Friday, May 1, 2020

Facebook group offers support and community for Chromebook users


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Plex's Ad-Supported Free Video on Demand Feature Gains Content From Crackle

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Plex today announced that it is adding to its lineup of ad-supported free video content, introducing TV shows and movies from video entertainment service Crackle.


Crackle brings thousands of free movies and TV shows to Plex, which also includes content from additional partners such as Legendary, MGM, Lionsgate, Warner Bros., and more. Plex users will be able to watch TV shows like Hell's Kitchen, Snatch, and Roseanne, along with movies that include Captain Phillips, Patriot Games, The Illusionist, and Failure to Launch.

For those who are unfamiliar with Plex, it's an all-in-one media hub that organizes your entire library of content, from TV shows and movies to music, photos, and more. Plex also offers free access to news, web shows, podcasts, movies, and TV, plus it can even be used to stream live TV with a TV antenna.


Plex's free media can be played on almost all platforms, including Apple TV, iPhone, and iPad, along with Roku, smart TVs, Android devices, and consoles. All that's needed is the Plex app. More information on Plex can be found on the Plex website.
Tag: Plex

This article, "Plex's Ad-Supported Free Video on Demand Feature Gains Content From Crackle" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Brit Comedy Series 'Trying' Arrives on Apple TV+

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Apple today released all eight episodes of "heartfelt" and "hilarious" British comedy series "Trying," on its Apple TV+ streaming video entertainment service.


Apple describes the brand new series as follows:
"All Jason and Nikki want is a baby. But it's the one thing they just can't have. Starring Rafe Spall and Esther Smith, "Trying" is a new comedy series about growing up, settling down and finding someone to love.
The series, made by BBC Studios, is written by former stand-up Andy Wolton, and is the first original series from the U.K. to debut on ‌Apple TV‌+. Apple's trailer description offers more detail:
All Nikki (Esther Smith) and Jason (Rafe Spall) want is a baby—but it's the one thing they just can't have. How are they going to fill the next 50 years if they can't start a family? They already went through The Sopranos in a weekend. After ruling out every other option, Nikki and Jason decide to adopt and are confronted by a world of bewildering new challenges. With their dysfunctional friends, screwball family, and chaotic lives, will the adoption panel agree that they're ready to be parents?
‌‌Apple TV‌‌+ is priced at $4.99 per month or free for a year for those who recently purchased an iPhone, iPad, Mac, iPod touch, or ‌‌Apple TV‌‌.
This article, "Brit Comedy Series 'Trying' Arrives on Apple TV+" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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macOS JPG File Truncation Bug More Pervasive Than Originally Thought

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Earlier this week we reported on a bug in Apple's macOS Image Capture app that adds empty data to photos when imported from iOS devices, potentially eating up gigabytes of disk storage needlessly. Today, we're hearing that the bug in macOS 10.14.6 and later is a lot more extensive than was initially believed.


NeoFinder developer Norbert Doerner, who originally discovered the bug, informed MacRumors that the same issue affects nearly all Mac apps that import photos from cameras and iOS devices, including Adobe Lightroom, Affinity Photo, PhaseOne Media Pro, and Apple's legacy iPhoto and Aperture apps.

The reason is said to be because the bug is located inside Apple's ImageCaptureCore framework, which is a part of macOS that all developers must use to connect to digital cameras. The only app that isn't affected is said to be Apple's Photos app, which uses other undocumented APIs to talk to iOS devices.

Essentially, the pervasive Mac bug causes HEIC files imported from iOS devices and converted to JPG to contain more than 1.5MB of empty data appended to the end of each file, increasing the file size and eating up storage. As an example, Doerner said he discovered more than 12,000 JPG files in his own photo library containing this extra unwanted data, resulting in over 20GB of wasted disk space.

Hex data of a JPG file viewed using Hex Fiend

Apple is apparently aware of the bug, but until a patch arrives, one short term workaround for future transfers is to prevent your iPhone or iPad from using the HEIF format when taking photos: To do so, launch the Settings app, select Camera -> Formats and check Most Compatible.

For users with large existing photo libraries, Doerner has suggested using a new beta version of the third-party utility Graphic Converter, which includes an option to remove the unwanted empty data from the JPEG files.

Alternatively, media asset management app NeoFinder is itself being updated on Monday to include a tool that can find and eliminate the unwanted data in JPG files. NeoFinder for Mac costs $39.99 and a free trial is available to download on the developers' website.
This article, "macOS JPG File Truncation Bug More Pervasive Than Originally Thought" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple patent: Flexible iPhone on the way?

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Battery patent application points to flexible versions of iPhone, iPad and even MacBook in the future

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iPad App Downloads and Spending Reached Record Levels in Q1 2020

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Downloads of iPad apps surged in the first quarter of this year, driven by an increase in use and adoption of the device amid widespread stay-at-home orders.


First-time downloads of iPad-specific apps surpassed 1.1 billion worldwide in Q1 2020, according to data compiled by Sensor Tower. It marks the first year-on-year growth since the fourth quarter of 2013 and a 40 percent increase from Q1 2019.

Based on the data, the vast majority of app installs in the first quarter were in the Games and Entertainment category, followed by education apps, which reached a record 105 million worldwide.

The previous best quarter for Education apps was Q1 2013 when they reached 91 million, indicating the impact of at-home schooling during the health crisis.


In addition, quarterly global consumer spending in ‌iPad‌ apps reportedly saw the largest year-on-year increase since Q4 2014 at 16 percent and crossed the $2 billion threshold for the first quarter ever. About 76 percent of that money, approximately $1.6 billion, was spent on games.

As for iPhone, app installs grew 24 percent year on year last quarter, compared to 40 percent growth on ‌iPad‌, partly owing to the ‌iPad‌'s increased suitability as a laptop stand-in at home, particularly for younger students, notes Sensor Tower.
This article, "iPad App Downloads and Spending Reached Record Levels in Q1 2020" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Samsung Galaxy A21s Moniker Confirmed Through Bluetooth SIG Certification, Launch Imminent


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