The Small Print Project                                       

For the second time in about 7 weeks, Apple released an updated one-one-hundredth version of iTunes 7.0. It’s no wonder the stick with numbers and area codes (as opposed to calling it, uh, Lisa) as Apple’s technologically limited music playing app regularly goes through multiple “fixes” per hyper DRM-laden version (Nine since 6.0 was forced upon the public in October 2005. Needless to say, this makes even Microsoft look legit for its attempt to limit patches and fixes to once a month — for an entire OS).

I want to be well-armed when I talk to Apple about its — how you say — unique relationship with the content-creating public and the exponentially huger clientele of limited-licensed viewers and listeners.

If you’re reading this, I need to hear from you.

On one hand, it appears that each iTunes “fix” provides maybe one day of relief and excitement to users who were bugged out by it’s predecessor (do they test these?). And then more issues surface or perhaps the “upgraded” version seems to strip users of access. Thanks to those of you who commented to that end here — from what I’ve read, this hundredth of a decimal version still won’t allow for shared listening on a network of iT6 listeners. Correct me if I’m wrong.

What’s to be made of the sudden iTunes forgot what country I’m in phenomenon?

OneDigitalLife woke up in a Swiss iTunes store.

Laurie at the Unofficial Apple Weblog made it to iTunes France where she couldn’t get any TV. Commenters to that post wound up in Sweden, China and elsewhere. (I can almost hear a new Apple jingle in the making).

Brian also got displaced to Switzerland where he couldn’t download The Office.

Here’s a blogger apparently from Spain who accesses the Internet via a server in the UK. Apparently, after downloading 7.0.2 — whether by some “twisted plot from beyond the Pyrenees” or otherwise, this blogger’s computer suddenly suspects a French-speaking user!

Interestingly, by way of upgrading to .0.2, Scott Gilbertson at MonkeyBites suddenly accesses an iTunes Music Store flush with Spanish-language podcasts, Telemundo broadcasts, and — the World Music section is suddenly iTunes Latino Store?

This Portuguese-language blogger is pissed about being apparently “forced” to take the upgrade. A loose translation of his concluding sentence (it at least embodies his rage throughout the post) is “Apple sucks balls.”

This post may be a tad overly sarcastic, and it is apparent that this is a “widespread bug” that is easy to fix, so no worries. Or does iTunes for some reason really need to find out *for sure* where you live?