That surge of Twitter activity this evening was the internet going ape for Facebook’s new IPO filing today in an effort to raise billion. Hey, good luck with that, guys… we’re just hoping all that cash will bring some much-needed fixes to the website, but Zuck probably has some other cool stuff in mind. Oh, and don’t forget to download Mac OS X 10.7.3 which finally hit Software Update today — and while you’re downloading, maybe catch up on the rest of the news for Wednesday, February 1, 2012.
It’s the beginning of February, and that means the iPad 3 rumors are going to start coming in hotter and heavier than they have over the last few months. Like clockwork, the first one is already here, with BGR reporting that leaked photos from “a source claiming to be in possession of an iPad 3 prototype” reveal some key details of the much-anticipated third chapter in the iPad saga. Using a development tool called iBoot, the tipster reveals there could be only two iPad 3 models this time around: One with Wi-Fi only and another with combined GSM, CDMA and LTE that will work with all carriers, both here and abroad. The photos also allegedly reveal an A6 quad-core processor with the model number S5L8945X, which is right in line with numbering scheme for the original iPad’s A4 and iPad 2’s A5 processors. That said, the photos do nothing to stem the long wait for CEO Tim Cook and company to actually reveal the device, let alone a date as to when we can storm the castle — er, Apple Stores — to actually buy one.
After a lengthy period in beta with developers, Apple finally pulled the trigger on the Mac OS X 10.7.3 update, which is now available via Software Update or directly from its servers as a standalone 997.01MB download (a Client Combo is also available, which weighs in at 1.2GB). Among the improvements offered with the new update are language support for Catalan, Croatian, Greek, Hebrew, Romanian, Slovak, Thai, and Ukrainian, fixing issues when using smart cards to log into OS X, resolving issues authenticating with directory services and compatibility issues with Windows file sharing. Apple has posted full release notes which detail every nook and cranny updated with the latest version, and a Security Update 2012-001 is available separately for both Snow Leopard and Snow Leopard server.
It’s been relatively quiet on the iPod front since the media player got bumped from its annual product refresh last year, but TechCrunch is reporting that there may be something worth waiting for. According to Chinese blog Apple.pro, a sixth-generation iPod nano has been spotted with a camera on its square little back, which falls in line with rumors we reported about last year. You’ll recall the fifth-generation iPod nano introduced a rear camera, which was summarily axed the following year when the nano got smaller and more square. Of course, the tiny camera will likely be of the 1.3 megapixel variety — more akin to the front-facing camera of the iPhone 4S than that slick dude capturing images around back, but we’ll take what we can get.
Social networking app Path really made a comeback in 2011, increasing the number of friends to 150 and allowing users to finally share directly to Facebook and Twitter. Today, the company announced a new version 2.0.5 release which adds Depth, billed as “the best way to tilt shift your photos and the only way to tilt shift your videos on the iPhone.” Depth creates a miniaturizing effect for photos and videos by creating a point or plane of clarity and blurring the surroundings, and works in both Spot and Landscape modes as well as before or after an image is taken. The update also introduces pinch, tap, rotate and zoom for photos, tap and rotate for videos, clickable links, friend requests sorted by time and the usual bug fixes. Path 2.0.5 is available for download now from the App Store.
Though it was widely expected, the tech world went a little bananas this evening as social networking giant Facebook officially filed its Initial Public Offering (IPO), revealing that it “earned .7 billion in revenues last year and made billion in profits,” according to AppleInsider. The House That Zuckerberg Built is aiming to raise billion with its public offering, making it the highest amount ever for a tech company. The filing also notes that game maker Zynga makes up 12 percent of Facebook’s revenue with its virtual currency and advertising, but cautions that “our financial results may be adversely affected” should that relationship sour. In December, Facebook revealed that it had 845 million monthly active users, with 483 million active users on a daily basis.
Follow this article’s author, J.R. Bookwalter on Twitter
As we all wait to see what Apple might have its sleeve for up-ending the education market on Thursday, the rumors are already swirling around the New York City media event — as if the world needs more evidence that anything related to Apple can really stir up the tech press! And that’s not all: A Japanese blog is predicting an iPad 3 media event just two or three weeks from now, if you believe that kind of stuff. So let’s put on our tinfoil hats and delve deep into what’s making news for this terrific Tuesday, January 17, 2012.
It may have seen a delayed launch here in the U.S., but iTunes Match is making up for lost time, today launching in the Netherlands as well as 18 additional countries around the world. According to MacRumors, the full list of new iTunes Match territories includes Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Estonia, Guatemala, Honduras, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, and Venezuela. These 19 countries bring the total count to 37, and the annual subscription service arrives in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and the Netherlands alongside iTunes in the Cloud compatibility with music and music videos, a first for those countries (the Latin American countries already had this functionality, but added iTunes Match).
We all know that current Apple CEO Tim Cook was co-founder Steve Jobs’ personal pick for his replacement, but a forthcoming book reveals that the company may already have its next chief executive officer all lined up — and he won’t have far to report for duty. AppleInsider is reporting that Apple’s senior vice president of iOS Software, Scott Forstall, is considered the company’s next “CEO-in-waiting” — that is, whenever current CEO Cook decides he’s had enough. Calling Forstall “the total package,” Inside Apple author Adam Lashinsky claims that the iOS boss is someone “who most closely resembles late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, making him the most obvious candidate to eventually succeed him.” The Fortune scribe will release his book Inside Apple: How America’s Most Admired — And Secretive — Company Really Works on January 25, which is already available for preorder on Amazon in both hardcover and Kindle formats as well as an unabridged audiobook.
This just in: Yahoo Inc. has hit the news wires with word that co-founder Jerry Yang (pictured above) has “resigned from its Board of Directors and all other positions with the company, effective today. In addition, Yang resigned from the Boards of Yahoo Japan Corporation and Alibaba Group Holding Limited, effective today.” Yang’s letter to the board reads as follows: “My time at Yahoo!, from its founding to the present, has encompassed some of the most exciting and rewarding experiences of my life. However, the time has come for me to pursue other interests outside of Yahoo! As I leave the company I co-founded nearly 17 years ago, I am enthusiastic about the appointment of Scott Thompson as Chief Executive Officer and his ability, along with the entire Yahoo! leadership team, to guide Yahoo! into an exciting and successful future.” The head Yahoo! — who founded the company in 1995 with David Filo — was hailed as a “visionary and a pioneer” by chairman of the board Ray Bostock.
You might not find education to be a very exciting area for Apple to tackle, but that may all change come this Thursday. According to AppleInsider, the company’s media event in New York City this week will focus on new content creation tools for the educational market, which some have called “GarageBand for e-books.” The concept is “a simple app that makes standards-compliant e-book publishing as easy as recording a song in GarageBand,” which would certainly be music to the ears of those in the industry, including authors described as “frustrated” by the current tools. The Wall Street Journal also chimed in with their own thoughts on Thursday’s event, claiming Apple “is expected to unveil textbooks optimized for the iPad and that feature ways to interact with the content, as well as partnerships with publishers.” Stay tuned to this channel to find out the details later this week!
What news roundup would be complete without some iPad 3 rumors? According to MacRumors, Apple is planning an event in early February to introduce the next iPad and potentially launch iOS 5.1 at the same time, which is currently in beta testing with developers. “According to Asian supplier and a source in United States, Apple seems to prepare to hold Special Event in early February,” explains Japanese blog Macotakara, who broke the news earlier today. “Because Chinese factory will be in holiday of New Year, then new product is considered to be released in early March.” As MacRumors notes, one month is a “significantly longer” gap between announcement and release than the iPad 2, which was introduced on March 2 and in stores nine days later, on March 11, 2011. But we’d say one thing is for sure: There’s a new iPad coming in the next 60-90 days, so strap in and enjoy the ride until we get there…
Follow this article’s author, J.R. Bookwalter on Twitter
It’s that time of the week when our thoughts stray from the work at hand to what we might do this Columbus Day weekend, but the tech industry is pushing through hump day with a variety of news items you’re sure to enjoy. Work off that post-keynote hangover by reading the latest news for Wednesday, October 5 starting… now!
We can’t preorder the new iPhone 4S let alone actually get our hands on one yet, but that isn’t stopping Samsung from throwing a bit of fecal matter in the punch bowl, as it were. The company announced this morning on their Samsung Tomorrow blog that they “will file separate preliminary injunction motions in Paris, France and Milano, Italy on October 5 local time requesting the courts block the sale of Apple’s iPhone 4S in the respective markets.” The fuss is all over two alleged patent infringements “related to wireless telecommunications technology” — specifically the WDCMA standard used in 3G mobile handsets.
iLounge is reporting that the makers of Real Racing 2 are planning a major update to the game which coincides with next week’s release of iOS 5 and the iPhone 4S. Firemint will deliver full 720p AirPlay support for playing on the Apple TV from an iPad 2 or iPhone 4S, with a ton of visual improvements and a new “Party Play” mode which allows two or four players to join in the fun with a split-screen local multiplayer game over AirPlay. Sounds awesome to us!
Siri is undoubtedly the belle of the iPhone 4S ball, but do you remember Siri Assistant, the free iOS app that started it all? The app is gone from the App Store now, and MacRumors reports that the app itself will likewise close up shop on October 15 — you know, the day after the iPhone 4S hits the streets and makes us forget all about the app anyway.
If you’re a Parallels Desktop 7 user who’s been holding out playing with Microsoft’s new Windows 8 Developer Preview, the virtualization company has some great news for you — a build 7.0.14924 has just been released with experimental support for Redmond’s next operating system. The update also improves general performance, including optimized CPU usage when PD7 is idle, improved compatibility with Quicken 2011 and support for Autodesk 3DS Max 2012. Hit up the “Check for Update” option from the Parallels Desktop menu to get yours.
Cult of Mac is reporting that many potential iPhone 4S customers already on AT&T are using Apple’s online eligibility tool only to discover they’ll be forking over more for the handset starting this Friday. A customer service rep for the carrier is pointing the finger of blame squarely on Apple, claiming “upgrade eligibility dates and the pricing models are all dictated by Apple, Inc. and they cannot be changed.”
Sounds unpleasant, but remember, upgrade eligibility is based upon a lot of different factors that make no sense to us — usually having to do with how long you’ve been a customer and how much money you fork over to the carrier each month. In any event, we’d recommend hitting up that convenient online eligibility tool on Apple’s website prior to Friday morning if you want to keep the disappointment monster at bay.
Follow this article’s author, J.R. Bookwalter on Twitter
If you frequently find yourself pasting the same text over and over again on the Mac, you’ve no doubt discovered Smile Software’s TextExpander, a handy utility that promises to save keystrokes — and now, the accompanying iOS version just got even handier with a host of new features.
Smile Software has announced TextExpander touch 1.2, the latest version of their .99 universal iOS typing shortcut utility with support for more than 100 apps including Twittelator, Elements, WriteRoom and Things. The latest update brings a few new feats of strength to the app, including Dropbox sync support as well as the addition of TweetBot as a Twitter client.
“Smile has released TextExpander touch 1.2, an update to the iOS version of Smile’s customizable typing shortcut tool,” the company announced on Tuesday. “The update adds Dropbox sync support, which allows users to sync snippets between Mac and iOS devices. The update also features the ability to sort snippets, as well as other enhancements and fixes.”
The full list of changes in TextExpander touch 1.2 includes:
- Dropbox sync support in Settings
- Sort snippets option in Settings
- Option to subscribe to TextExpander touch tips and updates email
- Supports TweetBot as a Twitter client in Settings
- Displays snippet labels
- Other minor fixes and improvements
With TextExpander touch, iPhone and iPad users can enter frequently-used text using short abbreviations. Once notes are composed using TextExpander shortcuts, they can be sent directly to Mail and SMS. They can also be used in other iOS apps via copy-and-paste.
TextExpander touch 1.2 is available now from the App Store for .99, or as a free update for existing users. The 2.2MB universal app is compatible with all iPhone, iPod touch or iPad models running iOS 4.0 or later.
Follow this article’s author, J.R. Bookwalter on Twitter
We recently brought you the story of iOS hit Snuggle Truck’s strange journey to the App Store, but now that the cute physics-based animal-transporting game has safely arrived on iPhones and iPads, that doesn’t mean developer Owlchemy Labs is resting on its laurels. Quite the opposite, actually, as the studio recently revealed that its long-promised level creation and sharing features will soon be added to the game via a hefty v1.5 update, which should pass approval later this month.
The level editor offers a fairly robust, but easy-to-use way to create your own challenges in a snap and make them freely available to all other users. It’s similar to what’s available in the PlayStation 3 favorite LittleBigPlanet, in that you can quickly whip up a playable stage and upload it to the servers, though die-hard maestros can no doubt spend hours perfectly manicuring their creations. Alex Schwartz, founder of Owlchemy Labs, tells us that the update was originally intended only for the iPad version of the app, due to the constraints of the iPhone and iPod touch screen sizes. However, he says they “received a flood of emails requesting the level editor on the iPod/iPhone,” and found a way to make it work on all supported iOS devices.
As demonstrated in the embedded video, Snuggle Truck’s creation tools give you full control over the look and feel of a stage, including the ability to place and transform items along the side-scrolling paths, as well as determine how quickly runs must be completed to earn medals. And once your level is complete, you can name and describe it, then simply tap a button to upload it to the public servers. Created stages are quickly found from the main menu and can be searched for or sorted via available categories, and it seems likely that this update will make thousands of new playable stages available in the weeks and months following its release.
The v1.5 update also tweaks the interface to ensure that essential on-screen elements aren’t hidden by hands and fingers during play, and lets you activate power-ups through an optional double-tap of the screen (instead of shaking the device). Additionally, it adds five new Game Center achievements, replaces some of the previous low-resolution artwork with higher-quality images, and makes various other optimizations and bug fixes.
The update is underdoing final testing now and will be submitted within days, making an end-of-month App Store release likely for both the iPhone/iPod touch and iPad versions of the game. And the v1.5 update will also launch simultaneously for the Mac and PC versions of the game, as well, which also includes the original Smuggle Truck experience alongside the rejiggered Snuggle Truck version.
