Actually, you don't need to shell out $99 to get access to those links. The $99 is to join the developer program in order to get the code certificate, test apps on your phone and release them through the appStore.
Dale Dietrich
· 1 year ago
That's odd Jason:
I wasn't able to access the links without first subscribing? I wonder if its a Canada / U.S. thing. Or maybe I missed something. Whenever I navigate to the iPhone Dev Center here:
All the links remain unavailable until I login and I was only able to login after paying the fee. Do you h ave another link that you can provide here where users can access those resources without being loged in?
...Dale
Glenn White
· 1 year ago
Few things have frustrated me more than having what I feel are great applications for IT, while not having the wherewithal to produce them in the real world. Few things are more encouraging than the 60s-era, share the wealth kind of information provided in this article, and on the iCodeBlog.
I've been working on a geo-navigable database of humanitarian, environmental and social justice organizations. The iPhone, and several other gps-enabled mobile devices, make it possible for information in this kind of database to be leveraged in a matter that could radically change how such organizations receive donations and promote their missions.
There are a ton of games written for mobile phones, and the private sector will surely get its butter from the duck, where these new technologies are concern. That's great. I just want to thank people like you Dale and Brandon, for helping to make these technologies more accessible to some of us tree hugging, bleeding heart, non-tech-types, who may be delusionally hell bent on making this a more fun planet to live on.
Henning
· 1 year ago
I didn't have to pay to get access either. Just get a free subscription to their developer program, and you're in! You can download the SDK, develop iPhone apps using Xcode, and test your app with the simulator. You can NOT, however, test your app with a real device or actually sell your app until you are accepted to the paid program and pay your money.
Cocoa is not Apple's proprietary version of Objective C. Objective C is a language that Apple uses. They've developed a framework using Objective C for you to develop applications with, and they call that framework Cocoa.
Dale Dietrich
· 1 year ago
Thanks Glenn ... this kind of sharing and the IT world's history of open-source co-operation is part of the reason I love IT and the IT community so much.
Henning ... perhaps I should have called it their proprietary or inhouse framework rather than 'version'.
Thanks for the clarification.
Cheers.
Jason
· 1 year ago
I'm with Henning - just get a free subscription and you are in.
I have since paid the membership fee as I now have an application to test and distribute. I eagerly await acceptance to the program.
Dale Dietrich
· 1 year ago
Jason, how long did it take you to get whatever approval and certification is needed to test your app on your iPhone. So far I received a “we’ll get back to you later” message from Apple after paying my $99 but they haven’t gotten back. So I can’t test anything out on my iPhone yet.
…Dale
Adam
· 1 year ago
Dale,
Good post. I didn't know about the sqlite plug-in for firefox. I will definitely be giving that a try!
Having been through a similar process (I'm an old C++ developer who drifted into management & wanted to get my hands dirty again), I think your summary is spot on.
A few updates/additions for you & your readers: - It took me about 2+ weeks to hear back from apple with my acceptance. That was back when the 3G first came out though, so I'm not sure if the wait is getting better or worse. - Registering for the certificate which allows you test your apps on your personal devices was pretty easy & a process I completed in about an hour. There is a step by step guide available from the portal (once you're approved): http://adcdownload.apple.com/iphone/iphone_os_s... - Here's another great tutorial site similar to the iCodeBlog: http://www.iphonesdkarticles.com/
Thomas Jaeger
· 1 year ago
Dale,
Thank you for your post. I bought my first Mac ever in August and I'm going through the same pains as you are, Dale. Pretty much everything you said I agree with you and I feel we are going though the same pains. I've been doing PC development for about 20 years now. I remember my first shareware apps back in 1991 and distributing them through BBS's back then.
I have never been excited since my first shareware app was sold back in 1991 since then. Until I saw the opportunities with the iPhone and how exciting this is.
Dale Dietrich
· 1 year ago
Adam:
Thanks for that info! Sorry it took a few days for your comment to make it through moderation. I made a few tweaks to my comment system so I hope more legitimate posts like yours will get through automatically while still keeping the spam at bay. I'll definitely be checking your links out soon. My law practice has kept me away from my iPhone development for a week. I hope to get back into it soon. I'm starting to think my applicatio didn't go through because I've heard nothing from Apple now in almost 4 weeks.
Thomas:
We are kindred spirits! :)
Jason
· 1 year ago
> how long did it take you to get whatever approval and certification is needed to test your app on your iPhone?
It was all approved within 24 hours.
And after a bit of messing around to get the certificates all sorted out, my first application is now 'In Review' with the nice folks at AppStore.
I have read lot about other's experiences with the apple developer program for iPhone. But there is no official document from Apple that clearly states the developer certification process. Please help.
Dale Dietrich
· 1 year ago
Mahesh, As requested, I updated the original post to include links to detailed descriptions of the certification process, including this one:
I applied to the iPhone Developer Program on Sept 15th and still have not heard from them. Is it taking this long for anybody else?
Dale Dietrich
· 1 year ago
Linh, perhaps you experienced what I experienced. I too thought I applied and paid the $99 for the program back in August. But when I looked back at my credit card statements, it somehow didn't go through. Apple never charged me. Take a look at your statements. If you were not charged, you may need to try it again.
Willem Buitendyk
· 11 months ago
Thanks Dale,
I'm about to take a similar plunge having come from the PC world of programming for the last 20 years. You have saved me many hours of googling. It was about 2 weeks ago when my friend bought an iPhone 3G and I started to innocently play around with it. When I checked out App store and saw how easy it was to download and install an application I was blown away. When I checked out the top 25 list and saw an application called iFart at the top for .99 I suddenly realized how insane this environment is. I can only imagine how much money the iFart developer has made for something so silly. Incredible! Although I'm late to the game I think its still early and hope to add my .2 cents. If only I can overcome this aversion to Mac - like you, whenever I've messed around on it I come away thinking Windows isn't that bad. But maybe after using it day in and day out I'll have a different attitude.
Marob
· 10 months ago
Very Helpful indeed Thank you. Regards from Nepal.
Dale Dietrich
· 10 months ago
Willem, I've been using it day in and day out since August and it still drives me nuts ... but, alas, I'm starting to come to terms with the Mac environment. It will never be as easy for me to use as a Windows PC but I've figured out most of it.
wow
· 9 months ago
wow, great job
Johnny
· 9 months ago
Very informative and helpful post Dale. Thanks a lot. I'm a Ruby/Perl developer and Objective-C just looks foreign to me. I initially started out in Java but it's been 5 years or so. Thanks again, I look forward to getting these books.
-Johnny
Dale Dietrich
· 9 months ago
Happy I could help. If you have NO C background at all, I'd start with an online C primer. If you find a good one let us know. I don't know one off hand, the w3schools.com site which is great doesn't seem to have one fro C. Then this online "Object-Oriented Programming with Objective-C": overview was extremely helpful
after that I'd go through the hillegass book to get into basic objective c follwed by the Mark/LaVarche 'Beginning iPhone Development".
I've always been interested in Ruby. I want to do a lot more online development. Let me know if you know of any intros to Ruby that would make sense for someone with my kind of background.
I really enjoy programming in Ruby. I never bought a book, learned everything through projects (mainly Ruby on Rails) and reading the documentation. I would literally just go to http://www.ruby-lang.org/en/ and see what you think about the language after testing it out.
How is the iPhone development going for you now after a few months?
psalil
· 8 months ago
I have no idea how to program anything. Never done it in my life. Have been close enough to technology and programing, but not near enough to code.
But I do have some great (I think) ideas on apps that could be ideal for iPhone. Am looking to partner with someone to build this.
Can someone help pl?
Dale Dietrich
· 8 months ago
Psalil,
Most iPhone developers are independant developers. My suggestion is find some iPhone Apps you like, go to the websites of the developers (they are all linked into the iPhone Apps page on iTunes) and approach them. If you are willing to finance a development project, you could probably drum up lots of interest out there.
...Dale
psalil
· 8 months ago
Thanks Dale. Will try.
Psalil
Pablo Matamoros
· 8 months ago
@Dale
Very useful post.
I have a similar background than you. I worked a lot in C and Visual Basic. I've been teaching for the last 5 years in New Zealand at a Polytechnic (tertiary level). Unfortunately Polytechnics treat tutors/lecturers like a sausage machines. You jump from one class to another with very little time to innovate or learn new things.
So, I am eating my “family hours” trying to learn new things to became a full-time freelancer. One of the markets I am looking at is the mobile market. I started by looking at the Qt libraries and the Qt creator tools (recently acquired by Nokia), but I am not 100% sure if it is the right move.
Has your iPhone experience being good? As a lecturer I don’t have money to spare in a Mac and an iPhone/iPodTouch. I want to be 100% sure before making the move.
Dale Dietrich
· 8 months ago
I'm glad you find the post useful. Personally I haven't worked on my app since January. I still have hopes that I'll get back to it 'soon'. Life keeps getting in the way. I also find I have hundreds of blog posts in my head aching to get out. I find myself spending the free time that I have doing that. But, I haven't given up.
As you can see from my related posts, you can do iPhone development on a Mac Mini and, unless you intend to develop a phone-specific app, the iPod Touch should be all you need for your development work.
You can also get a VERY long way without using an iPhone or an iPod Touch with the simulator alone. However, I think its very much the case that you can't really understand how to develop an iPhone/iPod Touch app without using the device in your day to day life.
iPhone Developers
· 8 months ago
Very informative article and lots of good tips for starting. However, even a great web programmer may have some trouble getting into Cocoa and obj C. Sometimes the best thing to do is just hire a qualified developer.
ahdont
· 8 months ago
Dale, just like the mac mini post, i find this post very informative. I can almost hear you scream in agony going through the mac and OOP at the same time. i finds it quite hilarious and entertaining. sorry. I, myself, are no programmer, the last program i have ever written was like 17 years ago in pascal during high school!! I am a pilot and have always try to stay away from any sort of codes. the only code that i can still be able to read are php and css. and now i wanted to write my iphone application so you can imagine what kind of craziness i am going through. Therefore, i find all your links and comments very very useful. i will have to come back alot more frequent to check on updates. thx, mate.
Dale Dietrich
· 8 months ago
You bet ... I constantly want to slap my Mac! :)
The MOST frustrating things are still the lack of a the File/Edit/View toolbar across the top of each program and the keyboard shortcuts being different. It drives me insane. I swtich back and forth between the PC and Mac all day and the MAC is like pulling teeth. I can't do anything quickly because the keyboard shortcuts are either non-existant or different. Where they are different I'm learning them, but where they don't exist, I wonder how MAC people get around their PC's quickly. Takes me so much longer to do ANYTHING on the MAC. But its otherwise a troublefree machine that runs 24/7 all day every day. It's only crashed 2 or 3 times since last August.
Good luck with your iPhone endeavours. I dipped my toe back in yesterday for the first time since December. I'm hoping to make some headway this week. But, I find I need to relearn so much. I can't believe how much I have forgotten in four months!
:) ... Dale
Erik
· 5 months ago
If you want fully customizable shortcuts for all sorts of things you should consider Quicksilver, by Blacktree. When it's running on your Mac you will be able to define your own shortcuts for a variety of actions that don't exist by default. It takes a while to make it really work, but if you use shortcuts that much it could certainly be worth it. I stopped using it just because I found I never really used the shortcuts I defined.
Dale Dietrich
· 5 months ago
Thanks Eric, I'll look into Quicksilver. Can you set shortcuts system wide with Quicksilver? For example, I can, and have, changed shortcuts in Xcode. That worked great. But when I use any other app or system utility those shortcuts are gone. It's frustrating. But at least in XCode I can work in a productive manner.
Darren
· 7 months ago
Fantastic.....there's so much info here, thank you for taking the time to do this!!!
Darren.
Haniff
· 6 months ago
Hello.. I am also new to this iPhone development. my idea was to develop a news feed on iPhone platform. This app will make use the push technology which is in the 3.0. The app is basically will push newly added information to iphones so that every user are instantly informed. So, how should i get started. By the way, is the push technology already available for developer.
Dale Dietrich
· 6 months ago
Haniff,
Your idea bumps up against one of the iPhone limitations. It does not allow for apps to run persistantly and constantly be pulling in data. This has been one of the chief complaints of developers. Apple limits this because to allow apps to constantly be polling for new info requires constant use of the radios - and hence fast battery drainage. Apple had promised a compromise technology that was supposed to be released last fall. It wasn't. I believe there is something in the next version of the OS that will accommodate apps like yours somewhat. But I haven't kept up on the latest. A few google searches on the features of the pending iPhone OS should yield relevant info for you.
...Dale
Haniff
· 6 months ago
thanks Dale.. Apple said something about the Push Notification Service that will be available in the iPhone OS 3.0..perhaps for now i need to register for the developer program to get access to the SDK 3.0 that is not free for the moment.
haniff
· 6 months ago
hello again, what tool do i need to use if i want to get the information from the website to display in the iPhone app. For example, a blog. When i add new blog post in the website through the computer web browser, it can be displayed inside the iphone app. In other word reading blog post using an iPhone app.
Dale Dietrich
· 6 months ago
My app doesn't access the web at this point so I haven't explored the web-access classes. But the textbooks I recommend above have chapters on that topic I believe.
Preamble
· 6 months ago
Awsome article and I totally agree with you on the need for OOP in everyday life.
I plan on following your lead on this - first I have to buy that pesky Mac :(
Adam
· 6 months ago
I have the greatest app Idea ever and have been reading on how to develop iphone apps for a week but my programing skills are limited to html some php and java I don't think I'm going to be able to do this before someone else uses the concept of mine!
Dale Dietrich
· 6 months ago
I feel your pain Adam. There are at least a half dozen apps in the app store now that are of the same type as the one I intended to create - but none (last time I checked) are anywhere near as good as what I have in mind. But the barriers to entry have still kept me from competing my app. I haven't thrown in the towel completely. Have you searched the app store to be certain what you have in mind hasn't already been tackled in the 50,000ish apps already out there?
hunter hansen
· 6 months ago
i am a poser hacker who only knows html and intermediate perl. no experience w C or C++ ect. i'm wonderong were to start to get up to speed?
hunter
scottmichael
· 5 months ago
Really a great article on iPhone App Dev. I haven't been programming for some years now, but have programmed in C, C++ and Java. I decided to get back into it due to an idea and have found, after some raeding, that the iPhone would be the ideal platform.
Your article really gives me a good idea of what i'm getting into here and I found it very helpful!
Now to go buy a Mac, as like you, i've worked purely on the Windows end through my career.
Macs slogan should be "Mac: We'll get ya on our side sooner or later."
Dale Dietrich
· 5 months ago
Ha! I don't think they'll ever get me on their side. I can certainly appreciate the Mac and all things Apple, using my Mac still drives me nuts 11 months after purchasing it. Good luck.
awicks
· 5 months ago
This is a really great blog. A business partner and I are endeavoring to create an application for the IPhone. It is going to be a totally new experience for both of us, so this blog is a life-saver. Really, we are going to kind of follow the path you have laid out. I am currently a object oriented computer programmer. Mostly web applications and websites created in c#/visual basic. Done a little in php. In turn, Objective-C syntax will surely be a huge transition for me. I have read a little on c++. This blog has given a good foundation of where to go for answers though. Thanks
Dale Dietrich
· 5 months ago
Hello all:
Just wanted to leave a comment here to let you know that this week I'm back into development hot and heavy again. I solved an implacable problem I had since last January (how to rotate between two base views in an application creating my own customized navigation bar that I place onto the view programatically). Whoo hoo!
So, I'm heavy back into the Beginning iPhone Development text again and this time I feel like I have everything I need to know to finish my app. So, I'm hoping August will allow me to do that - finish my first app. Whoot!
I can't tell you how happy I am that Mark and LaMarche wrote that text. It's perfect for me.
...Dale
aaronclarke
· 5 months ago
Dale,
Thanks for the great post. I found it when looking for the minimum mac hardware I would need. You answered many of the other questions I had as well, you really saved me a lot of time.
Good luck on your first app, glad to see you are back at it.
harshal
· 5 months ago
u have done good job for the i fone starters.
smithwilliams
· 4 months ago
hi Dale Dietrich This Article is the Great! I have already told all of my friends and co workers about it! iPhone is the greatest phone ever as well as posted in my blog. Thanks for the hat tip. Smith Williams
AM
· 4 months ago
Just wanted to say thanks for this blog entry. The iPhone sounds like a great platform for individual developers to let out their creativity (and hopefully earn some decent income), but like so many others, I am not at all familiar with the specific technologies needed for iPhone development (Mac, Cocoa, Objective-C, etc.). This blog is a great starting point, and I am very pleased to have stumbled onto it. Again, my thanks to you Dale. Good luck on finding the time to finish off an application or three. I will try to do the same.
Dale Dietrich
· 4 months ago
Thanks AM - it keeps going in fits and starts. Things work for awhile and then I'm up against a wall again. I'm up to chapter 9 of the Mark/LaMarch text, understanding everything to that point but scratching my head again. I guess I need to keep practising.
I have a method that 'works' for my basic underlying structure but I'm not happy with it. I have the basic layout of my app working. I'm still stuck on how to get an IBAction from one view-controller, to activate a method in another view controller. If I could solve that riddle, things would be moving along faster.
;) ...Dale
Juan Matías
· 4 months ago
Thanks!
Name
· 3 months ago
hiiii.i am sapna studyiny in fourth year computer engineering.i have to develop a project in i-phone using linux.is it ok if we use linux or windows.if we use linux what tools will be required?can we use objective -c ? i just read about eclipse i-phone cdt.i am totlally confused.can you please help me?
Dale Dietrich
· 3 months ago
As far as I know, the only way to develop on Linux or Windows is to develop fro jail-broken iPhones only. I do not know what tools are involved. But there are dozens of websites out there that can help. Sorry.
iPhoneAppFreelancer
· 3 months ago
Great article Dale, very informative stuff and a great overview of SDK/app development.
iPhoneAppFreelancer
· 3 months ago
We also wanted to mention our site. If you are looking for an iPhone app developer to advance you application idea, or are an experienced and talented application developer, you want to check out this great new resource.
Thanks very much for your Article. I am totally new to Mac and iPhone development. Your hard work of researching has been an amazing insight for me!
nFieldFlyGuy
· 2 months ago
Dale,
Just found your blog on the 100bestuniversities.com site and will follow you on twitter. Just wanted to recommend 71squared.com. Michael Daley does a series of excellent video tutorials on game building. Thanks for plotting your course. I am new to iPhone programming and waiting for the light to flick on. Perhaps following your references, it will sooner....Mark
Mark Simpson
· 2 months ago
A new site (for me) to check out... http://www.rorylewis.com/index.htm He's a prof at the University of Colorado in Colorado Springs. Includes some simple video tutorials on iPhone dev, plus some passioned speculation about the iTablet.
paulgreen
· 2 months ago
Thanks so much for putting this post together Dale. I was recently made redundant after 15 years at the same IT company and I decided it was a perfect opportunity to try some iPhone development while I look for a new job. Your post has saved me hours of searching for the information I need to get started. I have purchased a macBook and the two main books you recommend and am about to try and get a 'hello world' application across onto my iPhone (having subscribed to the developer programme). I am experiencing some of the same frustrations as you as I come from a Windows and C/Visual Basic background. I have to say I kinda like OSX it just takes some getting used to, especially the keyboard shortcuts like you say.
hummer5354
· 2 months ago
Hi Dale,
How far into the development of your app are you? What are your experiences so far? What else can you share with us?
I am also getting interested in developing apps for the iPhone. I have programmed in PHP, C, and some Java. I know HTML, Korn/Bash shell scripting (I come from the UNIX/Linux side), MySQL and some Perl.
I have never owned a Mac before, though I have used one briefly and really liked the interface. I've been wanting to purchase one for a couple of years now and this could be the perfect excuse to finally do so.
Thanks for your article!
Dale Dietrich
· 2 months ago
My experiences are no more than what I've written above and in the comments. My development is on again, off again. I finally got past the hurdle that was holding me back in August and then life interviewed. My law practice has gotten quite busy and I haven't had the time to get back to it. I hope to finish it one day, but you never know ... best laid plans and all. :)
Justin Plants
· 2 months ago
Dale,
I certainly appreciate you putting so much time into this article. I just bookmarked this page as I am taking on some iPhone App projects and am a newbie. In case someone reading your article isn't even familiar with C (which I believe is a very SOLID foundation for Obj C programming and makes the Obj C programmer that much stronger), Harvard offers a free C course that is exceptional at http://www.cs50.tv The instructor is excellent and all of the source code and notes for the course are also available online.
Thanks again, Dale.
Justin
Dotan Saguy
· 2 months ago
Great resource. For those who don't have the knowledge to dive into xcode but still want to show what their app idea would look like, I recommend using MockApp. It lets you build prototypes / mockups using Keynote or PowerPoint and virtually all iPhone UI elements are there in vector format, ready to be copied and pasted into an iPhone template. It's a great way to show your idea in high-fidelity to others or to provide detailed specifications to developers. It's a free download at http://mockapp.com/download
sapna
· 2 months ago
hi.i am sapna.and we have to develop an application in an iphone having features:-
1. Identifies a unique user and captures profile. 2. Admin module / configuration module to assist user define the data points and their bound values. 3. Support of upto 250 data points to monitor, and monitor upto 50 on the client side 4. Provide tabbed interface with not more than 10 points of data grouped in a single tab / tag 5. Output to be generated in text and graphical form 6. Support iphone features of touch etc 7. Web service to retrieve point data from the database.
we have learnt that mac os and iphone sdk is required.now for data transfer what is reqiured ? is it API.or web services.what is reqiured.what topics ahoulkd be studied for developing this project.i am fully new to this domain.waiting for your reply.
Dale Dietrich
· 2 months ago
Sapna, the 'Beginning iPhone Development' textbook I mentioned above should cover the bases for what you need to know. Of course the Hillgas 'Cocoa Programming for the Max OS X ' text will be critical if you are new to Objective C, xCode and programming for the Mac generally.
You could, of course, do most of what you want by developing a web-app applicable for a mobile device, but to get the unit iPhone touch features and advanced graphics on the iPhone you'll want/need to build a native iPhone app.
...Dale
zakah
· 1 month ago
i'm looking to hire a student iphone app developer to develop a very basic and simple app for me- very low budget. anyone able and interested? thanks
Kyle
· 1 month ago
Actually, There is a new e-book out that has really helped me. Here is the link if anyone is interested http://tinyurl.com/yga6are Oh! and by the way, I have been using a Mac for about 2 years, and It was really hard for me to understand xcode. I just couldnt grasp the dragging objects to the code and such. ugh confuses me right now:p
jeffreysatornino
· 1 month ago
Hi I have 2 game app ideas for any smart phone and would like to know the steps to take before pitching the idea to someone. Please let me know asap.
Dale Dietrich
· 1 month ago
I'm not sure what you mean. Do you mean you want to pitch to someone to get funding or do you want to find someone that you will fund to develop your app.
I don't know of any seed or venture fund that is accepting iPhone app pitches. The market for any such app would be too small for them. If you are looking for someone to develop your app, check out the comment by iPhoneAppFreelancer above. They seem to be open to doing that.
...Dale
utpal
· 2 weeks ago
great resource for those new to iphone applications
Jim
· 1 day ago
Dale,
I am considering jumping into the iPhone App frenzy, and am curious what your status is after 1 year of effort. Did you ever get an app accepted into the store? I will put in the work necessary to succeed, but I want to be reasonably confident that hard work and persistence has a reasonable chance to generate a profit. What are your thoughts?
Very useful blog. Thanks for putting this together.
One more thing. Have you noticed that it appears Indian students are given an assignment to generate an app, with almost no guidance or grounding? This is the type of hard core, open-ended assignment that would be good for American students to do.
-Jim
iphone developer
· 23 hours ago
Excellent article. Very organized and tons of useful information. Even as a fulltime employed iphone developer I found some good places to keep learning. Thanks!
All Comments
I wasn't able to access the links without first subscribing? I wonder if its a Canada / U.S. thing. Or maybe I missed something. Whenever I navigate to the iPhone Dev Center here:
http://developer.apple.com/iphone/index.action
All the links remain unavailable until I login and I was only able to login after paying the fee. Do you h ave another link that you can provide here where users can access those resources without being loged in?
...Dale
I've been working on a geo-navigable database of humanitarian, environmental and social justice organizations. The iPhone, and several other gps-enabled mobile devices, make it possible for information in this kind of database to be leveraged in a matter that could radically change how such organizations receive donations and promote their missions.
There are a ton of games written for mobile phones, and the private sector will surely get its butter from the duck, where these new technologies are concern. That's great. I just want to thank people like you Dale and Brandon, for helping to make these technologies more accessible to some of us tree hugging, bleeding heart, non-tech-types, who may be delusionally hell bent on making this a more fun planet to live on.
Cocoa is not Apple's proprietary version of Objective C. Objective C is a language that Apple uses. They've developed a framework using Objective C for you to develop applications with, and they call that framework Cocoa.
Henning ... perhaps I should have called it their proprietary or inhouse framework rather than 'version'.
Thanks for the clarification.
Cheers.
I have since paid the membership fee as I now have an application to test and distribute. I eagerly await acceptance to the program.
…Dale
Good post. I didn't know about the sqlite plug-in for firefox. I will definitely be giving that a try!
Having been through a similar process (I'm an old C++ developer who drifted into management & wanted to get my hands dirty again), I think your summary is spot on.
A few updates/additions for you & your readers:
- It took me about 2+ weeks to hear back from apple with my acceptance. That was back when the 3G first came out though, so I'm not sure if the wait is getting better or worse.
- Registering for the certificate which allows you test your apps on your personal devices was pretty easy & a process I completed in about an hour. There is a step by step guide available from the portal (once you're approved):
http://adcdownload.apple.com/iphone/iphone_os_s...
- Here's another great tutorial site similar to the iCodeBlog:
http://www.iphonesdkarticles.com/
Thank you for your post. I bought my first Mac ever in August and I'm going through the same pains as you are, Dale. Pretty much everything you said I agree with you and I feel we are going though the same pains. I've been doing PC development for about 20 years now. I remember my first shareware apps back in 1991 and distributing them through BBS's back then.
I have never been excited since my first shareware app was sold back in 1991 since then. Until I saw the opportunities with the iPhone and how exciting this is.
Thanks for that info! Sorry it took a few days for your comment to make it through moderation. I made a few tweaks to my comment system so I hope more legitimate posts like yours will get through automatically while still keeping the spam at bay. I'll definitely be checking your links out soon. My law practice has kept me away from my iPhone development for a week. I hope to get back into it soon. I'm starting to think my applicatio didn't go through because I've heard nothing from Apple now in almost 4 weeks.
Thomas:
We are kindred spirits! :)
It was all approved within 24 hours.
And after a bit of messing around to get the certificates all sorted out, my first application is now 'In Review' with the nice folks at AppStore.
The link
http://adcdownload.apple.com/iphone/iphone_os_s...
is not active anymore it seems.
I have read lot about other's experiences with the apple developer program for iPhone. But there is no official document from Apple that clearly states the developer certification process. Please help.
http://www.talentgrouplabs.com/blog/archive/200...
...Dale
I'm about to take a similar plunge having come from the PC world of programming for the last 20 years. You have saved me many hours of googling. It was about 2 weeks ago when my friend bought an iPhone 3G and I started to innocently play around with it. When I checked out App store and saw how easy it was to download and install an application I was blown away. When I checked out the top 25 list and saw an application called iFart at the top for .99 I suddenly realized how insane this environment is. I can only imagine how much money the iFart developer has made for something so silly. Incredible! Although I'm late to the game I think its still early and hope to add my .2 cents. If only I can overcome this aversion to Mac - like you, whenever I've messed around on it I come away thinking Windows isn't that bad. But maybe after using it day in and day out I'll have a different attitude.
Regards from Nepal.
-Johnny
http://developer.apple.com/iphone/library/docum...
after that I'd go through the hillegass book to get into basic objective c follwed by the Mark/LaVarche 'Beginning iPhone Development".
I've always been interested in Ruby. I want to do a lot more online development. Let me know if you know of any intros to Ruby that would make sense for someone with my kind of background.
Good luck.
I really enjoy programming in Ruby. I never bought a book, learned everything through projects (mainly Ruby on Rails) and reading the documentation. I would literally just go to http://www.ruby-lang.org/en/ and see what you think about the language after testing it out.
How is the iPhone development going for you now after a few months?
But I do have some great (I think) ideas on apps that could be ideal for iPhone. Am looking to partner with someone to build this.
Can someone help pl?
Most iPhone developers are independant developers. My suggestion is find some iPhone Apps you like, go to the websites of the developers (they are all linked into the iPhone Apps page on iTunes) and approach them. If you are willing to finance a development project, you could probably drum up lots of interest out there.
...Dale
Psalil
Very useful post.
I have a similar background than you. I worked a lot in C and Visual Basic. I've been teaching for the last 5 years in New Zealand at a Polytechnic (tertiary level). Unfortunately Polytechnics treat tutors/lecturers like a sausage machines. You jump from one class to another with very little time to innovate or learn new things.
So, I am eating my “family hours” trying to learn new things to became a full-time freelancer. One of the markets I am looking at is the mobile market. I started by looking at the Qt libraries and the Qt creator tools (recently acquired by Nokia), but I am not 100% sure if it is the right move.
Has your iPhone experience being good? As a lecturer I don’t have money to spare in a Mac and an iPhone/iPodTouch. I want to be 100% sure before making the move.
As you can see from my related posts, you can do iPhone development on a Mac Mini and, unless you intend to develop a phone-specific app, the iPod Touch should be all you need for your development work.
You can also get a VERY long way without using an iPhone or an iPod Touch with the simulator alone. However, I think its very much the case that you can't really understand how to develop an iPhone/iPod Touch app without using the device in your day to day life.
I, myself, are no programmer, the last program i have ever written was like 17 years ago in pascal during high school!! I am a pilot and have always try to stay away from any sort of codes. the only code that i can still be able to read are php and css. and now i wanted to write my iphone application so you can imagine what kind of craziness i am going through.
Therefore, i find all your links and comments very very useful. i will have to come back alot more frequent to check on updates. thx, mate.
The MOST frustrating things are still the lack of a the File/Edit/View toolbar across the top of each program and the keyboard shortcuts being different. It drives me insane. I swtich back and forth between the PC and Mac all day and the MAC is like pulling teeth. I can't do anything quickly because the keyboard shortcuts are either non-existant or different. Where they are different I'm learning them, but where they don't exist, I wonder how MAC people get around their PC's quickly. Takes me so much longer to do ANYTHING on the MAC. But its otherwise a troublefree machine that runs 24/7 all day every day. It's only crashed 2 or 3 times since last August.
Good luck with your iPhone endeavours. I dipped my toe back in yesterday for the first time since December. I'm hoping to make some headway this week. But, I find I need to relearn so much. I can't believe how much I have forgotten in four months!
:) ... Dale
Darren.
Your idea bumps up against one of the iPhone limitations. It does not allow for apps to run persistantly and constantly be pulling in data. This has been one of the chief complaints of developers. Apple limits this because to allow apps to constantly be polling for new info requires constant use of the radios - and hence fast battery drainage. Apple had promised a compromise technology that was supposed to be released last fall. It wasn't. I believe there is something in the next version of the OS that will accommodate apps like yours somewhat. But I haven't kept up on the latest. A few google searches on the features of the pending iPhone OS should yield relevant info for you.
...Dale
I plan on following your lead on this - first I have to buy that pesky Mac :(
hunter
I haven't been programming for some years now, but have programmed in C, C++ and Java. I decided to get back into it due to an idea and have found, after some raeding, that the iPhone would be the ideal platform.
Your article really gives me a good idea of what i'm getting into here and I found it very helpful!
Now to go buy a Mac, as like you, i've worked purely on the Windows end through my career.
Macs slogan should be "Mac: We'll get ya on our side sooner or later."
Just wanted to leave a comment here to let you know that this week I'm back into development hot and heavy again. I solved an implacable problem I had since last January (how to rotate between two base views in an application creating my own customized navigation bar that I place onto the view programatically). Whoo hoo!
So, I'm heavy back into the Beginning iPhone Development text again and this time I feel like I have everything I need to know to finish my app. So, I'm hoping August will allow me to do that - finish my first app. Whoot!
I can't tell you how happy I am that Mark and LaMarche wrote that text. It's perfect for me.
...Dale
Thanks for the great post. I found it when looking for the minimum mac hardware I would need. You answered many of the other questions I had as well, you really saved me a lot of time.
Good luck on your first app, glad to see you are back at it.
This Article is the Great! I have already told all of my friends and co workers about it! iPhone is the greatest phone ever as well as posted in my blog.
Thanks for the hat tip.
Smith Williams
The iPhone sounds like a great platform for individual developers to let out their creativity (and hopefully earn some decent income), but like so many others, I am not at all familiar with the specific technologies needed for iPhone development (Mac, Cocoa, Objective-C, etc.). This blog is a great starting point, and I am very pleased to have stumbled onto it.
Again, my thanks to you Dale. Good luck on finding the time to finish off an application or three. I will try to do the same.
I have a method that 'works' for my basic underlying structure but I'm not happy with it. I have the basic layout of my app working. I'm still stuck on how to get an IBAction from one view-controller, to activate a method in another view controller. If I could solve that riddle, things would be moving along faster.
;) ...Dale
http://www.iPhoneAppFreelancer.com
Just found your blog on the 100bestuniversities.com site and will follow you on twitter. Just wanted to recommend 71squared.com. Michael Daley does a series of excellent video tutorials on game building. Thanks for plotting your course. I am new to iPhone programming and waiting for the light to flick on. Perhaps following your references, it will sooner....Mark
http://www.rorylewis.com/index.htm
He's a prof at the University of Colorado in Colorado Springs. Includes some simple video tutorials on iPhone dev, plus some passioned speculation about the iTablet.
I was recently made redundant after 15 years at the same IT company and I decided it was a perfect opportunity to try some iPhone development while I look for a new job.
Your post has saved me hours of searching for the information I need to get started.
I have purchased a macBook and the two main books you recommend and am about to try and get a 'hello world' application across onto my iPhone (having subscribed to the developer programme).
I am experiencing some of the same frustrations as you as I come from a Windows and C/Visual Basic background. I have to say I kinda like OSX it just takes some getting used to, especially the keyboard shortcuts like you say.
How far into the development of your app are you? What are your experiences so far? What else can you share with us?
I am also getting interested in developing apps for the iPhone. I have programmed in PHP, C, and some Java. I know HTML, Korn/Bash shell scripting (I come from the UNIX/Linux side), MySQL and some Perl.
I have never owned a Mac before, though I have used one briefly and really liked the interface. I've been wanting to purchase one for a couple of years now and this could be the perfect excuse to finally do so.
Thanks for your article!
I certainly appreciate you putting so much time into this article. I just bookmarked this page as I am taking on some iPhone App projects and am a newbie. In case someone reading your article isn't even familiar with C (which I believe is a very SOLID foundation for Obj C programming and makes the Obj C programmer that much stronger), Harvard offers a free C course that is exceptional at http://www.cs50.tv The instructor is excellent and all of the source code and notes for the course are also available online.
Thanks again, Dale.
Justin
For those who don't have the knowledge to dive into xcode but still want to show what their app idea would look like, I recommend using MockApp.
It lets you build prototypes / mockups using Keynote or PowerPoint and virtually all iPhone UI elements are there in vector format, ready to be copied and pasted into an iPhone template. It's a great way to show your idea in high-fidelity to others or to provide detailed specifications to developers.
It's a free download at http://mockapp.com/download
1. Identifies a unique user and captures profile.
2. Admin module / configuration module to assist user define the data points and their bound values.
3. Support of upto 250 data points to monitor, and monitor upto 50 on the client side
4. Provide tabbed interface with not more than 10 points of data grouped in a single tab / tag
5. Output to be generated in text and graphical form
6. Support iphone features of touch etc
7. Web service to retrieve point data from the database.
we have learnt that mac os and iphone sdk is required.now for data transfer what is reqiured ? is it API.or web services.what is reqiured.what topics ahoulkd be studied for developing this project.i am fully new to this domain.waiting for your reply.
You could, of course, do most of what you want by developing a web-app applicable for a mobile device, but to get the unit iPhone touch features and advanced graphics on the iPhone you'll want/need to build a native iPhone app.
...Dale
I don't know of any seed or venture fund that is accepting iPhone app pitches. The market for any such app would be too small for them. If you are looking for someone to develop your app, check out the comment by iPhoneAppFreelancer above. They seem to be open to doing that.
...Dale
I am considering jumping into the iPhone App frenzy, and am curious what your status is after 1 year of effort. Did you ever get an app accepted into the store? I will put in the work necessary to succeed, but I want to be reasonably confident that hard work and persistence has a reasonable chance to generate a profit. What are your thoughts?
Very useful blog. Thanks for putting this together.
One more thing. Have you noticed that it appears Indian students are given an assignment to generate an app, with almost no guidance or grounding? This is the type of hard core, open-ended assignment that would be good for American students to do.
-Jim