iPhone OS : Apple calme l'émoi sur le

NDA
Des développeurs iPhone râlaient, Apple les a finalement écoutés. Elle va lever le NDA
(Non Disclosure Agreement - contrat de confidentialité) sur les versions publiques
d'iPhone OS. Les concepteurs d'applications pourront enfin discuter et partager leurs
expériences sur le sujet. Un nouveau contrat de participation au programme de
développement pour iPhone va leur être proposé très rapidement. En revanche, comme il
en va actuellement pour Mac OS X, ce NDA reste d'actualité sur des versions encore en
développement de ce système. Au moins est-on revenu à une certaine logique.

Apple a justifié cette chape de plomb dont la persistance commençait à taper sur les
nerfs de certains par une volonté de (sur)protéger ses technologies :

"Nous avons mis en place ce NDA car iPhone OS contient de nombreuses inventions et
innovations d'Apple que nous voulions protéger, afin que notre travail ne soit pas volé.
C'est déjà arrivé par le passé. Même si nous avons déposé des centaines de brevets sur les
technologies iPhone, le NDA offrait un niveau supplémentaire de protection. Nous l'avons
mis en place comme un moyen supplémentaire d’éviter que l'iPhone soit pillé par d'autres."

Mais de reconnaitre que par cette démarche, ce NDA à durée non précisée avait généré
trop de contraintes pour ceux qui y étaient soumis. Ils s'étaient en effet montrés de plus
en plus exaspérés par l'impossibilité de pouvoir communiquer (voir l'article Le ras-le-bol
de certains développeurs iPhone).

Face à un problème de programmation ou un bug il leur était impossible de solliciter

l'avis de leurs pairs ou d'en faire état publiquement. Un comble s'agissant d'un système
d'exploitation et d'outils de développements sortis depuis des mois. Une pétition avait vu
le jour enjoignant Apple, tout au moins, à s'expliquer publiquement sur le sujet. C'est
chose faite.

À l'objectif de calmer le jeu et de montrer qu'elle écoutait les doléances, s'est peut-être
aussi ajouté un autre constat. Celui du changement de statut d'Android, l'OS open source
de Google pour mobiles, passé du stade de système en développement à celui de
produit - bientôt - présent sur des milliers de téléphones. Et pour Android aussi, une
boutique de téléchargement de logiciels est prête à recevoir toutes les contributions
possibles et imaginables de développeurs.

What was it like working on the original iPhone project (codenamed

Project Purple)? originally appeared on Quora: the knowledge sharing
network where compelling questions are answered by people with unique
insights.

Answer by Terry Lambert, Apple Core OS Kernel team, technical

lead on several projects, on Quora:

I wrote about 6% of the Mac OS X kernel, by lines of code, over a period of

eight years. That’s about 100,000 lines of code a year.

This is the same kernel for iOS.

I didn’t get read in on Purple until late in the game, but I was informally
read in before that, because I was a pretty awesome kernel debugger, and
the kernel needs to be debugged a lot when you are doing a bring-up.

At some point you just have to wing it, because it’s more important to ship
product than it is to be overly anal about secrecy.

So I got taken into areas where there were black cloths everywhere. If you've
ever worked at Apple, black cloths are how they cover secret projects; you
pretend not to see them; it’s a kind of willful ignorance. I only got to see the
machine doing the remote debugging, not the target — but it was obviously
an ARM based system. If you want a clever Halloween costume for Apple,
buy a black sheet, cut eye holes, and go as a “secret project."

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When you finally got read in, you signed an NDA that let you see the NDA
that had the code name on it. You couldn’t see the code name, until you
agreed not to discuss the code name.

Another thing that Apple does is they give different code names to different
groups; in other words, you may be working on the same project as
someone else, and not actually know it. Or be allowed to discuss it.

After the read in, you get access to the “secret lab”. That’s a lab inside the
main lab. You may have access to the regular lab, but not the “secret lab”.
You didn’t really get to see the form factor, because when you are doing the
initial work, it’s all prototypes on plexiglass.

Oh, and the special cables you used to talk to the pre-production units, they
were actually Purple.

P.S.: if you care, you can pretty much figure out what any secret project is.
And no, I’m not going to disclose how you do it, but really? Trivially easy.
 This question originally appeared on Quora. Ask a question, get a great
answer. Learn from experts and access insider knowledge. You can follow
Quora on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+. More questions:

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Apple drops iPhone NDA gag order

It makes the change after developers criticize secrecy

By Gregg Keizer
Senior Reporter, Computerworld | OCTOBER 01, 2008 01:00 AM PT
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Bending to criticism from iPhone developers, Apple Inc. today announced it is

dropping the non-disclosure agreement (NDA) for applications that have been
released.

In a message posted to its developer site, Apple hinted that the move came in
response to critics, who had blasted the company for continuing to muzzle
developers long after they had wrapped up work on their software.
Last week, some took Apple to the woodshed after reports surfaced that the
company had told developers that the NDA applied to all communication, including
rejection notices sent when applications were turned down by the App Store, the only
official outlet for third-party iPhone programs.

[ Related: Tech event calendar: Upcoming shows, conferences and IT expos]

"We have decided to drop the non-disclosure agreement (NDA) for released iPhone
software," said Apple in the message. "We put the NDA in place because the iPhone
OS includes many Apple inventions and innovations that we would like to protect, so
that others don't steal our work. It has happened before."

But it acknowledged the recent negative publicity over its continued push for secrecy.
"The NDA has created too much of a burden on developers, authors and others
interested in helping further the iPhone's success, so we are dropping it for released
software," Apple said. "Thanks to everyone who provided us constructive feedback
on this matter."

Not everyone is free to speak, however. Apple reminded developers that the NDA
remains in force for "unreleased software and features."

Nor did Apple specify whether the new relaxed rules will apply to iPhone applications
that have been submitted for inclusion in the App Store but have been rejected.
Apple did not respond to a request for clarification Wednesday morning.

[ Learn Java from beginning concepts to advanced design patterns in this comprehensive 12-part
course! ]

That may be an important point for developers who have had their work rejected but
are unsure of how much, if anything, they can say about why Apple declined to sell
their software.

Related Blog:
Seth Weintraub: Apple drops NDA on released iPhone software
Apple's decision goes a little bit of the way in placating pent up frustration. [read
more]
A week ago, for example, Alex Sokirynsky, an iPhone developer whose Podcaster
application had been rejected, pulled a blog post that hammered Apple for shutting
down his developer account. Sokirynsky had said Apple took "the coward's way
out" by barring him from selling Podcaster using the Ad Hoc distribution channel as
an end run around the rejection.

Some suspected that Sokirynsky yanked the post because of the NDA.

Sokirynsky had become a minor iPhone celebrity after Podcaster was rejected.
When Apple denied him access to the App Store, Sokirynsky published Apple's
reason. "Since Podcaster assists in the distribution of podcasts, it duplicates the
functionality of the Podcast section of iTunes," Apple told him.

Other developers railed at Apple for that rationale. Fraser Speirs, for instance, said
he was done with the iPhone and called on Apple to publish clear rules for what it
would accept, and to add a pre-approval procedure to the App Store application
process.

Today, however, Speirs and others applauded Apple's NDA decision. "Now that's the
Apple I know and love," said Speirs in a Twitter message. "Next stop: pre-approval of
app concepts and the future is golden."

Apple said today that it would send developers a revised NDA in about a week.

When you sign up for an iOS or Mac developer account, you agree to certain terms. These are
outlined in this public-facing PDF on Apple’s website. There are several sections that are
referred to as “the NDA” by those in the community. Here’s the gist of it, from sections four
and five of the document

Confidentiality. You agree that any Apple pre-release software and/or hardware (including
related documentation and materials) provided to you as a Registered Apple Developer (“Pre-
Release Materials”) and any information disclosed by Apple to you in connection with Apple
Events or Paid Content (defined below) will be considered and referred to as “Apple
Confidential Information”. Notwithstanding the foregoing, Apple Confidential Information
will not include: (i) information that is generally and legitimately available to the public
through no fault or breach of yours, (ii) information that is generally made available to the
public by Apple, (iii) information that is independently developed by you without the use of
any Apple Confidential Information, (iv) information that was rightfully obtained from a third
party who had the right to transfer or disclose it to you without limitation, or (v) any third
party software and/or documentation provided to you by Apple and accompanied by licensing
terms that do not impose confidentiality obligations on the use or disclosure of such software
and/or documentation.

Nondisclosure and Nonuse of Apple Confidential Information. Unless otherwise expressly

agreed or permitted in writing by Apple, you agree not to disclose, publish, or disseminate
any Apple Confidential Information to anyone other than to other Registered Apple
Developers who are employees and contractors working for the same entity as you and then
only to the extent that Apple does not otherwise prohibit such disclosure. Except for your
authorized purposes as a Registered Apple Developer or as otherwise expressly agreed or
permitted by Apple in writing, you agree not to use Apple Confidential Information in any
way, including, without limitation, for your own or any third party’s benefit without the prior
written approval of an authorized representative of Apple in each instance. You further agree
to take reasonable precautions to prevent any unauthorized use, disclosure, publication, or
dissemination of Apple Confidential Information. You acknowledge that unauthorized
disclosure or use of Apple Confidential Information could cause irreparable harm and
significant injury to Apple that may be difficult to ascertain. Accordingly, you agree that
Apple will have the right to seek immediate injunctive relief to enforce your obligations under
this Agreement in addition to any other rights and remedies it may have. If you are required
by law, regulation or pursuant to the valid binding order of a court of competent jurisdiction
to disclose Apple Confidential Information, you may make such disclosure, but only if you
have notified Apple before making such disclosure and have used commercially reasonable
efforts to limit the disclosure and to seek confidential, protective treatment of such
information. A disclosure pursuant to the previous sentence will not relieve you of your
obligations to hold such information as Apple Confidential Information.

Furthermore, section six contains this sentence:

You agree not to use the Pre-Release Materials for any purpose other than testing and/or
development by you of a product designed to operate in combination with the same operating
system for which the Pre-Release Materials are designed.

While I’m no lawyer — nor do I play one on TV — the basic concept here that unless Apple
has shared a particular piece of information on its website or public keynotes, that information
is off-limits for public discussion or publication. If someone is found to be in breach of these
sections, Apple can revoke your account or take legal action against that person or
publication.

(The first item in section four is a weird line. Basically, once something is made public
knowledge by someone else, you won’t be held responsible for re-sharing it, the way I read it.
But again, I’m no attorney.)

Of course, visiting almost any site with “Mac” in the name, will result in seeing way more
about iOS 7 or OS X Mavericks than Apple’s put out officially. Some people have already
written reviews of iOS 7, which is just bonkers.

When Mac OS X Lion was in beta, Victor Agreda, Jr. at TUAW argued that Apple actually
wanted the press to break the NDA and discuss features of the new operating system since the
company wasn’t coming down as hard as it once did on people leaking details:

It’s become painfully clear that Apple wants all of us to poke and prod and test and above all
write, record and post about Lion. Sure, the various YouTube videos of Lion’s features have
been pulled down due to “copyright claims,” but this is a pretty tame response from a
company that used to sue rumor sites like Think Secret into oblivion over leaks. Apple must
feel that educating the masses begins with those of us (geeks, nerds, dweebs and fanboys)
who feel compelled to play with every new shiny thing that drops down from the mothership.
Indeed, as details bubble up to the mass consciousness, it’s a lot easier for Apple to have us
lay the educational groundwork for friends and family than it is for Apple to convince hurried
consumers to read its glossy white pages. “Where do I put apps?” grandma will ask, and we’ll
instantly know where they go. Even better, instead of a bunch of kneejerk reactions
(“Scrolling is broken forever! FAIL! One star!”), we’ll all be used to the tectonic shifts we’re
seeing in Lion by the time the full release is available. Education doesn’t happen in an instant.
It takes time to let the message soak in. With Apple allowing us to do as we please with this
preview of 10.7, it’s softening the collective blow when we decide to do a “real” review of the
OS later this year. The system works!

He closed his article with this:

So, from here on we’re going to ignore the NDA like every other Mac news outlet on the
internet. We’ll play Apple’s game and help teach the masses about Lion. It won’t win us
invites to Apple events, but then, neither has over five years of reporting on the company with
laserlike focus. Instead, we hope that if you are offended by this breakage or wish to be
surprised by the new features when Lion is officially released, you’ll pass over the posts with
10.7 info in them. In the end, it would seem it is in the reader’s best interest to stay informed,
and that’s what we’ll aim to do. You win, Apple!

I like Victor — and he’s the only other tech writer in my entire state, it seems — but I think
this interpretation of the NDA’s current state is too broad. That said, TUAW was really just
hopping onboard with what almost every other Apple-centric news site was already doing.

The reasons publications publish stuff like this is pretty simple: people read it. In a world
where hardcore nerds will drop $99 and put a very unfinished product on their carry device,

stories about pre-release software bring massive traffic. I’m not sure Apple is relying on the media to
educate the public, though.

Setting publications aside for a moment, the NDA serves as a wall between Apple and its
competitors. While you’d be foolish to think that Google, Microsoft and their partners don’t
have engineers and designers using Apple developer accounts to peek in on what Cupertino is
doing, it’s better than nothing.

Right?

In a world where the NDA is only taken seriously by actual developers who have the most to
lose by breaking it, does it still make sense for Apple to have one in place?

While Apple is surely more relaxed than it used to be when it comes to the NDA, I can’t help
but think that it is still in place just so Apple has something in its back pocket if something
truly crazy ever happened. It’s a safety net, in some respects, like patenting any thing the
company’s employees can think of. The NDA is more defensive than offensive at this point.
Apple allows a certain amount of information to be shared, but reserves the right to bring the
hammer down when it deems necessary. Apple definitely still sends cease and desists to
bloggers.

I for one don’t feel comfortable breaking the agreement I signed when joining the developer
program. Not everyone feels that way, and while it bothers me, I can only control what I do. I
strive to cover and discuss only what Apple’s made public. It only seems right.

Operating on the mentality that “everyone’s doing it” is a bad way to make coverage
decisions, in my opinion.

Post navigation
 Apple drops NDA for iPhone developers
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Apple announced Wednesday morning via a posting on the front page of its iPhone developer
site that it has decided to discontinue the non-disclosure agreement preventing developers
from discussing iPhone programming.

The statement on Apple’s site, addressed “To Our Developers,” said that the company had
originally put the NDA in place to protect Apple’s inventions and innovations from being
stolen by others. But the company acknowledged that the result had placed too much of a
burden on developers and “others interested in helping further the iPhone’s success.” Apple
went on to thank all those who provided constructive feedback on the matter.

Many iPhone developers had been openly critical of the NDA, regarding it as Apple tying
their hands behind their back by denying them access to a critical resource: their fellow
programmers. So it’s little surprise that the news that Apple was dropping the restrictions was
met with enthusiastic responses from the iPhone development community.

[ Further reading: Everything you need to know about iOS 12 ]

Bart Decrem, CEO of Tapulous, maker of the popular game Tap Tap Revenge, said his
company’s developers were delighted about the news. “This should make it a lot easier for
our developers to talk to others in the iPhone developer community, which will result in better
software and faster development cycles.”

Decrem also sees the removal of the NDA as a positive step for the platform as a whole. “This
will also have an impact on the ecosystem over the longer term: higher quality software, more
documentation, and more competition, as new developers join the platform once more
developer documentation becomes available.”

Other developers were positive on the news as well. “It’s about time!” said Brian Greenstone,
President of Pangea Software. Producer Bruce Morrison of Freeverse Software remarked “I
just hope now the iPhone community can come together to help each other freely.”

Brent Simmons of NewsGator, developer of NetNewsWire, likened the NDA to flying blind.
“Now it’s as if we can suddenly see the sky and the clouds and the ground—and we can talk
to other pilots.”

“Removing the NDA is great news for iPhone developers,” Simmons went on to say. “As a
Mac developer, I’m so used to looking to the Web and other developers when I wonder about
the best way to do something.” Simmons said that he expected to see numerous tutorials and
tips show up around the Web dedicated to helping other developers. “It’ll be a great
demonstration of how the Mac development community does things.”

The Iconfactory’s Craig Hockenberry echoed Simmons’s sentiments. “Basically, it makes life
easier for a developer. We can all rely on shared experiences: I don’t have to figure out
something that some other developer already has.”

Hockenberry, the developer of popular Twitter application Twitterrific, was one of the most
outspoken opponents of the NDA, and naturally one of the most excited about the
agreement’s removal. Shortly after the removal of the NDA was announced, he had
already posted a piece on his blog detailing his solution to a tricky development issue.

“The people who will benefit most from this move are the developers new to the platform,”
said Hockenberry. “There are a lot of people coming from Java, Windows Mobile and Palm
that are hungry for information. Being able to buy a book and talk with other developers will
help them immensely.”

Another vocal developer, Fraser Speirs of Connected Flow, which makes Flickr browser
Exposure, said that the removal of the NDA “shows Apple cares and is listening.” Last
month, Speirs said that he would be halting his company’s iPhone development because of
Apple’s lack of transparency in the App Store approval process.

While Speirs said that news of the NDA’s lifting has made him “a lot happier about being part
of the future of iPhone development,” he still has reservations. “It doesn’t fix the problem of
App Store rejections. This was my big beef and Apple still has to do something on that.”
Craig Hockenberry agrees with Speirs. “[The review process] seems to be taking longer as
time goes on. It appears that Apple is overwhelmed by the success of the platform and they
need to adapt their processes to deal with the flood of submissions.”

Both Speirs and Hockenberry think Apple still needs to work on a pre-approval process for
applications, so that developers don’t end up putting a lot of work into programs that are
ultimately rejected. But both also agree that Apple will likely address that issue as well.

"The best thing about this announcement is that it shows Apple is listening to us," said
Hockenberry. "It gives us all confidence that our other concerns will be addressed over time.”

Apple said it will issue a new agreement to developers covering released software that will
not contain the NDA clauses. Software and features that Apple has not yet released, such as
future versions of the iPhone Software Development Kit, will continue to be confidential until
their release.

“I don’t see the caveat about 'unreleased' software being a big deal,” said Craig Hockenberry,
pointing out that similar restrictions have long governed developers' access to Mac OS X. “I
think this is actually a good thing, since 'unreleased' APIs tend to change.”

The full details, however, will have to wait until the new agreement makes its way to
developers. But for now, the mood in the iPhone development community is clearly
celebratory.

“I’ve marked October 1st on my calendar as NDA Lifting Day—set to repeat yearly, like a
holiday,” said NewsGator’s Simmons. “It’s that cool.”

This story was updated at 2:54PM Eastern with reactions from developers.

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