Former Apple exec Scott Forstall to speak at Code.org online session

AppleInsider

Scott Forstall, Apple's former head of iOS development, is this week scheduled to take part in Code.org's Code Break, a weekly online seminar that helps students learn about computer coding during the coronavirus pandemic.

Scott Forstall will appear at this week's Code Break alongside Macklemore.

Announced by Code.org, and subsequently shared by Forstall in a tweet on Monday, the upcoming session will also feature musical guest Macklemore.

"I look forward to joining students around the world this week for a #CodeBreak," Forstall said.

Created by coding nonprofit Code.org, the weekly online meetups take place every Wednesday and aim to keep students of all ages engaged in coding during the ongoing coronavirus crisis through the presentation of interactive at-home activities. Code.org is responsible for organizing the annual Hour of Code event, a learning experience consistently promoted by Apple as part of educational outreach initiatives.

Hosted by Code.org founder Hadi Partovi, Code Break features special guests and a new activity or coding challenge each week. Options are available for beginners, experienced students and those without computers, according to the program's website.

Once a major force at Apple, Forstall was ousted from the company in 2012 following the controversial launch of the then-new Maps app. Complaints over mislabeled data, failed graphics, guidance issues and other problems prompted CEO Tim Cook to issue an apology, a note sources say Forstall refused to sign.

Forstall is slated to go live on Wednesday at 10 a.m. Pacific. Code Break requires users to sign up for a free account before viewing.

trashman69

Poor Scott - all he had to do was apologize.  Just a simple signature and his life would have been much different today.

yuck9

trashman69 said:

Poor Scott - all he had to do was apologize.  Just a simple signature and his life would have been much different today.

You think he cares ? He did not play there game. And I doubt he has cash flow problems. I bet he was glad to get the hell out. Here sign here and you can keep your job. No, I quit. LOL.  It's not like Maps is kicking ass in the past 8 years since he left. 

hammeroftruth

trashman69 said:

Poor Scott - all he had to do was apologize.  Just a simple signature and his life would have been much different today.

What a bunch of BS. They wanted to make him a scapegoat so they could blame the maps fiasco on him. He didn’t so they fired him.

This guy had the staying power to work with Steve for a long time. All the way back to the Next years. He was a brilliant programmer, just look at his achievements pre-Apple. 

canukstorm

hammeroftruth said:

trashman69 said:

Poor Scott - all he had to do was apologize.  Just a simple signature and his life would have been much different today.

What a bunch of BS. They wanted to make him a scapegoat so they could blame the maps fiasco on him. He didn’t so they fired him.

This guy had the staying power to work with Steve for a long time. All the way back to the Next years. He was a brilliant programmer, just look at his achievements pre-Apple. 

He was a brilliant software engineer.

apple ][

What does the rapper have to do with coding? 

SpamSandwich

apple ][ said:

What does the rapper have to do with coding? 

Thrift store app design?

kimberly

trashman69 said:

Poor Scott - all he had to do was apologize.  Just a simple signature and his life would have been much different today.

Absolute BS. If he didn't think he had anything to apologise for then he stuck to his principles. Good on him.

bestkeptsecret

Whether it's NDA or just plain integrity, I really appreciate the fact that Scott has (so far) never dissed the Company or anyone in it, never given a "tell-all" interview or never washed his dirty laundry in public.

We'll never know what really happened behind closed doors. As always, the truth will be somewhere between "he was a real asshole who thought he was the next Steve Jobs at Apple" and "they tried to make him a scapegoat, but he stuck to his principles".

Rayz2016

hammeroftruth said:

trashman69 said:

Poor Scott - all he had to do was apologize.  Just a simple signature and his life would have been much different today.

What a bunch of BS. They wanted to make him a scapegoat so they could blame the maps fiasco on him. He didn’t so they fired him.

This guy had the staying power to work with Steve for a long time. All the way back to the Next years. He was a brilliant programmer, just look at his achievements pre-Apple. 

He was in charge of Apple Maps development. If it wasn’t his fault, then who’s was it?

mirekn

apple ][ said:

What does the rapper have to do with coding? 

Adding new dimension to reading a code ;-)

razorpit

apple ][ said:

What does the rapper have to do with coding? 

 Macklemore looks like a thug that would bully you for being in to computers.

GeorgeBMac

So, how far has iOS progressed since he left?   Mostly it's just been minor changes and upgrades.  While the shift to 64bit and APFS opened some doors there really have not been any major changes.  

Elsewhere, iPadOS was rolled out and slowly, very slowly, developed almost imperceptibly into a powerful OS.   Also, WatchOS was very nicely done.   But, iOS, since 2011 it's been mostly just minor upgrades.

But, all in all, software development really seemed to slow after he left.   But then maybe that was inevitable since the product had entered a more mature phase.

canukstorm

GeorgeBMac said:

So, how far has iOS progressed since he left?   Mostly it's just been minor changes and upgrades.  While the shift to 64bit and APFS opened some doors there really have not been any major changes.  

Elsewhere, iPadOS was rolled out and slowly, very slowly, developed almost imperceptibly into a powerful OS.   Also, WatchOS was very nicely done.   But, iOS, since 2011 it's been mostly just minor upgrades.

But, all in all, software development really seemed to slow after he left.   But then maybe that was inevitable since the product had entered a more mature phase.

In the last couple of years, I've gotten the feeling Apple has put the pedal to the metal.  

[Deleted User]

apple ][ said:

What does the rapper have to do with coding? 

Nothing. This is on line class for kids. What does a rapper have to do with getting kids to show up? A lot. 

fastasleep

GeorgeBMac said:

So, how far has iOS progressed since he left?

You mean besides the complete visual overhaul and the many refinements since, the continual improvement and integration of Maps, the launch and integration of Apple Music, Siri Shortcuts and Suggestions, Machine Learning, Metal 2, Swift UI, ARKit, share sheets overhaul, a completely new interaction paradigm with the iPhone X generation, the buildout of Notes and Reminders, Messages App Store, Memoji, Animoji, News, Apple Pay, Sign In with Apple, everything that integrates with Watch... and a thousand other little things that add up to pretty major changes over 9 years, clearly not much.

GeorgeBMac

fastasleep said:

GeorgeBMac said:

So, how far has iOS progressed since he left?

You mean besides the complete visual overhaul and the many refinements since, the continual improvement and integration of Maps, the launch and integration of Apple Music, Siri Shortcuts and Suggestions, Machine Learning, Metal 2, Swift UI, ARKit, share sheets overhaul, a completely new interaction paradigm with the iPhone X generation, the buildout of Notes and Reminders, Messages App Store, Memoji, Animoji, News, Apple Pay, Sign In with Apple, everything that integrates with Watch... and a thousand other little things that add up to pretty major changes over 9 years, clearly not much.

Yeh, that minor incremental stuff (at least the iOS stuff which is the topic here rather than the stuff running on iOS).   It's good stuff -- but just incremental changes.

fastasleep

GeorgeBMac said:

fastasleep said:

GeorgeBMac said:

So, how far has iOS progressed since he left?

You mean besides the complete visual overhaul and the many refinements since, the continual improvement and integration of Maps, the launch and integration of Apple Music, Siri Shortcuts and Suggestions, Machine Learning, Metal 2, Swift UI, ARKit, share sheets overhaul, a completely new interaction paradigm with the iPhone X generation, the buildout of Notes and Reminders, Messages App Store, Memoji, Animoji, News, Apple Pay, Sign In with Apple, everything that integrates with Watch... and a thousand other little things that add up to pretty major changes over 9 years, clearly not much.

Yeh, that minor incremental stuff (at least the iOS stuff which is the topic here rather than the stuff running on iOS).   It's good stuff -- but just incremental changes.

THAT'S HOW EVERYTHING APPLE DOES ALL THE TIME! JFC

So, yeah — 9 years of incremental shit adds up to substantial changes. I shouldn't have to explain this to you since you've been around since the dinosaurs, but here we are.

Also what do you know about what's actually behind the scenes versus what "runs on iOS" and how much what is integrated where? You've got that seriously myopic view that substantial changes only come in the form of massive visual changes and functionality (which we've had a lot of, too). Ridiculous.

yuck9

Rayz2016 said:

hammeroftruth said:

trashman69 said:

Poor Scott - all he had to do was apologize.  Just a simple signature and his life would have been much different today.

What a bunch of BS. They wanted to make him a scapegoat so they could blame the maps fiasco on him. He didn’t so they fired him.

This guy had the staying power to work with Steve for a long time. All the way back to the Next years. He was a brilliant programmer, just look at his achievements pre-Apple. 

He was in charge of Apple Maps development. If it wasn’t his fault, then who’s was it?

Who know's. Everyone has a boss. If you are leading a project and (In this case Scott) and a higher up tells him to add this and that, you add  this and that, It fails,take this out, add this, etc. Time for release of product, It's not finished, The high up's tell you to ship it. It blows up. Public outcry, Blame has to be put on someone.