"What is the deal with near as a trendy substitute for nearly? Isn't nearly
elderly what we mean? Doesn't the clipping of ly result in a grammatical
near-miss? ...
Near is called a flat adverb, with the ly clipped off and morphing into the same form as its related adjective. "Drive slow, think different, do right, hang
tough." Don't let this dual use get you down; the flat adverb is one of
English's little confusions, and it sure (or surely -- pick'em) doesn't worry
usagists. "
So Apple gets a repreive in the ninth clause of the English rulebook... RK