“Ever since iTunes first launch as a digital music store Apple has been adding more and more content to it making the application an almost one-stop shop for your digital needs,” Alan Cone reports for Newowin. “Ranging from music to videos, and even mobile applications iTunes does it all. Curiously though, when Apple released the Mac App Store, this came as a separate application.”
Cone reports, “On an Italian Apple blog, Slide To Mac, they have an image which appears to show the classic App Store logo with the words “Coming Soon” below it within iTunes. While this makes sense on the Mac side, it would lead to drastic differences between the OS X and Windows versions of iTunes.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: It seems minor, but having to launch the Mac App Store as a separate app means fewer visits than if it was in iTunes for Mac right by the App Store icon. We’re in iTunes all the time, but we have to remember to launch the Mac App Store.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Sam” for the heads up.]
I doubt it. If that was the intent, it would have been introduced that way.
Apple intentionally made using the Mac App Store NOT dependent on having iTunes installed. The App Store for iOS being in iTunes makes sense, because iTunes handles syncing, backup, and maintenance for iOS devices.
“Apple intentionally made using the Mac App Store NOT dependent on having iTunes installed”…
ITunes is always installed on every Mac. While I believe you COULD trash it if you wanted (if you didn’t have an iPod/iPhone/iPad, nor wanted to listen to music), it is difficult to find a valid reason why.
Yes, but there should be no need to USE iTunes, just to install Mac software. And while some version of iTunes may be installed by default on every Mac, the user should not have to bother updating iTunes to the latest version, just to be able to continue using the Mac App Store.
The primary purpose of iTunes is to play media and should not be necessary to maintain the Mac’s software. What’s next, Disk Utility is going to integrated into iTunes?
I would rather them integrate the iOS App Store into the Mac App Store app. Have it all in one place that is AWAY from iTunes.
But then, you would have to set up syncing in two separate applications. The reason the iOS App Store is in iTunes is because iTunes is used for syncing “everything” to the iOS device, as well as backup and general maintenance. So it would not be “all in one place” in a more important way.
AND, there would have to be a separate “non-Mac Store” application for Windows users, if the iOS App Store was no longer in iTunes.
At some future date, iOS devices will no longer be dependent on having a separate “full” computer. At that time, Apple will probably rethink the role of iTunes.
I agree with Ross.
Sync can still happen through iTunes- just look at the syncing for Mail and Contacts.
iTunes has become bloated and hard to manage because they’ve thrown everything into it.
As I said, once iOS devices are no longer dependent on having a Mac or Windows PC to be the host, “Apple will probably rethink the role of iTunes.” Currently, for iPhones, iPod touch, and iPad, they are treated as dependent devices (like old-school iPods). So FOR NOW, you have to use iTunes to manage and perform the syncing of all the iTunes-based media AND even Address Book, iCal and Mail accounts, so it makes sense to also include apps (to keep it all in one place instead of two separate application – one for media and one for apps).
Once “iDevices” are no longer dependent, it would be more like having two Macs. You can keep them “in sync” in various ways, but one is not “synced to” the other (the two computers have “equal” status with respect to syncing). Apple will probably have some cloud-based method in place for syncing by that time.
iTunes is already bloated-snail slow. It needs to be simplified, not bloated even further. The app store needs better organization; interesting apps easily get lost among the thousands of crappy apps.
Now I’m a big fan of iTunes, but even I can see it’s bloated. I think I’d like to see more of it built into OSX, and little client widgets for maligning music, apps etc.
Of course they’d still have to produce a big application for Windows users.
I meant managing!
False rumor. Makes no sense. Not going to happen. Move along.
“While this makes sense on the Mac side, it would lead to drastic differences between the OS X and Windows versions of iTunes.”
No.
Having just another Tab, is not “drastic”.
If Apple were planning to offer both Mac and PC software through and App Store it would make sense to put the App Store into iTunes. Why not make $$ off poor misguided Windoze users? Money is money.
you know, I thought that mac app store was supposed to be like app store inside of itunes. but I don’t understand why they made it separately. that wasn’t like what Apple has done before. inefficient. now, they will try to change, huh? what’s wrong.
Because you don’t want make something as important as installing application on your Mac dependent on iTunes. For the Mac user, iTunes is an application for acquiring and playing various types of media. They may not use it at all. Or they may use it, but may have reasons for not wanting to upgrade to the latest version every time, just to keep using the Mac App Store. Conversely, if Apple has a need to update how the Mac App Store works, they should not need to test and release a new version of iTunes every time.
could be an AppStore for windows of course…
Remember all those statements that Flash is the most frequent cause of system crashes?
Well, that may be true, but since I use ClickToFlash, by far the program that falls in a quivering heap most often is iTunes.
Like, once every couple days.
Please no.
If anything they need to start breaking iTunes into separate apps, not integrate more into iTunes. It’s getting a little ridiculous.
I do not think this will happen. If it was the case, then Apple would have fused the iOS app store with the iTunes app.
apple will keep them separate – in BOTH mediums…
Last week I spent some time in the App Store and found about a dozen free apps are really sweet. Look around and I’m sure you’ll be tempted to buy something.
This will be a mistake.
So Apple should integrate the Mac App Store into iTunes because iTunes is always open anyway? Idiotic reasoning at its finest.
But if you go to the Apple menu, it says ‘App Store’… then it launches the Mac App Store in iTunes? Seriously, this seems very strange.
Maybe one of the ‘benefits’ of this is that Windows users get to look at all the cool Mac Apps available, and thus, feel like, wow, I could really switch, and I could get this this this and that…
It dispels the myth for Windows sufferers that there’s no software on the Mac
How about the “AppleStore” an application for purchasing and syncing all software and media. Then use apps for their intended purpose (ie iTunes for playing music or other media, Quicktime for streaming, etc). Have the AppleStore syncing all the time to all your devices and keep the apps smaller and quicker.
Having to re-import all your music every time iTunes forgets where it is, is a pain. Anything like that happening to installed applications would be a monumental annoyance.
I think Apple need to rethink iTunes. For a start, the application name doesn’t describe all that iTunes now handles. The navigation is not as intuitive as other applications, most likely because it has evolved into the all-encompassing program that it is: that tiny little black nav bar for the actual iTunes store is easily missed and when navigating back to a previous page I’m tempted to hit the large Prev Track button top left.
With the new App Store window/app, it appears almost instantly when accessed from the Apple Menu, it has clear navigation at the top, and when you purchase something, the little icon flies to the Dock 🙂
The Mac App Store Integrated/Non-Integrated into iTunes – either way it works for me. I’m sure the folks at Apple will make a proper decision on how to go forward. I’m just happy we have these two great options for the Mac.
😉 emoticons rule