What exactly is this direction? Why is R not alone in making this switch from Windows 8 to Windows 7 or even, as in R’s case, Mac? The answer lies in the approach that Microsoft took when creating Windows 8. The meshing of two computing OSs from two completely different computing devices, desktops and tablets, that don’t mix is what is driving people away from Microsoft. Many people have complained that Microsoft is heading in the wrong direction when they decided to make their desktop OS, which owns about 90% of the OS market, to an OS that owns 1% of the market, those two operating systems are the traditional Windows that Microsoft has made a fortune from, and the OS in phones and tablets that Microsoft has not made a fortune from, respectively. In essence, Microsoft replaced a 90% market share OS with a 1% market share (now 3.2%) OS. This radical move has angered many consumers since this switch in layout was sudden and not particularly needed. Windows 7 worked pretty good for most users and it didn’t need such a radical update, all it needed were some major fixes in terms of reliability. Windows 8 provided better reliability but it brought something many customers didn’t want–an overhaul. Windows didn’t need to change what worked but they did. They felt their Metro UI would do great on both desktops with mice and tablets with touch, while only particularly catering to touch. The reason people switch back or switch to Mac is because they feel as though they downgraded. They feel as though they would be upgrading when they go back or switch. Home consumers nor corporate consumers like Windows 8. Consumers don’t like it because of the radical change and businesses don’t like it because it looks childish and the older Windows 7 does what they need anyways.

Okay so why don’t Windows 8 users just go back to 7 and stay there? They do, but they can only do that for a certain amount of time. If they continue using Windows 7 for a elongated period of time, eventually Microsoft will make them get a new OS when they discontinue support for the older 7. Applications will slowly start to no longer work with 7, Windows will no longer release important security updates for 7. This has been done to 95 and XP is falling behind as well. Many schools and businesses are now just going to Vista and 7 due to the ever-increasing lack of support for XP. After a while, they will do this with Vista (probably sooner than later) and they will eventually do this with 7. In addition, all new computers you buy will have Windows 8 on it. Windows 7 is becoming more and more difficult to find preexisting on computers you buy since many manufacturers of computers jumped onto Windows 8 without realizing the huge risk behind it.

Unfortunately for consumers, Microsoft appears to be continuing down the wrong path. At least for the next update, Microsoft is continuing the Metro UI for Windows Blue, something so many people have been complaining about. The Microsoft executives also feel that they are heading in a positive direction and have shown no interest in changing direction. Steve Ballmer betted the company on Windows 8 and on the Surface, both of which continue to net close to nothing in market share. Many people on the internet have been making the suggestion that if Ballmer doesn’t change and fast, his career at Microsoft could be over.

Going back to the Surface for a moment. Didn’t Microsoft sell it’s OS to other tablet manufacturers for them to sell tablets? The introduction of the Surface just about left Microsoft to fend for itself in the tablet industry with the tablet manufacturers moving towards Android and not Windows 8. Because Microsoft decided to make it’s own tablet, it decided to alienate it’s corporate allies who were making Windows 8 tablets. Now, these former allies are moving to Android to power their tablets.

Again back to Ballmer. Gates has been a supporter of Ballmer for a long time and continues to support his decisions. Gates is the single largest shareholder so for Ballmer to be ousted, they need Gates’ approval. Due to Gates’ ever-continuing support, Ballmer will remain there. However, Gates is losing team members on this debacle. More and more people want to see Ballmer gone. In fact, some investors are saying he should just quit now to avoid a major battle over it.

Microsoft seems not to be stopping it’s poor direction. In fact, it is even rumored that the next XBox will have a core Windows 8 UI, again pointing Microsoft down towards the wrong path. All current Microsoft products at that point will have some form of Windows 8 on it, phones, tablets, desktops and laptops. These devices should not be sharing the same OS. It just doesn’t work.

Could Windows 8 and the negative direction the company is headed mark the end of the company? Or at least, could it become a major downfall for the company? Only time will tell, but all signs point toward a Microsoft that is driving itself into the ground. They have not innovated in the least bit, ever. The overall PC industry is on the decline. That is, all but Apple, whose Mac sales have flatlined in the past year or so, they continue to post about four million Macs sold a quarter. The Microsoft tablet, Surface, alienates their partners and it has not provided Microsoft any significant growth. Windows Phones continue not to sell and the OS limited to only a few percent marketshare. Windows 8 is starting a downward spiral for the company in it’s sales. It’s market share is lower than that of Vista. Vista remains at 4.9%, Windows 8 at 3.8%. Many people have made a good choice, realizing that they should not switch. Even then, those that do, want to leave. The problem with a low adoption rate on Microsoft’s products, not just 8 on desktops and laptops but also on tablets, phones and media players (whose life has already ended) is that money will become less abundant for Microsoft, it’s income is decreasing and will continue to decrease. If Microsoft can’t get people to switch to their products, they will have a serious problem especially if they continue down the unsuccessful path. Eventually, they will become how Apple became in the 90s if they are not careful and if they do not fire Ballmer. An accurate yet funny indicator of what is to come for Microsoft can best be seen at the introduction of the Surface. During the introduction, the product failed to work and they had to grab a backup Surface. It’s almost as though God was telling them, you’re seriously going down the wrong path. This is a mistake. Apparently, it actually was. Microsoft, if you want to survive, seriously consider your CEO and your direction, do you really want this leader pointing you to the path of self-destruction?

R and others like him, best of luck to you and your switch to Mac. You will find it much better here than there.

Thanks for reading,

Joe

Thanks for reading,

Joe

37.4 million iPhones, 19.5 million iPads, and 4 million Macs were sold in the quarter, a general increase from the previous quarter, in which 35.1 million iPhones, 11.8 million iPads, and an equivalent number of Macs were sold.

In general, there was a total $12.5 billion in cash flow from operations and an ending balance of $145 billion, as the CFO of Apple, Peter Oppenheimer, stated.

As for the third quarter, the company projects revenue near $33.5 to $35.5 billion and a gross margin between 36 and 37%.  Their operating expenses are likely to be from $3.85-95 billion, miscellaneous expenses of $300, and a tax rate of approximately 26%.

On the whole, Apple’s financial status remains robust as usual, thanks to its continuing innovation.

Apple also announced that everyone should expect exciting news coming this fall and all of next year. Of course, taken into context, we technically could still have an introduction of something in the next few months anyways since he did not explicitly say we wouldn’t have something in the next few months. That said, the chances of it happening are almost nada.

-Erin

Joe

In recent months we have been hearing about jOBS, the first biopic of Steve Jobs that Hollywood wants released to the public. It will feature Ashton Kutcher as Steve Jobs, an interesting choice. The movie will show the rise from hippie to CEO of Jobs. Anyone could take that this wording means from the 70s or 80s to the early 2000s. The movie was shown to critics at Sundance Film Festival to receive mixed reviews with many being negative. The movie was going to go public this month but unfortunately we will have to wait a while longer to see this film since the filmmakers decided to postpone the movies release to get more marketing on the movie done.

The second film many of you have heard about is the film that is penned by Aaron Sorkin, someone hired by Sony Pictures to write an biopic on Steve Jobs.  Because Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson is the only book authorized and assisted by Jobs himself and the movie will be based on this book (Sony bought the filming rights to the book for a 6-figure sum), this movie will be the only official biopic. The movie will feature three scenes in real time in the backstage before a major product launch (the Macintosh, NeXT and the iPod). These scenes will be thirty minutes long. It is unknown at this time who the cast is.

The third biopic, one that many probably have not heard about is actually the first full featured film from “Funny or Die”. Of course, since it is from “Funny or Die”, it will be more humorous the other previously mentioned two. Interestingly enough, the film was filmed in only a few days. Another interesting point is that they actually got a pretty well-known actor, Justin Long, to play Jobs. He played a Mac in the “Mac vs PC” commercials. The film is set to release on Monday. Yes, two days from today. It will be released to the web. The movie is titled iSteve.

It will be interesting to see what happens with these three biopics and I hope they at least do a kind of decent job of showing the magic that is Steve Jobs because Jobs legacy only deserves the best and honest reflection.

Thanks for reading,

Joe

A substantial number of stock apps have to do with calendars and reminders; the main one, the calendar, allows you to configure, organize, and change your upcoming events.  It also conveniently displays the date on the app symbol on the dock without you having to open it.  There are a number of different ways to view your events (day, week, month, and year), and you can also create different calendars to separate, for example, work and home events.  Reminders, though many people neglect it, is a very useful app; it is much like the calendar, except it is more specialized.  Inside each category that you create, you can make extensive lists of things to do, as well as set multiple alarms to remind you when and where to do them.  Once an event is complete, you simply check the box next to it, and it will automatically transferred into the “completed” category under the date that it was finished, in case you want to look back at it.  Notes is, of course, a virtual notepad, and is much more diversified in its uses than reminders is; is it also, however, more limited in its higher functions.  It is possible to send notes to people, but if you need a to-do list or a reminder of an event, then the former two applications are more suited to your purpose.

There are a number of miscellaneous utilities applications that also need to be addressed, though most are fairly simple.  The dictionary, for example, has a dictionary, thesaurus, and a mysterious “apple” dictionary, all of which are handy, yet straightforward.  The contacts are slightly more elaborate, and have many different types of slots for information- even nicknames; in fact, if you tell Siri to call you something, she will put that name in your contacts under “nickname”.  You should always add information to your contacts as soon as you get it, because weathered users have discovered the hard way that it is disconcertingly easy to lose it, try and remember it, remember it wrong, then end up calling an old lady in Pennsylvania and asking her what she did with your baseball cards.  The calculator is not quite as useful for most people, but it is good to have if you need it- and can find it.  It is not very complex, but does have a number of fairly advanced functions.  Finally, mail is reasonably standard, except that the notes application is attached to it.

The musical applications that come standard are Garage Band and iTunes, both of which take up much of your mac’s energy when they are open.  Garage Band allows you to create music, and iTunes holds the songs that you upload onto it, including yours.  Both are complicated, but easy to navigate once you get accustomed to them. For extra money, make that a lot of extra money, you can buy Logic Studio, an Apple app that professionals use for recording music.

The photo and movie applications are abundant on your Mac. Considering that Macs are known for their editing genius, that is no surprise. Macs have iPhoto, an app that allows you to view photos stored on your hard drive and also perform minor cosmetic operations on them. For more complex photo editing, check out Apple’s own Photoshop-like software Aperture. Photo Booth is an app that only works with Mac computers equipped with a camera. It is an app that many teenage girls have come to know and love since it is an app that allows you to take a forward facing pictures. In addition to taking normal forward facing images, it allows you to take images with effects to distort whatever is in your camera’s view. The third app is the Preview app. It is the app that opens when you want to look at a preview of a picture before your download it. Finally, the iMovie app is a world renown app that many people buy Macs in order to use it. While it is considered consumer-level editing, I have seen some amazing editing done on iMovie. If it is not enough for you, try Apple’s Final Cut Pro, one of the most complex and detailed video editing softwares on the planet.

FaceTime and Messages are two important social apps on the Mac (FaceTime: Snow Leopard and above, Messages: Mountain Lion only). The first app is the Jetsons come to life. The FaceTime app allows you to video call anyone that you know who has FaceTime on their Apple devices. The Messages app is used for text messaging anyone you know who has Messages (anyone who runs iOS or is on a Mac).

It is very important to understand your stock apps before looking for other apps that do the same thing, so I hope this has helped.

-Erin

Images Courtesy:

Image #1: http://applenapps.com/feature/os-x-10-8-mountain-lion-hands-on-preview-video-walkthrough

Image #2: http://www.maclife.com/article/reviews/its_all_about_apps

Image #3: http://www.afterdawn.com/software/audio_video/media_management/itunes.cfm

Image #4: http://www.apple.com/mac/facetime/

Thanks,

Brandon

In order to be unconventional, like Apple itself, I will begin at the bottom.  The fifth subsection, entitled Other, may not contain any icons at the moment because your computer is new, but once you get there you can always get help by typing keywords into the blue search bar under the “help” heading at the top of your screen.

Above that subsection is System, which is generally most helpful if you are sharing your mac with someone else, or if you are a parent.  “Users & Groups” will allow you to set up logins for different people in order to keep your respective affairs separate, and “Parental Controls” can help you to manage other users’ use of the computer, its applications, and the internet.  You can also manage these controls from another computer.  “Date & Time” is fairly self-explanatory, as is “Software Update”.  Under “Dictation & Speech”, you can, of course, dictate at any time that it would have been possible to type, and you can also change the shortcut to this function.  “Time Machine” is easy to configure, and it is automatic; it simply keeps backups until your backup disk is full, at which time it begins deleting the oldest ones.  The “Accessibility” subheading is quite extensive, but it mostly reflects your personal preferences.  Here you can change the settings to cater to your specific needs, such as enlarging text and cursors for better vision or allowing your Mac to read you things.  There are many other settings here, one of which is “invert colors”; this in particular is highly entertaining, but completely arbitrary as far as I can tell.  “Startup Disk” allows you to change the system that you are using on your Mac, or to restart it entirely.

Next, “Internet & Wireless”- this deals with sharing information through iCloud, mail, the internet, and Bluetooth, to name a few.  To learn more about iCloud, you will have to search somewhere else, because it is much too extensive to cover in this overview; suffice it to say that this is a complex and extensive system of wireless sharing.  “Mails, Contacts & Calendars” sets up your accounts in various apps, as it explains on the opening page, and “Network” deals with your Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connections.  The latter is often difficult to set up, but the “Assist me…” button at the bottom helps with this stage of the setup.  “Bluetooth” connects other devices to your Mac, but this is obviously only relevant if you have such devices.  Finally, “Sharing” is essentially an overview of the preceding subsection, and allows you to configure most of the settings that we just went over from a single page.

Hardware, the second subsection, deals with the physical, rather than virtual, functions of your Mac.  Most of these are fairly simple, but I do have a few tips.  Under “Displays”, it would be prudent to leave the color at default, but the sleep functions in “Energy Saver” can be modified depending on how much time you spend on your computer when it is not charging.  “Keyboard” should also be left as is, unless for some reason you detest shortcuts, and “Mouse” is only useful if you have a Bluetooth mouse.  The gestures in the “Trackpad” section are very useful, but some people find them infuriating or confusing. If you are one of these, then I would certainly advise unchecking most of the boxes; also, I have never been able to make the “look up” function work, so if you have the same problem, you are not alone.  I would also recommend using “Print & Scan” whenever possible, because it allows you to interact with printers without moving your computer or digging for the right cord.

At last, we arrive at the most entertaining part of system preferences- Personal.  “General”, “Desktop & Screen Saver”, and “Dock” all allow you to express your unique personality on your Mac, but “Security & Privacy”, “Notifications” and “Language & Text” are more serious matters.  Essentially, if you are an American who is not a secret agent, you will most likely be able to leave those alone.  “Mission Control”, the very last subsection, is an overview of all open windows, applications, and the Dashboard in one screen, and you may also organize this as according to your personal preferences.

It is important to remember while in System Preferences to be very careful, because some adjustments are irreversible- most people have an experience with one of these troublesome quirks at least once, so one must be very attentive when dealing with this application.  Hopefully, this article has helped you with the adjustment to your new Mac; thanks for reading!

-Erin

Image Courtesy: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:System_Preferences_icon.png

The immediate structure of the iPhone is very intuitive, with no adjustment required- unlike the mac, which, for me, was initially difficult to acclimate to with the up-to-go-down scrolling technique.  The single button at the bottom, usually referred to as the Home button, serves great many mysterious purposes, the most mundane of which are: one click to exit, double-click to see the most recently used apps, and hold for Siri. Siri is essentially your personal butler, and she will do practically anything for you if you can articulate it- people typically have a lot of fun with that.  She can also be male, from a different country, or both, if you change her settings.  If you need any help navigating then she can escort you to your desired app; this seems useless, but you would be surprised how easy it is to lose apps in the nooks and crannies of your iPhone.  For example, if you cannot find a way to set an alarm, then she will do all of it for you (by the way, set alarms and timers from the Clock app).  If this does not help, then there is a search bar on the far left slide, which most of you will have discovered already, that serves as a less animate Siri.  Many people (women in particular, I have been told) have difficulty fitting the new iPhones in their small pockets because it seems to be slightly taller than the last.  This is to accommodate the larger screen.  If necessary, I would advise putting it in your back pocket- not carry it around in your hand.  Some people also try to find a way to turn the phone sideways at any time; this is unfortunately futile.  Only some apps allow you to change the orientation, and the home screen never does.

Speaking of apps, you should explore all the default apps on your phone before buying new ones; often, people buy expensive apps that they later find they did not need.  I have heard much controversy over the Apple Maps app, but I have never had a problem with it, and it is much more convenient than going online to Google Maps.  Mail and Notes are also convenient, but if you want to make a to-do list, then Reminders is better.  As for the camera, it is simply phenomenal- I have a real one, but I prefer the one on my iPhone.  It is clear and bright, with so many pixels that I can zoom in much further than I can on a normal camera; also, you can take videos, self-portraits, and panoramas (on options).  Finally, to the Settings.  Many people are frustrated with this app because it is so difficult to find things on it, but whatever it is always turns up.  The bottom line: just keep looking.  If necessary, Siri or the internet should be able to help you.

In conclusion, the iPhone is an incredible device that will never cease to amaze even weathered users.  Happy graduation, former newbies, and say hello to Siri once in a while.

-Erin

Images Courtesy:  Apple

Why would Apple want to end jail breaking? People upload some very interesting tweaks to Cydia that Apple has picked up along the way. Offline reading lists were around long before Apple put it in iOS 6. The full screen mode in iOS 6 was once a jailbreak-only feature. Apple takes ideas from tweaks in Cydia or at least it’s ideas are largely influenced by those tweaks, influenced enough that you would think would make Apple want to keep these great ideas around. This question of why Apple wants to stop jail breaking has puzzled many and we may never know exactly why they want to stop jail breaking.

We can only hope that the jail breaking community can stand tall in the face of Apple’s anti-jailbreak policies. Live strong jail breaking community.

Thanks for reading,

Joe