Newton, Palm, WinCE and the Blackberry can all add 3rd party applications. However, having developed for 75% of those platforms, I can tell you that it wasn't easy.
What's missing from this article is the impact of the iPhone App store. It makes it absolutely trivial for a user to install new applications -- directly from the phone.
Compare the iPhone:
1. Click on App store
2. Search for the app you want
3. Click Install
to what we have to do with all of the other platforms above:
1. Find the app you want (ie, no centralize directory)
2. Download the app to a laptop/desktop.
3. Move the app to whatever machine this particular device is already mated to (yes, you can often do it on a guest device, but good luck.)
4. Unpack/Unzip/Untar the application
5. Open up the syncing/install application
6. Move it to the right directory or select the correct collection of files from the syncing application
7. Plug in or dock your handheld
8. Sync.
How often do you think that the latter occurs? While Palm boasted of having hundreds of thousands of apps, a tiny fraction of devices had any of them.
This integration is important. The handheld ecosystem goes far, far beyond "well, you can develop for it!"
It is a lesson that I'm hoping the Google folks are learning.
And unlike the iPhone, you don't have to get prior approval from RIM to sell or distribute your wares and you certainly don't have to give them a 30% cut.
What's more, non-apple platforms are far more open as to what you can actually do - background processes & listeners, better access to the system etc.
> Ever notice how the nicest applications are always ones made by RIM? An outside developer could never create the BlackBerry Facebook application in a million years, again, because of the API access. We heard RIM is actively trying to listen to developer’s cries for help, open up some APIs, give them newer and better tools, and possibly include things such as OpenGL graphics support. But it’s still extremely difficult to develop for BlackBerry devices and distribute those applications.
I can only speak for mobile Java applications, and they definitely can be installed over the air: type URL of app or browse to it in the phone's browser, install.
I also don't see how having only one store is an advantage. There have been no good stores for mobile applications, that is true. But that seems independent from the just one store problem. If there was one trustworthy store for applications, the other bad stores would be irrelevant.
It also remains to be seen how good the iPhone Appstore will really be. Why should it be better than the other stores for mobile applications out there?
Also, wasn't there a store for Palm Pilot applications from Palm Computing back in the day?
It depends on the store. Actually you could program your own store and get paid VERY easily (if you stick to paid SMS as payments).
I am not claiming that there are any good stores for mobile apps. I am not sure if Apple's store is good, either. What is supposed to make it good? If they have thousands of applications on there, it might become impractical?
"What is supposed to make it good? If they have thousands of applications on there, it might become impractical?"
I think their experience with iTunes will help out here. The interface from the phone is of course different, but people have been using iTunes to navigate the huge sea of music content to put them at the #2 spot for music vendor.
We will see, but I suspect the market is very different? I have never used iTunes to browse music. Do people actually discover music on iTunes, or do they just go there for music they already know they want?
What's missing from this article is the impact of the iPhone App store. It makes it absolutely trivial for a user to install new applications -- directly from the phone.
Compare the iPhone:
1. Click on App store
2. Search for the app you want
3. Click Install
to what we have to do with all of the other platforms above:
1. Find the app you want (ie, no centralize directory)
2. Download the app to a laptop/desktop.
3. Move the app to whatever machine this particular device is already mated to (yes, you can often do it on a guest device, but good luck.)
4. Unpack/Unzip/Untar the application
5. Open up the syncing/install application
6. Move it to the right directory or select the correct collection of files from the syncing application
7. Plug in or dock your handheld
8. Sync.
How often do you think that the latter occurs? While Palm boasted of having hundreds of thousands of apps, a tiny fraction of devices had any of them.
This integration is important. The handheld ecosystem goes far, far beyond "well, you can develop for it!"
It is a lesson that I'm hoping the Google folks are learning.