Here's to the crazy ones: thanks to the unofficial iPhone developers

Back at the introduction of the iPhone (was it only just over a year ago? How the time flies) we all cast a jaundiced eye at Apple's "develop for the Web" philosophy for extending the platform, while simultaneously wondering if Apple might provide a true SDK for the device of the future; I seem to recall a conversation back on an early talkcast where a couple of people (yours truly included) stated for the record that a Apple SDK was an inevitability, with the only question being exactly when.

Now, on the cusp of the official App Store and 2.0 firmware launch and ensuing flood of iPhone/iPod touch native applications, we owe a moment of acknowledgment to the folks who refused to take "Safari" for an answer when it came to making iPhone applications: the jailbreakers and community toolchain developers.

Not to take anything away from the diligent work of the Mobile Safari application developers -- many of their results, including TUAW fave Hahlo, stand up well against desktop apps -- but it's hard not to feel some degree of astonishment when a few (sometimes fractious) loosely-affiliated bands of hackers, with some help from our friends, start from the barest hints of access to the iPhone's system and create castles floating on air.

Scores of applications (some great, some not-so) including music, games, dictionaries, utilities and not one but two complete or nearly-so ports of the BSD subsystem, complete with sophisticated software deployment capabilities, are currently available for jailbroken iPhones and iPod touch handhelds. This is a notable body of work, and what makes it more surprising is that it's been done over the course of one year, absent any support from the device manufacturer (to say nothing of active discouragement) and with no particular financial incentive to proceed. This is hacking in the original, non-pejorative sense: diving into the innards of the coolest gadget under the sun to figure out how it works and how far you can take it.

As exciting as the App Store is, there's a bit of wistfullness amidst the hype and enthusiasm; we are replacing the grimy, rough-edged and self-sustaining Times Square of iPhone application development with the sanitized, "Disney/Apple" reworking of the original. Knowing that a substantial fraction of the jailbreak app developers are under 18 and cannot legitimately join the authorized development program until they come of age, we can only hope that the energy and enthusiasm they brought to the iPhone will not be lost to another mobile platform.

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Back at the introduction of the iPhone (was it only just over a year ago? How the time flies) we all cast a jaundiced eye at Apple's...

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Chrisco

As Apple said:
While some see them as the crazy ones,
we see genius.

Because the people who are crazy enough to think
they can change the world, are the ones who do.

Thanks tool chain iPhone hackers!

(Without you all, would WWDC have been all SproutCore? ::shudder::)

( http://web.archive.org/web/20010228171255/www.apple.com/thinkdifferent/ )

July 12 2008 at 12:31 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Josh

Your comment:

You know what, I guess before reading this article, I never really
appreciated the fact that the iPhone, Apple's bread + butter (c'mon.
This device has superseded the iPod as their flagship device), was
hacked and developed for without any support from Apple, all within a
year.

I've come from devices that have been hacked (remember Sony PSP firmware v1.50?), so I guess I just
'assumed' that there were 3rd-party programs being written for it I
guess. But now that I think about it, they have gotten very far with
literally nothing at all. At least Microsoft released SDKs for
Windows Mobile almost as soon as the OS came out.

July 11 2008 at 8:16 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

new

First of all Big Shout out to the hackers and to the developers of the installer app. May you continue to do what you do best!! If there were no you there would be no app store. If there were no you my iphone would be boring. And if 2.0 isnt jailbroken (which it already is - thanks to DEV TEAM lol) I would stay with my 114 iphone until the sun burns out! F&*K the app store. Installer forever!!!

July 11 2008 at 1:00 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

I'd much rather be official and have 2.0 software and the App Store than to jailbreak and deal with hackers and their ilk. There's not a lot of help there when something goes wrong, and the whole process of jailbreaking is convoluted and lacks that Apple ideal of "just works" -- Instead, you have to jump through hoops to get low-rent versions of the Apps and games we're going to see on App Store.

That's me. Maybe you're elite and young and think it's awesome to stick it to "the man" by jailbreaking.

Shrug. Whatever. I'd rather spend the $10 and KNOW it's going to work.

July 10 2008 at 8:51 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

1 reply to CZ's comment

Brian

There's not a lot of help there when something goes wrong, and the whole process of jailbreaking is convoluted and lacks that Apple ideal of "just works"

Jailbreaking: download ziPhone, run it and press one button.

Official update that "just works": wait for hours trying to get through to Apple's overloaded servers while your phone is completely inoperable.

That's me. Maybe you're elite and young and think it's awesome to stick it to "the man" by jailbreaking.

If being old means having such contempt for those who want to do things that you don't, I plan to stay young permanently. Now don't you have some kids to chase off your lawn?

July 11 2008 at 1:04 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Raul

Well put. Kudos to the fantastic work by a whole bunch of loosely connected individuals right from unlocking to the the unofficial sdk, installer app and all the wonderful apps and games. Its a vibrant ecosystem that seemingly came to life on is own. There have been many popular phones before but none with this level of unofficial hackery and community.

July 10 2008 at 7:01 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

goobi

Awesome write up! Almost had a tear in my eye.

Now if only someone can get a sim unlock working, I'm dying to try out that light saber thing!

July 10 2008 at 6:47 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

iPhoner

The iPhone Dev Team has already Jailbroken the 2.0 firmware they have screenshots at: http://www.iphone-hacks.com/2008/07/10/iphone-firmware-20-is-out-and-jailbroken/ it's not unlocked though :(

July 10 2008 at 6:31 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

1 reply to iPhoner's comment

Chris McDonald

No unlocked yet, and yet it's showing an unofficial telco. name?

July 10 2008 at 8:05 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Shervin

respect to all of them and I do have an iphone full of apps and I will jail break my 3G iphone once I get it...

July 10 2008 at 6:06 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Carlos

I for one don't plan on updating my iPod Touch just yet. Why pay $30 for an English Dictionary or $40 for a translation dictionary when it is available for free in the Jailbroken session. My thanks to the development community. I hope the Jailbreak people continue to do wonderful work even with version 2.

July 10 2008 at 5:56 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Aaron Miller

I truly think we can credit them for the App Store even coming into existence. We all know the people at Apple were jailbreaking their own phones and seeing how an ecosystem of native applications could work. Were it not for the jailbreakers, we may still be griping about the weakness of web apps.

July 10 2008 at 5:55 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

2 replies to Aaron Miller's comment

totoro

Oh, come on. Only an idiot would believe Apple didn't have the SDK/Apps Store planned from DAY ONE. The Jailbreak guys can be credited for a lot of things, but let's not get carried away.

July 10 2008 at 6:32 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

billg

Yes -- we all know apple could never have expected people to want to use native applications on their phones.

Are you new here? I hope you were being sarcastic.

Despite your apparent lack of google proficiency, it's been well established that this was in the works.

July 10 2008 at 6:56 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply