indie iPhone Blog

Paid iPhone Software Updates

Mon, 17 May 2010 09:59:35 -0700

With the news of the new 4G iPhone about to hit the street and the staggering number of 4Gs being built, it is easy to deduce that current iPhone users will buy the new 4G model. I know I will be doing just that. Buy why is that Apple and customers of iPhone apps don’t think they should have to pay for an upgrade to an iPhone App?
We are now approaching the end of the second full year of the App Store and still there is no mechanism in the App Store to charge for an upgrade. App developers are left to their own resources to find a way to make a return on their efforts to update their software. Today, developer are producing Pro versions or 2.0 versions of their apps that are completely different binaries that do the same thing as their original apps, just so they can charge more money. Why would app developers want to charge their customers more for newer features?
There is a obvious answer, but one that consumers don’t seem to understand. The additional effort of bringing new features to a product costs money; that cost needs to be recovered with profit. Simple. Profit ensures the a business will stay in business and a successful business will continue to bring more features and products to the market.
In addition, it takes considerable effort to update an app to leverage new advanced features Apple includes in major versions of the iPhone OS. Updating an app to take advantage of the new features alone, could be a candidate for a paid update. Yet there is no way to monetize an app update in the App Store.
App developers will not survive without the ability to charge for updates. The iPhone growth curve will start to flatten and when it does, app sales drop.

So the hype begins....

Mon, 19 Apr 2010 08:23:51 -0700

This is one of may stories about the next version of the iPhone.
This stuff has to be controlled releases of info by Apple marketing. That's my take. This is about stopping Android as was the 4.0 dog and pony. I'm not against any of this marketing hype, I'm just stating my perspective given I've lived through this once before.
What is going to happen is that current model of iPhone sales will slow, and so will app sales. May app sales will be down and lower sales will linger until the new iPhones hit and then sales will trend up. If the new iPhone also is a Verizon phone, that sales will mover higher still.

It’s Tough to be young and looking for work

Thu, 25 Mar 2010 08:26:23 -0700

18.5% unemployment for the young is a shocking number. How will this end? There is no end in sight given how our elected leaders have driven a stake in the heart of the “nascent” recovery with higher taxes on business and individuals to fund the take over our our healthcare system by big government. Funny thing is, Obama’s “hope and change” was the empty slogan that magnetized the young to Obama.
I know of two wonderful young people who help my family, that voted for Obama and are now struggling to find consistent work. It is very sad they don’t understand the basics of our economic system; what makes it strong and what makes it weak. They have been at best misinformed and at worst propagandized to not trust the free enterprise and its wealth creation function that is the foundation of a compassionate society. Instead they believe leaders who have put into place forced redistribution of wealth. The young have no understanding of the consequences those policies have on their potential to work and create wealth for themselves.
The creation of wealth provides them the means to build a better life for themselves and provides them with the opportunity of “giving back” to society. Instead, they are now at the mercy of a political class that is robbing them of their ability to make their way through society, by robbing individuals and companies of the wealth need to hire employees or provide capital if a young person wants to take a risk and start their own business.
High unemployment is now the norm for America. The young will have to learn this the hard way, and over time, the reality of this will sink in and the young will search for a new “one” to guide them out of troubled waters. I hope they learn that the “one” is themselves; that liberty, responsibility and self-reliance is the true path.

A Company With A Future

Sun, 7 Mar 2010 08:44:59 -0700

Apple the fourth largest public company in America with no current limits on growth. The iPhone App Store ride has just begun. Indies need to be thinking about the iPad, (Duh!) and also Mac OS X. The Mac in medicine is a no brainer. But the investment will be high. Windows XP systems in medical business are well entrenched and the bar is high; but not too high for OS X. The truth is that if smart developers apply the beauty of the Mac to medical businesses with all those images and the need for security, the Mac can win big.

Indie Teachers

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 16:28:43 -0700

We learn in “Arizona school districts spending less on student instruction” that only 57% of monies allocated per student is actually spent in the classroom. What percent is being spent in your state’s classrooms?
How do we increase the amount of money that is spent in the classroom? The answer is simple. Teachers go indie and parents use vouchers to pay teachers directly. In addition parents and private organizations can also pay extra for a child,thus allowing more money to be spent on education.
What does this mean for teachers? In Arizona the average spent on each student is $7900. With 25 students in a classroom that’s $197,500 that goes right into a teacher’s pocket. Now that does’t pay for all that is needed. Who pays for the classroom? Books? Transportation? Well the teach would. A teacher would have to pay rent, pay a fee for transportation and books. Just like any other independent business person.
Some points to note is that if parents could add just $1000 for a child that would increase the teachers pay by $25,000 in this example. Allow private entities to supplement even more and in classroom funding could explode. With all these possibilities of funding, could we get to $10,000 per student in Arizona? Sure. That would be $250,000 for a teacher in a class of 25. That’s real money.
With direct vouchers to teachers and the ability to augment student funding, the idea of students who need special services could get what they need. Special classrooms could have very few children and yet teachers could be paid very well.
Teachers who don’t produce simply go out of business. Just like any other small business. Teachers who find ways to excel, can grow their business; hire staff; write books and spread their knowledge across the country and get rich. More power to them. Conversely, techniques that don’t work in the real world, fade away to the ash heap of other failed teaching methods.
Our government run schools are failing us. Let the teachers go indie; let parents pay teachers directly and allow private entities supplement our education system.