Regarding Open Development for iPhone

Tom Yager:

But iPhone will be open, or else, because all of its competitors’ platforms support user-developed applications. Why do they all support custom apps? Because. Sometimes, somebody other than Apple gets to say, “because”. Open is just how phones are done, and not just smart phones.

But there are all sorts of rules regarding “just how phones are done” that iPhone breaks. (E.g. A physical keypad for text and number input is just how phones are done.) I certainly hope Apple announces something at this year’s WWDC regarding third-party iPhone development. But the iPhone could launch completely closed and still be a huge hit. I almost hope it does just to prove people who say otherwise wrong.

And, if Apple were to launch the iPhone completely closed but start opening developer APIs, say, a year from now at WWDC 2008, then by 2010 the API-less iPhones would be as forgotten as the FireWire-only, Mac-only early iPods.

★ Sunday, 6 May 2007