Senior Correspondent Arnold Woodworth's Weekly Web Wrapup

Here's a first look at Apple's redesigned 'Photos' app for Macs

Apple is about to replace iPhoto with a new image editor, simply dubbed "Photos." Not only does it bring a drastic redesign (in the style of Yosemite, of course), but it'll also come built into OS X so that you no longer need to download it from the App Store.

The editing tools are better this time around too. Not robust enough to take on Photoshop, mind you, but a clear improvement over iPhoto.

The best thing I noticed about Photos is that it's fast and smooth.  iPhoto hesitates as you click around, if only for a second or two.  Sometimes it beachballs.  Photos doesn't.

http://www.engadget.com/2015/02/05/apple-photos-app-os-x-yosemite/



Editing with Photos for OS X, Apple’s iPhoto (and Aperture) replacement

The current Photos app is BETA TEST.  It is NOT ready for prime time.

These updates go through quite a bit of testing, and several builds are usually released before they're deemed good enough for general use.

http://arstechnica.com/apple/2015/02/editing-with-photos-for-os-x-apples-iphoto-and-aperture-replacement/



David Pogue says Photos for the Mac Is Clean, Fast, Connected — and Unfinished

https://www.yahoo.com/tech/photos-for-the-mac-is-clean-fast-connected-and-110170322774.html



First Impressions of Photos for OS X: 'Vast Improvement' Over iPhoto

a roundup of some of the more interesting comments and opinions about Photos for OS X, which combines iPhoto and Aperture into one for OS X Yosemite.

Overall, Photos for OS X appears to be a significant improvement for users migrating from iPhoto, but a step down in functionality for those coming from Aperture.

http://www.macrumors.com/2015/02/05/photos-for-os-x-first-impressions/



Why are hospitals using Apple's HealthKit? It's simple

It's simple for hospitals to connect Apple's HealthKit to their Epic electronic health-record systems.

And it's simple for patients to connect their phones' data through HealthKit to their hospitals.

http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20150205/NEWS/302059938/why-are-hospitals-using-apples-healthkit-its-simple



Apple's 10 Biggest, Riskiest Bets

Even the most vociferous Apple haters can surely admit that Apple is firing on all cylinders.

http://www.technewsworld.com/story/81662.html



Five things Apple Co-founder Steve Wozniak will tell you about business

http://www.bizjournals.com/dayton/news/2015/02/05/five-things-apple-co-founder-steve-wozniak-will.html



The ultimate guide to how and where to use Apple Pay

http://www.macworld.com/article/2834669/the-ultimate-guide-on-how-and-where-to-use-apple-pay.html



We pitted an iPhone camera against a point-and-shoot and a DSLR to see if there's really any difference

http://www.businessinsider.com/iphone-6-vs-dslr-and-point-and-shoot-2015-2



The amazing perks of working at Apple

http://www.businessinsider.com/best-things-about-working-at-apple-2015-2



Microsoft Outlook is the best email app out right now

Apple's own Mail app is still the best integrated email app for iPhone users, but I found myself missing the extra features and depth to the email experience that Outlook brings to the table.

Gmail is still stuck using the same bogged down actions to deal with individual emails, Hop and Inbox are too alien for many users, and Mailbox makes it tough to deal with a clogged-up inbox in one swoop — it's perfect if you check your email obsessively though.

http://www.businessinsider.com/best-email-app-goes-to-microsoft-outlook-2015-2



Microsoft is slowly taking over my iPhone

A week ago, the apps on my home screen were dominated by just about every major tech company except Microsoft.

But last week Microsoft relaunched Outlook on iPhone.

After five minutes with the app, I knew Outlook was so good that I could delete Gmail.

http://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-sunrise-and-outlook-for-iphone-2015-2



Outlook on IOS? Careful Will Robinson!

You believe that Microsoft gives a damn about your data security?  If so, you're not very bright.

http://www.market-ticker.org/akcs-www?post=229810



Man misses epic moment because he's too busy texting

http://www.businessinsider.com/man-misses-once-in-a-lifetime-moment-because-hes-too-busy-texting-2015-2



Intelligent machines aren't going to overthrow humans

A world in which humans are enslaved or destroyed by superintelligent machines of our own creation is purely science fiction. Like every other technology, AI has risks and benefits, but we cannot let fear dominate the conversation or guide AI research.

http://www.businessinsider.com/artificial-intelligence-not-danger-to-humanity-2015-2



Can the music industry survive the streaming revolution?

For an 18-month period, I [Rosanne Cash] had 600,000 streams, and I was paid $104.

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/music-industry-survive-the-streaming-revolution/

Reader Comment:
You Tube is the lifeblood of many Facebook music groups. This side of music streaming is never covered by the media possibly because it involves technically the unauthorized use of copyrighted material and that can't be ethically promoted.

Reader Comment:
only since the invention of the phonograph and radio that musicians have become wealthy.
For thousands of years musicians were local performers or traveling minstrels that made a living income. Even famed composers like Mozart needed a wealthy sponsor to pay to write symphonies. Streaming media is just a reversion to the historical mean.



11 business facts about Facebook on its 11th birthday

http://fortune.com/2015/02/04/facebook-11th-birthday/



Don’t fall for this Facebook hoax (and 6 things you can do to ensure Facebook privacy)

http://www.businessinsider.com/6-steps-to-ensuring-facebook-privacy-2015-2



Social networking is still in its infancy

Twitter, Facebook are the two social networks that everybody thinks of when it comes to sharing news. I have been a longtime investor in Facebook and recently started buying Twitter in part because of their powerful reach in disrupting the control of media.

there's a lot of upside in social networking growth still to come. Think of it this way - today you watch 100 different TV shows in a year on 30 different TV stations on five different form factors and use maybe one or two social networks on your smartphone, tablet and PC. In five years, you'll be on five different types of social networks that you access from 30 different form factors (thank you, wearables). The size of the social network pie is growing tremendously.

http://blogs.marketwatch.com/cody/2015/02/02/social-networking-is-still-in-its-infancy/



How Science Fiction Will Help Us Go to Mars

Eventually, our technology will reach a point where it doesn't cost that much to go into space.

http://www.motherjones.com/media/2015/02/mars-martian-science-fiction-inquiring-minds

Reader Comment:
It won't take long for all those "rocket scientists" in congress to savage NASA's budget. We'll be lucky to get paper planes.



Your old landline could get an early retirement

Major telecom companies have made no secret of their desire to abandon the traditional, copper wire-based phone service.

AT&T wants to complete the switch within five years. Verizon, the dominant landline provider in Maryland, hasn't set a date.

The Federal Communications Commission has said there will come a "tipping point" at which it will no longer make sense to maintain two systems.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bs-bz-cutting-landlines-20150131-story.html#page=1



Anthem hack raises fears about medical data

Insurance giant Anthem Inc. suffered a massive data breach exposing the personal information of up to 80 million Americans — and it could have been even worse for consumers.

The hackers didn't take sensitive medical information on patients or their credit card data, according to the company, even though it was stored alongside Social Security numbers and other personal information that were stolen.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-anthem-hack-fallout-20150206-story.html#page=1?track=lat-pick



The Anthem hack reveals health insurers don't have to encrypt your private information

Insurers aren't required to encrypt consumers' data under a 1990s federal law that remains the foundation for health care privacy in the Internet age — an omission that seems striking in light of the major cyberattack against Anthem.

The main federal health privacy law — the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA — encourages encryption, but doesn't require it.

http://www.businessinsider.com/the-anthem-hack-reveals-health-insurers-dont-have-to-encrypt-your-private-information-2015-2