Posts in Linked

Lessons From The Yahoo Weather App→

Dan Frommer:

“Do we really need another weather app?” Actually, if it’s better, we do. Imagine if they’d stopped making new search engines after HotBot or new smartphones after the Samsung BlackJack.

I couldn’t agree more.

For free/inexpensive apps, the traditional rules of market saturation allow consumers to more comfortably try new apps; at the same time, annual OS updates enable developers to constantly experiment with more powerful technologies to fix problems consumers didn’t even think they had.

Apps are not refrigerators. With software, the diffusion of innovations is cyclic, and that’s why, as far as the App Store is concerned, editorial curation, smart recommendations, and new discovery algorithms will be key areas of improvement. We should never stop thinking about tomorrow.

Permalink

Why Are Calendar Apps Dumb?→

Smart piece by Jason Snell.

There are two key factors involved here: old interface patterns and constant data collection. New designs can be experimented with; parsing data introduces layers of complexity that go deeper than providing a new month view.

Google is working on this kind of technology with Now. It’s plausible to assume Apple is, too.

Permalink

Exploring The Pros and Cons of Freemium Gaming On iOS→

Great article by Craig Grannell, who interviewed several game developers.

In particular, this part:

More often, though, you hear about, as Ismail puts it, games specifically designed to be “less fun unless you pay, but just addictive enough that you want to play”. Money and research is poured into analytics, metrics, monetisation and behavioural targeting. “The difficulty for me is you’re then no longer designing the most engaging experience for a player, and are instead designing mechanics around getting people to drop money as often as possible,” says Perrin, who likens this system to the gambling industry.

As a long-time gamer, I still find myself wondering whether In-App Purchases will eventually prove to be a healthy model for the quality and economic viability of games. I like to think that it’s possible to use IAPs without being evil, but that far too many companies are exploiting them. Keep in mind, though, that I’m biased.

Our previous articles on games and IAPs still hold true today: there’s a conflict between economics and goodwill, but I’d argue that, ultimately, value is what truly matters.

Permalink

Apple Posts “Learn More About In-App Purchases” Page In iPad App Store→

Good move by Apple. The page contains screenshots, links to support documents, and a clear explanation of Parental Controls. Apple knows that In-App Purchases are usually bought by children using their parents’ devices, and they also made sure to explain the differences between IAPs to “remove ads” and “buy virtual food”.

It’s strange that the, in the US, the page is only featured on the iPad App Store.

This doesn’t fix the several other problems with In-App Purchases and developers exploiting the platform. Games like this shouldn’t be approved to begin with. Hopefully a section that highlights clever, genuine implementations of In-App Purchases is next.

Permalink

End WWDC→

The whole point of the conference needs to be rethought, and the goals addressed from scratch using new approaches. As the greatest challenge for WWDC is in scaling to meet demand, I think it’s obvious that the rethought WWDC should be considered in terms of digital solutions. Call it WWDC if you like, but it needs to take place 365 days a year instead of 4. It needs to serve 300,000 developers, not 5,000. And it needs to take place online, not within the cramped confines of a small convention center in San Francisco.

Daniel Jalkut says that it’s time for something better than WWDC. The entire post is worth a read.

Personally, I think it’d be interesting to see an expansion of the Tech Talk World Tour that Apple did in late 2011. But even in that case, venues were limited, and I imagine traveling around the world put a lot of stress on Apple engineers. Having Apple staff at smaller, independent conferences could help, but those would need to be several conferences each year, otherwise the same issues would arise.

I agree with Daniel. Maybe, with hundreds of thousands of developers, the solution that makes the most sense is a digital one.

Permalink

Sunstroke Fever Client Goes Universal→

Solid update to one of my favorite Fever apps.

The new version includes an iPad version (with a very classic Mail-like layout), a URL scheme to start a refresh and go back to other apps, and local notifications to be informed when sync has completed. Good release from an integration standpoint, too: you can now open links in Chrome (with callbacks), save via Pinbook, or share on App.net via Riposte.

Sunstroke is $4.99 on the App Store. Here’s my original review.

Permalink