Apple

iBook

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For those of us who are embedded inside the Apple hardware and ecosystem, we are past due for a dedicated e-reader with an Apple logo on it.

Look, I enjoy my Amazon Kindle and think it is a fantastic device, but I detest having an Amazon account and giving them money in order to read and/or purchase a license to read a book.

Apple has the resources to build a competing device and the software chops to make it compelling to read. Apple currently has the “Books” software application which doubles as a reading app and a bookstore all in one. Why are they not taking advantage of a missed opportunity for a new, dedicated hardware device? I’ll come back to this.

Yes, it is true book readers can read a book on their iDevices but it is not a pleasant experience. Yes, you can read a book with their software on an iPhone, an iPad or a MacBook, but these non-dedicated book reading devices are cumbersome. An iPad is heavy, unwieldy and has way too much glare on its screen. A dedicated e-reader using the best e-ink technology is a more enjoyable format. A dedicated reading device with an Apple logo on it must not, can not, have a way of disrupting the reading experience with distracting notifications such as a phone, call, text, or email alerts. The temptation to stop reading a book and switch to a social media site instead is too tempting more most users. No, eliminate the chance for these distractions.

About ten years ago, Apple took a hit against Amazon over price-fixing electronic books and has yet to fully recover, allowing Amazon to be the dominant force in e-books. Even today, yes, you can read a book from Amazon in the Kindle app installed on your iPad but you are not permitted to purchase anything inside that iOS Kindle app. You have to go to the Amazon website, purchase and send the book to the Kindle app. What a time-consuming and frustrating experience!

Currently, Apple has no option to connect with the local library reading app called Libby. Sure, you can use the Libby app on iOS but that library loan is sent to either A Kindle or a Kobo reading device, not Apple. Why? What a missed opportunity to foster reading and books sales!

Let’s be honest, the Apple Books reading experience is horrible. The user interface looks and feels cheap, almost as an afterthought.

Apple can also gain huge market share by allowing easier access for authors to submit their own books and promote these authors into the community. Take it a step further and create a haven for readers to comment, share and promote books in a social book club or commentary system.

As I mentioned previously, there is a missed opportunity for Apple to create a dedicated e-reader device with no distractions, the best hardware/software experience and then partner with Libby and local libraries to foster more reading. Beef up their UI and book store shopping experience for more sales and create a community where book lovers can discuss and share. All of this is a huge opportunity to focus on the book reading experience. Your move, Apple.

The End (?)

Minnie

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After a third-party seller fiasco on Amazon, I have finally secured a refurbished 2014 Mac Mini desktop. Of course her new name is simply “Minnie.”

Let’s hope that Apple will support this outdated operating system for a few more years

Minnie will have a renewed purpose in life as a file and media server which includes these functions:

  • store and serve photo, music and video files to access remotely for friends and family
  • external hard drive for backups
  • Time Machine backups
  • host and support this website as well as the FoxCast audio files
  • serve as a normal desktop for me and the significant other

With a hard wired ethernet cable to the 5G modem, a static IP address I can call up files even when I am away from home, which is more frequent lately.

After purchasing a new monitor, keyboard, mouse, ethernet and HDMI cables, she now has a head and input devices to interact with.

This will serve as my ultimate backup and storage solution for years to come. I’ve been wanting to do this forever and finally have the opportunity to do it.

Daily Defaults

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A recent trend going around the fediverse and blogosphere is showing off what your default software tools are so now it is my turn. In the past, I would try the latest shiny software to see if I could incorporate it into my daily digital workflow. But that got exhausting because there was always a shiny new toy later. Over time, however, I’ve settled on what works and to limit my subscription dollars going out. Therefore, I find that for the most part, Apple’s default software applications are good enough.

What works for you doesn’t always work for me, so don’t come at me with “what about ?” I won’t hear it.

📨 Mail Client: Apple’s Mail on both Mac and iOS.

📮 Mail Server: iCloud.

📝 Notes: I use an home-grown database for everything which I call “FoxOS.” Formerly known as “Grey Matter” and “Pensieve.” Apple’s Notes for collaborating with the missus.

✅ To-Do: Apple’s Reminderd

📷 iPhone Photo Shooting: Apple’s Camera app, usually with ProRAW enabled.

🟦 Photo Management: Apple’s Photos app, and editing in Lightroom

📆 Calendar: Apple Calendar

📁 Cloud File Storage: iCloud Drive

📖 RSS: Feedbin

🙍🏻‍♂️ Contacts: Apple Contacts

🌐 Browser: Safari on iOS and Mac.

💬 Chat: iMessage

💁🏻‍♂️Social: N/A

🔖 Bookmarks: Safari

📑 Read It Later: Feedbin and Matter.

📜 Word Processing: The aforementioned FoxOS

📈 Spreadsheets: Numbers.

📊 Presentations: N/A

🛒 Shopping Lists: Apple Reminders

📰 News: RSS and Apple News

🎵 Music: Apple Music

🎤 Podcasts: Apple Podcasts

🔐 Password Management: Apple KeyChain

The Point Of All This

Apple’s apps are pretty darn good for everything I want to accomplish. I’m also a bit of a purist, so I tend to default to defaults, even if they aren’t quite as robust as other options. There was a time in my life when I was a bit more adventurous, but I largely cannot be arsed.

Success

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The clean slate protocol I initiated a few days ago is a success. After creating a new domain name and building a new website, with a new e-mail account and a new Apple ID, I am slowly migrating some of my crucial data from backups.

I have yet to delete the old Apple ID for fear of missing a few crucial pieces of correspondence from companies I do business with but all that should be wrapped up by this coming week. For now, I can breathe a sigh of relief as I start building good organizational and privacy habits to ensure nothing gets out of control again.

Apple Watch SE

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After ordering and returning the Apple Watch Ultra upgrade, I went two weeks without. I felt naked without it at first, and then made peace with the situation. Right up to the point where T-Mobile offered a huge discount on the current SE model and I jumped on it. So now I am back to tracking my workouts, closing my exercise rings, making secure payments with a flick of my wrist at the check out stand and more. But that cheap silicon band has got to be swapped out for a more attractive band.

Hor

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There is a running joke in my family that I consume too many Apple devices every year. Well the joke is on me because I did it again. I upgraded to the Apple Watch Ultra. Horology is the study of time and so she is appropriately named.

Apple Watch Ultra with titanium & ceramic body.

UPDATE – the watch has been returned because I realized I simply don’t want it.

The Audio Mojo Podcast

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Not sure how long this will last but I’ll give it a go. The idea is to change up text blogging for audio posts.

Update

The Audio Mojo podcast is now available to stream on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. If you want to add it to either one of those or in your feed reader, the RSS url is https://anchor.fm/s/d991b480/podcast/rss

Apple Podcasts
Spotify Podcasts

Watch 9 Compass App with Wayfinding Integration

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The latest iOS software version has been released this week and I have some ooh, ahh and WTHs.

Apple WatchOS has a new way finding tool built in to its compass. Why the hell didn’t Apple see fit to update the same Compass app design with Wayfinding in its iPhone?

WatchOS 8
WatchOS 8
iOS 16 Compass app

I would enjoy equal use of this on both devices. Make it happen, Apple.

I Love My iPad Pro

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I’ve had the privilege of handling and owning a lot of personal computing and tech devices over the past couple of decades. My all-time favorite is hands-down the M1 iPad Pro and it’s companion, the Magic Keyboard.

The iPad has so much processing power and battery life that I can batch-process images, stream music and more for hours and it will not give out on me. The fact that it is ultra-portable with 5G data speeds, multiple inputs such as keyboard, mouse and Pencil still has my head shaking in amazement. This one stays with me until it dies.

The Cult Of Mac

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Yours truly was recently featured on a prominent website again. In the article, David was kind enough to feature the tools of my trade and how crucial a clean, minimal, dark and dedicated workspace enhances productivity and focus.

Special thanks to David Snow and the Cult of Mac publishers for showcasing my recent home office workspace, “Dark Mode.”

Dark Mode featured on The Cult of Mac website

You can read all about it on their website. While you are there, check out their insightful articles and maybe even grab a few of their books too.

Digital Essentialism

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How is your digital life? Feeling overwhelmed by all the clutter in your inbox, hard drive and cloud service? I know I was.

Though I consider myself to be a minimalist essentialist, there does come a time when I get lazy and the discipline slides. Clutter, digital or otherwise, can get distracting over time. Now may be the perfect time to clean up your digital room, so to speak. If not daily, then weekly because a well-organized computer will yield positive results for your state of mind and your workflow productivity.

Here’s how to get started:

Backups

When was the last time you backed up your data? If you can’t remember, then it has been too long. I set a calendar reminder for once a week, then plug in the dedicated external hard drive, flip on Apple’s Time Machine and let it do its thing-creating and preserving a snapshot image of everything on the MacBook’s drive. Before all that, I suggest sorting through your Downloads folder and assign to a proper folder or delete. How are your other folders? Photos, Music, Videos, Documents all need to be sorted. Toss what you have been holding on to for some reason. After all that, then take out the Trash and delete everything in that folder.

Cloud

Just as the computer gets cleaned up, so too your Cloud backups. My Cloud mimics the desktop with everything in place. Run Time Machine again and ensure good backups.

Software

If you have dozens of software programs and apps, it is time to have a think about what you are actually using. If you haven’t used a program in say six months, then uninstall and free up space on your machine. It will thank you for it. Do you really need four calendar apps, two music players, three browsers and who else knows what? Pick the right tool for the job and stick with it. Uninstall the rest.

Desktop

A cluttered desktop can be overwhelming and distract from your focus and productivity. A messy computer desktop is akin to a messy physical desk. Nobody wants to see that. Sort that clutter into their respective folders, empty your Trash can folder and enjoy the serenity.

The MacBook desktop

Web Browser

Now, wait just a damn minute, Chris. This is sacred. If I don’t have multiple tabs open or bookmarked, I run the risk of losing and forgetting them. I might even return to them…someday.

That mentality is an old way of thinking that needs to be corrected. You won’t go back to them. You don’t need it. One of these days, your browser’s memory will slow to a crawl, and you’ll be forced to reboot the thing and potentially lose all those open tabs you’ve been saving.

Inbox and RSS feeds

If you cringe every time you access your email inbox, then you are doing it wrong. Email should be assigned from an inbox to a folder, replied to or deleted. Don’t forget to take the trash out again when done. If the mail is piled up, and you are overwhelmed, most email applications have a search feature.

RSS feed readers are a remarkable resource to stay current on the websites and blogs you enjoy. Shameless plug inserted here- https://chrisdenbow.website/feed But how does your “Unread” count look? Either read the article or save it to the “Read It Later” folder. Everything else can be deleted. The same can be said for podcast episodes!

One Password To Rule Them All

I dislike passwords, and captchas and just about every modern day credential grabber. Who can keep track of them all? I used to and failed. Then I tried a third-party password manager. I only needed one password to log in to that, and every time I needed to sign in elsewhere, that application would pop up and log in for me. That was fun until their data center was hacked and everyone’s passwords were in the open. I currently use Apple’s Password manager.

I’m already signed in to an Apple account, so I don’t have to remember a password there. Any website I visit, the Password app is ready to log me in, or help me create a new username/password. Once credentialed, Passwords will retain the info and be ready to use again. All it requires is my Face ID or Touch ID.

The Takeaway

Our digital usage over multiple devices can overwhelm us, and we open ourselves up to clutter. Who has the time to organize when we just want to scroll a feed or watch a video? I find that currently we need to be more mindful. Digital simplicity, essentialism, and minimalism is more important than before.