Kaelri

Update: This is released.

I’ve been trying to tie up some loose ends, so that I can start in on my summer project list with a clean slate. And as loose ends go, my Rainmeter suite, Enigma, is sort of a big one.

I originally planned to release this thing on January 1st, as a New Year’s present. And in the midst of an incredibly productive December, this seemed like an entirely reasonable goal. Then—long story short—2011 decided that it just wasn’t going to be my year. January kicked it off with a sort of breathtaking series of unanticipated events, and I’ve really spent the last four months trying to keep up. As a result, most of my hobby projects have fallen by the wayside. And there’s nothing I hate more than unfinished business (except disappointing people and being falsely accused, which, funnily enough, have also been involved).

Frankly, Enigma was overdue for an update in December. Now it’s way, way, way overdue. And for the first time in forever, I have a weekend without any other timestamped obligations. So I am planning a coding blitz, starting this afternoon and ending tomorrow at midnight. Whatever’s done by then will be released on Monday as Enigma 3.0.

Anything left (probably the media player APIs, among other things) will be released in periodic patch updates as I get to them. The new Rainmeter website and skin installer utilities make patching a whole lot easier than it used to be, so I won’t have to go through all the logistical grief involved in a version overhaul like I did in the past. In addition, 3.0 completely changes Enigma’s basic code structure, which, although a little shocking at first, will also contribute to making future updates smooth and relatively painless.

It’s incredible to still see people downloading, using and modding Enigma, nearly three years after it first appeared on Lifehacker. I really feel that I owe you guys the modern Rainmeter experience that you deserve. The wait is (finally) almost over.

I was asked to share my take on the new Windows 8 preview that appeared yesterday. Short version: I’m impressed. I don’t want to extrapolate too much from a four-minute preview of a prototype product, but what I see in that video shows more creativity, polish, and sheer class, than anything we’re used to seeing from Microsoft.

First, though, a disclaimer for those who don’t know me: I’ve always been a little bit of an idealist when it comes to technology. I still watch every Steve Jobs keynote and every Google livestream with bated breath, shamelessly hoping for the next thing that will change the world. And yes, I still cross my fingers for the creative minds behind the paperclip, because I believe it’s never too late to get it right.

And there are a number of features here that I find truly fresh, bold, and indicative of a tighter creative direction which Microsoft has been sorely lacking. The Windows Phone 7-esque visual style is especially encouraging. WP7 is basically the first time MS has hit on a style which even its staunchest critics find unique, attractive and functional, and extending that success across the whole ecosystem can only be a benefit. (I’m not worried that the “tiles” paradigm won’t translate to the desktop, either; thanks to the boundless creativity of the Rainmeter community, we already have a compelling proof-of-concept.)

I also adore the fact that the new apps, as well as the Start screen’s tiles, are written in HTML5. I continue to believe strongly in the HTML standard, which has now had over a decade of intensive growth and refinement, as a key part of the solution to this fragmented glut of “apps” that iOS and Android are responsible for dumping on our heads. It’s not a silver bullet, but the closer we get to the web, the smoother the road seems to get. I know a lot of developers are tearing their hair out because of this, and I don’t lack an appreciation for the overwhelming breadth and history of legacy Windows software. But this is the future, guys. Half the “apps” pinned to my taskbar right now are just websites that open in their own windows via Chrome’s “app” framework.

I have to disagree with John Gruber, who calls it a “fundamentally flawed response to the iPad”. Not least because the Apple ecosystem itself is showing exactly the same patterns of consolidation.

Every new UI feature of OS X Lion—the tiled app launcher, the fullscreen modal interface, the removal of scrollbars, even reversing the touchpad’s default scroll direction—is bringing the PC and the iPad user experiences closer together. And Apple, it seems to me, has been entirely upfront about this. I strongly suspect that within the next 5 years, both OSes will be fundamentally the same product—and installed on the same types of devices. (Remember, too, that the first iPhone OS began its life as a stripped-down version of OS X proper.) A more fully-featured OS will remain available for developers and power users, but the difference will be one of usage case, not form factor.

HP, too, is designing the same webOS to be used on phones, tablets, and traditional PCs. After a decade of failed tablets, the myth of the unworkable hybrid device is starting to break down. Google is still maintaining their Holy Line of Demarcation between finger (Android) and mouse (ChromeOS) devices, but I don’t see that lasting as a long-term solution.

I think Microsoft sees where this road is leading, and they’re taking advantage of the still-considerable resources of their empire to try and leapfrog the competition. It’s ambitious. But—as someone who was buying peripheral keyboards for Palm Pilots back in 2002—I think it’s more doable than ever. As UI designers gain more experience, and show more willingness to break with a mold that is now almost two decades old, it takes less and less imagination to see how the realm of touch and the realm of the cursor might just find a way to coexist.

I don’t want to read much into the specific way the classic Windows desktop is presented alongside the new interface in this preview. For one thing, it’s all Aero. It has none of the WP7 styling, which makes me think that what we’re seeing is just a bunch of front-end software running on top of a regular Windows 7 system. I expect it’ll be a little while, and several failed attempts, before they figure out exactly how to integrate legacy software. I do strongly feel that the taskbar, or whatever they come up with to replace it, should remain a universal mechanism, available from all apps and consistent in appearance. The biggest problem is how to integrate windowed apps, and frankly I could write a treatise on that. If future previews don’t show more progress in this area, I’ll be concerned.

I’m definitely not ready to take the plunge, and I’m not sure Microsoft is either. Windows 7 is a mature OS, the evolution of a tried-and-true working paradigm on which the whole world still relies. I’m not at all comfortable with the idea of throwing away a good chunk of Windows’ greatest strengths as a platform. But that’s partly the point. Microsoft has decided not to be the next IBM. They’re gambling on a vision which, if it’s successful, could help move the whole industry forward. And for once, there’s reasonable evidence that they have a solid plan. I’m looking forward to it.

It feels like all the roads have disappeared and we’re stuck in our houses.

I wouldn’t quite call myself an Android “enthusiast.” I just bought my first Android phone – in fact, my first smartphone, period – about a week ago. And even this mesmerized time-traveler from the Days Before iPhone can see that it’s not perfect. But I think it has a lot going for it, and makes a strong competitor to iOS and webOS.

So for the sake of a healthy mobile ecosystem, can we all agree not resort to ridiculous straw-man arguments?

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“Why don’t you use a Mac?” is a question that I’m asked with alarming frequency. I try not to let myself get sucked into answering too freely, because, much like politics and religion, Apple is a subject which leads inevitably to pitched battles, hurt feelings, and the hurling of unsolicited Freudian diagnoses. But when I read something like this from a writer whom I like, respect and (mostly) agree with, I feel like I shouldn’t waste the opportunity.

Justin Lowery:

A quick look at most of the Android theming forums will show you exactly why Apple locks things down the way they do. To quote someone from a long time ago — “No one every lost money underestimating the intelligence or taste of the American people.”

Nearly all the Android modifications and themes make the phone less stable, more buggy, and in most cases, a downright hideous sight to behold. The same could be said of Jailbroken iPhones. The people really haven’t got a clue what they’re doing. Why should Apple (or Google for that matter) give license to a bunch of clueless 12 year old amateurs, while removing it from a carefully constructed team of world-class designers and developers? It makes no sense.

Apple has a lot of qualities that should be as admired, and emulated, as they are. Consistency. Simplicity. Perfectionism. Taste. Attention to detail. And an uncompromising dedication to user experience. (I think Justin is right about Microsoft’s relative apathy toward their users, although I don’t think the same is true of Google.¹) If you like the Mac OS, its particular working paradigm, then you’re in luck, because no one makes that paradigm work as well as Apple – or look as good doing it. It is a perfected art.

What should not be admired, much less emulated, is the idea that people do not own their products.

The idea of “giving license” to the amateurs – that this license is Apple’s to give – is insane. What business is it of Apple’s if I want to make a skin for iOS, even an ugly one? They don’t have to put it in their store. If I want to put OS X on my Dell desktop, they don’t have to sell it. And I’m not “removing license” from their world-class designers by doing so. They do not lose the ability to design and produce Macs and iPads to their exact specifications, nor do consumers lose the option of buying them and using them in their original configurations. The walled garden remains unblemished, for those who wish to live there. But what do they gain from rejecting potential users and eschewing the kind of competition and diversity that spurs innovation? Why it’s necessary to exclude, and not simply curate, is beyond me.

To be clear, this is not an argument that Apple should make its OSes free, open or redistributable. (I think it’d be great if they did, but of course they’re not obligated, legally or morally, to give up the rights to their proprietary creations.) But I’m not talking about anything that they have to make, or sell, or support. I’m talking about something that simply exists: the mere occurrence of people using Apple’s products in a way that they don’t happen to like. And the idea that restricting such action can be described as “freedom”.

It’s one thing to void the warranty on a jailbroken iPhone: of course Apple cannot, and should not, be responsible for cleaning up after their users’ messes, any more than Hyundai is liable for a drunk driver. But neither should they be responsible for protecting people from themselves. The attitude implied by that quote – you’re not smart enough, you don’t have enough taste, to be allowed full ownership of your belongings – is frankly insulting. If this kind of cynical, patronizing paternalism is unacceptable when it comes from our governments, so should it be from our private corporations.

So my answer to that first question is (in part) this: I do not wish to be required, now or in the future, to submit my lifestyle and my workflow to Steve Jobs for his approval or rejection. I choose a platform that lets me decide for myself how I live and work best.

1. In fact, I believe Google and Apple have one very important trait in common: they both make things that they want to use. Almost every beloved Google service began life as someone’s personal pet project. The Gmail team, the Chrome team, even (no, especially) the Wave team: these guys are incredibly excited about their products, and they don’t make them for anyone but themselves. Google’s problem isn’t a lack of passion. It’s a lack of direction. They have neither a plan, nor a planner. ↩

Another Google Earth oddity. (43°17’32.05″ N 79°16’44.92″ W)

I’ve had this idea bouncing around in my head for a few days, and with your patience in mind, I’ll jump right in: what if we could combine the strengths of Twitter and RSS into a standard that could form the new backbone of the open Internet?

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