Well, they sell 800 apps per second so they could still record it by millisecond...but yeah, I get your point. And thanks for that video! Ridiculous!
It's only 600 per second? For some reason I expected it to be higher. If my math is correct (and I'm not sure it is, that gives it a 20% chance that two app will fall on the same millisecond.
edit: Now I see you wrote 800, which I think is a 40% chance of the same millisecond.
I calculate it'll hit 50 billion in 9 days. Anybody want to double check that for me?
The counter on the page is set at a fixed rate when you load it. It sends a request to the server for the current total and it works out the step rate. You can manually get the exact timestamp and value using the Javascript console. Just type in:
var nc = new Counter({container:AC.Element.selectAll(".counter")[0],dataURL:"/itunes/store/counters/il6ark7ec.js",staticImagePath:"",targetCount:50000000000,stopAtTargetCount:true});
hit return then type:
console.dir(nc);
You can open up the data it gets from the server and it will give you the currentCount and a unix timestamp responseReceivedEpoch. If you put the timestamp into a converter like:
you can get the exact time in your own timezone and the number it reached but you can get an average rate if you use two sufficiently far apart values - just subtract the timestamps to get the separation in milliseconds. It's around 1,000 apps per second and you can see that with the timer, the thousand digit goes up roughly every second. That would mean it will hit 50b in less than 9 days as you said. The rate will probably increase as it gets closer.
It's good that they expanded the prizes to more people but I think it would be better if they gave away hardware. Just a voucher to be able to buy 1 Mac of your choice, 1 iPad and 1 iPod and $5000 of content from iTunes (music, movies or apps). I suspect the App Store voucher is their way of ensuring that they don't actually give away much money because it'll only be paid out to developers when it gets spent. Plus, Apple gets 30% of it back again.
I suppose trash games like the embed demonstrates should be punished with banishment based on consumer complaints. Apple cannot realistically police hundreds of thousands of apps.
But they do. Every app submitted and updated goes through a review process. Obviously there are grey areas (like this example that is an obvious rip off in so many ways) that "slip through."
indeed. evidenced by the fact that a purchase isn't even necessary to enter the sweepstakes. so they throw the non-purchase entries and some number of entries of those who purchased around the 50 billionth app into a pool, and that's the pool from which the winner is chosen?
Good point. That does spoil it a bit. Calling the winner "someone who either bought an app around the same time as the 50 billionth or entered some random drawing" isn't very poetic.
I bet they don't actually keep it up to date. It'd make sense that 50 billion has already been hit and this is the downtime while they contact the person who won and make sure it's all legitimate and such. That way the announcement can be made all the more quickly.
Also, 50 fakeroonies on the app in question being "Made for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch".
Comments
It's only 600 per second? For some reason I expected it to be higher. If my math is correct (and I'm not sure it is, that gives it a 20% chance that two app will fall on the same millisecond.
edit: Now I see you wrote 800, which I think is a 40% chance of the same millisecond.
The counter on the page is set at a fixed rate when you load it. It sends a request to the server for the current total and it works out the step rate. You can manually get the exact timestamp and value using the Javascript console. Just type in:
var nc = new Counter({container:AC.Element.selectAll(".counter")[0],dataURL:"/itunes/store/counters/il6ark7ec.js",staticImagePath:"",targetCount:50000000000,stopAtTargetCount:true});
hit return then type:
console.dir(nc);
You can open up the data it gets from the server and it will give you the currentCount and a unix timestamp responseReceivedEpoch. If you put the timestamp into a converter like:
http://www.epochconverter.com
you can get the exact time in your own timezone and the number it reached but you can get an average rate if you use two sufficiently far apart values - just subtract the timestamps to get the separation in milliseconds. It's around 1,000 apps per second and you can see that with the timer, the thousand digit goes up roughly every second. That would mean it will hit 50b in less than 9 days as you said. The rate will probably increase as it gets closer.
It's good that they expanded the prizes to more people but I think it would be better if they gave away hardware. Just a voucher to be able to buy 1 Mac of your choice, 1 iPad and 1 iPod and $5000 of content from iTunes (music, movies or apps). I suspect the App Store voucher is their way of ensuring that they don't actually give away much money because it'll only be paid out to developers when it gets spent. Plus, Apple gets 30% of it back again.
Heck I entered the no buy option. I thought it was $10000 for an Apple card. I was going to get a pimped out Macrpro R.
Quote:
Originally Posted by SpamSandwich
I suppose trash games like the embed demonstrates should be punished with banishment based on consumer complaints. Apple cannot realistically police hundreds of thousands of apps.
But they do. Every app submitted and updated goes through a review process. Obviously there are grey areas (like this example that is an obvious rip off in so many ways) that "slip through."
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pooch
indeed. evidenced by the fact that a purchase isn't even necessary to enter the sweepstakes. so they throw the non-purchase entries and some number of entries of those who purchased around the 50 billionth app into a pool, and that's the pool from which the winner is chosen?
Good point. That does spoil it a bit. Calling the winner "someone who either bought an app around the same time as the 50 billionth or entered some random drawing" isn't very poetic.
Quote:
Originally Posted by dasanman69
Declare yourself a corporation and pay none.
Maybe if you pour your winnings into tax-free municipal bonds or a master limited partnership (MLP).
Quote:
Originally Posted by pdq2
Seriously.
How would you ever even be able to spend $10,000 on the app store? I don't think my iPad can hold that many apps!
If you played Super Monster Bros, you'd blow through that $10k, in a day.
Btw, it's since been removed from the App Store.
https://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/cunnilingus-101/id381996885?mt=8
https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/condom-size/id592218822?mt=8
That way Apple has to promote sex apps for the winners. There should be a global campaign for everyone to download sex apps today.
Originally Posted by Marvin
Just over 13 hours to go.
I bet they don't actually keep it up to date. It'd make sense that 50 billion has already been hit and this is the downtime while they contact the person who won and make sure it's all legitimate and such. That way the announcement can be made all the more quickly.
Also, 50 fakeroonies on the app in question being "Made for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch".