The moment the iPad was released, computer geeks, amateur and professional alike, began their determined endeavors to hack the new gadget. And if you think about it, we can say the same thing for pretty much every piece of technology― that has achieved even marginal popularity― that has been released in the last 3 or 4 years.
Let’s face it, hackers control our technology. Companies spend millions of dollars and thousands of man hours trying fruitlessly to thwart the efforts of these people. But why?
Even if Apple has 100, 500, or even 1000 of the most capable programmers in the world working on solutions to hacking, there are probably hundreds of thousands of people contributing to solutions to those solutions. Sure, they don’t have fancy Ph. D’s in computer sciences from MIT but 500,000 novice programmers beat a thousand experts any day.
So my question to the mighty Steve Jobs is:
Why waste all these resources on trying to prevent the inevitable? Besides, so many users are drawn to Apple products just because they can be hacked, then decked out with some sort of custom operating system. If Apple is really all about satisfying its users at any cost, shouldn’t they be working with hackers to create better products? And shouldn’t they be open to “hacking” if in reality, it only improves their products?
And now, as the Blackberry Playbook was announced yesterday, I’m looking forward to seeing how RIM will respond to its hackers. The first company to embrace them might be the one to see profits stacking up like firewood, while its competitors wither in the background.
Didn’t I say that hackers were the most powerful people in technology?
