Eric Slivka
Eric is the Editor-in-Chief of MacRumors and has been writing for the site since 2008.
An avid swimmer and former biophysicist, Eric has been using Apple products for over 35 years and has been interviewed for pieces by The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Reuters, BBC, CNBC, and other publications.
Eric's current primary role involves day-to-day oversight of the editorial operations at MacRumors, but he also contributes occasional news and review articles while handling various other duties related to the site's operation.
An avid swimmer and former biophysicist, Eric has been using Apple products for over 35 years and has been interviewed for pieces by The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Reuters, BBC, CNBC, and other publications.
Eric's current primary role involves day-to-day oversight of the editorial operations at MacRumors, but he also contributes occasional news and review articles while handling various other duties related to the site's operation.
Eric Slivka's Articles
MacBook Pro Update Due for Launch as Soon as Tomorrow? [Updated]
9 to 5 Mac reports that it has received word from a tipster claiming that Apple is set to be released as soon as tomorrow, although the launch may be delayed until next Tuesday. The report follows an earlier claim of new Mac Pro models set for launch next Tuesday. According to the source: The MacBook Pro will be released on the same day as Mac Pro. We are scheduled for a Friday morning release...
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Apple Dominates Consumer Reports' Tech Support Ratings
Consumer Reports yesterday announced the release of new ratings of computer tech support ratings for both laptops and desktop, and while the full details are restricted to subscribers, CNET reveals that Apple dominated the rankings. Not only did Apple top both the overall laptop and desktop categories, but also took top honors in every single sub-category, including problem resolution, phone...
Barnes & Noble Officially Acknowledges Plans for iPad eReader Application
Barnes & Noble today officially acknowledged that it is developing an iPad-specific application that will provide access to content available in the company's eBookstore. Designed specifically for the iPad, our new B&N eReader will give our customers access to more than one million eBooks, magazines and newspapers in the Barnes & Noble eBookstore, as well as the existing content in their Barnes...
Apple Building Out eBook Categories Ahead of iPad Launch as Developers Update Apps
Forbes reports on information obtained by App Store research firm Busted Loop as part of its AppSlice project, revealing Apple's plans for eBook categories to be rolled out for its iBookstore. AppSlice's findings point to a highly organized approach to bookselling. Apple has designated about 20 "top-level" categories for books, including "Fiction & Literature", "Reference," "Romance," "Cookbooks"...
Pink Floyd Wins Legal Battle Over Digital Sale of Individual Songs
BBC News reports that Pink Floyd has won a legal battle with its record label EMI over whether the label should be allowed to distribute digital versions of the band's material on a track-by-track basis as it does through Apple's iTunes Store. Pink Floyd is one of a number of high-profile bands that have objected to the splitting up of what it considers to be single pieces of work. The rock...
More Claims of Multitasking in iPhone OS 4.0
AppleInsider reports that it has received information from sources claiming that iPhone OS 4.0, likely scheduled for release later this year alongside new handset models, will support multitasking by allowing multiple applications to run simultaneously. The report, however, offers no details on how this will be implemented beyond noting that it will take advantage of interfact technology used in ...
Steve Jobs Ranked World's 136th Richest Person
In its annual list of the world's billionaires, Forbes this year ranked Apple CEO Steve Jobs in a tie with six others for 136th place with a net worth of $5.5 billion. Jobs' net worth is up from $5.1 billion in an October 2009 Forbes ranking of richest Americans and up from $3.4 billion and 178th place in last year's world ranking. Following months of rumor and speculation, cultish king of the...
New Hexacore Mac Pros Next Tuesday?
ZDNet reports that it has received information from tipsters claiming that Apple will release new Mac Pro models next Tuesday, adding a hexacore Core i7-based model to its lineup. I'm getting tips in from sources who claim that Apple is set to revamp its high-end Mac Pro line, adding a 'hexacore' Core i7-980x model to the line up.
All information points to this happening next Tuesday, March...
New iPad SDK Adds Gesture Tools, Removes Video Chat Icons
Apple yesterday released the fourth beta version of the SDK for iPad developers, and observers have started to find a few differences popping up in the latest update.
9 to 5 Mac reports that Apple has added support for "3Tap" and "LongPress" gestures to the SDK, suggesting that the company is opening the door for developers to take advantage of these gestures in their applications. The...
Six Months Later: 'iTunes LP' Format Performance Remains Lackluster
GigaOM provides an interesting reexamination of Apple's "iTunes LP" format for enhanced album content six months after the format's debut. While iTunes LPs were touted at its launch as a means to reignite sales of albums as opposed to individual tracks, Apple has done very little promotion of the format in recent months and currently offers only 31 iTunes LP albums (plus three comic...
Verizon Viewing iPad as Opportunity to Push MiFi Service
Engadget reports on a leaked internal memo from Verizon to its staff members promoting Apple's iPad as an "opportunity" to sell its data plans, seeking to encourage customers to purchase a Wi-Fi iPad model and pair it with Verizon services such as MiFi to provide cellular data connectivity.
Verizon's proposal comes with a tradeoff for customers. The company cites the $130 premium carried by ...
Apple Releases MainStage 2.1.1
Apple today released MainStage 2.1.1, an update to Apple's Logic Studio component for bringing virtual instruments and effects to live performances, via Software Update. According to the release notes, the update addresses a host of issues related to 64-Bit mode, stability, plug-ins, and other areas. This update delivers improved compatibility and numerous fixes.
Issues addressed in MainStage...
Apple Reportedly Disrupting iPhone Competitors With Legal Threats Backed Up by HTC Suit
Fortune reports on a new research note from Oppenhiemer & Co.'s Yair Reiner claiming that Apple in January began high-level talks with major phone manufacturers expressing its displeasure with what it considers to be infringement of its iPhone-related intellectual property. According to the report, Apple's recent lawsuit against HTC has served to back up the company's position in these talks and ...
iPhone Developer Agreement Revealed by Electronic Frontier Foundation
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) yesterday announced that it had obtained a copy of Apple's iPhone Developer Program License Agreement and published it for public consumption. While the contents of the license agreement, which governs the relationship between Apple and App Store developers, should obviously not be a surprise to the many developers already participating in the program,...
Apple Releases iPhone SDK 3.2 Beta 4 for iPad
Apple today released iPhone SDK 3.2 Beta 4 via the iPhone Dev Center, offering developers updated tools for building applications for the iPad. The last update to the SDK was issued two weeks ago, continuing a trend of biweekly revisions.
There is no word yet on changes in the new version, but users with access to the SDK are undoubtedly already looking through the software to document the...
Microsoft Releases Software Updates for Office 2008 and 2004
Microsoft today issued a handful of updates for users of the company's Office productivity suite, primarily addressing security issues.
- Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac 12.2.4 Update (221 MB): The update offers several fixes related to stability and performance, as well as patches for security vulnerabilities.
- Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac 11.5.8 Update (9.7 MB): The update addresses...
Apple Reaches $200 Billion in Market Capitalization
Fueled by Friday's announcement of a shipping date for the iPad, Apple's stock price has jumped over 6% in recent trading, pushing the company beyond $200 billion in market value for the first time in its history. AAPL currently sits at over $223 per share.
Apple currently holds the fifth-largest market capitalization among U.S. public companies, behind Exxon Mobil, Microsoft, Wal-Mart, and ...
FileMaker Pro 11 Brings Streamlined Database Creation With New Reporting and Collaboration Features
Apple subsidiary FileMaker today announced the release of FileMaker Pro 11, the latest version of its popular database application. The updated version brings several new features, as well as streamlined productivity tools for simpler and faster database creation. "FileMaker Pro 11 is designed for solving real-world business problems, such as the need for interpreting business data," said Ryan...
Gruber: No 'Widget Mode' for Minor Applications on iPad
Last month, speculation that a number of minor iPhone applications such as Stocks, Weather, Voice Memo, Clock, and Calculator "missing" from the iPad could reappear in some sort of "widget mode" similar to Dashboard on Mac OS X received a bit of publicity.
According to Daring Fireball's John Gruber's sources, however, there is no secret "widget mode" and these applications were in fact...
Valve Officially Announces Steam and Game Library Coming to Mac in April
Valve Software today officially announced that it is bringing its Steam game distribution platform, as well as its own library of games, to Mac OS X next month. Steam and Valve's library of games including Left 4 Dead 2, Team Fortress 2, Counter-Strike, Portal, and the Half-Life series will be available in April.
"As we transition from entertainment as a product to entertainment as a...
