Replies to post #78458 on Apple Inc (AAPL)

[langostino]

"must be a nightmare"

That was Apple's choice. The pluses of a 100% controlled, closed platform, come with the corresponding responsibilities and challenges.

If Apple failed to plan for that, that's just poor management. Saying that management of a platform is challenging, has nothing to do with failure to do the basics. Like failing even to acknowledge receipt of developer applications? Or failing to provide any communication to manage developer expectations? No matter the challenges, there are ways to manage your customers and your partners via competent communication. Surely no one would argue Apple's done even a marginally good job in that department.

[WinLoseOrDraw]

Managing >4000 developer's apps all at once must be a nightmare.

For sure. It'll come as a shock to many here, but I know I can be an annoying p****, and there are potentially 3999 more mees out there. :)

So maybe the right answer is...don't attempt the impossible?

[Tex]

re nightmare

Well, Apple is the one that specified an architecture that will require Apple to ride herd over all the push messaging, application installation, and so on. I'm not sure that this is necessarily a problem, if Apple provides an API and then does the lifting needed to support it for paying customers. What does concern me is that Apple may appear to be or end up providing a warranty of all sold apps' compliance with Apple's announced app requirements, to folks who use Apple's download/install system -- and that Apple may end up bottlenecking third party apps as it engages in QA. And then recall lots of these are free downloads ....

I never heard of a platform where the OS vendor had to do QA on third-party code, unless maybe it was vendors paying Microsoft to sign kernel drivers in recent OSses.

Incidentally, I saw a call for Apple to begin loading only signed .kexts. For some reason, I thought Leopard was already starting on this path.

Who knows what secrets lie in the hearts of Cupertino?

Take care,
--Tex.