Re: Windows 7 to Windows 10
No, it's purpose is to determine if your system is
compatible and if so assist you with upgrading.
toggle quoted messageShow quoted text
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Sunday, October 30, 2016 7:32
AM
Subject: Re: [TechTalk] Windows 7 to
Windows 10
Thank you Carlos. So if I run this utility, it
wouldn't harm my system, right?
Douk
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Saturday, October 29, 2016 2:00
PM
Subject: Re: [TechTalk] Windows 7 to
Windows 10
On Sat, Oct 29, 2016 at 06:31 am, Duke wrote:
My question about upgrading to win 10. Does it matter of how old is the
computer? I mean for compatibility?
Welcome to the list. Yes, if the machine is too old, it may not be
compatible. The Windows 10 Update Assistant https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3159635 should
tell you if the machine can be upgraded.
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Re: Windows 7 to Windows 10
Thank you Carlos. So if I run this utility, it
wouldn't harm my system, right?
Douk
toggle quoted messageShow quoted text
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Saturday, October 29, 2016 2:00
PM
Subject: Re: [TechTalk] Windows 7 to
Windows 10
On Sat, Oct 29, 2016 at 06:31 am, Duke wrote:
My question about upgrading to win 10. Does it matter of how old is the
computer? I mean for compatibility?
Welcome to the list. Yes, if the machine is too old, it may not be
compatible. The Windows 10 Update Assistant https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3159635 should
tell you if the machine can be upgraded.
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Re: Minor updates to list of resources and freeware
Added the following to the list of
freeware:
Kid3 - Audio tagger for several popular
formats Note that the interface of this program is not very accessible.
I am including it because it can also be used from the command line. A
tagger which supports so many audio formats and command line operation is
somewhat rare in Windows. http://kid3.sourceforge.net/
Of course, the entire list is sent out
automatically on the 1st of every month and you can also view it here on the
Tech Talk Wiki.
toggle quoted messageShow quoted text
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Friday, May 27, 2016 6:26 AM
Subject: Minor updates to list of
resources and freeware
1. Added WebVisum
and the updated signed version
to the list of freeware.
2. Added my CDex
written tutorial to the Tech Talk Wiki
and files
section. The link has also been updated in
the list of resources and freeware to point to the Wiki. It was
previously pointing to my Dropbox which has not been working for quite some
time.
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Re: What We Got from Apple's October 2016 Event | AppleVis
Hi.
I have one word for u. Nvda. Lol.
toggle quoted messageShow quoted text
On October 29, 2016 10:19:55 AM EDT, "Olusegun -- Victory Associates LTD, Inc." <ukekearuaro@...> wrote:
Isn't Apple like a typical screen reader developer? Pile on more bells and whistles in the name of new features, kill whatever was working just because it can be done! Oh well, Norman, looks like you're buying my next screen reader; just tell me where to go pick it up? I'm still living in my ancient and modern world, having lots of fun with my peripherals and staying broke and stupid!
Sincerely, Olusegun Denver, Colorado
--
Sent from my Android device with K-9 Mail. Please excuse my brevity.
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Apple's New Baseball League!
Howdy Y'all,
Has anyone heard about the new baseball league
Apple is starting? It's supposed to be something like the NFL's Bud Bowl
but, all players on all teams will be iPhones!
The champion ship game will be
named....
keep scrolling down,
The World Siri
Anyways, I thought that maybe 1 of you would get a
chuckle!
Take care. Mike Sent from my iBarstool.
Dodgers, try again next year!
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Re: latest itunes and jaws 17
John Gregory <john.gm.gregory@...>
Hi,
Not sure if this method is appropriate to podcasts or just music files, or even if it only happens when Blind Tunes is installed, but I use Control + Right Arrow to move forware and Control + Left Arrow to move back. Try it and see if it works.
John.
toggle quoted messageShow quoted text
-----Original Message----- From: main@TechTalk.groups.io [mailto:main@TechTalk.groups.io] On Behalf Of Kimsan Sent: 29 October 2016 20:32 To: main@TechTalk.groups.io Subject: Re: [TechTalk] latest itunes and jaws 17 Yeah, I found that progress indicator yesterday but what if I'm not in that window while in itunes? That is what I was hoping for. -----Original Message----- From: main@TechTalk.groups.io [mailto:main@TechTalk.groups.io] On Behalf Of Thom Spittle Sent: Friday, October 28, 2016 12:29 PM To: main@TechTalk.groups.io Subject: Re: [TechTalk] latest itunes and jaws 17
Once you are playing the podcast. Tab to the progress indicator and when you down arrow, it will back up a little bit. If you want to skip ahead, use the up arrow. If you hold the arrow down longer, it will move faster.
Thom
-----Original Message----- From: main@TechTalk.groups.io [mailto:main@TechTalk.groups.io] On Behalf Of Kimsan Sent: Friday, October 28, 2016 12:58 PM To: main@TechTalk.groups.io Subject: [TechTalk] latest itunes and jaws 17
Hi, Using latest jaws 17, and Itunes. Is it possible to skip a few seconds while listening to a podcast? Thanks.
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Re: latest itunes and jaws 17
Yeah, I found that progress indicator yesterday but what if I'm not in that window while in itunes? That is what I was hoping for.
toggle quoted messageShow quoted text
-----Original Message----- From: main@TechTalk.groups.io [mailto:main@TechTalk.groups.io] On Behalf Of Thom Spittle Sent: Friday, October 28, 2016 12:29 PM To: main@TechTalk.groups.io Subject: Re: [TechTalk] latest itunes and jaws 17
Once you are playing the podcast. Tab to the progress indicator and when you down arrow, it will back up a little bit. If you want to skip ahead, use the up arrow. If you hold the arrow down longer, it will move faster.
Thom
-----Original Message----- From: main@TechTalk.groups.io [mailto:main@TechTalk.groups.io] On Behalf Of Kimsan Sent: Friday, October 28, 2016 12:58 PM To: main@TechTalk.groups.io Subject: [TechTalk] latest itunes and jaws 17
Hi, Using latest jaws 17, and Itunes. Is it possible to skip a few seconds while listening to a podcast? Thanks.
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Re: Thunderbird attachment questions
Hi Don,
Here's what I've been doing since the old DOS/windows 3.11 days.
First I create a folder called 'Temp.' I create it under the
route directory such as c:\ I.E. c:\temp is the path.
Then I set all my programs: e-mail, browsers, word processors,
ETC. to save files to that folder. In most cases, if you set the
folder to that in options under each program, it won't change. In
the case of browsers and Thunderbird, if you have the setting
under options set to default to the last folder for saves, then
all you need do the first time you set things up is to open the
'save as' dialogue (usually control+ S or alt + F, a) and then
press the home key to move to the beginning of the file name and
type in the path such as 'c:\temp' and press enter. Then every
time you want to save a file/attachment/whatever, you simply
highlight the file/attachment/open the context menu to save as
(program dependent) and press enter or click the save button.
Then once the files are saved in the temporary directory, you
use Windows Explorer/My Computer/Computer (Windows version
dependent) and do file management from there--moving files to what
ever folder/directory/sub directory you wish.
On 10/29/2016 11:25 AM, Donald L.
Roberts wrote:
I can accomplish the following but do it very inefficiently and
want to know the steps to get it done as easily as possible.
Newsline emails me publications in daisy format. Each
publication therefore has four files. I therefore want to save
each publication to a different location. So what is the best
way to save all four files to a specific folder?
Thanks.
Don Roberts
--
They Ask Me If I'm Happy; I say Yes.
They ask: "How Happy are You?"
I Say: "I'm as happy as a stow away chimpanzee on a banana boat!"
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Thunderbird attachment questions
I can accomplish the following but do it very
inefficiently and want to know the steps to get it done as
easily as possible.
Newsline emails me publications in daisy format.
Each publication therefore has four files. I therefore want to
save each publication to a different location. So what is the
best way to save all four files to a specific folder?
Thanks.
Don Roberts
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Re: What We Got from Apple's October 2016 Event | AppleVis
Olusegun -- Victory Associates LTD, Inc.
Isn't Apple like a typical screen reader developer? Pile on more bells and whistles in the name of new features, kill whatever was working just because it can be done! Oh well, Norman, looks like you're buying my next screen reader; just tell me where to go pick it up? I'm still living in my ancient and modern world, having lots of fun with my peripherals and staying broke and stupid! Sincerely, Olusegun Denver, Colorado
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Re: Virtual Recorder updated to version 1.2
Thanks for the update and sharing it.
toggle quoted messageShow quoted text
From: main@TechTalk.groups.io [mailto:main@TechTalk.groups.io] On Behalf Of Carlos Sent: Friday, October 28, 2016 3:06 PM To: main@TechTalk.groups.io Subject: [TechTalk] Virtual Recorder updated to version 1.2 I have updated Virtual Recorder to version 1.2. Not much is new, but I added the ability to disable system sounds while recording which I think is a nice feature. It is a checkbox in the main window who's state is retained between sessions. I have not had the opportunity to thoroughly test this feature under all conditions or even in all versions of Windows, but it seems to work fine for me in both 7 and 10. The link to the download page is below. Of course, thanks to Rob Hudson for hosting as usual.
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Re: Windows 7 to Windows 10
On Sat, Oct 29, 2016 at 06:31 am, Duke wrote: My question about upgrading to win 10. Does it matter of how old is the computer? I mean for compatibility? Welcome to the list. Yes, if the machine is too old, it may not be compatible. The Windows 10 Update Assistant https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3159635 should tell you if the machine can be upgraded.
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Re: Windows 7 to Windows 10
Thank you John for posting the link. Douk
toggle quoted messageShow quoted text
----- Original Message ----- From: "John Gregory" <john.gm.gregory@gmail.com> To: <main@TechTalk.groups.io> Sent: Friday, October 28, 2016 11:16 PM Subject: [TechTalk] Windows 7 to Windows 10 Joe,
Just in case you don't have the link to the 'free' download for Windows 10 upgrade for users of assistive technology:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/accessibility/windows10upgrade
Hope this helps.
John.
-----Original Message----- From: John Gregory [mailto:john.gm.gregory@gmail.com] Sent: 28 October 2016 23:08 To: 'main@TechTalk.groups.io' Subject: RE: [TechTalk] Windows 7 to Windows 10
Hi Joe,
Know where you are coming from, I resisted the temptation of moving from Win 7 to Win 10, but have recently taken the plunge. It takes a little bit of getting used to and an awful lot of reconfiguring to get it to stop nagging about apps you really don't want, but overall it isn't that bad really. However, one small piece of advice I would pass on is that even if you don't like it and continue with Win 7, it is worthwhile initially upgrading so that you can take advantage of the 'free' option should you want to move over later. Just upgrade and your PC will be registered and then you can 'roll back' to Win 7 within the 10 day grace period from the upgrade (used to be 31 days, but this appears to have been reduced to 10).
John.
-----Original Message----- From: main@TechTalk.groups.io [mailto:main@TechTalk.groups.io] On Behalf Of Joe Sent: 28 October 2016 22:58 To: main@TechTalk.groups.io Subject: [TechTalk] Windows 7 to Windows 10
Now, more than a year later, are people still inclined to recommend Windows 10 over Windows 7? My main machine has 7, and while I have no desire to move, I wonder if I could be allowing my fear of change to keep me from enjoying potential useful features. Thoughts?
Joe
-- Musings of a Work in Progress: www.JoeOrozco.com/
Twitter: @ScribblingJoe
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Re: Windows 7 to Windows 10
Hi Guys, I am a new member. My name is Douk pronounced Duke. My question about upgrading to win 10. Does it matter of how old is the computer? I mean for compatibility? Thanks Douk
toggle quoted messageShow quoted text
----- Original Message ----- From: "Jeremy" <icu8it2@gmail.com> To: <main@TechTalk.groups.io> Sent: Friday, October 28, 2016 11:09 PM Subject: Re: [TechTalk] Windows 7 to Windows 10 It's kind of hard to say. I really think it depends on how happy you are with 7 and weather or not you want to continue with some of the issues that people have had there, issues with windows update and alike.
I used windows7 for a number of years and really grew to love it and have really thought about restoring my image, but windows10 really isn't all that bad either. I do really like a number of things about 10, things that are made much easier, such as the windows registration process, hardware detection and pulling down the necessary drivers, native support for bluetooth, etc. I'd note though that most of my experience with 10, the applications I use and how I use them, makes things really similar to how things worked for me in 7, so it hasn't been a major change really. For those who play around with the built in applications and some of the new features of 10, things may be different.
I'm not sure what the status is on getting 10 for free, but if you can still download and install it, I'd at least recommend playing around with it to see if you like it. It's easy enough to make an image of both 7 and 10 and change back, if you don't care for it. Dong so leaves you with the ability to change back to 10 at a later date and it'd still be registered, if I understand things correctly.
Hope this helps.
Take care.
On 10/28/2016 4:57 PM, Joe wrote:
Now, more than a year later, are people still inclined to recommend Windows 10 over Windows 7? My main machine has 7, and while I have no desire to move, I wonder if I could be allowing my fear of change to keep me from enjoying potential useful features. Thoughts?
Joe
-- Musings of a Work in Progress: www.JoeOrozco.com/
Twitter: @ScribblingJoe
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Re: What We Got from Apple's October 2016 Event | AppleVis
I don't necessarily disagree, but it
does mean that upgrading all of your peripherals,
which would be much more expensive than purchasing adapters, is not
required.
toggle quoted messageShow quoted text
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Saturday, October 29, 2016 4:36
AM
Subject: Re: [TechTalk] What We Got from
Apple's October 2016 Event | AppleVis
Hi. That is true but the point I was making is that u do
need an adapter.
USB isn't yet that out of date that you should need
one or three of those.
Jmt
On October 29, 2016 2:08:25 AM EDT, Carlos < carlos1106@...> wrote:
I can agree with some of the opinions in the previous message, but it should be noted that while USB-C connectors are not compatible with standard USB Type-A connectors, the protocols being used in USB-C are compatible so all you would need are Type-A to Type-C adapters. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Lenron" <lenron93@...> To: <main@TechTalk.groups.io> Sent: Saturday, October 29, 2016 1:51 AM Subject: Re: [TechTalk] What We Got from Apple's October 2016 Event | AppleVis
They seem to love making these stupid choices. One of my major reasons why if I ever need to buy a Mac I will get one a few years old. Like you said the only thing really nice about the new Mac Book Pro is the finger print reader.
On 10/28/16, Norman <lists@...> wrote:
Hello.
Looks like it's rant time! Note, if you don't like rants, then don't read this.
I like to think of myself as pretty open minded when it comes to tech, I own at least one device from the 4 major operating systems in the world today, windows, android, ios, and mac.
Granted, my main computer runs windows and my usual smartphone is an android device but that's mostly for functionality and familiarity reasons, not accessibility.'
Now with all that out of the way, let's get to the big news from apple this week. I've been hereing a lot of rumors of the new macbooks, and this had me curious to do some research into what apple would come up with when announcement day rolled around. In full disclosure, i did not watch the event and only read most of what i know about it afterwards. My reaction to this is what in the world was apple thinking?
The one new feature in the new macbooks i actually like is touch ID. I will admit to wanting that. However, with all the tradeoffs i would have to make to get it? there is no way i will do it. Let's summerize, yes, you get a faster computer, but speed is subjective once computers become this fast. I'm pretty sure that most users will not actually see a 50% speed increase in day to day use. With that being said, the internals upgrade to the 2 high end macs do make sense. What makes much less sense is the outside redesign. Here again there are things i'm fine with, the bigger track pad for example. However, now we come to my real issues with the new computers. First the touch bar.
Why, o why, do we need this? I would much rather have a full keyboard with a touch screen for secondary input. Let's think about this for a second in a real world use case. I'm going through my email as i normally do in
the morning and come accross a message i want to reply to. Which do you think would be the faster way to click the reply button? By going up to the touch bar, finding reply and double tapping? or by hitting the reply keyboard shortcut?
My second reason for not liking this is because i run windows in bootcamp on my macbook pro 2015. The touch bar on windows is an aweful idea! I could probably overlook the touch bar, but that's not even the worse thing to come with the new macbooks. That has to be the lack of ports. There is something to be said for simplicity, but apple may well have taken it to far this time. Let's review. On the new macbooks you get 2 or 4 usb c/thunderbolt 3 ports, a headphone jack simply because apple couldn't find a good way of spinning that, and, o yes, i forgot, that's it. No standard USB, no card reader, no HDMI, WTF???? In a single day apple has forced me to think about
upgrading almost every periferal i own. To put this in perspective, i now need to buy a $50 adapter from apple just to get the ability to plug in my IPhone 5s, For those people that say all apple things work together so well, think about that for a minute. I'd much rather see a macbook with at least one standard USB port and When have SD cards and USB hard drives become out of date? To add insult to injury, apple also decided to raise it's price a couple hundred. I could live with that if they had left a good alternative at the old price point, but no, they just had to insult us by making us pay $1400 for an even less appealing option than the macbook pro 2015. How is this an upgrade? Looking back the $1250 i paid for my 2015 macbook is looking like a better and better deal. I have a very nice computer that's 6 months old and works almost as fast as what is now current, and o buy the way? i
have all my old USB ports, sd card readers and standard keyboard! Just to put the financial part into perspective, i paid $1250 for my 2015 mac, about $150 off of the apple store price from amazon. If i had to get something compareable now i'd have to pay $1800 plus any adapters that i need and don't want just to have a functional computer.
Anyway, this is the end of my rant for now, i'm just very put off by apples design decissions. If they want USB C so badly then put it on, i don't mind, Just don't dump everything else that has worked for years just like that.
JMT.
On 10/28/2016 3:01 AM, Christopher Hallsworth wrote:
http://www.applevis.com/blog/apple-apple-tv-news/what-we-got-apples-october-2016-event#comment-form
What We Got from Apple's October 2016 Event
Submitted by mehgcap on 27 October, 2016 - 16:28 and last modified on 27 October, 2016 - 19:18
Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team <http://www.applevis.com/applevis-editorial-team>
Hello Again
Today, Apple held a press event it called "Hello Again". The company announced a new accessibility website, a new Apple TV feature, and a long-awaited update to its MacBook computers. It may have missed the back-to-school shoppers, but today's announcements arrive just in time for the holiday shopping frenzy. There are some major
changes to the MacBook line-up on the way, and while much of what you're about to read is awesome, you may not like all of it. But there's a great deal to like about the latest offerings from Apple, and I yell at articles to quit rambling in their intros and get on with it just as much as you do, so let's get on with it!
Accessibility Kick-Off
To my surprise, Apple started the presentation with a video highlighting accessibility features of its products. This led to Tim Cook's announcing a "whole new website" focused on Apple's accessibility efforts. As of the time of this writing, we haven't had a chance to fully explore this new website <http://www.apple.com/accessibility>, but it's always great to see the spotlight shown on all the work Apple does to make their devices as usable, to as many people, as they can. It’s
also great to see that the AppleVis Community is featured on Apple’s new Accessibility Portal as somewhere people should go to obtain more information and support. Thank you, Apple!
Get Entertained on Apple TV
No, there's not a new Apple TV coming out, but there is a new way to find something to watch on the box you already have. It's a new app from Apple, called--appropriately enough--TV. Yep, just those two letters. Interestingly, Apple offers this app on not just Apple TV, but your iOS devices as well, letting you browse and play content on any of your devices. But what, exactly, does the app do?
TV pulls together any shows or movies you're already watching on your video apps, as well as offering the next or newest episodes in TV series. This isn't just iTunes, either; it can work with ShowTime, CBS, HBO Now, and others, which makes it simple to keep up with any entertainment you're watching. The app also shows you your iTunes purchases or new video apps. It can even play content without you needing to know which app the content is in; tell Siri to play a particular show or game and that's all you need. But don't get too excited, because while the app is free, it won't be here until the end of the year.
Prose about the Pro
The MacBook Pro was the star of the show today. It got a major makeover--the first since the 2013 model dropped the disk drive--and there's a lot of great stuff on and inside it. Yet, there's also a change you may not like.
Inevitable Updates
First, the fun part: the updates we all expected, and that Apple almost /had/ to make. The Pro is now slightly lighter and thinner, while the battery life remains at ten hours; no surprise there. It's also adopted the USB-C ports we first saw
in the Retina MacBook last year. The new Pro includes four of them, and any of them can be used to charge the machine, which is a great touch if your outlet is opposite the power jack of your Mac. The audio jack, fortunately, hasn't gone anywhere, so there's no need to worry about getting USB sound cards or mics plus a bunch of adaptors. Those four USB-C (also called Thunderbolt 3--same thing) are all the ports you get, though. No standard USB, no Mini Display, no card reader, and, sadly, no more MagSafe.
Speaking of audio, the speakers are louder and, Apple claims, sound better than ever. Oh, and the storage is twice as fast as before, while the ram has gotten faster, too. Overall, the new Pros are anywhere from half again to more than twice as fast as the models they replace, depending on the category (gaming, graphics, or storage) you're interested in. Between the faster storage and ram, the better CPUs, and the improved graphics cards, these machines are powerhouses that manage to be smaller than any Pro to date.
One unexpected bit of news: the trackpad on the Pro is now twice as large as in previous models, and, of course, uses Taptic feedback to simulate a click. This lets you click it anywhere, not just on the bottom, and provides a much better experience with its larger surface area that can still click when pushed.
Not at all unexpected is the screen. It is 67% brighter, can show much better color, and draws even less power than the 2015 MacBook Pro screen. Yet it is as thin as that of the Retina MacBook, Apple's smallest computer ever.
Finally, in keeping with the storage trend it started with the iPhone 7, Apple is upping the base storage for all its Macs. 256GB is now the minimum for all MacBook models, which is where the Retina MacBooks have always
been. The amount of ram across the line has not changed, to my knowledge.
New Magic
Aside from the new ports and altered dimensions, the major new feature on the Pro models is the removal of the entire top line of keys. Escape, F1 through F12, and Eject are all gone, replaced by what amounts to a touch screen. This "Touchbar", as Apple is calling it, is a multi-touch, retina-quality screen that runs in a strip along the top of the Mac's keyboard. The Bar offers context-sensitive controls and suggestions, plus emulates function keys when necessary.
Why do this? Apple's reasoning is rather compelling, when you think about it objectively. What is the top row of keys for most users? Keys used mostly for media or brightness control. When you aren't doing those things, those keys are wasted space. Instead of simply taking them out, Apple has decided to update them. Now, they
can be your media controls in iTunes like normal, but they can also be the buttons or tools you need at any given moment, in any given application. In Mail, you have favorite mailboxes, message controls, and quick actions all available at the top of your keyboard. In Safari, you have tabs, favorite websites, and more. While typing, you have QuickType suggestions, just like in iOS. Best of all, you can customize the bar to show the controls you want, and touch one key to quickly bring up your standard function keys at any time. Plus, being a touch-sensitive display, you can perform gestures on the TouchBar. It wasn't clear what gestures are supported, but we know for sure that up to ten simultaneous touches will be recognized. That means dragging, pinching, swiping, and more, all with one or more fingers.
The TouchBar is Apple's first attempt to marry a touch-enabled display with the keyboard-
and mouse-driven world of macOS. No, it won't be perfect right away, but it speaks of exciting things to come. Even in this first iteration, I have to admit I'm eager to try it out for myself. It's not the access to functions for which hotkeys already exist that I like, but rather the customization possibilities I can envision. Combined with gesture input, the TouchBar could significantly raise the bar on computer interfaces. I apologize for any mental injury caused by such a terrible pun.
Of course, this means that VoiceOver users lose the hardware keys we use all the time--escape, f1, f2, and f5 come to mind immediately as keys I use many times a day for various VO commands. The big question, then, is how to perform these commands if all the virtual keys on the TouchBar have configured themselves for the currently open application? I wish I had the answer, but all I can say is that we at
AppleVis have reached out to Apple about this issue. Thus far, we haven't heard, but we will let you know when and if we get a response. Still, with the Apple TV, Apple Watch, boot sequence with File Vault enabled, and even complete macOS re-installs all offering VoiceOver support, I have no doubt that the new TouchBar won't be a problem. Who knows; there may even be a whole new commander to play with.
A Touchy Addition
Ever since the iPhone 5s in 2013, TouchID has been a staple of iOS devices. If you bought an iPhone or iPad, you knew you'd get the ability to unlock it, or authorize payments/purchases/apps, with your fingerprint. However, no Mac has ever had this hugely convenient ability. Apple partly addressed this shortcoming in macOS Sierra, allowing users to perform authentication on their Macs through iPhones or Apple Watches.
Now, though, the MacBook Pro
can do it all; the power button is also a TouchID sensor. Logging into your Mac, entering your admin password, using Apple Pay, and other security-centric tasks just got a lot more convenient. Simply place a finger on the power button, and that's it. Just like on iOS devices, the Mac reads your print, authenticates you, and you're all set. If you share a Mac with someone else, you can even use TouchID to immediately switch to your own user account, simply by touching the reader.
Getting Butterflies Over the New Keyboard
Now I have to give you the bad news. When the Retina MacBook came out, it included a keyboard that Apple naturally called "revolutionary". The keyboard took up less space, and gave a whole new feel to typing due to its "butterfly" switches. Apple may love the new design, but many reviewers found it odd and not as nice as the old keyboards.
When I
went down to a local outlet store and tried the keyboard myself, I had to agree; the key travel was less, and--more importantly--the space between the keys was almost non-existent. This made it very hard for me to feel where the keys were. I imagine this would have gotten better with time, so I'm not willing to condemn the keyboard based only on that first impression.
I say all that to say this: a new version of that new keyboard is now standard on all MacBooks. The good news is that Apple specifically mentioned key travel as an area of improvement in this new generation keyboard, so I'm happy to try out the latest model and be proven wrong. I do recommend getting over to an Apple Store or other shop where a demo MacBook is displayed so you can get your hands on the new keyboard before you make any purchase, if possible. However, the mention of an updated design gives me hope that Apple may have
gotten it right this time. Only time and experience will tell.
The New Line-Up (Or: Bye-Bye to the MacBook Air )
For years, the choice of Macs has been simple: an eleven- or thirteen-inch Air, or a thirteen- or fifteen-inch Pro. In 2015, Apple shook things up with the introduction of a twelve-inch MacBook with a retina display, dubbed the Retina MacBook or, confusingly, simply the MacBook. Despite its larger screen, this device was about the size of the eleven-inch Air, and rumors swirled that Apple would drop the smallest Air from the line- up. As the Retina version lacked more than one USB port and used a less powerful processor, though, there was still a valid use case for the Air.
Despite all that, the Air is no more. It has been replaced with the twelve-inch Retina model for those wanting the smallest computer, and a basic version of the 13-inch Pro for those
wanting a little more. Again, though, both devices are about the same size, so you don't have to worry about getting a physically larger machine. In fact, the 13-inch Pro is twelve percent thinner and thirteen percent smaller in overall volume than the 13-inch Air. Note that, at least for the moment, the 13-inch Air remains available, while the 11-inch Air has been pulled. No one knows how long this will last, though, just as there's no telling for how much longer the 13-inch Pro from 2015 will continue to be sold.
The Airs are all but gone, and in their place are the 12-inch MacBook we already know, and a 13-inch Pro to take the place of the 13-inch Air, While it so far has no official name, this Pro lacks the TouchBar and TouchID of its more expensive sibling, and includes two USB-C ports to the four that come on the "real" Pros. If you're looking for a new Mac, here are your options. All of
these come with 256GB of storage and 8GB of ram, except the 15-inch Pro which has 16GB of ram:
* 12-inch MacBook: one USB-C port, fanless design, smallest and least powerful MacBook available. $1,299, 2 pounds. * 13-inch "basic" Pro: two USB-C ports, no TouchBar, no TouchID, 2GhZ dual core Core I5 processor. Identical to base model 13-inch Pro in all other ways. $1,499, 3 pounds. * 13-inch Pro: four USB-C ports, 2.9GhZ dual core Core I5 processor, includes TouchBar. $1,799, 3 pounds. * 15-inch Pro: four USB-C ports, 2.6GhZ quad core Core I7, includes TouchBar. Again, starts with 16GB of ram to the others' 8GB. $2,399, 4 pounds.
Until Next Year
That's it. Apple isn't expected to release anything new until sometime next year, so go forth and shop with confidence that you're getting the newest machines for months to come. Or, wait
for deals on the "old" models, which are still extremely powerful and capable computers. Whatever you decide, today's announcements gave you a /lot/ to choose from.
As of today (the day of the event), pre-orders are open for all models, though some won't ship for a few weeks while others will go out today. Please don't rely on this article for final prices, specifications, and upgrade options. Use Apple's website, or the Apple Store app, for that. I'm just giving you the basics, as given out at the presentation.
Let me know what you're thinking. Is the incredible reduction in size, and increase in power, enough to make you want a new Pro? Will you snatch up an Air while you can (no one knows if they're officially being discontinued)? Are you intrigued by the TouchBar, or do you want to stay far away from it? If I had the money, I'd get the 13-inch Pro with TouchBar in a heartbeat.
The possibilities of a second touch/display surface are exciting, and I use peripherals rarely enough that going all USB-C wouldn't bother me. My only concern is the keyboard, but I have yet to see this new generation in person. Let me know what you think!
Blog Tags:
* Apple <x-msg://36/blog/tags/apple> * Apple TV <x-msg://36/applevis-blog/apple-tv> * News <x-msg://36/blog/tags/news>
-- Lenron Brown Cell: 985-271-2832 Skype: ron.brown762
--
Sent from my Android device with K-9 Mail. Please excuse my brevity.
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Re: What We Got from Apple's October 2016 Event | AppleVis
Hi.
That is true but the point I was making is that u do need an adapter.
USB isn't yet that out of date that you should need one or three of those.
Jmt
toggle quoted messageShow quoted text
On October 29, 2016 2:08:25 AM EDT, Carlos <carlos1106@...> wrote:
I can agree with some of the opinions in the previous message, but it should be noted that while USB-C connectors are not compatible with standard USB Type-A connectors, the protocols being used in USB-C are compatible so all you would need are Type-A to Type-C adapters. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Lenron" <lenron93@...> To: <main@TechTalk.groups.io> Sent: Saturday, October 29, 2016 1:51 AM Subject: Re: [TechTalk] What We Got from Apple's October 2016 Event | AppleVis
They seem to love making these stupid choices. One of my major reasons why if I ever need to buy a Mac I will get one a few years old. Like you said the only thing really nice about the new Mac Book Pro is the finger print reader.
On 10/28/16, Norman <lists@...> wrote:
Hello.
Looks like it's rant time! Note, if you don't like rants, then don't read this.
I like to think of myself as pretty open minded when it comes to tech, I own at least one device from the 4 major operating systems in the world today, windows, android, ios, and mac.
Granted, my main computer runs windows and my usual smartphone is an android device but that's mostly for functionality and familiarity reasons, not accessibility.'
Now with all that out of the way, let's get to the big news from apple this week. I've been hereing a lot of rumors of the new macbooks, and this had me curious to do some research into what apple would come up with when announcement day rolled around. In full disclosure, i did not watch the event and only read most of what i know about it afterwards. My reaction to this is what in the world was apple thinking?
The one new feature in the new macbooks i actually like is touch ID. I will admit to wanting that. However, with all the tradeoffs i would have to make to get it? there is no way i will do it. Let's summerize, yes, you get a faster computer, but speed is subjective once computers become this fast. I'm pretty sure that most users will not actually see a 50% speed increase in day to day use. With that being said, the internals upgrade to the 2 high end macs do make sense. What makes much less sense is the outside redesign. Here again there are things i'm fine with, the bigger track pad for example. However, now we come to my real issues with the new computers. First the touch bar.
Why, o why, do we need this? I would much rather have a full keyboard with a touch screen for secondary input. Let's think about this for a second in a real world use case. I'm going through my email as i normally do in
the morning and come accross a message i want to reply to. Which do you think would be the faster way to click the reply button? By going up to the touch bar, finding reply and double tapping? or by hitting the reply keyboard shortcut?
My second reason for not liking this is because i run windows in bootcamp on my macbook pro 2015. The touch bar on windows is an aweful idea! I could probably overlook the touch bar, but that's not even the worse thing to come with the new macbooks. That has to be the lack of ports. There is something to be said for simplicity, but apple may well have taken it to far this time. Let's review. On the new macbooks you get 2 or 4 usb c/thunderbolt 3 ports, a headphone jack simply because apple couldn't find a good way of spinning that, and, o yes, i forgot, that's it. No standard USB, no card reader, no HDMI, WTF???? In a single day apple has forced me to think about
upgrading almost every periferal i own. To put this in perspective, i now need to buy a $50 adapter from apple just to get the ability to plug in my IPhone 5s, For those people that say all apple things work together so well, think about that for a minute. I'd much rather see a macbook with at least one standard USB port and When have SD cards and USB hard drives become out of date? To add insult to injury, apple also decided to raise it's price a couple hundred. I could live with that if they had left a good alternative at the old price point, but no, they just had to insult us by making us pay $1400 for an even less appealing option than the macbook pro 2015. How is this an upgrade? Looking back the $1250 i paid for my 2015 macbook is looking like a better and better deal. I have a very nice computer that's 6 months old and works almost as fast as what is now current, and o buy the way? i
have all my old USB ports, sd card readers and standard keyboard! Just to put the financial part into perspective, i paid $1250 for my 2015 mac, about $150 off of the apple store price from amazon. If i had to get something compareable now i'd have to pay $1800 plus any adapters that i need and don't want just to have a functional computer.
Anyway, this is the end of my rant for now, i'm just very put off by apples design decissions. If they want USB C so badly then put it on, i don't mind, Just don't dump everything else that has worked for years just like that.
JMT.
On 10/28/2016 3:01 AM, Christopher Hallsworth wrote:
http://www.applevis.com/blog/apple-apple-tv-news/what-we-got-apples-october-2016-event#comment-form
What We Got from Apple's October 2016 Event
Submitted by mehgcap on 27 October, 2016 - 16:28 and last modified on 27 October, 2016 - 19:18
Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team <http://www.applevis.com/applevis-editorial-team>
Hello Again
Today, Apple held a press event it called "Hello Again". The company announced a new accessibility website, a new Apple TV feature, and a long-awaited update to its MacBook computers. It may have missed the back-to-school shoppers, but today's announcements arrive just in time for the holiday shopping frenzy. There are some major
changes to the MacBook line-up on the way, and while much of what you're about to read is awesome, you may not like all of it. But there's a great deal to like about the latest offerings from Apple, and I yell at articles to quit rambling in their intros and get on with it just as much as you do, so let's get on with it!
Accessibility Kick-Off
To my surprise, Apple started the presentation with a video highlighting accessibility features of its products. This led to Tim Cook's announcing a "whole new website" focused on Apple's accessibility efforts. As of the time of this writing, we haven't had a chance to fully explore this new website <http://www.apple.com/accessibility>, but it's always great to see the spotlight shown on all the work Apple does to make their devices as usable, to as many people, as they can. It’s
also great to see that the AppleVis Community is featured on Apple’s new Accessibility Portal as somewhere people should go to obtain more information and support. Thank you, Apple!
Get Entertained on Apple TV
No, there's not a new Apple TV coming out, but there is a new way to find something to watch on the box you already have. It's a new app from Apple, called--appropriately enough--TV. Yep, just those two letters. Interestingly, Apple offers this app on not just Apple TV, but your iOS devices as well, letting you browse and play content on any of your devices. But what, exactly, does the app do?
TV pulls together any shows or movies you're already watching on your video apps, as well as offering the next or newest episodes in TV series. This isn't just iTunes, either; it can work with ShowTime, CBS, HBO Now, and others, which makes it simple to keep up with any entertainment you're watching. The app also shows you your iTunes purchases or new video apps. It can even play content without you needing to know which app the content is in; tell Siri to play a particular show or game and that's all you need. But don't get too excited, because while the app is free, it won't be here until the end of the year.
Prose about the Pro
The MacBook Pro was the star of the show today. It got a major makeover--the first since the 2013 model dropped the disk drive--and there's a lot of great stuff on and inside it. Yet, there's also a change you may not like.
Inevitable Updates
First, the fun part: the updates we all expected, and that Apple almost /had/ to make. The Pro is now slightly lighter and thinner, while the battery life remains at ten hours; no surprise there. It's also adopted the USB-C ports we first saw
in the Retina MacBook last year. The new Pro includes four of them, and any of them can be used to charge the machine, which is a great touch if your outlet is opposite the power jack of your Mac. The audio jack, fortunately, hasn't gone anywhere, so there's no need to worry about getting USB sound cards or mics plus a bunch of adaptors. Those four USB-C (also called Thunderbolt 3--same thing) are all the ports you get, though. No standard USB, no Mini Display, no card reader, and, sadly, no more MagSafe.
Speaking of audio, the speakers are louder and, Apple claims, sound better than ever. Oh, and the storage is twice as fast as before, while the ram has gotten faster, too. Overall, the new Pros are anywhere from half again to more than twice as fast as the models they replace, depending on the category (gaming, graphics, or storage) you're interested in. Between the faster storage and ram, the better CPUs, and the improved graphics cards, these machines are powerhouses that manage to be smaller than any Pro to date.
One unexpected bit of news: the trackpad on the Pro is now twice as large as in previous models, and, of course, uses Taptic feedback to simulate a click. This lets you click it anywhere, not just on the bottom, and provides a much better experience with its larger surface area that can still click when pushed.
Not at all unexpected is the screen. It is 67% brighter, can show much better color, and draws even less power than the 2015 MacBook Pro screen. Yet it is as thin as that of the Retina MacBook, Apple's smallest computer ever.
Finally, in keeping with the storage trend it started with the iPhone 7, Apple is upping the base storage for all its Macs. 256GB is now the minimum for all MacBook models, which is where the Retina MacBooks have always
been. The amount of ram across the line has not changed, to my knowledge.
New Magic
Aside from the new ports and altered dimensions, the major new feature on the Pro models is the removal of the entire top line of keys. Escape, F1 through F12, and Eject are all gone, replaced by what amounts to a touch screen. This "Touchbar", as Apple is calling it, is a multi-touch, retina-quality screen that runs in a strip along the top of the Mac's keyboard. The Bar offers context-sensitive controls and suggestions, plus emulates function keys when necessary.
Why do this? Apple's reasoning is rather compelling, when you think about it objectively. What is the top row of keys for most users? Keys used mostly for media or brightness control. When you aren't doing those things, those keys are wasted space. Instead of simply taking them out, Apple has decided to update them. Now, they
can be your media controls in iTunes like normal, but they can also be the buttons or tools you need at any given moment, in any given application. In Mail, you have favorite mailboxes, message controls, and quick actions all available at the top of your keyboard. In Safari, you have tabs, favorite websites, and more. While typing, you have QuickType suggestions, just like in iOS. Best of all, you can customize the bar to show the controls you want, and touch one key to quickly bring up your standard function keys at any time. Plus, being a touch-sensitive display, you can perform gestures on the TouchBar. It wasn't clear what gestures are supported, but we know for sure that up to ten simultaneous touches will be recognized. That means dragging, pinching, swiping, and more, all with one or more fingers.
The TouchBar is Apple's first attempt to marry a touch-enabled display with the keyboard-
and mouse-driven world of macOS. No, it won't be perfect right away, but it speaks of exciting things to come. Even in this first iteration, I have to admit I'm eager to try it out for myself. It's not the access to functions for which hotkeys already exist that I like, but rather the customization possibilities I can envision. Combined with gesture input, the TouchBar could significantly raise the bar on computer interfaces. I apologize for any mental injury caused by such a terrible pun.
Of course, this means that VoiceOver users lose the hardware keys we use all the time--escape, f1, f2, and f5 come to mind immediately as keys I use many times a day for various VO commands. The big question, then, is how to perform these commands if all the virtual keys on the TouchBar have configured themselves for the currently open application? I wish I had the answer, but all I can say is that we at
AppleVis have reached out to Apple about this issue. Thus far, we haven't heard, but we will let you know when and if we get a response. Still, with the Apple TV, Apple Watch, boot sequence with File Vault enabled, and even complete macOS re-installs all offering VoiceOver support, I have no doubt that the new TouchBar won't be a problem. Who knows; there may even be a whole new commander to play with.
A Touchy Addition
Ever since the iPhone 5s in 2013, TouchID has been a staple of iOS devices. If you bought an iPhone or iPad, you knew you'd get the ability to unlock it, or authorize payments/purchases/apps, with your fingerprint. However, no Mac has ever had this hugely convenient ability. Apple partly addressed this shortcoming in macOS Sierra, allowing users to perform authentication on their Macs through iPhones or Apple Watches.
Now, though, the MacBook Pro
can do it all; the power button is also a TouchID sensor. Logging into your Mac, entering your admin password, using Apple Pay, and other security-centric tasks just got a lot more convenient. Simply place a finger on the power button, and that's it. Just like on iOS devices, the Mac reads your print, authenticates you, and you're all set. If you share a Mac with someone else, you can even use TouchID to immediately switch to your own user account, simply by touching the reader.
Getting Butterflies Over the New Keyboard
Now I have to give you the bad news. When the Retina MacBook came out, it included a keyboard that Apple naturally called "revolutionary". The keyboard took up less space, and gave a whole new feel to typing due to its "butterfly" switches. Apple may love the new design, but many reviewers found it odd and not as nice as the old keyboards.
When I
went down to a local outlet store and tried the keyboard myself, I had to agree; the key travel was less, and--more importantly--the space between the keys was almost non-existent. This made it very hard for me to feel where the keys were. I imagine this would have gotten better with time, so I'm not willing to condemn the keyboard based only on that first impression.
I say all that to say this: a new version of that new keyboard is now standard on all MacBooks. The good news is that Apple specifically mentioned key travel as an area of improvement in this new generation keyboard, so I'm happy to try out the latest model and be proven wrong. I do recommend getting over to an Apple Store or other shop where a demo MacBook is displayed so you can get your hands on the new keyboard before you make any purchase, if possible. However, the mention of an updated design gives me hope that Apple may have
gotten it right this time. Only time and experience will tell.
The New Line-Up (Or: Bye-Bye to the MacBook Air )
For years, the choice of Macs has been simple: an eleven- or thirteen-inch Air, or a thirteen- or fifteen-inch Pro. In 2015, Apple shook things up with the introduction of a twelve-inch MacBook with a retina display, dubbed the Retina MacBook or, confusingly, simply the MacBook. Despite its larger screen, this device was about the size of the eleven-inch Air, and rumors swirled that Apple would drop the smallest Air from the line- up. As the Retina version lacked more than one USB port and used a less powerful processor, though, there was still a valid use case for the Air.
Despite all that, the Air is no more. It has been replaced with the twelve-inch Retina model for those wanting the smallest computer, and a basic version of the 13-inch Pro for those
wanting a little more. Again, though, both devices are about the same size, so you don't have to worry about getting a physically larger machine. In fact, the 13-inch Pro is twelve percent thinner and thirteen percent smaller in overall volume than the 13-inch Air. Note that, at least for the moment, the 13-inch Air remains available, while the 11-inch Air has been pulled. No one knows how long this will last, though, just as there's no telling for how much longer the 13-inch Pro from 2015 will continue to be sold.
The Airs are all but gone, and in their place are the 12-inch MacBook we already know, and a 13-inch Pro to take the place of the 13-inch Air, While it so far has no official name, this Pro lacks the TouchBar and TouchID of its more expensive sibling, and includes two USB-C ports to the four that come on the "real" Pros. If you're looking for a new Mac, here are your options. All of
these come with 256GB of storage and 8GB of ram, except the 15-inch Pro which has 16GB of ram:
* 12-inch MacBook: one USB-C port, fanless design, smallest and least powerful MacBook available. $1,299, 2 pounds. * 13-inch "basic" Pro: two USB-C ports, no TouchBar, no TouchID, 2GhZ dual core Core I5 processor. Identical to base model 13-inch Pro in all other ways. $1,499, 3 pounds. * 13-inch Pro: four USB-C ports, 2.9GhZ dual core Core I5 processor, includes TouchBar. $1,799, 3 pounds. * 15-inch Pro: four USB-C ports, 2.6GhZ quad core Core I7, includes TouchBar. Again, starts with 16GB of ram to the others' 8GB. $2,399, 4 pounds.
Until Next Year
That's it. Apple isn't expected to release anything new until sometime next year, so go forth and shop with confidence that you're getting the newest machines for months to come. Or, wait
for deals on the "old" models, which are still extremely powerful and capable computers. Whatever you decide, today's announcements gave you a /lot/ to choose from.
As of today (the day of the event), pre-orders are open for all models, though some won't ship for a few weeks while others will go out today. Please don't rely on this article for final prices, specifications, and upgrade options. Use Apple's website, or the Apple Store app, for that. I'm just giving you the basics, as given out at the presentation.
Let me know what you're thinking. Is the incredible reduction in size, and increase in power, enough to make you want a new Pro? Will you snatch up an Air while you can (no one knows if they're officially being discontinued)? Are you intrigued by the TouchBar, or do you want to stay far away from it? If I had the money, I'd get the 13-inch Pro with TouchBar in a heartbeat.
The possibilities of a second touch/display surface are exciting, and I use peripherals rarely enough that going all USB-C wouldn't bother me. My only concern is the keyboard, but I have yet to see this new generation in person. Let me know what you think!
Blog Tags:
* Apple <x-msg://36/blog/tags/apple> * Apple TV <x-msg://36/applevis-blog/apple-tv> * News <x-msg://36/blog/tags/news>
-- Lenron Brown Cell: 985-271-2832 Skype: ron.brown762
--
Sent from my Android device with K-9 Mail. Please excuse my brevity.
|
|
Re: What We Got from Apple's October 2016 Event | AppleVis
I can agree with some of the opinions in the previous message, but it should be noted that while USB-C connectors are not compatible with standard USB Type-A connectors, the protocols being used in USB-C are compatible so all you would need are Type-A to Type-C adapters.
toggle quoted messageShow quoted text
----- Original Message ----- From: "Lenron" <lenron93@gmail.com> To: <main@TechTalk.groups.io> Sent: Saturday, October 29, 2016 1:51 AM Subject: Re: [TechTalk] What We Got from Apple's October 2016 Event | AppleVis They seem to love making these stupid choices. One of my major reasons why if I ever need to buy a Mac I will get one a few years old. Like you said the only thing really nice about the new Mac Book Pro is the finger print reader. On 10/28/16, Norman <lists@thekingstech.com> wrote: Hello.
Looks like it's rant time! Note, if you don't like rants, then don't read this.
I like to think of myself as pretty open minded when it comes to tech, I own at least one device from the 4 major operating systems in the world today, windows, android, ios, and mac.
Granted, my main computer runs windows and my usual smartphone is an android device but that's mostly for functionality and familiarity reasons, not accessibility.'
Now with all that out of the way, let's get to the big news from apple this week. I've been hereing a lot of rumors of the new macbooks, and this had me curious to do some research into what apple would come up with when announcement day rolled around. In full disclosure, i did not watch the event and only read most of what i know about it afterwards. My reaction to this is what in the world was apple thinking?
The one new feature in the new macbooks i actually like is touch ID. I will admit to wanting that. However, with all the tradeoffs i would have to make to get it? there is no way i will do it. Let's summerize, yes, you get a faster computer, but speed is subjective once computers become this fast. I'm pretty sure that most users will not actually see a 50% speed increase in day to day use. With that being said, the internals upgrade to the 2 high end macs do make sense. What makes much less sense is the outside redesign. Here again there are things i'm fine with, the bigger track pad for example. However, now we come to my real issues with the new computers. First the touch bar.
Why, o why, do we need this? I would much rather have a full keyboard with a touch screen for secondary input. Let's think about this for a second in a real world use case. I'm going through my email as i normally do in the morning and come accross a message i want to reply to. Which do you think would be the faster way to click the reply button? By going up to the touch bar, finding reply and double tapping? or by hitting the reply keyboard shortcut?
My second reason for not liking this is because i run windows in bootcamp on my macbook pro 2015. The touch bar on windows is an aweful idea! I could probably overlook the touch bar, but that's not even the worse thing to come with the new macbooks. That has to be the lack of ports. There is something to be said for simplicity, but apple may well have taken it to far this time. Let's review. On the new macbooks you get 2 or 4 usb c/thunderbolt 3 ports, a headphone jack simply because apple couldn't find a good way of spinning that, and, o yes, i forgot, that's it. No standard USB, no card reader, no HDMI, WTF???? In a single day apple has forced me to think about upgrading almost every periferal i own. To put this in perspective, i now need to buy a $50 adapter from apple just to get the ability to plug in my IPhone 5s, For those people that say all apple things work together so well, think about that for a minute. I'd much rather see a macbook with at least one standard USB port and When have SD cards and USB hard drives become out of date? To add insult to injury, apple also decided to raise it's price a couple hundred. I could live with that if they had left a good alternative at the old price point, but no, they just had to insult us by making us pay $1400 for an even less appealing option than the macbook pro 2015. How is this an upgrade? Looking back the $1250 i paid for my 2015 macbook is looking like a better and better deal. I have a very nice computer that's 6 months old and works almost as fast as what is now current, and o buy the way? i have all my old USB ports, sd card readers and standard keyboard! Just to put the financial part into perspective, i paid $1250 for my 2015 mac, about $150 off of the apple store price from amazon. If i had to get something compareable now i'd have to pay $1800 plus any adapters that i need and don't want just to have a functional computer.
Anyway, this is the end of my rant for now, i'm just very put off by apples design decissions. If they want USB C so badly then put it on, i don't mind, Just don't dump everything else that has worked for years just like that.
JMT.
On 10/28/2016 3:01 AM, Christopher Hallsworth wrote:
http://www.applevis.com/blog/apple-apple-tv-news/what-we-got-apples-october-2016-event#comment-form
What We Got from Apple's October 2016 Event
Submitted by mehgcap on 27 October, 2016 - 16:28 and last modified on 27 October, 2016 - 19:18
Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team <http://www.applevis.com/applevis-editorial-team>
Hello Again
Today, Apple held a press event it called "Hello Again". The company announced a new accessibility website, a new Apple TV feature, and a long-awaited update to its MacBook computers. It may have missed the back-to-school shoppers, but today's announcements arrive just in time for the holiday shopping frenzy. There are some major changes to the MacBook line-up on the way, and while much of what you're about to read is awesome, you may not like all of it. But there's a great deal to like about the latest offerings from Apple, and I yell at articles to quit rambling in their intros and get on with it just as much as you do, so let's get on with it!
Accessibility Kick-Off
To my surprise, Apple started the presentation with a video highlighting accessibility features of its products. This led to Tim Cook's announcing a "whole new website" focused on Apple's accessibility efforts. As of the time of this writing, we haven't had a chance to fully explore this new website <http://www.apple.com/accessibility>, but it's always great to see the spotlight shown on all the work Apple does to make their devices as usable, to as many people, as they can. It’s also great to see that the AppleVis Community is featured on Apple’s new Accessibility Portal as somewhere people should go to obtain more information and support. Thank you, Apple!
Get Entertained on Apple TV
No, there's not a new Apple TV coming out, but there is a new way to find something to watch on the box you already have. It's a new app from Apple, called--appropriately enough--TV. Yep, just those two letters. Interestingly, Apple offers this app on not just Apple TV, but your iOS devices as well, letting you browse and play content on any of your devices. But what, exactly, does the app do?
TV pulls together any shows or movies you're already watching on your video apps, as well as offering the next or newest episodes in TV series. This isn't just iTunes, either; it can work with ShowTime, CBS, HBO Now, and others, which makes it simple to keep up with any entertainment you're watching. The app also shows you your iTunes purchases or new video apps. It can even play content without you needing to know which app the content is in; tell Siri to play a particular show or game and that's all you need. But don't get too excited, because while the app is free, it won't be here until the end of the year.
Prose about the Pro
The MacBook Pro was the star of the show today. It got a major makeover--the first since the 2013 model dropped the disk drive--and there's a lot of great stuff on and inside it. Yet, there's also a change you may not like.
Inevitable Updates
First, the fun part: the updates we all expected, and that Apple almost /had/ to make. The Pro is now slightly lighter and thinner, while the battery life remains at ten hours; no surprise there. It's also adopted the USB-C ports we first saw in the Retina MacBook last year. The new Pro includes four of them, and any of them can be used to charge the machine, which is a great touch if your outlet is opposite the power jack of your Mac. The audio jack, fortunately, hasn't gone anywhere, so there's no need to worry about getting USB sound cards or mics plus a bunch of adaptors. Those four USB-C (also called Thunderbolt 3--same thing) are all the ports you get, though. No standard USB, no Mini Display, no card reader, and, sadly, no more MagSafe.
Speaking of audio, the speakers are louder and, Apple claims, sound better than ever. Oh, and the storage is twice as fast as before, while the ram has gotten faster, too. Overall, the new Pros are anywhere from half again to more than twice as fast as the models they replace, depending on the category (gaming, graphics, or storage) you're interested in. Between the faster storage and ram, the better CPUs, and the improved graphics cards, these machines are powerhouses that manage to be smaller than any Pro to date.
One unexpected bit of news: the trackpad on the Pro is now twice as large as in previous models, and, of course, uses Taptic feedback to simulate a click. This lets you click it anywhere, not just on the bottom, and provides a much better experience with its larger surface area that can still click when pushed.
Not at all unexpected is the screen. It is 67% brighter, can show much better color, and draws even less power than the 2015 MacBook Pro screen. Yet it is as thin as that of the Retina MacBook, Apple's smallest computer ever.
Finally, in keeping with the storage trend it started with the iPhone 7, Apple is upping the base storage for all its Macs. 256GB is now the minimum for all MacBook models, which is where the Retina MacBooks have always been. The amount of ram across the line has not changed, to my knowledge.
New Magic
Aside from the new ports and altered dimensions, the major new feature on the Pro models is the removal of the entire top line of keys. Escape, F1 through F12, and Eject are all gone, replaced by what amounts to a touch screen. This "Touchbar", as Apple is calling it, is a multi-touch, retina-quality screen that runs in a strip along the top of the Mac's keyboard. The Bar offers context-sensitive controls and suggestions, plus emulates function keys when necessary.
Why do this? Apple's reasoning is rather compelling, when you think about it objectively. What is the top row of keys for most users? Keys used mostly for media or brightness control. When you aren't doing those things, those keys are wasted space. Instead of simply taking them out, Apple has decided to update them. Now, they can be your media controls in iTunes like normal, but they can also be the buttons or tools you need at any given moment, in any given application. In Mail, you have favorite mailboxes, message controls, and quick actions all available at the top of your keyboard. In Safari, you have tabs, favorite websites, and more. While typing, you have QuickType suggestions, just like in iOS. Best of all, you can customize the bar to show the controls you want, and touch one key to quickly bring up your standard function keys at any time. Plus, being a touch-sensitive display, you can perform gestures on the TouchBar. It wasn't clear what gestures are supported, but we know for sure that up to ten simultaneous touches will be recognized. That means dragging, pinching, swiping, and more, all with one or more fingers.
The TouchBar is Apple's first attempt to marry a touch-enabled display with the keyboard- and mouse-driven world of macOS. No, it won't be perfect right away, but it speaks of exciting things to come. Even in this first iteration, I have to admit I'm eager to try it out for myself. It's not the access to functions for which hotkeys already exist that I like, but rather the customization possibilities I can envision. Combined with gesture input, the TouchBar could significantly raise the bar on computer interfaces. I apologize for any mental injury caused by such a terrible pun.
Of course, this means that VoiceOver users lose the hardware keys we use all the time--escape, f1, f2, and f5 come to mind immediately as keys I use many times a day for various VO commands. The big question, then, is how to perform these commands if all the virtual keys on the TouchBar have configured themselves for the currently open application? I wish I had the answer, but all I can say is that we at AppleVis have reached out to Apple about this issue. Thus far, we haven't heard, but we will let you know when and if we get a response. Still, with the Apple TV, Apple Watch, boot sequence with File Vault enabled, and even complete macOS re-installs all offering VoiceOver support, I have no doubt that the new TouchBar won't be a problem. Who knows; there may even be a whole new commander to play with.
A Touchy Addition
Ever since the iPhone 5s in 2013, TouchID has been a staple of iOS devices. If you bought an iPhone or iPad, you knew you'd get the ability to unlock it, or authorize payments/purchases/apps, with your fingerprint. However, no Mac has ever had this hugely convenient ability. Apple partly addressed this shortcoming in macOS Sierra, allowing users to perform authentication on their Macs through iPhones or Apple Watches.
Now, though, the MacBook Pro can do it all; the power button is also a TouchID sensor. Logging into your Mac, entering your admin password, using Apple Pay, and other security-centric tasks just got a lot more convenient. Simply place a finger on the power button, and that's it. Just like on iOS devices, the Mac reads your print, authenticates you, and you're all set. If you share a Mac with someone else, you can even use TouchID to immediately switch to your own user account, simply by touching the reader.
Getting Butterflies Over the New Keyboard
Now I have to give you the bad news. When the Retina MacBook came out, it included a keyboard that Apple naturally called "revolutionary". The keyboard took up less space, and gave a whole new feel to typing due to its "butterfly" switches. Apple may love the new design, but many reviewers found it odd and not as nice as the old keyboards.
When I went down to a local outlet store and tried the keyboard myself, I had to agree; the key travel was less, and--more importantly--the space between the keys was almost non-existent. This made it very hard for me to feel where the keys were. I imagine this would have gotten better with time, so I'm not willing to condemn the keyboard based only on that first impression.
I say all that to say this: a new version of that new keyboard is now standard on all MacBooks. The good news is that Apple specifically mentioned key travel as an area of improvement in this new generation keyboard, so I'm happy to try out the latest model and be proven wrong. I do recommend getting over to an Apple Store or other shop where a demo MacBook is displayed so you can get your hands on the new keyboard before you make any purchase, if possible. However, the mention of an updated design gives me hope that Apple may have gotten it right this time. Only time and experience will tell.
The New Line-Up (Or: Bye-Bye to the MacBook Air )
For years, the choice of Macs has been simple: an eleven- or thirteen-inch Air, or a thirteen- or fifteen-inch Pro. In 2015, Apple shook things up with the introduction of a twelve-inch MacBook with a retina display, dubbed the Retina MacBook or, confusingly, simply the MacBook. Despite its larger screen, this device was about the size of the eleven-inch Air, and rumors swirled that Apple would drop the smallest Air from the line- up. As the Retina version lacked more than one USB port and used a less powerful processor, though, there was still a valid use case for the Air.
Despite all that, the Air is no more. It has been replaced with the twelve-inch Retina model for those wanting the smallest computer, and a basic version of the 13-inch Pro for those wanting a little more. Again, though, both devices are about the same size, so you don't have to worry about getting a physically larger machine. In fact, the 13-inch Pro is twelve percent thinner and thirteen percent smaller in overall volume than the 13-inch Air. Note that, at least for the moment, the 13-inch Air remains available, while the 11-inch Air has been pulled. No one knows how long this will last, though, just as there's no telling for how much longer the 13-inch Pro from 2015 will continue to be sold.
The Airs are all but gone, and in their place are the 12-inch MacBook we already know, and a 13-inch Pro to take the place of the 13-inch Air, While it so far has no official name, this Pro lacks the TouchBar and TouchID of its more expensive sibling, and includes two USB-C ports to the four that come on the "real" Pros. If you're looking for a new Mac, here are your options. All of these come with 256GB of storage and 8GB of ram, except the 15-inch Pro which has 16GB of ram:
* 12-inch MacBook: one USB-C port, fanless design, smallest and least powerful MacBook available. $1,299, 2 pounds. * 13-inch "basic" Pro: two USB-C ports, no TouchBar, no TouchID, 2GhZ dual core Core I5 processor. Identical to base model 13-inch Pro in all other ways. $1,499, 3 pounds. * 13-inch Pro: four USB-C ports, 2.9GhZ dual core Core I5 processor, includes TouchBar. $1,799, 3 pounds. * 15-inch Pro: four USB-C ports, 2.6GhZ quad core Core I7, includes TouchBar. Again, starts with 16GB of ram to the others' 8GB. $2,399, 4 pounds.
Until Next Year
That's it. Apple isn't expected to release anything new until sometime next year, so go forth and shop with confidence that you're getting the newest machines for months to come. Or, wait for deals on the "old" models, which are still extremely powerful and capable computers. Whatever you decide, today's announcements gave you a /lot/ to choose from.
As of today (the day of the event), pre-orders are open for all models, though some won't ship for a few weeks while others will go out today. Please don't rely on this article for final prices, specifications, and upgrade options. Use Apple's website, or the Apple Store app, for that. I'm just giving you the basics, as given out at the presentation.
Let me know what you're thinking. Is the incredible reduction in size, and increase in power, enough to make you want a new Pro? Will you snatch up an Air while you can (no one knows if they're officially being discontinued)? Are you intrigued by the TouchBar, or do you want to stay far away from it? If I had the money, I'd get the 13-inch Pro with TouchBar in a heartbeat. The possibilities of a second touch/display surface are exciting, and I use peripherals rarely enough that going all USB-C wouldn't bother me. My only concern is the keyboard, but I have yet to see this new generation in person. Let me know what you think!
Blog Tags:
* Apple <x-msg://36/blog/tags/apple> * Apple TV <x-msg://36/applevis-blog/apple-tv> * News <x-msg://36/blog/tags/news>
-- Lenron Brown Cell: 985-271-2832 Skype: ron.brown762
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Re: What We Got from Apple's October 2016 Event | AppleVis
They seem to love making these stupid choices. One of my major reasons why if I ever need to buy a Mac I will get one a few years old. Like you said the only thing really nice about the new Mac Book Pro is the finger print reader.
toggle quoted messageShow quoted text
On 10/28/16, Norman <lists@thekingstech.com> wrote: Hello.
Looks like it's rant time! Note, if you don't like rants, then don't read this.
I like to think of myself as pretty open minded when it comes to tech, I own at least one device from the 4 major operating systems in the world today, windows, android, ios, and mac.
Granted, my main computer runs windows and my usual smartphone is an android device but that's mostly for functionality and familiarity reasons, not accessibility.'
Now with all that out of the way, let's get to the big news from apple this week. I've been hereing a lot of rumors of the new macbooks, and this had me curious to do some research into what apple would come up with when announcement day rolled around. In full disclosure, i did not watch the event and only read most of what i know about it afterwards. My reaction to this is what in the world was apple thinking?
The one new feature in the new macbooks i actually like is touch ID. I will admit to wanting that. However, with all the tradeoffs i would have to make to get it? there is no way i will do it. Let's summerize, yes, you get a faster computer, but speed is subjective once computers become this fast. I'm pretty sure that most users will not actually see a 50% speed increase in day to day use. With that being said, the internals upgrade to the 2 high end macs do make sense. What makes much less sense is the outside redesign. Here again there are things i'm fine with, the bigger track pad for example. However, now we come to my real issues with the new computers. First the touch bar.
Why, o why, do we need this? I would much rather have a full keyboard with a touch screen for secondary input. Let's think about this for a second in a real world use case. I'm going through my email as i normally do in the morning and come accross a message i want to reply to. Which do you think would be the faster way to click the reply button? By going up to the touch bar, finding reply and double tapping? or by hitting the reply keyboard shortcut?
My second reason for not liking this is because i run windows in bootcamp on my macbook pro 2015. The touch bar on windows is an aweful idea! I could probably overlook the touch bar, but that's not even the worse thing to come with the new macbooks. That has to be the lack of ports. There is something to be said for simplicity, but apple may well have taken it to far this time. Let's review. On the new macbooks you get 2 or 4 usb c/thunderbolt 3 ports, a headphone jack simply because apple couldn't find a good way of spinning that, and, o yes, i forgot, that's it. No standard USB, no card reader, no HDMI, WTF???? In a single day apple has forced me to think about upgrading almost every periferal i own. To put this in perspective, i now need to buy a $50 adapter from apple just to get the ability to plug in my IPhone 5s, For those people that say all apple things work together so well, think about that for a minute. I'd much rather see a macbook with at least one standard USB port and When have SD cards and USB hard drives become out of date? To add insult to injury, apple also decided to raise it's price a couple hundred. I could live with that if they had left a good alternative at the old price point, but no, they just had to insult us by making us pay $1400 for an even less appealing option than the macbook pro 2015. How is this an upgrade? Looking back the $1250 i paid for my 2015 macbook is looking like a better and better deal. I have a very nice computer that's 6 months old and works almost as fast as what is now current, and o buy the way? i have all my old USB ports, sd card readers and standard keyboard! Just to put the financial part into perspective, i paid $1250 for my 2015 mac, about $150 off of the apple store price from amazon. If i had to get something compareable now i'd have to pay $1800 plus any adapters that i need and don't want just to have a functional computer.
Anyway, this is the end of my rant for now, i'm just very put off by apples design decissions. If they want USB C so badly then put it on, i don't mind, Just don't dump everything else that has worked for years just like that.
JMT.
On 10/28/2016 3:01 AM, Christopher Hallsworth wrote:
http://www.applevis.com/blog/apple-apple-tv-news/what-we-got-apples-october-2016-event#comment-form
What We Got from Apple's October 2016 Event
Submitted by mehgcap on 27 October, 2016 - 16:28 and last modified on 27 October, 2016 - 19:18
Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team <http://www.applevis.com/applevis-editorial-team>
Hello Again
Today, Apple held a press event it called "Hello Again". The company announced a new accessibility website, a new Apple TV feature, and a long-awaited update to its MacBook computers. It may have missed the back-to-school shoppers, but today's announcements arrive just in time for the holiday shopping frenzy. There are some major changes to the MacBook line-up on the way, and while much of what you're about to read is awesome, you may not like all of it. But there's a great deal to like about the latest offerings from Apple, and I yell at articles to quit rambling in their intros and get on with it just as much as you do, so let's get on with it!
Accessibility Kick-Off
To my surprise, Apple started the presentation with a video highlighting accessibility features of its products. This led to Tim Cook's announcing a "whole new website" focused on Apple's accessibility efforts. As of the time of this writing, we haven't had a chance to fully explore this new website <http://www.apple.com/accessibility>, but it's always great to see the spotlight shown on all the work Apple does to make their devices as usable, to as many people, as they can. It’s also great to see that the AppleVis Community is featured on Apple’s new Accessibility Portal as somewhere people should go to obtain more information and support. Thank you, Apple!
Get Entertained on Apple TV
No, there's not a new Apple TV coming out, but there is a new way to find something to watch on the box you already have. It's a new app from Apple, called--appropriately enough--TV. Yep, just those two letters. Interestingly, Apple offers this app on not just Apple TV, but your iOS devices as well, letting you browse and play content on any of your devices. But what, exactly, does the app do?
TV pulls together any shows or movies you're already watching on your video apps, as well as offering the next or newest episodes in TV series. This isn't just iTunes, either; it can work with ShowTime, CBS, HBO Now, and others, which makes it simple to keep up with any entertainment you're watching. The app also shows you your iTunes purchases or new video apps. It can even play content without you needing to know which app the content is in; tell Siri to play a particular show or game and that's all you need. But don't get too excited, because while the app is free, it won't be here until the end of the year.
Prose about the Pro
The MacBook Pro was the star of the show today. It got a major makeover--the first since the 2013 model dropped the disk drive--and there's a lot of great stuff on and inside it. Yet, there's also a change you may not like.
Inevitable Updates
First, the fun part: the updates we all expected, and that Apple almost /had/ to make. The Pro is now slightly lighter and thinner, while the battery life remains at ten hours; no surprise there. It's also adopted the USB-C ports we first saw in the Retina MacBook last year. The new Pro includes four of them, and any of them can be used to charge the machine, which is a great touch if your outlet is opposite the power jack of your Mac. The audio jack, fortunately, hasn't gone anywhere, so there's no need to worry about getting USB sound cards or mics plus a bunch of adaptors. Those four USB-C (also called Thunderbolt 3--same thing) are all the ports you get, though. No standard USB, no Mini Display, no card reader, and, sadly, no more MagSafe.
Speaking of audio, the speakers are louder and, Apple claims, sound better than ever. Oh, and the storage is twice as fast as before, while the ram has gotten faster, too. Overall, the new Pros are anywhere from half again to more than twice as fast as the models they replace, depending on the category (gaming, graphics, or storage) you're interested in. Between the faster storage and ram, the better CPUs, and the improved graphics cards, these machines are powerhouses that manage to be smaller than any Pro to date.
One unexpected bit of news: the trackpad on the Pro is now twice as large as in previous models, and, of course, uses Taptic feedback to simulate a click. This lets you click it anywhere, not just on the bottom, and provides a much better experience with its larger surface area that can still click when pushed.
Not at all unexpected is the screen. It is 67% brighter, can show much better color, and draws even less power than the 2015 MacBook Pro screen. Yet it is as thin as that of the Retina MacBook, Apple's smallest computer ever.
Finally, in keeping with the storage trend it started with the iPhone 7, Apple is upping the base storage for all its Macs. 256GB is now the minimum for all MacBook models, which is where the Retina MacBooks have always been. The amount of ram across the line has not changed, to my knowledge.
New Magic
Aside from the new ports and altered dimensions, the major new feature on the Pro models is the removal of the entire top line of keys. Escape, F1 through F12, and Eject are all gone, replaced by what amounts to a touch screen. This "Touchbar", as Apple is calling it, is a multi-touch, retina-quality screen that runs in a strip along the top of the Mac's keyboard. The Bar offers context-sensitive controls and suggestions, plus emulates function keys when necessary.
Why do this? Apple's reasoning is rather compelling, when you think about it objectively. What is the top row of keys for most users? Keys used mostly for media or brightness control. When you aren't doing those things, those keys are wasted space. Instead of simply taking them out, Apple has decided to update them. Now, they can be your media controls in iTunes like normal, but they can also be the buttons or tools you need at any given moment, in any given application. In Mail, you have favorite mailboxes, message controls, and quick actions all available at the top of your keyboard. In Safari, you have tabs, favorite websites, and more. While typing, you have QuickType suggestions, just like in iOS. Best of all, you can customize the bar to show the controls you want, and touch one key to quickly bring up your standard function keys at any time. Plus, being a touch-sensitive display, you can perform gestures on the TouchBar. It wasn't clear what gestures are supported, but we know for sure that up to ten simultaneous touches will be recognized. That means dragging, pinching, swiping, and more, all with one or more fingers.
The TouchBar is Apple's first attempt to marry a touch-enabled display with the keyboard- and mouse-driven world of macOS. No, it won't be perfect right away, but it speaks of exciting things to come. Even in this first iteration, I have to admit I'm eager to try it out for myself. It's not the access to functions for which hotkeys already exist that I like, but rather the customization possibilities I can envision. Combined with gesture input, the TouchBar could significantly raise the bar on computer interfaces. I apologize for any mental injury caused by such a terrible pun.
Of course, this means that VoiceOver users lose the hardware keys we use all the time--escape, f1, f2, and f5 come to mind immediately as keys I use many times a day for various VO commands. The big question, then, is how to perform these commands if all the virtual keys on the TouchBar have configured themselves for the currently open application? I wish I had the answer, but all I can say is that we at AppleVis have reached out to Apple about this issue. Thus far, we haven't heard, but we will let you know when and if we get a response. Still, with the Apple TV, Apple Watch, boot sequence with File Vault enabled, and even complete macOS re-installs all offering VoiceOver support, I have no doubt that the new TouchBar won't be a problem. Who knows; there may even be a whole new commander to play with.
A Touchy Addition
Ever since the iPhone 5s in 2013, TouchID has been a staple of iOS devices. If you bought an iPhone or iPad, you knew you'd get the ability to unlock it, or authorize payments/purchases/apps, with your fingerprint. However, no Mac has ever had this hugely convenient ability. Apple partly addressed this shortcoming in macOS Sierra, allowing users to perform authentication on their Macs through iPhones or Apple Watches.
Now, though, the MacBook Pro can do it all; the power button is also a TouchID sensor. Logging into your Mac, entering your admin password, using Apple Pay, and other security-centric tasks just got a lot more convenient. Simply place a finger on the power button, and that's it. Just like on iOS devices, the Mac reads your print, authenticates you, and you're all set. If you share a Mac with someone else, you can even use TouchID to immediately switch to your own user account, simply by touching the reader.
Getting Butterflies Over the New Keyboard
Now I have to give you the bad news. When the Retina MacBook came out, it included a keyboard that Apple naturally called "revolutionary". The keyboard took up less space, and gave a whole new feel to typing due to its "butterfly" switches. Apple may love the new design, but many reviewers found it odd and not as nice as the old keyboards.
When I went down to a local outlet store and tried the keyboard myself, I had to agree; the key travel was less, and--more importantly--the space between the keys was almost non-existent. This made it very hard for me to feel where the keys were. I imagine this would have gotten better with time, so I'm not willing to condemn the keyboard based only on that first impression.
I say all that to say this: a new version of that new keyboard is now standard on all MacBooks. The good news is that Apple specifically mentioned key travel as an area of improvement in this new generation keyboard, so I'm happy to try out the latest model and be proven wrong. I do recommend getting over to an Apple Store or other shop where a demo MacBook is displayed so you can get your hands on the new keyboard before you make any purchase, if possible. However, the mention of an updated design gives me hope that Apple may have gotten it right this time. Only time and experience will tell.
The New Line-Up (Or: Bye-Bye to the MacBook Air )
For years, the choice of Macs has been simple: an eleven- or thirteen-inch Air, or a thirteen- or fifteen-inch Pro. In 2015, Apple shook things up with the introduction of a twelve-inch MacBook with a retina display, dubbed the Retina MacBook or, confusingly, simply the MacBook. Despite its larger screen, this device was about the size of the eleven-inch Air, and rumors swirled that Apple would drop the smallest Air from the line- up. As the Retina version lacked more than one USB port and used a less powerful processor, though, there was still a valid use case for the Air.
Despite all that, the Air is no more. It has been replaced with the twelve-inch Retina model for those wanting the smallest computer, and a basic version of the 13-inch Pro for those wanting a little more. Again, though, both devices are about the same size, so you don't have to worry about getting a physically larger machine. In fact, the 13-inch Pro is twelve percent thinner and thirteen percent smaller in overall volume than the 13-inch Air. Note that, at least for the moment, the 13-inch Air remains available, while the 11-inch Air has been pulled. No one knows how long this will last, though, just as there's no telling for how much longer the 13-inch Pro from 2015 will continue to be sold.
The Airs are all but gone, and in their place are the 12-inch MacBook we already know, and a 13-inch Pro to take the place of the 13-inch Air, While it so far has no official name, this Pro lacks the TouchBar and TouchID of its more expensive sibling, and includes two USB-C ports to the four that come on the "real" Pros. If you're looking for a new Mac, here are your options. All of these come with 256GB of storage and 8GB of ram, except the 15-inch Pro which has 16GB of ram:
* 12-inch MacBook: one USB-C port, fanless design, smallest and least powerful MacBook available. $1,299, 2 pounds. * 13-inch "basic" Pro: two USB-C ports, no TouchBar, no TouchID, 2GhZ dual core Core I5 processor. Identical to base model 13-inch Pro in all other ways. $1,499, 3 pounds. * 13-inch Pro: four USB-C ports, 2.9GhZ dual core Core I5 processor, includes TouchBar. $1,799, 3 pounds. * 15-inch Pro: four USB-C ports, 2.6GhZ quad core Core I7, includes TouchBar. Again, starts with 16GB of ram to the others' 8GB. $2,399, 4 pounds.
Until Next Year
That's it. Apple isn't expected to release anything new until sometime next year, so go forth and shop with confidence that you're getting the newest machines for months to come. Or, wait for deals on the "old" models, which are still extremely powerful and capable computers. Whatever you decide, today's announcements gave you a /lot/ to choose from.
As of today (the day of the event), pre-orders are open for all models, though some won't ship for a few weeks while others will go out today. Please don't rely on this article for final prices, specifications, and upgrade options. Use Apple's website, or the Apple Store app, for that. I'm just giving you the basics, as given out at the presentation.
Let me know what you're thinking. Is the incredible reduction in size, and increase in power, enough to make you want a new Pro? Will you snatch up an Air while you can (no one knows if they're officially being discontinued)? Are you intrigued by the TouchBar, or do you want to stay far away from it? If I had the money, I'd get the 13-inch Pro with TouchBar in a heartbeat. The possibilities of a second touch/display surface are exciting, and I use peripherals rarely enough that going all USB-C wouldn't bother me. My only concern is the keyboard, but I have yet to see this new generation in person. Let me know what you think!
Blog Tags:
* Apple <x-msg://36/blog/tags/apple> * Apple TV <x-msg://36/applevis-blog/apple-tv> * News <x-msg://36/blog/tags/news>
-- Lenron Brown Cell: 985-271-2832 Skype: ron.brown762
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Hi,
Is anyone still experiencing this? I am not sure when the last updates were, but today, I noticed after saving a website as a favorite earlier today and I just opened it, there was no more of that dreaded dialog.
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Re: ripping cd with media player
If you are into audio tutorials, take a look at this page:
http://www.jaws-users.com/audio/
On this page item number 6, Brian Lee will walk you through ripping a cd using wmp.
Hth.
toggle quoted messageShow quoted text
From: main@TechTalk.groups.io [mailto:main@TechTalk.groups.io]
On Behalf Of Jerry hathaway
Sent: Friday, October 28, 2016 8:26 PM
To: main@TechTalk.groups.io
Subject: [TechTalk] ripping cd with media player
Can anyone give me step by steps to rip a cd by using media player.
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