Technology

The New MacBook Pro Should Have Been From the Start... by Adrian Galli

Image courtesy of Apple, Inc.

Image courtesy of Apple, Inc.

I have worked for Apple for fourteen years. In my time I have seen the release of more products than I can count. My experience has taken me to not only share and present these new products to the public but also learn and experience them for myself. By every legal definition, I am an expert witnesss when it comes to Apple, training, and our products.

Over these many years, I also have come to understand not only what and how Apple functions but why we do what we do. And to be totally transparent, I can not share almost any of my deep knowledge. Most of what I can share may sound like a Apple-rumor-junkie's five course meal but there is and infinite amount of information I can not share.

But to be perfectly clear, I'm not writing on behalf of Apple. I am not reviewing either positively or negatively Apple products. And I not being paid to write this. This is not an official press release from Apple, Inc. This is an article about accuracy, history, research, and Apple's MacBook Pro is just a fine example for the purposes of my writing.

Anyone who knows me will testify that I am a rational and logical person; some might argue excessively logical. I also care very much for justice, science, history, and the context surrounding events for this give one that rational when it comes to why thing are the way they are. And part of why these thing are so valuable and virtuous become apparently when discussing and formulating one's opinions or arguement for said discussions. Further, those who know me also know I don't for opinions thing I know little or nothing about but ask questions in such a conversation. 

When the 2016 model of the MacBook Pro was released, Apple received a lot of heat because it had no "legacy" ports but only new USB-C (Thunderbolt 3) ports. As a colleague of mine has mentioned to many people, "it is the first port to do everything." It serves power, video output, I/O, high speeds, reversible port, small, and overall highly functions. What used to be five, six, seven ports, is not a single port with many functions. So a couple of dongles while we wait for all other devices to follow suit is not a big deal. Incidentally, people have needed adapters over the years for all sorts of things: DVI to VGA, Thunderbolt to FireWire, etc.

On the other hand, another one of the biggest criticisms of the 2016 MacBookPro was the use of the Skylake processor (Intel's 6th generation Core processor.) "This isn't a pro machine," they said. "Why did they put such old technology in these laptops," they cried.

At WWDC (Worldwide Developer Conference), a new generation MacBook Pro was announced using the 7th generation Intel Core processor known as Kaby Lake. A colleague a few days later asked, "Why didn't they just do that from the beginning?"

While I'm not about to spew the "fake news!" one-liner vitriol of current politics, I do heavily criticize tech blogs and rumor sites of the internet because they are full of mistakes, bias, lack of cited sources, and in some cases, just amateur tech-nobodies with little knowledge or understanding.  

But here is my one-liner: When the MacBook Pro 2016 was designed, produced, and shipped, there was no mobile, quad-core configuration of the Kaby Lake processor.

That's it. But you didn't hear that from the tech blogs. You didn't hear that from the "Apple is failing" or the "No innovation at Apple" crowd. You hear it here, from Adrian Galli, who took three minutes to ask, "Yeah, why did Apple not use Kaby Lake? Let's find out," and visited Intel's website to find out more.

Accuracy Matter.™ 

The Fear... of a Woman President by Adrian Galli

Many are talking of the misogyny and bigotry toward women being endemic or a partial reason why Hillary Clinton did not win this election. I have no way of writing in completion an article on how much more complex I think this election was or the inequities of society at large and around the world. In fact, we over simply much of everything anymore and, in part, I think it is because of "the sound bite" or "the tweet." One hundred forty characters isn't much of a complete thought. We want to get “the burn” in and boast our egos and opinions while many opinions aren’t worth the bits they’re encoded in. That, however, is for a different forum.

There is something I would like to go on the record as a white male: I have always had an affinity toward strong women. With men, it is somewhat assumed that one will be strong and courageous. Perhaps that is also a societal downfall of the male population but I am not writing this to discuss the sociological implications of the patriarch. 

I really wanted to write this as small tribute to some women, both fictional and real, who are icons of strength, honor, intelligence, and power women possess.

In fiction (note the sci-fi motif):
Ellen Ripley (Alien)
Dana Scully (The X-Files)
Jadzia Dax (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)
Yu Shu Lien (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon)
Kira Nerys (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)
Dr. Beverly Crusher (Star Trek: The Next Generation)
Lady Macbeth (Macbeth)
Guinan (Star Trek: The Next Generation)
President Laura Roslin (Battlestar Galactica)
Lily Sloane (Star Trek: First Contact)
Catherine Willows (CSI: Crime Scene Investigators)
Michonne (The Walking Dead)
Aeon Flux (Aeon Flux, animated series)
Dr. Margo Green (The Relic)
Elle Woods (Legally Blonde)
Catwoman/Selina Kyle (Batman Returns)
Clarice Starling (The Silence of the Lambs)
Terry Doolittle (Jumpin' Jack Flash)

In the media and business:
Judge Marilyn Milian (Former Florida State Circuit Court Judge)
Senator Elizabeth Warren (Senator, Massachusetts) 
Rachel Maddow (Political commentator)
Oprah Winfrey (TV personality)
Michelle Obama (First Lady of the United States)
Bozoma Saint John (Apple, marketing executive)
Madonna (Music artist)
Whoppie Goldberg (Actree and TV personality)
Sally Yates (Attorney General of the United States)

Women whom I know personally:
Jennifer Braatz
Sasha Navarro
Siobhan LaGro
Sarah Cameron
Marissa Stuart
Janet Thomas
Karen Stone
Jaquai Harris
Karen Koenig
Sheila Fitzpatrick
Carlye Hirsh-Wolf
Alex Mollon
Brooke Schulze
Colleen Rudziewicz
Tonja Thigpen
Beth Hefel
Patricia Thomas

This is a just a short list.

When people ask me why a strong female character (fictional or otherwise) is so appealing to me, I honestly do not have an answer. There is a visceral response for which it seems english has no words. It is not logical, sexual, or simply emotional. If a male character were to replace said female, I would not have the same reaction or connection. Perhaps it is because I prefer equals to subordinates. Perhaps it is because, in a generally patriarchal society, these strong women stand out so boldly. The reality is, I can’t entirely explain it but the sum of what I am writing is to assure women that you do have allies in men, like myself, who want to see your success because it would be awesome and we value your strength and who you are.

Let us (all of us) keep moving forward and not let this moment in time discourage. 

#ImwithHer (all of the Hers out there)

Polarr 2.0 for Mac by Adrian Galli

Polarr 2.0

Polarr 2.0

One of my favorite photo editing applications for both iOS and OS X recently received major upgrades. Today, Polarr 2.0 for Mac is available and ready to download. With a new interface, adjustments to filters, and extension support for Photos, it is one of my most recommended applications.

My review of Polarr 1.0 shared some of its power but new powerful and easy to use features are hear. Check it out on the App Store for Mac (and iOS).