5 ms·

I hope the barrier to entry to be a producer will stay as low as it is now. I worry that as PC demand goes down, the cost to get started in programming will go

I hope the barrier to entry to be a producer will stay as low as it is now. I worry that as PC demand goes down, the cost to get started in programming will go up. I started to learn how to code web sites while procrastinating one afternoon during finals week; I discovered Apache on my macbook. The barrier to entry was almost accidental, because I had all this great stuff on my computer waiting for me to discover it. Those experiences will be more rare in the post-PC erra.

victork2 15y ago
Funny you mention that, but in a world totally dominated by iPads the price to just have your application being available by legal means is 99$. When I began to code(around 12-15) 99$ was WAY above anything I could imagine. I don't know if my parents would have allowed me to spend such a sum. Hopefully you can get started and publish for Android for free! So, who knows what the future holds for the cost of content creation... Again people often ignore the long-term externalities they produce when they make their choices, buying a PC or a tablet being one of these choices.
- wikyd 15y ago
  Are they ignoring the "long-term externalities" or is it just impossible to actually know what they are? Or maybe they just disagree and are putting their money where their mouth is. To even expect a non-programmer to consider this issue strikes me as pretty crazy. I bought an iPad and I don't think that it's going to affect distribution of software in any meaningful way, besides making it easier for developers to reach users through the app store. For one, anyone can deploy an app to Heroku for free. You can host plain html, css, and js for free. You can learn how to program an iOS device for free with tons of great guides and materials online. When you want to distribute it, there is a hurdle to clear, but (and this might be a cultural thing), $100 as a 12-15 year old is not such a wild sum. It also makes my experience browsing the app store better.
- ghshephard 15y ago
  Xcode is free (as in beer): https://developer.apple.com/xcode/index.php https://developer.apple.com/xcode/index.php You only need to register in the iOS Developer Program if you plan on distributing your apps in the App Store.
  - andrewaylett 15y ago
    You have to join (and pay) if you want to run your apps on hardware -- the free download only lets you run in the simulator.
- JumpCrisscross 15y ago
  I don't know when you were 12-15, but $99 at 2010 prices was about $34 in 1980 and $23 in 1975 [1]. [1] http://www.westegg.com/inflation/infl.cgi http://www.westegg.com/inflation/infl.cgi
  - victork2 15y ago
    I'm 25. Maybe I was born in a conservative family on spending but I would have to seriously push my parents for weeks to obtain $60 worth of something as abstract as a SDK (like they even know what it is...)! And for families that live check after check, they often have a computer but affording a $100 license can be very painful, I was in that situation!
    - jiggy2011 15y ago
      true , but it's only recently that there has been so much good development software available for free. When I was first looking at computers a computer cost $1000 and a copy of MS C++ was something like $300
      - danieldk 15y ago
        true , but it's only recently that there has been so much good development software available for free. I absolutely disagree. When I was 12 (in 1994) I became interested in Linux because it had so many development tools available. I thought computers and programs were magical, and Linux/bash/Perl/gcc et al. made it possible for me to learn programming. And Slackware Linux could be obtained for 10 guilders or less. My generation became hackers through GNU and Linux, just as the generation before used MSX, C64, or a ZX machine with a free BASIC interpreter. IMO, the sickening development is not so much that Mac and iOS developer accounts cost $99 per year. It's that the world (Apple and Microsoft) is slowly moving to a model where there is a gatekeeper who decides what gets in and what does not. As a bonus the gatekeeper gets 30% of every purchase. I can sympathize with the need to provide a 'trusted' source of software, but it should also be possible to install whatever the heck you like. What would the Internet be if it followed this model?
- deleted 15y ago
  [deleted]
kellypmk 15y ago
There's nothing inherent in the nature of tablets or iOS that prevents them from being used for learning programming. It's purely an issue of the availability of suitable apps. Have a look at Codea (http://twolivesleft.com/Codea/ http://twolivesleft.com/Codea/) for an example of such a tool. (Disclaimer: I know the guy who wrote it, but i genuinely believe its a very cool environment for learning programming and writing basic games)

victork2 15y ago

Funny you mention that, but in a world totally dominated by iPads the price to just have your application being available by legal means is 99$. When I began to code(around 12-15) 99$ was WAY above anything I could imagine. I don't know if my parents would have allowed me to spend such a sum. Hopefully you can get started and publish for Android for free! So, who knows what the future holds for the cost of content creation... Again people often ignore the long-term externalities they produce when they make their choices, buying a PC or a tablet being one of these choices.

wikyd 15y ago
Are they ignoring the "long-term externalities" or is it just impossible to actually know what they are? Or maybe they just disagree and are putting their money where their mouth is. To even expect a non-programmer to consider this issue strikes me as pretty crazy. I bought an iPad and I don't think that it's going to affect distribution of software in any meaningful way, besides making it easier for developers to reach users through the app store. For one, anyone can deploy an app to Heroku for free. You can host plain html, css, and js for free. You can learn how to program an iOS device for free with tons of great guides and materials online. When you want to distribute it, there is a hurdle to clear, but (and this might be a cultural thing), $100 as a 12-15 year old is not such a wild sum. It also makes my experience browsing the app store better.
ghshephard 15y ago
Xcode is free (as in beer): https://developer.apple.com/xcode/index.php https://developer.apple.com/xcode/index.php You only need to register in the iOS Developer Program if you plan on distributing your apps in the App Store.
- andrewaylett 15y ago
  You have to join (and pay) if you want to run your apps on hardware -- the free download only lets you run in the simulator.
JumpCrisscross 15y ago
I don't know when you were 12-15, but $99 at 2010 prices was about $34 in 1980 and $23 in 1975 [1]. [1] http://www.westegg.com/inflation/infl.cgi http://www.westegg.com/inflation/infl.cgi
- victork2 15y ago
  I'm 25. Maybe I was born in a conservative family on spending but I would have to seriously push my parents for weeks to obtain $60 worth of something as abstract as a SDK (like they even know what it is...)! And for families that live check after check, they often have a computer but affording a $100 license can be very painful, I was in that situation!
  - jiggy2011 15y ago
    true , but it's only recently that there has been so much good development software available for free. When I was first looking at computers a computer cost $1000 and a copy of MS C++ was something like $300
    - danieldk 15y ago
      true , but it's only recently that there has been so much good development software available for free. I absolutely disagree. When I was 12 (in 1994) I became interested in Linux because it had so many development tools available. I thought computers and programs were magical, and Linux/bash/Perl/gcc et al. made it possible for me to learn programming. And Slackware Linux could be obtained for 10 guilders or less. My generation became hackers through GNU and Linux, just as the generation before used MSX, C64, or a ZX machine with a free BASIC interpreter. IMO, the sickening development is not so much that Mac and iOS developer accounts cost $99 per year. It's that the world (Apple and Microsoft) is slowly moving to a model where there is a gatekeeper who decides what gets in and what does not. As a bonus the gatekeeper gets 30% of every purchase. I can sympathize with the need to provide a 'trusted' source of software, but it should also be possible to install whatever the heck you like. What would the Internet be if it followed this model?
deleted 15y ago
[deleted]

kellypmk 15y ago

There's nothing inherent in the nature of tablets or iOS that prevents them from being used for learning programming. It's purely an issue of the availability of suitable apps. Have a look at Codea (http://twolivesleft.com/Codea/ http://twolivesleft.com/Codea/) for an example of such a tool. (Disclaimer: I know the guy who wrote it, but i genuinely believe its a very cool environment for learning programming and writing basic games)