∞ Apple releases official WWDC app

Apple on Thursday released an app for developers of next week’s Worldwide Developers Conference.

Aptly named “WWDC,” the app lets you search the conference schedule, make a reservation at the User Interface, App Review, iTunes Connect, Program Support, or Developer Publications lab, view floor diagrams of Moscone West, and create a custom schedule of the sessions, labs, and events you plan on attending.

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∞ Pixelmator 2.0 adds content-aware fill, healing, retouching tools

The guys behind image editing application, Pixelmator, on Thursday announced the new features that will be in the 2.0 release scheduled for release later this summer.

As a long time user of Pixelmator, I’ve always been impressed with the feature set of the application and its of use, but these new features take the application to new heights.

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∞ Elements update adds Markdown footnotes support

Justin Williams on Wednesday released a new version of Elements, his text editor for iOS, adding many new features and fixing some bugs.

Built for iPhone and iPad, Elements 1.6 adds support for rendering Markdown footnotes in the Markdown preview as well as dictionary lookups via the Terminology app for iOS from Agile Tortoise.

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∞ Beatles Anthology collections to debut exclusively on iTunes June 14

We sure have come a long way in a short period of time. iTunes went from not having any of The Beatles to having music released exclusively on the music service.

EMI on Tuesday said the The Beatles’ three remastered Anthology music collections will debut on June 14. Anthology, Vols. 1-3 are available for preorder on iTunes starting today.

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∞ Report: Android apps not making money for developers

There have been many reports talking about how Android or is more popular than iOS and vice versa. However, if you’re a developer and want to make money, you should be on iOS.

Citing a report from research firm Distimo on Friday, Fortune’s Philip Elmer-DeWitt shared some interesting statistics. For instance, out of of 72,000 paid apps in Google’s Android Market, only two have sold more than 50,000 copies.

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∞ PayPal sues Google for stealing trade secrets

Yesterday morning, Google announced Google Wallet. By the afternoon, PayPal launched a lawsuit against the company, claiming it stole the technology.

I’ve seen very few lawsuits with the twists and turns that this one has and I’m sure it will only get better. It not only involves stealing technology, but trade secrets and even employees.

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∞ Analyst says Apple passes Nokia in 'share'

Market research firm Asymco says that Apple has passed Nokia in terms of mobile share. The big question is what exactly does “share” mean?

The author of the report, Horace Dediu, notes that there are many measurements of share these days. For example, there is the share of all handset units sold; share of installed based of handsets (penetration); share of smartphones; share of mobile computers; share of value (revenues) captured; share of profits; share of platforms; share within a given platform; and share by regions/countries/geographies/demographics.

Basically, there is a share for almost every measurement you can think of.

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∞ Apple sues white iPhone conversion kit company for trademark infringement

Apple on Wednesday filed a lawsuit against a company that makes iPhone version kits. The kits basically turn your black iPhone into a white iPhone.

Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, the lawsuit claims that Fei Lik Lam a/k/a Phillip Lam and whiteiphone4now.com, are “infringing and diluting Apple’s famous trademarks, in willful violation ofthe Lanham Act (15 U.S.C. § 1051 et seq.) and for engaging in deceptive practices and unfair competition in willful violation ofNew York state Jaw.”

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∞ Senator Franken asks Apple, Google to require privacy policies for apps

U.S. Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) asked both Apple and Google to require “clear and understandable privacy policies for all of their apps.”

The Senator made the statements in a letter sent to both companies.

“If the companies agree to this request, consumers who purchase apps from Apple or Google’s app stores would have a clearer understanding of what information is being collected about them and with whom it’s being shared,” wrote Franken.

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∞ The Heist topples Angry Birds as App Store's top selling app

A new game from the folks who brought Mac users the MacHeist software bundle has done the unthinkable — it toppled Angry Birds as the top selling app on the App Store.

The developers told The Loop on Wednesday that The Heist sold 25,233 copies in about half a day. That was enough to give them top spot on the App Store, at least for single day sales — they still have a ways to go to beat Angry Birds for cumulative sales, but they are well on their way.

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∞ Apple MacBooks top all Consumer Reports laptop categories

If you were wondering how good Apple’s MacBook line of portable computers are, the answer is simple — they are the top computer every category on Consumer Reports.

Apple’s 11-inch MacBook Air scored a 62 out of 100 taking the top spot in the small laptop section. Scoring a 56, Gateway came in second while HP came in third with a 49.

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∞ Apple details how to remove MacDefender malware

Apple updated its Web site on Tuesday with details on how to remove the much talked about MacDefender malware.

“A recent phishing scam has targeted Mac users by redirecting them from legitimate websites to fake websites which tell them that their computer is infected with a virus,” Apple wrote on its support site. “The user is then offered Mac Defender ‘anti-virus’ software to solve the issue.”

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∞ Apple close to deal for iTunes cloud music

Talks have progressed because music industry insiders are said to be hopeful that a cloud streaming service, which would allow users to access their music from any Internet-connected device, will boost sagging music sales. This way, users would be able … Continued

∞ Apple has NOT announced Steve Jobs as WWDC 2011 keynote speaker

Despite published reports to the contrary, Apple has not announced CEO Steve Jobs will give the keynote address. I confirmed this with Apple PR this morning.

Gigaom on Tuesday published a story that said Jobs would give the keynote. The Web site cited an official announcement from Apple in the story. The problem is there is no official announcement from Apple.

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∞ Objectify for Mac 1.0 Creates Objective-C Code from JSON

Tigerbears on Tuesday released a new application called Objectify that is targeted to Apple developers.

According to the company, Objectify saves Cocoa developers time and effort by automatically building customizable model classes from JSON content. These classes can be exported as Objective-C source code files, ready to be used in the developer’s development environment of choice.

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∞ Report: 500,000 apps approved on Apple's App Store

It wasn’t that long ago that Apple first opened the doors to the App Store and now the company has reportedly surpassed 500,000 approved apps.

That figure comes from a group of companies that have been involved in the app business since it launched: 148Apps, a mobile app blog; Chomp, an app search engine; and Chillingo, a game developer.

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∞ Developers 'extremely grateful' for Apple's letter to Lodsys

There is no doubt iOS developers are breathing a little easier today after Apple’s letter to patent holding company Lodsys.

“It’s been the longest ten days that I can remember,” PCalc developer James Thomson, told The Loop. “When I got the original FedEx parcel, I honestly thought somebody had sent me a present. To say I was surprised by the contents would be an understatement.”

Ken Landau, CEO of MobileAge agrees. “There is certainly a feeling of relief, he said.

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∞ Law firm investigating RIM for violating federal securities laws

Georgia-based law firm Holzer Holzer & Fistel on Monday said it was launching an investigating into RIM.

According to the law firm, the investigating is focusing on statements made by the company between December 16, 2010 and April 28, 2011. The investigation will try to determine if the statements “were materially false and misleading at the time they were made.”

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∞ Trooper's Ra McGuire and 'The Politics of Songwriting'

I remember hanging out with my friends, driving around the neighborhood with the music cranked up so loud it was impossible to hear anything but the thump of the kick drum and Ra McGuire’s voice. Those were good days.

Ra McGuire is the lead singer and songwriter for one of Canada’s best-selling rock bands of all time, Trooper.

With hits like “Raise a Little Hell,” “The Boys in the Bright White Sports Car,” “Three Dressed Up as a Nine,” “We’re Here For a Good Time (Not a Long Time),” and “Oh, Pretty Lady,” Trooper has had Platinum and Double-Platinum albums.

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∞ PlayBook vs. Etch A Sketch: A head-to-head battle

I was surprised with how many PlayBook fans were upset when I compared the device to the iPad 2. So I thought I’d try again.

According to the emails I received, a comparison between the PlayBook and iPad 2 wasn’t fair. These comments came despite the fact that RIM’s co-CEOs blathered on about how much better the PlayBook was than the iPad.

So if comparing the iPad 2 isn’t fair, what is? There aren’t very many modern devices that don’t allow its users to send email or work with calendars.

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∞ Assassin's Creed Brotherhood available at MacGameStore

Good news tonight for Mac gamers. Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood is available from the MacGameStore as a digital download — that means you can get it right now.

In the game, you assume the role of Ezio, a legendary Master Assassin, in his enduring struggle against the powerful Templar Order. Defeating the corrupt tyrants entrenched there will require not only strength, but leadership, as Ezio commands an entire Brotherhood who will rally to his side.

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∞ Apple working with Foxconn to investigate iPad factory explosion

Apple working with Foxconn to investigate iPad factory explosion

Apple on Friday said it is working with Foxconn to investigate an explosion at the factory where the company makes the iPad 2.

“We are deeply saddened by the tragedy at Foxconn’s plant in Chengdu, and our hearts go out to the victims and their families,” Apple said in a statement provided to All Things D. “We are working closely with Foxconn to understand what caused this terrible event.”

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∞ PlayBook returns high, misses sales targets by 90%

The news just keeps getting worse for RIM’s PlayBook tablet. Not only is the company missing targets, but return rates for the device are quite high.

Citing a source from a big box retailer, BGR on Friday said the PlayBook missed the retailer’s internal projected sales targets. RIM didn’t just miss the targets by a little — according to the source, the PlayBook fell short of the targets by over 90 percent.

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∞ Nielsen: 70% of tablet owners uses device while watching TV

The latest report from market research company Nielsen looks at how consumers are using their tablets, smartphones and eReaders.

According to the study that surveyed about 12,000 people, the television and bedroom are popular places for all of the devices. According to the responses compiled by Nielsen, here are the main points in the study:

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∞ Lawsuit claims AT&T overcharges iPhone data users up to 300%

A new lawsuit alleges AT&T is regularly overcharging iPhone and iPad customers for data usage, in some cases up to 300% more.

Lawyers for the lawsuit said they spent $80,000 testing devices in preparation for their day in court. In one instance, lawyers purchased a brand new iPhone and turned off everything that could affect data usage. When the bill came in from AT&T, there were 35 transactions for data usage, according to MSNBC.

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