The MacTech Spotlight:
Philip Goward and Greg Scown, SmileOnMyMac
Volume Number: 25
Issue Number: 06
Column Tag: MacTech Spotlight
The MacTech Spotlight:
Philip Goward and Greg Scown, SmileOnMyMac
Philip Goward and Greg Scown
What do you do?
Company Co-Founders
How long have you been doing what you do?
Greg Scown: I've been an indie software developer for over seven years, since 2002. My first job out of college was with Apple. I had a few jobs between then and now, mostly oriented toward raising money to take another shot at being an indie software developer.
Philip Goward: I've been with SmileOnMyMac for close to 6 years now. Otherwise I've been working in software for about 20 years, with a focus on objects, user interface and graphics.
What was your first computer?
Greg Scown: TRS-80 Color Computer from Radio Shack. My first Mac was a PowerBook 140.
Philip Goward: Sinclair ZX-81 until I saved for an Acorn Atom.
Are you Mac-only, or a multi-platform person?
Greg Scown: I'm a Mac person, but not quite a Mac zealot. I have some familiarity with the forces of the dark side.
Philip Goward: I've worked on many systems, but the Mac is where my heart is.
What attracts you to working on the Mac?
Greg Scown: Community. There's an excellent community of users, developers, and fans of the Mac. They're demanding, and they're great.
Philip Goward: Quality. Folks developing for the Mac love what they do, and it shows.
What's the coolest thing about the Mac?
Greg Scown: The whole package. The fact that the sum of the hardware and software is greater than either alone.
Philip Goward: With the Mac the beauty is not just skin deep. The software on a Mac is as well-designed as machines themselves. Even my technology-averse Mother can use it.
What is the advice you'd give to someone trying to get into this line of work today?
Greg Scown: Follow your passion. Engage the Mac community. Work really hard.
Philip Goward: Focus on what you are learning each step along the way.
What's the coolest tech thing you've done using OS X?
Greg Scown: I wrote code to flow text around a circle live while typing. This taught me that Mac OS X was the real deal, and it was part of the inspiration for DiscLabel.
Philip Goward: I'm partly stumped because I find the cool factor to always be in algorithms that use the OS routines to their max. Otherwise, the Quartz Composer work in BrowseBack that makes the screen slide diagonally backwards is pretty cool.
Where can we see a sample of your work?
Everything we do at SmileOnMyMac is collaboration. You can look at our work at: http://www.smileonmymac.com/
The next way I'm going to impact IT/OS X/the Mac universe is:
Greg Scown: Listen to our customers. Continue to improve our software.
Philip Goward: ...To keep on going.
Anything else we should know?
Greg Scown: I got started on the Mac because I helped answer a PC question in my college library. I happened to do so in front of the lab manager, and she offered me a job. We had 70 Macs and 6 PCs. I learned an awful lot about Macs in a short time at that job.
Philip Goward: I've never looked back since my SE30.
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