Frustration

Today has been really been the first time I’ve been frustrated with my decision to jump from Mac to Windows, and I’m not sure where to point the blame for it.

The biggest issue I have both with Windows 8 and Android is the lack of quality apps. I know the Android lovers and Windows fans will decry me being a blind Apple Fanboy, and anybody who is that close-minded is just a waste of my time. They can live in their happy little bubble the way I used to live in my happy little Apple bubble.

The fact that Apple OS X and iOS have a better selection of Apps available isn’t Apple’s fault, per se. I’m not saying that the Apple Branded Apps are better than the Windows branded apps of the same vein, I’m talking strictly 3rd party developers. I would imagine that with Android having more market share than Apple at this point there would be a better selection of Apps available for the platform and more high quality apps.

The issue here is 3rd party developers. I’m not a part of any developer program and I’m not a developer myself, so I’m not certain how each platform approaches their developers. The excuse from Google used to be that Apple had a higher market share than Android, so the developers were going to Apple. That argument no longer holds water, so what is it?

Well, one thing might just be that study after study has shown that Apple users are more likely to pay for their apps, unlike Android users who hate paying for apps and will find any way around paying when they can.

While I can appreciate free, I think most of the people who are busy creating the really high quality apps are putting in blood, sweat and tears (my brother programs high end robotics, so I know something about the life of a coder) into their apps. They want to make a living and ad revenues aren’t making up for money that’s coming in from fully paid apps that do well on the App store.

In App purchases are also more likely to occur on Apple than Android or even Windows phone. I suspect the same reason exists.

Some have pointed to the subscription models that are coming out for some apps as a nod to consumers, however they are now getting paid once a year instead of once when the app is sold initially. This isn’t about what the consumer wants so much as the developer wanting a more regular flow of income to keep themselves in business and food in their bellies. I do not fault them for this approach – the goal here is to make money doing something that you enjoy doing, or creating something fun and/or useful for people.

There’s also a particular integration that can occur within the Apple ecosystem. Create an app that works on the iPhone and iPad and then create more full featured app that works on Mac OS X and integrates seamlessly with and updates to/from the iPhone app. The one that pops into my head is Day One journal, but there are a ton of others. Now, Evernote does more or less the same type of thing cross platform, but I tend to use Evernote as a note taking and research tool rather than a journal.

While the possibility of the same type of ecosystem exists within Microsoft with their phone and desktop OS options, there hasn’t been a huge push in that direction from anybody but Microsoft at this point (please point out examples of where I’m wrong, if I am wrong).

There is no hope of that with Google currently as Chrome OS and Android are so different. Also, Chrome OS is a joke and needs to be retired and Android should be developed for a Desktop version.

I’ve also found navigating the Windows store to be an exercise in frustration and hair pulling. I don’t like the setup or the interface. It’s not easy, it’s not simple and it’s certainly not easy on the eyes. The fact is, the Windows store in Windows 8 is awful and needs a complete redesign.

While the Google Play Store is setup far better than the Windows Store, it still isn’t as easy to navigate as the Apple App Store. It’s just plain frustrating sometimes.

More so in the Android Google Play Store, I find when I start to download an app it will suddenly tell me what permissions it needs. I find it interesting that a flashlight needs access to my contacts and my network. Other apps don’t need those sorts of permissions and I still receive calls with caller ID just fine.

I will once again point at iMessage as the best IM service out there to date. Unlike other services, like Skype, if I read a message on my iPhone and then sit down and open iMessage on my iMac, it won’t tell me I have twenty unread messages from a conversation I had two hours ago. It understands that I read those messages on my phone and doesn’t alert me again. Also, if I’m on my iMac and receive a message in the background, my phone will go off and display a message on the lock screen, however if I read that message on my iMac by bringing iMessage to the front, the notification on my iPhone goes away. This is awesome and the sort of thing that should be available from EVERYBODY.

I am, in fact, so frustrated with the lack of quality apps I’m worried that after my 12 months on Windows, I’ll go back to the Mac so I can get my hands on the quality 3rd party apps that are only available on Apple.

And please folks, tell me about awesome, paid apps on Android and Windows if there are any. I’m always willing to pay money for the apps I use and support the developers of those apps. Especially if that means I don’t have to deal with stupid advertisements that interrupt game play or reduce the usefulness of the app.

It used to be that if you wanted the good software, you went to Microsoft because that’s where it was. Now it seems to be Apple that has all the good stuff while Microsoft and Android try to play catch-up.

I don’t know what you guys need to do to entice developers to code excellent software for Android and Microsoft, but whatever it is, you better find a way to do it soon.

As a note…

I don’t know many app developers, so I haven’t had a chance to talk to any prior to writing this, though now that I’m tapping away on my keyboard, I’m beginning to realize that I should talk to some of the folks that do develop and see if they do any cross platform development and then come back and do a more detailed post with more input.