Dan’s Microblog

If I find something interesting, I usually post it here. These are just short posts usually related to Apple and tech, but not always. Follow me on Facebook and/or Twitter.

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Dan Wassink

Tim Cook Interview on Good Morning America

Tim Cook was on Good Morning America recently showing the new features of the Apple Watch and iPhone. I found this entertaining to watch, Tim does a good job when being interviewed.

battery-iphone-ios 12

What’s New in iOS 12 on the iPhone – Mac, iPad, and iPhone Tutorials

battery-iphone-ios 12

The first of many lessons on iOS 12 on the iPhone are now available. These lessons are more specific to new features for the iPhone iOS. Coming soon will be all are tutorials on new and updates apps in iOS 12. See what’s new in iOS 12 on the iPhone with What’s New in iOS 12 on the iPhone.

What’s New in iOS 12 on the iPhone – Mac, iPad, and iPhone Tutorials:

Are you new to iOS 12 or do you want to learn what is new before you upgrade you iPhone to iOS 12? I can help with What’s New in iOS 12 on the iPhone. The lessons covers major features new in iOS 12 including the new screen time and battery health, as well as minor features such as sharing photos with a link. See what’s new in iOS 12 with the iPhone with this tutorial.

Dan Wassink

iPhone XS and XS Max Review: Sit Tight for the XR – WSJ

I love Joanna Stern’s reviews, and this one does not disappoint.

iPhone XS and XS Max Review: Sit Tight for the XR – WSJ:

If you want a ginormous screen on an iPhone, the XS Max’s beautiful 6.5-inch OLED display is here for you. Surprisingly, the XS Max is about as large as the older iPhone Plus models—its screen just covers more of the phone’s face. The only way I could make the Max look small was to put it in the hand of Gheorghe Mureșan, who shares the record for tallest basketball player in NBA history.

Dan Wassink

An Oral History of Apple’s Infinite Loop | WIRED

Some great stories in this article. A must read for Apple fans.

An Oral History of Apple’s Infinite Loop | WIRED:

Tim Cook (Apple CEO, 1998–present): My first day at work I had to cross a picket line to get in the building—they are out with signs and yelling and I’m asking myself, “What have I done?” I learned that it was because Steve decided to kill the Newton. I told him there’s protesters outside, and he says, “Oh yeah, don’t worry about that.”

Amelio: I knew Steve would never allow a partnership, and that my days were numbered. But I did what I thought was right for the company.

Thomas: The first time I ever saw someone outside a lab carrying an iPod was Steve, right after the announcement. He was walking, iPod in hand, be-bopping across the quad. He had the hugest smile on his face.

Dan Wassink

How Apple Watch saved my life | ZDNet

I’m reading more and more stories like this. This one is particularly interesting as he wasn’t an Apple fanboy, until the Apple Watch saved his life.

How Apple Watch saved my life | ZDNet:

I followed the app’s instructions. When I clicked on “Call a Doctor” I was immediately patched through, via FaceTime video call, to one of Stanford’s cardiologists. We discussed the results.

Dan Wassink

I Invented Autocorrect. Sorry About That; You’re Welcome | WIRED

I Invented Autocorrect. Sorry About That; You’re Welcome | WIRED:

More than 10 years after the initial release of the iPhone, the state of the art now is much as it was then. Even with recent advances in AI and machine learning, the core problem remains the same: Software doesn’t understand the nuance of human communication.

The Lego Chiron 1:1 is an actual life-size, drivable, glueless plastic hypercar | DriveTribe

A Lego car? Yup. Built with a lego screwdriver, a regular one had too much torque.

The Lego Chiron 1:1 is an actual life-size, drivable, glueless plastic hypercar | DriveTribe:

So, how many bricks does it take to make a full-size, moving Lego Chiron? Over 1,000,000 in total, of 339 different types. Only a few one-off custom bricks were needed, which are mostly the translucent ones used in the headlights and taillights. Which, by the way, illuminate in the same sequence as the real Chiron when you unlock the Lego car using a real Bugatti key.

Lego Car

Dan Wassink

iPhone interface designer Imran Chaudhri on Apple’s flaws

I love reading these early stories on the iPhone development.

iPhone interface designer Imran Chaudhri on Apple’s flaws:

“Very early on, when we first started building prototypes of the phone, a couple of us were lucky enough to take them home… By using the phone and living with the phone, I had friends all over the world who were hitting me up all the time and the phone was pinging and the light was going on, so I realized for us to coexist with this phone, we needed to have something to act as a gatekeeper. Very early on, I designed what ultimately became Do Not Disturb.”

Dan Wassink

Aqua Screenshot Library – 512 Pixels

Aqua Screenshot Library – 512 Pixels:

Of course, there have been highs and lows. Pin stripes and Brushed Metal and Linen and Rich Corinthian Leather. Transparency and Vibrancy. At times, Apple had led the way into new design trends, and at other times, they have fallen behind the rest of the industry.

Dan Wassink

Google Data Collection research – Digital Content Next

Why I love Apple and will never recommend Android. Also, why I don’t use Chrome on any of my devices as a primary browser. Privacy matters.

Google Data Collection research – Digital Content Next:

A dormant, stationary Android phone (with the Chrome browser active in the background) communicated location information to Google 340 times during a 24-hour period, or at an average of 14 data communications per hour. In fact, location information constituted 35 percent of all the data samples sent to Google.

For comparison’s sake, a similar experiment found that on an iOS device with Safari but not Chrome, Google could not collect any appreciable data unless a user was interacting with the device. Moreover, an idle Android phone running the Chrome browser sends back to Google nearly fifty times as many data requests per hour as an idle iOS phone running Safari.

For the record, I originally found this on Daring Fireball, but I thought I’d link to the original article.