Readit News logoReadit News
biogene commented on How the Mac didn’t bring programming to the people   eclecticlight.co/2023/09/... · Posted by u/mpweiher
karaterobot · 2 years ago
I think they did bring programming to the people by way of the app store. Maybe they didn't make it so your aged granny can write an automation script, but that more people than ever were inspired to learn programming. They made two languages and a proprietary hardware/software/distribution stack that brought a lot of people into the world of software development. I know so many people a generation younger than me who learned programming specifically to make apps for the app store. People who would probably not have gone into development but for the iPhone. I'm sure Apple did not intend to mint new programmers, they intended to sell hardware and make money on software, but the net effect is more programmers than ever as a result of their choices.
biogene · 2 years ago
That may be true, but the point was about empowering the end user. Making programing popular through the app store (arguable) is a separate (also important) topic.

Empowering the end user to not look at the computer as a black box that they have no idea about how it works is quite freeing and mind-expanding.

In the long term, I do believe there is a real risk for programming to become a niche where you end up asking for permission from the h/w vendor before you are allowed to write code on the device. We're slowly heading in that direction with app stores being bundled with the OS, and we may end up in a situation where you can only install s/w through the app store. And only "authorized" persons can download IDEs and dev tools. A large population that has no concept of programming is likely to not oppose this because the vendor will throw the security/privacy boogeyman at them, about "unauthorized" developers writing software that can harm them.

biogene commented on Google says it can’t fix Pixel Watches, please just buy a new one   arstechnica.com/gadgets/2... · Posted by u/duxup
turquoisevar · 2 years ago
The commenter said “Shit action is Ok, but boy that other company is worse” and that just doesn’t compute for me.

> Apple opposing and derailing right to repair legislation

I guess you didn’t hear the latest news[0]?

> they're increasingly serializing parts

A pedantic minor correction: they haven’t so much increased it as people have started noticing stuff that had been serialized prior

> such that perfectly working components from 2 brand new Apple devices can't be swapped between them

They can be swapped, the device doesn’t block it outright or refuses to boot (with the exception of biometrics).

The problem is that some of the calibration and configuration is component specific, so in certain cases a replacement has unintended consequences, which, because it’s Apple, gets explained a purposeful attempt by Apple to break non-authorized repairs.

Personally to me this is rather hilarious notion because Apple isn’t known to be shy about being explicit in their messaging, case in point would be the messaging when replacing a battery.

The simple fact of the matter is that calibration is simply part of the repair and if not done, the repair isn’t done properly.

It’s the same as replacing your tires without aligning them and then blaming the car manufacturer for all the vibrations you feel during your rides.

Just about now the conversation then shifts to who gets access to calibration tools.

Currently Apple, Apple Authorized Service Providers, independent repair shops that are part of the free Independent Repair Provider Program and customers using the Self Service Repair service have access to these tools.

That covers pretty much all scenarios, with the exception being cowboys that want to go at it alone because they don’t want to subject their skills to any form of scrutiny.

I think it stands to reason that they then use their unimpeachable skills to transfer the control chip that holds the calibration data.

0: https://www.theverge.com/2023/8/23/23843506/apple-california...

biogene · 2 years ago
>The commenter said “Shit action is Ok, but boy that other company is worse” and that just doesn’t compute for me.

If you're using quotes, you should be quoting something I actually said, rather than making stuff up. Don't worry, I'll tell you exactly what I think, so you don't have to do that.

biogene commented on Google says it can’t fix Pixel Watches, please just buy a new one   arstechnica.com/gadgets/2... · Posted by u/duxup
turquoisevar · 2 years ago
> Apple is well known for forcing customers to swap expensive internal components (instead of repairing them) and contributing to greater e-waste.

I’ll do you one better, they often swap out the entire device.

The customer doesn’t have to wait for a repair and can walk out with a working device, the defective device meanwhile is send off to one of their repair centers for further assessment.

I don’t know if this contributes to more e-waste because I don’t know the percentage of devices repaired, stripped for parts to be reused and stripped for parts to be recycled.

What I do know is that they heavily invest recovery of parts and other environmental focused processes and that they make extensive information on it available[0] just so they can brag about for 20 seconds during their keynotes. It seems unlikely to me that, despite this, they secretly bury a bunch of e-waste in their backyard (so to say).

> They force suppliers to not sell parts to independent repair stores. It sounds like you're not very familiar with it, so I won't blame ya.

They have no issues providing parts to independent repair stores, provided they’re part of the Independent Repair Provider Program[1]. The main requirement of which is that the technicians get certified, certification fees are waived and there’s no fee to join the program.

I can hardly blame them for wanting to make sure the parts end up in skillful hands if the repair is going to be advertised as done with genuine Apple parts, because the customer will sooner blame Apple than know to blame a shoddy technician.

> I have the option of not taking my car to the dealership and instead doing simple stuff like oil changes myself

Have at it, go change that oil[2].

> or taking it to a mechanic I trust. I'd like the same option for my electronics.

And you have. Like with cars you can go to a mechanic you trust that can’t get their hands on OEM parts and will use imitation parts or you can go to a mechanic you trust that does have access to OEM parts.

With cars it’s actually a bit more complicated because it depends on the car make, model, the part in question, the region you’re in and some other factors.

But without devolving into a new tangent, you have those same options.

0: https://www.apple.com/environment/

1: https://support.apple.com/irp-program

2: https://support.apple.com/self-service-repair

biogene · 2 years ago
I'm talking about component level repair, not recycle. Apple doesn't offer that service, and has never offered that service. They tell the customer to replace entire motherboards (costly + wasteful) which is so costly that its often cheaper to just buy a new device. Repairing a product by replacing a part that costs 50 cents is a lot better than extracting rare earth elements from the planet all over again. This isn't about forcing Apple to repair stuff, I just want them to get out of the way. Also, I don't mean to single out Apple, they're just a popular target, many companies have the same anti-repair policies.
biogene commented on Apple Tech Support Staff Urged to Stay Mum on iPhone 12 Radiation Issue   bloomberg.com/news/articl... · Posted by u/oatmeal1
flangola7 · 2 years ago
I find that answering a question with a question often results in better understanding and insightfulness by the pupil than just spoon-feeding it to them. Every good parent and professor will be familiar with this technique.
biogene · 2 years ago
Thanks, but I want my beliefs to be based on more truths and fewer falsehoods as much I can, so your input doesn't really help me with my goals.
biogene commented on Apple Tech Support Staff Urged to Stay Mum on iPhone 12 Radiation Issue   bloomberg.com/news/articl... · Posted by u/oatmeal1
flangola7 · 2 years ago
What do you think? Give it a couple of your best effort theories.
biogene · 2 years ago
Why would I give a theory when I don't even agree with your position. That is a bizarre request. I don't quite understand what point you're making except calling it a problem.
biogene commented on Google says it can’t fix Pixel Watches, please just buy a new one   arstechnica.com/gadgets/2... · Posted by u/duxup
turquoisevar · 2 years ago
So you’re ok with the company that sells it to you not being able to fix it and dropping support, but the company that provides repair services up to 7 years and battery replacements for Macs up to 10 years is somehow worse than that because they refuse to provide access to parts to third party repair shops that don’t join their program?

Again let me recap here:

- company that drops support, with no access to parts at all - company that provides support for almost a decade and limited access to parts

And somehow you see that and say that the first one is better?

Nuts.

biogene · 2 years ago
> but the company that provides repair services up to 7 years and battery replacements for Macs up to 10 years is somehow worse than that because they refuse to provide access to parts to third party repair shops that don’t join their program?

Apple is well known for forcing customers to swap expensive internal components (instead of repairing them) and contributing to greater e-waste. They force suppliers to not sell parts to independent repair stores. It sounds like you're not very familiar with it, so I won't blame ya.

I have the option of not taking my car to the dealership and instead doing simple stuff like oil changes myself, or taking it to a mechanic I trust. I'd like the same option for my electronics. If you don't trust anyone except Apple, you can keep going to them.

biogene commented on Marc Benioff: “I don’t work well in an office”   fortune.com/2023/09/15/ma... · Posted by u/wazokazi
aurareturn · 2 years ago
Just read the article. He doesn't like to work from the office because he said he prefers to be on the road meeting customers.

Meanwhile, the brand of WFH HN folks want is to not leave the house and interact with real humans in person.

The only reason I said "co-ceo" is because I was responding to someone who, for whatever reason, thinks a multi-billion public company shouldn't have its CEO talk to customers.

biogene · 2 years ago
I agree with you, people are twisting your words and setting up a strawman.
biogene commented on Apple Tech Support Staff Urged to Stay Mum on iPhone 12 Radiation Issue   bloomberg.com/news/articl... · Posted by u/oatmeal1
flangola7 · 2 years ago
The problem is that opens the door for the company to sweep issues under the rug. This is a pattern history has repeated time and time again
biogene · 2 years ago
How does that change the decision of not letting the company's accountant comment on safety?
biogene commented on Ex-Finance developers mock McKinsey's monitoring metrics   efinancialcareers.com/new... · Posted by u/Terretta
biogene · 2 years ago
IMO, you can take the dev word out, many productivity metrics are of dubious value, because corporate people love applying structures and systems to problems, only due to the fact that it is a structure rather than any inherent benefit.

Person A might need a completely different style of management/metrics than Person B, and Person A after a year might need yet another style of management/metrics. Its all messy and ad-hoc, because such are humans.

(Not a perfect analogy) If you replace humans with processors, and work with code, its the same efficiency paradox that devs know all too well. You apply an abstraction to solve a design problem, even if you already are aware that the Good™ solution is a hardware specific optimization or a new API design just to solve that one problem. Abstractions are seen as seemingly scalable, give you flexibility and leverage in other ways so they are Better™.

Performance focused devs are the complete opposite they give you maximum efficiency, by have a near-perfect match with the code>compiler>hardware. But at the significant cost of increased dev timelines, code complexity, stress, etc. The manager equivalent here would be the same where they are able to match their own style to the specific person they're managing. But these styles are impossible to create a universal system around.

biogene commented on Ex-Finance developers mock McKinsey's monitoring metrics   efinancialcareers.com/new... · Posted by u/Terretta
justin_oaks · 2 years ago
> looking at their code.

I can't imagine many development managers do that. And even if they did, I'm not convinced that many would make a good assessment that way.

Most of the managers I've had over my career have been poor coders. I'd hate to have them judging me by their conception of what good code is.

EDIT: I guess many people have had better managers than I've had. So my "most" and "many" may be off base.

biogene · 2 years ago
How many managers have you had? Seems like an odd generalization.

u/biogene

KarmaCake day57August 14, 2023View Original