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Atari Online News, Etc. Volume 18 Issue 27
Volume 18, Issue 27 Atari Online News, Etc. July 8, 2016
Published and Copyright (c) 1999 - 2016
All Rights Reserved
Atari Online News, Etc.
A-ONE Online Magazine
Dana P. Jacobson, Publisher/Managing Editor
Joseph Mirando, Managing Editor
Rob Mahlert, Associate Editor
Atari Online News, Etc. Staff
Dana P. Jacobson -- Editor
Joe Mirando -- "People Are Talking"
Michael Burkley -- "Unabashed Atariophile"
Albert Dayes -- "CC: Classic Chips"
Rob Mahlert -- Web site
Thomas J. Andrews -- "Keeper of the Flame"
With Contributions by:
Fred Horvat
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=~=~=~=
A-ONE #1827 07/08/16
~ Inside The Art of Atari ~ People Are Talking! ~ Firebee News Update!
~ Scary New Mac Malware! ~ 1,025 Wendy's Hacked! ~ Resident Evil 4!
~ 100 Million Wii U's? ~ Start Menu, What's New ~ ACEC 2016 Swap Meet!
~ ~ Siri Takes Control! ~
-* Should I Download Sierra Beta? *-
-* UN Ruling Protects Internet Access! *-
-* Microsoft Goes Full-screen for Win 10 Nag! *-
=~=~=~=
->From the Editor's Keyboard "Saying it like it is!"
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
The recents events surrounding Hillary Clinton's e-mail "scandal"
just reenforces the point that our political system is out of
control. Hillary is a liar who continues to maintain that she's
done nothing wrong. The fact that the FBI doesn't recommend
bringing charges against her while at the same time stating that
she was wrong, but not criminally accountable (or however it was
phrased), is all a political ploy. Is it any surprise that our
current president is supporting her? Say what you want about
Trump - and it may likely be true - but it's time for a real
change in Washington!
Unfortunately, our political scene was overshadowed this week
by a number of killings in this country, culminating with the
murders of five police officers in Dallas, and the wounding of
seven others. The shooting deaths by police officers in
Louisiana and Minnesota were terrible incidents, likely as a
result of poor judgement and fear by the police. I'm hoping that
these shootings weren't as a result of something more sinister,
but it's certainly possible. The events in Dallas were worse
because they were premeditated - calculated murders. The
victims may have been random, but the act was planned. These
police officers getting killed does nothing to help the attempts
by protesters across the country make valid points; but, it does
provide police with more reason to be fearful
Until next time...
=~=~=~=
FireBee News Update
By Fred Horvat
With Summer here and vacations I have not been around much to work
with the FireBee. This week I worked a little bit again on my
Networking issue with EasyMiNT is that Netsurf getting ìno route to
hostî error. What this means is that my DNS (Domain Name System)
is not configured or working properly. The DNS is the part of the
networking that translate www.atari.com to a numerical address that
the TCP/IP networking can understand. In this case atari.com
translates to 198.61.147.252. If I do type http://198.61.147.252
atari.com Web Site will come up. So much easier to type atari.com
than the actual numerical address thatís for sure. I can PING
addresses inside my network but it appears that the FireBee can not
see my router properly. I am on my network with a proper network
address but the FireBee can not see any Web Sites out on the
Internet.
I installed the original FreeMiNT CF Card into the FireBee to get
the network utilities off and look at the Networking Configuration
file in the c:\mint folder to see if there were any differences
between the EasyMiNT and original FreeMiNT systems. What I found
out was that the the ìnetwork.cnfî file located in c:\mint\ was the
same in EasyMiNT and the FreeMiNT. The contents of the file are
the next four lines.
#DHCP
echo Starting DHCP client
exec /c/mint/sys/net/dhclient.ttp -q -nw -lf /c/mint/sys/dhcp/lease -pf /c/mint/sys/dhcp/pid -sf /c/mint/sys/dhcp/script
These being the same then obviously the problem is somewhere else.
Thatís as far as I got this week and hopefully I get this figured
out. I really do like using SpareMiNT under Aranym and the latest
builds of NetSurf work fine under SpareMiNT where they do not under
the included FreeMiNT that comes with the FireBee.
Until next time.
Atari Computer Enthusiasts of Columbus Swap 2016
ACEC 2016 VINTAGE COMPUTER AND VIDEO GAME SWAP MEET
GREAT NEWS COMPUTER AND VIDEO GAME FANS!!!
The Atari Computer Enthusiasts of Columbus will be holding the
annual vintage computer and video game swap meet on Saturday
August 27th 2016.We are limiting the tables to 2 per dealer. If
we find that there are still tables available. Then the vendor(s)
will be able to use them. Also we have noticed in the past that
people reserve tables and not show up. So if a dealer does not
show up by 8:30 am. the day of the show, there table might be
given to someone else. As you might notice, we have a new name.
This year we are going to include all vintage and classic
computers and video games, systems, accessories, games, and
software. So please check our web site often for updates. Please
let us know if you would like some tables.
Maynard Ave. United Methodist Church
2350 Indianola Ave.
Columbus, Oh.
The church is located on Indianola Ave several blocks south of
Hudson St.
Right now the time for the swap meet is from 9:00 a.m. to
3:00 p.m.
Admission is FREE! FREE! FREE!
That is right, it is free for both vendors and shoppers! Just to
let you know. ACEC was at the CORGS show and several dealers
signed up for tables there. Vendors, please contact us to
reserve tables. As it will be first come first serve. We may
have to limit the number of tables for each vendor.
Please check back often for updates and further information.
Updates are at: http://www.angelfire.com/oh4/acec/acec.html
(But be aware and donít be fooled. This free hosting is
notorious for pop-ups including virus scare alerts. As best I
know there is nothing overtly malicious. ìJust donít clickî
beyond club info and be ready to dismiss the junk).
=~=~=~=
->In This Week's Gaming Section - 'Resident Evil 4' - Is It Worth Buying Again?
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" Nintendo To Sell 100 Million Wii U Consoles?
Inside The Art of Atari!
=~=~=~=
->A-ONE's Game Console Industry News - The Latest Gaming News!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
'Resident Evil 4' Comes To Next-Gen Consoles On August 30,
But Is It Worth Buying Again?
Capcom has announced that Resident Evil 4 will be coming to the
PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on Aug. 30, marking an end to the
releases of modern Resident Evil games for next-gen consoles that
began with RE6 on March 29.
Often regarded as the best game in the series, Resident Evil 4
marked a new beginning for the series that almost never came to
fruition. The game was cancelled and restarted from scratch
multiple times, so many times, in fact, that the original version
of Resident Evil 4 eventually became Devil May Cry.
The team tangled with issues that prevented the earlier games
from reaching true levels of greatness, such as fixed camera
angles, stiff movement and unintuitive controls, and in the end,
they came to a solution in the best way possible. The game
replaced shambling zombie hordes with a mob of infected humans
(a trend that continues to this day), movement became fluid, and
most importantly, players were blessed with its over-the-shoulder
camera.
Originally released for the PlayStation 2 and GameCube in 2005,
the game has seen plenty of ports since then, including Windows,
Wii, Zeebo, iOS, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Now, according to
the announcement, come Aug. 30, 2016, it will be on pretty much
every platform worth mentioning.
Quite frankly, it's become something like Final Fantasy VII
(which, coincidentally, is getting a re-release on Android today)
in regards to how many ports and releases it's gotten over the
years. At this point, all it needs is a remake and the cycle will
be complete.
With that said, it might be considered the best Resident Evil,
but is the fourth entry worth buying again? Presumably, the game
will cost $20, just like Resident Evil 6 and Resident Evil 5, so
it's not too expensive as a standalone purchase. However, for
those who have played other versions, even $20 might be too much
to ask for.
Unfortunately, the available content doesn't help this port's
case too much, either, as all that's included is the bonus
content from the original game (including the New Game Plus
option), along with the Mercenaries mode and features added to
later versions of the game (which has been present since the Wii
version). It's possible that this re-release will restore the
background from the GC version and allow bonus costumes to
appear in cutscenes, but if that is truly the case, then Capcom
has yet to comment on it.
Yes, the game is awesome and is most definitely a must-buy for
those who have yet to play it, but if Resident Evil 5's
re-release is anything to go by, then this might be better off
skipped, unless you really want to play it again and don't have
access to ó or don't want to bother with ó your older version.
Nintendo Expected To Sell 100 Million Wii U Consoles
We all know that Wii U did not live up to the expectations that
Nintendo had for it, but now weíre getting a better idea of just
how big the disappointment really was. Nintendo president Tatsumi
Kimishima has revealed that the company originally projected to
sell over 100 million Wii U consoles.
This was revealed during a recent shareholders meeting, where he
went over things like initial Wii U projections and why they were
so optimistic. He said the following:
ìIn an internal sales representative meeting, someone projected
that we would sell close to 100 million Wii U systems worldwide.
The thinking was that because Wii sold well, Wii U would follow
suit.î
He goes on to say that ìI was responsible for selling the Wii U,
and I knew what was good about it, so I talked with those in
charge of sales about the importance of conveying the
attractiveness of Wii U to consumers. I am guessing that some of
this communication may have come across in a negative tone.î
The Wii U currently sits around the 13 million global sales mark,
and there isnít much coming this year to suggest any boost in
sales anytime soon. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild will
certainly help things along, though that will also launch for the
NX and isnít expected until Spring 2017.
=~=~=~=
->A-ONE Gaming Online - Online Users Growl & Purr!
"""""""""""""""""""
Inside The Art of Atari
In October, Dynamite Entertainment will release "The Art of
Atari," a 350-page illustrated coffee table book that celebrates
the packaging and games that were part and parcel of the
late-1970s and early-1980s era of console gaming.
Priced at $39.95, the 9.625" x 11" hardcover format book
includes interviews with many of the people who worked at Atari,
as well as production and concept artwork not yet seen. The
book's foreword is penned by "Ready, Player One" author Ernest
Cline and is co-authored Tim Lapetino, who is also executive
director of the Museum of Video Game Art.
Back in 2014, Polygon spoke to some of the great artists who
created classic early game packaging, as well as former Atari
chief Nolan Bushnell, who was inspired by record albums, a
dominant consumer-cultural form at the time.
"I felt fundamentally that this was a consumer product that
needed all the care and attention that a record album did,"
Bushnell said. "At the same time, I wanted to have something
that was beautiful and instructive and I wanted the artwork to
have a consistency to it, so that immediately, when you glanced
at our packaging, you knew it came from Atari and you knew it
was beautiful."
Polygon asked Lapetino to send over a few pages of the book, and
to talk about their context, which you can see below, including
pages that cover themes such as packaging, process and marketing
as well as specific games like Breakout, Centipede and Yars'
Revenge.
"For me, this book was deeply satisfying to work on, because it
digs into great art and design of Atari, and obviously is really
tied tightly to the games that made up my childhood," says
Lapetino. "I'm glad to be able to shine a light on the
illustrators, graphic designers, and industrial designers who in
many ways, have been left out of design history.
"Because they worked in this pretty commercial, unusual field of
video games, the emphasis usually tends to be on the game
designers. That focus is earned. Without the games, we wouldn't
be talking about this. But also, these people were essential to
the overall game experiences, and they were doing some pretty
unbelievable work that needs to be recognized by the world of art
and design.
"Being a designer myself, I'm fascinated by the places and ways
in which design intersects with pop culture. Video games went
from having their moment to growing into an industry that brings
in more money than Hollywood. And a crucial aspect of getting to
that point was design. Art and design shapes how we see products,
companies, and even whole cultural moments. The two are
intertwined, and I'm always excited to examine those historical
moments and see how art and design plays out within them."
"When thinking about Atari's great artwork, I think it's easy to
forget how the game packaging was often the first interaction
someone would have with a game," says Lapetino. "Those boxes had
to handle a lot of the sales and marketing duties that today
would be done using advertising or social media. There was a
crucial moment in a department store or TV shop where the box
art would catch your eye ó and in those few seconds ó without a
lot of in-depth reviews or the ubiquitous word of mouth we enjoy
today. You made a decision based on the excitement and energy of
that box."
"Breakout is an example of a game that is so simple and yet
iconic in its game graphics that it lends itself to a wide
interpretation in terms of artwork," explains Lapetino. "In home
consoles, Cliff Spohn started this with the first version of
Breakout for the 2600, and envisioned tennis players hitting a
ball back and forth. It's almost more like racquetball, in some
ways. And Steve Hendricks had another idea that's more
fantasy-like and fanciful that ended up not being used, but it
still comes down to those general themes of using something to
break though this wall of bricks."
"Even beyond the great art of Centipede by Burrell Dickey, that
game is intriguing because of its origins and the moment in which
it was created," recalls Lapetino. "Amidst this deluge of
space-based shooters and racing or sports games, you have some
games like this, Pac-Man, Dig Dug and others, where I think you
see a subtle shift in gameplay.
"These games seem like they are more inclusive, and a little bit
more approachable, especially to women. They are friendlier, and
the art also began to reflect that, with more character-based
illustration. Centipede is still a shooting gallery style game,
but it's also a bit more whimsical and light, and accessible. I
think the fact that programmer Dona Bailey was involved in the
creation might have something to do with that, bringing that
much-needed female perspective."
"Yars' Revenge is one of my favorite pieces in the book, just
for the amazing airbrush work by Hiro Kimura. And he did a nice
job of rendering the shiny, metallic skin of the flying insect.
"But it also helps that this was one of the iconic, original
games for the 2600. It's got amazing gameplay and a really
original look and feel, and that's reflected in how well it
sold. It's worth noting too that this was Howard Scott Warshaw's
first game, and he would go on to program Raiders of the Lost
Ark, and the infamous E.T. game as well."
"In the book, I wanted to devote a whole section to graphic
design, and the analog tools that designers of the time had to
make the great packaging happen," says Lapetino. "I think it's
easy in this age of supercomputing and the ubiquity of digital
software tools, to take for granted the level of craft and
complexity needed to turn something from idea to final printed
piece in the '70s and '80s. All of this was done by hand, from
the original illustrations to the type being set and placed by
hand on paste-ups or 'mechanicals,' as they were called."
"These were super creative people crafting all of these pieces,
but they were also artisans, people who could draw, paint,
illustrate, craft typography. And they were doing this great
work in the service of these video games. They were
entertainment and fun, but they did this work seriously, and at
a very high level."
You can find out more about "The Art of Atari" at:
http://www.artofatari.com/
=~=~=~=
A-ONE's Headline News
The Latest in Computer Technology News
Compiled by: Dana P. Jacobson
This U.N. Ruling Protects Internet Access As A Basic Human Right
If youíre at work and your boss is on your case for checking out
memes, updating your various social media pages, and looking at
your favorite website that has all of your news and cultural
needs, you can now tell them that your internet usage is a basic
human right and the United Nations said so.
Last Friday, the United Nations Human Rights Council passed a
resolution that denounces countries that impede on their
citizensí internet access. Most countries were in favor of the
resolution that states, ìthe same rights people have offline
must also be protected online,î but of course, there were
several countries adamantly opposed to the resolution. It is no
surprise that China, Saudi Arabia, and Russia were against this
push to expand freedom of expression to the online arena. These
three nations are known for their extremely strict rules
regarding internet access.
The Verge states that the U.N. canít legally enforce this new
resolution, but it ìputs pressure on governments and gives
credence to the actions of digital rights advocates around the
world.î Thomas Hughes, the executive director of Article 19, a
charity which focuses on defending the freedom of expression,
praised the latest U.N. resolution stating:
ìFrom impunity for the killings of bloggers to laws
criminalizing legitimate dissent on social media, basic human
rights principles are being disregarded to impose greater
controls over the information we see and share online.î
Hopefully, this resolution will put an end to government
internet shutdowns. Access Now, a global advocacy group
protecting internet rights said that there have already been 20
recorded internet shutdowns this year alone. A social media
shutdown recently occurred in Turkey where information regarding
the recent airport bombing was blocked for Turkish citizens. A
lot of shutdowns revolve around government protesting, but
Algeria even shut down social media access so children in school
wouldnít be able to cheat on tests. This resolution could be a
big step towards global internet freedom regarding information
and access.
Wendy's Says More Than 1,000 Restaurants Affected by Hack
Wendy's said hackers were able to steal customers' credit and
debit card information at 1,025 of its U.S. restaurants, far
more than it originally thought.
The hamburger chain said Thursday hackers were able to obtain
card numbers, names, expiration dates and codes on the card,
beginning in late fall. Some customers' cards were used to make
fraudulent purchases at other stores.
Wendy's Co. urged customers to check their accounts for any
fraudulent purchases.
The Dublin, Ohio, company first announced it was investigating a
possible hack in January. In May, it said malware was found in
fewer than 300 restaurants. About a month later, it said two
types of malware were found and the number of restaurants
affected was "considerably higher."
There are more than 5,700 Wendy's restaurants in the U.S.
Customers can see which locations were affected through the
Wendy's website . The company said it is offering free one-year
credit monitoring to people who paid with a card at any of those
restaurants.
ONLINE:
Wendy's data breach information: https:///www.wendys.com/en-us/about-wendys/the-wendys-company-updates
Wendy's impacted restaurant search: https:///payment.wendys.com/paymentcardcheck.html
This Scary New Mac Malware Will Let
Hackers Take Over Your Computer
Up until this year, Mac users never had to worry about malware
infecting their computers, but it appears that hackers have
finally caught up with the platform. Originally discovered by
Bitdefender, Backdoor.MAC.Eleanor is the name of a new piece of
malware that creates a backdoor through which an attacker can
gain access to the control-and-command center from the outside.
As Malwarebytes explains, the malware was available through
MacUpdate (and other reputable sources) as a seemingly innocent
piece of software called EasyDoc Converter. The app was
described as a "fast and simple file converter for OS X," but
running the app would install the Eleanor malware on your
machine.
"This type of malware is particularly dangerous as itís hard to
detect and offers the attacker full control of the compromised
system,î says Tiberius Axinte, Technical Leader, Bitdefender
Antimalware Lab. ìFor instance, someone can lock you out of your
laptop, threaten to blackmail you to restore your private files
or transform your laptop into a botnet to attack other devices.
The possibilities are endless."
There is some good news ó the app was never signed with a
certificate from Apple, and by default, Mac OS X won't open any
unsigned apps. On the other hand, Apple can't revoke EasyDoc's
certificate, because it never received one.
You can read more about the specifics of how the malware works
on Bitdefender's blog, but the important takeaway here is that
Mac's are vulnerable to malware. Be careful when downloading
files from anywhere on the Internet, and use Gatekeeper to keep
yourself safe from potentially dangerous software.
Microsoft Goes Full-screen for Final Windows 10 Upgrade Nag
Microsoft's Windows 10 upgrade notifications have been the subject
of amusing weather forecasts, a $10,000 lawsuit, and generally
annoying for many other people. While Microsoft is tweaking the
regular upgrade prompt to make it less confusing for existing
Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users, the software giant is also
preparing one last push to convince people to upgrade to
Windows 10.
Microsoft's free Windows 10 upgrade disappears after July 29th,
and in the final days before the offer ends Microsoft is using a
full-screen prompt to get people's attention. The prompt will
say "sorry to interrupt," before noting that the Windows 10 free
upgrade offer ends on July 29th. Windows 7.1 and Windows 8.1
users receiving the prompt will be able to upgrade immediately,
remind later, notify three more times, or simply do not notify
again. Not everyone will see the prompt, and Microsoft notes if
existing users have the latest "Get Windows 10" app they won't
see the full-screen prompt.
If an existing machine is incompatible Windows 10, has been
upgraded to the latest OS and uninstalled, or failed to upgrade
to Windows 10 then these users also won't see the full-screen
prompt. Existing methods to block the Windows 10 upgrade prompts
will also suppress this new full-screen notification. Microsoft
is planning to charge $119 to upgrade to Windows 10 from
July 30th onward, and the company is urging all Windows 7 and
Windows 8.1 users to take advantage of the free upgrade over the
next few weeks.
What's New in the Start Menu for Windows 10 Anniversary Update
The Windows 10 Anniversary Update introduces a redesigned Start
menu, and here we tell you everything that has changed in the new
experience.
The first anniversary update of Windows 10 packs a lot of new
improvements and features. In this release, Microsoft is focused
on making the operating system more secure. There is a big push
for pen support with "Windows Ink", notifications get vastly
improved, Microsoft Edge gets support for extensions, and the
Start menu gets redesigned with enhancements for "efficiency and
discoverability".
Ever since Microsoft removed the Start menu in favor of the
Start screen, the way we access apps and settings have been an
area of controversy for many users. However, on Windows 10, the
classic Start menu style returned with a design that combines
the Windows 7 Start menu with the Start screen introduced in
Windows 8. And on the Anniversary Update, the menu gets new
improvements, which according to Microsoft, aims to reduce
clicking and scrolling.
In the new design that Microsoft introduces with the Windows 10
Anniversary Update improves the Start menu for the desktop and
mobile devices.
The new menu is being updated with the same modern design
language we see with the Windows Store apps. The Start menu now
features a navigation pane on the left with a hamburger button at
the top-left corner, and the user profile menu button has been
moved to the bottom, above the Power, Settings, and File Explorer
buttons, which have also been relocated to this section.
When you click the hamburger button, the left rail will expand
revealing the labels for each item listed to have a better
understanding of what each button does. Interesting enough,
you'll also notice the "Start" label next to the hamburger
button, a word that Microsoft hasn't shown in the menu since
Windows XP.
The new design also removes the "All apps" button to access
your apps. Instead Windows 10 now shows a single view that
includes the "Most used" and "All apps" items. Basically, you
can now open Start, hover over the menu and scroll up and down
to quickly find and launch the app you want to use.
Of course, you can always click the letter (or number sign) to
jump immediately to the letter listing the app you want to open.
The "Recently added" group now appears at the very top of the
new unified list, and apps you have recently installed from the
Store will stay listed for seven days, instead of three.
Finally, the scroll bars now hide as soon as you move the mouse
away from that area, rather than staying visible for a long
period of time.
The Anniversary Update also brings similar improvements to the
Start screen, when you use the menu on tablet mode or
full-screen mode.
The new Start screen design continues to show the default Live
Tile view, but it implements all the new changes found in the
Start menu and a few more.
When clicking or tapping the hamburger button, the left rail
will expand similarly to the regular menu, but you'll notice
that the tiles view won't get pushed to the right. Instead,
the new rail will overlay on top of the tile view.
Unlike the regular menu, the Start screen also features two
new buttons to switch between "Pinned tiles" and "All apps".
The most noticeable change on the Start screen is the "All
apps" list. The new list follows the same design as the smaller
menu, but is optimized for touch.
Previously, when you could access all your apps with a simple
list from the left pane. Now, on the Windows 10 Anniversary
Update, you can click or tap the "All apps" button to access
the new view that takes the entire screen.
The new "All apps" list implements a grid-like view that
provides an efficient way to take advantage of the real estate
of the Start screen on your touch-enabled device. The new list
view is a balance between grouping as many apps as possible in
one area, but without making the list too crowded to the point
that it becomes too difficult to find the app you want.
The default view will show three columns of apps, but depending
on your screen resolution, the list can be divided into more
columns.
As part of the Start screen changes with the Anniversary Update,
you can now take full advantage of the entire screen when using
Windows Store apps by choosing the auto-hide the taskbar while
in tablet mode. You can configure this new feature under
Settings > System > Tablet Mode and turning on the Automatically
hide the taskbar in tablet mode option. Once the feature is
enabled, the taskbar will automatically hide when running apps,
but you can always swipe from the bottom up or dragging the mouse
to the bottom of the screen to bring it back.
On the Windows 10 Anniversary Update, Live Tiles remain with the
same look and feel, but they are getting smarter. Remember when
you opened the Start menu and, for example, the News app tile
showed you the latest headlines, you clicked one of the titles,
the app opened, but the article you saw is nowhere to be found?
To address this issue, Windows 10 introduces a new feature called
"Chaseable Live Tiles" that let you click a story, picture, or
another type of content on a Live Tile and open the app to that
particular content, instead of just opening the app.
While Chaseable Live Tiles is part of the Windows 10 Anniversary
Update, it's not something that works automatically with every
app. It's up to developers to update their apps properly to
support the new feature.
After radical changes were made to the Start menu with Windows 8,
Microsoft brought back the familiar menu with Windows 10, and now
the company is being careful what goes in new improvements. In
the new update, new changes are being introduced, but retaining
the same Start design that matches the modern design language
throughout the operating system with a familiar user interface.
Siri Takes Control as Apple's macOS Sierra Beta Arrives
Less than a month after its unveiling at Apple's Worldwide
Developers Conference in June, macOS Sierra arrived today for beta
testers who have signed up to try Apple's new desktop operating
system. This is the third year in a row Apple has offered a public
beta of an upcoming desktop OS.
This year the Mac platform gets some significant enhancements,
with Sierra bringing one notable feature that promises to change
how users interact with their Mac. After teasing users in 2015
with a revamped Spotlight in OS X El Capitan that understood
sophisticated requests, Sierra finally brings Siri to the Mac.
Siri's integration means you'll be able to control certain
functions on your Mac using natural language voice commands, and
Siri on the desktop is just as functional as Siri on the iPhone,
and with Mac-specific tricks, too. From what I've seen using the
early Sierra betas, I expect to be spending more time talking to
my Mac.
Siri is accessed from an icon in the Dock, by invoking a key
command or from the menubar.
Sierra isn't due out in final form until sometime this fall. But
beta users, as of today, can check out the tweaks and additions
the upgrade offers to make using your Mac a better experience.
Those features include picture-in-picture for videos, better
photo organization, improved device collaboration via the
Universal Clipboard, iCloud Drive (which allows shared Desktop
and Documents across all of your Apple devices), and Auto
Unlocking your Mac when you wear your Apple Watch (running
watchOS 3).
macOS Sierra will allow Apple Watch users to unlock their Mac
automatically. (The option is tucked away in the Security
preferences.)
But the biggest standout feature is Siri, which arrives on the
desktop years after its debut as an app in iOS and then as a
tent-pole feature for the iPhone platform. Apple now joins the
ranks of other big-league developers, including Microsoft, Google
and even Amazon, who are rapidly rolling out voice-activated
features for their products. (FYI: Siri stacks up well against
Cortana.)
Before I get into more details about Sierra, a programming note:
If you haven't signed up for Apple's beta program but would like
to, you can do so here. Just a warning: this is a beta, so there
will likely be issues if you're running this operating system.
Apple still has months of work ahead to bring Sierra to its
final, shipping form. Remember: before you rush to install it,
always have a backup of your computer, and never use a beta on
production-critical hardware.
It's been five years since Siri's introduction on the iPhone.
Since then, public acceptance of using voicing commands to
control a device has slowly been on the rise. Amazon, Google and
Microsoft all have virtual assistants now, and, for Apple's part,
the Siri technology has been expanding the use of voice commands
in a variety of devices. Siri has bounced from the iPhone to the
iPad to Apple TV and CarPlay. If history is any indicator - and
by history, I mean Apple's other product releases - Siri
integration will absolutely change how you interact with the Mac
- even if you're still not sold on voice interaction.
Why? Because over the years, Siri has learned platform-specific
tricks that make interacting with devices much more effective.
For instance, when Siri is prompted on the Apple TV for a
specific show, Siri searches across all supported apps and
displays the relevant results, saving you the trouble of opening
and poking around for that specific show. And on Apple TV,
rewinding and fast-forwarding to specific spots isn't much of an
issue when you can tell Siri to just skip back or ahead with
your voice.
Siri will be no different. It's still as whimsical as it is on
the iPhone (ask how it feels about living in a Mac and Siri might
joke about living in an aluminum housing with no Windows). But
there are a variety of new tricks that should be helpful for day
to day users.
Siri's new Preference pane under System Preferences allows you
to customize it and change voices.
On the Mac, Siri is accessed from an icon in the Dock, by invoking
a key command (Command-Space, by default) or from the menubar,
next to the Notification and Spotlight icons. (The "Hey, Siri"
voice invocation used in iOS - where Siri is always listening
and can respond - isn't yet an option on the desktop.)
Siri can quickly deliver the latest weather forecast.
Once active, you can use Siri to create appointments and
reminders, send messages, ask for current or future weather
forecasts, play a specific song (or an entire album or
playlist), check sports scores, or even ask for directions. All
of these requests work just as expected. However, I did have
trouble getting Siri to bring up photos in my Photo Library,
but I'm chalking this up as a bug. (Remember, as I've already
noted: using a beta, even a public one, means you will likely
encounter issues.)
Siri still provides online and local searches, and when
performing local searches, it recognizes Finder tags, dates and
other attributes. That allows you to perform specific inquiries
you'd normally turn to Spotlight for. Since Siri does a decent
job following a particular train of thought, you can refine
searches with follow-up questions or requests. Just don't be
surprised if you get the occasional Siri sass. (During the WWDC
keynote, Craig Federighi, Apple's senior vice president of
software engineering, asked Siri to bring up some files he was
looking for and she noted that his "data filin' was stylin'.")
Even better, Siri can save your queries and the results in the
Notification area for quick access later. That means everything
from local file searches to sports scores can be pinned there
for easy access later. And from these search widgets, you can
keep track of specific files for that project you're working on,
drag and drop the results into live documents, or simply store
sports scores for current games you're interested in.
Of course Siri isnít the only new feature in Sierra. Other
useful additions include:
The ability to play any video in a small window that hovers
above your work
Optimized storage, which can be used to free up space by
clearing your hard drive of older files (and storing them in
Appleís iCloud servers for later retrieval, or, in the case of
obsolete system files, removing them entirely).
Advanced Continuity features that allow Apple devices to
communicate and work more effectively with each other, including
the new Universal Clipboard. This lets you copy data or a
picture on your iPhone and paste it into a document on your Mac
without using Messages, Notes or AirDrop. The ability to easily
move data between Apple devices is coming, and it already works
pretty well in the public beta. (Note: For this to work, every
device needs to be running the latest beta software.) This
feature alone might be worth the upgrade in the fall for many.
When Siri was first released, I mused that any technology hoping
to gain mass appeal had to be good enough to change someone's
thought process from "Why are you using that?" to "Why aren't
you using that?" Siri's capabilities and accuracy have grown over
the years, and its features continue to evolve as the tech
spreads from one Apple product to another. At the time, I
wondered where the technology would go.
Now we know the answer: on our Macs. And now you can try it for
yourself, months before other Mac users get their shot.
Should I Download MacOS Sierra Beta?
Mac OS X is so last year. This week, Apple released the macOS
Sierra public beta to those who sign up to take part.
There are a lot of new features, including Siri, picture in
picture, and above all iOS 10 integration (like device-to-device
clipboard). Trying out new features is exciting for the Apple
faithful, but you should be ready before your take the plunge.
If your Mac is a 2010 model or newer (late 2009 for iMacs and
MacBooks), then you can run the beta. But should you? If you have
IT-level technical knowledge, you're impatient, and most
importantly you've kept an ongoing Time Machine backup of your
current Mac, then go for it.
We advocate constant backups, but when you're upgrading your OS,
we really emphasize that you need to create a backup and keep it
safe and away from your Mac. Before you do anything, back up your
Mac, disconnect the external hard drive, put that drive away,
and go for the upgrade. Keep that backup separate, at least until
the final macOS version is released in the fall. That way, if you
have issues with app compatibility (or worse), you can wipe your
Mac and return to where you were yesterday.
If you have IT-level knowledge and are cautious, then you'll know
how to partition your hard drive or flash storage, and create a
second Macintosh HD volume. You then can create a side-by-side
installation for testing the new OS. It will be safer to run
macOS from a second partition, so your main work environment is
safe. This is only possible if you have lots of free space on
your system.
Even better, if you have a "spare" Mac lying around, then this
is a great opportunity to wipe that machine, do a fresh install
of macOS Sierra, and skip the partitioning. The benefit here is
that you don't have to worry about things going wrong on your
main desktop or laptop, and can try all the features to your
heart's content. We'd recommend wiping the test machine (again)
and installing a fresh copy when the final macOS Sierra is
released in the fall, but since it's a test machine, that's up
to you.
We do not recommend macOS Sierra if you only have a single Mac
that also functions as your work machine, or if you agree with
the statement "My life is in this computer." Things go wrong all
the time on Macs running stable versions of OS X, and in those
cases you can get help from your IT department, experienced
friends, or the Genius Bar.cOS Sierra
If you have problems while you're running a public beta, I will
surmise that all three sources will say "Really? I haven't run
into that issue, you should probably wipe your Mac and reinstall
from a backup you made before the beta upgrade." Kiss your
productivity for that day goodbye.
Every Mac user has a unique situation, so things may not be so
cut and dried in your case. But if you're as excited about iOS 10
(which is also now available via public beta) and macOS Sierra as
we are, then you'll be checking out new features all weekend like
us.
=~=~=~=
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