iTunes France TV job; .Mac refresh rumor; NYC shortages return

[AppleInsider]

Apple is hiring for an iTunes TV show manager in France, confirming an upcoming rollout. Also, rumors have surfaced of a .Mac update to match new iPhone software; shortages of the device have returned to New York City; and mentions of free AT&T Wi-Fi have disappeared once again from the carrier's web pages.

Apple seeks manager for TV shows in France

Apple on Friday posted a new job opening for the Head of iTunes TV in France, whose job it will be to acquire rights to shows for the local version of the online store.

The listing doesn't provide clues as to when Apple will reveal the store, but confirms recent rumors that suggest iTunes France will be one of the next national stores to receive a TV section as soon as this month, following previous international developments in Canada, Germany, and the UK.

These earlier reports suggested the store will launch with content from close Apple partner Disney as well as EuropaCorp and Paramount, mixing both foreign and local programming.

Major .Mac overhaul cued to iPhone 2.0?

Stoking rumors ahead of the Worldwide Developer Conference, TUAW now claims that Apple at the June event may make significant changes to its .Mac online service in tune with the widely anticipated release of the iPhone 2.0 firmware update.

With changes suggested by the alleged source, .Mac would be put on par with Exchange and include a full wireless sync that updates calendars, contacts, and e-mail messages as they are added or deleted on other computers.

The service will also add sync for platform-agnostic data with Windows, according to the claim.

The site doesn't have a definitive track record for leaks but notably claims to have images of push e-mail support for .Mac, which would deliver mail in near real-time as with many Exchange servers.

iPhone drought returns to New York City

Confirming Apple statements that forecast a continued shortfall in iPhone stocks, Gizmodo now says that Apple's West 14th store in New York City's Meatpacking district has been without iPhones for the entire week.

At the time, a clerk at the store also added that it was uncertain when Apple would resupply the store, an observation which AppleInsider has since confirmed with its own checks at the outlet.

Multiple estimates by analysts as well as separate rumors have pointed to the longstanding shortages as a likely sign of Apple winding down production of the current-generation model ahead of a switch to a future model.

AT&T pulls references to free iPhone Wi-Fi

Just a day after posting details on its website, AT&T has withdrawn all references to free Wi-Fi access for iPhones on the phone's product website at the carrier.

No explanation is given for the withdrawal, which echoes a similar pattern this weekend in which the company first enabled and then disabled a web-based portal that provided unrestricted wireless to owners of the Apple phone with a valid AT&T phone number.

The project is generally believed to hinge on more Starbucks locations converting from T-Mobile to AT&T for their Wi-Fi access points.

[hmurchison]

Nice

I'd certainly sign up for .Mac.

In fact I may hold off my Blackberry purchase and see if something like this happens. I'd love to be able to sync OTA and the windows support for platform agnostic data sound very clever is managed well.

Oh and I'd recommend that Apple reduce the price to $59 annually because "a dollar everyday is better than 10 now and then"

Make Dot Mac a "must have" for people with iPhone and Macintosh computers.

[8CoreWhore]

Wait to see if the .mac thing even works before paying a year in advance for it. I won't be renewing. ATT - what a joke.

[Jason94102]

Originally Posted by 8CoreWhore

Wait to see if the .mac thing even works before paying a year in advance for it. I won't be renewing. ATT - what a joke.

What's wrong with AT&T? I had AT&T before my iphone, and now have it with my iphone. I never really have any problems.

[palex9]

Originally Posted by Jason94102

What's wrong with AT&T? I had AT&T before my iphone, and now have it with my iphone. I never really have any problems.

Post something, then remove 2 days later. Twice in a row? How brain dead are their managers?

[Jason94102]

Originally Posted by palex9

Post something, then remove 2 days later. Twice in a row? How brain dead are their managers?

Regardless of what they post or remove, my iPhone has been able to access free WiFi at my starbucks for weeks now through the AT&T portal. It asks you to enter your phone number and then gives you WiFi. Weeks...

Tmobile is also still at this location.

[sigs21]

Originally Posted by Jason94102

Regardless of what they post or remove, my iPhone has been able to access free WiFi at my starbucks for weeks now through the AT&T portal. It asks you to enter your phone number and then gives you WiFi. Weeks...

Tmobile is also still at this location.

I also get wifi from starbucks and at Mc Donalds with ATT.

As fare as ATT service, it all depends on the air of the country,, and a lot of time they are third party cell towers that give crappy service ... if your speaking of crappy customer service... call centers suck but would you be happy answering peoples complaints all day long....

[NasserAE]

Hopefully they will reduce .Mac price. add push email, add iPhone remote wipe, and OTA sync of contact and calender. Maybe I am just dreaming.

[solipsism]

Originally Posted by palex9

Post something, then remove 2 days later. Twice in a row? How brain dead are their managers?

If the biggest problem you have with a telecommunications company is some minor miscommunication with their marketing department then I'd say that you aren't going to convince many that AT&T is crap.

[solipsism]

Originally Posted by NasserAE

Hopefully they will reduce .Mac price. add push email, add iPhone remote wipe, and OTA sync of contact and calender. Maybe I am just dreaming.

I'm all for a lower price but I doubt it will happen. The prices have been constant for so long with minimal service upgrades that I doubt that a major upgrade will shrink the price.


PS: Admins: I would love to have multiquote working while using an iPhone.

[jawporta]

Always sounds good on paper, will it actually work is another story. Still can't get Back to my Mac working and still doesn't sync all my bookmarks.

[Wiggin]

If they make the calendar an interactive, online calendar instead of a static, read-only one (that can't even be password protected), I maybe be willing to pay the money. As it is, my .Mac trial-membership expires in two weeks and I won't be renewing it because of the useless online calendar and the buggy online address book (it can't show more than two email addresses or phone numbers for a contact and is often missing data that is clearly in my Address Book on my Mac).

[solipsism]

Originally Posted by Wiggin

... and is often missing data that is clearly in my Address Book on my Mac).

I have that too. it will sync to and from all my Macs perfectly, but using mac.com to read my addresses is utter crap. Luckily, I have an iPhone so I don't haven't had to use it but it's an utter shame. It's not as if displaying DB entries on the website is difficult coding.

[razorpit]

Originally Posted by solipsism

I have that too. it will sync to and from all my Macs perfectly, but using mac.com to read my addresses is utter crap. Luckily, I have an iPhone so I don't haven't had to use it but it's an utter shame. It's not as if displaying DB entries on the website is difficult coding.

I felt somewhat mislead when I signed up for .Mac, I asked the Apple store clerk if I could sync calenders via .Mac and I was told yes you can do it. I then later realized all you can do is view it and not make any changes to it. I was actually dumb founded at how short sighted Apple was being on this combined with how terrible the address book was I was ready to discontiue the service then the storage space was increased to 10GB and I figured oh well I might was well keep it for the year and see what happens. Now that my year is quickly coming to an end this "leak" appears. If it is true then I will renew.

I can't believe all of the shortages as of late. Looks like Apple miscalculated the demmand of the old phones before the launch of the 3G unit. I guess it is a good thing people are still buying the old version so soon to the new release. It appears more people need to read Appleinsider! ;-)

[parky]

Originally Posted by razorpit

I felt somewhat mislead when I signed up for .Mac, I asked the Apple store clerk if I could sync calenders via .Mac and I was told yes you can do it. I then later realized all you do was view it and not make any changes to it. I was actually dumb founded at how short sighted Apple was being on this combined with how terrible the address book was I was ready to discontiue the service then the storage space was increased to 10GB and I figured oh well I might was well keep it for the year and see what happens. Now that my year is quickly coming to an end this "leak" appears. If it is true then I will renew.

I can't believe all of the shortages as of late. Looks like Apple miscalculated the demmand of the old phones before the launch of the 3G unit. I guess it is a good thing people are still buying the old version so soon to the new release. It appears more people need to read Appleinsider! ;-)

The answer you got about syncing .Mac calendars was correct!

If you had asked the right question - "Can I edit Calendars in the Web' - then you might have got the right answer.

[Wiggin]

Originally Posted by parky

The answer you got about syncing .Mac calendars was correct!

If you had asked the right question - "Can I edit Calendars in the Web' - then you might have got the right answer.

That's a really lame argument. I read all of Apple's .Mac info online about what it could do. And while I didn't necessarily feel that Apple mis-represented the online calendar functionality, I do think after reading the features they tout that they very conveniently leave out certain information. You can access your email and contacts, it seems logical that you'd a have similar functionality for your calendar. And no, I don't consider their current solution to be "accessing" my calendar because you can't see the details of your events; and the only way I can see anything at all online is if I publish my calendar for all the world to see! They don't do that with my email or contacts, I was shocked to learn they do that with my calendar!

I'm sorry, but iCal (the application) is far and way the worst iApp and it's online .Mac functionality is shameful given the the level of features the rest of the online .Mac apps have.

[solipsism]

Originally Posted by Wiggin

That's a really lame argument.

There will little no debate that iCal, .Mac, and .Mac's integration with iCal, but the excuse is not lame. Razorpit was wondering about the specific usage info and the interaction of a less used app and an even lesser used service, but asked an in-store sales rep (who are usually not very technical) about it. But he asked a loaded question without any detail in a closed-ended form. While I don't think the rep would have known the answer, Razorput didn't word his question in a way that could possibly be understood by the rep the way he wanted.

It sucks when sales rep aren't very knowledgeable about a product or service but "them's the breaks". Luckily, we have this glorious internet which allows us to research anything we want before buying. There is no reason why we shouldn't be educated before we make a major purchase.

[anantksundaram]

Originally Posted by sigs21

I also get wifi from starbucks and at Mc Donalds with ATT.

As fare as ATT service, it all depends on the air of the country,, and a lot of time they are third party cell towers that give crappy service ... if your speaking of crappy customer service... call centers suck but would you be happy answering peoples complaints all day long....

It just asks for the phone number? That's all (in both SB and McD)?

[Delfoniq]

I was browsing on the US Apple Store, clicked on the iPhone Buy Now page and it shows that both the 8 GB and 16 GB models are currently unavailable.

http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPL.../iphone/iphone

Exact same thing in the UK Apple Store

http://store.apple.com/Apple/WebObje.../family/iphone

I'm guessing new iPhone out this Tuesday .

[iCarbon]

Originally Posted by Delfoniq

I was browsing on the US Apple Store, clicked on the iPhone Buy Now page and it shows that both the 8 GB and 16 GB models are currently unavailable.

http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPL.../iphone/iphone

Exact same thing in the UK Apple Store

http://store.apple.com/Apple/WebObje.../family/iphone

I'm guessing new iPhone out this Tuesday .

Hot Diggity -- you're right, I just checked the US applestore too, not available is the watchword of the weekend!

Tuesday, here it comes!!!!!

[sigs21]

Originally Posted by anantksundaram

It just asks for the phone number? That's all (in both SB and McD)?

yup.. I also have home service with ATT... and there DSL .. so at MC Ds I have had to use my home number but still they same have not tried the cell number yet.. I also got it to work in the Philly airport... thru ATT>..

The only place I have add trouble is the philly 30th street station wife and on the Acela express.. both are free wifi not ATT>>>>

[Neil Anderson]

.Mac still doesn't provide enough value to bother getting an account. Haven't renewed since one year after they changed it from iTools.

[razorpit]

Originally Posted by solipsism

There will little no debate that iCal, .Mac, and .Mac's integration with iCal, but the excuse is not lame. Razorpit was wondering about the specific usage info and the interaction of a less used app and an even lesser used service, but asked an in-store sales rep (who are usually not very technical) about it. But he asked a loaded question without any detail in a closed-ended form. While I don't think the rep would have known the answer, Razorpit didn't word his question in a way that could possibly be understood by the rep the way he wanted.

It sucks when sales rep aren't very knowledgeable about a product or service but "them's the breaks". Luckily, we have this glorious internet which allows us to research anything we want before buying. There is no reason why we shouldn't be educated before we make a major purchase.

I know, how silly of me to assume that I could add or edit information online in my own calender or address book.