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ExtraBITS for 26 October 2015

In ExtraBITS this week, Josh Centers talks about TV shows with the Tech Night Owl, Find My Friends arrives on the Web, and publishers are torn between native apps and the mobile Web.

Josh Centers Discusses TV with The Tech Night Owl — On his latest Tech Night Owl appearance, Josh Centers broke from the usual tech topics to discuss favorite TV shows with host Gene Steinberg, including The Blacklist and Hannibal. Of course, the pair eventually returned to technology, specifically the new Apple TV and the much-rumored Apple Car.

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Find My Friends Now on iCloud.com — Along with other updates last week, Apple added a Web-based version of its Find My Friends app to iCloud.com. Just like its iOS counterpart, the Web-based version of Find My Friends displays where all of your friends are on a map, assuming they’ve agreed to let you view their locations.

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Publishers Debate Apps Versus Mobile Web Sites — The New York Times highlights the tension publishers feel when trying to decide whether to distribute content via apps or mobile Web sites, tying it to a somewhat exaggerated Apple-versus-Google debate. Apps tend to be better at serving loyal readers and capturing payments, but are far too expensive for many publishers. On the other hand, Web sites cost less and are essential to attract new readers, but can’t provide as good a mobile experience. (And of course, it’s not clear that most readers are
even all that clear on the difference between apps and sites.) The money quote, from publisher Ann Kjellberg, is about how Google and Apple are aiming not “to support the endeavor of creative working people, but to get people addicted to their business models, their devices, or interaction with a screen.”

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