Mastodon: @viticci@macstories.netEmail: viticci@macstories.net
Federico is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of MacStories, where he writes about Apple with a focus on apps, developers, iPad, and iOS productivity. He founded MacStories in April 2009 and has been writing about Apple since. Federico is also the co-host of AppStories, a weekly podcast exploring the world of apps, and Dialog, a show where creativity meets technology.
He can also be found on his two other podcasts on Relay FM – Connected and Remaster.
Friends of MacStories share their iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch Home screens.
In last week’s issue of MacStories Weekly, I shared my iPad Home Screen and mentioned some of the recent experiments I’d been testing with new apps and workflows on my devices. After another week of testing, there have been some changes, which I will cover in today’s second installment of this mini-series.
So let’s get into it. Here’s my iPhone Home Screen:
Great reads and links from around the web.
Developer Todd Heberlein writes about the “cozy” mini-WWDC Apple held for visionOS app developers at Apple Park last week. (Link)
Starting in November, Xbox Cloud Gaming will allow you to stream thousands of games from your library that aren’t already part of Game Pass. The announcement comes on the heels of the reveal that you’ll be able to buy games on Android from the Xbox App, allowing you to purchase and immediately stream games from Android. (Link)
Tips and tricks to master your apps and be more productive.
Earlier this year, I started a process that I knew would take me months: moving from a fake US-based Apple Account I started using for my App Store purchases in 2009 to a new, real Italian one.
There are a couple of reasons behind this decision. First, I want to embrace the DMA and take advantage of the apps I can download in the European Union; by always having my iPhone and iPad configured with an Italian account, I wouldn’t need to switch back and forth between different App Store accounts every month to reaunthenticate, which is always a pain. Second, because we use family sharing, I was getting tired of having to explain to Silvia, my mom, and her sister why certain apps they wanted to download from the Italian App Store weren’t available via the American App Store they were “forced” to use due to my family sharing setup. I had a good run with my fake US App Store account, but it was time to come home.
Friends of MacStories share their iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch Home screens.
Over the next few weeks, I’m going to share what my setup looks like across the iPhone, iPad, and my desk. These stories are the results of two different initiatives: I spent some time after wrapping up the iOS and iPadOS 18 review finally understanding how Home Screen and Control Center changes would impact my devices in everyday life, and I finally got some help from my girlfriend Silvia (who is incredibly more skilled than I am at cable management, turns out) and redid my entire desk setup, which is looking better than ever.
For the first installment of this mini-series, I’m going to focus on the Home Screen setup of my 11" iPad Pro. Let’s dive in.
Great reads and links from around the web.
Spotify has begun creating an offline playlist of recent and queued songs for Premium subscribers to listen to when they aren’t online, according to Andrew Liszewski of The Verge. (Link)
Bloomberg’s Rachael Metz has an excellent in-depth look at the aftermath of Sam Altman’s return to OpenAI and how he’s consolidated power inside the company. (Link)
Those who have been reading MacStories long enough know that there are, broadly speaking, two categories of apps I’ve historically been dissatisfied with: task managers and read later apps. We’ve recorded numerous episodes of AppStories about them; I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve switched between Reminders, Things, and Todoist or GoodLinks, Safari Reading List, Matter, and Readwise Reader. Sure, I like switching between different apps because it’s also my job to constantly try new stuff and keep myself informed, but I won’t lie – I’d also like to settle on something eventually and call that app my “home” for a particular task.
Now, I don’t mean to jinx it, but after some serious investigation and comparisons following the completion of my iOS 18 review, I think I’ve reached a point where I can comfortably use two specific apps in these categories without any more lingering doubts. I switched from Things to Reminders three months ago, and I’ve decided to stick with it as my task manager. In terms of read later apps, after using Readwise Reader for the entire summer, I’ve realized that – despite its many positive qualities – it can’t be the solution for me long-term. So after much deliberation, I’ve made a decision: I’m going back to GoodLinks.
