It’s a potpourri of topics this week, anchored by Security Editor Rich Mogull’s extensive Q&A about sandboxing, the Mac App Store, and Gatekeeper. Also timely are Adam Engst’s explanation of how to sync iCloud contacts on pre-Lion Macs using SOHO Organizer, his followup on Apple’s fix to the damaging Thunderbolt Software Update 1.2, and Agen Schmitz’s roundup of reviews of the MacBook Pro with Retina Display. Tossing timeliness to the winds, Michael Cohen contributes a look back at a 1982 New York Times article summarizing a remarkably prescient NSF-commissioned report on the future of communications and computing. Notable software releases this week include TextExpander 4.0, Skype 5.8.0.865, and Bento 4.1.1.
Apple has released Thunderbolt Software Update 1.2.1 to fix the boot failure problems caused by the 1.2 release. And, in a refreshing change, the company has acknowledged the mistake and apologized for the disruption.
The new MacBook Pro with Retina Display (say that 10 times fast!) is garnering positive reviews from most quarters for its centerpiece feature as well as its speedy responsiveness.
If you have a Mac that’s restricted to Snow Leopard, for whatever reason, you can still access your iCloud-based contacts from it using Chronos’s SOHO Organizer, which is a far better contact program than Address Book. Unfortunately, there’s no good connection between SOHO Organizer and other apps that look to Address Book for contact information.
In June 1982, the National Science Foundation released a commissioned report describing how electronic information technology would transform America. Turn on your teletext to find out how accurate it was.
The combination of OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion’s Gatekeeper and Apple’s recently enacted sandboxing requirement for the Mac App Store will provide Mac users with significant protection from attackers, but Apple will need to maintain the right balance of control and freedom or risk hamstringing the Mac platform.
Notable software releases this week include TextExpander 4.0, Skype 5.8.0.865, and Bento 4.1.1.
Only one quick hit this week, but you’ll find plenty to read, since it’s a collection of interesting responses to an NPR intern revealing that she has purchased almost none of the music in her 11,000-song collection.