512 Pixels

If you’ve been wanting to take a look at the under-the-hood changes in OS X Mavericks, this PDF is for you.

Federico Viticci:

iOS 7 has a new focus on content with an interface that emphasizes hierarchy, context, edge-to-edge designs, gestures, motion, and typography. I don’t think that iOS 7 has lost its predecessors’ playfulness; in fact, I do believe it’s got a different kind of whimsy – one that is related to content and information, not just the resemblance of toolbars to leather or paper. I already see this in the animations and transitions for moving between views, the way Control Center comes up from the bottom of the screen, or how tapping an icon zooms into it, bringing an app in the foreground.

Craig Hockenberry:

It’s clear that Apple’s designers have done the same thing: their focus has shifted towards content. I can’t wait to see what happens to the iOS ecosystem when other designers and developers follow their lead. That path forward won’t be easy, but it will take the platform to a whole new level.

When reflecting on yesterday’s insane Apple keynote, I thought about John Gruber’s piece for Macworld in which he wrote:

This is how the designers and engineers at Apple roll: They roll.

They take something small, simple, and painstakingly well considered. They ruthlessly cut features to derive the absolute minimum core product they can start with. They polish those features to a shiny intensity. At an anticipated media event, Apple reveals this core product as its Next Big Thing, and explains — no, wait, it simply shows — how painstakingly thoughtful and well designed this core product is. The company releases the product for sale.

At first, I thought some of yesterday’s news — mainly the Mac Pro and iOS 7 — were in a departure from Apple’s normal way of doing things.

Then I thought about this image:

If you remember back to 2002 when Apple released the iMac G4, it was a huge departure from the G3-powered machines before it. However, looking at the whole timeline, it fits with the overall direction the product was heading in. The move to the LCD was a clear forerunner to the iMac G5, whose shape is still present in the iMacs of today.

When Tim Cook said that iOS 7 was the biggest change to iOS since the introduction of the iPhone, he wasn’t kidding. The UI is of course drastically different, but things like background-updating and better car integration are huge changes.

However, once we can all zoom out a little bit, I think iOS 7 will be seen as an evolutionary change. A big one, perhaps, but one that shouldn’t be seen as all that surprising.

Yesterday was a big leap, but iOS is rolling on.

The Mac Pro is a huge jump forward, too, but it’s on a course set out upon but the machine at the far end of the product lineup — the MacBook Air. With on-board flash storage, Thunderbolt and insane cooling, this machine is a complete re-build from what came before, but the Air was the playground for many of these technologies.

When thinking about what a “next-gen” computer should realistically be like, the Mac Pro is the obvious, yet impressive, answer.

Yesterday was a big leap, but Mac hardware is rolling on.

Some think yesterday’s keynote was disappointing, or that it shows Apple’s insecure, but I think it’s great. iOS needed some changes, but despite all the newness, it’s still iOS. The Mac Pro is still the most powerful Mac ever built, but it still can meet the needs of most pro users.

The iMac G4 felt like a big direction change, but in reality, it was just a leap forward down the same path.

Both of these product announcements feel like big direction changes, but in reality, they are just leap forwards.

In hindsight — once 2013 is just a dot on a timeline — that’s how yesterday will shape up, I believe.

What a day. New Mac Pro, iOS 7 and OS X Mavericks.

The best part? Apple executives being feisty on stage.

Even in this form, the iMac G4 is stunning.

Tomorrow, I get in my car to drive to Little Rock, Arkansas ¹ to fly to San Francisco.

Last time I was in San Francisco was for last year’s Macworld. At the end of that trip, I wrote:

I’ve struggled with questions concerning online friendships in the past. This week, I learned that people I know from the Internet are real people and — more importantly — that our friendships are real, even though we don’t see each other most of the time.

This year, it’s different. While in 2012, I was unsure what it would be like meeting my “online friends,” this year, I can’t wait to get there and have a beer with some of my buddies.

Nathan Ingraham at The Verge:

A new beta for the Dropbox desktop sync software was just released and one of the included new features is the ability to import photos straight from your iPhoto library. The software is smart enough to make folders out of your albums and events, so your photos will be just as organized in Dropbox as they are on in iPhoto.

Well, that would make moving to Dropbox from iPhoto easier for most users.

My buddy Cole Conrad interviewed me about yesterday’s announcement.

Yesterday, the story broke that Apple is replacing iPhone 5 screens in-store. For $149, most Genius Bars are now able to swap a shattered screen in just a few minutes.

(A full out-of-warranty swap runs $229.)

After the repair, the iPhone tech uses the below machine to calibrate a display’s functionality:

From what I’ve heard, Apple Stores have been instructed that the iPhone is the “top priority” for the Genius Bar, and this new repair and crazy machine surely reflect that. In addition to the program changes, many stores have Geniuses that are dedicated to iPhone repairs for sections of their shifts. In short, Apple is pouring resources in to in-store iPhone repairs.

“We’re bringing China to the Genius Room,” one employee said.

Sure seems like it.

As discussed at the end of last week’s episode of CMD+Space, the 512 Podcast is coming to a close. Next week’s episode — recorded live in San Francisco — will be our last.

Don’t be sad. ¹ I’m not, because it’s being replaced by something even better. A new show called The Prompt.

The Prompt is a weekly panel discussion on technology and the culture surrounding Apple and related companies on the mighty 5by5 network.

The show is co-hosted by myself, Myke Hurley and Federico Viticci of MacStories fame.

In fact, Viticci was on the 512 Podcast this week to talk about WWDC, iOS 7 and the new show.

Each week, we’ll be looking at not only the news, but the ecosystem and culture around Apple and its products.

The real twist is what we do with guests. Instead of the three of us running around trying to cover everything, we’re building an army of correspondents.

If you subscribe to the 512 Podcast, I’m told you should start receiving episodes of the new show automatically.

Oh, and we have some kick-ass artwork, done by Jory Raphael:

While I don’t understand the excitement about Apple hanging these things up every year, it’s fun to see so many all at once.

The “Redmond, start your photocopiers” banner is still my favorite, but this one is a close second.