Android Gets a Build-Your-Own-App App

Maybe this will knock Apple off their "we know what's good for you better than you do" pedestal....

The question is whether or not this will appeal to the masses, instead of just the tech crowd.

Still, anything that forces Apple (and others) to be more open is good in my book.

My next phone will be on Android. I love the open-source projects and Google Code/Labs. Plus, it's in Java a very easy language so it will be easy to create my own application.

If it's done right, this should appeal to anyone who's ever punched 5318008 into their calculator and turned it upside-down.

In junior high, our computers had something like HyperCard on them (I think it was HyperStudio). Everyone loved it - the nerds, the jocks, everyone. They'd record themselves making silly noises and get that to play when you pushed a button, that sort of thing. Simple and juvenile, but everyone did it. Now these things are so polished and all development is so obscure to most people that we've come to accept them as things that other people program for us. If this takes off, and is pushed in schools, it could really democratise our gadget culture.

I don't have a cell phone right now. I bought my wife an iPhone a little over a year ago and she loves it. I like it too, and I like the look and feel of the iPad, but I just don't have the time or prerequisite knowledge to get into development for hobbyist purposes. This is just one more point in Android's favor if and when I do pick up a cell phone.