I haven’t really chimed into the controversy surrounding the release of Apple’s Final Cut Pro X (disparagingly referred to by some as “iMovie Pro’), but I thought this clip from the Conan O’Brien show illustrated the criticism perfectly (and hilariously). That an upgrade to a professional editing application could be fodder for a late night talkshow bit is telling as well.
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Technologizer: How vulnerable are Macs?
In his latest Technologizer column for Time, Harry McKracken takes a reasoned, thoughtful look at the current state of Mac security and comes to much the same conclusion I did: while Mac malware is still more reliant on social engineering than technological exploits, there’s no such thing as risk-free computing.
(The) fact that the recent spate of Mac attacks could be worse doesn’t mean that Apple types don’t need to think about their computing safety. It’s not just the possibility of more OS X malware. Instead of putting a particular operating system in the crosshairs, nogoodniks are turning their attention to social networks such as Facebook and Twitter, where they spam users, steal identities, and generally do their best to wreak havoc. They don’t care whether you use Windows or a Mac, as long as your guard is down.
Like me, Harry does not run any anti-virus software on his Mac, noting “security software isn’t without its own downsides. Even the best packages require a certain amount of babysitting; the worst ones get in your face, bog down your system, and teeter on the brink of being more of a hassle than the dangers they’re meant to protect you against.”
Until and unless Mac malware gets a lot more sophisticated, I’ll continue focusing my defenses on the social engineering side of the issue. Don’t open attachments unless you know what they are, be careful about where you surf and never—never—install a program you’re not absolutely confident came from a safe source.
iWork apps get update; now work on iPhone, iPod touch
Apple’s iWork suite of productivity apps have been updated to work on the iPhone and iPod touch, according to a press release from Apple.
Keynote, Pages and Numbers are now universal apps that run on iPad and iPad 2, iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4, and iPod touch (3rd & 4th generation), according to Apple. The apps are available from the App Store for $9.99 each for new users, or as a free update for existing iWork for iPad customers. Keynote Remote is sold separately via the App Store for 99 cents.
It remains to be seen exactly how usable these apps will be on the iPhone, but the ability to create and edit iWork documents on small iOS devices is sure to come in handy.
Apple spells out keynote for WWDC: Lion, iOS 5, ‘iCloud’
Apple made the unusual move of spelling out the topics for its WWDC Keynote next week:
Apple CEO Steve Jobs and a team of Apple executives will kick off the company’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) with a keynote address on Monday, June 6 at 10:00 a.m. At the keynote, Apple will unveil its next generation software – Lion, the eighth major release of Mac OS X; iOS 5, the next version of Apple’s advanced mobile operating system which powers the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch; and iCloud, Apple’s upcoming cloud services offering.
Apple rarely — very rarely — tips its hand about keynotes and is generally even more tight-lipped about upcoming products and services. The only time I can recall them doing so is when they feel the need to manage rumors and keep a handle on expectations, which I think is what’s going on here. They want to emphasize that there will be no hardware announcements (read: no iPhone 5 or “4GS”).
Mostly Harmless
There’s a new variant of the Mac Defender Trojan Horse making the rounds. This one, called “Mac Guard,” is scarier in that it does not require a password to install, since it affects the user account, not the entire computer. Scarier, but still fairly benign since at worst, the installer can only open automatically — it still requires a user to click the install button to do any damage.
The best defense is to make sure that “Open ‘Safe’ files after downloading” is disabled in Safari’s preferences — which is the default. Apple released a Knowledge Base article which explains how to find and disable the malware and promises an update that will do just that automatically.
Some are using the existence of these Trojans as “proof” that Macs are no safer than PCs — that they’ve only enjoyed “security through obscurity,” which is nonsense. Mac Defender and its variants are programs that still require a user to actively install them — unlike viruses, which can embed and replicate themselves without any human assistance.
That’s not to say that Macs are inherently safe. As these programs demonstrate, a combination of malware and a little social engineering can be a dangerous combination — even on a Mac.
This is why people don’t trust marketers
More on Dell’s new laptop from The Guardian:
Noted in passing: advert for the Dell XPS-15, containing the phrase
Finally, the power you crave in the thinnest 15″ PC on the planet*.
Wow, the thinnest? But wait, what’s the asterisk?
Small print time: “Based on Dell internal analysis as at February 2011. Based on a thickness comparison (front and rear measurements) of other 15″ laptop PCs manufactured by HP, Acer, Toshiba, Asus, Lenovo, Samsung, Sony, MSI. No comparison made with Apple or other manufacturers not listed.”
In other words, “we’re going to lie in the big type, then explain that we’re lying in teeny tiny type that we hope no one will actually read.”
Appalling. (Charles Arthur via Glenn Fleishman.)
Shameless
Photo courtesy of Engadget. Click to view the full article.
The phenomenon of other brands’ products “coincidentally” beginning to look like Apple products is nothing new, (think about cellphones before and after the iPhone or tablets after the iPad, for instance) so it’s not surprising to see that Dell’s new XPS 15z laptop bears a striking resemblance to the MacBook Pro. They’ve even copied Apple’s packaging, which includes a downright Freudian admission in the arrangement of photos of the laptop in an arrangement that practically screams “Mac OS X.”
But what’s particularly embarrassing is the pretense that it’s not happening. Dell described their new laptop as having an “innovative new form factor” for crying out loud.
I wonder if the PR flack who wrote that was even able to keep a straight face.
Absolutely embarrassing. (via Engadget.)
On the Apple’s 10th anniversary in retail, a look back at NJ’s first store
With today marking the 10th anniversary of Apple’s first brick-and-mortar store, I thought it would be interesting to take a look back at how we covered the company’s first location in the Garden State, which opened in Tice’s Corner in 2001. Back then, of course, there were only five retail outlets, and the company had an ambitious goal of opening a total of 25 by the year’s end (there are over 300 now), and store openings were a big deal, not just among the Mac press, but the mainstream news outlets as well. Apple’s newest product, the “iPod,” wouldn’t even be available for another week after the opening.
RandomMaccess was given exclusive access to the store the night before the special pre-opening “press event.” Here’s how we reported our first look at Apple’s foray into retailing.
Read the EULA; you told Apple (and others) they could track you.
I’m finding it hard to get riled up about the latest brouhaha regarding the discovery of a file on iPhones that contains time-stamped location information about places your phone (and presumably you) have been. First, there’s no evidence so far that this information is being sent anywhere. Second, if you use foursquare, Facebook Places, Gowalla or even Twitter for that matter, it’s highly likely you’re already sending much more detailed information to much more public places. Third, you agreed to let your phone gather information about where you’ve been.
Wait, what?
Really. Remember those End User License Agreements (EULAs)? You know, the pages and pages of text that open whenever you launch an application or device for the first time. The window that you scroll to the bottom of as quickly as possible to click “Agree” or “I Understand” or whatever so you can get on with using the device? The ones that no one ever actually reads?
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Well Andrew Munchbach at Boy Genius Reports has read them. Not just the iPhone’s, but Google’s, Motorola’s, RIM’s, Windows’, HTC’s and others. They all disclose that their devices:
…transmit, collect, maintain, process and use your location data, including the real-time geographic location of your iPhone, and location search queries. The location data and queries…are collected in a form that does not personally identify you and may be used…to provide and improve location-based products and services.
The wording varies, but the message is the same.
It remains to be seen if anything nefarious is being done with this information by any of these companies, or if it’s merely used, as they say, to enhance the quality of location-based services. It also remains to be seen how binding any of these EULAs actually are.
But before you become outraged at the “theft” of your personal data, realize that no one is stealing anything. You’re giving it all away.
Read more of the things you’ve agreed to in Munchbach’s article. (via Ian Betteridge.)
Reuters: iPhone 5 coming in September
The next-generation iPhone will sport the same design as its predecessor, but will have a faster processor, according to a Reuters article. Nothing earth-shattering in that, but the story’s sources say the iPhone 5 will come in September, not July, which has become the traditional month for new iPhones.
Makes sense. Apple has already said its Worldwide Developers Conference would focus on software. What really sells it for me, though, is the idea that the September timeframe has usually been reserved for iPod announcements, and there hasn’t been much to say about them on their own lately. It’s not a stretch to see why Apple would want to roll iPod and iPhone announcements into one event. (via The Loop.)