Apple and Microsoft are closed. Google is open. There is, I think, a case for both. The debate now rages over which is better and what will work. I think they both will. Apple and Google will win this war unless Microsoft can move out of the 1960’s.
Google wins for functional tools and “gets” the Cloud concept much better than Apple does. Or at least sees it differently. Chrome as a browser just has more Cloud features and is a workhorse now for the heavy Webcentric user.
Apple has everything locked down. Even iAd will be locked down in how it enables ads to work. I think there is a place for Apple though. Here’s why;
– It Works: Consumers want something that works. That they don’t have to fiddle with. Apple approach means software designed for the hardware. Including the Web experience. It just works. Much better than Microsoft.
– No Thinking: Let’s face it, people want a solution where they can just “do” what they intended to do and not fuss with installing bits and pieces of this and that. When you want to listen to music, you can. Watch a movie? Simple. Apple understands how we’re consuming media. Less than 3% of the market wants to fiddle with the innards.
– Code is Dead: 97% of the market does not want to learn code. They don’t care about HTML5 or C++ or whatever else. They want to share and create and watch.
– Design, Design, Design: Apple know’s design. They understand how to use all this technology and they know how to make it look good so people want to use it. What IT folks put up with, consumers don’t. People are willing to pay for good design.
– We Need A Curator: There has always been some form of “gatekeeper” for content. Whether it was the producer in a Hollywood studio, the editor of the newsdesk, the owner of a printing company. Always. Apple understands that, it’s just changed the role of the gatekeeper to curator. Television and radio worked well because they both have “quality standards” but often controlled the content. Apple doesn’t care about the content, it cares about how it is delivered. So we always get what we want and it works.
The software and IT industry doesn’t really have any “standards” so Apple is helping to do that. Not that they’ll always be right, but they are on the right track. I like Google stuff. A lot. So I suspect things will be a tad topsy turvy for the next while.
Microsoft is toying with “open” but isn’t quite there and is still basing its technology on the 1960’s. They’re so slow to truly innovate that they’ll be well suited to change-resistant enterprises.
What do you think? Is Apple on the right track?
