News Roundup 6/16: OS X, Apple Music Deals, And Bad News Lane

We’re starting to get some early reports of what it’s like to actually use the new version of OS X. This is probably going to be the most attention that OS X gets in the current cycle, as it will be overshadowed by new iOS software and hardware this fall. Without Siracusa’s phone book sized reviews, there isn’t even a big event to get excited for.


Early Looks At OS X

Like I said, we have some early looks at OS X El Capitan. The first is from David Pierce at Wired. He spends a bit of time with each of the tent pole features of OS X, giving them their paces. He’s a Gmail user, but missed checking if it’s playing nice with Mail.app now.

Rene Ritche at iMore goes into a lot more depth, but very much from the perspective of someone who’s signed their digital life over to Cupertino. Let’s face it, that’s most of us. I really like his look at the Force Trackpad in El Captain. He also gets bonus points for discussing the new system font.


Last Pass Hacked

I recommended Last Pass as our go to password manager. My faith in the company was shaken when I saw the headlines that there were hacked. Reading through their blog post detailing the hack, I felt a lot better.

The company recommends that all users change their passwords, as the intrusion exposed email addresses, password hashes, and password reminders were compromised. Saved passwords were not accessed. They’be asked users to update their master password and are requiring email authentication before signing on from new IPs. All in all, a great response to a bad situation.


Instacast Ends Its Broadcast Day

Continuing our drive down bad news lane, Vemedio the parent company behind the podcast app Instacast, has shut down. I liked Instacast when I reviewed it a few years ago, but the paid subscription model hasn’t stood the test of time against the torrent of new podcasting apps with a flat fee model.

Mac Observer reportsthat Vemedio is trying to keep their servers up for as long as possible, but users are already losing access. They also offer alternative apps, but I stand by my choice of Overcast.


Apple Continues To Show Off The Goods

Apple has been working hard to show off the kind of photography and video work the iPhone 6. They have shared additional videos on their You Tube page. If you want to see the earlier campaign materials, Apple has a gallery page.


Now war is declared and battle come down

In the ever escalating war of words between Apple and everyone else in the streaming industry, a new salvo was released. In an [exclusive report given to Recode](http://recode.net/2015/06/15/heres-what-happens-to-your–10-after-you-pay-for-a-month-of-apple-music/), Apple detailed that their split of the new Apple Music revenue will be roughly their customary 30%. Spotify was quick to point out Apple isn’t paying this for the free iTunes Radio, nor the trial period on the new service. As the article points out, this doesn’t guarantee the artist is getting a sizable chunk of that 70%. Regardless of their bad contracts, be sure to read think pieces blaming Apple for their bad deals.

Mac geek? Gamer? Why not both? Mike is a writer from Wisconsin who enjoys wasting immense amounts of time on the Internet. You can follow him on Twitter.