During the last few days of theWorld full Developer Conference(WWDC ) , Apple announce major changes to itsdeveloper programme . Gone are the unlike programs — and different fees — that developers for iOS , OS X , and watchOS previously had to pay . And that ’s great ! Except , one of the most under - appreciated dev communities got a lil ’ moment screw over .
Developing extensions for Safari is n’t big concern . In fact , it ’s not business at all — there ’s no chemical mechanism for users to bear for Safari extensions ; developers have long provided reasonably complex tidbits of software system to user , free of cathexis . recognize this , Apple has historically provide the dick for developer to make and publish Safari extension , complimentary of kick .
All that ’s change . As part of a wide shakeup of the developer program , the Safari dev syllabus is being mix with all the others — pay a $ 99 annual fee , and you get admission to Safari dev tools , the ability to publish your extension ( once vetted ) in the upcoming prolongation gallery , plus all the tool to develop for iOS , OS X , and Watch OS .
The inside information were adumbrate to developer in an email from Apple , shared on Redditby the developer ofReddit Enhancement Suite :
Dear Developer ,
As a God Almighty of Safari Extensions , you ’ve assist enrich the crop experience for Safari user by postulate advantage of development imagination through the Safari Developer Program . This program is now part of the Modern Apple Developer Program , which merge everything you demand to develop , dole out , and manage your apps on all Apple platforms .
Your be Safari Developer Program membership will persist alive until July 8 , 2015 and your Safari university extension will proceed to work for subsist users .
you may continue building Safari extensions and bring your creativity to other Apple platform by bring together the Apple Developer Program . Join today to provide updates to your current extensions , build new extensions , and submit your extensions to the new Safari Extensions Gallery for OS X El Capitan . you may also learn how to extend your slang skills to create innovative new apps for Apple customer around the worldly concern .
Learn more[1 ]
Reading between the lines ( because Apple has n’t dead clarified this yet ) , it seems that developer will still technically be able to make extension without forking over $ 100 / year , but in lodge to be in the extension gallery , or submit update to users — both of which are fairly damn crucial — devs will require to pay for memberships .
intelligibly , people are n’t happy about the newfangled policy , with devs voicing their displeasure onnumerousReddit threadsandforums , includingApple ’s own dev forum . A universal consensus is that while people are well-chosen to donate their time to make cool software for the community — and making Safari intimately ! — that generousness clearly does n’t run to paying $ 100 per twelvemonth for the privilege .
This is n’t just a shaft move by Apple — it ’s a horrible tactical mistake . Chromeisn’t really a full browser app any more : itchomps through RAMandbattery lifewith adequate condescension , but thanks to the indispensable library of extensions that come with it , I still hightail it Chrome over the quicker , more effective Safari .
Starting with theOS X Yosemite update last year , Apple has been push to change that style , emphasise Safari ’s nighttime - and - day transcendence for electric battery life , and flesh out functionality to the point where it ’s competitive with Chrome or Firefox .
All that hard work make a fantastic web internet browser will be worth exactly diddly squat if Apple kill off the few good internet browser extensions Safari already has , by get developers off the platform with what looks like a gratuitous money snap . The people who really care about their internet browser ’s speed and performance are exactly the same single who will climb up ship if the Reddit and adblock denotation vanish from Safari .
The really thwarting thing is , Apple appears to recognize how important annexe are to browsers . That ’s what seems to have sparked the change in the first situation — OS X El Capitanis going to have an ‘ extension gallery ’ , a percipient nod to the Chrome Web Store ( which it cost devs a one - time $ 5 fee to get extensions into ) . It will be a place for extensions that are vetted ( to some extent ) and bless by Apple .
https://gizmodo.com/apples-new-os-x-el-capitan-looks-a-lot-like-os-x-yosemi-1709844078
The logical system progress to sensory faculty , to some stage — Apple vets apps for Io and OS X , sells them in an official shop , and in paying back , developers have to pay off $ 100 a year for the prerogative . But unlike those memory , Safari devs do n’t make any meaningful money off their code , just the casual paltry donation . So , if the initial reaction bears out , developers are going to leap ship , taking their extensions with them . In the attempt to make Safari better , Apple ’s just function and made things a whole lot worsened .
get in touch with the author at[email protect ] .
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