Apple’s new file system revolves around encryption
One of Apple’s quietest announcements at WWDC might also be its most important. The company has introduced a brand new file system, simply called Apple File System (APFS) that makes security its centerpiece. It offers a unified encryption method for virtually every device Apple makes, ranging from the Apple Watch to the Mac. That includes multi-key encryption, which makes it tough to crack even if you have physical access to the storage. In short, the FBI won’t be happy: Encryption is now a core part of the operating system, not just something bolted on after the fact.
APFS also acknowledges the advances in technology in the nearly two decades since Apple’s current file system, HFS+, hit the scene. It’s optimized for flash storage, uses extremely fine-grained time stamps (down to the nanosecond) and supports a whopping 9 quintillion files on a single volume. You’ll also see “snapshots” (read-only instances of the file system) that make Time Machine-style backups easier.
The file system is available to developers in preview form right now, and it should launch in earnest in 2017. However, unlike the usual operating system previews, you don’t even dare try this unless you’re writing apps where it’d be a factor. The pre-release APFS can’t be used to boot a device and doesn’t support many Mac staples, such as Fusion Drives or Time Machine. There’s no certainty that the data you put on a drive now will be readable by later versions of APFS, for that matter. Nonetheless, its very existence is noteworthy: It’ll likely dictate the features of Apple gadgets for years to come.
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Source: Apple (1), (2)
Apple TV App Store Now Hides Downloaded Apps From Top Charts
In an effort to further improve app discoverability, Apple recently implemented a change to the way Top Charts work on the Apple TV. When viewing the Top Paid, Free, and Grossing Charts in the tvOS App Store, Apple TV users no longer see entries for apps they’ve already downloaded and installed on their set-top box.
Individualized, custom Top Chart rankings are now available for all Apple TV users, allowing them to see a dynamic list that changes with each app they download. This behavior is exclusive to the Apple TV App Store and is not reflective of how Top Charts work for iOS devices and Macs.
App developer Equinux noticed the change last week, after discovering one of their popular apps was no longer listed in the Top Charts. Equinux thought the app had fallen from the charts at first, before noticing it was simply hidden on Apple TV devices where it was already installed.
In turns out, Apple now hides an app in the charts once you’ve installed it. Give it a try: Go install TV Pro Mediathek (VOD for German TV content) from the App Store (currently #3 Top Grossing in Germany) and then go back in to the App Store: boom – it’s gone from the charts and the next-placed app has moved up.
This tvOS top charts algorithm change even affects featured apps on the start page: TV Pro Mediathek no longer shows up in its featured slot on the start page of the German App Store once you’ve installed it.
Apple’s intention with the change is presumably to make the charts appear ‘fresher’ and users see more apps that they haven’t installed yet.
When the Apple TV first launched in October, app discovery was a major issue. Apple has since made an effort to make it easier for Apple TV users to find apps through the implementation of app categories, Top Charts, and web previews.
Since late 2015, Apple’s App Stores have been under the control of Phil Schiller, who took over from Eddy Cue. Schiller now oversees the app ecosystem across iOS devices, Macs, the Apple TV, and the Apple Watch, while Cue focuses on other software and services. Under Schiller’s leadership, Apple has improved search algorithms and sped up app review times.
Related Roundup: Apple TV
Tags: App Store, tvOS
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Infuse helps you find fresh videos on Apple TV and iOS
Media portal and set-top box makers have tried any number of things to help you decide what to watch next, ranging from visual makeovers to voice recognition. However, the team at FireCore thinks it has a better way: filters. The new Infuse 4.2 for Apple TV and iOS has a redesigned library view that not only helps you find videos the old-fashioned way, but incorporates smart filters that automatically sift through your collection. You can quickly figure out which TV shows are kid-appropriate, for example, or look for just the movies that came out last year. Moreover, you can create home screen favorites that revolve around these filters — you could always see what’s new the moment you sit down for the evening.
There’s more. On iOS, Infuse titles now show up in Spotlight searches and will start playing right away when you tap the results. Your ratings on Trakt sync across devices, too, so you won’t forget that a show was amazing just because you’re about to watch it somewhere else. All told, this isn’t the minor update the version number suggests. Give it a look if you’re frequently wracked with indecision on movie night.
Source: FireCore
Apple TV is getting badly-needed voice-dictation
Apple is really trying to fix one of the biggest complaints about its generally solid 2015 Apple TV: text input. The previous beta 2 of tvOS 9.2 introduced a bluetooth keyboard, and the latest beta 3 version of tvOS 9.2 now has dictation and App Store search for Siri. The dictation feature lets you speak to input text and spell passwords rather than typing them using the remote — a process that’s infuriatingly slow and clunky. To use it, you hold down the remote’s Siri button and speak, with confirmation that it hears you coming via a live level meter.
The App Store search for Siri is another logical addition because, again, the current text input method sucks. Using your voice, you can now seek categories like “photo and video” or “games,” and search for specific apps. Other new features expected for osTV 9.2 include Live Photos and iCloud Photo Library support, better folder organization and a refreshed App Switcher. It’ll likely arrive this spring alongside iOS 9.3.
Via: MacRumors
Source: Apple Developers
What picture-in-picture on the new Apple TV would look like
A subscription TV service isn’t the only add-on we could envision for the new Apple TV. Developer Steven Troughton-Smith — who gave us a peek at iPad split-screen multitasking well before Apple started offering it — whipped up an app for the device with picture-in-picture support that looks right at home on tvOS. Support for the feature isn’t built into the box yet, but we can’t imagine official support for this will be too many software revisions away. Older smart TV platforms like Google TV and Yahoo Widgets! handled some form of multitasking, and if the future of TV is apps like Apple says, they’ll need to figure this out along the way.
Wrote a PiP setup for my TV app. Love how it works – totally fits on tvOS. Not sure why not built-in yet 😁 https://t.co/fyE6zruzkA
— Steve T-S (@stroughtonsmith) January 29, 2016
Source: Steven Troughton-Smith (Twitter)
Apple TV software update adds missing Podcasts app
Apple has a host of notable updates coming for iOS, the Apple Watch and the new Apple TV. But in the meantime, the company has just released tvOS 9.1.1, a relatively minor bug fix update that nonetheless contains at least one user-facing feature: a Podcasts app. The fact that the new Apple TV shipped without this app was rather puzzling, as the older Apple TV has had podcast features for some time. Now, that gap has been closed.
There’s not much else to speak of in this update, but tvOS 9.2 will bring the ability to group apps into folders, bluetooth keyboard support and a new multitasking interface. There’s no word on when that’ll launch, but it’ll likely be sometime this spring alongside iOS 9.3 and WatchOS 2.2, all of which are currently in beta.
Via: 9to5Mac
Source: Apple
The App Store now shows you when iOS apps work on Apple TV
The fourth-generation Apple TV already has over 2,600 apps, a significant number considering tvOS is such a young platform. Naturally, as more developers make their applications compatible with the new hardware, Apple wants users to easily find these. In order to do that, Apple’s iOS App Store now lets you know when its iPhone or iPad apps also have an Apple TV version, similar to what it does with the Watch.
Originally spotted by 9to5Mac, the label (pictured below) doesn’t appear to be fully baked at the moment: it displays as “SF.UniversalAppleTV,” rather than something cleaner like “Apple TV.” Of course, you could always just search the Apple TV for apps, but this gives you a different option to see which will or won’t work with your set-top box.
Source: 9to5Mac
The Apple TV already has over 2,600 apps
It really shouldn’t surprise anyone that the new Apple TV is already home to over 2,600 apps. The company that helped launch the entire app-centric industry might have been a bit late to the streaming-media box app store, but according to data collected by appFigures, tvOS is well on its way to becoming another popular platform for developers to build upon.
According to the data, the number one type of app available for the Apple TV are games. It’s not surprising that 38 percent of the store is hoping to make the device a gaming console. But, users have other plans.
The top 10 apps are all from major streaming companies, Netflix, Hulu etc. In fact, 28 of the top 50 apps are entertainment with only eight games games breaking into that list. Of course it’s easier to build a game than to become a major content provider. So expect more games for the box in the foreseeable future.
Source: appFigures
Amazon Prime Video Coming to New Apple TV Possibly Within a ‘Few Weeks’
Last month, Amazon removed all Apple TV and Chromecast product listings from its website because the devices do not offer its Prime Video streaming service, which the online retailer said may cause confusion for customers. Nearly a month later, the new Apple TV remains unavailable on Amazon, but that could soon change.
Amazon appears to have confirmed to engineer Dan Bostonweeks that it is developing a tvOS app for Prime Video that could launch before the end of 2015. “Hopefully, within a few weeks span, you will be able to see the Amazon Instant Video app feature on your Apple TV,” the company purportedly said in an email.
I sent feedback to Amazon via the Amazon Instant Video iOS app about supporting tvOS. They say it’s in development. pic.twitter.com/52fYUgtgNs
— Dan Bostonweeks (@danimal) November 28, 2015
http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.jsApple was wrongly criticized by some in October for seemingly not allowing Prime Video on the new Apple TV, but shortly after the company provided a statement to BuzzFeed News emphasizing that “all are welcome” on the platform — Amazon simply had not submitted a Prime Video app for the tvOS App Store.
Apple tells BuzzFeed News that “all are welcome” on its new Apple TV platform. But Amazon — which recently purged Apple TV from its store — doesn’t have a Prime Video app in the Apple TV App Store. And as of a few days ago, it hadn’t submitted one.
Amazon told BuzzFeed News it “doesn’t have anything to share” on the topic at the time, but it now appears the company is actively developing a tvOS solution. Amazon Video allows Prime members to instantly stream tens of thousands of movies and TV episodes, with hundreds of thousands of titles available to buy or rent.
Amazon Video for iOS is free on the App Store and accessible by Amazon Prime members. The service is also available on Android, Fire OS, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Wii, Wii U, the web and select TV and Blu-ray players from LG, Panasonic, Samsung, Sony and Vizio.
Tags: App Store, Amazon, Amazon Prime Video, tvOS
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Apple Releases tvOS 9.0.1 Update for Apple TV
Apple today released the first update to tvOS, the new operating system that runs on the fourth-generation Apple TV. tvOS 9.0.1 is a minor update that likely includes bug fixes and performance updates to address issues discovered since the launch of tvOS on October 30.
The new 9.0.1 update can be downloaded over-the-air through the Settings app on the Apple TV.
tvOS 9.0.1 comes as Apple is testing the first major update to the operating system, tvOS 9.1. Apple has thus far seeded one beta of tvOS 9.1 to developers, with release notes for that beta pointing towards improvements to networking and scrolling. tvOS 9.1 also appears to include support for Siri search for Apple Music.
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