Software

The phrase “app store” has quickly become the most annoyingly buzzy term of the summer—who doesn’t have one nowadays? Up until about four seconds ago, if you answered “OS X” you would’ve been right.

A desktop app store is fundamentally different than a mobile one, especially a closed system like the Apple’s, since users are already accustomed to finding and installing their apps piecemeal. Desktop app stores are a convenience—not a necessity or a mandate—an idea which IDFusion seems to have taken onboard with App Bodega.

Ignoring the twee interface (a storefront, see!?!) App Bodega will feel familiar to anyone who’s used one of the many Linux application front-ends, like Synaptic. Those same people will also tell you that those programs are incredibly useful, and make life much easier when it comes time to download a new app from an unfamiliar category.

Moving beyond the strictly free Synaptic model, Bodega will let developers sell their apps, though they won’t take a cut—the entire project will be, at least for now, advertising-supported. [CNET]