hackbod wrote: > Note that it in my opinion it wouldn't make any sense to have the > market available at this point, because nobody should be publishing > their apps without first actually running them on a real phone, and > since no phones are yet available,
There is a big difference, though, between not having the market available and not having *information* about the market available. You've stated that phones are necessary before apps can be shipped. That's fine...but it's not all about the phone. To wit: 1. Listing an app in the App Market will undoubtedly require some sort of legal agreement, ranging from a site Terms of Use all the way to a real contract. Every OHA member I've ever dealt with doesn't understand what they're doing with such documents -- they think such agreements are acts of Congress, rather than the marketing brochures they really are. Hence, the agreements to use the App Market, to paraphrase Hobbes, will likely be nasty, brutish, and long. That usually requires review by legal counsel, which can't happen until the agreement is published. Attorneys aren't known for blazing speed, so firms really should be working on that now...but they can't, apparently because there are no phones available. 2. Listing an app in the App Market will undoubtedly require some level of marketing materials, ranging from logos to screenshots to descriptions. Most likely, there will be rules surrounding those materials, such as a maximum length of prose or maximum size and number of images. Firms could have their graphic designer and marketing department working on building those to spec now...but they can't, apparently because there are no phones available. 3. Listing an app in the App Market may require some amount of technical work, ranging from special code-signing rules to embedding such-and-so metadata in the APK (e.g., the PAD/PAR stuff others have been discussing). Firms could be working on integrating those things into their build process now...but they can't, apparently because there are no phones available. 4. Listing an app in the App Market might put unexpected burdens on a developer. For example, it could be the App Market mandates a phone number be published for end user support, or that the developer must adhere to certain privacy guidelines. Firms could be working on evaluating such requirements and figuring out how best to meet them...but they can't, apparently because there are no phones available. It's not my place to say whether the App Market should be fully open at this time, and I definitely appreciate the argument about needing to test apps on actual hardware. However, when it comes to making *information* available about the use of the App Market, an argument of "there are no phones available" doesn't hold water. -- Mark Murphy (a Commons Guy) http://commonsware.com _The Busy Coder's Guide to Android Development_ Version 1.3 Published! --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Android Discuss" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/android-discuss?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
