Mac, News/Rumors

Another new Java update for OS X Lion

Apple implemented few days ago a Java security update 2012-001, due to the Trojan BackDoor.Flashback that infested more than 550K Mac, mostly in the U.S., Canada and UK.

According to the reports received by 9to5 Mac, it seems that Apple is pushing forward a new version of Java update, as noted in the Software Update. The new update, 2012-002, displaces the previous –001, though it appears in the KB article still as -001.

Specifications about the aim of the new update are not mentioned yet. Maybe the first update was meant to close the vulnerability in Java 1.6.0_29 that caused the Macs infection, while the latter comes with security improvements.

Mac

Dr. WEB Diagnosed 550K Macs Infested With “Flashback”

The Russian anti-virus vendor, Doctor WEB, released on Wednesday a research reporting that the Trojan BackDoor.Flashback reached to 500 000 of Apple’s hardware running Mac OS X. Mac owners from the U.S., Canada and UK were the most injured.

BackDoor.Flashback.39 gets installed in someone’s computer once a user reaches an infested link, and it seems that more than four million infested Web pages were found on a Google SERP at the end of March.

When it reaches a Mac, Flashback automatically saves on its hard drive an exe. file that adds malicious charges to the system. If the Trojan analyzes your system’s field and if the immunity is low, it successfully installs and starts downloading and running payloads.

In order to keep the track of the infected hosts, Dr. WEB redirected the botnet traffic to its own servers. It seems that the compromised Mac owners were mostly from the U.S., Canada and UK.

Apple closed this vulnerability on April 3rd, 2012.

Source: Dr. Web

Mac

Safari Keyboard shortcuts that come in handy

It’s stated that Safari is not just a web browser but a new way of interacting with the web. Safari copes with Mac OS X, allowing one to make whatever he is doing on the web in a different way. We have come with useful OS X shortcuts on a previous article and now for taking full advantage of your device, OS X Daily has provided us more useful shortcuts and multi-touch gestures.

Navigating Tabs & Web Pages

  • Switch to Next Tab – Control+Tab
  • Switch to Previous Tab – Control+Shift+Tab
  • Scroll Down by Full Screen – Spacebar
  • Scroll Up by Full Screen – Shift+Spacebar
  • Go to Address Bar – Command+L
  • Open New Tab – Command+T
  • Open Link in New Tab – Command+Click a link
  • Add Linked Page to Reading List – Shift+Click link

Reading & Viewing Pages

  • Strip Styling and View in Reader – Command+Shift+R
  • Increase Text Size – Command+Plus
  • Decrease Text Size – Command+Minus
  • Default Text Size – Command+0
  • Enter or Exit Full Screen – Command+Escape
  • Open Home Page – Command+Shift+H
  • Mail Link to Current Page – Command+I (mails contents)

Caches, Loading Pages, Source, and Pop Ups

  • Empty Browser Cache – Command+Option+E
  • Reload Page – Command+R
  • Stop Loading Page – Command+.
  • View Page Source – Command+Option+U
  • Disable Pop Up Windows – Command+Shift+K

Finding and Navigating Found Items

  • Find Text on Page – Command+F
  • Navigate Found Items Forward – Return
  • Navigate Found Items Backwards – Shift+Return

Toolbars, History, and Reading List

  • Hide or Show Toolbar – Command+I (vertical divider)
  • Hide or Show Bookmarks Bar – Command+Shift+B
  • Hide or Show Status Bar – Command+/
  • Hide or Show Tab Bar – Command+Shift+T
  • Show Top Sites – Command+Option+1
  • Show History – Command+Option+2
  • Show Reading List – Command+Shift+L
  • Show Downloads – Command+Option+L

Safari Multi-Touch Gestures

  • Go Back – One Finger Swipe Left
  • Go Forward – One Finger Swipe Right
  • Zoom Out / Decrease Font Size – Pinch
  • Zoom In / Increase Font Size – Spread / Reverse Pinch

 

Accessories, iPhone, iPod

JBL On Air Wireless: Speaker Docks from JBL that breaths the purest sound into your world

JBL On Air Wireless is the eye-catching speaker dock for your iPhone and iPod that enables you to clearly stream your iTunes tracks and the Internet radio via Wi-Fi.

The sound is streamed to a clear quality due to the design of the speakers and to the proprietary DSP technologies. JBL On Air features a 360-degree HALO (horizontal acoustic level optimization) design that produces a pure sound field of high quality and depth. Moreover, the design not only that is purposeful, but it is also uncommon and attractive; it integrates a bright color LCD screen that displays album covers and tracks metadata.

The advanced DSP technologies takes care that you enjoy the high quality sound. The Computer-optimized equalization (COE) combines with the Optimized compression topology (OCT) to adjust the spread of the sound to a rich and wide soundstage.

It may sound complicated but in fact the JBL On Air Wireless speakers are easy to use and the setup is almost absent, you’ll just have to dock your iPhone or iPod to JBL’s docking connector. And as an extra feature, your device will charge while connected.

A small but powerful IR remote controls all the functions of the speakers, even if you are 15 feet (4.5m) away. You can also connect your MP3 or your CD player to JBL On Air and play music also from flash storage devices.

If you want your favorite tracks to be streamed through the purest sound then you can purchase your JBL On Air Wireless speakers from the Apple Store and from iStyle Premium Apple Reseller Store for South-Eastern Europe.

Source: JBL

Apple, Mac

Wall clocks that originate from retired MAC and ibook covers

Ever wondered where the sleek, lovely polished and retired Apple devices are turning to? Some of them will proudly fill the history pages while others will fill the empty space on your wall as working clocks.

A clock created from a white Mac 14″ iBook cover and combined with the Apple wireless mouse as the pendulum bob couldn’t look otherwise than appealing and particular. The clock has dimensions of 12.75″w x 10″h and runs on 2 AA batteries that power the movement of the fingers and of the pendulum.

Also the side panels of a Mac G3 and Mac G4 are making an eye-catching sight on one’s wall. Such clock measures 16″w x 16″h and runs on 1 C battery. Having no pendulum, the clock uses a high torque quartz drive movement. And you could choose between a glossy or unpolished model.

Moreover, you could also follow time on an LCD. The clock alternative created from a Mac 15″ Powerbook G4 LCD screen looks catchy. It features a circular pattern in the middle of the antiglare screen and gets completed with an Apple wireless mouse as the pendulum bob. It measures 13.5″w x 16″h and runs on 2 AA batteries that bring the tick-tock to life.

All clock models come with batteries included. Due to the fact that the clocks are created from retired Macs, one might notice also scuffs and scratches. None the less, such clocks are making a sleek appearance on one’s wall, especially on the wall of an Apple fanatic. You can get your Apple inspired clock from Etsy’s shop for $69.00, $57.00, $59.00 and $76.00 respectively.

Apple

Apple’s Hardware Improvements in the Life Sciences Industry

The research firm IDC Health Insights surveyed 100 of the most popular life science companies to contrive its Q1 Leading Indicators in Life Science IT Spending Survey and reached to the following conclusion: Apple’s hardware is placed second on the top of the life science companies preferences for 2012.

Apple moves into the second place for the first time and scores the greatest improvement in the hardware category. More than 30 percent of the participant companies are planning to purchase their hardware from Apple.

Meanwhile, Dell is proudly holding the lead as the most preferred hardware vendor; 45 percent of life science companies chose Dell as their hardware provider. This way, the company comes into the first place for the 6th year in a row.

In this top of preferences, Apple is followed by Cisco, HP, Intel, EMC and IBM.

Apple experienced considerable improvements also in the software area, along with SAP and SAS. It did not reach the first place, as Oracle is the leader on the software market, with more than 25 percent of the life science companies planning to spend money on Oracle in 2012.

Source: TNW via IDC

Apple

Largest Apple Store in South-Eastern Europe Got Opened in Bucharest

Apple’s Premium Reseller in Romania, iStyle, opened today the largest Apple store from South-Eastern Europe.

The store, situated in Bucharest at Baneasa Shopping City Mall, is declared as the largest in this geographical area because, unlike other stores from Bucharest, Budapest or Prague, this one measures more than 310 square yards (260 square meters).

All iStyle stores are in accordance with Apple’s Business Values that define the way the Company does business worldwide and the way its channel members must cooperate, thus, each detail of this store was approved by Apple and even the furniture and the parquet for the floor were sent by the Cupertino Company. Also the white dots on the crystal-clear windows are fixed according to Apple’s specifications.

Above the store’s entrance is placed a people-monitoring device which sends real time details to Apple’s headquarters. Also, unlike other iStyle stores, this one is offering free trainings and workshops to its clients using Apple devices and applications.

Apple

FLA to Report on Apple Working Conditions

Rumors about the bad working conditions in Apple’s manufacturing factories from China are in the air especially since the iPhone 4S launch, when the demanding for the smartphone became overwhelming. Once with Apple’s successful holiday quarter both the selling and the manufacturing ceased no more.

Activist group SumOfUs calls in question the fact that this week, the Fair Labor Association (FLA) might reveal in a report the working conditions and techniques at Foxconn facilities in China. SumOfUs detailed what FLA aims with this report:

“The purpose of this memo is to place that forthcoming report in context, based on the history of Apple’s statements and pledges concerning these issues, the information already publicly known about labor practices in Apple’s supply chain, and the analysis of truly independent labor rights groups as to what steps Apple and Foxconn should actually be taking to address labor rights abuses.”

Due to the already reported rights violations of workers, such as lingering overtime and dangerous working conditions, and to the fact that Apple admitted the existence of some of the claims, FLA has no choice but to note that abuses of rights do occur at Foxconn.

Thus, “a critical report from the FLA will not, in and of itself, constitute proof that a new day is dawning in Apple’s supply chain. It will only be proof that the FLA and Apple are smart enough to understand that no one, at this point, is going to be fooled by a whitewash,” said SumOfUs.

All in all, the issues at Foxconn are already popular and one cannot say why exactly a FLA audit needs to mention them one more time. Either way, FLA will also bring into notice Apple and Foxconn’s promises for a better work environment and also their responsibilities. Back in 2006, the same situation occurred to Apple but the problems fount their answers; it remains uncertain whether or not Apple will show decency to its workers instead of abuses also on 2012.

Source: SumOfUs

Apple

iPad owners spend altogether $70K a day on Newsstand content

Apple released the Newsstand 6 months ago, once with the release of iOS 5. This area of the App Store gathers in a single folder all newspaper and magazine apps installed by a user.

Due to the fact that since the release of its first iPad Apple managed to sell 50 million tablets, Distimo Publication explored the depth of this fresh App Store area; the research company reached to the conclusion that more than 70K USD per day got spend by iPad users on Newsstand content.

The report also revealed that 10% of all iPad apps feature in-app purchases, while among the iPhone apps only 6% feature in-app purchases. So far, Apple’s App Store is the only one that integrates such purchases, meaning that one can get a free app and then pay for an upgrade.

It seems that the Newsstand category generates substantial revenues to Apple; 7% of the top 200 grossing apps are accounted from news apps, reaching to the top of the iPad apps. The daily $70K USD is made by the top 100 grossing Newsstand magazines, most downloaded being The Daily, NYTimes for iPad, The New Yorker Magazine, National Geographic Magazine and Cosmopolitan Magazine.

Also, another surprisingly finding was that China became the leading Apple App Store for iPad judging after the app downloads. No wonder the winner of the 25 Billion App promotion was Chinese.

Distimo’s report was achieved after an accurate analysis of the Apple App Store for iPad in the United States in February 2012. After only 6 months, the Newsstand proves to be a great shot not only for Apple but also for developers.

Source: Business Insider