I wish Nintendo would make a gaming-focused PMP or smartphone that ran iOS so I don't have to pay out the ass for traditional games or save money buying shit games.
I think he has a valid point...it's easy to say that the App store is a meritocracy, but if good apps are mingled in with poor apps then the good apps are increasingly hard to find.
It will be interesting to see how Apple handles this. For now I will rely on MacWorld to let me know the best app in a certain category is the one to choose.
Meritocracy is good, but the good apps are hard to find among all the lesser apps...
The trouble is that the AppStore app has several shortcomings
- it is buggy (filter options lock up -- and why does the GUI use regular buttons for dropdown menus? It almost looks like a Windows port as far as user unfriendlyness and unexpected behavior is concerned)
- it fails to provide useful and detailed searching.
- it filters the reviews (as does iTunes) according to the store one is in. This is ridiculous. Only a small minority of apps are of local interest. If you live in a small country you hardly see reviews of any statistical significance. The least Apple could do is to provide an optional filter for the reviews (with the default: all stores/countries (make this an app preference), possible other options: comments according to language(e.g., English Only; multiple options), local store only)
Meritocracy is good, but the good apps are hard to find among all the lesser apps...
The trouble is that the AppStore app has several shortcomings
- it is buggy (filter options lock up -- and why does the GUI use regular buttons for dropdown menus? It almost looks like a Windows port as far as user unfriendlyness and unexpected behavior is concerned)
- it fails to provide useful and detailed searching.
- it filters the reviews (as does iTunes) according to the store one is in. This is ridiculous. Only a small minority of apps are of local interest. If you live in a small country you hardly see reviews of any statistical significance. The least Apple could do is to provide an optional filter for the reviews.
The app store is good. But a long way from perfect.
Who cares if Nintendo sells less in the traditional titles. It still has the Wii, which is wildly successful, and, as far as I know, is still its own niche. Let them further develop that, or someone will catch up and overtake them.
Hawkins didn't elaborate on how the number of web pages compare with App Store titles, how gamers will discover web-based games any easier than in Apple's App Store, or how developers will make money from web games.
It's funny to me how Apple was panned for decades because the Mac wasn't a bonafide gaming platform. Now Apple has apparently changed the gaming industry in much the same way it changed the music and telecommunications industries? and the personal computing industry twice!
Everything I've read shows a very long tail: the top 100 make very good money, the second and third hundred make about as much as many small desktop software companies, and the other 399,700 make somewhere between a minimum wage and zero.
But if you have stats that can show even a tenth of iOS devs making more than they could make doing IT work ($100k-$150k annually) I'd love to read it.
That's $4K per app not per annum. Some apps take a single programmer a few hours, some programmers do lots of apps. Some apps take a team of programmers a few months (mostly games I guess).
The long tail goes for any other creative activity, musicians, movie-makers, artists, authors etc. Try writing a book and making it pay, or recording a song. People buy brand names too, $20K for a purse by Hermes, $2K for one just as good by an independent craftsperson or small company (and probably a $20 cheap knock-off).
Independent authors tend to write lots of books, 5 - 10 per year, they sell a few thousand (maybe a few hundred of each) per year they are happy, maybe one day they get lucky.
Apple has created a means for independent programmers to make a living and get a chance at the lucky break in many ways similar to the routes to fame via indie labels, small publishers, YouTube etc. Kudos to Apple for leveling the playing field somewhat.
Actually, the iOS app quantity is similar to PC Software choices to Mac choices. Macs have software, but PCs have hundreds even those most were crap. I hope the iOS app store isn't seen as a pile of garbage apps with a few good ones that are impossible to find.
Perhaps. But did you read his title? I didn't quote it. It's not just my ox being gored, it's that I have been on a crusade here of late asking that posters lay off gratuitous political jabs. We all "Think Different" but let's try to keep to something we can all agree to come here for--Apple.
It's funny to me how Apple was panned for decades because the Mac wasn't a bonafide gaming platform. Now Apple has apparently changed the gaming industry in much the same way it changed the music and telecommunications industries
? and the personal computing industry twice!
Make that thrice! Apple ][ - Mac - iOs (iPad, iPod Touch and iPhone)
Meritocracy is good, but the good apps are hard to find among all the lesser apps...
And in the Amazon Kindle bookstore it is hard to find good books among all the lesser apps, err, books.
Who on earth selects music to buy by going to the iTMS or Amazon MP3 and expect the store that offers 100'000s of items to pick just the right 20 tracks for you personally? Music, as well as books, as well as movie, as well as apps, are bought on personal recommendation, be it from friends and family, the media, or by association (eg, same author/band/developer, or heuristic systems like the Genius sidebar, Last.fm, rotten tomatoes).
Comments
I don't get that either?
maroon
thats the way bugs Bunny always pronounced it.
maroon
4. Jokey euphemized form of "moron".
C.
"Head toward"?
"More recently"?
I don't even understand the point of this paragraph?
- Xbox Live launched Nov/2002.
- XBLA launched Dec/2004.
- PSN launched Nov/2006.
- WiiWare launched Mar/2008.
I suppose you could say that consoles "head toward" online gaming... but only if this article was written 8 years ago.You missed the Dreamcast which shipped with a built-in modem Nov/1998.
thats the way bugs Bunny always pronounced it.
Ahhh... cool. Thanks.
It still doesn't make sense but at least I'm aware of the Bugs Bunny reference!
4. Jokey euphemized form of "moron".
Cheers.
I think he has a valid point...it's easy to say that the App store is a meritocracy, but if good apps are mingled in with poor apps then the good apps are increasingly hard to find.
It will be interesting to see how Apple handles this. For now I will rely on MacWorld to let me know the best app in a certain category is the one to choose.
Meritocracy is good, but the good apps are hard to find among all the lesser apps...
The trouble is that the AppStore app has several shortcomings
- it is buggy (filter options lock up -- and why does the GUI use regular buttons for dropdown menus? It almost looks like a Windows port as far as user unfriendlyness and unexpected behavior is concerned)
- it fails to provide useful and detailed searching.
- it filters the reviews (as does iTunes) according to the store one is in. This is ridiculous. Only a small minority of apps are of local interest. If you live in a small country you hardly see reviews of any statistical significance. The least Apple could do is to provide an optional filter for the reviews (with the default: all stores/countries (make this an app preference), possible other options: comments according to language(e.g., English Only; multiple options), local store only)
Meritocracy is good, but the good apps are hard to find among all the lesser apps...
The trouble is that the AppStore app has several shortcomings
- it is buggy (filter options lock up -- and why does the GUI use regular buttons for dropdown menus? It almost looks like a Windows port as far as user unfriendlyness and unexpected behavior is concerned)
- it fails to provide useful and detailed searching.
- it filters the reviews (as does iTunes) according to the store one is in. This is ridiculous. Only a small minority of apps are of local interest. If you live in a small country you hardly see reviews of any statistical significance. The least Apple could do is to provide an optional filter for the reviews.
The app store is good. But a long way from perfect.
I think your suggestions are very reasonable.
C.
I would also pay for os x to install on my intel box.
So go buy a copy of Snow Leopard and do it yourself right now. Not like it isn't possible.
But more importantly, the App Store is a meritocracy, where good apps make a lot while thousands of junk apps make little or nothing.
Oh yes, more importantly!
Hawkins didn't elaborate on how the number of web pages compare with App Store titles, how gamers will discover web-based games any easier than in Apple's App Store, or how developers will make money from web games.
best part
I'm trying to figure out the bad in this
Let me know if you come up with something.
This guy seems to have a knack for leaving companies just before they get really big lol.
Looks like those companies owe their success to him.
URLs?
Everything I've read shows a very long tail: the top 100 make very good money, the second and third hundred make about as much as many small desktop software companies, and the other 399,700 make somewhere between a minimum wage and zero.
But if you have stats that can show even a tenth of iOS devs making more than they could make doing IT work ($100k-$150k annually) I'd love to read it.
That's $4K per app not per annum. Some apps take a single programmer a few hours, some programmers do lots of apps. Some apps take a team of programmers a few months (mostly games I guess).
The long tail goes for any other creative activity, musicians, movie-makers, artists, authors etc. Try writing a book and making it pay, or recording a song. People buy brand names too, $20K for a purse by Hermes, $2K for one just as good by an independent craftsperson or small company (and probably a $20 cheap knock-off).
Independent authors tend to write lots of books, 5 - 10 per year, they sell a few thousand (maybe a few hundred of each) per year they are happy, maybe one day they get lucky.
Apple has created a means for independent programmers to make a living and get a chance at the lucky break in many ways similar to the routes to fame via indie labels, small publishers, YouTube etc. Kudos to Apple for leveling the playing field somewhat.
Hit a very sensitive never there I guess....
Perhaps. But did you read his title? I didn't quote it. It's not just my ox being gored, it's that I have been on a crusade here of late asking that posters lay off gratuitous political jabs. We all "Think Different" but let's try to keep to something we can all agree to come here for--Apple.
""$4,000 per application. Do you see a problem with that? That doesn't even pay for a really good foosball table"
Less foosball, more marketing, fella. It's time to move out of the frat house and grow up.
It's funny to me how Apple was panned for decades because the Mac wasn't a bonafide gaming platform. Now Apple has apparently changed the gaming industry in much the same way it changed the music and telecommunications industries
? and the personal computing industry twice!
Make that thrice!
Meritocracy is good, but the good apps are hard to find among all the lesser apps...
And in the Amazon Kindle bookstore it is hard to find good books among all the lesser apps, err, books.
Who on earth selects music to buy by going to the iTMS or Amazon MP3 and expect the store that offers 100'000s of items to pick just the right 20 tracks for you personally? Music, as well as books, as well as movie, as well as apps, are bought on personal recommendation, be it from friends and family, the media, or by association (eg, same author/band/developer, or heuristic systems like the Genius sidebar, Last.fm, rotten tomatoes).