Essential Apple Podcast 206: Simple photo and video adjustments with Darkroom

Recorded 17th January 2021

This week there was a virtual CES, somewhat reduced in size but still with its array of prototypes, new products and as ever a few oddities. Apple announced what it is actually doing with its REJI and is apparently going to extend free Apple TV+ again. Also today we are joined by Jasper Hauser of Darkroom photo and video editor for Mac and iOS (the winner of an Apple Design Award in 2020).

GIVEAWAYS & OFFERS

Glenn Fleishman’s Working From Home book is completely FREE and can be downloaded here and now he has also released Take Control of Zoom Essentials free as well.
Steve at Geeks Corner has restarted his podcast which is a 5-15 min show of his thoughts on tech. Also keep an eye on his site or follow him on Twitter @GeekCorner_uk to watch for regular giveaways.

Why not come and join the Slack community? You can now just click on this Slackroom Link to sign up and join in the chatter!

Slacker @MacJim has a family friendly Flickr group for listeners to share photos because the Darkroom channel in the Slack has become so popular – if you’re interested head over to to the Essential Apple Flickr and request an invitation.

On this week’s show

JASPER HAUSER

Web
@usedarkroom on Twitter
Instagram
YouTube
Reddit

APPLE

M1 Mac Bluetooth problems finally set to be resolved, says Apple – 9to5Mac
Apple begins blocking M1 Mac users from side loading iPhone and iPad applications – 9to5Mac
Apple Launches New Nationwide Racial Equity and Justice Initiative Projects – Mac Rumors
Apple suspends Parler from App Store – CNN
- Apple CEO Tim Cook Says Parler Can Return to App Store If It Ups Moderation – Newsweek
Apple is extending Apple TV+ trials again — TechCrunch

TECHNOLOGY / CES

The LG Rollable phone with expandable display is real, and coming in 2021 – CNet
LG’s transparent TV concept rolls up from foot of bed – Mashable UK
- Video of the transparent TV – Digital Trends
The best foldables (and rollables) of CES 2021 – Digital Trends
Masks, sanitizers, and social distancing gadgets: The COVID tech that dominated CES 2021 – Mashable
Accessibility devices at CES 2021 reflect growing focus on inclusive tech – CNet

SECURITY & PRIVACY

Google Analytics opt out browser extension – Google
- Available for Microsoft Internet Explorer 11, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari and Opera.
Son from Simple Login replied to my suggestion of a Menubar App – go upvote it if you would like to see this (you have to register to vote)
- That’s a good idea indeed! (and I would use it personally obviously :)). Just created https://trello.com/c/6S3WmqLP/152-create-mac-menubar-for-simplelogin, feel free to upvote it to make it happen sooner!
Encrypted Messaging App Signal Sees Surge in Popularity Following WhatsApp Privacy Policy Update – Ultimate Pocket
- WhatsApp’s New Privacy Policy Is Exactly Why No One Trusts Facebook – Inc
Johns Hopkins security researchers ‘shocked’ at Android and iOS vulnerabilities – 9to5Mac

WORTH A CHIRP / ESSENTIAL TIPS

Fonts: Install New Fonts – App Shopper
- App Store
Bufferi.ng: Create lag and buffering on video chats like Zoom, Skype and Microsoft teams

JUST A SNIPPET

For things that are not worth more than a flypast

SmartDot radiation-protection phone stickers ‘have no effect’ — BBC News
- “They are supposed to use “scalar energy” (aka Undetectable Magic Powers) – brought to you by the same loons who will sell you a Faraday cage for your router… “ – Simon

Essential Apple Recommended Services:

Pixel Privacy – a fabulous resource full of excellent articles and advice on how to protect yourself online.
Doug.ee Blog for Andy J’s security tips.
Ghostery – protect yourself from trackers, scripts and ads while browsing.
Simple Login – Email anonymisation and disposable emails for login/registering with
33mail.com – Never give out your real email address online again.
AnonAddy – Disposable email addresses
Sudo – get up to 9 “avatars” with email addresses, phone numbers and more to mask your online identity. Free for the first year and priced from $0.99 US / £2.50 UK per month thereafter… You get to keep 2 free avatars though.
ProtonMail – end to end encrypted, open source, based in Switzerland. Prices start from FREE… what more can you ask?
ProtonVPN – a VPN to go with it perhaps? Prices also starting from nothing!
Comparitech DNS Leak Test – simple to use and understand VPN leak test.
Fake Name Generator – so much more than names! Create whole identities (for free) with all the information you could ever need.
Wire – free for personal use, open source and end to end encryted messenger and VoIP.
Pinecast – a fabulous podcast hosting service with costs that start from nothing.

Essential Apple is not affiliated with or paid to promote any of these services… We recommend services that we use ourselves and feel are either unique or outstanding in their field, or in some cases are just the best value for money in our opinion.

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