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Did an Apple Engineer Invent FB Messages In 2003?
theodp writes "Q. How many Facebook engineers does it take in 2010 to duplicate a lone Apple engineer's 2003 effort? A. 15! On Nov. 15th, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg introduced Facebook Messages, which uses whatever method of communication is appropriate at the time — e.g., email, IM, SMS. A day later, ex-Apple software engineer Jens Alfke was granted a patent for his 2003 invention of a Method and apparatus for processing electronic messages, which — you guessed it — employs the most appropriate messaging method — e.g., email, IM, SMS — for the job. Citing Apple's lack of passion for social software, Alfke left Apple in 2008. After a layover at Google, Alfke landed at startup Rockmelt, whose still-in-beta 'social web browser' also sports a pretty nifty communications platform."
Ok, maybe good software developers, but a UI designer that puts a green plus on the UI that makes the window bigger, and has you put your disk in the trash to take it with you simply cannot be called good UI designers. That, and an engineer that cannot figure out how to put a battery door on an MP3 player or phone cannot be called a good engineer. Actually, after using iTunes, you can't say they have good software developers either.
Apple has good advertising, and a willingness to be an early adopter on new trends. Everything else is pretty mediocre.