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iPhone Can Now Run Apache, Python, Vim

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the not-enough-memory-for-emacs dept.

An anonymous reader writes "After the first Hello World application, hacker NerveGas and the people at #iphone-shell have built Apache, Python and other Open Source apps for the iPhone using NightWatch's toolchain. Yes, your iPhone can now be a Web Server and do all sort of 1337 things. This also means that third-party applications for iPhone will happen no matter what. People, iPhone Doom could be just around the corner." It's fairly thin on information but if true, this will lead to good things. Like hopefully permission from apple.

3 of 312 comments (clear)

  1. Re:my thoughts by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative
    I think the demand for a SDK caught apple by surprise (possibly because the iPod didn't have many people hollering for a SDK, and since it's easy to see the iPhone as an iPod + phone functionality I can see how this was given a low priority.)

    There is plenty of demand for an iPod SDK, and has been since day 1:

    http://www.alteringtime.com/log/archives/96
    http://www.macworld.com/news/2006/09/21/macgamesip od/index.php
    http://www.ipodhacks.com/modules.php?op=modload&na me=Forum&file=viewtopic&forum=2&topic=1806
    http://lists.apple.com/archives/studentdev/2001/Oc t/msg00437.html
    ...and so on.

    Apple has their reasons for not releasing an iPhone SDK, same as they have their reasons for not releasing an iPod SDK. I assure you that not knowing the demand has nothing to do with it.

  2. Not Quite There by DylanQ · · Score: 5, Informative

    People are completely misunderstanding what's going on with iPhone development. We have no means of writing apps for the iPhone with a GUI, or even apps that handle user input. We CAN access the iPhone via SSH and run things remotely; that's about it. Some people are working hard on reverse-engineering current apps and frameworks (myself included) so that we may be able to compile a GUI app, but at this point, there is no Doom "just around the corner". For a while, the main focus of the iPhone hacking efforts has been unlocking. Hopefully this will change, but while people are focused on unlocking, not much else is getting accomplished (aside from what Nightwatch is doing with his toolchain).

  3. Re:my thoughts by tji · · Score: 5, Informative

    Sure, some were asking for an iPod SDK.. But, for something with a wheel as an input device, your development options are pretty limited.

    The iPhone is much different, because

    - It has full input capabilities -- pointer, selection, keyboard input and more.

    - It's a much more powerful device (cpu/ram) than the iPods

    - Apple positioned it as a "smart phone", directly comparing it to the competitive smartphones, which do offer SDKs.

    - Apple represented it as running "True OS X". They even mentioned it supporting Cocoa. Why the hell would you talk about the programming interface if you don't intend to give your developers access?

    After watching the initial iPhone introduction, I just assumed developers would have access (based on the OS X / Cocoa stuff). Just after that annoyance of finding they were NOT making an SDK wore off, Apple came back with the "you don't need an SDK, just write web pages" bullshit, which re-opened the wound. That episode was the farthest off I have seen Apple in understanding their developers/customers. Hopefully they remedy it soon.