OS X

Apple warns developers of incoming CloudKit data wipe, suggesting iOS 8 beta 3 might be around the corner

Apple just sent an email to its registered developers warning them that the company will be performing a server-side CloudKit data wipe for iOS 8 beta and OS X Yosemite Developer Preview, on Monday July 7.

If this data wipe is not unusual, it definitely comes at an interesting time, suggesting that not surprisingly, iOS 8 beta 3 and and the third OS X Yosemite Developer Preview might be right around the corner...

Taasky is a beautiful and minimalistic task manager for Mac

Taasky for Mac is one of the latest entrants in a highly competitive market of apps for task management, to-do lists and getting things done. How it aims to stand out of the pack is with a beautiful and sleek design, but how does it stack up functionally? Taasky can be best described as simple, both from a design and usage perspective. After giving the app a test drive on my Mac for a few days, here are my first impressions… 

Apple appears to have ended support for AIM accounts in OS X Messages

For years, Apple's Messages app for OS X (previously known as iChat) has offered support for the aging AIM messaging protocol with mac.com and me.com IDs.

Then on Monday, as it said it would, Cupertino has ended AIM support for mac.com or me.com accounts in Messages on Macs running OS X Lion 10.7.1 or earlier.

However, it now appears that the company has actually phased out support for AIM accounts for everyone, regardless of Mac OS X version, and without giving users a heads-up...

Photos for Mac won’t be dumbed down, says Apple

Apple's surprise announcement that it will cease development of its Aperture app in favor of Photos for OS X Yosemite has left watchers scratching their head. There's also the problem of prosumers and iPhone photography enthusiasts, many of whom have grown dependent on Aperture workflows.

The problem is even more pronounced given concerns that any feature-parity between Photos on iOS 8 and the upcoming Photos for OS X Yosemite Macs would inevitably lead to significant dumbing down compared to Aperture's feature set.

Case in point: the iWork for iCloud effect.

Anyway, Apple has now official confirmed via a written statement that Photos for Mac will include certain pro-grade features such as photo editing, image search and third-party effects and plugins...

How to jailbreak iOS 7.1.x untethered with Pangu on Mac OS X [video]

Pangu for the Mac was just released today, and it brings with it the ability to jailbreak iOS 7.1.x untethered. The Windows version, which was released last week to much fanfare, has already allowed many people to enjoy the fruits of jailbreaking iOS.

I think it's safe to say that the Mac version has been highly anticipated since word of Pangu first hit the Internet. For those of you who remained patient, your patience has paid off. You can now jailbreak iOS 7.1 and iOS 7.1.1 using your Mac. Check our our full video walkthrough inside for all of the details.

Apple to stop development of Aperture in favor of Photos on OS X Yosemite

Apple has confirmed that it will no longer be developing its professional photo editing software Aperture when OS X Yosemite is released later this year. The company is shifting focus to the new Photos app that it previewed at the WWDC keynote, which effectively replaces both iPhoto and Aperture on previous versions of OS X. The app is set to launch early next year… 

Apple seeds OS X 10.9.4 build 13E25 to developers

Apple has seeded the fourth beta of OS X 10.9.4 to registered Mac developers for testing. This latest OS X Mavericks beta has the build number 13E25 and arrives just six days following the third OS X 10.9.4 beta release. As with most of these minor build releases, it is unknown exactly what changes that Apple has made, but we should be nearing a public release soon… 

Apple TV rumored to receive Continuity integration with iOS 8 and Yosemite Macs this Fall

iOS 8 and Yosemite come with Handoff, a particularly useful feature for completing tasks across multiple devices and seamlessly moving from one device to another. Part of the broader Continuity capability, Handoff relies on proximity sensing via power-sipping Bluetooth 4.0 to detect nearby devices which then broadcast user tasks.

Handoff lets you easily create an intelligent Instant Hotspot on your mobile device, start writing an email on your iPad and continue right where you left off on a Mac, receive and make phone calls and handle text messages on Macs and lots more.

According to one blogger, Apple will be bringing Continuity to its Apple TV media-streaming box when iOS 8 launches this Fall, resulting in a much tighter Apple TV integration with Mac and iOS...

How to enable Yosemite’s somewhat functional dark mode

There were lots of oohs and aahs in response to Apple's software engineering chief Craig Federighi showing off a new dark UI mode in OS X Yosemite at WWDC two weeks ago. It basically alters the appearance of the menus, sliders, buttons, windows and other UI elements.

The gorgeously subdued look is inspired by the dark appearance of Apple's pro software such as Aperture and Final Cut Pro. In fact, I like it so much that I enthusiastically tweeted right after the keynote that I was very much looking forward to using it on a permanent basis come this Fall.

However, dark mode was notably absent from the first beta of OS X 10.10 and is nowhere to be found in the just-released Beta 2. For a good reason, too, as it's unfinished and very much work in progress so not really ready for prime time yet.

If you're a type of person who can't wait to see it in action, you can enable Yosemite's dark UI using just a simple Terminal command...