geerlingguy
Aug 16, 11:24 PM
When rendering in FCP, it's all about the CPU.
Fast hard drives contribute to real-time effects, but do NOT contribute to rendering.
Ram helps a little bit.
However, depending on what kind of rendering you're doing, the hard drive can be a limiting factor.
Say you're just rendering ten minutes worth of a blur effect on video�the CPU says 'gimme all you got' and goes to town on the frames, blurring each one quickly. But the hard drive may have a hard time keeping up with the CPU, because 10 minutes of footage needs to be read, then re-written to the drive. For HD-resolution video, that can be a couple gigs of data. And that data also has to pass through the RAM (which acts like a high-speed buffer).
However, in the case of these benchmarks, one would think the testers would choose some more CPU-intense rendering, which would allow the hard drive to take it's time while the CPU is overloaded with work.
But, to anyone configuring a graphics or video workstation: Everything�CPU, Hard Drives, RAM, and even the GPU for some tasks�should be as fast and ample as possible. "A chain is only as good as it's weakest link." If you pair up a Quad 3.0 GHz Xeon with a 5400 rpm USB 2.0 drive, you will be disappointed.
Fast hard drives contribute to real-time effects, but do NOT contribute to rendering.
Ram helps a little bit.
However, depending on what kind of rendering you're doing, the hard drive can be a limiting factor.
Say you're just rendering ten minutes worth of a blur effect on video�the CPU says 'gimme all you got' and goes to town on the frames, blurring each one quickly. But the hard drive may have a hard time keeping up with the CPU, because 10 minutes of footage needs to be read, then re-written to the drive. For HD-resolution video, that can be a couple gigs of data. And that data also has to pass through the RAM (which acts like a high-speed buffer).
However, in the case of these benchmarks, one would think the testers would choose some more CPU-intense rendering, which would allow the hard drive to take it's time while the CPU is overloaded with work.
But, to anyone configuring a graphics or video workstation: Everything�CPU, Hard Drives, RAM, and even the GPU for some tasks�should be as fast and ample as possible. "A chain is only as good as it's weakest link." If you pair up a Quad 3.0 GHz Xeon with a 5400 rpm USB 2.0 drive, you will be disappointed.
Nuck81
Dec 1, 11:18 AM
Cool thanks. I will give this a try. Anything to get this bus done. I hate the tasks where whatever it is you are driving is real slow!
Heh, if you like driving the bus, you'll LOVE the next two races at Top Gear...
Heh, if you like driving the bus, you'll LOVE the next two races at Top Gear...
fivepoint
Apr 27, 03:25 PM
I'd be fascinated to know exactly what you did to "discover" those layers, 5P. I have Photoshop and Illustrator too. Guess what? One layer. Nothing selectable. At least one of us is talking complete bollocks.
Open the file in illustrator, use the white arrow (not black) tool, and the individual layers or objects will be individually selectable. If you look at the word 'none' in the center of the document for example, you'll see that part of the word is darker than the other, one part is on one layer, the other is separate. I just don't understand how this would normally happen on a simple scanned PDF.
Like I said... Computer / operator fail @ OCR usage.
:rolleyes:
EDIT: although I do have to issue another "rollseyes" face at the people who dismiss 5P because "they tried but saw no layers".
I tried, I discovered layers.
Fact: There are "layers" if you can even call them that.
Another Fact: They mean nothing.
You're probably right... it's probably some type of OCR epic fail.
Also, it's not a fact. I'm a liar, you're a liar, if you don't think there's only one layer, you're a liar.
Since the messenger (you) has expressed huge distaste for Obama on almost a daily basis, I'd say my assumptions are fair.
Yes, I think Obama is a horrible president. That doesn't mean he was born in Kenya. Enough with the overly dramatic defense mechanisms. Just because you love the guy doesn't mean you get to live in a fairlytale world where he has no flaws, or he can't be questioned or criticized in the least. Why not focus on figuring out why the document is weird so we can all move on!?!? Do you just have fun laying down baseless attacks for no reason instead? It's a simple question - aimed at graphic artists who know what they're talking about (not you) - so why even discuss it other than to disrupt this issue, misdirect the conversation, and accuse me lying?
He didn't discover anything, he just bought in to the reactionary right wing propaganda spreading like wildfire on the internet.
If I had 'bought into it' I would have been on here saying, "look, look, it's a fake! He's not a citizen! Here's proof!". To the contrary, I said from the very beginning that there was likely a simple explanation and that I wanted to hear such an explanation which I think MattSepta (unlike the rest of you) has begun to offer. Are there any other expert opinions out there on this issue? I had hoped this issue would be laid to rest at this point, I almost think it's going to get worse based on what I'm seeing out there. :(
Open the file in illustrator, use the white arrow (not black) tool, and the individual layers or objects will be individually selectable. If you look at the word 'none' in the center of the document for example, you'll see that part of the word is darker than the other, one part is on one layer, the other is separate. I just don't understand how this would normally happen on a simple scanned PDF.
Like I said... Computer / operator fail @ OCR usage.
:rolleyes:
EDIT: although I do have to issue another "rollseyes" face at the people who dismiss 5P because "they tried but saw no layers".
I tried, I discovered layers.
Fact: There are "layers" if you can even call them that.
Another Fact: They mean nothing.
You're probably right... it's probably some type of OCR epic fail.
Also, it's not a fact. I'm a liar, you're a liar, if you don't think there's only one layer, you're a liar.
Since the messenger (you) has expressed huge distaste for Obama on almost a daily basis, I'd say my assumptions are fair.
Yes, I think Obama is a horrible president. That doesn't mean he was born in Kenya. Enough with the overly dramatic defense mechanisms. Just because you love the guy doesn't mean you get to live in a fairlytale world where he has no flaws, or he can't be questioned or criticized in the least. Why not focus on figuring out why the document is weird so we can all move on!?!? Do you just have fun laying down baseless attacks for no reason instead? It's a simple question - aimed at graphic artists who know what they're talking about (not you) - so why even discuss it other than to disrupt this issue, misdirect the conversation, and accuse me lying?
He didn't discover anything, he just bought in to the reactionary right wing propaganda spreading like wildfire on the internet.
If I had 'bought into it' I would have been on here saying, "look, look, it's a fake! He's not a citizen! Here's proof!". To the contrary, I said from the very beginning that there was likely a simple explanation and that I wanted to hear such an explanation which I think MattSepta (unlike the rest of you) has begun to offer. Are there any other expert opinions out there on this issue? I had hoped this issue would be laid to rest at this point, I almost think it's going to get worse based on what I'm seeing out there. :(
rdowns
Apr 28, 05:57 PM
all want to know is was why it always has to go to name calling..be it..wacko christians, teabaggers or racists conservatives..it seems like every thread any of the liberals on the forum posts always goes to calling names at whatever group it is that they have a problem with today.
I'm not a liberal but those sound like apt descriptions of some of the people who call themselves Republicans/Tea Party/Conservative. I long for the Republican Party my family supported.
I'm not a liberal but those sound like apt descriptions of some of the people who call themselves Republicans/Tea Party/Conservative. I long for the Republican Party my family supported.
GregAndonian
Apr 11, 04:22 AM
Mr Jobs had good sense of keeping his fingers out of Pixar
...which is why their movies look INCREDIBLE on Blu-ray. :p :D
...which is why their movies look INCREDIBLE on Blu-ray. :p :D
Multimedia
Aug 27, 02:12 AM
I still pity those guys expecting "Major" MBP performance gain by moving to Merom without Santa Rosa. They are as ignorant as those people expecting G5s with their two pound heat sinks to go in powerbooks. I'm just looking forward to see Conroe iMac and better battery life for MBPs. And iPod update off course ;)I don't give a rat's A** about Santa Rosa. What I do give a Rat's A** about is that Easy Access HD Bay. The ability to have multiple 160 GB HDs standing by for different field purposes can make for revolutionary work flow procedures.
shamino
Jul 20, 09:32 AM
Is having more cores more energy efficient than having one big fat ass 24Ghz processor? Maybe thats a factor in the increasing core count.
Actually, this is well documented.
There are serious electrical and physical problems with jacking up clock speeds much further than they are now. Intel managed to push their chips to 3.4GHz, but the power consumed was tremendous.
When you can't ramp up the clock speed, your next best alternative is to go for as much parallelism as you can - increase the number of instructions you can execute in a single clock.
Chip makers achieve this in a wide variety of ways, including multiple CPU packages on a motherboard, multiple cores per CPU package, multiple threads per core, and multiple functional units per thread.
And yes, a single CPU at 3GHz can easily consume more power than two CPUs (or two cores) at 1.5GHz.
As for your theoretical 24GHz processor, such a thing is simply not possible with today's technology. (Well, there were some university experiments that hit insanely fast speeds, but don't expect commercial products any time soon.) Given the heat/power curves of today's chips, I wouldn't want to think about the cooling requirements of a 24GHz chip if you could somehow manage to build one.
Of course, breakthroughs do happen, and higher clock speeds might become practical in the future. But multi-core tech isn't going away - we'll simply end up with multiple cores at higher clock speeds.
Actually, this is well documented.
There are serious electrical and physical problems with jacking up clock speeds much further than they are now. Intel managed to push their chips to 3.4GHz, but the power consumed was tremendous.
When you can't ramp up the clock speed, your next best alternative is to go for as much parallelism as you can - increase the number of instructions you can execute in a single clock.
Chip makers achieve this in a wide variety of ways, including multiple CPU packages on a motherboard, multiple cores per CPU package, multiple threads per core, and multiple functional units per thread.
And yes, a single CPU at 3GHz can easily consume more power than two CPUs (or two cores) at 1.5GHz.
As for your theoretical 24GHz processor, such a thing is simply not possible with today's technology. (Well, there were some university experiments that hit insanely fast speeds, but don't expect commercial products any time soon.) Given the heat/power curves of today's chips, I wouldn't want to think about the cooling requirements of a 24GHz chip if you could somehow manage to build one.
Of course, breakthroughs do happen, and higher clock speeds might become practical in the future. But multi-core tech isn't going away - we'll simply end up with multiple cores at higher clock speeds.
SuperCachetes
Mar 4, 09:17 PM
Logic is my source. Society needs people, no people means no society. If there were no more babies society would eventually collapse.
Wow. Does your logic also tell you that 100% of society is gay? Do you think that only gay males were posting here, asking for a source?
Your example has no relevance to the actual world we live in. Even if every single homosexual on Earth decided not to raise a child (which is far from the truth), we do not all have to make/raise babies to propagate the species.
Wow. Does your logic also tell you that 100% of society is gay? Do you think that only gay males were posting here, asking for a source?
Your example has no relevance to the actual world we live in. Even if every single homosexual on Earth decided not to raise a child (which is far from the truth), we do not all have to make/raise babies to propagate the species.
leekohler
Mar 3, 10:53 AM
I'm not conflating them. See post 129.
Don't compare them either. There is a huge difference between what homosexuals do and what pedophiles do. You're the one getting on people for not comprehending language. I suggest you take your own advice.
Don't compare them either. There is a huge difference between what homosexuals do and what pedophiles do. You're the one getting on people for not comprehending language. I suggest you take your own advice.
NATO
Aug 15, 04:49 PM
Interesting results, definitely makes me want to rob the local bank to buy a 3.0GHz Mac Pro :p
Spotted something amusing when browsing the barefeats page, an ad for the Apple store advertising 'The New Power Mac G5 Quad - Shop Now' ... Not so new now :p
Spotted something amusing when browsing the barefeats page, an ad for the Apple store advertising 'The New Power Mac G5 Quad - Shop Now' ... Not so new now :p
logandzwon
Apr 19, 02:51 PM
The First Commercial GUI
http://img62.imageshack.us/img62/5659/star1vg.gif
Xerox's Star workstation was the first commercial implementation of the graphical user interface. The Star was introduced in 1981 and was the inspiration for the Mac and all the other GUIs that followed.
http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/7892/leopardpreviewdesktop4.jpghttp://img714.imageshack.us/img714/5733/xerox8010star.gif
-The Star was not a commercial product. Xerox didn't sell them. (Well eventually they did, but not as PCs. they were to be similar to what we'd call a terminal today.)
-the middle image is actually of an Apple Lisa. I think you were just showing as a comparison, but some people might think your saying it's a Star. It's not. It's a Lisa.
-Apple compensated Xerox for the ideas borrowed from the Star. SJ and the mac team were already working on the GUI before any of them ever saw the Star though. Also, Macintosh 1 wasn't a copy of the Star. In fact a lot of the stables of a modern GUI today were innovated by Apple for the Macintosh.
http://img62.imageshack.us/img62/5659/star1vg.gif
Xerox's Star workstation was the first commercial implementation of the graphical user interface. The Star was introduced in 1981 and was the inspiration for the Mac and all the other GUIs that followed.
http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/7892/leopardpreviewdesktop4.jpghttp://img714.imageshack.us/img714/5733/xerox8010star.gif
-The Star was not a commercial product. Xerox didn't sell them. (Well eventually they did, but not as PCs. they were to be similar to what we'd call a terminal today.)
-the middle image is actually of an Apple Lisa. I think you were just showing as a comparison, but some people might think your saying it's a Star. It's not. It's a Lisa.
-Apple compensated Xerox for the ideas borrowed from the Star. SJ and the mac team were already working on the GUI before any of them ever saw the Star though. Also, Macintosh 1 wasn't a copy of the Star. In fact a lot of the stables of a modern GUI today were innovated by Apple for the Macintosh.
weckart
Apr 8, 02:48 AM
Really? C'mon. Most Best Buys don't even have an employee maning the Apple section.
Our local BB has an Apple employee looking after the Apple section. There is no way it could pull any stunt in breach of Apple's agreement with BB without Apple's finding out.
Maybe things are different in the US.
Our local BB has an Apple employee looking after the Apple section. There is no way it could pull any stunt in breach of Apple's agreement with BB without Apple's finding out.
Maybe things are different in the US.
wpotere
Apr 27, 12:05 PM
I lost mine a few years ago and it was re-issued so it isn't worn and faded. Does that mean I can't run for president? :eek::p
twoodcc
Jul 27, 10:59 PM
Could Shadowfax or Shawnce or someone else who knows describe a little more about the implications of the upgrade from Yonah to Merom? I'm trying to decide whether to get a Macbook or wait, I'm not that worried about the minor speed boost, but I am more concerned about longer term compatibility (say with mac OS or Windows). If there's going to be a point in a couple of years where the difference between Yonah and Merom is the difference between running the latest version of the OS or not, then I might wait. But if it's only speed and heat, I'll probably go for the Yonah (after WWDC) and live with not having the speed and lower heat that the upgrade brings.
i want to know the exact same thing
i want to know the exact same thing
Macaroony
Mar 1, 02:22 PM
@CoCo & Bill: Please, just stop arguing with bogus reasons. The Catholic Church has everything wrong and upside down and only to control its followers. You two are a perfect example thereof.
CoCo, heterosexuality is not the norm, at least not outside our social understanding. In ancient Greece and Rome, sexuality wasn't even up for discussion. You followed a certain social conduct and explored your sexuality as you saw fit and didn't question it or that of others. When Christianity started taking over the laws and moral standards, they made it so they could control everything people do. Your reasoning comes from the same source as those who wrote the medical journals that condemn homosexuality as a mental illness. They did so out of fear of the unknown - the very essence th the Catholic Church uses to control its followers.
And Bill, please go out and live a little. Get a nice girlfriend and explore your and her sexuality a little and see how much more relaxed your attitude about the world can be. There's more to life than waiting for God's instructions. He certainly wouldn't want you to waste your life on such trivial things like analyzing other people's sexuality.
You two need to expand your world view and accept that there are plenty of things that make you uncomfortable, but there is no reason to condemn them so exhaustingly. You cannot reverse progress and you certainly cannot control the lives of other people.
There are plenty of folks in Northern Africa that can vouch for that.
CoCo, heterosexuality is not the norm, at least not outside our social understanding. In ancient Greece and Rome, sexuality wasn't even up for discussion. You followed a certain social conduct and explored your sexuality as you saw fit and didn't question it or that of others. When Christianity started taking over the laws and moral standards, they made it so they could control everything people do. Your reasoning comes from the same source as those who wrote the medical journals that condemn homosexuality as a mental illness. They did so out of fear of the unknown - the very essence th the Catholic Church uses to control its followers.
And Bill, please go out and live a little. Get a nice girlfriend and explore your and her sexuality a little and see how much more relaxed your attitude about the world can be. There's more to life than waiting for God's instructions. He certainly wouldn't want you to waste your life on such trivial things like analyzing other people's sexuality.
You two need to expand your world view and accept that there are plenty of things that make you uncomfortable, but there is no reason to condemn them so exhaustingly. You cannot reverse progress and you certainly cannot control the lives of other people.
There are plenty of folks in Northern Africa that can vouch for that.
gorjan
Mar 31, 02:49 PM
I have 2 friends with android, one with an HTC and one with Samsung Galaxy S.
They have different OS versions since they aren't able to update it, they get crap bugs and error in almost every software they use. I say to one of them to update to lastest version, he told me he can't because he need to do it from "root"... i don't know, but at least i was able to install WhatsApp on their phones, the only thing i care :-P Naturally they are using their device at minimum, few software and one of them neither have 3G connection. When we are at pub, they all use my iPhone for browsing and gaming (sigh) as always has been.
This is exactly why I sold my Samsung Galaxy S the other day and purchased an iPhone. The Samsung crashed all the time and it was slow to the unbearable!
They have different OS versions since they aren't able to update it, they get crap bugs and error in almost every software they use. I say to one of them to update to lastest version, he told me he can't because he need to do it from "root"... i don't know, but at least i was able to install WhatsApp on their phones, the only thing i care :-P Naturally they are using their device at minimum, few software and one of them neither have 3G connection. When we are at pub, they all use my iPhone for browsing and gaming (sigh) as always has been.
This is exactly why I sold my Samsung Galaxy S the other day and purchased an iPhone. The Samsung crashed all the time and it was slow to the unbearable!
j26
Nov 29, 06:26 AM
My initial reservations about this story (the Zune/Universal payment) was much like eveybody's elses on these forums - very bad for us and screw 'em. But now that I've had time to think it through I actually think it's a fantastic idea.
Fantastic for the consumer and the artist, and potentially catastrophic for Universal Music.
Allow me to explain! Somebody buys a Zune or iPod that has had the 'Universal Tax' applied to it and then fills it with 30GB of stolen Universal music. It goes to court and the 'Pirate' successfully argues that he/she has already compensated UMG by buying the iPod/Zune. The judge agrees and piracy of Universal music becomes legal so long as it's for the 'UMG taxed' iPod or Zune. UMG collapses overnight and the artists get to release music on their terms and get more of the money that they deserve, not the faceless corporations and shareholders.
Why is this good for us? Because every entertainment company would become very wary of labelling us all 'pirates' and might actually realise that digital distribution at a fair price is their future.
D'oh somebody has already written something to this effect whilst I was typing!!
But do you really think a court will decide that way. Not likely, especially if it's a judge from the wealth maximisation school of thought.
Fantastic for the consumer and the artist, and potentially catastrophic for Universal Music.
Allow me to explain! Somebody buys a Zune or iPod that has had the 'Universal Tax' applied to it and then fills it with 30GB of stolen Universal music. It goes to court and the 'Pirate' successfully argues that he/she has already compensated UMG by buying the iPod/Zune. The judge agrees and piracy of Universal music becomes legal so long as it's for the 'UMG taxed' iPod or Zune. UMG collapses overnight and the artists get to release music on their terms and get more of the money that they deserve, not the faceless corporations and shareholders.
Why is this good for us? Because every entertainment company would become very wary of labelling us all 'pirates' and might actually realise that digital distribution at a fair price is their future.
D'oh somebody has already written something to this effect whilst I was typing!!
But do you really think a court will decide that way. Not likely, especially if it's a judge from the wealth maximisation school of thought.
Lord Blackadder
Mar 24, 02:25 PM
I'm not the one leveling unfounded, sweeping, non-cited accusations of racism, but I guess that doesn't bother you. Color me surprised.
I'm not going to to hold up this discussion with it any further, and while I stand by my general assertion it was slightly rash for me to inject it here. Another day perhaps.
I'm not going to to hold up this discussion with it any further, and while I stand by my general assertion it was slightly rash for me to inject it here. Another day perhaps.
aly
Aug 27, 01:38 PM
Just a few hours left, let's hope we see new MacBook Pros tomorrow, I think we'll see the new iMacs with Merom in Paris, because it's a very good announcement for consumers, and get the Pro MB's tomorrow.
As in Paris Expo? Cause I do believe that apple aren't going to be making a keynote speech. And won't make any annoucements at all or am I still believing in old news proved wrong?
As in Paris Expo? Cause I do believe that apple aren't going to be making a keynote speech. And won't make any annoucements at all or am I still believing in old news proved wrong?
antster94
Mar 22, 12:44 PM
Competition is good.
jamesW135
Aug 19, 10:16 PM
Whoa! I'm amazed at how it compared to the G5 in the Photoshop Speed test. If it was this fast now. Imagine PS once it's a UB!!:eek:
moooosedude
Jul 20, 08:27 AM
The Mactopus??
So I was just in the office workin on my new Mactopus...
or
Hey honey! I just dropped 3K on our new Mactopus!
...It could be very fun.
~moooosedude
So I was just in the office workin on my new Mactopus...
or
Hey honey! I just dropped 3K on our new Mactopus!
...It could be very fun.
~moooosedude
LagunaSol
Apr 6, 03:54 PM
You're absolutely right. Better than the junk in the app store. At the end of the day there aren't that many QUALITY apps on ipad either. I know because I have one.
"Junk?" You're hilarious. Show me a single Honeycomb app that compares to GarageBand. Keynote. Pages. OmniFocus. Swords & Sworcery. Djay. The list goes on and on. Enjoy your widgets. It's too bad for your wife you don't know how to find and download good iPad apps for her.
"Junk?" You're hilarious. Show me a single Honeycomb app that compares to GarageBand. Keynote. Pages. OmniFocus. Swords & Sworcery. Djay. The list goes on and on. Enjoy your widgets. It's too bad for your wife you don't know how to find and download good iPad apps for her.
MacRumors
Apr 27, 07:52 AM
http://www.macrumors.com/images/macrumorsthreadlogo.gif (http://www.macrumors.com/2011/04/27/apple-officially-addresses-location-data-controversy/)
Apple officially acknowledged (http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2011/04/27location_qa.html) the growing controversy over the logging of location data on the iPhone and iPad. The document comes in a Q&A format. In it, Apple addresses some common concerns and explicitly states that they are not tracking the location of your iPhone, has never done so and has no plans to do so.
The go on to explain the reason for the logging of data:
Why is my iPhone logging my location?
The iPhone is not logging your location. Rather, it’s maintaining a database of Wi-Fi hotspots and cell towers around your current location, some of which may be located more than one hundred miles away from your iPhone, to help your iPhone rapidly and accurately calculate its location when requested. Calculating a phone’s location using just GPS satellite data can take up to several minutes. iPhone can reduce this time to just a few seconds by using Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower data to quickly find GPS satellites, and even triangulate its location using just Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower data when GPS is not available (such as indoors or in basements). These calculations are performed live on the iPhone using a crowd-sourced database of Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower data that is generated by tens of millions of iPhones sending the geo-tagged locations of nearby Wi-Fi hotspots and cell towers in an anonymous and encrypted form to Apple.Apple states that all data that is transmitted to Apple is anonymous and encrypted and can not be tied to the identity of the user. They also note that findings that the database continues to grow despite Location services being off as a bug that will soon be addressed.
Apple is planning on releasing a free iOS update in the next few weeks that performs the following:
- reduces the size of the crowd-sourced Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower database cached on the iPhone,
- ceases backing up this cache, and
- deletes this cache entirely when Location Services is turned off.
Article Link: Apple Officially Addresses Location Data Controversy (http://www.macrumors.com/2011/04/27/apple-officially-addresses-location-data-controversy/)
Apple officially acknowledged (http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2011/04/27location_qa.html) the growing controversy over the logging of location data on the iPhone and iPad. The document comes in a Q&A format. In it, Apple addresses some common concerns and explicitly states that they are not tracking the location of your iPhone, has never done so and has no plans to do so.
The go on to explain the reason for the logging of data:
Why is my iPhone logging my location?
The iPhone is not logging your location. Rather, it’s maintaining a database of Wi-Fi hotspots and cell towers around your current location, some of which may be located more than one hundred miles away from your iPhone, to help your iPhone rapidly and accurately calculate its location when requested. Calculating a phone’s location using just GPS satellite data can take up to several minutes. iPhone can reduce this time to just a few seconds by using Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower data to quickly find GPS satellites, and even triangulate its location using just Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower data when GPS is not available (such as indoors or in basements). These calculations are performed live on the iPhone using a crowd-sourced database of Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower data that is generated by tens of millions of iPhones sending the geo-tagged locations of nearby Wi-Fi hotspots and cell towers in an anonymous and encrypted form to Apple.Apple states that all data that is transmitted to Apple is anonymous and encrypted and can not be tied to the identity of the user. They also note that findings that the database continues to grow despite Location services being off as a bug that will soon be addressed.
Apple is planning on releasing a free iOS update in the next few weeks that performs the following:
- reduces the size of the crowd-sourced Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower database cached on the iPhone,
- ceases backing up this cache, and
- deletes this cache entirely when Location Services is turned off.
Article Link: Apple Officially Addresses Location Data Controversy (http://www.macrumors.com/2011/04/27/apple-officially-addresses-location-data-controversy/)