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I think the windows store just did not fit the usage patterns: People were used to download stuff right off the net, or use platforms like Valve's Steam. On a

by sddfd 9y ago

I think the windows store just did not fit the usage patterns: People were used to download stuff right off the net, or use platforms like Valve's Steam. On a chromebook-style laptop, expectations might be different. I personally don't like the walled-garden aspect of app-stores, but I like that there is someone who can effectively respond if malware is reported. Sometimes malware is even proactively removed. For non-power-users this is definitely an advantage. I hope in a few years I can just tell my parent to only install software from the app store, and they will be fine. Additionally, they don't have to do anything to stay up-to-date. Even for power users there is a (theoretical) advantage, which is explicit dependency management. Once you know that all your software is distributed through one channel, libraries and versions can effectively be shared. This is what happens in the Free Software version of app stores: All major distros have them, and without them dependency management would be impossible. So what is the potential gain here? In some version of the future, we might hope that apps don't include hard-copy versions of the libraries they are using, but just tell the app-store which versions they like to use. Security updates can then be pushed by the app-store vendor vs the app vendor.

52-6F-62 9y ago
> For non-power-users this is definitely an advantage. I hope in a few years I can just tell my parent to only install software from the app store, and they are fine. Additionally, they don't have to do anything to stay up-to-date. I think this is often so easily overlooked for the technologically inclined. ------ It's also not a situation that will likely dissipate. For instance, if in 100 years we're all (I dream) boarding starships, do the engineers really expect the average passenger or crew to understand the intricate workings of the entire vessel? Is this true for airplanes now? Computers are essentially a vehicle for knowledge. If it's not where one is at one moment, it is where one can arrive. Not everyone who drives a car is an automotive engineer, kinetics or physics expert, or even a mechanic. Most people just want or need to get in and drive. Demanding more of somebody who's true goal is to become an expert in a subject that doesn't involve technical engineering is frankly just stupid. This is one of the things I liked about Steve Jobs, in that he believed this. Of course, that developed into the walled-garden approach but I think that's something else altogether. It's far more beneficial for the world to have easy access to knowledge than to wish everybody saw computers and other technology the way people like us who spend time on tech forums do. TL;DR - I agree! But I also think there's much more to be said about that.
digi_owl 9y ago
If the store had launched with vetted Win32 programs from day 1 it may have gained some traction. But right now all i can see in there are UWP "apps", and those are usually very limited in capabilities vs their Win32 equivalent. For example, if i want to use a UWP file manager, i have to go through the Win32 file picker to allow the UWP file manager to access anything but the sub-folders of my user's home folder.
intoverflow2 9y ago
>I think the windows store just did not fit the usage patterns: People were used to download stuff right off the net, or use platforms like Valve's Steam. I don't think I'll ever understand the weird logic of most Windows users where DRM Online Store A is the best thing ever and a selling point of the platform and DRM Online Store B is an abomination that should never exist.

by sddfd 9y ago

52-6F-62 9y ago

> For non-power-users this is definitely an advantage. I hope in a few years I can just tell my parent to only install software from the app store, and they are fine. Additionally, they don't have to do anything to stay up-to-date. I think this is often so easily overlooked for the technologically inclined. ------ It's also not a situation that will likely dissipate. For instance, if in 100 years we're all (I dream) boarding starships, do the engineers really expect the average passenger or crew to understand the intricate workings of the entire vessel? Is this true for airplanes now? Computers are essentially a vehicle for knowledge. If it's not where one is at one moment, it is where one can arrive. Not everyone who drives a car is an automotive engineer, kinetics or physics expert, or even a mechanic. Most people just want or need to get in and drive. Demanding more of somebody who's true goal is to become an expert in a subject that doesn't involve technical engineering is frankly just stupid. This is one of the things I liked about Steve Jobs, in that he believed this. Of course, that developed into the walled-garden approach but I think that's something else altogether. It's far more beneficial for the world to have easy access to knowledge than to wish everybody saw computers and other technology the way people like us who spend time on tech forums do. TL;DR - I agree! But I also think there's much more to be said about that.

digi_owl 9y ago

If the store had launched with vetted Win32 programs from day 1 it may have gained some traction. But right now all i can see in there are UWP "apps", and those are usually very limited in capabilities vs their Win32 equivalent. For example, if i want to use a UWP file manager, i have to go through the Win32 file picker to allow the UWP file manager to access anything but the sub-folders of my user's home folder.

intoverflow2 9y ago

>I think the windows store just did not fit the usage patterns: People were used to download stuff right off the net, or use platforms like Valve's Steam. I don't think I'll ever understand the weird logic of most Windows users where DRM Online Store A is the best thing ever and a selling point of the platform and DRM Online Store B is an abomination that should never exist.