87 Posts under Mango Paper
Bartender Mac App Under New Ownership
There is a Reddit thread about the new Bartender ownership situation.
MacUpdater, a Mac app that helps you track and update all your Mac apps, put a warning about the new Bartender release. u/CoreCode from MacUpdater has a very detailed explanation why they added the warning. Calling out two points:
This is concerning because 'App Sub 1 LLC' seems to be a dubious company publishing a few low quality iPad apps (https://apps.apple.com/us/developer/app-sub-1-llc/id1667982354) and with an equally dubious homepage (https://stepsforiphone.com/). why was their certificate used to sign Bartender releases?
On 15. May the final release of Bartender 5.0.52 was released and again it was not signed by the known-and-safe 'Surtees Studios Limited (8DD663WDX4)' but by a 'Bartender App LLC (24J875RH8J)' never seen before
u/Ordinary_Delivery_79, self-claimed as the new Bartender owner responded:
Hey everyone, new owners of Bartender here! Our team acquired Bartender from Ben S, the original developer, two months ago. As we prepare to roll out updates for Bartender, we needed to re-sign the app with Apple using our company's information, replacing Ben's. This led to a one-time certificate change.
Truth be told, we should have notated it on the release notes but, since we could not update them retroactively, we included this fact on our blog & shared it with users as they emailed us. We've collaborated closely with Ben to understand his vision for Bartender. Our goal is to implement many of the improvements he had planned and address any reported bugs from the past few months to enhance Bartender's performance.
But there are no other information and this doesn't reassure users.
Jason Snell on Sixcolors:
These things happen—no developer should be chained to their software forever—but it’s odd that (anonymous?) new owners could appear without any communication to existing Bartender customers beyond a note saying a certificate had been changed. It’s Apple’s rules around signing app binaries, and the attention of MacUpdater, that brought this out into the open at all.
A glance around the Bartender website does reveal that while Surtees celebrated 12 years of Bartender in a blog post announcing version 5, posts from 2024 read more like SEO spam, with “key takeaways” summaries at the top, followed by unrelated Mac tips, followed by a pitch for Bartender.
Juli Clover from MacRumors:
At this point, it does not appear that Bartender's new owners plan to inform customers about the change in ownership, but users should be aware that the app has been sold and is no longer being updated by the original developer. The new owner's intentions are not clear, but as Reddit users have pointed out, the situation raises some red flags.
Filipe Espósito from 9to5mac:
Even so, it still seems a bit suspicious that the new developers only introduced themselves after all the controversy. Some users said they didn’t trust the app’s new owners and uninstalled it. Bartender’s official website has no mention of the acquisition.
The problem with Bartender is that you are giving Accessibility and Screen Recording permissions to an unknown entity. With Accessibility APIs you can control the Mac (including other apps). With Screen Recording APIs you can see everything that's happening. Both of those things require trust, and the new owners being silent about the matter does not gain that. I wouldn't touch it with a ten foot pole until that communication happens.
Also remember that Bartender is not running in a sandbox, so it has a lot more access to the system than something from the Mac App Store. Like being able to establish network connections without entitlements. Or accessing data outside of the app's container. And since it's likely the app launches automatically and runs continuously, it's trivial to exfiltrate anything that's collected. At this point, it feels like someone bought a really nice back door.
I am doing fine, hope to be an indie dev forever, have no plans to sell StopTheMadness, and indeed never had an acquisition offer, but if someone totally mad offered me $millions for it, I absolutely would owe my customers an announcement.
Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. It’s a sacred responsibility to run my native code on other people’s computers, and I take that responsibility seriously. Your customers trusted you, and any developer who violates that trust harms all other developers.
I personally don't use Bartender. My only need is to hide some of the rarely used menu bar items, and to make them available only when needed. The open source Hidden Bar app meets my exact need.
UPDATE on 2024-06-05: Ben Surtees, the original creator of Bartender, came out with a statement:
It's Ben Surtees, the original developer of Bartender. Twelve years ago, I embarked on a journey to create Bartender, a macOS app designed to help you manage your menu bar items. Over the years, it has been incredibly rewarding to see Bartender grow and become an essential tool for so many of you. Your support and feedback have been invaluable in shaping the app into what it is today.
After the release of Bartender 5, I came to the realization that supporting all the users and maintaining the app at the high standard I expect and you deserve was too much for one person. It required a dedicated team that could provide continuous support, innovate, and keep up with the fast-evolving macOS landscape. This realization led me to make a difficult decision.
This reads a genuine statement. Though the recent likely AI-written blog posts on Bartender's blog don't increase much of my confidence in the story.
UPDATE on 2024-06-06: According to u/pulsarsolar from a user support email with the new owner:
We've removed Amplitude from the latest test build (v5.0.53).
UPDATE on 2024-06-08: Adam Engst from TidBITS:
Instead, this was merely a case of botched PR. As a friend with a decades-long career in the field once told me, the goal of PR is to tell the truth and tell it first. Had Surtees and Applause announced the acquisition before making any technical changes, they could have avoided this online tempest and harm to Bartender’s reputation and user base. Now it’s up to Applause to mend the damage by focusing on transparency.
PyCon US 2024
PyCon US 2024, David L. Lawrence Convention Center Expo Hall B
This year's PyCon US is real special to me. Just 3 weeks before PyCon US 2024, I found out I had to find some other reasons going to the conference. One obvious purpose is to meet potential future employers and colleagues, and I did. But what ended up more important to me is a longer term discovery. PyCon has helped me to realize that I still want to continue my career working on this language thingy called Python.
I came to Python at work because of my technology interests 8 years ago. Now I'm staying for the Python community outside of work. One unique aspect of PyCon I keep experiencing is its welcoming and inclusive attitude. It's the community and amazing people that have trapped me in this realm and I just don't want to get out.
After the layoff, I have certainly thought about going independent and growing Mango Umbrella LLC. Not only it's a financially unwise decision, but also it turns out it wouldn't actually be my number one choice regardless of money.
Thank you, all the nice people I met at PyCon US 2024. I hope to see you again at PyCon US 2025.
P.S. I always find interesting and a learning opportunity from reading other people's experiences. So here are some of them I've found:
- Selfie at Conference Closing by Mariatta Wijaya, PyCon US 2024 chair.
- PyCon US 2024 Recap by Kati. Incredibly detailed.
- Weeknotes: PyCon US 2024 by Simon Willison, one of the PyCon US 2024 keynoters.
- Links and References For My PyCon US Keynote by Sumana Harihareswara, another PyCon US 2024 keynoter.
- pyOpenSci at PyCon US 2024 - Python Packaging and Community by Leah Wasser, Executive Director & Founder of pyOpenSci.
- Our Experience at PyCon US 2024 in Pittsburgh by Ngazetungue Muheue from Kafkai.
- 3 Key Takeaways from PyCon US 2024 by Luis Juncal & Yolanda Robla, from Stacklok.
- Wagtailers Spread Their Wings at PyCon 2024 by Meagen Voss, from Wagtail, an open-source Python CMS.
- Echos of the People API user guide by Ned Batchelder, PyCon US 2023 keynoter.
- Flet at PyCon US 2024 by Feodor Fitsner, founder of Flet.
- My First PyCon in US by Tomy Hsieh.
- PyCon 2024 Reflection by Trey Hunner.
- PyCon US 2024 as Security Developer-in-Residence by Seth Larson.
- The Python Language Summit 2024 from the PSF blog.
- From Pittsburgh to New York: A PyCon US 2024 Adventure by Monica Oyugi.
Wrote or found another post about PyCon US 2024? Please let me know!
Rest in Peace, Akira Toriyama
From Bird Studio's statement today:
Dear Friends and Partners,
We are deeply saddened to inform you that Manga creator Akira Toriyama passed away on March 1st due to acute subdural hematoma. He was in age of 68.
Akira Toriyama's work has been a significant part of my childhood. May your soul rest in peace.
Update on 2024-03-10: App Store published a story remembering Akira Toriyama with a collection of apps and games featuring his works and characters: https://apps.apple.com/story/id1734943876.
Mango Is the King of Fruit - Phil
A great quote from Somebody Feed Phil.
I'm in total agreement with Phil. Also, his smile is so infectious!
TSA Finds Recording Breaking-Firearms, Every Single Year Since 2010
From a TSA press release on January 10, 2024:
During 2023, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) intercepted a total of 6,737 firearms at airport security checkpoints, preventing them from getting into the secure areas of the airport and onboard aircraft. Approximately 93% of these firearms were loaded. This total surpasses the previous year’s record of 6,542 firearms stopped at checkpoints and represents the highest one-year total in TSA’s history.
In my mind, 6,737 is mind-boggling. I mean, we are talking about airport security checkpoints here. Whenever I saw the signs of firearms at security checkpoints, I've always thought, who would be so dumb to carry firearms?
This got me interested in the historical numbers. Luckily, last year's press release is very handy and includes a chart for number of found firearms since 2010:
Except for 2020, due to the pandemic, it's been record-breaking every fucking year. Last year was six times that of 2010.
It's just mind-boggling. I hate this part of America.
Default Apps 2023
I saw this from Jay Wilson and took it as a template.
This is what I’m using at the point and time of publishing.
📨 Mail Client: Gmail app on iOS and gmail.com on macOS
📮 Mail Server: Google
📝 Notes: Apple Notes
✅ To-Do: Apple Notes
📷 Photo Shooting: iPhone 14 Pro, Sony A7R III, Sony FE 70-200 F4 G
🎨 Photo Editing: Lightroom on macOS, Photomator on iOS
📆 Calendar: Google Calendar
📁 Cloud File Storage: Google Drive, iCloud Drive
🙍🏻♂️ Contacts: Apple Contacts
🌐 Browser: Safari on iOS, Chrome on macOS
💬 Chat: WeChat, iMessages, Discord, Google Talk or whatever it is called today
🔖 Bookmarks: Chrome
📑 Read It Later: Apple Notes
📜 Word Processing: Google Docs
📈 Spreadsheets: Google Sheets
📊 Presentations: Google Slides
🛒 Shopping Lists: Apple Notes
🍴 Meal Planning: Google Docs, physical paper on the fridge
💰 Budgeting and Personal Finance: Google Sheets
📰 News: Mastodon
🎵 Music: YouTube Music
🎤 Podcasts: Overcast
🔐 Password Management: Chrome, Apple Keychain, KeePassXC
🧑💻 Code Editor: VS Code, Xcode
🌲 Git Client: git, GitHub Desktop
🖥️ Terminal: iTerm2
📐 Design: Figma
📝 Blog: In-house Engine and Client
✈️ VPN: Google Fi
`xcrun simctl status_bar` Is Not Working Since Xcode 14.1
xcrun simctl status_bar is a great tool to control what you want to display on the status bar in simulators. It's often used to set the time to 9:41 AM for screenshots.
Since Xcode 14.1 in Oct 2022 though, it's no longer working if the simulator runs iOS 16.1+. Neither Xcode 14.2 and 14.3 fixed this, and it has been a mysterious since.
However, today @saagar just posted the reason and a workaround:
If you’ve been trying to use xcrun simctl status_bar recently to take pretty screenshots and found that it doesn’t work past simulators running iOS 16.1, you can use
SIMCTL_CHILD_SIMULATOR_RUNTIME_VERSION=16.0 xcrun simctl bootas a temporary workaround to get this back.
Great, problem solvedmitigated!
In addition, if you use @twostraws's awesome ControlRoom app, I sent out a PR (to be reviewed and merged) to add this workaround.
Remembering Alex Hay
I'm very sad to hear Alex Hay, the maker of Toolbox Pro and many other apps, has passed aways after years of battling with cancer.
MacStories is dedicating Automation April 2023 in memory of Alex Hay:
So, with his family’s blessing, we’re dedicating Automation April 2023 in memory of Alex Hay, a brilliant and beloved member of the automation community who was taken from us far too early at the age of 36. MacStories is also making donations to the American Cancer Society and Cancer Research UK in Alex’s name, and we’d love it if you would join us in making a donation using the links above too.
The Apple automation community is a close-knit group of talented, creative people, and no one exemplified that more than Alex Hay. We’re grateful for the chance we had to get to know Alex and the apps he built that opened up so many new possibilities for Shortcuts users around the world. Our hearts go out to his family and friends, and we hope you’ll join us in thinking of him and his loved ones throughout Automation April.
Alex's work has inspired so many people and has advanced automation tooling on Apple platforms. He was also such a friendly person, helping other developers in the community. I have closely followed his research on the new iOS 16 AppIntent framework. Without that and a few brief exchanges on Twitter, I couldn't have launched Mango Baby's iOS 16 update with great AppIntent support.
We'll miss you.
Happy the Year of Rabbit
I started my career at Google more than 10 years ago in New York. My then manager asked us to set personal OKRs. I wrote “visit the Chicago office" so I could spend more time with my wife in Chicago. They were very supportive. The entire org cared us, and sincerely put our career in priority. Every Friday 7:30PM we ate pizza and watched founders' TGIFs hosted in California. It was an unconventional company.
The day before this Luna New Year's Eve, I was waken up by my wife around 2:30AM telling me to check my email. We are still not sure how she woke up exactly minutes after the email. It was difficult to process when sleep deprived. Heck it would probably take a really long time to digest everything. We are still celebrating the New Year and the Spring Festival. I don't know how I would feel going back to work on Monday. One thing became obvious, it is now just a conventional company. After the founders left, you can feel it stronger every year.
I can still enjoy working on my team and enjoy the work I do. But I start to question the long term purpose of it. I guess I set my 2023’s theme to be the Year of Purpose for a reason. I hope I can figure it out.
I'm upset. Happy the Year of Rabbit.
2023: Year of Purpose
I was tidying up my home office area the other day, and found a bunch of things I haven't touched for years. The first thing came to my mind was of course Marie Kondo's Spark Joy principle. But a lot of things in the past 3 years no long spark joy, yet they are still used often. This no longer works.
Then I changed the question to, does this thing have a purpose in my life? It worked surprisingly well. I got rid of many things and kept others. I came up future projects that can make some of them more useful. Promising.
2022 is also coming to an end. It means it's time for my 3rd attempt to a yearly theme. As you have already read the title, 2023 is going to be my Year of Purpose. The past 3 years have also worn down our life's purpose. It's time to bring it back. Let's move past this and look forward to a more purposeful year.
What's your yearly theme?