Path

The revelations about Path's contact list uploading, and the resulting mea culpa's first from Path and now from Apple, might have Path's Android users a bit spooked. In fact, they should have you worried--but over something much more important.

Could this happen on Android is a fairly cut-and-dry question. The answer is no, as in, a snowball's chance. No, nien, nyet, non. Why it can't happen on Android still only hints at the bigger problem.

The future possibility of the Path situation happening on Android can't occur because it already has happened. When you install any app on Android, it shows you a list of permissions that the app wants to access. Android's explicit call-out system for app permissions can be useful for people who care about such things. It's a moderately helpful tool that reveals how close to your personal data the app wants to snuggle.

Some of these permission requests make a lot of sense. These include the obvious, like Google Maps wanting access to your location data, or Skype integrating your contact list.

In the case of Path, says Jonathan Oberheide, co-founder of security app maker Duo Security, Apple's proposed changes simply bring the iOS version of the app into line with the Android's permission request to u... [Read more]

Apple's print system is built on the open-source Common Unix Printing System (CUPS) technology, which it acquired a few years ago and implemented in its Mac operating system.

The printer drivers for the CUPS system are largely developed by refining generic driver sets to accommodate the features in new hardware, rather than being developed completely from scratch and distributed by companies separately. As a result, Apple periodically releases driver updates for printers from various companies.

Today Apple has issued a new round of driver updates for Mac users running Snow Leopard and Lion, which covers new and current print and scanning devices from Canon, Samsung, Gestetner, Ricoh, Infotec, Lanier, InfoPrint, and NRG. Apple has made these driver sets available for download from its Support Downloads Web page.

While most of the driver packages are between 16MB and 34MB in size, the drivers for Canon, as with other large-name printer manufacturers, are well over 300MB in size, because it contains the software for numerous devices instead of just one or two.

Even though Apple makes these driver packages available for download, you can instead use Software Update to install the drivers. Software Update will detect which printer devices you have and only download the driver updates for those devices instead of installing many that you might never use.

These driver updates include s... [Read more]

When multitasking in OS X, sometimes the programs you are using might output notification sounds or otherwise use the OS X audio system in ways that could interfere with your other tasks.

If you increase the volume to watch a movie while you have Mail open in the background, then when you receive a new message, Mail will output a loud New Mail sound. While you can disable Mail's notification sounds or quit the program, you might wish to keep it open and hear when the Mail arrives, but just not as loud.

Other similar scenarios might also benefit from playing volumes at different levels, such as when playing games, listening to music, or if you just wish to keep one application at a different volume level than another. While some programs such as media players have their own volume controls, others like iChat or Mail do not, and instead rely on the main system settings to adjust volume level.

Sound Bunny's controls allow you to adjust application volumes independently.

To tackle this need, ProSoft Engineering (maker of Data Rescue and Drive Genius) has released a new utility called SoundBunny, which is a simple control panel that interfaces with the core audio system in OS X and allows you to adj... [Read more]

Send a postcard with your mobile device

Touchnote is fast, easy to use, and offers an awesome way to make use of those shots that might have otherwise sat untouched in your photo gallery.

Here's how it works:

1. Download and install the app Touchnote (download) is available for free in the Android Market or iTunes App Store. You can play around with it all you want, but when it comes time to actually send a postcard, you'll have to go ahead and create an account.

2. Pick a photo The app gives you the choice of pulling a photo from your gallery, taking a new photo with your device's camera, or downloading one from your Facebook profile. Once you've made your pick, pinch and drag to control the zoom and placement of your photo, or do a two-finger twisting motion to rotate it in 90-degree increments.

3. Flip the card over and fill out the back First, tap the field on the right to enter the destination address. If you have any addresses saved in your contacts, you can choose one. Otherwise, you'll have to enter the recipient's name and address manually.

Next, tap the field on the left to start filling out your message. But don't expect to be able to do much stylizing because there aren't any text alignment options, and there's onl... [Read more]

Windows Update makes it dead simple to keep your basic system up-to-date, but this can lead to laziness or forgetfulness when it comes to other software.

Many popular programs, like Web browsers, check themselves pretty often, but others may not do so or may need to be told to do so. FileREX is a small, free program that checks your system for software that needs updating.

1. Download and install FileREX.
2. It should run automatically when you complete the installation and let you know if you've got any programs that need updates. Click the pop-up bubble or double-click the orange arrow icon in your system tray to bring up the main program window.

Step 2: Update notification.

3. From here you can see what needs updating and go to the FileREX site to download and install updates.

Step 3: Update software.

4. Click the gear-shaped Options icon to run FileREX when you start Windows and change other options.

Step 4: Select options.

5. That's it! FileREX isn't quite as seamless as Windows Update, but it does make it incredibly simple to keep your software up-to-date. 

(Via Addictive Tips)

Photoshop CS6's content-aware move is shown here to move a woman in red.

The woman to the upper left has been moved and the pixels filled in where she formerly was placed.

In the current Photoshop CS5, Adobe introduced a technology called content-aware fill that could automatically fill in a hole left when a portion of the image was excised. In the upcoming CS6, the company will take that idea much farther.

In the company's fourth Photoshop CS6 preview, Photoshop Senior Product Manager Bryan O'Neil Hughes showed two new ways to use the tool.

The existing tool fills in holes by making its best guess where to find filler material elsewhere in the image. O'Neil Hughes said that with the new version, photographers will be able to pick the source of filler on their own.

"What I want is the ability to drive this and tell it what to put where," he said. "People have been asking for this for a while with the patch tool, and that's just what we've given them."

More dramatic is the new content-aware move tool. He used it to center a coin-operated telescope in the image. It had only been crudely selected, but Photoshop did a creditable job figuring out how to remove the original... [Read more]

Instagram's new Lux feature might benefit some photos, but don't be surprised if it makes others look worse.

Love Instagram? Everybody's favorite photo-tuning app just got a little better--and more than a little worse.

The first thing you'll notice in version 2.1, which hit the App Store last Friday, is the interface: it's a bit prettier, but gone are the text labels identifying each of the five main buttons.

This wouldn't be a huge deal except that the buttons themselves have changed. In place of Feed, there's now a Home icon. Popular has given way to a star, and News is now a heart inside a speech bubble. Huh?

Result: novice and veteran users alike are likely to be confused until they discover what each button does. (I always equate a star with "favorites," not "popular.") It's not that Instagram is tough to use, but I think the developers have made it tougher to learn.

Instagram's "improved" interface lacks text labels for its navigation icons.

Instagram's new Lux feature promises to make your photos "more vibrant and [bring] out details you couldn't see before," which to me sounds a lot like HDR processing. To apply it, you just tap the little starburst ... [Read more]

If you are a Windows user, or come from a Windows background, odds are you have heard of and used WinZip.

With the launch of WinZip for the iPhone and iPad, iOS users will now have an easy method for opening ZIP files on their iOS device. Whether those files come from the Web, or were sent as an e-mail attachment.

Once you have downloaded and installed WinZip on your iPhone or iPad, you may notice there is nothing to the app. Upon opening it, you are presented with a miniature tutorial and nothing else. Even after trying to read the screenshot tutorial, how you use the app may not be all that clear. Hopefully we can help.

If the ZIP file was e-mailed to you, the process to open it in WinZip is a matter of a few taps. The screenshots below begin after you have downloaded the attachment to your device, and tapped on it to open it.

(Credit: Screenshot by Jason Cipriani)
1. When you tap on the attachment to open it, you will be presented with a default method for opening it. If WinZip isn't listed there, tap on Open In.
(Credit: Screenshot by Jason Cipriani)
2. Select WinZip from the list of apps.
(Credit: Screenshot by Jason Cipriani)
3. You are then presented with the contents of the ZIP file.

Opening a ZIP file fro... [Read more]

Amazon's Kindle Touch

Amazon's Kindle Touch is getting handwriting recognition, but it isn't being delivered by the company you think.

A new puzzle-focused technology startup called Puzzazz has developed a Kindle Touch-exclusive product called TouchWrite. The technology, which GeekWire's Todd Bishop tried out, enables users to write numbers and letters with a finger, and then TouchWrite converts them into digital on-screen versions.

For now, Puzzazz's technology is limited to a couple of Sudoku e-books available in the Kindle Store. However, the company's founder, Roy Leban, told GeekWire that he believes TouchWrite is "the future of books."

Related stories

• A Windows 8 tablet offers hope as potent iPad foe
• Amazon readying 9-inch Kindle Fire for 2012, analyst predicts
• Amazon fires shot at iPad's screen glare, price in new Kindle ad
• ... [Read more]

Singular Software's PluralEyes augments the built-in sync abilities of Apple's Final Cut Pro X.

Apple updated its Final Cut Pro X software two weeks ago support footage from multiple videocameras, and now Singular Software has followed suit with its PluralEyes plug-in that's designed for just that scenario.

PluralEyes lets video editors synchronize multiple video and audio tracks by analyzing each track's sound, and it's become widely used as a way to ease the tedious, important, but sometimes difficult chore.

"The latest update of Final Cut Pro X added new multi-camera editing features, and these are now fully supported by PluralEyes," said Singular Chief Executive Bruce Sharpe in a statement yesterday.

The software costs $150--a price that might look a bit higher since multicam editing in Final Cut Pro X now also uses audio track analysis to sync clips. But Singular thinks its product is still worth paying for.

When I asked why a Final Cut Pro X user would now pay for PluralEyes, this was Sharpe's response:

We created this update in response to many requests from FCP X users who are familiar with our automatic synchroni... [Read more]

Symantec took down the Norton interface several notches, making it much more streamlined for Norton One.

Symantec newest effort to simplify PC security involve a heavily personalized approach called Norton One, as the company's latest version of Norton 360 made its debut today. Also announced was a new take on Norton 360, called Norton 360 Everywhere.

Norton One is an entirely new product that Symantec hopes will appeal to people who don't mind paying for PC security but want the experience to be as close to hands-off as possible. Basically, the premium you pay gets you one license key and account ID that can be used on up to five devices; 25 GB of online storage; premium tech support which will connect you with a dedicated Norton One adviser within two minutes of placing your call; free virus removal by a technician if your device gets infected after installing One; and a Web-based interface for managing it all.

"We've taken everything that's in Norton and made it accessible for this non-technical audience," Jody Gibney, group product manager for Norton One, said in a phone conversation last week.

The Android interface will also indicate when it's connected to a Norton One account.

[Read more]