Dennis Sellers

<p>Some folks don’t like OS X Mail, saying it doesn’t have enough “power” features. I’m a regular — and satisfied — user of the Apple app, but have found that you can beef it up with <a href="https://www.feingeist.io/mailbutler"><em>MailButler</em></a>, the Apple Mail assistant by Feingeist Software GmbH. It simplifies, optimizes and streamlines working with emails.</p>

<p>Apple CEO Tim Cook plans to visit Beijing later this month to meet high-level government officials, <a target="_blank" href="http://www.reuters.com/article/us-apple-china-exclusive-idUSKCN0XX0NY" rel="noopener noreferrer">reports Reuters</a>. He plans to meet senior government and Communist Party leaders - including officials in charge of propaganda, the article adds, quoting an unnamed source “who declined to be named as the plan is not public yet.”</p>

<p style="margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px">There are two new reports about the rumored Apple Car project. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/real-estate-for-autonomous-car-facilities-gains-movement-in-silicon-valley-1462493064?mod=e2tw" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Wall Street Journal</a> says Apple is among companies looking for large expanses of real estate in the San Francisco Bay Area for their autonomous-car operations.</p>

<p>Apple has introduced an Apple Music plan aimed at students. As noted by <a href="http://techcrunch.com/2016/05/06/apple-musics-new-student-membership-option-discounts-the-service-by-50/?ncid=rss">TechCrunch</a>, the service is $4.99 a month instead of the regular $9.99 per month fee.</p>

<p>Bob Kupbens, the vice president in charge of Apple’s growing online retail business, has resigned to take on a new position elsewhere, reports <a target="_blank" href="http://9to5mac.com/2016/05/05/apple-vp-of-online-retail-bob-kupbens-leaves-company/" rel="noopener noreferrer">9to5Mac</a>, quoting unnamed “multiple sources.” He joined Apple in 2014 and has been in charge of all online-based Apple retail initiatives.</p>

<p>Immersion, a haptic feedback tech company, <a target="_blank" href="http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160505006596/en/Immersion-Corporation-Reports-Quarter-2016-Results-Files" rel="noopener noreferrer">has filed a second (or is the third?) lawsuit</a> against Apple for alleged patent infringement.</p>

<p style="margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px">Currently, I own two Macs. My main computer is a 27-inch iMac; my backup computer is a 12-inch MacBook. I'm hoping that by 2018, I'll own just one Mac: a MacBook Pro with a 10GB flash drive.</p>

<p>NewerTech's <a target="_blank" href="http://www.newertech.com/nuguard_kx/apple/iphone-6-and-iphone-6-plus/" rel="noopener noreferrer">NuGuard KX protective cases</a> for the Apple iPhone 6s and 6s Plus resemble Apple Smart Cases on steroids with their one-piece design. However, they're thicker than the Apple product. Due to this, and other features, the NuGuard KX is more protective than the Smart Case, but does add more bulk to your smartphone. </p>

<p>You can prepare for Mother’s Day (and you haven’t forgotten that Sunday, May 8) is Mother’s Day, have you?) with <a target="_blank" href="https://itunes.apple.com/app/id633281586" rel="noopener noreferrer">Mix on Pix 1.0</a> for the iPhone and iPad.</p>

<p style="margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px">Over the years, I’ve collected lots of nifty T-shirts from trade shows I’ve covered — mainly the late, lamented Macworld Expos held in Boston, San Francisco, New York, Tokyo, and Paris. Over the next few weeks I’ll be “modeling” some of the items in my collection.</p>

<p>Apple and <a target="_blank" href="http://www.sap.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">SAP</a>, which specializes in enterprise application software, have announced a partnership to “revolutionize the mobile work experience for enterprise customers of all sizes” by combining native apps for the iPhone and iPad with the capabilities of the SAP HANA platform. </p>

<p>Barry Chang, the mayor of Cupertino, California, told <a target="_blank" href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/may/05/apple-taxes-cupertino-mayor-infrastructure-plan" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Guardian</a> that he recently went to Apple’s headquarters in the city to talk about traffic congestion, but had barely made it into the lobby before security scored him off the property.</p>

<p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.indeed.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">Indeed</a>, has announced its list of the 50 top companies to work for, curated from the job site’s company reviews. Apple is number nine on the list.</p>

<p>Apple files for — and is granted — lots of patents by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office. Many are for inventions that never see the light of day. However, you never can tell which ones will materialize in a real product, so here are some recent patent highlights: </p>

<p>Apple, Facebook, and other tech firms are pushing for the next U.S. president to support the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal and to make it easier to hire high-tech workers from abroad, according to a joint letter seen by <a target="_blank" href="http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-technology-idUSKCN0XV2R1" rel="noopener noreferrer">Reuters</a>.</p>