| 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 Redmond is stealing ideas from Cupertino, it seems Cupertino is stealing ideas from its third party developers. Konfabulator, 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.
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