∞ Apple Publishes New Webpages Explaining the Benefits of the App Store and the Company’s Developer Program
The more PR effort Apple puts into this, the worse their image is. Wake up.
∞ GitHub is Now Free for Teams
We’re happy to announce we’re making private repositories with unlimited collaborators available to all GitHub accounts. All of the core GitHub features are now free for everyone. 🎉
Microsoft has risen again.
Official trailer for The Half of It, from writer/director Alice Wu:
Shy, straight-A student Ellie is hired by sweet but inarticulate jock Paul, who needs help winning over a popular girl. But their new and unlikely friendship gets complicated when Ellie discovers she has feelings for the same girl.
😍 I can't wait for this.
∞ Othering the Virus
In the West, perception of the virus as a threat came only very late. Terrifying news from China was available since late January: High death rates, permanent damage from the disease, people dying in their homes or in the street in front of overloaded hospitals, entire families dying. But far into February, western observers did not see an urgent need to act.
This is a good read, from Marius Meinhof, a sociologist at the University of Bielefeld in Germany.
Most of the “Face with Medical Mask” emojis should be redesigned. The face should be completely neutral, even just closing eyes is not neutral.
Google Maps Ditched the Hamburger Menu
Everyone else focused on the icon update, but I’d really like to zoom in with the removal of hamburger menu in Google Maps for iOS:
Screenshot of Google Maps for iOS
The hamburger menu now is just a placer holder with no functions, and I expect it to be removed in a future update. And they also moved more features to the bottom tab bar. What a welcome change. It certainly feels more homey on iOS. Therefore, I forgive the new icon 😜
Hanabira工房 Makes Crazy Detailed Miniature Houses
Check out Hanabira工房's YouTube Channel, every single one of their videos is a treasure.
∞ Apple Weighs Letting Users Switch Default iPhone Apps to Rivals
Mark Gurman, reporting for Bloomberg:
The technology giant is discussing whether to let users choose third-party web browser and mail applications as their default options on Apple’s mobile devices, replacing the company’s Safari browser and Mail app, according to people familiar with the matter. Since launching the App Store in 2008, Apple hasn’t allowed users to replace pre-installed apps such as these with third-party services. That has made it difficult for some developers to compete, and has raised concerns from lawmakers probing potential antitrust violations in the technology industry.
Let me check, what apps do I need an alternative default? Mail, Maps, Calendar, Calculator, Reminder, Camera, Weather, Photos, Notes, News. 10 freaking apps.
I also just realized that, the Keyboard effectively already allows alternative default. Files app too.
(News is special here because RSS URLs are forced to be opened by it, 🖕 Apple News.)
Doraemon and Costumes of Tang Dynasty
Zi De Guqin Studio presents the Doraemon theme song in costumes of Tang Dynasty. It can’t get any better.
∞ Apples Releases Swift Playgrounds for the Mac, Powered by Catalyst
Apples just released Swift Playgrounds for the Mac. And yes, it's powered by Catalyst. Now, I am 👀 at you, Shortcuts team.