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Adam Engst

Adam Engst

Adam C. Engst is the publisher of TidBITS. He has written numerous books, including the best-selling Internet Starter Kit series, and many magazine articles thanks to Contributing Editor positions at MacUser, MacWEEK, and now Macworld. His innovations include the creation of the first advertising program to support an Internet publication in 1992, the first flat-rate accounts for graphical Internet access in 1993, and the Take Control electronic book series now owned and operated by alt concepts. His awards include the MDJ Power 25 ranking as the most influential person in the Macintosh industry outside of Apple every year since 2000, inclusion on the MacTech 25 list of influential people in the Macintosh technical community, and being named one of MacDirectory's top ten visionaries. And yes, he has been turned into an action figure.

Adam Engst 26 comments

Dealing with Leading Zeroes in Spreadsheet Data

After receiving an “undeliverable” holiday card back, Adam and Tonya Engst discovered that their approach to extracting data from Contacts to print labels inadvertently deleted leading zeroes in ZIP codes. Can they ever send snail mail to New England? Here’s what happened—and how to avoid similar errors.

Adam Engst 5 comments

Helping ckbk Remove Ad Tracking

It pays to speak up. After being introduced to the ckbk cookbook service, Adam Engst expressed his disappointment in the app asking to track and was rewarded a few weeks later with an update that resolved the issue.

Adam Engst 14 comments

Quirky TidBITS Issue Printing Problem Solved

Prompted by a question from a reader about why images didn’t appear in printed copies of the TidBITS email issue, we look under the hood in WordPress to find the culprit.

Adam Engst 64 comments

Apple’s File Provider Forces Mac Cloud Storage Changes

As cloud storage services like Box, Dropbox, Google Drive, and Microsoft OneDrive move from deprecated kernel extensions to Apple’s File Provider extension, Mac users face interface and workflow changes.

Adam Engst 40 comments

Apple Music Classical to Debut This Month

Over a year and a half after it acquired Primephonic, Apple has finally announced the release of the dedicated Apple Music Classic app for iOS, scheduled for 28 March 2023. You can “pre-order” the free app now.

Adam Engst 25 comments

Microsoft Outlook for Mac Now Free, with Strings Attached

Microsoft has released its Outlook for Mac email and calendar app for free, but it displays ads, requires the "New Outlook" user interface, and asks to sync all your data to the Microsoft Cloud.

Adam Engst 2 comments

iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus Now Available in Yellow

Apple has added a vibrant yellow option to the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus lineup, just in time for those who are looking for a new iPhone to coordinate with their spring outfits.

Adam Engst 6 comments

tvOS 16.3.3 to Fix Siri Remote Problems for Third-Generation Apple TV 4K

If you've been having connectivity problems between the USB-C Siri Remote and the third-generation Apple TV 4K, the latest update for tvOS promises to help.

Adam Engst 3 comments

Tweetbot and Twitterrific Ask Users for Help after Twitter Client Ban

In the wake of Twitter banning third-party clients, Tweetbot and Twitterrific are giving subscribers the option of not asking for pro-rated refunds that could drive the small companies behind them into bankruptcy.

Adam Engst 12 comments

macOS Photo Screen Savers Still Don’t Properly Display Rotated or Edited Images

macOS has a long-standing bug that causes screen savers to fail to show edited or rotated images from Photos—only the original versions. Ventura still suffers from this problem, and although Adam Engst shares some workarounds, you’re not going to like them.

Adam Engst 28 comments

LastPass Publishes More Details about Its Data Breaches

LastPass was heavily criticized for communicating insufficient details after it lost customer vault data in a breach. A collection of new posts attempt to rectify that mistake—but it’s not enough for Adam Engst, who shares his experiences switching from LastPass to 1Password.

Adam Engst 7 comments

Reuters Uses AirTags to Track Donated Shoes Destined for Recycling

Ever wondered what happens to donated old running shoes? Reuters decided to verify the claims that they would be recycled into playgrounds by tracking them with AirTags. Spoiler—no playgrounds were built with the tracked shoes.

Adam Engst 39 comments

How a Thief with Your iPhone Passcode Can Ruin Your Digital Life

The Wall Street Journal reports on a spate of attacks in which iPhone thieves obtain your passcode and then change your Apple ID password, disable Find My, make purchases with Apple Pay, and more. Some attacks are as simple as the miscreants surreptitiously watching you enter your passcode; others involve violence. Read on to learn how to protect yourself.

Adam Engst 24 comments

Auditing Free Drive Space: Where Have All the Gigabytes Gone?

Curious about how Time Machine snapshots can supposedly prevent the space occupied by deleted files from being recovered right away, Adam Engst ran some tests and came away more confused than when he started.

Adam Engst 15 comments

Steve Jobs Archive Shares 1984 Photo of Jobs Spotting a Mac in the Wild

Executive Director Leslie Berlin has sent email to Steve Jobs Archive subscribers containing a 1984 photograph of Jobs, captivated by the sight of a Mac in the wild within a month of its launch.