Very whiny. What kind of software developer needs everything spoon-fed to them? "unix loving neck beards"? Oh, ok, I understand now.
You win, RIM (An open letter to RIM's developer relations)
91–100 of 114 posts
Re: You win, RIM (An open letter to RIM's developer relations)
#92Earlier quoted context omitted.
Thanks for the response Matt. As the author, I'm gonna have to disagree about the whiny tone, haha, but obviously you have the right to your own interpretation. I realize the Bueller thing probably came across as bizarre if you're not familiar with the reference (to Ferris Bueller's Day Off), in this case it just kinda means "What? No response?". The wording on RIM's site sure made it seem like the $200 fee would be…
All I meant about the whiny tone is that it seemed like it was written in a bit of a sensationalist way, rather than giving both sides of the story. That being said, your intention was to get RIM's attention, and so I think the sensational tone paid off, because it's here on Hacker News and on DF :) Hah, I know Ferris Bueller, so I get the joke, don't worry, I just thought it seemed redundant after the first one. I a…
I have to disagree that it's an awful process to get apps on an iOS device. I was up and running in under 30 minutes from the time I started the registration process to the time I had an app running on a device.
Point taken about the untapped market of Flash developers. Honestly I hope RIM can turn it around. Like I said, they're the #1 supporter of my university and they support the local economy in a big way. The things I hear from friends who work there though don't give me a lot of hope. The impression I get is that the front line developers share a lot of same concerns that I do.
Re: You win, RIM (An open letter to RIM's developer relations)
#93Earlier quoted context omitted.
C'mon. Did it really take you _days_ to get the provisioning profile stuff working?
Yeah, I mean the process is a little complicated, but it works perfectly if you just follow the instructions step by step (and you don't need to do any of that to run your app in the simulator). I think it took me about an hour the first time, and it takes maybe 10 minutes to generate the certificates and profile after you do it a few times.
> instructions
yeah, if those were available/not just plain wrong when the program started.
Re: You win, RIM (An open letter to RIM's developer relations)
#94Earlier quoted context omitted.
This is a fair point, but its a fair point that completely misses the point. If RIM wants to attract the huge numbers of developers that are flocking to iOS (and, presumably, doing all of their dev work in OS X), they should be doing everything possible to make the switch from iOS development to Playbook development as smooth as possible. And there is no way to do that without addressing the question of Playbook deve…
Maybe they want to attract the huger-still number of developers who aren't flocking to iOS. It's obvious they won't get the rock star developers, but there's a lot more non-rock stars. How is the experience on Windows?
The question is: do they want to compete with Apple for developers? Given Apple's huge success, I can't see how the answer to that question could be anything but "yes".
If RIM's strategy doesn't have some component that involves trying to woo iOS developers to their platform, I predict they will fail.
Re: You win, RIM (An open letter to RIM's developer relations)
#95shut up about Bueller
Re: You win, RIM (An open letter to RIM's developer relations)
#96I hope this letter causes RIM to WAKE UP! You are not the dominant force any more. Get with it.
Re: You win, RIM (An open letter to RIM's developer relations)
#97The complaints are: $200 price to develop with 10 app limit. Multiple registration forms. Requiring multiple downloads. Requiring to purchase vmware fusion. Installer that just copies an iso. Having to password protect the simulator. Bad documentation on how to load an app on the simulator. The comparative ease with which you can do these things with android and ios.
Now I feel like an idiot for spending an hour and half writing it, lol.
No time wasted. And you're a good writer to boot. I thoroughly enjoyed the article.
Re: You win, RIM (An open letter to RIM's developer relations)
#98Ok, as an iPhone + iPad app developer (I created Trainyard), and as a Flash developer who has created a PlayBook app, and as a fellow Canadian, I feel I should weigh in on this. Despite the whiny tone and bizarre "Bueller?" moments, there were a bunch of valid points made. Yes, the amount of forms you have to fill out is ridiculous. Yes, the fact that the simulator .iso has an installer is crazy. With those things, I…
I contacted RIM regarding the whole notarised deal. Here's what they said:
Me: As an independent developer I can afford neither to become incorporated, nor to get a notary signature. Could you explain the reasoning behind this?
RIM: We require our vendors to be 18 years of age or older. This is why we require a notary form.
Me: Is there not a way of proving that I'm over 18 other than spending £200 on a lawyer? I could send you a copy of my drivers license?
RIM: We do not except photocopies unless they are notarized. You can try a local bank or family doctor to see if they will notarize your documentation.
Me: OK, but what you ask for is a certified notary i.e. someone legally authorised as a notary (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Notary). Are you saying that this is not actually the case?
RIM: Correct, we would prefer a certified notary but sometimes it is difficult for people to find them so we make exceptions.
Hopefully helpful to someone. Having dismissed PlayBook development altogether, from what I've learnt since my blog post (http://rizergames.com/blog/2011/02/11/developing-for-playboo...), I might be tempted to give it another go, although the number of things that don't actually work on the simulator is still a massive hurdle.
- Luke
Re: You win, RIM (An open letter to RIM's developer relations)
#99I actually have an approved app for the PlayBook and actually found the entire process quite straight forward, especially considering that both the sdk and simulator are both in beta.
Same here. I didn't find it a problem at all. It required a bit of piecing together, but it was definitely not difficult.
Re: You win, RIM (An open letter to RIM's developer relations)
#100I was put off by having to get my forms notarized, not because it's particularly difficult, but it seems to be a completely unnecessary hurdle. After being dispirited by RIMs process, I immediately went and registered as an Android developer - simple and done within 20 minutes.
I can't comment on the BlackBerry tools (nor the iOS ones, as I don't own a Mac), but although Eclipse+ADT isn't the most elegant solution, it does seem to work fairly well, and didn't take too long to set up.
Obviously a free PlayBook would have been nice, and I would like to have gotten in at the ground-floor of a new platform, but RIM does have to take steps to ensure it's easier for developers to do what they do best - develop, not fight fires in the registration or set-up processes.