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One of the funniest/saddest parts of how RIM treated developers was that initially there was something like a $250 fee to get into their developer program, and

One of the funniest/saddest parts of how RIM treated developers was that initially there was something like a $250 fee to get into their developer program, and then you only got something like 5 app submissions/updates. You then had to pay for more submissions/updates. I believe they suspended this policy around the time they launched the BB Playbook, but compared to distributing through Google Play or the Apple App store, it was surprisingly ridiculous. Also, Window's Store developer setup experience was pretty embarrassing as of a year or so ago. If you want your ecosystem to do well, nail the developer onboarding experience, not just the getting started docs but the whole end to end experience. As a multiplatform developer, it makes a huge difference to where I want to develop for.

ams6110 13y ago
From their historical position as an "enterprise" phone provider, the dev program makes sense. It's like how being a Microsoft Windows developer used to be. You had to pay for all the tools. They may have felt that by having a price of entry it would help ensure that only "serious" developers would bother to apply.
porsupah 13y ago
And then there was the wonderfully.. "hand crafted" touch, shall we say. Order your keys to develop for them, and: == Your BlackBerry JDE Signature key order has been received and will be processed shortly. It could take up to 10 business days to fully process your order. You will receive a confirmation email prior to your signature keys being issued. If you require further assistance with regards to your order, please email devsupport@rim.com, providing your Company Name, Name, Email Address and Date/Time of your order. == Yes, that's 10 business days to get underway. (At the time - 2011 - I recall their app store could only be browsed under Windows, thanks to a fundamental reliance on DirectX components. This struck me as a little odd)

ams6110 13y ago

From their historical position as an "enterprise" phone provider, the dev program makes sense. It's like how being a Microsoft Windows developer used to be. You had to pay for all the tools. They may have felt that by having a price of entry it would help ensure that only "serious" developers would bother to apply.

porsupah 13y ago

And then there was the wonderfully.. "hand crafted" touch, shall we say. Order your keys to develop for them, and: == Your BlackBerry JDE Signature key order has been received and will be processed shortly. It could take up to 10 business days to fully process your order. You will receive a confirmation email prior to your signature keys being issued. If you require further assistance with regards to your order, please email devsupport@rim.com, providing your Company Name, Name, Email Address and Date/Time of your order. == Yes, that's 10 business days to get underway. (At the time - 2011 - I recall their app store could only be browsed under Windows, thanks to a fundamental reliance on DirectX components. This struck me as a little odd)