Toward a "modern" Emacs - First Steps

I have seen posts about people getting Emacs running in iOS so it's not a technical problem with the code. I should point out that the GNU project doesn't provide pre-built binaries for ANY platform. It's up to someone else to build the software and distribute it. So, if that's not being done for iPad it's not really the GNU project's problem: that's not what they do. The problem is that no one else has done it.

So why has no one else done it? I don't know. Maybe you do?

I have heard three different things: one is that Apple doesn't allow interpreters in programs that run on the iPad. If that's true, the entire basis of Emacs (which is a Lisp enterpreter) is not allowed. How do you suggest that this be worked around? Other people say this is not true, or it was true but is not true anymore, and that other examples of interpreters exist. So maybe that's not the problem.

I've also heard that Apple won't allow an application to download other software. If that's true, it means that you can't use Emacs' package facility to install extra elisp packages. If all you care about is vanilla Emacs I guess that's fine but most people use at least one add-on package. Perhaps whomever created Emacs for the iPad could add in a bunch of the most popular external elisp packages--but the odds that it will include everything you might want are slim. But still, someone could publish Emacs if this were the only issue.

I've also heard that Apple won't allow any program licensed under the GPLv3 to appear in the app store. If this is true, then this certainly would be something that could not be solved by a user who wanted to publish an iPad version of Emacs. If this is the problem, how do you suppose this should be worked around?

When you say "work it out", is it your belief that Apple will agree to some compromise where both parties give some ground to come to a resolution? If that's how you think it would work I recommend you read about the current situation between Epic Games and Apple.

What you're really saying is, the GNU project should give in completely to Apple and do whatever they want, in order to increase their user base to include a group of people who either don't know or don't care about the fundamental reason the FSF and the GNU project exists, or anyway don't care enough to avoid buying hardware that is completely anathema to that reason.

That MIGHT make sense if the goal of the GNU project was to get as many users as possible. Although, the aforementioned Epic Games shows that even if that is your goal you might not be able to come to terms with Apple.

However, the GNU project isn't about increasing market share, it's about increasing software freedom. Compromising their principles to gain a group of users who are happy buying hardware that will only work with pre-compiled software that is selected for them by a single company who exercises absolute control over anything they could run on that hardware is... not an attractive deal for them, to say the least.