iOS 6 comes with over 200 new features that will make the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch even better, but there’s a few caveats: first, it doesn’t run on all hardware, and second, on some of the supported devices the feature set will be limited. We’ll sort all of that out.

Devices Supported by iOS 6
According to Apple, the iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPad 2, iPad 3, and iPod touch 4th gen will all run iOS 6.

Noticeably absent from the supported device lineup are the iPad 1 and iPod touch 3rd gen, despite those devices having similar hardware to some of the other supported hardware. If you have one of these older devices, consider an upgrade if you want the latest and greatest features.

iOS 6 Feature Compatibility
Here is where things get slightly more complicated: Even if your iPhone or iPad can run iOS 6 that doesn’t mean it will support all of the features.

Some of the more anticipated and prominent improvements in iOS 6 like FaceTime over 3G won’t be supported on the iPhone 4 or 3GS for example, and Siri will come to iPad 3 but not iPad 2. And many of the most exciting features won’t work whatsoever on the iPhone 3GS, and are barely supported by the iPhone 4. If this sounds complicated it’s really not, but to help decipher which of the bigger features will work with what, MacRumors put together a helpful chart…

You’ll notice it’s only the newest hardware that is fully compatible with most of the major features of the newest iOS, but keep in mind that all supported hardware will be benefiting from the smaller improvements, with things like the iPhones new calling features, Guided Access, Single App mode, Facebook integration, Do Not Disturb, and all of the many more subtle improvements that were demoed at WWDC.

iOS 6 was given a loose release date of “Fall” of this year.

If you’ve ever entered a lengthy command into the terminal and upon execution discovered a syntax error, a “no such file or directory”, or “command not found” message because you made a typo, you’ll love this quick tip that lets you rerun the last executed command while replacing the erroneous syntax. You’ll need to be using the default bash shell for this to work.

The general syntax to use is as follows:

!!:gs/old/new

!! runs the last command again, while :gs/old/new replaces instances of the text “old” with “new” within the last command.

For example, here’s a simple change directory command with an error in the path:

cd /System/Library/CoerServices/Dock.app/Contents/

Notice “CoerServices” should be “CoreServices”, but rather than type out the entire command and path again, you can enter the following:

!!:gs/Coer/Core/

And suddenly you’re in the proper directory.

This is obviously extremely useful when you’ve discovered errors floating in command line syntax somewhere, but it’s also perfect for toggling settings on and off through things like defaults write commands by replacing “no” with “yes” and so forth:

!!:gs/no/yes

You can also place sudo in front of !! to run the previous command as root.

Apple has posted an excellent walkthrough video showing off the some of the bigger new features of OS X Mountain Lion. The 5:30 video is embedded below, and although it doesn’t cover every one of the 200+ new features in Mac OS X 10.8, it shows off the highlights and is well worth watching if you’re considering upgrading your Mac in the near future.

OS X Mountain Lion will be released next month on the Mac App Store for $19.99, upgrades from OS X Lion and even directly from Snow Leopard are possible.

Apple knows how to pick great background pictures, and the new default wallpaper from iOS 6 beta is no exception of a lovely watery scene.

You’ve probably seen the rippled water already in screenshots of iOS 6 from Apple, but thanks to @sonnydickson you can set the calming image as your background now too.

• Click here or on the image above to grab the picture at 2048×2048

The image is at 2048×2048 resolution, so it will fit on a new iPad and scale nicely to most other devices too.

Don’t miss the new OS X Mountain Lion wallpapers too, they’re also all high-res and quite attractive.

Apple has started to run commercials for the Mac line again, with the newest ad focused on the speedy new MacBook Pro with Retina display. The ad is straight forward and shows the new MacBook Pro performing tasks rapidly with some ghosted hands speeding around on the keyboard and trackpad, with the narrator saying: “The radical new MacBook Pro with Retina display. Innovation in every dimension.”

This is the first Mac advertisement to run in a while, making it a noticeable departure from the vast majority of Apple commercials which tend to focus on the iPhone and iPad these days.

The first benchmarks for the new retina MacBook Pro, MacBook Pro 2012 refresh, and the updated MacBook Air 2012 have shown up from GeekBench and, as you would probably expect, they’re very impressive.

First up is the new MacBook Pro 15″, which is easily the fastest Mac laptop Apple has ever made. The preliminary Geekbench scores top out at 12,303 for the non-retina and 11,844 for the retina model, but it’s important to note the non-retina model as tested has a slightly faster chip speed and so the top of the line next-gen MBP 15″ will likely end up as the fastest.

Each of the 2012 MacBook Air models also show a nice speed boost from the previous generation, but where you’ll really notice a huge performance boost is if you’re upgrading from the 2010 models.

The biggest gains are experienced by the top of the line models, though basically even the slowest models from the mid-2012 refresh are now faster than the 2011 speediest. This is mostly the result of the new Intel Ivy Bridge processor architecture at work, but for anyone who gets an Air or retina MacBook Pro your Mac will feel even faster thanks to their speedy new SSD drives as well.

If you’re thinking about upgrading, any upgrade from last years models are going to be a nice improvement, and if you’re coming from 2010 or prior models you’re going to experience gigantic gains. This is really a great time to be an Apple fan, if you are going to upgrade soon don’t forget that any Mac bought between now and July also comes with a free copy of OS X Mountain Lion when it’s released next month.

OS X Mountain Lion is due to be released next month but if you’re like us you don’t want to wait that long to get your hands on the new beautiful wallpapers. These come to us from the latest Mountain Lion developer preview, and each of the 15 images is at a gigantic 3200×2000 resolution, making them ready for whatever retina Mac or iOS device you want to dress up.

Click any picture below to open the full sized image.

Read more »

Some of you may have experienced the unfortunate kernel panic on boot problem that is occurring on certain Macs after they’ve installed recent software updates. If you haven’t installed the “Thunderbolt Software Update 1.2” yet it’s best to avoid it completely until a fix comes from Apple. If it’s too late and you’re experiencing crashes on reboot, then you’ll probably want to know the cause of the kernel panics is that recent Thunderbolt Update and we’ve got three different ways to resolve the problem.

Before beginning, there’s some good news and some bad news. The good news is each of these methods will maintain your files, preferences, apps, settings, and customizations. The bad news is that you’ll either have to reinstall OS X (just the operating system), or restore from a Time Machine backup. Regardless of which approach you take, do not install the Thunderbolt update again when the Mac reboots if it’s available in Software Update, wait until a fixed version comes from Apple within a day or two.

Fix #1: Use Internet Recovery
This will redownload and reinstall OS X Lion from the internet, it’s fairly automated once you begin the recovery process.

1. Reboot the Mac and hold down Command+R to boot into Recovery Mode
2. Select “Re-install OS X” and enter your Apple ID
3. Let Internet Recovery do it’s magic

Fix #2: Use Time Machine and Restore from Recent Backup
This is only going to be practical for those who make regular Time Machine backups, if you don’t, you should start doing so now.

1. Reboot the Mac and hold down Command+R or Option to enter into Recovery Mode
2. From the boot menu choose Time Machine and “Restore”, following the onscreen instructions to select the most recent backup to restore from

Fix #3: Reinstall OS X from a Boot USB or DVD
Assuming you followed our instructions from a while back on how to make a bootable Lion USB drive, you can use this approach:

1. Connect the USB drive to the Mac and reboot, holding down the Option key
2. Select the Lion boot disk from the boot menu
3. Choose “Reinstall OS X” from the options

This method will require you to reinstall general system updates afterwards, because the version of OS X being installed is the same as what’s contained on the USB boot drive. This is probably the least practical approach as a result.

Regardless of the approach you take, do not reinstall the Thunderbolt update. We’re repeating that because if you do reinstall it before it’s fixed by Apple, you will end up in the same kernel panic situation again and that’s no fun. These kind of problems are fairly rare but they can happen, which is why we recommend regularly backing up a Mac with Time Machine as one of the four essential maintenance tips for any Mac OS X machine.

If you need further assistance, jump into the comments or join the lengthy forum thread on Apple Discussion Boards.

Thanks to @kingoftroy22 and @mwh_lib for the heads up and pictures

The annual Apple Design Awards were held at WWDC 2012, with the winners representing a great batch of apps for iPhone, iPad, and Mac OS X. Whether you’re just looking for a couple new apps to try out or you’re wondering what type of design catches Apple’s eye, each app is well worth checking out. Links go to the App Store:

iPhone winners

• Jetpack Joyride
• National Parks by National Geographic
• Where’s My Water?

iPad winners

• Paper by FiftyThree
• Bobo Explores Light
• DM1 – The Drum Machine

Mac app winners

• Deus Ex: Human Revolution – Ultimate Edition
• Sketch
• LIMBO

Student winners

• Little Star
• daWindci

Both student winners are iOS games, with the iPad versions seeming to be why each won. You can read more about each app and why it won at Apple’s ADA page.

Paper for iPad and Limbo for OS X are my personal favorites in the group, and National Parks is very useful if you plan on road tripping around the USA this summer. If you want another batch of great apps then last years winners are holding up quite well too.

If you don’t have time to watch the WWDC 2012 keynote video, here’s a quick summary of everything major that was announced at WWDC and also a few things that were quietly updated behind the scenes. New Macs, new operating systems, new apps, it was a big day for Apple.

Macs & OS X Mountain Lion

• Next-Generation Retina MacBook Pro released, starts at $2199 and features a 15″ whopping 2880×1800 display while weighing 4.4lbs in a thinner unibody enclosure. Quad-core Ivy Bridge CPU’s, 8GB RAM and SSD standard. It’s freakishly powerful and attractive, hide your credit card or else you will probably buy one.
• MacBook Air gets updated at both 11″ and 13″ models, 4GB RAM standard and accepts maximum 8GB RAM, Ivy Bridge CPU, USB 3.0, Intel HD 4000 GPU, faster SSD drives, FaceTime HD camera, all models $100 cheaper. Decent update to great Macs.
• Existing MacBook Pro 13″ and MacBook Pro 15″ models got minor spec updates, Ivy Bridge CPU’s, Nvidia 650M GPU, it’s a matter of opinion but compared to the new Retina MacBook Pro and update MacBook Air line the MacBook Pro is now officially boring.
• OS X Mountain Lion release set for next month, priced at $19.99 and a single purchase installs on all of your Macs. As we mentioned a while back, you can upgrade directly from Snow Leopard to Mountain Lion too. OS X 10.8 also has over 200 new features, heavy iCloud integration, iMessage, Share Sheets, Power Nap, and much more.
• OS X Mountain Lion Dev Preview 4 is now available for developers.
• Mac Pro got a quiet minor update so boring that it’s barely worth mentioning.
• MacBook Pro 17″ was silently discontinued. But did we mention the Retina MacBook Pro 15″?

iOS 6 and iOS Related

• iOS 6 Announced: Everyone knew it was coming but iOS 6 was officially announced at WWDC, along with a loose release date of “Fall” which probably coincides with whenever the next iPhone will arrive. Over 200 new features are packed into the update.
• New Maps app with turn-by-turn directions, crowd sourced traffic updates, and more
• FaceTime comes to 3G and 4G networks
• Siri gets major updates and improvements, can launch apps.
• Siri comes to iPad 3 with iOS 6
• Many new cars will have Siri integration, Apple working with auto manufacturers to bring Siri buttons directly into the steering wheel of upcoming cars, support from a huge range of manufacturers
• iOS 6 beta 1 for developers is now available to download.
• iPad “Smart Case” released, it’s basically a Smart Cover with rear protection as well.

Mac & iOS Related

• New AirPort Express was introduced
• Back to School Promo starts today for students, $100 iTunes gift card for a new Mac purchase, and $50 with a new iPad purchase
• iTunes 10.6.3 is out, has bug fixes and required for installing the iOS 6 beta

And that’s about it.

OS X Mountain Lion Developer Preview 4 was released for developers today as build 12A239. To access DP4, registered developers will need to log into the developer center and retrieve a download code which can be used within the Mac App Store.

Apple hinted at WWDC2012 that Developer Preview 4 was close to the release candidate, and then announced that OS X 10.8 will be available to everyone through the Mac App Store next month for $20. Though DP4 is the most stable beta release yet, it still has a fair amount of bugs and is therefore only appropriate for developers to use.

On a random note, the Dock in OS X 10.8 DP4 got a slight UI update and looks quite nice as shown in this screenshot from ManiacalRage:

Didn’t make it to WWDC 2012? No big deal, you saved yourself a whole grip of cash and you can watch the Apple keynote anyway from the comfort of your own home. The keynote covers everything launched and announced at WWDC this year, ranging from the MacBook Air refresh, MacBook Pro refresh, the all new retina MacBook Pro, iOS 6, OS X Mountain Lion, and lots of details of everything in between.

• Watch the video directly on Apple.com

If you like watching everything from Apple, it’s a must view.

Apple has released iTunes 10.6.3 for all to enjoy. Though it’s a minor point release, it includes a variety of important bug fixes for behavior both within iTunes and for when syncing iOS devices to iTunes. iTunes 10.6.3 is also a necessary update for any developer wanting to install iOS 6 beta 1.

You have three possible ways to update to iTunes 10.6.3:

• Download from Software Update via the  Apple menu
• Update through iTunes app itself
• Download directly from Apple

iTunes updates can take a while to propagate, making downloading from Apple the quickest way to get the newest version. If you download from the official iTunes website you do not need to enter an email address, instead click the giant blue download button on their site to begin. For OS X the download weighs in around 170MB.

The first developer beta of iOS 6 is now available to download for anyone registered with Apple’s Developer program. Arriving as beta build 10A5316k, it represents the first time developers outside of Apple will have a look at the new iOS version, which includes over 200 new features. A few of the most anticipated components of iOS 6 are the new Maps app with turn-by-turn directions, Siri for iPad 3, and FaceTime over 3G.

iOS 6 beta 1 is compatible with iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPod touch 4th gen, iPad 2, and iPad 3. There is a separate version available for Apple TV 2 and Apple TV 3 as well. Installing any of the beta builds requires iTunes 10.6.3, and Xcode 4.5 developer preview is also available for developers to download.

Registered developers can get the updates now from Apple’s Dev Center, joining Apple’s developer program costs $99 per yearly membership. For everyone else, iOS 6 will be released in the fall as a free update.

Apple officially announced iOS 6 at WWDC 2012 today with a “Fall” release date, such a release is likely to coincide with the announcement of the next generation iPhone.

Current hardware supported by iOS 6 includes the iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPod touch 4th gen, iPad 2, and iPad 3, though noticeably absent are iPad 1 and iPod touch 3rd gen.

iOS 6 includes over 200 new features including a redesigned Maps app with turn-by-turn navigation, major updates to the Phone app, significant Siri updates including Siri for iPad 3, Facebook integration, FaceTime over cellular connections, Safari Offline Reading List with iCloud tab syncing with Macs running OS X Mountain Lion, Photo Stream sharing, Passbook app, Guided Access and Single-App mode, VIP Mail inbox, and much more.

iOS 6 betas are available today for developers, along with a new developer preview of OS X Mountain Lion for Macs. OS X Mountain Lion will be available in July.

No more guesses or vague release schedules, Apple has announced that OS X Mountain Lion will be released in July at a price of $19.99. The download will be available exclusively through the Mac App Store and following along with Apple’s generous purchase policy, a single purchase of Mountain Lion will install on all personally authorized Macs.

Versioned as Mac OS X 10.8, Mountain Lion includes a wide variety of new features, including iMessage integration, AirPlay Mirroring, Dictation (think Siri minus the responses), Sharing Sheets, Notifications, Notes & Reminders apps, GateKeeper, Game Center, improved full screen support, and all-around heavy iCloud integration.

As we have mentioned before, you can upgrade to OS X Mountain Lion directly from Snow Leopard in addition to Lion.

Any new Macs bought from here until the official release date qualify for free upgrades to Mountain Lion, that includes the fancy next gen MacBook Pro.

Apple revealed an all new “next generation” MacBook Pro at WWDC 2012 today, it’s the first retina Mac to be made available and comes in addition to their standard MacBook Pro line. The enclosure looks similar to existing unibody MacBook Pro models, though it is significantly thinner and lighter than any previous models.

Read more »

It’s always a good idea to backup a file if you’re going to be making some changes to it and you’re uncertain of the outcome. In the Finder this is as simple as just selecting the file and hitting Command+D to create a duplicate of the file in question, but in the command line you typically have to use the cp command, point it at the file, and then specify the copied version. Here’s a nice variation of that to make fast backups of any file through the Terminal.

The simple syntax to create an instant backup of a file at the same location (directory) would be as follows:

Read more »