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【Software】Your "Apps" Are Not Apps
You may have noticed that I don't use the word "app" outside the context of software made for smartphones.
There's a really good reason for this.
What particularly bothers me in the tech industry is the constant misuse of the word "app".
The History of the Word "App"
Before 2007, this word didn't exist.
Then Steve Jobs showed up with the iPhone and coined the term "app".
In Romanized spelling, it coincidentally matches the first three letters of "Apple" (the company).
In other words, by using the word "app", you're unconsciously advertising Apple products to others.
You might wonder why Apple invented a new word.
They create new terms for everything and get you to use them, subtly promoting their products.
For example, they call "4K resolution" "Retina Display", "TPM 2.0" "Apple Secure Enclave", "120Hz display" "ProMotion Display", and "ARM64 Mac" "Apple Silicon".
I like to call this "Apple Pi" because it's little more than a single-board computer you can't modify, stuffed into a fancy case, sold at an exorbitant price for a product that stops working a few years after purchase.
The Problem with the Word "App"
The specific issue with the word "app" is that it's become so widespread that everyone, especially those not tech-savvy, started calling all software "apps".
If you've been reading this blog for a while, you know I really don't like smartphones.
Here's a simplified list of software terms that non-tech-savvy people have replaced with "app":
| Before iPhone | After iPhone |
|---|---|
| Software | App |
| Program | App |
| CLI Utility | App |
| Game | App |
| Website | App |
| Firmware | App |
| Driver | App |
| Kernel | App |
| Backend | App |
| Frontend | App |
| Video | App |
| Chat Protocol | App |
| Application | App |
| Embedded | App |
| Server | App |
| Client | App |
| Daemon | App |
| Compiler | App |
| Debugger | App |
| Virtual Machine | App |
I didn't include "container" in this list because it didn't exist when the iPhone came out.
Over time, this extended to software distribution as well:
| Before iPad | After iPad |
|---|---|
| Android Market (now "Play Store") | App Store |
| Steam | App Store |
| Wii Shop (now "Nintendo eShop") | App Store |
| PSN Store | App Store |
| AUR | App Store |
| apt-get | App Store |
| Flatpak/Snap | App Store |
| rpm | App Store |
| Ports Collection (BSD, CRUX) | App Store |
| Package Manager | App Store |
| .msi Wizard | App Store |
| Unity Asset Store | App Store |
| Spotify | App Store |
| The Pirate Bay | App Store |
There's other software where Apple's terminology has leaked into other fields, like "Dock".
However, "Dock" is clearly defined as a floating panel in desktop environments where program icons are displayed.
In contrast, the word "app" is used so broadly across all kinds of software that it's become a problem.
How long before we start calling all hardware "Mac Silicon"?
Non-tech-savvy people call all tablet PCs "iPads", and sometimes even all laptops "iPads", which is another issue.
Even my mother, who is in her late 60s, always calls her iPad a "laptop" and my ThinkPad an "iPad".
I understand that she and other non-tech-savvy people she interacts with daily do this, but for those of us who've been in tech for decades, it's annoying.
That's all