Computerworld Apple News

Organize videos by groups in iTunes

(Kirk McElhearn) — Tue, 15 May 2012 18:04:00 GMT

In iTunes, there are two ways to categorize your videos: as either Movies or TV Shows. Movies are displayed individually, but TV shows are organized in groups, as they would be if they were episodes in the same show. One anonymous Mac OS X Hints reader takes advantage of this to organize all kinds of videos, regardless of their actual source. He uses his Movies library for very large files and puts everything else in TV Shows. So, for example, in his TV Shows library, he has groups called YouTube Videos, Home Videos, Work Stuff, and so on.

Mac clone maker Psystar saga ends as Supreme Court denies appeal

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Tue, 15 May 2012 16:00:00 GMT

The four-year-old saga of Psystar, a Florida Mac clone maker that was crushed by Apple, ended Monday when the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear its appeal of a lower court decision.

Microsoft to charge $15 for Windows 8 upgrade deal

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Tue, 15 May 2012 15:30:00 GMT

Microsoft plans to charge users who buy a new Windows 7 PC $14.99 for an upgrade to Windows 8. The upgrade program is expected to kick off alongside the delivery of Windows 8 Release Preview in June.

Apple ships first Leopard security update in nearly a year

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Mon, 14 May 2012 23:47:00 GMT

Apple on Monday issued its first security-related update for OS X 10.5, or Leopard, in nearly a year, to disable long-outdated versions of Adobe's Flash Player.

MacBook Pro refreshes may be imminent, say reports

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Mon, 14 May 2012 17:41:00 GMT

Hints that Apple will soon refresh its iMac desktop and MacBook Pro laptop lines accumulated today as several Mac-centric blogs revealed new details gleaned from the Web and unnamed sources.

Microsoft preps Windows 8 upgrade deal for early June debut, says report

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Fri, 11 May 2012 16:52:00 GMT

Microsoft will reportedly kick off a Windows 8 upgrade program for buyers of Windows 7 PCs in early June.

Infringement case suspended; Samsung tests Apple's 'pinch-to-zoom' claim

(Loek Essers) — Fri, 11 May 2012 11:38:00 GMT

Samsung Electronics may challenge the validity of Apple's intellectual property claims before the Regional Court in Mannheim, Germany, rules on whether the company has infringed them, the court said on Friday. It is the second time in two weeks that the Mannheim court has decided to wait for a validity verdict from the Federal Patent Court before ruling on an infringement case.

Mozilla on new browser brouhaha: Microsoft, Apple different cases

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Fri, 11 May 2012 10:46:00 GMT

Two wrongs don't make a right, Mozilla's chief counsel said Thursday when asked why his company hasn't lambasted Apple, as it did Microsoft, for blocking rival browsers from its mobile operating system.

Apple dominating Samsung in Japanese smartphone market

(Jay Alabaster) — Fri, 11 May 2012 10:05:00 GMT

Nearly one in three smartphones sold in Japan last fiscal year was an iPhone, pushing Apple's sales far ahead of main rival Samsung in the country, according to data published by a local research firm.

Adobe's security chief praises Apple for Flash-crippling move

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Thu, 10 May 2012 20:17:00 GMT

Adobe's head of security is applauding Apple's move to block outdated versions of his company's Flash Player.

Apple patches 36 bugs in OS X, fixes encryption password goof

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Thu, 10 May 2012 19:01:00 GMT

Apple on Wednesday patched 36 vulnerabilities in Mac OS X, most of them critical, plugging a hole that revealed passwords used to encrypt folders with an older version of FileVault.

What the summer portends in new tablets

mhamblen@computerworld.com (Matt Hamblen) — Thu, 10 May 2012 10:00:00 GMT

Summer 2012 promises to be the season of tablet experimentation. Just about every tablet maker is expected to announce a new product in the next four months. The devices are likely to be smaller in the case of Apple, bigger in the case of Amazon.

Apple patches Safari, blocks outdated Flash Player

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Thu, 10 May 2012 02:09:00 GMT

Apple on Wednesday patched four security vulnerabilities in Safari and blocked outdated versions of Adobe's Flash Player from running in its browser.

Is Apple's OS X Mountain Lion on early-release track?

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Wed, 09 May 2012 19:57:00 GMT

Apple may release OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion earlier than expected, according to a report by a popular blog and clues found within the release dates of the three developer previews of the new operating system.

Pinpoint your location

(Christopher Breen) — Wed, 09 May 2012 16:07:00 GMT

Reader Catherine Bailey is interested in marking her territory. She writes:

How to time-stamp your video in iMovie

(Jeff Carlson) — Wed, 09 May 2012 13:43:00 GMT

I hope we can all agree that it's good that video cameras no longer burn the date and time into footage as they used to. If you missed this particular piece of video history, cameras had an option to include the date and time on every frame of video. (Many cameras can still do this.)

Apple's e-store satisfaction score jumps, thumps Microsoft's

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Wed, 09 May 2012 11:15:00 GMT

Apple's online store scored the highest satisfaction rating of any computer-related company, and handily beat rival Microsoft, a consumer pollster said today.

Foxconn to open new facility in Shanghai

(Michael Kan) — Wed, 09 May 2012 02:18:00 GMT

Apple supplier Foxconn plans to set up headquarters in China, as part of the company's growing expansion in manufacturing and commercial operations.

Apple, Samsung pare down claims in U.S. smartphone, tablet patent case

(Marc Ferranti) — Tue, 08 May 2012 16:49:00 GMT

Responding to a U.S. district court judge's order, Apple and Samsung Electronics have trimmed the number of claims they will assert in a broad intellectual-property lawsuit regarding smartphone and tablet products.

Microsoft pitches SkyDrive over iCloud to Mac Office users

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Tue, 08 May 2012 15:39:00 GMT

Microsoft is pitching its SkyDrive online storage service to Office for Mac users, calling Apple's iCloud offering "not enough" for collaboration, file sharing and anywhere-access to documents.

Symantec conference puts focus on mobile security

(Ellen Messmer) — Tue, 08 May 2012 14:31:00 GMT

At its annual Symantec Vision conference attended by enterprise customers and business partners, Symantec laid out its management and security product strategy for mobile endpoint devices, including the iPhone, iPad and Google Android devices.

Where did I come from? The origin(s) of my MacBook Pro

(Josh Fruhlinger) — Mon, 07 May 2012 20:52:00 GMT

I remember when I bought my first new Mac. The label on the box read something like "Assembled for Apple in California." Famously, that has now changed.

Apple patches Google 'Pwnium' bug with iOS 5.1.1 update

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Mon, 07 May 2012 19:33:00 GMT

Apple today shipped iOS 5.1.1 for iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch owners that dealt with connectivity issues on the tablet, fixed bugs in AirPlay's video playback and patched four vulnerabilities in the mobile operating system.

Half of all Macs will lack access to security updates by summer

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Mon, 07 May 2012 18:50:00 GMT

Unless Apple changes its security update practice, nearly half of all Mac users will be adrift without patches sometime this summer.

Apple wants iphone5.com domain handed over

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Mon, 07 May 2012 10:35:00 GMT

Apple is disputing ownership of the iphone5.com domain, sparking speculation that the company will use the long-rumored name for its next smartphone.

Tibco adds Hadoop support to Spotfire analytics tool

(Chris Kanaracus) — Mon, 07 May 2012 04:06:00 GMT

Tibco has brought its Spotfire in-memory analytics software into the burgeoning ecosystem around Hadoop, an open-source framework for processing large sets of information, the company announced Tuesday.

Apple engineering mistake exposes clear-text passwords for Lion

(Jeremy Kirk) — Mon, 07 May 2012 01:47:00 GMT

Apple's latest update to OS X contains a dangerous programming error that reveals the passwords for material stored in the first version of FileVault, the company's encryption technology, a software consultant said.

Ask the iTunes Guy: More iTunes Match questions

(Kirk McElhearn) — Fri, 04 May 2012 13:51:00 GMT

[Ask the iTunes Guy is a regular column in which we answer your questions on everything iTunes related. If there's something you'd like to know, send an email to the iTunes Guy for consideration.]

Samsung can challenge Apple's photo gallery patent before ruling on infringement

(Loek Essers) — Fri, 04 May 2012 12:41:00 GMT

Samsung Electronics will be allowed to challenge the validity of an Apple patent before a decision is made on whether Samsung has infringed the patent, the Regional Court in Mannheim, Germany ruled Friday.

Handset vendors face 'brutal fight' for China's low-end smartphone market

(Michael Kan) — Fri, 04 May 2012 09:23:00 GMT

As China leads the world in smartphone shipments, top handset vendors are raising their stakes in the nation, and will likely bring more exclusive products and lower-end devices to the market, resulting in fierce competition, according to analysts.

iPad share of tablet market jumps as Kindle Fire slumps

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Thu, 03 May 2012 20:23:00 GMT

Apple's iPad reclaimed a larger share of the global tablet market last month, in part because of a more-serious-than-expected slump in sales of the hot Kindle Fire in the first quarter, IDC analysts said today.

Mobile experts disagree on who should protect privacy

(Grant Gross) — Thu, 03 May 2012 17:46:00 GMT

Users of mobile apps need more information about the ways those apps use their personal information, a group of experts agreed Thursday, but they didn't agree on who is most responsible for protecting user privacy.

Judge again orders Apple, Samsung to streamline claims in iPad patent case

(Stephen Lawson) — Wed, 02 May 2012 23:28:00 GMT

Apple and Samsung Electronics have until Monday to further boil down the number of claims to be considered in the sweeping intellectual-property lawsuit concerning their smartphone and tablet products, which is now scheduled to go to trial July 30.

Restarting a remote Mac

(Christopher Breen) — Wed, 02 May 2012 17:53:00 GMT

Reader, tech dabbler, and Weeds actor Andy Milder, occasionally contacts me for technical advice. In exchange, I drop his name. I'd additionally like to drop this bit of advice in response to his latest query:

Apple rejecting iOS apps that use Dropbox SDK

lmearian@computerworld.com (Lucas Mearian) — Wed, 02 May 2012 17:34:00 GMT

Apple has reportedly been rejecting developer's iOS apps that use the Dropbox SDK.

Microsoft detects new malware targeting Apple computers

(Jeremy Kirk) — Wed, 02 May 2012 04:18:00 GMT

Microsoft has detected a new piece of malware targeting Apple OS X computers that exploits a vulnerability in the Office productivity suite patched nearly three years ago.

IE on a rebound, browser share data shows

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Tue, 01 May 2012 19:21:00 GMT

Microsoft's Internet Explorer in April again gained usage share, the third time in the year's first four months, to stay well above the 50% mark and remain the world's top browser, a Web analytics company said today.

Seamless transitions your music from Mac to iOS effortlessly

(Serenity Caldwell) — Tue, 01 May 2012 18:59:00 GMT

Back when I had a morning commute, I would often pop in some earbuds before hopping on the bus and rock out to one of the many tunes on my iPhone as we rode through Chinatown. The problem, of course, came when I reached my desk mid-song: Did I pause and try and find the song on my Mac's iTunes library? Or did I continue to listen through my iPhone, only to look up hours later and realize I'd drained my phone's battery when I should have switched to my desktop?

iPad in the Enterprise: IT Must Stay Ahead of the Curve

(Tom Kaneshige) — Tue, 01 May 2012 16:50:00 GMT

In a wide-ranging interview, an Apple expert shares real-world experiences about iPads in the enterprise, mobile device management and BYOD. Key takeaways for IT: Don't improvise when it comes to iPad adoption and don't get bypassed by rogue users.

Microsoft mute on Nook app's bundling with Windows 8

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Tue, 01 May 2012 15:37:00 GMT

Microsoft on Monday declined to say whether Barnes and Noble's Nook app for Metro will be embedded into Windows 8 or Windows RT.

Facebook looks to connect patients with organ donors

sgaudin@computerworld.com (Sharon Gaudin) — Tue, 01 May 2012 11:55:00 GMT

Facebook launched a new tool today that co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg hopes will help connect patients with needed organ donors.

Samsung grabs biggest smartphone share in Q1, says IDC

(Mikael Ricknäs) — Tue, 01 May 2012 10:22:00 GMT

The worldwide smartphone market grew 42.5 percent year-over-year during the first quarter, as Samsung Electronics overtook Apple for the smartphone leadership position, according to IDC's estimates.

Review: Quickoffice Connect is a poor iCloud clone

(Galen Gruman) — Tue, 01 May 2012 10:12:00 GMT

Stick with the original Quickoffice HD app and either Dropbox or Box instead for a more reliable, cheaper alternative

Flashback gang could be making $10K a day off infected Macs

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Tue, 01 May 2012 10:11:00 GMT

The Flashback malware that's infected hundreds of thousands of Macs may be generating more than $10,000 a day for the hackers who made the Trojan horse, Symantec said.

AT&T, Google among top lobbying spenders in Q1

(Grant Gross) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 18:13:00 GMT

AT&T spent nearly $7.1 million on lobbying Congress and President Barack Obama's administration in the first quarter of 2012, making it the leading corporate spender on lobbying, with Google, Comcast and Verizon Communications also making the top five.

Snow Leopard users most prone to Flashback infection

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 11:41:00 GMT

Of the Macs that have been infected by the Flashback malware, nearly two-thirds are running OS X 10.6, better known as Snow Leopard, a Russian antivirus company said.

I have seen the future (and it's made of glass)

(Mike Elgan) — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 11:00:00 GMT

Expect to see incredible innovation in consumer electronics glass over the next few years from Apple, Google, and Microsoft, writes columnist Mike Elgan.

Does the iPad cannibalize Apple's laptops?

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 10:31:00 GMT

Is Apple cutting the MacBook's throat with the iPad? Apple CEO Tim Cook seems to think so, and analysts agree.

Bugs & Fixes: From Mail crashes to HTML5 video failures

(Ted Landau) — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 19:24:00 GMT

It's bargain day at Bugs & Fixes. This week's column offers three separate items for the price of one.

New iPad owners pay big 'halo' dividends for Apple

gkeizer@computerworld.com (Gregg Keizer) — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 18:47:00 GMT

The iPad is giving Apple entree to millions of customers who have never purchased one of company's products before, a research firm said today.