Wouldn't total-utilitiarian then prefer a population of 1000000 mostly unhappy people over a population of 100 very happy people? In that case it would at least be an awkward benchmark, as you just need to procreate as much as possible to get the "best" scenario.
Yes, there's an interesting thing on that here:
http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/repugnant-conclusion/
I haven't looked at enough philosophy to be able to figure out what I'd place myself as, average-utilarianism also seems to lead to morally-counter-intuitive stuff.
I'm assuming this is so that if you speak the name of one of your contacts, it understands the word. Names can be weird, especially last names, so they're bound not to be in the standard list of words that can be used. This way you can name your contacts when dictating without the system freaking out.
I was at the talk, and the way he explained it was that the first column allows for less customization. Kenneth said that if he would use Linux he would spend all day tweaking it, and not getting work done. The same goes for pen & paper notes over digital notes, once they're written down, you're not tweaking them anymore. A simple text editor does not have all the fancy functions to play with that an IDE does. So he is indeed advocating the first column, with regards to them being tools that are not as configurable as the second column.
> he would use Linux he would spend all day tweaking it
That is a fatigued point. I use Linux and store the few tweak I have to do manually in a install_note file. Next time I want a fresh install I just follow the doc and in 10 mn I have a fully adapted environment. Then I do not tweak anything more at this level. All subsequent tweaks are vimrc and bashrc modifications that are pushed to bitbucket, and I guess I would do those on MacOS anyway.
Being able to fiddle the config do not mean you have to, and the days are gone when Linux was not that stable.
The thing I actually spend a lot of time tweaking for the few days I have a new device or OS version is my phone (Android). On these little big guys I get back the tweaking excitment I got with my first PCs (Oh! Look, you can change the prompt! Look, you can move the start bar to the top!)
I think what is actually interesting with mobile phone is that they are not stabilized, a lot has to be invented for them, and each new OS version or even some apps really add new possibilities.
But for Linux, Windows or Mac, no new exciting thing is in sight, and spending too much time tweaking the config just mean you have time to spare.
The 30% margin may be high, but the fact that the store keeps some of the money is not that surprising, is it?
I do not believe keeping the price equal to other helps the consumer, it's simply Apple keeping developers from charging the 30% straight to the consumer. I believe it would be interesting if they let this restriction slide. Perhaps the advantage of simple purchasing makes up for an increase in price. Convenience is also worth something, as supermarkets have found out.
The app works very nicely. It can feel a bit unresponsive, for example when you press "Done" on a note it takes some time to upload the note, but you don't see anything, which makes me want to press the button a gazillion more times. Maybe a nice spinner there would make things clearer.
Also, just out of curiosity, how are you planning to make money with this?
I guess the zero friction upgrading refers to the app, not the browser. You can be pretty sure people are running the latest version just by pushing the code to your server. No need to download/install, or update in an app store.
It's different because he did not take the sheet music. He heard the recording and decided to play his own version of it. Music may well be the worst example here, because it happens all the time. Now I'm not sure with regards to the financial side of performing a cover (rather than recording it), but at least in a casual context it happens for free.
I think there's actually a surprisingly good analogy to music here: those "play X on the guitar" tutorials. The original artist plays the song, someone else hears it, figures out how to play it by ear, then offers to teach it (probably their own version/interpretation of the song) for free. Similarly, the OP saw a design, figured out how to code it up himself, and decided to share it with the world.
This is exactly the point that makes using Mongo a breeze. You can just play around with your models without having to worry about a thing. You just code it up as you go along, and your database just works.
I like that they're being honest about this and are focussing on what they are good at. The request push option, useless as it may be with Apple in charge, might be just what is needed. As they already state, allowing an e-mail app into the app store in the first place is a step in the right direction. Why not try to prod Apple to take another one.
The problem is focusing on what they're good at leaves the user with only half a product.
I've just downloaded the app and it's awesome from a UI perspective, but it's never going to be an option as my primary mail app in it's current form which means I really can't recommend it to anyone.
Yes Apple might change their policy on this but it seems unlikely, at least in the short term. I think their best hope would be a new mechanism that allows something like this in OS6 rather than Apple just going "OK" but pragmatically they need to be looking at what they can do rather than crossing their fingers and waiting for Apple.
I'd say it's better to have half a product than to have a product that spills your e-mail credentials all over the web. It's not like they try to hide the shortcoming in their app, they are open about it. If you feel the lack of push is a dealbreaker then you can just not use or buy the app.
It might be better than that but it's not as good as the native mail app which doesn't have those issues, is the incumbent application for this sort of thing and is free and installed on all iPhones from the off.
But that's not really my point. My point is that petitioning Apple likely isn't a productive route for them to follow, they need to look at how they address this problem without relying on a third party who are unlikely to accommodate them.
Gmail has mechanisms for allowing access without you having to share you credentials with another organisation so it can be done. I get that it's not their core competence but if this is a market they want to be in, they might need to start expanding their skills base.
Why not? If Google gives me a crappy mail app on my iPhone I am definitely not switching to Android. On the other hand, if it is high quality I may actually be tempted to switch.
