iOS 6 to be previewed at WWDC 2012

A couple of days ago, 9to5Mac reported that banners for iOS 6 have gone up at Moscone West. The banners include a new logo for iOS, as well as the slogan: "The world's most advanced mobile operating system." I can't wait to see what Apple has planned for iOS 6 as well as everything else due to be released/previewed this Monday!

Apple releases iOS 5.1.1

iOS 5.1.1 was released today. It isn't a major upgrade, as it just is a bug fix release. Here's what it addresses:

• Improves reliability of using HDR option for photos taken using the Lock Screen shortcut
• Addresses bugs that could prevent the new iPad from switching between 2G and 3G networks
• Fixes bugs that affected AirPlay video playback in some circumstances
• Improved reliability for syncing Safari bookmarks and Reading List
• Fixes an issue where 'Unable to purchase' alert could be displayed after successful purchase

It also addresses three critical Safari vulnerabilities:

• A maliciously crafted website may be able to spoof the address in the location bar
• Visiting a maliciously crafted website may lead to a cross-site scripting attack
• Visiting a maliciously crafted website may lead to an unexpected application termination or arbitrary code execution

More information about this update can be found on Apple's website or on the security page for the iOS 5.1.1 update.

iOS 5.1

Along with the new iPad, iOS 5.1 was released today. It contains several improvements for iOS 5, including battery bug fixes, and Siri support for Japanese. iOS 5.1 has been in beta for a couple months now, so it's no surprise that Apple released iOS 5.1 with the new iPad. This is a milestone update, because it is the first update that iOS users can receive "over the air". iOS 5.1 will not require a computer to install, unlike all previous updates.

Other features of iOS 5.1 include:

•   Genius Mixes and playlist for subscribers of iTunes Match
•   Optimized audio for movie playback via the iPad
•   Podcast controls and 30-second rewind button for the iPad
•   Updated AT&T network indicator
•   A fix for audio dropping for outgoing calls

Mac OS X Lion

As all of you Mac fans out there already know, Mac OS 10.7 Lion was released on Wednesday, July 20, 2011, changing the way the Mac works and looks. It has incorporated many of the features of iOS, including Lauchpad a new application launcher that acts and looks like the iOS home page. I am also really looking forward to the multi-touch gestures, which bring iOS-like gestures, such as pinch to zoom, swiping, and scrolling. I was at the Apple Store a couple of days ago, and I played around a little with Lion. I was really impressed with Mission Control. By using three fingers on the trackpad and swiping to the right or left, you can swipe through all your open full-screen applications.

But the two features which I am most looking forward to are Airdrop and Screen Sharing. But let me take them one at a time. Airdrop allows you t o wirelessly send files to any Mac on the local network, just by dragging-and-dropping. File sharing doesn't get any easier that Airdrop. There is no setup required, just drag-and-drop. I know that I'll use this one all the time. Screen Sharing (which I also use all the time) has received a major update for Lion. Now a person can be using a Mac, and another person can log into the same Mac with a different user account and see their desktop and files, without interrupting the other person. I know I'll use this one quite a bit, too. I found this online. It's an application compatibility table for Lion. Unfortunately, not all applications support Lion. Lion does not have Rosetta, which means it can't run PowerPc applications. I am really (Really!!) hoping Apple will put this feature back into OS X. I use so many applications that are PowerPc, that it may be awhile before I completely switch over to Lion. In my opinion, Lion is the biggest upgrade since OS 10.1 came out. I am really looking forward to using this state-of-the-art operating system.

-- Matthew