back to article Steve Jobs beheads iPad apps for acting like desktops

The Apple App Store police are now rejecting iPhone and iPad applications for behaving like "widgets" and "creating their own desktops," according to one developer who's busy eating his previous claims that Apple isn't evil. In late April, an unnamed Australian — one of a small team of cross-platform developers known as Shifty …

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  1. LaeMing

    Night of the long spoons

    If you sup with the devil, and all that.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Sup with the devil...

      And don't even try the (Android) restaurant next door.

  2. gluonspring
    Jobs Horns

    It's so sad. The more evil Apple behaves, the higher their stock flies.

    The <a href="http://ipadmakesmesad.blogspot.com">list of egregious Apple behavior </a> just goes on and on. Just last year I could have written an Apple fan blog, but they have completely jumped the shark for me.

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    The bigger lesson here

    Just because the rules haven't bitten you yet, it's worth understanding why people are complaining about them. The whole "well it hasn't hurt me" mentality is always a dead end for progress. I think the iPhone and iPad look great, but I'll stick with my laptop and OSX until I can use them however I like. I just hope they don't start locking down OSX too or I'll have to move back to Linux. To me, and apparently most of the world, the reason computers are so damn awesome is because they're so damn open.

    If Apple really believed people wanted the platform under Apple control, they'd start limiting which websites could be visited. But they know that would be the death of both devices. People do want freedom. The only reason they can get away with the app limitations on the iPhone and iPad is because 1) the unlimited internet provides most of the usefulness in the first place and 2) they're supplemental devices; people already have a real computer to do whatever they want on.

    And that makes clear the real reason I think Apple limits them: they don't want to cannibalize their computer sales. Fair enough. But I can't imagine how much it would suck to develop for a platform knowing you can get your plug pulled any time by Apple because you're making something too cool.

    1. rciafardone
      Linux

      OSX has a Linux Kernel...

      So you wont feel so bad if you move on... :D

      1. Andraž 'ruskie' Levstik

        And you fail... badly

        It has a bastardized FreeBSD kernel. Which is not Linux.

        1. Stuart Elliott
          FAIL

          You say tomato I say tomato..

          Let's call the whole thing off.

          1. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            RE: You say tomato I say tomato

            lol

            http://bash.org/?604051

        2. IanPotter
          FAIL

          Re: And you fail... badly

          As do you, it uses Mach.

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Headmaster

        RE: OSX has a Linux Kernel...

        You are wrong, actually, as OSX is based on BSD kernel and, unless you are a kernel developer or low-level programmer yourself, in 2010 you usually don't budge with kernels.

        All major operating systems' kernels are mature enough that desktop and applications are drivers of the average user's experience.

      3. PC1512

        Nope

        It's certified UNIX, nowt to do with Linux (aside from the fact that Linux is a cheap copy of UNIX).

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: Nope

          "It's certified UNIX"

          Big whoop: is it 1993 again or something? No-one cares about the Unix mark any more.

          1. PC1512
            Headmaster

            1993 Factoid

            UNIX != Linux, whether you care about that or not..

          2. The Fuzzy Wotnot
            WTF?

            Unix doesn't matter. No?

            Well I think most Fortune 500s would disagree as most of them run Unix variants on their back-end servers, Trolley!

            When you grow up, leave school and head into the real world, you will find that serious computing power does not come from some Mickey-Mouse 8 node Windows thing, but 64+ node Unix clusters running proper database software that can work in the petabyte size, not fall over when it runs a 50MB Access DB!

            1. Rattus Rattus

              I don't think he meant Windows

              I think he meant nobody cares if the UNIX-like OS you run is actually officially "UNIX" (ie BSD or System V) or if it's just UNIX-style like Linux. I really doubt he was trying to imply the servers of the world run on Windows.

            2. David 141
              Linux

              Linux != Unix

              "Well I think most Fortune 500s would disagree as most of them run Unix variants on their back-end servers, Trolley!"

              @The Fuzzy Wotnot

              91% of the world's fastest computers run Linux, less than 5% run Unix. A fair chunk of the really fast machines run AIX and Linux.

              (http://www.top500.org/stats/list/35/osfam)

              The reason that Unix is still common in the business world is has more to do with marketing and legacy system support than the superiority of those OS's.

  4. Anonymous Coward
    Jobs Horns

    unbelievable, but then again, this is apple we're talking about

    The very first thing I did when I got a Palm-based PDA back in my college days (yes, I'm that old) was to swap out it's boring white home screen with one I can change the desktop of.

    For apple to deny such a thing when the home screen of an iPhone/iPad/iTouch is a boring black makes it less attractive. As much as I dislike M$, at least they're smart enough to allow skinning the desktop with custom themes.

    Steve says wallpapering desktops is dead. I say he's being delirious.

    1. chr0m4t1c
      Thumb Down

      I hate to be pedantic

      But you can change the wallpaper on the iPad. That's a built-in ability, not something that requires jailbraking.

      The upcoming iPhone OS4 will enable that functionality on the iPhone based on the demo.

      You're right about them not doing themes, though.

      By all means criticise a device for not providing a certain piece of functionality, but it's usually a good idea to check that it doesn't before hand.

      And now I will be down-voted for pointing out facts that happen to be in Apple's favour. How dare I.

    2. AF
      Stop

      No, Steve says "Wallpaper on your desktop? Sure!"

      If you'd actually looked at an iPad, you'd notice that you can indeed have whatever wallpaper you want on your home screen. I've got a picture of the Peggy's Cove lighthouse on mine. True, you can't do it right this minute on an iPhone or iPod Touch, but it's been announced in iPhone OS4 (bit late, but it's coming).

      So Steve doesn't say "wallpapering desktops is dead", he says "wallpapering desktops is actually not that bad after all, so go on then, if you must".

  5. rahul

    Desktop real estate going to the dogs (iAds)?

    Me thinks iAds is going to need / use the desktop real estate. Nothing should cover up the glory of the ads displayed the on device that many perceive as overpriced.

  6. Wrenchy
    Linux

    Not so fun

    When it happens to you...

    As sad as this is, there are 10,000 rabid fanbois/developers waiting for Stevie-boy to sh1t on them. Oh please Sir, may I have some more??

  7. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Oh come on ...

    who didn't see this coming?

    Well the Mac FanBois obviously. Jobs and his clan are rapidly becoming Balmer look-a-likes tho.

    Hands up, I'm a Linux guy. This bitch fighting between users and 'owners' is getting tedious tho. OOH, dows it run on iPad, does it run on Android, does it run on AmigaOS?

    I'm fucked off with this all now Reg! (Censor that if you want by the way?)

    I want to develop an app without considering tedious laws or API's. I need money coming in. Any platform that is not letting me isn't an issue.

    I've dropped all iPhone development. I now write Layers for approved apps on both. It's cheaper. If either company drop the apps we write to that run on both phones, we'll drop using that app until something better comes up.

    Where is your Tricorder you once asked?

    When the mobiles all have a standard HTML interface thru to H/W and software, you'll have it. Untll then, sod the buggers. In IT everything always reaches a standard, and pads, pods, mobes ( :p ) and everything else will.

    1. HollyX
      Heart

      +10 points ...

      ... for mentioning AmigaOS ^_^

  8. Anonymous Coward
    Grenade

    title

    "There is no alternative platform, despite what others may say about Android, it’s immature and their app store(s) are a wild west nightmare. It really is Apple’s way or the highway, and that really stinks..."

    Well, stop whinging, get off your arse and help make Android's app store better. Google would be more than happy to take suggestions to make the Android market place better and more ubiquitous than the Apple app store and give you the alternative you desire. Jump ship now, before the rush.

    Eventually, Apple will piss off so many developers and have such a bad reputation they'll come crashing down. Developing for the the iPhone/iPad is somewhat like taking a stroll through a minefield with a blind fold on: one wrong step and "KaBOOM!!" And the worst part is, you know that if you do anything remotely creative and interesting you can virtually guarantee you'll step on one of those really nasty anti-personnel mines that takes your nadgers off but leaves you alive.

  9. Christopher Martin
    FAIL

    Definitely widgety.

    Seriously... weather, clock, sticky notes? Those are the first things that any half-assed desktop-widgetsmith will forge.

  10. Lance 3
    Jobs Horns

    Don't feel sorry at all for them

    Look at the latest SDK, it even states that Apple can reject an app for any reason. So it doesn't matter that they cannot see anything in the SDK that prohibits it; the catchall clause covers it. Developers should be leaving in droves and show Apple that they wield more power than Apple thinks they have. The other clue should have been the confidentially portion as well. A developer is coding an application and releasing it to the world; what is Apple really hiding?

  11. ks2problema

    It's Apple's party...

    It's Apple's party and you can cry if you want to -- but, look, it's how they work. It's how they think. It's who they are.

    As the snake said: You knew I was a snake when you took me home.

    1. rciafardone
      Coat

      Wrong fable?

      Maybe you are thinking in a scorpion... and a toad... and moving across a river insted of a home.

      1. Stuart Elliott
        Badgers

        RE: Wrong Fable

        Nope, he was referring to the song "The Snake" sung by Al Wilson.

        Badgers.. well because they go well with snakes..

        Badger badger badger badger.. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIyixC9NsLI

    2. Michael H.F. Wilkinson Silver badge

      Actually in the Netherlands

      Apple's stance might well be illegal. If you simply do not allow an app, that would probably be OK, but throwing it out AFTER it previously had been approved, that is unreasonable, UNLESS the developer made changes which make it unacceptable. Even then the previously approved app should still be allowed.

      Given the great asymmetry in power between Apple and most of its developers, a judge in the Netherlands might quite easily throw out the catchall "we can reject anything for any reason we like, and change our minds any time" parts of any contract as being unfair and unreasonable.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        The law of the law and big corps

        You should realise by now that this sounds great in theory and probably stands up legally, but when it comes to the big corps with their expensive lawyers, deep pockets and dirty tactics, it never holds up in practice.

        1. Michael H.F. Wilkinson Silver badge

          Again: it depends on the country

          Some countries have a legal system that does not mean seeking justice against a big corporation means going bankrupt .

  12. ReasonableGuy

    Starting to get "un-friendly"

    I have been a regular customer of Apple since the summer of 1984. I have been looking forward to the next version of the iPad (I try really hard not to be on the bleeding edge, 'cause I've lost too much blood in the past).

    But now I may have to consider the full gamut of pad / tablet devices.

    I fully appreciate the desire and need of Apple to keep crap off the iPad, but this time it seems they are indeed going to far.

    Perhaps my one-time classmate (Mr. Jobs) is suffering from pre-mature fuddy-duddyness.

    1. The Indomitable Gall

      Irony...

      "I have been a regular customer of Apple since the summer of 1984."

      You couldn't have picked a more ironic year, given the circumstances.

      1. Sarah Bee (Written by Reg staff)

        Re: Irony...

        If Orwell had had any inkling of how often his work would be pompously cited by silly buggers on the internet, I suspect he would have thrown away his typewriter and spent his short life breeding ostriches instead.

        1. Asgard
          Big Brother

          @"If Orwell had had any inkling of how often his work would be pompously cited"

          He did have an inkling, its why he wrote his 1984 book!

          His work is becoming ever more relevant to our time which is shown by ever more example news of how technology is being abused as a means of control.

          1. Michael H.F. Wilkinson Silver badge

            But then he wanted to call it

            1948

            gfruio0gffuiioufiuodfdfoip

            (post must contain letters)

  13. Trevor_Pott Gold badge

    Poor devil.

    It acutally looks like a cool App. Wouldn't mind it for my Crackberry.

  14. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Don't worry

    In 12 hours, Daring Fireball will let you guys know why this rejection isn't just good for Apple, but it's good for its users, its developers and you as well.

    Then everything will be alright.

  15. JP19

    Overkill.

    So when will we be able to buy that Verizon/Google tablet?

  16. noodle heimer

    how much longer will the npr app live? the abc app?

    Boy, if they don't like apps that look like desktops, how much longer will the NPR or ABC apps live?

    What, forever, because they're driven by major players?

  17. Anonymous Coward
    FAIL

    Jailbreak away...

    Gives all the more legitimacy to jailbreaking..

  18. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Well...

    Just modify your app a bit so it has a border and shows 2 pixels of the iPad desktop behind it round all the edges... Then nobody (well maybe almost nobody) can claim it's a desktop.

    Then load it up with a logic bomb which triggers in 2 months time and screams "Steve Jobs is a wanker" out of the speaker at full volume.

  19. gimbal
    Megaphone

    The reason? Jobs Co. is truly obsessive

    ...about their beloved "Apple-ness". People can argue as many points as they may please, the Apple company continues to conduct itself as an obsessive big brat, in the tech industry - at least to whoever endeavors to introduce new approaches to the Apple platform and Apple Co's beloved "Appleness."

    I'm not one to say, "Let's sell all our Apple stock." I would like to say, with all sincerity: Apple, grow the f- up, stop slighting whoever rubs your fancy fur the wrong way, and support your developers, already.

    1. Arctic fox

      Yeah, that I think is in fact the point.

      The reasons for the rejections when they ocurr are in fact often subjective. I.e. It does not fit in with how Apple see their own image/brand rather than there being anything objectively wrong with the app concerned. That is why our aussie friend has not been given any explantion, nothing he could change so that it would not be dropped. The cults priesthood just don't like it - nothing objective about the rejection at all.

  20. jeff419

    First they came for the.....

    widgety apps. But our app wasn't widgety so we did nothing.

    I think app devs all need to unionize or form an association to use their group effort to put apple in it's place.

    Or just move to android. I personally can't wait to retire my iphone for an evo 4g phone from HTC/Sprint come Friday.

  21. MicroNix

    Devs, bring those nice rejected apps to Android

    We won't kick you out... In fact, out of the box thinking is welcome. Don't put up with Steve's crap when you can have an awesome collaborative community.

  22. Jay 12
    Thumb Up

    /inbetweeners

    APPLE WANKERS

    /inbetweeners

  23. Paul Richards

    It is Widgety

    I get it and understand why they are removing it. However it's about the why? It needs to be more relevant to the platform, this is where creativity comes in.

  24. John Tserkezis

    Impressive...

    That a company can piss off their own fanbois.

    You have to try hard to do that...

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Unhappy

      Indeed

      What's more impressive is how they keep forgiving and going back for more.

  25. vincent himpe
    Jobs Horns

    what a bunch of

    closet 'evil germans from the 1940's' ...

  26. This post has been deleted by its author

    1. Michael H.F. Wilkinson Silver badge

      But MS don't even control ...

      the software they run themselves properly

      sorry, couldn't resist

  27. TeeCee Gold badge
    FAIL

    Aha!

    Welcome to Adobe's world. Not quite so funny when they move the goalposts on the little guys is it?

    CS5's authoring for iPhone was the thing that needed a united front behind it as Adobe have the grunt to actually go to the mat over it, but instead teh intahwebs dissolved into a series of bleats from the screaming flashtards saying how wonderful Apple's capricious ban was for sticking it to Flash. There's nothing like allowing one's pet hates to obscure one's view of the picture for causing a monumental cockup now, is there? So that opportunity went begging, Apple got away with stomping on the big beast and now get to pick off the independants at will.

    No I don't like Flash, I hate it with a vengence. But at least I could see the principle at stake:

    First they came for CS5, but we did nothing as we don't like Adobe.....

    1. Ken Hagan Gold badge
      Stop

      Re: those Martin Niemöller quotes

      The difference between Apple and Nazis is that eventually you *will* have to fight Nazis. There's no "eventually you *will* have to buy an Apple", much as Steve would want there to be. I suggest we stop making the comparisons before we offend someone.

      1. Field Marshal Von Krakenfart

        Halt!

        I agree, stop making that comparision, although I don't know which one would be more offended.

  28. DrXym

    Android isn't immature

    What is this guy talking about? From what I see of his app, it could be reproduced exactly in Android. Even better (from his perspective) he could even replace the default photo viewer, or create an actual widget that occupies one of the main navigation screens. The scope for what his app can do in Android is far greater.

    As for the marketplace being a wild west. I kind of agree with that (which I'll describe below) but it really shouldn't be an impediment for his app. I read somewhere else that he was claiming you can't sell apps through the store from Australia. A minor obstacle - just release a trial version of the app for free and then direct people through the browser to PayPal if they wish to buy the full version. Easy. Unlike Apple you can create your own payment model if you like, one which means you keep more of the money too.

    Where I think Marketplace is massively let down is that there is too much spam, and too many apps in the Farmville ilk. There is nothing wrong with these apps per se except for the idiots who play them and post affiliate codes in the comments. Google should be laying the smackdown on the spam and the codes. If necessary disable comments & ratings on those kinds of games. I also think that Google should be doing security audits on apps which install with certain kinds of permissions (e.g. to use the camera or dial numbers) because of the added security implications these apps pose. I can well imagine some malicious app which waits until 2-3 in the morning and then dials some premium number in Sierra Leone or similar. It would hurt Google a lot if these kind of apps slip through.

  29. JPatrick
    Coat

    Perhaps you shouldn't have a business model ...

    that is so reliant on a gatekeeper who is well within their rights to approve and reject your product for any reason at any time?

    As for writing off Android, well that seems a bit odd? Surely to reject writing software for rival that is increasing its market share and increasingly look like a serious competition for Apple is cutting off your nose to spite your own face?

    1. Ben 56
      Jobs Horns

      He's clearly not that bright

      and doesn't learn from mistakes - in a month or so he'll rescind this blog comment about not writing software for a rival.

  30. Anonymous Coward
    Alert

    Overthinking again ?

    The trouble is the vast majority of users dont care if one app is thrown out for spurious reasons. Al they care is that the thing is easy to use and they can get to Facebook and my space easily, this the iPad does beautifully.

    How many apps are sold for the iPad and iPhone as opposed to those for blackberrys or android phones ? by my guessing a shed load more money is made by apple developers than android ones ?

    Apple doesnt sell to the iPad to IT people, we will buy a "proper" laptop, but in a few years everyone will want a similar device as a third "media consumption device" in the house.

    Prob similar conversations when the first PC came out with us saying the Pc was to small to be worht it and you couldnt do what you could on a mainframe ..........

    1. andy 45
      Thumb Down

      err... no Myspace audio player?

      " All they care is that the thing is easy to use and they can get to Facebook and my space easily, this the iPad does beautifully"

      Err, doesnt MySpace use Flash for it's music player? I think that would be a no-no then...

  31. Anonymous Coward
    WTF?

    App removed for being too "shiny" or "being the wrong colour"?

    I own a few apple devices and do like a lot of what they make - but closed, walled-garden style approaches really irk me, and Apple's draconian power-frenzied treatment of developers is simply unacceptable. It's no wonder Android has outsold the iPhone already, piss off enough developers, they'll soon turn against you!

    Apple need a change in management at the highest level, the power's definitely gone to his head!

    1. Anonymous Coward
      FAIL

      Re: change in management

      Yeah, that's the best decision, one in which the shareholders will definitely back you as his replacement, him being the CEO of the decade, responsible for turning Apple into second largest market cap company.

      Yeah, change the management at the highest level. What planet are you living on? Obviously, not the one with the greed-based system where everything is about profit, profit, profit?!

  32. Anonymous Coward
    Jobs Horns

    They want rid of the small people

    Remember an article a few weeks ago that revealed that in the early days of Windows, Bill gates wanted to make the Windows APIs a swiftly moving target so that small developers couldn't keep up and the only apps that would appear would be developed by the big boys with pockets deep enough to pay a 200-strong team to maintain the apps and chase the new APIs and other changes?

    Well this sounds to me like Apple are doing the same. They don't want small fry developers making nice but quaint apps, they want to attract big developers with long term plans who can keep their apps on the Istore when the small people can't. That means more sales and profit and fewer rivals for them. Apple are a large international corporation. They want to associate and do business with like-minded people, not hobbyists.

    As anyone who owed a Psion in the 90s will know, it's those 'hobbyists' who come up with the most exciting and innovative software.

    1. sT0rNG b4R3 duRiD

      In fairness to M$...

      Stuff written that calls only venerable win32 API still runs fine. For big projects... it is... a wrestle... But for small ones, it is truly a thing of beauty.

    2. This post has been deleted by its author

  33. PC1512

    Widgets ahoy

    There's something hilarious about this article, which is full of incredulity about how this app could possibly be described as "widgety" or as a "desktop", and is then capped off with a screenshot of the most widgety, desktop-like app you can imagine.

    I mean seriously, it's a "photo frame" (because obviously neither the iPhone or iPad have a means of viewing a full screen photo built in) which just happens to overlay said photo (or "wallpaper" if I might coin that term) with a bunch of "layers". Only those layers are actually, very obviously, all the usual widgets you'd expect on a desktop replacement - which is exactly what this is.

    How mysterious!

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Coat

      Well done for pointing at the proverbial Elephant!

      Nice username too! How I fondly remember the family PC1512. OT, I know...

  34. Martin Chandler
    Stop

    Too many mistakes

    Mistake #1: Wasting time writing an app for the Iphone, Ipod, Ipad

    Mistake #2: Wasting time not reading the EXACT SAME STORIES about how other developers got shafted! (Why on earth did he not believe them!?!)

    Mistake #3: Defending the indefensible

    Mistake #4: Blogging about his bad experiences - its the same story as everyone elses - if people dont know what to expect from Apple, then they'll never learn.

    Free OS, Free your mind!

    1. NightFox
      Thumb Down

      Alternatively,

      So, you say:

      Mistake #1: Wasting time writing an app for the Iphone, Ipod, Ipad

      in preference to:

      Alternative #1: Completely ignoring the whole App Store market

      Smart business acumen you have there.

      You make me laugh all you developers who claim you won't go the App Store route because of Apple's management. Enjoy your smugness whilst the others reap their £££s! Why not just factor in the risk like the smart developers do?

  35. John Sanders
    Flame

    I can see the next big Apple article here on old El'Reg

    Jobs calls developers to tell them individually what applications is he expecting them to write;

    Jobs; I want you to develop a light accountancy program for grannies.

    Developer; but his highness I want to develop a new concept of media player I have been toying around.

    Jobs; No! you'll do as you're told or else your developer license will be terminated, when you agreed to the Apple iPad developer license you agreed to do as I say!

  36. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    So what...

    It serves them right for being 'developers' tied into a single company...Hell Apple basically have a gagillian free lancers working for free...no no....in fact they are PAYING APPLE for the joys of working for them...Bunch of idiots.

  37. Anonymous Coward
    Jobs Horns

    Apps should not be apps

    Basically the iPhone/iPad polluted ecosystem is not for independent developers. It's for banks or shops or the ebays of the world to develop ways to access their websites using a tool that is in the hands of so many people like the iPhone/iPad. Any independent developer wasting time and money to bring "ideas" to the table is a fool. That environment doesn't need your ideas, all ideas must be Apple's.

  38. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Could it be an actual reason?

    I've no idea really, but could it be that two features are coming with the next iPhone version that would render apps like this ugly and weird? One is the double screen real estate - what would happen to an app like this displaying an image of a certain size? I don't know the platform - do they just display "to the edge" so this wouldn't be a problem? Just curious.

    The other issue could be that a new feature in the next version is ability to change desktop background, which apps like this would render that feature less interesting.

    Just 2 possible reasons why? Any thoughts?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      WTF?

      Talk about Anonymous Coward

      Anyone that downvotes a question - it was a question posed, is the ultimate in anonymous coward, offering no explanation as to why you disagree. How can you disagree with a question?

      Talk about blind sheep - anyone that doesn't slate the iApple product gets an immediate downvote? Have an opinion other than "not apple, not apple, NOT APPLE!"? What a small vocabulary a world like that requires. Good thing there are so many small minds out there who are perfect for such a world! :P

      Now, how about answering the question, or are they really not allowed? I'd be curious to know if people have any ideas.

  39. Tim Bates
    Alert

    Writing on the wall...

    I'll admit I didn't go much on the original iPhone - It was Apple, and it was a US only release which always puts me off (Nexus One I felt the same), and I'd need to find replacement apps for all those I used on my Win Mob phone (some of which would be impossible at the time, due to Apple's restrictions).

    But the 3G got my interest again... I could buy it locally, they'd fixed (or were about to fix) many of the missing features (MMS, copy+paste, etc), it was supposed to be cheap, etc. And if I grabbed the "free" SDK, I'd be able to write my own apps to replace at least some of what I used on WinMob. Sadly, I then discovered that "free" meant $100US plus buying a Mac to develop on, the phone was nothing like cheap, and Apple had started rejecting many apps from the store.

    This put me off the iPhone forever.

    The iPad is now here - complete with it's limitations, restrictions, rejected apps for no reason. The writing is on the wall people... If you develop apps, find another platform because Apple don't want you to make money - they just want you to give them money.

  40. Richard Cartledge
    Thumb Down

    Insolence!

    How dare he have the audacity to backchat Steve!

  41. Anonymous Coward
    Happy

    Want to do something cool on your iPAd....

    ...there's a banned app for that.

  42. hopelessness
    Badgers

    Baffling

    Apple really are a bit odd, I don't understand it one bit!

    If they ban an app from their market, what happens to people who have already paid for it and installed it? I do hope it doesn't get wiped from their device...

    Android is clearly the future of smartphones. As said previously, if I want to change the desktop on my phone, I can. If I want to have widgets, I can. If I want to use my device as a photo frame with layers, that's right, I can! It's this 'I can' mentality that makes Android so much more attractive than the iPhone OS.

  43. Anonymous Coward
    Joke

    Sny follow suit....

    Apparently Sny have just released a new shiny DVD/Blu-ray combo that only plays Sny disks - for $1000. When questioned about the logic behind this, and who would actually buy such an over-priced restricted device, the head of Sny marketing quoted..

    "Well people by iPads don't they! And that is our target customer base - we are even offering a free man-bag to allow our customers to carry their iPad without scratching the nice shiny surface"

    :-)

    Cue fanboi down-votes

    1. PC1512

      Hmm

      I think you might be at more danger of people-who-understand-how-a-joke-works down votes.

  44. Mike Shepherd
    Jobs Horns

    Ha!

    You thought it was your computer.

  45. Anonymous Coward
    Jobs Horns

    FFS! Horses for courses!

    I am not defending Jobs and his little hellish daemons of lock down, but leave it alone will you lot!!

    1) It's Steve's toy, he made it, he can tell you to stick it up your Jacksy if that's how it works best! His game, his rules. I would say that's his sales fsck'd, but 2 million buyers have proved me wrong!

    2) IT IS NOT A COMPUTER! IT IS A MEDIA DEVICE! OK? GOT THAT? If you want a pocket computer, buy a mini notebook. If you want to JailBreak it and put Atari ST GEM Desktop on it, fab! Have a ball! As it is, out of the box, it does what Apple say it does, if you don't like it, please don't buy it.

    3) "If it was a car, you wouldn't like it if they suddenly said you had to my TESCO petrol only!" - No I wouldn't, but it's not a car. It's a handheld media device, and it has changeable software. Buried somewhere in the T&Cs is a clause that says, to repeat myself, 'Steve's baby! Steve's rules! Lump it!'.

    So before you buy it and or develop for it, check the reviews, if you don't like what you see, don't buy it. Simple. Mr Jobs is not rich for doing favours, he's a businessman, a greedy, corporate money-driven businessman, if he wishes he can be a complete git and change the rules of the game within the law. If you have any inkling he might do this and stuff you up, then don't dance with the devil, else you will pay the price!

    I don't like the lock-down, so after checking I will have no choice I gave it miss. I bought one of the Missus, who loves it because it's a perfect multi-media tablet player thingy. I chose an Acer mini-notebook and I can install the software I want under Ubuntu, being the sad geek I am.

    Need a lie down in a darkened room, the pills obviously aren't working anymore....

    1. rcdicky
      Go

      Rather round-about way of saying...

      "if you don't like it, don't buy it" lol, but in fairness this is probably the most common sense comment I've read on this site in a long while.

  46. Francis Fish

    Oh, it's worse than you think

    The T'S & C's state that, if Apple pull your app, you have to meet the whole refund cost - including the 30% they took for distributing it. This is why it's so hard to register an app if you're a small company - they need all sorts of assurances that you will be able to meet this obligation.

    I do wonder if this is enforceable under UK contract law, I seem to remember there is some provision for "unfair conditions" imposed by a big supplier on a small one.

    1. Michael H.F. Wilkinson Silver badge

      Unfair conditions

      Can be thrown out by judges in many countries.

      Someone should have the balls (and pockets) to challenge them in court

  47. Volker Hett

    Not too far from reality

    Sony advertises a new TV in Germany with its ability to show youtube contend, Sonys contend is disabled on youtube when accessed by german IP addresses :)

  48. Doug Reed
    Jobs Halo

    The might one has spoken

    Behold the might jobsian cultmaster has decreed that yet another app has followed the wrong path.

    One must repent for your sins, buy three iPads, kneel facing Cupertino and recite the holy mantra "Hail Jobsy, son of the mighty one, for I have sinned, I had wicked thoughts and won't have them any more ".

    The mighty one will appear before you and hopefully will forgive you in return for fiscal offerings. If nothing happens, you can always go follow Scientology.

  49. sT0rNG b4R3 duRiD
    Jobs Horns

    How are you gentlemen?

    All your ipad are belong to us!

  50. vwgm

    These apps are perfect for this

    This apps would be perfect for iPads which are in frames and docks that display information. Like the ones from http://www.theipadframe.com

  51. sT0rNG b4R3 duRiD
    Jobs Horns

    I'll try some common sense.

    Apple likes only signed approved apps to run on the iPhone/Pad etc right? Else currently you need to jailbreak it and with that risk further hassle with OS updates etc.

    Why? They like control, maybe they see it as a way of preventing malware. Whatever. They want control.

    Why not just have 2 tiers of runnable apps and GIVE the user the CHOICE?

    Tier 1: Appstore apps with the jobs mark of quality and stamp of approval (yeah right)

    Tier 2: Unsigned apps. Non-appstore apps. Could be something you just rolled up 5 mins ago. This option could be disabled per user's desire (for perceived security, fanboism whatever)

    That way no one need jailbreak their phone to run whatever they like.

    Of course maybe they have some sort of financial reason that keeps them from wanting a solution like that.

    I won't buy an iPhone etc because of how it's locked down and this article just goes on to prove it. However, a compromise like what I am suggesting could see me buy an iPhone.

    Apple, ball's in your court.

    But you won't do this will you? Not with that w4nk3r in charge.

    1. hopelessness

      Tiered app system

      Ah yes, like Android. Pfft!

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Stop

      @sT0rNG b4R3 duRiD

      Imagine for a moment that you could put anything on the device. Now imagine that one (or more) started causing the device problems, or allowed malware or whatever on the device which negatively affected the user experience. Now imagine the twat that loaded the stupid app on there started bitching all over the world and his grandmother heard that his new iPad wasn't working. What do you think the possibilty of grandma buying that device would be?

      Just works? "Not all of them, the number of stories about these devices breaking keep growing."

      Maybe, just maybe, *this* is the reason there is so much control of the device. After all, they do just work, don't they? At least that's the common and popular perception, and the value of that is worth so much that they continue to protect that.

  52. Dick Emery
    Jobs Halo

    The most useful app would be...

    Remote Desktop for Windows on iPhone/iPad.

    I bet there is not an app for that!

    1. Michael H.F. Wilkinson Silver badge

      More importantly, do they have

      ssh?

      If so I would be fine (apart from parting with too much money)

    2. JP19
      Troll

      You mean Apps, plural

      RDP Apps for iPhone/iPad. Not going to link _every_ apps, just these few.

      http://www.jaadurdp.com/

      http://www.mochasoft.dk/iphone_rdp.htm

      http://iphonewinadmin.com/

  53. Doug Glass
    Go

    And The Horse He Rode In On Too

    Juck fobs

    1. Anonymous Coward
      FAIL

      Very constructive, Doug.

      Really, your wit and insight constantly astounds me.

  54. Aaron 10
    Jobs Halo

    Banned

    Even the Android App Store is constantly changing its policies in light of two approved apps that STOLE YOUR BANKING INFORMATION.

    http://gizmodo.com/5445733/android-banking-scam-app-shoots-phish-in-googles-barrel

    Before you guys go bashing Apple, realize the approval process is thorough for a reason. The "no desktops or widgets" rule seems a little less enforceable but for aesthetic and functionality reasons, I'm certain there is a cause.

    My iPhone is jailbroken; I run several non-Apple-approved hacks. My iPhone's performance has decreased significantly. I am now starting to understand why these hacks were unapproved...

    1. Zazzalicious
      FAIL

      Leally?

      My iPhone's usefuleness has increased significantly since I jailbroke it.

      I run several non-Apple-approved hacks...

      Are you paid to write this stuff?

  55. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Pubs, clubs and iPads.

    Round our way, we seem to have quite the turnover of new pubs and clubs. The same thing always happens. Initially the place is launched and they go through a period of getting people in. Then they reach a stage where they get fussy. The rules come in and the bouncers start turning people away for arbitrary reasons - which they feel they can because there's queues of people waiting to get in. But eventually more and more people get pissed off and simply don't anymore and take their custom elsewhere. Then the pendulum swings and suddenly they're desperate to get people back - 2-for-1 drinks, women drink free, allsorts of cheap gimmicks, but it's too late, they've alienated everyone and created a crappy atmosphere and everyone now goes elsewhere.

    Anyhow, when that "elsewhere" finally arrives for Apple, people will leave in droves. The same is true of eBay, which has long since needed a big player to cut them down to size. The exodus from eBay would be legendary.

  56. Mr. Meaty
    Flame

    Well, here we go again...

    I was in the final stages of an investment deal for development of i* applications... I think, considering the implications of Apple's policing, I will rewrite my business and investment plan to target the new Google Android tablet and other devices, rather than this closed-minded narrow thinking CEO's view of the world.

    I don't need to be ploughing 2 million dollars into a suite of applications for a device when the CEO will basically say "sod off" if we create something he doesn't like. This isn't a business. This is personal emotion influencing the income and revenue of companies, small and large, and that simply isn't good business.

    Though I somewhat agree with disallowing Flash on the i*, I do not agree with the way Apple handled it. They waited until the week before Adobe released CS5 with Flash iPhone app packaging (even when there were many applications using the same technology on the App Store, and have been for a number of months) then dropped the bomb, costing Adobe hundreds of thousands, or even millions in R&D and development costs.

    If Apple will do that to a massive company like Adobe, what makes small developers think they'll be treated any better?

    Sorry, Apple, but the only thing I'll ever buy from you is a Mac, and only if the OS stays open. I will never again purchase an iPhone, iPad or iPod, and this comes from a guy who has purchased over 20 of your devices personally, and been instrumental in the purchase of thousands.

    1. Mike Powers

      I'm sure he's crying himself to sleep over this

      of course, the pillowcase stuffed full of money will do an excellent job absorbing the tears.

      The problem with this whole discussion is that everyone's acting like Apple is Sony, selling their hardware at a loss and making the money back on licensing. That's exactly the opposite. Apple is one of the few media-hardware manufacturers that still makes money off the hardware, and people need to keep that in mind when dealing with them. So your app got rejected? So what? The i-products were never about apps in the first place.

  57. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Tickled

    I must admit to rather enjoying the sight of all these Apple evangelicals getting prissy as they discover the hard way that Apple is just another arrogant, exploitative, controlling megacorp.

    Suckers...

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Thumb Down

      Who's in denial?

      You think people who like Apple products are obvlivious to the fact that we live in a greed based world where corporations run our lives? What rock did you just crawl out from under?

  58. Anonymous Coward
    Grenade

    I'm not surprised

    Apple is just as evil as Microsoft, but they do it with style.

    This is just about money of course, why should Apple give people a lot more free or cheap functionality? An iPAD is just a Tablet computer with OS X installed and wireless. So why is apple pretending like the iPAD is some sort of over-sized iPhone?

  59. Anonymous Coward
    FAIL

    Apple needs to treat their developers better.

    I am a programmer and I am afraid to develop for the iPhone/iPad/iPod touch. The rules keep changing and they don't even have to follow their own rules. They can ban anything for any reason.

    I'm posting anonymously because maybe the next change is banning all developers who complain about Apple.

  60. gonzotgreat23

    Think Apple will copy the app?

    I wouldn't put it past Apple to have decided that they liked what the app does and just decided to write their own version and kick out the other developer. They did something similar with their book case app (in that case they just hired the code writers away from the other company and had them write the same code). If Apple comes out with a similar app in a month, will Apple fans admit the dirty deed?

  61. Anonymous Coward
    Jobs Horns

    I told you guys before...

    And I will tell again,

    boycott this Apple crap before it rolls over you and smashes every bone in your body. I don't endorse, use or support any kind of Apple crap and never will. I recommed everybody to do the same.

  62. MegC

    The title is required, and must contain letters and/or digits.

    I never thought I'd say this... but I'm feeling a bit sorry for MicroSoft lol

    If this was them they'd be brought up on monopoly'esq charges.

  63. Rattus Rattus

    Seems to me

    the app store's new unofficial motto has become "There used to be an app for that."

    1. Ammaross Danan
      FAIL

      Title

      Gah, you beat me too it by a few minutes. :(

      Anyway, "Come to the iP*d! We -h-a-v-e- had 300,000 Apps! Want to use your iPad as a photo frame? There (was) an app for that!"

  64. Bryan W
    Jobs Horns

    Round 16,724 ... FIGHT!

    Apple: "Lies!"

    PC: "Told ya so!"

    Its ok guys. The more Apple alienates its 3rd party developers, the more they'll flock to Android. Can't really say what's going to convince end users tho...

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