I had no idea butter tarts were a Canadian thing until I moved to the US. I just assumed everyone enjoyed these yummy little desserts. It is definitely a delicious holiday tradition for many of us in Canada and, even better, fairly easy to make.
Silver man secret revealed London street performer, floating and levitating trick
I used this video to blow my kid’s mind this morning.
Apple’s secret repair kill switch hasn’t been activated—yet
As is often the case, the furor that arose from this earlier in the week is tempered with time. It doesn’t mean that Apple won’t turn this “feature” on in the future though.
Banksy Painting Self-Destructs After Fetching $1.4 Million at Sotheby’s
This is a fascinating story. Did Sotheby’s know it was going to happen? Is the art destroyed? Has it become more valuable? What a great stunt.
Apple hires police to stand guard at stores amid rash of robberies
I suspected Apple would do this eventually in some locations. There were just too many of these kinds of smash and grab robberies happening. Obviously, this won’t prevent all of them but it will deter some.
What Businessweek got wrong about Apple
We quoted pieces of this strongly worded rebuttal/denial in our story this morning but here is the full text of what Apple sent to Bloomberg regarding the Businessweek story.
I’m a paramedic: here’s how the Apple Watch Series 4 will and won’t save lives
Rich Mogull is not only my go-to Mac Security guy, but he’s also been a licensed paramedic for many years. His perspective on this particular feature is very interesting.
Apple CEO Tim Cook joins stellar line-up for 2018 International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners
This is not (just) marketing fluff. This is a concerted effort by Apple to signal their intentions regarding customer data protection and security.
National Theater in London offers glasses with live subtitles
I went to an opera once and they had subtitles above the stage. While I really appreciated it, it was a bit distracting. The audience would “get the joke” before the singers had actually sung the lyric. While these glasses may be targeted at those with hearing difficulties, I can see it being a boon to a lot of different people attending productions.
The Apple Watch faces its toughest challenge yet: grandma and grandpa
I don’t know how representative the review group was but it was definitely interesting to read about the Watch from the point of view of seniors – a demographic many say they will be buying a Series 4 Watch for.
How to use Apple’s new re-used password warning to reduce your risk of account hijacking
While this isn’t an issue for me – I use 1Password to create unique passwords for every login – I really appreciate it for my wife. It drives the point home to her how often she uses the same password on multiple sites.
In praise of mediocrity
Interesting theory but I don’t agree with it. I think people don’t have hobbies because they don’t have the time or the money to pursue them. My favourite “hobby” is riding my motorcycle but I can’t do it as much as I’d like for many reasons, money being one of them.
Camera test: iPhone XS Max vs iPhone X
More info and examples of the differences in photo quality of the two cameras.
VICE News Tonight interview with Apple CEO Tim Cook
I love Cook’s comments on privacy.
iPhone XS: A look at the new camera (and debunking the ‘beauty filter’)
I suspected something like this was happening when I first heard of this issue last week.
Alex Honnold free solo climbing Yosemite’s famous El Capitan in 360 video
This is an incredible video. If you can watch it on a device that supports 360 degrees, do it. Both my 12-year-old and my 12-year-old self loved it.
Snapheal, Intensify, and ColorStrokes from Macphun Software (now Skylum) are now free apps
Looks like the nice folks at Skylum (formerly Macphun Software) have made three of their apps free for macOS users.
“Portraits of Melissa”
I never used “Moments” from the iOS Photos app but, under iOS 12, “For You” pops up with these little videos now and again. I’m fairly impressed. Without me having named any of the pics or videos, the phone has identified my lovely wife and created this little video of her.
iPhone naming: 1 step forward, 4 steps back
I’m with Segall on this one. I think Apple may have painted themselves into a naming corner. I tend to refer to the new phones simply as “the S”, “the Max”, and “the R”. Still awkward though.
Backblaze cautions users about upgrading to Mojave
I hope this warning doesn’t come too late for some of you.
Facebook network breach affects up to 50 million users
Facebook keeps stepping in piles and piles of crap – much of it their own.
California Apple Store robbery gang stole over $1M in goods, cops say
At what point does Apple revise its store in order to stop this kind of theft or whether they just see this as the cost of doing business the way they do? My biggest fear is that someone, staff or customer, gets hurt or worse in one of these smash and grabs.
“Since Mom died this past spring, my 92 year old dad waits for mail every day.”
Please take a moment over the next few days to buy a postcard of your hometown or state or province or country and send it to Mr Dunn.
Don’t you hate when a seal slaps you in the face with an octopus?
This blew up on Twitter yesterday and it was hilarious to see.
385 feet of crazy: the most audacious flying machine ever
This is a giant, ugly plane but I would never bet against the legendary plane builder Burt Rutan or Paul Allen’s millions.
What is atrial fibrillation, and why is your watch telling you about it?
Interesting post explaining something most of us have heard about but may not understand.
The 10 safest countries in the world
I don’t take these kinds of lists too seriously but I am happy to say I live in #6 and will be visiting #4 next March.
Banff National Park’s explanation of the difference between sheep and goats
TFW your home-sick-from-school 12 year old asks you, “What’s the difference between a sheep and a goat?” and a Google search leads you to this video.
Working with Mojave’s privacy protection
Things like 1Password, SpamSieve and the like will need to acess this.
macOS Mojave patcher tool for unsupported Macs
There’s no chance I’d ever use this kind of thing but I’m sure some of you would love to stuff Mojave on to an old Mac.