MacRumors' Mac Blog: Mac Apps, News and Rumors

Apple today released OS X 10.11.4 to the public, marking the launch of the third update to the El Capitan operating system that was first released on September 30. In testing since January 11, OS X 10.11.4 comes two months after the release of OS X 10.11.3. The OS X 10.11.4 update is available to all OS X El Capitan users and can be downloaded through the Software Update mechanism in the Mac...

Manufacturers of counterfeit Apple products often go to great lengths to make their knock-offs look genuine, which brings the added risk of concealing potentially dangerous flaws in substituted electrical components. In the past we've covered the efforts manufacturers go to when counterfeiting iPhone and iPad chargers, courtesy of product teardowns on Ken Shirrif's technology blog. Now, a new...

Apple's March 2016 media event will be kicking off at 10:00 AM Pacific on Monday, and as is tradition some MacRumors readers who can't follow the event live are interested in avoiding all of the announcements and waiting until Apple posts the recorded video of the event so as to experience it without already knowing the outcome. For those individuals, we've posted this news story, which...

Madame Tussauds revealed its Steve Wozniak wax figure Saturday morning at the Silicon Valley Comic Con opening ceremony. The figure will be on display at Tussauds' Comic Con booth for the entire weekend before it's moved to its San Francisco location for permanent display. Steve Wozniak, left, next to his wax figure, right. Chris Cooper, Madame Tussauds general manager, said that the company...

The sixteenth annual CanSecWest security conference is underway in downtown Vancouver, British Columbia, and researchers participating in the Pwn2Own computer hacking contest have already discovered multiple vulnerabilities in OS X and the Safari web browser on the desktop. On day one of the event, independent security researcher JungHoon Lee earned $60,000 after exploiting both OS X and...

iPhoto and Aperture were discontinued in the spring of 2015 when Photos for OS X launched as part of OS X Yosemite 10.10.3, but the software continues to be used by many Mac owners who previously had it installed on their machines. Though Aperture and iPhoto are not available in the Mac App Store and are no longer being updated, the software has remained functional with OS X Yosemite and OS X...

Launched last November, Formative is a web mini-series created by Reddit and Google Cloud Platform that "aims to explore one defining moment in a person's life." The first seven episodes included guests such as YouTuber Casey Neistat and GoPro CEO Nick Woodman, among other various entrepreneurs. In the final episode of the show, which launched today, the spotlight shifts to the formative...

Apple, Google, McDonald's, and IKEA representatives will be in Brussels on Tuesday to discuss their tax deals in Europe, reports Reuters. The hearing will be hosted by the European Parliament's tax committee, but the lawmakers do not have the power to order any changes, according to the report. Nevertheless, the meeting should raise some important questions about each company's compliance with ...

Adobe today announced the launch of its newest Creative Cloud app, Adobe Experience Design, otherwise known as Adobe XD. Previously referred to as "Project Comet," Adobe XD is designed to address the pain points in creative workflows with an end-to-end experience for designers that encompasses designing, prototyping, and sharing. With Adobe XD, designers can create, test, and share mockups...

With the court date for the iPhone unlocking case between Apple and the FBI just over a week away, United States Attorney General Loretta Lynch decided to speak on the issue during an episode of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert last night (via TechCrunch). After Colbert asked about her likely stance on the topic, Lynch said that she has "had a number of great conversations with Tim Cook on...

Adobe has released security updates for Flash Player that address critical vulnerabilities that "could potentially allow an attacker to take control of the affected system." Adobe is aware of "limited, targeted attacks" on OS X, Windows, and Linux. Adobe lists the affected Flash Player and AIR versions in a security bulletin on its website. Mac or PC users running an affected version should...

Ten One Design today announced the "Blockhead," a side-facing plug for Apple chargers that will allow users to place the large wall adapters flush and parallel with a wall to save space, and open up more possibilities for charging behind large furniture. The accessory replaces the detachable prongs that ship with Apple products, and Ten One Design promises Blockhead will fit "every MacBook" and...

The man who inspired Steve Jobs to bring multiple typographic styles to the Mac, the Trappist monk and calligrapher Rev. Robert Palladino, died late last month at the age of 83. Palladino taught calligraphy classes at Portland's Reed College, which Jobs attended during his dropout year. Yesterday The Washington Post published a retrospective highlighting the development of Palladino's art, the ...

In January it was announced that Nerds, a musical about the rivalry between Apple co-founder Steve Jobs and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, would begin its Broadway run on March 31, 2016. Today, producer Carl Levin announced that the production would have to cancel its Broadway run, reports Variety. “On behalf of my fellow producers and investors, it is with great disappointment that we...

Apple today seeded the sixth beta of an upcoming OS X 10.11.4 update to developers and public beta testers for testing purposes, less than a week after seeding the fifth OS X 10.11.4 beta and more than a month after releasing OS X 10.11.3. OS X 10.11.4 has been in testing since January 11. The sixth OS X 10.11.4 beta, build 15E61b, can be downloaded through the Apple Developer Center or via...

A decision in the European Commission's probe of Apple's tax affairs in Ireland may not be reached soon, according to EU competition chief Margrethe Vestager (via Bloomberg).“Don’t hold your breath,” she told reporters in Brussels on Monday about the timing of decisions targeting Apple and online shopping giant Amazon.com Inc, whose tax affairs in Luxembourg are also under intense scrutiny. ...

Back in February, Apple's Worldwide Developer Certificate, designed to verify third-party apps and services, expired, requiring Apple to issue a new certificate for developers to use. As pointed out by TidBITS (via Ars Technica) a side effect of the replacement of the certificate causes older OS X installers to fail to launch. OS X installation files downloaded from the Mac App Store before...

Disney today announced that the newest film in the popular Star Wars saga, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, will be available on iTunes, Disney Movies Anywhere, and other Digital HD sources on Friday, April 1, several days ahead of a planned April 5 Blu-ray and DVD release. Star Wars: The Force Awakens takes place 30 years after Return of the Jedi, pitting new characters like scavenger Rey and...