Horace Dediu:
>What this level of spending implies is that iCloud (and Siri and iTunes) are expensive. They may seem ephemeral and even trivial as services, but they require a staggering commitment few can make. Apple made that commitment and they made it early on, before the first quarter billion users were even on the horizon.
If accurate, this data shows just how much effort that Apple put into its cloud services this time around.
One look at the picture of that notebook and you have to think there will be a forthcoming lawsuit from Apple.
Rita McGrath:
>So, not only are we still left asking whether Groupon is beneficial to merchants, now it’s uncertain as to whether or not its business actually benefits the customer.
Interesting that now it seems Groupon’s deals aren’t always “deals” — I wonder how many people really thought Groupon was around for the long haul?
Dan Frommer:
>In an informal flip through the Fortune 500 companies, the only industry that seems to come close to Apple’s current growth — at its size or larger — is the oil business. Chevron, for instance, is twice Apple’s size and is growing at the same rate.
There will be a point when growing at the rate Apple current is will be very difficult — if not impossible — to achieve. Luckily, Apple seems to not be close to such a point.
W.J. Hennigan reporting on [last weeks Predator Drone virus](https://brooksreview.net/2011/10/safety-first/):
>The Air Force shot down those claims, saying the virus “in question is a credential stealer, not a keylogger, found routinely on computer networks and is considered more of a nuisance than an operational threat. It is not designed to transmit data or video, nor is it designed to corrupt data, files or programs on the infected computer.”
*Guys, guys, calm down. They aren’t logging anything — they’re just stealing our top secret credentials. No big deal.*
And later:
>[…] Cook said the Air Force continues to strengthen cyber defenses, “using the latest anti-virus software and other methods to protect Air Force resources and assure our ability to execute Air Force missions.
*Before we didn’t see the need to pay for this years version of Norton, but we now see why we need that. The update should be done in 3 mins and 37 seconds.*
A very cool little video that shows off a piece of software meant to allow the blind to use tablets. I love stuff like this.
JR Raphael reporting on a new change to the Verizon privacy policy that all users are opted-in to by default:
>This info includes the URLs of websites you visit over Verizon’s network and also your device’s location data. Some of those details may be shared with outside companies as well. Verizon says none of it will personally identify you.
You should read the report and then opt-out.
Florian Mueller:
>After today’s decision, I believe no company in the industry be able to launch any new Android-based touchscreen product in Australia anytime soon without incurring a high risk of another interim injunction. The two patents on which today’s ruling is based aren’t Galaxy Tab 10.1-specific at all. They will affect all Android-based smartphones and tablet computers, across all vendors.
Oh, that can’t be a comfortable spot for Android handset makers.
It appears that iCloud — specifically iCloud email — is intermittently working for many users today. Looks like mostly too much traffic and it is buckling under the pressure. Here’s the link to the status page.
Maybe MobileMe isn’t as distant a memory as we all hoped.
Comprehensive, even a few that I didn’t know about. Good place to start off with the new OS.
One of my favorite tools for research and multi-section writing just got better. Lion compatible and support for ePub exports are just two highlights of this update. It’s also cheaper than it was when I purchased it, now just $19.99 in the Mac App Store — it’s a bargain. ((Or it could have been free if you were following me on Twitter this morning — just sayin’.))
If I was writing a book I wouldn’t bother with any other app — heck I’m not writing a book and I still love it.
I wrote about my [biggest annoyance](https://brooksreview.net/2011/10/notification-center/) with iOS 5 being the new Notification Center, now let’s talk about my favorite part of iOS 5: Over the Air Everything. From the OTA Delta updates to iOS itself, to iCloud, to WiFi sync — this is the stuff that really makes iOS devices feel magic.
These are the *real* problems that iOS 5 solves, and it does so very well. What Apple has done is to truly create a device that you need never plug into a computer and as a user that feels magical in the same way that pinch-to-zoom feels magical — what other way would you do it?
### OTA Updates
The most minor feature for power users is also one of the bigger features for ‘regular’ users — over the air, delta, updates of iOS. This means you only download the parts that changed and install those parts without ever plugging it into a computer.
Incredibly, this was the most stable part of the beta process for me with iOS 5 — never once did I have an issue with this.
The reason this is so huge for the general iOS user base is developers now can reasonably expect users to keep their devices updated. Even if a user isn’t up-to-date it is no longer “too much to ask” if you suggest that they update their phones.
This is also something that general geeks should rejoice about: now you can trust that your parents can update their phones without you holding their hands — hooray!
In all honesty this is going to be a bigger deal than I think most people realize because prior to iOS there was no easy, painless, way to keep your device updated — now there is.
### WiFi Syncing
I won’t spend too much time on this, but we now have WiFi syncing. It’s just as slow as naysayers thought it would be and just has handy as the beggars wanted it to be.
All in all, if I need to sync my iPhone or iPad I still prefer to plug it in. Not because WiFi sync is inherently bad, but because I tend to never leave my Mac on and thus am always waiting for the sync to finish — why not spend less time waiting and plug in.
If you have a Mac that is left on all the time, then this likely will be a great tool for you — but for us Laptop only people it’s of limited utility.
### iCloud
Of course iCloud is big and important, there are a ton of nice little things in iCloud already, but I think there will be many more great things to come in iCloud next year. iCloud is the first step in the right direction for cloud syncing, now we just need it everywhere.
My two favorite parts so far:
#### Music
iTunes Match is the biggest of the new iCloud features. Allowing you to store all of your music from iTunes in the “iCloud” and download that music to your devices at will.
It takes a bit to get setup, but from there on out it works just as described. One thing that drives me nuts is that when you activate iTunes Match you delete all songs off your device — forcing you to re-download them OTA.
This isn’t bad if you don’t like to store a bunch of music on your device, but if you like to keep a base collection of 1-2GB — well you are in for some tedious work of getting that music back on each device. ((A [smart idea](https://twitter.com/talaviir/status/124211488712962050) is to create a Smart Playlist of your “base collection” and then use the download all functionality to get that music on each device.))
This is just about the only annoyance I have with iTunes Match, so overall this is a huge plus.
#### Backups
This is, hands down, my favorite iOS 5 feature. The daily backups done when on WiFi and plugged in — typically while I sleep. Here’s why I love it:
1. I can now restore my phone from anywhere that I can get online.
2. I can set my phone to delete all contents after 10 tries — without worry of losing anything.
3. It’s automatic, the way all backups should be.
4. It’s invisible to the user.
5. It’s so easy that my Mom, Wife, Dad, Sisters, et al can use this.
6. It backs up the camera roll.
This is just an excellent feature, priced right, and man is it good. The backups take a while to restore, but you can still use the phone while it restores — how great is that?
Sign up for iCloud and start the backups now — there’s no reason not too.
Overall Apple’s move to cable independence is a huge plus for users and I have a feeling Apple is just getting started.
What’s better than reminding you are a specific time? Reminding you when you are somewhere that you can actually do the task, that’s what.
Turn your WordPress site into a Facebook-like Timeline. Nifty.
>On this, the 30th episode, Shawn and Ben discuss iOS 5, iCloud, the iPhone 4S, and Steve Jobs. Also, Portland, Maine has a great AT&T network.
You’d be foolish not to install this as soon as you can.
John Gruber:
>I wouldn’t say I can’t live without Siri. But I can say that I don’t want to.
I’m pumped.
Ryan Cash:
>With iOS 5, you can simply tap in the middle of the message area (when you’re in the half message/half keyboard screen), and slide down to reveal the full screen view.
That is a nice touch.
Glyn Moody reporting on Facebook’s response to turning over data it keeps on users:
>Claiming that certain aspects of your personal data is “a trade secret or intellectual property of Facebook Ireland Limited or its licensors” seems pretty extraordinary.
In Europe you can request that any Internet company hands over the data that they have on you, and a group has begun to do so with Facebook. It is very interesting and I have no idea what data Facebook would say is “a trade secret”, but now I really want to know.