Its like hearing from people who bought a lotto ticket and won $100. I recognize that these people have made their money back, but I'm really not interested in their story. Where's the > $100k iPhone app success stories?
Maybe my $100k target was too low to illustrate my point. I have yet to see a valuable killer iPhone app that Apple didn't write. Mail, Maps, and Safari could each on their own convince me to buy an iPhone. Trism? Some Polaroid sim? These are useless entertainment. Where are the VisiCalc's of this space? Apps where people stare dumbfounded at the screen and want to trample their neighbors to spend $200 on software.
What really bothers me about the "gold rush" stories is that they just aren't big enough. Some kid makes a game that nets $250k - basically enough to hire a couple people to help you make your next game before you go out of business. And to top it off, these are only the cream of the crop - most iPhone devs never recoup their investments. We aren't seeing real value being created here, just a few people capturing the spare change of the masses.
The modern smart phone is as close as we've gotten to a flying car... lets see something awesome already. I grew up thinking that software developers were like astronauts, not crop dusters.
(+1) But the problem isn't the discussion of the risks, rewards, success stories, or how all of it was navigated.
The problem is the sheer emphasis on iPhone apps over seemingly everything else. We all would be better off (developers and consumers) if there was more discussion around cross-platform mobile development. I know there is some of this, but not at the enthusiasm level you see with App Store discussions.
I don't see the emphasis as a problem. The iPhone is a market leader and market leaders tend to get a lot of attention. Why should developers waste their time on other platforms if they aren't interested in them or don't feel there is enough market to make a profit? I only knew C before I got an iPhone, but I was excited to learn to develop for it. I think a lot of others share that same excitement, thus the amount of stories and enthusiasm surrounding the device.
No one should do anything they really don't want to do. That's not what I'm saying. (And more power to everyone developing for iPhone, whether successfully or not.)
What I'm saying is that in the long run, this is a temporary state of things, and I personally feel we are better to move beyond it sooner than later. Geo-social apps are a great example that will benefit from better cross-platform support. And doing it in-browser, or some other compatible way, encourages more innovation faster than having to develop for n different proprietary platforms.
