Steve Jobs said on numerous occasions that Apple is primarly a software company.
As Apple Remote Desktop crashed on my MacBook Air yesterday, that came to mind. Then I realized besides some maintenance updates, ARD hasn’t changed all that much in a while.
I decided to take a look at all of the software Apple currently has in the Mac App Store, and see if that was the case for other titles as well.
A poor, nameless Apple Support employee:
On June 23, 2013, AppleCare is updating its Service Training and Certification program. This update is based on feedback from the field and will ensure a simpler and easier way to create and maintain service technician credentials.
The new exams are as follows:
The new ACMT exam is no longer proctored, and can be taken online without a trip to a testing center. This should all make life a little bit better for Apple-Authorized Service Providers. The special tests for certain models — like the new stupid thin iMac remain in place, however.
The new $229 device sports the same 4-inch screen as the 5th-generation model, but has no rear camera or “Loop” wrist strap and just comes in silver.
I provided the only D11 coverage you need to read.
Jeff Gamet:
The short version: Big changes for iOS 7 previewed, more plumbing changes for OS X, no Apple television or iWatch, and wait until fall for new iPhones and iPads. That makes the WWDC keynote sound like a setup for a boring presentation, but I don’t think that’ll happen. My money is on exciting announcements for iOS and OS X, but it may take a while for analysts and some Apple fans to realize just how important those are.
I’m changing jobs at the end of June, and am holding out until WWDC to see if the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display finally gets the graphics horsepower it needs.
In the hearing (which was mostly about taxes), Sen. John McCain asked:
What I really wanted to ask was, why the hell I have to keep updating the apps on my iPhone all the time, and why you don’t fix that?
Hm.
My friend Bradley Chambers has a new project out.
$4.99 gets you an hour of screencasts as .mp4 files or wrapped up as an iPad-ready iBook. They’re all well done, and Bradley is a great teacher.
If you’ve been Evernote-curious or want to get more out of the app, be sure to check it out.
Matthew Panzarino:
Yesterday, during the Google I/O keynote, Google announced that it had hit 48B downloads of apps on the Google Play Store. During the same keynote, the counter on Apple’s site ticked over to 50B App Store downloads.
But there has been some question about how exactly the two companies tabulate their numbers.
Turns out, that Apple and Google count them in a very similar fashion. Here’s Panzarino again:
Handsome.
Impressive, and quite funny that it landed on the day of Google’s keynote.
This weekend, I picked apart a report claiming that big, sweeping changes could be coming to Apple’s service business.
One of the big rumored changes is a shift toward Apple repairing more iPhones, as opposed to simply swapping out defective devices.
@swgs over on App.net chimed in:
The repairs are completed within 30 mins. iPhone only. Only certain internal parts are available, but they say that’ll be expanded. Stores are to have a Genius scheduled to do iPhone Repairs every hour the store is open.