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Josh Centers

Josh Centers

Josh Centers is the managing editor of TidBITS, as well as the author of Take Control of iOS 13 and iPadOS 13, Take Control of Notes, Take Control of Apple Home Automation, and Take Control of Apple TV, and co-author of Take Control of Preview. He's also a contributor to The Prepared and USA TODAY.

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Tim Cook Chooses the Environment Over Profit

Bryan Chaffin of The Mac Observer witnessed a visibly angry Tim Cook lash out at a National Center for Public Policy Research representative at this year’s Apple shareholder meeting. The NCPPR had pushed a proposal that would have required Apple to disclose the cost of sustainability programs and be more transparent about its relations with sustainability-related groups. After the measure failed, the representative questioned the effect of Apple’s sustainability programs on its bottom line and demanded that Cook promise to do only things that are profitable. Cook responded angrily, concluding with, “If you want me to do things only for ROI reasons, you should get out of this stock.”

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The App Apocalypse

Developer Jeff Atwood, co-founder of Stack Exchange, has penned a brilliant diatribe against the current app economy. Atwood rails against the flood of useless apps, and tackles the problems of having different interfaces for each device, not knowing what you’re getting when you buy an app, the lousiness of both free apps and in-app purchases, and having to learn wildly inconsistent interfaces. Atwood compares the state of apps to computing before the dawn of the Web, and hints at an upcoming solution.

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Apple Shareholder Proposal to Lock Spies Out Fails

On 28 February 2014, Apple’s shareholders voted down a measure to harden the company’s defenses against intelligence agencies, with the proposal earning less than 1 percent of votes. The proposal was drafted with the help of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, encryption expert Bruce Schneier, and Lavabit attorney Ian Samuel; it suggested stronger encryption measures, immediate and frequent revocation of potentially compromised SSL keys, more transparency, and the removal of equipment that was used for mass surveillance.

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A Look at Tim Cook’s Alabama Childhood

From humble origins in Robertsdale, Alabama, Tim Cook rose to become CEO of Apple. In an AL.com profile, Michael Finch II talks to those who knew Cook as a child, describing him as meticulous from an early age. Be sure to check out the yearbook photos!

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10.9.2 Fixes Critical SSL Security Bug, Adds FaceTime Audio

Apple has released OS X 10.9.2 Mavericks, plugging a potentially dangerous security vulnerability with SSL/TLS, as well as adding FaceTime audio calling and iMessage sender blocking.

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Apple Updates iOS and Apple TV to Fix Critical SSL Security Bug

Apple has released a fix for a long-standing critical security vulnerability in iOS and Apple TV, but Mac OS X remains vulnerable.

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The Future of Apple TV

Since releasing his “Take Control of Apple TV” book, Josh Centers has frequently been asked for his thoughts on the future of Apple’s living room business. He shares his speculations here.

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What the iPhone Has Replaced from a 1991 Radio Shack Ad

Steve Cichon of Trending Buffalo uncovered a Radio Shack newspaper ad from 1991, and realized that almost everything in the ad had been replaced by his iPhone, including a desktop computer, CB radio, tape recorder, CD player, answering machine, calculator, alarm clock, and camcorder. It would have cost $3,054.82 to buy all the gadgets that the iPhone has replaced — about $5,100 in 2012 dollars — which puts the cost of the iPhone and apps into perspective. The only two items in the ad that haven’t been yet replaced by the iPhone? A radar detector and a beefy speaker.

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Steve Jobs to Be Commemorated with Postage Stamp

According to a document leaked to The Washington Post, former Apple CEO Steve Jobs will be commemorated with a special stamp from the United States Postal Service in 2015. The design is still a work in progress, but we’re hoping for a popular vote between a “flat Steve” and a “skeuomorphic Steve,” much like the 1992 stamp runoff between “young Elvis” and “old Elvis.”

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FunBITS: Threes Is Good Company for iPhone and iPad

Threes is a deceptively simple math puzzler for iOS.

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iTunes Festival Comes to the United States via SXSW

The iTunes Festival is coming to the United States for the first time this year, from March 11th through 15th. The five-day extravaganza, broadcast from SXSW in Austin, Texas, will include Coldplay, Imagine Dragons, Keith Urban, and more. As always, iTunes Festival performances will be available both live and on-demand on your Apple TV, iOS device, or computer.

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Apple’s R&D Expenditures over the Years

Yoni Heisler, writing for TUAW, has tracked Apple’s research and development expenditures from its SEC filings, and found some surprises. R&D expenditures dropped considerably after the return of Steve Jobs, who axed a number of projects. Since then, Apple’s R&D spending has grown considerably, with expenditures from 2011–2013 equaling 50 percent of Apple’s total R&D expenditures since 1995. Even so, the company still spends billions less than competitors. As Steve Jobs once said, “It’s not about money. It’s about the people you have, how you’re led, and how much you get it.”

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Apple’s New Factory to Run on Renewable Energy

Apple is building a new plant in Arizona, reportedly to produce sapphire glass, and the company wants it to be powered by renewable energy from the first day. Apple has been in negotiations with the local power company, Salt River Project, which has been constructing new solar and geothermal plants to power the factory.

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Exploring Your Mac’s Restarts via the Command Line

Want to know how often you restart your Mac? Josh Centers explains a quick Terminal command that will do the job.

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FunBITS: Silver Screen Brings Your Video to Apple TV

Silver Screen is a Web-driven Mac app that makes it easy to play video in any format on your Apple TV. “Take Control of Apple TV” author Josh Centers takes a look.