One of Siri’s original founders, Dag Kittlaus, left Apple a few years ago and started a new thing, Viv. I’ve actually been watching this one pretty closely. While Viv is still in development, I’ve always felt it may be something pretty nifty. Maybe it was a reaction to escaping from the Apple yoke but it seemed as if the team behind Viv was set on keeping it platform agnostic.
That’s no longer the case. A few days ago Samsung acquired Viv. Word is that Viv will remain an independent company but will only develop Viv for Samsung phones. (It will be curious to see if they rebrand the name.)
Increasingly, lines are being drawn. Apple has Siri. Google has Google Assistant. And now Samsung will have Viv. It looks like we’re going to have less competition on individual platforms but instead competition between platforms. I don’t think the idea of digital assistants is going away anytime soon. But that’s about all we can be sure of. How this all plays out or even what exactly a digital assistant does in a few years is anyone’s guess right now.
This week I guested on the Clockwise podcast, where we talked about Google’s new stuff, including Google Home; Apple’s new Spoken Editions of print articles; and imagining the Next Big Thing.
It is becoming increasingly clear that last year, the government ordered Yahoo to search its entire user email database and Yahoo’s response was, “no problem”. According to the New York Times, Yahoo was forbidden from disclosing the order and the collection is no longer taking place, but if they’re forbidden from disclosing, how would we really know that? Moreover, if that particular collection has stopped, who is to say that there aren’t other searches ongoing that still have not been disclosed. Is the government co-opting other technology companies to do their snooping for them? Yahoo has responded that Reuter’s original reporting of this was “misleading”, But again how would we really know? All of this is done under the veil of secrecy.
Every time the issue of privacy comes up, I feel like a bit of a dinosaur. I think privacy is a fundamental right and one upon which the United States was founded. It is baffling to me that these big companies, with presumably teams of lawyers, can just roll over so easily when the government asked them to search their entire email database.
If you could pretend for a moment that the Internet and email didn’t exist and discovered that the US Postal Service was opening and scanning every piece of mail that went through on the lookout for some particular piece of correspondence involving a terrorist or a foreign government, you would probably be outraged. I would be. The difference between that hypothetical world and the one we live in is that the Internet and email does exist and it is technically possible to pull something off like a search of all of Yahoo’s email for all of its users. Put simply, they are doing this because they can. Moreover, the government has shown very little restraint in asking for that type of information. This request may have been for an entirely legitimate reason. However, once you open up that door, it is going to be very difficult to close it.
At a minimum, I believe there should have been public disclosure and the courts should have had an opportunity to weigh in before the government was given such sweeping power. I can’t help but feel that Yahoo let the government off way too easy here and if I were a Yahoo email subscriber (I am not) I would be looking for new options … today.
data-animation-override> “Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.”
In our recent Mac Power Users episode on macOS Sierra, both Katie and I bemoaned the fact that you can’t verbally trigger Siri on the Mac. It seems a no brainer to me as someone with an iMac on my desk sitting there waiting to work 24/7. Several listeners wrote in to explain that you can trigger Siri on the Mac with your voice using the Mac’s accessibility features. Lifehacker has an article showing you every step to enable voice-activated Siri on your Mac. Click on the link to set it up but I will tell you that this actually involves making two separate voice commands: “Hello” and “Computer”. Having used it now a few days, I find it works best if you leave a slight delay between the two words. Have fun.
This week MacSparky is sponsored by PracticePanther, legal practice management software for the modern attorney. Practice Panther includes tools for attorneys to manage contacts, matters, and documents, track tasks, track time and send invoices, and manage expenses. Using PracticePanther, it takes less than one minute to create and email an invoice to a client. You receive an email confirmation when the client makes a payment, and the software even alerts you when a client views the invoice. Practice Panther also lets attorneys interact with clients with a client portal, notification & chat.
PracticePanther also offers email and iCal integration. See everyone’s calendar in one central location. Attorneys can add events in their native calendar and it appears within PracticePanther’s dashboard.
There’s a lot more including custom intake forms, document integration with Dropbox and Box. PracticePanther was designed to be powerful, secure, and easy to use and it seamlessly integrates with all of the apps that attorneys are used to like Gmail, Outlook, Office 365, Quickbooks and many others.
There’s a lot of talk lately about the looming release of Apple’s Bluetooth AirPods. It looks like demand is really high (or at least sorta high) and I’m not surprised. When the AirPods were first announced, a lot of people were shocked by the $159 price. I wasn’t. I bought a quality pair of Bluetooth headphones last year and they cost $150 (although now they’re only $99). During the past week, I had the opportunity to spend a little time with some Apple AirPods and thought I’d report in my initial impressions.
The AirPods feel a lot like Apple’s existing EarPods. If you like the way those fit in your ear, you’ll be fine with AirPods. If you don’t like the fit of EarPods, don’t bother with AirPods.
I’m a lot less worried about them falling out of my ears after having tried them out. The hold is pretty good for day-to-day moving around. I think I could use them on a run but but not rock climbing. In hindsight, the only time I’ve ever had traditional EarPods fall out of my ear is when there is some external pressure from the cord, like catching it on a door handle (which I do often).
The battery charging dental-floss-sized case is clever and charges fast. You’ll have no problem using AirPods all day if you can occasionally drop them in the case for a recharge. There’s also a nice little magnetic snap as the AirPods drop into the case. Once they are in place, they are held in magnetically. You are not going to have an issue with the AirPods falling out of the charging case. It takes deliberate force to get them out.
The AirPods sound adequate. If you’re picky about headphone quality, these are not the headphones for you. That said, I listened to music in them and, in my brief time with them, thought they were as good, if not better than my current Bluetooth headphones. They are also not noise-cancelling. I don’t see myself using them on airplanes.
I really like the single ear mode. It’s an excellent way to handle calls. I’m on the phone a lot with the day job and I really like the idea of AirPods for calls.
The lack of physical controls is very … well … Apple. It’s part of what makes the AirPods so attractive but also can be maddening if you want to change the volume or skip a track without talking out loud to Siri. If you have an Apple Watch, you can get around this without pulling your phone out of your pocket or purse. I think this shortcoming will be the biggest complaint about AirPods.
I’ve recently become a backpack convert. While messenger bags look cool, distributing the weight of my gear to both shoulders feels a lot better at the end of the day. Waterfield is expanding its backpack line and they recently sent me their new Waterfield Bolt backpack to check out. The Bolt measures 12.5 x 16 x 5 inches. It has two zippers across the top. One gets quick access to the laptop compartment and the other gets access to the rest of the cargo. Like other Waterfield bags, the laptop compartment is its own padded sleeve that your laptop can slide into. It’s big enough to hold a MacBook Pro or a large iPad Pro. There is a second sleeve sewn on top that can hold a 9.7 inch iPad. I have, on occasion carried two iPads in my Bolt because that’s just how I roll.
The main interior is a large cargo compartment. The Bolt has quite a bit more storage than in my Waterfield Staad laptop bag. Another feature common with Waterfield bags is the gold fabric lined interior. I didn’t realize how much I appreciated this until recently I was looking for something in my daughter’s non-Waterfield backpack. Most backpacks have dark fabric on the inside which makes it even harder to find things when you’re digging around. The gold fabric brightens things up and makes finding my gear easier.
Also on the interior are two pockets with the Velcro fasteners to hold miscellaneous items like chargers, business cards, pens and pencils. As an iPad nerd, I can report these pockets are deep enough to hold an Apple Pencil but also shallow enough that the top of the pencil pokes up and is easily retrieved.
The bag is made out of waxed canvas with the leather on the bottom to add some additional support. There’s also an integrated leather handle at the top of the bag.
On the front of the bag is two additional pockets with leather tabs and magnetic closures. The pockets are pretty big and I’ve been keeping one loaded out with personal items, like aspirin and Kleenex, and the other is for tech supplies, like my charging battery, a few cables, and a flashlight (because everybody needs a flashlight). I like having quick access to these items without having to open up the backpack itself. Behind the two compartments is a hidden zipped pocket. There are also pouches on either side perfect for holding a water bottle.
The back of the backpack has a mesh cushion to provide ventilation on a hot day. One of the nice little touches is that this mesh cushion is only sewed on the sides of the bag. There’s a gap between the cushion and the rest the bag so you can slide it over a rolling suitcase handle on trips. The straps are also padded and fit well. When wearing this backpack, I cinch the straps down so the bag rides high on my back. I find that, over the long haul, this is more comfortable.
The real story with the Waterfield products is their design and construction. These bags are made to last. I’ve been buying the Waterfield bags for years. I just recently gave away a Waterfield bag I bought six years ago to and it was in such good shape that my friend mistook it for new. Waterfield gets the details right with quality fabrics, heavy stitching, waterproof zippers, rain guard flaps and all the other small things that give the bag longevity.
As seen in pictures, the bag is also quite attractive. They have various configurations ranging from urban to Indiana Jones. I always lean towards the bags that look like I’m about to head out on expedition.
I’ve been using this bag for over a month. In between a cross country trip, day hikes, and trips to Disneyland, I’m guessing I’ve got about 100 miles of walking with this bag on my back and I can report it still feels and looks great.
I now have two Waterfield backpacks. The Staad, which I reviewed a few months ago, is a bit smaller and most appropriate for day trips. If you carry a lot of gear or are looking to use a backpack for travel, you should probably step up to the Bolt. The additional cargo space, combined with the ability to attach it to a rolling suitcase and the large external pockets, make the Waterfield Bolt a perfect travel companion. I took a trip this month and the Waterfield Bolt was great.
I used to make fun of my wife for buying too many purses but given my fetish for high quality bags and backpacks, I really just need to shut up. If you’re looking for a backpack for trips or carry a lot of gear, the Waterfield Bolt is for you.
This week I’m in Indianapolis speaking at the Release Notes conference. App Camp For Girls is here and doing a fundraiser. They’re looking to buy a set of iPad Pros to teach the girls with iPad Pro and Swift Playgrounds. My wife helped run the App Camp For Girls in Orange County this year and I’ve seen first hand how inspiring and life-changing App Camp for Girls is for its campers/developers. If you’d like some good karma, why not contribute?
This week’s Mac Power Users episode is all about macOS Sierra and the new features available the latest mac operating system. We also cover watch OS 3 and how we’re using the Apple Watch.
This week MacSparky is sponsored by SaneBox, the email service that can start saving your bacon today. Recently SaneBox announced the SaneFwd service. The latest new feature at SaneBox is SaneFwd. It’s an easy way to automate email forwarding to your favorite third-party apps and team members.
With SaneFwd, you can:
• Automatically turning emails into tasks with Any.do and Todoist
• Automatically saving emails and attachments to your Evernote
• Automatically forwarding receipts to Expensify
• Automatically forwarding trip itineraries to Kayak
• Automatically forwarding certain emails to certain friends or colleagues
As an example, let’s say you have a newsletter that you want to automatically save to Evernote. With SaneFwd, you can train SaneBox to keep on the lookout for future newsletters and automatically forward them to your Evernote account.
The list is growing and SaneBox is working with service providers to make this feature even better. SaneFwd is just one more example of how SaneBox can help manage your email so you can get on with your life. I use SaneBox to sort and defer email. I also use it to check back on people that don’t timely reply. Using SaneBox to power through email almost feels like cheating. Why not sign up for a trial and use this link to get a nice discount off your subscription and let them know you heard about it here.
