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Apple, aspiring to be exceptional, inspires exceptional zealotry. There is much to chew on for supporters of their products and platforms. Android aspires to u

Apple, aspiring to be exceptional, inspires exceptional zealotry. There is much to chew on for supporters of their products and platforms. Android aspires to ubiquity – and achieves it. And so it is polluted by handset manufacturers with inept designers and short-sighted leadership. It is beautiful – sometimes. It is mediocre – most of the time. For everything one can celebrate in Android land, there is plenty more to lament. Because of this, Android doesn't need a Gruber – it needs an anti-Gruber. A churlish character who, rather than celebrating the excellent, laments the shabby. An irascible voice to scold the masses who value the wrong things. While Gruber is enamored of one party and frustrated by the rest, our Anti-Gruber must be frustrated by all. Annoyed by Apple's approach. Annoyed by the squandered opportunities of his own camp. If you ever read the work of Ted Dziuba, that'll help you capture the sort of voice I'm imagining. "Jesus Christ Silicon Valley" is a bit over the top, but probably lives in a similar neighborhood: http://jesuschristsiliconvalley.tumblr.com http://jesuschristsiliconvalley.tumblr.com This character must be pissed off for reasons, he must elucidate them consistently, and must be relentless in the coverage of his ire. Curmudgeonry is entertaining when it's purposeful – especially when it also serves to educate. Android enthusiasts would link to such blog – some because of its skewering of their preferred platform, others because of their agreement with the presented frustrations. Apple enthusiasts would link because sometimes it agreed with their worldview. There's room for this character.

voltagex_ 13y ago
I am. I'm bloody angry that consumers prioritize tiny/thin phones over a battery that lasts all day. I hate how Google handles their bug reports. I hate how low latency audio still isn't a priority on Android. I hate how the bluetooth stack was broken seemingly for no reason at all. I hate that there's still no Bluetooth LE support. I hate how Google won't let the Commonwealth Bank of Australia implement a Google-wallet style application. I hate how half the Android OEMs can't be arsed releasing proper sourcecode. But I think the Nexus 4 is one of the best devices I own...
- danilocampos 13y ago
  If you can channel that frustration into entertainment and education, you, too, can sell outrageously lucrative feed sponsorships.
  - voltagex_ 13y ago
    Maybe I'll just stick with Gittip.
- statictype 13y ago
  I find your ideas fascinating and would like to subscribe to your newsletter. So please make one.
  - voltagex_ 13y ago
    Hey thanks. I've been procrastinating while trying to start a blog for ages. Do you think I'd have to stick to just Android? I've been meaning to make a post (or several) out of [1] this comment. [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6037640 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6037640
- eco 13y ago
  > I hate that there's still no Bluetooth LE support. I believe tomorrow's expected 4.3 announcement adds Bluetooth LE (and all around improved Bluetooth).
  - voltagex_ 13y ago
    Woohoo! Nexus 4 pays off.
- omonra 13y ago
  For your #1 - I use a zero lemon battery with my S3. Lasts 2 days of VERY heavy usage - http://www.zerolemon.com/ http://www.zerolemon.com/. That's the best part about Android - you choose whether you want to have a thin phone or one that lasts a long time.
recuter 13y ago
When the iPhone was introduced in 2007, Steve boasted that it is 5 years ahead of the competition. It wasn't hyperbole. Ever since, the jailbreakers and Android tinkerers have provided a fertile testing ground for half baked ideas. Apple kept iterating, filling the gaps, and adopting the best things poorly done by the aforementioned to boot. It is 2013 -- I can't even think of a good reason to jailbreak anymore. The low hanging fruit are gone and there's not much left to be OCD about. There's no room for this character, this stuff is now officially boring. It comes down to the old choice between running OS X or some Linux distro.
- skeletonjelly 13y ago
  > It is 2013 -- I can't even think of a good reason to jailbreak anymore. The low hanging fruit are gone and there's not much left to be OCD about What about removing that bookshelf icon permanently? Customising the UI? These are all visual things people who subscribe to self-diagnised OCD obsess with.
  - recuter 13y ago
    You can remove the bookshelf icon in iOS 7. :) Fiddling with the UI style is like going through all the various window managers and desktop environments for Linux with the significant difference that there's really no chance at any productivity wins whatsoever when it comes to the smartphone form factor.
    - skeletonjelly 13y ago
      My iPhone using coworkers swear by this: http://www.iphonehacks.com/2013/02/lockinfo-5-new-features-ios-6-support.html http://www.iphonehacks.com/2013/02/lockinfo-5-new-features-i...
ok_craig 13y ago
Gruber already does lament the shabby doesn't he? So what'd be the difference? In addition to calling out Google / Microsoft / Samsung, he also calls out Apple? Doesn't really seem like a big diff, except maybe for being slightly more objective.
- danilocampos 13y ago
  > So what'd be the difference? I think the big difference would be hating everyone equally. Gruber laments the shabby with a song in his heart and a spring in his step because Steve Jobs was brilliant, Jony Ive satisfies and Stanley Kubrick was a master filmmaker. This guy? "Fuck everyone, that's why." That's his schtick. So on the odd days when the sun comes out, you pay very close attention. The rest of the time, wry smiles.
  - pohl 13y ago
    Designing a hypothetical persons's schtick ahead of time will never work. It would only be sustainable if it's genuine. If not genuine, something would have to motivate them to — every day for over a decade — wake up, make fussy coffee and sit down at their clicky keyboard to produce something in character. I don't think this character idea is fertile enough to inspire a Colbert.
BadassFractal 13y ago
Love that blog, thank you for the share.

voltagex_ 13y ago

I am. I'm bloody angry that consumers prioritize tiny/thin phones over a battery that lasts all day. I hate how Google handles their bug reports. I hate how low latency audio still isn't a priority on Android. I hate how the bluetooth stack was broken seemingly for no reason at all. I hate that there's still no Bluetooth LE support. I hate how Google won't let the Commonwealth Bank of Australia implement a Google-wallet style application. I hate how half the Android OEMs can't be arsed releasing proper sourcecode. But I think the Nexus 4 is one of the best devices I own...

danilocampos 13y ago
If you can channel that frustration into entertainment and education, you, too, can sell outrageously lucrative feed sponsorships.
- voltagex_ 13y ago
  Maybe I'll just stick with Gittip.
statictype 13y ago
I find your ideas fascinating and would like to subscribe to your newsletter. So please make one.
- voltagex_ 13y ago
  Hey thanks. I've been procrastinating while trying to start a blog for ages. Do you think I'd have to stick to just Android? I've been meaning to make a post (or several) out of [1] this comment. [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6037640 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6037640
eco 13y ago
> I hate that there's still no Bluetooth LE support. I believe tomorrow's expected 4.3 announcement adds Bluetooth LE (and all around improved Bluetooth).
- voltagex_ 13y ago
  Woohoo! Nexus 4 pays off.
omonra 13y ago
For your #1 - I use a zero lemon battery with my S3. Lasts 2 days of VERY heavy usage - http://www.zerolemon.com/ http://www.zerolemon.com/. That's the best part about Android - you choose whether you want to have a thin phone or one that lasts a long time.

recuter 13y ago

When the iPhone was introduced in 2007, Steve boasted that it is 5 years ahead of the competition. It wasn't hyperbole. Ever since, the jailbreakers and Android tinkerers have provided a fertile testing ground for half baked ideas. Apple kept iterating, filling the gaps, and adopting the best things poorly done by the aforementioned to boot. It is 2013 -- I can't even think of a good reason to jailbreak anymore. The low hanging fruit are gone and there's not much left to be OCD about. There's no room for this character, this stuff is now officially boring. It comes down to the old choice between running OS X or some Linux distro.

skeletonjelly 13y ago
> It is 2013 -- I can't even think of a good reason to jailbreak anymore. The low hanging fruit are gone and there's not much left to be OCD about What about removing that bookshelf icon permanently? Customising the UI? These are all visual things people who subscribe to self-diagnised OCD obsess with.
- recuter 13y ago
  You can remove the bookshelf icon in iOS 7. :) Fiddling with the UI style is like going through all the various window managers and desktop environments for Linux with the significant difference that there's really no chance at any productivity wins whatsoever when it comes to the smartphone form factor.
  - skeletonjelly 13y ago
    My iPhone using coworkers swear by this: http://www.iphonehacks.com/2013/02/lockinfo-5-new-features-ios-6-support.html http://www.iphonehacks.com/2013/02/lockinfo-5-new-features-i...

ok_craig 13y ago

Gruber already does lament the shabby doesn't he? So what'd be the difference? In addition to calling out Google / Microsoft / Samsung, he also calls out Apple? Doesn't really seem like a big diff, except maybe for being slightly more objective.

danilocampos 13y ago
> So what'd be the difference? I think the big difference would be hating everyone equally. Gruber laments the shabby with a song in his heart and a spring in his step because Steve Jobs was brilliant, Jony Ive satisfies and Stanley Kubrick was a master filmmaker. This guy? "Fuck everyone, that's why." That's his schtick. So on the odd days when the sun comes out, you pay very close attention. The rest of the time, wry smiles.
- pohl 13y ago
  Designing a hypothetical persons's schtick ahead of time will never work. It would only be sustainable if it's genuine. If not genuine, something would have to motivate them to — every day for over a decade — wake up, make fussy coffee and sit down at their clicky keyboard to produce something in character. I don't think this character idea is fertile enough to inspire a Colbert.

BadassFractal 13y ago

Love that blog, thank you for the share.