TOP 10 JAILBREAK TWEAKS OF THIS MONTH

New jailbreak tweaks for iOS are being released all the time, which is great news if you are a fan of the jailbreak world and like to have new things to try, but it can often be overwhelming for those who are just getting started or simply don’t have the time or the inclination to stay on top of everything.

That’s when choice and availability start to have a negative affect, and that’s no good for anybody.

Luckily enough, though, we’re here to make sure that no worthy tweak goes unnoticed, and to that end, we are going to share ten jailbreak tweaks with you, all of which were released recently. If you’re looking for a new tweak to test-drive this weekend, then look no further.

SwipyFolders

Super-charge your folders with this tweak. SwipyFolders allows users to change the icon used for a folder, control what happens when it is 3D-Touched or swiped, and more. Ever wanted to launch an app from within a folder with a double-tap? Install this, and you can.

The tweak is available for free on the BigBoss repo.

Phenomenon

Task switchers are some of the best jailbreak tweaks around, and Phenomenon has a place on that list. Improved gesture support and control over Control Center are amongst the list of things this tweak is capable of.

The tweak goes for $2.99 over at the BigBoss repository.

IGExperiments

Ever hear about some of the new features that Instagram is testing but you never seem to have access to them? IGExperiments will let you enable things like 60-second videos and the new blank & white UI. Clever stuff.

The tweak is free on the BigBoss repository.

WAContactPicture

This tweak allows users to change the profile pictures of their friends within WhatsApp. Simple, really.

You can grab WAContactPicture for free from BigBoss.

Xgress

Play Ingress on your jailbroken iOS device because, why not?

Available for free from the BigBoss repo.

TinyPlayer Lite

A unified media player that can be activated via Activator gestures and is visible on top of apps and even the Home screen.

TinyPlayer Lite can be downloaded for free from BigBoss.

SilentMessenger

Get better control over Facebook Messenger’s privacy settings, including an option to stop the recipient from being able to tell when you are typing, disable Read receipts, and much more.

SilentMessenger will cost you $1.50 and is available from the BigBoss repository.

ThinBar

This tweak does nothing more than take the standard notification bar and make it considerably thinner. If the standard bar strikes you as too large, then this is for you.

ThinBar is free on the BigBoss repo.

SaveCloud

A tweak dedicated to making it easy to download files from SoundCloud, with downloaded tracks able to be imported into the Music app if so desired.

SaveCloud can be downloaded for free from BigBoss.

SmartBatteryPercentage

Own Apple’s Smart Battery Case? If the answer is yes, this tweak will combine both it and the iPhone’s battery into one icon on the iPhone’s screen. If both devices are charged, the screen will read 200%.

SmartBatteryPercentage can be downloaded for free from the developer’s repo at leftyfl1p.github.io.

And that’s enough for now – let us know if there are any we’ve missed and enjoy your weekend’s tweaking!

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Stress-diabetes link detailed in new study

Rice University study has found a link between emotional stress and diabetes, with roots in the brain's ability to control anxiety.

That control lies with the brain's executive functions, processes that handle attention, inhibition, working memory and cognitive flexibility and are also involved in reasoning, problem-solving and planning.

The study published in Psychoneuroendocrinology establishes a metabolic chain reaction that starts with low inhibition, aka attention control, which leaves a person vulnerable to tempting or distracting information, objects, thoughts or activities. Previous studies have shown that such vulnerability can lead to more frequent anxiety, and anxiety is known to activate a metabolic pathway responsible for the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, signaling proteins that include interleukin-6 (IL-6).

Along with cognitive tests that measured attention control, the Rice study measured levels of both blood glucose and IL-6 in more than 800 adults. IL-6 is a protein the body produces to stimulate immune response and healing. It is a biomarker of acute and chronic stress that also has been associated with a greater likelihood of diabetes and high blood glucose.

The research showed individuals with low inhibition were more likely to have diabetes than those with high inhibition due to the pathway from high anxiety to IL-6. The results were the same no matter how subjects performed on other cognitive tests, like those for memory and problem-solving.

Researchers have suspected a link between anxiety and poor health, including diabetes, for many years but none have detailed the biological pathway responsible, said lead author Kyle Murdock, a postdoctoral research fellow in psychology. He said the Rice study takes a deeper look at how inflammation bridges the two.

"The literature shows individuals with poor inhibition are more likely to experience stressful thoughts and have a harder time breaking their attention away from them," Murdock said. "That made me wonder if there's a stress-induced pathway that could link inhibition with inflammation and the diseases we're interested in, such as diabetes.

"Plenty of research shows that when individuals are stressed or anxious or depressed, inflammation goes up," he said. "The novel part of our study was establishing the pathway from inhibition to anxiety to inflammation to diabetes."

Murdock works in the Rice lab of Christopher Fagundes, assistant professor of psychology. The Fagundes lab investigates processes that happen along the border of psychology and physiology, and how those processes affect overall health and potential treatments.

The data came from a Midlife Development in the United States study of 1,255 middle-aged adults whose cognitive abilities were tested two years apart. More than 800 of those also underwent blood tests to check IL-6 and glucose levels. The Rice researchers found not only the positive link between inhibition and diabetes, but the absence of a link between other cognitive functions and the disease. They also determined that the pathway only went in one direction: Inflammation never appeared to affect inhibition. Murdock said a year as a clinical psychology intern at the Oregon Health and Science University, where he studied with co-author and psychologist Danny Duke, led the researchers to think there could also be a feedback loop at play in those with diabetes. "Individuals who are anxious are more likely to avoid treatment and use maladaptive strategies (like smoking or unhealthy diets) that enhance their blood glucose, which is problematic. It's a snowball effect: The further they go, the worse it gets," he said.

"We also know that extremely high blood glucose can impact cognition as well. We talked about how, if we're going to treat these individuals appropriately, it won't be by sitting them down in a room and saying, 'Hey, you need to eat better,' or 'You need to use your insulin on time.'"

The researchers listed several possible interventions, including mindfulness therapy, stimulant or anti-inflammatory medications and cognitive behavioral therapy. "Research shows that people who practice mindfulness do better on the inhibition tests over time," Murdock said, suggesting that shifting one's attention away from stressful thoughts may affect physiological responses.

"I'm a firm believer that mindfulness-based approaches to treatment are a great idea, for a lot of reasons," Fagundes said. "That doesn't mean medicines that promote inhibition, such as stimulants, shouldn't be considered, but a combination of the two could be really helpful."

iOS 9.3 Jailbreak Release Date, Rumors and Updates: iOS 9.3.2 Jailbroken! 

Can we expect an iOS 9.3 jailbreak, now that Apple has released iOS 9.3 to the public 

 

iOS 9.3.2 Jailbroken

Update – June 6, 2016 – A new group known as GSMagic claim to be working on an iOS 9.3.2 jailbreak, which they say, will be released on June 10. We’re not sure if this team is just saying so to urge other iOS jailbreak groups to release a jailbreak first, or if they actually are working on a jailbreak.

According to them, the iOS 9.3.2 jailbreak will also work on iOS 9.3.3, but we’re not convinced. They also say that if they cannot make a jailbreak tool by June 10, then they will stop trying. If you go to their Twitter page, you’ll see that they’ve been taunting hackers such as Luca Todesco, who actually has a working iOS 9.3.2 jailbreak.

We’ll have to wait till June 10 to find out if any of this is true. Apple is all set to release 

iOS 9.3.3 before WWDC 2016, which is happening in another 10 days.

Update – May 29, 2016 – Yes, that’s right, an iOS 9.3.2 jailbreak exists, but it cannot be yours. Our favorite hacker Luca Todesco has once again created a stir in the jailbreak community, and angered many, by jailbreaking iOS 9.3.2.

Why has he angered people? Well, despite having a working untethered iOS 9.3.2 jailbreak, Luca will not be sharing it with the world. There won’t be a tool that can jailbreak your iOS device, at least, not from him.

He recently shared a video of his iPod Touch running iOS 9.3.2 and jailbroken. As many were asking for proof, he also showed how the jailbreak actually works. The jailbreak is similar to the popular browser based JailbreakMe tool. You didn’t have to connect your iOS device to the computer, instead, the exploit would be injected using Safari.

Fake iOS 9.3 Jailbreak – Beware

Update – May 24, 2016 – Apple recently released iOS 9.3.2 to the public, and still, we have no jailbreak. Users have been eagerly waiting for jailbreak news, but there hasn’t been anything new.

Rumors and reports are still floating around suggesting that the jailbreak teams, either TaiG or Pangu, will release a jailbreak before WWDC next month. Only time will tell.

Update – May 9, 2016 – Looks like we’ll have to wait longer for a jailbreak on iOS 9.3. Yes, it is possible to jailbreak iOS 9.3, as shown by hacker Luca Todesco, but we will not be seeing a public release from him.

It is still being reported that the jailbreak teams are waiting for Apple to release the final version of iOS 9.3.2 so they can release a jailbreak, but we’re not sure how far that’s true.

Recently, among rising fake jailbreaks, another one has joined the list and we urge you not to fall for them. The new jailbreak is called ‘3K Jailbreak‘ and claims it has jailbroken iOS 9.3.2, 9.3.1 and 9.3. All false claims. Do not download such jailbreak tools as they will both ruin your Windows PC and your iOS device.

Update – April 27, 2016 – Several fake iOS 9.3 jailbreaks are circulating on the Internet, we strongly advise you not to download and try any.

Web sites called Taig9.com and en-pangu.com are circulating fake jailbreaks to unsuspecting iOS users. The tool most likely injects some sort of malware onto your device, which is why you should stay away from them.

As of now, there is no working iOS 9.3 or iOS 9.3.1 jailbreak. When there is one, we will let you know, until then, enjoy your non-jailbroken iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch.

Update – April 21, 2016 – Apple has stopped signing the iOS 9.3 firmware, which means that if you had updated to iOS 9.3.1, you can no longer downgrade.

This is also bad for the iOS 9.3 jailbreak, as most users are either on earlier firmware or on the latest iOS 9.3.1. If a new jailbreak is released for iOS 9.3, users on iOS 9.3.1 and on iOS 9.2.1 and earlier cannot enjoy it.

It is being reported by several sites that an iOS 9.3.2 jailbreak could be released at WWDC 2016.

Update – April 13, 2016 – It’s been almost a month since the release of iOS 9.3, but we haven’t seen any jailbreaks so far. Yes, you’ll find many fakes out there, but we recommend not to pursue any of them. As of now, there is no jailbreak for iOS 9.3 or iOS 9.3.1.

We’re not sure if anyone is even working on a jailbreak anymore, because Apple has moved past iOS 9.3.1 and is now testing iOS 9.3.2. It is possible that the jailbreak teams are now focusing on iOS 9.3.2 instead or perhaps are waiting for WWDC to release a jailbreak.

Apple is expected to talk about iOS 10 and most likely release a developer beta during WWDC this year. The jailbreak teams could thus be waiting for Apple to release the next major iOS update. This way, they can provide a jailbreak for all versions of iOS 9.3, including 9.3.1 and 9.3.2.

Update – April 2, 2016 – Now that Apple has released iOS 9.3 to the public, the wait for an iOS 9.3 jailbreak is on. The last iOS 9.3 beta was jailbreak friendly, so it’s only a matter of time.

Apple recently seeded iOS 9.3.1 to fix bugs that were present in iOS 9.3. According to a new report, jailbreak teams could be waiting for Apple to fix the bugs on iOS 9.3 to release a working jailbreak.

The report says that the release of an iOS 9.3 jailbreak could’ve been delayed due to Apple working on a smaller update. And as suspected, Apple released iOS 9.3.1 with bug fixes.

Now, the jailbreak teams could release an iOS 9.3.1 jailbreak is one is ready. If such a jailbreak tool is ready, now would be a great time to release it.

iOS 9.3 Jailbreak Release DateiOS 9.3 is now available for download and brings with it, several new features. You get the Night Shift mode, TouchID for notes, more 3D Touch shortcuts for apps and a tonne of new improvements and bug fixes.

Now that it’s out, jailbreak teams are probably hard at work trying to release a tool to jailbreak iOS 9.3. We’ve already seen leaks and videos of hackers successfully jailbreaking iOS 9.3 betas. The last beta, is very similar to the public release, which means that a jailbreak is definitely possible.

Unfortunately, the hacker who managed to jailbreak the iOS 9.3 betas, will not be releasing any jailbreak to the public. Therefore, we will have to wait for teams such as Pangu or Taig to come up with a solution. Recently, Pangu released a jailbreak for iOS 9.1, but not many users are on that firmware.

Most people who want a jailbreak, are either on iOS 9.0 – 9.0.2 or are waiting for an iOS 9.2.1 jailbreak. We’re not sure if there will be an iOS 9.2.1 jailbreak anymore, now that iOS 9.3 is out. And there’s no way the jailbreak teams will wait till iOS 10 to release a new jailbreak.

It has been six months since the last jailbreak release, so it’s about time a new jailbreak is released. Hopefully, it’ll be for iOS 9.3 and happen soon. If you want a jailbreak, do not update to iOS 9.3.

Those who don’t want a jailbreak or can no longer wait, should update to iOS 9.3. Between iOS 9.0.2 and iOS 9.2.1, there haven’t been plenty of changes, except for security updates and minor bug fixes. With iOS 9.3, there are plenty of new features and improvements, therefore urging users to upgrade.

We have no idea when an iOS 9.3 jailbreak will be released, but it could happen as soon as 1-2 weeks. If there are any new updates, we will let you know

10 JAILBREAK MYTHS YOU DID NOT KNOW

Over the years, there have been lots of misconceptions about jailbreaking, the type of people that

 jailbreak, and the overall purpose of jailbreaking. What’s true, and what’s not? Does jailbreaking void your warranty? Is it hard to do? Is it even necessary nowadays?

In this post, I’ll break down and debunk 10 jailbreaking myths. I’ll show you why I still jailbreak, and why jailbreaking may be quite different than you perceived it to be.

Jailbreaking voids my warranty

Jailbreaking is not a permanent thing. If you need warranty service, simply use Cydia Impactor to unjailbreak before taking your iOS device in for service, or perform a system restore via iTunes. Apple cannot tell that you’ve previously jailbroken your iPhone if you perform a proper restore.

Jailbreaking slows down your iPhone significantly

Sure, you can install tons of jailbreak tweaks, and some can slow down your device. But, if you use good judgement about the type of tweaks you install and keep it to a reasonable amount, you shouldn’t see any major slowdowns. In fact, some tweaks are designed to speed up your iPhone.

Jailbreaking makes your iPhone less secure

This can be true if you don’t use good judgement, but jailbreaking can also make your device more secure. In the past, jailbreak developers have actually released fixes for existing bugs in Apple’s iOS software before Apple was able to do so. If you use sound judgement and stay away from shady third-party repos, piracy, questionable tweaks, and don’t open up your device unnecessarily by installing OpenSSH or AFC2, then you should be safe.

Jailbreaking is illegal

That’s simply not true.

Jailbreaking is for sketchy characters

To some, jailbreaking is something sketchy characters do dark alleys. That’s silly. I know all sorts of people who jailbreak. I know older people who jailbreak, moms who jailbreak, celebrities who jailbreak, musicians who jailbreak. I even heard that Justin Bieber was jailbroken at one time.

Jailbreaking is difficult

You can jailbreak your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch in less time than it takes to brew a cup of coffee. Trust me—it’s so easy that my mom could probably jailbreak her iPad with little to no issues.

Jailbreaking costs money

Jailbreaking your iOS device is free, and you should never pay for a jailbreak. 

Jailbreaking kills battery life

This can be true, but running an intense game non-stop can also kill battery life. It simply takes good judgement, and being picky about the type of tweaks that you install to maintain good battery life on a jailbroken device. Just because you’re jailbroken doesn’t mean that you automatically end up with bad battery life. In fact, some tweaks are designed to improve your battery life.

Jailbreaking is for piracy

That’s simply not true. While it is unfortunate that some take advantage of the ability to pirate media, which is easier to pull off with a jailbroken device, it’s definitely not the original reason that jailbreaking got started, and it’s definitely not the reason that many individuals jailbreak today. People pirate media when they’re not jailbroken. I know plenty of people that jailbreak because it allows them to customize their device, not because it enables piracy.

Jailbreaking is no longer necessary

Can you theme a stock iPhone? Can you have picture-in-picture mode on a stock iPhone? Can you drastically speed up iOS animations on a stock iPhone? Can you browse the native filesystem on a stock iPhone? Can you use a Wii U Pro Controller, or a Dual Shock controller with your games on a stock iPhone? Can you record your screenon a stock iPhone? Can you customize Control Center toggles on a stock iPhone? No? You can’t? Well then, jailbreaking is still very much necessary in my eyes.

Do you have any jailbreaking myths that you’d like to debunk as well? Which one on my list irritates you the most? Drop me a note in the comments and let me know, and please thumbs up the video so that others can see it as well

Proton is another take on a system-wide mini music player [jailbreak]

 

The jailbreak community is one place where we can almost always count on developers to create new ways to interact with music throughout the system-wide iOS experience. New tweaks are released all the time that let you control your music without even being in the Music app itself, and each tries to be better than the last.

A relatively new tweak release, Proton, is available in Cydia and offers some unique functionality of its own. We’ll show you what it’s all about inside this review.

Proton: a mini music player you can access anywhere

Proton is another alternative to opening Control Center to control your music and to find out more information about whatever it is you’re listening to. The tweak’s small icon hovers around any interface you’re in, whether it’s an app, or the Home screen.

We’ve seen plenty of tweaks that act similarly to this, however as each one has its own unique user interface and options to configure, no two tweaks of this nature are ever truly 100% alike.

Proton has two forms: one where the floating icon, about the size of a Home screen app icon, hovers around with nothing more than the album art of whatever it is you’re listening to (this iscalled Unsnapped mode), the other is a floating widget, about the size of four Home screen app icons, and this form has all of the following things built into it (this is called Snapped mode):

• Play and pause buttons
• Forward and backward buttons
• The name of the artist playing
• The name of the song playing
• The art of the album work as a background

You can toggle between Snapped and Unsnapped mode pretty easily by tapping and holding on the floating icon. Tapping on the icon in Unsnapped mode will pause or play the music.

Since the little floating icon can undoubtedly get in the way sometimes when you don’t want it to, you can easily tap and drag to move the icon anywhere on the screen where you might want it to be.

Even when that’s not enough, you’ll find that the tweak’s options will more than deal with this problem in a way suitable for you.

Configuring Proton

After you install Proton, you can immediately head over to the Settings app and start configuring the tweak via the new preferences pane to your liking.

The things you can do here include:

• Enabling or disabling the tweak on demand
• Viewing the gestures available in the tweak
• Choose how the Proton UI is colored based off of the album artwork
• Configuring a size for the Snapped “Proton” mode icon
• Have the interface hidden when no media is playing at all
• Have the interface automatically dismiss when not in use
• Choose the timeout period before Proton is hidden automatically
• Have the tweak look for updates automatically
• Reset all settings to factory defaults
• Without a doubt, one of the features I enabled immediately was the “Hide when not playing” option. This is because when I’m not listening to any music, I’d rather not have the interface in my face all the time, getting in the way of everything.

On the other hand, when I am listening to music, I seem not to mind it as much because the controls are at my fingertips immediately, no matter where in iOS I might be.

As far as the rest of the settings go, I recommend the default settings, although changing the style to Adaptive mode does add a touch of slightly sexy color matching, and that’s the only other setting I really changed:

Take note of the brown-colored base, which is different than the default shown at the start of this article. In adaptive mode, the music control buttons change between white or black, depending on the background it has to display over. Even the artist name and song title have the ability to change colors to adjust legibility.

My thoughts on Proton

Because I see so many tweaks always trying to compete to be the best music player for jailbroken devices, I initially thought to myself, “oh great… another one…”

After giving it a shot, however, it has managed to grow on me a little more. I probably wouldn’t use it on my daily driver, because I hate when things hover around on my screen when I’m trying to use my iPhone. Nevertheless, it is an option that’s out there for others who may feel differently than I do.

In terms of the price, which is set at $1.99, the feature set seems a little limited. In my opinion, this should be a $0.99 jailbreak tweak.

Conclusion

If you’re looking for something new to use while listening to your music, whether with Apple Music, Spotify, or another music service, Proton could offer a new kind of experience for you if you’re jailbroken. The tweak can be had from Cydia’s BigBoss repository for $1.99.

What are your thoughts on the idea behind Proton? Share in the comments below!

APPLE SEEDS 2nd DEVELOPER BETA'S FOR APPLE TV OS 9.2.2 AND MAC OS X 10.11.6 

AND BETA 2.2.2 FOR NEW APPLE WATCH

In addition to iOS, Apple also seeded new betas for watchOS, tvOS and OS X on Monday. The betas are available to registered developers, and can be installed via the Apple Watch app on iPhone, OTA in tvOS for those with the latest beta profile, and the update tab in the Mac App Store.

The software version numbers are watchOS 2.2.2, tvOS 9.2.2 and OS X 10.11.6, and from what we saw in the first betas, they’re not adding any significant new features. The 10.11.6 change log reads “improves the stability, compatibility, and security of your Mac,” and the others follow suit.

Keep in mind that we’re now just one week away from Apple’s World Wide Developers Conference, which is set to kick off June 13. The company has already sent out press invites to its keynote address, where it’s expected to introduce its vision for the future of its four software platforms.

BIOLOGY PSYCHATRIST COULD HELP YOU FIND WHETHER YOU ARE RESPONSIVE TO ANTIDEPRESSANTS

Scientists have developed a blood test that could identify which people with depression will respond to treatment so that patients can avoid spending months taking antidepressants

that do not help them.The experts involved believe the breakthrough could lead to depressed patients receiving personalised treatments that are more likely to relieve their symptoms. 

The Royal College of Psychiatrists said that, if it worked, the test could prove to be a key moment in the quest for the holy grail of biological psychiatry. 

The scientists at King’s College London behind the development claim that their test “accurately and reliably predicts whether depressed patients will respond to common antidepressants, which could herald a new era of personalised treatment for people with depression”.

If the test proves effective it is hoped that by measuring patients’ level of blood inflammation it would identify which of them would benefit from receiving antidepressants soon after their diagnosis to stop their condition worsening. 

 What does depression feel like? Trust me – you really don’t want to know

Tim Lott

 

Read more

About half of all patients with depression get no benefit from antidepressants the first time they take them and they never work for one in three people.

Currently it is impossible to establish who should or should not be given antidepressants, or combinations of them. That means that patients are tried on a succession of different drugs for 12 weeks or more and experience prolonged periods of ineffective treatment because their medication does not benefit them.

One in six Britons will suffer depression at some point in their life. Last year 61.5m prescriptions for antidepressants were issued in England.

Researchers focused on two independent clinical groups of depressed patients on two biological markers that measure inflammation of the blood, as heightened levels are associated with poor response to antidepressants. They found that blood test results above certain levels reliably predicted how well patients would respond to commonly prescribed antidepressants. Their findings have been reported in the International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology.

“The identification of biomarkers that predict treatment response is crucial in reducing the social and economic burden of depression and improving quality of life for patients,” said Prof Carmine Pariante from KCL’s institute of psychiatry, psychology and neuroscience. 

“This study provides a clinically suitable approach for personalising antidepressants therapy. Patients who have blood inflammation above a certain threshold could be directed towards earlier access to more assertive antidepressant strategies, including the addition of other antidepressants or anti-inflammatory drugs,” Pariante added.

Dr  Cosmo Hallstrom, a spokesman for the Royal College of Psychiatrists, said: “Finding biological markers for depression (and other mental illnesses) has been the holy grail of biological psychiatry.

“Such a finding and a test to back it up would be critical to advancing our understanding of the biological causes of depression. It would accelerate our therapeutic interventions and make them more tailored to the needs of the patient.”

The stories you need to read, in one handy email

 

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But further clinical research is needed to see if the findings can be applied in a clinical setting, Hallstrom added. 

Stephen Buckley, head of information at the mental health charity Mind, said: “We welcome research which adds to our understanding of treatments and medications that may work for people experiencing mental health problems. These initial findings are interesting, but, as with all areas of mental health, there is still more research to be done.” 

Mental health problems, including depression, are estimated to cost £105bn a year in England. The World Health Organisation has predicted that by 2020 depression will be the second biggest cause of health problems in the world.