How Apple overcame its culture of secrecy to create AirPods Pro • Hacker News Board

Re: How Apple overcame its culture of secrecy to create AirPods Pro

#131

Post by kevinday » Sun, May 08, 2022, 3:26 PM UTC

EdwardDiego wrote: post #93

nicoburns wrote: post #90

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why not just install a newer version of bash? It’s trivial to do so with homebrew. I’m sure your team has other dependencies that must be installed in order to run your software.

Because a shell script is supposed to be a lowest common denominator. Run this, and it'll ensure you have Maven, it'll ensure you have Java 11+, then it'll build the thing and run the thing. And now I'm needing to sniff your OS, detect whether or not Homebrew is installed, install it if not, then install Bash >3, then run the actual meat of the script. All because of Apple's lawyers being scared of GPLv3. At this poi…

Bash really isn't a standard outside of most Linux distributions, you're going to find the same issue anywhere that isn't Linux.

OpenBSD uses pdksh, Busybox/NetBSD/Minix use ash, there are some linux distros that use zsh, OpenSolaris is ksh, etc.

Re: How Apple overcame its culture of secrecy to create AirPods Pro

#132

Post by jlarocco » Sun, May 08, 2022, 3:32 PM UTC

urthor wrote: post #24

skuhn wrote: post #21

I worked at Apple relatively briefly, in a lead role on an Important Project that required its own form to be disclosed on it (besides the general agreement you sign to begin employment). A truly toxic work environment that I couldn't get out of fast enough once I shipped the project. All kinds of projects at Apple have their own disclosure forms, and you are only given one to sign if it's deemed necessary to your wo…

Keep in mind this attitude makes total sense to hardware engineers. The hardware business is... Let's just say that the difficulties you face definitely exist for hardware engineers. But, difficulties involving negotiations plus recalcitrant South Korean factory owners are WORSE. In "South Korean factory owner negotiations," secrecy is paramount. Particularly if said South Korean factory owner is the biggest supplier…

> The software is only good because Mac fans join the company and slave hard enough to make it that way.

The software hasn't been good for years now.

Re: How Apple overcame its culture of secrecy to create AirPods Pro

#133

Post by birdyrooster » Sun, May 08, 2022, 3:33 PM UTC

skuhn wrote: post #21

I worked at Apple relatively briefly, in a lead role on an Important Project that required its own form to be disclosed on it (besides the general agreement you sign to begin employment). A truly toxic work environment that I couldn't get out of fast enough once I shipped the project. All kinds of projects at Apple have their own disclosure forms, and you are only given one to sign if it's deemed necessary to your wo…

I’m disclosed on many many projects at the fruit company and I don’t think there is any prestigiousness. What happened to you is super super rare and that’s what makes it entertaining to read about.

Re: How Apple overcame its culture of secrecy to create AirPods Pro

#134

Post by raverbashing » Sun, May 08, 2022, 3:39 PM UTC

skuhn wrote: post #21

I worked at Apple relatively briefly, in a lead role on an Important Project that required its own form to be disclosed on it (besides the general agreement you sign to begin employment). A truly toxic work environment that I couldn't get out of fast enough once I shipped the project. All kinds of projects at Apple have their own disclosure forms, and you are only given one to sign if it's deemed necessary to your wo…

It's ironic when they talk about "office collaboration" and "bumping into colleagues" but in reality you can't even talk about what you're doing to most (internal) people

Re: How Apple overcame its culture of secrecy to create AirPods Pro

#135

Post by tintedfireglass » Sun, May 08, 2022, 3:50 PM UTC

uuyi wrote: post #79

tintedfireglass wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We had Bluetooth earpods in the early 2010s used by a lot of people. What's innovative in releasing the same product but for two ears something revolutionary. Capacitive touch is revolutionary, a Bluetooth earpiece is not

One that actually works properly and doesn’t sound like ass is revolutionary. That’s where apple win.

I feel it's a "good product" not a "revolutionary" one

Re: How Apple overcame its culture of secrecy to create AirPods Pro

#136

Post by JKCalhoun » Sun, May 08, 2022, 3:56 PM UTC

birdyrooster wrote: post #133

skuhn wrote: post #21

I worked at Apple relatively briefly, in a lead role on an Important Project that required its own form to be disclosed on it (besides the general agreement you sign to begin employment). A truly toxic work environment that I couldn't get out of fast enough once I shipped the project. All kinds of projects at Apple have their own disclosure forms, and you are only given one to sign if it's deemed necessary to your wo…

I’m disclosed on many many projects at the fruit company and I don’t think there is any prestigiousness. What happened to you is super super rare and that’s what makes it entertaining to read about.

I'm not sure. There was a time certainly, when Jobs was alive, where the big bonuses and options grants went to the "disclosure circle".

Re: How Apple overcame its culture of secrecy to create AirPods Pro

#137

Post by closedloop129 » Sun, May 08, 2022, 4:00 PM UTC

birdyrooster wrote: post #133

skuhn wrote: post #21

I worked at Apple relatively briefly, in a lead role on an Important Project that required its own form to be disclosed on it (besides the general agreement you sign to begin employment). A truly toxic work environment that I couldn't get out of fast enough once I shipped the project. All kinds of projects at Apple have their own disclosure forms, and you are only given one to sign if it's deemed necessary to your wo…

I’m disclosed on many many projects at the fruit company and I don’t think there is any prestigiousness. What happened to you is super super rare and that’s what makes it entertaining to read about.

To me as an outsider, this sounds like the Apple pendent to white privilege. I don't really want to doubt your experience but how do you know that there is no prestigiousness when you seem to be in a position with an abundance of disclosures?

Re: How Apple overcame its culture of secrecy to create AirPods Pro

#138

Post by birdyrooster » Sun, May 08, 2022, 4:07 PM UTC

closedloop129 wrote: post #137

birdyrooster wrote: post #133

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m disclosed on many many projects at the fruit company and I don’t think there is any prestigiousness. What happened to you is super super rare and that’s what makes it entertaining to read about.

To me as an outsider, this sounds like the Apple pendent to white privilege. I don't really want to doubt your experience but how do you know that there is no prestigiousness when you seem to be in a position with an abundance of disclosures?

Maybe there is this prestige somewhere in Apple, like the people who work at Apple Park are isolated from the rest of us, but I am such a pleb that I never got the memo. Almost everyone has to be disclosed on stuff to work at all.

Re: How Apple overcame its culture of secrecy to create AirPods Pro

#139

Post by gkop » Sun, May 08, 2022, 4:13 PM UTC

ip26 wrote: post #122

zebnyc wrote: post #62

My conversatons with my brother who works at Apple goes something like this. Me: "What are you working on?" Him: "All I can tell you is that I am working on a project which will launch later this year and you hear about it in the news."

Is that supposed to be surprising? I don’t tell people about unannounced projects I work on either.

There’s a middle ground. We make fun of “stealth mode” start ups and non-technical idea people demanding an NDA for a coffee chat, we should pick on the big companies too, when they take themselves too seriously (Eg. non-Apple companies copying Apple’s way of working, without recognizing what works for Apple is unique, it’s got an outlier track record over its 46 years).

And, maybe you’re not as close with your brother as grandparent. Some siblings are very close.

Re: How Apple overcame its culture of secrecy to create AirPods Pro

#140

Post by ohyoutravel » Sun, May 08, 2022, 4:20 PM UTC

lapcat wrote: post #118

urthor wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Keep in mind this attitude makes total sense to hardware engineers. The hardware business is... Let's just say that the difficulties you face definitely exist for hardware engineers. But, difficulties involving negotiations plus recalcitrant South Korean factory owners are WORSE. In "South Korean factory owner negotiations," secrecy is paramount. Particularly if said South Korean factory owner is the biggest supplier…

> Apple's CEO, COO and "head of services" all have degrees from Duke University Why do you mention this? Duke awards thousands of degrees every year. It's a highly ranked university, but the number of people in the world with degrees from highly ranked universities is massive. It's not rare.

The chances of the top three (four?) executives at any given giant multinational company all holding degrees from the same institution is pretty small. I don’t think there is an intent to malign Duke, but it is noteworthy.