The author clearly mistakes indifference for antagonism. Yes the majority of consumer devices are both Unix and programmer indifferent. One might argue that for the vast majority of people this is a good thing. And followers of the Unix way never really seem to run out of ways to scratch their itch anyway.
iOS is anti-Unix and anti-programmer
91–100 of 144 posts
Re: iOS is anti-Unix and anti-programmer
#92Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm not anti-iOS, I'm anti-all current mobile OSes. I think you present a false dichotomy. I shouldn't have to know how the engine in my car works, but I should have the option of tinkering with it if I wish. And I do expect my car to be componentized. I expect it to have a transmission, an alternator, a radiator, etc. While I have no preferences for how those components are designed, I expect them to work, on the wh…
In the theory that comes from a cursory glance, someone could make an OS that's portable, composable, open, free, changeable and tinkerable, etc. and that's easier to use than any system that's available today. That'd be great. But in practice, as systems exhibit more of those traits more strongly, they, as a general rule, become less and less of a coherent, unified whole and more of the internal workings become expo…
I disagree, and I would use desktop linux as the counter example. A distribution like Ubuntu is nowadays opinionated on user-experience questions while still maintaining the ability to easily swap out the DE for something else if the user so wishes.
That this hasn't happened on mobile just means we haven't reached the point of interchangeable hardware. I just worry that patents are the primary reason for this, and that we may never enjoy the same level of freedom in phones that we have on PCs.
Re: iOS is anti-Unix and anti-programmer
#93Eh, I can understand the outrage the author feels. I used to be so pissed off when people were contented with their iOS devices. But I have my Nexus One, I can hack the hell out of it, it is state of the art, and I don't really care what anybody else uses. If people find that trading freedom for convenience is acceptable, then that is their choice to make.
Re: iOS is anti-Unix and anti-programmer
#94Earlier quoted context omitted.
I wonder how many of the people here decrying iOS as a radical loss of freedom would be willing to learn how the engine of their car works in order to drive it, or how all the machinery in a dentist's office works in order to get a checkup. We live in an age of specialization and iOS just represents a far less leaky abstraction for the average user than the operating systems of the past.
I'm not anti-iOS, I'm anti-all current mobile OSes. I think you present a false dichotomy. I shouldn't have to know how the engine in my car works, but I should have the option of tinkering with it if I wish. And I do expect my car to be componentized. I expect it to have a transmission, an alternator, a radiator, etc. While I have no preferences for how those components are designed, I expect them to work, on the wh…
There's no free lunch. Flexible and easy are dichotomous. In the past the average user has paid the price for the greater choice we hackers have enjoyed. Who are we to say that this tradeoff was fair? Modern cars are not hackable but you'll be hard pressed to find a typical driver that doesn't consider this a fair bargain for increased reliability and ease of operation.
You can talk all you want about how things should be but the facts on the ground are that Apple has done more for the experience of the average user than any of the hacker idealists at the FSF/GNU etc.
Re: iOS is anti-Unix and anti-programmer
#95I wouldn't expect anything less from a programmer. But then programmers (as customers) are not the ones making Apple the most valuable company in the world. Comparing something made by programmers for programmers to something made by a consumer product company for consumers is pure nonsense.
Re: iOS is anti-Unix and anti-programmer
#96I love composability as much as the author, but his opinion is, to put it kindly, not well informed. iOS has a myriad of mechanisms for sharing content within and between apps, bot from the same developer and from different developers, with and without prior agreement, and for composing workflows and experiences that are greater than the sum of the parts. Some of these mechanisms are new, and the possibilities have n…
iOS does not provide tools for programmers. At least not an Objective-C compiler. I don't think any modern OS comes with a built in C compiler though. Apple has provided these things for iOS
Re: iOS is anti-Unix and anti-programmer
#97I love composability as much as the author, but his opinion is, to put it kindly, not well informed. iOS has a myriad of mechanisms for sharing content within and between apps, bot from the same developer and from different developers, with and without prior agreement, and for composing workflows and experiences that are greater than the sum of the parts. Some of these mechanisms are new, and the possibilities have n…
You are missing the point. What the author wants is a composable toolbox. He knows it's possible, he can wield them proficiently, and the gains are numerous, but the system doesn't give him the means to do that. You can't pipe iPad apps. You can't filter emails from a file using a single line of Objective-C. Development environments don't have the practicality of typing text in a shell for instant execution. If I und…
You can't pipe iPad apps.
Yes you can, through custom URL schemes.
Re: iOS is anti-Unix and anti-programmer
#98I expect nothing less from a programmer. But then programmers (as customers) are not the ones making Apple the most valuable company in the world. Comparing something made by programmers for programmers to something made by a consumer product company for consumers is pure nonsense.
Re: iOS is anti-Unix and anti-programmer
#99I don't get the article, at all. Do you have a command line in your car to change the radio station? Do you expect to have the controls when being on a plane? You want a device that let's you program? Buy a notebook. I hear the MacBook Airs are excellent. Some of my friends are musicians and LOVE the iPad. Garageband on it blew their mind. Does every computing device need to behave like a PC?
Don't attempt to reason with the self-righteous. Apple is EVIL, they are stealing your freedom, read the memo.
Re: iOS is anti-Unix and anti-programmer
#100Earlier quoted context omitted.
In the theory that comes from a cursory glance, someone could make an OS that's portable, composable, open, free, changeable and tinkerable, etc. and that's easier to use than any system that's available today. That'd be great. But in practice, as systems exhibit more of those traits more strongly, they, as a general rule, become less and less of a coherent, unified whole and more of the internal workings become expo…
I disagree, and I would use desktop linux as the counter example. A distribution like Ubuntu is nowadays opinionated on user-experience questions while still maintaining the ability to easily swap out the DE for something else if the user so wishes. That this hasn't happened on mobile just means we haven't reached the point of interchangeable hardware. I just worry that patents are the primary reason for this, and th…
The poster you replied to noted that they become much less of a coherent whole due to those factors. Bringing up desktop Linux is not helping your case against that assertion in the least.