Comments on: Joel Spolsky and Weak Metaphors http://starkravingfinkle.org/blog/2007/09/joel-spolsky-and-weak-metaphors/ Sun, 29 Apr 2012 07:09:30 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Matthew Gertner http://starkravingfinkle.org/blog/2007/09/joel-spolsky-and-weak-metaphors/comment-page-1/#comment-3625 Matthew Gertner Sun, 23 Sep 2007 19:29:13 +0000 http://starkravingfinkle.org/blog/2007/09/joel-spolsky-and-weak-metaphors/#comment-3625 I agree, Joel misses the point when he postulates that a proprietary platform will play the role of Windows in the web world. Interestingly this mirrors a recent post by Marc Andreessen which I've been meaning to blog: http://blog.pmarca.com/2007/09/the-three-kinds.html. He suggests that the future web will be dominated by platforms that let others host applications in some sort of controlled environment, basically runtime environments. I reacted to this in very much the same way as you reacted to Joel's piece: his vision is a plausible path for the evolution of the web, but I don't believe a proprietary product will succeed long-term in this space. BTW: I think you got the link to Joel's article wrong in your first sentence. I agree, Joel misses the point when he postulates that a proprietary platform will play the role of Windows in the web world. Interestingly this mirrors a recent post by Marc Andreessen which I’ve been meaning to blog: http://blog.pmarca.com/2007/09/the-three-kinds.html. He suggests that the future web will be dominated by platforms that let others host applications in some sort of controlled environment, basically runtime environments. I reacted to this in very much the same way as you reacted to Joel’s piece: his vision is a plausible path for the evolution of the web, but I don’t believe a proprietary product will succeed long-term in this space.

BTW: I think you got the link to Joel’s article wrong in your first sentence.

]]> By: Thomas Hansen http://starkravingfinkle.org/blog/2007/09/joel-spolsky-and-weak-metaphors/comment-page-1/#comment-3599 Thomas Hansen Fri, 21 Sep 2007 23:29:52 +0000 http://starkravingfinkle.org/blog/2007/09/joel-spolsky-and-weak-metaphors/#comment-3599 I am not sure how I should comment on this, sure your Taxi Driver has heard of Window, but has he heard of Windows API or MFC? He hasn't heard of GWT that's true, but he HAS heard of GMail, right...? None the less, interesting reading and you kept me through your entire post and even made me comment, so good work :) Btw, I am not really sure how you feel about standards and "binary frameworks"...? Did I sense an agreement towards my definition of ActiveX2.0...? I am not sure how I should comment on this, sure your Taxi Driver has heard of Window, but has he heard of Windows API or MFC?
He hasn’t heard of GWT that’s true, but he HAS heard of GMail, right…?

None the less, interesting reading and you kept me through your entire post and even made me comment, so good work :)

Btw, I am not really sure how you feel about standards and “binary frameworks”…?
Did I sense an agreement towards my definition of ActiveX2.0…?

]]> By: Ryan Stewart http://starkravingfinkle.org/blog/2007/09/joel-spolsky-and-weak-metaphors/comment-page-1/#comment-3595 Ryan Stewart Fri, 21 Sep 2007 06:42:38 +0000 http://starkravingfinkle.org/blog/2007/09/joel-spolsky-and-weak-metaphors/#comment-3595 Good write up Mark. I wonder if the taxi driver has heard of Flash? One of the things I enjoyed about Joel's post was that it spawned so many different opinions. I had mine and now we get the Mark slant. All valuable, all interesting. =Ryan rstewart@adobe.com Good write up Mark. I wonder if the taxi driver has heard of Flash? One of the things I enjoyed about Joel’s post was that it spawned so many different opinions. I had mine and now we get the Mark slant. All valuable, all interesting.

=Ryan
rstewart@adobe.com

]]> By: Windy http://starkravingfinkle.org/blog/2007/09/joel-spolsky-and-weak-metaphors/comment-page-1/#comment-3593 Windy Fri, 21 Sep 2007 00:11:35 +0000 http://starkravingfinkle.org/blog/2007/09/joel-spolsky-and-weak-metaphors/#comment-3593 The the Web into Windows - http://www.vista.si/default.htm The the Web into Windows – http://www.vista.si/default.htm

]]> By: gwenhwyfaer http://starkravingfinkle.org/blog/2007/09/joel-spolsky-and-weak-metaphors/comment-page-1/#comment-3592 gwenhwyfaer Thu, 20 Sep 2007 22:58:06 +0000 http://starkravingfinkle.org/blog/2007/09/joel-spolsky-and-weak-metaphors/#comment-3592 It's a funny thing, but I don't believe there is any instance of anyone successfully arguing another person wrong. Proving them wrong, yes, but that requires rather more than a rant for a rant. It’s a funny thing, but I don’t believe there is any instance of anyone successfully arguing another person wrong. Proving them wrong, yes, but that requires rather more than a rant for a rant.

]]> By: Dan Mosedale http://starkravingfinkle.org/blog/2007/09/joel-spolsky-and-weak-metaphors/comment-page-1/#comment-3591 Dan Mosedale Thu, 20 Sep 2007 22:20:02 +0000 http://starkravingfinkle.org/blog/2007/09/joel-spolsky-and-weak-metaphors/#comment-3591 w.r.t. "forcing interop by mandating a framework", I agree that that's a poor outcome. However, it's not an entirely unlikely outcome, especially if the standards bodies don't do a good enough job. There are some interesting analogues here with the attempts to counteract the fragmentation of the UNIX market using standards in the 80s and 90s. The triumph of SMTP mail over various proprietary systems in available in the 80s and early 90s has some similarities too. Granted, of course, there are also very salient differences between these situations. w.r.t. “forcing interop by mandating a framework”, I agree that that’s a poor outcome. However, it’s not an entirely unlikely outcome, especially if the standards bodies don’t do a good enough job. There are some interesting analogues here with the attempts to counteract the fragmentation of the UNIX market using standards in the 80s and 90s. The triumph of SMTP mail over various proprietary systems in available in the 80s and early 90s has some similarities too. Granted, of course, there are also very salient differences between these situations.

]]> By: monk.e.boy http://starkravingfinkle.org/blog/2007/09/joel-spolsky-and-weak-metaphors/comment-page-1/#comment-3587 monk.e.boy Thu, 20 Sep 2007 10:17:20 +0000 http://starkravingfinkle.org/blog/2007/09/joel-spolsky-and-weak-metaphors/#comment-3587 Re: silverlight and flash. Why are you so against these technologies? I don't see the OS community doing anything about them? Where is the Open Source technology that competes with either? Flash has been around for what? 10 years? How long should we wait? Tell me how to do some simple animation + some alpha transparency and filters in HTML. SVG? Pants. Canvas? Pants. Anything that needs Javascript to code is SO BAD. JS is the evil. Why can't I use Python or C# to animate stuff in HTML+DOM? But I liked your comments :-) monk.e.boy Re: silverlight and flash.

Why are you so against these technologies? I don’t see the OS community doing anything about them? Where is the Open Source technology that competes with either?

Flash has been around for what? 10 years? How long should we wait?

Tell me how to do some simple animation + some alpha transparency and filters in HTML. SVG? Pants. Canvas? Pants.

Anything that needs Javascript to code is SO BAD. JS is the evil. Why can’t I use Python or C# to animate stuff in HTML+DOM?

But I liked your comments :-)

monk.e.boy

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