Hmm.
I have a few seperate opinions on the whole issue here. I don't think its a bad idea for any OS to push forward on what really fits into the OS, even if a 3rd party does it. For example, Superclock!, a 3rd party shareware app for System 6/7 added a menubar clock to the system. It obviously should have been there (it just fit) and Apple added it into 7.5. I don't think it should be such a big complaint for them to add things which are a natural evolution of the OS / Product.
For example, Liteswitch, yea, no. Floaters were already used in OS X and LiteSwitch just used a floater like dialog to switch between apps. Been in Windows forever and Apple did it too, they just changed the interface from the dock to the floater.
The other ones get tricky, because we don't know how ideas should fit into the natural evolution of the OS.
As far as Watson/Sherlock, I don't know exactly what I think here as much. Neither was an innovative idea per se. Sherlock's natural evolution of internet services was to evolve into Sherlock 3 / Watson. You can't blame Apple for wanting to use a general idea that was a natural evolution of that Sphere of thinking. Karelia just got their first.
As far as Konfabulator/Dashboard, I don't know. I think that it will steal thunder from the as of yet undisputed widget king Konfabulator, but widgets aren't a new idea, its all been there throughout the ages (Desk Accessories) and now Apple just comes up with a different,yet similiar (in some aspects) implementation as Konfabulator.
[Paragraph rant about Konfab usage: I think that first, the hidden nature of Expose use in Dashboard has so many advantages to the always on widgets of Konfabulator. I don't need widgets all the time, and when I do (even info providing one) a nice pop in and out is good enough. Even Konpose doesn't really fix the problem, and I don't like the implementation that it uses]
In a word, I guess I feel this way. Apple has a sort of right as the OS developer to provide extensions and new features to their OS. Sure, It'd be nice if they'd hire a few of the developers of the stuff that inspired the idea, but that may not always be possible (and if they did, would they take said job?). If you feel that strongly about it, Apply at Apple. Or if you think your product is still legitimite, Don't roll over and die, no one expects you to. I hope Konfabulator promotes their software as a good alternative to people who don't like Dashboard. What I don't think is necessary is this massive "OMG! APPLE BULLYS!" like idea, just go on programming.
Imitation *is* the highest form of flattery.
I have a few seperate opinions on the whole issue here. I don't think its a bad idea for any OS to push forward on what really fits into the OS, even if a 3rd party does it. For example, Superclock!, a 3rd party shareware app for System 6/7 added a menubar clock to the system. It obviously should have been there (it just fit) and Apple added it into 7.5. I don't think it should be such a big complaint for them to add things which are a natural evolution of the OS / Product.
For example, Liteswitch, yea, no. Floaters were already used in OS X and LiteSwitch just used a floater like dialog to switch between apps. Been in Windows forever and Apple did it too, they just changed the interface from the dock to the floater.
The other ones get tricky, because we don't know how ideas should fit into the natural evolution of the OS.
As far as Watson/Sherlock, I don't know exactly what I think here as much. Neither was an innovative idea per se. Sherlock's natural evolution of internet services was to evolve into Sherlock 3 / Watson. You can't blame Apple for wanting to use a general idea that was a natural evolution of that Sphere of thinking. Karelia just got their first.
As far as Konfabulator/Dashboard, I don't know. I think that it will steal thunder from the as of yet undisputed widget king Konfabulator, but widgets aren't a new idea, its all been there throughout the ages (Desk Accessories) and now Apple just comes up with a different,yet similiar (in some aspects) implementation as Konfabulator.
[Paragraph rant about Konfab usage: I think that first, the hidden nature of Expose use in Dashboard has so many advantages to the always on widgets of Konfabulator. I don't need widgets all the time, and when I do (even info providing one) a nice pop in and out is good enough. Even Konpose doesn't really fix the problem, and I don't like the implementation that it uses]
In a word, I guess I feel this way. Apple has a sort of right as the OS developer to provide extensions and new features to their OS. Sure, It'd be nice if they'd hire a few of the developers of the stuff that inspired the idea, but that may not always be possible (and if they did, would they take said job?). If you feel that strongly about it, Apply at Apple. Or if you think your product is still legitimite, Don't roll over and die, no one expects you to. I hope Konfabulator promotes their software as a good alternative to people who don't like Dashboard. What I don't think is necessary is this massive "OMG! APPLE BULLYS!" like idea, just go on programming.
Imitation *is* the highest form of flattery.