Watch the keynote video from the event here: http://www.apple.com/apple-events/education-january-2012/

Apple Reinvents Textbooks with iBooks 2 for iPad

Today, Apple introduced iBooks 2 for iPad, featuring iBooks textbooks, an entirely new kind of textbook that’s dynamic, engaging, and truly interactive.

Now students will experience gorgeous full-screen textbooks on their iPads that feature text as well as interactive animations, diagrams, photos, videos, 3D objects, and more. With iBook textbooks, students can highlight text, take notes, search for content, use study cards, and find glossary definitions.

The iBookstore offers high school textbooks on topics such as algebra, biology, chemistry, and geometry from McGraw-Hill and Pearson to customers in the United States. Textbooks from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt are coming soon. iBooks textbooks are available for $14.99 or less.

Visit the iBooks 2 textbooks page on apple.com for more information. A First Look will be available by the end of January.

Apple Introduces iBooks Author

With iBooks Author and a Mac, anyone can create stunning iBooks textbooks, cookbooks, history books, picture books, and more for iPad.

iBooks Author features Apple-designed templates with a wide variety of layouts. It’s easy to add photo galleries, videos, 3D objects, Keynote presentations, lesson reviews, and more. Preview your book on iPad before submitting it to the iBookstore for purchase or as a free download.

Visit the iBooks Author page on apple.com for more information. A First Look and Product Presentation will be available by the end of January.

Apple Unveils New iTunes U App

The new iTunes U app gives educators and students everything they need to teach and take entire courses on iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch.

Now teachers can create and manage courses, and offer them to millions of iOS users around the world. iOS users can access the world’s largest catalog of free educational content from top universities worldwide. And for the first time, any K-12 school district can offer full courses through the iTunes U app.

Visit the iTunes U page on apple.com for more information.

From Quicken 12/22/12:

Dear Quicken Mac Customer:

As a fellow Mac fan and customer, I wanted to personally introduce myself, and share some highlights of our Apple-related efforts with you.

I recently became General Manager of the Personal Finance Group at Intuit, responsible for Quicken and Mint.com. Intuit’s 25 years of leadership in personal financial management software makes me excited to lead this team and I am committed to creating products to help you reach your financial goals.

I recognize, however, that we have not always delivered on this promise to Quicken Mac customers.

As you may know, Quicken for Mac 2007 does not currently work on Apple’s latest operating system, Mac OS X 10.7 (Lion). I understand the frustration this may have caused you and have put a team in place to address this issue. I am happy to announce that we will have a solution that makes Quicken 2007 for Mac “Lion-compatible” by early spring. There are still details to be worked out, so I ask your continued patience as we work through these. In the meantime, you can find more information on our Mac FAQ page.

Working toward a Quicken for Mac 2007 solution is just a first step in winning back your confidence.

We are expanding our development team to continue our renewed focus on personal finance solutions that suit the needs of our Mac customers. As we develop solutions, we’ll be looking to you and the rest of our Mac customers for ideas and feedback.

I understand we have a way to go, but I wanted to start by communicating our commitment to Mac and look forward to sharing the details with you as they emerge.

Thank you for your continued loyalty to Quicken.

Sincerely,

Aaron Forth
General Manager, Intuit Personal Finance Group

Comcast is almost finished with their full rollout of DNSSEC.

We had been having problems with clients internet connections when using Comcast. The symptom we’ve been see is to suddenly lose connectivity due to DNS issues, even though the modem shows it is connected and the link is active.

See this URL for more information:

http://dns.comcast.net/dns-ip-addresses.php

Comcast is now moved over to these DNS servers nationally

75.75.75.75
75.75.76.76

Even though they have rolled this out internally the DHCP from Comcast’s gateways are still pushing out the old DNS info to devices. Manually setting the DNS to the new 75.xx… numbers on you router’s LAN DHCP should correct the problem.

We’ve heard this story before:

We heard about another Apple Authorized Reseller who has a client, an attorney on the West Coast, whose MacBook Pro and Time Capsule were stolen in a recent break-in. Everything he had was on those two devices.

If a drug addict breaks into your home or office looking for stuff to steal to fuel their next drug fix, they WILL steal anything that has an Apple logo on it and anything else they think might be related. They will grab ANYTHING else they think they can get as little as $5 for. GPS devices go for $5 at pawn shops by the way when they are sold.

You might be 100% totally backed up locally, which is AWESOME because so many people don’t even do that, but if your data needs to be backed up, you need three things to have a complete back up:

The important thing is to PLAN AHEAD. Your back up is not complete if it’s not:

1. Automatic (Use Time Machine and this point is covered)

3. Off-Site (Take your double back up off-site or get Mozy or CrashPlan Pro and this point is covered)

If you’d like to sign up for Mozy or CrashPlan Pro, we have links to those services, including the hard to find free 2GB Mozy account. We also strongly recommend LoJack for Laptops.

http://www.macmedics.com/mozy (Use code “2012″ for 10% off paid service until 2/1/12)
http://www.macmedics.com/crashplan
http://www.macmedics.com/lojack

We also have a number of other backup related articles on the MacMedics Blog about Time Machine, backups in general, and some posts about disaster planning.

Don’t Play Trick Or Treat With Your Mac’s Back Up!

It’s Not A Real Backup Until You Also Have An Off-Site Copy Of Your Data

Be sure to read “The Nine Things We Wish We Did Before Our House Burned Down” in the post listed above. We have the list line by line and a link to the original post, which is a “MUST READ” for anyone that has a house OR a computer

What’s new in iTunes 10.5.2

iTunes 10.5.2 includes several improvements for iTunes Match and fixes an audio distortion problem when playing or importing certain CDs.

iTunes 10.5.1 included:

• iTunes Match. Store your entire music library in iCloud, including music you’ve imported from CDs, and enjoy your collection anywhere, anytime, on your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, computer, or Apple TV.

• iTunes in the Cloud. iTunes now stores your music and TV purchases in iCloud and makes them available on your devices anywhere, any time, at no additional cost.

• Automatic Downloads. Purchase music from any device or computer and automatically download a copy to your Mac, PC and iOS devices.

• Download Previous Purchases. Download your past music, TV, app, and book purchases again, at no additional cost. Previous purchases may be unavailable if they are no longer on the iTunes Store.

• Sync with your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch with iOS 5.

• Wi-Fi Syncing. Automatically sync your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch with iTunes any time they’re both on the same Wi-Fi network.

Apple has updated Safari and Keynote to improve performance:

Safari

This update contains various improvements, including fixes that:

-Improve stability
-Address issues that could cause hangs and excessive memory usage
-Address issues that could cause webpages to flash white
-Allow PDFs to be displayed within web content

Keynote

This update addresses issues when working with large Keynote presentations on OS X Lion. It also includes improvements in stability and accessibility for Keynote.

This update is recommended for users of Keynote 5.1. For detailed information on this update and individual application changes, please visit this site: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5026.

We’re going to start posting serial numbers of Apple Macintosh computers that have been stolen from clients of MacMedics. The most recent additions will be at the bottom. If you know the wherabouts of one of these units, please get in touch with us at MacMedics so we can let the owner know.

Stolen 11/16/17-11/17/11 from Washington DC Metro area office at the same time, so these units might surface together at the same place for password removal, or hard drive replacement:

MacBook Pro 17″ C02D71BQDC7C and a 15″ MacBook Pro W870710MW0K

Stolen 11″ MacBook Air from Millersville, MD SE# C02DKHYWDDQX

Stolen 12/7/11 From Washington DC Metro area:

MacBook Pro 17” Matte display C02DJ3G6DHYC. Also had a USB mouse dongle attached.

Stolen 12/15/11 From Millersville, MD area

MacBook Pro (13-inch, Late 2011) Serial # C02GJB58DV13
MBP 13.3/2.4/2X2GB/500-5400/SD/GLSY, Apple Limited Warranty

Stolen 1/3/12

W88510P15L9 Macbook Air

Stolen 1/21/12 from the Philadelphia area:

W801912NAGX 15″ MacBook Pro (Mid-2010)

If you have info on any of these units we will forward your information to the owner of the machine and also forward onto law enforcement if needed. Help a fellow Mac user out and do the right thing if you encounter one of these units.

Contact us at mdservice (A T) macmedics (d o t) com or call us toll-free and 1-866-MAC-MEDICS

THANKS!

iOS 5 Software Update

This update contains over 200 new features, including the following:

• Notifications
• Swipe from the top of any screen to view notifications in one place with Notification Center
• New notifications appear briefly at the top of the screen
• View notifications from lock screen
• Slide the notification app icon to the right on the lock screen to go directly to the app
• iMessage
• Send and receive unlimited text, photo, and video messages with other iOS 5 users
• Track messages with delivery and read receipts
• Group messaging and secure encryption
• Works over cellular network and Wi-Fi*
• Newsstand
• Automatically organizes magazine and newspaper subscriptions on Home Screen
• Displays the cover of the latest issue
• Background downloads of new issues 
• Reminders for managing to do lists
• Syncs with iCloud, iCal and Outlook
• Location-based reminders when you leave or arrive at a location for iPhone 4S and iPhone 4
• Built-in support for Twitter
• Sign-in once in Settings and tweet directly from Camera, Photos, Maps, Safari and YouTube
• Add location to any tweet
• View twitter profile pictures and usernames in Contacts
• Camera improvements for devices with cameras
• Double click the home button when device is asleep to bring up a camera shortcut on iPhone 4S,

iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS and iPod touch (4th generation)

• Volume Up button to take a picture
• Optional grid lines to line up shots
• Pinch to zoom in the preview screen
• Swipe to camera roll from preview screen
• Tap and hold to lock focus and exposure, iPad 2 and iPod touch (4th generation) only support exposure lock
• Photo improvements for devices with cameras
• Crop and rotate
• Red eye removal
• One tap enhance
• Organize photos into albums
• Mail improvements
• Format text using bold, italic, or underlined fonts
• Indentation control
• Drag to rearrange names in address fields
• Flag messages
• Mass mark messages as flagged, read or unread
• Customize mail alert sounds
• S/MIME
• Calendar improvements
• Year view on iPad and new Week view for iPhone and iPod touch
• Tap to create an event
• View and add event attachments
• Game Center improvements
• Use personal photos for your Game Center account
• Compare your overall achievement scores with your friends
• Find new Game Center friends with friend recommendations and friends of friends
• Discover new games with custom game recommendations
• AirPlay Mirroring for iPad 2 and iPhone 4S
• Multitasking Gestures for iPad
• Use four or five fingers to pinch to the Home Screen
• Swipe up to reveal the multitasking bar
• Swipe left or right to switch between apps
• On-device setup, activation and configuration with Setup Assistant
• Software updates available over the air without tethering
• iCloud support
• iTunes in the Cloud
• Photo Stream
• Documents in the Cloud
• Apps and Books automatic download and purchase history
• Backup
• Contacts, Calendar, and Mail
• Find My iPhone
• Redesigned Music app for iPad
• Hourly weather forecast
• Real-time stock quotes
• Wireless sync to iTunes
• Keyboard improvements
• Split keyboard for iPad
• Improved autocorrection accuracy
• Improved Chinese and Japanese input
• New Emoji keyboard
• Personal dictionary for autocorrection
• Optionally create keyboard short cuts for frequently used words
• Accessibility improvements
• Option to light LED flash on incoming calls and alerts for iPhone 4S and iPhone 4
• Custom vibration patterns for incoming calls on iPhone
• New interface for using iOS with mobility-impairment input devices
• Option to speak a selection of text
• Custom element labeling for VoiceOver
• Exchange ActiveSync improvements
• Wirelessly sync tasks
• Mark messages as flagged, read or unread
• Improved offline support
• Save a new contact from a GAL service
• More than 1,500 new developer APIs
• Bug fixes

Products compatible with this software update:
• iPhone 4S
• iPhone 4
• iPhone 3GS
• iPad 2
• iPad
• iPod touch (4th generation)
• iPod touch (3rd generation)

* Normal carrier data rates may apply. Messages will be sent as SMS when iMessage is unavailable, carrier messaging fees apply.

MacMedics is an Apple Authorized Value Added Reseller for Macintosh computers, iPads, iPods, and the Apple TV.

Apple Announces iOS 5 and iCloud Availability

iOS 5 and iCloud will be available on October 12, 2011.

iOS 5 is the world’s most advanced mobile operating system. It will be a free software update for iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPad 2, iPad, and iPod touch (3rd and 4th generation).

iCloud is Apple’s breakthrough set of cloud services and will be available as a free download to iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch users running iOS 5 and Macs running OS X Lion. Using iCloud with a PC requires Windows Vista or Windows 7.

iTunes 10.5 is required for iCloud users. It will be available soon as a free update.

Apple Announces New Features and Lower Pricing for iPod touch and iPod nano

iPod touch

iPod touch now comes in black or white models and starts at just $199 (U.S.). It ships with iOS 5, with over 200 new features that include iMessage, Notification Center, Twitter integration, Reminders, and more. iPod touch is ready for iCloud, which stores your music, photos, documents, apps and more, and wirelessly pushes them to your other devices.

iPod nano

iPod nano now starts at just $129 (U.S.) and features a redesigned Multi-Touch user interface with larger icons, 16 new clock faces (including Mickey and Minnie Mouse), and improved built-in fitness features. iPod nano features the same great clip-on design and bright colors.

Are you ready for a new iPod or iPad? MacMedics is an Apple Authorized Value Added Reseller for Macintosh computers, iPads, iPods, and the Apple TV. If you have a broken, damaged, or even an old dead iPod or iPad, or just want to trade up to the newest model, we’ll give you a trade in credit towards a new iPod or iPad, and recycle the old one thru the proper recycling channels (if it’s no longer working). Call us at 1-866-MAC-MEDICS for more details!