"If course, to get the SDK to sign the app, you've got to be a fully paid up, kosher iPhone developer on Apple's official program. Personally, I don't have any big problems with this. After all, the $99 you must pay isn't going to break the bank"

Wrong - it's not a question of cash.

Apple choose who they are prepared to join this programme. 80% of application are rejected.

For over a month my Apple SDK page has been showing "Thank you for applying to the iPhone Developer Program. We have many more requests than we can serve during this initial beta period, so we must limit the Program at this time. We plan to expand it during the beta period, and we will contact you regarding your enrollment status at the appropriate time. We appreciate your patience."

This is DESPITE me opting for the $299 programme, not the $99 programme. A colleague has another account and has chosen the $99 programme - and also sees the same message.

Although one may download the SDK for free - and develop apps - it's no f'ing use since you're not a registered developer.

"Although one may download the SDK for free - and develop apps - it's no f'ing use"

I've removed the redundancy in your statement but on the whole agree with you. The free-to-download SDK is entirely missing the point.

If CC&P, TomTom and some sort of encryption could be put on the phone, I would be set. And maybe less crashes with Safari.

The pocket PC has been doing stuff like that for years.

its a limited beta, not a free for all. They had a limit for the beta and you didnt get in.

Well perhaps Apple should say "This is a limited beta not a free for all. You did not get in. We may have some spaces later on. If you wish to remain in the queue please don't do anything - we will contact you should you wish to avail yourself of this beta opportunity. On the other hand if you wish to withdraw your interest please ... (whatever)" ?

The time-honoured tradition of Haxies on the mac is continuing on the iPhone.

Nobody complains about this on the Mac. EVERYONE seems to complain about

it on the iPhone.

Developer whingeing is now firmly linked to the iPhone SDK not being out fast enough and not being all things to all people in one dot naught. Probably we'll next have developers filing suit against Apple for mental anguish and break-up

of their marriages.

I'm giving up on reading any news on the Mac:

1/ Rumours constantly abound as though they mean something real.

2/ Developer whingeing over not having everything now.

3/ Flaming religious wars any time anyone posts a pro-PC, pro-Mac, anti-PC, or anti-Mac statement.

I think I'll go for a walk on the beach whilst the whole jamboree collapses in an inferno of blame and whingeing.

Cheers,

Matthew

"Amazingly, it's now a whole year since metrosexuals and geeks waited"

*wipes the tears of hilarity from his eyes*

With a sense of humour like that, you really should give Seth M a hand on his new Google project.

your walk would have been so much more relaxing if you skipped your rant/winge/blame/inferno.

re: everything else

Windows mobile has been doing all this for years with lots of lag and crashes and memory leaks. I haven't used an iPhone yet and I have the opportunity coming up but the thought of being so restricted is very claustrophobic. i'd much rather stay with windows mobile and play with iphone imitations that never quite suffice.

...if they can add Undo - and extend the functionality to the phonecall you just made, obviously - they've got my money!

Just for the record, this approach is most probably not designed as Apple profiteering, but rather as a way for Apple to stop malware / viruses becoming mainstream on the iphone. If you haven't considering mainstream mobile phone viruses, this is a *BAD* thing.

"your walk would have been so much more relaxing if you skipped your rant/winge/blame/inferno."

Nah, it was quite relaxing; I only thought about what I was writing during the time I was writing it. And while you responded, I was blissfully thinking about what I was doing then. Definitely water off a duck's back.

Nor was there inferno, rant, or winge, just some quiet observations that the general tenor of the conversations seemed to be going for a more and more predictable degradation. And that I was packing it in, had something better to do with my time, and was offering an example to anyone else who might've been willing to accept the suggestion that the lack of meaningful discussion on the noted topics was becoming commonplace.

Cheers,

Matthew