chasm

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chasm
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  • Tim Cook confirms that Apple has been working on generative AI for years

    chasmchasm
    noelos said:
    I'm sorry - but the excuses about Siri being crap because of privacy concerns just doesn't hold water.

    "Hey Siri - play Scarborough Fair". Now I have "Scarborough Fair" by Simon & Garfunkel in my library, and I'd guess this is the version that 99.9% of people would want 99.9% of the time and it's a track I've also asked Siri to play literally hundreds of times because it helps my toddler get to sleep.

    And yet, every time it is a gamble if she will play this, or some other rando version, or some other rando song completely. Siri learns NOTHING and doesn't even use the contextual knowledge available to make a reasonable guess of what you want.

    Or what about a simple query while I'm driving and I idly ask what year some actor died. "I can't answer that while you're driving". Is that to preserve my privacy or is it just because they haven't put in the work to make Siri be able to answer simple queries in natural language?
    Okay, let’s go over this:

    As I mentioned, if you issue requests poorly, you can get bad results. Your S&G request is a good example of this. If you want a specific artist’s version of a song, you need to include the artists’ name in the request. A thousand acts (at least) have covered this song, so saying “Hey Siri, play Scarborough Fair by Simon and Garfunkel” will probably get you the right version, though I admit there’s a possibility you might get a live version by them — but if you add the phrase “from my library” I think you’d hit 100 percent accuracy.

    As for your driving and asking questions query, I’ll remind you that Siri is not a chat bot. It is MUCH more restricted by Apple while you’re driving so that you don’t get distracted, and this is by design. Apple does not want you asking Siri random questions while you are driving, because that indicates that you are distracted or want to be distracted.

    You may find that too restrictive, and I think you have something of a case, but when it comes to driver distraction I’d rather Apple err on the side of being over cautious and thus more limited. When I’m NOT in motion, suddenly Siri can answer a question like that handily. I just asked it “what year did actor John Wayne die,” when I was at home, and it gave me a very full answer, including his age and location when he died as well as the date.

    I am certainly NOT saying there isn’t any room for improvement in Siri; quite the opposite! I’m just explaining why it behaves in some of the ways it behaves.
    FileMakerFellerjas99designrroundaboutnowAlex_Vwatto_cobraMacProjony0

  • Apple doesn't care about games, long-time Apple Arcade developers say

    chasmchasm
    Massiveattack87 said:
    AAPL needs to bring more innovative ideas here. 
    Their games are just childish.. 

    Nothing what I would play longer than 2 days... 
    Apple Arcade is not aimed at competitive gamers like teens and adults.

    It is aimed squarely at the casual game market that made it king of mobile gaming. In particular, Apple aims Arcade at families with children.

    This is why there’s no IAP, no ads, and no subscriptions. It’s a **child safe** gaming environment that has a handful of games adult casual gamers would enjoy. You are barking up the VERY wrong tree looking for “serious gamer” titles.
    foregoneconclusionwilliamlondondanoxbaconstangmacxpresstmaymuthuk_vanalingamdewmewatto_cobrarue

  • Epic takes its 'Fortnite' fight with Apple to the Supreme Court

    chasmchasm
    carnegie said:
    Apple is likely to file its own cert petition, asking the Supreme Court to consider aspects of the case, today or tomorrow. I think the deadline for filing that petition is, as it was for Epic, tomorrow.
    They already did, a few weeks ago now. Sweeney is being Mr. Last Minute Filer, here.

    If the court takes up the case, we’ll need to ask the billionaire owners of at least two of the judges what THEY think in order to get an idea of how the court will rule. :)
    ronntenthousandthingsdarkvaderbeowulfschmidtdavkurai_kagewilliamlondonFileMakerFeller13485watto_cobra

  • Goldman Sachs continues to bleed cash from Apple Card operations

    chasmchasm
    The article is talking about combined losses that *include* the Apple Card but are not *exclusive* to the Apple Card. The short version is that GS has very badly miscalculated their ventures into the *consumer* lending market, though they have been very successful with their *business* lending, There have been other problems that may have contributed to the losses they’ve seen on Apple Card.

    But the reason Apple Card is popular with users is the same reasons it is unpopular with GS executives: there are no fees associated with the Apple Card, even late fees. Interest rates are around the industry standard, but as pointed out AC users tend to be affluent, and Apple actually reminds users how much of the payment will go to interest, which further spurs paying it off quickly.

    The $350 figure only refers to initial costs with setting up an AC account; GS is probably also paying at least partially for the advertising/promotion of the card, and also working with merchants to arrange promotional deals as well. Some of the money GS is reporting as a loss is also anticipated rather than actual, based on other factors like the cost of money from the fed.

    In short, GS has decided they suck at consumer lending and want out of all of it, which includes AC. Really nothing here any user should pay much attention to.
    iOS_Guy80eightzeroBart Ydewmewatto_cobra

  • Apple, Visa, Mastercard face lawsuit over high merchant fees

    chasmchasm
    eriamjh said:
    It would be nice to know what min, max, and average merchant fees are in the world of credit cards.  

    This is what pays for things like daily cash, and cash back, and all those perks.
    As you note, the merchant fee is a service charge by the credit provider that comes out of the merchant’s selling price. Broadly speaking, it varies by card from one percent to three percent.

    To put this in the simplest terms, there are four parties involved in a credit card transaction: the customer, the customer’s issuing bank, the merchant, and the merchant’s bank. Amex and Diner’s Club do things a little differently, since they aren’t issued by the customer’s bank, but the idea is the same.

    Apple Pay only comes into play when you use an NFC terminal and an Apple device to pay with your card. At that moment, Apple Pay becomes the platform to provide a whole new level of security on the transaction, and coordinates the payment and fees between the customer’s bank, the merchant, and the merchant’s bank.

    Apple’s fee for this comes out of the merchant’s bank fees. Without getting into the details, this amounts to 0.15 percent of the value of the transaction. So if you bought something (say a new Mac) where the total price before taxes was $2,000, Apple would get $3.*

    *this estimate is based on the total fees Apple charges the merchant’s bank as of 2014. To the best of my knowledge, that total hasn’t changed, but it might have.

    The merchant is supposed to “mark up” the price of the items to cover their base cost, the cost of doing business, and allow for profit. So Apple’s “slice” of this entire transaction should already be covered as part of the fee the merchant’s bank charges the merchant, i.e. part of the cost of doing business.

    So I can sort of see why Apple Pay has to be included in a lawsuit challenging the fees banks and credit card companies charge merchants, but Apple isn’t actually the source of the issue in any way IMO, and frankly they more than justify their tiny fees for the services they provide, which have made using credit cards VERY significantly safer than they were before, since:

    A. The actual card information is never exposed when you use Apple Pay, and
    B. Then entire transaction is encrypted to avoid interception, and
    C. Apple Pay eliminates the possibility of theft, unauthorized use, or leaving behind a physical credit card by accident.
    ronnXedBart YiOS_Guy80mike1badmonktdknoxwatto_cobra

  • Apple engineers lack optimism about the Apple TV strategy, claims report

    chasmchasm
    Is it worth the price upgrading from a Apple TV 3 to the 4K or going for the Google Chromecast? 
    Yes.
    The Chromecast, like anything from Google, is a security and privacy nightmare masquerading as a functional peripheral. Does it work, and it is cheaper? Yes. Will you be further profiled and advertised to/manipulated by literally any entity or individual that wants to target you? ALSO YES.

    Upgrading to the new one from the 3 is a no-brainer IMO. In addition to regaining features and apps like YouTube that are disappearing from the 3, you get:

    * Dolby Vision/HDR10 support if your TV supports it
    * The ability to control both the TV and the Apple TV box with a single remote (which finally has a mute button!!)
    * Dolby Atmos and Lossless Audio over AirPlay if you have HomePods (and coming this fall, HomePod minis)
    * A vastly better remote
    * eARC support for your other connected-to-the-TV devices (DVDs, consoles, etc)
    * Apple Arcade support
    * A three-month free trial of Apple TV+ if you don't already have it (So cheap! So good!)
    * Um, 4K ... and the superior Apple TV 4K interface, screen savers, and TV calibration
    * Little features I enjoy, ike "what did he/she say?", the TV app to let me know where something I want to watch is available, and the Apple Events app, which I am not sure is available on other stores/platforms.

    The security and privacy aspects alone justify the higher price for me, but all these other features and that make the new Apple TV 4K a downright bargain in my eyes. The TV I own has a Roku interface (no longer connected to the internet) ... dear lord what a grossly inferior and spyware-like experience!

    Those smaller stick units from Google and Amazon and Roku have their uses, I guess ... smaller to take with you when travelling, for sure ... but the trade-off is too much for me. My old Apple TV lasted many years, while my friends with cheaper sticks seem to replace them every 2-3 years for various reasons (mostly when one of the companies gets in a fight with one of the streaming app companies ... or they just "stop working one day.")
    Japheypulseimagesapplesauce007scstrrfjeffharriswatto_cobrapscooter63

  • Child safety advocacy group launches campaign against Apple

    chasmchasm
    Again with a group of idiots who think Apple can make a “backdoor” that “only the good guys” have access to.

    You either have privacy, or you don’t. Full stop.

    Apple won’t respond to this any further, I suspect, but if they did — they should demand that the Heat Initiative outline a system that would reveal CSAM images *only* but protect a user’s right to privacy in *all* other ways.

    Good luck with that. If Apple’s own engineers tried and failed, it’s very unlikely anyone else could, and certainly not this fringe outfit.
    FileMakerFellerentropysrob53baconstangdewmebyronlwonkothesaneelijahgad0niramzeus423

  • Apple TV+ renews Idris Elba's high-octane thriller 'Hijack'

    chasmchasm
    Rick601 said:
    Enjoyed the first few episodes but toward the end it got pretty woke and the hero pretty lame. He went from being Reacher to being in touch with his feminine side. Perfect for the new Hollywood and Apple unfortunately. 
    I think your perception of what’s wrong with the show stems from your own obvious problems, not the show’s.
    williamlondonForumPostjibronntenthousandthingslolliverStrangeDaysAlex_Vwatto_cobra

  • Protesters close Chicago Apple Store over Palestinian employee firing

    chasmchasm
    Is it? Is it really a bad decision to stay well clear of both sides in this screwy mess where there is ZERO chance of doing anything but alienating customers?

    I disagree with Apple Store management barring the keffileh, it long pre-dates the current conflict and is simply a cultural identifier. But actively sporting political accessories -- for any political position -- really doesn't have a place in a retail store environment IMO.
    StrangeDayselijahgteejay2012macguistompybyronlmike1omasoutimpetusroundaboutnow

  • Apple Music unveils trailer for Usher's Super Bowl LVII halftime show, shares new artist-c...

    chasmchasm
    baederboy said:
    Maybe the NFL actually picked Usher to do the Super Bowl half-time show and not Apple? And what if Apple announces that they have rights to film in 3-D and stream on Apple TV the next day so that people can watch in 3-D on their new Apple Vision Pro?
    While I’m sure the NFL has approval on artist choices, Apple bought the rights to stage the halftime show last year and are responsible for the production. You might be right, but Apple made it clear that they wanted Rihanna last year, so it seems like Apple gets to pick the featured artist.
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