One of the big changes in iOS 8 is the addition of widgets in Notification Center. Apple has resisted the call to add more glanceable information to its platform for years, but it has finally acquiesced. Cupertino isn't letting developers go completely wild, though. The most recent app to be drummed out of the App Store shows us where Apple is drawing the line with this feature.
Before it was booted from the App Store on Friday, Launcher allowed users to create links to their favorite apps and actions in a small notification widget. It's the sort of capability Android has offered for years. People were excited for good reason—Notification Center is easily accessible almost everywhere on the device, so these links were just a tap away. Launcher had hundreds of thousands of users.
Apple told the developer upon removal of the app that using an app to link to other apps in Notification Center was a "misuse of widgets." He attempted to submit a fix that bounced users to the Launcher app first before continuing on to the selected app, but Apple rejected that as well.
There are plenty of reasons Apple might have decided to get rid of Launcher and disallow similar apps, but it's probably an aesthetic concern. Having a second home screen grid of sorts could get messy, and Apple likes to protect users from their own poor decisions. Launcher also reserved one spot for a sponsored app unless the user upgraded to the pro version, and Apple would be understandably annoyed by ads of any sort cluttering up the system UI.
There won't be any more updates, and Launcher can no longer be downloaded by new users. This has users up in arms, but it's a common occurrence throughout the history of iOS. If you're going to play in Apple's walled garden, you have to expect there will be rules. At least now we know where the limits are for widgets.
from PCMag.com Breaking News http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/breakingnews/~3/5MlSxZQQC60/0,2817,2469457,00.asp
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