Professional Documents
Culture Documents
GAABer September 2017
GAABer September 2017
The GABer
The Newsletter of the Greater Albany Apple Byters
SeptemberServing
2017 the Apple ComputerGABer
User Community Since May 1984
The
2
Its easy to get so focused on the details on the present that sure about thatmacOS still gets some love and annual
we miss the obvious questions about the future. When John updatesbut its true that the difference between these
Siracusa wrote about the dangers of Mac OS X getting old first two scenarios is mostly about what Apples ultimate
in 2005, that operating system had only been around for goals with iOS are. Is Apple building iOS, especially on the
five yearsbut he wasnt wrong that Apple would need iPad, as an operating system
to address major shortcomings in the operating system in thats powerful enough to
the long term. outright replace macOS? As
someone who uses iOS to
So with iOS riding high (and serving as the basis for pretty get real work done, I think
much every major Apple platform that isnt the Mac), its Apples still got a long way
hard to imagine what comes next. And yet some tweets by to go with iOS before it could
Steve Troughton- Smith made my eyes pop open. After feel comfortable making iOS desktops and laptops and
linking to a fascinating Ars Technica story about Fuschia, shutting down production of Macs. But the company could
Googles next-generation operating system project, get there if it made a concerted effort.
Troughton- Smith wrote: Were far enough into the age of
mobile that the big players are designing the OSes thatll Apple OS 2020. The other way for Apple to go would be
follow it- surprised if Apple isnt doing same. Its not so to continue updating iOS and macOS annually, but pull
crazy to think that Apple would want to replace both iOS resources off of those projects and instead begin building
and macOS with something new and more unified. Post- the foundations for an entirely new operating system,
XNU [the Kernel that runs iOS and macOS], post-BSD one that can run devices as small as an Apple Watch (or
[Unix, the underpinnings of iOS and macOS]. AirPods?) or as large as a 27-inch iMac or a Mac Pro. An
operating system that takes the best of iOS, but ditches
Replace macOS? Okay, weve played this game before some of its featuresTroughton-Smith suggests replacing
just as the Mac has changed chip architectures every decade the XNU kernel and BSD unix underpinningswith
or so, were now 17 years into the macOS/OS X eraand something new. This new, single operating system would
the classic Mac OS lasted about the same amount of time. be the basis of all future Apple products, and the distinction
iOS is comparatively young, but its still 10 years old, between the Mac and iOS would drop away.
and built on top of the Mac OS X base. Perhaps its time is
coming, sooner than we think. Or perhaps not. Lets look The OS of Theseus
at Apples long- term OS choices:
My guess is that Apple has no stomach for a complicated
Plow ahead on both fronts. In this scenario, Apple operating-system migration, especially with iOS and the
continues to maintain two separate (but related) base App Store doing so well. And iOS has proven remarkably
operating systems, macOS and iOS. iOS continues to adaptable. Over the last few years, Apple has shown a
receive a lot of attention, but macOS also gets major new preference to replace the parts of its operating systems,
features, especially ones that are synergistic with additions bit by bit, rather than chucking everything out wholesale.
to iOS. Its a lot of extra work to have two totally separate iOS devices run a different filesystem than they ran last
operating systems (leaving aside the iOS derivatives that year; Apples programming language of the future, Swift,
run the Apple Watch, Apple TV, and HomePod), but the coexists with the Objective-C language that Apple inherited
Macs not a business Apple wants to abandon and iOS from NeXT in 1997.
isnt going to replace it, so were left with a steady state.
Apple seems to prefer invisible, subtle, and slow
Lean into iOS so it can replace macOS. Some people technology transitions whenever its possible. It seems to
would argue that this is the current state of affairs. Im not Continued on page 8.
Internet SIG
6 Ways to Speed Up Slow WiFi
by Kim Komando, Komoando.com
Weve all been there: Every gadget at Be sure to restart your router once the update is complete
home is running smoothly and were for the changes to take effect. Set an appointment in your
streaming without a hitch. Suddenly, the calendar to check for router firmware updates every three
dreaded digital slow down and then, the months. We probably wont have to do this task much
mental meltdown occurs. longer. Some newer routers update themselves without
owners having to do a thing.
There are plenty of reasons your Wi-Fi
acts up including signal congestion, 2. Look for interferences
bandwidth issues, and hardware limitations. The truth is,
most households and offices cant get away with a basic You might be surprised by what kinds of household
single-band router anymore. Personal devices have started devices can affect your Wi-Fi speeds. Cordless phones
to stretch available bandwidth, and each smartphone, tablet, are obvious. But what about microwave ovens? Did you
television, desktop, gaming console, smart appliance, and ever suspect that a baby monitor could slow down your
laptop is competing for the same signal. videos on Facebook?
Whatever your Wi-Fi hiccups, here are surefire ways to This is particularly true for older routers running on a
speed things up. 2.4GHz frequency. This is the same frequency that many
household appliances run on, so the signals tend to overlap.
1. Update your routers software The easiest way to fix this problem is to move your router
away from other 2.4GHz devices, or just upgrade your
Most people routinely update their apps and operating hardware.
systems, but they forget about their routers firmware. The
advantages are twofold: You may make your Wi-Fi more If youre feeling ambitious, create a Wi-Fi heat map,
efficient and also protect yourself from newly discovered which can help you see where Wi-Fi signals are strongest
security breaches. (and weakest). Click here for a free program that will
diagram the signals in your home or office.
Using your web browser, type in your routers IP address
to visit your routers administrator page and check for 3. Change channels
updates. You will have to enter a username and password
to log in. Crazy, but router default passwords are readily Another common tweak is to change the channel of your
available online. Click here for the link you need to find router. Again, this step is most helpful when youre running
just about any routers username and password. on a 2.4GHz frequency because these can get congested
with other appliances. Moving from one channel to a less
Fing is a network tool that you should have in your tech crowded one may speed things up.
arsenal even if you know your routers IP address. Sure,
youll learn your routers IP address but you can also How do you do this? The process is slightly different for
see all devices connected to your network, check your Macs and PCs.
internet connectivity, monitor the network and detect
intruders. Click here for more information and the links
you need for both Apple and Android devices. Continued on page 7.
Education SIG
7 Digital Learning Trends
by Joshua Bolkan, THE Journal
Project Tomorrow recently released information about customizability, a basis in research and adjustability for
seven digital learning trends uncovered in their most recent reading levels.
Speak Up research project.
Indicators ranked as least important include an OER label,
Project Tomorrow surveyed more than 514,000 educators, search ranking, expertise of developer, recommendation
parents and students between October 2016 and January by state department of education and the availability of a
2017 for this years report. mobile app version.
1. Superintendents are most concerned about funding, the 4. Students are using mobile devices for teacher-directed
achievement gap and staff morale. Asked, What wakes and self-directed learning.
superintendents up at night, 51 percent of respondents
indicated it was funding; 48 percent selected achievement When directed by a teacher, students are using mobile
gap; and 43 percent went with staff morale. devices to do online research, play learning games, take
tests, read articles, access textbooks and watch videos their
Since 2010, the top six concerns have remained the same, teachers have made.
according to the survey, though there has been some
jockeying for position over time and the level of concern On their own, they are using mobile devices to check
has intensified. Test scores was in second place in 2010 grades, look up class information, e-mail teachers,
and is now in sixth place, for example, and the number of access reminders, take notes and take pictures of their
respondents choosing funding as a concern is up from 51 assignments.
percent in the same year.
More than half, 58 percent, of high school students are
2. Instruction informed by data, social media and online bringing their own mobile devices to school, according
assessments are creating positive results for students, to the survey, and a quarter of middle school students are
according to administrators. According to surveyed doing the same.
principals, techniques and solutions that are improving
student outcomes include data-informed instruction, the 5. Teachers, administrators, students and parents do not
use of social media to communicate with students and their see technology use the same way. Administrators said
parents, online assessments, multimedia within instruction, motivating teachers to change practice is their biggest
cloud software and tools, mobile devices in schools and challenge. Parents said technology use is important to
online professional development. their childs success in the future, but tech use varies from
teacher to teacher. Students said learning to use technology
CIOs and CTOs surveyed told researchers that demand is important, but there are too many rules placed on it.
is growing for online professional development, open
educational resources (OER), game-based learning And, students, teachers and administrators all have
environments and new learning models, such as blended, a different view on the role of Internet access outside
flipped and competency-based learning. of school, according to information released by the
organization. Few teachers say they regularly assign
3. The most common digital content being used in the Internet-dependent homework; more principals think
classroom is online videos and games. When determining Internet-dependent homework is being assigned, but
what makes for good digital content, teachers told students say they regularly use the Internet to help with
researchers they looked for freshness, standards alignment, homework.
Only 38 percent of students said they couldnt access social Serving approximately 100,000 teachers, administrators,
media at school, down from 50 percent in 2011. ed tech specialists and other education stakeholders
worldwide, ISTE has a comprehensive view of the K12
7. Parents prefer e-mail for school communication. education landscape and offers a unique perspective on
emerging learning technologies, according to CEO Richard
Parents want school communication to be convenient, Culatta.
given to them rather than requiring a search, personalized,
timely, succinct and actionable and high-impact. With improved connectivity and increasingly impactful
educator professional learning around the use of
Other key findings of the report include: technology, many students will have new experiences as
the bell rings to start a new school year, Culatta said the
More than two-thirds of teachers reported experiencing announcement.
external indicators of change, such as using more videos
in the classroom or texting with colleagues, but less than An ISTE educator from Wisconsin says coding can be
one third are using an online curriculum with students or taught to students as young as kindergarten.
engaging in online professional learning communities;
First, the organization called coding the international
75 percent of teachers say mobile devices improve student language of problem-solving and says every student will
engagement, but only 35 percent said they improve student need to know the basics of computer science. Teachers are
work quality; Teachers say they are most likely to use data helping students attain problem-solving skills by infusing
to do things they would do otherwise, like collaborate with coding and computational thinking into courses across the
other teachers or communicate with students, parents or curriculum and encouraging students to become digital
school leaders; Teachers say they are least likely to use data content creators, the organization wrote.
in ways that would change their practice, like identifying
at-risk students or designing individualized learning paths; Second, learning feedback will happen in real-time.
Therefore, schools will start to do away with end-of-unit
48 percent of high school students surveyed said they or end-of-year tests and instead assess student knowledge
use the internet to help with schoolwork daily or almost as they learn.
daily but the same percentage of teachers said they almost
never assign homework that requires internet connectivity; Tools that can visualize student progress in real time and
and The kinds of support teachers were most likely to say recommend learning activities based on individual student
they needed were professional development, planning time, progress are just becoming available, Culatta noted in
student devices and tech support. the announcement. This will allow teachers to intervene
and adjust more quickly when students are struggling to
comprehend difficult subjects.
A dummy model featuring the upcoming OLED iPhone In line with past events, Apples 2017 iPhone unveiling will
kick off at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time. Apple will stream the
The upcoming 4.7 and 5.5-inch iPhones have not been event live on its website and on the Apple TV, but for those
heavily featured in rumors, but they too are said to feature who are unable to watch, MacRumors will be providing
glass bodies, support for wireless charging functionality, full event coverage, both on MacRumors.com and through
and improvements to the processor, camera, and other our MacRumorsLive Twitter account.
components.
Apple provides a free tool called Wireless Diagnostics. 5. Buy a new 802.11 AC router
To use it, hold the Option key while clicking on the Wi-Fi
icon on the top right-hand side of the menu bar and then If youre in the market for a new router and you want
choose Open Wireless Diagnostics. improved Wi-Fi speeds, look for an 802.11 AC router with
dual or triple band capabilities.
To access the Scan tool, ignore the actual Wireless
Diagnostics window. Immediately go to the Window tab What does all that mean? Put simply, newer Wi-Fi
on the top left side of the menu bar and choose Scan. standards mean better features and increased performance.
AC routers are a step up from the older B, G, and
Youll see a list of the Wi-Fi signals in your vicinity and N models.
the channel they occupy, among other useful information.
If you wanted to, you could keep your older 2.4GHz router
Windows on its own band and add the newer AC device on a higher
band. This is essentially like having multiple routers in
For Windows, download a free Wi-Fi utility called Acrylic one and it can solve interference and congestion issues.
Wi-Fi Home. Similar to the Macs Scan tool, this application
will instantly give you information about the Wi-Fi signals Here are some of the best routers you can buy in 2017.
in your area, including the channels they occupy.
6. Mesh is the word
For Android users, there are a bunch of Wi-Fi scanning
tools available, but a very popular one is Network Some people have big houses, and they quickly find that
Analyzer. Click here for more details and download the Wi-Fi only extends so far, especially when a lot of
information. devices are attached to the same network. You may have
heard of a network extender, a cheap device that will
Once you have the channel info you need, to prevent help you expand your Wi-Fi reach. You may be tempted
trampling on other channels, the recommended channels to invest in one.
for 2.4GHz are 1, 6 and 11, which dont overlap with each
other. Hold off and investigate a savvier option of a mesh
network. This system uses two or three different devices,
4. Put the kids on their own network and enable QoS which work together to blanket your environment. While
a Wi-Fi extender might require several network names and
Many parents have specialized settings on their computers give you uneven coverage, a mesh network is all part of the
to prevent kids from getting into trouble. Similarly, you same system, so you should always get a consistent signal.
can put your kids on a separate network with its own rules
and parameters. Click here to learn more about mesh networks.
The simplest method is to set up a separate Wi-Fi router. If that sounds enticing, understand that a mesh network
Alternatively, you can enable your routers Guest isnt added onto your current router; you will replace your
Network option. Guest networks are designed to give router with at least two new devices. The transition isnt
visitors limited access to your homes network and files, cheap, but youll be astonished how much more powerful
but it can also work for kids. A guest network has many and far-reaching your Wi-Fi will become.
benefits, including the ability to shield your main devices
from certain web-based attacks. How else can you live a better digital life? Be sure to listen
or download my podcasts, or click here to find it on your
Related: Without proper security, your router opens the local radio station. You can listen to the Kim Komando
door to let others into your network and access your private Show on your phone, tablet or computer. From buying
data. Click here for the critical steps to secure your Wi-Fi advice to digital life issues, click here for my free podcasts.
network.
The continued existence of the Mac gives Apple a powerful The name Us Festival was not short for United States,
out when it comes to iOS development. If theres something but rather the collective term for everyone. It was short
iOS cant do, some market or user type that it cant serve, for Unite Us in Song. It was supposed to celebrate the
Apple can point at the Mac and declare it the solution. passing of the Me Decade that had been the 1970s.
Whether purposely or not, it also referred to Wozniak as
This, then, seems to be the current state of affairs: Apples a new family man. His wife had gone into labor the night
investing in iOS, swapping out bits and pieces as it goes, before the festival opened.
allowing it to grow into something more powerfulbut
not embarking on a crash course to build it into a Mac To bring his festival to life, Woz enlisted legendary rock
replacement. macOS keeps hanging around, gaining new promoter Bill Graham (whose name is used for San
features but not with any urgency. Its not the most exciting Franciscos Bill Graham Auditorium, where Apple holds
scenarioand it certainly could turn out to be the wrong various events). Graham filled the Us Festival card with
onebut sometimes slow and steady really does win the rock luminaries ranging from The Grateful Dead and The
race. Ramones to The Kinks and Fleetwood Mac. Because of the
scale of the festival, many artists charged obscene amounts
of money to perform.
Us Festival: Technology and music together Woz considered the event a massive success, even though
it wound up losing a massive amount of money. Although
Woz being Woz, technology was also a big part of the Us the audience for all three days proved impressive, a large
Festival. It was described as a three-day celebration of percentage of people who turned up never paid. They
contemporary music and technology. either used counterfeit tickets or simply climbed over the
perimeter fences.
Robert Moog attended to give a demonstration of his
famous synthesizer. A Sensadome offered a 360-degree That didnt stop Woz from staging a follow-up Us festival
multimedia light show. And jazz legend Herbie Hancock the next year. This time, his losses came to $13 million. At
led a discussion about the Apple II/Alpha Syntauri music that point, Woz called a stop to his concert-promoting days.
system.
If I do this for another 55 years, Im in trouble, he said
at the time.