AppleMagazine #173

Responding to unprecedented data breaches and cyberattacks, President Barack Obama is trying to spark alliances between policymakers who want to regulate the online world and tech innovators who traditionally shun Beltway bureaucracies. In California’s Silicon Valley on Friday Obama was participating in a White House summit on cybersecurity and consumer protection, joining hundreds of administration officials, tech and other CEOs, law enforcement officials and consumer and privacy advocates. The focus is on encouraging every player to do better at sharing information that can help the private sector prevent and respond to costly and potentially crippling threats to the security of their online networks. Obama was delivering the keynote address at the daylong event, as well as leading a round-table discussion with a group of business leaders. JJ. Thompson, CEO and…

Facebook is making it easier to plan for your online afterlife. The world’s biggest online social network said Thursday that it will now let users pick someone who can manage their account after they die. Previously the accounts were “memorialized” after death, or locked so that no one could log in. But Facebook says its users wanted more choice. Beginning in the U.S., Facebook users can pick a “legacy contact” to post on their page after they die, respond to new friend requests and update their profile picture and cover photo. Users can also have their accounts deleted after their death, which was not possible before. If you want someone to manage your account after you die, click on the upside-down triangle on the top right corner of your page,…

MASSIVE BUBBLEGUM POP HIT “ALL ABOUT THAT BASS” CAPS REMARKABLE RISE TO STARDOM When it was confirmed in late January that Meghan Trainor had dethroned the previously all-conquering Taylor Swift at the top of Billboard’s Artist 100 - a measure of artist activity across the most influential U.S. charts - there was little surprise. After all, it wasn’t the first time she had even been ranked the country’s top artist in this way. Indeed, it just completed her rise to the top on the basis of what turned out to be one seriously empowering song about body confidence. We are, of course, referring to “All About The Bass”, the monster viral hit that has topped singles charts across the world, including the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, in the process accomplishing…

Just as I was warming up to choosing a Microsoft Office 365 subscription over making a one-time software purchase, Microsoft started giving away a lot of subscription benefits for free. The company now offers Word, Excel and others at no cost on most mobile devices. It’s a smart move by Microsoft, but it makes me wonder whether you really need a subscription, which starts at $70 a year. The subscription will appeal to people who use Office apps on traditional Windows or Mac computers or Windows tablets, such as the Surface Pro 3. Those who primarily use iOS and Android mobile devices can probably stick with free apps. What’s right for you comes down to whether you need a PC or can get things done with just your smartphone or…

NO LONGER ARE YOU STUCK WITH JUST PENCILS AND PAINTS For years and years, if you aspired to be a visual artist, at least in the more traditional sense, your task was clear - you needed to buy some pencils, paints and palettes, set up an easel and get practicing. In today’s digital age, though, things are much more ambiguous. You now don’t need to invest in any artistic tool other than your !Device, making the most of the many creative apps available in the App Store. When you think about it, it shouldn’t be such a big shock that the iPad - in particular - is commanding popularity as a replacement in some quarters for the stretched canvas and easel. After all, digital art is almost old enough to…

The next phishing email you get could be from your boss. With high-profile security breaches on the rise, from Sony Pictures to Anthem, companies are on the defensive. And they want to make sure their employees are not a hack waiting to happen. Data show phishing emails are more and more common as entry points for hackers. Unwittingly clicking on a link in a scam email could unleash malware into a network or provide other access to cy berth !eves. So a growing number of companies, including Twitter Inc., are giving their workers a pop quiz, testing security savvy by sending spoof phishing emails to see who bites. “New employees fall for it all the time,” said Josh Aberant, postmaster at Twitter, during a data privacy town hall meeting recently…