The opinions expressed in this blog post are mine alone. They DO NOT represent the opinions or policies of Panic, Inc., any of my co-workers, or any other company or person. They are my thoughts, and you can't have them. OK?
I don't think I've ever been as conflicted about something as I am about the iTunes App Store. There are so many intersections at which it is both the best and worst at the same time that I'm having an incredibly hard time sorting out how I feel about it.
Some of my most inviolable principles about developing and selling software are:
I work in the software industry so I can (A) solve problems that annoy me, and (B) make money on which to live. While I respect the GPL and Open Source movements, I believe that commercial software is a necessary and important part of the ecosystem -- however NOT at the expense of the above basic freedoms.
The iTunes App Store distribution model mangles almost every one of those tenets in some way, which is exasperating to me.
But, the situation's not that clear-cut.
Apple's approval process ensures at least a basic adherence to expected UI behaviors and acts as an effective filter for malicious software.
The App Store puts my product directly in front of EVERY SINGLE person who is capable of using it. Let's not understate the value of that. There has never really been a true equivalent to this in the traditional distribution model. They also cover hosting and payment-processing fees and associated strife.
Apple's restrictions on what applications can and cannot do (with respect to sandboxing and not running in the background) prevent exactly the kind of terrible experiences I've had with other (crashy and slow) mobile devices.
And, although inconvenient, Apple's non-repeal of the NDA on iPhone development probably does protect information about iPhone technology from their competitors. At least, the ones who are concerned about not getting sued. Which, in a backhanded and perverted way, protects the very platform that the developers depend on.
So, it's all good, right?
Well, no.
What I have here is a list of what I consider to be basic developer rights and a distribution model that uses that list as toilet paper, while in return presenting me with an equally long list of genuine and tangible benefits. How do I respond to that?
Despite the store's restrictive terms, Apple's generally a "good guy" about things, right?
One thing that haunts me is the specific case of the "I Am Rich" application, which cost $999 and served no function other than providing you with bragging rights that you had enough disposable income to buy it in the first place.
Yes, it's a silly and diabolically clever idea, and I've been outspoken (especially on Twitter) about my feelings on frivolous iPhone apps. But silly ideas have a right to exist. After a tidal wave of negative comments, Apple appears to have removed the app, citing a "judgement call".
The most cited argument against I Am Rich seems to have been that someone might "accidentally purchase" the application, and there is anecdotal eveidence that this actually happened. You have to be dumber than a box of dried-out paintbrushes to "accidentally purchase" something, and even if you're unwilling to accept personal responsibility for your own actions, it should be an open-and-shut case of giving the unwitting user a refund and moving on. The fact that it's so difficult/impossible to issue a refund for an iPhone application merely highlights another glaring problem with the App Store.
Although silly, the application did not violate any of the App Store's terms of sale, to the best of my knowledge, and sat proudly amongst the menagerie of equally useless flashlights, dice-rollers, and tip calculators. Nobody was forced at gunpoint to lay down their credit card. The mere notion that software I write may be subject not just to a set of written guidelines but also arbitrary undocumented "judgement calls" after it has already been approved for sale quite frankly sends chills up my spine. I'm not sure I could ever be truly comfortable publishing software into such an environment.
I've been trying to reconcile the App Store with my beliefs on "how things should be" ever since the SDK was announced. After all this time, I still can't make it all line up. I can't question that it's probably the best mobile application distribution method yet created, but every time I use it, a little piece of my soul dies. And we don't even have anything for sale on there yet.