During Friday's class, the topic of jailbreaking apple devices came up. What I found most interesting about our short discussion about this concept was that only a few students were unfamiliar with the term "jailbreaking". The ability to jailbreak an iPhone or iPod Touch has been accessible from the very first generation of Apple iPhones, but I am sure if the same topic was brought up only a year ago to the same group of students, less than half would have recognized the term. Although I would say only a small percentage of iPhone users actually jailbreak their phones, most of them have heard of jailbreaking these days. I feel this is significant because most devices released in recent years can be "hacked" or modified in some way that gives the user access to more content than the manufacturer intended, however this concept has been largely unknown to the average consumer up until very recently. Jailbreaking has been the first widely used and recognized method of device modification. To me, this shows that consumers are more interested than ever in gaining access to every single feature that a device they purchase has. As more and more people use and support the jailbreaking concept, it will become easier to apply and better supported by independent software developers because of the greater consumer interest. Eventually, I don't find it unlikely that a completely unlocked, opened, and modifiable device will become a selling point. Manufacturers will advertise the fact that their device can run any software made by an independent or 3rd party developer and contain no locks on the device's features. I find the concept of widespread modification and unlocking very intriguing, how about you?
Well, personally, I love the geek talk, Ian. But I can see why some might find your post to be a little intimidating.
ReplyDeleteI think you could make this more accessible by comparing it to another kind of product which has been modified and improved by its customers.
Or perhaps you could make a greater point about American individualism and how it intersects with the iPhone.
Remember that this concept of jailbreaking runs counter to many American corporations that want to keep a tight rein on their products in order to maximize their profits. You might talk of that tension as well.