Why Google's Inventor is a big mistake and the Apple response I hope is around the corner.
Write A Dumb-App for a Smart-Phone
Today, Google unveiled a new tool for building Android apps -- Google Inventor. In a nut shell, it's a tool that allows someone with no programming experience to construct an Android app by fitting together little puzzle pieces, each representing some type of interface element or action. You can watch this little gem in action below.
Today, Google unveiled a new tool for building Android apps -- Google Inventor. In a nut shell, it's a tool that allows someone with no programming experience to construct an Android app by fitting together little puzzle pieces, each representing some type of interface element or action. You can watch this little gem in action below.
Wow, Google, thank you for making me feel better about developing for the iPhone. I can see the good intentions behind this tool, but the path to a failed platform is paved with good intentions (ask Palm).
1989 Called, They Want Their Technology Back
First of all, this is nothing new. The technology graveyard has a special section for CASE (Computer Aided Software Engineering) tools. The last failure was buried there in the early 90s. They all failed for the same reason -- its impossible to create sophisticated software graphically, and our software is only getting more complex.
Google guys are smart (as in book-smart, not street-smart), they know all this. So one can only assume that they are comfortable with people creating apps having very limited functionality. In fact, Harold Ableson, the lead on this project, was quoted as saying
“These aren’t the slickest applications in the world. But they are ones ordinary people can make, often in a matter of minutes"
And that's exactly where the problem lies. In a short period of time, the Android Marketplace will be like a sewage treatment plant the evening of Cinco de Mayo. Regardless of how many people claim to be excited about Inventor only for personal use, a ton of people will upload their little experiments. Android's Marketplace will soon be flooded with crap-ware.
Apple has a crap-ware problem, too. But at least they recognize it as a problem and are actually trying to prevent crap-ware, not encourage it.
In the long run, this is very bad for consumers. A successful platform consists of several fundamental aspects. One of them is easy discovery and acquisition of content. In my opinion, Android's 'you make it, we'll take it' policy was already a step in the wrong direction. Inventor just made it a sprint.
Let's Add Some More Junk to the Internet
In the short-term (as in -- while we wait for Android to collapse under its own weight), Apple may choose to respond with something similar. I very highly doubt they'd open up the App Store to allow an iOS version of Purring Kittens (watch the video -- it's ridiculous), but why not give people the tools to create an HTML 5 version.
Apple is pushing HTML 5, and they are pushing hard. Creating an HTML 5 authoring tools is in Apple's interest. Having a piece of it be grandma-friendly wouldn't be too much extra work. Overall, it would help get the Flash monkey off their back and, by having it run only on OS X, they'd sell a mac mini or two. And once you buy an Apple product, there's a good chance you'll buy other Apple products (don't believe me, ask my mac mini, or macbook pro, or two iphones, or ipad ... hell, there's probably even an Apple TV somewhere in China with my name on it).
I would actually be surprised to find out that an HTML 5 authoring tool is not already in the works.
We'll see.
Apple has a crap-ware problem, too. But at least they recognize it as a problem and are actually trying to prevent crap-ware, not encourage it.
In the long run, this is very bad for consumers. A successful platform consists of several fundamental aspects. One of them is easy discovery and acquisition of content. In my opinion, Android's 'you make it, we'll take it' policy was already a step in the wrong direction. Inventor just made it a sprint.
Let's Add Some More Junk to the Internet
In the short-term (as in -- while we wait for Android to collapse under its own weight), Apple may choose to respond with something similar. I very highly doubt they'd open up the App Store to allow an iOS version of Purring Kittens (watch the video -- it's ridiculous), but why not give people the tools to create an HTML 5 version.
Apple is pushing HTML 5, and they are pushing hard. Creating an HTML 5 authoring tools is in Apple's interest. Having a piece of it be grandma-friendly wouldn't be too much extra work. Overall, it would help get the Flash monkey off their back and, by having it run only on OS X, they'd sell a mac mini or two. And once you buy an Apple product, there's a good chance you'll buy other Apple products (don't believe me, ask my mac mini, or macbook pro, or two iphones, or ipad ... hell, there's probably even an Apple TV somewhere in China with my name on it).
I would actually be surprised to find out that an HTML 5 authoring tool is not already in the works.
We'll see.
I like to look at the bright side: now even I can write a smart phone app! Which brings me to what should be the quote of the week: "Write a dumb app for a smart phone!"
ReplyDeleteBrilliant! I'm adding that.
ReplyDeleteI have been looking for something like this and I am not a newbie in programming but I am tired of learning new big development system for just doing rather simple programs. I think it looks more like visual basic and that works fine for doing advanced stuff as more simple programs.
ReplyDelete"its impossible to create sophisticated software graphically, and our software is only getting more complex."
ReplyDeleteSo, wouldn't your statement mean that since our software is getting more complex then at some point graphically created software wouldn't be a problem?
Oh, and the proper use is "it's", not "its".