Dennis Sellers

<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>

<p>Apple has updated its <a target="_blank" href="http://www.apple.com/shop/browse/home/specialdeals/mac/macbook_pro" rel="noopener noreferrer">refurbished products online store</a> to add the 13-inch 2016 MacBook Pro without a Touch Bar. It was originally released in October of 2016. </p>

<p>The Chinese ride-hailing company Didi Chuxing — in which Apple is an investor — is opening an artificial intelligence lab in Mountain View, California, reports <a target="_blank" href="http://www.recode.net/2017/3/8/14845892/didi-self-driving-lab-mountain-view-uber-charlie-miller" rel="noopener noreferrer">re/code.</a> This is one of the first times it has expanded its physical footprint outside of China.</p>

<p>The founder of WiFiSLAM, which Apple scooped up three years ago — is leaving the tech giant for another job.  Joseph Huang will become the CEO of StartX, the startup accelerator that initially helped launch WiFiSLAM, <a target="_blank" href="https://techcrunch.com/2017/03/08/startx-new-ceo/" rel="noopener noreferrer">according to</a> <em>TechCrunch</em>. He will replace Cameron Teitelman, who is shifting into a chairman position.</p>

<p>You can open documents and downloads from “stacks” in macOS Sierra. A stack is a folder shortcut in the Dock that provides fast, direct access to files in a folder. </p>

<p>Western Digital has increased the capacity of its line of iOS mobile flash drives with the introduction of the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.sandisk.com/home/mobile-device-storage/connect-wireless-stick" rel="noopener noreferrer">256GB SanDisk Connect Wireless Stick</a>, a plastic USB flash drive that measures 3.08 x 0.82 x 0.48 inches and weighs 0.8 ounces. It’s a nice accessory for iPhones and iPads, though it has drawbacks.</p>

<p>Apple partner <a target="_blank" href="https://www.imgtec.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer">Imagination Technologies</a> has unveiled its next-generation PowerVR Furian architecture, an entirely new GPU [graphics processing unit] architecture designed for the evolved graphics and compute needs of next-generation consumer devices. I’d expect to see it in 2018 iPhones and iPads.</p>

<p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.filemaker.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">FileMaker, Inc</a>., a wholly owned subsidiary of Apple, has announced that its cloud platform for managing and running custom apps, FileMaker Cloud, is now available in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA). </p>

<p>The CIA faces what could potentially be the biggest ever leak of its secrets, after Wikileaks <a target="_blank" href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/new-wikileaks-documents-fuel-tension-between-intelligence-agencies-tech-sector-1488935711" rel="noopener noreferrer">published</a> thousands of documents claiming to show how the agency uses cyber espionage tactics to hack into smartphones and other devices.</p>

<p>A post on the Japanese blog <em>Mac Otakara</em> — as noted by <a target="_blank" href="http://appleinsider.com/articles/17/03/08/rumor-apples-iphone-8-might-not-feature-full-screen-oled-sans-home-button-to-launch-long-after-september-reveal" rel="noopener noreferrer">AppleInsider</a> — says Apple is <a target="_blank" href="http://www.macotakara.jp/blog/rumor/entry-32050.html" rel="noopener noreferrer">working</a> to finalize an "iPhone Edition" set to debut alongside expected "iPhone 7s" and "iPhone 7s Plus" handsets this fall. </p>

<p>Component supplier Ibiden is the first company in Japan to pledge it will power all of its Apple manufacturing with 100% renewable energy — a new milestone for Apple and Japan. The announcement marks a significant step forward in Apple’s efforts to help its manufacturing partners transition to clean power, says Lisa Jackson, Apple’s vice president for Environment, Policy and Social Initiatives.</p>