4 ms·

Apple will never be able to match Google in Maps. Here's why: Apple does not have any technical depth. I am a former Apple employee. Apple can't do technicall

by xxcode 14y ago

Apple will never be able to match Google in Maps. Here's why: Apple does not have any technical depth. I am a former Apple employee. Apple can't do technically hard problems that require a multi-person effort. Yes, Apple can and has done good Hardware. But hardware is not technically hard - its an art. Apple is good at Art. Google is good at science.

bigtones 14y ago
Wow - did you work at the Apple Store, because that comment is very short sighted. In terms of technical problems that require multi-person effort, OSX is a testament to that, as is Motion, Logic Pro and Compressor. All those are highly technical pieces of software that lead their respective markets. To say Apple can't "do" technically hard problems is extremely short sighted.
- walkon 14y ago
  OSX does not lead the market.
- berkut 14y ago
  lol! Motion's a joke - to say it leads its respective market is ridiculous - After Effects leads the motion graphics segment, and Nuke leads the compositing segment. The only highly technical app Apple has had that lead the market was Shake, and they completely fucked that one up (due to their secrecy and not telling their customers plans for future releases) and ended up killing the product after the majority of the Nothing Real team left and all their high-end customers had moved to Nuke.
wooster 14y ago
That's just your opinion. I'm ex-Apple, and disagree.
ceejayoz 14y ago
> Apple can't do technically hard problems that require a multi-person effort. Making UNIX accessible to the masses wasn't a technically hard problem that required a multi-person effort? How about Webkit?
- illicium 14y ago
  >WebKit Is originally a fork of KHTML and is an open-source effort that MANY companies contribute to.
- prodigal_erik 14y ago
  When you regress to an extremely short list of recent supported hardware and abandon features like package dependency management and high-performing remote display, shipping a BSD fork is no longer that hard.
dasil003 14y ago
To the contrary, Apple can deal fine with technical problems. Doing good hardware + software is extremely technical. You can't build an entire platform like iOS + OS X without massive technical expertise. The problem with maps is its irregularity and irreducible complexity. You can't reduce maps to their essence and create a great MVP—if you want Google-caliber maps you need tens of thousands of people on the ground and the bureaucracy to support them. Apple can get there (Apple Stores), but it's not an overnight thing.
- pedalpete 14y ago
  Though I agree with your sentiment, I don't think the apple stores is anywhere near the footprint they need on the ground . There aren't that many stores, and they are significantly focused on the US.

by xxcode 14y ago

bigtones 14y ago

Wow - did you work at the Apple Store, because that comment is very short sighted. In terms of technical problems that require multi-person effort, OSX is a testament to that, as is Motion, Logic Pro and Compressor. All those are highly technical pieces of software that lead their respective markets. To say Apple can't "do" technically hard problems is extremely short sighted.

walkon 14y ago
OSX does not lead the market.
berkut 14y ago
lol! Motion's a joke - to say it leads its respective market is ridiculous - After Effects leads the motion graphics segment, and Nuke leads the compositing segment. The only highly technical app Apple has had that lead the market was Shake, and they completely fucked that one up (due to their secrecy and not telling their customers plans for future releases) and ended up killing the product after the majority of the Nothing Real team left and all their high-end customers had moved to Nuke.

wooster 14y ago

That's just your opinion. I'm ex-Apple, and disagree.

ceejayoz 14y ago

> Apple can't do technically hard problems that require a multi-person effort. Making UNIX accessible to the masses wasn't a technically hard problem that required a multi-person effort? How about Webkit?

illicium 14y ago
>WebKit Is originally a fork of KHTML and is an open-source effort that MANY companies contribute to.
prodigal_erik 14y ago
When you regress to an extremely short list of recent supported hardware and abandon features like package dependency management and high-performing remote display, shipping a BSD fork is no longer that hard.

dasil003 14y ago

To the contrary, Apple can deal fine with technical problems. Doing good hardware + software is extremely technical. You can't build an entire platform like iOS + OS X without massive technical expertise. The problem with maps is its irregularity and irreducible complexity. You can't reduce maps to their essence and create a great MVP—if you want Google-caliber maps you need tens of thousands of people on the ground and the bureaucracy to support them. Apple can get there (Apple Stores), but it's not an overnight thing.

pedalpete 14y ago
Though I agree with your sentiment, I don't think the apple stores is anywhere near the footprint they need on the ground . There aren't that many stores, and they are significantly focused on the US.