I give Steve Jobs and Apple huge credit for great design and new business models. But not all is perfect in Mac land.
Ok, I admit it, I use a PC with Windows. But I do use iTunes and QuickTime. Apple, along with countless other software providers, commits the moral equivalent of trespass on my PC. To wit, here I am working in an application when suddenly my keyboard seems to go dead. But no…. it’s just the Apple Software Update pop-up invading my screen, grabbing control of my system. The dialog box offers to download more than 60 megs of new code for features that I don’t need and seem marginal to me. Even with a fast cable connection, it takes time to download and install. This happens often enough that it is a noticeable drag on productivity.
I’m all for updating software, but developers need to learn how to respect property lines. How about configuration options that let the owner choose how often to be notified and allow setting a threshold for types of updates. With all the energy that created the sleek iPod and iPhone, I would think the designers at Apple could come up with a better way to update software.
Apple is by no means the only developer that commits moral trespass. Here’s a case where politeness and personal productivity go hand-in-hand: developers, please create less intrusive means of updating your applications and give me more control over the process.