The WP7 API surface area is very much locked down. For example, in v1 we did not provide any access to the address book (other than a chooser). There is no way to do cross app IPC. There was no background processing. No sockets. Etc...
As I went around the world "selling" the WP7 story to developers I got very good at saying "I'm sorry, but in this version of the platform the app you want to build is not possible."
I found that once this sunk in, developers were actually really glad we were so clear and unambiguous. They weren't necessarily happy, but it felt good (to me) knowing we'd been principled and consistent.
I personally believe this is the only way to build a modern client platform. Start with very tight controls and open it up only when
* There is a well understood use case.
* You have the time/resources to do it right.
I do not mean to be overly pejorative about what Google has done with Android (because, in the large it's truly awesome), but I firmly believe that when it comes to building platforms once the cat is out of the bag it can't be stuffed back in. I'm specifically referring to BOTH the tightness of the sandbox and fragmentation BTW.
As I went around the world "selling" the WP7 story to developers I got very good at saying "I'm sorry, but in this version of the platform the app you want to build is not possible."
I found that once this sunk in, developers were actually really glad we were so clear and unambiguous. They weren't necessarily happy, but it felt good (to me) knowing we'd been principled and consistent.
I personally believe this is the only way to build a modern client platform. Start with very tight controls and open it up only when
* There is a well understood use case. * You have the time/resources to do it right.
I do not mean to be overly pejorative about what Google has done with Android (because, in the large it's truly awesome), but I firmly believe that when it comes to building platforms once the cat is out of the bag it can't be stuffed back in. I'm specifically referring to BOTH the tightness of the sandbox and fragmentation BTW.