Colbert's 'Late Show' skewers cost, content of Apple's new design book

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  • Reply 61 of 73
    entropys said:
    entropys said:
    jibberj said:
    Personally, I purchased the book as soon as it went on sale, and I had to make arrangements in another country as it isn't available in Canada. I don't see the issue with it's existence. Is this the reason there is no Mac Pro update? I doubt it. Ive isn't the first person around Apple to have a vanity project if you see it like that. 
    This is all true.  
    This book certainly isn't the reason Apple's desktops haven't been updated, the reason there appears to be a lack of coordination between the Mac team and the iPhone team (no lightning to USBC connector in the box or even bigger, a lightning port on the new MBP?), the reason people are complaining about the little things like the loss of iconic Apple features like MagSafe and the lit up Apple logo that delight users,or the reason the MBPs are so expensive, or the reason the Airpods weren't released alongside the new iPhone 7.

    but it certainly serves as a symbol of those things, a symbol of expense, an indulgent video about a book which implys what the designers have been doing instead of focussing on macs, a beautiful hardcover lap of honour of past glories at a time they are copping shit, a symbol implying that Apple's best years are behind it, and people like Ive are now focussed on their memoirs and legacy. None of this is probably reality, but that doesn't matter.

    This book smells like Hubris, hence it is ripe for parody and derision.
    Good grief sometimes I swear people think the only employees at Apple are Ive's design team. Apple's design team is around 20 individuals. Compare that to the thousands of employee in its hardware/software engineering and operations teams. 20 designers don't run the company.
    Yes, that is what I am saying.  It isn't real, it's the symbolism.  It looks like Ive is more interested in legacying himself that focussing on product design. If the company was hitting home runs on a wide front more power to them. But at the moment they are not. So this indulgence opens the company up for ridicule.
    Well that's your opinions. Also there is zero evidence Ive isn't focusing on product design. I'm sure Apple employees can walk and chew gum at the same time.
    jibberj
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  • Reply 62 of 73
    entropys said:
    entropys said:
    jibberj said:
    Personally, I purchased the book as soon as it went on sale, and I had to make arrangements in another country as it isn't available in Canada. I don't see the issue with it's existence. Is this the reason there is no Mac Pro update? I doubt it. Ive isn't the first person around Apple to have a vanity project if you see it like that. 
    This is all true.  
    This book certainly isn't the reason Apple's desktops haven't been updated, the reason there appears to be a lack of coordination between the Mac team and the iPhone team (no lightning to USBC connector in the box or even bigger, a lightning port on the new MBP?), the reason people are complaining about the little things like the loss of iconic Apple features like MagSafe and the lit up Apple logo that delight users,or the reason the MBPs are so expensive, or the reason the Airpods weren't released alongside the new iPhone 7.

    but it certainly serves as a symbol of those things, a symbol of expense, an indulgent video about a book which implys what the designers have been doing instead of focussing on macs, a beautiful hardcover lap of honour of past glories at a time they are copping shit, a symbol implying that Apple's best years are behind it, and people like Ive are now focussed on their memoirs and legacy. None of this is probably reality, but that doesn't matter.

    This book smells like Hubris, hence it is ripe for parody and derision.
    Good grief sometimes I swear people think the only employees at Apple are Ive's design team. Apple's design team is around 20 individuals. Compare that to the thousands of employee in its hardware/software engineering and operations teams. 20 designers don't run the company.
    Yes, that is what I am saying.  It isn't real, it's the symbolism.  It looks like Ive is more interested in legacying himself that focussing on product design. If the company was hitting home runs on a wide front more power to them. But at the moment they are not. So this indulgence opens the company up for ridicule.
    Well that's your opinions. Also there is zero evidence Ive isn't focusing on product design. I'm sure Apple employees can walk and chew gum at the same time.
    If I wanted to play Devil's Advocate or Debate Club member, I could argue that the slowing pace of Mac updates and the increasing number of aging models being left unrefreshed could be interpreted as the core team being unable to keep all the plates spinning. Obviously there are a wide range of issues and considerations affecting that process, but it's not unreasonable to wonder if management attention is one of them. I don't actually have a genuine opinion on the matter, but I could not definitively rule out distraction as a component.

    Creating the book also seems to run counter to the narrative that Apple's focus is on "the 90%" and not niche markets.

    Personally I don't care that Apple produced a book. I think it's kind of a self-congratulatory product, but so what? Its existence doesn't adversely affect my life in any way that I can see. I'm sure many people will get enjoyment from and see value in it.
    edited November 2016
    dysamoria
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  • Reply 63 of 73
    dysamoriadysamoria Posts: 3,430member
    cali said:
    dysamoria said:
    Seriously? A $200/$300 book? WTAF. 
     You didn't go to college did you? 
    Yes, I did. College text books aren't vanity products (well, except for some historical propaganda); they require a lot more research effort than a vanity book (well, if accuracy is valued by the publisher). Also, college text books shouldn't cost what they cost either!
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  • Reply 64 of 73
    dysamoriadysamoria Posts: 3,430member

    george li said:
    This lad probably has not bought a textbook in recent years. 200 or 300 is not much at all for a 450 page book that has the potential to be a hot collector's item in 10 or 20 years. The book was intended for students in art/design schools anyway with the purpose of attracting future talents to apple. 
    It was intended for students in art/design schools? Really? Looks more like a vanity book than anything else. If I see it somewhere, I'll page through it, but it doesn't seem like an educational textbook. Apple's prior book on design cost $30. Even the Apple Human Interface Guidelines book, which I own, and which Apple seems to be ignoring today, cost only $30, and includes a lot of content learned over a large period of time doing user interface research.
    tallest skil
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  • Reply 65 of 73
    Solisoli Posts: 10,038member
    dysamoria said:
    cali said:
    dysamoria said:
    Seriously? A $200/$300 book? WTAF. 
     You didn't go to college did you? 
    Yes, I did. College text books aren't vanity products (well, except for some historical propaganda); they require a lot more research effort than a vanity book (well, if accuracy is valued by the publisher). Also, college text books shouldn't cost what they cost either!
    Not a single mention about the materials and print quality of the book, or the cost of producing the photos. 
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  • Reply 66 of 73
    Solisoli Posts: 10,038member
    @dickprinter, any wisdom to bestow on what it would take to produce this book?

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  • Reply 67 of 73
    Soli said:
    @dickprinter, any wisdom to bestow on what it would take to produce this book?

    I'd rather buy Kramer's coffee table book on coffee tables that doubles as a coffee table.
    edited November 2016
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  • Reply 68 of 73

    The only thing wrong with this book is that it isn't available in countries where there is no Apple store.

    Ebay is no friend...


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  • Reply 69 of 73
    Oh look, Colbert is still trying to be relevant.

    It's failing. 
    come on, don't hate the colbert. this is what they do. if it's not from colbert, it could be from anybody. kimmel, ellen, bill maher, conan.  

    one thing we can agree, this is not the book for everyone. i'm still 50-50 between to get it or not. one thing i'm sure is, if i want to get it, it has to be $299 one.. 
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  • Reply 70 of 73
    apple47 said:
    come on, don't hate the colbert. this is what they do. if it's not from colbert, it could be from anybody. kimmel, ellen, bill maher, conan.
    Funny (pun not intentional) how they all do exactly the same thing, uniformly, in the same way. Almost as though there’s a narrative or something…
    i'm still 50-50 between to get it or not. one thing i'm sure is, if i want to get it, it has to be $299 one.. 
    Compare it with Iconic (far cheaper) before deciding.
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  • Reply 71 of 73
    Yes, this is inside my head as well.. :)
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  • Reply 72 of 73
    spice-boyspice-boy Posts: 1,455member
    Both the Apple book and the Ikea catalogue video's were quite funny. Being poked at and made the butt of a parody is only something to be proud of. 
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  • Reply 73 of 73
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,769member
    Soli said:
    @dickprinter, any wisdom to bestow on what it would take to produce this book?

    He's be the one to know among the members here. My personal guess is well less than $30/thousand considering how many Apple probably produced. I do know that some photographers' have had premium leather-bound "coffee-table books" printed for under 40K for a limited run of a thousand copies.
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