I was talking about changing the responsive layout, not just the adding of the text snippet. Maybe I should've expressed that more clearly.

I use Windows on my workstation and game computer, freebsd on my fileserver, Mac OS on my MacBook, iOS on my iPad and Android on my Galaxy S3. I'm not a fanboy. I use whatever tool is best for the task.

However, I'm sick of a community that jumps on every news about Apple, taking everything for granted what they're mouth-fed and dismissing any fact-checking.

48hrs is not adequate to change a responsive layout. Designers and programmers have to work in hand and you have to test the entirety of your website in at least a dozen browsers.

Oh, and according to your comment history, a lot of your posts are flamebait. Why not try contributing for once?

I'm sorry, but I was writing about adjusting the layout. You can't do that in a couple of minutes. This involves designers, programmers, and testing across browsers, which can't be done in 48hrs.

While the decision has effect throughout the EU, the notice has to be put only on the UK site.

How about some facts.

First, the UK website has had this responsive layout for weeks. Also, most other country-specific landing pages of Apple use the same layout (for example German, Austrian websites). With the notable exception being the US site.

Second, Apple was laughed at for claiming to need 2 weeks to implement the new statement on their website. While I agree I could fix something like that in 5 minutes, you just don't fiddle around in the CSS of such a website. In addition to drafting a new text, you have to adjust the code and actually test it, which can't be done in a few days. That the court demanded Apple to fix this in 48hrs, just goes to show how much they understand about this.

The iOS app for google maps provides a map which shows your route and has two arrow buttons to switch back and forth between turn points. But there are neither voice directions nor "signs" where you have to drive, you have to derive all info from the top down view, which is basically unusable if you have to drive and navigate yourself.

This isn't turn by turn.

You can't even save in Mountain Lion anymore ;) You can just "duplicate".

Some people work better with symbols, which is why they were introduced. They're language-agnostic devices which enable more people to use your hard- or software.

Oh and btw, maybe you mixed it up, but the floppy disk translates to saving and the folder to opening ;)

Using a symbol which is widely accepted for another mechanism doesn't work: It introduces ambiguity which is very undesirable.

For me personally, I don't even want symbols. I'm perfectly fine with text. However, that's not how most people work, unfortunately.

Fair point, the use of the word need seems misplaced. English is not my native tongue ;) What I wanted to express is the following.

I handed my 83yr old , technical-illiterate grandma an iPad and she was able to use most of the apps because they resembled physical devices she knew.

Of course she doesn't "need" to use a digital calendar, or even an iPad. But that device and ample use of skeuomorphisms are enabling her to participate in a lot of places which were inaccessible for her before. It makes a lot of people feel familiar with usually (for them) almost frightening devices.

This is empowerment, and as long as nobody else is hindered I think the debate is quite pointless.

Seriously, as a designer myself I can only shake my head when I read stuff like this.

It may be true that "traditional visual metaphors no longer translate to modern users", but what about older users? Should we just dismiss their needs? Are interfaces really encumbered because they feature a wood-textured background?

Also, I challenge you to come up with a symbol for saving files without using a diskette or something like that. These symbols have transpired from metaphors of real objects to metaphors of actions, and people who have never even seen a diskette learn their purpose by context. Granted, this creates a certain standard by convention, and you could argue that any symbol could be used for that. But again, that would dismiss the users who grew up with that symbol. Currently, everybody is happy, why challenge this?

Imho, articles like this and blogs like skeu.it are just cleverly-disguised marketing by Microsoft. Ask any designer, and they'll tell you that well-used skeuomorphisms are not problematic, but even necessary to reach most of your target audience.

Well, you could basically do that with any other phone, and everyone who doesn't know the older generation phone will react this way.

This says more about psychology and especially trust in authority figures than anything about the iPhone or even phones for that matter.

I find it astounding that they even take old PC hardware. Yet, Apple is demonized in almost every news article.

Apple didn't lose. In fact, Microsoft settled for a huge investment in Apple.

I usually just generate additional passwords and save them in KeePass.