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Posts Tagged ‘Bad News’

Apple’s New Stance On ‘Cookie Cutter’ Apps: Add More Features Or Perish

In the wake of Apple’s sudden decision to remove nearly all “sexy” applications from the App Store, we’ve been hearing that the company is also clamping down on so-called “cookie-cutter” applications — iPhone apps that are built from templates using one of the many app-building services available. This would be yet another major change for the App Store, as it already features thousands of such applications. And, perhaps more important, quite a few companies have sprung up to facilitate building iPhone applications. I’ve reached out to Apple to ask if they’d like to clarify their stance, but given their lack of transparency in the past, I’m not betting on getting anything definitive. To try to get to the bottom of the current situation, I spoke with multiple developers (some of whom wished to remain anonymous) to find out what Apple was telling them.

Between the developers I spoke to, the consensus was this: Apple doesn’t appear to be opposed to ‘app generators’ and templates per se, but in the last month or so it has started cracking down on basic applications that are little more than RSS feeds or glorified business cards. In short, Apple doesn’t want people using native applications for things that a basic web app could accomplish. For some of these services that’s bad news, because that’s exactly the sort of application they produce; any new applications they submit are going to get rejected. But all hope isn’t lost for them, provided they can make their apps more useful.

Unlike the ’sexy’ app ban that took place a few weeks ago, when Apple gave developers no options to keep their apps on the store, over the last month the company has been reaching out to at least a few app building services to suggest what they should be doing.

The founders of Appmakr, which has been used by publications like The Atlantic to build iPhone applications, say that the process has been quite positive (though they are quick to clarify that applications built with their tools are more full-featured than the basic RSS apps described above). After some suggestions from Apple, the service is integrating new features like in-app purchases, instant notifications, offline access, and landscape viewing modes to their app templates. Another developer mentioned that they might include a tip calculator for restaurant apps. Appmakr’s hope (and one that I’m sure is shared by other developers) is that applications generated using their tools will eventually be given an accelerated path through the App Store’s approval process, because Apple is familiar and happy with the kind of apps they produce.

However, from what I’ve gathered not everyone is having as much luck as the Appmakr team. Multiple developers mentioned that they’d heard of some app vendors that Apple wasn’t being nearly as accommodating towards — I suspect services offering the most basic templates are getting hit hardest. That said, the developers I spoke to said that they’d only heard about Apple blocking newly submitted applications, and that there wasn’t an indication that Apple is going back and removing all of the overly-basic apps they can find.

So why is Apple doing this? Here’s what Medialets CEO Eric Litman had to say, which I think perfectly summarizes the situation.

This is the ongoing balance point between encouraging innovation and growth on one side and wanting to tightly control user experience on the other. Apple wants iPhone apps to be superior to Web experiences because they are extremely sticky and drive people specifically to buy the iPhone over competing smartphone platforms. Apps that are too simple or largely indistinguishable from the Web, other apps or particularly other apps on other platforms send the message to end users that the iPhone app ecosystem might not be particularly special.

Now the challenge for Apple is that the app building platforms are extremely attractive to a wide swath of the market that would otherwise be reluctant to bear the cost and complexity of developing an app from scratch. We have already seen apps from personal bloggers up to major media brands using some of these platforms, and many of the folks in that spectrum have content Apple would certainly want in the App Store. Interestingly, some of those same developers also have fully custom-built apps in the App Store, too.

So what are the platforms to do about the recent crackdown from Apple? There’s really only one choice if they want to continue to exist on the iPhone: invest in building out considerably more flexibility into their platforms to allow each app to differ from the others they build. Integrate more features and take the time to nail the design and UI elements to be representative of what Apple wants to see in every app.

For better or worse, Apple will be looking more closely at apps from the platforms than from individual developers. AppLoop, the first startup to announce and iPhone-specific app builder, is already gone. Others will almost certainly follow.

Overall, this will almost certainly result in a better experience for users as they have to deal with fewer spammy apps. But, as I wrote when Apple launched its war on sex apps last month, the policy change may also scare developers. After effectively sending a message to developers that basic applications were okay, Apple is again changing its mind.  Some developers may be hesitant to build their businesses around the iPhone, knowing that at any moment Apple could change its mind and cut off their only mode of distribution.

Thanks to Robert Strojan for the tip
Photo by Goosmurf

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Bad news: HTC says the Nexus One doesn’t ‘go in pockets’

One of the biggest mysteries in the blogosphere right now is probably Crave’s Nexus One, which somehow developed a cracked screen while simply charging on the desk (sounds familiar, right?). Not even HTC could unearth the cause from its forensic inspection, but it didn’t rule out the possibility of a small crack growing over time due to, for example, “getting knocked around by keys” and repetitive squeezes in tight pockets. That’s fine, but saying “people sometimes forget that they don’t go in pockets” is surely stretching a bit, no? What happened to the awesomeness in the compression test and bend test that we once witnessed? More importantly, has anyone here had the same baffling screen problem and been charged £180 ($273) for the repair? If so, do share your pain with us — we’ve got a shoulder for you.

Bad news: HTC says the Nexus One doesn’t ‘go in pockets’ originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 06 Mar 2010 03:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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CloudBlue’s growth calls attention to mounting e-waste problem

CloudBlue Technologies, a company that manages the disposal of e-waste — thrown away electronics ranging from laptops to medical equipment components — says it has just landed a second round of financing, as well as 25 new Fortune 500 clients in the last year, calling attention to a growing yet oft-neglected problem.

The company’s new recruits come from a range of sectors, including insurance, media, manufacturing, finance and healthcare. In today’s knowledge economy, no industry is immune from e-waste. Businesses lacking computers and mobile phones are unheard of, regardless of size. And all of these electronics need to periodically be replaced. In the past, their predecessors would have ended up in landfills despite major opportunities for recycling and reuse — not to mention the toxic or hazardous materials many of them contain.

But companies big and small are running out of excuses for this behavior. New government environmental regulations are requiring strict e-waste disposal measures and non-compliance comes at a hefty price. While this is bad news for enterprises set in their ways, its a huge boon for companies like CloudBlue, which helps them shift course and mitigate their risk.

Based in Georgia, the company tracks every phase of e-waste disposal, from pickup to transportation to recycling. With 16 facilities around the world, it is able to send its own trucks to collect waste in an energy efficient manner that is guaranteed to comply with all regulations and dodge big fines.

E-waste presents several unique challenges. Not only do electronics contain many small, intricate components that need to be dealt with individually, most of them — especially in the enterprise space — contain proprietary information or identification tags that need to be thoroughly and responsibly erased before they are disposed of. CloudBlue takes care of all of these processes, it says.

By and large, the U.S. is behind when it comes to e-waste management. Several states have passed bans on e-waste in general landfills, which is a start, but by no means a solution. Europe covered this a long time ago. That said, the European Union is taking a lot of heat right now because recyclers are doing a poor job of removing toxic materials and properly extracting and processing the pricier metals.

Another big issue: Some e-waste disposal companies are simply shipping what they collect to developing countries where they rot in distant landfills, endangering nearby populations and crippling their own environmental efforts. For example, watchdog organization the Basel Action Network has just called out CRT Recycling for exporting tossed computer monitors to Indonesia. While the Environmental Protection Agency has done its best to regulate against this practice, objectionable shipments still make it through. CloudBlue assures its clients that none of their waste leaves the U.S., but it can’t turn this tide all by itself.

While it wouldn’t disclose the amount of its recent venture round, the company says it came from Riverwood Capital. It previously raised $9.92 million, including $3.57 million in December 2009 that may have been rolled into this current round.

Companies: CloudBlue Technologies, Riverwood Capital

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Hitler Rants About Cloud Security and Updates His Facebook Page

It’s a Friday morning and goodness knows we will be up to our eyeballs in discussions next week as the RSA Conference shovels out enough cloud security news for us all to groan just a bit.

So, let’s lighten it up a bit with one of the funnier YouTube videos that spoofs Hitler. This time, the subject is cloud computing in “Der Führer in Cloud Computing,” by Marcus Ranum and Gunnar Peterson.

Sponsor

Hitler’s generals have to deliver some bad news. Someone tampered with the The Third Reich’s customer database and changed every last name to “pwnz0red.”

This is really funny. I know the Hitler parodies get a bit overplayed but this one works. The cloud is so ripe for satire. And this one hits it right on the mark.

Discuss

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It’s February 23rd, do you know where your Spring Design Alex is?

We hate to be the bearers of bad news, but it looks like the lovely Spring Design Alex has quietly missed its ship date. Back at CES the word was Febuary 22nd and, after spending a little quality time with the thing, we’ve been counting the days. Here we are on February 23rd and the only thing up for sale at the Spring Design website is a “coming soon” note, and we already have more of those than we know what to do with. Even more discouraging, the Borders site is still listing only Sony Readers up for sale. We’ve reached out to Spring Design to see what’s up, so hang onto your pulp until we get a response.

[Thanks, Matthäus]

It’s February 23rd, do you know where your Spring Design Alex is? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 23 Feb 2010 08:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Upcoming Outlook for Mac remains shrouded in mystery

SAN FRANCISCO—Microsoft’s Mac Business Unit (Mac BU) announced during the 2010 Macworld Expo more information about the upcoming Office 2011 for Mac, and users are excited despite the lack of details. Scheduled to be released before the holiday season this year, the revamped Office suite is bringing more parity than ever to the Mac version while still being as Mac-like as it can be.

The bit of news that generated the most questions—at least to those of us in the Ars Orbiting HQ—is related to Outlook for Mac. Old is new again, at least for Mac users who have been begging Microsoft for years to introduce an e-mail client comparable to its Windows offerings. The company announced the arrival of Outlook to the Mac back in August of 2009, but revealed this week that Outlook 2011 would have support for .PST files. The good news, as we discovered by sitting down with the Mac BU, is that Outlook for Mac will support bringing them in from Outlook for Windows. The bad news is that the company has “nothing to announce” (at least not at this point) regarding auto-archiving to PST.

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Anxious Yahoo BOSS Developers To Speak With DOJ About Microsoft Deal

In July 2008, Yahoo announced a radical new product called BOSS, or “Build Your Own Search Service” that lets developers tap into Yahoo’s core search index with an unprecedented amount of flexibility. Now, in light of the Microsoft/Yahoo search deal that was announced last summer, the future of BOSS is uncertain. That’s bad news for the many developers who have built projects on the BOSS APIs, some of whom are building businesses off of the service. Now, after being met with months of silence and uncertainty, some BOSS developers are taking action: they’ve scheduled a conference call with the Department of Justice to discuss their concerns.

It’s understandable why the developers are agitated. Google and Bing both offer APIs, but they limit monetization options, limit the ways developers can change the way their search results are presented, and have myriad other restrictions that BOSS doesn’t. All of which means that developers can’t easily port their applications over to one of the alternatives.

A developer identifying himself as “Phil” on the BOSS Yahoo Group sent a letter to the DOJ outlining his concerns. The DOJ has apparently responded, saying that they will hold a conference call with any concerned developers (the group contains instructions for any BOSS developers who wish to join). We have a request in with the DOJ to verifiy that the call is scheduled, but it sounds legitimate.

We’ve reprinted Phil’s letter to the DOJ, which outlines the developers’ concerns, below:

Dear sir/madam,

I represent a group of people who are concerned about a certain aspect of an
antitrust issue which we understand is currently being examined by your office.
The matter at hand is the Microsoft-Yahoo deal. Our concern is the following:

In July 2008, Yahoo introduced a new program called Yahoo Boss. Boss is a
programming framework (called an API) which allows developers to create new
search engines which use the Yahoo database. In Yahoos own words:

“BOSS (Build your Own Search Service) is Yahoo!’s open search web services
platform. The goal of BOSS is simple: to foster innovation in the search
industry. Developers, start-ups, and large Internet companies can use BOSS to
build and launch web-scale search products that utilize the entire Yahoo! Search
index. BOSS gives you access to Yahoo!’s investments in crawling and indexing,
ranking and relevancy algorithms, and powerful infrastructure. By combining your
unique assets and ideas with our search technology assets, BOSS is a platform
for the next generation of search innovation, serving hundreds of millions of
users across the Web.”

(Quote from http://developer.yahoo.com/search/boss/)

The reason this program is so important is because before Boss, tens, if not
hundreds of millions of dollars would be required to start a new search engine.
Boss changed all that by making Yahoos own servers and search results available
to third parties. In the year and a half since, tens, if not hundreds of
companies and web developers have spent thousands of hours developing new
websites, web applications and search engines using Yahoo Boss. By May 2009,
Yahoo Boss was serving 30 million search queries a DAY through these websites
(http://www.ysearchblog.com/2009/05/19/key-milestones-for-searchmonkey-and-boss/
). Clearly, Yahoo Boss is a unique program which has been the biggest catalyst
in search engine innovation and competition in years.

Google and Microsoft do have their own similar APIS, but they are severely
limited. Googles API gives the user but a small number of search results, while
both Google and Microsofts apis disallow open monetization, thus rendering them
meaningless from a competitive point of view.

Over the many months since the Microsoft-Yahoo deal was announced, countless
developers have been asking Yahoo for information on the future of Yahoo Boss,
yet in vain. Yahoo refuses to tell us whether the framework will be shut down or
not. This is even after the two companies announced that all the details of
their deal had been fleshed out. This has given us the distinct feeling that the
decision to shut down Boss has already been made, but that they prefer to keep
that quiet in order to not “rock the boat”.

Obviously, this is of great concern to us. In addition to all the time and work
we have put in, Boss is the ONLY factor which has allowed broad and viable
competition in the search engine industry. Shutting down Boss would by default
mean shutting down all the websites using it, in addition to signifying the end
to the aforementioned competition.

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Rogers signed up to carry Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 as a Canadian exclusive

We still don’t know whether T-Mobile is going to take on-contract advantage of the X10’s AWS version in the States, but as far as we can tell, WIND won’t be taking advantage of it in Canada now that Rogers has locked it up as an exclusive. The bad news is that it won’t be launching until some time in the second quarter — but when you think back to the X1 and the excruciating 16-month delay between announcement and retail on Rogers, that ain’t half bad. Now, Rogers, just push HTC to rethink its decision not to move past 1.5 on the Magic and Dream and you’re doing alright by us (at least as far as Android gear goes).

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Rogers signed up to carry Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 as a Canadian exclusive originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 05 Jan 2010 15:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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