The Great Intermediary Panic

hnmullany•about 2 hours ago

Flash didn't disappear when internet technologies got better. Flash disappeared because Apple refused to distribute it on iPhone - partly because Adobe couldn't effectively shrink it down to early generation iPhone technical capabilities - but partly because they didn't want a competitor to the iOS SDK.

Then Apple effectively vetoed - explicitly and through lack of investment) futher improvement in audiovisual web platform technologies (e.g. the custom shaders that Adobe wanted to make part of the nextgen filter spec) during the critical period where developers were making their platform choice for mobile.

Apple has been no friend to the further evolution of the web.

cryo32•about 2 hours ago

What about the bit where the majority of the browsers on the web are or were derived from WebKit, which was Apple originated?

Nobody really wanted Flash. It was expensive to develop for, had a bunch of security issues and was generally bloated.

AlotOfReading•about 1 hour ago

The majority of browsers are derived from KDE's KHTML/KJS, webkit included. Apple made very significant contributions (like the webkit project itself), but that's not where the codebase originated.

HeavyStorm•about 1 hour ago

"Expensive to develop for" sounds very biased.

cryo32•29 minutes ago

Have you had to pay an ActionScript developer’s cigarette and booze bill?

cyanydeez•about 3 hours ago

this is the same logic about space exploration vs world exploration: ...history has shown exponetial-ish grow, so surely, there's always a "next step".

It's just not a rational position. The great intermediary may just stop. You just might be shut out. We could go from a million influencers (myspace) to a couple (facebook). You're not going to out compete the other 10 people vying for attention.

The point is: this is equivelent to just saying "shut up, grab the lube, and pretend you enjoy the technological revolution [rape]".

I know that'll anger people, but finding the right way in which society deals with technology is more than just "grab some new bootstraps" or it's your fault if you become a panic.

But aside from the social commentary, the logical commentary is: there isn't always going to be a space for your interests just because there's a long chain. The same way your mother can give birth to you and you can decide not to continue.

We don't have any evidence that we'll make it to mar and beyond for any reasonable approach.

The Great Intermediary Panic

⚡ Community Insights

Discussion (6 Comments)Read Original on HackerNews