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Opera Browser Not Allowed in iPhone App Store
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I hope that those of you who blindly think that Apple is the second coming of Messiah understand that this company is no better than Microsoft, which most of you seem to hate.
Remember the debacle about Internet Explorer back in the day? Well, this is the exact same situation. Apple is turning to the thing you guys despise so much!
Still, I like their products
Remember the debacle about Internet Explorer back in the day? Well, this is the exact same situation. Apple is turning to the thing you guys despise so much!
Still, I like their products
Exactly. There's so much people don't realise about Opera (not just little things, even big things). People on this forum trash Opera because it has so little marketshare (and thus, must be bad) . . . while simultaneously using Apple products. Hmm.
You would be correct. Here's a small list of things Opera had before Safari or Firefox (and in most cases, every browser):
- Wand (ability to remember and input your information/email-and-password/whatever on websites)
- Tabbed browsing (The first mainstream browser, actually)
- Saving sessions/remembering tabs
- Speed dial
- Page zooming
- Mouse gestures (still does it better than any other browser...and last I checked, Firefox was the only other browser to even have it. Of course, since that's all they ever do - copy Opera.)
- Widgets
That's just a couple.
The news says "Opera mini", not "Opera". I know that the full version of Opera are great. I also have "Opera DS" which is slow but still amazing considering the limitations of the hardware. But is Opera mini better than Safari for the iPhone/iPod touch? Is it really worth all this debate?
Actually, the mobile versions of Opera tend to be really good.
Okay? Mobile Safari has crashed 0 times for me while doing anything in 6 months (in other words, never).
That's why ATT should love the idea. They have limited bandwidth, and with unlimited plans, they should minimize data as much as possible. Opera Mini is perfect for that purpose.
Well, it looks like I won't be buying an iPhone.
Because I don't believe in Apple exerting control over which apps get published and which do not.
It's kind of like how if you are Chinese and you publish a website that criticizes the Chinese government your site will be blocked and/or taken down. And that is bull****.
- - - -
Edit: OK, above was my initial reactionary response. And on second thought maybe I'm not being fair because we don't know for certain what Apple's reason for denying Opera was. But it is a very suspicious move on Apple's part and I agree with the earlier post that it doesn't help Apple's image. This makes me realize how many of us embrace Apple because it is a brand that for us symbolizes an open and competitive philosophy. The opposite of Microsoft in other words. And that is the reason I get so pissed off when I see Apple taking a position that seems to go against these principles. It's about ethics. It's because it's important to me that the brands I support are ethical.
Because I don't believe in Apple exerting control over which apps get published and which do not.
It's kind of like how if you are Chinese and you publish a website that criticizes the Chinese government your site will be blocked and/or taken down. And that is bull****.
- - - -
Edit: OK, above was my initial reactionary response. And on second thought maybe I'm not being fair because we don't know for certain what Apple's reason for denying Opera was. But it is a very suspicious move on Apple's part and I agree with the earlier post that it doesn't help Apple's image. This makes me realize how many of us embrace Apple because it is a brand that for us symbolizes an open and competitive philosophy. The opposite of Microsoft in other words. And that is the reason I get so pissed off when I see Apple taking a position that seems to go against these principles. It's about ethics. It's because it's important to me that the brands I support are ethical.
Ill go ahead and use your same logic right back at you. Where in that letter did Apple say that it was rejected because they want to maintain their browser superiority?
No they didn't. They used OpenID 2.0. You have been misinformed.
Considering that Opera is the most secure browser there is, and considering that Opera Mini is a thin client, so any "exploits" would affect Opera's servers rather than your phone, this argument is bogus.
It is more likely that Safari would brick your iPhone than Opera.
Opera is a reputable multinational corporation. Why would they resort to amateur hacks? Doesn't make sense.
If you bought an iPhone expecting to run any app you wanted, then you would be a woefully uninformed consumer. There are many applications the iPhone cannot run, and probably never will. There are many that you would never want to run, and many that you might want to but never will be able to. You could say the same of any electronic device out there. In this case, sure, Apple is the one responsible for limiting it. On most other phones, it's AT&T or Verizon or T-Mobile or Sprint limiting it. It's no different. Sure, they're doing it for competition reasons, but there's nothing stopping you from simply getting another phone. You'd simply have to be willing to make some sacrifices.
That's life.
jW
Well, I'm not going to say your reasons aren't legitimate, as that is definitely a reason not to buy an iPhone. However, I do think your analogy is a bit off...This move could certainly be labelled as anti-competitive, however I don't think it's the same as Apple censoring people or removing users/developers for criticising them/making fun of them/whatever.
How about those existing app in store that crashes a lot should apple remove them too. I couldn't be more happier.
I wasn't too concerned about it until recently. Ever since 2.0, I've had an incredibly bad Safari experience. It crashes every couple minutes when I'm using it. I've tried every trick suggested by others who are having similar issues, and nothing seems to help. Apple, if you're listening -- I'm going to switch to a different phone if you can't make this one stable. I bought it primarily for it's web surfing ability. Too bad it really sucks at that now.
i think restore does help, and i turn off safari's javascript and plug-in.
In addition to that, i use less safari now; i use byline, which can read websites pretty well.. used it for a month and so far zero crash.
Luckily theres a rating and comment system to discredit those terrible apps.
I realize that what I type here may be against what many of you think, and I should probably give some insight onto what Ive been trying to get across:
Personally I see no need for a different browser as safari works beautifully for me (obviously thats not the case for everyone) and I do think that the option for a different one would be a great bonus for anyone interested. I can, however, see why apple hasn't allowed it, and thats what I've tried to post here (though I admit I've probably done a bad job of getting that across).
Carry on gents.
thanks ZiggyPastorius.
Opera also introduced "restoring tab" feature. As the name suggests, if you mistakenly close a tab, worry not. You can restore it right back. I can't tell you how much I appreciate this feature. I'm positive that many of you were in this situation when you thought, "man, I should have bookmarked that site!!!!"
With Opera, you don't have to worry about it.
I'm sure this feature will soon be seen on Firefox and the crowd will go "wow".
I have no problem with people using firefox but it saddens me to see that many of Opera's original features were blatantly imported to firefox and nobody mentions Opera.
Opera also introduced "restoring tab" feature. As the name suggests, if you mistakenly close a tab, worry not. You can restore it right back. I can't tell you how much I appreciate this feature. I'm positive that many of you were in this situation when you thought, "man, I should have bookmarked that site!!!!"
With Opera, you don't have to worry about it.
I'm sure this feature will soon be seen on Firefox and the crowd will go "wow".
I have no problem with people using firefox but it saddens me to see that many of Opera's original features were blatantly imported to firefox and nobody mentions Opera.
Don't be surprised if exactly that happens in the future. Apple is getting more arrogant and controlling by the day.
All the self-proclaimed legal experts on here keep telling me it's Apple's property and they don't HAVE to compete with anyone. They're allowed to have a pseudo-monopoly for hardware since they don't have a larger 'overall' market share against Windows even though the iPhone has nothing to do with Windows and anyone who WANTS OS X isn't going to consider buying Dell hardware on the home computer front because it's 'not allowed' to run OS X. Thus, I say pseudo-monopoly. Given Apple is making record profits, I would say that "not Monopoly" is working out pretty well for them. Oh, just go buy something else like Linux, which has no commercial software support. Oh well.
Really, that's the heart of the problem. Linux is the 'free and open' system CONSUMERS *want* in theory, but since there's very little commercial software and games for it, it's really a chicken/egg situation. Plus commercial enterprises generally don't like supporting a system that touts "free and open" since undoubtedly they feel most of the users on that system will just help themselves to pirated versions (like that doesn't happen on Windows or OS X all the time).
Personally, I'm for keeping hardware and software markets SEPARATE. In other words, if you make a piece of hardware, you should not be allowed to stop someone from installing the software of their choice on it. Similarly, if you make an operating system, you should not be allowed to tell someone what hardware they can install it on. That saves the consumer from these intolerable situations where I cannot get a new Mac laptop with a matte screen (because Apple won't offer it and won't let me buy one from someone else) or I cannot install flash or Opera on my iPod Touch or iPhone because Apple says too bad, we don't have to compete because we know the DOJ won't come after little 'ole Apple if they won't even crack down like they originally did on Microsoft that is many times larger.
What I'd like to know is why all the laws in the US are for anyone BUT the people it's supposed to represent. This is why I can not support Republicans ever. They are for big business and the top 5% (rich), not the common people (i.e. middle and lower classes). What amazes me in this country is how over 40% or more tend to vote Republican when only 5% of the country is represented by them. It tells me that almost half this country actually likes being screwed over. Until I came to these forums, I didn't actually see how those people think, but having witnessed blind support for Apple on here like a groupie would support a rock star, I can see WHERE those people are coming from, but I cannot comprehend for the life of me WHY they think that way. The only thing I can possibly think of is that people WISH they were part of that 5% or HOPE that they will get there some day. They don't want to be part of the 95% that is middle or lower class so they vote for their dreams instead of their reality. Either that or they let ONE issue (like abortion) control their vote regardless of what it does to them economically, socially or otherwise.
There are other operating systems with perfectly good operas and firefoxes
None that are credible.
I too love this feature. There are so many that people don't know about, and since Firefox is so mainstream, it gets all the credit for crap that Mozilla doesn't even think of.
There are too few Opera users on this forum
Ever *actually* used any for a prolonged period?
Please summarize your misgivings for each
Thanks!
Yes I have, I bought a cheap PC about five years back and experimented with various forms of linux and BSD unix.
Blanket misgivings: difficult to install, not the best GUI, and no useful applications. To be honest, I'll use Vista as a day to day OS before I'll use any of them.
