company, but it still isn't dominant in terms of market share. That's why I think Epic Games is going to lose. We'll have to see.

The HEY APP — Apple Is Not A Monopolist or Violating Antitrust

Lexstar — Sun, 28 Jun 2020 16:54:23 -0400

The latest rage among some developers on Twitter and the internet is to say that Apple is unfair for charging a 30% cut of selling apps or services through Apple iOS APP Store. Fine, it might be unfair, but sometimes business is unfair. But what really doesn’t make sense is that some developers are claiming that Apple is a “monopolist” and violating Antitrust Laws by charing 30% for app or services on the Apple iOS App Store. This makes no sense.

For example, this developer, Russell Ivonovic, said:

The issue is, Apple also makes the iPhone, and has mandated that there’s no other way to get software onto an iPhone except through their store. So what you have is the company which has a monopoly on installation of software on the iPhone, mandating that you use their store, and give them 30%. If you don’t like that deal, there’s no alternative available. It’s the definition of anti-competitive monopolistic behaviour: taking the market dominance you’ve created in one market, to give you an unfair advantage in another.

Rusty Rants

This logic makes no sense. It claims that because Apple makes the iPhone, and has an exclusive App Store for the iPhone, it is a monopolist and abusing monopoly power. By this logic, anyone who makes any device and any service that controls its device and service and limits what can go on that service is monopolizing its device and service and thus is a monopolist. By that definition, Nintendo is a monopolist because Apple, Google, and Microsoft and no one other than Nintendo can operate an App store for Nintendo devices. How about Walmart? By that logic isn’t Walmart a “monopolist” because Walmart controls what it sells in its stores? What if I want to sell a product in Walmart’s stores? Can I force Walmart to allow me to set up a stand in Walmart and sell it? No. That would be stupid.

It is well established in Antitrust Law that for a company to be deemed to have “monopoly” power, it must have more than 50% and closer to 80% and 90% in the relevant market. So there are two key things to properly define. First, what is the relevant market? And then what is that company’s market share in that relevant market.

Apple Does Not Have Monopoly Power In The Smartphone Market And That Is The Relevant Market.

What Rusty and other get wrong is that the relevant market is not iPhones in and by themselves. The relevant market is at the very least all smartphones, if not also all computing devices. Lets take the smartphone market. The smartphone market is dominated by two types of smartphones iPhones and Android Devices. These devices are so similar, that in the early days of Android, Apple engaged in major litigation with Samsung claiming that Samsung violating its patents on iPhones and iPhone designs so that customers couldn’t tell the difference between iPhones and Android. And if you go to websites and YouTube channels covering Androids, customers who are using Android smartphones claim Android smartphones are much better than iPhones.

So most customers would say the market between iPhones and Androids is very competitive. And in terms of market share, the data shows Android has a larger share of the market than Apple. In fact, data shows that Apple sold fewer than 30% of all the smartphones in recent quarters and years.

Statista

Rather than being dominant in the smartphone market, IDC’s data shows that the iPhone currently counts for only about 15% of all smartphones shipped worldwide and will fall to 13% in the coming years.

IDC

In terms of installed mobile operating systems world-wide, i.e. smartphones being used world-wide rather than ones just recently purchased, Apple has less than a 30% market share.

Statscounter

So with far less than 50% share in the smartphone market, there is no way any court can find Apple to have monopoly power in the smartphone market. And that makes sense. A monopolist is such that it can raise prices and customers have no choice but to pay the monopolist and can switch to another supplier . For example, ConEdison, the Electric Utility in New York City, is a monopolist in New York City. I have to purchase electricity through ConEdison. For that reason, the government regulates ConEdison’s prices. But Apple can’t raise the price of its iPhones and then require me to pay it. There are all those Android smartphones that my Android friends say are better than the iPhone. So if Apple raises the prices of its top new iPhone to $3000, I don’t have to purchase it. I can purchase the latest Samsung smartphone for $1500.

Apple Is Not A Monopolist Because Its IOS APP Store Is Better for Developers Than the Android App Stores.

Now Rusty Rants claims there is no other choice for developers than Apple’s App Store. But Rusty there is. You and other developers can make apps for the Android Store. It is a bigger market. There are man more Android customers than iPhone customers. Now those Android stores are not as lucrative. But that is because Apple made a better app store. And it is a better app store than the market for Apps on the Android smartphones, because Apple curates the iOS App Store to make sure there isn’t malware and other terrible apps on the app store. It is not a perfect, but many customers like it because Apple keeps iOS devices safe and not destroyed by malware.

Apple’s App store is more lucrative than the Android app market, because Apple’s exclusivity has made it a better store. Ironically, the very thing that some developers want to do, open up iPhones to have additional app store, or allow side loading, is the very thing that will destroy the quality of the iPhone experience and cheapen the quality of the iOS App store.

Developers who complain: “Cry my a river.” You don’t have to develop for iPhones, or smartphones. There are various other devices that you can develop for, like the Web, and Web apps, like plug-ins for Wordpress, like apps for linux devices like Raspberry Pis.

You can develop for PCs and Macs. There are enterprise developers. The market for developers services is incredibly large and iOS developers are only a tiny slice of the developer market.

These complaints of Antitrust violations are ridiculous.

Christmas In The Summer - 2020 WWDC

Lexstar — Sun, 21 Jun 2020 15:45:59 -0400

Christmas In The Summer - 2020 WWDC

We are just a day away from the virtual WWDC starting on June 22, 2020. This is Apple’s annual developers conference that usually takes place in the first week of June each year. But this year it is going to be only online and starting later in June.

Its always felt like Christmas in the summer. When I was a kid, Christmas was a time of surprise and new toys being given to me. For many years now, WWDC has been the same thing. A time of surprise and new toys being available. The difference is the new toys are new software technology and new hardware technology.

When Steve Jobs was alive, he ruled over WWDC. He ran the show on the main keynote speech that always takes place on Monday the first day at 10 am Pacific time. He was like the magic Uncle in the Nutcracker bringing magical toys to the children. He captivated us with his showmanship. Gather closely and I will pull something from my pocket which will dazzle you. Steve died on October 5, 2011. And his successors, led by Tim Cook try to continue with that summer time magic in WWDC.

I look forward to Monday, June 22, 2020 and the coming WWDC keynote. There are rumors and leaks of what is to come. I welcome the rumors and leaks. They provide hope of new and interesting things. At this time of difficulty in our country and world, we need the magic and positive excitement of WWDC.

Here are things that I am looking forward to:

New iMacs

The rumors are that Apple will announce new iMacs and release them at WWCD. They key part of that rumor is that Apple has finally redesigned the iMacs. As you may know, for about 8 years or so, Apple has not changed the design language of the iMacs. The rumor is that Apple has actually created a new design and its like the style of the latest iPad Pros and the expensive XDR monitor that Apple released in 2019 along with the new Mac pro. My 2020 iMac finally died earlier this year so I have been looking to get new Mac. I have been lusting after the Mac Pro but the price of that along with a monitor is fiscally irresponsible for me to pursue. A new iMac with a fantastic screen makes more financial sense. So if new ones come out, I will probably pull the trigger and get one.

Transition of Macs to Apple’s Own Processors

Apple is expected to announce to developers that it is transitioning the Macs away from using Intel’s processors to using Apple’s own ARM processors that Apple has developed and uses in its iOS devices. I am all for this. I remember in the mid-2000s, about 16 years ago, when Apple switched from RISC processors to Intel processors for its Macs. It was a big deal back then. The Intel processors were faster and better performers. Through out the 1990s and early 2000s, one knock about the Macs was that they weren’t as powerful as the Intel-based PCS. Also, back then, software was such, that there was less software to use on Macs because the software on Intel-based PCs couldn’t run on Macs without a virtualization software also being run. It was a miserable experience running Windows software on those non-Intel Macs. But then Apple switched to Intel. And Apple created the Bootcamp software so you could boot the Intel Macs as a Windows computer. It was a big deal and made the Macs more useful.

So why am I looking forward to ARM-based Macs? Because Apple has shown it is an amazing processor maker. Its processors for the iPhones and iPads are amazing. I am writing this on a 2020 iPad Pro and the power of this device is amazing. Every year Apple comes out with newer processors that greatly increase performance from the prior year. Apple optimizes its software with its processors to make them more efficient. Intel meanwhile has been lagging and rapidly going down hill as a processor company. It has let AMD lead the market in high end processors for PCs. Intel missed the boat in developing processors for smart phones. Apple and Qualcomm make all the processors for smart phones. Apple creating Macs based on its own processors will result in super powerful Macs that will eventually dwarf Intel-based PCs. I don’t think the new iMacs that will be announced next week will be running Apple processors, at least not the main workhorse processors. But it looks like Apple will announce the transition to developers. Most likely, the first ARM-based Macs will be the lightest MacBooks. Then Apple will migrate developing its own processors up to the Mac Pro. Apple just released last year the Mac Pro so it wouldn’t make sense to change that Apple-processors right away. No one who purchased $6k to $50k for a Mac Pro prior to WWCD wants to feel like their Mac Pro is obsolete. My guess is that Apple’s transition to all ARM-based Macs will take at least 3 years. The Mac Pros will be the last computers that Apple upgrades to Apple processors.

New IOS and Mac OS

One thing for certain, Apple will announce new features to the operating systems for iOS devices and Macs. That has been the case at each WWDC I can remember. What are some of the features I am expecting and hoping for?

Better Multitasking. Apple has made iPad OS much more useful for power users who are using the iPad as their main or only computing device. In particular, multi-tasking and access to files has greatly improved. We can bring up at least two Apps side by side and quickly get access to other Apps. We can quickly share data and files among apps through the Sharesheet, the Files App and Shortcut actions. I expect Apple will go further in that direction with more multi-tasking features in both the iPad OS as well as iOS for the iPhone. Apple may bring up some of the features on the iPad OS to iOS. Apple may allow its larger iPhones to run Apps side by side like on the iPad. I expect that Apple will increase the amount of Apps you can bring up side by side on the iPad and also make it more elegant when you do so.

Shortcuts App I think the Shortcuts app and its integration into iOS and iPadOS is one of the most amazing and powerful features on iPhones and iPads. I believe Apple will make that program and system integration more powerful. Among the things I would like to see:

Allow Shortcuts to be organized into folders.
Allow all shortcuts to be run and executed in the background.
Improve the scripting actions to make it easer to create if and then actions and make it more intuitive.
Add more actions tied into the system. For example, there is a built-in password manager in iOS which works when you log into accounts on the browser and apps. Tie that to Shortcuts.

SpringBoard Redesign

I desperately want Apple to redo the springboard on iOS. One huge problem with iOS is when you have many apps on the iPhone or iPad, its hard to organize them and move them around. In addition, if you have many apps on your device, its hard to find what page they are if you want to move them around. I would like Apple to make it much easier. For example, I wouldn’t mind when you edit a folder on the springboard, you can click somewhere and get a list of all the apps on your device and pick which apps you want to move into that folder. Similarly, I would like to click on the springboard anywhere or in the Control Center and see a list of all my apps and I can delete the apps. Or if I pick the apps on the list, I can chose to create a folder with them or move them to a list of folders. This needs to be fixed. Please please Apple fix this!

Airtags

There have been rumors for more than one year that Apple is developing Airtags. These would be cheap plastic tags that you can attach to anything and then you will be able to find them using your iPhone or Apple Watch. The key technology is that Apple will crowd source all the iPhones that people own to help you find where your lost Airtag is located. The idea would be that if I lost my Airtag, even if my iPhone was out of bluetooth or other wireless range from the Airtag, another person’s iPhone that went by the Airtag that I lost will tell Apple where my Airtag is and then Apple will automatically tell me where my Airtag is. I guess some people will worry about privacy because one’s iPhone could be used to help someone else find their lost Airtag. But Apple could do this while keeping any data about people’s Apple’s data or information. A number of years ago I tried a third-parties tag products which also tried to do this. But the product wasn’t that good. The tags were expensive, the batteries didn’t last too long, and the tags were too big and heavy. Significantly, the ability to find the tags was based on how many people but that tag. That is because that third-party didn’t control everyone’s iPhone or devices. It only controlled those devices where the owner purchased their tag. Here, Apple could use all the iPhones that are out there, regardless of whether the people purchased an Airtag, to help find lost Airtags.

Carkey

Apple is supposedly going to work to have the iPhone be able to replace your carkey. This makes sense. Just like Apple has worked to replace subway cards so you can use your iPhone to get an on a public bus or subway, Apple is working on making your iPhone be your car key. More and more Apple will make your iPhone be the control for everything you do. Apple Wallet and ApplePay is replacing my physical credit cards. Many buildings allow you to use NFC on your iPhone to get into your dorm or office. Soon governments will realize that your credentials, like passports and drivers license should be in Apple Wallet and be digital. Carkey technology will just be another thing that you don’t have to carry and have on your iPhone.

Augmented Reality Technology and Apps

Hey, my 2020 iPad Pro has lidar sensors in it. Apple should release more augmented reality apps to work with it. They should also release more AR technology in the iOS and Mac system. Bring it on. Very soon, they will release AR Glasses so let the customers get used to it.

These are just some of the things I hope they release on Monday. I am sure some will not be announced, some will be announced, and hopefully some which I never thought of will be announced and surprised me.

Shortcut Your Life

Lexstar — Sat, 06 Jun 2020 12:37:17 -0400

One of my favorite Apps, is Apple's Shortcuts App. If you don't know anything about it, Apple's Shortcuts app allows you to automate things you do with your iPhone or iPad. It is a way for anyone to learn how to be a developer as it shows you how to think like a developer. I have a many shortcuts on my iPhone and iPad. I plan to create a page where I write up how to use Shortcuts and what you can do with it. I plan to create a subscription newsletter. Among the things I do with Apple Shortcuts is:

Quickly get the password for certain important things.
Put the lights on and off in various rooms using verbal commands.
Having the tv put on and have Apple TV's Youtube TV to come out and have my virtual remote ready. And then quickly shut things down when I don't need to watch TV.

The amount of things you can come up with with Apple Shortcuts is almost endless. And Apple Shortcuts is very powerful as you can put various development language to make really powerful and complex Shortcuts.

This is not my day job. I am not a professional technology person. Rather, I am an everyday person who likes technology. So if I can learn this, you can to. It is easy and powerful once you pursue learning Apple Shortcuts.

Here is where the sign up will be if you are interested:

My goal is to write many articles and videos showing how you can use Apple Shortcuts to make your life and work easier. I believe Apple will eventually have Apple Shortcuts on the Macintosh. In particular, as many business use iPhones and iPads for their employees, Apple Shortcuts will help businesses by more efficient. So sign up, and you will get newsletters on the word of Apple Shortcuts.

Thanks, Lex.

Apple Glass, LIDAR, GPS Inaccuracy and the Holy Grail of Location and Mapping Accuracy!

Lexstar — Tue, 26 May 2020 15:48:16 -0400

In the Graduate movie, a young Dustin Hoffman is playing a recent college graduate who doesn't know what to do with his life. Some jerky older adult pulls Benjamin (Hoffman's character) aside to tell him "one word, Plastics, there is a great future in Plastics." Well it looks like this year, the great future is in LIDAR. One word, LIDAR. Hear me out.

Prosser's Apple Glass Leak

As I mentioned in a recent post, the YouTuber, Jon Prosser, recently leaked from an Apple employee that Apple is working on releasing glasses next year. Prosser claims he has seen the glasses Apple is making and claims that the product will cost $499 (without prescription lenses), it will be called Apple Glass, Apple Glass¹ looks like regular glasses, and Apple Glass will have LIDAR technology but no cameras. It's the last part that I will address. Why would Apple not put cameras in Apple Glass? And is LIDAR technology enough for the Apple Glasses to make customers really want to purchase that product?

First, why won't there be cameras in Apple Glass? Prosser suggested that there would be no cameras because people freaked out when Google Glasses had cameras in it. I think that makes sense. Apple doesn't want people to be afraid to wear Apple Glass. Apple wants to make it easy for every day people to purchase the glasses. Apple also has been telling everyone that they respect the privacy for consumers. If cameras were on Apple Glass, people would be afraid that whoever is wearing Apple Glass is video recording what they see.

A number of years ago, I purchased Snap's glasses, Spectacles. You can see the video I made here. They were fun to wear but the glasses were big and people could see the camera on one side of the glasses. When you were having the glasses take pictures or recording video, a light would go off on the side of the glasses letting people know you are recording them. I wore then for a while, but I felt I looked kind of silly wearing them and I have stopped using them.

So one reason Apple might not put cameras on the Apple Glass is that people might be afraid to wear them if everyone knew they had cameras on it. That makes sense.

Another reason to not use cameras on the Apple Glass is that cameras, that are always working or on a lot, could eat up the battery of the Apple Glasses. Prosser says the Apple Glass will be connected with the iPhone to work. So probably it will wirelessly connect with Bluetooth or some other wireless technology like the W1 chip. So that wireless connection itself will eat up some of the battery on the Apple Glass. And if Apple Glass look normal like regular glasses, well there won't be much room for batteries on Apple Glass. So to save battery energy, maybe that is why Apple will not use cameras on the Apple Glass.

LIDAR

But how could Apple Glass be a great technology if they don't have cameras? The answer is LIDAR, which Prosser mentioned is on the Apple Glass. He also pointed out that Apple put LIDAR on the latest iPad Pro so Apple could test out LIDAR before Apple Glass comes out. I think that makes sense. But how could LIDAR make Apple Glass be great new technology.

First, what is LIDAR? Here was what Velodyne a major manufacturer of LIDOR sensors and technology describes it as:

Lidar is an acronym for “light detection and ranging.” It is sometimes called “laser scanning” or “3D scanning.” The technology uses eye-safe laser beams to create a 3D representation of the surveyed environment. Lidar is used in many industries, including automotive, trucking, UAV/drones, industrial, mapping, and others.

Velodyne goes on to explain how LIDAR works:

A typical lidar sensor emits pulsed light waves from a laser into the environment. These pulses bounce off surrounding objects and return to the sensor. The sensor uses the time it took for each pulse to return to the sensor to calculate the distance it traveled. Repeating this process millions of times per second creates a real-time 3D map of the environment. An onboard computer can utilize this 3D map of the surrounding environment for navigation.

LIDAR has been around for a long time in automobile technology for autonomous cars to "see" as The Verge pointed out in an article right after the Consumer Electronic Show this past January. That technology, as the Verge pointed out, has been very expensive, but now that technology is becoming much cheaper.

So cheap, in fact, that the companies leading the pack now predict LIDAR will become as commonplace in mass-market vehicles as cameras, radar, and other low-cost safety technology.

(The Verge).

So why would Apple want to put pulsed lasers rather than cameras in Apple Glass? Or not both? As Velodyne explained, LIDAR has an advantage over cameras for mapping out what is around you because it immediately creates a 3D map while cameras create a 2D map that then the computer has to figure to make it 3D.

Cameras produce 2D images of the environment and companies are installing them around vehicles to use for navigation. However, there are serious problems with the accuracy of proposed camera-centric systems which have not been solved and will likely not be solved soon. Lidar “sees” in 3D, a huge advantage when accuracy and precision is paramount. The laser-based technology produces real-time high-resolution 3D maps, or point clouds, of the surroundings, demonstrating a level of distance accuracy that is unmatched by cameras, even ones with stereo vision. Whereas cameras have to make assumptions about an object’s distance, lidar produces and provides exact measurements. For this reason, autonomous or highly automated systems require lidar for safe navigation. The ability to “see” in 3D can’t be underestimated. Lidar produces billions of data points at nearly the speed of light. Each point provides a precise measurement of the environment. Compared to camera systems, lidar’s ability to “see” by way of precise mathematical measurements, decreases the chance of feeding false information from the vision systems to the car’s computer.

(Velodyne).

So LIDAR appears to be more efficient than cameras at mapping the world. Maybe also LIDAR may use up less energy than having cameras open all the time. Also it looks like when you use cameras you will need more processor power to determine what the camera is seeing.

Now the LIDAR Apple puts into Apple Glass may be similar to the LIDAR sensor that Apple put into the newest iPad Pro. This is how Apple discussed its LIDAR technology in its March 18, 2020 Press Release when it announced the newest iPad Pros:

Breakthrough LiDAR Scanner

The breakthrough LiDAR Scanner enables capabilities never before possible on any mobile device. The LiDAR Scanner measures the distance to surrounding objects up to 5 meters away, works both indoors and outdoors, and operates at the photon level at nano-second speeds. New depth frameworks in iPadOS combine depth points measured by the LiDAR Scanner, data from both cameras and motion sensors, and is enhanced by computer vision algorithms on the A12Z Bionic for a more detailed understanding of a scene. The tight integration of these elements enables a whole new class of AR experiences on iPad Pro.

So you figure Apple will use LIDOR sensors in Apple Glass that are as good as the LIDOR sensor in the iPad Pro. So that means the LIDAR will be able to see anything in front of you that is at least within 5 meters, which is just short of 16 and 1/2 feet. So what could Apple do with 16 and 1/2 feet of LIDOR data for Apple Glass?

Some Ideas of What Apple Could Do!

What if Apple used the map and GPS data that the iPhone has together with the LIDAR data from the Apple Glass? Let's think about this. Your Apple Glass maps out what is in front of you for 16.5 feet in front of you and sends it quickly to the iPhone. Your iPhone knows where you are because of GPS, Bluetooth Data and Wifi connections. Now Apple has been spending many of the last few years catching up to Google Map by sending cars mapping cities and towns in the U.S.A. and around the world. That is why in Apple Maps you can drill down on the map in the city your are and see 3D renders of buildings and monuments. So when the LIDAR data comes back to the iPhone, the iPhone can quickly connect it to the data from the GPS and Apple Maps and match up the LIDAR data. So even though you don't have a camera, the pictures and virtual 3D pictures of the buildings on Apple Maps could be sent to your Apple Glass and matched up with the scan of your LIDAR data. That means your Apple Glass and your iPhone which is connected to it will know exactly what you are looking at through your Apple Glasses and it will be able to label it quickly for you. So you will able to look at a building or a a neighborhood and Apple will know exactly where you are and what you are looking towards and map out in front of you.

This LIDAR information is really helpful for Apple because currently, GPS data is not very accurate.² Significantly, the current state of GPS data, according to the United States Government, is accurate to 16 feet. That is just short of the range of the LIDAR sensor on the iPad. The LIDAR data could fill in the 16 feet of inaccuracy from the GPS data. So the LIDAR data married with the GPS data will help Apple pinpoint exactly where you are standing and where you are looking. Apple will then put Augmented Reality (AR) data on your Glass as you are looking.

Right now, if Apple just used GPS data, the accuracy of what you see would be really messy. But with LIDAR data being sent back to the iPhone and matched with GPS data, Apple will have much better accuracy regarding where you are. Apple couldn't do this with out first mapping out cities and towns on its own. Apple now has data regarding where buildings and structures are located. With LIDAR and other location data, Apple will be closer to the holy grail of location accuracy.

What does this mean? When I am driving and wearing my Apple Glass, I will be able to get map data on my Apple Glass rather than what I currently do, i.e. either look at my Apple Watch for prompts or look at the iPhone next to me. With Apple Glass, Apple Map data will be right in front of my eyes. I will look ahead. Data will come on telling me which way the route is going and where I have to take turns.

Similarly, using Apple Maps when you are walking and following directions is a pain. You have to look down at your phone or Apple Watch. And because the GPS isn't very accurate, the map is often not lined up with the direction I am looking at. With Apple Glass, Apple Map will be more accurate and very convenient. The LIDAR data from Apple Glass will tell exactly Apple Maps where I am looking and the map data will be shown on my Apple Glass screen. Walking directions now will be incredibly easy.

With Apple Maps supercharged and showing on you Apple Glass, developers will make great apps using the map data combined with the LIDAR data. Someone can make a walking tour app for tourists on Apple Glass. When you look at certain landmarks, information can be showed on your Apple Glass or a video or audio played.

As found by Josh Constine in leaked iOS 14 files and building on what Benjamin May at 9to5Mac reported in March 2020, Apple is working on using Apple branded QR codes to work with AR. Longtime tech maven, and the guy who first wore Google Glasses in a shower, recently extolled how important Apple's AR glasses with QR code will be. Scoble believes that that Apple's QR code will allow people to use Apple Pay by just looking at the QR code and telling Siri it is ok to pay it. Scoble points out that Apple will further know your location to match up with the store and Apple Pay because they know exactly where they put the QR code for the store. His post is on LinkedIn here. What is interesting about Apple's QR codes working with LIDAR is that LIDAR is not a camera but Apple figured out how to crate QR codes that LIDAR could read using software.

The Last Frontier of Mapping

But I think Apple will use Apple Glass for something even greater -- one of the last frontiers that hasn't been mapped? What is that? Is it Antarctica? Is it deep oceans? No, it is your local gigantic box store, like Costco or Home Depot. GPS can only map what is outdoors and generally tell you roughly where you might be in a building. But Apple Maps doesn't not have mapping information for large buildings. Now Apple previously tried to use technology to map the great indoors. Way back at the Developers Conference in 2013, Apple launched the iBeacon protocol which uses small Bluetooth beacons that will work with iPhone. I played around with such iBeacons and they were cheap, like $10 each. You could plug them into the wall in a building and when you walked by with an iPhone that had an app that worked with it, the iBeacon could send you a message on your screen. And presumably, if Apple knew where the iBeacons were placed, it could map your location in doors. But that technology never really took off. It didn't work well with the iPhone. For it to generally work, stores had to put the iBeacons around and map the location of each. Then for it to work, the store's app had to be used by the customer and work well with the data from the store.³

What I want as a consumer, and which iBeacons failed to deliver, is walk into my local large Home Depot Store and when I tell my iPhone to get me a certain screw, the iPhone takes me directly to the hallway and exactly where the screw I need is located. Finding products in stores without having to search for help and look at a bad map in the store is want I want Apple to solve.

Apple Glass with LIDAR data could solve this problem. A developer working with Home Depot or other stores could use Apple Glass to quickly LIDAR map the store. Then the Home Depot app would have an exact map of each store. And when someone came in the store with Apple Glass, the Home Depo app would know exactly where in the store the customer was located based on the LIDAR data it was getting. The Home Depot app would then guide the customer exactly to where the product is.

More importantly, Apple could use the LIDAR data from customers who walk into stores to map each store. Already, Apple is using Siri data from customers, although anonymously so it doesn't know the name of each customer, to improve Siri. Apple is crowdsourcing Siri data from its millions of customers to improve Siri. Apple could do the same with the LIDAR data that customers wearing Apple Glass are collecing when they walk into stores. What if Apple married the LIDAR data with the Apple Pay data when Apple customers purchase products in large stores and malls? Apple probably knows exactly what terminal in a store you used Apple Pay. Although the stores don't know your name and ID, Apple probably knows where the Apple Pay transaction occurred. Apple could marry that location data with the LIDAR data to map indoor stores and malls.

Don't Forget the U1 Chip!

There is more that Apple could marry up with the LIDOR Data. Apple has a U1 Chip. Remember, back last year, Apple put a U1 Chip in the iPhone 11 Pro. Back in September 2019, longtime Apple journalist Jason Snell was so impressed by the U1 chip and its potential, he penned an article entitled: The U1 Chip In The iPhone 11 Is The Beginning of an Ultra Wideband revolution. Snell pointed out Apple only released this nugget of information about the U1 chip on its website:

The new Apple‑designed U1 chip uses Ultra Wideband technology for spatial awareness — allowing iPhone 11 Pro to understand its precise location relative to other nearby U1‑equipped Apple devices. It’s like adding another sense to iPhone, and it’s going to lead to amazing new capabilities.

It looks like for now the U1 chip is used for making AirDrop transfers and maybe the Apple Tags which hasn't been released. The U1 chip is low powered and can pinpoint other U1 chips.

Snell explained its potential after interviewing an industry person familiar with the technology:

But the possible applications of UWB go way beyond AirDrop and tracking tags. Decawave’s Viot says potential applications include smart home tech, augmented reality, mobile payments, the aforementioned keyless car entry, and even indoor navigation. (And it’s not a power hog, either—Viot says that Decawave’s latest UWB chip uses one-third of the power of a Bluetooth LE chip when in beacon mode, as a tracking tile would be.)

(SixColors).

So think about what this means? Apple is rolling out the U1 chip roughly at the same time it is rolling out the LIDRO technology.⁴ Apple could have both technologies working together. For example, eventually if all the Apple devices have the U1 chip, Apple could use the location of the devices together with the LIDAR data. So if you lose your device in a mall, Apple could pinpoint for you exactly where that device is.

Conclusion

Developing new sensors, it looks like Apple is very serious with AR and mapping indoors with LIDOR technology. Apple getting in the LIDOR game is very serious. Remember, there have been rumors for many years that Apple is working building a car -- Project Titan. (See MacRumors). LIDOR has been used for building an autonomous car.

Who knows what new products and services Apple will bring to the market in the coming years. What ever they do will push us forward into the future.

I refer to it as Apple Glass without "the" in front of it because that is Apple's naming convention for products. For example, Apple always refers to "iPhone," not "the iPhone". ↩︎
In addition to GPS, Apple's latest iPhone also has GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System)technology. GNSS is an umbrella over all the satellite location technology. GPS relies on the old United States Department of Defense satellites. But other countries and Europe are creating new location technology location using new satellites. Europe's Galileo is precise to 1 meter, roughly three feet, much more precise than GPS. So eventually satellite location for iPhones and other devices will be more precise than GPS. ↩︎
Apple hasn't abandoned iBeacon technology and still touts it in the technology specifications for the iPhone and iPad devices. It refers to it as "iBeacon microlocation." ↩︎
Now interestingly, it doesn't look like the latest iPad Pros released this spring have the U1 Chip. (See AppleInsider -- speculating that because of supply issues or the iPad Pro doesn't have the latest processor, that is why the iPad Pros do not have the U1 chip). ↩︎

iPad Pro or MacBook Air For My Friend? Which To Get?

Lexstar — Mon, 25 May 2020 13:23:38 -0400

I have a really good and close friend who is not a tech geek like I am. Recently, his 2012 13-inch MacBook Pro broke down. I told him it was time he should get a new device. I suggested he get either an iPad Pro or a MacBook Air. I gave him the pros and cons of both devices: on one hand the 12.9-inch iPad Pro and on the other hand either the 13-inch MacBook Air.

Now mind you my friend didn't do much with his prior 13-inch MacBook Pro. He is a writer. So the most he did with his MacBook Pro is write. He also used the mail app to send and receive emails. He also used the Safari and Chrome browsers to go on the internet. But that was about all he did with it. He didn't have photos on that MacBook Pro. He never edited videos. As for sending messages or texts? He sent and received messages and texts on his iPhone, not on his MacBook Pro. He did watch videos on the MacBook Pro on the internet. And also listed to some music from the internet. He doesn't have a tv, so his only movies or audios were on the MacBook Pro.

In the end, he went with a 13-inch MacBook Air. He is very happy with his purchase. It is a great upgrade from his 2012 MacBook Pro. But I think he made a mistake. I believe he should have purchased instead the 12.9-inch iPad Pro. Here is why:

Technology-wise, he gets much more technology from an iPad Pro than a MacBook Air.

Cameras. The iPad Pro has much better camera than the MacBook Pro and it has it on the front facing you and also on the back. The MacBook Air has a 720p FaceTime camera. The iPad Pro's TrueDepth Camera, which is on the side with the screen, has an 1080p camera that shoots 7mp photos. In addition, it has two great camera lenses on the back that can shoot 4k video and photos at 12mp and 10mp. Now why should he care about these differences? Well, during the shutdown, like all of his, he is making many Zoom video calls with people. And if you have a better camera for the calls, then the Zoom or video calls you make are better. So right there for that reason the iPad Pro would be better for him than the MacBook Pro. But the cameras on the back are also better for him. He doesn't take many pictures and he has an iPhone. But the cameras on the back would allow him to do more things with his iPad Pro than the MacBook Air. For one, he could scan documents with the iPad. You can't scan papers with the MacBook Pro unless you have a good scanner connected to it. A good scanner can cost an additional $500. I do all my scanning now with my iPhone 11 Pro or my old iPad Pro.

Also, the cameras on the back have new technology for the iPad Pro. They have LIDAR sensors. Here is what the National Oceanic Service describes LIDAR as:

Lidar, which stands for Light Detection and Ranging, is a remote sensing method that uses light in the form of a pulsed laser to measure ranges (variable distances) to the Earth. These light pulses—combined with other data recorded by the airborne system— generate precise, three-dimensional information about the shape of the Earth and its surface characteristics.

A lidar instrument principally consists of a laser, a scanner, and a specialized GPS receiver. Airplanes and helicopters are the most commonly used platforms for acquiring lidar data over broad areas. Two types of lidar are topographic and bathymetric. Topographic lidar typically uses a near-infrared laser to map the land, while bathymetric lidar uses water-penetrating green light to also measure seafloor and riverbed elevations.

No my friend isn't going to be interested in LIDAR technology because he doesn't know how it it will help him. But the thing is he will probably keep his new device for at least 7 years. And clearly Apple plans to do something with LIDAR on the iPad and also third-party developers will create programs that use LIDAR. Right now, without LIDAR, my iPhone 11 Pro has a measurement app which allows me to measure stuff with the iPhone. With LIDAR, the measurement app will work even better. By purchasing the MacBook Air rather than the iPad Pro, my friend is missing out on all the possible apps that could use LIDAR.

In addition to LIDAR, the iPad Pro has other sensors that the MacBook Pro doesn't have. It has a Three-axis gyro, an Accelerometer and a Barometer. Plus it has FaceID security rather than a fingerprint security. The MacBook Air does not have these sensors.

Screens. How about the screen? The iPad Pro's screen is superior to the MacBook Air's screen. The 12.9 inch iPad Pro has 2732-by-2048-pixel resolution at 264 pixels per inch (PPI). The Macbook Air is 2560-by-1600 native resolution at 227 pixels per inch.

Weight. The 12.9-inch iPad Pro is lighter than the 13-inch MacBook Air as it weighs 643 grams while the MacBook Air weighs 1.29kg (or 1290 grams). But if you get the Magic Keyboard for the iPad Pro that combined weight will be about the same as the MacBook Air. But the point is you can have the iPad Pro naked with no cover and you can easily read it in your bed or sofa or when you are on a public transportation because its so light.

Power. The MacBook Air got a single-core Geekbench score of 1110 and multi-core score of 2862. The newer iPad Pros got Geekbench scores of 1118 single core and 4704 for multi-score. So the iPad is more powerful in multi-core processing.

Other Differences. There are a couple of other things that are different between the iPad Pros and and all the Mac.

First, the iPad Pro you can get with a cellphone antenna if you pay extra. You can't get that with any Macintosh. So with the iPad Pro if you have a cellphone antenna, you can always connect to the internet even if you you are not at home and don't have a connection to a wifi that is connected to the internet.
Second, the iPad Pro has access to many more apps and programs in the iOS App Store than what the Macs have access to in the Mac App Store. In addition, the iPad apps are generally cheaper than the programs for the Macs.
Third, and the most obvious, the iPad screen has touch on it so you can navigate the screen using your finger. This is a big deal because some apps are better to use by using your finger than using a mouse, trackpad and keyboard. Say you are watching a video. Isn't it better to hold the iPad Pro and use your finger to start the video or to swipe around for other videos? Same with looking a photos. Isn't touch better for looking at them? I think so.
Fourth, the iPad Pro can work with the latest Apple Pencil. My friend writes. Sometimes you want to write with a pencil and take notes. With the Macintosh you don't have a choice. The screen on the Macintosh doesn't have touch screen or the ability to use a pencil. With the iPad Pro you have a choice, touch, keyboard, trackpad, mouse or pencil. Actually also voice control. The Mac has voice control but I don't think it is as useful or as ingrained in the system as voice control on iOS devices.
Fifth, the Mac has some major advantages but mainly for pros. For example, on the Mac you can use Xcode to create apps for the iPhone, iPad, Macs, Apple TV and Apple Watch. On the iPad Pro you can't do that. But my friend is not a developer so he should not care about that. The Mac lets you put apps that don't come from the Apple App Store. That is a big deal for a power user like myself. For example, I have long used the Audio Hijack program from Rogue Amoeba, which allows you to record any audio that comes through your Macintosh. There is nothing like that on iOS as Apple doesn't let third-party developers fool around with the system underneath.¹ Similarly, because your have a Terminal App on the Mac, and because MacOS was built on UNIX, you can put UNIX commands and do crazy stuff on your Mac. On your Mac, you can download Homebrew on the Terminal App and then do additional crazy stuff. Like for example, there are programs that can make your Mac a server for HomeKit so you can have devices that are not HomeKit work with Apple's HomeKit on your iPhone and iPad. And of course scripting. On the Mac, you can run AppleScript and other scripts to automate your Mac. On the other hand, on iOS, Apple has the Shortcuts app, where essentially you can create your own scripts and automation apps. And iOS now has a finder so you can navigate into the folders for each app pretty much to find the files you need. So iOS is closer to having a finder like on the Mac.
Sixth, the security on iOS is greater than on the Mac because you can't install non-Apple approved programs on iOS. Also, because the iOS apps are siloed when they run, unlike on the Mac where the programs get closer to the underlying system, your iPhones and iPads are much less likely to get hacked or hijacked. On the Mac, you can still get locked out and have your computer hijacked if you click on the wrong thing form the internet.

What about cost? That shouldn't be the difference in deciding to purchase the MacBook Air or iPad Pro. The MacBook Air ranges in price from $999 to $2249 if you max out the ram and storage to 16gb of Ram and 2tb of SSD storage as well as bump up slightly the processor speed. The 12.9-inch iPad Pro starts at $999 and ranges up to $1649 if you max out storage to 1tb and get the cellphone antenna built in. If you add in the Magic Keyboard for the iPad Pro, add another $349. If you get the Apple Pencil, add in another $129 for the second generation model. So the prices of the iPad Pro and Macbook Air are congruent on price range. Given that my friend is likely to own this new device for at least 7 years, he could splurge on either the iPad Pro or MacBook Air top price and it would be not very expensive for each month he uses it. For example, take $2000 and divide it by 7 years times 12 months; it totals $23.8 per month.

What about storage? That also shouldn't be the difference for my friend. The MacBook Air gives you more storage than the iPad Pro if you pay for it. Up to 2 TB for the MacBook Air and only up to 1TB for the iPad Pro. My friend told me he only used 10% of all the storage on his 2012 MacBook Pro. That MacBook Pro had 4gb of ram and a 500mb hard drive. So my friend used approximately 50 mb of storage. The entry level iPad Pro comes with 128gb of storage. That is 256 times more storage than he use don his 2012 MacBook Pro. That entry model would probably have sufficient storage for my friend.

So why did my friend pick the MacBook Air instead of the iPad Pro when the above shows that that iPad Pro has more flexibility and much better technology?

I think he was prejudiced against getting the iPad Pro by a prior experience with an iPad that he purchase many years ago and quickly returned to Apple. Many years ago, when the iPad was in its nascent existence in 2012, the iPad and its operating system couldn't do as much compared to a Mac. Back then, there were no keyboard covers. You connected a keyboard by bluetooth or lightning back then. Significantly, the operating system for the iPad wasn't geared for physical keyboard back then. Also, there was no support for a mouse or trackpad. So if you used a physical keyboard a lot, you had to each out to change an app or edit. For someone used to writing a lot on a MacBook Air, the 2012 iPad and its operating system could not really well complete with a Mac. I remember my friend purchase the iPad on my recommendation back then and he promptly returned if to Apple after trying to use it. He doesn't trust that the experience on the iPad has changed so much since 2012 that it would be easy for him to write and use the iPad Pro.

Second, I don't think he can appreciate that new things that he never tried could enhance his life. I think most people in the World are like that. It is normal. We live in today. If things are working today, we are happy with that. Something new might not work and it takes additional effort to learn. This is why Apple is careful about how and when it releases new products. Apple knows it has to bring people to the new technology by seducing them with great design that is friendly to people and technology that is so good that people will quickly adopt it. Look at the original iPhone. Most people didn't think it was a big deal or given its high price anyone would adopt it. Remember Steve Balmer then the CEO of Microsoft. He said no one would purchase the iPhone. RIM, the makers of the then very popular Blackberry said no one would purchase the iPhone because it didn't have a physical keyboard. iPhones and iPhone-copiers (i.e. Android phones) now completely control the cell phone market. No one purchases cellphones with physical keys or keyboards. I think most people when they start using an iPad regularly will full embrace it as their main computing device. My mom, who is 90, started using an iPad about 6 years ago. She has access to regular computers. But when I see her she is always on the iPad.

Eventually my friend will have an iPad as his main device. Eventually.

Apple isn't approving Audio Highjack to get into the Mac's system to highjack audio. Audio Highjack is not sold in the Mac App Store. Instead you download and install it directly from Rogue Amoeba. ↩︎

Review of Apple Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro

Lexstar — Sun, 24 May 2020 10:58:39 -0400

Magic Keyboard

I finally purchased Apple's Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro.

Here are my thoughts:

The cover and keyboard along with the trackpad together with the new operating system for the iPad makes the iPad Pro closer to being like a regular laptop but also like a great tablet. I used it with the 2019 12.9-inch iPad Pro. It works with last year's iPad Pro along with this year's iPad Pro.

I purchased the first 12.9-inch iPad Pro along with Apple's first cover keyboard. I liked that cover keyboard that Apple made for the first iPad Pro but that cover keyboard has serious problems. First of all, the way it it was weighted was awkward so when you opened it up you always felt that iPad will fall out because you didn't set it up correct. It felt like it was an origami puzzle. In addition, after a while, the connection between the cover keyboard and iPad Pro stopped working. The connection port on that older iPad Pro is on the bottom edge of the iPad Pro and it would connect with a slot on the seem of the keyboard cover. I still have both but the keyboard doesn't work as the connection on the keyboard covers wore away and no longer work. The same happened to a second Apple keyboard cover I purchased. So it must be endemic for that keyboard model.

Before this year's Magic Keyboard for the iPad Pro, Apple created a new keyboard cover for the iPad Pro that solved a lot of the problems that the original keyboard cover had. The newer keyboard was stiffer. That keyboard is still sold and it is called the Smart Keyboard Folio. Instead of three origami parts that folded like the original, the newer keyboard had essentially two parts with one side slightly bending. Also, the connector port for the iPad Pro was moved to the flat part of the back of the iPad Pro instead of edge of the bottom of the iPad Pro. This makes the connection to the iPad Pro more stable and also less likely (I Hope) that the connection between the iPad Pro and keyboard cover doesn't wear away easily like the first generation keyboard cover. Apple still sells that older keyboard cover (what I call the origami keyboard cover) for the cheaper and older generation iPads (the non-pro iPads and the 1st and 2nd generation iPad Pros). See here.

This year's new Magic Keyboard for the iPad Pro builds upon that Smart Keyboard Folio and adds additional features that make it much better.

First, the keys are much better. They have more depth and travel so they feel like real keys like the Magic Keyboard that Apple makes for the iMacs.
Second, there is a trackpad. It is a real clicking type trackpad and it is level throughout the rectangle. It works really well and you can swipe fingers similarly like the Magic Trackpad for the iMac, the MacBook Pros and MacBook Air. Apple upgraded the operating system for the iPad so it works well with mouses and trackpads. So this Magic Keyboard for the iPad Pro has it all, a keyboard and trackpad.
Third, the keys have back lighting. This means you can now type in the dark and seek the keys. Prior keyboard covers that Apple made did not have back lighting. This is a big deal. Makes it even more like a laptop.
Fourth, the Magic Keyboard has a USB-C charging port on the left side which also passes through the charge to the iPad Pro. It is nice because it frees up the USB-C port on the side of the iPad and its lower to the ground and flat with the desk that you put this iPad Pro on. So the cable will not be up in the air connecting to the iPad.
Finally, the Magic Keyboard has a dock which makes the iPad Pro rock back and tilt up at a good angle to look at when you are typing. Some say it makes the iPad Pro look like it is floating.

This Magic Keyboard makes the iPad Pro an even better production machine. People who use the iPad Pro to do work will find it even easier to produce their work. This includes not only people who write on the iPad Pro, but also those who edit videos or audio like podcasts.

So what are some drawbacks?

First, these keyboard covers are very expensive. The one for the larger iPad Pro is $349. The version for the 11 inch iPad Pro is $299. Are they worth the money? You can use pretty much any keyboard and mouse and trackpad with the iPad Pro. I have a great mechanical keyboard from Keytron which pairs by Bluetooth to the iPad Pro and works well with it. But, Apple's Magic Keyboard is easy to travel with the iPad Pro. You can close it up and it become like a slim book that you travel around with. You can't easily do that with regular keyboards, mice and trackpads. And third-party companies that make similar keyboard covers are not as good as Apple's Magic Keyboard. So this keyboard cover is good for someone who plans to move around and travel with their iPad Pro and also wants to easily work with it using the keyboard and trackpad. But you pay a pretty high price for it. I purchased the Keytron keyboard for under $100 and recently got Logitech's MX Master 3 Mouse for $100. These are two great devices for working on computers and the iPads. But they are not as portable as the Magic Keyboard for the iPad Pro. So you are paying for the portability when you pay $349 or $299 for these Magic Keyboards.
Another frustration is you cannot bend one of the covers fully behind the iPad Pro so that it is flush with the back. The original keyboard cover and the second generation keyboard cover allows you to do that. That allowed me to then use the iPad as just a tablet and get the keyboard out of the way when I didn't need to use it. On the second generation it was awkward as the keys would be facing out on the back so when you held the iPad with one cover on the back your hand would be pressing down on the keys. The original origami keyboard cover for the iPad Pro had the keys facing in on the back side of the iPad Pro. This newest model doesn't allow you to swing one side of the cover fully on the back. That means you cannot use the iPad as just a tablet unless you completely separate it from the Magic Keyboard. I don't like that because I rely on the Magic Keyboard as a cover protecting the iPad. So the Magic Keyboard for the iPad Pro is really less a cover for the iPad Pro then a highly portable and compact keyboard with trackpad. I guess Apple had to make it this way to make the structure of the keyboard cover stronger than the previous models. The origami keyboard cover was frustratingly unstable. This Magic Keyboard is heavy and well balanced. You can more easily balance it on your lap and type on it.

So who is this keyboard cover for? I would suggest it for anyone who is an iPad enthusiast and anyone who uses the iPad Pro as their main work or production device. If you do a lot of work on the iPad, you should definitely get this. Between using the keyboard, touchpad and touch screen, you have complete and easy control of the iPad Pro. Having the backlight and additional USB-C connection on the keyboard (it only charges and doesn't send data) makes it easier to use the iPad Pro.

I should point out that Apple has three different covers for the iPad Pro.

Model	11-inch iPad Pro	12.9-inch iPad Pro
Magic Keyboard Cover	$299	$349
Smart Keyboard Folio	$179	$199
Smart Folio	$79	$99

If you are a hardcore iPad Pro user it might make sense to purchase not only the Magic Keyboard Cover but also the Smart Folio. The Smart Folio has no keyboard or trackpad. It is just a cover for the front and back. What is good about it it automatically shuts down the screen when you close the cover. Also, you can swing the cover on the front to the back and it is thin. So if you just want to use the iPad Pro as a tablet this Smart Folio will protect it. So I can see someone purchasing both the Magic Keyboard Cover and the Smart Folio. When they don't need the keyboard and what to travel with the iPad Pro they may put the Smart Folio on it. When you need the keyboard and trackpad you take the Magic Keyboard Cover. Yes, you could get the Magic Keyboard Cover and just take out the iPad Pro naked when you want to use it just as a tablet. But some people, like me, would be afraid that the iPad Pro will be damaged it you don't have a cover.

One thing to point out is that the Magic Keyboard for the iPad Pro is pretty heavy:

The 12.9-inch iPad Pro and Magic Keyboard weigh in at 3 pounds (1362 grams), more than the 2.8 pounds (1290 grams) of the 13-inch MacBook Air but the same as the 13-inch MacBook Pro.

(The Verge). For that reason that is also why you can't really hold the iPad Pro with the Magic Keyboard as a tablet. It is heavy, heavy as a 13-inch MacBook Pro. That is why I may purchase the Smart Folio to use the iPad Pro as a tablet when I want to be more mobile and protect it.

To sum it up, though it is expensive, the Magic Keyboard for the iPad Pro is the best keyboard and trackpad when you want to be mobile with the iPad Pro. If you are never leaving your office with the iPad Pro, I would think about getting another keyboard or trackpad and a stand for the iPad Pro. But if you are ever going to move around and leave your home or office with the iPad Pro and want to type and do work on your iPad Pro, this is the device for you.

Definitely a thumbs up from me!

The Apple Leaker -- Jon Prosser -- Think Secret!

Lexstar — Thu, 21 May 2020 20:41:47 -0400

Many of you following Apple have heard of this gentleman named Jon Prosser who has a YouTube channel called Front Page Tech. His channel for many years have been essentially a comedy tech news channel. He seems like a nice guy. But lately, his channel has gotten very serious because it looks like Apple employees are leaking to Prosser various secret products. For example, recently he leaked that Apple has glasses coming out at the end of the year or in 2021 and he claims he has seen the glasses and knows the price, around $500. See this episode. Earlier, about one month ago, he leaked the iPhone SE coming out. See this episode.

I have listened to him on various podcasts he has been a guest on. First, I heard him on iMore's podcast here. iMore podcast April 26, 2020. On the iMore podcast he goes on at length at how he gets his information from sources at Apple. He basically admitted he is getting the information straight from Apple employees who are leaking to him. But it also looks like he is inducing the employees to leak to him. For example, on the iMore podcast, he admits that he asked the Apple employee to let him get a picture of the product. See this part of the podcast

I heard Prosser today also on the CultofMac podcast cast. See the CultCast's May 21, 2020 episode. Prosser seem like a nice guy. He is also somewhat young. He mentioned before he built up his YouTube channel (he has about 247,000 subscribers) he used to work for Chris Pirillo, a longtime character on the Internet. Prosser mentioned on the CultCast podcast that he had a really hard childhood as is parents died when he was young. He also joked about being worried about Apple coming after him.

Frankly, I am worried about Prosser. I think he is over his head. On the podcasts he sounds like he is inducing Apple employees to leak confidential information to him. This could be a problem for him. Inducing an employe to breach a company's trade secret could be deemed a misappropriation of a company's secret and thus illegal. Prosser openly states on the podcasts he appears on that he assures the Apple employees he is getting leaks from that he will work to keep their identity confidential. On the iMore podcast he admits that he is telling his sources what he would like to get from Apple's confidential information.

Many years ago there was another young tech person who got secrets from Apple's employees. The website was called ThinkSecret.com and the owner of the site was a young tech person named Nick Ciarelli (aka Nick DePlume). Apple sued him and his site and in 2007 he settled and that website has been vacant since then. See Digital Media Law.

What Prosser has to be careful of is that Apple could sue him for inducing employees to violate the confidential agreement. Just getting sued by Apple could be incredibly expensive. And Prosser seems to be baiting Apple on his videos and podcast appearance. He knows that Apple is trying to find who is leaking to him. I feel that I am seeing a slow automobile accident happening right in front of me. I feel bad for the Apple employees who are leaking and for Prosser. I don't think they know what they are dealing with here. Apple has a large legal department and it hires some of the top law firms. If Apple feels that Prosser is inducing its employees to leak, I could see Apple suing Prosser. Apple eventually will also find the employees who are leaking to Prosser.

My advice for Prosser is to be very careful and not do anything that looks like he is inducing leaks to him.

Restarted My Podcast and YouTube Channel

Lexstar — Thu, 21 May 2020 18:16:28 -0400

Many years ago, I had a podcast on itunes: MacsFuture and and iPad podcast. Also had it on YouTube. Well, I have decided to again try to podcast and have a YouTube channel. Here is my first podcast episode.

🎧 Listen to the episode

A Trip Down Memory Lane - I Don't Miss Old Tech

Lexstar — Wed, 13 May 2020 10:56:28 -0400

Over on John Gruber's Talk Show Podcast, Gruber had Adam Engst on, one of the founders and keeper of TidBits. TidBits is probably the oldest internet publication covering Apple, let alone the oldest publication on the internet. Engst and Gruber reminisced about the early days of the Macintosh in the late 1980s and Engst and his wife's early days with the TidBits sites.

Engst and his wife were at Cornell University as students when they first got into the Macintosh and Apple. Same with me. I was there also as student and also got into the Macintosh. While I can reminisce, and appreciate how amazed I was in the past, I don't miss the old technology.

The original Macintosh came out in 1984. I got my first Macintosh in 1986. My first Macintosh was the Macintosh Plus, which was the third version of the Mac.¹ The big feature of that Mac is that it came with a whopping 1 megabyte of RAM, four times the amount of the original Macintosh. That Macintosh, also known as the Macintosh Plus, retailed for $2,599. Looking back, that was a lot of money. In today's money, that is $6,114.². It is funny that I now hem and haw about replacing my broken-down 2010 iMac and whether to spend more than $2500 on a replacement and whether to get a dream machine like the Mac Pro which costs at least around $6000. But back in 1986, when I was a student, I got that Macintosh Plus which in today's money is more than $6000. Now back then I purchased the Macintosh Plus through the school. So I got a big discount. I think around 30% discount. So I think I paid around $1,819 and with tax, over $1,900. In today's money that is around $4,500. Back then my family helped me out and purchased it.

I was thrilled to have that Mac. It was my first personal computer. Earlier in school several years before, I had taken a computer course where I worked at a terminal that was hooked up to some mini-frame computer or mainframe computer. I took a course where we learned the Fortran language.. I don't remember much about that computer language but I remember it was supposed to be helpful for scientific classes and economics. I remember I could send a message to other students on another terminal in the room. There was no internet at that time. Sending a message to another terminal in the same room was considered pretty amazing back then. The key thing about that terminal computer course is that you typed out the instructions to the computer. There was no mouse and there was not Graphical User Interface.

The Mac was totally different. First, I didn't have to go to a room in school to use it. I could use it in my apartment. Second, it it had a GUI and a mouse. No computer I used prior to that Mac used a mouse. The mouse was revolutionary. You could just click and point and move around on it. It seemed so easy. The way I first felt about it about how easy it was to use is similar to how people who first used an iPhone felt compared to a regular computer. That is how revolutionary it was. In 1986, Microsoft had just come out with Windows 1.0 in late 1985 but it could not yet compete with the Mac's operating system. It wasn't until later after several generations of Windows that Windows was as good at the Macintosh's operating system, and then with Windows XP it passed the Macintosh.

Back in 1986 I was excited by several software programs. First I was amazed that you could print out documents that looked like what you had on the screen. Prior to the Mac, printing of course didn't look exactly like what you had on the screen, because there was no GUI. The Mac had the first GUI (for everyday people) that let you create a document on the screen like what you wanted printed. Seems crazy now that prior to the Mac you couldn't do that. No the printer I had for the Mac, which came from Apple, was a dot matrix printer. It printed slow and put dots on the paper. It wasn't sharp. Not by today's laser print standards. But it what you printed looked like what you had on the screen. You could among other things, print rudimentary graphics with your texts. At the time, that was mind-blowing. It spawned a whole industry of desktop printing.

I quickly realized you could other crazy things with the GUI. I was into music. I quickly purchased software that came out that allowed you to control keyboard and music devices and record music onto the Mac. It used a technology that is still used now: MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface). I remember I had Opcode's MIDIMAC Sequencer which came out in 1986. You have MIDI now in every iPhone, iPad or Mac you purchase. It is built into Garageband, Apple's free music creating app. Opcode's MIDIMAC was rudimentary and limited compared to Garageband today. Essentially, you could arrange notes on the MIDIMAC which would then use Apple's limited sound synthesizer chip. The sounds were very cheesy and sounded nothing like real acoustic instruments. It took years for computer to become powerful enough to record audio directly from microphones into computers. Back then, the only recording of sound was highly limited into dedicated samplers where you could only record a few seconds. That didn't come to the Mac for many years. Instead, back then one purchased a separate "Sampler" device.

Finally, the third category of programs that made my early Macintosh fun were games. There were crazy graphic games. At colleges and universities these Macintosh games flourished. I remember going to a computer room in a university I was at and finding many Mac games on a common Mac in the room. I copied them and then had many free games on my Mac. This was revolutionary. Prior to that, purchasing a game, like a video game, was expensive and you needed a special console for your tv. With the Mac, you could copy games from another Mac and share them with your friends. That is until copy protection came out.

The only thing I really reminisce about those days is just remembering how impressed and blown away I was about that new technology. Looking back, that technology looks like a joke. My first Mac had 1 MB of RAM. My current Mac that I am writing this on has 16 GB of RAM. I know have 16,000 times more RAM than the first Mac. My first Mac didn't even have internal storage. I had to put floppy disks into the Mac to run a program and save files. Nothing was stored on the Mac. That didn't come for me until a few years later when I upgraded to the Mac SE/30. That first hard drive totally changed the way I used that Mac. It made it so much easier. No longer did I have to use a floppy disk to load a program and save a file. With the hard drive, I could use a program just by starting up my Mac. No floppy disk needed to first be loaded.

But get your mind around this. That first internal hard drive I had was 30 MB in size. That was considered a large amount of storage at the time. The floppy disks I used prior to that were 512k or half of that in storage size. That 30 MB hard drive size is now not large enough for basically one photo file that my camera shoots. And at most, it would hold just a few of the photos my iPhone 11 Pro shoots. I can purchase a MacBook Pro now with 4 terabytes of storage. Think about that difference. One gigabyte is 1,000 MB. One terabytes is 1,000 GB. So a 4 terabyte Mac today has more than 1 million times storage than my Mac SE/30.

My reminiscing is really just limited to remembering how I felt when I saw the technology that the Mac had back in the 80s. It was the future for me. But back then, I could only compare the Mac with what was the technology then or before then. I couldn't compare it with the future. And what I found out was that compared to the near future, the Mac I had in the late 1980s was not great. By today's standards its a joke. Because technology goes forward very fast. Everyday I see new technology that blows me away. And by tomorrow that technology is average or old.

Proof of this is Apple's recent upgrade to Logic Pro which came out yesterday, May 12, 2020, just as I am finishing this post. Take it a look at its features and then go back and see what the music making program that was on the Mac back in the late 1980s could do. You can't even compare it. It you went back in time with the Logic Pro from today you would freak out anyone back then and they would think you were from another planet. Imagine then what the Logi Pro app in the future in 20 years from now would be like!!!

See Wikipedia. ↩︎
See inflation calculator ↩︎

Staying Mentally Sharp During The Pandemic Shutdown With An Epic Tech Adventure

Lexstar — Sat, 02 May 2020 22:32:02 -0400

Okay, so what can you do during a pandemic to keep sane and mentally sharp? Answer: work on some technology projects. Even though that’s not your business and you’re not a technologist, working on some technology projects can keep you sane and positive during the shutdown when you are at home all the time. After all, you can’t go out, you can’t do much. You can’t travel. You can’t really walk around very much. What’s going on right now is that if you have a computer and it is connected to the Internet, this is your lifeline. But it is not enough to just consume. You can’t just watch Netflix all the time. You can’t just play video games all the time. You can’t just read news all the time. You have to do something to work your brain. You have to do something to grow. And one of the things that you can do without leaving your house, your place of shelter, is work on various technology projects. You can take on projects that will be helpful to you. And if the project isn’t helpful at the very least you learn a lot of about technology.

And it’s important to learn about technology because technology is everywhere. It has seeped everywhere in our lives. And one thing for sure, in this pandemic, technology is something we can rely on. Technology ultimately is going to be the thing that saves us. It will be some scientist or company using the latest technology in biology or chemistry or both who will make a breakthrough and create a vaccine that protects us.

In terms of what we’re relying on. Just look at companies like Amazon, Apple, Google, and Microsoft. They’re the backbone of our survival right now, because they’re not going down. We are relying on them more and more. And because of that, it is helping us survive. We can communicate better with each other. We can do our job using technology. Look how Zoom has taken off for everyone, not just for businesses, schools are using Zoom. People are having private Zoom parties.

So over the last few weeks, I went on an epic adventure where I learned tech about the Internet and created projects.

So what kind of projects can you work on? Well, one thing to do is work on creating your own website. And I don’t mean do it the easy way where you go to a site like Squarespace or Wordpress where they will host your website, and they will just make it easy to create a website through a few clicks. Don’t do the easy way like that. There are a number of reasons why not to do it the easy way. First it’s more expensive to create a website like that. Squarespace costs at least $12 per month. Wordpress starts at $4 per month but quickly goes up if you want to add stuff to help your website.

I found a way to host multiple sites for a total of $5 per month. More on that later. But the main reason not to use turnkey services like Squarespace or Wordpress hosting is that you can learn to do it yourself with any server on the Internet. That way you understand what is underneath your website, the server itself.

What do I mean by that? Well, everything on the Internet runs on something you’ve maybe heard about called a “server.” A server, just like a butler server at a party, “serves” you something. But a server on the Internet serves you digital data when you go to that server. So when you go to an Internet website, a server somewhere is sending you digital data to your browser.

A server is nothing more than a computer somewhere connected to the Internet that is hosting the data that comes to your browser. Some servers actually are sending not digital data to your browser, but sending digital data to your app on your iPhone or iPad or Android device. Also, when you talk to Amazon’s Alexa device, the information that Alexa is giving comes from a server that Amazon has hooked up to the Internet. When you make a Zoom call, a server somewhere is making the connection for you with the people that you are calling on Zoom.

Now you could have a server at home. After all, your Windows computer or Mac is a computer. So your home computer can be a server. But if you want your server at home to serve digital data outside your home, you are in trouble. Trouble because the companies hooking up your home to the Internet, like Comcast and FIOS, they are making your address at home unstable for guests in the outside world to find it. That is because you have a dynamic IP address. You see all devices hooked up to the Internet have a unique IP address. The problem with trying to run a server from your home computer is that your Internet provider, i.e. Comcast, FIOS, etc, gives you a dynamic address. Your unique number changes. You need a “static” address for your server.

So if you really want to serve digital data to the outside world, it is best to get space on a server outside your home that is specifically set up to give you a static address so people can find you on the Internet. Now when you go to a company like Squarespace and open an account, that is what Squarespace is doing. It is giving you space on a server. But is also giving you other things, like services to make it easy to design and have your own website.

Once you have a server and a static server address, you also want to have a domain name. Now this you probably know. Right? Facebook.com is a domain name. Cnn.com is a domain name. Every website name you know on the Internet is a domain name. Now a domain name is not a server and a server is not a domain name. You have to pay an annual fee, usually around $10 to $15 per year, for a domain name that isn’t already used by someone or some company. There are various companies that can help you register and get a domain name. Squarespace does it as part of its service for hosting your website. But there are companies that do nothing but register and sell you the domain names. The company I use because it has a decent reputation (i.e. not trying to up-sell you all the time or making it hard to transfer your domain to another site) is Hover. You go to a service like Hover, and you try out different domain names to see if they are available. And you can also get domain name suffixes other than the traditional .com. They have .tv, .blog., even .poker and .bet. Be careful though. Some of those suffixes are very expensive annually. Go for the traditional suffix: .com. That is a classic.

Multiple sites for $5 per month on Linode

So how did I do it so cheaply? Well what I found out is that there are various companies which give you a good server that is cheap, but you don’t get the service that holds your hands to create a website. Think of it like this. When you buy food, if you go to a store that does wholesale rather than retail, you get a better deal. That is why Costco, e.g., has such good prices. Well regarding selling servers on the Internet, there are companies selling server services wholesale. Their market is not selling retail to you and me. Their market is really selling to developers and companies that need a lot of Internet servers. The biggest company doing this is of course Amazon.

Many years ago, Amazon realized it was really good with having servers on the Internet and having services on the Internet for its own Amazon website. After all, Amazon was selling zillions of books and then selling zillions of other things on its website. Amazon realized it was so good with servers for its own business that it realized that it could sell services to third-parties. Amazon created low-priced servers on the Internet for developers. That business is called AWS: Amazon Web Services.. AWS took off; particularly with developers making apps for the iPhone. They needed services on the Internet to send digital data to the their apps on the iPhone. AWS was a very good and cheap service to do so. You probably don’t know this, but many of the web services and apps are hosted on AWS. It is a huge business for Amazon.

Well others are competing with Amazon on that wholesale business. Microsoft pivoted from just focusing on Office and Windows to now providing Internet services for developers through its Azure service. Google has its Cloud service..

Now there are Internet hosting companies that are much smaller than these big three. Several years ago, I found a good deal at one called A Small Orange (ASO).. I got 5gb of server space for $5 per month. I purchased this originally to host a website for a relative who was a doctor because my relative didn’t have website. The website was just to have straight forward information about my relative’s office.

I created the website with what some would consider a non-traditional app to create websites: Hype by Tumult.. Tumult was created by some guys who had worked at Apple. Hype was created to create animations using HTML5 technology. Do you remember Steve Job’s April 2010 “Thoughts on Flash” announcement?. It is still on Apple’s website. Flash was that technology that created all those animations on the web starting back in the 1990s and continuing to a couple of years ago. Adobe owned that technology. Apple refused to allow the iPhone and iPad to run Flash on those devices browsers. This was a big deal back in the early days of the iPhone and iPad because some sites and content on the Internet could not be accessed because of the lack of Flash support. But Steve Jobs was adamant that Flash sucked. In his lengthy polemic against Flash in April 2010, he listed many reasons Flash was not good, including that is was proprietary and chewed up battery life. Jobs and Apple pointed out that HTML5 technology, which was open source and part of the backbone of the web, could work better and replace Flash.

Tumult was created to create an app on the Mac which could create HTML5 animations that could replace Flash animations. So I dabbled in this great app when it first came out. Using this app, I created a website with buttons and menus for different pages which I uploaded to ASO and linked up to a domain name I purchased at Hover.

After I created the relative’s website, I realized that in my ASO account I could create additional sites on the same 5 gb space. I also discovered I could do this through an interface app that ASO had for my server space called cPanel. cPanel is a graphical user interface app for your the server space so you can navigate easily your server and install apps. It is not free, but it came part of my ASO account. ASO must have paid the cPanel company that leases or sells that app. So why is there this cPanel interface?

It is there because pretty much all these servers run on an operating system called Linux. It was created by this guy back in 1991 named Linus Torvold. Practically every server on the Internet runs on a version of Linux. Since it is open sourced, developers and business have created “forks” of Linux over the years. On most servers on the Internet Debian or Ubuntu is used. The most famous fork of Linux is Android, which run the smartphones and tables competing with Apple’s iPhones and iPads.

So through this cPanel interface on ASO, I created two more websites using Wordpress. One for my website MacsFuture.com and the other one for my kids’ sports. I wanted to created Wordpress sites because for many years I read and heard how a big chunk of the web was Wordpress sites. Wordpress is so successful because it’s an open program. This is what Wikipedia says:

WordPress (WordPress.org) is a free and open-source content management system (CMS) written in PHP[4] and paired with a MySQL or MariaDB database. Features include a plugin architecture and a template system, referred to within WordPress as Themes. WordPress was originally created as a blog-publishing system but has evolved to support other types of web content including more traditional mailing lists and forums, media galleries, membership sites, learning management systems (LMS) and online stores. WordPress is used by more than 60 million websites, including 33.6% of the top 10 million websites as of April 2019, WordPress is one of the most popular content management system solutions in use. WordPress has also been used for other application domains such as pervasive display systems (PDS). Wikipedia on Wordpress(footnotes omittied).

So I had never tried a self-hosted Wordpress before so I went for it. Because ASO had a cPane, in cPane there are different server apps that you can put into your server. It was pretty easy. And then, I hooked it up those two sites with domain names from Hover.com. So great, I then had two websites and my relative had one website on a $5 per month server from ASO. Everything was going well. Until …..

Last year, I realized that ASO was charging me more than $5 per month. Here is how much they were charging and the increases over the years.

ASO Charges

So you see it went from $40 to over $90 in a few years. But that isn’t what got me to finally switch my sites to another company that leases servers. It was SSL.

What is SSL? SSL is that lock you see on the domain address when you go to various websites.

That lock tells people going to your website that there is security on your site; particularly that you are who you claim you are. This is important if the people going to your site are putting private information on your site. For example, a bank which has customers logging in would want such security. Or if your site was collecting email address from people signing up for your site. You may have seen these locks on website address popping up a number of years ago. But the practice of having ssl certificates on sites took off and practically every site has that lock because Google says if you don’t have that lock then it would lower the score for your site:

Thursday, February 8, 2018 For the past several years, we’ve moved toward a more secure web by strongly advocating that sites adopt HTTPS encryption. And within the last year, we’ve also helped users understand that HTTP sites are not secure by gradually marking a larger subset of HTTP pages as “not secure”. Beginning in July 2018 with the release of Chrome 68, Chrome will mark all HTTP sites as “not secure”.

Google February 8, 2018 Announcement

The “s” after http is what makes the lock. What is going on is that the connection to your site is being encrypted and a third-party service is giving you a certificate certifying that your site is encrypted. Over time, particularly since the summer of 2018, I realized my sites looked poor without being “https:” and having the corresponding lock. I Googled around and found that some hosting sites for servers, particularly ones that helped host self-serving Wordpress sites, provided free SSL certificates. I checked with ASO, and they didn’t provide any free SSL service. In fact, they charged a substantial amount.

ASO Add Ons

As you can see, an add on service for an SSL would cost me $40 annually at the very least and a wildcard SSL even much more. The thing is I looked around and there is a free SSL certificate service called Certbot that is provided by the Electronic Frontier Foundation. The EFF is a highly legitimate nonprofit organization which among other things, protects the free use and free speech on the Internet. I looked around the web and found out that some server providers which had cPane installed provided an app on cPane to allow users to easily install a free Certbot SSL certificate for the self-hosted Wordpress site. I checked ASO’s cPane and none existed there. I emailed ASO support and they confirmed they didn’t provide such a plug in for the free service.

The fact that ASO was charging me more than $90 per year and not even providing me with an easy way to install a free SSL certificate really bothered me. Then I took a look at Linode. For years I heard about Linode on podcasts as Linode sponsored a lot of tech podcasts. Linode I realized was for customers who are developers. Linode was really competing with Amazon’s AWS, Google Cloud and Microsofts Azure. The thing about Linode that caught my eye was it was cheap. Linode’s cheapest plan gave me 25 gb of storage on a server and 1000 Mbps out in speed all for $5 per month. By comparison, ASO only gives 500mb of space for $6.51 per month. $8.80 per month would get you just 5 gb of space. That was the plan I was on at ASO that was originally $5 per month when I signed up. Linode wasn’t offering me a cPane app for free with the server space I would lease. It turns out if I wanted a cPane I would have to pay extra. And that is part of the reason that ASO was charging more than Linode. Nor did Linode offer a free SSL certificate.

I decided to try Linode because. It had a community and answers on its website where you can find out information on how to set up a Linux server without using a cPane program. I had to figure out Linux commands to set up the Linode server. Then I had to figure out how to put SSL certificates on those severs.

I did it. I was able to transfer my sites from ASO to Linode. It wasn’t easy. It took time. But here is the important thing: It was really satisfying as I learned how to:

SSH communicate from my Mac to the Linode server.
Use the Terminal App on the Mac after SSHing to the Linode server to download and set up apps on the server using Linux commands.
Set up Apache on the Linux server to create virtual servers given I had only one LInode server and wanted to have more than one website on that server.
Download and install three Wordpress sites from scratch.
Navigate in the server files and folder structure for Wordpress.
Use Nano on Linux to edit and change the config documents for Wordpress and Apache.
Configure MySql on the server as the databases for the Wordpress sites.
Configure the DNS on Hover and Linode to set up the various domains I created on one Linode server.

After completing the set up of the various sites and setting up the domain connections, I still had to solve another problem: getting SSL certificates so I would have that lock symbol and the https addres for my sites. The great and free solution I eventually came across was to install the Certbot certificates using command line instructions on the Linode server through ssh connection through the Terminal app on my Mac. These free certificates only last three months but Certbot comes with commands where you can set up a “cron.”. Cron is a service on Linux where you can automatically run commands. So I set up a cron using Certbot so that Certbot will renew the certificates a week or two before the certificates would run out. Pretty cool.

So here you can see my https://macsfutures.com site all set up on Linode. But the fun and my learning did not stop there. I continued to explore.

Static Web Sites

While researching installing Wordpress on Linode, I came across a trend that has been going on over the last five years or more: static sites. A number of bloggers and developers are arguing that static sites are faster and better on the web than dynamic sites. A dynamic site in contrast to a static site changes based on who goes to the site. So Facebook is a dynamic site because based on who goes to that site, the site changes. Wordpress is a dynamic site because it uses a database, MySql, behind the website. It turns out, a number of geeks and others on the web figured out the websites that are static run faster on the Internet.

I learned that one static site publishing platform is called Hugo.. There is a website at https://gohugo.io where it says that Hugo is “The Word’s Fastest Framework for Building Websites.” It is written in Google’s developer’s language called Go. I was curious to try it because 1) it claims to be much faster, 2) you can write your posts as simple “Markdown” text files," and 3) Linode’s new “Object Storage Plans,” can host static websites.

So let’s go through each of these. First, faster website. This one is easy. Why wouldn’t I want a faster website? If it’s quicker to load for users, users will like my website better. I hate going to websites that are slow. I hate websites that load all sorts of videos and crazy stuff and adds. Nice simple websites are the best.

Second. Hugo works with Markdown files. What is Markdown?

Markdown is a lightweight markup language, originally created by John Gruber  and Aaron Swartz allowing people “to write using an easy-to-read, easy-to-write plain text format, then convert it to structurally valid XHTML (or HTML).

markdown-guide.readthedocs.io citing wikipedia [1] [2]

The fact that Hugo worked with Markdown files appealed to me. I had played around with word processors that use Markdown for many years. On my Mac and my iOS devices I have long used Byword.. There are many apps on iOS and on the Mac that use Markdown. The beauty of Byword is that there isn’t hidden code and formatting such as in Microsoft Word or even Apple’s Pages program. You write in simple text. And if you are going to format it the code is simple and easy to read so it isn’t confusing. Hugo treats each Markdown text file you create as a blog post or a page on the Internet depending on what folder you put it in. It is a really simple concept. So writing in Markdown really appealed to me and is a plus for using Hugo.

Finally, if I can host a site on Linode’s Object storage, that is a great deal for website hosting. Linode gives you 250 GB of storage for just $5 per month. That is 10 times as much storage for the same price as its regular storage that can host dynamic sites like Wordpress. Hosting sites cheaply on the Internet is pretty amazing after all. And the cheaper you can do it the more amazing it is. Technology is all about bringing efficiency and reducing the cost.

Think about how hard it was to publish anything so other people could see it. In the early 1700s, a young Benjamin Franklin wanted to run his own printing press and newspaper. He had worked for a press in Boston when he was a teenager. After he fled from Boston to Philadelphia, to get away from his domineering older brother, he wanted to use his experience in running press to create his own press. Franklin obtained significant funds, a fortune in todays funds, and travelled by boat all the way to London to purchase an old press and then transport it by boat to Philadelphia. The rest is history. He became a prominent publisher, inventor, legislator and founder of the United States. Read more on Franklin here

Today, you can run hundreds of sites each for under $20 day using Linode’s 250 gb Object Storage program for $5 per day. You could have all the static websites you create share the $5 per month storage on Linode. $60 per year divided by 100 sites is 60 cents per year. A domain for each site would be $15 per domain. This brings the cost to $15.60 per year for each domain. In terms of a device to set up the sites, you can get a cheap computer (like a chrome book) and use your phone’s hotspot or free Internet connection in a library or park. The friction to publish now is 1/millionth the friction that young Benjamin Franklin faced.

Hugo

Getting back to Hugo. You can install the Hugo publishing platform on your server or you can publish on your Mac and then have the static website it creates sync with your website. I decided to run it on my Mac. Here is how I did it.[3]

First, it involves using your Terminal App on your Mac. Remember what computer screens looked like before the Mac was created and Microsoft copied the Mac and created Windows? It looked like MS-Dos.

(Credit to the Interface Experience for the MS-Dos Photo.) Giving instructions by text is called using the “command line.” All of you using iOS devices, and Macs, Windows and Chrome computers may be oblivious to the subterranean world underneath the user interface. On Macs, the user interface is built on an older technology called UNIX. The operating system for the Mac is running on a relative of UNIX. UNIX was created by the telephone company’s computer lab back when there was one telephone company for the entire United States. The Terminal App is using UNIX like commands. Those commands are very similar to the Linux commands on a Linux server as they are both related to UNIX. Read more on Unix here.

For installing it on a Mac, the people behind Hugo suggested to first install Homebrew.. Homebrew is a package manager that allows you down load development software on your Mac or even Linux. The idea is once you install Homebrew you can then more easier install other things on your Mac. Here is the command on the Terminal App to do so. It is not for the faint of heart if you have never used the Terminal App before.

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/master/install.sh)"

Then after you install Homebrew, you use that to install the Hugo package on your Mac.

brew install hugo

Once it the Hugo publication system is on your Mac, you create a Hugo command in the terminal to create a new site, and it creates a folder on your Mac for the site with various folders. (Look here for various Hugo commands.)

This is what the folder looks like after you generate a site on Hugo.

The folder that is labeled “Public” is the web documents you put on your server. The rest of the folders are what Hugo uses to make the website. The folder Content is where the content you create, i.e. writing, photos, and videos, go into. And the Folder called Themes is where the different themes you can use to make your website are put. In Content folder there is a folder called Posts. This is where your blog posts go. Take a look at mine. What you see below are separate Markdown files. Each one is a separate post.

Hugo Content Folder

These Markdown files for each post take up hardly any storage space as they are pure text files. They are easy to back up and use if you change where your website will be.

As for themes, you download different Hugo themes people created and put them into the Themes folder. Then you open the config file and reference the theme you want in your Theme folder for that site. It’s a simple word reference. See:

I found this crazy Hugo.386 theme that makes your site look like the old 386 PCs, i.e. the ones with MS-DOS commands. I created a subdomain that shows off this Hugo theme here.. Here is a screenshot of this Hugo site.

Hugo Site

To add posts to this site, I add a new Markdown post file in the post folder. Then I run a command in the Terminal App to remake the site in the public folder, and then sync that folder to the server. If you run Hugo on the server, you can just add the Markdown file on the server’s Hugo content post folder and it will rebuild the site on the server.

Swift Static Site Publisher

After I successfully created a Hugo site, I then got interested in another program to create static websites. What caught my eye about it is that it used Apple’s Swift language to create a static site. It is called Publish by John Sundell and you get it on something called Github.com.

First thing first. What is Swift? Swift is Apple’s code language that Apple developed for developers creating apps and programs for IOS devices and Macs. Back on June 2, 2014, Apple announced Swift at the WWDC conference it holds every summer.. No one saw it coming. For years Apple and developers for the iOS devices and Macs used a language called Objective-C. Swift was supposedly to be simpler to use and be more powerful. Apple has been pushing everyone to use Swift and created an App on the iPad many years ago for kids and everyday people to use Swift, called Swift Playgrounds. Over the years, I have dabbled in learning Swift through that Playgrounds app.

During the last year, one of the podcasts I have been listening to is called Stacktrace, which is hosted by two developers, John Sundell and Gui Rambo. These two young developers are very entertaining. Rambo is from Brazil and he helps out the website 9to5mac.com by looking deep into beta IOS systems for clues for what Apple is working on in the future. Sundell is a Polish developer who also runs the great Swift website Swift by Sundell. He gives tips on the Swift language and it is a great resource. It is John Sundell who during the last year created an application called Publish which uses the Swift Language to create a static website. His own website, Swift by Sundell is built with that Swift language tool. Having had success building a Hugo website, I thought what the heck, let’s try building one with Swift.

Publish by John Sundell

So John Sundell created this Swift language Publish program. You have to download it from Github. [4]. Similar to Hugo, you can download using commands on the Terminal Program on the Mac. There is one difference though. Because this Publish program uses Swift, you need to make sure you have Xcode on your Mac. Xcode is Apple’s program for developers to create apps on the IOS devices and also programs on the Mac. So similar to Hugo, after you use Publish together with Xcode it creates folders on your Mac. It looks like this.

Swift Site Folder

Like with Hugo, the Content folder is where you put the content for your website. And again like in Hugo you put Markdown files to create your posts.

This is what the content folder looks like.

Content

What goes onto your website is in the “Output” folder. This is where it differs from Hugo which calls it its “Public” folder. Now I don’t think you can run this on a server unless the server has Xcode or something that executes the Swift language. Most servers run on Linux. There are places you can rent Macs as servers. For example there is Macstadium where you can rent a Mac as a server. But that is much more expensive for a minimum plan compared to Linux as MacStadiums cheapest plan is around $80 per month for a Mac Mini. So publishing a Swift static website would require you to sync the Output folder on your Mac with your server. [5]

So I created a Swift static website successfully and I am hosting it as a subdomain. You can see it here.. It has a rather simple looking design , which you can see here.

Swift Site

Jitsi

The adventure didn’t stop there. I kept stumbling upon things to try out on the $5 Linode server I rented. Now during this pandemic everyone is using live video programs to connect with each other. People are using FaceTime and Skype. But Zoom became very popular because it is easy to use. Then I heard about this service, Jitsi, which is open source and is supposed to be very secure. So what is Jitsi? In the open source entity’s own words:

Jitsi is a set of open-source projects that allows you to easily build and deploy secure video conferencing solutions. At the heart of Jitsi are Jitsi Videobridge and Jitsi Meet, which let you have conferences on the Internet, while other projects in the community enable other features such as audio, dial-in, recording, and simulcasting.

So why should you install Jitsi on your own server? You can make calls for free using Jitsi’s own website. It works with the Jitsi app on the iPhone which you can get here. They also have an Android App.. The reason to get Jitsi installed on your own server is 1) it is more secure, and 2) how cool would that be? It is more secure on your own server because you control your server. You don’t have to worry that someone at Jitsi is eavesdropping on you. With Zoom or other services you don’t control the server that your calls are going through. Same with FaceTime or Google Meet. They are all going through a third company’s server. Here you can install Jitsi even on a server in your home. The Second reason to install it on your own server is it is cool to do so. You can tell people you have your own video calling service. So I decided to go forth and install Jitsi.

It wasn’t that hard to install Jitsi. The Jitsi website gives you the instruction to install it on a Debian or Ubuntu server here. I installed it as a subdomain on one of the sites I had on Linode.

One of the problems I had after I installed it is that the initial set up allows anyone to make a video call. I didn’t want that as I have a small server and if people I didn’t know were using it it could rack up my server bill. I found this video from early April 2020 from Nerd on the Street on Youtube very helpful for configuring Jitsi after I had it up and running.

His video showed me how to configure Jitsi so that a call could only be initiated with my password. So Jitsi works on the server I am leasing. But because it is the cheapest server and is small, I don’t think it can take a lot of calls at the same time. I would have to upgrade the power of my server if I want to make many calls.

Nextcloud

The adventure didn’t stop at Jitsi. I was recently listening to this podcast. Release Notes. One of the hosts runs a business on the Internet where he makes websites for professionals, tax accountants. I realized listening to him that his business involves creating Wordpress sites on a Linode server. I heard this after first transferring my sites to LInode. On this podcast, I heard he created for his customer a service on their website where their customers could upload documents to them. In other words, his tax accountant customers could have their own Dropbox or iCloud built into their site. The way he did this was using an open system called Nextcloud.. As stated on its website:

Share and collaborate on documents, send and receive email, manage your calendar and have video chats without data leaks. As fully on-premises solution, Nextcloud Hub provides the benefits of online collaboration without the compliance and security risks.

Basically, Nextcloud is an open source system taking on big players like Microsoft, Google and Apple and allowing anyone to host cloud services on their own servers. You can use what ever you want.[6]

So I installed Nextcloud on my own site as a subdomain. It is really cool. When you open it, feels like you have your own Microsoft company on your website. Here is a screenshot.

Nextcloud

Next Cloud has apps for the Mac and iOS and other devices. After I downloaded the Nextcloud app on my Mac it created a folder named Nextcloud. That folder on my Mac automatically syncs with my Next Cloud app on the server. So I have my own iCloud or Dropbox. This is really cool. You can invite users. According to Nextcloud, it is really popular in Europe particularly Germany and a lot of universities and companies use it. I don’t know why schools and companies don’t use it here. They could save so much money that they are paying to Microsoft and Google.

Transmit App for the Mac.

Finally, I should mention the one purchase I made during this crazy adventure: Panic’s Transmit 5 program for the Mac. For most of this technology adventure, I was mainly using the Terminal App on my Mac to navigate the folders and files on my Linode server. It was a real pain as you have to type out commands to get to the right folder. Then I remembered that for many many years, the bloggers and podcasters who love Apple and Mac always praised the Transmit program. I checked it out and purchased it. It was a godsend. It is basically a powerful Graphical User Interface for connecting to servers with SSH connections and navigating and editing files on servers. On its fifth generation, It is a well polished and beautiful app.

Once I started using Transmit to connect to my LInode server, it made life much easier. Transit has a feature where if you have to use the Terimal to make commands on the server, you can go straight from a folder on Transit app to the Termina and put the path from from the server on Terminal. This makes navigating the server much much quicker than doing it with command line instructions on Terminal.

Conclusion

There are many adventures in technology. Our ancestors like Ben Franklin went on their own adventures with tech. It is unfortunate that we are living through this virus pandemic that is destroying lives and taking away our normal life in the outside world. But many of us, with decent computers and Internet connections, are lucky. There are adventures and learning available on our finger tips. Use this time to explore what you don’t know. Take on a project. Take it on just to learn something and see if you can build it. Having set up various Wordpress sites, created a Hugo static site, created a Swift static site, created a Jitsi server, and created a Nextcloud server, and all the while reduced my server cost by going to Linode and most importantly, got those SSL locks on my domain addresses, I am now at the end of this adventure.

What adventure comes next? Stay tuned.

Lex.

John Gruber is the famous Apple-related blogger who runs DaringFireball.net ↩
Aaron Swartz is the genius on the Internet who was prosecuted for trying to make public research university publications that are subsidized by the Federal Government. He committed suicide when the prosecutors insisted he go to jail. Read more on Swartz here. ↩
Here are instructions on installing it on your Mac from Hugo’s site. ↩
Github is a famous website for developers. There you can work on codes for programs and apps or web development and work with other developers. It has been around for a long time. Microsoft purchased Github in 2018 for $7.5 billion. That is how popular it was. ↩
You probably can’t run this Publish Swift program on a non-Mac like Windows as you need something to compile the Swift language which requires Xcode from Apple. ↩
I found out that Nextcloud is an off shoot of OpenCloud, and that both were created by this man, Frank Karlitschek, a highly talented German developer. He is a big believer in open systems and individuals taking back control of their data. ↩

Good Luck To Rene Ritchie On His New Adventure

Lexstar — Wed, 01 Apr 2020 09:49:22 -0400

Today, April 1, is Apple's birthday. It was created on this day by Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs in 1976. One of the things I love about Apple is the community that has been built around it. One of the best people in the community is Rene Ritchie. For the last 11 years on the iMore website, Rene has been a reporter, columnist, and editor covering Apple and other technology. But the thing I really like about Rene is he has always been incredibly positive and never says anything bad about anyone. He a great citizen in the Apple Community. During the last year, he has been on YouTube for iMore on a channel called Vector. His videos are straight forward and no-nonsense and they are filled with great facts. I really enjoy them. Well yesterday, he quit iMore and decided to go on his own. He has his own channel called Rene Ritchie. Please check him out if you never watched him. I wish him the best luck and I look forward to watching him.