MacVoices #24278: 2024 Holiday Gift Guide #1 (1) Our annual holiday gift guide series kicks off with picks from Mike Schmitz, Bart Busschots, Marty Jencius, and host Chuck Joiner, covering categories from audio to coffee and beyond. (Part 1)
MacVoices #24277: Live! - Tidal & Dropbox Layoffs, and Why Apple Bought Pixelmator The tech industry is a dynamic business segment. Dave Ginsburg, Brian Flanigan-Arthurs, Marty Jencius, Mark Fuccio, Web Bixby, Jim Rea, and Eric Bolden discuss Apple’s acquisition of Pixelmator and how it might affect both Apple-branded offerings as well as the legacy application. Then, layoffs at both Tidal and Dropbox are in the cross hairs. Tidal has been all but left out of the streaming music conversation, and Dropbox seems to have fumbled as they tried to diversify. The panel members have thoughts on both.
MacVoices #24276: More with Jeff Carlson on Take Control of Apple Watch (2) Jeff Carlson, the author of Take Control of Apple Watch, 5th edition, continues the discussion of some of the new capabilities of the latest Apple Watch and watchOS 11. The innovative check-in tool in Messages for notifying loved ones of safe arrivals, the benefits of the ultra-wideband chip for finding misplaced phones and the new offline Translate app for seamless communication while traveling highlight a discussion of those features.
MacVoices #24275: Jeff Carlson Takes Control of Apple Watch (1) Jeff Carlson has updated Take Control of Apple Watch to the 5th edition to cover Apple Watch 10, Apple Watch Ultra, and watchOS 11. The first part of our conversation covers his approach to the update and the contstant evolution of Apple’s products. Jeff shares insights on major updates, such as the enhanced Smart Stack widget and live activities integration, as well as advancements in health tracking, workout management, and notifications that streamline the user experience.
MacVoices #24274: Live! - A Tethered Apple Vision Pro? The idea of an Apple Vision Pro has been talked about as a way to make the device more affordable. Dave Ginsburg, Brian Flanigan-Arthurs, Marty Jencius, Web Bixby, Jim Rea, and Eric Bolden consider the implications of inking the Vision Pro to the iPhone for power and processing and how that would impact the user experience. Whether that would actually result in a significant cost savings is called into question, and the use cases it would and wouldn’t impact are discussed.
MacVoices #24273: More Smart Assistants and Clipboard Managers with Jeff Gamet on The Mac Show (2) The discussion with Jeff Gamet on a recent edition of The Mac Show on The British Tech Network finishes off thoughts on the smart assistants we use before turning to why one of us uses Clipboard Managers extensively and one hasn’t found a reason to do so, in spite of the fact that he has one installed.
MacVoices #24272: Jeff Gamet on Smart Assistants on The Mac Show (1) In a one-on-one conversation from a recent edition of The Mac Show on The British Tech Network, Jeff Gamet and Chuck Joiner talked about smart assistants. The differences in purposes, capabilities, and responsiveness are discussed, along with notification abuse and which devices they each use. (Part 1)
MacVoices #24271: Talking With The Long Island Macintosh User Group A bonus-sized MacVoices discussion resulted from a virtual visit to the Long Island Macintosh User Group. As with most user group discussions, we start out in one direction and then let the questions and conversation dictate what we cover. The starting point this time was the iPhone 16 and things went from there.
MacVoices #24270: Live! - Importance of The Internet Archive, UK’s USB Charging Standard, AI Resources The Internet Archive, its importance, and a recent DDoS attack on it start off a MacVoices Live! discussion with Chuck Joiner, David Ginsburg, Marty Jencius, Brian Flanigan-Arthurs, Web Bixby, Jim Rea, Jeff Gamet, and Eric Bolden. The panel also gets a chuckle over the UK adopting a USB-C charging standard, and cover some of the little-knowing LLMs that are more specialized than the ones you might be familiar with.
MacVoices #24269: Live! - Bluesky’s Growth, Sonos Issues, Squarespace Acquired, The WordPress Soap Opera MacVoices Live! covers several recent shifts in major tech platforms, starting with the mass migration of users from X to Blue Sky and its implications for social media competition. The panel of Chuck Joiner, David Ginsburg, Marty Jencius, Brian Flanigan-Arthurs, Web Bixby, Jim Rea, Jeff Gamet, and Eric Bolden discuss the challenges Sonos faces regarding device connectivity and user experience as well as Squarespace’s $7.2 billion acquisition, the internal turmoil within WordPress under Automatic, and the possible effect on the web site building industry.
MacVoices #24268: Live! - Set Lists in Apple Music, New Beats Pill, Russians Buying More iPhones, and Apple Counterfeit Product Seizure MacVoices Live! panel members Chuck Joiner, David Ginsburg, Marty Jencius, Brian Flanigan-Arthurs, Web Bixby, Jim Rea, Jeff Gamet, and Eric Bolden have differing use cases for Apple’s new set list feature in Music, at least a couple of which will surprise you. We also debate the importance of celebrity endorsements through the new Beats Pill, cover the reported increase in iPhone sales in Russia, and an Irish seizure of counterfeit Apple products.
MacVoices #24267: Live! - ApplePay at 10 and Did Tim Cook Really Call Donald Trump? Apple Pay turned 10 recently and the MacVoices Live! panel discussed its transformation and influence in mobile payments since its launch. Then, Chuck Joiner, David Ginsburg, Martty Jencius, Brian Flanigan-Arthurs, Web Bixby, Jim Rea, Jeff Gamet, and Eric Bolden detour into political territory, examining a political narrative surrounding a rumored phone call between Tim Cook and Donald Trump related to EU regulations. The conversation focused on the need for both skeptical and mixed media coverage.
MacVoices #24265: Live! - Adobe vs. Procreate, Sonos, Locked iPhones, and More The MacVoices panel discusses the changes Adobe made to Fresco, apparently to go after the tablet drawing app market that Procreate dominates. How do the two compare, and how with their respective business models fare? Chuck Joiner, Brian Flanigan-Arthurs, David Ginsburg, Ben Roethig, Marty Jencius, Eric Bolden, Jim Rea, Jeff Gamet, and Web Bixby have thoughts before they report on Sonos’ improvements, and laugh their way through the cell carriers’ assertion that locking phones is good for you.
MacVoices #24264: Live! - M4 iMac, An Apple Card Promotion, Apple TV+ Successes Chuck Joiner, Brian Flanigan-Arthurs, David Ginsburg, Ben Roethig, Marty Jencius, Eric Bolden, Jim Rea, Jeff Gamet, and Web Bixby turn their attention to the newly announced M4 iPad. Who will be buying it, the secondary monitor support, and how it will change as Apple Intelligence rolls out are all considered. The panel also looks at a new Apple Card promotion and whether Apple or Goldman Sachs is funding it, as well as the roll that Apple TV+ seems to be on.
MacVoices #24263: Live! - The M4 Mac mini and M4 Mac mini Pro During a week of Apple announcements, the MacVoice Live! panel took a look at the first two Mac upgrades. Chuck Joiner, Brian Flanigan-Arthurs, David Ginsburg, Ben Roethig, Marty Jencius, Eric Bolden, Jim Rea, Jeff Gamet, and Web Bixby look at the new Mac Mini with the M4 and M4 Pro chips, and the performance boost they offer in a new, compact form factor. Design quirks, multiple monitor support, and Thunderbolt 5 are part of the discussion, as is the question over whether this should be considered a “prosumer” machine.
MacVoices #24262: Glenn Fleishman Takes Control of Securing Your Apple Devices, AirTags, and More (3) Our multi-part conversation with Take Control author Glenn Fleishman concludes with discussions of Take Control of Securing Your Apple Devices, Take Control of Find My and AirTags, and Take Control of FaceTime and Messages. Glenn points out some lesser-known features such as Lockdown Mode and Private Wi-Fi Address, talks about using GateKeeper effectively, and explains some new features in FaceTime and Messages that improve the user experience. (Part 3)
MacVoices #24261: Glenn Fleishman On Keeping Safe Using Mobile Tech (2) Glenn Fleishman goes in depth on the title subject of his Keep Safe Using Mobile Tech. We talk about how to secure Apple devices amid all the changes and updates to operating systems, along with features such as car crash detection, fall detection, emergency SOS, and the Check-In function, Glenn emphasizes the need for individuals to understand and customize their device settings for optimal protection from both misadventure as well as theft. (Part 2)
MacVoices #24260: Keyboards, Comics, and Taking Control of Your Apple Account with Glenn Fleishman (1) In the first part of a wide-ranging conversation with author Glenn Fleishman, we touch on his participation in the Shift Happens book project, his latest project, How Comics Were Made, and his Take Control of Your Apple Account. Along the way we looked back at the surprising origins of a peripheral we all use, the challenges of the early printing industry, and got some thoughts on what you can and can’t do in your account interactions with Apple.
MacVoices #24259: Live! - Wordpress Controversies and Sonos Customer Confidence Two topics dominate this MacVoices Live! discussion. Chuck Joiner, Marty Jencius, Eric Bolden, Jim Reat, and Mark Fuccio look at the ongoing soap opera that is the Wordpress/WP Engine feud that now has some employees heading for less combative pastures. Then, the panel consider the latest efforts by Sonos to gain back their customers trust…and why it is an uphill climb.
MacVoices #24258: More Home Organization with Under My Roof (2) Our conversation with Diane Hamilton, Co-Founder & Managing Partner of Binary Formations continues with how they are implementing machine learning integration in Under My Roof, particularly object recognition, and the support resources available for users. Diane also shares insights on the transition to a subscription model, data ownership and privacy through iCloud integration. (Part 2)
MacVoices #24257: Diane Hamilton On Organizing Your Home with Under My Roof (1)
Diane Hamilton, Co-Founder & Managing Partner of Binary Formations, discusses the evolution of Under My Roof. Originally designed for home inventories, the app has transformed into a comprehensive tool for managing all aspects of homeownership, including maintenance schedules and household supplies. Useful for both day-to-day activities as well as in times of disaster, Under My Roof uses iCloud for secure storage of your data. Diane explains user-friendly mechanisms like receipt uploads and strong syncing capabilities across devices as part of the initial implementation. (Part 1)
MacVoices #24256: Live! - AI Emotional Support, Good-Bye HoloLens Microsoft wants to provide “AI emotional support?” Chuck Joiner, David Ginsburg, Marty Jencius, Eric Bolden, Jim Rea, Jeff Gamet, and Mark Fuccio look at their plans for user experience and approach, as well as the decision to kill off their headset without a replacement product announced.
MacVoices #24255: More with Mike Schmitz on LifeHQ (2) We wrap up our conversation with Mike Schmitz about how his latest project, LifeHQ, organizes your projects, to-dos, and your life (hence the name). Mike explains some of the key concepts behind his system, how it integrates with apps that you already are using, and the modularity of his approach. Best of all, you can adopt features as your needs and time dictate, rather than have to learn everything all at once. (Part 2)
MacVoices #24254: Mike Schmitz Launches LifeHQ To Improve Your Productivity (1) Mike Schmitz has been working on his new project, LifeHQ, for a long time. Built on Obsidian, LifeHQ is, “Everything You Need to Run Your Whole Life.” Mike explains his combination of personal knowledge management (PKM) and productivity enhancement and how it turns items like notes and journaling into actionable insights. Inspired by Mike’s productivity projects and studies, LifeHQ brings it all in one place. (Part 1)