Hacker News Reader

Comment by timdorr | Hacker News Reader

Interesting that the new Maps makes no mention of public transit support. Is that gone completely now? It looks like your app can register as a "router" to support different types of navigation routing, but it would suck if that is no longer built in.

View on HN

That would be a hang-up for me. I'm pretty dependent on Maps for busing around to random destinations in SF...

Since it was Google's data, Apple will probably build it back in at some other point since it's what they've done previously.

Hopefully Google will produce (and be allowed) a Google Maps app for iOS.

And we will see whether Apple will allow such app in their store. I would imagine they will not, because they would rather have people using their own maps, but perhaps they will be benevolent this time.

If I had to guess, Google will attempt to get it into the App Store before iOS 6 is released. Apple will probably end up delaying approval of the app for a few months after iOS 6 to let users become accustomed to using their own solution.

Apple seems to have moved away from disallowing apps for "duplicate core functionality" - we have GVoice, Sparrow, Camera+ now. I don't see how they could not allow it.

Apple could use the same data standard as Google does already: https://developers.google.com/transit/gtfs/reference

I'm sure the transit providers would be happy to provide the same feed to Apple and Google, but it looks like Apple want to make something new and incompatible.

Supposedly it integrates with third-party apps. If done well, this would be great--in Seattle, I have to integrate directions from Maps with information from OneBusAway by eyeball.

At least the beta supposedly just points you at the app store for public transport in Boston.

(haven't tried this myself, asked a friend of mine who installed the beta)

Right now transit directions are dead in the water since nothing in the App Store supports the new API yet.

"Dead in the water" means no progress will be made.

http://www.usingenglish.com/reference/idioms/dead+in+the+wat...

Reply on news.ycombinator.com