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Apple Hides Taiwan Flag in Hong Kong

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Re: Apple Hides Taiwan Flag in Hong Kong

#111

Post by thrwn_frthr_awy »

paxys wrote: post #55
tinus_hn wrote: post #12

In other news, when you were able to visit Google Maps in China you would see the Chinese view of the world where disputed regions are part of China, while the rest of the world would see something else. https://qz.com/224821/see-how-borders-change-on-google-maps-...

This is true for every country in the world. Google Maps in the US displays borders/countries which the US government recognizes.

China is the only country in the world that requires Google Maps servers to be ran on Chinese government data centers by non-Google employees.

Re: Apple Hides Taiwan Flag in Hong Kong

#112

Post by diminoten »

thrwn_frthr_awy wrote: post #85
blotter_paper wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As if the US hadn't sold their soul already? :/ I'm not trying to downplay the horrors of China, but let's not act like the US had clean hands before importing bulk electronics.

I'm not sure the average American benefited as directly to the atrocites of the past. The U.S. simply cannot change course without a serious alteration of the the ethos of the country.

Oh we definitely have, everyone benefitted massively from the "manifest destiny" attitude behind the many atrocities committed against the native Americans.

It's also not our fault, infar as we didn't literally pull any triggers. We're probably still complicit to some degree, however, by our general lack of support for reparation actions.

Re: Apple Hides Taiwan Flag in Hong Kong

#113

Post by dheera »

peterkelly wrote: post #40

This reminds me of the story about how the first release of Windows 95 was banned in India because 8 pixels of the map shown in the timezone selection control panel were colored in such a way that suggested parts of Kashmir were part of Pakistan. https://www.cnet.com/news/how-eight-pixels-cost-microsoft-mi... https://devblogs.microsoft.com/oldnewthing/20030822-00/?p=42...

I wonder what would have happened if Microsoft just didn't listen to them. If they ban Windows over a petty reason like that, they're screwing over their own economy.

Re: Apple Hides Taiwan Flag in Hong Kong

#114

Post by 7u5432throw »

johnzim wrote: post #10
georgeecollins wrote: post #8

I don't know if things are different now, but when I went to school in HK a long time ago, most Chinese people in Hong Kong I talked to felt Taiwan should be part of China.

1 Country 2 Systems has been shown to be a scam so things have changed. I can't speak for people of my generation but the kids are alright.

Macau is doing fine.

Re: Apple Hides Taiwan Flag in Hong Kong

#115

Post by RandallBrown »

pradn wrote: post #72
behnamoh wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Man that's crazy! They must've paid real close attention to it, but I think it's partly due to low resolution screens available in circa 1995. On a low-res screen, it's impossible to draw maps completely according to the borders, so this was probably inevitable and unintentional.

Inside Microsoft, there's a whole database of geopolitically-sensitive issues that have been accrued over the years. You can see all sorts of border disputes and differences in language that you had to take into account when working on global products. On a related note, now you have movies with different scenes in China. https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/the_extra_looper_scenes_y https://kotaku.com/why-many-in-china-hat…

During my time at Microsoft I submitted a code review with an updated mapping library we got from a 3rd party. The auto review bot flagged the the changes with a "Geopolitical Issue" or something like that. Turned out it was an icon for Taiwan's flag.

I don't remember if we deleted the icon or just renamed it, but the product never ended up shipping, so it probably doesn't matter much.

Re: Apple Hides Taiwan Flag in Hong Kong

#116

Post by diminoten »

duxup wrote: post #19
degenerate wrote: post #6

The degree that China goes to censor things reminds me of kindergarten. Pull the shades down, and kids won't want to go outside? Is it simply a reminder to their people of who's in charge, at this level of pettiness?

I think it is petty. At the same time it's a good gauge for them to figure out what else they can do. Start with "hey man don't show that one pic" and the company figures "it's one pic, whatever we're not really compromising our values". A few more steps and then it seems less dramatic when it comes to "give us that information on that one user"... and so on. Personally I would expect an external social credit score…

This is a fallacy, stop with this kind of logic. At whatever point where the requests become unreasonable is the point at which to raise issue, not because of some arbitrary "precedent setting" bullshit.

The frog, in reality, just jumps out of the pot when the water gets too hot.

Re: Apple Hides Taiwan Flag in Hong Kong

#117

Post by yabadabadoes »

thrwn_frthr_awy wrote: post #85
blotter_paper wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As if the US hadn't sold their soul already? :/ I'm not trying to downplay the horrors of China, but let's not act like the US had clean hands before importing bulk electronics.

I'm not sure the average American benefited as directly to the atrocites of the past. The U.S. simply cannot change course without a serious alteration of the the ethos of the country.

The average American benefited a great deal from violence toward South America in exactly the same way.

For the partisans: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banana_republic (ever noticed that bananas are the cheapest fruit?)

Re: Apple Hides Taiwan Flag in Hong Kong

#118

Post by thefringthing »

dheera wrote: post #102
unethical_ban wrote: post #89

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I disagree. You may see "contested" borders, but not outright US policy. For example, the US recognizes the sovereignty of Kosovo, but Google Maps shows it as a dotted border. And Wikipedia accurately describes it as a disputed state.

Recognition of one side or another in a foreign dispute is a little different than having your own dispute or claim. Guantanamo Bay (disputed between US/Cuba) used to be marked as US territory in Google Maps at least when viewed from the US, although interestingly, I'm looking at it now it doesn't say Cuba / United States along the border anymore. I can't imagine the amount of crap they must go through on the backend…

There is no dispute about what country Guantanamo Bay is part of: both the US and Cuba agree it is part of Cuba.

The dispute is about whether the lease agreement which allowed the US to use that territory as a naval base is still in force. Early after the Cuban Revolution, one of the US's regular rent cheques was mistakenly cashed, and the US claims this is recognition on the part of Cuba that the lease remains valid.

Re: Apple Hides Taiwan Flag in Hong Kong

#120

Post by [deleted] »

thrwn_frthr_awy wrote: post #111
paxys wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is true for every country in the world. Google Maps in the US displays borders/countries which the US government recognizes.

China is the only country in the world that requires Google Maps servers to be ran on Chinese government data centers by non-Google employees.

[deleted]
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