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Enlarge / iTunes 12.4. (credit: Andrew Cunningham)

Apple today released OS X 10.11.5, the fifth major update to OS X El Capitan since it was released last September. The company also released iTunes 12.4, a minor update that tweaks the user interface in an effort to simplify it.

The El Capitan update doesn't change much. There are quite a few security fixes and a few tweaks related to enterprise usage, but little in the way of user-visible changes. iTunes 12.4 is more noticeable change. It doesn't fix the core problem with iTunes—that having one program to handle local music, streamed music from Apple Music, TV and movie purchases, podcasts, and iOS device backups and administration makes for lots of clutter and confusion—but it does present a marginally more streamlined version of the app everyone loves to hate.

The top navigation bar has had several buttons removed, and the app uses a persistent sidebar instead of multiple drop-down menus to let you view your media. iTunes versions of yore also made heavier use of sidebars for navigation—sometimes the old ways really are best. Finally, the back and forward buttons now let you "navigate between your Library, Apple Music, iTunes Store, and more."

NCTA CEO Michael Powell at the cable lobby's annual INTX (Internet & Television Expo) conference. (credit: NCTA )

The cable industry's chief lobbyist today criticized what he called the Federal Communications Commission's "relentless regulatory assault" on the industry, claiming it has been unprovoked by the cable companies themselves.

"What has been so distressing is that much of this regulatory ordinance has been launched without provocation," said Michael Powell, CEO of the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA). "We increasingly are saddled with heavy rules without any compelling evidence of harm to consumers or competitors." The FCC's recent actions have not been "modest regulatory corrections," he said. Instead, "they have been thundering, tectonic shifts that have crumbled decades of settled law and policy."

Powell, who was FCC chairman himself from 2001 to 2005, made his comments today in a keynote speech at the NCTA's annual conference in Boston. Four FCC commissioners are scheduled to speak at the conference tomorrow, and FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler will do so on Wednesday. Wheeler—who was CEO of the NCTA from 1979 to 1984—has been critical of the industry in speeches at the conference in each of the last two years, and he would likely disagree with Powell's assertion that cable companies haven't harmed consumers or competitors.

(credit: squirrel83)

Several years ago, nobody would have believed you if you said that a secret US court was ordering the nation's telecoms to forward the metadata for all telephone calls coming to and from the United States to the National Security Agency. It would have sounded like fiction from some deranged person wearing a tinfoil hat. But it was true. Edward Snowden, a former contractor for the NSA, turned over internal government documents in 2013 that illustrated just that reality. Future document releases would underscore that the United States had been spying on its populace and the world at large to a breathtaking extent.

Snowden, now living in Russia, handed over the documents to reporter Glenn Greenwald, who published many of the juiciest disclosures at the Guardian. Greenwald left the Guardian and took the documents with him to The Intercept, which announced Monday that it is beginning a public document dump of the goods provided by Snowden. Today, The Intercept is releasing its first batch of many classified documents—166 articles of the NSA's internal newsletter called SIDtoday. The site explained:

The Intercept’s first SIDtoday release comprises 166 articles, including all articles published between March 31, 2003, when SIDtoday began, and June 30, 2003, plus installments of all article series begun during this period through the end of the year. Major topics include the National Security Agency’s role in interrogations, the Iraq War, the war on terror, new leadership in the Signals Intelligence Directorate, and new, popular uses of the internet and of mobile computing devices.

Greenwald encouraged "journalists, researchers, and interested parties" to sift through these and forthcoming document dumps "to find additional material of interest. Others may well find stories, or clues that lead to stories, that we did not. (To contact us about such finds, see the instructions here.) A primary objective of these batch releases is to make that kind of exploration possible."

Enlarge (credit: Merge Healthcare)

A heart patient undergoing a medical procedure earlier this year was put at risk when misconfigured antivirus software caused a crucial lab device to hang and require a reboot before doctors could continue.

The incident, described in an alert issued by the Food and Drug Administration, highlights the darker side of using computers and computer networks in mission-critical environments. While a computer crash is little more than an annoyance for most people at home or in offices, it can have far more serious consequences in hospitals, power generation facilities, or other industrial settings.

The computer system at issue in the FDA alert is known under the brand name Merge Hemo and is sold by Hartland, Wisconsin-based Merge Healthcare. It comprises a patient data module and a monitor PC that are connected by a serial cable. It's used to provide doctors with real-time diagnostic information from a patient undergoing a procedure known as a cardiac catheterization, in which doctors insert a tube into a blood vessel to see how well the patient's heart is working.

(credit: Andrew Cunningham)

Apple has just released iOS 9.3.2, a minor update to iOS 9 that fixes a handful of minor bugs. The most significant fix is related to the iPhone SE, which "could experience audio quality issues" when paired to Bluetooth headsets. The full release notes are below:

• Fixes an issue where some Bluetooth accessories could experience audio quality issues when paired to the iPhone SE
• Fixes an issue where looking up dictionary definitions could fail
• Addresses an issue that prevented typing email addresses when using the Japanese Kana keyboard in Mail and Messages
• Fixes an issue for VoiceOver users using the Alex voice, where the device switches to a different voice to announce punctuation or spaces
• Fixes an issue that prevented MDM servers from installing Custom B2B apps

All of these fixes are for minor edge cases that affect only small fractions of the iOS userbase—major development on iOS 9 stopped with iOS 9.3, at which point Apple presumably shifted its focus to the new version of iOS that we'll see at WWDC next month. The update is available for all devices that support iOS 9, including the iPhone 4S and newer; iPad 2 and newer; all iPad Minis and iPad Pros; and the fifth- and sixth-generation iPod Touches.

Apple also released minor updates for its other iOS-derived platforms, the Apple Watch and the fourth-generation Apple TV. The release notes for watchOS 2.2.1 and tvOS 9.2.1 don't name any specific fixes, but if you want the latest "bug fixes and security updates" you can download both of them now.

Dan Borstein's Twitter selfie before testifying in Oracle v. Google. (credit: @danfuzz)

SAN FRANCISCO—Top Android programmer Dan Bornstein returned to the stand today as the Oracle v. Google trial rolled into its sixth day.

Oracle, which acquired Java when it purchased Sun Microsystems in 2010, says Google infringed its copyrights by using 37 Java APIs in Android. In 2012, a judge ruled that APIs can't be copyrighted at all, but an appeals court disagreed. Now Oracle may seek up to $9 billion in damages, while Google is arguing that its use of the 37 APIs constitutes "fair use."

Bornstein, who wore a silver tie, clear glasses, and his trademark Android lapel pin, was on the stand for less than half an hour today. He answered friendlier "re-direct" questions from Google attorney Christa Anderson, who sought to ameliorate any possible damage from Friday's cross-examination of Bornstein.

Thomas Manning, the first man in the US to receive a penis transplant. (credit: Massachusetts General Hospital)

A Boston man who lost most of his penis in a fight with cancer has become the first US patient to receive a penis transplant.

Thomas Manning, 64, a bank courier from Halifax, Massachusetts, received the new organ from a deceased donor in a 15 hour-long operation conducted at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston on May 8 and 9. The procedure involves doctors hooking up nerves, veins, and arteries between the recipient and donor organ. So far, Manning's doctors are “cautiously optimistic” that he will recover urinary and sexual function in the coming weeks and months.

“It’s uncharted waters for us,” Dr. Curtis L. Cetrulo, a plastic and reconstructive surgeon, told the New York Times. Cetrulo was a leader on the team of seven surgeons, 6 fellows, and more than 30 other health care workers who contributed to Manning’s procedure.