This is a great point, b/c app count is endlessly quoted in newspaper articles. The next step, of course, is asking how many apps are not junk, but this is much harder to measure. App count is very important in the press, and here Maemo's practice of resetting the app count to zero every time a new version of the OS comes out has just GOT to be fixed in MeeGo (related thread is here).

This kind of thing might also generate more niche apps. The value of a huge app store is the same value as cable: not that you really need all those channels, but if you have all those channels, it increases the chance that you'll find one right for you.

It also might be a path for people to get into serious programming. What if people use the tool & get the hang of it, but run up against its barriers? Well, have it spit out code in the language (Java or Python or whatever) and then learn that language? I admit -- I'm not sure how often this will really happen, but I have to think it will whet at least some people's appetites.

It might also be a way for middle-grade programmers to quickly put together an interface and then hook in the more complicated plumbing later.