Dennis Sellers

<p>In 2013 Apple filed three patents that showed the company is working on ways let you loan or re-sell the digital content you purchase on iTunes. That's a great idea; if it ever comes to fruition, I'll be more inclined to buy even more content at the iTunes Store.</p>

<p>In the first half of 2016, US and UK smartphone users were most likely to be interested in purchasing a device with a 5.3-inch or 5.0-inch display, according toa new <a target="_blank" href="https://www.strategyanalytics.com/access-services/ux-innovation/user-experience-strategies/reports/report-detail/h1-2016-smartphone-size-preference-remains-stable-at-5.0-to-5.3-inches#.WMgNGG-LSM8" rel="noopener noreferrer">report</a> from Strategy Analytics.</p>

<p>The Mac’s Dock is the place where you can keep items you use frequently in macOS Sierra. You can add or remove items from the Dock, make it larger or smaller, or even hide it altogether.</p>

<p>The number of households with Netflix now surpasses those with a DVR for the first time ever, a new study finds. The <a href="http://www.leichtmanresearch.com/press/030617release.pdf">survey</a> of 1,211 households throughout the United States, conducted by Leichtman Research Group (LRG), revealed that more than half of adults — 54%— have Netflix in their household. </p>

<p>Don’t count the traditional personal computer — such as the Mac — out yet. According to new data from the <a target="_blank" href="http://www.comscore.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">comScore research group</a>, among all media devices in U.S. connected homes, laptop and desktop computers had the highest penetration at 90%, followed closely by mobile phones at 88%. </p>

<p>Apple has applied for a patent (number 2017006892) for an <strong>“integrated component cap and spacer for a battery pack,” </strong>which hints at battery packs that could attach to Mac laptops, iPads and iPhones, something already provided by some third parties.</p>

<p><a target="_blank" href="https://www.weberhaus.de" rel="noopener noreferrer">WeberHaus</a>, which specializes in pre-fabricated connected homes, will feature Apple HomeKit — a framework that allows control of compatible home automation devices through iOS and Siri — in its smart homes this year. The company is based in Germany.</p>

<p>Apple’s Swift is now among the 10 most popular programming languages, according to the <a target="_blank" href="http://www.tiobe.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer">Tiobe Index</a>, which measures the popularity of programming languages on a monthly basis. This is the first time it’s made the list.</p>

<p><a target="_blank" href="https://motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/source-apple-will-fight-right-to-repair-legislation)" rel="noopener noreferrer">Apple is planning to fight</a> proposed electronics "Right to Repair" legislation being considered by the Nebraska state legislature,  “according to a source within the legislature who is familiar with the bill's path through the statehouse.”</p>

<p>It’s easy to manage windows on macOS Sierra’s Desktop and the Finder. The Desktop is the space where you see file, folder, and application windows. It’s not to be confused with the Finder, the default file manager and graphical user interface on your Mac. </p>

<p><a target="_blank" href="https://macpaw.com/store/cleanmymac" rel="noopener noreferrer">CleanMyMac</a> from MacPaw is an all-in-one macOS (10.8 and higher) solution designed to keep your Mac clean and to secure space from your Mac’s hard drive. It was a solid app with versions 1.x and 2.x; version 3.0 is even better.</p>

<p>On a regular basis, <em>Apple World Today</em> posts a list of notable new apps or app updates that have been released. They may not necessarily be new, but they're popular and deserve mention. Here are today's picks.</p>

<p>The 2016 MacBook Pro with Touch Bar was a — to say the least — controversial upgrade, but if you want the best possible tech support for a laptop, buy a MacBook. For the third consecutive year, Apple has topped <em>Laptop Mag</em>'s<a target="_blank" href="http://www.laptopmag.com/articles/tech-support-showdown" rel="noopener noreferrer">Tech Support Showdown report</a>, nabbing honors for its strong combination of phone and web-based assistance. </p>

<p>MBLM, a “brand intimacy agency,” has revealed that 10 out of the 15 industries studied in its <em>Brand Intimacy 2017 Report </em>are more successful in creating and maintaining intimacy with men than women. </p>

<p>Apple is beginning to “more uniformly” enforce a restriction in place since the debut of the Apple App Store in 2008, and is notifying developers that it will refuse approval to new apps or updates that include mechanisms to update or alter pre-approved app behavior outside the App Store, notes <a target="_blank" href="http://appleinsider.com/articles/17/03/09/apple-begins-strictly-enforcing-rule-that-prohibits-ios-app-updates-outside-of-app-store" rel="noopener noreferrer">AppleInsider</a>.</p>