2008-07-31: Interview with John Edwards

Black represents John Edwards (www.gojohnedwards.com); red represents CommonsWare.
>  Hi Mark,
>  Many thanks for getting back to me. These are the questions I would like answered.:

I'm probably not the typical sort of person you're interviewing, but,
here goes...

>  What code are you developing for Android?

Nothing big at present -- mostly tutorials for books, blog postings,
training material, and the like. I have some bigger projects on the
docket for later this year.

>  When did you begin developing it?

The book and its accompanying code was started in February and was
published in July.

>  What are your goals?

Truth, justice, and...oh, no, wait...that's been done.

>  Do you work for someone or are you independent?

Independent.

>  How important is it for developers to create code for Android?

I am assuming that by "developers" you're referring to people outside
Google and OHA.

In that case, it is either extremely important or totally immaterial,
depending upon what class of phones you're thinking of.

Smartphones -- phones where end users can install other applications --
need a robust ecosystem of third-party applications.

Feature phones -- phones that might run Android but aren't designed for
end users to install other applications -- don't need such an ecosystem.

Android is targeting both segments over the long-term, as I understand
it, though it would appear that the near-term focus is on smartphones.
In that case, as Mr. Ballmer famously put it, it's all about
"developers, developers, developers".

>  What incentives do developers have to create code for Android?

For a device that doesn't exist? Other than first-mover advantage, and
possibly the Android Developer Competition, none whatsoever.

There are other aspects that may garner *interest* (e.g., the hoped-for
openness), but I wouldn't characterize them as "incentives", per se.

>  How have Google's misstep's hurt its reputation with the developer community?

Sure. What impact it will have, though, has yet to be determined.

What people call "the developer community" is an amalgamation of lots of
individuals with their own ideas, opinions, etc. It's not like it's a
trade union with an elected set of officials and a publicly-stated
position or something.

Undoubtedly, some developers have written Android off and will never
return. Some developers might return in a year or two. Some aren't that
worried yet. Lots aren't paying a darn bit of attention to the whole
mess because there aren't any devices ready yet. And some are ADC
winners or other selected insiders, who probably think things are just
peachy.

As for me, I'm in the "not that worried yet" bucket. The past few months
have been disappointing but still largely within the confines of what
Google/OHA said they were going to do.

>  Is Google providing adequate developer support?

For a device that doesn't exist? They're providing remarkable developer
support. They actually made an SDK available before the devices ship.
They have a decent cut at documentation up online. They set up some
Google Groups and have some Googlers keeping an eye on them.

Compared to a typical open source project, of course, Google/OHA's
support is so-so -- long on the things dollars can address, short on the
things driven by passion. But, compared to, say, the iPhone -- which, at
this stage of development, was a hush-hush secret -- Android is a
paragon of openness.

>  Is Google in danger of losing momentum and developer commitment to Apple?

On the momentum front, you can't measure momentum until the first
devices ship. It's a bit like the NFL Draft: until they slap on the
pads, you have no idea if they're the next Anthony Munoz or the next
Tony Mandarich.

In terms of developer commitment, I'm less concerned than most. There
are vast numbers of developers for whom the iPhone is useless, because:

-- Applications are written in an obscure programming language
(Objective-C, only used in production by Mac OS X and, now, the iPhone)

-- The iPhone may never be available, legally, in their market

-- The iPhone App Store may never accept their applications, or they
can't afford the fee

We here in the States tend to take a US-centric view on the mobile
marketplace. Based on book sales to date, though, there is greater
interest in Android outside of the US, where the iPhone isn't exactly an
unstoppable juggernaut, IMHO.
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2008-07-31: Interview with John Edwards
