As a Linux Fuckboi, I haven't had any problems with malware. Presently looking for a decent, cheap Linux phone, because I don't relish the idea of being a Google Fuckboi. I certainly am NOT going to be an Apple fuckboi, for many reasons as others above have pointed out.
Oh, but all the Android Fuckbois are always crowing about how Android == Linux, to "support" their assertion that Linux is the most popular OS.
So which is it? Android is Linux, or it is not. Can't be both.
Personally, I think that Android is Linux in exactly the same way as iOS is macOS. They share some underlying code; but then diverge.
But your answer seems to allude to the fact that Android != Linux.
With good Internet there are lots of other choices. Not all are legal... But most are easier.
Haven't seen ONE yet that approaches 1/10 of the ease of "pickup remote, Go to channel-guide, pick a channel, watch or record", sorry.
We're SORT of getting there; but it's still WAAAAY too "techy" for average people. You and I can easily deal with it, but a LOT of "ordinary folks" (like the 99.99999999999% of the population who don't read Slashdot), um, just can't.
That's not their fault, it's ours; for being to stuck-up and/or lazy and/or stupid to come up with a solution that works more like a "TV" and less like a "File Server". Voice Search stuff is helping get past the "typing/spelling" part; but something still isn't quite right to make it "click" (no pun) with the masses.
Have you bosses finally told you that "removing the 3.5 mm headphone jack is the best idea ever" ? Or you are just hedging your bets in case they tell this to you later?
That's right. You've discovered my secret.
Because unlike every other person that posts on Slashdot, I have absolutely no independent thought and no personal opinions.
[/sarcasm] (Justin Case you are as dense as you appear to be).
"Abigail Brody (an ex-Apple designer, which Apple hired last year)"/em
Wait, Apple hired her last year, and she's already ex-Apple? Must be good, then.
No, she left Apple in 2011, so she's been out of the iOS-loop for a LONG time. From her bio, it sounds like she left Apple as part of the "Great Skeumorphic Purge" that also ousted Scott Forrestall.
Personally, I'd say she stays at a company until they figure out she's a poser, then moves on.
maybe they should all pool their resources in to one open source OS like a mobile Linux distro, i hear ubuntu is making a smartphone and/or OS too maybe something along those lines, a GNU/Linux type of system would fit that job nicely
So what you want us to believe you won't have the same problems with the lightening connector? I am sure those tiny little traces and contact pins won't show any mechanical wear or oxidation issues ever....
The difference of course being with the analog link you *can* wiggle it around and you'll get immediate feedback if the connection is improved. The delay the digital connection adds means you won't get that feedback. So it will be much harder to say fiddle with using only your left hand while driving and expect to make any kind of progress. Your complain might be fair but Apple's "answer" makes the problem worse not better.
I knew someone would come up with that objection, and it's a valid one.
HOWEVER, for whatever reason (maybe just good connector design, maybe the fact that the contacts on both sides are gold-plated and thus no oxidation), I haven't personally had any issues with the Lightning connector after plugging/unplugging dozens of times since I got my iPhone 6 plus a couple of years ago. And all the Lightning connector problems I found in a quick Google search seemed to be on the iPhone 5's Lightning "jack"; so maybe they fixed the female part of the connector in time for the iPhone 6. But even if it is just a matter of the age of the iPhone 5 vs. the 6, it seems like all that happens is that dust and crap collects in the female side, and is easily swabbed-out with a toothpick or similar.
Any cable and connector can have problems; but some have more than others. And I would submit the number of iPhone users who have had maddening problems with 3.5mm phone plugs/jacks being intermittent FAR outstrips those who have had problems with the Lightning connector.
Motorola is replacing with USB-C, which everyone else will eventually do as well. Apple will use lightning, which nobody gives a flying shit about and nobody else will ever use. Hence the hand-wringing.
They may switch to USB-C, too. They were an early adopter on their newest Macs.
Macs4FuckingAll, the one sadistic asshole that wants to force everyone to use overpriced, under powered shit for our computing needs, assures us that the almighty Apple hasn't yet confirmed it's plan to yet again not only fuck over it's own customers, but everyone else as well.
You stupid motherfucking idiot! You have the gayest User ID possible, one that literally screams, "Hay everybody, I'm a huge fanboi douchebag!", and you actually believe people won't notice that.
I'll say it again because it can't be said enough in your case: FUCK YOU, MACS4ALL! I wish I could go back in time and murder your mother. God, she must be so ashamed.
Don't you think you're just a bit over the top with that rhetoric.
Anyone getting rid of 3.5mm jacks seems like a stupid idea, Apple or whoever. The mobile phone is my primary audio media device these days, and that means being able to plug in stereo speakers or headphones, not low quality bluetooth or some proprietary trash.
We DO have input on how all these companies design their devices, including Apple. It's called "money".
The Samsung Galaxy S6 was a big step backwards from the S5: it eliminated waterproofing, the microSD slot, and the removable battery. It didn't sell very well compared to previous Galaxy S* phones, so the S7 brought back the waterproofing and microSD slot (but not the battery).
Apple gets away with this shit because its customers are stupider than the other companies'. Samsung customers pissed about the S6 either kept their S5 or moved to some competing phone. But Apple customers won't do that, they'll just keep buying Apple products no matter what, and rationalize to themselves that Apple must know best.
You know, that has to be the most ridiculous bullshit there is.
With the exception of one person, all the Apple owners I know are VERY computer and "tech" savvy. MUCH more so than the majority of WIndows Users I know. And the one person I mentioned above is VERY smart (Lawyer, CPA and CFE); just not too tech-savvy. She's also 65 years old. However, conversely, my 86 year-old Mac-friend/client is QUITE computer-literate. He consults on Theatre Architecture design. And the list goes on.
Same thing for most Android users. Most are dumb-ass Millenials that wouldn't know two-factor authentication from a season-pass to Taylor Swift concerts.
That's not the plug, that's the strain-relief of the cable itself that borke, you numpty.
No, it's some sort of oxide or other crud on the jack and/or plug.
I can flex the cable all over the place, including at the strain relief, and it doesn't affect the audio. But if I grab the plug and rotate or "rock" it, it cuts in and out.
Been dealing with cables for a LONG time. I know how to troubleshoot cable vs. connector issues.
And I don't abuse cables either. So it isn't like a headphone cable that gets caught on stuff and inadvertently yanked-on, breaking the conductors at the strain relief. This particular cable gets plugged into the 3.5mm jack on the front of my car stereo, and runs over to the iPhone sitting on the passenger seat, or in a little "alcove" in the console. No "strain" whatsoever.
I imagine Apple expects some sort of fee for licensing the lightning standard. Probably not much if you're going to be buying high-end headphones, but it would mean no more £0.99 disposable ones from the supermarket.
If you're buying 99 pence headphones, you should probably switch to Bluetooth. Even that will sound better.
Apple didn't have the first USB port; nobody EVER said that (Intel was the main "driver" of USB at first); but they did have the first WORKING USB Port with actual OS-Level support.
Check the history on how long it was before WIndows and Linux had decent USB support. Hint: It was AFTER Apple.
That's a big NO. Windows 95 OSR 2 was released in August of 1997 with OS level USB support. The first version of Mac OS to support USB whatsoever was Mac OS 8 which released July of 1997. However, USB support wasn't very reliable or useful until the release of the G3 and the iMac in 1998. In fact, the first Mac to come with a USB port was the G3 which came out a few weeks prior to the iMac in August of 1998.
Hmmm. Then how come it was a Windows 98 demo that embarrased the SHIT out of Billy Gates when he plugged in a USB scanner and promptly BSOD'ed the OS in front of the entire planet?
From all accounts I have read, Windows 95 OS R2 had VERY limited USB Support; hardly worth counting, actually.
Nothing is preventing it from existing. People are complaining because of what I affectionately call SJ's Law in honor of the guy who almost single-handedly made it relevant:
"All else being equal, and in the absence of explicit preparation to the contrary, the probability of having the right adapter is inversely proportional to the importance of having that adapter."
In other words, even though it is possible to get an adapter for your phone, the odds of having that adapter with you when you need it are approximately zero unless you explicitly planned ahead and made special arrangements to carry it with you just so you could have it at that particular place and time.
That's why, when I was a sound man in my youth, I would always show up with every adapter, every cable, every tester, and every tool I could think of.
NO ONE outside of 1 Infinite Loop that ISN'T under heavy NDA really knows what, if anything, Apple is doing with the 3.5 mm jack. We will all know in September, when the new iPhones traditionally come out.
Therefore, if it is true then it was generated from within Apple. In that case, it is most likely the marketing department. Perhaps they got tired of "losing" their phone prototypes in bars.
There isn't any alternative to the headphone jack. All headphones today use that analog port. Headphones don't have built in amps or digital to analog processors. I took a browse at all the best headphone s in headphone.com and earphonesolutions.com - they all use the port, none of them use USB or lightning ports. It would seem that headphone ports are not legacy and no replacement port has been devised.
Take the Shure SE-846 or Westone W6- I own both. Both come in headphone jack only variants. The cost to replace these headphones with something else would be $1000 each.
Apple might be telling users they will need to switch to external DACs and Amps instead.. I have used external DACs/Amps and they are bulky and normally larger than the size of the phone itself. They aren't compact. They use their own batteries etc and are not power efficient.
obamasweapon.com
There weren't ANY USB peripherals when the iMac debuted in 1998 with only USB ports. One year later, those were all sporting BOTH USB and Serial ports (My Epson 380(?) Printer had a USB, Serial AND Parallel Port). Another 2 years, and you nearly couldn't find a printer or other peripheral with a Serial or Parallel port.
Now I double-dog-dare you to find a Serial or Parallel printer being manufactured. There probably is still one, because I think Panasonic still offers some Dot-Matrix printers; but other than that...?
It's called "Time". It has a tendency to move forward, whether you like it or not. Adapt (no pun) or perish.
Floppy's ultimate demise came about because of USB technology, which was superior and did much more than just a storage technology.
Somebody please enlighten me, what's the technology making 3.5mm redundant at this point?
You do realize, of course, that the Floppy's demise was not due to USB (as evidenced by a number of USB-based Floppy drives that were offered for about the next 5 years). br.
Oh, wait. You don't know because you were a Zygote back in 1998.
More evidence that technology is slowing down and they have to change standards to get people to re-buy new sets of incompatible accessories which will get people to spend any money.
No, it's more evidence that you are getting old, and are becoming suspicious/afraid/annoyed by "new technology".
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As a Linux Fuckboi, I haven't had any problems with malware. Presently looking for a decent, cheap Linux phone, because I don't relish the idea of being a Google Fuckboi. I certainly am NOT going to be an Apple fuckboi, for many reasons as others above have pointed out.
Oh, but all the Android Fuckbois are always crowing about how Android == Linux, to "support" their assertion that Linux is the most popular OS.
So which is it? Android is Linux, or it is not. Can't be both.
Personally, I think that Android is Linux in exactly the same way as iOS is macOS. They share some underlying code; but then diverge.
But your answer seems to allude to the fact that Android != Linux.
just ask thier customers
Boy that's no shit...
But to get that good internet in most places you need to buy it from the cable co.
There is that, too...
With good Internet there are lots of other choices. Not all are legal... But most are easier.
Haven't seen ONE yet that approaches 1/10 of the ease of "pickup remote, Go to channel-guide, pick a channel, watch or record", sorry.
We're SORT of getting there; but it's still WAAAAY too "techy" for average people. You and I can easily deal with it, but a LOT of "ordinary folks" (like the 99.99999999999% of the population who don't read Slashdot), um, just can't.
That's not their fault, it's ours; for being to stuck-up and/or lazy and/or stupid to come up with a solution that works more like a "TV" and less like a "File Server". Voice Search stuff is helping get past the "typing/spelling" part; but something still isn't quite right to make it "click" (no pun) with the masses.
but it wont cost 99 cents... seems like a weird argument?
If "price" is your only criteria for product-selection, I'm sure it does.
Have you bosses finally told you that "removing the 3.5 mm headphone jack is the best idea ever" ? Or you are just hedging your bets in case they tell this to you later?
That's right. You've discovered my secret.
Because unlike every other person that posts on Slashdot, I have absolutely no independent thought and no personal opinions.
[/sarcasm] (Justin Case you are as dense as you appear to be).
"Abigail Brody (an ex-Apple designer, which Apple hired last year)"/em
Wait, Apple hired her last year, and she's already ex-Apple? Must be good, then.
No, she left Apple in 2011, so she's been out of the iOS-loop for a LONG time. From her bio, it sounds like she left Apple as part of the "Great Skeumorphic Purge" that also ousted Scott Forrestall.
Personally, I'd say she stays at a company until they figure out she's a poser, then moves on.
maybe they should all pool their resources in to one open source OS like a mobile Linux distro, i hear ubuntu is making a smartphone and/or OS too maybe something along those lines, a GNU/Linux type of system would fit that job nicely
Yeah, more Fragmentation FTW!
Google has taken some precautions with the mighty powerful ADB interface
Wait, what? Google is using the Apple Desktop Bus?
So what you want us to believe you won't have the same problems with the lightening connector? I am sure those tiny little traces and contact pins won't show any mechanical wear or oxidation issues ever....
The difference of course being with the analog link you *can* wiggle it around and you'll get immediate feedback if the connection is improved. The delay the digital connection adds means you won't get that feedback. So it will be much harder to say fiddle with using only your left hand while driving and expect to make any kind of progress. Your complain might be fair but Apple's "answer" makes the problem worse not better.
I knew someone would come up with that objection, and it's a valid one.
HOWEVER, for whatever reason (maybe just good connector design, maybe the fact that the contacts on both sides are gold-plated and thus no oxidation), I haven't personally had any issues with the Lightning connector after plugging/unplugging dozens of times since I got my iPhone 6 plus a couple of years ago. And all the Lightning connector problems I found in a quick Google search seemed to be on the iPhone 5's Lightning "jack"; so maybe they fixed the female part of the connector in time for the iPhone 6. But even if it is just a matter of the age of the iPhone 5 vs. the 6, it seems like all that happens is that dust and crap collects in the female side, and is easily swabbed-out with a toothpick or similar.
Any cable and connector can have problems; but some have more than others. And I would submit the number of iPhone users who have had maddening problems with 3.5mm phone plugs/jacks being intermittent FAR outstrips those who have had problems with the Lightning connector.
Motorola is replacing with USB-C, which everyone else will eventually do as well. Apple will use lightning, which nobody gives a flying shit about and nobody else will ever use. Hence the hand-wringing.
They may switch to USB-C, too. They were an early adopter on their newest Macs.
Macs4FuckingAll, the one sadistic asshole that wants to force everyone to use overpriced, under powered shit for our computing needs, assures us that the almighty Apple hasn't yet confirmed it's plan to yet again not only fuck over it's own customers, but everyone else as well.
You stupid motherfucking idiot! You have the gayest User ID possible, one that literally screams, "Hay everybody, I'm a huge fanboi douchebag!", and you actually believe people won't notice that.
I'll say it again because it can't be said enough in your case: FUCK YOU, MACS4ALL! I wish I could go back in time and murder your mother. God, she must be so ashamed.
Don't you think you're just a bit over the top with that rhetoric.
Why don't you log in and fight like a man? I do.
My point is, this decision by Apple forces people to buy expensive headphones that fall short of a corded version.
WHAT "Decision"?
ALL there is at this point is FUD. Nothing more.
Anyone getting rid of 3.5mm jacks seems like a stupid idea, Apple or whoever. The mobile phone is my primary audio media device these days, and that means being able to plug in stereo speakers or headphones, not low quality bluetooth or some proprietary trash.
Too bad. The world won't wait for you.
Great, my wallet is just ready to barf cash at this new Bluetooth 5 shiny shiny.
You DO realize, of course, that APPLE had nothing to do with Bluetooth 5, right? It's a STANDARD.
We DO have input on how all these companies design their devices, including Apple. It's called "money".
The Samsung Galaxy S6 was a big step backwards from the S5: it eliminated waterproofing, the microSD slot, and the removable battery. It didn't sell very well compared to previous Galaxy S* phones, so the S7 brought back the waterproofing and microSD slot (but not the battery).
Apple gets away with this shit because its customers are stupider than the other companies'. Samsung customers pissed about the S6 either kept their S5 or moved to some competing phone. But Apple customers won't do that, they'll just keep buying Apple products no matter what, and rationalize to themselves that Apple must know best.
You know, that has to be the most ridiculous bullshit there is.
With the exception of one person, all the Apple owners I know are VERY computer and "tech" savvy. MUCH more so than the majority of WIndows Users I know. And the one person I mentioned above is VERY smart (Lawyer, CPA and CFE); just not too tech-savvy. She's also 65 years old. However, conversely, my 86 year-old Mac-friend/client is QUITE computer-literate. He consults on Theatre Architecture design. And the list goes on.
Same thing for most Android users. Most are dumb-ass Millenials that wouldn't know two-factor authentication from a season-pass to Taylor Swift concerts.
That's not the plug, that's the strain-relief of the cable itself that borke, you numpty.
No, it's some sort of oxide or other crud on the jack and/or plug.
I can flex the cable all over the place, including at the strain relief, and it doesn't affect the audio. But if I grab the plug and rotate or "rock" it, it cuts in and out.
Been dealing with cables for a LONG time. I know how to troubleshoot cable vs. connector issues.
And I don't abuse cables either. So it isn't like a headphone cable that gets caught on stuff and inadvertently yanked-on, breaking the conductors at the strain relief. This particular cable gets plugged into the 3.5mm jack on the front of my car stereo, and runs over to the iPhone sitting on the passenger seat, or in a little "alcove" in the console. No "strain" whatsoever.
I imagine Apple expects some sort of fee for licensing the lightning standard. Probably not much if you're going to be buying high-end headphones, but it would mean no more £0.99 disposable ones from the supermarket.
If you're buying 99 pence headphones, you should probably switch to Bluetooth. Even that will sound better.
Apple didn't have the first USB port; nobody EVER said that (Intel was the main "driver" of USB at first); but they did have the first WORKING USB Port with actual OS-Level support. Check the history on how long it was before WIndows and Linux had decent USB support. Hint: It was AFTER Apple.
That's a big NO. Windows 95 OSR 2 was released in August of 1997 with OS level USB support. The first version of Mac OS to support USB whatsoever was Mac OS 8 which released July of 1997. However, USB support wasn't very reliable or useful until the release of the G3 and the iMac in 1998. In fact, the first Mac to come with a USB port was the G3 which came out a few weeks prior to the iMac in August of 1998.
Hmmm. Then how come it was a Windows 98 demo that embarrased the SHIT out of Billy Gates when he plugged in a USB scanner and promptly BSOD'ed the OS in front of the entire planet?
From all accounts I have read, Windows 95 OS R2 had VERY limited USB Support; hardly worth counting, actually.
Nothing is preventing it from existing. People are complaining because of what I affectionately call SJ's Law in honor of the guy who almost single-handedly made it relevant:
In other words, even though it is possible to get an adapter for your phone, the odds of having that adapter with you when you need it are approximately zero unless you explicitly planned ahead and made special arrangements to carry it with you just so you could have it at that particular place and time.
That's why, when I was a sound man in my youth, I would always show up with every adapter, every cable, every tester, and every tool I could think of.
That way, I never needed any of them.
It also ensures that the kernel on the device wasn't modified (think: desolder NVRAM, solder onto your own board, modify, replace).
Exactly.
NO ONE outside of 1 Infinite Loop that ISN'T under heavy NDA really knows what, if anything, Apple is doing with the 3.5 mm jack. We will all know in September, when the new iPhones traditionally come out.
Therefore, if it is true then it was generated from within Apple. In that case, it is most likely the marketing department. Perhaps they got tired of "losing" their phone prototypes in bars.
Is that your great, erudite comeback?
Seriously?
There isn't any alternative to the headphone jack. All headphones today use that analog port. Headphones don't have built in amps or digital to analog processors. I took a browse at all the best headphone s in headphone.com and earphonesolutions.com - they all use the port, none of them use USB or lightning ports. It would seem that headphone ports are not legacy and no replacement port has been devised. Take the Shure SE-846 or Westone W6- I own both. Both come in headphone jack only variants. The cost to replace these headphones with something else would be $1000 each. Apple might be telling users they will need to switch to external DACs and Amps instead.. I have used external DACs/Amps and they are bulky and normally larger than the size of the phone itself. They aren't compact. They use their own batteries etc and are not power efficient. obamasweapon.com
There weren't ANY USB peripherals when the iMac debuted in 1998 with only USB ports. One year later, those were all sporting BOTH USB and Serial ports (My Epson 380(?) Printer had a USB, Serial AND Parallel Port). Another 2 years, and you nearly couldn't find a printer or other peripheral with a Serial or Parallel port.
Now I double-dog-dare you to find a Serial or Parallel printer being manufactured. There probably is still one, because I think Panasonic still offers some Dot-Matrix printers; but other than that...?
It's called "Time". It has a tendency to move forward, whether you like it or not. Adapt (no pun) or perish.
Floppy's ultimate demise came about because of USB technology, which was superior and did much more than just a storage technology.
Somebody please enlighten me, what's the technology making 3.5mm redundant at this point?
You do realize, of course, that the Floppy's demise was not due to USB (as evidenced by a number of USB-based Floppy drives that were offered for about the next 5 years).
br. Oh, wait. You don't know because you were a Zygote back in 1998.
More evidence that technology is slowing down and they have to change standards to get people to re-buy new sets of incompatible accessories which will get people to spend any money.
No, it's more evidence that you are getting old, and are becoming suspicious/afraid/annoyed by "new technology".