If you’ve been itching to start the journey to learning code then Cult of Mac Deals has an excellent offer for you…and at a fraction of the regular price: The Ultimate Python Programming Course.
This tutorial is detailed enough for beginners but is also an excellent reference for various leveled Python programmers. Purchasing this course is like having an expert Python consultant for the rest of your life, and all the lessons are organized for easy access – just like a chapter in a book. You’ll also have certification provided upon completion of the course, making you a certified Python developer. And you’ll get all of this for just $39 – that’s a 60% discount!
Readdle, the creator of some of the best productivity apps for iOS, has today replaced its awesome $6.99 Calendars app with a new version that won’t cost you a penny. It has all of the same great features it’s always had, only now you can enjoy them for free.
Here at Cult of Mac, we’re huge fans of Philips Hue LED lightbulbs and Minecraft. Any hack, then, that mashes together the two and we’re in… especially if there’s a father delighting his ten year old, Minecraft-obsessed son at the end!
Which is why Jim Rutherford’s Hue/Minecraft hack is so awesome. It uses the Hue, Minecraft and an iPad to make the lights around you correspond to the game’s pixellated day cycles.
Ever wanted to pick up an awesome Mac or iOS accessory after it’s been funded on Kickstarter, but had no idea where to find it? There’s a good chance you’ll get it at BiteMyApple, a new online store that sells the coolest and most innovative Kickstarter projects as soon as they hit retail.
Netflix is a fantastic service, but it doesn’t do much of that “social” jazz everyone’s talking about these days. That’s about to change, though, with Netflix now introducing the appropriately christened Netflix Social, which will let you see what’s popular amongst your friends.
I love being able to whisper instructions to Siri as I walk along the street. My favorite trick is to get her to play a song, album or playlist. “Play something by Daft Punk,” I order, and off he goes. The problem is that I use Spotify and Rdio for most of my music, and Siri doesn’t talk to either of them.
But this neat hack will get her most of the way there.
It seems you can’t go anywhere these days without seeing an advert for the iPhone. They’re on billboards in the street, they’re there when you switch on the TV, and you’ll also find them in newspapers and magazines. But believe it or not, there’s one company that spends more — a lot more! — on advertising its smartphones than Apple does.
That company is Samsung. In 2012, Samsung outspent Apple by more than three to one in smartphone advertising, with a number of large campaigns on TV, in print, and on the Internet. In total, the Korean company spent $401 million advertising its phones.
Joby Ingram-Dodd is a lucky guy. First, he has an awesome name which sounds like he’s a successful gold prospector from the 1800s. And second, he bought a tough-as-boots iPhone.
Oh, and he has, like, the best job ever.
You see, Joby managed to drop his iPhone 4S 60 meters (almost 200 feet) from the top of a wind turbine onto a concrete parking lot way below. And guess what?
Tony Stark is essentially Marvel’s answer to Steve Jobs, if Steve Jobs looked like Robert Downey Jr., was kidnapped by the Taliban, had a nuclear reactor installed as a replacement heart, and built himself a set of power armor.
In every other way, though, the two are exactly similar, which is what makes it natural that Steve Jobs’s greatest creation — the iPhone — is now capable of “suiting up” in Tony Stark’s greatest invention, the Mark VII power armor.
In France, the proletariat is not a force to be trifled with. There are expectations on how companies are to treat workers: whether there are enough golden crusted, freshly baked baguettes in the breakroom, for example, or how many fromage breaks one gets per hour. “Vive les grenouilles!” the workers cry, sousing themselves silly with wine.
It’s a good system, but Apple has fallen afoul of it, with seven Apple Stores in France now being rapped on the knuckles for violating a French law that prohibits employers from making their workers work past nine PM at night.
YourTube, a popular jailbreak tweak that brings new features to the official YouTube app — including video downloading and ad-blocking — has been updated to support jailbroken devices running the latest iOS 6 firmwares. The latest version is available to download from Cydia now, and it’s free to existing YourTube and YourTube HD users.
ActoTracker is a free Mac app that automatically tracks all of the activity on your Mac. You might show up at the office on Wednesday having completely forgotten what you were working on Monday. You might wonder what specific website you went to while researching that lit paper, and not have a record of the history stored in your browser. With ActoTracker, you can pull up this kind of information, and much more.
A new smartphone service launched today by the British Heart Foundation uses augmented reality to transform a packet of cigarettes into luxury items in an effort to help you quit smoking.
Using the Blippar app for Android and iOS, the service encourages you to “swap fags for swag” (“fag” is a British term for cigarette) by virtually transforming your cigarettes into other items you could afford if you didn’t spend your cash on smokes.
When Apple launched its new Maps app with iOS 6 last September, one of its headline features, Flyover, only supported a handful of big cities. But the Cupertino company has been hard at work in the background to extend its reach, adding support for additional locations all over the world.
In the past few months, Apple has brought Flyover to an additional 16 cities, plus extended its coverage in 14 of the cities already supported.
Everyone knows that Apple’s maps suck, right? After all, they were pretty poor at launch, and anything to do with Apple never changes: Apple gear is overpriced ($330 for an iPad!), Apple should license its OS (Android is open! And winning!). Etc.
Except that maps have gotten a lot better in the intervening months. The app mightn’t have gotten an update, but arguably its the same old app that used to use Google maps anyway. But the software and map tiles behind the scenes? Oh boy.
Google Now, the intelligent personal assistant that was introduced to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean last June, appears to be gearing up to make its debut on iOS. The feature will be integrated into the Google Search app for iPhone and iPad, according to a promotional video that was allegedly posted to Google’s official YouTube channel prematurely — before quickly being pulled again.
The Homeworld series, launched in 1999 by Relic Entertainment and Sierra Entertainment, is considered by many to be the birth of the modern 3D real time strategy game. Homeworld: Cataclysm was released the following year, with Homeworld 2 following in 2003.
Today, development house teamPixel wants to license the Homeworld franchise, liberating it from the THQ bankruptcy, and create two new games: Homeworld Touch, a remake of the Homeworld game with a new, modern, touchscreen interface for iOS and Andriod, and Homeworld 3 for Mac and PC, to extend the game to new frontiers and new audiences. They’d also like to bring the older, legacy Homeworld games to Steam and Good Old Games. All they need is your support with their Kickstarter project.
The Blockheads is a fantastic iOS game that captures so much of the Minecraft experience, it’s a must play for any but the most jaded of iOS gamers.
It updated today, with all sorts of great stuff. You can now warp in up to four players, twice the two previously available. My kids and I are gonna have a ton of fun with this one. You can find fish in the sea, craft a fishing rod to catch them, and hopefully not get eaten by sharks there, either. Also, there’s a way to make tin foil, which lets you roast those fish on a campfire, canceling out the most hunger possible in game. Or, you know, make a tin foil hat.
Yes, it’s a frisbee that doubles as an iPhone speaker. When you’ve finished flinging the Fli Tunes around, pop the center out and stick your iPhone in it. Be sure to pick up your iPhone before flinging it around again.
One type of bag was conspicuously missing from the lineup when Pelican released its ProGear line a few months back. There was a smorgasbord-like selection of tablet- and laptop-toting bags — but nothing for camera gear. Now Pelican has filled that space, integrating their vault-like case technology in the new S130 ProGear laptop/camera backpack.
Ok, so it’s not a life-changer, but the Apple Store app has just been updated to version 2.5. There are now new delivery options available in the app, and you can choose different shipping options for each different item in an order. Want your iPad smart case shipped to your office, your iPhone charger to your home, and pick up your iPad mini at the local Apple Store? You can arrange for that now in the app itself.
There’s a new section in the Express Checkout screen, too, which lets you know whether a purchase will be available for pickup at the nearest Apple Store, at least for US customers.
Every time I’ve used the Apple Store App, whether to purchase an item in store or order it ahead of time, I’ve been impressed by the seamlessness of the transaction. It’s like having a better, more portable Apple Store website on my phone, and it makes it easy to make Genius Bar or workshop reservations at my local store. The app allows you to purchase and pick up products from the store, personalize iPads and iPods with engraving, choose gift-wrapping options, configure new Mac purchases, and track your stuff once you’ve bought it.
And? It’s really a ton of fun to walk into the store, scan an item, type in my iTunes password, and walk out with that item. Feels all sneaky. I also like that just showing up with my iPhone and a reservation for a Specialist notifies them and me. It’s just plain cool.
What’s New in Version 2.5
– New delivery options make it even more convenient to get your Apple products. Choose different shipping options for different items in an order.
– An even easier way to see if the product you want is available for pickup at your favorite Apple Retail Store (U.S. only).
With Apple stock seemingly in free fall, a new report suggests that Apple is going to announce a plan to return additional value to shareholders as soon as this spring, either by increasing the existing dividend or by buying back stock from investors.
After giving its mobile app a lot of love, Dropbox is focusing its attention on its desktop client.
Dropbox announced today that it’s got a couple new upgrades for the Mac and Windows app that will help you share files quicker, and improve updates to help you keep up with the service.
