Updates on the WebOS SDK…

I think that once the SDK is released, and developers start building large apps… that Sprint will likely enforce bandwidth constraints as well. I don’t know if they will be as onerous as the 10 MB restriction that AT&T demanded of Apple.

Jailbreaking iPhone is hardly about pirating apps. While that is an abuse of it, this is not like game console piracy, where piracy outweighs homebrew application usage. In fact, on iPhone, it is quite the opposite. Millions of iPhone OS devices are jailbroken, only a small fraction of those run pirated apps. People like myself, all the way on up to Steve Wozniak, don’t jailbreak their devices to pirate.

We jailbreak so we can use our phones as a modem legally (via FCC mandate), we jailbreak so we can Qik to record video (without buying an iPhone 3G S), and we jailbreak so we can emulate all the classic games that we already own.

The SDK for iPhone was announced on March 6, 2008. The App Store opened on July 10, 2008. The iPhone was released on July 11, 2007.

With that, I think Palm has a good timeline set up. App Store up and running BEFORE the launch of the phone. SDK out within 3 months of the phone release. And lets not forget that we DON’T HAVE TO BE ON WIFI to download apps.

As for a threatened existence of the Pre Dev Wiki, I really don’t think so. They did just open up opensource.palm.com to give us an inner look at the working protocols of the OS. Now I have read Palm’s official statements, and I do understand that they are “urging” developers to wait for the SDK because “it will be better for developers, Palm, carriers, and end users” but all that means is that it is easier for most people. The don’t seem to be telling developers not to do what they want to do, just that they would like to see official offerings. I don’t seem to think that Palm would care if a developer released a flashlight application for free using current rooting processes and then offered it in the App Store for free later. I could see them having issue with offering paid applications for free, but isn’t that what the iPhone jailbreaking is all about?

Palm is dismissing the homebrew community. Android embraced it with a supported unsigned app process. You are completely misrepresenting the Pre Dev Wiki “support”. It’s more like a threatened existence in disguise, and you can be sure we’ll be reporting on that more shortly.

Also, Palm isn’t dismissing anything. They are just stating that “most” users will benefit by waiting for the SDK. Those that are comfortable with rooting their device and programming in VI are being supported… Palm even set up an open source website for them and is fulling supporting the Pre Dev Wiki as long as certain rules (no tethering) are followed.

Even Palm is giving reasons of constraints as to why the SDK is not readily available right now.