Marco Arment, on the state of Apple software :

I fear that Apple’s leadership doesn’t realize quite how badly and deeply their software flaws have damaged their reputation, because if they realized it, they’d make serious changes that don’t appear to be happening. Instead, the opposite appears to be happening: the pace of rapid updates on multiple product lines seems to be expanding and accelerating.

New features in a highly competitive industry like computer or smartphone marketing, are fundamental to keep your company relevant from your competitors. If Apple was selling the iPhone 6 with iOS 6 installed, I doubt that it would led to “the biggest iPhone launch ever”.

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Following yesterday piece, Cromulent Labs published a blog article explaining why the had to remove their app from the App Store recently.

Here’s some bits that I’ve selected:

During one of my conversations with someone at App Review last month, I asked if they could tell me if some of these new apps being accepted slipped through or if their use of widgets was deemed acceptable. I heard what had come to be a popular refrain from them. They couldn’t discuss other apps with me, they would look into those apps, and if I submitted a new app with that specific functionality they would be happy to review it and let me know if it was acceptable or not by either rejecting or accepting my new app. They steadfastly refused to tell me if a certain use of a widget was acceptable or not ahead of time.

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Panic’s update notes for Transmit :

Also, at Apple’s request, we had to remove the ability to “Send” files to other services, including iCloud Drive. In short, we’re told that while Transmit iOS can download content from iCloud Drive, we cannot upload content to iCloud Drive unless the content was created in the app itself. Apple says this use would violate 2.23 — “Apps must follow the iOS Data Storage Guidelines or they will be rejected” — but oddly that page says nothing about iCloud Drive or appropriate uses for iCloud Drive.

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Kyle Orland, for Ars Technica:

After a very brief announcement and teaser at E3 this year, Nintendo used the inaugural Game Awards webstream and live presentation in Las Vegas tonight to show off a more substantial trailer highlighting new gameplay features in the next Legend of Zelda game, planned to hit the Wii U some time in 2015. In the trailer, Zelda creator Shigeru Miyamoto and project producer Eiji Aounuma discuss the game’s “massive world” designed with “a number of high places with great views” to view far-off goals (“It would take a very long time for Link to walk” across the map, Aounuma says). Distant landmarks can be highlighted through a first-person view, controlled by tilting the GamePad, then show up as markers on an interactive, zoomable map on the touchscreen.

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