Dennis Sellers

<p>Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple and its long-time CEO, died Oct. 5, 2011, after a long battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 56. <a href="https://twitter.com/tim_cook/status/783662822819401728">Apple CEO Tim Cook has tweeted</a> in remembrance of his predecessor and his impact on the world at large.</p>

<p>Targus has launched the $199.99 <a href="http://globalmessaging1.prnewswire.com/clickthrough/servlet/clickthrough?msg_id=8326790&adr_order=160&url=aHR0cDovL3Rhcmd1cy5jb20vdXMvdXNiLWMtdW5pdmVyc2FsLWRvY2tpbmctc3RhdGlvbi1kb2Nr%0ANDEwdXN6P2ljbj1wci1fLTEwMDUxNmh0dHA6Ly90YXJndXMuY29tL3VzL3VzYi1jLXVuaXZlcnNh%0AbC1kb2NraW5nLXN0YXRpb24tZG9jazQxMHVzeg%3D%3D">USB-C Universal Docking Station (DOCK410USZ)</a>, a compact 4K docking station that supports USB-C technology. It works with the 12-inch Apple MacBook.</p>

<p>Apple remains the <a href="http://interbrand.com/best-brands/best-global-brands/2016/ranking/apple/">world's most valuable brand</a> this year, topping <a href="http://interbrand.com/best-brands/best-global-brands/2016/ranking/">Interbrand's annual rankings</a> of the Best Global Brands for the fourth consecutive year. Apple’s brand value grew by 5% to US$178 million.</p>

<p>Apple has discontinued the third-generation Apple TV, removing it from its online store, notes <a target="_blank" href="https://9to5mac.com/2016/10/04/apple-tv-third-gen-discontinued/" rel="noopener noreferrer">9to5Mac</a>. Links to it now send you to the page for the fourth-generation Apple TV. </p>

<p>Enterprise IT folks have mixed feelings about Apple, according to a survey of 900 of them <a href="http://spiceworksinc.staging.wpengine.com/marketing/state-of-it/report/">from Spiceworks</a> — as noted by <a target="_blank" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/it-professionals-have-mixed-feelings-on-apple-survey-finds-2016-10" rel="noopener noreferrer">Business Insider</a>. Still, Apple ranked second only to Dell in terms of hardware brands discussed by IT pros on the social networking site for IT professionals.</p>

<p>Two-factor authentication is an extra layer of security for your Apple ID designed to ensure that you're the only person who can access your account, even if someone knows your password. It’s a useful feature — and one that’s necessary if you plan to use your Apple Watch to automatically unlock your Mac.</p>

<p>I’ve long argued that the “cloud” is fine for storing and backing up data — as long as you also have a local copy. Sorry, Apple, but I’m simply not wiling to trust you — or any company with safeguarding all my valuable data. Which is why the newly introduced <a href="http://drobo.com/">Drobo 5C</a> with USB-C connectivity is a great product.</p>

<p>According to a <a href="http://www.uspirg.org/sites/pirg/files/reports/USP%20ShellGames%20Oct16%201.2_FINAL.pdf">new study</a> authored by researchers from Citizens for Tax Justice, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy and the U.S. PIRG Education Fund, 73% of U.S. Fortune 500 firms — more than 300 corporate giants — have money stashed in tax shelters abroad, including the Netherlands and Bermuda. Five of the top 10 biggest tax-avoiders — ranked by dollar amount held offshore — are big tech companies, with Apple ranked as No. 1 and Microsoft at No. 3.</p>

<p>Apple has brought its universal search feature for the fourth-generation Apple TV to five new countries and has added more supported services in the U.S. and Australia, according to <a target="_blank" href="http://appleinsider.com/articles/16/10/04/apple-tvs-universal-search-comes-to-five-more-countries-expands-in-us-australia" rel="noopener noreferrer">AppleInsider</a>.</p>

<p style="margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px">There’s a security flaw in the iOS 10 backup protection mechanism, but Apple is working on it. Russian forensic company Elcomsoft says that cracking the logins for backups stored on a Mac or PC is considerably easier now</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>Apple Pay <a target="_blank" href="http://www.reuters.com/article/us-russia-applepay-idUSKCN1240AX" rel="noopener noreferrer">has launched in Russia</a>, making it the 10th country to support Apple’s mobile payment service. It will initially operate in Russia with partners Sberbank and MasterCard.</p>

<p>Apple has been granted ye another patent (number 9,449,758) for a “three dimensional user interface session control using depth sensors” that hints at a Mac user interface that utilizes gesture controls in much the same manner its <a href="https://appleworld.dreamhosters.com/blog/2016/8/11/leap-motion-control-is-intriguing-and-fun-but-not-quite-ready-for-prime-time?rq=Leap">Leap Motion’s Leap control device.</a></p>

<p>With the fall softball season here, I had high hopes that the $149.95 <a target="_blank" href="https://blastmotion.com/products/baseball/?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Brand%7CBMM&utm_term=%2BBlast%20%2BMotion&utm_content=Core" rel="noopener noreferrer">Blast Baseball 360</a> might help me improve my swing and up my on-base percentage. But so far the experience has been inconsistent. I’m not having a blast (sorry, couldn’t resist the pun). </p>

<p>It’s time for a Mac laptop with LTE support. Having 4G LTE in a laptop is nothing new and there's no obvious reason why at least some models of the MacBook Pro, MacBook, or MacBook Air (if it lives on past this month) shouldn’t offer this capability. </p>