De-emphasizing Mac OS at WWDC?

WWDC 2008:  Offered sessions on transitioning Mac developers to iPhone.  Makes sense.  iPhone OS was a new platform with few developers at the time - why not throw the Mac developer community at the iPhone.

WWDC 2009:  Offered sessions on transitioning iPhone developers to Mac.  That was a surprise to most, but again makes sense because during the previous year the Cocoa Touch developer community exploded and why not throw a few of them back to the Mac.

WWDC 2010:  Evidently it's about iPhone OS.

But is it?  Clearly not everyone is happy about Apple's strong iPhone OS emphasis at WWDC this year.  But maybe it isn't about iPhone OS maybe it's about Cocoa Touch?

Cocoa is the development frameworks for Mac OS.
Cocoa Touch is the development frameworks for iPhone OS.

Is there a difference between iPhone OS and Cocoa Touch?  Hell yeah there is.  There's no reason Cocoa Touch can't be part of Mac OS.  Cocoa Touch is a damn fine environment to develop software for devices with a multi-touch screen interface (by 'damn fine' I mean nothing else comes even close).

Let's not assume that multi-touch screens are exclusively for this new 'mobile era'.  Sure that might be the driver of multi-touch screens, but I can't see them staying there.  If we get a multitouch screen on a Mac, then we should get Cocoa Touch too - and all those wonderful iPhone developers have a place on the Mac.

Don't think a multi-touch screen has any business on a Mac?  Matt Gemmell's dad seems to think it does

Apple throwing the developer community behind iPhone OS might just be a front to transitioning us to developing in Cocoa Touch - for iPhone, iPad and Mac.  Glory glory hallelujah.

For a more in-depth analysis see my previous post on UIKit in 10.7