Distributing to platform marketplaces

Most operating systems now have a central location for discovering and installing applications. Apple created the Mac App Store, Windows has the Microsoft Store, and each Linux distribution has its preferred package manager. Having an application listed in (and hosted by) a platform marketplace significantly increases the number of users you can expect and also reduces associated hosting costs. When paired with carefully prepared metadata (as described at the beginning of this chapter), a marketplace can easily become your largest distribution channel. How to get applications included in these directories is specific to each platform, so we will look at the process for each in turn.

Mac App Store

...