…a manager within its expanding mobile-software group, said two of the people, who declined to be identified because the information isn’t public. Williamson, who worked at Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) for more than a decade, was one of the engineers assigned by Apple co-founder Steve Jobs to build software for the iPhone. Williamson was fired by Apple in November as part of a management shakeup after its mapping product was criticized for misguided directions and inaccurate landmark locations.
Apple Inc. (AAPL): It Is Still The King In This Industry (Insider Monkey)
The iPod may not be too financially meaningful these days (3% of trailing-12-month sales) to Apple Inc., but the Mac maker is still the music king. According to recent estimates from market researcher NPD, Apple Inc.’s iTunes Music Store still dominates the music download industry with 63% market share. The news comes as we approach the tenth anniversary of iTunes’ launch at the end of this month. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) periodically announces iTunes milestones, and in February the company said it hit 25 billion songs downloaded to date. Apple gave the lucky European downloader a 10,000 euro iTunes Gift card to commemorate the occasion.
Apple issues Java, printer, iPhoto, and Aperture updates (CNET)
Apple has issued a few updates for OS X users, including a new version of its in-house Java runtime environment, updated printer drivers, and new versions of iPhoto and Aperture. The updates improve reliability, security, and compatibility overall, but for iPhoto and Aperture users Apple has specifically addressed the following details: Photos can now be deleted from My Photo Stream by dragging to the Trash, Photos can now be exported from Photo Stream using the Export command in the File menu, Raw images manually imported from My Photo Stream are now editable, etc. Beyond application updates, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s printer driver updates include those for new models from Canon and Epson.
VEA Buddy: An Apple-Inspired SmartWatch (Forbes)
If Steve Jobs designed the iWatch, it could very well look like VEA’s Buddy. A thin and solid watch, with a single button, a color touchscreen display and large clear icons. A world’s away from the more geeky smart watches from Casio, Pebble, Motorola or Sony. “The iPhone was our inspiration,” said Armand Billard, the CEO of Caiman Design, who led the VEA Buddy’s design team. “We’ve been designing smart watches for years, but with the Buddy, we started from scratch, with a user-centric approach. It had to be simple, easy to use and comfortable to wear. A smart watch for everyone, not just geeks!”
The Resort That Banned Apple … Ever Since 1983 (Yahoo! Finance)
Thirty years ago, an upstart, young computer company called Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) threw a party. A big party, with kegs of beer, rowdy crowds and rumors of skinny-dipping at La Playa Hotel, a small, family-owned resort on the California coast that was a popular site for corporate retreats in the early days of Silicon Valley. The facility’s management at the time and, of course, other guests, were less than impressed by the Macintosh team’s hijinks, and as a result the eventual iPhone and iPad maker was unceremoniously kicked off the property and banned from the Carmel-by-the-Sea, Calif. resort for life, effective 1983.
