So, as we move towards the denouement of the second act of the Apple story, the battle has become pretty equal, and Apple, previously king of the tech gods, is now one of the pantheon.
Of course, no one really knew what that meant since Apple pretty much refused to share usage data with publishers.
With the popularity of the Apple (AAPL) iPad, there has been a rush by hardware manufacturers and chip makers alike to rush into the category, which had been pretty sleepy until Apple entered the market.
We pretty much know what Apple is going to announce today.
FORBES: Links 23 Oct. We Know What Apple's To Announce: And Does Their Security Explain Maps?
Android phones come with pretty excellent mapping that Apple used until now.
FORBES: Judging From Apple's Apology, Maps Matter and Nokia Has Maps That Work
The economy looks pretty rosy from where Apple's Steve Jobs sits.
The two versions of Google Maps and the Apple software pretty much gave me the same directions and time estimate just over 10 hours, though we were planning on 12 with stops.
Pat-rights says that Apple has pretty much been ignoring them ever since they contacted them back in 2003 about this, and that they're getting ready to file suit on March 21st if their demands aren't met.
Today, at one fellow swoop, pretty chicken et al, Apple changed the game again.
FORBES: Apple's WWDC Announcements: A Lot to Like, but no Death Blow
On the positive side, Siri and Apple maps are pretty good at finding nearby restaurants.
Meanwhile, Apple is sitting pretty with hardly a change to its position and Android continues its juggernaut-like assault on all markets.
ENGADGET: Windows Phone sees big gains at the expense of BlackBerry and Symbian
Apple has a pretty good record of successfully deploying capital.
FORBES: Apple Should Plow Cash Back Into Growth, Not Shovel It Out To Shareholders
The traders are going to like the look of that Microsoft dead cat bounce, but for investors it is not a pretty thought to imagine that Apple is on its way back to normality.
Not so fast -- according to analysts at Caris and Company, Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer "pretty much killed" that idea when they asked him about it, saying it didn't mesh with Apple's business.
People are speculating that Apple already shut things down, but that's pretty unlikely: nothing on the Psystar site infringed any of Apple's IP (as far as we can recall) and the company hadn't actually sold anything yet, which means there isn't much of anything for Apple to go to court over.
ENGADGET: Psystar site goes down under load, Apple lawyers seen shopping for BMWs
"What Apple is doing is pretty mainstream, " said accounting expert Robert Willens, in an interview.
This is pretty incredible considering the innovation that Apple has consistently brought to the market with iPod, iPhone and now iPad.
Google: For one thing, Apple Maps is a pretty impressive piece of work, including turn-by-turn navigation, crowd-sourced traffic information and integrated Siri voice controls.
FORBES: Apple's WWDC Keynote: Sorting Out The Winners And Losers
Pretty simple and pretty slick, which is exactly what Apple tends to be.
FORBES: Apple, iOS 6 & Mobile Payments - One More Thing for the iPhone 5?
It would be safe to say that he is pretty well known at Infinite Loop (Apple headquarters) in Cupertino by now.
FORBES: Apple's Layered Strategy Translates Into China Advantage
Considering the fact that Apple is up against some pretty stiff competition, selling 47.8 million iPhones and 22.9 million iPads in one quarter strikes me as not too shabby.
Tech blogger and entrepreneur Anil Dash was especially critical of the new maps, which he called "pretty but dumb, " and of Apple for releasing what he said was a flawed product.
Call it further proof that Apple is more than just a pretty face.
Apple watchers expect that updates to Apple's notebook lineup will arrive in early November, and with traffic increasing at Apple's stores, its pretty-looking operating system won't blow any sales.
Apple Chief Steve Jobs can be pretty crafty.
FORBES: New Apple Software, Not New Macs, Could Claw Microsoft Wednesday
Its display is not the best Apple has ever produced but it is pretty good.
Who could have known that Apple was going to win with its pretty machines?
Otherwise, Apple would have remained a high-priced pretty desktop computer that would have only reached a limited audience.
应用推荐