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Apple - strict and controlling?

News Type: Opinion — Tue Nov 18, 2008 4:05 AM EST

Live Poll

Do you think Apple are too strict?

  • Yes
    33%
  • Maybe
    28%
  • No
    39%

Total Votes: 18

The Apple disaster: not informing developers what's wrong with their applications.

Photo by Victor Svensson. (License: Creative Commons Attribution)

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With the recent release of Google's iPod Mobile application which features groundbreaking voice recognition for search technology not being launched until Monday, two days after the expected release, some important questions need to be asked. Is Apple being to strict? Do they need to more clearly define what can and cannot be seen in the iTunes App store? Do they need to speed up their processing time? The answer's yes, and here's why.

In recent months, Apple has come under fire over the banning of Podcaster, which lead to the creator using an 'ad hoc' method to desperately try and get his application out there. It's still unclear why Apple chose to ban this application, although speculation is mounting that Apple is building in a 'podcast synchronizer' in the next firmware release. At the time though, Apple gave the developer no indication as to why it was blocked from the store, a move which left many up in arms. Apple really needs to begin letting developers know why their applications are blocked, instead of telling them quite simply to go away, and come back with a new app.

Another problem facing Apple is that it quite simply takes far too long to get an application through the app store checking process. Some application developers have reported that the approval process has taken them up to three months, whilst recently Google has had a bit of trouble trying to roll their applications out on time. Reports stated that the application was due to come out on Saturday, when in reality it didn't surface until late Monday. Surely Apple can pick up speed in this department, and not leave users hanging in the dark, waiting for the applications to come online. Yes, it does thoroughly check the applications, but surely there's a better way of doing this.

So what does Apple need to do? Maybe they should setup a service where users and developers can connect together, and see how the process of approving the application is going, with maybe an ETA until it's released? Maybe not, but they sure need to do something, and let the developers at least know why their applications have been denied.

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3.9
{"commentId":4107195,"authorDomain":"onlineapps"}
Andy Min

And a third? How about letting 3rd party devs access more in the API?

Speaking of the API, why is it OS X only? Windows people can be, believe it or not, creative.

{"commentId":4107195,"threadId":"422210","contentId":"2123204","authorDomain":"onlineapps"}
  • 2 votes
Reply#1 - Tue Nov 18, 2008 9:18 AM EST
{"commentId":4108253,"authorDomain":"brianford"}
Brian Ford

Ultimately, I don't think this is as big a deal as some do -- we're talking about three or four applications that we know of that have been refused without good explanations for *why* they've been refused -- but I don't particularly disagree that Apple probably should come out with more explicit guidelines.

Though - I don't get how your first paragraph (the delay in the Google application) leads into the content of the article. How are the two related?

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  • 2 votes
Reply#2 - Tue Nov 18, 2008 10:24 AM EST
{"commentId":4109195,"authorDomain":"kirklennon"}
Kirk Lennon

Surely Apple can pick up speed in this department, and not leave users hanging in the dark, waiting for the applications to come online.

There are currently around 5,000 apps in the App Store, each one of which was carefully tested by Apple, and tested again for each revision. The App Store has been a spectacular success, and has been flooded with submissions. It's a simple matter of demand being greater than the supply of Apple engineers currently available to do testing/approvals. I suspect that working hard at hiring more, but this isn't the kind of job where any warm body will do.

Of course, Apple could just do away with the entire approval system and let anything through. Is Apple strict? Yes, but I like to think of them as a benevolent dictator. Somebody should decide what's good, and Apple has taste and good sense. They've launched a major new computing platform, and they are being very protective of it. I don't really see the problem.

Speaking of the API, why is it OS X only? Windows people can be, believe it or not, creative.

Are you talking about the SDK? I can't even fathom the complexity of porting Xcode to Windows.

{"commentId":4109195,"threadId":"422210","contentId":"2123204","authorDomain":"kirklennon"}
  • 1 vote
Reply#3 - Tue Nov 18, 2008 11:15 AM EST
{"commentId":4117584,"authorDomain":"fdbryant3"}
FDBryant3

It doesn't really bother me that are being strict about what they will allow into the store.   It is their ball, and for that matter their playground.  It is their right to make the rules and say who can play.

I do think it would be nice of them if they would stop playing I got a secret with the rules though.  They should make clear what the criteria is for acceptance into the App Store. 

What is particularly rediculous and truly annoying though is how apps are getting into the store and then being pulled out with no explanation.  That makes no sense at all and is really heavy handed.

{"commentId":4117584,"threadId":"422210","contentId":"2123204","authorDomain":"fdbryant3"}
  • 3 votes
#3.1 - Tue Nov 18, 2008 8:26 PM EST
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{"commentId":4115905,"authorDomain":"mightyblogger"}
Pacific Northwest Blogger

The question about this is licensing, like DvDs do you own the actual product or just lease license it?
If you pay money to purchase it, do you own it and have the right to modify it?

{"commentId":4115905,"threadId":"422210","contentId":"2123204","authorDomain":"mightyblogger"}
    Reply#4 - Tue Nov 18, 2008 5:56 PM EST
    {"commentId":4117500,"authorDomain":"fdbryant3"}
    FDBryant3

    Apple is strict and controlling about its products? Say it ain't so Shoeless Joe..............errr Shoeless Steve?

    {"commentId":4117500,"threadId":"422210","contentId":"2123204","authorDomain":"fdbryant3"}
    • 2 votes
    Reply#5 - Tue Nov 18, 2008 8:19 PM EST
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