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Apple Didn't Invent the App Store

michaelrobertson.com

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Re: Apple Didn't Invent the App Store

#11

Post by foob »

cmsj wrote: post #4

In which a minor freetard business celebrity fails to distinguish trademarks from patents.

I think you're being overly harsh. He quotes Apple's legal papers in which they clearly state that the concept of an app store is unprecedented and then he exposes that as inaccurate. You might think of him as a "minor freetard business celebrity" but he took the brilliance of Linux software repositories, made them easier to use and more accessible, and integrated in the ability to pay for software long before Apple did the exact same thing. That makes him extremely qualified to offer some insight on the topic regardless of how big of a celebrity he is. It also explains why he focuses on countering Apple's claim that they invented the concept despite it being less relevant to the trademark dispute.

He was also involved with the Microsoft v. Lindows case in which Microsoft claimed to own the trademark on all words that rhyme with Windows. Remember that one? Where Microsoft couldn't win so they ended up paying $20 million to Lindows for them to change their name to Linspire? He's had direct experience with a frivolous trademark suit from a major software company in the past. Again, that makes him highly qualified to share an opinion on the current situation, which he does. He directly addressed the fact that that app store had been in common usage before Apple started using it. It would've been nice if he could have given more concrete examples but he did still address it.

In conclusion, calling him a freetard is childish and contributes nothing to the discussion of the article. Saying that he fails to distinguish trademarks from patents is flat out wrong and gives people skimming the comments a totally inaccurate impression of the article and its relevance.

Re: Apple Didn't Invent the App Store

#13

Post by ryanhuff »

Anechoic wrote: post #2

> And like the term "Windows", "App Store" is a generic computing term that was in use prior to Apple's product. Is there an example of the usage of the term "App Store" before Apple popularized it? The date search via Google hasn't turned up anything. edit: I did find this blog post from 2006: http://nerddawg.blogspot.com/2006/08/debugging-windows-prese...

Is that a reference to a store, as in a place that sells things, or a store as in storage? I am not familiar with the topic discussed on the page, but to me, the term "app store" is referring to app caching/storage mechanism.

Re: Apple Didn't Invent the App Store

#14

Post by tvon »

defroost wrote: post #12
cmsj wrote: post #4

In which a minor freetard business celebrity fails to distinguish trademarks from patents.

"Freetard"? What are you twelve? A corporate troll or a Windows user? I will be so happy when this "*-tard" meme goes away, it is truly irksome.

I think Fake Steve Jobs coined the term... and it doesn't sound any worse than "fanboy" to me.

Re: Apple Didn't Invent the App Store

#15

Post by Anechoic »

ryanhuff wrote: post #13
Anechoic wrote: post #2

> And like the term "Windows", "App Store" is a generic computing term that was in use prior to Apple's product. Is there an example of the usage of the term "App Store" before Apple popularized it? The date search via Google hasn't turned up anything. edit: I did find this blog post from 2006: http://nerddawg.blogspot.com/2006/08/debugging-windows-prese...

Is that a reference to a store, as in a place that sells things, or a store as in storage? I am not familiar with the topic discussed on the page, but to me, the term "app store" is referring to app caching/storage mechanism.

I'm not sure, I suspect it refers to storage, but that was the only example of the term 'app store' that I could find prior to Apple's app store announcement.

Re: Apple Didn't Invent the App Store

#16

Post by [deleted] »

Anechoic wrote: post #15
ryanhuff wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is that a reference to a store, as in a place that sells things, or a store as in storage? I am not familiar with the topic discussed on the page, but to me, the term "app store" is referring to app caching/storage mechanism.

I'm not sure, I suspect it refers to storage, but that was the only example of the term 'app store' that I could find prior to Apple's app store announcement.

[deleted]

Re: Apple Didn't Invent the App Store

#17

Post by beej71 »

Anechoic wrote: post #15
ryanhuff wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is that a reference to a store, as in a place that sells things, or a store as in storage? I am not familiar with the topic discussed on the page, but to me, the term "app store" is referring to app caching/storage mechanism.

I'm not sure, I suspect it refers to storage, but that was the only example of the term 'app store' that I could find prior to Apple's app store announcement.

Usenet post from February 2000 offhandedly refers to Electronics Boutique as "basically a PC app store". Arguably, this is meant as ((PC app) store).

Not that it's particularly surprising someone would use the term; most etymology references I can find for "app" put it about 20 years old, in line with the term "killer app". ("Killer app" seems to make an appearance on Usenet in 1989.)

But Apple has the trademark, and they're going to defend it regardless of, well, anything.

Re: Apple Didn't Invent the App Store

#18

Post by coob »

List of things Apple didn't 'invent':

* WIMP GUI * All-in-one PCs * Laser Printers * USB * Hard drive audio players * Online media/software marketplaces

List of things Apple made wildly popular with the general populace:

* WIMP GUI * All-in-one PCs * Laser Printers * USB * Hard drive audio players * Online media/software marketplaces

Re: Apple Didn't Invent the App Store

#19

Post by stuhacking »

defroost wrote: post #12
cmsj wrote: post #4

In which a minor freetard business celebrity fails to distinguish trademarks from patents.

"Freetard"? What are you twelve? A corporate troll or a Windows user? I will be so happy when this "*-tard" meme goes away, it is truly irksome.

Freetard, iFag, luser, Microdroid, B1ff, Pointy haired, Marketroid.

The 'us and them' mentality exists across many boundaries and I don't think it's going away any time soon. Most just learn to ignore it because whatever you decide is good, someone, somewhere, disagrees with you.

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