Apple on Thursday posted an update to Final Cut Pro, its pro-level video editing software. The new version is ready for download from the Mac App Store. Final Cut Pro 10.2 was released in mid-April with the ability to create titles with customizable 3D text, along with updates to the companion Motion and Compressor applications. Now Apple has released a minor maintenance update to fix...
2014's WWDC was a disappointment for anyone hoping for new hardware — it was a software-only event. Is history going to repeat in 2015? I don't think so. Two years ago wasn't the first time Apple didn't do any hardware announcement at its Worldwide Developer Conference — though a new entry-level 21.5-inch iMac followed it by a couple of weeks — and it might not be the last. At WWDC...
Macs can easily read PC-formatted hard disk drives. Writing to them, however, is a different story. If you've switched to the Mac, welcome aboard. Your old external Windows PC drive will work great on the Mac. Apple has built OS X Yosemite and some previous OS X releases with the ability to read from those disks just fine. If you're using such a drive and you'd like to write new data...
Using a Mac mini as a media server is very easy and very doable, but it does have some limits. The Mac mini is versatile enough to use as a home media server or small business workgroup server — you just want to make sure you're getting the right Mac mini for the task. Aim too low, and you might not get the higher performance you need. Aim too high, and you may be spending more money...
FileMaker celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. FileMaker has seen a lot of changes along the way, but it remains one of the Mac's most versatile and powerful database apps. FileMaker got its start back in the early 1980s as a program for PC-compatible computers running MS-DOS. The software changed hands a few times, including a brief ownership by Microsoft. The powerful database...
Think USB-C on the new MacBook is a mistake? Get over it. We're going to be seeing a lot more. The Internet outrage machine has produced much sturm und drang over Apple's the new MacBook and its use of a USB-C connector instead of USB 3.0 or Thunderbolt, as is available on other Mac laptops. I have to say, though: I'm ready for a new peripheral interface. Most of the anger directed...
If you make a lot of purchases from the Mac App Store, your Purchased tab can get very unwieldy. The Purchased tab in the Mac App Store shows you all the apps you've downloaded, free and paid. If you find the Purchased tab hard to navigate due to the sheer amount of apps you have downloaded, you can hide apps you may not need to see a record of, such as apps you never uninstall and...
The CEO of Fiat Chrysler talked about visiting both Tesla and Apple during a recent trip to California. Sergio Marchionne runs Fiat Chrysler, and recently visited a new Maserati dealership in Toronto, Ontario Canada (Fiat owns luxury motor brand Maserati). Marchionne wouldn't elaborate about his meetings with Tim Cook and Elon Musk beyond some cursory comments. "I'm incredibly...
If you're within range of Woodstock, IL and interested in learning and talking with other Mac users, check out Macstock. And if you have time, come to the MacBBQ too! Midwesterners don't get too many Mac events to call their own, so it's fortuitous that Macstock is happening. It's a one-day event scheduled for June 20, 2015 from 8:00 to 3:00 PM, taking place at McHenry County College...
A security researcher has discovered a critical problem with MacKeeper, the controversial software for the Mac. I've already said my piece about MacKeeper — I don't think Mac users need it, and the developer's aggressive marketing tactics leave a bad taste in my mouth. If you need more evidence that you should stay away from it, MacKeeper is now the target of a new zero-day...
A new Mac app shot to the top of the App Store charts by selling fewer than 100 copies. What does that say about the state of the Mac App Store? Sam Soffes recently released Redacted, a $4.99 Mac app that makes it easy for you to pixelate, blur, or add black bars to images. If you already have an image editing app that does this, it's no big deal, but it's a handy utility for people...
GOG.com is offering up classic Interplay games based on Star Trek for the Mac, PC, and Linux, for $5.99 each. If you're a retro-gamer hankering for a taste of the 1990s, make your way over to GOG.com and check out the new Star Trek games available for download. Two of them run on the Mac, Windows, and Linux, and one runs on Windows only. But at $5.99, you can pick and choose which you...
Need your Mac's serial number? If your Mac is awake, it's just one click to find it. Your Mac serial number is important information: If you need to get your Mac serviced, you'll need it. If you call Apple for help, they may ask you for it. But if you haven't written it down and can't read the number off the case, don't worry: There's another easy way to get it. At the store I work...
Need to share files between a Mac and PC? No problem. If you have files and media on PC you need to get to your Mac, you shouldn't need to download additional software, as long as your Mac and PC are on the same network. This is because Apple gives you everything you need out of the box, you just have to know where to look. Switch to Mac Every week our Peter Cohen brings you...
Having problems with Apple devices on your network getting lost or appended with numbers? "Discoveryd" might be to blame. Iconfactory developer Craig Hockenberry posted to his blog about persistent problems he's run into with OS X Yosemite (warning: strong language). Hockenberry gives me some insight into a problem that has also dogged me since Yosemite was in beta last summer:...
GOG.com has updated its recent releases of the vintage LucasArts X-Wing and TIE Fighter games with Mac support. GOG.com recently made a splash by re-releasing vintage Star Wars games previously published by LucasArts on their digital rights management (DRM)-free gaming service, but Mac users were disappointed to see that X-Wing and TIE Fighter weren't available for their platform (...
Apple gave us a glimpse into the future of laptops with the new MacBook. But what does that mean for the rest of the company's laptops? Tim Cook was unambiguous about the new MacBook during his most recent conference call with financial analysts: We believe — and I think most everyone agrees — this is the future of the notebook. The new MacBook hasn't exactly wowed early...
Setting up whole-house audio with your Mac doesn't require a lot of effort or a huge cash outlay. All you need is your Mac and the right kind of speakers. Thanks to AirPlay, you can make music wherever you have Wi-Fi. There's a bonus tip in here too, to help you control your Mac from your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch. Set up iTunes iTunes is that app that some of us love to hate. I'...
If you run a Mac server, what's the best way to back up data using Time Machine? That's the question posed to me in this week's Mac Help. Now, I'll extol the virtues of the Mac mini as a home and small business server until my dying day. Sometimes I think I'm the only one, then a question comes in that reminds me I'm not. This one focuses on storage for OS X Server, Time Machine and...
Mac ID enables you to use Touch ID on your iPhone or iPad to unlock your Mac. That's cool, but that's not all this useful third-party utility can do. Mac ID is a two-part tool you get both from the iOS App Store and from the developer's website. Once you've set it up, you can unlock your Mac from your Touch ID-equipped iPhone or iPad. Mac ID can do a lot more too, to help you with...