http://tidbits.com/ After a week of non-stop criticism of the new Maps app in iOS 6, Apple CEO Tim Cook has posted a public apology on Apple’s Web site. Adam Engst examines the situation. en-us Copyright 2012 TidBITS Publishing Inc. Thu, 04 Oct 2012 00:00:00 EDT Thu, 04 Oct 2012 00:00:00 EDT editors@tidbits.com (TidBITS Editors) editors@tidbits.com (TidBITS Editors) http://tidbits.com/images/tb_logo_152x55.png http://tidbits.com/ 55 152 TidBITS badge http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15936 Thu, 04 Oct 2012 04:45:39 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15936 http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15920 Tue, 02 Oct 2012 14:47:57 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15920 http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15919 Tue, 02 Oct 2012 14:35:58 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15919
"Most of the problems revolve around the server side of the equation, and with over 100 million users searching for billions of locations per month, Apple will have unimaginable amounts of data with which to improve the mapping databases that underpin both the visual maps and directions."

How is the fact that I simply looked up an address going to help "improve" Apple's Maps app?]]> http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15918 Tue, 02 Oct 2012 14:22:24 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15918 http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15917 Tue, 02 Oct 2012 14:19:48 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15917
Plus, it sounds from what someone else said that Apple may be defaulting to TomTom's data most of the time, and perhaps Maps needs to put alternative sets of directions using different data in competition with each other - present them to different people and see which work better.]]> http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15916 Tue, 02 Oct 2012 14:02:50 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15916 http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15915 Tue, 02 Oct 2012 13:26:41 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15915
Maps on the other hand sucks even if you are the only user. So it is easier to make a decision yourself withou relying on others.]]> http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15912 Tue, 02 Oct 2012 12:10:37 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15912
As for those who lost saved positions in the old Maps app, all I can say is take it from one who has used a paper planner, Palm OS, and now iOS: never rely on app specific data. Save all your data in a format that will still be accessible even if the app you rely on eventually goes away, or at least in multiple different apps. If you have a special location you want to save, put the location data in an address book entry and export the vcard files to save in a safe location. etc]]> http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15908 Tue, 02 Oct 2012 11:00:16 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15908 http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15906 Tue, 02 Oct 2012 10:05:00 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15906 http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15902 Tue, 02 Oct 2012 03:32:26 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15902 http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15901 Tue, 02 Oct 2012 00:54:00 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15901 http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15895 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 10:22:33 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15895 http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15893 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 08:42:57 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15893 http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15885 Sun, 30 Sep 2012 20:47:53 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15885
Fast forward to the release of Maps on iOS, and all the errors in the OpenStreet maps are still there (roads going thru rivers without benefit of a bridge, etc.).

For what it's worth, the new app works fine. It's the data. Nearly every railway station in Japan has an icon in the correct location, and a second icon 1km up the road. The hospital across the road is a restaurant, etc.

The problem going forward is one of trusting the data in Maps. That trust may take years to return.]]> http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15883 Sun, 30 Sep 2012 17:00:50 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15883
http://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/fog0000000007.html

I just don't see that as the case here. I do think this was a difficult business decision that events made inevitable. Perhaps they should have been more honest about the flaws, but that doesn't seem to be the way they roll out any program or product.]]> http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15881 Sun, 30 Sep 2012 16:31:05 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15881 http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15870 Sat, 29 Sep 2012 21:31:23 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15870 http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15868 Sat, 29 Sep 2012 20:44:08 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15868 http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15859 Sat, 29 Sep 2012 13:32:53 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15859 http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15858 Sat, 29 Sep 2012 13:09:23 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15858
This is a recurring problem with all the map apps, they can't seem to tell the different between no traffic and a road closure.

PS. The media has named the road closure Carmageddon 2 (1 was an earlier weekend closure) for those not in the US or not watching the news. This seems to have gathered national attention.]]> http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15857 Sat, 29 Sep 2012 12:57:47 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15857
Really, the problem here is a disconnect between the people managing the product and the executives who needed it delivered. The folks who knew how bad the data (not the app) was must have reassure the people who needed both data and app to be superb that it was good enough.

I suspect we will hear about firings soon and new top-level map data people being installed (if any of that leaks out).]]> http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15855 Sat, 29 Sep 2012 12:16:56 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15855
I think this a very telling sign of how Apple is now run. When Steve was in charge, for all his faults, he could make the company stop and turn on a dime if something was wrong. Now it's just a big corporation like any other; no one is running it, no one can control it, its fate and behavior depend on thousands of issues and personality conflicts and habits and rules we can't see.]]> http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15853 Sat, 29 Sep 2012 02:44:39 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15853
What I find interesting is no one is talking about the fact that Google had a YouTube app ready on day one. From what I've heard the YouTube team was unhappy with the presentation of YouTube on iOS and that the features weren't at parity so they were pushing for Apple to remove the built in YouTube app so they could ship their own.

In the same way Google wanted to get additional mapping features (Google Latitude, etc) on iOS. When Apple said no to adding those features, they should've started working on their own iOS app...

IMHO, Apple was more than clear enough with Google: We're not going to implement the features you want, and we've been buying mapping companies. If Google can't read between those lines, Larry and Sergey need to have their glasses checked.]]> http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15852 Sat, 29 Sep 2012 01:45:49 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15852
Also, had Apple been straight with Google (even as a competitor!) and openly said "Fair warning, we'll be doing our own maps app with iOS 6, so now's the time to create a Google Maps app" that would have helped too. I think Google is lying if they claim to have been taken by surprise...but if Apple had been direct about this, no one would have to make excuses now.]]> http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15850 Fri, 28 Sep 2012 15:45:39 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15850 http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15849 Fri, 28 Sep 2012 15:30:22 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15849 In Google's case its Inav/Geosistemas SRL.
In Apple's case it's Tomtom.
Apple maps shows railway lines; Google's don't.
With both the street name usually has to be written exactly as in the respective map or you end in a very different place (in other words: I must know where the correct address is to get there). And, obviously, both use slightly different ways to write. So now I find I have to have two entries in my address book: one for Maps, another for Google]]> http://db.tidbits.com/article/13301?rss#comments_15848 Fri, 28 Sep 2012 15:15:18 EDT http://tidbits.com/article/13301#comments_15848