Adobe Releases Guide on Transitioning Photos From Aperture to Lightroom [Mac Blog]

Back in June, Apple announced plans to discontinue development on both Aperture and iPhoto in favor of the new Photos app that will be added to both iOS 8 and OS X Yosemite in the future.

Adobe took advantage of Aperture’s discontinuation, announcing its own plans to create a tool to help former Aperture and iPhoto customers transition to Lightroom, Adobe’s professional photo editing software.

Adobe today released a guide [PDF] for users who are interested in making the switch from Aperture to Lightroom immediately, which can be accessed from the Adobe website.

In the guide, Adobe notes that a simple tool remains in development, but for users who don’t mind going through a detailed migration process, it’s possible to switch from Aperture to Lightroom immediately. The process involves creating a full backup, exporting original photos from Aperture, exporting TIFF versions of edited Aperture photos, and importing the content to Lightroom.

Adobe’s guide also includes links to learning more about how to use Lightroom and it points users towards Adobe’s Creative Cloud Photography plan, which offers access to Lightroom for desktop, web, and mobile along with Photoshop CC for $9.99 per month.

Users who don’t want to go through the hassle of exporting and importing files from Aperture to Lightroom can wait for Adobe’s migration tool to be completed.

While Apple is ceasing development on Aperture in favor of Photos, early screenshots of the app and information from Apple representatives has suggested that some of Aperture’s professional-grade features may make it into the Photos app. Photos will also include tools to allow users to import iPhoto and Aperture libraries into the new app.

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Apple’s Arizona Sapphire Facility ‘Commencing the Transition to Volume Production’

Apple’s sapphire partner GT Advanced Technologies today announced financial results for the second quarter of 2014, acknowledging publicly that the companies’ facility in Mesa, Arizona is “commencing the transition to volume production.”

“The build-out of our Arizona facility, which has involved taking a 1.4 million square foot facility from a shell to a functional structure as well as the installation of sapphire growth and fabrication equipment, is nearly complete and we are commencing the transition to volume production,” Gutierrez continued. “We remain confident about the long-term potential of the sapphire materials business for GT.

Overall, GT reported a net loss of $86 million for the quarter, a result that is not unexpected given that the company is significantly restructuring itself as part of the Apple deal, essentially shutting down its sales of sapphire furnaces to other customers in order to devote all of those resources to setting up the Arizona facility for Apple. The facility is owned by Apple and being run by GT, with Apple providing some upfront financing to help get production rolling.

GT allocated over $45 million to “sapphire production ramp up costs” during the quarter, with the company stating that those costs relate to “production inefficiencies and inventory losses” associated with building out its facilities and are not part of ongoing operations for the company. That amount is up from just $1.9 million in the prior quarter, signaling the company’s massive move to launch production for Apple.

Apple has used sapphire for the camera lens cover on several iOS devices and for the Touch ID sensor on the iPhone 5s, but the company is pursuing a massive increase in sapphire usage for future products. The iPhone 6 display has been rumored to include a sapphire cover, but rumors are divided on whether the material will be included on all models or just higher-end models, as well as whether the entire cover will be full sapphire or a thinner lamination layer.

Apple’s rumored iWatch has also been speculated to include a sapphire cover, as the material is fairly common on high-end watches to minimize scratching.

(Image: GT sapphire furnace)

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U.S. Department of Transportation to Pursue Ban on In-Flight Cell Phone Calls

The United States Department of Transportation has plans to pursue a ban on in-flight phone calls, reports The Wall Street Journal. In a speech last week at the International Aviation Club, general counsel of the Department Kathryn Thompson suggested restrictions were in the works, and a DOT spokesperson later confirmed the plans.

A spokeswoman confirmed that the DOT is developing “a notice of proposed rulemaking” for publication in December. “At this point, there is no final determination” as to what the notice or the final rule will say, said another spokeswoman.

The Department of Transportation’s move to pursue a ban on in-flight cellular phone calls follows an FCC proposal to overturn the current restrictions that prevent airline passengers from making phone calls and using cellular data while in flight.

The existing rules state that all cellular telephones on board an aircraft must be turned off when an aircraft leaves the ground in order to keep them from interfering with ground networks, but the FCC no longer believes in-flight interference is an issue. In 2013, the FCC officially relaxed its restrictions on the use of portable electronics in flight, allowing them to be used during landing and takeoff while in Airplane Mode.

After the FCC suggested it might permit cellular phone usage in flight, the Department of Transportation, airlines, and several other consumer groups expressed concern over the disruption voice calls could introduce if permitted in flight. Though airlines have largely been against in-flight cell phone calls, they believe the final decision on in-flight calls should be left up to them rather than in government control.

“Airlines aren’t clamoring to allow mobile-phone use during flight, and some have already said they’d prohibit it on their own flights,” said Jeffrey Shane, general counsel for the International Air Transport Association, and a former senior Transportation Department policy maker. But Mr. Shane said some carriers may want to explore passenger-friendly ways to introduce calls, such as in-flight phone booths or quiet zones.

The FCC is continuing to investigate the safety of allowing cell phone service on planes, and a ban on voice calls from the Department of Transportation, which supersedes any FCC decision, may result in a situation where customers are permitted to use cellular data in-flight for texting and web browsing but are banned from making voice calls. The Department of Transportation is expected to release more information on a potential ban in December.

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