4 ms·

I think this is a good and interesting analogy. I think it should be noted though that developers most likely came to Playstation not entirely because of the lo

I think this is a good and interesting analogy. I think it should be noted though that developers most likely came to Playstation not entirely because of the looser content restrictions (though that probably helped) but because of the superior, CD-ROM based hardware of the Playstation and its higher market share. If Apple ever ends up without a device that doesn't support what's universally understood to be The Next Big Thing (Nintendo didn't like the disc format mostly because it was easy to pirate) while the Android vendors do have it, the analogy would be much more apt.

megaduck 17y ago
That's a darned good point, but I think we might already be there. First, a (very) slight correction. Piracy was a factor, but the N64 also didn't support CD-ROM because Nintendo was addicted to the control and revenue that the cartridge system gave them. The N64 cartridges had lockout chips preventing unlicensed software, similar to the NES carts. They even strengthened the system with a checksum calculated at boot. I think Apple might be approaching a similar tipping point with things like Flash and Google Voice. These are obviously features that consumers want, but Apple is too addicted to their control over the platform.
- ra88it 17y ago
  Flash is not The Next Big Thing (it's been falling from prominence by almost every measure for quite some time) and I'm not convinced that any significant segment of the market is actually demanding it. I've heard more iPhone owners applaud its absence than complain about it. Google Voice could maybe be The Next Big Thing, but Apple can still (technically) get on that train. Much different than the hardware constraints facing Nintendo when the cd-rom format took off.
- glhaynes 17y ago
  Thank you for the correction! That's an excellent point. It will be interesting to see what happens, for sure. My sense is this: Apple has hit on something with iPad that is similar to what Nintendo has found with Wii. That is, a whole base of users -- perhaps comparable in size to the current market! -- that actively ignores the existing offerings as much as they possibly can because they dislike them. These things that we love, they hate! So, inasmuch as they can give those users an experience they enjoy (in contrast to what they're used to), I think they'll be very successful. They're clearly very confident in the user interface and surrounding factors they've built. From my anecdotal experience of the types of people who I think are likely to represent the largest market for the iPad (and unlikely to buy anything else except reluctantly, if they must), Apple's control of the App Store thus far is utterly irrelevant. Perhaps it "should" be relevant to them. And perhaps I "should" know more about how my car works or how the vegetables at my local supermarket were grown/transported. But I don't. Now, if users find themselves frustrated, feeling left out because their friends are enjoying Flash apps that they can't, that could be a problem. The question, then, is: how many of these users will be willing to give up their iPads — and all the apps that are exclusive to it — for a computer and all the hassles that come with it?

megaduck 17y ago

That's a darned good point, but I think we might already be there. First, a (very) slight correction. Piracy was a factor, but the N64 also didn't support CD-ROM because Nintendo was addicted to the control and revenue that the cartridge system gave them. The N64 cartridges had lockout chips preventing unlicensed software, similar to the NES carts. They even strengthened the system with a checksum calculated at boot. I think Apple might be approaching a similar tipping point with things like Flash and Google Voice. These are obviously features that consumers want, but Apple is too addicted to their control over the platform.

ra88it 17y ago
Flash is not The Next Big Thing (it's been falling from prominence by almost every measure for quite some time) and I'm not convinced that any significant segment of the market is actually demanding it. I've heard more iPhone owners applaud its absence than complain about it. Google Voice could maybe be The Next Big Thing, but Apple can still (technically) get on that train. Much different than the hardware constraints facing Nintendo when the cd-rom format took off.
glhaynes 17y ago
Thank you for the correction! That's an excellent point. It will be interesting to see what happens, for sure. My sense is this: Apple has hit on something with iPad that is similar to what Nintendo has found with Wii. That is, a whole base of users -- perhaps comparable in size to the current market! -- that actively ignores the existing offerings as much as they possibly can because they dislike them. These things that we love, they hate! So, inasmuch as they can give those users an experience they enjoy (in contrast to what they're used to), I think they'll be very successful. They're clearly very confident in the user interface and surrounding factors they've built. From my anecdotal experience of the types of people who I think are likely to represent the largest market for the iPad (and unlikely to buy anything else except reluctantly, if they must), Apple's control of the App Store thus far is utterly irrelevant. Perhaps it "should" be relevant to them. And perhaps I "should" know more about how my car works or how the vegetables at my local supermarket were grown/transported. But I don't. Now, if users find themselves frustrated, feeling left out because their friends are enjoying Flash apps that they can't, that could be a problem. The question, then, is: how many of these users will be willing to give up their iPads — and all the apps that are exclusive to it — for a computer and all the hassles that come with it?