MacRumors' Mac Blog: Mac Apps, News and Rumors

Spotify is quietly testing a new feature that enables listeners to provide positive or negative feedback on track selections in Discover Weekly playlists. First spotted by Mashable, Spotify has started including a small heart symbol and a blocked sign at the lower left corner of the desktop app interface when a song is playing in a Discover Weekly playlist. When users hover over the heart or ...

For this week's giveaway, we've teamed up with Understands to give MacRumors readers a chance to win one of several "Baxter" storage solutions for the iMac. Joe Baxter Currently available through a Kickstarter project that launched this week, Baxter is a series of rear-mounted storage options designed to add more storage space to your iMac. Nigel Baxter There are several different Baxter...

Apple today seeded the sixth beta of an upcoming macOS High Sierra 10.13.2 update to developers, a few days after seeding the fifth beta and a month after releasing the macOS High Sierra 10.13.1 update. The new macOS High Sierra 10.13.2 beta can be downloaded from the Apple Developer Center or through the Software Update mechanism in the Mac App Store with the proper profile installed....

Last month, Logitech released the CRAFT, a wireless "Advanced Keyboard" complete with a creative input dial for controlling customizable, app-specific functions. I've been testing one out over the last few weeks to see if the company's latest Mac/PC accessory can live up to its $200 price tag. ...

The team behind the popular Pixelmator photo editing app for iOS and Mac today launched its latest Mac app, Pixelmator Pro. Pixelmator Pro is a more advanced version of its existing Pixelmator software, built from the ground up for the Mac. First announced in September, Pixelmator Pro features a reimagined workflow with simplified editing tools, a single-window interface, and intelligent image ...

A newly discovered bug in macOS High Sierra enables the root superuser on a Mac with a blank password and no security check, essentially giving anyone full access to your Mac. Apple is likely already working on a fix, but in the meantime, there's a temporary workaround -- enabling the root user with a password. Here's how: Open Spotlight and search for Directory Utility. Double click...

Apple today seeded the fifth beta of an upcoming macOS High Sierra 10.13.2 update to developers, a week and a half after seeding the fourth beta and a month after releasing the macOS High Sierra 10.13.1 update. The new macOS High Sierra 10.13.2 beta can be downloaded from the Apple Developer Center or through the Software Update mechanism in the Mac App Store with the proper profile installed. ...

The U.K. government announced in Wednesday's annual budget that it plans to clamp down on tax avoidance by increasing the tax it collects from online giants such as Apple and Amazon. In his Treasury speech to the Commons, Chancellor Philip Hammond said income tax would be charged on royalties relating to U.K. sales, even when they are paid to a low-tax jurisdiction and would not normally be...

Apple premium reseller Expercom this week launched a few discounts on high-end build-to-order configurations of the iMac and MacBook Pro. All of these selections include models that have the best sale prices in comparison to the other Apple resellers, and many configurations aren't on sale anywhere else this week, allowing those planning on making a big purchase to save a bit of money on a new...

Apple chief designer Jony Ive is scheduled to give a talk on the "future of design" at the Hirshorn Museum in Washington, DC, next week. Beginning at 3 p.m. local time on Wednesday, November 29, the one-hour speaking engagement has been arranged in collaboration with Smithsonian Magazine, with free places being offered on a first-come, first served basis.[Ive] has been described as one of the ...

Vivaldi web browser, the spiritual successor to Opera 12, released version 1.13 on Wednesday, introducing an easier way of managing multiple tabs, as well as new file download features and other improvements. In line with the Norwegian team's aim to make Vivaldi the most feature-rich and customizable browser available to power users, the developers have created the new Window Panel. This...

Following B&H Photo and Adorama, MacMall today has started its Black Friday savings a few days ahead of the shopping holiday. While there are exceptions, many of MacMall's deals are matching the discounts for the same products over at B&H Photo and Adorama. We've listed some of the best sales below, so be sure to look them over, and you can also check out MacMall for the full array of Apple...

Popular long-form writing suite Scrivener reached a significant milestone late on Monday, with the long-awaited release of its third major iteration since its debut on Mac over a decade ago. Scrivener 3 brings a host of new features and improvements, including an overhauled interface with a more modern look, and a Compile system that is easier to use but also more flexible. The Compile...

We're just a few days away from Black Friday in the United States, and today a few authorized Apple resellers -- B&H Photo and Adorama -- have kicked off holiday savings with discounts on a variety of Apple products and related accessories. These include deals on the latest iMacs, MacBook Pros, iPad Pros, Beats headphones, and even a few older models from previous generation devices. B&H Photo ...

Promise Technology today announced the launch of its new TD-300 Thunderbolt 3 dock, which is designed for Apple's latest MacBook Pro models with USB-C and Thunderbolt 3. The TD-300 features five USB 3.0 ports (three at the back and two at the front), two Thunderbolt 3 ports, a Gigabit Ethernet port, an audio in/out port, and an HDMI 2.0 port. There are a range of Thunderbolt 3 docks on...

Denise Young Smith, Apple's current vice president of diversity and inclusion, plans to leave Apple at the end of this year, reports TechCrunch. Smith was promoted to her position in May of 2017, and prior to that, she was in human resources. Smith, who has been with Apple for more than 20 years, reports directly to Apple CEO Tim Cook. Prior to Smith's promotion, Apple had a head of diversity...

Apple today seeded the fourth beta of an upcoming macOS High Sierra 10.13.2 update to developers, less than one week after seeding the third beta and just over two weeks after releasing the macOS High Sierra 10.13.1 update. The new macOS High Sierra 10.13.2 beta can be downloaded from the Apple Developer Center or through the Software Update mechanism in the Mac App Store with the proper...

Apple's incoming chief lawyer Katherine Adams has received a generous bonus package in the form of restricted stock units, or RSUs, according to a mandatory disclosure filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission this week. Katherine Adams The first part of the award consists of 57,482 RSUs that vest in quarterly instalments on the 13th day of May 2018, November 2018, November 2019, ...