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How to clear your web browsing cache in Chrome, Safari, and Firefox on Mac

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated December 19, 2022

Over time, web browsers accumulate website data from everyday browsing. Known as cache, this data collection helps browsers load web pages more quickly, so these files don't have to be re-downloaded when you revisit the same websites in the future.

Unfortunately, cache is also the main suspect when diagnosing issues loading websites, and it can also eat up valuable storage space on your Mac. That's why in this tutorial, we'll show you how to delete cache and cookies in three of the most popular web browsers: Apple Safari, Google Chrome, and Mozilla Firefox.

Interesting points from Apple’s Q2 earnings call

Cody Lee ∙ May 2, 2017

Apple announced the financial results for its fiscal second quarter of 2017 this afternoon, and the numbers for the 3-month period are pretty good. While iPhone sales were down slightly from last year, the company's revenue was up from $50.6 billion to $52.9 billion.

Following the release of its earnings, CEO Tim Cook and CFO Luca Maestri hopped on a conference call to talk about Apple's performance over the last 3 months, and offer up some insights into its future. Here are some of the most interesting points from the call.

Apple’s Q2 2017: 50.8M iPhones, 8.9M iPads, $52.9B revenue

Cody Lee ∙ May 2, 2017

Apple on Tuesday reported its [fiscal] Q2 2017 earnings, offering a look at its performance over the last 3 months. During the period, the company sold 50.8 million iPhones, down slightly from the year-ago quarter, and made $52.9 billion, up 5% from last year. Here's a full breakdown of the numbers.

Microsoft’s new mouse has bendable tail

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 2, 2017

Microsoft's hardware division has been building some of the nicest mice and keyboards for years now. At today's education-focused event in New York City, the Windows maker briefly showed off a new Surface Arc Mouse.

Positioned as the perfect travel companion to the company's new touchscreen Surface Laptop, the wireless mouse was designed with a bendable tail and other features such as a touch-sensitive surface akin to Apple's Magic Mouse.

The Bluetooth device snaps into the curved position to power up. When you're done using it, simply snap again to flatten and power it down.

At just 2.91 ounces, or about 83 grams, Surface Arc Mouse is pretty light, too.

And here it is in action.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkwSh2q-1yE

Other features include a touch-sensitive plane for simultaneous vertical and horizontal scrolling, Bluetooth 4.0, the curvature that conforms to your hand, up to nine months of battery life via the two included AAA alkaline batteries, left and right buttons and more.

The Bluetooth device boasts high imaging rate that adapts dynamically to a whopping 1,200 frames per second, ensuring smooth performance with up to a thousand points per inch and tracking speed of up to 30 inches (approximately 762 millimeters) per second.

Surface Arc Mouse is available for pre-order via Microsoft Store for $79.99 in three distinct color finishes: Burgundy, Light Gray and Cobalt Blue.

It's scheduled to start shipping this summer on June 15.

New features announced for Minecraft: Education Edition

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 2, 2017

As part of Microsoft’s event held earlier today, developer Mojang announced that Minecraft: Education Edition is getting new features. The educational version of the popular open-world game designed specifically for classroom use will be gaining a Code Builder feature, Command Blocks and other enhancements via an upcoming update due later this Spring.

Code Builder

With Code Builder, educators and students can explore, create and play in the Minecraft world, all by writing code. Students can connect to popular learn-to-code platforms: ScratchX, Tynker, Code.org and a brand new open source platform, called Microsoft MakeCode.

Check out Code Builder in the video presentation embedded below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3rKuSlgqePo

Players start with the familiar Minecraft tools, templates and tutorials, with additional resources at their disposal allowing them to easily engage with computer science concepts as they design and create.

Command Blocks and Classroom Mode

Command Blocks, a new feature, will be part of the upcoming Minecraft: Education Edition version 1.0.1 due later this Spring. That update will also bring out a few other perks, including additional languages, villager trading, adventure mode, concrete/terracotta blocks and llamas.

Lastly, Classroom Mode for Minecraft: Education Edition has been updated with additional toggles to support teaching and learning. The update gives educators additional toggles to manage chat and blocks that cause damage like lava and TNT, weather and mobs.

Availability

Microsoft says classrooms in more than a hundred countries have used the educational edition of Minecraft, with its professional learning community having created 30,000 profiles and hundreds of educator-created lesson plans.

Download Minecraft: Education Edition for Mac/Windows via education.minecraft.net, where you can also join an open beta of Code Builder if you'd like.

The software maker said that a one-year subscription to Minecraft: Education Edition is now included with qualifying purchases of Windows 10 computers and tablets.

The regular edition of Minecraft is gaining a Marketplace feature, basically an in-game store where players can buy Minecraft customizations made by independent developers.

Marketplace is coming via the version 1.1 Discovery Update.

Microsoft unveils touchscreen Surface Laptop, its $999 MacBook rival

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 2, 2017

At its educational event held this morning in New York City, Microsoft unveiled Surface Laptop, its $999 MacBook rival available for preorder beginning today ahead of its planned release this summer.

The device runs the new Windows 10 S operating system, the company's answer to Google’s Chrome OS, and features a clamshell body weighing at 2.76 pounds and measuring 14.47mm at its thickest point and tapering down to 9.9mm at its thinnest point at the front.

Taking on MacBooks

Surface Laptop runs either Intel’s seventh-generation i5 or i7 processor and sports vapor chambers integrated into the anodized aluminum finish on the rear to help keep it cool.

It's got a 13.5-inch PixelSense LCD touchscreen with a 3:2 aspect ratio featuring 3.4 million pixels (withCorning’s Gorilla Glass 3 for protection) and supporting the Surface Pen stylus. “This is the thinnest LDC touch model every created and put into a laptop,” says Microsoft's Panos Panay, who took to the stage to unveil the new products today.

Say hello to Surface Laptop

Watch a reveal trailer for Surface Laptop below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74kPEJWpCD4

The laptop is outfitted with a 14.5-hour battery.

That’s “up to four more hours of battery power than a 13-inch MacBook Pro” and “more battery life than any MacBook Air on the market today,” says the Windows maker in another comparison between its new notebook and Apple's MacBook line. The Windows maker claims you can watch as many as fourteen episodes of your favorite TV show in one sitting, without ever plugging in.

The device's keyboard has a 1.5mm travel, with the backlit keys made from the same material used for premium Surface Pro covers, called Alcantara fabric. The speakers are integrated underneath the keyboard, but there are no speaker grills or holes.

In terms of connections, Surface Laptop comes outfitted with a regular USB port, mini DisplayPort and the conventional Surface power connector, but no USB-C.

Windows 10 S or Windows 10 Pro?

Because it runs Windows 10 S, Surface Laptop can only run apps offered on Windows Store.

Google Chrome is not found on Windows Store and Spotify’s app with support for Surface Dial will be coming to the store early this summer. If you want to run apps not found on Windows Store, you can optionally upgrade to Windows 10 Pro for a one-time $49 fee.

Because Windows 10 Pro is the full version of Microsoft’s operating system, upgrading may result in reduced battery life and performance, cautions the Windows maker.

If you need to use an app that isn’t in the Windows Store, in just a few clicks can go to the Windows Store and switch to Windows 10 Pro. But you shouldn’t. This device, this OS, they’re made for each other, and together they offer so much. It’s everything you love about Windows, Office, and Surface, made pure and elegant in an unbelievably thin and light package.

Microsoft now has three families of Surface devices in its lineup: the Surface Pro 4 notebook/laptop hybrid, the all-in-one Surface Studio and the new Surface Laptop.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HCVUCqZoHI

Availability and pricing

Surface Laptop is available for pre-order via Microsoft Store starting today.

The entry-level $999 model uses Intel’s seventh-generation Core i5 processor with Intel HD Graphics 620, four gigabytes of RAM and 128 gigabytes of flash storage. The $1,299 model uses 256 gigabytes of flash storage and eight gigabytes of RAM.

The more powerful $1,599 model comes outfitted with Intel’s seventh-generation Core i7 processor with Intel Iris Plus Graphics 640, eight gigabytes of RAM and 256 gigabytes of flash storage. The flagship $2,199 model upgrades your storage and RAM to 512 and sixteen gigabytes, respectively.

Surface Laptop comes in four colors: Platinum, Burgundy, Cobalt Blue and Graphite Gold.

The notebook will start shipping this summer on June 15. For a limited time, Surface Laptop comes with an offer for one-year subscription to Office 365 Personal and one terabyte of free storage on OneDrive, giving you full access to Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote.

Drone footage reveals Apple Park is starting to come together

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 2, 2017

Apple announced a month ago that its futuristic new $5 billion headquarters in Cupertino, California would be named Apple Park. New drone footage from videographer Matthew Roberts now shows that Apple Park is finally starting to come together although some sections are still under construction.

Although first employees began moving in last month, construction workers will be finalizing landscaping and putting additional finishing touches around the new campus until year-end.

Clockwise: huge tunnels leading underneath the main building, the visitor kiosk, a fitness center for employees and the main entrance to the underground 1,000-seat theater for press events.

Apple has been able to plant a lot of mature trees around the campus over the past few weeks and has reused most of the massive pile of the earth it dug up for landscaping work .

The main ring-shaped building, large enough to house 13,000 employees, is being finalized as we speak. And now, watch the latest birds-eye video of Apple Park from Matthews.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFhcnzSmH-E

Other facilities are nearing completion as well.

Aside from the main ring-shaped building, other nearly-finished facilities include the Tantau Avenue parking garage above ground plus the massive parking garages below ground, the secure research and development centers found on the outskirts of the campus, the kiosk for visitors and tourists and the giant tunnels running underneath the main building.

Solar panel installations on the roof appear mostly complete.

On the other hand, there are some unfinished structures on the site but they're expected to be completed in a matter of weeks. As mentioned, some sections of the main building have been open to employees since the beginning of April.

How do you like Apple's new headquarters?

Undercover factory worker spills the beans on security measures to prevent iPhone leaks

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 2, 2017

As part of his summer project, NYU grad student Dejian Zeng spent six weeks working undercover in a Chinese factory operated by iPhone manufacturer Pegatron. In a video interview with Business Insider's Kif Leswing, he reveals some of the security measures designed to prevent unwanted leaks as part of preparations ahead of iPhone 7 production.

Here's an interesting excerpt from the interview:

In the workshop, we were originally producing iPhone 6s and during that time that we were in the workshop they were already building up some facilities or infrastructure to build the assembly line for iPhone 7.

And they had this big curtain that blocked everything.

While we were in the same workshop, we saw nothing. And later on, we were moved to another sub-factory building to do work there for a while, because they need to rebuild the assembly line that we are working on also.

The following points from the interview stood out for me:

It's “impossible” for workers to take photos, let alone carry some components out Workers are required to leave their phones, keys and other metals in a locker room No metal is allowed inside the factories There are security cameras in every assembly line Security involves access cards, facial recognition cameras and metal detectors

The security level increased sharply ahead of iPhone 7 production.

For starters, management at the factories installed two metal detectors and increased their sensitivity, in turn creating problems for female workers wearing bras.

“All of a sudden, on that specific day, they couldn’t pass the security door, and they needed to go back and change everything,” said Dejian.

He says regular assembly line workers were strictly prohibited from bringing their cameras or phones inside the factories, unlike high-level managers who could bring their phones.

“I’m not sure whether photos can get leaked by that,” he said.

But even high-level managers were asked to wake up their phone's screen every time they went through the metal detectors so that security personnel could determine that they weren't carrying an unfinished iPhone unit concealed in a fake phone case. And if a worker does get caught attempting to carry an iPhone out of the factories, they're sent to the police.

In spite of all the security, leaks do happen and they're a fact of life.

Who's to stop a person from running to the press to tell them what they saw inside the factories? After they started building iPhone 7, some employees were able to confirm to the media that the device would come without headphone jack and with two cameras on the back.

“Those are some things that we can see and we can remember and we can tell the media later on,” said Dejian. Apple is known for holding its contractors to the highest security standards.

In that regard, the following excerpt is revealing:

When I was producing iPhone 6, I did see Apple come for audits. I think it was two or three times.

And every time when they come, the manger in the factories got very nervous. They would tell us you need to follow the procedure and sit straight, and don’t talk.

When they kicked off iPhone 7 production, Apple staff was there “every single day”.

Factory workers are reportedly aware of how popular the iconic smartphone is and think it’s “very cool” that they get to see Apple's unreleased products before anyone else.

The full video interview is available on Business Insider.

Google says Apple Watch support will be returning to Maps for iOS

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 2, 2017

Google has confirmed that it will be bringing back support for Apple Watch to the Maps app for iPhone and iPad at some point in the future. In a statement issued Tuesday to AppleInsider, a spokesperson for the search giant said: “We removed Apple Watch support from our latest iOS release, but expect to support it again in the future”.

The company provided no explanation for the removal of Apple Watch functionality from Maps for iOS, which went largely unnoticed because it wasn't mentioned in App Store release notes.

As we reported yesterday, recent updates to major iPhone apps like Google Maps, eBay, Amazon and Target came stripped of all Apple Watch support, perhaps indicating that watchOS features in them were not widely used.

Google brought its Maps app to Apple Watch in September 2015, with features like turn-by-turn driving, walking and transit directions for recently visited points of interest. The app lacked other features found in Apple's Maps for Apple Watch, such as no conventional map view and the inability to conduct searches without a tethered iPhone.

CCQuick Pro X turbocharges Control Center with a bevy of new features

Anthony Bouchard ∙ May 2, 2017

If having an arsenal of quick shortcuts throughout iOS sounds good to you, then you should warm up to a jailbreak tweak release dubbed CCQuick Pro X for iOS10 by iOS developer Cunstuck pretty quickly.

Following installation, the tweak turbocharges Control Center with a slew of new features. Not only can you boost its visual appeal, but you can also upgrade the interface’s usability with additional shortcuts and toggles among other things.

This tweak eliminates the delay after pressing the Home button

Anthony Bouchard ∙ May 2, 2017

There’s nearly a full second of delay after pressing your Home button before the app you’re in actually closes. Whether you love or hate the delay remains to be seen, but if you aren't fond of it, now there's something you can do about it.

Installing a new free jailbreak tweak called Accelerated Home Button by iOS developer Mehul Rao from Cydia virtually eliminates the delay effect, making access to your Home screen instantaneous after pressing the Home button.

Let’s Talk iOS 185: Back in full force

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated May 9, 2017

The guys show you how to record a one-hour podcast without even talking about iPhone 8 rumors. Yes, it is possible. Listen in to find out how. Cody and Sebastien mainly discuss the rumored Siri speaker, as well as a potential upcoming financial service from Apple that we'll dub Apple Cash for now.

Subscribe on iTunes

Support Let’s Talk iOS: Visit protectamerica.com/ios to get $5 off your monthly monitoring.