OS X 10.10

Can’t redeem Yosemite beta code? Here’s a fix.

Apple today opened the floodgate by posting the public beta of its upcoming OS X 10.10 Yosemite software, which launches officially sometime this Fall, and already a bunch of people took to Twitter over an error message saying the redemption code has already been used.

Each copy of Yosemite beta requires a promotional code which must be redeemed in the Mac App Store to download the installer. Is there anything you can do about this error message?

Yes, there is – and a remedy couldn’t be simpler. Read on…

Apple rolls out OS X 10.10 Yosemite public beta – are you in?

As promised, Apple today opened up OS X 10.10 Yosemite betas to the first million applicants who’ve signed up for the OS X Beta Program using their Apple ID. If you haven’t yet signed up for the program, better hurry up! Otherwise, be patient as Apple will email you soon (using your Apple ID contact details) to let you know when your OS X Yosemite Beta redemption code is ready.

There’s a lot to love about Yosemite – both in terms of the simplified, flattened user interface and  new features that take integration between iOS and the Mac to the next level.

It also marks the first time Apple has permitted both its registered Mac developers and the general public to access betas of a work-in-progress Mac operating system update.

Today’s poll asks a very simple question: are you, or are you not, going to install the public Yosemite beta on your Mac?

How to install OS X 10.10 Yosemite beta on a separate partition

When Yosemite was first announced with all of its awesome features, I exclaimed on iDB’s group chat session that I would be installing the OS as soon as it was available for download. Sebastien quickly rebuffed my excitement and told me how unreasonable it was to install a beta OS on my main machine, and especially so while I’m out of the country. After being a bit disappointed (that wasn’t what I wanted to hear at all…I mean, SMS texting on OS X!) I eventually came to the realization that he was right.

But then, I remembered that I didn’t need to settle. I could easily create a partition on my Mac and keep Yosemite completely separate from my main (and stable) Mavericks install. It had been a while since I had last messed around with disk partitioning in OS X, but it didn’t take long before I was installing the Yosemite beta on the same Mac where my primary Mavericks install lays its head down at night.

The benefits are multi-faceted. Number one, you get to try out Apple’s new OS right now. Number two, you don’t have to worry about buggy beta software cramping your style; after all, you’re still running your main OS on the a separate partition. Number three, it can be done quickly, and with little to no downsides (as long as you have the disk space to spare). Check inside for our full tutorial that shows you how to install OS X 10.10 Yosemite on a separate partition on your primary Mac.

Yosemite includes the ability to initiate screen sharing via the Messages app

There’s a plethora of new features to be found in Yosemite, and one of the latest has been found in the Messages app. Along with the ability to initiate FaceTime audio and video calls directly from a Messages app conversation, comes the ability to initiate screen sharing.

Users will be able to either request a screen sharing session from another user, or initiate their own screen sharing session directly from the Messages app. Check inside for more details.

iOS 8 AirPlay broadcasts to Apple TV without Wi-Fi

Apple’s current implementation of AirPlay, its media streaming technology, requires a Mac or iOS device to be on the same Wi-Fi network as an AirPlay receiver, which in most scenarios is the Apple TV. While seamless, AirPlay in its current form makes it impossible to use in places where you don’t have access to a local Wi-Fi network.

Feeling your pain, Apple in iOS 8 has implemented zero-configuration peer-to-peer networking between AirPlay devices. This lets you broadcast whatever content from an iPhone, iPod touch or iPad to your Apple TV, even if these devices are not on the same local network…

OS X Yosemite lets you video capture iOS 8 devices with a Lightning cable

Capturing a real-time screencast of apps and games running on your iPhone, iPod touch or iPad used to require juggling with various devices/cables.

As our own Jeff Benjamin would explain, a typical solution would involve using a pro camcorder to physically record the screen of an iOS device and taking advantage of one of Lightning digital A/V adapters to feed live video from your iOS device to a computer or a specialized video capture device.

Starting this Fall, iOS 8 and OS X Yosemite will greatly simplify the process by allowing you to capture a screencast by connecting an iPhone, iPod touch or iPad to a computer using a Lightning cable, no A/V adapters or HDMI capture cards needed whatsoever…

Download the iOS 8 and OS X Yosemite wallpapers

Today, Apple announced the newest version of its desktop operating system, OS X 10.10, also known as “Yosemite.” With a vast array of new features, 10.10 is one of the largest departures from previous versions we have seen in many years. Sporting exciting additions like Continuity, which promises a more streamlined experience when switching between iOS devices and desktop devices, we are really enjoying getting through some of the beta testing.

Each new version of any OS includes at least one amazing wallpaper from Apple. Today, we discovered one new wallpaper with each iOS 8 and Yosemite. Inside, find the full resolution versions for your selective devices…

Public OS X Yosemite beta only open to first one million applicants

Non-developers wanting to try out the new OS X 10.10 Yosemite before it launches this fall will be happy to know that Apple is opening up the beta to the public via its AppleSeed Seeding program. That’s the good news, that bad news is that only the first 1 million applicants will get access.
If you haven’t already, hurry over to Apple’s AppleSeed registration page and enter your iTunes credentials to sign up. As you can imagine, Apple’s servers are getting slammed right now, so the pages are loading very slowly. But if you wait for them to speed up, you might just miss out!

OS X Yosemite developer preview will be available today

Folks excited to checkout all of the new features in OS X Yosemite will be happy to hear that a developer preview will be available today, for free [obviously]. It sounds like it’s going to be available for all registered developers at first, and eventually hit Apple’s recently launched public beta program. As usual, we’ll let you know as soon as the download is available.

Apple introduces ‘MailDrop’ for sending large files via email

Continuing on with its rundown of OS X 10.10 Yosemite, Apple’s Craig Federighi just introduced MailDrop. The new feature addresses a “fundamental problem with email” by allowing users to send large files over email, via iCloud.

As it sits now, users get the error ‘Cannot send message using the server Mail’ when they go to send larger hi-resolution images or HD video via the Mail app in OS X. But MailDrop fixes this by allowing you to send files via iCloud…

Leaked images seemingly show OS X 10.10 with Control Center, flatter UI and other iOS 7 features

Earlier this morning, someone has posted a set of alleged OS X 10.10 screenshots on Reddit only to pull them soon after.

In researching the authenticity of the purported photos, MacRumors has been able to dig up a few interesting tidbits concerning Apple’s design direction for the next major update to its desktop operating system powering Macs.

The original photos have been removed since at the request of the original poster. We can’t vouch for their authenticity and are reposting them here for entertainment purposes…

WWDC roundup: what to expect from Apple’s keynote

We’re now less than 24 hours away from Apple’s highly anticipated WWDC 2014 keynote. Beginning at 10 AM PST tomorrow, Tim Cook and other executives will take the stage at the Moscone Center in San Francisco to give us all a glimpse of the company’s future.

We don’t know exactly what’s going to be talked about, outside of new versions of OS X and iOS, but the rumor mill has provided us with a bevy of possibilities. So, as we do every year, we’ve put together a roundup of all the things we’re expecting Apple to announce…