Rumors of Coming ‘macOS’ Rebrand for OS X Refuse to Die

The discovery of a change in file naming conventions in OS X 10.11.4 is behind a recent growth in speculation that Apple is set to rebrand its OS X desktop operating system.

Screenshot from Mac OS 8 released in 1997.
The rumor appears to have begun on Tuesday after Brazilian Apple blog MacMagazine reported that a name used for an Interface Builder document tucked away in the OS X System folder contained a previously unseen reference to ‘macOS’.

Developer Guilherme Rambo discovered that a document in FlightUtilities.framework in /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks takes the name FUFlightViewController_macOS.nib, which it did not have prior to last week’s release of OS X 10.11.4.

Image: Guilherme Rambo
Speculation appears to be based on the fact that iOS, watchOS, and tvOS already take similar naming conventions, leading some to believe that OS X could be set to fall in line.

However, as 9to5Mac points out, there are good reasons to remain skeptical that the change indicates an imminent rebrand.

Apple developers often use macOS identifiers for convenience, because the naming scheme suffix shares symmetry with Apple’s other platforms and allows coders to easily identify apps with cross-platform components. Additionally, a significant rebrand of Apple’s flagship desktop OS is the type of marketing decision that engineering teams would be unlikely to hear about until later on in the version cycle.

Despite the skepticism, a rebrand for OS X is by no means out of the question. Indeed, the name change would see Apple revert to the operating system’s traditional name Mac OS, which remained in place until Apple dropped ‘Mac’ from its OS X branding in 2012.

The next version of Apple’s Mac operating system, 10.12, is rumored to include Siri as a desktop feature, and is expected to be revealed at the Worldwide Developers Conference in June ahead of a public launch in the fall.

Tags: OS X 10.12, macOS
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Facebook Messenger Gains Airline Information Bot

Facebook released a new feature today for its iOS Messenger app that allows users to receive booked flight information updates.

The instant messaging service’s first ‘airline bot’ enables KLM Royal Dutch Airlines customers who have booked tickets through the airlines’ website to have all their flight information delivered to a dedicated thread within the app.

The bot is designed to supply customers with their itinerary, boarding pass, and check-in confirmation, as well as notify of any flight delays. An option to speak to a human KLM staff member is also included.

Earlier this year, TechCrunch reported that Facebook was offering select developers access to its Messenger SDK which would allow them to build helpful service bots for the app.

According to the report, Facebook was likely giving third-party developers access to the chat SDK in an effort to make Messenger more like its Asian counterparts, such as WeChat and Line, whose users can contact dedicated accounts to buy movie tickets and pay bills.

In December 2015, Uber announced integration with Messenger via a new Transportation feature, which lets customers book taxis and receive live progress updates from within a chat thread.

Facebook Messenger is free on the App Store for iPhone. [Direct Link]

Tags: Facebook, Facebook Messenger
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iOS 9.3 ‘Most Stable New Release in Years’, Says Analytics Firm

Despite its much-publicized problems, Apple’s iOS 9.3 is showing a lower crash rate than all active iOS builds, an app analytics firm reported yesterday (via AppleInsider).

According to California-based Apteligent, over the past eight days iOS 9.3 has had a crash rate of only 2.2 percent, making it the most stable iOS release in circulation. Apple’s new iOS also beat the latest version of Android, which had a reported crash rate of approximately 2.6 percent.

By contrast, iOS 8, iOS 9 and iOS 9.2 have all fared worse over the month of March, with crash rates of 3.2 percent meaning their users were more likely to experience problems than early adopters of Apple’s latest mobile OS iteration.

The study will come as a surprise to many, following media coverage of issues reported by a number of iOS users. Apple is aware of an issue causing web links to crash in multiple iOS apps like Safari, Mail, and Messages, and says it is working on a fix that will be released “soon” via a software update.

The bug was the second major bug to affect iOS 9.3 users. The first rendered some older devices unusable due to a problem with Activation Lock, which required customers to enter the information originally used to set up their iPhone or iPad. Apple released a new version of iOS 9.3 on Monday to fix the issue.

Tags: appleinsider.com, iOS 9.3
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Your girl friends can eavesdrop on convos in this dating app

A new dating app called Boompi works like Tinder at first blush. It finds matches based on location, and you can swipe left or right to let it know if you’re interested or not. Now, here’s where it gets iffy: if you’re a woman, you can invite your girl friends into a private convo you’ve been having with a potential date. We’re not talking about having an honest-to-goodness group chat — no, your friends would be totally invisible to the person you’re talking to. They can send messages within the convo that the other person wouldn’t be able to read. And even those who aren’t looking for a date can sign up and go on “Ghost Mode” just to be able to eavesdrop on conversations.

Truth is, nobody can stop you from showing your friends all the messages you get on dating sites, especially the creepy PMs women get all the time due to the gender disparity in many services. Maybe you want to ask them what they think of a prospective date based on your conversation, or to warn them against talking to this person who’s been harassing you on the app for months. That’s what friends do. But making eavesdropping an actual feature in a dating app is alarming. We’ll bet a lot of people would consider inviting friends to watch a private convo from behind a cloak of invisibility a betrayal of trust and a huge violation of privacy.

The app’s creator, Alejandro Ponce, told TechCrunch that he believes men would still join his service despite the feature’s existence, though, because “boys will be wherever girls are.” And Boompi, he claimed, “is every girl’s dream.”

Source: TechCrunch, Boompi

Google Cardboard takes you ‘Inside Abbey Road’

Almost a year ago Google launched “Inside Abbey Road,” a special site containing an interactive tour of the legendary recording studio in London. Today, the company is back with an Android app that repackages the experience for Google Cardboard. Instead of clicking around in the browser, you can slide your phone into a compatible headset and peek around naturally. It’s mostly the same content, combining detailed Street View imagery, 360-degree video and some audio narration by Giles Martin, the son of record producer and “fifth Beatle” Sir George Martin.

The original site was put stitched together using 150 different 360-degree panoramas. It covers studio one, two and three, as well as a smaller mastering room nestled in the building. Once you’re done with Martin’s tour you can move the reticule in the center of the screen to view photos, videos and factual snippets in each room. If you own a Cardboard it’s definitely worth checking out, especially if you’re a fan of the “Fab Four.”

Via: Google (Blog Post)

Source: Inside Abbey Road (Google Play)

Mayo Clinic might have the cure for VR motion sickness

Virtual reality systems are doing an awful lot to prevent nausea, but the fact still remains that some folks are going to get sick no matter how high the content’s frame rate is or how low the latency. But Mayo Clinic might have a solution, Fast Company reports. The hospital has developed algorithms that, when paired with galvanic vestibular stimulation (GVS), can trick the brain into syncing what you’re seeing in VR with physical stimulation within a tenth of a second.

It’s achieved by placing electrodes behind each ear, on the forehead and at the base of the skull. From there, electrical impulses are sent to simulate the type of vestibular (inner ear) responses one would have for rotating left or right. Mayo Clinic has licensed it to vMocion, an LA-based entertainment outfit, however there haven’t been any other takers so far from the likes of HTC, Sony or Oculus.

But implementing the tech into any of those three right now is pretty much impossible now that PlayStation VR pre-orders are open, the fact that the Rift’s first consumer headset shipped this week and the Vive releases next month.

Source: Fast Company

Apple Chip Suppliers Report Slowing Orders for Q2 2016

Chip orders from Apple for the second quarter of 2016 have been notably slow, according to unnamed sources in the integrated circuit supply chain (via DigiTimes).

Overall, chip orders placed by Apple for Q2 are expected to be only slightly higher than those for Q1, despite the launch of the company’s 4-inch iPhone SE and 9.7-inch iPad Pro earlier this month.

First-week sales of Apple’s new devices have been disappointing, according to the sources, while chip shipments for the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus for the second quarter of 2016 are likely to be halved from those shipped in the first quarter. According to DigiTimes:

Shipments for the new iPhone SE will be unable to offset the fall in shipments for the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus devices in the second quarter, the sources continued. The shipment target for the SE in the second quarter is four to five million units.

The same sources claim chip orders from Apple are unlikely to return to the previous high levels until after the third quarter of 2016, when its next-generation iPhone, iPad, MacBook and iMac products become available.

Taiwan-based website DigiTimes has a mixed track record at reporting on Apple’s upcoming product plans, but its sources within the upstream supply chain have proven reliable in the past.

Back in February, the site claimed Apple would ship 9.8 million iPads in the first quarter of 2016, potentially its lowest quarterly tablet sales since the iPad 2 in mid 2011.

In January, Apple CEO Tim Cook confirmed during the company’s financial earnings conference call that iPhone sales would likely decline in the March quarter, marking the first year-over-year decline since the smartphone was released in June 2007.

Apple forecast that its total revenue in Q2 2016 would be between $50 and $53 billion, compared to $58 billion in the year-ago quarter, signaling the company’s first year-over-year drop in revenue in thirteen years.

Tag: digitimes.com
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‘Final Fantasy XV’ lands September 30th

Final Fantasy XV hits PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on September 30th, Square Enix announced during its Uncovered live event in Los Angeles. The release date may not be a surprise for everyone, considering it leaked a tad early, but this announcement marks official confirmation. A new teaser for FFXV launches tonight, called Platinum Demo, and it’s free to download on PS4 and Xbox One. PC players, you’re out of luck — for now. FFXV director Hajime Tabata told Engadget that the studio isn’t currently working on a PC version of the game. But, Tabata said he was “aware of the big call for a PC version.”

“Unfortunately we weren’t able to do simultaneous development on a PC and console version for XV,” he said. “We had to focus on the console version and our goal was to maximize, optimize everything for the HD consoles. Once that’s done, then we will definitely take a good, hard look at PC and what we need to do, and consider all our options. But right now we aren’t decided, we’re still considering a lot of things.” For Xbox One and PS4 players, there is a Deluxe Edition and Ultimate Collector’s Edition available to purchase on the official Square Enix online store.

FFXV stars Prince Noctis and his friends as they take one final, epic road trip together before Noctis is married to a neighboring princess. Players will control Noctis only throughout the entire game, though his friends are independent AI helpers and he can give commands to them.

The main characters in FFXV have rich backstories and personalities, and these will be on full display in two supplemental pieces of media set to launch before the game itself. Brotherhood: Final Fantasy XV is a five-episode animated series from A-1 Pictures, the studio behind Sword Art Online and Black Butler. Its story focuses on the strong emotional bonds connecting Noctis and his best buds, and explains how they became friends. The first episode is available now for free on YouTube.

Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV is a full-length, 3D-animated feature film a la Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, directed by veteran Final Fantasy director and animator Takeshi Nozue. It takes place during the events of FFXV, but it focuses on King Regis (Noctis’ dad) and the Crown City once the bro trip leaves the kingdom. Game of Thrones stars Lena Headey and Sean Bean provide their voice-acting talents to the film, as does Breaking Bad actor Aaron Paul. Kingsglaive will be released digitally in 2016, and the studio is still figuring out if it will pursue other formats as well.

FFXV has traveled a long and rocky path toward release: Square Enix announced it in 2006 under the name Final Fantasy Versus XIII, but over the years, it changed titles and directors. Final Fantasy XV is led by Type-0 director Tabata, who took over from long-time Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts mastermind Tetsuya Nomura.

Google makes it easier to bring VR to your apps and the web

The challenge of bringing virtual reality to the masses isn’t so much recording it as putting it in front of people’s eyeballs. How do you plunk VR into an app without resorting to exotic code? Google can help. It’s launching a VR View tool that makes it relatively easy to embed VR photos and videos in apps and websites. In software, it’s just a few lines of programming with the Cardboard developer kit (which now supports iOS, we’d add). On the web, you only need embedding code like the sort you use for 2D clips.

It’s a seemingly simple effort, but it could mean a lot for VR adoption. If it’s trivial to add VR to apps and the web, you’re more likely to see it used on a regular basis — not just for the occasional experiment. You’ll still need VR gear to make this more than a click-and-drag experience, of course, but it’s still an important piece of the puzzle.

Via: TechCrunch

Source: Google Developers Blog

The ‘Final Fantasy XV Platinum Demo’ is available now

The long-awaited Final Fantasy XV will not arrive until September 30th, but gamers can get a taste tonight, with the Platinum Demo now available on PS4 and Xbox One. Find it now via these links (PlayStation, Xbox) or on the console’s stores (we had to search for the game to get it to show up). According to the description you will “Join young Noctis and his magical guide as you explore the fantastical world of his dreams.” Sounds exciting.

Source: PlayStation Store, Xbox One