Space Javelin

It's the big 6-0 episode, and we celebrate by bringing in another great developer guest: this time, it's Joe Japes from Econ Technologies, makers of ChronoSync -- a great and powerful backup and syncing manager for people who need a little more than Time Machine offers. Mike also takes veteran Mac users to task for complaining that Apple has gone all consumer and mobile and doesn't pay enough attention to the desktop publishing market anymore -- we do feel your pain, but us slab Mac Pro users are a dying breed, and Apple owes us nothing. We also, of course, detail the latest FBI shenanigans, but this week we don't have an App of the Week: instead, we offer some crazy-good deals and bundles for you to jump on. Not only is the podcast free, we actually save you money! Tune in now! Limited time only! We guarantee your complete satisfaction or double the podcast cost back!

Can we just mention that we were right last week? We said, we actually said that if you go down to an Apple Store and wait for an hour, you might get a new MacBook. Okay, we didn't phrase it quite so specifically and actually we may possibly have meant iMacs rather than MacBooks but the principle holds: we called it. Which means this week, we have to keep that prediction record up.

A much better mix of straight news -- good and bad -- and crazy-bananas stories, ranging from bizarre patents to the worst design of a possible "Apple Car" you've ever seen. This week, Mike and Charles talk about what they'd do if they ran Apple, the change of heart at Smile Software over TextExpander, the latest from the FBI and DOJ (including a security revelation from BlackBerry), and finally the weird news of the week, then William's Apple of the Week, which this time is a technical downgrade. All this and cheap laughs, as usual.

We were ready to go all profound – wait, that is different from profane, isn't it? –– over what's been happening with William Gallagher's beloved TextExpander. Before we'd opened our gobs, though, makers Smile Software walked back a lot of the problems and reacted to its customers in a way that you can only applaud. So well done them and we are pleased, but we had a great pun ready for you with the word 'TextExpander'.

We were ready to go all profound – wait, that is different from profane, isn't it? –– over what's been happening with William Gallagher's beloved TextExpander. Before we'd opened our gobs, though, makers Smile Software walked back a lot of the problems and reacted to its customers in a way that you can only applaud. So well done them and we are pleased, but we had a great pun ready for you with the word 'TextExpander'.

The bane of all true nerds, we start off this week talking a little bit (but only a tiny smidgen, we promise) about sportsball -- but this is only a cheery overture before we delve into the main news topics of the week, which are mostly bad. From our investigation into a bundle company that is ripping off developers, to the latest FBI/DOJ subversion of the Constitution, to beloved utility Textexpander suddenly going subscription, it's nearly all bad news. Luckily, we have a great new $1 e-book out of tips and help to keep your mind off it all. That, and App of the Week will help you bring back a beloved feature. So cheer up and dive in!

The bane of all true nerds, we start off this week talking a little bit (but only a tiny smidgen, we promise) about sportsball -- but this is only a cheery overture before we delve into the main news topics of the week, which are mostly bad. From our investigation into a bundle company that is ripping off developers, to the latest FBI/DOJ subversion of the Constitution, to beloved utility Textexpander suddenly going subscription, it's nearly all bad news. Luckily, we have a great new $1 e-book out of tips and help to keep your mind off it all. That, and App of the Week will help you bring back a beloved feature. So cheer up and dive in!

You've done this, haven't you? You're sitting there in your kitchen, having a chat, and somehow you get someone's name wrong. You keep calling them by the wrong name and when you or your friends eventually realise what's happened, you've had hilarious consequences and/or slander legal suits. Fortunately, the kitchen at MacNN has this great kettle that just so happens to beep over precisely the right syllables.

You've done this, haven't you? You're sitting there in your kitchen, having a chat, and somehow you get someone's name wrong. You keep calling them by the wrong name and when you or your friends eventually realise what's happened, you've had hilarious consequences and/or slander legal suits. Fortunately, the kitchen at MacNN has this great kettle that just so happens to beep over precisely the right syllables.

Unsurprisingly, a good chunk of this week's episode focuses on Apple's 40th anniversary, which happened last Friday ... unless they've been pranking us for the last four decades ... and a bit about our own 20th anniversary year, which wraps up this June. There's also been new developments in the fight between Apple and the DOJ and FBI to go over, new rumors about the iPhone 7 (and beyond!) to be a bit skeptical about, the return of the Bundlecult scam, the ongoing Oracle vs Google case (which has taken a new turn), the tragedy of not preparing your digital files for your -- rather than their -- end of life, the debut of the affordable Tesla 3 vehicle, and of course our usual App of the Week. All jam-packed into a info-cramming hour. Take a listen!