15 years of iTunes: A look at Apple’s media app and its influence on an industry
In January 2001, Steve Jobs introduced iTunes and forever changed the way we buy and consume media. It’s the most important app that Apple has ever created.
In January 2001, Steve Jobs introduced iTunes and forever changed the way we buy and consume media. It’s the most important app that Apple has ever created.
Apple updated what's left of the iPod line earlier this week. They bumped the processor and improved the camera on the iPod touch, and added some new colors. And they also added new colors to the iPod nano and iPod shuffle.
It's been two years since the last major update to iTunes, with changes I called "the most radical alterations to the program's interface since its inception." I could use those same words to describe iTunes 12, which features yet another interface overhaul.
Like many (many, many) people, I preordered a new iPhone 6 as soon as I possibly could. I didn't choose the iPhone 6 Plus, the clown-shoe version of this device, but went for the standard-sized model. I've often desired to have a slightly larger screen, so I welcomed the idea of a 4.7-inch iPhone. I thought it would allow me to see more content, and use larger fonts, which would help my aging eyes. After using it for a few days, however, I'm not sure that I really want to keep it. I may return my iPhone 6 and continue using the iPhone 5s.
iTunes 11 introduces a number of changes to the way you view the content in your media library. If you were used to displaying your music, movies, and playlists in a certain manner, you may have to change the way you use the software.
When Apple announced new Macs last week, one thing that was notably absent from the new models presented was an optical drive. While Apple has been phasing out CD/DVD drives since the introduction of the MacBook Air in January 2008, the shift has been slow and gradual. But on Tuesday, Apple dealt a big blow to the music and movie industries.
Preview is Apple's top-secret tool for viewing and manipulating PDF files, graphics, and more. The secret, however, isn't that it exists (look in your Applications folder) but that this seemly simple program harbors tons of advanced features. You can use Preview to annotate PDFs, delete or rearrange PDF pages, crop images, and more. Here's an overview of the recent additions to Preview that you may not know about.
While the Music app on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch might be sufficient for you, there are plenty of other apps you can use to listen to music on your iOS device. Some offer unique ways of organizing and listening to music, and others focus on providing better sound. Here’s a look at three apps that you can use to listen differently to music on iOS.
If you're a fan of audiobooks, you're probably familiar with the many options available for listening to your favorite authors. You can download audiobooks from a number of services - including the iTunes Store and Audible.com - and buy books on CD.
With the increase in the amount of music sold digitally, more people are buying songs, and fewer people are buying albums. While some have suggested that the days of the album are numbered, I don’t think this is the case. Buying individual songs is nothing new, and while many buyers are eschewing complete albums to get just the hits they want, this is only a minor shift in the way music is sold. So what is the future of albums?
You've probably noticed it in the navigation bar at the top of the iTunes Store--sandwiched between Podcasts and the much-maligned Ping - but have you ever clicked on the iTunes U link? Millions of people have, and iTunes U has seen more than 600 million downloads since its inception in 2006.
While the PDF file format is a great tool for sharing documents while retaining their formatting and for assuring that documents aren’t changed (contracts, for instance), sometimes you need to use the text from a PDF. You may need to copy a paragraph, a page or more, and edit it in a Microsoft Word document, or in another word processor or text editor. While you can select text in a PDF, chances are that this text will be seriously munged. You’ll often see odd breaks, or no breaks at all, and styles will be lost. There are ways, however, that you can convert a PDF to formatted text. Here’s how to do this.