Mobile Devices and Their Apps: Search Gone Missing
February 5, 2010
VentureBeat’s “A Pretty Chart of Top Apps for iPhone, Android, BlackBerry” shocked me. Not a little. Quite a bit. You will want to look at the top apps for the iPhone, the Android devices, and the BlackBerry gizmos. There is no entry for search. In fact, there is no entry for any app related to reading. What’s this tell me?
First, search is not considered an app. I think people assume that finding stuff on a mobile device is a bit of hunting, some familiar icons, and letting the system spit out what seems to be relevant when looking at a map for pizza and walking around. That’s disappointing because search on a mobile device is important in my opinion.
Second, there is no app at hooks into reading. For those publishers in secret meeting with tablet makers, I have a hunch that readership of books and magazines may not take off like a sky rocket. Perhaps bundling a tablet and a subscription will work in some niches, but I am not sure if a major bump will occur.
Finally, the lists tell me too much about our society. I am delighted that I am an old and addled goose.
Stephen E Arnold, February 5, 2010
No one paid me to write about these lists of what are toys and entertainment applications. I suppose I need to report this sad situation to the Department of Education, a stellar outfit.
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