Does the arrival of Photos for OS X mean you have to stop using iPhoto or Aperture? Absolutely not.

OS X 10.10.3 was released Wednesday, and with it, a brand new Photos app for the Mac, complete with support for iCloud Photo Library. Photos is the future, yes, and with its release, we won’t see any more changes to iPhoto or Aperture, but that doesn’t mean those apps are going away today.

You may remember that when Apple introduced iOS 8, it abruptly stopped iOS device users from using iPhoto. Opening the iPhoto app on iPhone or iPad resulted in an error message — the company forced iOS 8 adopters to use Photos instead.

Fortunately, that hasn’t happened on the Mac. iPhoto and Aperture still work, and will still continue to work on OS X Yosemite. Apple’s given us that much reassurance, at least.

Obviously the Mac doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Apple’s continuing to develop new versions of OS X and new Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) that OS X developers will use to unlock new features in their own apps. There’s no promise of backward compatibility with legacy apps like iPhoto and Aperture beyond Yosemite.

I’ve spoken to many iPhoto and Aperture users who are already looking (or have migrated) to other programs like Adobe’s Lightroom, though in fairness, most of the actual photo pros I’ve spoken with migrated away from Aperture years ago when Apple stopped putting any sort of effort into updating it with new features.

Still, Aperture and iPhoto both work presently; in fact, Photos’ share sheet includes an “Add to Aperture” function that makes it really easy to use Aperture along with Photos (I’ve been using it this way for the past couple of months, to do things like quick color-correction, cropping and resizing for product photos I use at iMore, for example).

The bottom line: If you’re trying to “future-proof” your Mac, your best bet is to migrate to Photos and starting using it. But that doesn’t mean you need to make that change today. After all, some of us have invested years in iPhoto and Aperture-based workflows. Figuring out how to integrate Photos into those workflows will likely take some time and some effort.

To that end, the iMore team has created a lot of information for you about Photos:

• How to use Photos for OS X: The ultimate guide
• How to use iCloud Photo Library: The ultimate guide

(Actually, it is bad. It’s just that by the time you get to it, it’s too late to really do anything about it.)

We hate bloatware. Let’s stop mincing words. Most everyone hates it, and every time a new phone is released the topic comes up, because the folks making the phones and the carriers selling them all like to put “value-added” applications on the phone before they sell them. Some of these preloaded apps are useful to some of us, but those useful ones can just as easily be downloaded through Google Play by the people who actually want them. Heck, I install the same Yellow Pages app on my phone that AT&T forces on me. It’s the forcing we all take issue with.

Recently, folks have been talking about the bloatware on the Galaxy S6 (and, yes, the edge model, too) and how you can’t really remove it. While that’s an issue of its own — once paid for you own the phone hardware — some are concerned about these apps taking away space for your own applications.

But it doesn’t really work that way. We’ll explain.

Sure, the Apple Watch is just around the corner, but that’s not going to stop Google from continuing work on getting Android Wear to work with iOS.

It’s been rumored and reported for a while now that Google was working to get Android Wear to be properly compatible with the iPhone, and it appears that they’re rapidly approaching the point of actually seeing a release. According to The Verge:

In its current state of development, Android Wear works along with a companion app on the iPhone and supports basic functions like notifications — as you can see in the photo below. As it does on Android, on the iPhone Android Wear also supports Google Now’s ambient information cards, voice search, and other voice actions. It should also support some more advanced features with Google’s own iOS apps, like replying to Gmail messages.

Enterprising code spelunkers have found references to iOS in Android Wear’s code on previous occasions, and some have even managed to get the watch to work on a basic level with iPhones. But proper integration, something that would even start to approach what Android Wear can do when paired with an Android device, or even the Apple Watch, will require the companion app that Google’s been working on.

For what it’s worth, Android Wear on Android needs a companion app, Pebble on both iPhone and Android needs a companion app, and even the Apple Watch uses a companion app (though that’s mostly for management of the device and not enabling basic functions).

Whatever happens, it’ll be nice to see additional choices for wearable accessories for iPhone users. There are issues to overcome, sure, though if Pebble’s success getting developers to build tie-ins to their iOS apps is any indication, Google might do alright if Wear for iPhone ever comes to fruition.

There are several Android Wear smartwatches — these are the best

Source: The Verge

Sure, the Apple Watch is just around the corner, but that’s not going to stop Google from continuing work on getting Android Wear to work with iOS.

It’s been rumored and reported for a while now that Google was working to get Android Wear to be properly compatible with the iPhone, and it appears that they’re rapidly approaching the point of actually seeing a release.

Ever taken a really great photo only to notice a small blemish or distracting object after the fact?

We’ve all done it. Luckily, retouching a photo is a lot easier than going and retaking it. Photos for OS X offers a retouch tool that lets you quickly remove small imperfections such as skin blemishes, and even a small object that wasn’t supposed to be in the image to begin with. It may not be as powerful as spot healing tools in software editing programs such as Photoshop, but in a pinch, it gets the job done!

How to quickly retouch an image in the Photos app on your Mac

1. Launch the Photos app on your Mac running OS X Yosemite or newer.
2. Find the photo you need to retouch and open it.
3. Click on the Edit button in the upper right hand corner.
4. Select Retouch in right hand menu.
5. You can zoom into your image using the zoom tool in the top menu if you need to.
6. Adjust the size of the retouch tool in the right hand menu if you need to.
7. Click on the area that you need to retouch. If it’s a larger area, you can click and drag as well.
8. You also have the option of holding down the option key on your keyboard and clicking to select a pattern. You can the area you’d like to match that target and it will be applied
9. If you ever need to Undo a retouch, just hit Command + Z on your keyboard to step back.
10. When you’re happy with the results, click Done in the upper right hand corner.

The HERE suite on Windows Phone has been updated today, bringing fixes for HERE account sign-in issues and other bug fixes to HERE Drive+, HERE Maps, HERE Transit, and HERE City Lens.

Waltr, a Mac app that lets you drag-and-drop multiple file formats such as MKV and FLAC onto your iPhone or iPad, has received a large update, adding full subtitle support and new format compatibility.

In addition to MKV and FLAC, Waltr supports MP3, MP4, AVI, CUE, WMA, M4R, AAC, M4V, M4A, and ALAC, many of which aren’t supported in iTunes. Waltr will load these files directly into your iPhone’s native Music and Video apps. With version 1.5, the app adds support for several new formats, including FLV, MPEG, and WEBM for video, and AIFF, WAV, and OGG for audio.

Also supported in this version are SRT and ASS subtitle files. The app also features a retouched design, and the developer has said that automatic metadata, Wi-Fi transfer, and picture support are all in the works.

You can download Waltr for free with a 14-day trial, after which you can purchase a license for $29.95.

• $29.95 – Download Now

If you’re more comfortable in Photoshop, Pixelmator, Acorn, or another image editor, your instinct might immediately be to ‘Edit with…”

That way you way you don’t have to worry about photo-specific workflows, you can get right down to nudging pixels. Apple’s new Photos for OS X, however, doesn’t include support for external editors, at least not yet. So, if you really want to move your images out of Photos and into your favorite image editor for Mac, what can you do?

The answer is to manually round-tip them.

That’s because not only is there now “Edit with…” option in Photos for OS X, currently you can’t even drag directly from Photos and into another editor. You have to save out, open in, save out, and open back. It’s inefficient, absolutely, but if there’s a filter, effect, or pixel-level edit you can only make in an external editor, it’s the only way to get it done. For now, at least.

How to move an image out of Photos and into Photoshop, Pixelmator, Acorn, or other external editor

1. Click on the photo you want to edit.
2. Go to the File > Export > Export Unmodified Original menu item. (If you don’t care about the highest quality possible, you can simply drag and drop the photo to your desktop.)
3. Save the photo to your desktop.
4. From your desktop, drag the photo into your favorite image editor. (Or control/right click the icon and choose “Open with…” and then your favorite image editor.)

How to bring and edited image back into Photos for OS X

1. Save or Export the edited image back to your desktop.
2. From your desktop, drag the image back into Photos for OS X. (Or choose the File > Import menu item and then select the image to import.)

Apple’s message that Apple Watch is “the most personal and intimate device we’ve ever created” resonates with me in two ways.

First, regarding the Apple Watch as an object, as a timepiece and fashion accessory: It’s been years since I regularly wore a watch, but Apple Watch is pushing to change that. From everything I’ve seen and heard about the watch, I would be thrilled to wear it every day. As with Apple’s other products, the watch seemingly strikes a good balance of form and function. Secondly, the Watch as a device — how it works and how one interacts with it — is bound to have far-reaching effects on users with disabilities. As a person with visual and motor delays, I’ve wondered myself how accessible the Watch will be, especially in context of the size of watch displays.

Ever since Apple unveiled the Watch last September, I’ve heard from many in the accessibility community who have expressed trepidation in their enthusiasm for the watch. The common refrain is that the usability story of it for, say, a blind person is unknown. As I said, we with special needs need reasonable assurance that Apple Watch will be usable, particularly in light of the introduction of the digital crown and Taptic Engine.

I met with Apple for a hands-on briefing of the watch and its accessibility features. My aim with this article is to run down what’s available on Apple Watch, accessibility-wise, as well as share a few observations I have on their potential impact on watch wearers.

The accessibility of WatchOS

Apple Watch borrows numerous accessibility options from iOS. They include:

• VoiceOver
• Large Dynamic Type
• Extra Large Watch Face
• Reduce Motion
• Reduce Transparency
• Zoom
• Grayscale
• Mono Audio
• Bold Text
• On/Off Labels
• Accessibility Shortcut

That’s a lot of bullet points, but I’m glad to know the Watch supports so much out of the box. In general, the features that were demoed to me (VoiceOver and Reduce Motion were but two) work more or less the same way they do on iOS, albeit on a much smaller canvas. The watch’s accessibility features are available on the device itself and on the companion Apple Watch app for iPhone.

It’s worth noting that Apple feels the Taptic Engine — a new form of physical feedback that feels akin to a tap on the wrist — is a feature that will be very beneficial to those who are deaf or hard of hearing. I agree. As I wrote for MacStories about the accessibility ramifications of haptic feedback on users with disabilities, Apple’s embrace of this technology is profound because it will help someone with a hearing loss, for example, become more aware of what’s happening on his or her watch by supplementing the audio stimulus with a tactile one. (Just like an doorbell or telephone for the hearing impaired is equipped with a flashing light to indicate ringing. The phone still rings like normal, but it also simultaneously flashes.)

There are two accessibility features of the Apple Watch that stand out to me: Extra Large Watch Face and Zoom. Regarding the Large Watch Face, it does what it says: shows the time in a ginormous font. It’s very well done, although for my needs, I’m confident that I can get by just as well with Large Dynamic Type. Overall, however, Large Watch Face will be great for those who need the clock to be extra big in order to read it. Likewise, the Zoom feature was helpful for me in identifying icons on the Home screen, as they’re a tad small at normal size. I found that Zoom works best for me using the digital crown, as the two-finger pan was more difficult to do using my partially-paralyzed right hand (caused by my cerebral palsy).

The Apple Watch app

The Apple Watch app is yet another one of those unintentional accessibility wins — it’s a great accessibility tool.

As I mentioned above, the Apple Watch’s accessibility features are available both on the device and in the Apple Watch app. Since the watch and the iPhone talk with each other, it’s possible to, for instance, turn on Grayscale in the app and have it instantly enabled on the watch. This is important for a couple reasons.

The first, most obvious, reason is that the watch app is running on a big screen. Especially for a person with low vision, it’s so much easier to fiddle with the Accessibility settings on the iPhone than it is on the watch. The same applies to organizing Home screen icons, setting friends for Digital Touch, and more. It saves on squinting, which ultimately saves on eye fatigue and strain.

The second reason is one of dexterity. My fine-motor mobility isn’t the greatest, especially on my right side. I’d much rather complete the “housekeeping duties” for the watch in the app than on the device. My fingers have more room to move, and the margin for error (missed taps, etc) is lesser on the phone.

Of course, the Apple Watch app benefits the fully-abled too. Apple made a smart design decision to offload much of the grunt work to the phone. Not only does it relieve the watch of technical stress, but even those with 20/20 vision and impeccable fine-motor skills can appreciate not having to exclusively navigate such a small display.

The Apple Watch

• I got an opportunity to try on an Apple Watch. Despite being left-handed, I prefer wearing watches on my left wrist, for two reasons. (1) my left side is strongest, so I have more movement and muscle strength in my arm; and (2) as well, my left eye is strongest, and I felt more comfortable viewing the watch with my dominant eye. I realize the convention is to wear a watch on the opposite hand (from the hand with which one writes), but this feels most comfortable to me.

• The digital crown is a lot easier to move than I anticipated. There’s a fluidity to it that makes it easy to turn even with the slightest touch of my finger. A definite lubriciousness to it. By contrast, I’ve always had trouble with traditional crowns on watches, since it takes more force to turn being that they’re not nearly as lubricious as the watch’s digital crown.

• One of the questions I’ve had surrounding the watch is how easily someone with motor delays would be able to unfasten and re-fasten the various bands. The watch I saw had a white Sport band, and I was pleasantly surprised at how easy the so-called “pin-and-tuck” method is to manipulate. I had no issues taking it on or off, nor with adjusting the fit. I’m very interested to find out how something like the Modern Buckle or Milanese Loop works in this context, especially since the loop bands (Leather, too) use magnets.

The beginning

As I said at the outset, what you see here is just an overview of Apple Watch’s accessibility. The real test will come, of course, when I get a chance to live with the Watch for a while. I’m very much looking forward to assimilating the Watch into my daily life.