A comment on my blog notes that iRiver music players do not have proprietary loading technologies.
That comments prompts further reflection:
Why do Sony and Apple have proprietary loading technology--specifically, why do they control access to the hard drives of their players? Largely, I presume because this is a tricky environment--they want to allow you to purchase songs from their websites in a controlled format so that they don't become free for the taking.
The more tricky question is why the Apple device (and perhaps the Sony one as well) don't readily allow independent programs to be run? This is a major problem with the Apple iPod. Contrast the Palm. There are countless programs for that operating system platform.
Would Apple sell an iMac and tell you that you could only buy Apple or Apple-approved software? No. I'm not sure I understand why they run their iPod that way.
That brings me to the Sony flash MP3 player. It seems to me that Sony has an opportunity with that pretty device to open up the operating system for invention. Remember the nifty games that people came up with when computing devices had just one or two line LED displays? Imagine what creative folks could do with a few lines on Sony's sleep LCD.
I would like my Sony player to recite Haiku.