I should have posted this months ago but I didn't see it until now. Now that I have some more free time I hope to most more interesting links like this. In short: Google have provided a platform for non-programmers to create apps without any knowledge of programming. I think that is admirable but opens up the field to a lot of people that want to get involved but have no programming skills. On the back of this, I think more people will become interested in programming and I think it will (or should) shortcut a lot of the donkey work involved in creating new apps.
Here is a news link from Zdnet: Should Android programming be open to non-programmers?
I'm a keen supporter of Google and Android, their approach to the world is computing seems fairer than either MS or Apple. I do have some love for MS as I grew up with Windows. Apple on the other hand I have nothing but contempt for.
I'm not a non-programmer but I don't consider myself to be a hardcore / professional / skilled coder. Most experience with coding has been in numerical modelling rather than creating GUIs or useful apps for the general public. I've worked with Java and I have done some graphical things (including GUIs) but I'm not as adept as I'd like to be, at least not to create the sort of programs that I can dream up. I don't think this platform will harm the 'industry', in fact it should serve to make it stronger: if the platform is good then it speeds up the development process for simple apps. I doubt anyone will create the next Angry Birds using this platform but I'd happily be proven wrong on that one.
I intend to look into playing around with this, I'm quite excited but fear I may be let down by annoying behaviour. Often these ideas never quite work as well as intended so you end up going back to raw coding.. Fingers crossed.