512 Pixels

The update addresses these issues:

• Fixes an issue where Mac computers running macOS Catalina 10.15.4 could not participate in FaceTime calls with devices running iOS 9.3.6 and earlier or OS X El Capitan 10.11.6 and earlier
• Resolves an issue where you may repeatedly receive a password prompt for an Office 365 account
• Fixes an issue where MacBook Air (Retina, 13-inch, 2020) may hang in Setup Assistant or when disconnecting and reconnecting a 4K or 5K external display
• Resolves an issue where a USB-C port in your Mac may become unresponsive

No word on if this will fix some of the Finder issues that many users (including myself) have seen, but this is available in Software Update now.

As discussed on this week’s Connected, I am sharing how I picked my winners on the Mac Madness Bracket. There are some real differences as you will see. For example, I had the 2019 Mac Pro and the 20th Anniversary Mac going further than the public did. However, I was right on the money with the Cube passing the MacBook Air, and the public and I voted the Clamshell iBook along to the same round. You can see all the differences here, and click on the images to enlarge them.

The Public Final Bracket

My Bracket

My winner — the Titanium PowerBook — is my favorite Mac of all time:

A solid update to one of the most powerful backup applications on the Mac. Version 6 includes official support for APFS, the ability to run multiple backup tasks at once and more powerful scheduling options.

April 11 Update: After seeing this thread on the MPU Forums, it seems that the update to version 6 isn’t going super well.

Underscore David Smith has launched a new Apple watch app that — quite frankly — blows my mind. Named Watchsmith, it makes Complications a lot more useful and flexible, as he writes on his blog:

First, it provides a wide array of complications. Each of these is completely customizable, with controls for things like font, color, hand type and location. The initial set is just over 50 unique complications, with dozens more planned down the road. My goal is to provide a complication for just about every use and let you make it look just how you want. In the absence of 3rd-party watch faces, this is the closest I can get to making my own watch faces.

A rich collection of customizable complications would be enough to check this app out, but the real magic comes when you set Watchsmith up to change out complications based on time. In his review of the app at MacStories, Ryan Christoffel explains the feature:

Based on the schedule you set for a given complication type, that complication slot on your watch face will automatically update per your schedule. So you can have certain complications occupy that slot at relevant times of day, getting the most out of each slot on your watch face. If you want to get really crazy, you can even have a different complication show up every hour of the day.

This means if you want to see a calendar on your Watch’s screen from 9 AM to 5 PM, but want to hide it after work, Watchsmith can handle that for you. If you just want to see the Weather for the first few hours of the day, no problem.

Then there’s this magic:

The math involved in building out the “Avoid Watch Hands” feature is probably the thing I’m most proud of in the app. It was one of those ideas that I thought _should_ be possible, but really had no idea how to even begin building it. pic.twitter.com/N32o3w2rh2

— David Smith (@_DavidSmith) April 8, 2020

Smith says he is already working on new complication types, and I expect Watchsmith will continue to grow in features over time. Few people know watchOS development like he does, and it shows with this app.

Watchsmith is a free download with a $1.99/month or $19.99/year subscription to unlock all the complication types.

I didn’t expect this, but here they are, in both 11-inch and 12.9-inch sizes.¹ Amazon doesn’t list a ship date, but Apple has said the new keyboard/trackpad combo will arrive in May.

These pages show the weights of the new keyboards at 1.81 pounds (822 grams) for the small one, and a whopping 2.41 pounds (1,093 grams) for the 12.9-inch model.

If we assume that these weights include the iPads in their totals (and doesn’t include the box), the new Magic Keyboards should weigh in at:

• 11-inch: .77 pound (349 grams)
• 12.9-inch: 1 pounds (453 grams)

The existing Smart Keyboard Folios are 297 and 407 grams, according to 9to5 Mac. Those were heavier than their predecessors as well, by 52 and 67 grams, respectively.

(For comparison, the Brydge Pro+ keyboards, which include trackpads, weigh 1.14 pounds or 550 grams and 1.51 pounds or 690 grams.)

If those Amazon numbers don’t include the iPad, but the box, the true weight may still be unknown.

No matter what the final numbers are, I think these things are going to make the iPad Pro more like a laptop than ever in terms of weight. Maybe this is why Apple hasn’t wanted to talk about this.

It’s fun to spend an evening obsessing over this instead of the news, right?

A very important episode of Liftoff this week, marking the 50th anniversary of Apollo 13:

In the spring of 1970, NASA launched what would be the third mission to walk on the moon, but almost nothing went to plan, putting the crew in peril until the moment they splashed down.

It is a true miracle that this crew made it home alive.

My thanks to our sponsors:

• Squarespace: Make your next move. Enter offer code LIFTOFF at checkout to get 10% off your first purchase.
• Tuparev Technologies: Modern tools for the astronomy community. Sign up to the email newsletter now.

Apple is hard at work making 1 million face shields a week for medical workers on the front line of the COVID-19 pandemic.

So, naturally, there’s a new support page up detailing how to assemble them, complete with a video:

This time on Ungeniused, things get salty:

Not all bodies of water are blue, and not all saltwater is the same. On this episode, Myke and Stephen belly flop into the weird world of pink lakes.

My thanks to our sponsor:

• Pingdom: Start monitoring your website performance and availability today, and get instant alerts when an outage occurs or a site transaction fails. Use offer code UNGENIUSED to get 30% off. Offer expires on January 31, 2021.

Apple Support, explaining a problem no one has had or thought about in a long time:

In a multi-zone network, when you select the last zone, the list of printers in the “Printers” box does not get updated and continues to display the printers that belong to the previous zone that was selected.

The fix?

The original Apple Printer Utility v1.0 had an issue working with printers in the last zone of a multi-zone network, as well as networks that only have one zone (as that zone is effectively the last zone).

This issue is fixed in later versions of the Apple Printer Utility. To find the most recent version of this software, refer to the Apple Software Updates Library at http://www.apple.com/swupdates.

This week on Mac Power Users:

All of a sudden, many people are working from their homes for the first time. This week, Stephen and David tap into their combined decade of experience to share some of what has worked well for them at home.

My thanks to our sponsors:

• Boll & Branch: The Softest Organic Sheets & Luxury Bedding. Save $50. Try them for 30 days in a risk free trial.
• Squarespace: Make your next move. Enter offer code MPU at checkout to get 10% off your first purchase.
• TextExpander from Smile: Get 20% off with this link and type more with less effort! Expand short abbreviations into longer bits of text, even fill-ins, with TextExpander from Smile.
• 1Password: Have you ever forgotten a password? You don’t have to worry about that anymore.

If you use audio on your Mac in any way, SoundSource is for you. It lives in your menu bar, and provides you with superior control over all your audio.

Take control of audio on a per-application basis. Now you can change the volume of any app relative to others, and play individual apps to different audio devices.

Add effects to any audio too. The Magic Boost and Volume Overdrive features, let you hear your audio even in loud environments, and the built-in equalizer can sweeten the sound. Advanced users will love the ability to apply Audio Units to any audio.

SoundSource also provides fast access to the settings for your Mac’s Output, Input, and Sound Effects audio devices. Adjust levels, tweak the balance, and even switch sample rates, right from the menu bar. You may never need to open the Sound System Preference again!

SoundSource is made by Rogue Amoeba, the masters of Mac audio who bring you Audio Hijack, Airfoil, and more. Download the free trial, then purchase today. Through May 10th, 512 Pixels readers can save 20% with coupon code 512TWENTY.

NASA:

The original NASA insignia is one of the most powerful symbols in the world. A bold, patriotic red chevron wing piercing a blue sphere, representing a planet, with white stars, and an orbiting spacecraft. Today, we know it as “the meatball.” However, with 1970’s technology, it was a difficult icon to reproduce, print, and many people considered it a complicated metaphor in what was considered, then, a modern aerospace era.

Enter a cleaner, sleeker design born of the Federal Design Improvement Program and officially introduced in 1975. It featured a simple, red unique type style of the word NASA. The world knew it as “the worm.” Created by the firm of Danne & Blackburn, the logo was honored in 1984 by President Reagan for its simplistic, yet innovative design.

NASA was able to thrive with multiple graphic designs. There was a place for both the meatball and the worm. However, in 1992, the 1970s brand was retired - except on clothing and other souvenir items - in favor of the original late 1950s graphic.

Until today.

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine:

The worm is back! When the @SpaceX Falcon 9 lifts off carrying @NASA_Astronauts aboard #CrewDragon, it will sport the iconic symbol to mark the return of human spaceflight on American rockets from American soil. More: https://t.co/jQQv5ZcTY0 #TheWormIsBack pic.twitter.com/9Ltk1nMa8j

— Jim Bridenstine (@JimBridenstine) April 2, 2020

Don’t miss the 1976 NASA Graphics Standards Manual linked on that page. This page is my favorite: