[opendtv] Re: Apple loosens its chokehold on app development
- From: Kilroy Hughes <Kilroy.Hughes@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 10 Sep 2010 03:07:31 +0000
PR is such a wonderful thing; especially when nobody reads it.
They said "relaxing all restrictions on the development tools used to create
iOS apps, AS LONG AS THE RESULTING APPS DO NOT DOWNLOAD ANY CODE."
Apps without code ... Hmmm.
That could mean no apps at all, but I suspect it means no interpreted code like
Flash Action Script, no bytecode like Java, or no virtual machines in binary
like Flash, Java, etc. VMs that will process intermediate code apps.
I think the message is that you can write it in Elvi or edlin or Flash
authoring tools if you want to, but you have to compile a single app to iOS
binary and use their APIs, which is zero change from the current policy on what
apps are allowed to run on the device. Content can't contain any
interactivity, like Flash, BD-J, etc. They don't dictate what development
tools you have to use to generate their binaries; big deal.
Based on the blurb, they are no closer to allowing Flash content and apps to
run on iDevices. If you can convert it to a single app in native Apple code
you can, but then it isn't Flash anymore.
Kilroy Hughes
-----Original Message-----
From: opendtv-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:opendtv-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On
Behalf Of Craig Birkmaier
Sent: Thursday, September 09, 2010 9:30 AM
To: OpenDTV Mail List
Subject: [opendtv] Apple loosens its chokehold on app development
http://money.cnn.com/2010/09/09/technology/apple_developer_guidelines/index.htm?section=money_technology&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fmoney_technology+%28Technology%29&utm_content=Google+Reader
Apple loosens its chokehold on app development By Stacy Cowley, tech editor
September 9, 2010: 11:55 AM ET
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Apple is loosening its grip on its app development
for its mobile devices, announcing Thursday that it will drop restrictions on
what programming tools developers can use to create iOS apps.
The unexpected move means Apple is standing down in what had become an
increasingly heated battle between the company and the developers who have
created the more than 250,000 apps that stock Apple's App Store.
"We have listened to our developers and taken much of their feedback to heart,"
Apple said. "This should give developers the flexibility they want, while
preserving the security we need."
Apple's rule changes are quite technical, and developers raced to pore over the
fine print and figure out exactly what they mean.
But the practical upshot is that programmers will be able to use tools from
Apple's rivals -- most notably Adobe -- to build software for Apple's iPhones,
iPads and iPods.
Adobe's current Flash development suite includes a tool for converting apps to
run on Apple's platform, but the company said in April that it would stop
further development on that tool because of Apple's restrictions and focus more
on Google's Android operating system.
Adobe did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
But Flash programmers were quick to chime in: "We're back in the game," one
posted in Adobe's forum right after Apple's announcement.
Veteran Apple developer Hank Williams, who strongly criticized the company's
previously policy in his blog, celebrated the new rules.
"I am ecstatic that competition from Android is forcing Apple to make the
iPhone a more competitive, more open, and therefore better platform for users
and developers," he wrote. "It is exceedingly rare for Apple to capitulate, and
it can only mean that pressure from the popularity of the far more open Android
has taken its toll.
Apple's previous policy of banning unapproved development tools had drawn
notice from federal regulators, who have reportedly considered launching an
antitrust investigation of Apple's software development rules.
Apple also said it will for the first time publish review guidelines to help
developers understand how it vets the applications submitted to its App Store.
Developers have frequently griped about Apple's opaque and occasionally
drawn-out review process.
"We hope it will make us more transparent and help our developers create even
more successful apps for the App Store," Apple said of its decision to release
the guidelines.
Shares of Adobe (ADBE) jumped about 12% on the news in late morning trading
Thursday, to $32.69. Shares of Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) rose 1%, to $266.31.
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