

Apple Apologizes for Misstep on Maps - brackin
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/29/technology/apple-apologizes-for-misstep-on-maps.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all#222

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oofabz
The original iPhone Maps app was only a client. It relied on Google's servers
for its data, which already had years of polishing.

The iOS 6 Maps app is an excellent client. Its only problem is with the data
it fetches from Apple. Their maps data is very new and rather less polished.

It is silly to compare the two. Building a worldwide database of map data is
orders of magnitude more difficult than writing an iPhone app.

Edit: This comment was a response to OP's headline, which was "Apple built
original Maps app in three weeks". He has since changed the headline.

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muppetman
The problem is, my mum doesn't know that. She just knows she had maps that
worked well, now has maps that don't work very well. And there's evidently
enough people comparing the two that the Apple CEO has had to write a public
apology.

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nilium
I like Apple's response, but I don't think we need to be reminded of it with
every new article repeating their message (or in this case, not even bothering
to share the message). It was nice seeing the link to Apple's site here the
first time. The TechCrunch link didn't really contribute anything, though
that's typical of TechCrunch. Far as I can tell, the only thing the NYT does
here is summarize what led up to it and relate it to MobileMe and so on.

They also refer to Tim Cook as "Timothy D. Cook, Apple’s chief executive,"
which honestly baffles me for some reason. I suppose it's just strange seeing
an article not refer to him as just Tim Cook (which is what everyone else
would use, including Apple). They also seem unable to spell "iPhone" correctly
when it begins an article.

At any rate, I think the Apple's own page is sufficient unless something
unique is added, and I just don't get the impression that the NYT is doing
that. If anything, they're actually ignoring aspects of the message: there's
no mention of the alternatives Apple suggested, including Bing. I personally
found that interesting, and to ignore it seems a little strange.

~~~
jfarmer
They write it that way to conform to their style guidelines, the NYTimes
Manual of Style and Usage. Most style guidelines (Chicago, AMA, AP, etc.) have
similar styles.

~~~
nilium
Oh, I'm aware, it's just strange to see his name as anything other than "Tim
Cook." One would think exceptions should be made to style guidelines to ensure
the reader doesn't pause and think, "that's just weird." Strict adherence to
style guidelines doesn't always produce the best results.

