Many services are bidding for the chance to store and share our digital memories: Apple’s Photo Stream, Flickr, Instagram, 500px, Everpix, and many more all pitch various ways to hold and showcase our photographs, but all do so slightly differently—and not always successfully.

The new Loom service aims to do many of the same things as the above-named platforms, but it has an edge: excellent apps, a clean design, and a speedy back end. I took it for a spin over the past few days, uploading photographs and video from all manner of sources. Here’s how Loom shakes out.

The look...

Apple is the top ranked brand in the United States, according to results from an annual Harris Interactive poll. Apple was ranked the top brand by consumers in all three of the categories it was included in: computers, smartphones, and tablet devices.

The Mac Observer Spin:
Haters are gonna hate, but consumers love Apple's products and they trust the company. That's a pretty good position to be in.

doo is the one app for documents. It lets users access all their documents, wherever they keep them, and automatically generates intelligent tags to help users find any document in seconds.

The cloud-based solution with native apps is currently available for OS X and Windows 8. Apps for Android and iOS are coming soon. Further Windows versions are planned.

Users can connect their local document folders on their devices as well as online services such as Dropbox, Google Drive, and their email accounts. doo will automatically generate intelligent tags. The selective sync allows users to define which of their documents to manage locally, and which to back up and sync to other devices via the optional doo Cloud.

The seamless integration with scanners of leading manufacturers, as well as with smartphones and cameras, lets users scan documents and import pictures of...

New Retina MacBook Pros with Intel's new Haswell processors could arrive even later than expected, in October, if the latest rumor is to be believed.   ...

A Harris poll of almost 40,000 American consumers on more than 1,500 brands across 155 categories saw Apple retain Brand of the Year in three categories.

• 2013 Computer Brand of the Year
• 2013 Tablet Brand of the Year
• 2013 Mobile Phone Brand of the Year

What really stands out is that in all three of the categories Apple brands are measured – Computer, Tablet and Mobile Phone – its Brand Momentum scores are in the top 30 of all 1,500 brands evaluated in the study, showing that consumers see this as a brand of the future.

The poll asks consumers to rate brands on Familiarity, Quality, Purchase Consideration, Emotion, Fit, Trust, Performance, Energy, Ubiquity, Future Outlook, Leadership and Popularity.

The top four...

ABI Research (www.abirsearch.com) has found that the overall 2012 wireless network equipment market was quite challenging for infrastructure vendors, but the incessant demand for 3G and 4G mobile broadband will continue to drive demand for mobile packet core equipment. The Mobile Packet Data Core Network infrastructure market will reach $1.8B in 2013.

"Continued growth in 3G and 4G traffic will propel the Mobile Packet Core Infrastructure to a cumulative $10B market over the next five years," says Joe Hoffman, principal analyst at ABI Research.

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ABI Research (www.abirsearch.com) has found that the overall 2012 wireless network equipment market was quite challenging for infrastructure vendors, but the incessant demand for 3G and 4G mobile broadband will continue to drive demand for mobile packet core equipment. The Mobile Packet Data Core Network infrastructure market will reach $1.8B in 2013.

"Continued growth in 3G and 4G traffic will propel the Mobile Packet Core Infrastructure to a cumulative $10B market over the next five years," says Joe Hoffman, principal analyst at ABI Research.

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St. Clair Software has released Default Folder X 4.5.10 (http://tinyurl.com/2gm24v), an update to their utility for Mac OS X. The new version is compatible with the developer release of Mavericks and fixes issues on Mac OS 10.8 and 10.7 as well.

Default Folder X enhances the file dialogs in all Mac OS X applications. Its custom keyboard shortcuts put your favorite and recent folders at your fingertips. It provides fast navigation to your files, convenient previews, integrated Spotlight tagging, and more.

read more

Photo: ibtimes.com

The latest numbers from IDC, ABI and Strategy Analytics (the latter not yet online) paint an interesting picture of where the smartphone business currently stands, and where the iPhone sits within it.

The overall picture for smartphones is, of course, strong. IDC reports:

In the worldwide smartphone market, vendors shipped 237.9 million units in 2Q13 compared to the 156.2 million units shipped in 2Q12. This represents 52.3% year-over-year-growth, the highest annual growth rate in five quarters. Second quarter shipments were up 10.0% when compared to the 216.3 million units shipped in 1Q13....

Joomla! is a powerful Open Source Content Management System for building professional Web sites easily. It is often the system of choice for small business or home users who want a professional looking site that's simple to deploy and use. It can deliver a robust enterprise-level Web site as well, empowered by endless extensibility for your bespoke publishing needs. Joomla! is different from the normal models for content management software. For a start, it's not complicated. Joomla! has been developed for everybody, and anybody can develop it further. Similarly to the Firefox browser, the core system can be extended via easily installable add-ons authored by the developer community. The comprehensive internationalization of Joomla! 1.5.x supports right to left languages (e.g., Hebrew or Arabic) and extended character sets. Dozens of language packs can be separately downloaded. This is a...

NoteAbilityPro is a professional music notation package for the OS X operating system. Developed by Dr. Keith Hamel at the University of British Columbia, it is easily the most sophisticated music notation software available on any platform. NoteAbility combines both musical intelligence and graphical flexibility in a direct and intuitive graphical user interface. Notate anything from simple melodies to complex avant garde orchestral music, play the score on your MIDI synthesizer or using QuickTime Musical Instruments and print a publishable copy of your score on any OS X-compatible printer.

If you have been frustrated by the awkwardness and inflexibility of other notation programs, or by the time it takes to learn them, then you definitely should have a look at NoteAbilityPro.

The demo version of NoteAbilityPro is a complete working copy of the program with some...

VPN Tracker is the premier VPN client for OS X, allowing safe data transfer between your Mac and your remote networks. VPN Tracker brings the workflow of the mobile user to the foreground. The starting point is the "Secure Desktop". Here users' documents, Internet addresses, applications, and scripts can all be easily organized giving VPN users the direct access they need most. Every item in the Secure Desktop can be completely configured and linked to any one of the users VPN connections. Administrators and consultants can easily create multiple Secure Desktops which can also be pre-configured and exported to specific users. Along with IPsec-based connections, VPN Tracker can also integrate any existing L2TP and PPTP-based VPN connection in the same user interface.

Version 7.0.2:

• The order of connections and Secure Desktops is now preserved when exporting and...

Komodo IDE helps developers create great applications using dynamic languages and open technologies.

Award-winning tools for debugging, code intelligence, visual code navigation and the regular expression toolkit help developers write cleaner code faster, while source code control integration, a project manager and multi-user support assist in team development.

With improved performance for all supported languages including Perl, PHP, Python, Ruby & Tcl, HTML, CSS, JavaScript and XML), simple Firefox-style extensibility, and flexible multi-platform licensing for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux, Komodo IDE has developed smart tools with developer freedom and choice in mind.

Version 8.5.0-beta2:

Bug Fixes:

• Debugger: Tcl: Ensure Linux 64-bit remote debug package contains correct executables. (Bug 99608)
• Debugger...

It's simple to password-protect your Pages, Numbers, and Keynote files, and once you know how to do it in one program, you know how to do it in all three. In this tip, we'll discuss how to require a password to open iWork documents (along with some important caveats for using this feature!).

Fone Rescue helps you recover data lost or accidentally deleted from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. It is capable of recovering up to 12 different file types containing information like SMS, contacts, photos, videos, notes, and social media. By using Fone Rescue, you can easily get erased files back from any situation, such as jailbreak, iOS update, or iDevice damage.

Key Features:

Recover Data from iOS Devices Directly or iTunes Backup Files

• Provides two methods of recovery: recover deleted files from your iOS device directly or retrieve data from previous iTunes backup files.
• With Fireebok's upscaling technology for recovery, built-in deep scan goes through the entire database to find files. Deleted data like text messages and other erased important information can be recovered more effectively.

...

NetAdmin Pro is a powerful, fully automated monitoring tool which continuously provides diverse information on the local network to which you are connected. It is an advanced version of NetAdmin.

Main features of NetAdmin Pro are:

• Stand-alone automatic data collection
• Fully automated operations
• Easy UI that provides various information required for local network management
• Host status charts within various given period (90 min. to 1 year)
• Network- and host-status reporting (PDF, print), exporting via CSV
• Additional features such as MIB Browser (SNMP v1/v2, keyword searching, exporting via text/CSV)
• Configurable icon and name for each device
• Wake-on-LAN

Main information provided by NetAdmin Pro is:

• ...

While broadly compared to Apple TV, Google's new Chromecast product and the WebRTC protocol behind it aren't really comparable to Apple's AirPlay, the wireless video feature that is the main reason people are buying and using Apple TV.  ...

Icon Slate lets you easily compose, import or export icons in many formats: Apple ICNS, Microsoft ICO, CandyBar iContainer, image (PNG or TIFF).

• Manage multiple icons in one project.
• Batch import and export .ICNS (512x512 OS X 10.5 Leopard), .ICO (Windows Vista 256x256), .PNG, .TIFF, .iContainer files
• Compose your icon by simply dropping one or multiple images.
• Create icon quickly with compose mode (Copy to empty or filled sizes).
• Adjust the background color to check the rendering of your creation in different contexts: brightness mode, custom color, transparent background.
• Use created ICNS files directly in Finder's inspector.
• Built in dock preview.
• QuickLook thumbnails and previews in Finder.

Version 3.42:

• Add the xxhdpi (480dpi) size for Android
• Fix Finder format...

Because the features of the Google+ Local iOS app have now been incorporated into the latest edition of the Google Maps iOS app, the company announced on Thursday that it would retire the Google+ Local iOS app beginning August 7. Reviews and ratings created in the app will be available in the Google Maps app and in the users' Google+ profile if they are using the service....  ...

Research firm IDC has released its estimates on worldwide mobile phone sales for the second quarter of 2013, showing Apple's iPhone growth slowing as it posted its second-lowest iPhone growth rate in four years with only 20% year-over-year growth compared to 52.3% growth for the entire market. However, Apple maintained a hold on the number two spot for smartphone makers behind Samsung, as other competitors LG, Lenovo, and ZTE failed to hit the 6% mark during the quarter.

Worldwide Smartphone Shipments in 2Q13 in Millions of Units (Source: IDC)Apple posted its second-lowest year-over-year iPhone growth rate in almost four years as some buyers presumably held off on iPhone purchases in advance of an expected next-generation device launch this fall. Nonetheless, the 31.2 million iPhones Apple shipped last quarter was impressive as its flagship iPhone 5 model, which has been in the market for three quarters,...

Navicat Essentials for PostgreSQL is a compact version of Navicat which provides basic and necessary features you will need to perform simple administration on a database. It supports the latest features including Trigger, Function, View, and it also comes with an Import/Export tool which allow user to import and export data from plain text file formats including TXT, CSV and XML.

Navicat Essentials for PostgreSQL is available for three platforms - Microsoft Windows, OS X, and Linux. It can connect you to local/remote server, providing several utilities such as SQL editors, import/export, dump/execute SQL scripts and Server Monitor to facilitate the process of data maintenance.

Version 11.0.7: Release notes were unavailable when this listing was updated.

OS X 10.6 or later


...

Navicat Essentials for SQLite is a compact version of Navicat which provides basic and necessary features you will need to perform simple administration on a database. It supports the latest features including Trigger, Function, View, and it also comes with an Import/Export tool which allow user to import and export data from plain text file formats including TXT, CSV and XML.

Navicat Essentials for SQLite is available for three platforms - Microsoft Windows, OS X, and Linux. It can connect you to local/remote server, providing several utilities such as SQL editors, import/export, dump/execute SQL scripts and Server Monitor to facilitate the process of data maintenance.

Version 11.0.7: Release notes were unavailable when this listing was updated.

OS X 10.6 or later


...

Navicat for SQL Server is an ideal solution for SQL Server administration and development which lets you create, edit databases, run SQL queries and connect to remote SQL Server in an easier way. It features an intuitive GUI and offers powerful visual tools such as Query Editor with syntax highlight capability, SQL Preview, SQL Console, TEXT, Hex and BLOB viewer/editor, SSH Tunnel and more, to increase your productivity.

Also, Navicat provides a number of tools allowing to perform all the necessary database operations such as creating, editing, and duplicating database objects. It also offers a well-described wizard system that simplifies your database development tasks and a full featured graphical manager for setting the users and access privileges.

It runs on Windows and Mac OSX with remote connection capability. Navicat is also available for MySQL, Oracle,...

Navicat for Oracle is an ideal solution for Oracle administration and development which lets you create, edit databases, run SQL queries and connect to remote Oracle in an easier way. It features an intuitive GUI and offers powerful visual tools such as Query Editor with syntax highlight capability, SQL Preview, SQL Console, TEXT, Hex and BLOB viewer/editor, SSH Tunnel and more, to increase your productivity.

Also, Navicat provides a number of tools allowing to perform all the necessary database operations such as creating, editing, and duplicating database objects. It also offers a well-described wizard system that simplifies your database development tasks and a full featured graphical manager for setting the users and access privileges. Navicat is also available for MySQL and PostgreSQL.

Easy installation and intuitive interface make it an irreplaceable tool for...

Navicat Essentials for SQL Server is a compact version of Navicat which provides basic and necessary features you will need to perform simple administration on a database. It supports the latest features including Trigger, Function, View, and it also comes with an Import/Export tool which allow user to import and export data from plain text file formats including TXT, CSV and XML.

Navicat Essentials for SQL Server is available for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. It can connect you to local/remote server, providing several utilities such as SQL editors, import/export, dump/execute SQL scripts and Server Monitor to facilitate the process of data maintenance.

Version 11.0.7: Release notes were unavailable when this listing was updated.

OS X 10.6 or later


...

Navicat for MySQL Client from PremiumSoft, is an integrated GUI tool let you perform MySQL administration and database development in an easier way. Advanced features allow you to create data models, import/export data, backup, transfer databases, create queries, and manage your local or remote MySQL server. It also includes a full-featured graphical manager for setting the users and access privileges and more.

Navicat is sophisticated enough for professional developers, yet easy to learn for new users. It is also available for Windows and Linux and translated into 7 major languages.

Version 11.0.7: Release notes were unavailable when this listing was updated.

OS X 10.6 or later


More information

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LibreOffice is an office suite (word processor, spreadsheet, presentations, drawing tool) compatible with other major office suites. The Document Foundation is coordinating development and maintenance of this OpenOffice.org fork.

Many different language versions are available here.

Version 4.1.0.4:

• This release is bit-for-bit identical to the 4.1.0 Release Candidate 4, so you don't need to download or reinstall if you have that version already.
• LibreOffice 4.x drops a few long-deprecated features, including support for legacy binary StarOffice files, export to legacy Word and Excel (version 6.0/95), and legacy ODMA document management.
• Some menu entries have changed or added. If you miss something, that may be due to the use of customised menu settings from your previous LibreOffice installation.
• This version still contains a few annoying...

FontExplorer X Pro is optimized for professional use; it's the solution that gives you the power you need to manage all your fonts.

Now you can more easily manage, activate and organize your existing font collection as well as find and experiment with new fonts. Whether you've got a hard drive full of typefaces or a few cherished families, FontExplorer X Pro handles your font library quickly, efficiently and reliably. And when you're ready to add to your collection, you can view thousands of classic designs and the latest releases from independent foundries using the integrated store.

FontExplorer X Pro features an enhanced user interface with a configurable toolbar, activation control, comprehensive font information at your fingertips, customizable font previews, back-up functionality and access to FontExplorer X Server. Used together, FontExplorer X Pro and FontExplorer X Server are your complete solution for organizing, exploring and buying fonts...

Hazel is your personal housekeeper, organizing and cleaning folders based on rules you define. Hazel can also manage your trash and uninstall your applications.

Organize your files using a familiar rule interface. Filter on the file's name, type, date, the site or email address it came from and more. And do more than just file. You can set color labels, Spotlight keywords and comments and even archive files. Hazel also cleans, sporting options to clean out incomplete and duplicate downloads.

In addition, Hazel can manage your Trash for you, relieving you of having to empty it yourself.

All this is done automatically in the background allowing you to focus on your real work.

Version 3.1.3:

User interface changes:

• The connection panel now has a path field to optionally set the initial folder to start in when you browse the server. This should allow you to bypass folders which you may...

Web Help Desk Free offers an industry leading web-based help desk software feature set that allows you to track and fulfill all of your technical support trouble tickets and customer service requests with ease, all through an intuitive web-based technician interface, iPhone web-app, customer support Web portal, email-to-ticket conversion, and 2-way email integration.

Free Help Desk Software Features:

• OS X Help Desk Software Solution
• Web-based Client UI - Zero Footprint
• Customer Service Web Portal
• Incident & Problem Management
• Email-to-Ticket Conversion
• LDAP / Active Directory Synchronization
• Knowledge-base Management
• Two-Way E-Mail Correspondence
• Service Level Agreement (SLA) Alerts
• Reporting Included

Free Help Desk Software Integration:

• ...

An alleged "motherboard" from an iPhone 5S has turned up at a Chinese repair shop called iHospital. Lending credibility to the report is the fact that the new photos exactly match a motherboard leaked a more than a month ago, including some changes in layout. It is clearly possible that both leaked boards were fakes, but the new photos show that the boards are in production (since they are pictured as a pair in a snap-out card) and further support the reports that the iPhone 5S will sport multiple internal improvements, including the camera and graphics.... ...

Reports of phishing emails seeking Apple ID passwords have been making the rounds, with the fraudulent messages leveraging perceived concerns over the extended downtime of Apple's developer website to gain access to sensitive user data.   ...

Apple has pulled off another hat-trick in capturing the top rankings in three separate but mainstream categories in a new poll from Harris Poll EquiTrend. Like last year, the company has again been ranked the top brand for computers, tablets and smartphones as decided by more than 38,500 American buyers that were asked to rank brands on over 1,500 products in 155 categories. The polling company also noted that consumers placed Apple in the top 30 of all 1,500 brands evaluated for "momentum," indicating its good relationship with consumers will continue into the future.... ...

Fantastical is the Mac calendar you'll actually enjoy using.

Creating an event with Fantastical is quick, easy, and fun:

• Open Fantastical with a single click or keystroke
• Type in your event details and press return

...and you're back to what you were doing with a shiny new event in your calendar!

Fantastical's natural language engine is expressive and intelligent so you can write in your own style. Fantastical also automatically recognizes the location of your event and can even invite people from your Address Book to the event.

Your events have never looked better. Plan your day in style with the most attractive calendar you've ever seen. Color-coding and beautiful design help you quickly make sense of your schedule. You can even change the number of events you want displayed, allowing you to focus on what's...

CalorieKing is one of the oldest nutritional tools available online and the service bills itself as "America's trusted food database." If you're looking for the caloric content of a meal -- be it homemade or from a fast-food joint -- you'll likely find the answer on CalorieKing, and the website features an in-depth weight management program as well. Late last year CalorieKing launched ControlMyWeight, an app that acts as a food and exercise log as well as a nutritional research tool, and its ease of use is quickly making it one of my favorite fitness apps.

For a somewhat steep $3.99 entry fee ControlMyWeight gives you a suite of tools to help you manage your intake and workout routines. Entering a meal or snack is as simple as a few taps and the massive database of foods from CalorieKing means you'll rarely have to manually enter a food. In the rare cases you can't locate your...

Appearing on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno to promote his upcoming film JOBS, Ashton Kutcher talked about what prompted him to take on the role of Steve Jobs while also expressing regret for not meeting the Apple co-founder when he had a chance.

A transcript of the video is below. Incidentally, the few clips I've seen of Kutcher as Jobs are rather impressive.

I had an opportunity to meet him about 6 months before he passed away. I was working that day and couldn't go. In hindsight, I had the opportunity to meet the Leonardo da Vinci of our generation and I missed it. That really affected my decision to take on the role.

It was actually the day that he died... for me, I hear people talk about they knew where they were the day Kennedy died. And for me, I'll never forget the moment I heard that he died. And I pulled my car to the side of the road, and kind of took a moment. I got home and I realized, I sat down on my computer and started doing some work and I...

When it comes to finding a particular photograph of the Space Needle in your haystack of digital photos, you’ll have a hard time unless you follow the advice about assigning keywords and other metadata in the sixth chapter of Jeff Carlson’s “Take Control of Your Digital Photos,” now available to TidBITS members. Jeff explains how to choose and assign keywords, fix incorrect dates, and apply geotags to your photos in each of the four main photo-management apps.

Read the full article at TidBITS, the oldest continuously published technology publication on the Internet. To get a full-text RSS feed, help support our work and become a TidBITS member! Members also enjoy an ad-free version of our Web site, email delivery of individual articles, the ability to make long comments with live links, and discounts on Take Control orders and other Apple-related products.

Market research firm Harris Interactive on Thursday announced Apple, for the second consecutive year, beat out tech giants like Google, Samsung, and Amazon to be named computer, tablet and mobile phone "Brand of the Year."  ...

If you need to look up your Mac's IP address, there are some quick ways to do so.

Digital Treasures launched a new iPad case called Repel on Thursday. This case is cool because it's waterproof up to 33  feet. For those who track such things, the company had it tested and received an IPX8 certification. It's not very attractive, but if you want to take your iPad around lots of water—I'm thinking the tub, the pool, the lake, or the ocean—waterproof beats pretty every day of the week. Repel folds over like a book-cover style case, and if you fold the front cover back, you can use it to prop your iPad up in two positions for viewing, as shown in the picture. You can touch and type through the clear cover, and the back has a cutout for the camera. It's US$49.95, and it's available now.

While many have questioned the post-Steve Jobs fate of Apple, the company continues to hold its spot as a top technology brand across three mainstream categories, according to findings from the 2013 Harris Poll EquiTrend (EQ) study. In its first full year under Tim Cook’s stewardship, Apple took home repeat Brand of the Year distinctions in three categories – Computer, Tablet and Mobile Phone – in the annual study, which measures the perceptions of 38,500+ American consumers on more than 1,500 lifestyle, product and service brands across over 155 categories.

Well that settles it, Apple is doomed.

∞ Read this on The Loop

Use the steps in this article in instances when you might need to delete a song or music video from iCloud.

If you're a HockeyApp customer, the service that enables you to collect user feedback, distribute betas, and analyze tests, you'll be pleased to learn that the company has just introduced a new app. Just launched, HockeyCoach helps you view and manage your crash reports.

With just a few clicks, you'll be able to view your source code side-by-side with the crash report. All you need is a git repository and a commit tag. Hockey Coach correlates the source with the symbolification to make sure you view the right error point.

HockeyCoach also coordinates with bug tracker tickets. It's a free download for all current HockeyApp customers. HockeyApp plans start at $10/month for indies and go up to $300/month for Enterprise deployment.

...

The TechTool Pro 6 Upgrade requires a valid serial number from purchasers of TechTool Pro 4 or 5. If you have an older version, or have never owned TechTool Pro before, you need to purchase the full version.

TechTool Pro is a full-featured utility program containing options for testing and repair, maintenance (including disk defragmentation), and data recovery. All it takes is one click of the mouse to perform a comprehensive suite of tests on your computer's hardware and attached drives. TechTool Pro does it all. There is no need to purchase additional software to keep your computer performing at its best. In fact, it's so good that Apple includes a copy of its sibling, TechTool Deluxe, in its AppleCare Protection Plan.

Diagnostics and Repair Use the Check Computer feature to perform a complete diagnostics check of the...

Verizon's general counsel, Randal Milch, has published an editorial in the Wall Street Journal calling for the Obama administration to veto an International Trade Commission ban on some iPhone 3G, 3GS, and 4 sales. In June the ITC ruled that AT&T versions of the phones must be removed from sale by August 5th. Even though it wouldn't directly affect Verizon -- which has never sold the 3G or 3GS, and carries a different model of the 4 -- Milch claims that the ban would set a bad precedent....  ...

SymLinker is a simple open source Cocoa GUI for creating symbolic links.

Version 1.0.3:

• Copy/Paste support
• Creates target folder(s) if it doesn't exist
• Drag and drop folders
• Stability fixes

• OS X 10.7 or later

More information

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With CheckBook, easily and simply manage your personal checking accounts.

A paper check register can't categorize your transactions or report cash flow over time, and it'll never balance itself. That's where we come in. Introducing CheckBook 2, the powerfully simple personal finance manager.

Precisely manage your finances

• Find transactions with simple searches or dozens of powerful criteria
• Reconcile your accounts to the penny
• Schedule transactions that repeat periodically, like monthly bills and paychecks
• Track cash flow over time with customizable reports so you can see where your money came from and where it's going

Import from other personal finance apps or your bank

• Strong support for OFX, QFX, QIF, CSV, and Text
• Import from Quicken Essentials for Mac
...

Absolute Acey Deucey (was Absolute Acey Deucey Plus) is a collection of 6 backgammon variations (Backgammon, American Acey Deucey, Dutch Backgammon, European Acey Deucey and Nackgammon) that has many features including 4 different methods to move the pieces, 5 skill levels.

For those concerned that the dice rolls might not be random, the game has an option to save the dice rolls, to be used in the game, to a file in the game folder before the game starts. There is also an option to ask if you want to use your dice rolls or the computer's dice rolls. With these 2 options selected, even the most skeptical can be assured that the game is not cheating. Also, you can check the stats that the game keeps to assure you that the dice rolls are random and not favoring either player.

Version 6.0:

• Now works with OS X 10.5 and later
• Can now select to...

Apple's ebook price-fixing cases are now in the settlement stage in the US and Europe, and the latest word from the EU is that Penguin has become the last publisher to offer to end ebook pricing restriction deals with Apple.

In December of 2012, Apple and the other four publishers named in the European Commission price fixing case agreed to settle by allowing retailers to set their own prices or discounts for the next two years and drop the "most-favored nation" contracts for five years. With this latest move by Penguin, all of the parties involved have now settled the concerns of the European Commission and this chapter of Apple history comes to a close.

The damages to be levied against Apple in the US...

Dragon Forged Software has introduced Slender 2.0 for Mac OS X. Slender features a toolset allowing developers to analyze not only the usage of assets inside of a project but report on specific problems.

read more

Joe Kissell returns to the topic of the paperless office three years later with new information about improvements in technology and online services that can help readers reduce paper proliferation and see their desktops again.

Read the full article at TidBITS, the oldest continuously published technology publication on the Internet. To get a full-text RSS feed, help support our work and become a TidBITS member! Members also enjoy an ad-free version of our Web site, email delivery of individual articles, the ability to make long comments with live links, and discounts on Take Control orders and other Apple-related products.

Last April, Apple announced plans to increase its share repurchasing program from US$10 billion to $60 billion. Apple at the time noted that this represented the "largest single share repurchase authorization in history."

While the full buyback program is slated to be finished by the end of 2015, Apple has already began buying back shares.

Philip Elmer-DeWitt of Fortune reports:

By my calculation, the company spent $16 billion last quarter ($4 billion in cash, $12 billion through the so-called accelerated share repurchase program) to purchase 36 million of its own shares at an average price of just over $444.

Coupled with Apple's dividend payments, which now stand at $3.05 a share, Apple over the course of three years will be spending $100 billion as part of its initiative to return money to shareholders and buy back its own shares.

...

We are very fortunate to be in a position to more than double the size of the capital return program we announced last year. We believe so strongly that repurchasing our shares represents an attractive use of our capital that we have dedicated the vast majority of the increase in our capital return program to share repurchases.”

– Apple CEO Tim Cook, April 2013

Apple’s share buyback program is proving to be quite a bit larger than originally conceived.

Though its original plan called for the repurchase of 10 million shares in its third fiscal quarter of 2013, Apple instead bought up 36 million shares. It spent about $16 billion to do so, buying up shares at an average price of about $488, according to some back-of-the-napkin math by Asymco’s Horace Dediu.

A massive purchase, indeed. For...

New iPhone users have reported that they’ve been unable to activate their phones, as it appears that Apple’s activation servers are experiencing an outage. An AT&T employee has reportedly confirmed the outage. A number of threads discussing activation problems have also popped up in Apple support forums. It…

During his company’s quarterly earnings call today, Facebook co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg discussed how Instagram will be monetized. The answer isn’t too surprising: there is a big expectation for the app to one day be profititable, and advertising will be the name of the game.

Not a big surprise. You are the product being sold.

∞ Read this on The Loop

Norton AntiVirus Definitions are the latest anti-virus detection files. The installer will automatically update Norton AntiVirus virus definitions and engine files to detect and repair the most recently discovered Mac viruses. This file is a self-extracting archive which contains the Norton AntiVirus Virus Definitions Installer. Once downloaded and expanded on your hard drive, simply double-click on the Installer and the appropriate files will be installed on your computer.

Version 07/25/2013:

• Includes the latest virus definitions

• OS X 10.4 or later
• Norton AntiVirus 11.x, or Norton AntiVirus 10.2

More information...

Following a report that a woman in China was electrocuted by her iPhone charger and Apple's subsequent investigation into the incident, the company has updated its website in the country with tips on identifying whether or not you're using an official Apple charger or a third-party knockoff. The investigation into the accident showed the victim was using a third-party charger, and in this case it seems the charger was defective.

The Mac Observer Spin:
The loss of life, especially in situations like this, is a horrible tragedy. Apple's response was totally predictable: Investigate the incident, then warn customers about the dangers of knockoff iPhone chargers.

Apple’s Mac mini shipping times have slipped from 24 hours to 5-7 days, MacRumors notes. The change occurred today as a Bing Search cache points to 24 hour shipping times as of yesterday.

The slip in shipping times currently appears exclusive to the Mac mini, in multiple Apple Online Stores, as Apple’s other Macs are still showing the typical 24 hour times to ship.

While a slip in shipping times does not confirm an imminent update,...

Lots of smart people I know are very, very excited about Chromecast, Google’s new TV streaming gadget.

I think it’s pretty cool, too. But only as an iterative step: Maybe I’m not smart enough to figure out The Big Picture, but to me this seems like a cheaper version of Apple TV and Roku’s boxes, both of which do very similar things.

But Apple TV and Roku were pretty cheap to begin with, and now Chromestick is just about free. Google is selling it for $35, but it’s giving you three free months of Netflix (even if you’re already a Netflix subscriber), which brings the net cost down to $11. If you smoke cigarettes and you live in New York City, you will pay more for a pack of Marlboro Lights.*

So if Chromestick’s main...

ClipExporter is a simple workflow and export tool for Final Cut Pro X.

ClipExporter opens exported Final Cut Pro X projects (fcpxml) and exports each clip as a Quicktime reference movie, Nuke file or Syntheyes importable file. If you use the export feature for After Effects the whole timeline will be reconstructed by translating your edits and many parameters. It creates shot based folders with custom subfolders and extends each clip with handle frames.

Features

• Exports Quicktime reference movies. These files can be opened in other applications like Mocha, Motion, PFTrack etc.
• Export for After Effects. Translates the complete project to a composition. See feature list here.
• Exports Nuke files. All in-/out...

You could almost go through this article line by line and pick it apart, but let me just grab a couple of sections. […]

∞ Read this on The Loop

Wunderlist is a beautiful, free task management tool that allows users to sync their to-do lists between multiple devices.

Wunderlist was inspired by David Allen's best-selling book Getting Things Done.

Version 2.2.0:

• The brand new Files feature lets you attach anything from photos, spreadsheets, videos, sound clips, and even funny GIFs to a to-do (Pro)
• Now you can use tags like #recipe to label your to-dos Clicking on the blue tag will let you view all the related to-dos
• In-App Search has been improved and results now include matches in Subtasks, Notes, Files and Tags
• Bug fixes and stability improvements

• OS X 10.7 or later

More information

Download Now

New iPhone owners are finding themselves unable to activate their devices today, according to widespread accounts. Trying to go through the process in iOS generates an error message stating that activation servers are unavailable, while suggesting that people try again later or activate through iTunes instead. Customer calls to Apple appear to confirm that servers are down, as does word from an AT&T source....  ...

Just three weeks after Bluebox Security first announced the discovery of a key flaw in Google's Android with the potential to turn devices into a "zombie botnet," Symantec has reported finding rogue apps that take advantage of the vulnerability.  ...

iMore directs us to a new research study from Kapersky Labs which indicates that the number of phishing attacks purporting to come from Apple are on the rise.

Kapersky writes that the phishing attacks attempt to secure the Apple ID credentials of unsuspecting victims, which can then be used to access said users' iTunes and iCloud accounts and subsequently retrieve stored credit card numbers.

From January 2012 through May 2013 Kaspersky Lab's cloud-based Kaspersky Security Network (KSN) detected an average of 200,000 attempts per day of users trying to access the phishing sites, which were triggered each time a user running Kaspersky Lab's products was...

IK Multimedia has announced that the iKlip Stand, a desktop stand for the iPad and iPad mini, is now shipping. The stand can be used to position an iPad above other gear on a tabletop or desktop surface, and features a ball-joint device holder for easily switching between portrait and landscape orientations. In addition, a clamp that can be used in place of the standard base to secure the iPad to the edge of a desk or table is also included with every stand. The iKlip Stand sells for $70 and can be purchased online and from authorized retailers across the US.... ...

Includes networking, formatting, and user interface improvements to the popular file cleanup and processing utility.

Read the full article at TidBITS, the oldest continuously published technology publication on the Internet. To get a full-text RSS feed, help support our work and become a TidBITS member! Members also enjoy an ad-free version of our Web site, email delivery of individual articles, the ability to make long comments with live links, and discounts on Take Control orders and other Apple-related products.

Includes a number of interface refinements and core improvements. (All updates are free. DEVONthink Pro Office, $149.95 new; DEVONthink Professional, $79.95 new; DEVONthink Personal, $49.95 new; DEVONnote, $24.95 new)

Read the full article at TidBITS, the oldest continuously published technology publication on the Internet. To get a full-text RSS feed, help support our work and become a TidBITS member! Members also enjoy an ad-free version of our Web site, email delivery of individual articles, the ability to make long comments with live links, and discounts on Take Control orders and other Apple-related products.

It has been over a week since the Apple Developer Center Web site went offline, with no indication of when it will be back. However, Apple has now created a status page displaying an itemized checklist of what services are online, which currently includes only iTunes Connect and Bug Reporter. (Alas, you can't click the icons to bring services up and down!) In email to developers, Apple announced that it is prioritizing the order in which updated systems will be made available. Certificates, Identifiers & Profiles, Apple Developer Forums, Bug Reporter, pre-release developer libraries, and videos will be available first, followed by software downloads and remaining systems.

Read the full article at TidBITS, the oldest continuously published technology publication on the Internet. To get a full-text RSS feed, help support our work and become a TidBITS member!...

Writer and developer Matt Gemmell has detailed how to connect an Apple Newton to a contemporary Mac running OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion. Sold by Apple from 1993 until 1998, the Newton was a groundbreaking handheld device that featured handwriting recognition but wasn’t commercially successful. If you have an old Newton kicking around, Gemmell advises acquiring the software and hardware required to connect it to your computer now, as it’s likely to become harder to obtain in the future. And if you’re just Newton-curious, Gemmell discusses some Newton emulators with which you can experiment.

Read the full article at TidBITS, the oldest continuously published technology publication on the Internet. To get a full-text RSS feed, help support our work and become a TidBITS member! Members also enjoy an ad-free version of our Web site, email delivery of individual articles, the...

The European Commission has accepted a proposal from British publisher Penguin -- and German media conglomerate Bertelsmann -- to toss e-book deals it signed with Apple that are in violation of European competition regulations, according to a press release. "After our decision of December 2012, the commitments are now legally binding on Apple and all five publishers including Penguin, restoring a competitive environment in the market for e-books," states the EC's Competition commissioner, Joaquín Almunia....  ...

The iPad, just like the iPhone offers a way to lock the screen orientation so it doesn't rotate as you move your tablet from a horizontal to vertical position. That's handled through an on-screen button that's only slightly hidden. But what if you'd rather use the physical Mute switch to do that instead? No problem. Read on to learn how.

Most Apple owners are familiar with the UDID, aka serial number, for their iOS device, but did you know that your Mac has a similar hardware UUID too? In this post, I will show you where to find it, so you can use it in beta testing.

If you ever volunteer to test a beta Mac app, you will likely need to provide the developer with this hardware UUID. This alphanumeric value is used by the developer to provision an Adhoc version of the software specifically for your Mac. Finding your UUID is not too difficult once you figure out where it is located in OS X.

To find you UUID, you must start with the Apple icon in the top left corner of your Mac menu bar. Click on the Apple and then select "About This Mac," as shown above.

This will pull up the basic details about your Mac hardware, including its processor, memory and startup disk. Click on "More Info..." to view the...

Verizon's top lawyer penned an editorial this week asking President Barack Obama to prevent the U.S. International Trade Commission from barring the sales of some older iPhones.  ...

It's time to save some of that hard-earned cash with our Daily Deals, featuring a handy list from Dealnews and our own hand-picked selections that include some sweet deals on iOS and OS X software (all prices are USD and subject to change).

Deals from Dealnews

• StackSocial: [Mac Software] The Mac Freebie 10-App Bundle for free
• StackSocial: [Graphics & Publishing Software] 192-Vector Icon Bundle for PC and Mac downloads for free
• MacUpdate Promo: [Mac Software] Cocktail 6 for Mac downloads for $20
• ...

uDesktop NEXT is a high-quality wallpaper database that is frequently updated, organized into categories, and features wallpapers that match the resolution of everything from iOS devices to the MacBook Pro with Retina Display.

Version 2.0:

• Initial release

• OS X 10.7.4 or later

More information

Download Now

Things still aren't looking up for BlackBerry, as the struggling Canadian phone maker revealed Thursday it will lay off 250 more employees as part of a continuing plan to cut costs and rescale its operations.   ...

DeepInside is an application that extends the abilities of Finder and Spotlight, browsing and searching files throughout all file systems, including hidden and special areas.

Version 1.3: Release notes were unavailable when this listing was updated.

• OS X 10.8 or later

More information

Download Now

Last week, TUAW reported on the case of Ma Aliun, a 23-year-old Chinese flight attendant who was apparently electrocuted while answering her iPhone -- which was attached to what may have been a knockoff iPhone charger. Apple has now added a page to its Chinese website showing iPhone and iPad users how to identify a genuine Apple power adapter.

The page talks about Apple's "stringent safety and reliability testing," then recommends that owners use the genuine article:

This overview will help you identify genuine Apple USB power adapters. When you need to charge the iPhone or iPad, we recommend that you use the supplied USB power adapter and USB cable. These adapters and cables are also available separately from Apple and Apple Authorized Resellers.

Apple most likely published the page to satisfy the...

You mean Twitterrific can get better? Yup. The latest update to the $3 Twitter client includes an overhauled visual look, plus fixes like sizing a photo to the screen of your device and playing audio from in-app videos even if your sound is turned off. Other problems—including issues saving tweets to Storify—have also been addressed.

Developer algoriddim has released djay 2, an upgrade to its DJ app for the iPhone and iPad. Much of the interface has been overhauled, for instance making it easier to switch between different modules. Tilting a device into portrait orientation brings up a new single-deck mode, offering bigger controls while still letting people jump to the second deck....  ...

dTransfer simplifies the task of managing database tables, which should not always require sophisticated technical skills. Especially when many of the tables that store important lookup information need to be located in multiple databases. Treating tables in a database like files in a folder, you can transfer the most important tables from one database to another, even when all you need to do is simply make a copy of an important table for offline access. Targeting PostgreSQL, MySQL, and SQLite databases, dTransfer will copy all of the records of an existing table into a new table in the database of your choice.

• Select PostgreSQL, MySQL, or SQLite as the type of database for either your source or destination database.
• Quickly copy a table from one database to another; table data can be copied to the same type of database or to a different supported database.
• ...

Dan Nosowitz for Popular Science:

The Apple TV costs $95 on Amazon–a lot more money, sure. But you get a lot more for your money (great interface, stellar hardware, support for the enormously popular Apple store, the combination of apps and a slinging feature), and it’s also important to remember that these gadgets can help you get rid of cable entirely. An Apple TV costs about as much as one month’s worth of cable. Suck it up, guys. It’s not that expensive.

This isn’t to say that I’m not excited by Chromecast; I think slinging is exceptionally cool, and I think it’s great that this hardware so cheap and small. But I don’t necessarily think that a device that does exclusively slinging, no matter how cheap it is, is a viable option for most people. It’s best as part of a larger whole.

I agree with Dan. Google basically implemented Apple’s AirPlay, but that’s all Chromecast does. People expect more from an entertainment device in their home and this doesn’t give...

LibreOffice is an office suite (word processor, spreadsheet, presentations, drawing tool) compatible with other major office suites. The Document Foundation is coordinating development and maintenance of this OpenOffice.org fork.

Many different language versions are available here.

Version 4.1.0.4:

• This release is bit-for-bit identical to the 4.1.0 Release Candidate 4, so you don't need to download or reinstall if you have that version already.
• LibreOffice 4.x drops a few long-deprecated features, including support for legacy binary StarOffice files, export to legacy Word and Excel (version 6.0/95), and legacy ODMA document management.
• Some menu entries have changed or added. If you miss something, that may be due to the use of customised menu settings from your...

Hazel is your personal housekeeper, organizing and cleaning folders based on rules you define. Hazel can also manage your trash and uninstall your applications.

Organize your files using a familiar rule interface. Filter on the file's name, type, date, the site or email address it came from and more. And do more than just file. You can set color labels, Spotlight keywords and comments and even archive files. Hazel also cleans, sporting options to clean out incomplete and duplicate downloads.

In addition, Hazel can manage your Trash for you, relieving you of having to empty it yourself.

All this is done automatically in the background allowing you to focus on your real work.

Version 3.1.3:

User interface changes:

• The connection panel now has a path field to optionally set the initial folder to start in when you...

After a Chinese woman was earlier this month evidently electrocuted while talking on her iPhone while it was plugged in to charge, Apple is warning users to avoid counterfeit chargers. From CNet: "Last week, reports surfaced in China that suggested the woman, Ma Ailun, might have been using a third-party charger designed to look like the real thing. Although third-party chargers are not uncommon, they vary widely in terms of safety and quality. Earlier this year, safety consulting and certification company UL issued a warning that counterfeit Apple USB chargers were making the rounds and that consumers should be on the lookout for them due to their lower quality and possibly dangerous defects. The company posted the guidance on its site after a woman was allegedly electrocuted while answering a call on her iPhone."

...

Summer is reaching its peak which means the blockbuster movie season is in full swing. Below is a list of five movie apps, hand-picked by the folks at TUAW, to test your movie trivia and make your movie watching experience more enjoyable. Check out the list below and add your own recommendations in the comments.

Anything After -The Movie Credits Stinger App [iOS Universal; US$0.99]

Don't miss that funny cut scene because you skipped the credits to hurry out to your car. Anything After will let you know when a movie has a bonus scene or extra content after the credits.

Run Pee [iOS Universal; $0.99]

Run pee will tell you the best time to take a bathroom break during a movie. You can relax while you relieve yourself knowing you won't miss an important scene.

...

Apple has posted a warning on its Chinese website, urging people in the country to avoid using unofficial power chargers with its products, reports "MacNN" (http://tinyurl.com/lo58ns3).

This is almost certainly due to reports that two people in China were electrocuted -- one fatally -- by third party iPhone charges. As "MacNN" notes, third party models aren't necessarily dangerous, but some in China and other countries are counterfeit and designed to resemble Apple gear without necessarily passing the same safety standards.

Procoding allows you to create interactive visuals. The clean and beautiful integrated one-window interface, individually optimized for the best JavaScript coding experience, featuring a syntax highlighting and code-checking editor with automatic live-preview and integrated reference, brings back the fun in programming with JavaScript. Procoding is a mobile-code-sketching IDE for JavaScript, focusing on creative coding and small mobile WebApps using Web technologies like HTML5/Canvas. Your sketches automatically sync with Procoding Mobile via iCloud, so you can run (and edit!) your sketches on your iPad or iPhone (the optional Procoding Mobile app is available as a separate download on the iTunes App Store). You can also export your sketches as stand-alone HTML5 project folder. No more project setups and HTML boiler-plate code: with Procoding you are ready to sketch out your ideas!

...

Sometimes it’s best to stick with the genuine article.

After a pair of iPhone-related electrocutions in China allegedly caused by unauthorized third-party chargers, Apple has added a section to its Chinese website helping users identify official iOS device chargers as well as advised users to charge its devices with genuine Apple chargers according to CNET.

The page offers a look at official charger designs for the iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPad mini, iPad with Retina display, and iPad 2.

The website notes that Apple “always” puts the safety of its users...

A newly published patent application from Apple describes a "power management for electronic devices" system, which detects the usage patterns of a mobile phone and estimates the required energy needed to run the phone between charges. The abstract of the patent application, No. US 2013/0191662 (via AppleInsider), describes the system as:A method for modifying one or more characteristics of a mobile electronic device in order to save or reduce power consumption of the device.Closer inspection of the document reveals that the system automatically turns certain hardware features of the mobile phone (such as Wi-Fi, location...

Apple has released a statement detailing a maintenance plan for its still-down developer website. To keep developers updated on the progress of the restoration, Apple has created a new status page that shows which systems are online. As of this writing, only iTunes Connect and Bug Reporter were…

The Dropbox updates just keep comin’…

On Wednesday, Dropbox released version 2.2.10 of its cloud-based storage client for Mac OS X. The new version, a 31 megabyte download (via MacUpdate), which adds the following fixes and changes:
- Reduced initial startup time.

- Reduced initial link time.

- Reduced time taken when relinking a previously linked account.

- Fixed an issue which could cause certain files to sync endlessly.

- Fixed an issue which could cause proxy connection settings to be lost.

- Other minor fixes.

Dropbox...

DbSchema is a complete database management tool for the most popular relational databases which helps you discover and get control of databases that have simply evolved over time rather than having been built according to some overall design or "master plan". And there seem to be no shortage of answers as to why this occurs. Sometimes DBA's are just far too busy with loads of other tasks. Sometimes developers are under the gun for deliverables so quickly that there's just not time. Or, this project started just a couple new tables and then ballooned into a monster. Whatever the reason, the situation exists far too often in the real world of information systems.

Let's put this into perspective. Would you build a new house without a foundation? For sure you're not going to do that. The database is the foundation of the software, and a good database design will reflect in the quality of...

European regulators have accepted a promise by the British media group Penguin and German media conglomerate Bertelsmann to scrap deals on electronic books, also known as "e-books", with Apple which were found to be in breach of European competition policy.

Penguin was not the only company in the firing line. Back in December 2012, the Commission criticized the practices of four large publishers, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, Holtzbrinck and Harper Collins, of working with Apple via an "agency model" whereby the publishers set the retail price and the distributor takes a fee (30% in Apple's case).

Under the "wholesale model" in place before Apple entered the market, publishers sell their goods to distributors for fixed prices and allow the distributors decide the final retail prices. The agency model came under fire for causing a rise in retail prices of e-books compared to the wholesale model championed by Amazon and Google. Under Apple's "most favored nation"...

In Flyro for iOS (US$0.99) you're a nimble bird with a special power; you transform into a destructive flame when flying. Your home town, appropriately named Birdtown, has been frozen by an evil mouse, Moustermind. Your mission is to overcome all the obstacles the Moustermind sets before you so you can save Birdtown.

Flyro is based on the classic arcade-style, endless runner game. You fly around and through objects and obstacles to score points, complete objectives and ultimately unfreeze Birdtown.

It's really simple to get started, the controls are excellent for touch devices like iPhone and iPad. With your thumb, slide or tap left and right to move Flyro (I assume that's what the little bird is called) around the screen, so he doesn't crash into things and die.

When flying in a straight line, Flyro transforms into a flame that can burst...

Monosnap allows you to save screenshots easily, conveniently, and quickly, sharing them with friends and colleagues at once. It's the ideal choice for anyone who is looking for a smart and fast screenshot app.

Capture:

• Capture full screen, just part of the screen, or a selected window
• Make your crop area pixel perfect with our 8x magnifier
• Customize screenshoting hotkeys

Annotate and Edit:

• Highlight important details with pen, text, arrows and shapes
• Hide private information with our blur tool
• Open snapshots in your favorite external editor

Save and share:

• Login to get free cloud storage space
• Drop images on the Monosnap icon to upload them to the cloud
• Drag image from Monosnap to Finder or any other application you like
• Upload your snapshot to our...