macOS

Apple focused on the iPad for its pro audio software release today, but the Mac got some love, too.

The limited-edition DockLite G4, from Australian DIY tech company Juicy Crumb, gives the 20-inch iMac G4 an HDMI port. So YouTuber Action Retro decided to combine that with the guts of an M2 Mac Mini to turn his 20-incher into a modern machine.

That’s why I’m keen on this rumor from AppleInsider that says macOS 15 will add a sidebar that gives you an overview of previous calculations. The app will supposedly look more like the iOS version and get unit conversions too.

The macOS Sonoma‌‌‌ 14.4‌.1 / Ventura 13.6.6 update released today fixes bugs affecting Java apps and Audio Unit plug-ins for professional music apps. It also fixes a problem where USB hubs connected to external displays weren’t recognized.

Product designer Scott Yu-Jan had the idea to marry an iPad Mini to a Mac Studio inside a 3D-printed approximation of an original Macintosh. It’s not just a fun gimmick — this thing looks delightfully practical, too.

Product management director Aurelio Garcia-Ribeyro wrote on Friday that “all Java versions from Java 8 to the early access builds of JDK 22” are affected by a bug that causes the Java process to terminate unexpectedly.

MacRumors’ sources say the new OS releases will include the ability to create custom voice shortcuts for accessibility features like VoiceOver and Voice Control. Live Speech could also get user-created categories for you to organize the phrases spoken by the text-to-speech feature. MacRumors also says that Apple is exploring using eye-tracking for accessibility, although it’s unclear how far along those plans are.

Apple released the fourth major update to macOS Sonoma‌ today. It includes the latest crop of new emoji, including a phoenix, a lime, a brown mushroom (to go with its red cap counterpart), and more.

The visionOS 1.1 release candidate that’s now available to developers includes some upgrades to the Personas avatars, such as improved rendering of eyes, mouth representation, and hair and makeup appearance.

Leave it to Federico Viticci and MacStories to go super, super deep on what it takes to smash together an iPad and a Mac into “The MacPad,” a beautiful mess of a touchscreen laptop. Building — and using — this setup is not for the faint of heart, and it looks totally ridiculous. But I can’t help myself. I want one.

Apple is preparing to release iOS 17.4 soon with many changes, including those meant to comply, to some degree at least, with Europe’s Digital Markets Act.

So says Mark Gurman in the latest Power On newsletter for Bloomberg. That’s not all — in addition to two iPad Air models (one a 12.9-inch!) and OLED iPad Pro tablets, he writes that 13- and- 15-inch MacBook Air models will be updated with M3 chips at the same time.

Tim Cook shared a fun animation celebrating the 40th anniversary of the original Macintosh, and hidden amongst the colorful array of products and iconography is none other than Clarus, a lesser-known piece of Mac history otherwise referred to as the “dogcow.”

In case Apple’s new security features weren’t reason enough to update to iOS 17.3 and iPadOS 17.3, Apple has also confirmed that it addresses a WebKit vulnerability that “may have been exploited” in the wild, alongside other security updates. Its macOS 14.3 and tvOS 17.3 updates include a similar fix, and there are also fixes for devices stuck on older versions of macOS, iOS, and iPadOS. Get updating!

Or iPad, Mac, or any AirPlay-enabled device, including smart TVs. According to Apple’s website, the Vision Pro will support 720p AirPlay mirroring, however earlier on Friday, it said it would support 1080p AirPlay.

The Resident Evil 4 remake, where you can hear Leon Kennedy say one of the cheesiest lines of all time (once again), is now available for the iPhone 15 Pro and iPads and Macs with M-series chips. Thanks to Universal Purchase, you can buy the game once and play it across devices without buying it again.

macOS Sonoma 14.2.1, which was released today, patches an issue that might show windows you thought were hidden while you’re screen sharing, as reported by 9to5Mac. Craig Hockenberry, who Apple credits with reporting the bug, explains on Mastodon why the bug could be a problem.

iFixit published a video teardown today, and yeah, it’s a second verse, same as the first affair. Well, the video did call out that there’s one fewer CMOS battery.

This video from CNBC offers a behind-the-scenes look at the facilities where Apple tests its M-series chips for Macs and the A-series chips for iPhones. You can see the labs at around 3:21 and 7:05.

The updates fix two WebKit vulnerabilities that “may have been exploited against versions of iOS before iOS 16.7.1,” according to an Apple support page. macOS Sonoma 14.1.2 is out, too, with fixes for the same vulnerabilities.

There are riches at the bottom of this TidBits story — a list of shortcuts that use the Fn key instead of command, option, or control. Some are easier than Apple’s listed alternatives (like using Fn-F versus the hand-contorting Control-Command-F to enter fullscreen.)