I can't actually sync my new phone with iTunes, because it needs iTunes 7.7, and Apple's download servers seem to have crashed. This seems to me like the sort of thing the folks at Apple might have seen coming.
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You're lucky--at least you got yours activated! Right after you left the servers crashed or something and the "soft activation" with iTunes stopped working. Mine is a brick right now; I have to try to activate it at home.
Nice vlog!
That'll teach you not to buy Microso... what? Apple, you say?
Heck, they could have seen it coming last time -- the original iPhone launch had similar problems.
I'm not an economist, though. I imagine there is some trade-off when spending money to scale a system that will be under ridiculously heavy load for one or two days, then under much less load for years at a time.
I'm surprised there are not yet any comments criticizing you for making light of killing, linking you to articles about what killing "really looks like", or describing "McArdleton" as a place where being slaughtered in the street is equivalent to having to wait an hour because a server crashed.
Maybe I'm just early though.
i'm hoping you at least have your old phone. those of us who didn't update buthave the original iphone were able to download the new software but not connect to activate it.
great day for apple all around.
That's why I updated my firmware yesterday...
From a technical pov, it's very costly to build systems for 'peak' load. You can't go for 'average' either. Interaction systems are 'bursty' so guestimate your 80% level and aim for that.
Would be interesting to know if it's Apple (who do an excellent job with capacity for software downloads, even big ones) or ATT systems with the bottlenecks. ATT hasn't ever really had peak sales days like this - probably only one single day, about a year ago.
I updated my 1st gen iPhone today. Since I already had iTunes, getting the update was pretty seamless and downloading the 2.0 firmware also went well, until the final step of (re)activation.
Everything hung for about three hours until roughly 2pm CDT, when the (re)activation finally went through and I got my phone back from activation purgatory. Apparently, there was some network change because commenters at Gizmodo and Engadget seemed to notice the same thing.
Good luck with the downloading.
From what I've read (I forget where), this is an AT&T server that the apple servers are making a call out to to validate the SIM card and phone number as valid, active AT&T accounts. I assume they did little to expand the capacity for this, as it will taper off in about 6 hours.
Though the real problem was in store activation, as last year it was something like 3 hours from purchase to when I actually turned it on. In addition to that, everyone who owned an iPhone already is hitting these servers as well.
It was going fine in att stores on the east coast till the stores in other time zones started coming on line, then Itunes went goofy. Part of the problem was people upgrading to 7.7 before the sales started. I tried to go to 7.7 at 630am so I could put some content on the stores demo's (hence the reason I am not using my usual screen name and website), and it was toast. Then the unbricking module went down.
All in all, it went a lot better then last year, and my store moved 25 devices and well over 30 direct fulfil between 8 and 12.
megan-
This seems to me like the sort of thing the folks at Apple might have seen coming.
Do you think Apple really cares? They already have your money... and they also have your "name" on a 1 or 2 yr 'dedicated' contract.
I would love to see a comparison between non-renewed "fitness club/gym memberships" and "iPhone connection contracts"...
OMG after 3 hours in line in Boston I have I one. My bf and I made "line friends" the guy in line with me was upgradeing his 8 year old sprint phone - he won the prize for the largest technical leap
You're right that it's expensive to buy loads of servers for a one-two-day massive load, but there are companies out there that offer that sort of service. You hire their servers absorb your overload for the duration-- they are scaled-up so you don't have to be.
Seems like you could have waited...
Thats what commonly makes people who camp out to buy electronic goods far far dumber than the average person. Hardware and software is always released way too early, and needs a few months for the bugs to be worked out. Anyone who knows anything about either the hardware or software industry knows this. its part of the business model. But hey, you want to announce your rubitude to the world, go ahead nubskillet!