Apple accused of stealing ideas from developers again
updated 07:15 pm EDT, Mon June 28, 2004
Apple stealing ideas?
Developer Arlo Rose says that Apple is stealing ideas from its developers. At WWDC today, Steve Jobs introduced Dashboard, a configuration utility that allows users to control and manage "widgets," small application that can perform any number of system, Internet, or other tasks. "While , the first utility to allow users skinable easy to create desk accessory-like objects written in JavaScript, has served as the template for Apple's new feature Dashboard."
Konfabulator, a $25 shareware application that was released last year, allows third-party developers to create "widgets" that users can download. Over 650 widgets, including games, stock quotes, calendars, clocks, etc., are available to users to Mac OS X Jaguar and Panther now.
Apple, in the past, has also been accused of taking ideas from other shareware programs, which has caused backlash from some develops. Karelia Software, producers of Watson Internet search tool, made similar accusations after Sherlock 2, released with a previous version of Mac OS X, offers virtually identical functionality. After its integration into the system, the company slowed the release of updates, and the company today announced that its technology was sold to a major developer, but did not name the buyer.
Dashboard also bears more than a passing resemblance to Panic's Stattoo utility, which mimics some of the functionality of Konfabulator and was released earlier this year.






Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Mar 2004
Word?
Yeah, I must admit Dashboard looks A LOT like Konfabulator, but isn't it all open-sourced? And if so, doesn't that mean any developer-Apple included-can make an application on those standards? I'm not a developer (for good reason!), but I don't know how 'wrong' Apple is on this one.