ART511 - Locative Studio Spring 2008

A developers conference was held on Thursday 3/6/08, in Cupertino, where Apple released its Software Development Kit (SDK) for the iPhone. The SDK is freely available and will allow developers the same access to the iPhone’s features as Apple’s programs have. Apple also helped launch a 100 million dollar fund with Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB) for developing new applications on the iPhone or the iPod Touch.

During the presentation, the architecture for the iPhone was outlined, detailing some of the core services and media applications that would be available to use in your program. For example Core Location runs as part of the Core Services on the Apple iPhone. This is the service which enables the iPhone to triangulate where you are using cell-towers and wireless devices. And, Web View can be embedded into your applications, so that your application can use Safari’s browser natively.

Apple also said that a new App store would be relesed in June, that will allow users to download and install applications directly from the store onto their iPhone. And that, developers who create programs for use on the iPhone can sell their applications at a 70/30 split with Apple, which isn’t that bad if you consider the free advertising and product placement with Apple.

This is a great opportunity; here’s the link to the free SDK and info on the developers program with a link to 100 million dollars: Introducing the iPhone Developer Program.

It took me a while but I found something: Socialight. The demo video kind of creeped me out. Not only was it backed with a jazzy, muzak, shopping mall soundtrack, but there was no mention (of course) about the surveillance issues surrounding this service. Of course, I have been reading a lot of Naomi Wolf lately, so that could just be the paranoia about closed societies talking.

Anyway, this Socialight service offers location based information generated by consumers for consumers that loads to your cell phone to give you suggestions on where to shop, dine, and be entertained. Think Yelp.com but tagged to locations for you to discover as you move through the environment. The example in the video of looking for the pretzel cart–that happens to be right around the corner–raised many questions for me personally: Would they have ever tried this pretzel cart if they hadn’t been notified? Will this help fill out entertainment venues? Is this service likely to aid impulsive purchases? Will this drive people further out of reality and into the lcd screens of their mobile devices? This service/project looks like the beginning of corporate/capitalist adaptation of the locative media format. Would anyone use this service, or is it too Patriot Act creepy?