Intelligent Editorial: Apple and Third Party Applications

Andrew Case | Sat, Mar 8, 2008

Â Â Â If you don’t know by now… Well, if you don’t know by now I shudder to think that you call yourself an Mac user. Just kidding. But seriously… Apple has released an SDK (Software Developers Kit) for the iPhone. Is this epic or epic fail?Â Â Â ”Applications for the iPhone will be built on a Mac using a new version of Xcode, available in a beta version today as a part of Apple’s newÂ iPhone Developer Program. A new version of Interface Builder will allow developers to quickly design their iPhone software’s interface and localize the software for different languages. Other tools monitor memory usage and other aspects of the iPhone’s internals in an attempt to aid developers in improving the speed of their programs.” (http://www.macworld.com) Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Yes, this SDK is still in beta, but that does not mean that this is not a big step for the iPhone. The SDK opens up many new doors that could not be opened even with unbricking the iPhone. The software can now access the inner guts of the iPhone. This means that an awesome new thing can come out of the SDK, a VoIP client!Â Â Â Yes, this would eliminate the need for phone service alone for the iPhone, theoretically. Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Apple has already said that they will regulate (S.J. talk for not allow, mind you) use of VoIP through the Cingular internet. This means you can only make calls through your home WiFi. This also means that the need for iPhone VoIP will be eliminated. You can just use your computer for you VoIP needs. Oh Well. Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â On the other hand, there are other cool things that can come out of this! Anyone that uses iStat Pro will know how nice it is to be able to see how your system is working. Well, with access to the inner workings of the iPhone, you can use iStat to view what on Earth is hogging all of your power! This, however, is just one of the many 1337 things you can do with your baby. Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â There isÂ still one problem with this whole thing. You have to pay $99 per year to make your application available to others. Go figure, a monopoly attempt. I am pretty sure that others will attempt to find a way to distribute from their site, but I guess that is to be seen in the future. I am really disappointed with this stipulation. Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Besides the payment problem, and the fact that Apple gets 30% of the proceeds from purchases of your application, this could be a really big thing. Many people may become iPhone users that would not have considered it before. I am really excited to see some of the cool new things that may come of this. That’s all for this week folks!Â

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4 Responses to “Intelligent Editorial: Apple and Third Party Applications”

mark Says:
March 9th, 2008 at 1:19 pm
Jobs didn’t say you could only use VoIP with your home wifi. You could use it with wherever you can get wifi access, and that’s way more than at home. Though it is not usable everywhere like cellular, it is still very useful.

Joshua Schnell Says:
March 9th, 2008 at 1:57 pm
I know I’m super stoked at the prospect of wifi voip access. 90% of my cellular calls come when I’m at home with a wireless network available. Now, if Jobs and Co. would just give me an iPhone in Canada I’d be ecstatic.

Walt French Says:
March 9th, 2008 at 4:28 pm
I’d really love to see a “business plan” for distributing software that costs less than $99 per title up front and 30% of sales.

Real-world apps for PCs, let alone the little $15 goodies, have hugely higher per-sale costs, whether you get Digital River or somebody else to run your store, or whether you home-brew one and deal with all the credit card and/or paypal fees.

Anybody who wants to make his mark as a coder or program conceptualizer is gonna love being able to focus on their business instead of whining about how much time they spend on overhead.

In the real world circa 2008, this is a vastly lower barrier to entry for developing software.

Walt French Says:
March 9th, 2008 at 4:29 pm
woops, that’s per author. Let a thousand flowers bloom!