Cult of Mac

It was just a few hours ago that we told you that Apple had patented new transparent texting system which would help users who walk while typing be more aware of their surroundings.

If you thought the patent sounded like a great idea for a jailbreak tweak, you weren’t alone. CamText is a new tweak for jailbroken devices that replaces the default Messages.app background with a live stream from your camera’s video feed.

So if you have a jailbroken iPhone, why wait until iOS 8 to get Transparent Texting today? It’s fully compatible with both Messages and BiteSMS, although not the iPad. You can buy it through Cydia today for just $1.50.

Via: iClarified

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHbiPjxFqIQ

Last week, we posted a video by iOS hacker extraordinaire winocm, showing that he had managed to hack an iPad 2 so that it could boot between iOS 5, iOS 6 and iOS 7 at will. At the time, we said “elite skills necessary to hack your iPad to dual boot operating systems is beyond the ability of most of us mortals, and it’s unlikely winocm will ever make this process friendly for the everyman.”

Well, we’ve got egg all over our face on this one, because that’s exactly what winocm intends on doing. The legendary hacker has said on Twitter that he’ll be releasing the hack to the public. Unfortunately, there aren’t many details outside of that, including what devices this hack will work on, but if you want to have a schizo-iPad that can dual boot between Scott Forstall’s skeuomorphic iOS 6 and Jony Ive’s flat iOS 7, it’s coming!

Via: Redmond Pie

Getting a new Mac delivered to your door is always an exciting experience… but imagine opening the door and seeing, not your postman, but Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak at your door? You’d lose your mind, just like the girl in this video, Emma, does when she realizes that er idol is at the door. As Emma’s father notes, it’s like having your lightbulbs delivered by Thomas Edison!

Source: Sploid

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MyTEfBRCjg

Before iOS 7 came along and Apple borrowed its approach to multitasking wholesale, Auxo was one of the best reasons to jailbreak your iPhone or iPad. Since iOS 7 took many of its tricks, though, we’ve been waiting to see what, if anything, an updated version would look like.

We’ve just gotten our hands on the first trailer of Auxo 2, and while it’s just 30 seconds long, it’s enough of a look to get us excited. Featuring iOS 7’s advanced animations, a beautiful new split-paned Control Center view, the ability to close all running apps at once, and much, much more, Auxo 2 is shaping up to be just as revolutionary to jailbroken iOS devices as Auxo was to iOS 6 devices.

It looks as if Auxo 2 will be released on Cydia on Wednesaday, April 2nd. There’s no word on pricing yet, although the original tweak cost $1.99. We’ll let you know when it’s out!

It’s no secret that Steve Jobs was inspired by the incredible work Xerox was doing over at PARC Labs when he came up with the Mac: he borrowed the computer mouse, the desktop, and even the Macintosh business plan from the famous tech think tank.

Now, it looks like we also owe the ubiquitous hamburger icon — widely used in iOS as a menu shortcut, as well as a way to order draggable lists — to Xerox PARC as well. It turns out that the first example of the hamburger icon shows up in a 1981 video for the Xerox Star workstation.

Here’s an interesting financial. Robert Paul Leitao, founder of the AAPL Independent Analysts, shows how Apple’s revenue has grown over 1,127% since 2006, and earnings per share has grown an incredible 2,457%.

Fiscal 2011 and fiscal 2012 have been particularly kind to Apple: 66% in 2011, and 54% in fiscal 2012, largely thanks to new deals such as the Verizon Wireless iPhone deal, and the announcement of a new product line in the iPad. In 2013, though, Apple grew only 9.2%, and so far, Apple’s guidance for the latest quarter suggests nearly no growth at all.

Leitao’s conclusion? Apple’s growth is dependent on the successful release of new and currently unannounced new products. “Apple is an episodic enterprise,” he writes. The best reason to believe that Apple has an iWatch coming this year is that, without one, Apple will stop growing.

Source: Posts At Eventide Via: CNN

Considering their nearly ubiquitous status in retail cuture, it’s easy to forget that the Apple Store is a relatively new creation. Although Apple brought in over $7 billion in revenue last quarter across 400 physical locations, the first one was opened in just 2001… but ever since then, the Apple Store has spread like wildfire across the planet.

Here’s a great reminder of how far Apple has come, courtesy of Business Insider. Watch this animated map showing Apple Stores’ openings internationally. Check out how far the greatest retail success story since Wal-Mart has come!

Source: Business Insider

Sick of colliding with lampposts and the elderly whilst walking and texting? A new Apple patent for ‘Transparent Texting’ might be right up your alley, using your iPhone’s video camera to pipe through a live feed of what’s happening in the real world behind your Messages window.

It can be hard to hold on to some of your smaller everyday items. With Hone you can breathe easy because you’re just a click away from finding your lost possessions.

You can attach Hone to your keys, wallet, remote control – anything. Then, the small Bluetooth dongle automatically pairs to your iPhone or iPad with Hone’s free iOS app. If you can’t find the object, simply tap the “Find” button and Hone starts to vibrate, alerting you to the location of your cherished object. And Cult of Mac Deals has it for 50% off during this limited time offer – just $29.95.

Google recently started requiring Android handset and tablet makers to add a very specific “Powered by Android” graphic to the boot animation when you power up an Android phone. It’s part of the revised Google Mobile Services agreement for new Android phones.

The penalty for handset makers’ non-compliance is banishment from access to the Play Store by users of those devices.

The move is no doubt intended to raise user awareness about Android and brand the platform.

Unfortunately, it could backfire. Here’s why.

This Cult of Mac Deals offer features a must-have set of icons for all your designing needs. With three different sets of icons available, you have the necessities to make any webpage unique and give that hand-drawn personal touch. The icons are available in 8 file formats, including vector source files, raster images in four sizes, icon font files and vector files for custom font rendering.

All the hand-drawn goodies are creatively doodled, which cannot be substituted by any filters or effects. Its a must have for every designer who wants to create a hand-drawn website, application, presentation or print media. And right now you can get this bundle for just $39!

We’ve descended upon San Francisco for Macworld 2014! Join us for our show expectations, plus plenty of news, rumors, and discussion on: why 2014 might be the year for Retina Macbook Airs; Apple’s plans for a streaming TV service with Comcast; Office coming to iPad; the problem with emojis; and why iTunes needs to be more like Spotify.

Snicker your way through each week’s best Apple stories! Stream or download new and past episodes of The CultCast now on your Mac or iDevice by subscribing on iTunes, or hit play below and let the uproarious good time commence.

And thanks to Lynda.com for sponsoring this episode! Learn at your own pace from expert-taught video tutorials at Lynda.com.

Apple should buy Yahoo.

This is neither a new idea, nor one acceptable to the Apple fan base. But since people briefly talked about it last year, it’s become an increasingly good idea — maybe a necessary one for Apple’s continued growth and success — and I’m going to tell you why.

Your iPad is a trusted and essential tool for staying up to date on information, responding to emails, researching for work or school and much more. Now it’s time to take your iPad productivity to the next level – and Cult of Mac Deals can help.

The iPad Keyboard Case combo allows you to convert your iPad into a laptop-like position for faster, more comfortable typing. It also allows for tablet use by folding its hinge, hiding the Bluetooth keyboard out of sight. And Cult of Mac Deals has it for just $39!

SAN FRANCISCO — Moscone North has been packed with exhibitors for the last three days as they peddle their latest wares to the Apple faithful. We combed through all the booths, and while there were a ton of underwhelming products, Macworld 2014 did feature some really cool stuff and a couple surprises.

After some fierce debate among the Cult of Mac editors, we’ve settled on seven things that are truly deserving of a “Best of Macworld 2014″ title. So without further adieu, here they are:

SAN FRANCISCO — Cult of Mac is on the ground for Macworld/iWorld 2014 at the Moscone Center. We’ll be roaming the show floor and sitting in on workshops all day to bring you the coolest Apple-related stuff we can find.

You can follow us throughout Macworld on the liveblog below. No need to refresh the page; new posts will appear automatically!

This Cult of Mac Deals offer brings you the ability to copy DVDs, record music, and convert media files from the comfort of your own home.

These 4 insanely useful apps will help you edit and create content simply – and all at a price that is easy to handle. The Media Master Mac Bundle is available for a limited time for 77% off the regular price – just $29.95.

Whether virtual-reality technology really takes off in a big way remains to be seen. But with Facebook having just dropped $2 billion acquiring Oculus Rift, a whole lot of people — some of them with very large checkbooks — are confident it will.

Both Apple and Google have have shown interest in virtual reality, but what exactly does it have the potential to change in our lives?

Here are seven answers:

It’s billed as the “Ultimate iFan Event” and definitely doesn’t disappoint.
We spotted some old friends and made some new ones while roaming the floor at Moscone this year.

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Look who we ran into — Raines Cohen — co-founder of the legendary BMUG (Berkeley Mac User Group) and a colorful character.

He is wearing a vintage BMUG shirt. Look what it says on the back.

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These two are hardcore Macworld fans. They’ve been attending the shows since 1983 and they’ve both worked at Apple. The gentleman on the left is related to Elmer Baum, the oldest employee at Apple who loaned $5000 to the two Steves to build the Apple I.

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This is brother Gabriel Mosher, he comes to Macworld to explore the “crossroads where the Catholic nerds and the agnostic nerds meet.” He’s also on Twitter.

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I convinced these brothers to pose with the MacKeeper robot. I told them to do the robot dance, but they weren’t very enthusiastic. The robot gets just as much attention as a booth babe — if not more. Plus it’s cheaper.

Seven seconds of fame at the New York Times flipboard booth. Photo David McSpadden.

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Buster and Erfon, playing it cool at the Cult of Mac table during 6 About to Break contest.

Shopping for new toys. Photo David McSpadden.

SAN FRANCISCO — Right in the middle of the Macworld show floor, there’s a circle of 12 tables. They’re showing off a range of cool gadgets, like a combination battery/wall charger and a clever foldable iPhone stand.

The dozen products all started life as successful Kickstarter projects, and can be found for sale on BiteMyApple.co, an online store that sells Apple-related Kickstarter products.

The site is the brainchild of Chris Johnson. After founding the site three years ago, Johnson has grown it from $45,000 in annual revenues to more than $500,000. He runs the whole operation himself out of his small apartment in New York.

He’s even making a profit on the 12 tables here at Macworld.

You’re probably the go-to person in your circle of friends, family and maybe even your company when it comes to cracked iPhone screens, waterlogged iPads and battery-dead iPods.

That’s why the team over at iFixit is planning to launch a section for third-party repair services, which they previewed at Macworld. CEO Kyle Wiens says the project was a natural outgrowth of the numbers: on average, iFixit members have made seven repairs. “We figured if you can do that many, you should be making money from it.”

Don’t be a tool
Wiens asked for a show of hands of people who had tried to repair an iPad and broken the screen taking it apart instead: a dozen arms shot up from the 50-or so aspiring repair people at the conference. If you want to go into the repair business, you’re going to need the right kit, so consider which tools you’ll need for the bulk of your repairs and add that to your business plan, Wiens said.

For example, after realizing the iPhone 5 fingerprint sensor is easily busted when pried open, they created the iSclack, which pops it open without damaging it. (Bonus: it also works on other versions of the iPhone 5 , but is not suitable for previous generations.) The new repair biz section of the site will have tool kits aimed at third-party repairs.

Follow the money
A good rule of thumb for pricing your services? Half to two-thirds the cost of the device. Keep in mind,

Luke Soules, iFixit COO said, that iPads have higher margins for the repair person since the owner’s perception is that it’s a more expensive device. (The “free” or subsidized iPhones that come with call plans or trade-ins mean most American consumers perceive the phones as costing less.)

Consider the scale
“You could charge $150 to fix an iPad and customers are OK with it,” Weins said. “There’s more potential there, once you get up to scale.” He reiterated that iPhone owners, especially under warranty, will go back to Apple but watch those same customers come crawling back, he said, when it expires.

Pick Your Battles
“Figuring out when to say no is essential to success,”  Soules told a breakout group of would-be third party repairers. “You’ll want to pick the repairs where you know what you’re getting into.” A cracked iPhone screen can be a quick turnaround with “instant gratification” for the owner, and a borked home button can also be an easy fix.

Keep in mind “broken” can sometimes be easier to fix than “damaged” (especially when it comes to water damage, he said.) And when a customer brings in a device but doesn’t know why it’s not working, troubleshooting can end up being costly — for the repairer. There are obvious things like the water sensor which turns pink when there’s damage — though pristine sensors can be bought bogus online, he noted. Sometimes, you’re going to want to tell the customer that the device can’t be fixed and offer $50 for parts. That may end up being a much better deal for everyone involved.

Parts is Parts
On the question of parts, Wiens admitted that iFixit’s parts are more expensive than other options: “We spend more because we want quality.” It’s buyer beware if you’re going through eBay or Amazon, he said, noting that often the reviews don’t accurately reflect the overall quality of the parts on sale. Apple still refuses to offer original equipment manufacturer’s parts (OEM) to third-parties, despite the fact that not every Apple customer lives close to store or certified technician. “Tim Cook has not returned any of my phone calls about OEMs yet, but I will keep calling.”

The preview of the repair info was clean and organized – like you’d expect from iFixit. You’ll have to wait to check it out, though. Soules told us that it will probably debut in a couple of months. “It’s one of our more long-term projects,” he said. Not a quick fix, in other words.

FTL: Faster Than Light came out in September of 2012, and we’ve done nothing but rave about it since then.

The only thing missing from the FTL experience, though, was the ability to play the dang thing on an iPad. “How sweet would that be?” we thought.

Today’s our lucky day, then, as the developers behind the hot space-sim rogue-like have righted the wrongs in their universe by letting us all know that FTL would be available for the iPad (along with an Advanced Edition for the Mac and PC) this coming April 3.

SAN FRANCISCO — The New York Times is launching a new iPhone app on April 2nd in the App Store. Called NYT Now, the app will aggregate news from the Times as well as other publications. All stories will be handpicked by a 10-person team of Times editors and complied in daily reports.

If that sounds familiar, it’s because the Yahoo News Digest app is based around the same model. The difference with NYT Now is that it’s a paid service with the full backing of one of the most influential papers in the world.

Once again Cult of Mac has waded through this week’s endless list of new releases of books, music and movies to find the very best stuff so you don’t have to.

This week’s selections feature a little bit of pop, emo, gangsta rap, novels set in pre-Hollywood Los Angeles, and greedy dragon guarding one of Middle Earth’s most valuable treasures.

Music

Future Islands – Singles

Pop fans will soak up the energy and ambiance that flows along every note from frontman Samuel Herring in the fourth album from Baltimore pop synth band Future Islands. Singles manages to balance pop and melodrama built around a new age beat. The first half is definitely better than the back, but Future Islands indulgence in poppy beats is so fun you’ll probably have the entire album on repeat.

iTunes – $9.99

YG – My Krazy Life

YG’s “My Nigga” and “My Nigga (the remix)” have been on repeat during my jogging runs pretty much nonstop the last two weeks but My Krazy Life is full of great tracks that aren’t super innovative but serve as a beautiful nod to the era of Compton rappers, featuring appearances by SchoolBoy Q, Drake, Lil Wayne, Jeezy, and Comptons new king, Kendrick Lamar.

iTunes – $9.99

Owls – Two

Tim Kinsella’s work under Owls isn’t really pop and not totally emo despite its cryptic, piecemeal lyrics, but it falls unpleasantly inbetween. Two is the band’s first work in over 13 years, and while the album has been called “highly anticipated” from the best of fans, it’s also the most accessible piece of music Kinsella’s made for new fans as well. 

iTunes – $9.99

Books

Leaving China: An Artist Paints His World War II China
by James McMullen

I still think children’s’ books are best enjoyed in print where you can cuddle up with the pages, but James McMullen’s latest work really shines on the iPad. Leaving China depicts the artist’s exodus from China giving kids and adults alike a glimpse into life in China during the tumultuous  World War II era.

iTunes – $9.99

The Age of Radiance: The Epic Rise and Dramatic Fall of the Atomic Era
by Craig Nelson

Craig Nelson first rose to prominence with his autobiography on Thomas Paine, but rather than tackling another historical figure, for his next book he gives us the first complete history of the Atomic Age, chock full of accounts from people who uncovered the secrets of the nucleus and brought its power to America.
iTunes – $12.99

Mount Terminus
by David Grand

David Grand’s Mount Terminus is one of the best coming-of-age novel this year thanks to its elegant yet dark prose. Set against the backdrop of pre-Hollywood Los Angeles, the novel focuses on a young man named Bloom who is uprooted to California after the death of his mother and chronicles the rise of the film industry.

iTunes – $12.99

Movies

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

Smaug finally slithers into life for the second part of Peter Jackson’s Hobbit trilogy The Desolation of Smaug. Bilbo and the company of dwarves have slipped through the White Orc’s meaty claws, but now they face an even more potent adversary as they make their way into the depth of the Lonely Mountain in search of the arkenstone.

iTunes – $19.99

Delivery Man

Just when I started believing Vince Vaughn could no longer carry a comedy by himself, he brings it with Delivery Man. It’s the story of an anonymous sperm donor, Starbuck (Vaughn), whose sauce is so potent he fathered over 500 children. Vaughn’s character finds out the shock of his life might be the best thing to ever happen to him in this feel-good comedy that really delivers the laughs.

iTunes – $19.99

Grudge Match

I’d love to see Stallone and De Niro go at it in an epic good-guy bad-guy movie, but since they’re both more worried about osteoporosis than adding to their oeuvre of action flicks, we’ll have to settle for the comedy Grudge Match which sees the two actors as long-time rival boxers from the Pittsburg who rekindle their rivalry 30-years after their prime.

iTunes – $19.99

It was a close call this week in our games department, as reviewer extraordinaire Evan Killham lobbied hard for his favorite, Words & Cards. Granted, it’s a great game, but I had to push back a bit. Plus, I’m the editor, so I win.

Star Wars Assault Team is kind of the perfect blend of role-playing game stickiness with digital collectible card game features, all put together with your favorite Star Wars characters to boot.

The writing is great, with plenty of nods to the iconic movie series, and we finally get to see something new: how you spell Chewbacca’s roars. Really, that’s worth the download right there.

Here’s our Game of the Week video below to show you a bit of the game play.