Apple's Maps Revamp Creeps into Midwest U.S.

Remember when Forestall was ousted because of a few Map issues and things weren’t ready in time?

But now iOS and Mac Apps ship with mission critical features broken and severe bugs that brick devices?

Nice to see Apple continuing their improvement of maps. I would like to see Apple add easy user reporting into the app, like Waze.

Remember when Forestall was ousted because of a few Map issues and things weren’t ready in time?

This isn't really related to the article is it? Actually I believe it was because he didn't take ownership of the quality of the release at the time - which was really bad.

But now iOS and Mac Apps ship with mission critical features broken and severe bugs that brick devices?

Not related to the article again. But this isn't new, Apple has had issues with new releases going way back. Leopard was one I was around for, that was rough as well. I don't install updates with big OS changes for a couple of months because you know there will be alot of bugs, its an easy call.

We got a super good release with iOS 12 last year, that may have set people's expectations too high, because it was a bug fix release (with a few new things added), much like Snow Leopard was back in the day.

Are Apple still doing the map business? I thought they quit because no improvement has been done for years.

Gosh you haven't been reading GeekWebGuides much eh? Because there have been lots of articles on the updates to Apple Maps for years but in particular in the last couple of years when they've been making big changes.

Unless I’m recalling wrong, Forstall got kicked due to not apologizing for the issues that maps had?

Right, he reportedly refused to sign the public apology ('https://web.archive.org/web/20121004201624/http://www.apple.com/letter-from-tim-cook-on-maps/') which effectively forced Tim Cook to sign it. In turn, between that and his notorious toxicity which was pushing other executives toward the exits, his head rolled.

ETA for the Forstall worshippers here: Really, if Forstall were a god of software engineering, another company would have hired him as an executive by now with a blank check for his salary. The issue is that no one wants him because he’s a terrible colleague.

I follow the Apple maps subreddit and I learned a few things from there
- full rollout takes about 6 weeks, all users should have the updates after that
- until then, some people will get the updates and some won’t
- there is no rhyme or reason to get them, they just show up
- if you get the update, they may come and go until the 6 weeks pass

I still find Apple's maps almost unusable in Carplay mode. There's almost no contrast between the road and the surrounding areas so it's near impossible for me to see upcoming roads without intently staring at the screen, something you shouldn't be doing while driving.

I have no such trouble with Waze's maps.

Set it on night mode and you’ll be fine. I found there is a huge variation in quality of LCD panels used by manufacturers. Some are harder to see with CarPlay than others. But night mode/dark mode resolves most contrast issues unless you can change the brightness/contrast of your LCD.

Are Apple still doing the map business? I thought they quit because no improvement has been done for years.

Hello Rip Van Winkle. While you've been asleep, Apple went from it's disastrous start to become, by far the most used mapping App on iPhones, now used many billions of times a week around the world. It's been shown to more accurate in time estimates than Google and Apple just recently finished building its own base map at a cost of billions and several years. They now have several thousand employees working full time on just maps. Now that they have their own base map, instead of just cobbled together third party information from Tom Tom, etc., you are seeing them roll out impressive new features that will push them further beyond Google. For example, everyone agrees that Look Around blows Street View out of the water. It took some time, but it was well worth it. And remember, all of this is without sacrificing your privacy to Google, where they retain everywhere you go, forever in the Borg, and link it to every other bit of your life they've captured in your virtual dossier. All praise Apple!