May 25, 2012 - 05:30 PM EDT — AAPL: 562.29 (-3.03, -0.54%) | NASDAQ: 2837.53 (-1.85, -0.07%)

Apple removes Ping spam, improves interface

Tuesday, September 7, 2010 · 11:25 am · 12 Comments

“Though spammers quickly flocked to Apple’s fledgling social network last week, most of the bogus surveys and other unwanted comments were removed by Monday,” Neil Hughes reports for AppleInsider.

Advertisement: The new AppleTV. The simplest way to watch your favorite HD movies and TV shows on your HD TV. Just $99. Buy Now.

“Soon after it was unveiled last week, Ping was inundated with spam, as comment sections on many popular artists’ pages were filled with links to items like phony surveys,” Hughes reports. “But by Monday, that spam was all but removed from the service. Ping also initially had a number of fake accounts, with users posing as Apple executives, including CEO Steve Jobs and designer Jony Ive. Many of those accounts had also disappeared by Monday.”

Hughes reports, “In addition, Apple made minor tweaks to the Web-based interface of Ping, adding “back” and “forward” buttons that were missing when the service launched last week.”

Thank You for supporting MacDailyNews!

♥ Adobe Photoshop CS6 Extended for Mac - Student and Teacher Edition DVD (65171323) only $249!
♥ Blowout: Apple 15.4" MacBook Pro i7/4Core/2.0GHz/4GB/500GB (MC721LL/A) only $1,549.99 + Free Shipping from MacMall
♥ Mac Madness Save 25% on Parallels Desktop 7!
♥ 15% Off Compatible Ink. 10% Off All Others (excludes OEMs). Free Shipping over $55. Coupon: 123BLOSSOM, Expires 6.18.12
♥ Save up to 60% at the Hammacher Schlemmer Special Values Sale-While supplies last.
♥ Dragon Dictate for Mac 2.5 - New! Simply Smarter Speech Recognition
♥ Up to 30% OFF Accessories from Verizon Wireless
♥ Limited Time Offer: Get free ZAGGsmartbuds when you buy a ZAGGsparq!

Comment Feed

12 Comments

Macdude

Tuesday, September 7, 2010 - 11:28 am · Reply

fledgling?
HMCIV

Tuesday, September 7, 2010 - 11:41 am · Reply

Funny how quickly that spam was eviscerated. It’s almost as if Apple had planned for the attack.
breeze

Tuesday, September 7, 2010 - 11:52 am · Reply

Testing 123…testing
Invisible Shield

Tuesday, September 7, 2010 - 12:32 pm · Reply

I love how the bloggers and pundits seized on Ping with a vengeance, clubbing the baby seal before it emerged from the womb. The truth is that it’s software, and given the fact that Ping is based on servers, Apple can continually improve it. So far, Ping is one of the more successful “failures” I’ve seen, with over two million “failures” signing up. Nothing like having a pundit basically say that you’re a loser to make you feel insulted. And well you should.

The truth is that Ping will do just fine, thanks. And the pundits, as usual, will eat their words, if only they were held accountable. But the Apple-hating media and punditocracy will do all that it can collectively to keep screaming, “die, Apple, die, die, die.”

Ever notice that the media keeps trumpeting the latest “__________ killer?” Be it iPod, iPhone or iPad, and now, iTunes, the punditoctracy keeps looking for ways to bring them back to the golden years of 1997 when Apple was on the ropes. That’s over 13 years ago, but in subtle fashion, the pundits and media keep referring to that age as though it could happen at any time. But $45 billion in cash and no debt later, I kind of doubt that. But then, many of the pundits still do their bidding from the bedroom they grew up in at their parents’ house, unable to even get a date. And I am supposed to trust these bozos?

I think not.

Ping might not be perfect. But then, no version 1.0 of anything ever is. I doubt that Ping is supposed to be the end-all-be-all of social media, but yet another way to keep people coming back to iTunes. It’s flypaper. And however imperfect Ping might be, I have a feeling a lot of us will be happily stuck there.

Count me among them.

Thanks, Appple, for being diligent about casting the vermin and the money changers from the temple.
breeze

Tuesday, September 7, 2010 - 1:25 pm · Reply

“So far, Ping is one of the more successful “failures” I’ve seen”

You forgot iPhone 4, which was written off worldwide as a colosal Apple blunder which has gone down as the biggest retail lauch of any product ever.
Truth

Tuesday, September 7, 2010 - 1:26 pm · Reply

SO where is the Alarmist
“They need to get rid of accounts with no credit cards NOW!!!” crowd now?

Fixed and all without the bag of hurt for users.

Well done Apple!
liopapa

Tuesday, September 7, 2010 - 1:49 pm · Reply

@Invisible Shield- beautiful post. You hit the proverbial nail on the head squarely. I think the fact that Apple refuses to march to the mediocre drumming of the typical corporation; that is, run like a bloated, bureaucratic, quantity-over-quality mode, “gotta get maximum returns for the shareholders” organization; quite frankly, PISSES these morons off. I say, GOOD. Keep shoveling the attention Apple’s way, all the while oblivious to the fact that all of this blathering has the exact opposite effect.

Beautiful.
Listening

Tuesday, September 7, 2010 - 2:35 pm · Reply

I have found 6 new albums to listen to just by the suggestions from my favorite artists. So far I am liking ping for what it is , a new way to discover music. I look toward apple adding movies and books into the mix at some point.
KingMel

Tuesday, September 7, 2010 - 2:47 pm · Reply

@Invisible Shield
Sound good to me. Apple solutions typically start out very focused and fairly basic, and then evolve over time in a structured way. Eventually Apple will need to take a step back and retrench. iTunes might be in line for a rebuild in the next couple of years to clean up the architecture and UI associated with its growing breadth of functionality.
Jim

Tuesday, September 7, 2010 - 4:38 pm · Reply

I just use ping to discover music then go and borrow it from my library.

I’m forced to use itunes because of my phone but I refuse to give any additional money to the Apple run Monopoly.

Could you imagine if Microsoft tried to unveil an Mp3 player then forced you to use it’s software to run it, meanwhile this software sells you music in a form that only can be played on said MP3 player….

The DOJ would have shut them down… but not Apple, I guess when apple came out with the ipod they weren’t seen as a threat but now it’s fairly obvious that that have a monopoly.

Geez.. Msft got screwed for giving a free web browser with their operating system.. I can see if they forbid you from installing other browsers but give me a break.

Apple is the giant that everyone (aside from the MDN fanboys) love to hate, sort of like microsoft from the 90′s.

That’s why all the “pundits” can’t wait for them to fail and they will. Just like every other big company.
Macduff

Tuesday, September 7, 2010 - 5:35 pm · Reply

@ Jim
I take it you’re still of school age young man because in the bad old days if you bought a windows desktop Microsoft didn’t want you downloading anyone elses web browser and it took court action to get them to toe the line and allow freedom to use whichever web browser you liked.
Also I gather you’re quite happy to use iTunes to rip music off the CDs that you borrow from the library and then no doubt send shed loads of copies to all your little schoolfriends. Well thank heavens there are people still prepared to pay for their music because if we weren’t buying it you wouldn’t be copying yours for free because the unpaid musicians would simply say “What’s the bloody point!”
Nothing cones free in this world young man, you obviously haven’t learned that lesson at school yet.
Big Als MBP

Tuesday, September 7, 2010 - 5:46 pm · Reply

@ Jim,

You’re iTunes purchased music will work just fine on your Zune.

Now, don’t go away mad, just go away.