[9cb14c1ec0]

Google Play has been a huge drag on innovation and security in the mobile ecosystem. I'm actually looking forward to the time when AI kills the mobile app ecosystem so that every phone manufacturer can bundle their own "vibe-code-your-own-app" system with their devices, and the Google Play monopoly is broken.

[miketery]

I don't think that will happen. Sure for a minority of users the same as people running linux for their daily driver, and I definitely support it!

It's possible that we get to a place where everyone cooks their own meal (vibe coded app), and only goes out to eat sometimes (official app store). Spreadsheets are the same, you can get a lot of milage, and most still buy and use closed source software.

Reminds me of this: https://www.robinsloan.com/notes/home-cooked-app/

[bflesch]

I see a future where it is easier for startups to create their own mobile devices than to deliver certain functionality through the Google and Apple platforms where your own data will be used against you and where their devices can record you 24/7 without any remediation to ensure privacy.

[bluGill]

Unlikely for most. For some situations yes, but for most situations customers are going to demand that you work with their existing phone.

[doublerabbit]

Let's rewind 15 years ago when everyone was jumping and praising mobile Eco-systems. Did no one ever see this happening or were most too gullible with Facebook hugs and pokes

[wongarsu]

My recollection of HN 15 years ago includes a lot of annoyance with apps that could have been a website and how these walled gardens harm our freedom

[doublerabbit]

Got my date wrong. What about twenty years ago?

[applfanboysbgon]

In 2006, before Android, the iPhone, or app store existed? Were you even alive 20 years ago?

[dredmorbius]

Keep in mind that the 1st-gen iPhone only supported a small set of built-in apps. Third-party apps didn't appear until 2008.

<https://www.macstories.net/stories/10-years-of-app-store-a-t...>

HN discussion at the time:

- Apple iPhone SDK Event: iFund - $100 Million for iPhone Devs <https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=130686>

And some early skepticism: "iPhone SDK And Restrictions: Some Of The Details Aren’t Great" (7 Mar 2008) <https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=131171> Mostly concerns limitations on the API and what capabilities are exposed.

And for those who care to do more digging, a couple of searches bounded on 5 Mar 2008 -- 6 Mar 2012, the first 4 years of the App store:

"iphone sdk": <https://hn.algolia.com/?dateEnd=1331078400&dateRange=custom&...>

"iphone apps": <https://hn.algolia.com/?dateEnd=1331078400&dateRange=custom&...>

"iOS apps": <https://hn.algolia.com/?dateEnd=1331078400&dateRange=custom&...>

A very cursory eyeball of those shows some interest, but nothing overwhelmingly panglossian or critical. But I've not looked in depth.

[doublerabbit]

Yes, I am 37. What about you? I was hosting an IRCd on my 33.2k modem at night using Hybrid-IRCd before that ratbox. I recall XFree86 before Xorg and running Linux on my 486dx running kernel 2.x

https://distrowatch.com/table-mobile.php?distribution=icepac...

My first mobile phone was a Siemens m35i, eventually followed by a Sony Ericsson k500.

Where the Nokia 3310 phone couls receive animated icons via SMS messages that displayed on the background as well as looking at ascii smut via WAP at the age of 15.

So yes, what do you take me for? A disappointed cynical 37 year old who's watched the world burn in to a walled garden of hell that folk enjoy licking the grey walls of.

I do recall the rainbow fences where one could happily jump over if you got bored. Where anxiety wasn't a thing and folk were in touch with nature.

[frollogaston]

Every semi-smart phone I used before the iPhone existed either had no app ecosystem, or it had a super walled-off one that nobody complained about because it was probably unused.

Which is kinda where I'm at with cars. Idk what this stuff about VW supporting a mobile OS means, cause my car can't really talk to any phone unless you count Bluetooth audio.

[applfanboysbgon]

> everyone was jumping and praising mobile Eco-systems.

Literally who?

[mystraline]

The app-devs were salivating on striking it rich on a garbage app.

The rest of us groan when we hear "DOWNLOAD OUR APP" or grocery stores that want you to install their spyware coupon app.

These days, nost apps are just data exflitrators, spyware portals, and surveillance pricing initiatives, wrapped up with a "FREE THINGY" wrapping.

[mrhottakes]

> These days, nost apps are just data exflitrators, spyware portals, and surveillance pricing initiatives, wrapped up with a "FREE THINGY" wrapping.

This describes almost every "tech" product

[code_duck]

There were a lot of companies who thought an app was preferable to a mobile website (which is still true today). For example, around 2010-11 I was working on Etsy API stuff at the time but had no interest in making a mobile app for anything, and saw a few developers and apps acquihired by Etsy.