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Bingo. The most open device is going to win this race, and it won't be any vendor that locks developers into an "app store" or any specific language/runtime.

Bingo. The most open device is going to win this race, and it won't be any vendor that locks developers into an "app store" or any specific language/runtime. Most people forget that the reason the PC took off like it did was because a developer could do whatever they wanted with the machine. It was a blank slate that could run multiple operating systems be used with many different languages. Many vendors today are purposefully taking a very open architecture and locking it down tight, which is a very anti-developer stance to take, and contrary to (what history shows as) the path to success.

earl 16y ago
> The most open device is going to win this race [...] The above is very far from clear at this point. In case you didn't notice it, the App Store just hit 10 billion downloads [1]. I'd say that's a pretty relevant bit of history. Also note the amazing 60 apps per idevice [2]. And don't conflate openness with developer profitability -- in one case, Microsoft had both, but it's not clear that the latter leads to the former. Right now, I'd guess there's easily one or two magnitudes more developers supporting themselves with iOS apps than with android apps. The fact that my gf and mom's iphone and ipad can't run random executables is, IMO, a feature not a bug. I got so tired of telling them, "No, do NOT click yes on any dialog box. Do not install anything. Do not agree to anything. etc" And yet somehow, spyware / crap always ended up on their damn computers. Apple's vision of utility computing, where the computer is a tablet or a phone that just bloody works is one of the best things that can happen to computing intended for widespread adoption. Further, curation of apps similarly is awesome for them. I'm not as stoked about it for myself, but I'm very clearly a distinct minority. [1] http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/22/apples-app-store-hits-10-billion-downloads/ http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/22/apples-app-store-hits-10-... [2] http://www.readwriteweb.com/mobile/2011/01/more-than-60-apps-downloaded-per-ios-device.php http://www.readwriteweb.com/mobile/2011/01/more-than-60-apps...
- philthy 16y ago
  I guess you like to be told what you can do and what you can like on your device. Nothing wrong with that...
  - brownleej 16y ago
    He said "I'm not as stoked about it for myself", so I would wager that he does not like to be told what he can do and what he can like.
- TimJYoung 16y ago
  The question is this: have we seen a truly open device on the market yet ? If not, then none of the stats that you quote really mean much, at least at this point.

earl 16y ago

> The most open device is going to win this race [...] The above is very far from clear at this point. In case you didn't notice it, the App Store just hit 10 billion downloads [1]. I'd say that's a pretty relevant bit of history. Also note the amazing 60 apps per idevice [2]. And don't conflate openness with developer profitability -- in one case, Microsoft had both, but it's not clear that the latter leads to the former. Right now, I'd guess there's easily one or two magnitudes more developers supporting themselves with iOS apps than with android apps. The fact that my gf and mom's iphone and ipad can't run random executables is, IMO, a feature not a bug. I got so tired of telling them, "No, do NOT click yes on any dialog box. Do not install anything. Do not agree to anything. etc" And yet somehow, spyware / crap always ended up on their damn computers. Apple's vision of utility computing, where the computer is a tablet or a phone that just bloody works is one of the best things that can happen to computing intended for widespread adoption. Further, curation of apps similarly is awesome for them. I'm not as stoked about it for myself, but I'm very clearly a distinct minority. [1] http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/22/apples-app-store-hits-10-billion-downloads/ http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/22/apples-app-store-hits-10-... [2] http://www.readwriteweb.com/mobile/2011/01/more-than-60-apps-downloaded-per-ios-device.php http://www.readwriteweb.com/mobile/2011/01/more-than-60-apps...

philthy 16y ago
I guess you like to be told what you can do and what you can like on your device. Nothing wrong with that...
- brownleej 16y ago
  He said "I'm not as stoked about it for myself", so I would wager that he does not like to be told what he can do and what he can like.
TimJYoung 16y ago
The question is this: have we seen a truly open device on the market yet ? If not, then none of the stats that you quote really mean much, at least at this point.