Apple does so many things well, actually. I would return to them for some things and even recommend them (versus exclusively GNU/Linux and LineageOS) if they'd only change the stupid iOS terms that prohibit GPL software.
> Apple's Terms of Service impose restrictive limits on use and distribution for any software distributed through the App Store, and the GPL doesn't allow that.
1. I can’t use your app ID
2. I can’t sign it with your cert
3. I can’t tie it to your website for deep links (because of #1)
It used to be the case that I couldn’t even get the binary to the device without paying $99/year, but that’s not necessary any more.
The dev program fee was definitely anti-GPL. I don’t know if the other things I mentioned are.
No, here's the deal:
GPL: You CAN modify and share this software, and if you share, you have to keep these terms for others so they have freedoms too.
iOS terms: You MAY NOT modify or share ANY software you get as a normal consumer through the app store OR install any software from outside the app store.
The problem is that Apple's unwillingness to ALLOW a user to exercise these basic freedoms means that there's no way to distribute in the App Store any software that requires these freedoms be maintained. It's incompatible terms. And the fault for the incompatibility lies 100% on Apple for their terms that are the ones that demand that freedoms not be allowed.
Is it? I know nothing of this subject and am speaking out of my ass, but that seems.... trivial to do. I'm curious as to why that is hard for them to do?