Everything around me is going Apple-shaped.

When I first worked as a contract web developer in the late 90s, the standard issue was PCs for developers, Macs for designers. That’s just how it was for most of my missions, with few exceptions. Personal preference? Bah! To the technical decision makers at the design agencies where I worked (IT departments), providing Macs at all was only a necessary expense to keep the designer prima donnas happy. There were probably other reasons, from developer tools, to network compatibility, but mostly I think it was down to cultural bias of IT departments and developers alike: an affinity to big-number specs. Speed. Capacity. Grrrr.

I had learned to code on a Mac, so although I missed BBEdit on the job, I grew to like Homesite and appreciate the various things I could do with Windows XP. They are just tools after all, and not to be blamed. By 2003 when I set up my own business, I had mostly given up, and kept my iBook for portability, but otherwise I was a PC shop (with a couple Linux servers under my desk). I worked a lot with a designer, and he had a Mac. Every now and then there were some issues with exchanging files and fonts, but mostly we got along fine between our arguments over the necessity for rounded corners and drop shadows.

How times have changed. These days Macbooks seem to be the preferred tool for developers (in the media and design world anyway). Go to any conference or hack day, and you will see fewer HPs or IBMs, and those that you do see are probably running some form of Linux anyway. Apple has provided a great platform for developers, and some great hardware. Good design has won the day, and things have turned around. Or come full circle…

The more Apple-shaped my environment, the more I am niggled by the increasing dependency on a single company’s (or single CEO’s) vision. Sure I have choice. I could, for the sake of diversity and freedom, give up my iPhone for an Android, or switch to Ubuntu Desktop for development. And buy an HP Touchpad (or not, anymore). But the more  software and apps I buy, the less likely I am to change. And anyway, I like my basket of Apples, they are solid, and I use them to great affect daily. But what if they end up a basket of eggs?

In this time of the surging tech wars going on between the major players, our privacy, identity, personal data and creative output as developers are potential pawns in a bigger game, and this question is more and more prevalent to me.

The answer, I think, is to make sure I am collecting tools, not eggs or apples. The real value lies in the open technologies and formats I choose to use to build websites and run my life.  Maybe one day I will be cursing the ubiquity of Ubuntu or some other flavour of openness, but at present, Apple provides the best balance  for me of openness, productivity and enjoyment. Some of these unfortunately require lock-in on a functional level, such as native apps. But where possible I will make sure I am investing in something that is open, portable and adaptable to any of  the changes that lie ahead.

I’ve been reading every opinion in my feeds following the fallout of the iPad launch. I think it’s fascinating to see how quickly people are polarised. There are a lot of angry Flash developers out there, and a lot of smugness coming from the other side.

I will admit that I like developing with both ActionScript and JavaScript/HTML.  I think both the Flash Platform and the Browser show great potential for different purposes. And each has its problems when misapplied. So what’s new? As developers we face these choices with our technology every day. So Flash isn’t on the iPad or iPhone. Does it matter that much? It’s a single device platform with a visionary design. It should be applauded. But we are not creating interactivity for a monoplatform world. Innovation will mean there is something that outwits the iPhone OS. Necessity will require us to adopt new, unchartered and non-standard solutions. Interaction design and communication technology is not all about LED screens and input devices.  Principles will still be the same: make things for people not for technologies.

There is so much to say on this subject, it opens up so many juicy channels of opinion, debate and evidence. Is this about openness? Is it about innovation? Is it about standards? Is it about winners or losers? Ultimately the debate is good for the web development community, and it’s time we all had a chance to define some thinking about these issues in this landscape. The launch of the iPad may be a watershed moment for more reasons than innovative touchscreen technology and eBooks saving the publishing industry.

I think the ball is in Adobe’s court right now. They could really turn this around to their favour. Open source the Flash Platform completely? Support the development and adoption of the HTML standard by giving developers more great tools? Make Flash  better and more essential to everyday browsing? Make a FlashPad device?

Ray Valdes on Gartner probably offers the best and most balanced overview of the issues that face us as media producers for these platforms.

• Please Scroll
  (tags: webdesign humor)
• War? There’s an iPhone app for that | Technology | guardian.co.uk
  My first thought was, surely the military would not expose itself to the risks of a consumer device? But then I thought it is inevitable that technology as ubiquitous as the iPhone seems to becoming gets put to some usage that many of us would not feel comfortable with. It’s usually the other way round anyway, we get the military gadgets that have been civilianized. But as the article points out – the applications have their place in disaster emergency situations.
  (tags: iphone technology apple apps)
• How to recognise a good programmer
  Another checklist to run your decisions by. There is probably a lot of sense in this article, but the truth is, when you are in the interview situation, from either side of the table, you know when you have a match. Sure there are basic skills that must be met, but most important is the idea that you can work with this person. If you’re starting from a checklist, you are probably starting from the wrong angle.
  (tags: interview jobs programming)
• Rally Wants To Bring Location Back To Its Core, With Only Your Real Friends.
  I haven’t so far really got into Foursquare. I have checked in a few places, but no-one else I know is playing. (Let me know if you are) This aims to be even more limited in terms of social circles – and I agree with the principle. I think there is something to be said for deeply valuable connections over multiple, transient ones. Unless you’re like me and no one else you know is playing, in which case you have to resort to real conversations, perhaps face to face.
  (tags: apps iphone socialmedia)
• The secrets behind menu design – (37signals)
  No not user interface menus. Some good business principles here taken from restaurant menus, understanding what you really have of worth to offer your clients and users, and what they are willing to pay for. The basic idea: know your customer.
  (tags: design pricing business)
• Dishwashers, and How Google Eats Its Own Tail
  Paul Kedrosky points to what could be Google’s weakness, whereby it is the victim of its own success and via adword fuelled top search results its search results become useless to the average user. Google eats its own tail. This of course assumes the giant is incapable of accommodating a changing landscape and reacting to this threshhold. Will a new pattern emerge?
  (tags: google advertising seo future)
• Using Google Reader “Send To” with WordPress | thingelstad.com
  This could be useful for my blogging workflow!
  (tags: wordpress tools)