[schlu]

In my opinion here are the pros:

- iOS will be around a long time.

- Big brands and startups are basically required to have an app in the App Store if they want to succeed.

- Every year a new version comes out that requires developers to fix bugs and sometimes adopt new technology.

Here are the cons:

- Extremely difficult to build an indie business on iOS given that there is a single distribution channel that you don't control.

- The learning curve is pretty steep.

Here are some other points:

- Good iOS developers are harder to find than good web developers (feels true to me, it might not be).

- You probably won't be on call as an iOS developer (this is important to me, it might not to you).

Developers are paid well across the board. I would pick a technology you enjoy working in and isn't in decline. I believe developers are more likely to succeed if they chase their interest over their salary.

[onion2k]

Big brands and startups are basically required to have an app in the App Store if they want to succeed.

I don't think that will continue to be the case for much longer. It's mirroring the web to an extent - for a long time every business needed to have a website, and now more and more don't bother with anything more than a holding page that directs users to a few social media accounts. Brand apps are likely to go the same way, especially as Apple are doubling down on rejecting apps that don't provide useful functionality now.

Having an app for your brand is worthwhile if you have something to say and something for users to do. If you don't it's painfully obvious that the whole effort was a waste of time.

[zepto]

What brand can you name that wouldn’t have something useful you could do with an app?

[kick]

The Hershey Company.

[zepto]

https://www.hersheys.com/en_us/products/hersheys-milk-chocol...

[kick]

What's the purpose of linking this? It's chocolate...with an emoji stamped on it. There's no app.

[zepto]

No but it’s obvious there could be.

[ryanwaggoner]

People have been saying this for a decade.

[hstreet]

I can promise that they'll be saying this a decade from now too, without much changing.

[ptah]

> - Every year a new version comes out that requires developers to fix bugs and sometimes adopt new technology.

this is a huge bug in the ecosystem from a user perspective as you have to continue paying to keep your software working.

[schlu]

I wish upgrades were easier on the iOS side, but in some instances users are demanding new features. Take for example split screen on the iPad. I takes time to figure out what your interface should look like in different dimensions. I am not sure what Apple could have done about that in advance.

Upgrades on the web take time and resources too. So I don't think this is unique to iOS.

[ptah]

I guess it is a general software problem. Breaking changes in the platform forces developer to put effort into keeping application functioning and that needs to be paid for somehow

[_kwmj]

> You probably won't be on call as an iOS developer (this is important to me, it might not to you).

Thank you! This was the reason I went back to Android dev after trying web dev for 7-8 months. There were other reasons too.

[jpttsn]

> Extremely difficult to build an indie business on iOS given that there is a single distribution channel that you don't control.

Would this imply it is easier to build an indie business on Android?

[schlu]

I don't have any direct experience of building a business on Android. Last I heard iOS users spend more money on the App Store than Android users. I think this implies it is harder. I would think they are both pretty difficult probably in the same order of magnitude to each other.

[jpttsn]

If the walled garden is that bad for indies, indies should do way better on Android, right?

[mygo]

There is significantly more money inside that walled garden. Just a more qualified customer base in terms of willingness to pay.

[jpttsn]

So: on net, the single distribution channel provides access to paying customers, in turn making it easier—-not harder—-for indies to build a business there.

Which makes it wrong to say iOS’s single distribution channel is bad for indies: it’s actually good for indies.

Unless you claim that walled garden and paying users occurring together is a sheer coincidence.

[ryanwaggoner]

I strongly echo all of this.