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Apple's Software Quality Crisis

eliseomartelli.it

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Re: Apple's Software Quality Crisis

#961

Post by consteval »

dsego wrote: post #279
legitster wrote: post #202

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can I ask what the fascination with the Apple trackpad is? My other daily driver is a Thinkpad and I actually vastly prefer using the smaller one on it. You're not flinging your wrist across the zipcode and the clicks are more tactile.

It was the first good trackpad that supported gestures that are now common, things like two finger swipe to scroll (inertial scrolling was huge), pinching, two-finger for right click. I still see people using windows laptops with a mouse plugged in because in general windows laptops have touchpads that suck, and it was way more common a decade ago. Innovation in the windows laptop space was adding unusable gimmicks l…

To be fair, I use a mouse on a MacBook. Because even the best trackpad is still more cumbersome, painful, and inaccurate than a mouse.

Re: Apple's Software Quality Crisis

#962

Post by BeFlatXIII »

yalok wrote: post #685

This has been going on for years. I used to do a lot of iOS development, and have an eye for bugs. Almost every Apple app/service has been regressing in quality. Take basic functionality - a phone app (calling). After certain audio sessions use (calling via WhatsApp) I can’t make regular calls over cellular - the UI app immediately cancels the call. Only reboot helps. Or notes - for many years/iOS versions, they live…

Same feeling about Mac OS. What am I going to do? Move to Windows? I suppose I could install Gentoo or read the entire Arch wiki. However, I am no longer an unemployed 23-year-old. Don't have the time or care to bother with recreational sysadminning.

Re: Apple's Software Quality Crisis

#963

Post by BeFlatXIII »

whstl wrote: post #728
latexr wrote: post #700

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Sometimes I’m so frustrated, and thinking of my options - it’s either move to Android, or go get hired at Apple with a mandate to fix bugs in various products… Those aren’t options, they’re fantasies. Like dreaming of suing out of existence a company that wronged you, or fixing the world by ruling it, or winning the lottery without playing. Android isn’t perfect either, it’s a different set of frustrations. And why…

While I agree that it's Tim Cook's responsibility to set the course and influence the culture, I doubt a new CEO will be able to so. I'm not saying nobody can be like Steve Jobs, but Steve Jobs was an anomaly when it comes to C-Levels, and even when it comes to management in general, at least from reading things like www.folkore.org and interviews with people who worked with him. And I'm not even talking about talent…

Steve Jobs wasn't an anomaly because he was Steve Jobs; he was the anomaly because he was the founder and CEO. Founder C-suites can foundationally get away with actual innovation in a way that the board refuses to permit for their successors.

Re: Apple's Software Quality Crisis

#964

Post by gblargg »

echoangle wrote: post #639
ThePowerOfFuet wrote: post #630

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is true, but still smacks of victim-blaming.

Oh, I am not saying that apple should be able to brick your device if you log in with a throwaway account, I was just wondering why one would bother doing it.

I assumed it needed to be logged in to an account to do the update and install apps (like how Google requires a login to open the Play Store).

Re: Apple's Software Quality Crisis

#966

Post by CuriousRose »

zombiwoof wrote: post #385

I worked at Apple. I was literally driven out of town due to my constructive criticism of how terrible our software and processes were. There was zero focus on quality and maintainability. ( I worked at Google and Netflix).

I'd really love to hear more about your experience, what were the major issues with process and how would you fix them? I'm running a startup as a software dev looking to have a fast polished product with the Apple-esque perception of the past, but need to know what to avoid doing. Any good resources on running a software company implementing a focus on quality as part of the process that doesn't limit growth?

Re: Apple's Software Quality Crisis

#967

Post by sureIy »

Cupprum wrote: post #879
sureIy wrote: post #785

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Man every time I read someone complaining about the new photos app it feels like they never even tried looking for a solution. "It changed, so it's broken." 1. Open shared album 2. Tap "Sort" button in the bottom left corner 3. Select "Sort by oldest first" I don't know if they could have done it any simpler than this.

Yes i do that :) but now i also need to tell that to my family constantly. Its not like you need to change it once, you need to change it for every single album

Two taps per album. Absolute downgrade. 1-star.

The reality is that the new default order does make sense for albums you keep adding to.

- I added photos to the album

- Where? I don't see them

- idk, scroll somewhere in the middle, they're from 2019 and 2023

Re: Apple's Software Quality Crisis

#968

Post by MarcelOlsz »

ryandrake wrote: post #944
MarcelOlsz wrote: post #922

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My favourite one is getting voicemail spam with no records in my call log for a number to block. Lovely.

Spam callers rotate the fake numbers they use for Caller ID, so blocking individual numbers doesn't work.

I'm cooked then.

Re: Apple's Software Quality Crisis

#969

Post by reddalo »

mschnell wrote: post #687
reddalo wrote: post #256

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Oh, I envy you, I have the exact opposite problem. Sometimes new icons start stacking up one over the other on the top right corner. If you try moving one of the icons anywhere, it snaps back to the top right corner right away. I haven't found a fix. The only fix is moving the icons away from the Desktop into another folder using a Finder window.

That is actually a feature called ‚Stacks‘. Open the context menu on your desktop and de-select ‚use stacks‘.

No, I know stacks and they're not them. In my case, new icons (e.g. downloads, files that I save, etc.) appear on top of each other, as if the desktop lost track of their position. It's clearly a bug that hasn't been fixed in a long time.

Re: Apple's Software Quality Crisis

#970

Post by lenkite »

flohofwoe wrote: post #68

Here's my personal canary in the coal mine that something must be fundamentally broken in Apple's software development process: - on a recent macOS version, right click on the desktop, select 'change wallpaper' => the new settings panel opens - click on 'Custom Color' - now hold and drag around the 'color cursor' in the color selection circle for a few seconds - stop dragging and notice how the color cursor continues…

My deep-seated guess is that the switch from a simple language like Objective-C to the complex Swift language with its humongous compile times has caused developer productivity to be broken. No time to fix bugs, no time to refactor, no time to re-iterate on improving features because time is all taken up by compilation and grokking complexity.
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