iPhone May Allow 3rd Party Applications?

MacRumors · May 30, 2007, 04:29 PM

Another comment by Apple's CEO Steve Jobs today indicated that Apple is still putting serious thought into allowing 3rd party application development for the Apple iPhone. His statement today reinforced previous hints that they were still reconsidering their decision to limit software development for the iPhone.

Quote:

Is the iPhone’s platform closed? And if it is, will it be open to developers in the future? Jobs says it’s a security issue, but Apple is working to find a way to allow developers to build applications for it. Jobs says he doesn’t want the iPhone to be “one of those phones that crashes a few times a day.” He adds: “We would like to solve this problem and if you could just be a little more patient with us, we’ll do it.”

Jobs hints that there is a solution in the works to allow 3rd party application development for the iPhone. Apple's position on this has been a point of criticism.

v-ault · May 30, 2007, 04:31 PM

I definitely don't want 3rd party apps crashing a phone, so I agree w/ Jobs on limiting the 3rd parties.

SC68Cal · May 30, 2007, 04:32 PM

Next thing you know, I'll have to add a link to my signature, listing terrible applications that you shouldn't use on your iPhone.

Mobile Onyx
Mobile MacJanitor
Repair Permissions (iPhone edition)
Mobile UNO
Mobile Cocktail

etc....

God help us if this appears
Application Enhancer (iPhone edition)

There should be some serious code-vetting before any application can be put on the iPhone. I think that developers should submit their sourcecode to Apple, and have Apple handle vetting the applications, and rejecting all the crappy ones, and perhaps banning them from ever submitting an application again, if their code is so awful that it warrants it.

queshy · May 30, 2007, 04:33 PM

Could you imagine having a kernel panic while on an important business call! Ouch!

~Shard~ · May 30, 2007, 04:39 PM

Yeah, I think it's a good idea to err on the side of being exclusive rather than inclusive in this situation. I don't think users will be as tolerant with phone crashes as they might be with computer crashes. Not saying that the inclusion of 3rd party apps automatically means they will be buggy and cause conflicts, but the odds definitely increase - it's possibly an unnecessary hassle Jobs simply doesn't want to have to deal with.

warfa · May 30, 2007, 04:42 PM

if they allow 3party apps, it'll make me wanna switch from t-mobile and pay the over priced 600.00!!

balancedview · May 30, 2007, 05:12 PM

Wait, what??

Mac OS X is extremely reliable and stable. Third party apps have never crashed my computer even once.

Jobs repeated at D today that there is a "real" OS X in the iPhone. Why would it be any less stable on an iPhone than on a desktop or laptop? Suddenly we're supposed to believe third party apps will bring down the whole OS? This assertion just doesn't wash.

~Shard~ · May 30, 2007, 05:40 PM

Jobs has commented, as have others, though that the iPhone is a very intricate device - hence why they needed to pull off the Leopard QA team to ensure it was bug free and such. I agree that in theory you wouldn't think it would be a huge deal, but you'd be surprised...

I think at this stage at least, Apple is focused on releasing the iPhone and ensuring there are no glaring issues and so forth. Once the device is proven to be stable, then they will no doubt feel more comfortable in opening it up to 3rd party apps and such.

kingofkolt · May 30, 2007, 05:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by balancedview

Wait, what??

Mac OS X is extremely reliable and stable. Third party apps have never crashed my computer even once.

Jobs repeated at D today that there is a "real" OS X in the iPhone. Why would it be any less stable on an iPhone than on a desktop or laptop? Suddenly we're supposed to believe third party apps will bring down the whole OS? This assertion just doesn't wash.

I don't know what he means by a "real" OS X, but I don't think it's reasonable to believe that there is a full version of Leapord on the phone... that doesn't make sense... I mean, it even wastes space. Why would you need Photo Booth, iChat AV, Time Machine, etc..? (Although, if the camera was on the front instead of the back, iChat AV on the iPhone would be kickass.)

ISMPlus · May 30, 2007, 05:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ~Shard~

Yeah, I think it's a good idea to err on the side of being exclusive rather than inclusive in this situation. I don't think users will be as tolerant with phone crashes as they might be with computer crashes. Not saying that the inclusion of 3rd party apps automatically means they will be buggy and cause conflicts, but the odds definitely increase - it's possibly an unnecessary hassle Jobs simply doesn't want to have to deal with.

ITA, I couldn't have said this better!

tobefrnk · May 30, 2007, 05:51 PM

Sure, OSX is stable but how many of us have tried to install an enhancer or other such software that crashed one of our OSX apps like Mail, Safair, iTunes, etc? I think this is the fear of allowing the 3rd parties in. Sure, the device will still run (just like OSX still runs when an app crashes/beachballs)but the phone app might crash because you added a 3rd party enhancement to the interface or Safair might crash because someone made an extension or something that would increase page download speed on the iPhone. These are the instability potentials I see.

psychofreak · May 30, 2007, 05:52 PM

If they're letting Google make apps, hopefully they'll very soon allow other big companies (the makers of Skype?) to develop, before making it a very open platform

ajhill · May 30, 2007, 05:53 PM

Translation: "We're working on it as fast as we can. And hope to have it ready to give to our developers the week after next!"

This is HUGE! The iPhone just got a massive boost to it's success rate with this announcement. Expect more details on June 11th at the World Wide Developer's Conference.

The stocks widget will, most likely, have delayed quotes out of the box. With 3rd party development a firm like TD Ameritrade could offer a widget that allows REAL TIME QUOTES to their account holders. Given the action on AAPL stock today 20 minutes versus live quotes would be a huge reason for an active investor to purchase an iPhone. Not to mention about half the population of lower Manhattan.

This is just one of many possible 3rd party applications. And it could be deployed in practically no time at all. Imagine the value an online broker could add to their business with just this one widget?

WHAT WIDGET WOULD YOU CREATE?

Al

psychofreak · May 30, 2007, 05:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SC68Cal

Next thing you know, I'll have to add a link to my signature, listing terrible applications that you shouldn't use on your iPhone.

Get QuickSilver off your list...NOW!

skinnylegs · May 30, 2007, 05:53 PM

I don't think I'd be using many 3rd party apps. so this isn't a big deal to me. It's funny....my g/f got a Treo and one of the first apps. she dl'd was something that would allow her to organize and play her mp3's. Huh? I would have thought that was included.

psychofreak · May 30, 2007, 05:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ajhill

WHAT WIDGET WOULD YOU CREATE?

Not really a widget, but having Skype would be a deal maker for A LOT of people

ajhill · May 30, 2007, 05:57 PM

I'm sure Steve will find a way to "Crash Proof" applications for the iPhone.

Here's how it will work. Those developers wanting to sell programs for the iPhone will submit them to Apple for testing.

If approved, they will get the "Written for iPhone" label and offered for sale THRU THE iTUNES STORE. Oops yet another profit center for Apple Inc. The man's a Genius.

SC68Cal · May 30, 2007, 06:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by psychofreak

Get QuickSilver off your list...NOW!

No.

Quote:

Rixstep:
After ridding this sloppy package of all things unnecessary the footprint is 296 items for 3279591 bytes or 7344 blocks (3.5 MB) with 0 (zero) bytes in resource forks.

10.4 MB (ten point four megabytes) of the download was pure junk.

geerlingguy · May 30, 2007, 06:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by queshy

Could you imagine having a kernel panic while on an important business call! Ouch!

This is *exactly* the problem I have with Windows Mobile. From the limited experience I have with it (on a Treo 650), I have found that crashing phones is about the most annoying and pointlessly stupid thing about 'smart' phones.

It seems the smarter a phone is, the harder it is to make a phone call on it. And, if you're doing something like typing an email, and a call comes in, crazy things happen...

Hopefully Apple changes all this.

rlreif · May 30, 2007, 06:38 PM

my treo 650 has thousands of third party apps available, and a couple dozen installed

it crashes once every couple weeks... i guess it would be nice if it didnt but it isnt a big deal, and i wouldnt trade my apps for no crashes

TPALTony · May 30, 2007, 06:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by balancedview

Wait, what??

Mac OS X is extremely reliable and stable. Third party apps have never crashed my computer even once.

Jobs repeated at D today that there is a "real" OS X in the iPhone. Why would it be any less stable on an iPhone than on a desktop or laptop? Suddenly we're supposed to believe third party apps will bring down the whole OS? This assertion just doesn't wash.

Whether it brings down the whole system isn't relevant. If apps crash it's annoying. And less tech savvy consumers don't associate the app with the producer. All they know is "My damn iPhone crapped out again." That's annoying and you end up with a bad reputation for something that isn't your fault.

Having built systems with UI components and server components, I can count on the fingers on one hand the number of bugs reported in UAT that were attributed to the server. EVERYTHING is attributed to the UI, coz that's what you touch. In reality, over 50% of the bugs were actually server side. But perception is 9/10ths of reality here, so one way or another Apple takes a hit from someone elses application crashing.

So I understand the decision. I don't _like it_ but that's because I'm tech savvy enough to know that it's my fault if I load a piece of garbage onto my phone (in the same way it's my fault when I kill my Blackberry!) :-)

be well

t

iamiuru · May 30, 2007, 06:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ajhill

I'm sure Steve will find a way to "Crash Proof" applications for the iPhone.

Here's how it will work. Those developers wanting to sell programs for the iPhone will submit them to Apple for testing.

If approved, they will get the "Written for iPhone" label and offered for sale THRU THE iTUNES STORE. Oops yet another profit center for Apple Inc. The man's a Genius.

With that statement I would guess you never worked on a Brew app for Verizon. Just takes way too long. Not saying they wouldnt go that way, but it is a slow way to go.

Been on a Treo for a long time and have been relatively happy with 3rd party apps. Something screwy happens, erase it. And I know plenty of people in business that don't have any 3rd party apps on their phones.

I guess it breaks down to options. You can have it sans 3rd party apps, or you can add 3rd party apps.

psychofreak · May 30, 2007, 07:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SC68Cal

No.

However clogged it is...its brilliant...and not an app to be put on an avoid list...

avalys · May 30, 2007, 07:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SC68Cal

No.

QuickSilver is a great program. It is ridiculous to proclaim that it is a "PROGRAM YOU SHOULD NEVER USE" because the author is not as anal-retentive about hard drive usage as you.

I have 120 GB of space on my ancient PowerBook's drive. 10 MB is nothing - 0.0083%. It's absolutely absurd to get worked up over that.

WestonHarvey1 · May 30, 2007, 07:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SC68Cal

Next thing you know, I'll have to add a link to my signature, listing terrible applications that you shouldn't use on your iPhone.

Mobile Onyx
Mobile MacJanitor
Repair Permissions (iPhone edition)
Mobile UNO
Mobile Cocktail

etc....

God help us if this appears
Application Enhancer (iPhone edition)

There should be some serious code-vetting before any application can be put on the iPhone. I think that developers should submit their sourcecode to Apple, and have Apple handle vetting the applications, and rejecting all the crappy ones, and perhaps banning them from ever submitting an application again, if their code is so awful that it warrants it.

Code vetting? Are you serious? That will pretty much guarantee there will be no third party applications.

I don't really see that this is going to be a tremendous problem. The phone runs OS X, not Windows Mobile. How often do applications bring down OS X?

May 30, 2007, 04:39 PM	#5
~Shard~ macrumors Demi-God Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: 1123.6536.5321	Yeah, I think it's a good idea to err on the side of being exclusive rather than inclusive in this situation. I don't think users will be as tolerant with phone crashes as they might be with computer crashes. Not saying that the inclusion of 3rd party apps automatically means they will be buggy and cause conflicts, but the odds definitely increase - it's possibly an unnecessary hassle Jobs simply doesn't want to have to deal with. __________________ My riches consist not in the extent of my possessions, but in the fewness of my wants. - J. Brotherton

May 30, 2007, 04:42 PM	#6
warfa macrumors regular Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: SD	if they allow 3party apps, it'll make me wanna switch from t-mobile and pay the over priced 600.00!! __________________ 20" iMac: 2.16GHz 2GBRAM 250GB HDD 8x DL SD 15.4" LED, Santa Rosa, 2GBRAM 8GB Product RED Nano

May 30, 2007, 05:40 PM	#8
~Shard~ macrumors Demi-God Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: 1123.6536.5321	Jobs has commented, as have others, though that the iPhone is a very intricate device - hence why they needed to pull off the Leopard QA team to ensure it was bug free and such. I agree that in theory you wouldn't think it would be a huge deal, but you'd be surprised... I think at this stage at least, Apple is focused on releasing the iPhone and ensuring there are no glaring issues and so forth. Once the device is proven to be stable, then they will no doubt feel more comfortable in opening it up to 3rd party apps and such. __________________ My riches consist not in the extent of my possessions, but in the fewness of my wants. - J. Brotherton

May 30, 2007, 05:51 PM	#11
tobefrnk macrumors newbie Join Date: Nov 2006	It's the apps that could crash Sure, OSX is stable but how many of us have tried to install an enhancer or other such software that crashed one of our OSX apps like Mail, Safair, iTunes, etc? I think this is the fear of allowing the 3rd parties in. Sure, the device will still run (just like OSX still runs when an app crashes/beachballs)but the phone app might crash because you added a 3rd party enhancement to the interface or Safair might crash because someone made an extension or something that would increase page download speed on the iPhone. These are the instability potentials I see.

May 30, 2007, 05:53 PM	#13
ajhill macrumors 6502 Join Date: May 2007	Great News! Translation: "We're working on it as fast as we can. And hope to have it ready to give to our developers the week after next!" This is HUGE! The iPhone just got a massive boost to it's success rate with this announcement. Expect more details on June 11th at the World Wide Developer's Conference. The stocks widget will, most likely, have delayed quotes out of the box. With 3rd party development a firm like TD Ameritrade could offer a widget that allows REAL TIME QUOTES to their account holders. Given the action on AAPL stock today 20 minutes versus live quotes would be a huge reason for an active investor to purchase an iPhone. Not to mention about half the population of lower Manhattan. This is just one of many possible 3rd party applications. And it could be deployed in practically no time at all. Imagine the value an online broker could add to their business with just this one widget? WHAT WIDGET WOULD YOU CREATE? Al

May 30, 2007, 04:31 PM	#2
v-ault Banned Join Date: Dec 2006	I definitely don't want 3rd party apps crashing a phone, so I agree w/ Jobs on limiting the 3rd parties.

May 30, 2007, 04:32 PM	#3
SC68Cal macrumors 68000 Join Date: Feb 2006	Next thing you know, I'll have to add a link to my signature, listing terrible applications that you shouldn't use on your iPhone. Mobile Onyx Mobile MacJanitor Repair Permissions (iPhone edition) Mobile UNO Mobile Cocktail etc.... God help us if this appears Application Enhancer (iPhone edition) There should be some serious code-vetting before any application can be put on the iPhone. I think that developers should submit their sourcecode to Apple, and have Apple handle vetting the applications, and rejecting all the crappy ones, and perhaps banning them from ever submitting an application again, if their code is so awful that it warrants it.

May 30, 2007, 04:33 PM	#4
queshy macrumors 68040 Join Date: Apr 2005	Could you imagine having a kernel panic while on an important business call! Ouch!

May 30, 2007, 05:12 PM	#7
balancedview macrumors newbie Join Date: May 2007	Wait, what?? Mac OS X is extremely reliable and stable. Third party apps have never crashed my computer even once. Jobs repeated at D today that there is a "real" OS X in the iPhone. Why would it be any less stable on an iPhone than on a desktop or laptop? Suddenly we're supposed to believe third party apps will bring down the whole OS? This assertion just doesn't wash.

May 30, 2007, 05:52 PM	#12
psychofreak Retired Join Date: May 2006 Location: London	If they're letting Google make apps, hopefully they'll very soon allow other big companies (the makers of Skype?) to develop, before making it a very open platform

May 30, 2007, 05:53 PM	#15
skinnylegs macrumors 6502a Join Date: May 2006 Location: San Diego	I don't think I'd be using many 3rd party apps. so this isn't a big deal to me. It's funny....my g/f got a Treo and one of the first apps. she dl'd was something that would allow her to organize and play her mp3's. Huh? I would have thought that was included.

May 30, 2007, 05:57 PM	#17
ajhill macrumors 6502 Join Date: May 2007	Crash proofing the iPhone I'm sure Steve will find a way to "Crash Proof" applications for the iPhone. Here's how it will work. Those developers wanting to sell programs for the iPhone will submit them to Apple for testing. If approved, they will get the "Written for iPhone" label and offered for sale THRU THE iTUNES STORE. Oops yet another profit center for Apple Inc. The man's a Genius.

May 30, 2007, 06:38 PM	#20
rlreif macrumors regular Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Vancougar	whatever my treo 650 has thousands of third party apps available, and a couple dozen installed it crashes once every couple weeks... i guess it would be nice if it didnt but it isnt a big deal, and i wouldnt trade my apps for no crashes

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