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Scott Forstall Reportedly Forced Out of Apple
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Because most the people on here seem to think they know how to create an OS and iPhone iPad and mac better than apple.
Thank you for clarifying this point. I have no problem with an employee wanting to go out on their own and starting their own company. I have an employee who did just that and he has been quite successful. That said, he didn't take my customer database with him. It appears that provision is still intact and that's good!
Steve Jobs is gone but life continues. Jobs probably protected Forstall and saw in him a talent that he needed at the time - to develop iOS. The operating system is in a state where they probably can afford to lose Forstall, and management came to the conclusion that the company would be better off without him. I've complained the last few years that iOS appears to be standing still while Android is adding some wonderful features and allowing customization that a lot of iOS users also want. If firing Forstall leads to the elimination of the boring and non-functional "app grid" screen layout, I will be a happy camper.
These executive changes and distribution of duties to other executives appears to be an excellent decision. Having Ive handle UI makes total sense. I believe Forstalls ouster has been in the works for a while. The promotion of Federighi and Cue to SVP roles a few weeks ago was a calculated move and was done in anticipation of Forstall's departure.
I think we are going to see a lot of good things coming for iOS now that Forstall is gone. I'm also glad Apple made this announcement at a time when the stock market is closed for two days. By the time the markets open, it won't seem like such a big deal. Brilliant maneuver.
It's a bit like football. Sometimes you get a manager that takes a team through a couple of divisions, becomes a hero, is lauded as a great. Then, in attempt to reach the very top, results go badly, resources are thrown at the problem, but there's a slump. The manager is sacked because he's run out of ideas, his previous battles now irrelevant.
What was Forstall bringing to the party now? Maps so bad Tim Cook thinks you'd be better off putting a link to Nokia Maps on your phone? Siri, which is no more than a gimmick without weight. Cheesy graphics in place of killer features.
Sigh
As 'flawed' as Apple Maps seems to be, it does do the job. We were 450-500 miles from home when my friends iPad-dongle-based GPS overheated and shut down.
We used my iPhone5 to get the rest of the way home and it did a bang up job.
I used it this morning to get to one of our new offices I've not been to and it did just fine.
Sometimes guys get to take the fall, especially if they have difficult personalities.
As 'flawed' as Apple Maps seems to be, it does do the job. We were 450-500 miles from home when my friends iPad-dongle-based GPS overheated and shut down.
We used my iPhone5 to get the rest of the way home and it did a bang up job.
I used it this morning to get to one of our new offices I've not been to and it did just fine.
Sometimes guys get to take the fall, especially if they have difficult personalities.
It's horrifying that there are only two companies making profit from selling smartphones.
Smartphones are the biggest growth area of personal computing and electronics right now. All around the world people in emerging economies are buying smartphones - skipping desktops and laptops and going right to mobile web devices for their data consumption and internet useage - and yet, with all these customers and all this money, only Apple and Samsung are making a profit...
This is genuinely worrying. I want a healthy, competitive market for smartphones. I love smartphones and tablets. I find them to be the most interesting area of personal electronic, and we can see with the offerings from Nokia and HTC that there are plenty of ways you can innovate in smartphone design, yet nobody is making any money other than the two big players. This is very, very bad news.
Not that you were responding to me, but the point made was "It was plain, non-cluttered, and matched the hardware very well." Were you begging to differ by showing pictures that prove the point? Yes, there's a difference... for the worse.
The top one matches the hardware thanks to the black, clean background. Since the hardware is also black it makes the icons pop, like they were sitting on the glass. Plus, it's non-cluttered. These wallpapers on the other hand, especially bright ones like this one with water ripples, often make the whole UI look like puke that came out of Microsoft or something. Dark, muted ones with unobtrusive texture are OK. The first thing I do when I get a new iOS device is to replace the wallpaper with a dark grey or black one. The first thing I do with a new Mac is to banish the glass dock in favor of the black 2D one where you can clearly see which apps are running, and then I switch to a dark grey or black wallpaper without stupid galaxies involved.
If Jony Ive were to throw out the hideous wallpapers that come with iOS, clearly selected by the same 8-year old girl who selected the wallpapers that typically ship with Windows, he definitely has my blessing to go ahead and make the rest of iOS tasteful.
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Well, non compete agreements are essentially unenforceable in California - where you reside. They sound good but are pretty worthless.
Does this mean no iTunes refresh?
Speculation glasses on. Perhaps this is a tell from Apple that they want to shift away from OSX-NeXT underpinnings, and have another OS in mind for mobile in the not so distant future. Or at least thinking about moving on it with a skunkworks team on an alternative new OS. Just a thought.
Speculation glasses on. Perhaps this is a tell from Apple that they want to shift away from OSX-NeXT underpinnings, and have another OS in mind for mobile in the not so distant future. Or at least thinking about moving on it with a skunkworks team on an alternative new OS. Just a thought.
Well, on the OS X side they're rapidly running out of big cats and point release numbers. Once 10.9 "Bobcat", "Lynx", "Ocelot", err... yeah, once that's out the door it's time for XI (sharks?). The timing of appointing Ive new head of the human interfaces teams opens the possibility for him to shape the look & feel of the next Mac OS generation.
Ha ha, well everybody has their own tastes. The main reason I never bought the original iPhone was because there was no wallpaper option. I absolutely hate looking at a black background. In fact I refuse to. So while you may be happy with going back to 'no option' I'm sure many more people wouldn't.
See, that's the real issue - choice. Some people like having choices rather than what is simply spoon-fed to them. And that is probably one of the main reasons Android has been a success.
I love choices. Whether I make the right one or the wrong one they do make life interesting.
People keep saying that but it is not true.
You can keep looking at Wikipedia all you want.
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No, no, and no again.
Is this really a good thing? I guess we will see. But are the Macbooks really that sexy? I am not sure. I have seen some Sony computers that if it was not because of their OS i would have consider instead of my MBPR.
But like I said... we will see. This is one of those things that time will really tell.
And just because Ive has a british accent doesnt make him a genious.
I didn't say they should force the black bg upon everyone, I said that ugly wallpapers aren't an improvement, aesthetically speaking.
Choice is good up to a point... from that point on it's mostly a source of headaches. Read "The Paradox of Choice: Why More Is Less" by Barry Schwartz for more thoughts on the matter (see, I only gave you one book to choose from.
)Why?
I love how the fanboys talk without even having the least of the ideas on how this developed and what will be the impact.
He first said.... "Ive's take on iOS UI design could be interesting. Methinks it could possibly take a step back towards the design feel of the original" Just pointing out that the original UI & the current UI does not have much differences. Besides the extra row of icons, I don't see much of a difference at all. In reality, you can change the wallpaper to whatever you want. I just think different aspects of the UI need an overhaul starting with the grid of icons.
Jobs = Forstall in many ways. Both in brilliance and arrogance. And both have gotten the boot from Apple. Only difference is Forstall still has a job there for a year.
Which makes me think. Why would you give someone a job for a year if you are firing them? Makes no sense.
Which makes me think. Why would you give someone a job for a year if you are firing them? Makes no sense.
You're going a bit off-topic with this truisms. I guess the word "value" can have different meaning in different contexts.
That's what we can both agree on. However in my opinion the "value" you speak off is mostly marketing and loyal following/brand attachment, which I have mentioned at the beginning of our discussion. So we're back at square one.
Cook has symbolically fired Steve Jobs in the grave. Ive is not qualified beyond picking the copper paint on the 20th Annivesary Mac.
Please stop comparing Jobs to Forestall. Steve had his temper, but there was purpose to his decisions, whereas Forestall may have had poor judgement. Only because he's perceived as a jerk doesn't mean he had Job's holistic POV.
All jerks in corporations doesn't equal to a second Steve Jobs. Who knows, maybe he decided to change his character in a negative way thinking that he was more like Jobs.
Plus, it was Jobs who gave Jonny special privileges for a reason, unlike Forestall.
In light of the shakeup, Jonathan Ive is now taking over Apple's Human Interface teams. --.Thumbs up! Finally the apps might match the look of the hardware surrounding it! I never liked skeuomorphic features... seem like a case of early computer nostalgic...