Macworldの September 2014 の目次

Tim Cook’s instruction from Steve Jobs was clear: Don’t let Apple become paralyzed like Disney did in the wake of Walt Disney’s death, endlessly asking how the esteemed founder would react in any given situation. The only directive from Jobs’s tenure that mattered after his death was the one that freed Cook and everyone else at Apple from playing “What Would Steve Do?” Criticism of post-Jobs Apple tends to run in one of two directions: Either Apple is doomed because it’s slavishly following the old playbook of its former CEO, or it’s doomed because it isn’t following the playbook of its genius former CEO. As a close observer of Apple before, during, and after Jobs’s tenure, I can tell you that the Apple of today is not playing by the…

This year’s WWDC focused on showcasing something a bit different: the cult of the developer. The Worldwide Developers Conference 2014 keynote (go.macworld.com/wwdc2014) seemed like a developer’s dream: extensions, TestFlight, third-party keyboards, a framework for building cloud-based apps, a compelling successor to Objective-C, and more. But what does this avalanche of empowerment mean for developers, and what impact will it have on the future of Mac and iOS apps? CEO Tim Cook and Craig Federighi, senior vice president of software engineering, jumped right into the good stuff, showing off the new features in OS X Yosemite and iOS 8 (see “What You Need to Know: OS X Yosemite and iOS 8,” page 46). In Yosemite, you can use your Mac as a phone, making calls and answering SMS messages, as long…

Is Apple stepping up the pace of acquisitions? Apple’s acquisition in late May of Beats Music and Beats Electronics for $3 billion (go.macworld.com/beatsrep) was significant even beyond its industryshaking ramifications. The deal also offered a rare peek into Cupertino’s usually clandestine acquisitions process. Critics have long charged that Apple moves too slowly when it comes to buying outside companies and new technologies, but that seems to be changing (go.macworld.com/cook) CEO Tim Cook noted in April 2014 that Apple had made 24 strategic acquisitions over the previous 18 months. Whether the number of acquisitions is actually increasing is hard to pin down: As in all of its processes, Apple puts a premium on secrecy. “[Apple is] not very visible about those things,” says Charles Golvin, an independent analyst, “so it’s difficult…

Asus PB287Q Is a Budget-Friendly 4K Display Asus’s 28-inch PB287Q, one of only a handful of affordable UltraHD monitors, has an impressive feature list, including 3840-by-2160-pixel resolution, LED backlighting, two HDMI 1.4 ports, a DisplayPort 1.2 connection, and a bright 330 cd/m2 luminance rating. Its adjustable stand includes support for Mobile High-Definition Link, as well as decent built-in 2W speakers. On the downside, the PB287Q lacks a USB hub and has a clunky on-screen settings menu. Because 4K monitors offer four times as many pixels as standard 1080p high-definition displays, they require serious graphics horsepower. The PB287Q can run at 60Hz connected to a compatible graphics card via DisplayPort 1.2, but operates at a cursordragging 30Hz over HDMI 1.4. The PB287Q has a limited angle of view relative to Sharp’s…

With the advent of extensibility in iOS 8, Apple’s mobile OS is finally maturing as a platform. In some respects iOS will always be the new kid on the block, the upstart, the whippersnapper. But judging from this year’s WWDC keynote announcements, the mobile OS is embarking upon a new stage in life—if not reaching full maturity, then at least growing from childhood to adolescence. This new stage doesn’t just involve the usual incremental increase in front-facing features. Rather, it’s something deeper—an exponential change in the mobile OS’s power, and in the things we can do with it. And there’s no better sign of this evolution than the introduction of extensions. EXTEND THIS As good as iOS is these days, it has always had pain points, in which a task…

The revolution will be televised. And if you’re watching it online, chances are good you’ll be doing so on an iOS app. That’s just one of the fascinating conclusions drawn from an Adobe quarterly report on video consumption. The “U.S. Digital Video Benchmark” (PDF; (go.macworld.com/digvideo) for the first three months of 2014 compiles and analyzes both online TV (TV Everywhere) and nonauthenticated online video trends. According to Adobe, iOS apps now top browsers as the most popular access method for TV Everywhere content. iOS apps grabbed a 43 percent share of that market in the first quarter of 2014. Browsers came in second with a 36 percent share—down from 47 percent a year ago. MOVING TO MOBILE This seismic shift signals that the move from the desktop to mobile devices…

When I started writing songs in the midnineties, I jotted them down on scraps of paper between classes and hummed into a tape recorder. Later, as iPhones became my recording device of choice, the Voice Memos app served as my lyrics storage engine: I’d record something there, and then transcribe it in plain text and store it in Dropbox. But I had no good way to associate snippets with my lyrics. That’s why I’m loving Hum: It combines the audio storage of Voice Memos with a plain-text app to provide a spot where you can note lyric ideas and song snippets, as well as add the key, the tuning, and whether you’re using a capo; in addition, you can rate the song’s mood and volume, and add notes. It’s simple…

UTILITY We can’t escape the command line; it lurks beneath all our modern operating systems. But if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em, I say—and that’s why I love Prompt. Should you ever need to use telnet or secure shell (SSH) via your iOS device, Prompt is where it’s at. I’ve used Prompt for connecting to my home computer while I’m thousands of miles away, logging in to my remote Web server, and much more. You can store frequently used connections, including login info, initial commands, and terminal types. You can also use multiple connections at once. In addition to giving you quick access to command-line keys like < Control>, < Esc>, and < Tab>, Prompt’s toolbar offers four slots that you can customize with standard keyboard characters. Tapping the…

VSCO Cam combines picture taking, image editing, and online photo sharing in one snazzy package. The app takes a little getting used to, in part because it does so many things, and in part because the interface mostly consists of wordless iconography. Once you’re in its camera mode, though, it’s a joy to use. You can toggle the flash, change the display (showing a line-of-thirds grid, the horizon level, or nothing), lock the white balance, and choose a mode that allows you to take the photo by tapping the screen instead of the shutter release. The app’s robust editing tools—15 in all—give you the opportunity to adjust exposure level, color temperature, contrast, saturation, sharpening, and cropping, as well as to make less-common tweaks. You also get about a dozen filters,…

I magine what your iTunes library would be like if all your songs had random characters for their song, artist, and album names. You would never find what you want to listen to. But even if your library’s tags are mostly correct, any erroneous tags—a misspelled artist name, for instance, or a song title with a typo—may prevent you from locating the files you’re seeking. And if you’ve left some tags blank, some of your tracks or videos won’t display in certain views. For all these reasons it’s a good idea to take a close look at your iTunes library and ensure that your files’ tags are filled in and correct. To do that for an individual item, simply select a track or video and press 1-I to bring up…

Here’s a rundown of your best options. Your iPhone is smaller than many remote controls—and can function as a remote control itself. So why would you need a remote control for your iPhone (or other iOS device)? A few months ago I would have thought the idea ridiculous. But it turns out that adding a Bluetooth remote control to my iOS devices has enabled me to solve some interesting problems and has made those devices more useful. If you’ve never considered using a remote control for your iOS devices, I’d like to suggest four uses that may persuade you to try one. Remote shutter release: Long before anyone used the term “selfie,” people put cameras on tripods, set a self-timer, and ran back in front of the camera to appear…

The streaming music scene seems like it’s ruled by a few heavyweights, with Pandora, Rdio, and Spotify slugging it out for your heart, mind, and eardrums. But that’s only part of the picture. Just as a number of lower-profile video streaming services vie with the likes of Hulu and Netflix, music streaming services you’ve probably never heard of are looking for ways to make their mark. ANGO 1 Like Pandora, Jango (jango.com) lets you create personalized radio stations based on an artist or song you want to hear. Simply type an artist or song into the search box, and Jango starts playing music that fits the bill. It also offers apps for iOS and Android as well as a decent Web interface providing lyrics, artist info, and even the ability…

WHAT DO YOU DO? I work on the backer experience for Kickstarter. I try to make everyone else’s job easier. WHAT HARDWARE DO YOU USE? I use a 13-inch MacBook Air—the size just feels right for me. And I prefer the way the keyboard feels. I never use an external monitor because the amount of screen space overwhelms me I’ve never been much of a tablet person. If I’m on a computer, I want to be productive. But I have a Microsoft Surface RT in the kitchen that I use to pull up recipes while I’m cooking. Right now I use an iPhone 5s. For a couple of years, I worked on Windows Phone and carried an HTC 8X. After dropping and shattering two within a year, I decided it…

Nine Technologies That Apple Disrupted at WWDC A fleet of new products in iOS and OS X promise stiff competition for some developers. This year’s WWDC keynote was jam-packed with new technologies destined for the next versions of iOS and OS X. While this is great news for users, a number of developers who will soon be competing directly with Apple may not welcome the innovations. CLOUD STORAGE iCloud has matured into an essential element of the Apple ecosystem. With the introduction of iCloud Drive (go.macworld.com/iclouddrive), services such as Dropbox will face pressure from Cupertino’s aggressive pricing and iCloud Drive’s seamless integration with iOS, OS X, and even Windows. SCREEN-RECORDING APPS OS X Yosemite will allow users to make screen recordings from compatible iOS devices. This capability targets developers who…

Will iOS 8 and OS X Yosemite Keep Us Safer? Apple defends user privacy with iOS extensions and security enhancements in the Swift language. with a mere two hours to cover the wealth of advances in its operating systems and developer tools, Apple offered few details in the WWDC keynote about security updates. Still, if you’re somewhat familiar with Apple’s platforms, the future of Mac and iOS security looks a little clearer: For the next generation of products, extensions are the name of the (security) game. iOS 8: PRYING OPEN TOUCH ID AND THE SANDBOX The inclusion of the Touch ID fingerprint reader in the iPhone 5s made it easy and convenient to use strong passwords. According to Apple, less than half of iPhone users enabled a passcode before the…

Before the Internet’s meteoric rise, large centralized dial-up services such as America Online, Prodigy, and Compu-Serve dominated the online landscape. In this competitive climate 20 years ago (go.macworld.com/isp) Apple introduced eWorld, a subscription-based information service for Mac and Newton users (go.macworld.com/eworld) Although Apple shuttered eWorld in 1996, the service is still notable for its unique city-based interface and as a symbol of Apple’s overreaching ambition in that era. Users accessed eWorld through Apple’s custom client software and connected by way of a dial-up modem. Once you connected, the eWorld software displayed a playfully illustrated aerial view of a small city. Each building in it represented a different focus, containing articles, chat rooms, discussion boards, and downloads. For example, clicking the Business and Finance Plaza building presented the user with articles…

What We’re Raving About This Month Illum Lytro’s $1499 camera captures data on millions of rays of light, including their color, intensity, and direction. This information allows users to refocus photos after taking them. Illum has a 30mm–250mm equivalent focal lens up front, a 4-inch touchscreen on the back, and a slew of physical controls for items including the shutter, exposure, and autofocus (lytro.com) —JARED NEWMAN 3Planesoft’s $2 Earth 3D Amazing Atlas is a great educational tool designed to help anyone who’s interested in geography learn more about our planet. The app provides a thorough overview of the world, with beautifully designed landmarks and lots of detailed information about everything from the tallest skyscrapers to the largest peninsulas (3planesoft.com) —MARCO TABINI RT-AC3200 Asus’s new router (price not announced) is all…

An Apple device can tell many stories: One person can pick up an iPhone and see a communication device; another, a pocket camera. But whether you use a device for creative endeavors, consumption, or both, doing so has always involved some measure of compromise. We write email on iPhones because it’s convenient not to pull out a laptop, even when the laptop is nearby. We drag Macs onto airplanes because we need their data, even if we don’t need the machines. Instead of pursuing the best experience, we try to make one device do everything. I do this constantly. I’ll spend 15 minutes fighting with autocorrect on my iPhone to chat with a friend, all the while sitting in front of my MacBook Air. I’ll tote the computer across the…

Duo The $649 Duo Combines the classic warmth of tube-driven speakers with the modern convenience of Bluetooth streaming audio. It includes a 48V Class A preamp that Tubecore says “produces rich bass, warm mids and crystal clear highs.” CombiTray Made in cherry, maple, or walnut, Woody’s TabletTrays have an inset for your iPad’s Bluetooth keyboard. The CombiTray variant (about $138; shown here, also provides a place for Apple’s trackpad. ALUCABLE FLAT The $20 AluCable Flat (go.macworld.com/alucable) is a 4-foot, flat Lightning-to-USB cable for the whole universe of iOS devices. It comes in gray, gold, and blue, and is, according to Just Mobile, “a must-have for design-conscious users.”Apple TV Station We’ve seen products like this before, but it’s too lovely to resist mentioning. The $40 iSkelter Apple TV Station is an…

PHOTO APP A mix of Instagram and Vine, Moju offers a public timeline of moving photos. The magic lies in how they play: Tilting your device left and right takes you through 24 frames of stop-motion delight. The timeline runs both forward and backward, which can lead to some amusing playback. Creating a post is as much fun as viewing one: Tapping the camera button produces a recording screen with a capture button, 24 dots, and a settings button. Tapping the capture button snaps a photo; hold it to take images in quick succession. Like similar apps, Moju offers a “ghosting” mode (which displays your previous shot at half opacity) for lining up your next shot. You can also add a grid, flip from the front camera to the back,…

Based on a great 1980s board game, the two-player Space Hulk for iPad is a game of rare simplicity, elegance, and tension. You can play against the computer, but local and online multiplayer options are available. One player controls a handful of space marines clanking around a derelict spaceship. The other gets an unlimited number of vicious aliens called Genestealers. The gameplay is as delightfully nerve-shredding as ever. Motion-detector blips represent one, two, or three aliens, leaving the human player in constant doubt. In turn, the marines get a random number of bonus action points, and this number is revealed to the Genestealer player only when the points run out. The greatest source of stress derives from “overwatch,” a mode in which the humans fire reflexively in response to movement.…

Apple has officially previewed this year’s update to OS X, and we know its California place name: Yosemite. But although developers have access to an early version of the new OS now, most users will have to wait until the fall to dive in (unless they sign up for, and get into, the public beta program (go.macworld.com/beta). So lots of questions are swirling around about OS X Yosemite. Based on what we learned at WWDC (and from testing the early OS on a system that Apple loaned to Macworld’s Jason Snell), here are answers to some of the most common questions. THE INTERFACE What’s this I hear about a revamped interface? Taking a cue from iOS 7, Yosemite features translucency not only on the menu bar (which you can adjust),…

A pple’s WWDC keynote address was an interesting mix of user-oriented and developer-focused announcements. The company introduced a number of advances comprising the consumer, enterprise IT, and developer spheres. The big question now is what happens when the consumer and enterprise spheres intersect, as they are certain to do in a world where iOS is the dominant mobile operating system in enterprise and where Apple continues to push for integration among its mobile, desktop, and cloud platforms. HOMEKIT AND HEALTHKIT In breaking down Apple’s standout announcements, let’s start with the new HomeKit and HealthKit. Both platforms rely on a variety of technologies to integrate functionality and highly personal user information. Although neither of these features has an immediate enterprise impact, they do make an iPhone (or other iOS device) more…

Apple and Beats: What’s the Deal? Apple recently announced that it was acquiring Beats Electronics and Beats Music, the companies known for popular headphones and a promising music subscription service. Here are some of the important details of the deal. What is Apple paying for Beats? Apple is paying $2.6 billion initially and, in the future, will invest an additional $400 million. Does all that money go to the founders? Beats was cofounded by Jimmy Iovine and Dr. Dre (Andre Young), but although they’ll realize several hundred million dollars from the deal, not all of the money will go to them. Companies such as the Carlyle Group and Universal Music have invested in Beats and will take their cut when the deal reaches completion sometime in the fourth quarter of…

With iTunes, you can control music playback from the window, but if you don’t want the full interface visible while you listen to music, you have other ways to tell the app what to do. I’ll show you how to control iTunes using built-in features as well as thirdparty apps, so that you can hide the window when you play your songs. MEDIA KEYS The easiest way to control iTunes is via media keys, which reside among the F-keys found on the top row of your keyboard. Press the < F8> key to play or pause music. Press < F7> to skip back— either to the beginning of the currently playing track, if you’ve played less than 10 seconds of it, or to the previous track. < F9> skips ahead…

With plans afoot to gradually retire the long-used Objective-C programming language, Apple has introduced a new language, called Swift, for designing apps to run on Apple iOS devices and Macintosh computers. The company designed Swift (go.macworld.com/swift) to be as intuitive and easy to use as popular interpreted languages such as Python and JavaScript, while maintaining the speed and flexibility of compiled languages such as C++. “Swift is fast. It is modern. It is designed for safety, and it enables a level of interactivity and development you’ve never seen before on the platform,” said Apple CEO Tim Cook, who introduced the language to a surprised audience at the Worldwide Developers Conference. Cook explained that Apple designed Swift to eliminate entire categories of common programming errors. It includes modern constructs such as…

Apple recognizes apps that set new standards in design and innovation. Apple describes the recipients of its annual Apple Design Awards (go.macworld.com/appledesignawards) as apps that “raise the bar in design, technology, and innovation.” Developers of the winning apps haul in a load of Apple hardware, as well as a trophy cube. Here are this year’s winners. ADDIMAL ADVENTURE Teachley’s Addimal Adventure (free; (go.macworld.com/addimal) is a game for kids who are learning single-digit addition. Players must save the city of El Sumado by solving problems that exercise different math strategies. BLEK The point of Denis Mikan’s Blek ($1; go.macworld.com/blek) is to draw lines that then animate to knock out dots as they appear on the screen. The game sounds easy enough, but it gets more complicated as you try to figure…

In the litigious world of mobile technology, it’s hard to keep track of who is suing whom, but more and more often Apple’s name is appearing in the headlines. Given the sheer number of lawsuits in play between the folks from Cupertino and other major industry players, I am starting to find much of this legal ballyhoo a little boring—so much so that I’m sometimes even tempted to root for the other guys. START YOUR PHOTOCOPIERS The products that have come out of Cupertino’s labs in the last ten years have informed the design of just about every other device in their respective categories. After Apple introduced the iPhone, practically every other smartphone started to look like it. The iPad essentially invented a whole new product category. Even the MacBook…

several years ago, I implemented the world’s first whole-school, one-to-one iPad program (go.macworld.com/ipadproject) in which all students in the school use iPads full time. The iPad has served us well, but recently I started to worry that it would always be the Mac’s little sibling. Before WWDC last year, I wrote a blog post about the limitations of iOS that we’d discovered when using it for serious productivity work. Last year, I didn’t get much that was on my iOS 7 wish list. (We did get AirDrop, and it has been transformational in how easily it lets us move large files around the classroom.) At WWDC 2014, Apple delivered on a huge chunk of my wish list with iOS 8, and I couldn’t be happier. EXTENSIBILITY The critical iOS 8…

At this year’s WWDC keynote, CEO Tim Cook noted that the App Store hosts more than 1.2 million apps, with total downloads now topping 75 billion. The size of the App Store is certainly one of the biggest selling points of iOS. It’s also a growing headache. Apple seems to recognize that perusing the App Store is becoming more of a pain, because the company will be making some changes. During the keynote, Apple framed the alterations as being part of iOS 8’s new developer tools, but make no mistake: These changes are every bit as important to users. First, let’s recap the problem. Unless you know an app’s exact name, shopping can be hit or miss. (Sometimes even knowing the name isn’t enough.) Searching with a general description is…

Hitman Go: From Violent Shooter to Surreal Puzzler The Hitman series of violent and visually sumptuous stealthshooting games has arrived on the iPad—in the form of Hitman Go, a mannered, turn-based puzzle game. Hitman Go doesn’t play like a board game. But its rendition is evocative of one, and the visuals are quietly stunning. Rigid playing pieces represent Agent 47, guards he must evade or kill, and the target. You move one space (or into a shortcut), and guards move in response. You may find hiding places, locked doors, disguises, or firearms, but each time you must reach the objective while avoiding death at the hands of a guard. At each level, you get extra tasks: For instance, you must finish within a certain number of steps or grab a…

PUZZLE GAME Among crosswords, the daily New York Times puzzle is the gold standard. And if it’s the daily Times puzzle you want, this app is the way to go. Although the app is a free download and offers a fullfeatured two-week trial, getting the most out of it requires a subscription; plans range from $4 a month to $17 a year. Version 2.0’s iOS 7-inspired design is an improvement. The main screen prompts you to do today’s puzzle and gives you quick access to downloadable puzzle packs as well as to a calendar of past puzzles. (And so far it has fewer pop-up ads.) New options allow you to skip filled squares, as well as to jump back to the first blank or to the next clue when you…

At a birthday party last year, I ended up in front of a PlayStation 3, watching my friend play Thomas Was Alone, an eerily beautiful game about sentient colored blocks journeying to the outside world. We paused for cake, and the journey remained unfinished for me— until the game’s port to the iPad. You guide the blocks over platforms, acid, and spikes to reach portals. Been there, done that, fallen to my death a thousand times because I still don’t know how to time double jumps. But Thomas Was Alone plays with such expectations, throwing in gravity deformations, new abilities, and “shifters” that alter a block’s abilities. Pair those twists with an excellent David Housden soundtrack, narration by the delightfully Scottish Danny Wallace, and a carefully crafted story, and the…

Given iOS 7’s visual overhaul last year, it wouldn’t have been surprising if Apple decided to just focus on small under-the-hood improvements in iOS 8. But iOS 8 looks like it will be every bit the game-changer its predecessor was. This time, the focus is on system features and app improvements more than on visual tweaks. In particular, the update will see a seismic shift in the way apps communicate with each other, giving mobile users a richer experience. Here are the details so far. THE BASICS When is iOS 8 due out? Apple says “this fall.” If the pattern of recent years holds, the company will have a press event in the fall announcing new iPhone and iPad models, and iOS 8 will come out only a few days…

My wife and I recently welcomed our second child, and our older son has just turned four. When we tell other parents that we both work from home, their expressions predictably turn from envy to horror in a matter of seconds. On the one hand, yes, it’s wonderful that we get to spend so much time with the kids at this age. On the other hand, the work we do requires extended periods of uninterrupted concentration, and those little bundles of joy are nothing if not distracting. How do we pay adequate attention to both our preschool kids and our work? I don’t pretend to have all the answers, because every situation (and every child) is different. But I can tell you a bit about what’s worked for us. NOT…

Whether you want help falling asleep or you wish to block out the sounds of an open office, ambient audio can be a useful tool. And it need not be confined to the tiny-speakered and tinny-sounding consumer “sleep machines” you find advertised in the back of in-flight magazines. With your iOS device you can be wrapped in an otherworldly environment in seconds. AMBIENT AND iOS While not as common as to-do list managers and Flappy Bird clones, ambient audio apps are fairly prevalent on the App Store. These are a few of my favorites. Naturespace: Holographic Audio Theater’s Naturespace (free with in-app purchases; naturespace.com) is a player for the company’s ambient nature sounds in addition to a storefront for sounds you can purchase for $2 each (or in bundles priced…

Need an Annotated iPhoto Slideshow? Turn to Keynote Q: I have some information that I’d like to present to a group via a slideshow that they’ll watch on their computers. I have the pictures I need in iPhoto, but I can’t find a way to annotate them. Is it possible to do so? A: Not in an effective way. I’d turn instead to Apple’s Keynote. Launch Keynote, select the White theme, and click Choose. With the latest version of Keynote, the Format button at the top of the window should be highlighted. In the area below this button, click Change Master and choose the empty slide at the bottom right of the list. You should now have a single empty slide. Click the Media button at the top of the…