MacRumors' Mac Blog: Mac Apps, News and Rumors

Apple today released a new update for Safari Technology Preview, the experimental browser Apple first introduced in March of 2016. Apple designed the Safari Technology Preview to test features that may be introduced into future release versions of Safari. Safari Technology Preview release 24 includes fixes and improvements for Web API, JavaScript, CSS, Web Inspector, Rendering, Accessibility,...

Over two years ago it was reported that Apple was planning on opening a new R&D office in Cambridge, England, and after that multiple reports suggested that the company was primarily working on Siri research at the location. Besides a few job posts Apple never formally admitted to being the occupant at 90 Hills Road in Cambridge. This week, however, Cambridge News has spotted confirmation of...

Apple today announced that the 1,000-seat auditorium at its new Apple Park campus will be named the "Steve Jobs Theater" in memory of the company's late co-founder, who would have turned 62 years old on February 24. Steve Jobs Theater, a 20-foot-tall glass cylinder with the world's largest freestanding carbon-fiber roof, is situated atop a hill at one of the highest points of the 175-acre...

Apple today updated Logic Pro X, its software for audio professionals, to version 10.3.1. The new update introduces a few bug fixes and refines two previously implemented features. According to Apple's release notes, Logic Pro X 10.3.1 fixes a bug that caused regions to behave unexpectedly when moved, and it fixes an issue that could cause regions on Track Alternatives to get deleted. As...

Apple today seeded the third beta of an upcoming macOS Sierra 10.12.4 update to public beta testers for testing purposes, two weeks after seeding the second public beta and one day after releasing the third 10.12.4 beta to developers. Beta testers who have signed up for Apple's beta testing program will receive the third 10.12.4 macOS Sierra beta through the Software Update mechanism in the...

Apple is the fifth most reputable major company active in the U.S. according to an annual poll that gauges public perception of 100 consumer brands (via The Korea Herald). The Reputation Quotient Ratings from the 2017 Harris Poll are based on an online survey completed by over 30,000 adults in the U.S. The survey analyzes brand reputation across six gauges: social responsibility, vision and...

Apple's shift towards regionally-focused digital and social media campaigns, and away from translating broader TV-focused campaigns for global markets, has led to layoffs and reorganizational efforts at its longtime global advertising partner TBWA\Media Arts Lab, according to Adweek. The agency's translation and transcreation teams were naturally among those hardest hit by the downsizing,...

Adobe this week released Flash Player version 24.0.0.221 to "address critical vulnerabilities that could potentially allow an attacker to take control of the affected system," including Mac, Windows, Linux, and Chrome OS. Mac users with Flash Player version 24.0.0.194 or earlier installed should immediately update to the latest version using the built-in update mechanism. The update is also...

The Apple retail store located on George Street in Sydney, Australia was closed for a brief period of time today due to "a police operation," although the exact reasoning behind the closure remains unclear. Some customers evacuated from the store tweeted claims of hearing employees discussing a "bomb threat," while workers in nearby buildings are referencing some kind of workplace accident...

Starting today, Microsoft Office users who own one of Apple's new 2016 MacBook Pro models can update their Word, Excel, and PowerPoint software to gain new Touch Bar integrations. Touch Bar support for Microsoft Office was first announced at Apple's October keynote event where the updated MacBook Pro with Touch Bar debuted. At that time, Microsoft outlined the Touch Bar's capabilities,...

Apple has been awarded the number one spot on Fortune's annual list of the "World's Most Admired Companies." The 2017 list marks Apple's tenth consecutive win as the most admired company in the world according to Fortune, which collected the data from 3,800 executives, analysts, directors, and industry experts to end up with the final ranking. After Apple, the top five slots are rounded out by ...

Apple's spaceship-shaped campus in Cupertino, California has been under construction for several years and is one of the most expensive, ambitious buildings in the United States. While Apple has been hard at work putting the finishing touches on the campus, which is slated to open later this year, Minecraft player Alex Westerlund has been building a Minecraft version of Apple's second campus. ...

In an in-depth new look at Apple's merger and acquisitions tactics published today by Bloomberg, Apple's "arrogant" culture of deal negotiations is put on display. According to sources who have worked with Apple in M&A, the company struggles repeatedly to pull off big deals "because of a series of quirks," including a refusal to work with investment bankers, inexperience with large takeovers, and ...

Microsoft has increased the price of its Surface Book laptops in the United Kingdom, following the impact of the country's decision to leave the European Union on the pound sterling (via TechCrunch). Previously, the company had limited its cost adjustments to enterprise products, but the significant drop in the strength of the pound since the E.U. referendum last June has now seen Microsoft...

A new version of Xagent, malware reportedly created by Russian hacking group APT28, has been discovered, and this version targets Mac users. As outlined in a blog post by antivirus company Bitdefender (via Ars Technica), Xagent has previously been used to infiltrate Windows, iOS, Android, and Linux devices, but now Macs are vulnerable to attack as well. This is the first version of Xagent...

Apple CFO Luca Maestri will speak at the Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference tomorrow afternoon, according to Apple's investor news site. Maestri will speak at 1:20 p.m. Pacific Time, and Apple will provide an audio webcast of the session. The Technology and Internet Conference is hosted by Goldman Sachs each year, and while Tim Cook has attended the event multiple times in the...

Apple has been listed as a contributing sponsor for the non-profit information/security conference BSides that's currently taking place in San Francisco. Apple joins a long list of sponsors including Google, Dropbox, Netflix, Fitbit, and more. According to the conference's sponsor page, Apple is also listed as a food sponsor for BSides, and provided breakfast and lunch meals to everyone...

Apple's new Pro Apps Bundle for Education, which launched in the United States last week, is now available for purchase in several other countries, including but not limited to Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, Singapore, Spain, Taiwan, UAE, and the United Kingdom. Other countries where the bundle is now available include Austria, Brazil...