[DUG] Delphi on Windows Mobile

[Jolyon Smith]

> I'm not sure that the new licensing is an issue for monotouch as they
> support iPhoneOS 4 presently - I think the licensing is more aimed at
> Adobe (I'm not sure why Apple hates flash sooooo much).  But I'm sure
> others on this list know more about this than I.


The language in the license quite clearly and obviously applies equally to
MonoTouch.

Novell would have been working on 4.0 support long before the license terms
were changed.  So of course they announced support for it, they weren't
about to throw all that work away.  And MonotTouch can support OS 4.0
without violating the license.  People can even still use it to develop apps
without violating the license.  The license only affects whether those apps
will then be permitted access to the store.

It's like the landlord in your pub... he will happily sell you beer.  If on
the way home you then get pulled over and arrested for drunk driving, well,
that's between you and the law, nothing to do with the landlord.  (don't
pull too closely at that analogy... landlords typically are limited by the
law in some respects, e.g. to not serve intoxicated persons, but someone
doesn't have to be intoxicated to be over the drink drive limit).


But whole debacle is a bit pointless.

The license also already gave Apple the right to deny access to/withdraw any
app from the store without reason.  By introducing this language I think
they are covering their legal backsides against a potential law suit from
someone who feels their development language/tool/framework is being
specifically and unfairly targeted by Apple.

This language gives them plausible cause:  "The license clearly states...
etc etc, so we're sorry, but all those applications written in/for your
product willfully violated those terms. You knew that when you started
developing/selling/marketing your product to developers".


Presently they have Adobe Flash in the public gun-sights - the MonoTouch
guys aren't being targeted at present (but neither have Apple said that
MonoTouch escapes being covered by the license language).

The bottom line is that anyone using MonoTouch to deploy code written in
Delphi Prism, C# or any language other than those specifically allowed in
the license for iPhone/iPad cannot now complain in the future if they have
their app pulled/denied access to the store on the basis of it being a
MonoTouch app.

They couldn't complain before either of course, but a single developer irked
at not being allowed to distribute his app isn't who the license is aimed
at... it's aimed at the legal departments of the
language/tool/framework/runtime vendors that those developers might choose
to use.


Just my 0.02

> -----Original Message-----
> From: delphi-bounces at delphi.org.nz [mailto:delphi-
> bounces at delphi.org.nz] On Behalf Of Alister Christie
> Sent: Wednesday, 5 May 2010 3:28 p.m.
> To: NZ Borland Developers Group - Delphi List
> Subject: Re: [DUG] Delphi on Windows Mobile
>