Overcast Updated With Clip Sharing⇢

The newest version of Overcast has a really nifty new feature, as explained by Marco Arment:

With today’s 2019.4 update, you can now share audio or video clips, up to a minute each, from any public podcast. Simply tap the share button in the upper-right corner.

You can generate an audio clip, or portrait, landscape, or square video, using your current Overcast theme setting.

Somewhat embarrassingly, I seem to have accidentally inspired this feature in an interview on Unco. Marco just popped up in a Slack private message with some screenshots, and I was really impressed at how well thought-out this feature is. It’s going to be a great addition to Overcast, and a really nice way to make podcasts more shareable.

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Apple Prioritizing MacBook Keyboard Repairs⇢

Joe Rossignol, with good news for owners of machines with the dreaded butterfly keyboards, quoting from an internal Apple memo he got his hands on:

Most keyboard-related repairs will be required to be completed in store until further notice. Additional service parts have been shipped to stores to support the increased volume.

These repairs should be prioritized to provide next-day turnaround time. When completing the repair, have the appropriate service guide open and carefully follow all repair steps.

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Mac Power Users #479: 100,000 Subscribers, with Rene Ritchie⇢

This week on MPU, David and I interviewed Rene Ritchie:

Over a year ago, long-time Apple blogger Rene Ritchie launched Vector, a daily YouTube show covering the world of Apple and tech beyond. This week, David and Stephen catch up with Rene, talking about his video workflows, YouTube as a platform and the future of the Mac and iOS.

Rene is one of the hardest-working people in our industry, and it was a lot of fun to hear more about he gets it all done.

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History of Gold Apple Watches⇢

Zac Hall at 9to5Mac, writing on the weird history of the use of gold and gold finishes when it comes to the Apple Watch:

Apple Watch has a curvy history with the color gold and accompanying straps. The original 18K gold Apple Watch Edition paired with a range of straps before being discontinued. Aluminum models have included three shades of gold (rose gold, gold, and “new” gold) with Sport and (now discontinued) Woven Nylon bands using gold hardware. Gold variations aren’t sold separately either which makes them somewhat rare.

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Guilherme Rambo: macOS 10.15 to Ship with Screen Time and Siri Shortcuts⇢

Guilherme Rambo, continuing an incredible week at 9to5Mac:

Apple is working on bringing the Mac and iOS closer together with the introduction of macOS 10.15 and iOS 13. Siri Shortcuts, Screen Time, and more are expected to be unveiled for Mac during its Worldwide Developers conference in June.

According to people familiar with the development of macOS 10.15 – which has been in the works for at least two years – the new version will include support for Siri Shortcuts, a feature introduced in iOS 12 which allows users to create custom voice shortcuts for actions that can be done in apps.

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St. Jude Finds "Bubble Boy" Cure⇢

Michelle Corbet at The Daily Memphian:

Over the past three years, nine babies with SCID-X1, more commonly known as “bubble boy disease,” have been treated with an experimental therapy that is now being heralded as a cure.

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital president and CEO James Downing said in his 32 years at St. Jude, the children’s hospital has accomplished many milestones, but Wednesday’s announcement was particularly exciting — a cure.

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A Brief History of The Prompt and Connected⇢

This week marks the 10th anniversary of MacStories, and John asked me to write a column to help mark the occasion. His entire pitch to me was: “You’ve known Federico the longer than anyone else who writes on MacStories,” so I opted to write a bit about the history of Connected and its forerunner The Prompt:

“I think we should talk to Federico about joining the show.”

With that, my podcasting career – and life – got a lot better.

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