Many people are claiming that Java on OS X is going to die now that Apple isn’t going to be creating their own (usually delayed) releases. I think most of these people are forgetting that WebObjects is Java and that is what is behind the iTunes store and all of Apple’s web applications. I don’t think Java is just going to go away anytime soon.
Newspaper Sales Pitch
Brett’s story about a kid trying to sell him a newspaper subscription reminded me of this experience:
We were living in Grand Rapids Michigan in a nice neighborhood of the type that the Grand Rapids Press would love to acquire more subscribers. The phone rang and caller id showed the call was from Arizona. I didn’t know anyone in Arizona at the time, but I answered anyway.
Me: Hello?
Them: Hi, I’m calling people who don’t subscribers to the Grand Rapids Press to see if they would like to start receiving this wonderful newspaper.
Me: Hm. Well I don’t know. Is the paper any good?
Them: Oh yes, it is fabulous. It is really something you need to get to be informed.
Me: I see. Tell me, what state are you in?
Them: Arizona
Me: Have you ever read the Grand Rapids Press?
Them: No.
Me: Then how do you know it is any good?
Them: Well I’ve heard about how wonderful it is from the people I call on the phone.
Me: Didn’t you just say that you were calling people who aren’t subscribers?
Them: Yes. Thats right.
Me: Then how would they know if the paper was any good?
Them: Ummm…
RIM’s plans for the Blackberry
The the iPhone and Android as the platforms of choice for mobile developers. Research in Motion is trying to make the Blackberry platform more attractive. Apple didn’t originally allow developers to write code for their devices and pushed developers to create web apps instead. Personally I think they were just trying to get the distribution part worked out for how apps would be purchased and didn’t want to roll out the hardware and the distribution infrastructure at the same time.
RIM’s response was to create their own “App World” where Blackberry apps can be featured, purchased and downloaded. The purchase process is very convoluted and requires a Paypal account to pay for purchases. Apple on the other hand integrates their purchases with the iTunes store so it is seamless and doesn’t require a third party payment service.
Research in Motion is trying to bring this type of capability to developers as well as in-app purchases for additional content or features–something the iPhone has. While these may help attract developers, the Blackberry platform appears to be going through some big changes. The newest Blackberry, the Torch, runs Blackberry 6 OS and it sounds like 6 will be compatible with some of the more modern Blackberry devices out there.
However, RIM also announced the new Playbook (an odd name considering the company’s focus on corporate sales) would be based on a new operating system from QNX. Comments from several people from RIM make it sound as if this operating system will eventually be what is run on phones as well. It appears unlikely that the QNX operating system will be capable of running on any of the current phones.
OS X is turning into an even bigger asset for Apple because they have an OS that can scale up to run on a large server or down to run on a handheld device. RIM is going to have to work hard to stay relevant–particularly as Apple encroaches on the corporate market where Blackberrys have traditionally had a stronghold.
India’s Commonweath Games
With the Commonwealth Games finished in India, everything came off much better than many were expecting. However, India isn’t getting the public relations boost they were hoping for when the won the rights to host the Commonwealth Games back in 2003.
Much of the work was finished at the last minute and there was a great deal of negative press about whether or not the infrastructure would be complete. Several top athletes decided not to come after the widely reported concern about the filthy living quarters and there weren’t nearly the number of tourists as they were expecting.
In the end, most of the events went smoothly. The venues and infrastructure was completed and the sanitary conditions sound like they were resolved. There was a a problem with the computer system that handled tickets and several events had a lack of spectators while being listed as “sold out”.
Unfortunately the lack of preparation made front page news, while the last minute sprint to get everything done didn’t get nearly the same amount of publicity. Overall, it will probably help India’s reputation. There were no major catastrophes at the actual event, so they were able to pull everything off successfully. The negative PR probably isn’t going to help India get the Olympics anytime soon, but the experience of working under a global spotlight along with the infrastructure that was put in place will probably help them move closer to that goal.
Tapestry 5 Links
I’ve been getting back into Tapestry and wanted to compile a list of the links that have been useful to me.
Mailing Lists
Wooki
Wooki is a project written in Tapestry that lets you collaboratively create online books. The full source is available and it makes for a great reference to see how how things are were setup and configured. The authors have also created some modules for installing tapestry applications, managing database migrations and more. Spread The Source is the blog associated with the project and offers Tapestry code and news.
Tapestry Hotel Booking
The authors of wooki are working on a reference application using Tapestry that will recreate the Seam reference application. They are also writing an online book detailing how it was created. The app will be a hotel booking program and the code is available.
Component Demos
- Tapestry5Demo
- Jumpstart – Demonstrates how to do various things and also can be used to “jumpstart” a Tapestry project by providing a working app with basic user management and security.
- Appspot Component Test – A Google App Engine deployed version of the test app1 that is part of Tapestry core.
Startup Apps
These are some applications that make it easier to get started. They help set everything up for you and sometimes give you basic user management or security.
- Jumpstart – As previously mentioned.
- AppFuse – Lets you create a basic web application by choosing between a number of different web frameworks.
Modules and Components for Tapestry
Blogs
Books
- Tapestry 5: Building Web Applications – Nice step-by-step guide, but is geared for Tapestry 5.0 and there have been a lot of improvements. Still well worth reading.
- Tapestry 5 – This book is in German, but it is being translated and should be part of Mannings Early Access Program very soon.