Year: 2012

Server, Simplified →

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Andrew Cunningham, at Ars, on Mountain Lion Server:

My fear in this brave new world is that OS X Server will suffer the same fate as Apple Remote Desktop, another enormously useful tool if you’re trying to manage a large number of Macs. Remote Desktop’s last major update, version 3.0, was introduced all the way back in 2006. Though it is still technically being maintained and sold in the Mac App Store—its current version is 3.6—most of those point updates have served only to add compatibility with new OS X versions and add incremental feature improvements like IPv6 support.

There’s still some good, low-hanging fruit that Apple could harvest to make OS X Server better for the kinds of users they’re gunning for—things like centralized FileVault management, the ability to patch iOS with the Software Update service, and local iOS device backups. If the software goes into maintenance mode, I worry that we’ll never see server features that keep pace with the features in the OS X client.

As someone who manages an Xserve, I have the same worry. 10.8 didn’t do anything to help.

Day One 1.8 Released →

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The new Day One update is here, and it’s pretty great.

The new update expands the app’s capabilities from just text entry. Now, journal entries can include location, photos and even the weather.

I work on a Mac all day long, and for me at least, journalizing at my computer has never been successful. I always have a notebook in my back pocket, and more often then not, if I journal, that’s where it happens. With the new Day One, I can snap a photo of my page and file it away.

Genius.

For homework, go read Shawn and Federico’s reviews.

University of Memphis President Investigating Helmsman Cuts →

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The Daily Helmsman, in an update regarding its budget being cut:

University of Memphis President Shirley Raines has said in an email that she has asked her executive assistant to review the circumstances surrounding the funding cut of the Daily Helmsman.

“Even though it is my understanding that the committee’s initial decision to cut the Helmsman’s funding was not based on the content of the newspaper, I want to be sure that this is the case,” Raines wrote Wednesday in an email reply to a U of M alumni who was upset about the funding cut.

Good.

On Chocolat →

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I’ve been using Chocolat as my text editor for several weeks, and have been pretty impressed by it. It’s fast, good-looking and works a lot like TextMate.

And it has an awesome Easter Egg in its “About” screen:

Moof.

The Value of a Question Mark

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Check out the following headlines:

Now, read these:

See the difference?

The first batch of headlines make it seem like the rumored September 12 event is fact. While it may indeed be, reporting it as fact is a little incorrect (at best) and maybe even linkbait-y (at worst). Adding a simple question mark to a headline would have been a good idea for some of these sites.

Out of the six sites linked to above, I like MacRumors the best. “Apple Media Event All But Confirmed for September 12th, iPhone Launch Likely” seems pretty accurate, with guys like Jim Dalrymple confirming the rumors.

That said, until Apple sends out the invites, nothing about the September 12 date is really confirmed, and writers shouldn’t be reporting it as such.

Nexus Q Delayed →

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Dante D’Orazio:

Google has just let us know that it is delaying the launch of the Nexus Q as it works to improve the device. The Nexus Q order page on Google Play has been taken down, and now simply leaves customers with a note that the device “is coming soon.”

It’s not all bad news for those who pre-ordered, however: Google has informed us that those who did reserve the device will be receiving it in its current form for free.

Google still sucks at shipping “real” products.

Twitter Apologizes For Shutting Down Guy Adams’ Account →

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Alex Macgillivray, Twitter’s General Counsel:

The Trust and Safety team does not actively monitor users’ content. In all cases, whether the user is the head of a major corporation, a celebrity, or a regular user, we require a report to be filed at our abusive users webform. Not only do we need a report, but we need a report from the person whose private information has been posted, or someone who is able to legally act on their behalf. We do not proactively report or remove private information on behalf of other users, no matter who they are.

[…]

That said, we want to apologize for the part of this story that we did mess up. The team working closely with NBC around our Olympics partnership did proactively identify a Tweet that was in violation of the Twitter Rules and encouraged them to file a support ticket with our Trust and Safety team to report the violation, as has now been reported publicly. Our Trust and Safety team did not know that part of the story and acted on the report as they would any other.

As I stated earlier, we do not proactively report or remove content on behalf of other users no matter who they are. This behavior is not acceptable and undermines the trust our users have in us. We should not and cannot be in the business of proactively monitoring and flagging content, no matter who the user is — whether a business partner, celebrity or friend. As of earlier today, the account has been unsuspended, and we will actively work to ensure this does not happen again.

So, Twitter doesn’t proactively remove information, but it did so when working with NBC on the Olympics deal. It seems like when there are piles of cash involved, Twitter is willing to let some things slip.

My trust in Twitter as a company has never been so low.

RSS Sponsor: The Theme Foundry →

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Thanks to The Theme Foundry for sponsoring the RSS feed this week! — SH

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