The U.S. Department of Justice will take Apple and publishers to court over their pricing system for ebooks. Apple and the publishers use the agency model in which the publishers set the prices for the books and the retailers, like Apple and Amazon, cannot sell below those prices. The alternative would be wholesale pricing, which lets the retailers sell the books at any price they wish. The DOJ sees the agency model as illegal price fixing. But there is much debate about which model is better for consumers, retailers and publishers.
The threat of the Flashback trojan malware is waning as more people update their Macs and become aware of the threat and how to easily thwart it. Apple is reportedly attempting to take legal action against those responsible, and is also working on a removal tool according to this support note.
“Ever since the iPad got a retina display, my wife insists on having a model take my place in photos.”
With the recent increased threat from the Flashback trojan malware, a new spotlight is shining on Mac anti-malware security. Flashback usually appears in as a downloadable trojan, requiring the user to download, run and give permission to install. But for a few days there was a Java exploit that installed it on some Macs without requiring permission. Apple then issued a patch to prevent that.
Some believe that you should use 3rd-party security software as protection. But that software needs updates to remain effective as well. MacMost has always taught that keeping updated, informed and watching what you download is all that is required for protection.
What do you think? Do you use third-part software for protection? Has the recent issue changed your mind one way or the other?
More regional U.S. wireless carriers have announced this week the availability of the iPhone. nTelos Wireless in Virginia, Appalachian Wireless in Kentucky, Cellcom in Wisconsin and Alaska Communications have announced they are getting the iPhone. Looks like April 20 is the start date for all of those networks.
The annoying Flashback trojan, a rare piece of malware that can infect Macs, became a little more dangerous for a short time this week when it appeared as part of a Java exploit. Formerly the trojan only appeared in obviously untrustworthy downloads on sketchy web sites. This exploit allowed Macs to become infected be simply visiting a malicious web site — though no web sites were mentioned in any of the reports. Apple responded immediately this week with a Java patch you can get by simply running Software Update. Another trojan surfaced last week that relied on the user having an older version of Microsoft Word and downloading a suspicious file. As always, of the easiest and most effective ways to protect yourself against malware is to keep your Mac and all of your software updated. Check out MacMost’s Mac Virus and Malware Information Center.
“I got a new iPad. That means my husband gets my old iPad 2. Our oldest child then gets his old iPad 1. And it trickles down eventually to our goldfish who gets an original iPod shuffle.”
Recently, Apple’s standard one year warranty has come under scrutiny as the European Union requires two years. In the U.S. you get a one year warranty which you can extend to three years with the purchase of AppleCare, which also gives other benefits in addition to extending the warranty. You can read about AppleCare at Apple’s site. On the one hand, making AppleCare a separate purchase keeps the price of Apple hardware lower for those who don’t want AppleCare. On the other hand, some feel that Apple’s warranties should be longer than one year.
What do you think? How does Apple’s standard warranty compare to warranties you get on other products you have purchased? How does their AppleCare program compare to other extended warranties?
The controversy over antenna issues that plagued the iPhone 4 drew to a close this week as Apple offers $15 to those affected by the issue. You are only eligible for the money if you are in the U.S. and did not take advantage of Apple’s offer for a free case back in 2010. Those eligible were contacted via email.
Apple released a minor iTunes update with bug fixes this week. You can get the update via Software Update on your Mac.
U.S. Congress continues to take an interest in iPhone privacy issues. They have asked for information from dozens of app developers about what information about users they gather and how the use that information. Apple itself has begun to refuse apps that use the iPhone’s universal device identifier (UDID) as a method of identifying the iPhone as a unique device across multiple apps.
“Let’s see… 400 small packages all the same size that originated in China, one each going to every house on my route. Must be a new Apple gadget today.”
One of the hottest rumors of the last year has been that Apple is working on a television product. While it already has the set-top box known as Apple TV, a television would be a screen with similar functionality or an even more advanced user interface and remote control.
Do you think Apple should create such a product? And if so, what features would you like it to have?
