Apple’s Agonizing Updates
I take pride in being a Non Conformist. I mostly avoid the directions of the faceless mobs, the trends, etc. Like thousands of other loyal Apple users, I had to get the most recent Apple updates the same day they arrived. These updates were indeed agonizing.
I started out using Software Update on my Mac Mini, which I had recently turned into my Primary Macintosh computer. Oh my God, a 6-hour download?! I abandoned the update for awhile and worked on a video project. I started having anxiety attacks about the editing project, and returned to the Apple upgrade experience.
This time I decided to go directly to the Apple Support Downloads site to get the updates. Here is the link. I think it was more efficient to download directly from this site because I could save the files, and use them on the second Macintosh computer. But then I realized my Mac Mini’s wi-fi connection was abysmally slow. I’ve covered that story in this blog post. I started using the iMac for downloads.
I realized that thousands of other Apple customers were trying to download the same files. I stopped downloading, and sat on my easy chair a few hours to watch old episodes of Smallville. I went to the Apple download site around 10 PM that night.
The downloads were done in about a half hour, versus the 6 hour estimate I had earlier in the day. The OSX Lion updates on the Macintosh computers were incredibly easy. The IOS5 updates for my iPad and iPhone 3GS proved to be the most exhausting updates.
The iPad and iPhone 3GS needed to be restored. All purchases and settings would be wiped away. Oh but Apple has been keeping records on all my purchases, and I could get them back just fine. I went ahead with the updates. The iPhone 3GS was first.
I haven’t been using the iPhone 3GS as a “real smartphone.” It’s more like an iPod Touch for me. I hadn’t bothered using a SIM card, because I don’t make phone calls. The iPhone 3GS was in its new Mophie Juice Pack Air, but that proved to be a major obstacle. The update process complained that there was no SIM. I had to remove the Mophie Juice Pack, and insert an old SIM that had been deactivated for months. The Mophie Juice Pack case really didn’t want to be removed.
The update process itself was painless once I inserted the crippled SIM card. The apps presented the worst problem. I needed to go through my entire history of apps “purchases,” including the free apps I’d installed, and make sure they all were back on the iPhone. I had also decided to pair my iPad and iPhone 3GS with the iMac, rather than the Mac Mini. That made my job all the harder.
I must have spent 3 hours or more updating the iPhone 3GS and getting my apps installed. I started around midnight, and went to bed about 3 AM.
The next day I woke, and went through the same process on my iPad. I’m not sure if I got all my apps back yet.
I still need to sort out a few things. I have double entries for contacts on my iPhone 3GS. I haven’t looked at the contacts on the iPad yet. Most likely I made some mistake and caused the problems.
I think Apple did a good job with these updates. I know thousands of people suffered because they were impatient,wanting to get everything NOW. I believe Apple, or any other company, doesn’t add a bunch of extra servers for such an update. I know everyone, including me, would have been better off waiting till the next day to get the updates.
Yes, Apple likely had some problems which added to people’s confusion or inconvenience. But who is perfect these days?!
My own experience was aggravated by my reliance on a wi-fi connection. I switched the “host computer” to the iMac, and that made my job harder as well.
It will take me a few days or more to evaluate all the great new stuff we got from these updates. I am happy that the job is done, for now.