APPLE

Tim Cook announced on October 22nd that new changes are on the way—changes in software and changes in products. I’m going to go through them in the same order that Mr. Cook did, starting with the fact that five days after the launch of iOS 7, 200 million iPhones, Touches and iPads were using it. There could have been even more only Apple decided my iPod Touch 4 was too slow to make the grade. Many of the older devices like my iPhone 4 will run the system but not all of the features are supported. Yes, I am running it and it seems to run fine on that device. There is, however, a problem about using the virtual keyboard with documents and data (in iCloud). You need to disable this feature in your iCloud settings. If you do not do this, you will see a 5 to 10 second lag each time you press a key. I have not turned on iCloud so I have not had any problems with my keyboard on the iPhone 4.

NEW FEATURES

Apple has also added new features to Safari: enhanced notifications, tags in the Finder, and big changes to how multiple monitors are handled. New Maps and iBooks Apps so you can now burn your eyes out, staring at your computer screen, reading a book long into the night. New software to go with the new Mavericks like Pages, Keynote, and Numbers. You can upgrade your computer from any System using 10.6.8 or above for free providing it meets the hardware requirements. I will be coming back to Mavericks and talk about things as I use it a little more. So this will not be the last you will hear about it.

13-INCH RETINA MACBOOK PRO

The 13-inch MacBook Pro drops to 3.46 pounds, 0.71inches thin, with the new 4th-generation “Haswell“ dual-core i5 processor and Iris integrated graphics. At 2.4GHz, it’s 90% faster than previous generation and should run for nine hours on battery. That’s up from seven hours on the old model. It includes 4GB

of DRAM, 802.11ac wireless, PCIe-

based flash storage, 60% faster than previous generation, and Thunderbolt 2 ports. Pricing starts at $1299 for 128GB of SSD, down from $1499.

15-INCH RETINA MACBOOK PRO

The 15-inch MacBook Pro uses an Intel “Haswell” quad-core i7 at 2.0GHz with Iris Pro Graphics. An NIVIDIA GeForce GT 750M with 2GB memory is available as an option. The new machine features 2 USB ports, eight hours of battery life— up from seven hours, faster Wi-Fi, Thunderbolt 2, and PCIe-based flash storage. The 256GB version starts at $1999, down from $2199. All these

machines are currently shipping.

MAC PRO

Drum roll please! When the new Mac Pro is available there will be so many geek details, that I am not even going to make a paragraph of them. Straight from the Apple Store page:

$2999 gets you:

• 3.7GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon E5 processor

• 12GB 1866MHz DDR3 ECC memory

• Dual AMD FirePro D300 with 2GB GDDR5 VRAM each

• 256GB PCIe-based flash storage

$3999 gets you:

• 3.5GHz 6-Core Intel Xeon E5 processor

• 16GB 1866MHz DDR3 ECC memory

• Dual AMD FirePro D500 with 3GB GDDR5 VRAM each

• 256GB PCIe-based flash storage

What they are really trying to say is that this is really fast, yet small in physical size and very easy to move around. The big plus is the energy usage is quite good and it does not make very much noise. In quiet office areas this will be a great plus. The device will be assembled in USA. For those needing lots of computing power, it should fill that need very well. These machines will not ship until late December so you may want to budget for next year if you want one.

iWORK AND iLIFE

Now on to the other stuff that Apple covered. Again I’ll try and keep it brief. iWork and iLife are both getting makeovers (I think I said this once but we’ll go over it just to make sure I did not miss something). On both OS X and iOS there are brand new versions of iPhoto, iMovie and GarageBand, all integrated with iCloud. Here’s where I remind folks that if they buy a new iOS device, they can download these Apps for free. The applications in iWork (Pages, Numbers and Keynote)

have been updated, but you should notice the interface looks different. If you buy any new computer they should be on it already. If you owned iWork ’09 you can download them after you update to Mavericks. If you download these, the old version will still be inside your iWork folder. I will warn you now, there will be some features that work differently than before. Already noted that you cannot edit a movie in iOS then open it in iMovie on your Mac. We have heard that some problems may be fixed in a future version of the program.

MAVERICKS

Next was the announcement of Mavericks (Mac OS X 10.9). It has so many new features! But first let us see if you are on the the fast track to upgrading. The list of Macs that will

install Mavericks is pretty much the same as those that are able to use OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion, so we’re talking 64-bit Intel-based Macs.

Here’s the full list of Macs and OS X Mavericks compatibility:

• MacBook Pro—you’ll need to have either a 13-inch from mid-2009, 15-inch from mid/late 2007 or 17- inch from late 2007 or later.

• MacBook—13-inch from 2008 or 13-inch aluminum from early 2009 or later.

• iMac—it needs to be mid 2007 or newer.

• MacBook Air—it needs to be from 2008 or newer.

• Mac Mini—it needs to be early 2009 or newer.

• Mac Pro—it needs to be early 2008 or newer.

• Xserve—early 2009.

As you can see, this leaves many older Macs unable to upgrade including all the plastic-case MacBooks before 2008, pre-mid 2007 MacBook Pros, Mac Minis, iMacs and most notably the original MacBook Airs. In terms of graphics support this means anything with the ATI Radeon X1600 or an Intel GMA 950 or x3100 integrated graphics cards are dead in the water. Even the 2006 and 2007 versions of the Mac Pro won’t be able to install OS X 10.9, just as they couldn’t install OS X 10.8. So if you’re feeling left out, just think how left out those high-end machine users feel after investing $4K to $5K or even $10K and finding out their machine is now not supported. Now you’ve heard the bad news or good news depending on where your machine is on this list. Let’s talk about what Mavericks offers you. For portable owners, one of the improvements is longer battery life—from one hour to three or four according to tests with various machines doing different tasks. This is achieved with memory compression and how the CPU spends its time. Remember if you want more information on this you can watch the Apple Keynote at: www.apple.com/apple-events/ october-2013/

UPGRADING TO MAVERICKS

There do not appear to be any performance issues using Mavericks on my Mac Mini which is a Core 2 Duo 2.66Hz. There are some screen redraw problems on my 39" TV which I use as a monitor for that unit. Most things are chugging right along, including my two Drobo raid devices which hold my movies and music. As a warning I give everyone: backup your data with a clone and a Time Machine backup. Always start with a Disk FirstAid check to make sure your data and directories are in good shape before doing any major updates. Trying to downgrade back to where you were is a real pain in the bun. I’m lucky to have the Mini which is our media center for music and movies as well as a viewing device for internet video clips. So it’s not like I am risking my work computer. Things to check before you make this kind of upgrade: Is the software you use compatible with Mavericks? I have seen third party software cause big

headaches. Printer drivers could be an issue, make sure that your printer will work with the software. Make sure your Java is up-to-date if you use Adobe products as there is a problem launching them if Java is not correct and turned on. Older (round) Airports may no longer be configured on the newer systems.

iPADS

As Tim Cook would say, next up is the iPad. Right off the bat they are changing the name, the new iPad Air is 1 pound versus 1.4 pounds for the old device. At this time it is the lightest full-size tablet in the world and 43% thinner than the previous version. It has the Apple A7 chip from the iPhone 5s inside and the M7 motion coprocessor is included as well. Other features include the 5MP iSight camera, 1080p HD video, new FaceTime HD camera with larger pixels, improved backside illumination, dual microphones, and expanded LTE support. It is the first iOS device with MIMO (multiple input and output of data streams) so your wireless router that is rated “802.11.n” will give you more speed. The iPad Air began shipping on November 1. Same price as the old units WiFi only: 16GB $499, 32GB $599, 64GB $699; if you want cellular add $130 more to the prices.

Last but not least is the iPad Mini with faster A7 chip and Retina screen but that screen bumps the price from $329 for a 16GB to $399, again add in the $130 for cellular. The word from vendors is supplies are going to be very limited on these devices for several months so unless you’re lucky don’t count on one under the holiday tree.

OS/iOS

So all in all, the Macintosh OS is beginning to look more and more like the iOS. I expect to see some Apps cross the gap and be on both devices as time goes on. That, my friends, is why Apple as well as others want you hooked to the web with their software. The idea here is start a project and then work on it everywhere you are, on every machine you have access to. I think if you have a business that requires you to edit ongoing projects and documents with groups of people that is a great way to do it. However, I for one, do not want my every word to be on the web and in the cloud until I choose to put it there. When even the government wants to look at every thing we do, I want to make sure my thoughts are mine until I feel like sharing them. There is no safe place on the internet, given enough time all encryption can be broken. So I will do my files and backups the old fashioned way, with hard drives and safety deposit boxes.

SPRING MACCAMP 2014

MacCamp 58 is headed your way, it will be April 17th through 20th of 2014. That’s right—four days over the Easter weekend. It’s going to be a little different and a little smaller. We are not going to have classes; it is bring your own project and we’ll all share, help and have fun. The cost is $229 for all four days. We are only taking two of the four lodges so visiting and sharing will only be a short walk between Blueberry and Alder. So other than traveling down to the dining hall to eat you’re pretty much set. Many of us have talked about this kind of camp for years and we are excited about the possibility this kind of camp can offer. If you want to reserve your spot now, send a $50.00 non-refundable deposit to PMUG attention MacCamp 58. Spaces are limited to 24, so reserve today.

New machines and things that are coming in the Fall

Apple’s WWDC conference in June announced many hardware and software changes, some available now and some due in the fall. First of all, let’s look at the new MacBook Air. Both the 11 inch and the 13 inch come with faster flash storage drives, the latest Intel processors and graphics cards, longer battery life, and 802.11ac WiFi. All of these updates mean a longer work time with faster response. The work time on these is rated at 9 hours for the 11 inch and 12 hours for the 13 inch models. After your work is over you can put it to sleep and it should (with a full charge) be able to sit around for 30 days before running out of power. The new Haswell chips are going to be faster but also conserve energy with up to a 50% savings. The graphics card known as the Intel 5000 is much better than older models and will do a pretty good job of running your video games. The flash storage, which can be ordered as large as 512 Gigabytes, is 45% faster than the previous generation, making for a snappy system boot up. The one feature I was hoping for in this model did indeed arrive and that is the 802.11ac Wi-Fi which will give you up to three times faster performance when paired with one of the new Airport extreme base stations. However these statistics are quoted by Apple and real life will most likely be slower. In fact if you connect with a non 802.11ac device you are most likely looking at bringing the whole wireless network down to 802.11n speeds. Although Apple states that your WiFi range improves it will really depend on your setup.

The preview of the new Mac Pro got plenty of attention at WWDC and well it should have as the Mac Pro has not been updated for at least three years. Much has changed here, some for the better, some for the worse. Per Apple “Engineered around workstation graphics with dual GPUs, PCI Express-based flash storage, high-performance Thunderbolt 2, new-generation Xeon processors, ultrafast memory, and support for 4K video, the new Mac Pro delivers state-of-the-art performance across the board.” You can order one with up to 12 processor cores. It is very sleek and black. There are tons of technical details I could say but but will start with lightweight, 9.9 inches tall and 6.6 wide round with two AMD FirePro graphic processors that can drive three 4K monitors. Now for the crazy: the storage is PCIe Flash, meaning that you will be adding Thunderbolt drives to store those large files. This will create a huge demand for raid enclosures like Drobo with Thunderbolt so that it can keep up with the speed the Mac Pro will be able to produce. There is even a handle on the top for carrying it. There are four USB3 ports and well as six Thunderbolt 2 ports, two Ethernet, one HDMI, speaker out, and a lock port. All this as well as the 802.11ac and BlueTooth in a very small package. To finish up here, with the ability to daisy chain six devices to each of the six Thunderbolt ports the only limit here is how many vendors will increase their support for Thunderbolt? The new Mac Pro will show up sometime this fall—start saving your pennies now. One of the really big announcements was that the Mac Pro was designed in California and is being manufactured in Texas. That should make it a little harder for Samsung to borrow since we are not handing them the blue-prints. 

Many other items were announced for the fall lineup including the death of the “cat” nicknames for the Macintosh operating system. OSX 10.9 will become “Mavericks” as in a California beach that has monster waves. Personally I like Waves better than Mavericks but my vote doesn’t count. Mavericks will have a version of iBooks so you can read on your Mac desktop all those books you have been collecting. A better version of maps, calendar that you can scroll month to month. A new version of Safari that should offer better performance. An iCloud Keychain (here we are in the cloud again) so you can have your passwords on all of your devices ,even the mobile ones. It is encrypted with AES 256-bit but good luck if you forget your password. Did I say Finder tabs yet? For those of you who love tabs the Finder will have tabs. This is meant to allow better handling on multiple displays with each being able to display the top menu bar and the Dock. You can go full screen on one monitor without messing up the second monitor or if you please full screen with different applications or even make your HDTV into a second or third monitor using AirPlay and an AppleTV. 

Notifications will let you know about email, Chat, FaceTime or even auction alerts without leaving your application. Tags will allow you to mark files for groupings and finding; even tagging with more than one list if needed. If you have ever used Pandora Radio then you will know how to use iTunes Radio. Again coming soon but only in beta now. Set up stations, select music, block music—it’s all there. If you have Siri you can ask her to play a request or ask who is playing the song. If you have iTunes Match there are no ads. You can also choose to buy the song right when you hear it. This should work across all your devices as long as you are in the same account on each of these devices. 

AppleTV got some updates to their channels, adding HBO GO, WatchESPN, Sky News, Crunchyroll and Qello. Of course you need a subscription to get them but if you have that you are good to go. See Apple’s web site for other details about the new channels. http://www.apple.com/pr/ library/2013/06/19HBO-GO- WatchEsPN-Come-to-Apple-TV.html

The Cloud it's all about can you trust it?

This blog purchased and downloaded online? The more we get cloud-based, the harder all of these things become to prove, and the easier it becomes for companies or governments to control us. Am I overreacting? I don’t think so, and if you look around, I believe you can see what I am talking about. So my advice is to stick to backing up all your data and software to local disks or flash drives. Write down all your passwords and serial numbers and get a copy of them out of your house. Safety deposit boxes are a great place; or maybe have a friend hang on to a password protected copy of this information. If you want to back up certain items to the cloud I would suggest encrypting that information so that if the account is hacked they still have to decrypt your information.

MACCAMP FALL 2013 and SPRING 2014

Fall MacCamp will be here before we know it. We will try to have a Mavericks (OSX 10.9) introduction class and an iWork in the Cloud intro. A lot of this depends on the release times for both programs. Due to cost increases at Silver Falls the cost of Fall Camp will be $199.00. We try to keep costs down and have lost money or broken even on the last few Camps. This is still a fair price adding in meals and rooms and meeting halls. In fact, the only reason we have not lost more money on the last couple of camps is that several instructors have paid their way to Camp. If you would like to sign up for MacCamp this fall (October 18-20) please send a $50.00 deposit (total cost will be $199.00) to PMUG, PO Box 8948, Portland OR 97207-8948 attention MacCamp. If you have a class you would like to see at MacCamp please email charles@pmug.org.

Spring MacCamp next year will be a little different. There will be no formal classes and it will be called Master Camp. Right up front you need to know this is on Easter weekend (April 18-20). We will be doing a lot of things differently. Yes that is right—no set classes! We are also thinking about adding Thursday the 17th but will only do breakfast on Sunday morning. Because it is Easter we are expecting fewer people but the learning and social aspect should be even greater. If you would like to reserve a spot at Master Camp please send a non-refundable depot of $50.00 (total cost will be $199.00) to PMUG, PO Box 8948, Portland OR 97207-8948 attention MacCamp.

Adobe

I want to write a little bit about Adobe. Yes we’re talking about Adobe the company, the creators of Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign and many more programs. One of the first things I have to admit is although I’ve been using Adobe Photoshop for many years, I only know a small portion of the program. For 20 years I have been using Photoshop to edit pictures that have been scanned or taken with a digital camera. That’s a long time and for those 20 years I have upgraded my copy of Adobe Photoshop from version 2.5 up to version CS5. I have to admit I did not upgrade every time Adobe brought out a brand-new version. Sometimes I would wait for a newer version than the step from 5.5 to 6, things like that. The reason I waited was because I could see very little need for my upgrading a program that already did what I wanted just to have the latest version on my machine. All in all, with no other costs included, I figure purchasing Photoshop has cost me in the vicinity of $3000 over twenty years. Having worked with Adobe Photoshop for this period of time, I’m kind of at a stopping point. Adobe has opted to no longer sell a license to operate Adobe Photoshop (or the other Creative Suite applications) as a stand- alone product. This means that if I want to keep my software I have to continually pay Adobe monthly for the privilege of doing so. I was fine paying for upgrades when I needed them and not being forced to upgrade other parts of my system if needed to operate this software. It looks like Adobe Photoshop CS5 will be the last Adobe Photoshop I personally purchase because there is no way I am going to pay them a monthly fee to use software that will allow them the ability to disable my software on my machine if I don’t pay. My feeling about this is the same way I feel about extortion. I find it very offensive that one of the largest companies in the software industry has opted to take away the ability for people to work independently of the web and being online.

Please note—at this time—the new policy does not affect Adobe Photoshop Elements or Adobe Lightroom.

For all those creative people out there that have to use Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Indesign—you have my sympathy.

I understand that a lot of you feel the same way I do. I feel the only

way that I can really express myself (that Adobe will understand) is to write this column and not enter into an agreement that allows them to charge me monthly for software that they control.

New Malware Ransomware

You are clicking on research hits in Google/Bing etc and suddenly a screen that you can.t dismiss comes up saying it's the FBI. Seems that you owe them 300.00 for going to a WEB site that has illegal content on it. If you force quit Safari it will just reload the next time you launch so:

follow this link to find out what hackers/Cyber-criminals are trying to extort money from Mac users

http://blog.malwarebytes.org/intelligen ... s-x-users/

WARNING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is a con job and it has not infected your computer but has a script set up to force you to hit the leave this page button 150 time in order to get out.
Do not give these guys your credit card numbers follow the direction in the link to get out.

Starting up with the shift key down will allow you to reset your Safari prefs. Sometimes Apples updates are not your friend. 

Before installing memory please check to see that the memory you purchased is correct. Too many people assume that they have purchased the correct RAM only to find that their computer will no longer boot. Be sure to check the size (how many GB) speed  (1067 MHz) and type (DDR3) all of this can effect your computer. Just because it fits in the slot does not mean it is correct. All the information you need for your mac can be found under the apple in about this Mac.

People ask me all the time why they should buy an iPhone rather than an Android and here is my answer. I bought an Android to use with my Consumer Cellular service and I find it’s not very easy to use. Even hanging up a miscalled number is not very easy to do. The ringer has it’s own mind and I have tried several different rings finally found one that works but text messages often give me no clue that I have one. I have been given an iPhone 4 but Consumer Cellular does not support it without modifying the SIM card and jumping though some hoops. So when the Droid finally drives me nuts I’ll take the time to switch over to it.

Correctly using disk images on your computer is something everyone needs to do. Most folks just double click on the .dmg and never drag the program from the image to their hard drive. So everytime they launch their program from the Dock if the image full is not mounted it mounts and then launches the application. At a client site the other day I ran into 25 mounted disk images on the desktop. So if you click on that .dmg and it mounts a disk image on your desktop. (Note a disk image looks like a flash drive and can sometimes be colored.) After you install the program or drag to program to your Applications folder, please eject it by dragging it to the trash. If it disappears from the desktop you have succeeded in dismounting it.

As it has been awhile since I have said this, leave some free space on your hard drives, certain operations require room before they can be performed. Here is a small listing of those items: burning a CD or DVD, installing a System update, and using programs like Photoshop. All of the listed require a lot of space for a short period of time. I suggest at least 10% of the hard drive space be kept free.

I was reminded not too long ago that not all Mac Users understand the trash can. Not just the main Trash located on their Dock but Trash in applications like iPhoto and Mail. Not only do you have to throw away the files you don’t want but you also have to tell the Trash to empty after you move the files there. If you do not empty the Trash the files stay on your hard drive and sometimes manage to fill it up to the point of  corruption. So empty the Trash often. For those of you who put items in the Trash and use it as a holding bin: DON’T. Never put anything in there that you want to keep. If you feel the need to archive some files burn them to a CD or move them to a external hard drive, then throw them away and empty the Trash. If your Trash tells you that it can’t throw away certain files try again holding down the Option key as you empty the Trash. I have even had times I needed to "secure empty trash" before items would allow themselves to be removed.

Always entertained about people who complain about FaceBook. Lets see you get on FaceBook to be found by your friends then you only put data on there that you want people to see, Right? There lies the problem folks that think they are only letting their friends see the data. You really need to go into your security setting on FaceBook and make sure only invited friends see your posts. Do keep in mind that any friend who shares your post allows all of their friends to see it. My best advice is don’t post anything you would not say out loud in a room full of strangers. As long as you use FaceBook posts this way you will never get in trouble. Also never tell people where you live or that you are going on a trip and won’t be home. Your real birthday is your business I don’t mind telling what month and day I was born but leave the year off. I only share things that I want to share and tend to treat FaceBook just like writing a articule for Mouse Tracks even if it is for friends. You never know who is going to read it.

In this new economy we watch companies wander round looking for someone to show them the next great thing we need more visionaries. One of Steve Jobs greatest assets was recognizing good ideas. He didn’t think them up he used talent that he knew was there. Steve used the talent from both friends and enemies to advance products. Some times those talents had nothing to do with computers it had to do with style and looks. Having a computer that used fonts in the same manner page layout people used them was this kind of thinking. A long time ago when I worked for ESI engineers used to ask anyone standing around them for comment on a project. Now that does not mean these were not smart guys. They wanted feed back from someone else’s eyes, a new perspective.  Poor attention to detail is what kills most innovation.  You need it to be killer the very first time you introduce it. This shows in the iPhone, iPad, iMac, MacBook Airs and MacBook Pros. People like the looks the feel as well as the software.

The Apps store at Apple is both good and bad. It’s good that it offers one stop shopping and updates for purchased items. However the amount of control the developers give up to put their products there hinders what they can and cannot do. So while you may only have to go to the Apps store to shop you may be settling on a product that has far less features than if you purchased the item directly from the developers. In fact many developers cannot be in the Apps store because their product violates Apples rules. Many Tricks software Moom is one of these. Their product is in the Apps store but all they can do is fix bugs they cannot add new features like they do if you buy the product directly from them due to Apples sandboxing rules. This is just a sample of one companies effort to keep their customers software up-to-date see their blog at (http://manytricks.com/blog/?page_id=2208) to learn more about how to update to their new versions by going to their web site. So if you really like a product at the Apps store you may want to check out the company that produces it and maybe buy it direct from the source. What this does is gives more money directly to the programmers. It lets the programmers inform you when updates happen and gives you the most current one with all the bells and whistles that Apple may not allow you to have. The biggest problem I have with Apple is that they do not turn over to the software developers who bought their products so they have know way to know that you have purchased their product. These are the bad parts of the Apple Apps store. The good part is that you can upgrade up to 5 machines using your Apps/iTunes account and password. This means if you buy Pages for your desktop you can also install it on you portable and your Mac Mini for no additional cost.

Well it’s been over 5 years that I started work for the MacStore in Beaverton. Told everyone going in that my feet would tell me when it was time to go. By the time you read this I will be a former employee and back to being a computer consultant again. I call it retirement because I will have Monday though Friday work hours and be able to travel a bit now and then. Retail has taught me a lot of things that I did not understand before.  For shoppers first thing is be kind to the person you’re working with, most are trying really hard to help. Do your homework before you go and then when you ask for help you will understand many of the answers. Do not tell the sales rep your life story stick to what you came for. Do not ask how much this item is next door! If you want to know go next door and look. Sales people are not there to shop other stores for you. Sales people will ask you what you are currently doing with your computer and what would you like to do with your computer in the future. Knowing what you do helps them suggest the right computer for you. On the other hand sales people should treat you, as they would like to be treated.