FINALLY! Multitasking comes to the iPhone!

Thursday, April 8th, 2010 | Opinion | Comments Off

Apple has finally added multitasking, and so much more, to the iPhone OS. Ars Technica reports all the details. The highlights:

- Multitasking using the home button. While I was wrong about only one app being allowed, I was right about the home button being the primary interface. This sounds fantastic. Audio apps can even use the previously iPod only pop up controls. There are only ways for apps to “run” in the background. For location based apps, they can be woken up when positions change. For games, they can “pause” and be idle.

- Folders on the home screen. Another welcome addition. Instead of managing pages upon pages of unorganized apps, they can be put inside a folder. I can already see this for less used apps and games.

- Unified inbox in Mail. Yet another FINALLY. It will make it so much easier to manage more than one account.

Some of the other things are interesting too. Game Center will be great for game developers- a kid of XBox Live system. iAd will be wonderful as adding advertising can be a pain. And the enterprise features are awesome- especially the remote installing of apps.

A good update. I was hoping for some sort of printing option though. Maybe that will come later.

One final note- if you install the 4.0 release on an iPhone, MobileMe’s tracking system will not work. I don’t know why, but it won’t. Hopefully that will be fixed for beta 2.

Great Reason to Run SMART Utility: Gruber HD Failure

Tuesday, March 16th, 2010 | Opinion, SMART Utility | Comments Off

John Gruber, of DaringFireball fame, just had his HD fail. He noticed it because everything was running very slow. He ran DiskWarrior which recovered his data but alerted him to a problem. SMART Utilility would most likely have alerted him to this issue a lot sooner. He was lucky because he also had a SuperDuper backup as well as a DropBox backup.

He makes a lot of good recommenations, and I encourage you to read the full story, but this is my favorite part:

Hard drives are fragile. Read as much as you can bear to about how they work, how incredibly precisely they must operate in order to cram so many bits onto such small disks. It’s a miracle to me that they work at all. Every hard drive in the world will eventually fail. Assume that yours are all on the cusp of failure at all times. It’s good to be spooked about how long your hard drives will last.

A hard drive failure can happen to anybody. Be prepared when it does, and be alerted before it does. That’s why I made SMART Utility.

Rumor: iPhone OS 4.0 to Add Third Party Multitasking

Thursday, March 11th, 2010 | Opinion | 1 Comment

According to AppleInsider, Apple is adding the ability for third parties to multitasking. They say no details are available, but its a “full-on” solution.

This is very exciting, as it will fix the biggest flaw of the OS right now. As AI points out, its not a technical problem, as many Apple apps (iPod, Messages, etc) run fine in the background. Its a political problem. The current arguments for it (battery and resource usage) are red-herrings, because they both apply to the Apple apps as well- and the decision to use them are up to the user.

I’m very interested in seeing how Apple manages this. I expect the home button to be the primary means of interacting, with only one third party app allowed to run. There will also be a requirement to have a menu bar icon to alert the user that there is an extra app being run.

Regardless of how its done, this is great news for the platform. Once less reason to use the Andriod platform. The next thing to change: unsigned apps.

Update: Apple Gives in to Rogue Amoeba

Monday, November 23rd, 2009 | Opinion | Comments Off

In an update to this post I made a view days ago (where Apple rejected their already approved app because it used images of Apple computers), Apple has reversed course and now will allow the app. Apple, via Phil Schiller (Senior Vice President of Worldwide Product Marketing), has stated that they are changing their policies regarding trademarked images.

Its good to see them backpedal because it was a horrible decision in the first place. It was covered far and wide, and was very bad PR for Apple. On top of that, it hurt the UI of the app- something Apple is supposed to be know for.

However, RA is not jumping back into iPhone development:

The problems of the App Store go well beyond our own relatively minor case. We pushed this update to Airfoil Speakers Touch out because we wanted to restore functionality we had to take away from our users. We’re happy to be able to do that.

That said, the App Store and iPhone platform still have myriad problems, detailed in many places. Among other issues, the potential remains for months of effort to be wasted as an app sits in limbo, or is never even released. As well, the long lead times needed before updates reach users are still in place.

At this time, we don’t believe it makes good business sense for us to commit much in the way of resources to the iPhone. We’ll make sure our existing applications continue to function, of course, but that’s all we have planned for now.

I have to agree. There still are many problems with the App Store, none of which is fixed by this decision. Slow review process, unknown risk as to whether an app will be approved, inconsistant reviewing- these all still exist. And they still don’t see the problem:

Schiller does manage to admit that Apple has made mistakes. Sadly, he doesn’t say it loudly enough. In a Social Networking era when transparency is not only beneficial to a company but almost essential to maintaining a happy customer base, Apple still can’t manage genuine “openness” where it most counts. I’m sure Misters Jobs and Schiller grudgingly decided this interview was a necessary (if bitter-tasting) step in damage-control. But it’s dripping with convoluted and downright unfriendly corporate-speak.

And its not just openness- though that will help tremendously. Its even having a process in the first place. There really needs a second way to get apps on the phone. Apple can still have its App Store with visibility and ease of use (for buying and selling). But for those apps that Apple doesn’t like but users do, iTunes should allow installing any .ipa files.

App Store Full of Buggy Apps

Friday, November 20th, 2009 | Opinion | Comments Off

Paul Graham makes a very interesting point in his article about the reasons the App Store is failing:

By breaking software development, Apple gets the opposite of what they intended: the version of an app currently available in the App Store tends to be an old and buggy one. One developer wrote:

I believe that they think their approval process helps users by ensuring quality. In reality, bugs like ours get through all the time and then it can take 4-8 weeks to get that bug fix approved, leaving users to think that iPhone apps sometimes just don’t work. Worse for Apple, these apps work just fine on other platforms that have immediate approval processes.

I had not considered that because Apple takes so long to approve updates, that most apps in the App Store are very buggy since no updates can be approved. Whereas on the Mac, an update can be pushed right away to fix a bug, the APp Store takes an unknown amount of time. So the tendency to roll as many fixes and changes into one update is overwhelmingly strong, because who wants to wait 3 months for 6 updates, and instead to 1 update every 3 months.

Just another reason the approval process is broken.

Another iPhone Developer Quits

Friday, November 13th, 2009 | Opinion | 1 Comment

Rogue Amoeba has announced they are also leaving iPhone development. In their case, they tried to submit a bug fix release, but Apple complained about them “using Apple’s image” in their app. First off, I don’t understand why Apple wouldn’t want them to use the images. I mean, that provides UI and image consistency across apps and devices. Second, they got the images from APPLE PROVIDED SOURCES. I just don’t understand this.

The situation is getting more dire everyday. I thought this would be a weekly thing, and now its happening daily.

Facebook iPhone App Developer Quits

Friday, November 13th, 2009 | Opinion | Comments Off

This hit the net yesterday, and its such a shame. The Facebook application is great, and its sad to see the lead (and only I think) developer leave.

And why did he leave? Apple’s ridiculous App Store policies. I don’t blame him. I have some ideas for iPhone apps, but the enthusiasm to do them just isn’t there. And that’s because I could spend months working my tail off on an app, only to see it delayed or even rejected. That’s no way to run a business.

I hope Apple wakes up and sees just what a mess they have created. As I have said all along, the review process needs to be scrapped. There are too many problems, from the review part, to the update part. There still can be an App Store, but Apple should have a post review- ie if there are problems they can pull it later.

That is the way it should’ve been from the start, and who knows how much better the App Store would be.

Ridiculous App Store Rejections

Monday, November 9th, 2009 | Opinion | Comments Off

Two more ridiculous App Store rejections hit the web the past week.

The first is MacWorld’s iPhone Superguide. It was rejected because it contained the word iPhone and a picture of an iPhone. Come on Apple! ITS RUNNING ON AN IPHONE! Why they can’t use the name or picture boggles me.

The second was rejected because cartoon versions of politicians were included in the app. OH NO! People might recognize their representative! And find information on them! We can’t have that now… My favorite line for the article is:

Hard to believe that anybody could be this stupid and blind. Maybe they just have a monkey doing the approval of their apps, and he throws a dart at a dartboard with “approved” and “rejected” targets on it and whatever it hits is the fate the that app.

This just gets stupider by the day.

Unbelievable: Apple’s FCC Repsonse

Sunday, August 23rd, 2009 | Opinion | Comments Off

While I personally disagree with the FCC’s involvement with the recent iPhone/Google Voice controversy, Apple’s response completely boggles the mind.

First, Apple starts off with some complete BS about the store, the number of apps, and how it functions. While the app store is much better than any prior cell phone app development and distribution, it still sucks in comparison to the Mac- especially because it doesn’t have to (more on that later).

Next, they describe three core reasons why apps are reviewed: “protect consumer privacy, safeguard children from inappropriate content, and avoid applications that degrade the core experience of the iPhone.” None of these points to good reasons why apps HAVE to be reviewed. The first will be quickly found out by the community. I’m not a child (and many iPhone users aren’t either), so I don’t need to be dictated too, so reason number 2 is bunk. And finally, the third reason assumes I can’t choose which apps DON’T hurt how my iPhone works. Actually, having MLB At Bat or AOL Radio in the background DOESN’T hurt the core experience. In fact, preventing those apps from running in the background HURTS the core experience- because I have to stop them to check email, text, or do anything else. So get off your high horse Apple.

Then they outright lie about the approval process: “When there is an issue, we try to provide the developer with helpful feedback so they can modify the application in order for us to approve it.” HAHAHA. Most of the time they just say “The app doesn’t comply with out guidelines. Its denied. Suck it, dev.” Many developers only WISH they provided helpful feedback. And finally (just in that paragraph): “95% of applications are approved within 14 days of their submission.” THAT ABSOLUTELY SUCKS! That should be 95% is approved in within ONE DAY. 14 days in an insanely long time- especially for bug fixes.

Now we start in on the answers to the questions. Q1 answer: “Contrary to published reports, Apple has not rejected the Google Voice application, and continues to study it.” THAT MEANS ITS REJECTED. If its not approved, its rejected. Period. End of story. Stop lying. Besides, it DOESN’T alter the user experience- IT CAN’T YOU MADE SURE THAT NO APP CAN AFFECT ANYTHING. Do you not use your own product Apple? Does the Phone “app” get replaced? NO. It disables visual voicemail? HOW? Only if you CALL A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT NUMBER! Jesus, its like working with 80 year olds using an iPhone. Apple must thing we are 8 year olds with an IQ of 2. Let us decide Apple.

Okay, after a bunch of non-answers to questions, we learn that there are only 40 app review. WTF? For “65,000+ apps”? That’s insane! No wonder it takes 2 freaking weeks to approve an app. Double that app, or triple it.

Oh, and this is a complete lie: “In many cases we are able to provide specific guidance about how the developer can fix the application. We also let them know they can contact the app review team or technical support, or they can write to us for further guidance.” RARELY do they provide specific guidance, usually its “Your app sucks. Try again,” to paraphrase the email received. And NEVER can the contact the app review team or write to them for further guidance. How many blog posts do developers describe it as a black hole to find out what is going on with there app. Apple is out and out LYING to the FCC.

But what is most frustrating is that none of this is necessary. There doesn’t have to be the App Store (AN App Store is okay, but not THE App Store). There doesn’t have to be a review process. There doesn’t have to be a review team. There doesn’t have to be so much bad PR for Apple.

So many problems can be solved in one fell swoop- Allow any app on the iPhone. It will not hurt anybody. It will not hurt the “children.” It will not hurt the network. It will not hurt the iPhone. But it will make the iPhone the platform nobody hates, and nobody wants to leave.

Stop being dumb and stupid, Apple. Open up the iPhone, and watch your dominance grow.

AP- Completely Misguided

Friday, July 24th, 2009 | Opinion | Comments Off

The news organizations continue to miss the point. The AP thinks that they will get revenue even by people linking to their stories. However, they completely miss the point of the web- to communicate between people. Charging for even link will only mean that less people will link to the story(whether because they refuse to give into such extortion, or because they simply can’t afford it), and hence that the AP will become increasingly irrelevant. They are shooting themselves in the foot.