Apple is burning bridges with developers since they welcomed a wireless app store with the launch of the iPhone 3G. This timeline goes through some of the news reports and issues that have arisen since the issues began.
Created by appliedluck on Sep 25, 2008
Last updated: 03/12/10 at 01:13 AM
Apparently Apple's imposed non-disclosure agreement on iPhone's software developer kit is affecting not only programmers but publishers as well. Pragmatic Programmers has announced canceling publication of its book about coding iPhone applications since Apple has not lifted its NDA.
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/09/publisher-cance.html
If you’re a mobile application developer, where should you be playing your chips — on Apple’s side of the table or Google’s?
That’s the question Neil McAllister tackles in his SDK Shoot-out over at InfoWorld. It’s a thought-provoking read.
McAllister attests that the toolchain plays a big part in the decision. To build an iPhone app, you have to have an Intel Mac, you have to have iTunes and you must use Apple’s proprietary coding tools. For Android development, you can use Eclipse, you can use a command line or you can hack Android’s development tools into the IDE of your choice. It’s a logical argument: all other things being equal, a cross-platform and open environment is better than a proprietary environment.
http://www.webmonkey.com/blog/Android_vsDOT_iPhone%3A_Which_Is_The_Better_Bet_for_Developers_
One of the presenters at the recent C4 Mac developers conference made a point about Apple that is incredibly relevant to how the company is viewed, especially by the media and rabid Apple fans. To paraphrase his statement, in dealing with Apple, one should never assume that the company is being malicious when its behavior can be just as easily explained by incompetence.
These days, there are a lot of iPhone developers—and users—who are suddenly rooting for incompetence. Because when it comes to the entire machinery of the App Store, something is terribly wrong. It’s not something you may even notice today if you’re an average iPhone user. But in the end, if things don’t change, what’s happening right now may seriously weaken the iPhone as a platform and enable Apple’s competitors to get the upper hand when it comes to dominating the smartphone market.
http://www.macworld.com/article/135729/2008/09/app_store_policies.html
Disgusted with Apple's seemingly arbitrary and restrictive App Store policies, some developers have been thinking about dumping their iPhone projects in favor of Google's open mobile platform, Android.
After being rejected by Apple, coder Alex Sokirynsky said he'd be an Android convert. The wannabe iPhone developer recently gained widespread attention when Apple rejected his application Podcaster -- because it allegedly "duplicates" iTunes. Then, Sokirynsky tried to sell his application through other means, and Apple shut down his operation. As a result, Sokirnysky on Tuesday announced in a blog post (before removing it, presumably in light of Apple's new non-disclosure policy regarding rejections) that he would cease developing applications for Apple and code for Android instead.
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/09/will-google-and.html
If you're a developer and Apple rejects your iPhone application from its App Store, the company wants you to shut up and get over it.
Apple's serious about it: The company has extended the iPhone non-disclosure agreement, which prohibits application developers from discussing programming tips, to include rejection letters as well. Some developers in the past have shared their rejection letters on the web, but now, according to MacRumors, rejection letters include a clause that reads, "THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS MESSAGE IS UNDER NON-DISCLOSURE."
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/09/apple-imposes-n.html
T-Mobile’s, first Google Android-enabled phone officially announced Tuesday. Now all we have to do is wait for them to go on sale October 22.
Today’s announcement is the first time the public, via journalists, get a hands-on look into what the Android mobile OS will look like when it is released as open source later this year.
The general verdict? Well, it doesn’t look like it’s an iPhone killer — the reaction has been lukewarm. It plays catch up with a lot of the features iPhone has, and doesn’t quite keep up with some of them — most notably, the robust media player features the iPhone, and the underlying iPod, boasts.
http://www.webmonkey.com/blog/First_Android_Phone_Shows_Off_Polished_Features
Angelo DiNardi’s MailWranger app for the iPhone has been denied entry to the App Store because it “duplicates the functionality” of the built-in Mail app. The reason is similar to why Podcaster was rejected and it makes even less sense.
MailWrangler lets users check multiple Gmail accounts without manually logging in and out. Unlike Apple’s application, DiNardi’s uses the web interface via an embedded browser.
http://www.webmonkey.com/blog/Apple_Zaps_Another_Competing_iPhone_App
The game is called Trism, and it's an example of why – despite Apple throwing its toys out of the pram every time it sees an iPhone App it doesn't like – developers will continue to make quality software for the App Store.
Trism has made $250,000 for its developer, Steve Demeter, in just two months. A simple game, it looks to be as addictive as Tetris*, and it hits the right spot for pricing: $5. With the recent ballyhoo over Podcaster, in which Apple pulled an application that was well within the App Store rules simply because it competed with Apple's own offering, iPhone developers have been groaning that things aren't fair.
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/09/app-store-is-a.html
The iPhone is a revolutionary handset. But it is also the key to a virtual gold mine -- the iTunes App Store, where independent developers can become multimillionaires in just a year.
Since its launch in July, the App Store has grown to become an indie developer's dream come true. Steve Demeter, developer of the vastly popular $5 iPhone game Trism, announced he made $250,000 in profit in just two months. His team? Himself, mainly, with a little bit of help from a friend and a contracted designer (whom he paid $500). If his profits continue at this rate, Demeter will earn nearly $2 million by July 2009.
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/09/indie-developer.html
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Gadget Lab's Suggestions for Apple's App Store Rules
By Brian X. Chen EmailSeptember 17, 2008 | 8:17:17 PMCategories: Apple, iPhone
Iphone_2 Apple has been fickle with its iPhone App Store, to say the least. When the App Store first launched, Steve Jobs said the rules were "no porn" and "no malicious software." And given those loose standards, some applications that should never have seen the light of day made it to the App Store -- only to be subsequently removed. And now, Apple's App Store team has raised the bar and started rejecting some applications, stirring up controversy on the web.
It's a good and a bad thing for Apple to start rejecting applications. On the positive side, Apple is being more cautious about what gets through the door, which means malicious apps are less likely to make it to the App Store and onto our iPhones. On the negative side, Apple is stifling innovation and discouraging some developers from programming iPhone apps.
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/09/gadget-labs-sug.html
Podcaster is the latest app to fall afoul of Apple’s seemingly random process of approving and denying iPhone applications. Podcaster, an application for subscribing to, streaming and downloading podcasts directly to your iPhone and iPod Touch, has been denied a spot in the App Store. But the developer has decided to distribute it by any means available, which means you can grab a copy if you hurry.
The official Apple decision, sent to Podcaster creator Alex Sokirynsky, reads: “since Podcaster assists in the distribution of podcasts, it duplicates the functionality of the Podcast section of iTunes.”
http://www.webmonkey.com/blog/Snubbed_by_Apple__Podcaster_Developer_Turns_to__Ad_Hoc__Distribution
When Apple released a $1,000 iPhone application that did nothing -- and pulled it down shortly after -- some questioned whether the company exercised any quality standards for its App Store. A purported application-rejection e-mail suggests Apple has raised the bar.
A wannabe iPhone application developer forwarded to MacRumors what he claims to be an e-mail from Apple rejecting his "Pull My Finger" app. As you might have guessed, the application features illustrations of a finger -- and if you slide upward on the finger it makes a fart sound.
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/09/rejected-pull-m.html
Android’s mobile OS platform developers revealed their own version of Apple’s App Store Thursday. Google-hosted Android Market is a near feature by feature copy of the iPhone’s App Store — a centralized mobile software distribution application.
There are some minor differences. According to Eric Chu, as described on Android’s development blog, “We chose the term ‘market’ rather than ’store’ because we feel that developers should have an open and unobstructed environment to make their content available.”
http://www.webmonkey.com/blog/Android_s_Market_Mimics_iPhone_s_App_Store
You've got one more day to download the iPhone Tetris clone Tris before it is removed from Apple's App Store.
In a move that's hardly surprising, Apple was contacted by The Tetris Company over copyright claims for the title.
http://blog.wired.com/games/2008/08/tetris-clone-re.html
Fans of the iPhone may have heard that Apple removed several apps from its App Store after previously approving them. Though few are likely to argue with Apple removing malicious apps, it has gone too far with the most recent removal.
Last week a $999 app called “I am Rich” made news. The purposeless program displayed a gem in the center of the screen. That’s it. You couldn’t even change the color of the jewel.
http://www.webmonkey.com/blog/Apple_Should_Have_Kept__I_am_Rich__App
Apple CEO Steve Jobs' open acknowledgment of an emergency iPhone-application "kill switch" was a welcome move toward transparency, but he gave away a pretty big tell: We iPhone users are the software testers, or better yet, the guinea pigs. I agree with Jobs that it's absolutely necessary to include an emergency kill switch for Apple to remotely remove malicious applications. It's necessary because Apple's App Store team clearly is not testing these applications adequately before they're available for download in the App Store. Let's run down some quick numbers. When the App Store launched July 11, about 500 apps were available. On July 29, that number grew to 1,001. Are we to believe that Apple employees chained themselves to their desks and chugged cans of Red Bull while diligently testing 500 applications for quality and security in just two weeks?
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iPhone App Store Nets Apple $0. But That is Still Good News.
By John C Abell EmailAugust 11, 2008 | 10:18:00 AMCategories: Apple, iPhone, Steve Jobs
Appstore_2_2
Steve Jobs told the Wall Street Journal that the iPhone App Store has grossed about $1 million a day in its first month. That's roughly $365 million a year and Jobs says this is just the beginning:
"This thing's going to crest a half a billion, soon," he added. "Who knows, maybe it will be a $1 billion marketplace at some point in time."
Great! How much is Apple making off all this? Umm, about nothing, Jobs concedes. It's cut is 30 percent, which just about covers its costs, with the other 70 percent going to the developers.
http://blog.wired.com/business/2008/08/iphone-app-stor.html
Nullriver's short-lived iPhone application NetShare, which turns your iPhone into a wireless modem for your laptop, might not be returning to the App Store after all.
Earlier in the week, Nullriver received a response from Apple saying the removal of NetShare was a mistake that required "technical review." It turns out that was a blanket term, because in a phone interview today Nullriver's CEO Adam Dann said Apple was reviewing user contracts with providers, including AT&T.
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/08/netshares-retur.html
iPhone Coders Muzzled, Miffed by Apple’s NDA
By Scott Loganbill August 6, 2008 Categories: Mobile, Software & Tools
BrokeniPhone by JefferySimpson via FlickrThe iPhone development community is growing rapidly, but Apple’s treatment of some of its biggest supporters is drawing more ire than kudos.
Because of the company’s restrictive non-disclosure agreement (NDA), iPhone developers are legally banned from sharing programming tips, discussing code or asking questions of one another in forums or over e-mail.
They feel as if they’re coding with their hands tied, and the frustration is enough to make iPhone programmers want to curse loudly in the direction of Cupertino.
“FUCKING NDA” has become a mantra on Twitter. Every time a developer posts about his or her latest run-in with the metaphorical brick wall that is Apple’s NDA, the capitalized expletive is sounded off. “FUCKING NDA” has become such a phenomenon, a website has sprung up at FuckingNDA.com to track the twisted tweets.
http://www.webmonkey.com/blog/iPhone_Coders_Muzzled__Miffed_by_Apple_s_NDA
Apple's tight-lipped culture is not only damaging its reputation with the public; it's also pissing off its direct supporters -- iPhone application developers.
In accordance to Apple's non-disclosure agreement, iPhone app developers are legally not allowed to exchange or discuss programming tips with one another. The NDA has pissed them off enough, in fact, to spawn a web site called FuckingNDA.com. The site is essentially a portal containing a feed of iPhone developers on Twitter complaining about how the NDA is negatively affecting their coding.
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/08/developers-stea.html
Before you're rich enough to start throwing away your money to cancer foundations and third-world countries, consider buying a $1,000 iPhone application that does nothing.
My old colleague Harry McCracken brings to light an application called "I Am Rich," that will make you wonder whether developer Armin Heinrich is referring to you or himself -- after he suckers enough tool bags into purchasing this useless piece of software. The app does nothing but display a red ruby; tapping a miniature i in the corner will load a secret mantra enabling you to "stay rich, healthy, and successful."
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/08/pay-1000-for-an.html
Some iPhone application developers and users are befuddled by the mysterious removal of two programs from Apple's App Store over the weekend. Apple on Friday evening removed Nullriver's NetShare -- an application that essentially turns your iPhone into a wireless modem for your computer. That same day, Apple yanked Metasyntactic's BoxOffice, an app that allows you to search movie showtime listings.
Minutes after Nullriver released an application allowing you to use your iPhone as a wireless 3G/EDGE modem for your computer, Apple took it down.
Hours later, the software, called Netshare, was back in the App Store. And hours later it was gone again. (It's kind of like that on-again, off-again relationship you had in high school.)
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/08/iphone-tetherin.html
Justin Williams from Second Gear lets loose his frustration by launching FuckingNDA.com. The site conglomerates Twitter comments and (now) delicious feeds complaining about Apple's NDA.
http://fuckingnda.com
The iPhone 3G/2.0 launch suffered many problems, from activation issues through availability to a buggy OS. And although there were few customer problems with the App Store -- where users can get software to run on the iPhone and iPod Touch -- developers tell a different story.
Apple’s insistence on secrecy meant that developers were cut off from their air supply: a large and vocal group of beta testers. Worse still, Apple’s vetting process means that each and every update has to be hand-checked by Apple staff.
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/appstore-nnw.jpg
After manically clicking on the "Check for Updates" button in iTunes all morning, the 2.0 iPhone and iPod Touch firmware has finally show up. The update will bring all the functionality of the iPhone 3G to your old model -- minus the 3G and the GPS of course.
The update is free if you have an iPhone and $10 for the Touch (Thanks, Sarbanes-Oxley). As an added bonus, iPod Touch owners will also get the four iPhone applications -- Google Maps, Mail, Weather and Web Clips -- which were a previous paid upgrade earlier this year.
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/07/apple-releases.html
Phone developer house Pinch Media has analyzed the App Store numbers, listing the number of apps and what they will cost you. Of the 550-plus applications available right now, about 25 percent of them can be downloaded free of charge.
Apple’s App Store, where customers can buy applications for the iPhone and iPod Touch, opened its doors Thursday morning.
http://www.webmonkey.com/blog/App_Store_Launch%3A_552_Applications__135_of_Them_Free
Apple launched the newest version of their media player, iTunes 7.7. Included with the release is the iPhone App Store and version 2.0 of the iPhone/iPod operating system.
Apple’s App Store provides a venue for iPhone and iPod touch owners to download third-party applications submitted to Apple for sale or for free. iTunes upgrade features are all geared toward supporting the new iPhone/iPod enhancements.
http://www.webmonkey.com/blog/Apple_Launches_iTunes_7DOT7__iPhone_App_Store
The new iPhone is open to third-party applications, hooray! However, those applications can apparently only be distributed through the new App Store, “the exclusive channel for iPhone and iPod touch applications.” Yuck.
The App Store is probably a fine thing for the type of shareware mentality that seems to populate the Apple universe: application developers take home 70% of the proceeds for apps they sell, and Apple handles credit-card processing, distribution, and all that bother.
But it imposes a level of lockdown that will probably conflict with open-source licenses, and it gives Apple and its carriers ultimate control over what you’re allowed to install on your phone. App Store applications will be wrapped with Apple’s FairPlay DRM for access control, to ensure that they can’t be distributed beyond the single phone they were bought on. It’s reminiscent of the awful walled-garden distribution mechanism for third-party apps on the Sidekick, which involve licensing hurdles and make each precious bit you’re allowed to download seem like a gift from the Lord. As a result of that, there are hardly any third-party apps for the Sidekick. For instance, there’s no real IMAP client. If there were, I’d have bought a Sidekick, with its roomy keyboard, years ago.
http://www.webmonkey.com/blog/iPhone_App_Store_Exclusivity_Is_a_Big_Drawback
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