Dennis Sellers

<p>When you think of app developers, you naturally think of Gwyneth Paltrow. Or not. Either way the Academy Award winning actress will serve as a mentor to contestants in Apple’s “Planet of the Apps,” a reality-competition series designed to showcase the iTunes App Store that is set to bow in 2017, <a target="_blank" href="http://variety.com/2016/digital/news/gwyneth-paltrow-apple-planet-of-the-apps-1201830454/" rel="noopener noreferrer">reports Variety</a>.</p>

<p>The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-08-04/apple-can-now-sell-power-as-tech-giants-boost-energy-investments">approved</a> the wholesale selling of energy, capacity and other services needed to maintain reliable power by Apple Energy LLC, a subsidiary of Apple, Inc.</p>

<p>Dozens of the world's top design professionals have filed an amicus brief with the Supreme Court, pledging their support for Apple in its ongoing patent infringement lawsuit against rival Samsung, <a target="_blank" href="http://appleinsider.com/articles/16/08/04/over-100-leading-design-professionals-file-amicus-brief-supporting-apple-in-supreme-court-case-vs-samsung" rel="noopener noreferrer">reports AppleInsider</a>.</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 today’s patent highlights:</p>

<p>On Monday, China’s Didi Chuxing, in which Apple has invested, announced a strategic agreement with Uber under which Didi Chuxing will acquire all assets of UberChina--including its brand,business operations and data--for operation within mainland China. Now <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/us-uberchina-m-a-didichuxing-idUSKCN10E20Z"><em>Reuters</em></a> reports that Apple's $1 billion investment in Didi Chuxing was the driving factor in Uber's decision to agree to the deal, in return for a one-fifth stake in a bigger Didi. </p>

<p>If, like me, you’re in charge of your home network, equinox’s Spot Maps for Mac OS X is handy. It lets you find networked devices and localize them on an interactive map via drag and drop.</p>

<p>Just Mobile's Lounge Dock is a cool, good-looking, multi-purpose dock for the Apple Watch. The adjustable charging stand allows you to interact with the smartwatch in multiple viewing angles.</p>

<p>Apple CEO Tim Cook has <a href="https://twitter.com/tim_cook/status/760929444886351872">announced on Twitter</a> that a new Apple App Store record was set in July with Apple seeing its highest ever monthly billings for the store, as well as the largest amount of money paid out to developers. </p>

<p>In its latest <a target="_blank" href="http://www.apple.com/diversity/" rel="noopener noreferrer">diversity report</a>, Apple says it’s increased its hiring of women and minorities. </p>

<p>As noted by <em>Seeking Alpha</em>, UBS analyst Steven Milunovich <a href="http://blogs.barrons.com/techtraderdaily/2016/08/03/apple-some-iphone-7-sales-growth-inevitable-says-ubs/">anticipates</a> modest single-digit unit growth in fiscal year 2017 and closer to 20% unit growth in fiscal year 2018 for the iPhone.</p>

<p>Apple has reportedly filed counterclaims against the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), blasting the latter's Wi-Fi patent lawsuit on several grounds.</p>

<p>Hey, Apple, here’s your chance: 61% of Windows users would switch to Mac OS X for more privacy, according to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.comparitech.com/blog/vpn-privacy/windows-users-might-switch-to-mac-over-windows-10-privacy-issues/" rel="noopener noreferrer">a new survey</a> by <a href="http://www.onepoll.com/">OnePoll</a> on behalf of security and privacy advice and comparison website <a href="https://www.comparitech.com/">Comparitech.com</a>. Evidently, there’s a lot of concern about the amount of data Microsoft collects via the Windows Store.</p>

<p>The decision by Apple executives to replace a cartoon revolver emoji with one of a squirt gun is a "combination of childishness and anti-gun demagoguery," according to the <a target="_blank" href="http://www.saf.org" rel="noopener noreferrer">Second Amendment Foundation</a>, a tax-exempt education, research, publishing and legal action group “focusing on the Constitutional right and heritage to privately own and possess firearms."</p>

<p>Fitbit dominated the “basic band” sector of the wearables market in the second quarter 2016, with 3.7 million shipments, <a href="http://www.canalys.com">according to Canalys</a>. Total shipments of basic bands, which are mainly health and fitness trackers, exceeded nine million units, adds the research group.</p>

<p>On the heels of announcing its new PasswordLess <a href="https://www.logmeonce.com/photologin/">PhotoLogin</a> feature, which enables users to log in by taking a photo on the computer that is sent to their trusted mobile device to approve, <a href="http://www.logmeonce.com">LogMeOnce</a> has announced a Visual One-Time Password (OTP) authentication option. </p>