HTTP probably helps admins of large networks cache downloads for their 5000 computers that are all updating at once (if they're not running Apple's update cache server)
This is also how Apple’s cache server works, otherwise it would need to break the TLS connection, and that is not an improvement.
I have personally looked at the accompanying connections and it looks like Apple sends hashes over a proper TLS connection. Updates are also signed as another layer of security.
Or multiple hours for those of us who are still plagued with slow internet at home.
Luckily it's not that bad for me anymore, but I still sympathise with everyone with slow connection speeds, because you can't "just" download an update.
The ability for windows 10 updates to be shared across computers in a network (signatures are still verified of course) doesn't sound so bad in cases like this.
I'm in Sydney, at home my fastest option is ADSL2+ which gets me 15-16Mbit on a good day (7-8 if it's rained much recently...)
My ISP contacted me mid last year to offer pre-signups for our "National Broadband Network" on Sept 4th. A couple of months ago it became public that the old HFC cables they were planning to use were completely not up to the task, with major problems reported pretty much everywhere it'd already been rolled out, and they've now stopped and new HFC rollout using that (Optus) coax for at least 9 months.
I _think_ Sydney Australia counts as "the developed world", but even 100Mbit for me right now is at least a year away...
Hardly. I live in Germany and I was able to upgrade to 50,000kbit/s, of which I effectively get ~35,000 most of the time, only last year. Before that it was 5,000 for a few years and before that I was happy to have 1,000.
And I don't live in the country either, I'm a 10 minute walk away from a technical university und multiple research institutes.
What is taking up that 2.17GB??? Are they just recompiling every shared library or something?
How is it that their updates (even on iOS) are so massive even if they don't include (or need to include) new graphics, etc.