Actually I did missed Dark Sky widgets on my Mac's ☺️
The weatherwidget is good, but don't always update itself.
So I tested on both my Mac's if the dark sky api was still working. It does just fine on my Mac's.
See for how long...
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Dark Sky Removed From iOS App Store Ahead of Upcoming Shutdown
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The weatherwidget is good, but don't always update itself.
So I tested on both my Mac's if the dark sky api was still working. It does just fine on my Mac's.
See for how long...
The Dark Sky API, used by the Dark Sky app and a whole lot of other third-party weather apps (and it's basically being relabeled as Apple's WeatherKit API now) -- has never included per-hour data beyond 48 hours.
The data format has always been:
- current conditions
- per-minute data for 60+1 minutes (precipitation probability/intensity)
- per-hour data for 48+1 hours (precipitation, temperatures, dewpoint, humidity, pressure, wind, clouds, visibility, uv, ozone)
- per-day data for 7+1 days (same data points as per-hour, but including times when those min/max points are forecasted to hit, plus it adds sunrise/sunset and moonphase)
- plus some flags that describe the sources used, and an alert section if there's any NWS alerts in the area
I've been pulling this Dark Sky data from their API every 5 minutes since 2016. I have a pretty good idea what is present in the data.
Same reason companies buy up proprietary software then bury the rights once they own them. It’s just about squashing what is better, they never had any intention of improving their own offerings. Sad…
The Dark Sky app was beside the point, for Apple's purposes. Their goal was the back-end system that Dark Sky developed. The Dark Sky API did a good job of combining data from a number of different sources, generating forecasts, and providing that information in JSON format. The Dark Sky app used that data, but so did a LOT of other weather apps on iOS. The Dark Sky API is now Apple's WeatherKit API, with very few changes.
Apple wanted that API to power their own weather app, and various bits of their software that want weather data (like Siri), and to offer as yet another feature to developers on the macOS/iOS platform. Apple has a long history of not wanting to be beholden to other company's whims for things they depend upon (two most obvious examples being the reasons behind the jump from PowerPC to Intel - so they were no longer behind everyone else - and then from Intel to ARM - so they no longer had to wait on Intel). This purchase means they "own" a useful weather data source. The Dark Sky app got "caught in the crossfire".
Steve Jobs did this sort of thing all the time!
You don't remember iTools and Mac.com?
I'm livid at Apple for doing this. The Apple weather app is what we in the UK call "utter pants".
Apple is pulling an excellent app, that I paid for, that works on my phone on iOS15 and is replacing it with an app that is only available under iOS16.
The Apple weather radar map is simply ghastly too. The whole interface is dreadful.
But this is what Apple has always done: it buys technology that it likes, guts it, creates a free alternative that long-tern users of the original will hate and it closes the original, so there is less choice in the marketplace and those who needed the features Apple removed or changed or integrate badly are left stuck.
It's a business that caters for the masses. Apple doesn't love you! It never has!
(And yes, I've been a Mac user for many decades)
Apple is pulling an excellent app, that I paid for, that works on my phone on iOS15 and is replacing it with an app that is only available under iOS16.
The Apple weather radar map is simply ghastly too. The whole interface is dreadful.
But this is what Apple has always done: it buys technology that it likes, guts it, creates a free alternative that long-tern users of the original will hate and it closes the original, so there is less choice in the marketplace and those who needed the features Apple removed or changed or integrate badly are left stuck.
It's a business that caters for the masses. Apple doesn't love you! It never has!
(And yes, I've been a Mac user for many decades)
I'm super bummed Dark Sky is about to be sunsetted. I knew it was its death knoll when Apple bought the app. It usually is. But I have loved Dark Sky since it's inception. It's reliable which has been wildly helpful for planning film shoots.
I know Apple planned to merge Dark Sky's features into their own weather app. But what I've seen, just isn't the same.
What other weather apps that have Dark Sky's features do folks here have to recommend?
I know Apple planned to merge Dark Sky's features into their own weather app. But what I've seen, just isn't the same.
What other weather apps that have Dark Sky's features do folks here have to recommend?
mac.com is still owned by Apple, and redirects to apple.com
itools however seems dead.
Darn Apple if they ever kill mac,me,icloud.com. We are a lot of people who have those emails connected to our Apple-id's
With the end nie, I continue to mourn the loss of a GREAT app. I don’t find everything I’m used to using in the latest ios 16 releases, regardless of device. Frankly, I really don’t know why they couldn’t just maintain it for MINIMAL cost/expense. Heck, could have even charge $5 a year and I bet that 20% of users would have stayed on. It will be missed. I really hate this process by big tech companies.
WTF??
The Dark Sky weather app that's owned by Apple is no longer available for download in the U.S. App Store, suggesting that it has been removed ahead of schedule.
Apple acquired Dark Sky back in March 2020 and has since incorporated elements of the app into the Weather app available on the iPhone (and soon, the iPad).
Dark Sky remained available for purchase as a standalone weather app after the acquisition, but the app's developers earlier this year said that the Dark Sky iOS app would no longer be available after December 31, 2022.
The Dark Sky blog suggested that when the app became unavailable at the end of 2022, already purchased versions would cease providing weather data, but as of now the app still works. It is not entirely clear if the removal of Dark Sky is actually some kind of glitch or if Apple has simply pulled it early.
While the Dark Sky app is officially shutting down at the end of December, the Dark Sky API and website will function until March 21, 2023. Developers who use the Dark Sky API can transition over to Apple's WeatherKit API.
Article Link: Dark Sky Removed From iOS App Store Ahead of Upcoming Shutdown
why would the best and most useful weather app be purchased and then removed. Will it come back with paid subscription to Apple News?
Yes. A basic calc app for iPad would great. I have tried so many and they are annoying.
The annoying thing, Apple has an app on any device, they need to have the app across all devices. No exception. If Apple chooses to not have an app on one device, the app removed from all devices. Simple concept the geniuses at Apple cannot comprehend.
This was really interesting and sad to read. Dark Sky was so helpful and Apple's "Weather" is a jumbled confusing mess of information that requires the user to dig around to get anything really specifically useful. https://nightingaledvs.com/dark-sky-weather-data-viz/
It’s very sad how one of the largest companies on earth has gone backwards (for several years) with intuitive and intelligent software design. Troubling…
Why? I don’t find the lack of a pre installed calculator to be a problem on my iPad.
How odd. When Dark Sky closed down and app just show everything 0 etc. I never deleted Dark Sky app from my iPhone. I accidentally open it instead of Apple Weather (they are next to each other) and Dark Sky seem be working again?? I going check tomorrow morning see if still there or back to empty 0 data.
Attachments
According to Carrot on Twitter, Dark Sky is shutting down at the end of the month.
I barely look apple weather much except just quick look weather home screen. I looked properly today and seems that Apple finally added percentage chance of rain in weather app! I have no clue how long it been there and I given up waiting for Apple to add it in from Dark Sky. Now I can finally use it.
Such a shame Apple bought Dark Sky as it was the best weather app by far. Apple weather is as vague and unreliable as most other weather apps now and I have no idea how a good service can be ruined, especially when such a rich company with almost unlimited resources buys it? The mind boggles.