Daniel and Manton discuss the new JSON Feed format and initial public reaction to it. They talk about Panic’s source code being stolen, and Daniel celebrates/laments his new MacBook Pro.

Many thanks to our sponsors this week:

• Digimarc: The best mobile scanning solution today. The only solution for tomorrow.
• Linode: Cloud Hosting for You.

Links:

• Announcing JSON Feed – Official announcement of JSON Feed 1.0.
• jsonfeed-wp – WordPress plugin supporting automated generation of JSON Feed compatible feeds.
• Micro.blog – Manton’s microblogging service.
• Brent on JSON Feed – Brent Simmons shares his thoughts on the announcement…
• Manton on JSON Feed – … and Manton shares his.
• The Case of the Stolen Source Code – Panic details the theft of their source code, subsequent ransom threat, and what they’re doing about it.

Manton and Daniel react to new rumors of Apple’s “Siri Smart Speakers” standalone voice assistant. They follow up on the debate about Chromebooks vs. iPads in schools, Apple’s ongoing development of Workflow, and changes in App Store commissions. Finally, they catch up on respective indie work progress and how easy it is to get thrown off course.

Many thanks to our sponsors this week:

• Linode: Cloud Hosting for You.
• Indeed Prime: Apply to 100 Top Tech Companies with 1 Application.

Links:

• Echo Look – New hands-free video voice assistant from Amazon.
• Echo Show – Another new Amazon product, designed to help evaluate your fashion style.
• Siri Smart Speakers – New article from Mark Gurman including details about alleged testing of Apple’s new product.
• Amazon and Whole Foods – Bloomberg story about Amazon’s consideration of a Whole Foods acquisition.
• Uh Oh Chromebook – Brian Foutty writes confidently about the virtues of iPad over Chromebook in the classroom.
• Workflow Update – MacStories reports on substantial changes to Apple’s Workflow app.
• Commission Update – Apple clarifies that only in-app purchases will see a reduction in commission rate.
• Refresh Austin – The event at which Manton recently spoke about Indie Microblogging.
• CocoaConf Next Door – Mac and iOS conference at which Manton will speak next.

Daniel talks to Manton about his challenges with Micro.blog server problems, and his successful fulfillment of accounts to Kickstarter backers. Manton talks about his strategy for shutting down social media in the wake of stress, and taking time to recuperate. The two also talk about Microsoft’s new Windows 10 S announcement and the apparent bleakness of Apple’s chances in the school laptop market. Finally, they check in on WWDC plans and consider the absurdity of $40 box lunches.

Many thanks to our sponsors this week:

• PDFpen: New Version 9.
• Indeed Prime: Apply to 100 Top Tech Companies with 1 Application.

Links:

• Micro.blog – Manton’s new indie microblogging service.
• Core Intuition Slack – Join the community of listeners.
• Microsoft’s Answer to ChromeOS – The Verge on the new Windows 10 S.
• Savor SMG – Menu from the exclusive caterer for WWDC SF.
• Release Notes Conference – Indie software conference being held October 16-18 in Chicago.
• CocoaConf Next Door – Mac and iOS conference held in proximity of WWDC 2017 in San Jose.
• Refresh Austin – Event page for Manton’s talk in Austin on May 9.

Manton and Daniel talk about Manton’s launch of Micro.blog to Kickstarter backers, then check in on Swift and the state of Developer Tools. Finally they talk about Apple’s affiliate program cuts, and the merits of avoiding reliance on a single platform or marketplace for a living.

Many thanks to our sponsors this week:

• appGarten.io: appInsight, appCare, and appServices for Your App.
• Indeed Prime: Apply to 100 Top Tech Companies with 1 Application.

Links:

• Micro.blog – Manton’s new microblogging service.
• Apple Cuts Commissions – John Voorhees of Macstories responds to Apple’s affiliate commission changes.
• Killing the iTunes Affiliate – Brett Terpstra responds in no uncertain terms to the Apple affiliate changes.
• touchArcade – A business Daniel assumed might be somewhat dependent on iTunes affiliate links.

Daniel and Manton talk about Manton’s impending rollout of Micro.blog to backers starting next week, and the merit of picking a specific launch date and sticking with it. They respond to a listener question about accounting practices, and discuss Apple’s apparent decision to stop updating the Workflow app, and what it means for the future of such functionality on iOS.

Many thanks to our sponsors this week:

• Linode: Cloud Hosting for You.
• Digimarc: The best mobile scanning solution today. The only solution for tomorrow.

Links:

• Micro.blog – Manton’s forthcoming microblog publishing service.
• The Gates of Chaos – Halle Winkler’s NSConference 2015 talk.
• Study Accounting – iOS app for learning the fundamentals of double-entry accounting.
• Baremetrics – Subscription sales analytics service.
• MoneyWell – Mac bookkeeping app by Kevin LaCoste.
• OmniFocus – Mac task management app from The Omni Group.
• Less Accounting – Online accounting software.
• Xero – Another online accounting app.
• No Updates Planned – Story from 9to5mac about Apple’s apparent cessation of Workflow updates.
• The Future of Workflow – Federico Viticci’s reaction to Apple’s acquisition.
• Automator – Documentation for Apple’s Workflow-esque Mac-based automation tool.
• AppleScript – Apple’s documentation about the canonical scripting language for Mac.
• Frontier – UserLand’s web-based outliner and scripting language.

Manton and Daniel react to Apple allegedly using private API from Clips, and what it means for their App Store apps to enjoy special privileges. They talk about Daniel’s consideration of a freemium approach for the next major release of MarsEdit. Finally they examine Apple’s new TestFlight features, speculate about the cause for a looming iTunes Connect shutdown, and follow up about the efficacy of responding to App Store reviews.

Many thanks to our sponsors this week:

• Zendesk: Bring native, in-app support to your app.
• Linode: Cloud Hosting for You.

Links:

• Fancy Screwdrivers – Stephen Hackett and Federico Viticci talk about Clips’s private API usage.
• MarsEdit – Daniel’s Mac-based blog editing app.
• What’s New in TestFlight – Apple’s announcement about changes including support for multiple builds.

Daniel and Manton react to Apple’s surprisingly transparent “roundtable” meeting with several members of the press, and celebrate the many positive signals coming out of the event. They engage in a friendly debate about the likelihood that Mac users will defect to Windows. Finally, they talk about the merits of professional software, and the negative impacts that a poor market for such software may be having on iOS as a platform.

Many thanks to our sponsors this week:

• TextExpander for Teams: The Productivity Multiplier.
• Indeed Prime: Apply to 100 Top Tech Companies with 1 Application.

Links:

• The Mac Pro Lives – John Gruber writes about Apple’s special press event outlining the Mac Pro’s future.
• The Reset Button – Matthew Panzarino writes about the Mac Pro announcements.
• Osborne Effect – Age-old adage about the risks of premature product announcements.
• Workflow Acquisition – TechCrunch story on Apple’s acquisition of the popular iOS automation app.
• This Might Be Our Fault – The Connected podcast discussion of Workflow’s acquisition.
• Panic 2016 Report – Panic’s reflections on the year and its struggles with iOS app sales.
• Coda for iOS – Prime example of Panic’s professional-grade app development for iOS.

Manton and Daniel discuss the opening of the WWDC ticket lottery, the correlated announcements about details of the WWDC Bash location, and Apple’s promotion of 3rd party events happening in the orbit of the conference. Manton reflects on his new decision to say yes to public speaking, and Daniel takes stock of recent reading around a “Going Pro” mentality. Finally, they react to the new ability for developers to reply to App Store reviews, and whether and how developers should choose to do so.

Many thanks to our sponsor this week:

• Zendesk: Bring native, in-app support to your app.

Links:

• San Jose Drainage Ditch – Image from Wikipedia of the Guadalupe River, near WWDC’s San Jose venue.
• Discovery Meadow – Location of the WWDC Bash.
• San Antonio River Walk – Texan example of a riverside parkway.
• Beyond WWDC – Apple’s guide to conferences and events happening outside of WWDC.
• Relay FM Meetup – WWDC-peripheral meet-up hosted by the Relay.fm podcasting network.
• CocoaConf Next Door – Conference near WWDC 2017 at which Manton will be speaking.
• The Power of Habit – A book about the effects of habits and how to establish or modify them.
• The War of Art – Steven Pressfield’s motivational book about pursuing your dreams with vigor.
• Turning Pro – Follow-up to The War of Art.
• Responding to Reviews – Apple’s advice to developers about how to respond to customers on the App Store.
• Customer Support – 2007 post from Manton about his rules for customer support.
• Sunlit.io – Photo-based storytelling app by Manton Reece and Jon Hays.
• Appfigures – Web-based service for tracking app sales and reviews.

Daniel and Manton talk about Manton’s decision to hire Jean MacDonald as Micro.blog’s Community Manager, and the psychological effects of transitioning from a single to multi-person company. They also react to this week’s Apple announcements, focusing mainly on Apple’s new Clips app and how it relates to Apple’s historic focus on facilitating user creativity.

Many thanks to our sponsor this week:

• Digimarc: The best mobile scanning solution today. The only solution for tomorrow.

Links:

• Guiding the Micro.blog Community – Manton announces the hiring of Jean MacDonald as Community Manager.
• @macgenie – Twitter account of Jean MacDonald.
• Smile – Mac software company where Jean MacDonald was formerly a partner.
• App Camp for Girls – Summer day camp for girls, founded by Jean MacDonald.
• MarsEdit – Daniel’s Mac-based blog editing app.
• Inessential – Blog of Brent Simmons, original developer of MarsEdit.
• History of Technorati – Summary from the company which appears nothing like it used to be.
• Clips – Apple’s forthcoming socially-oriented, visual mash-up app.
• Internet Explorer for Mac – Wikipedia page about the history of the once-dominant Mac web browser.
• Aqua Introduction Keynote – Steve Jobs announces Aqua at Macworld SF in 2000.
• Paper Airplane Icons – Daniel’s post about the use of paper airplanes as a metaphor for mail.

Manton and Daniel discuss Apple’s short-lived restrictions on editing App Store descriptions, weighing the merits of adding more semantic fields to App Store pages, and supporting a separate review process for metadata-only updates. They talk about Apple’s rejection of apps using Rollout.io technologies, and larger risks of depending on any 3rd party binaries or open source. Finally they consider the power of assuming certain labels such as “entrepreneur,” and how it frames your business thinking moving forward.

Many thanks to our sponsor this week:

• Linode: Cloud Hosting for You.

Links:

• Editing App Store Descriptions – 9to5mac reports on the change of policy by Apple, and subsequent reversion to status quo.
• Firewatch – macOS game from Campo Santo and Panic.
• Rollout.io Statement – Rollout responds to Apple’s rejection of apps using their hot-patch technology.
• CocoaPods – A popular package manager for iOS and Mac.
• SXSW – Austin-based film, music, and technology conference.
• Open Coffee Club – Worldwide directory of meetups aimed at uniting investors and entrepreneurs.
• Open Coffee Austin – Manton’s local club.
• 15 Years of Blogging – Manton celebrates his long blogging career, and looks back at some favorite entries.