Although I am happy that apps are moving out of the MAS (it is slow, updates are slow, no possibility to offer upgrade licenses), as a user, Sandboxing is something that I want for every possible application. The model where an app can e.g. touch your whole home directory should go.
And for those potentially dangerous Mac apps that need to touch your home directory or essentially become a key logger, I'd want them to be as watched by Apple as possible. Keep them in the Mac App Store, with a strict permission / entitlements model.
That's what I've never understood about the Sandbox policy. Those apps will still be shipped... they're just another level removed from Apple's oversight. And it's not like iOS, where not allowing those apps ensures that 99.9% of users will never ever see those apps.
Gatekeeper helps with this to a degree, but why not just allow them in the Mac App Store?
I don't disagree but I think there must be ways around this.
For instance I don't mind Apples requirement that you have to ask for permission to access various files or folders but it should be possible and not come up with things like a spinning gear skating around your menubar. Those things are just sloppy.
A simple. "I trust this app to do more crazy things with my machine" feature must be possible to do.
Really? If that model is so awesome, how can I ever implement a screen reader for Hearthstone? Or how can I implement a deck tracker for Hearthstone?
Or any other kind of wild shenanigan Apple hasn't ever thought of.
Keep that stuff for mobiles.
If PCs also become grandma only territory, how will really interesting apps ever be developed? Interesting almost always involves "dangerous" somewhere along the way.
With a two tier system. I believe you should still be -able- to install apps that have wider rights but you should have to jump through some hoops and make sure the user is aware of what he's doing before installing them.
