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While there probably are some proportion of programmers that program in flash want to stay in flash because they don't want to try new things, sometimes, it's a

by iamwil 17y ago

While there probably are some proportion of programmers that program in flash want to stay in flash because they don't want to try new things, sometimes, it's a more practical matter. Hell no I don't want to maintain 4 code bases for each of the iphone, android, palm, and blackberry platforms, especially if my app doesn't depend on anything special that one platform provides.

raganwald 17y ago
Two distinct responses, so two separate replies. First, the same old argument that has nothing to do with the OP: > especially if my app doesn't depend on anything special that one platform provides. Why is it in Apple's best interests for your app to run on iPhone? What competitive advantage do they lose if your app--which doesn't depend on anything special--runs on android, palm, and blackberry but not on iphone?
- jrockway 17y ago
  What competitive advantage do they lose if your app--which doesn't depend on anything special--runs on android, palm, and blackberry but not on iphone? Let's look at Macs instead. Walk into any large company, which probably spends millions of dollars a year on computers (and IT support). No Macs. Why? (Because their half-assed IE 6-only app doesn't run on Macs. Hence, they waste millions of dollars a year supporting Windows XP.) Similarly, why do the corpo-drones all have Blackberries instead of iPhones? Not because the Blackberry has an awesome UI or is cheaper -- because the app they need is Blackberry-only.
  - bmj 17y ago
    Let's look at Macs instead. Walk into any large company, which probably spends millions of dollars a year on computers (and IT support). No Macs. Why? Because most IT staffs are not savvy enough to support both PCs and Macs on a corporate network. IME, IT is often barely competent enough to support PCs.[1] [1] Design shops are the exception to this rule, since Macs tend to be popular with creative types
- orangecat 17y ago
  Why is it in Apple's best interests for your app to run on iPhone? What competitive advantage do they lose if your app--which doesn't depend on anything special--runs on android, palm, and blackberry but not on iphone? Er, because then there wouldn't be much left? The large majority of iPhone apps don't depend on anything "special"; just touch events, basic widgets, and sometimes accelerometer support and 3d graphics.
raganwald 17y ago
Two distinct responses, so two separate replies. Second, the point of the post is that it is a benefit to the programmer to learn and use multiple languages. I get the feeling that the Apple row is a McGuffin, a way to introduce his thoughts on programming education.
- _delirium 17y ago
  Yeah, my guess is the 2nd also. The author of the post also has a background being interested in how differences in computational platforms affect what's produced on them. He has a whole book on how, when looking at "Atari games", it's not irrelevant that they were made on an Atari, and to really understand them requires understanding the Atari VCS programming model and hardware: http://www.bogost.com/books/video_computer_system.shtml http://www.bogost.com/books/video_computer_system.shtml My high-level read of this post is a worry that that's becoming no longer true: the way that programming and hardware differences made Atari VCS, arcade, Commodore 64, and Apple II software each have its own distinctive style, might not be replicated in the present day, as Android, iPhone, and Blackberry apps all look like the same munge of identical apps compiled through some compatibility layer, and not really taking advantage of anything distinctive about each platform.

by iamwil 17y ago

raganwald 17y ago

Two distinct responses, so two separate replies. First, the same old argument that has nothing to do with the OP: > especially if my app doesn't depend on anything special that one platform provides. Why is it in Apple's best interests for your app to run on iPhone? What competitive advantage do they lose if your app--which doesn't depend on anything special--runs on android, palm, and blackberry but not on iphone?

jrockway 17y ago
What competitive advantage do they lose if your app--which doesn't depend on anything special--runs on android, palm, and blackberry but not on iphone? Let's look at Macs instead. Walk into any large company, which probably spends millions of dollars a year on computers (and IT support). No Macs. Why? (Because their half-assed IE 6-only app doesn't run on Macs. Hence, they waste millions of dollars a year supporting Windows XP.) Similarly, why do the corpo-drones all have Blackberries instead of iPhones? Not because the Blackberry has an awesome UI or is cheaper -- because the app they need is Blackberry-only.
- bmj 17y ago
  Let's look at Macs instead. Walk into any large company, which probably spends millions of dollars a year on computers (and IT support). No Macs. Why? Because most IT staffs are not savvy enough to support both PCs and Macs on a corporate network. IME, IT is often barely competent enough to support PCs.[1] [1] Design shops are the exception to this rule, since Macs tend to be popular with creative types
orangecat 17y ago
Why is it in Apple's best interests for your app to run on iPhone? What competitive advantage do they lose if your app--which doesn't depend on anything special--runs on android, palm, and blackberry but not on iphone? Er, because then there wouldn't be much left? The large majority of iPhone apps don't depend on anything "special"; just touch events, basic widgets, and sometimes accelerometer support and 3d graphics.

raganwald 17y ago

Two distinct responses, so two separate replies. Second, the point of the post is that it is a benefit to the programmer to learn and use multiple languages. I get the feeling that the Apple row is a McGuffin, a way to introduce his thoughts on programming education.

_delirium 17y ago
Yeah, my guess is the 2nd also. The author of the post also has a background being interested in how differences in computational platforms affect what's produced on them. He has a whole book on how, when looking at "Atari games", it's not irrelevant that they were made on an Atari, and to really understand them requires understanding the Atari VCS programming model and hardware: http://www.bogost.com/books/video_computer_system.shtml http://www.bogost.com/books/video_computer_system.shtml My high-level read of this post is a worry that that's becoming no longer true: the way that programming and hardware differences made Atari VCS, arcade, Commodore 64, and Apple II software each have its own distinctive style, might not be replicated in the present day, as Android, iPhone, and Blackberry apps all look like the same munge of identical apps compiled through some compatibility layer, and not really taking advantage of anything distinctive about each platform.