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Apple Beta Program iOS 11
#45410 06/27/17 03:33 PM
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I just completed installing iOS 11 on
  • iPhone 7 Plus
  • iPad Pro
  • iPad mini
I haven't had it long enough to offer much comment other than the installation on all three devices seemed to take longer than previous iOS 10.3 updates and apparently many (most?/all?) third party apps were automatically re-downloaded and installed after the iOS 11 installation. This was particularly noticeable on the iPad mini as it has by far the slowest processor. This was not a big deal for me, but it sure might have been one if I had a slow internet connection.

The first NEW features I have encountered are:
  1. The App Store — a shiney new UI and so far it seems a significant improvement.
  2. Settings > General > iPhone Storage
    1. Offload Unused apps — Automaticially offload unused apps when you are low on storage. Your documents and data will be saved and you can redownload the app and pickup where you left off
    2. Auto Delete Old Co... — automatically removes all your messages and attachments that wee sent or received over 1 ¥ear ago
    3. Review Large Attachments — See photos videos and attachments taking up storage in Messages and consider deleting them
    4. Messsage on iCloud — up;oading all your messages and attachments can take some time, Check the upload status of the Messages app.
  3. Do Not Disturb While Driving — You will not receive notifications when you are moving (I believe the magic cutoff speed is 5 mph but I have not tested it yet
  4. Safari — When you see an icon in hte search filed that looks like lines of txt, tap it to see just the text and images — without ads.

This list could go on and on and on almost ad infinitum. More interesting stuff later and High Sierra will be in another thread when it is available.

Last edited by joemikeb; 06/27/17 03:38 PM.

If we knew what it was we were doing, it wouldn't be called research, would it?

— Albert Einstein
Re: Apple Beta Program iOS 11
joemikeb #45416 06/27/17 06:50 PM
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Still on initial impressions it is interesting that although iOS 11 is technically the same on both the iPhone and iPad There are a lot of iPad ONLY features and functions. But the system size on the iPad Pro and iPad mini are 6.02 GB and 5.97 GB respectively while the system size on the iPhone is 8.39 GB ⁉️ I would not have expected the cellular capability to cause a nearly 40% increase in the size of the OS ‼️

Appearance: I have read some complaints about the new UI being flat and rather mundane or boring. Admittedly the look is not particularly flashy and relatively flat, but to my eyes they are crystal clear, obvious in their meaning, and easily distinguishable even in not great lighting conditions. They may not win any awards from the fashion conscious, but from the usability standpoint they are laudable – at least to my eyes.


If we knew what it was we were doing, it wouldn't be called research, would it?

— Albert Einstein
Re: Apple Beta Program iOS 11
joemikeb #45427 06/28/17 11:58 AM
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Originally Posted By: joemikeb
But the system size on the iPad Pro and iPad mini are 6.02 GB and 5.97 GB respectively while the system size on the iPhone is 8.39 GB ⁉️.

New OS releases often leave a lot of debugging code in them, it can be removed by flipping a few switches in the compiler before compiling so it's easy for them to simply not include in the build. They'll leave that stuff in for awhile and then remove it (or trim it down) when they have more of the bugs worked out.

A lot of that is double-checking things (to avoid data loss) and logging functions. Looking at console you can see it gets very busy logging a lot of things. (and more often than not, coughing up a LOT of warnings, reminders, and minor errors on a pretty much continuous basis) They'll also stretch buffer and array sizes "just in case" until they figure out how much space they actually NEED. (or can optimize things to be more efficient)


I work for the Department of Redundancy Department
Re: Apple Beta Program iOS 11
Virtual1 #45430 06/28/17 12:48 PM
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That's good to hear since there are a few 16 GB total capacity iPhones out there. wink


On a Mac since 1984.
Currently: 24" M1 iMac, M2 Pro Mac mini with 27" BenQ monitor, M2 Macbook Air, MacOS 14.x; iPhones, iPods (yes, still) and iPads.
Re: Apple Beta Program iOS 11
Ira L #45437 06/28/17 03:29 PM
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Originally Posted By: Ira L
That's good to hear since there are a few 16 GB total capacity iPhones out there. wink

That is probably one more reason iOS 11 has added even more features for conserving storage space and moving apps and data to iCloud.
Originally Posted By: virtual1
New OS releases often leave a lot of debugging code in them, it can be removed by flipping a few switches in the compiler before compiling so it's easy for them to simply not include in the build. They'll leave that stuff in for awhile and then remove it (or trim it down) when they have more of the bugs worked out.

Yes but it would seem reasonable the same debugging switches would be thrown on the iPad as well as the iPhone. So that still would not account for a 40% increase in the size of the system between the iPad and iPhone. ⁉️


If we knew what it was we were doing, it wouldn't be called research, would it?

— Albert Einstein
Re: Apple Beta Program iOS 11
joemikeb #45460 06/29/17 02:11 PM
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FYI, I am encountering the usual glitches expected in an easy beta but what has been surprising is the glitches have so far been mostly in legacy applications such as Calendar.

There is a learning curve with some of the new features and to an extent some of that is exacerbated by minor variations in implementation between iPhone, iPad mini, and iPad Pro. The Dock on the iPad Pro feels and acts much like the Dock in Sierra, but on the iPhone, not so much. The multi-tasking appears to work reasonably well and switching between apps is easier than ever before. It feels and works more intuitively on the iPad Pro but it works on the iPhone as well.

As usual in the first beta battery life is not good. The next beta and my going through and retuning all the settings will probably cure that however. Interestingly enough Apple's Feedback app seems to really suck the power out of the battery to the point the iPhone gets noticeably warm at the top in the vicinity of the camera. I don't know what that is about?

At this point in summery I would say I like iOS 11 and it is a worthy upgrade but I really prefer the iPad implementation. The iPad version really benefits from the additional screen real estate and the resulting look and feel is definitely more "computer like".


If we knew what it was we were doing, it wouldn't be called research, would it?

— Albert Einstein
Re: Apple Beta Program iOS 11
joemikeb #45485 06/30/17 11:19 PM
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Still trying to shut down enough stuff to get through a day without dropping below the magic 20% that kicks you into low power mode. No obvious culprit shows up in battery usage either. This is frustrating! I am already pining for the second beta in hopes this has been fixed.


If we knew what it was we were doing, it wouldn't be called research, would it?

— Albert Einstein
Re: Apple Beta Program iOS 11
joemikeb #45500 07/01/17 01:55 PM
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DO NOT DISTURB WHILE DRIVING

This one is a potential life saver. The idea is Do Not Disturb is turned on when you are driving a car. There are three trigger options:
  1. Automatic: detects acceleration patterns encountered when in a moving vehicle (there is a "I am not the driver" toggle)
  2. When there is a bluetooth connection to the sound system in the car
  3. Manual
When this is activated:
  • The phone does not ring or vibrate
  • the screen does not light up
  • Car Play and Maps still work (my watch still taps me on the writst when approacing a turn)
  • Incoming text messages from selected groups will receive a return text that you are in Do Not Disturb while drive mode and will reply to them later
  • there is an option where parents can prevent children from disabling this feature (I can see my grandson's eyes rolling at this bit of information)
I have not tested this yet but it is my understanding the "accept calls from" option of Do Not Disturb still works.

I see so many examples of distracted driving I wish this feature was mandatory on all cell phones — even those built into the vehicle itself.


If we knew what it was we were doing, it wouldn't be called research, would it?

— Albert Einstein
Re: Apple Beta Program iOS 11
joemikeb #45683 07/12/17 11:58 PM
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iOS 11 Beta 2

I installed on an iPhone, an iPad Pro, and an iPad mini. The installation procedure itself is straight forward but I had to restart it several times on both the iPhone and iPad mini and at least once on the iPad Pro. I cannot tell if that was an installer or App Store problem, but it was annoying. So far...
  • It is too early to tell if the battery eating problem has been corrected, but the top of my iPhone is very noticeably cooler. smile
  • In beta 1 it was sometimes difficult to convince an app to shut down on either the iPhone or iPad and the shutdown mechanism on the iPad was different and touchy. In beta 2 swipe to the top of the screen is back on both platforms and so far seems far more relaible. grin
  • I have submitted half a dozen Feedback reports on various issues with apps including Calendar, and Photos. All of those have been fixed in Beta 2‼️ grin
So far I am a happy camper.

👌



If we knew what it was we were doing, it wouldn't be called research, would it?

— Albert Einstein
Re: Apple Beta Program iOS 11
joemikeb #45699 07/14/17 08:26 PM
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BETA 2


  • Generally everything is running smoother. So far no annoying mini-hangs (long pauses), a lot easier to stop apps, app switching so far has worked smoothly, no new problems encountered. smile
  • iPhone running significantly cooler and battery life is improved, smirk but there is still a good way to go before it is up to standard shocked .
  • There are so many new features that by the time I learn all of tem iOS 12 will be out. crazy


If we knew what it was we were doing, it wouldn't be called research, would it?

— Albert Einstein
Re: Apple Beta Program iOS 11
joemikeb #45825 07/26/17 01:07 AM
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PUBLIC BETA 3 — DEVELOPER BETA 4

Nothing dramatic to report in today's update except I had some time to spend with Maps today and found some significant improvements...
  • A new and to my ears very pleasing and distinct voice
  • More precise voice guidance, "take the second or third lane from the right" and "you can exit from either right lane", "take the leftmost exit lane as you will be turning left in 700 feet"
  • The dispay scale seems to change more often and there are more levels of zoom based on a large numbe of factors. The downside of all that is it can be disconcerting until you get used to it. I'm eager to see how this plays out in CarPlay so I will take my wife's car tomorrow.
  • Voice guidance still gets truncated — this has been a long running problem — but it is improved
  • Handshacking between Maps voice guidance and other audio apps such as Audible and even Music is improved
  • I haven't tested this rigerously, but routing seems to be better.


If we knew what it was we were doing, it wouldn't be called research, would it?

— Albert Einstein
Re: Apple Beta Program iOS 11
joemikeb #45844 07/27/17 02:29 PM
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PUBLIC BETA 3 — FOLLOW UP


  • It appears the battery eater has been evicted from Beta 3‼️
    laugh
  • All of my open issues with iOS 11 appear to have been resolved in this beta
    👌
  • This is not entirely an iOS 11 issue, but third party apps are evolving so fast it is becoming almost annoying to keep up with the updates. (Whether this is good, bad, or what is IMO a mixed bag. Empirically it appears the updates are about equally divided between Bug fixes, Improvements, New features)
    😐


If we knew what it was we were doing, it wouldn't be called research, would it?

— Albert Einstein

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