Open letter to Steve Jobs
Open letter to Steve Jobs
Dear Steve,
I remember, long ago, back in High School there were always the kids who were not gifted in the stature department. Unfortunately some of them got picked on because they were small, and others decided to show everyone they were a big man by picking fights with everyone so they could “prove themselves”. It's a sad part of being small, having to always prove yourself to those around you. Even those small people who grow up to be successful in life never seem to lose the chip on their shoulder, and they continue to pick fights everywhere and with everyone.
I can't help but think you must relate to these poor individuals plight in some ways. When Microsoft dominated you in the PC market, you must have felt like the small kid who needed to fight their way to the top no matter who they had to fight to get there. With Flash it was no different. Flash technology has dominated the market in comparison to your quicktime format ever since it's inception. So now you start a fight with Adobe, to prove yourself, where there were only wanting to work together.
You're right that Flash does have memory problems, but so does quicktime and silverlight. You're wrong if you think HTML 5 will replace flash, because that showcases the fact you really have no argument. Small people who are losing an argument sometimes LASH OUT at others with completely unrelated arguments to prove their point, and this is what it appears to us that you are doing today. The truth is, HTML5 can compete with the video capability of flash but not interactive functionality; there will be no incredible online games created solely with HTML 5, something which Flash reigns supreme. Why do we not hear about Flash's interactivity when you are making comparisons? Because HTML5 can't compete and you know it.
In watching demos, HTML 5 does handle video well. Does this mean it will replace Flash? Of course not. HTML 5 isn't due out for years, and market penetration will take years more. After all this time, HTML 5 will be only able to do what Flash has been able to do all along. You once promoted Quicktime as the next best thing to compete with flash, and when that failed you are now pushing another video format. Have you still not realized Flash is more than just playing video?
I don't take you for a stupid man, so it boggles the mind why you would make ludicrous statements regarding HTML 5 replacing Flash when you know it can't compete overall and isn't meant to. It makes me think that you must have ulterior motives. Could it be that you don't want your apps to be ported to other platforms easily? I think so. This gives you an advantage as the apps are already created for your platform and if it were easy to port your games to other platforms easily, like Flash offers, developers would flock to that technology. Truth is, several apps created using Flash were already accepted in your app store because you didn't realize they were created with flash. Then you barred that too. Your approval team accepted them, so they must be up to your standards. But you still refuse them. Why? It's obvious to everyone that you just don't want developers to create for multiple platforms. Why not just admit that your decision to not allow flash is a business decision rather than a technical one? Oh. That's right. They have annoying regulatory bodies that disallow this type of behaviour. Is this why you had to make up the story about flash not being good enough, even though it already past through your regulators? Again, I think so. You should be ashamed of yourself. Just tell the truth.
I can't help but think that your elementary school teacher must have labelled your report card with “Does not play well with others”. Adobe did not start a fight with you, but you pick a fight with them? One day you may realize that fighting isn't the answer. For example, you could have handled the Adobe thing so much better. A more appropriate response to Adobe may have been “We recognize Flash has brought interactivity to the web like no other product has. Unfortunately for our phones it also causes. We have put together a list of requirements for Adobe and together our teams are working closely together to make this happen. We look forward to having Flash on our platforms in the near future.”. Doesn't that sound like a more logical approach? Work WITH people instead of AGAINST people? Steve? STEVE!! Pay attention here, this is important stuff.
Going back to my high school days again, an interesting thing occurred. While the little guys always tried to pick fights with the big guys, the really big guys usually didn't have problems with each other. Why? Because they had nothing to prove so why fight. This is why Microsoft, Google, and Adobe play well together. Sure they compete against each other, for example Silverlight vs. Flash, but none have gone so far as to openly abuse each other in the press as you have done. You need to realize that no one is picking a fight with you, and you don't need to prove yourself anymore. You're welcome to play with the big boys now but the only requirement is that you leave the bad attitude at the door.
I would have thought you would have learned from the original Mac Vs. Windows battle. Your closed system was less appealing to consumers than windows because it gave them fewer choices. With Windows they were able to pick the hardware, from a much larger software library, and Microsoft worked with many hardware manufacturers to make sure their software worked on their platform. The same thing is happening today with Android where they are working with Adobe and many hardware manufacturers to provide an operating system that will give the consumers and developers choices instead of your closed framework. My point in telling you this is, maybe now isn't the time to be picking fights with anyone, particularly a potential partner (again, unless have ulterior motives as mentioned above) . If you continue along this path, the same thing will happen as it did with Windows. Hopefully you have learned something from that experience, although based on your actions, it seems to not be the case.
I still have a lot of respect for you, Steve. I learnt to program with basic on a Apple II then a mac plus using Hypercard, and now one of my machines is a Mac Pro. So I have had a fondness for your products almost since day 1 and still do. That's why now I'm hoping that your next step will be a more positive one. While I am just a humble programmer at heart, I hope you take this letter as sign that I still believe in you. If I didn't, I wouldn't bother writing. I'm waiting with baited breath to see what you do next. Have you learned anything? Or are you going to keep acting like you are afflicted by the little man's syndrome. The choice is yours.
Yours Truly,
Perplexed Coder
