Tag Archives: Apple

National Parks

Apple announces OS X Yosemite

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

Okay, if you’ve visited my website a time or two – or even scrolled through a bit today, it’s no secret that I’m a BIG fan of Yosemite.  It must be a Scottish thing; John Muir seemed to have a fixation on the area that would eventually become a national park, too.

Today’s big announcement at the WWDC touched a soft spot; it’s Apple, it’s naming the new operating system Yosemite.  I’m giddy as a schoolgirl!  From MacWorld:

Apple on Monday announced that the next version of the Mac OS—dubbed OS X Yosemite, after the popular National Park in California—will be available as a free upgrade to the public this fall.

The jam-packed operating system update features a significant user interface overhaul, rich with bright colors and translucent effects, plus numerous changes to the visual identity of almost every system app that brings them closer to their iOS counterparts. The interface now also comes with a “dark” mode, which dims system elements like the Menu and Dock and allows apps to be more prominent.

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General Aviation

Garmin Adds Synthetic Vision to Pilot App

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

Garmin International Inc., a unit of Garmin Ltd. (NASDAQ: GRMN), the global leader in satellite navigation, today announced an updated version of the Garmin Pilot application for the iPad and iPhone featuring synthetic vision as an option for premium subscribers. 3D Vision incorporates GPS-derived airspeed, altitude, and vertical speed overlaid on rich 3D topographic landscape. 3D Vision is transformed when optionally paired with the GDL 39 3D, which superimposes back-up aircraft attitude information overtop the Garmin SVX display.

“With the addition of synthetic vision, Garmin Pilot takes a big step forward by offering pilots great situational awareness in all weather conditions, day or night,” said Carl Wolf, Garmin’s vice president of aviation sales and marketing. “When combined with the GDL 39 3D, attitude information as well as ADS‑B traffic and weather are all conveniently accessible within one application, further demonstrating our commitment to bringing safety enhancements to all pilots.” 

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eBook, General

OS X Mavericks is here, and it brings iBooks to the Mac!

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

Apple announced new hardware and software today, including the FREE release of OS X Mavericks available on Apple’s website HERE.

For authors, Mavericks brings iBooks to the Mac.  From the Apple press release:

With OS X Mavericks, a new chapter in the iBooks story begins. Now you can launch the iBooks app on your Mac and the books you’ve already downloaded on your iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch will automatically appear in your library. And there are over 2 million more books in the iBooks Store, ready for you to download with just a few clicks.1 Reading books is intuitive and easy — turn pages with a swipe and zoom in on images with a pinch. If you’re a student hitting the books, keep as many open as you like and search through them with ease. And when you take notes, highlight passages, or add a bookmark on your Mac, iCloud pushes them to all your devices automatically. iCloud even remembers which page you’re on. So if you start reading on your iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch, you can pick up right where you left off on your Mac.

You can find out more about the new products HERE and OS X Mavericks HERE.

You can find out more about iBooks HERE.

Self Publishing, Writing

Question: What is the hardest thing about publishing an ebook?

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

This question was recently asked in a group I’m part of.  Here’s the whole question:

Question: What is the hardest thing about publishing an ebook?  I’m curious what problems here people have had with publishing ebooks themselves. i’m currently working on two books that I want to release as ebooks, but I’d like to avoid some of the common mistakes and problems if at all possible. I’ll be making enough of my own as it is! 🙂 Thanks!

Answer: The hardest part about publishing an ebook is marketing. It’s exactly the same problem authors have with publishing through a traditional publisher. Marketing will always be the most difficult part; it’s the actual sale to the consumer. In order to get your book to the person who has the least resistance to buying your book, you have to let them know it exists, and that – even for the Big Six … or Big Five … or Big … well, Big However Many Publishers There Are Still Left Dragging Their Dinosaur Tails Behind Them Out There – is a problem. At least with a publisher there’s a possibility that you might – maybe – get spot on a shelf without you having to personally intercede or promise sexual favors (at least initially) for awhile. Continue reading →