Former Facebook app dev touts iPad as better platform

updated 04:55 pm EST, Fri January 29, 2010

Hewitt sees web apps as workaround for developers


Joe Hewitt -- who famously walked away from developing the Facebook iPhone app, over issues with Apple's app review policies -- is now speaking enthusiastically about the iPad. The coder says the iPad "is exactly the product I've been wishing for," and that it overcomes the limitations of the iPhone, giving developers and end users more room to work with in much larger screen space.

Hewitt is also speaking positively about the iPhone OS, describing it as more secure due to the isolation of the OS as a whole, and the isolation of each app running with it. Apps cannot directly access the filesystem, the hardware or other programs, preventing damage that is routine on Macs and PCs.

In regards to working around the App Store approval process, Hewitt proposes web apps as the main inroad to iPad development, free of restraints -- although this does require a developer to host the app on their own server. Web apps are the key to client-side freedom too, the developer says.


by MacNN Staff


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Comments

  1. dliup

    Fresh-Faced Recruit

    Joined: Jan 2006

    -3

    lol

    Someone come crawling back with his tail between his legs...

    Comment buried. Show
  1. testudo

    Fresh-Faced Recruit

    Joined: Aug 2001

    -13

    and...

    Why does anyone care what any particular app developer thinks of the iPad?

  1. Skwidspawn

    Fresh-Faced Recruit

    Joined: Sep 2006

    +6

    Interesting

    Well, he has managed to make one of the best iPhone apps out there. The Facebook app is a great example of what makes the iPhone great. I actually prefer using Facebook on my iPhone over their cluttered, ad-laden website.

    As far as webapps go: They seriously need to solve the problem of having to reload the site every time you go to use it. Over 3G the time it takes to load even a twitter client every time you want to post can be very tedious. I'd much prefer if Apple simply made the approval process better for these guys.

  1. Tofino

    Fresh-Faced Recruit

    Joined: Apr 2005

    +5

    oh yeah...

    this is the douchebag that whined about apple's 'walled garden' while working for facebook - the worlds most walled off playground...

  1. ApeInTheShell

    Senior User

    Joined: Nov 2002

    +3

    Web apps

    Why do some developers love the idea of web apps?

    I would rather play a game or write a document that didn't require online access to work. That is what makes the iPhone appealing when I have enough battery power left because the 3G or wifi is not sucking up the power.

  1. redwood

    Fresh-Faced Recruit

    Joined: Oct 2003

    0

    Dooooooouuuuuche

    The terms was invented for this guy

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