Microsoft plans to replace Outlook with new Universal Client

According to Windows Central, Microsoft plans to replace all the current versions of Outlook with one, web based, universal client. This new client - codename Monarch - is based on the Outlook Web app already available available in a browser today. There is no information when the actual switch might happen.

10th years of the Mac App Store

The Mac App Store launched exactly 10 years ago, on January 6, 2011. Although it is the easiest way to install an app on the Mac, it never gained the popularity. The 30% Apple tax and not clear app review rules caused that many developers never sold their apps through the AppStore or even abandoned the AppStore.

Hopefully the new and lower Apple Tax for small businesses and upcoming investigations regarding Apple's monopoly will make the AppStore a better place for developers.

Google workers plans to unionize

A group of Google workers plan to unionize. The Alphabet Workers Union will be available to all employees and contractors that work for Google's companies. So far about 400 workers joined the union out over 130K people working for Google. The union might be small, but it is determined to solve the issues that has been reveled in recent months.

Image credits: Microsoft

SpaceX Crew-1

For the second time, SpaceX and NASA launched the Crew Dragon capsule with people onboard. Following the successful Demo-2 mission, NASA gave SpaceX's Crew Dragon an operational status, and the Crew-1 mission is the first flight with such status. Crew of 4 astronauts launched on Sunday, and docked to the International Space Station the next day. According to NASA plans, astronauts will spend in space about 180 days.

Apple reduces AppStore tax to 15%

Apple announced, that from January 1st, the AppStore tax will be reduce from 30% to 15% to all developers that during a  year made under $1 million. If the developer exceeds the $1 million threshold then the 30% tax will be applied.

This is huge for the most of the developers. The change from 30% to 15% cut, by then increases developers revenue for about 20%.

ARM Macs delivers

Apple started shipping new ARM powered Macs and the first benchmarks started showing up. It looks like, all Apple claims about new hardware are true. New macs are not only the fastest, but also super efficient, which improves battery life. Now, the only thing that might stop a customer from choosing an ARM mac is a software compatibility. But even that should not be a big issue for the most users. And if a particular application is not ready yet, it should be very soon.

Dope links

• macOS defaults list
• Does Apple really log every app you run? A technical look
• Api diff between net5.0 and netcoreapp3.1 & netstandard2.1
• I built a VR chainsaw in Unity

Image credits: NASA/SpaceX

Macs with Apple Silicon

Apple held the One more thing event that focused on new Apple Silicon for Macs.

Apple introduced a brand new M1 chip, which combines couple of  chips and controllers under one single housing:

• 5‑nanometer process,
• 16 billion transistors,
• 8-core CPU with 4 high‑performance cores and 4 high‑efficiency cores,
• Integrated  8-core GPU,
• Integrated 16-core neural engine built-in,
• Integrated and shared memory including DRAM and cache.

According to Apple, new CPU is up to 3.5x faster on the same power usage. And the GPU is twice as fast. Looking at early benchmarks, those claims might be true.

The new chip would be nothing without new hardware that uses it, so Apple announced 3 new Mac:

Mac mini

• Apple M1 chip (8-core CPU,  8-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine),
• 8 or 16GB of RAM,
• 256GB, 512GB ,  1TB or 2TB of storage,
• WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5,
• Price starting at $699.

MacBook Air

• 13.3-inch Retina Display (2560 x 1600px)
• Apple M1 chip (8-core CPU, 7 or 8-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine),
• 8 or 16GB of RAM,
• 256GB, 512GB ,  1TB or 2TB of storage,
• 2 USB 4/Thunderbolt ports,
• WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5,
• Up to 18 hours of battery life,
• Price starting at $999.

MacBook Pro 13

• 13.3-inch Retina Display (2560 x 1600px)
• Apple M1 chip (8-core CPU,  8-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine),
• 8 or 16GB of RAM,
• 256GB, 512GB ,  1TB or 2TB of storage,
• 2 USB 4/Thunderbolt ports,
• WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5,
• Up to 20 hours of battery life,
• Price starting at $1299.

macOS Big Sur released

Apple has also released the newest version of the mac operating system. I've been using it since Beta and it's rather stable, but the launch itself was far from perfect.

Xbox Series X launch

Microsoft has finally launched the next-gen console. The launch itself was rather smooth, but there were some vaping accidents 😅 Now, when the console is here, it's time for some next-gen games to be released.

Dope links

• Building a concurrency-proof token refresh flow in Combine
• On Apple's Piss-Poor Documentation
• On Apple's SwiftUI Header File Documentation
• Case Study : Virtual Studio for Twitch LiveStream
  

Image credits: Apple

Mandalorian Season 2

It's finally here. Mando is on a quest of uniting the Child with its kind. And  if rumors are true, he will meet interesting characters along the way.  First episode started very strong. If the rest of the episodes are on the same level,  we will have superb season ahead of us. This is the way.

SpaceX 100 successful launches

SpaceX reached 100 successful launches with latest Starlink mission. It all started in September 2008 with  flight of a Falcon 1 booster.  Twelve years later, SpaceX has a fleet of reusable Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets, that not only sent cargo into space, but also humans.

If everything will go according to SpaceX's plans, then we might see 200th launch within next 3 years.

Dope links

• How to build macOS apps using only the Swift Package Manager?
• Swift Concurrency Roadmap
• BBC Boing Ball
• 2.5 GPx picture of the Orion constellation

Image credits: Lucasfilm

The war continues

The conflict between Epic and Apple is escalating. Epic informed that Apple is terminating all of its developer accounts and cut Epic off from iOS and Mac development tools. Apple left 2 week notice on that matter, and is planning to terminate the accounts on August 28th, which is strange, normally account would be terminated immediately without any warning, so here is another example that not everyone is treated the same.

In a meanwhile, Epic is trying rally allies in battle against Apple.  If they succeed, they might get support from giants like: Amazon, Netflix, Spotify, Microsoft, Google, Facebook, Valve.

Dope Links

• Cool Features of Vue Router 4
• Microsoft Flight Simulator is finally here
• Big Sur Touch screen gestures - Lenovo X250
• Making of the WWDC 2010 Hyperwall