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  • What it takes to make a "green" Apple

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    18 May 2012, 10:30 am by: Chris Foresman
    Nearly all of Apple's operations will run on renewable power by 2013.
    Enlarge / Apple's Maiden, North Carolina data center will be largely powered by Apple's own solar panel arrays and methane-powered fuel cells.
    Apple, Inc.

    Apple has gone into detail about how it sources energy for its data centers, explaining its plans to reach 100 percent renewable energy for all of its data centers by 2013. The company is adding an additional large solar panel farm in North Carolina, sourcing hydro power for its upcoming center in Oregon, and transitioning its existing data center in California to renewable sources. Apple is planning to power much of its other operations with renewable energy as well.

    But Apple isn't alone in adopting "green" energy and design for its data centers and operations. Microsoft recently announced plans to make all its data centers and operations "carbon neutral" by July 2012. Google has invested heavily in outfitting its data centers and operations facilities with solar panel roofs and sourcing wind and other renewable energy. The overall trend toward greater data center efficiency began in earnest around 2008, when "performance-per-watt" began to trump raw gigahertz speed as the top concern for IT operations, just after Google helped found the Climate Savers Computing Initiative in 2007.

    Cutting coal in North Carolina

    Apple has already confirmed that a 20MW solar array and a 5MW fuel cell array are being built adjacent to its Maiden, North Carolina data center. The company is also planning an additional 20MW solar array just a few miles away. Each solar panel array is capable of generating 42 million kWh of clean energy annually. The fuel cells, which run on waste methane generated by a nearby landfill, will produce another 40 million kWh.

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  • Screenwriter Sorkin will consult with Woz to pen Steve Jobs biopic

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    18 May 2012, 9:05 am by: Chris Foresman
    The Apple co-founder will consult on technical aspects and Jobs personally.

    Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak has been tapped to serve as an on-set "tutor" for the upcoming movie based on Walter Isaacson's biography Steve Jobs. Screenwriter Aaron Sorkin will consult with Woz on technical details related to computers, as well as personal details about Jobs himself.

    Sorkin is known for recent films The Social Network and Moneyball, as well as the political TV series The West Wing. He insists the film won't be "a straight ahead biography."

    "Drama is tension versus obstacle. Someone wants something, something is standing in their way of getting it. They want the money, they want the girl, they want to get to Philadelphia—doesn't matter... And I need to find that event and I will. I just don't know what it is," Sorkin said during a news conference.

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  • Steve Jobs reportedly "worked closely" on larger-screened iPhone

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    18 May 2012, 7:56 am by: Jacqui Cheng
    A major iPhone makeover looks to be in the works.

    Former Apple CEO Steve Jobs allegedly "worked closely" on the design of the rumored larger-screened iPhone, according to sources speaking to Bloomberg. The publication corroborates previous reports that the iPhone is about to get a serious makeover this year, noting that Apple has indeed placed orders for a screen larger than the current 3.5-inch screen used in the iPhone 4S.

    The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week that Apple is planning to begin production of an iPhone with a 4-inch screen in June. We have been highly skeptical of such rumors up until recently, but recent positive changes in the signal-to-noise ratio is changing our minds. Apple has stuck with a 3.5-inch screen since the iPhone first launched in 2007, and it has performed quite well in the market since then, selling 35.1 million iPhones last quarter alone.

    Bloomberg points out that a 4-inch screen doesn't necessarily mean the dimensions of the iPhone itself will change—Apple could possibly fit it into the current dimensions if it pushes other elements of the front around (such as the speaker, camera, and Home button). But this is only speculation, and there is currently very little information available about what the next iPhone will actually look like. But we do agree that the iPhone will likely see some major cosmetic changes this year—Apple typically overhauls the look of the iPhone every other year, and the design of the iPhone 4S matches that of the iPhone 4 launched in 2010. What do you think we're in for when the next iPhone makes its debut?

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  • Mozilla preparing Mac code signing for Mountain Lion’s Gatekeeper

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    17 May 2012, 3:30 pm by: Ryan Paul
    Signing will be enabled for the nightly build channel next week.
    Firefox will soon be compatible with Gatekeeper

    Mozilla developer Ben Hearsum wrote a blog post today, describing the status of the effort to integrate code signing into the automated build process for Firefox on Mac OS X. Mozilla aims to turn on code signing for the browser’s nightly builds by next week.

    The application needs to be signed so that it will continue to work on Mac OS X 10.8, codenamed "Mountain Lion," which is expected to launch later this year. Mountain Lion introduces a new security feature called Gatekeeper that will prevent the platform from executing applications that come from untrusted sources.

    Gatekeeper supports several different configurations, but the default setting will only allow users to run software that has been signed with an Apple-supplied developer key or that comes from the Mac App Store. Third-party developers who do not distribute their applications through the Mac App Store will need to register with Apple, obtain a developer ID and start signing their applications.

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  • According to iTunes, "jailbreak" is a four-letter word

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    17 May 2012, 9:50 am by: Chris Foresman
    Is the word "jailbreak" on the same level as "f**k"?

    Someone at Apple appears to have decided that the word "jailbreak" is a dirty word. The term is now being filtered in iTunes Store search results, as originally reported by Shoutpedia.

    Apple often filters many of the most common swear words (but curiously, not "bitch"). When returning search results for these terms, the iTunes Store will show the word with most letters replaced with asterisks, e.g. "f**k."

    And now, searching for the term "jailbreak" returns numerous results for songs and albums titled "J*******k." Curiously, the filtering doesn't appear to include a handful of TV shows and books with the word "jailbreak" or "jailbreaks" in the title, nor does it filter the word in every single case.

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  • Viacom, Time Warner kiss and make up over iOS app streaming

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    17 May 2012, 8:48 am by: Jacqui Cheng
    TWC subscribers will be able to get their Jersey Shore fix via iPad.
    Photo illustration by Aurich Lawson

    Users of Time Warner Cable's iPad app will soon have access to a plethora of Viacom-owned content once again thanks to a settlement between the two companies. Viacom announced the agreement on its blog on Wednesday, saying that the two companies have "agreed to resolve their pending litigations" so that Time Warner subscribers will now have access to shows like the intellectually stimulating Jersey Shore and The Daily Show through the TWC TV iOS apps.

    "All of Viacom’s programming will now be available to Time Warner Cable subscribers for in-home viewing via internet protocol-enabled devices such as iPads and Time Warner Cable will continue to carry Viacom’s Country Music Television (CMT) programming," the companies said in a joint statement. "In reaching the settlement agreement, Time Warner Cable and Viacom were also able to resolve other unrelated business matters to their mutual satisfaction. Neither side is conceding its original legal position or will have further comment. "

    The dispute goes back to early 2011 when Time Warner rolled out its free iPad app that allowed Time Warner subscribers to stream live TV from dozens of channels. As it turns out, Time Warner had rolled out the app without working out the legal details with Viacom, which owns a handful of cable channels offered through Time Warner (including MTV and Comedy Central). Viacom wasn't the only one, either—Fox also sent a cease-and-desist letter to have its content removed, and Time Warner ended up shedding many of the channels it had originally launched with the app.

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  • Money! That's what Flashback's creators want (but they can't get it)

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    16 May 2012, 1:45 pm by: Jacqui Cheng
    Generating fraudulent ad clicks and getting paid are two different things.

    A Flashback botnet of Macs could bring in up to $10,000 per day, but it doesn't. Symantec has published a new report after having followed OSX.Flashback's advertising component for a few weeks, concluding that the creators have only garnered about $14,000 in three weeks and have yet to figure out how to get the money into their bank accounts.

    Symantec's original report from the end of April said that Flashback was capable of generating up to $10,000 per day in ad clicks, primarily impacting Google and bringing in "untold sums of money for the Flashback gang." The ad-clicking component works by monitoring Web searches being performed in Safari, Chrome, and Firefox. It then bypasses Google's own advertising on the results page by substituting ads from various pay-per-click (PPC) services. When clicked, the PPC services would then pay fees to the Flashback team.

    In its latest report, Symantec says that during a three-week period in April, the Flashback botnet managed to generate around 400,000 ad clicks out of roughly 10 million being displayed. That 4-percent conversion rate resulted in about $14,000 worth of payouts to the Flashback creators—if the PPCs would actually pay them, that is. In a twist of schadenfreude, Symantec points out that collecting the money has been a problem.

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  • Apple ITC win leads to HTC One X, Evo 4G LTE import holdup

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    16 May 2012, 10:30 am by: Chris Foresman
    Customs officials are checking devices for compliance with an exclusion order.

    HTC, AT&T, and Sprint are all feeling the effects of Apple's import ban win against HTC last December. The One X and Evo 4G LTE, both Android handsets, may be delayed from their May 18 launch date as the devices are currently being held by US Customs officials. Officials are examining both devices for compliance with an International Trade Commission ban on the import of HTC devices violating an Apple patent.

    Apple's "thermonuclear" assault on Android began in earnest in 2010 when Apple sued HTC for patent infringement. Along with a federal lawsuit, Apple also filed a parallel complaint with the ITC seeking the import ban. Filing ITC complaints has become a common tactic in patent infringement disputes, as the ITC tends to rule on cases quicker than federal district courts. US import bans are also potentially quite effective since nearly all smartphones and other electronic devices are produced in China.

    Though Apple originally claimed HTC infringed 10 of its patents, the ITC ultimately ruled that HTC's Android smartphones ran afoul of a patent related to a feature Apple first debuted on the Mac as "Data Detectors." This is the technology that automatically recognizes certain data types—such as addresses or phone numbers— and turns them into clickable links that perform a map lookup or dial a phone number.

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  • WSJ: production of 4-inch iPhone beginning in June

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    16 May 2012, 8:09 am by: Jacqui Cheng
    There's hope for farsighted iPhone fans.

    Apple is indeed planning to introduce an iPhone with a larger screen, according to sources speaking to the Wall Street Journal. The company has reportedly ordered 4-inch screens from its suppliers, a bump from the currently standard 3.5-inch screen size that Apple has been using since the original iPhone appeared in 2007.

    Rumors of a larger-screened iPhone have been floating around for some time now—especially since comparable Android phones gotten bigger and bigger, like the Galaxy Note and it's monster 5.3-inch screen. But many observers—including those of us at Ars' Infinite Loop—have not bought into those rumors. You can count me as a critic of this rumor, but there may be more to the large-screened iPhone rumors than we originally thought.

    We're not likely to find out the truth anytime soon, though—the report says production is slated to begin next month, and Apple isn't expected to roll out new iPhones until the fall.

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  • Judge: Ample evidence that Apple "knowingly joined" e-book conspiracy

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    15 May 2012, 5:00 pm by: Jacqui Cheng
    Apple hasn't been found guilty yet, but the judge's comments don't bode well.
    Aurich Lawson

    Apple is not officially on the hook yet for allegedly colluding with publishers to fix e-book prices, but US District Judge Denise Cote had some harsh words about the company's actions. Cote denied Apple and five publishers their request to have a class-action suit over the alleged price fixing thrown out on Tuesday, writing (PDF) that it certainly appears as if Apple and the publishers did not act as innocently as they claim when it came time to sell e-books on the iBookstore.

    The class-action suit in question is the one brought by a number of US states, filed on the same day as the Department of Justice's own action against the companies. (The number of states involved in the class has since ballooned from 16 to 31.) An amended version of the complaint released last week revealed new details in the case, such as an e-mail from former Apple CEO Steve Jobs that implies that he was personally involved in the decision to push the "agency model" on e-book publishers. The e-mail doesn't explicitly show illegal actions, but does show that Jobs was thinking about many of the details that are now being argued in various lawsuits.

    Cote apparently took note of it. In her opinion, she points out that Jobs' comment at the 2010 iPad launch—that e-book prices would all "be the same"—implies that publishers had indeed colluded to "raise eBooks' prices and that Apple intentionally and knowingly joined that conspiracy." She noted elsewhere that although Apple may not have had the same motivations to join the alleged conspiracy as the publishers, that doesn't mean Apple wasn't a participant.

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  • Apple TV could make ESPN another trick in its bag

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    15 May 2012, 4:05 pm by: Megan Geuss
    America's biggest sports network could have a home on Apple TV.

    ESPN's network executive Sean Bratches said on Tuesday that the sports network would be interested in working with Apple to bring a version of the WatchESPN app to ESPN subscribers with the Apple TV. ESPN is the most-watched sports network in America, and a deal with the company could bring more users to one of Apple's more timid products.

    ESPN already allows users of Microsoft's Xbox to stream WatchESPN content if they subscribe to a participating television package that includes the sports network. Today, Bratches declared that ESPN (which is owned by the Walt Disney company), is "platform agnostic."

    “To the extent that in the future there’s an opportunity with Apple to authenticate through the pay-TV food chain as we’re doing with Microsoft, that’s something that we will participate in,” Bratches told Bloomberg.

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  • MacBook Pro rumor rollup: thinner, better, faster, stronger

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    15 May 2012, 11:15 am by: Chris Foresman
    As the MacBook Pro update looms, "leaked" info is seeping out of the woodwork.

    Multiple sources are now aligning on a vision of the next MacBook Pro, expected to be unveiled at Apple's Worldwide Developer Conference in June. The new machine is expected to retain the "Pro" moniker, and supposedly won't be a copy of Apple's current MacBook Air. However, it is expected to drop the optical drive and "legacy" FireWire and Ethernet ports, slim down in thickness, and vastly increase screen resolution.

    The overall picture of the reported MacBook Pro revision, as detailed by sources for 9to5 Mac, aligns with previous rumors that suggested the MacBook Pro would go on a diet. Apple is expected to slim down the current MacBook Pro by ditching its optical drive—which in the age of the Mac App Store and iTunes downloads is largely becoming vestigial for most users. Taking some cues from the successful MacBook Air, the new MacBook Pro will also rely on a solid state drive for booting. We believe Apple will utilize the tiny SSD modules it designed for the MacBook Air to shave size and weight, though it will likely offer a 2.5" internal bay for optional additional storage (either HDD or SSD). And for upgraders, there is still one company offering additional modules in greater capacities than Apple currently offers.

    Apple will undoubtedly be upgrading the MacBook Pro line to Intel's latest Ivy Bridge processors, but the rumored thinner body may prove somewhat challenging for thermal design. This leads us to believe that Apple may standardize on 35W dual-core processors across its MacBook Pro line. There are only a handful of quad-core Ivy Bridge parts available, and most are 45W TDP—that might be pushing things inside a thinner unibody enclosure. However, we do know there is at least one quad-core part—for OEMs only—that tops out at 35W TDP; it seems likely this chip may appear as a build-to-order upgrade.

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  • "Swiss Army knife for QuickTime" Perian turning off the lights

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    15 May 2012, 8:53 am by: Jacqui Cheng
    The source code will be made available on Github or Google Code.

    Perian, the "Swiss Army knife for QuickTime," has decided to cease development after six years on the market. The Perian team posted a notice to its users this week, saying that the software is "as complete as it will ever be under our stewardship." Though we can't disagree with the team's reason for wanting to move on, Perian's retirement is a bittersweet reminder of the earlier days of Apple, when watching videos of different codecs was a challenge on the Mac.

    Perian made its debut in 2006 as freeware that allowed users to view a plethora of codecs that QuickTime didn't support natively, including DivX, XviD, 3viX, and FLV, with plans for both Matroska and Ogg. When Ars interviewed Perian lead developer Augie Fackler in 2006, he told us that Perian wasn't so much meant to replace VLC—another popular video-watching option—but rather to make it possible to watch videos natively in places like Finder previews and Front Row.

    The software saw active support for several years after its launch, but the team felt there was only so far Perian could go. In its notice to users, the team said there would be one final update that will contain fixes since the last release, but that the last update may or may not work under OS X 10.8 (Mountain Lion). "Starting 90 days after the final Perian release, we will no longer provide support. We'll wrap up our loose ends, pack up our bags, and move on to new and exciting projects," the Perian team wrote.

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  • Supreme Court won't hear Psystar's appeal against Apple

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    15 May 2012, 7:58 am by: Jacqui Cheng
    Psystar is "sad"—and definitively out of the Mac clone business.

    Mac cloner Psystar won't be taking its case to the Supreme Court after all. The Court has denied (PDF) the company's request to appeal an earlier ruling in favor of Apple, effectively settling the issue of whether selling non-Mac machines with OS X installed is a violation of Apple's copyrights.

    Apple won its original victory against Psystar in November 2009. That's when US District Judge William Alsup ruled that Psystar had violated Apple's copyrights by distributing OS X with its clones, also violating the anti-circumvention provisions in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. One of Psystar's defenses was that it was protected by the first sale doctrine, which would restrict Apple from deciding what Psystar does with copies of OS X after they were sold the first time, but Judge Alsup didn't buy it. Psystar appealed the decision in September 2011, but the court once again decided in Apple's favor.

    Psystar had vowed to take the case all the way to the Supreme Court—an ambitious goal that has now been dashed. "We are sad," Psystar's law firm Camara & Sibley, LLP told CNET. "I'm sure that the Supreme Court will take a case on this important issue eventually."

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  • Leopard users get Flashback removal, Flash disabler tools, too

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    14 May 2012, 2:00 pm by: Jacqui Cheng
    Leopard users won't be left behind just yet when it comes to OS X security.

    Apple has now brought OS X 10.5 (Leopard) up to speed with Lion, at least when it comes to security. The company issued updates to Leopard users on Monday with Leopard-friendly copies of the Flashback removal tool that was released to Lion users last month, as well as the ability given to Lion users last week to disable out-of-date versions of Flash in Safari.

    The updates come via the Flashback Removal Security Update and Leopard Security Update 2012-003, both posted to Apple's download site on Monday afternoon (also available via Software Update). Both downloads require OS X 10.5.8 in order to install.

    You're probably already familiar with the Flashback removal tool, which gets rid of any Flashback malware infections that might be on the machine in question. The Flash disabling tool, which made its debut last week, is meant "to help keep your Mac secure" by turning off old and potentially insecure versions of the software. If Safari encounters Flash content while Flash is disabled, the browser will display a dialog linking to the latest version so it can be installed with a more recent version. Users can manually enable older versions if necessary, too, even though there's not much reason to avoid installing the latest version.

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  • iCloud expected to gain photo, video-sharing services with iOS 6

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    14 May 2012, 12:41 pm by: Jacqui Cheng
    There may be more to iOS 6 than we expected.

    Apple is reportedly preparing to turn its iOS Photo Stream into a full-fledged photo sharing service, according to "people familiar with the matter" speaking to the Wall Street Journal. The publication wrote on Monday that the changes will allow users to share their photos with others over iCloud, who will be able to comment on and interact with the images. This will be in addition to an upcoming video-sharing feature, the WSJ claims, which will all come as part of a major iCloud upgrade.

    Further details on both the photo and the video sharing features were not given, but the WSJ says the iCloud upgrade will be part of Apple's eventual rollout of iOS 6. Buzz about iOS 6 began in March when we found references to iOS 6 in our server logs, and spiked again last Friday when Apple added Reminders and Notes to a closed beta version of iCloud.com. The WSJ made note of the addition of Reminders and Notes as well, reiterating that these upgrades are widely expected to be announced at WWDC next month.

    Benchmarks claiming to be run on as-yet-unreleased Ivy Bridge Macs have just popped up this week as well. Those are also widely expected to be announced at WWDC, possibly along with OS X 10.8 (Mountain Lion). Assuming the timing for these different leaks aren't a coincidence, it certainly seems as if the WWDC keynote is gearing up to be one hell of a presentation. Now if only Apple would actually announce the keynote...

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  • Kaspersky performing independent security analysis on OS X (Updated)

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    14 May 2012, 10:28 am by: Jacqui Cheng
    The firm's CTO says Apple asked for help—and at just the right time.
    This post has been updated (see bottom of post) with a statement from Kaspersky Lab. The title has also been changed to reflect the new information we received.

    Apple is drawing upon the expertise of security researchers from Kaspersky Lab when it comes to security on OS X, according to Kaspersky CTO Nikolai Grebennikov. In an interview with Computing News, Grebennikov revealed that Apple had asked his firm to begin analyzing OS X in order to help improve its security. The request follows the recent high-profile Flashback scare, and shows that Apple is beginning to take steps to take OS X security more seriously.

    "Mac OS is really vulnerable, and Apple recently invited us to improve its security. We've begun an analysis of its vulnerabilities, and the malware targeting it," Grebennikov told Computing News. "Our first investigations show Apple doesn't pay enough attention to security. For example, Oracle closed a vulnerability in Java, which was a target for a major botnet several months ago."

    Following reports that more than a half-million Macs were infected by Flashback thanks to a then-unpatched Java vulnerability in OS X, Kaspersky Lab boldly told members of the media that "Mac OS X invulnerability" to malware is a myth. Although the statement generated grousing among the Mac-using community, it's true—security researchers have been arguing for years that Macs were only perceptibly "safer" because of their relatively low market share. It would only be a matter of time before attackers began focusing on the Mac, and Kaspersky argued last month that we have officially reached that point. "Market share brings attacker motivation," the firm said in April. "Expect more drive-by downloads, more Mac OS X mass-malware. Expect cross-platform exploit kits with Mac-specific exploits."

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  • Stars aligning for June Ivy Bridge Mac launch alongside Mountain Lion (Updated)

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    14 May 2012, 8:30 am by: Jacqui Cheng
    Yet another reason all eyes will be on WWDC.

    Benchmarks claiming to come from as-yet-unreleased Macs with Ivy Bridge processors have begun to pop up online, just as some retailers are beginning to discount their stock of available Macs. Although benchmarks can easily be faked and a retail discount isn't usually something to write home about on its own, the two taken together have helped to fuel buzz that Ivy Bridge MacBook Pros and iMacs are indeed just around the corner. WWDC, anyone?

    MacRumors highlighted the new benchmarks showing up in Geekbench's machine database that appear to show a MacBookPro9,1 entry (the current line is MacBookPro8,x) as well as one for iMac13,2. The one claiming to be the new MacBook Pro shows a 2.7GHz quad-core Intel Ivy Bridge Core i7-3820QM processor, and its motherboard appears to correspond with a new Mac configuration found within the first developer preview of OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion. "In addition, the Geekbench result has the test machine as running OS X Mountain Lion build 10A211, which would be newer than the 12A193i build seeded to developers on May 2," MacRumors notes.

    The same applies to the "new" iMac in question. iMac 13,2 from Geekbench's database lists out a 3.4GHz quad-core Intel Ivy Bridge Core i7-3770 and is believed to correspond to one of the higher-end 27" models. Its motherboard is also one that was found in that first Mountain Lion preview, and it claims to have been running an obscure build of Mountain Lion at the time of the Geekbench test.

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  • How to harden your smartphone against stalkers—iPhone edition

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    13 May 2012, 5:30 pm by: Jacqui Cheng
    Stalkers: sometimes they're coming from inside your phone.
    Who's that peeking in my window?
    Casey Johnston + Aurich Lawson

    Some years ago, soon after the original iPhone took firm hold of the public's imagination, an iPhone-using friend of mine went through a messy breakup. He was the instigator and his partner was, well, the breakup-ee. In the following weeks, my friend's ex kept sending him creepy messages with more knowledge about his activities than any ex should have. The ex also would show up, unannounced, in situations an ex shouldn't know anything about. And that was just the beginning.

    Through his iPhone, this crazy ex had gained access to my friend's activities and communications. This wasn't possible in the old feature phone days, and my friend thought that not making his life public on social networks would keep him safe from stalkers. A few freaked out phone calls, a bunch of settings changes, and one restraining order later—we all learned otherwise.

    I was reminded of this story again recently after seeing this reddit thread (the original contents of which have since been removed). The poster had been watching his ex-girlfriend's whereabouts on her iPhone—not with some agreed-upon permission in Find My Friends, but from within her own iCloud account using Find My iPhone. The poster also admitted to changing the names of contacts in his ex-girlfriend's address book so that numerous text messages from her would go to him instead of to her friends. He would also change other people's contacts to match his own number so he could text, masking himself as another friend. He had originally set up her iTunes password and so was able to access everything about her—as her.

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  • Hands-on with five antivirus apps for the Mac

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    13 May 2012, 4:00 pm by: Jacqui Cheng
    Which antivirus software is the best for Mac users? It depends on your needs.

    So Mac invulnerability to malware is a myth, at least according to security researchers from Kaspersky Lab. And although such a blunt statement may be a blow to the ego of some Mac users, it remains true. Security researchers from all walks have long argued that it was only a matter of time before the Mac became popular enough that virus, malware, and spyware makers would come calling, and the recent Flashback scare has only served as a reminder that overconfidence precedes carelessness. Especially when it comes to technology.

    The Flashback flare-up happened less than a year after another malware spike, which came in the form of fake antivirus app Mac Defender. Though neither incident ended up infecting every single Mac, they both showed that malware on the Mac is ever-so-slowly inching its way into our public consciousness. "Market share brings attacker motivation," Kaspersky Lab told the press last month, and Mac market share is definitely on the rise.

    Is it time to begin installing antivirus software on our Macs? We leave that up to you to decide for yourself, but given the spike in questions we've been receiving about which antivirus software is the best, we thought we'd take a look at a handful of the most well-known apps out there for Mac users. Your mileage may vary, but here are our impressions of five different antivirus packages after installing and using each one. In no particular order:

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  • A Good AirPlay Speaker

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    12 May 2012, 1:30 pm by: Ars Staff
    The best tool to listen to iTunes exclusively.
    The Wirecutter
    The following review is from our esteemed colleagues at The Wirecutter. If you want to buy an AirPlay Speaker (and the author explains reasons you may not) this is the one you should get.

    If I were going to buy an AirPlay speaker today, I'd get Audyssey's Audio Dock Air. Compared to other speakers that use Apple's proprietary streaming protocol, the Audio Dock Air is reasonably affordable (no small feat for AirPlay speakers), has a great form factor, and can produce big, room-filling, sound.

    That said, AirPlay speakers are still very much a nascent category. So while we've seen a bunch of new offerings from companies like JBL, Logitech, iHome, and Altec Lansing this year, the fact is you're still going to pay an unnecessary premium for AirPlay compatibility—not to mention limit yourself to playing music through iOS devices. That's why we can still easily recommend something like the $300 Sonos Play:3 or a Bluetooth speaker if you truly want the most wireless bang for your buck. You'll not only get more flexibility with these speakers, you'll also get audio quality that at the very least rivals Apple's CD-quality AirPlay.

    Here's why.

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  • Week in Apple: updates, updates, updates galore!

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    12 May 2012, 9:00 am by: Jacqui Cheng
    Did we mention updates?

    This week's top Apple news was all about software. OS X received an update, as did iOS and Safari for the desktop. We covered all that, plus a discussion sparked by our forums about the future of the Mac, Foxconn's intent to improve factory conditions, the new Google+ app for iOS, iPad cases that don't suck, and more. Here's the top 10 from the week!

    Have a great weekend, everyone!

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  • Apple hints at iOS 6 as part of iCloud beta preparations

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    11 May 2012, 10:11 am by: Jacqui Cheng
    An announcement about iOS 6 appears likely at WWDC in June.
    Only developer accounts can log into this new version of the iCloud beta for now.

    Apple is preparing to add Notes and Reminders to iCloud.com, as evidenced by Apple's iCloud beta test portal for registered developers. The changes popped up on Friday morning and developers noticed immediately, taking note of the two new icons that are not currently present on iCloud's Web interface.

    The additions to iCloud are apparently being tested for release as part of iOS 6. And as pointed out by developer Tom Klaver, a JavaScript file on the beta site reads: "To use http://beta.icloud.com, first sign in to iCloud with the iOS 6 Beta." To our knowledge, Apple has not yet seeded iOS 6 to registered third-party developers, but is almost guaranteed to be testing versions of iOS 6 internally.

    Ars found iOS devices claiming to run iOS 6 with IPs originating from Cupertino in our server logs in March, but Apple has yet to make any kind of public acknowledgement about the OS update. It's widely expected that Apple will announce and demonstrate iOS 6 during its annual Worldwide Developers Conference scheduled to take place next month, however. With WWDC only five weeks away at this point, it's no surprise the company is beginning to prepare its offerings for wider testing, and we're eager to find out what else might be included as part of the rollout.

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  • Apple reportedly putting acquired map technologies to good use in iOS 6

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    11 May 2012, 8:09 am by: Jacqui Cheng
    Is Apple finally ready to drop Google for iOS mapping?
    A shot of C3's technology before the acquisition by Apple

    A switch away from Google's mapping data in favor of Apple's own in-house solution is imminent, according to a report by 9to5Mac. Citing "trusted sources," the site says the Maps application for iOS will be done "completely in-house," mapping data and all, thanks to Apple's acquisition of Placebase, Poly9, and C3 Technologies over the last couple of years. Apple's deal to use Google's Mapping data is also said to be expiring soon, opening the door for Apple to begin experimenting with its own technologies.

    Poly9 was best known for its "Poly9 Globe," a Flash-based clone of Google Earth. C3 was largely known for its 3D mapping technology. PlaceBase's claim to fame was its PushPin API, which offered richer data integration features than those currently offered by Google Maps. Apple began the acquisitions in 2009 and made the most recent one in October of 2011, apparently completing a trifecta of mapping technologies that many believe are being used to completely revamp the default Maps app for iOS.

    According to 9to5Mac's sources, that is indeed the case. "The most important aspect of the new Maps application is a powerful new 3D mode," wrote the site. "This 3D mode is said to essentially be technology straight from C3 Technologies: beautiful, realisitic [sic] graphics based on de-classified missile target algorithms."

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  • Foxconn and Apple to split costs to improve factory conditions

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    10 May 2012, 9:53 am by: Chris Foresman
    Foxconn CEO says Apple agrees it will be a "competitive strength."

    Foxconn plans to improve labor conditions in its Chinese factories where iPhones and iPads are made, according to CEO Terry Gou, and Apple will reportedly share in the costs of making those improvements.

    "We've discovered that this [improving factory conditions] is not a cost. It is a competitive strength," Gou told reporters on Thursday, according to Reuters. "I believe Apple sees this as a competitive strength along with us, and so we will split the initial costs."

    Apple and Foxconn have come under heavy fire recently from critics saying the factories that make iPhones, iPads, and other Apple gadgets are little more than sweatshops that exploit Chinese workers. A 2006 incident involving labor law violations at one of Foxconn's factories prompted Apple to begin internal audits of its entire supply chain. Those audits have turned up numerous abuses, and while Apple has taken steps to rectify them, activists believe Apple could do more.

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