TidBITS

Mark your calendars—Apple has announced that its Worldwide Developer Conference will kick off on 9 June 2025. Last year’s question if WWDC would bring an AI-powered version of Siri remains open.

A cascade of Web technology interactions—involving lightboxes, automatic browser translation, and a bizarre Google Translate bug—resulted in respondents to a Pew Research survey seeing “forks” instead of “yes.”Read original article

In partnership with researchers from Harvard University and the University of Oxford, Garmin is launching an ambitious academic study to investigate happiness through wearable tech and smartphone-based surveys. Unlike Apple’s health research, this study is…

Apple’s AirPods Max will gain support for lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio through a firmware update in April, but only the USB-C model and only when physically connected to devices.Read original article

On the Chit Chat Across the Pond podcast, Adam Engst discusses the accuracy of AI-powered transcription and suggests that AI-powered search engines represent a fundamental shift in how we access and interact with information.Read original article

Brings a critical fix and enhancements to the Dashboard. ($5.99/$39.99 monthly/yearly subscription, free update, 40.9 MB, macOS 13+)

Brings improvements and bug fixes to the videoconferencing/communication app. (Free, 139.4 MB, macOS 10.13+)

Brings new Shortcut actions to the Mac utility for deploying apps and settings to multiple iOS and tvOS devices. (Free, 52.5 MB, macOS 14+)

Brings updates to Activity Panel feeds and the Social field in the contacts management app. ($49.99 new, free update, 24.2 MB, macOS 12+)

Adds a large collection of new Shortcuts to the Swiss Army knife of graphics programs. ($39.95 new, free update, 268.2 MB, macOS 10.13+)

Adds the capability to open multiple windows to the calendar app. ($56.99 annual subscription, free update, 67.5 MB, macOS 12+)

Adds Passkey authentication support for all Office apps. ($149.99 new for one-time purchase, $99.99/$69.99 annual subscription options, free update, macOS 12+)

John Siracusa’s new Hyperspace app identifies and converts duplicate files into space-saving APFS clones, offering a safe way to reclaim drive space. The free download lets you scan before deciding whether to pay for reclamation.

Scheduling across time zones can cause incorrect calendar reminders and missed meetings. Adam Engst explores the intricacies of time zone management in popular calendar apps and provides practical strategies to help users navigate common scheduling quirks.

Storyteller and former Take Control author Scott Knaster has launched a Substack newsletter featuring true stories of the Silicon Valley of yesteryear from his time at Apple, General Magic, Microsoft, and Google.

Brings improvements and bug to the site-specific browser following its recent major upgrade. ($29.99 new, free update, 26.5 MB, macOS 12+)

Brings improvements and bug fixes to the Markdown previewer. ($13.99 new, free update, 23 MB, macOS 10.12+)

Major upgrade for the screenwriting app. ($59.99 annual subscription, free update, 35.1 MB, macOS 13+)

The Open/Save dialog utility adds enhancements to its Quick Search feature. ($39.95 new, free update, 17.6 MB, macOS 10.13+)

Significant update for the keyboard shortcut and emoji cheat sheet utility. ($39.99 new, free update, 3.9 MB, macOS 12+)

Brings a handful of bug fixes to the CSV manipulation app. (Free/$39/$59, 27.1 MB, macOS 10.11+)

Looking for an affordable way to extend audio from your HomePod to other rooms in your house? The Dio Node AirPlay 2 speaker provides easy setup at a lower price than a HomePod mini, though with some audio quality compromises.

Adam Engst explains how to determine whether any apps on your iPhone may have been unintentionally sharing your location with data brokers by relying on ads from the real-time bidding ecosystem.

Apple has released operating system updates to address a serious WebKit vulnerability that surfaced 14 months ago. The latest version of this vulnerability also affects Google Chrome.

Updates the financial management app with user interface enhancements and improvements to the Business dashboard. ($71.88/$95.88/$131.88 annual subscription, free update, 3.2 MB, macOS 12+)

Maintenance update with feature enhancements and bug fixes for the image editor. ($29.99 new, free update, 84.8 MB, macOS 14+)

Brings improvements and minor tweaks to the bulk image processing utility. ($29.99/$49.99 new, free update, 58.3 MB, macOS 12+)

Brings an updated sidebar with easier access to multiple tools and a new vertical tab view. (Free, 131.1 MB, macOS 10.15+)

Important security update for an information disclosure vulnerability. (Free/$149.99/$199.99 new, free update, macOS 13+)

Maintenance release brings improvements and bug fixes to the keyboard-based launcher. ($29 new, free update, 14.6 MB, macOS 10.24.6+)