Newest Mac mini Turns Three ⇢

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I would have missed the anniversary without this blog post by Brian Stucki:

It’s been three years since the current Mac mini was released on Oct 16, 2014. “All About That Bass” was the number one song in the land. Four hundred million humans have been born since that day and have never known a new Mac mini. My daughter is one of them. She already walks and talks and just moved to her big-girl bed. Three years is a long time.

It’s not all bad news for MacStadium, as he writes. They have tons of customers using the small machine for a whole bunch of different things. I’m one of them; Relay FM’s live stream is powered by a Mac mini hosted in Las Vegas.

Connected #164: My Mother Has a Bunch of Keyboards ⇢

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Last night, Federico, Myke and I recorded a live episode of Connected in Chicago to help kick off the Release Notes conference:

The boys discuss the Google Home Mini’s rough launch, the future of AR at Apple and Federico’s baker.

I packed a surprise for my co-hosts as well.

My thanks to our sponsors for this week’s show:

  • Squarespace: Make your next move. Enter offer code WORLD at checkout to get 10% off your first purchase.
  • Timing: The automatic time tracking app for macOS. Use this link to get 10% off your purchase of Timing.
  • Incapsula: Secure and accelerate your website. Connected listeners get one month free.

App Camp 2020 ⇢

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App Camp is a program close to the heart of many of us in the Apple community, and they have a new big goal:

We want to start three more camps by 2020. Three new camps means we’ll be able to bring camps to an additional 60 kids per year nationwide!

In order to accomplish that goal, we need your help. Your contribution will help us buy the MacBook Pros, iPad Pros, Apple Pencils, and iPod touches necessary to running a camp like this. It will also support the growth and development of our volunteers and give us the ability to make the curriculum we teach even better.

Visit the Indiegogo page and help make this possible

Amazon Announces new Kindle Oasis ⇢

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I’m a big fan of my Kindle Oasis. It’s my third or fourth Kindle, and I love how small and lightweight it is.

I have two main complaints: having a battery pack and cover makes it a little too fiddly, and the thing really should be waterproof.

Amazon has answered both of these with the new Kindle Oasis.

The new e-ink reader boasts a larger, 7-inch, 300-ppi display in a waterproof housing. Now, all of the battery is in the device itself, which is now aluminum, not soft-touch plastic.

The new Oasis has another trick up its sleeve, however, as Dan Moren writes at Six Colors:

Amazon’s also added Audible support to the Oasis, though it doesn’t sport any internal speakers. Instead you can use Bluetooth to stream Audible books to connected headphones or speakers—or, at least, you’ll be able to when Amazon releases a software update after the Oasis ships. Owners of 8th-generation Kindles and the original Oasis will also get Audible support with a free over-the-air update “in the coming months.”

I’m going to sit this upgrade cycle out, but if you have an older Kindle and want to upgrade, this Oasis looks great.

Twitterrific 5 for macOS ⇢

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The original Twitter client for the Mac is back. This version is all-new, thanks to a Kickstarter project that raised funds for its development. While the Mac app isn’t as full-featured as its iOS counterpart, all the basics are here in a clean looking, fast app.