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
Rogue Amoeba Retreats from iPhone Development Over App Store Policies
In yet another example of a high-profile developer team stepping back from Apple's App Store, Rogue Amoeba today announced in a lengthy blog post that it will no longer develop applications for the iPhone following an extended run-in with App Store reviewers over a bug fix update to the company's Airfoil Speakers Touch application. The application allows users to stream any audio content from a...
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AT&T Publicly Responds to Verizon Ad Campaign
AT&T today published a public response to a recent series of advertisements from rival Verizon attacking AT&T's 3G network coverage. The latest spat between the two companies began last month with Verizon ads using map-based representations of AT&T's and Verizon's 3G coverage areas, with Verizon's network being touted as covering five times the area of AT&T's.
Earlier this month, AT&T filed...
Apple Deploys Web-Based 'iTunes Preview' Content
Macworld reports that Apple has quietly rolled out "iTunes Preview", a Web-based listing of iTunes Store content that allows users to browse the store's offerings without the need for an iTunes installed on their devices. While iTunes is still required for listening to song samples and purchasing content, the move to Web-based listings provides a convenient means for users to share links to...
Chrome Browser for Mac Beta Confirmed for December, Chrome OS Next Week?
Hints earlier this week regarding the release of an official beta version of Google's Chrome browser for Mac have been confirmed. TechCrunch contacted received the news yesterday from a Google spokesperson, who stood by earlier reports that the Mac beta of Chrome will be available by the end of the year. We asked Google about it and here's what they had to say, "As I'm sure you know, we generally ...
Undercover 1.5 Adds Push Notification Tool to iPhone Theft Recovery App
Macworld reports that Orbicule has updated its Undercover [App Store, $4.99] theft recovery application for the iPhone and iPod touch to include a tool that utilizes push notifications to entice thieves into opening the application to allow it to transmit the device's location to Orbicule's recovery center. Now you have the ability to send push notifications with any message of your choosing...
Official Google Chrome Browser Beta Due in Early December?
CNET reports on recent discussion that indirectly reveals that Google is planning on releasing an official beta version of its Chrome browser for Mac in "early December". Developer builds of the Mac version of Chrome have been available for testing for several months, but the move to a beta designation implies a more polished version that could be considered acceptable for many mainstream users.
...
TomTom iPhone App to Gain Text-to-Speech, Lane Guidance
CNET reports that TomTom has updated its turn-by-turn GPS navigation application for the iPhone with several highly-anticipated features, including text-to-speech and advanced lane guidance. The updated application has been submitted to Apple and is currently awaiting approval. The update will add text-to-speech (TTS) for spoken street names and POIs as part of the device's directions, graphic...
Facebook iPhone Application Developer Quits Over Apple's Review Process
TechCrunch reported yesterday that Joe Hewitt, the developer behind the popular Facebook iPhone application, has resigned from the project over his dissatisfaction with the "gatekeeper" model of Apple's App Store review process. In response to a request for comment from TechCrunch, Hewitt explained his views: My decision to stop iPhone development has had everything to do with Apple's policies. I ...
Apple to Shift Retail Strategy to Larger, More Iconic Stores
Ground Floor of Apple's Upper West Side Retail Store
Gizmodo reports on a number of tidbits offered by Apple Senior Vice President of Retail Ron Johnson at a media preview event held today at the company's Upper West Side store scheduled to open in New York City on Saturday. Among the most notable items of interest were comments that Apple is looking to move forward aggressively on store...
Apple Researching Pen-Based Input Recognition for Tablet Devices?
Illustrative Diagram of "Tablet" Allowing Pen-Based Input and Output
Unwired View reports on a newly-published patent application from Apple disclosing software methods for processing pen-based computer input. While the patent application, which was filed on July 19th, 2009, is broadly written to apply to computers in general with pen-based input-only "tablets", the inventors also make...
Apple Grabs 17% of Worldwide Smartphone Sales in Third Quarter
Worldwide Smartphone Sales in 3Q09 in Thousands of Units (Source: Gartner)
Research firm Gartner today issued a report covering worldwide mobile phone sales for the third quarter of 2009. The highlight of the data for Apple is the company's third-place showing in the smartphone category, grabbing 17.1% of that market in finishing behind market leader Nokia and Research in Motion. Apple's...
Apple's Upper West Side Store Unveiled [Updated]
ifoAppleStore notes that Apple has taken the wraps off the company's new Upper West Side retail store in New York City in advance of the public opening scheduled for Saturday morning. At night the store is a beacon visible for several blocks, especially for those approaching by car or on foot from the south. The glow of the ceiling lights, the backlit logo and the back-lit wall graphics are...
Apple Adds Status Updates to App Store Approval Process
Wired reports that Apple has recently rolled out a new feature for iPhone developers, offering a history of status updates for each application submitted for inclusion in the company's App Store. In Apple's Dev Center website, iPhone app developers can view Apple's progress on reviewing their apps from start to finish. When an app is in line to be reviewed, the status will read "Waiting for...
Apple Releases Safari 4.0.4
Apple today released Safari 4.0.4, bringing improvements for JavaScript and History search performance, stability improvements in a number of areas including third-party plug-ins, and fixes for a handful of security issues. This update is recommended for all Safari users and includes improvements to performance, stability, and security including:
- Improved JavaScript performance
- Improved...
Mac Market Share Surges to 5% in UK
A new study from market research firm Gartner pegs Apple's share of the personal computer market in the UK at 5.0% for the third quarter of 2009, ranking the company fifth among all vendors. The company's unit shipments increased 26.6% to move up considerably from a market share of 3.8% in the year-ago quarter.
Gartner's UK PC Vendor Unit Shipment Estimates for 3Q09 (Thousands of Units) ...
New Malware Allows Hackers to Access Personal Information on Jailbroken iPhones
Security firm Intego reports that it has spotted new malware, termed iPhone/Privacy.A, that is capable of allowing hackers to access personal information stored on certain jailbroken iPhones and iPod touches. Non-jailbroken iPhones are not vulnerable to the malware.
While full details of the tool are not disclosed, it is reported to utilize the same method as the "Rickrolling" worm deployed...
Core i7-Based 27" iMac Now Shipping, 3% Discount at MacMall
Earlier this week, we noted that customers were receiving notifications that their quad-core Core i5-based 27" iMac orders had begun shipping. At the time, we had not received word about the status of order for machines carrying Intel's Core i7 processor, a $200 upgrade over the Core i5 models.
A number of readers have now reported, however, that their Core i7-based iMac orders have been...
Apple Widens Lead Over Nokia as Most Profitable Handset Manufacturer
Telephony Online reports on data from research firm Strategy Analytics that places Apple as the most profitable mobile phone manufacturer in the world for the third quarter of 2009. Apple's estimated $1.6 billion profit easily topped Nokia's $1.1 billion take for the quarter. The firm estimates that Apple's iPhone operating profit came in at $1.6 billion in Q3, while Nokia recorded only $1.1...
Orange Claims Record 30,000 iPhone Sales on Launch Day in UK
Pocket-lint reports that UK wireless provider Orange is claiming that it has sold over 30,000 iPhones as of 4:00 p.m. on launch day for the carrier, reportedly smashing records for one-day mobile phone sales. The news comes via a Twitter post from Conor Maples, a member of Orange's communications team. Orange UK had sold more than 30k iPhones,smashing what we believe is the previously published...
Microsoft Issues Office 2008, Office 2004, Open XML Converter Updates
Microsoft today issued a handful of updates for users of the company's Office productivity suite. While much of the documentation for these releases mysteriously lists October release dates, the updates do appear to have just been issued today.
- Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac 12.2.3 Update (349.5 MB): According to the associated support document, the update includes suite-wide security and...
