iPhone app. Pinpoint Premium

Posted on February 14, 2012 by

PinPoint Premium. All new release. iPhone app. http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/pin-point-premium/id467970377?ls=1&mt=8

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Upgrade to Adobe Flash Pro 5.5

Posted on October 3, 2011 by

Version 5.0 has serious limitations. Not the least of which is that it only builds armv6 binaries. It doesnt do stagewebview either. And your binaries cant be upgraded when you later build with 5.5, which only builds armv7 binaries.

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Pin Point Premium – Coming soon to the iTunes app store

Posted on September 25, 2011 by

Pin Point Premium

The iPhone/iPod Touch that is able to tell people where you are. Now that’s cool.

Pin Point Premium is the all new interface, built using the latest code – so we couldn’t do an upgrade unfortunately. But it is worth it – You can now find your current location on the cleanest and simplest interface possible. Simply map your current location, or that of an address you enter in the address entry field. Your current Geolocation data is displayed on-screen as well and updates constantly. You can also send that location to your Twitter account. This all new version is Version 1.50, and is under constant development. Updates are now done using the latest code to match your iPhone, and at all times the app will be kept to the simplest interface possible. The design is for maximum simplicity allowing speed of use – well, as fast as the Internet allows. Where ever you are you can see it at a glance and report back to family or friends, or even your business.

 

The main screen now has some new buttons. The most obvious one is the [Tweet It] button. This is a great option, and one that can be used to report your location directly to your family or friends, even your boss.

If you want an individual Twitter account, register it with Twitter, for example your family, ‘aslambie’ – becoming @aslambie. Maybe your workplace, @myworkplace, maybe your travel record, @myoverseastrip – the ideas are actually endless as you think about them.

Where ever you are and there is an internet connection, either through the Internet directly, or through the cell/mobile network, you can use PinPointPremium on your iPhone. Try it – select [Map Current Location] and it will show you exactly where you are. Great, but how do you tell Mum where you are? Now this is the fun bit, because in the past you couldn’t send this to anyone, only try and describe it over the phone. An impossible task. Now, just press [Tweet It] and the current geolocation will be sent to your nominated twitter account. And you only have to login in to Twitter once, and the app remembers it. Your Mother, Father, friend, or husband/wife, whoever has access to the Twitter account has simply to click on the link sent to Twitter, and it shows them exactly where you are – or were at the time of sending, with a date stamp on the Tweet.

Keep a record of your overseas trips, your trips across your own country or simply your trips to town or the next county.

 

 

Give the family peace of mind, if you are out on the town, you can report your location at any time. Car broken down beside the road? Report your location to your family to come pick you up. Lost? Tell someone where you are so they can rescue you.

Also on the screen now is a small button on the lower right with an ‘i’ – for Information. This is simply a brief description about the program, its current version, and who wrote it.

On the lower left is a small red ‘r’ button. With that you can open a new login to a different Twitter account. Simple to use, pressing this button brings up a small instruction screen with two buttons – New, or Cancel.

If you select New it clears the internal cache then disappears. Next time you press Tweet It, you are asked to validate a new login to your selected Twitter account. If you select Cancel, the screen clears and you proceed as normal.

So simple even kids can do it.

 

The design is for ultra simplicity, and is based on tried and proven code examples. Watch for the updates over the coming months. Questions, comments, suggestions, and support are all available from the author.

 

Go to the app store today.

 

PinPoint v1. Basic model that just takes you to Google Maps, with your location, or input address mapped.

 

Pin Point Premium being released within the next week or so – allows you to send a Tweet to your Twitter account to tell people where you are at any time.

 

Be easy to find.

 

Which bar are you in? What street are you on? What city are you in? In which country ?

 

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Develop iPhone/iPad apps on a PC. Upload to store with Matthew

Posted on September 25, 2011 by

Are you an iTunes AppStore developer? Don’t have access to a Mac so you can upload your apps? Your problems are over. Go see this person

Matthew

CEO of MWFPRO

mwfpro@Hotmail.com

If I helped you, you can say thank you by leaving a donation 

Http://mwfpro.webs.com

http://twitter.com/#!/mwfproapps

 

Matthew has the patience of a saint, and will help you every step of the way. Nothing is too much trouble for Matthew in ensuring that your app reaches the store for you.

Develop you apps on a PC, using Adobe Flash in one of it’s many versions. Create the .ipa file, and send that to Matthew with $20, and he will upload it to the app store via his Mac. Great stuff.

He has done two for me now.

PinPoint

And

PinPointPremium

I strongly recommend his service.

Posted in The Daily Mail | 1 Comment

Flash Pro CS5.5

Posted on September 1, 2011 by

Forget trying to develop iPhone apps with CS5. You must have EITHER Flash Builder 4.5 or Flash Professional CS5.5, and you MUST have the latest SDKs to suit both. The best advice I have on the development platform is to use an Apple Macbook, which must have the Intel processor. Whether you use Adobe products, or the Apple Xcode/Cocoa route, do it on an Apple and save yourself a lot of grief!

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How to make an iPhone App. Reprint

Posted on August 26, 2011 by

A great article – just have to republish it. Written by Dave Prochnow. 2009.

 

How to Make an iPhone App: Part One

Gain fame and fortune: become an iPhone app mogul

By Dave Prochnow Posted 02.26.2009 at 1:21 pm47 Comments

 


Hackintosh Tools of the Trade
Dave Prochnow

See part two on coding your App.

Love it or hate it, it’s tough to argue about the success of the Apple App Store. While this venture might be a successful cash cow business model for Apple, how does business fare for the app developer? Pretty good, it turns out.

One of the poster children for successful app development is Joel Comm. Or, as he is better known, the developer of iFart. The sales claims for this little app blew away the competition, with sales of 113,885 downloads during a two-week period in December 2008.

Those are some pretty sobering statistics to digest while standing in the unemployment line. So what’s a poor (read: really poor) developer to do? Why, make your own app, right? Not so fast, bucko.

Making an Apple iPhone/iPod Touch app is not a venture that should be undertaken lightly. There are two significant investments that you must be willing to make:

  1. Financial investment: you will need an Intel-based Mac computer with Mac OS X 10.5.5 Leopard for developing your app, as well as a couple of test devices (preferably both an iPhone and an iPod Touch). Plus, you must be a registered member of the Apple iPhone Developer Program, which costs $99 for the basic edition.
  2. Time investment: even the simplest iPhone app will take a considerable amount of time to develop. Yes, you could blow a simple app out your posterior in about two weeks’ time, but a true sales contender could take a couple of months for development, testing, and distribution.

Granted, there are a couple of corners that you could cut for reducing development costs. You could be a rogue developer and rely solely on the iPhone SDK iPhone Simulator for your app testing. You could harvest the extensive library of Apple sample apps for your code. You could just“blow on your arm” for your app content. Even after all of these cost-saving efforts, however, you are still going to need an Intel-based Mac and a subscription to the Apple iPhone Developer Program.


Hackintosh mini Me:  Dave Prochnow

First things first, though; let’s build a machine that’s able to support the iPhone SDK app development environment. No, we aren’t going to create the illegal kind of “Hackintosh,” a non-Apple-branded Mac OS X clone computer — rather, we are going to bundle the lowest-possible-cost Mac computer development platform. Be forewarned, this project will void your warranty.

My first attempt at creating an iPhone app dev system was housed on a 16GB CompactFlash media card. There are many sites that will guide you through this process. Unfortunately, this system wasn’t stable enough to reliably code a major iPhone app.

My second attempt at creating an iPhone app dev system was a complete success. Furthermore, the investment (on my part) was minimal, because I already had many of the components on hand. Here is the complete laundry list for building your own Apple-based iPhone app dev system Apple-based from scratch.

 

 

How to Make an iPhone App: Part One

Gain fame and fortune: become an iPhone app mogul

By Dave ProchnowPosted 02.26.2009 at 1:21 pm47 Comments

 

TIME: 6 hours
COST: $923.77 [Mac mini w/2GB RAM, 250GB HDD, keyboard, mouse, and monitor]
DIFFICULTY: easy

PARTS

OPTIONAL

TEST PLATFORMS

At a minimum, you will need one iPhone 3G ($199) and one iPod touch ($220). There is a provision in the Apple iPhone Developer Program, however, for adding external “testers” to your dev system.

STEPS

In order to help you with your Mac mini disassembly, download these additional photographs that illustrate the below steps.

1. Turn the Mac mini upside down on a soft, protective surface and open the case. Begin the opening operation by carefully wedging plastic cards between the metal aluminum case and the plastic system component tray. Locate the plastic hold-down clips on the component tray and slide a plastic screwdriver or pick down the shaft of each clip. Gently pry on the screwdriver until you hear the clip release. Repeat the process for all clips, on all four sides of the tray.


Hackintosh iPhone App Maker:  Dave Prochnow

2. Carefully separate the system component tray from the exterior case.

3. Locate the LED power connector along the front side of the tray and disconnect it.

4. Release the spring-loaded Wi-Fi antenna and remove the four hold-down screws from the corners of the black plastic drive subassembly carrier.

5. Lift the carrier and lay it upside-down along the back panel side of the tray. Don’t disconnect the brown plastic ribbon cable. From this vantage point, you can extract and replace the two SDRAM sticks, hard disk drive, and optional optical drive.

6. Replace the black plastic drive subassembly carrier and secure it with one screw. Reconnect the LED power connector to the front side of the tray. Do NOT reassemble the Mac mini yet.

7. Carefully inspect the entire Mac mini system component tray. Ensure that all wiring is connected and there are no parts, screws, or wires that are out of place.

8. Test the Mac mini for proper operation. Connect the power adapter, keyboard, mouse, and monitor to the Mac mini. You are going to test your modifications before you reseal the Mac mini.Be careful! Plug the Mac’s power adapter and monitor power adapter into a wall outlet and turn on your system. You must insert the Mac OS X installation disc (e.g., Disc 1) into the Mac mini optical drive immediately after powering on the system. Boot from the disc and use the DVD-based Disk Utility for configuring your new Western Digital hard drive. It is recommended that you use at least two partitions on your new drive (e.g., System & Docs, etc.). Install Mac OS X 10.5.5 Leopard on your Mac mini (Note: you might need to download a Software Update from the Apple Web site).

9. Check each new component for proper operation. Use System Profiler (e.g., the “About This Mac” menu item under the Apple menu) to verify your new memory and hard drive. Also, if you added a new SuperDrive, verify the system ID on your optical disc drive. If everything checks out OK, shut down the Mac mini, disconnect all cords, cables, and adapters, secure the three remaining screws on the black plastic drive subassembly carrier, and slowly slide the case down over the system component tray. Watch the back panel for proper alignment of the metal shielding clips.

10. Your iPhone app dev system is now ready for building the next great app.

Stay tuned, our next episode will cover the installation and operation of the Apple iPhone SDK.

 

How to Make an iPhone App: Part Two

Building a great app: that’s the objective, see?

By Dave ProchnowPosted 03.11.2009 at 9:06 am10 Comments

 


Xcode – Interface Builder
Dave Prochnow

The third and final installment in this series takes our App to market, err, the App Store.

In the first part of this series, we covered the “nuts and bolts” for assembling a workable iPhone app development platform. Now that our desktop is cluttered with a mess of cables, it’s time to roll up our sleeves and start cobbling some code together.

First things first, however. There are two things you must accomplish before you can start developing that next great American App. One is free, but for the other one you’re going to have to pony up some cash.

1. Become a Registered iPhone Developer. This one’s free. Yup, go do it now; then you’ll be able to download the free iPhone SDK (software development kit; at this time the latest version is 2.2.1). Please note, as mentioned in the first part of this series, you must also have an Intel-based Mac and Mac OS X 10.5.5 for using this iPhone SDK. Furthermore, you will have to make a choice between being either a single-entity developer (e.g., Dave Prochnow) or a corporate developer (e.g., Microsoft Corporation). If you elect to pursue the corporate route, you will be asked to furnish documentation of incorporation (e.g., a Federal TIN, partnership, LLC, or S corporation documentation).

2. Subscribe to the iPhone Developer Program. This subscription will cost you either $99 (plus sales tax!) for the Standard Program, or $299 for the Enterprise Program. Most folks will easily fit into the Standard Program $99 subscription. After you’ve made your choice, you’ll be whisked to the Apple Store, where a credit card transaction will have you quickly subscribed to the iPhone Developer Program for one year.

Once you have your registration and your subscription, log into the iPhone Dev Center and begin downloading everything in sight: SDK, videos, sample apps, and documentation. Sure, you might already know some of this stuff, but the more knowledgeable you are about the iPhone, the easier it should be to develop your app.

Notice that I said it “should be” easier. That’s because, if you lack a solid footing in the Objective-C programming language and Apple’s Cocoa development environment, you could experience a very painful learning curve.

Luckily, there are a couple of tricks and tips that can help minimize this learning curve:

1. Don’t reinvent the wheel. Find an Apple sample app that closely mimics your app — either in appearance or function. Then strip out the Apple stuff and integrate your own code into this working sample shell.

2. Learn from others’ mistakes. Go grab a couple of apps from the iTunes App Store that are representative of your competition. Use what they did right, and seriously avoid what they did wrong.

3. Mine the superhighway for clever programming tricks. When you’re stumped (and you will be… several times or more!), search the Web for a code snippet or fragment that deftly handles a problem similar to yours.

4. Innovation is the mother of all apps. Don’t follow the masses (how many crude bodily-function-oriented apps does the market need?) — rather, start a new trend.

 

How to Make an iPhone App: Part Two

Building a great app: that’s the objective, see?

By Dave ProchnowPosted 03.11.2009 at 9:06 am10 Comments

 


Xcode IDE:  Dave Prochnow

Learning a whole new programming system can be a lot like getting a sip of water from a fire hose. So take your time and, once you have a solid footing in Objective-C and Cocoa touch programming, it’s time to venture out on your own.

In very general terms, your app development cycle should look something like this:

1. Spitball your app concept. Use big broad brushstrokes and create a beginning app design document. Slowly flesh in all of the details of your app. Consider graphics, multimedia, fonts, colors, layout, organization, program flow, and app goals. The more detailed this document becomes, the better your app will work.

2. Install the SDK. Inside this massive 1.5GB+ download is the complete Apple Xcode Cocoa development environment. Supporting Xcode is a fistful of utilities, documentation, and Mac OS sample code. If you wish to experience the full flavor of iPhone development, you will need an active net connection for downloading sample code and additional reference library materials. This Web connection is not mandatory for Xcode operation, however.

3. Open Xcode and create your project. There are several project templates in Xcode that will ensure that you don’t botch this step.

4. Build your interface. What could be easier than drag-and-drop interface design? Integrated into Xcode is a visual development utility called Interface Builder. Inside Interface Builder you can develop the complete look and feel for your app without writing a single line of code.

5. Code it. If Interface Builder is the skeleton and flesh of your app, code is the blood and nervous system. Without code, your app is just a pretty lifeless blob. Write it tight and write it clean.

6. Build it and it will run. Your first level of app testing should be performed with the Xcode-friendly iPhone Simulator. When you select “Build and Go” in your project, Xcode will compile your code and automatically launch iPhone Simulator. This Xcode utility is ideal for quickly evaluating the basic flow of your app, but it is not a substitute for actual testing on both an iPhone and an iPod touch. In fact, this would be a good time in the development of your app to create a “test team” for your project. In order to add testers to your project, you must obtain a Provisioning Profile from the iPhone Program Portal. Access to this portal is granted with your iPhone Developer Program subscription. Use this capability wisely. Have your project testers write and orchestrate testing scenarios for your app. This process will be simplified with the creation of a full-bodied app design document from step 1.

7. Get testy. In order to test your app on a real iPhone and iPod touch, you must code-sign your app. These certificates are obtained from the same iPhone Program Portal that you used in step 6. Getting your app to successfully code-sign and load on a real device can be difficult. Here are four tips to guarantee your app will run on a test device:

  • While Apple assures us that this type of “direct” coding is unnecessary, I found that it is almost always necessary: rather than rely on your bundle ID from the info.plist, insert your actual app ID from the iPhone Program Portal into the bundle ID field of the info.plist.
  • Code-sign your app under the “Any iPhone OS Device” key of the “Build” list from your Target’s “Get Info” button.
  • AND code-sign your app in the same Target info location with the “Code Signing Identity” key (located right above the “Any iPhone OS Device” key).
  • Select Build — NOT Build and Go — from the Build menu.

Once you have a successfully compiled app bundle (note: the icon for this bundle might have a white international “no” symbol — the circle with a slash through it), send it AND the appropriate Provisioning Profile to your tester(s).

8. Fine-tune. After all of your testing has been successfully completed, use special Xcode utilities for measuring and tuning your final app. This final step will ensure that your app will be a good citizen of any iPhone and iPod touch.

Coming up, our third and final episode will take this little piggy to market! Watch the Apple iTunes App Store and monitor our progress.


Xcode – iPhone Dev Center:  Dave Prochnow

 


How to Make an iPhone App: Part Three



You thought coding was hard; now it’s time to get your app approved

By Dave ProchnowPosted 03.26.2009 at 6:21 am5 Comments

 


RingsTrue Top 50 Dave Prochnow

In the previous two installments of this series, we labored through some ornery hardware wrangling and tested our mettle with some serious Objective-C coding, now it’s time to deliver our app to the masses.

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TAGS

DIY, Dave Prochnow, App, apple, dave prochnow, iphone, ipod touch, iTunes App Store, mac mini, projects, RingsTrue, sdk

This journey began on February 25 with the assembly of an Apple iPhone app dev system and culminated with my first app published in the Apple iTunes App Store on March 22. By all accounts, this turnaround time could have been reduced by six days had I not foolishly deleted a CAF audio file from the official app submission bundle. The good folks at Apple spotted this glaring omission and duly informed me on March 16 that I should fix the bundle and then resubmit the whole shebang. I immediately complied, but my gaffe delayed the app approval process for an additional six days.

No matter — I’m now a published app developer!

There were a couple of nagging details to tie up prior to my official app submission, however. First, I had to create a distribution provisioning profile for code-signing my Version 1.0 app. I just had to follow a few steps inside the iPhone Program Portal, then install the profile in my dev system’s Keychain, and I was ready to get my app officially blessed for release in the iTunes App Store.


RingsTrue Screenshot:  Dave Prochnow

Once the app was code-signed, I targeted the appropriate iPhone SDK (e.g., OS 2.2.1), built the target application, and, finally, archived the app in a ZIP file. Before you head to the Developer’s App Upload site, you should make sure that you have a couple of graphics ready to go, as well as a completed App Store Application Information form.

This graphics are easy enough: an icon (57×57-pixel PNG format image), an iTunes artwork rendering (just a 512×512-pixel JPEG version of your icon), and a sample screen grab (pick a great screen shot of your app in “motion”; this image will go on your “storefront” iTunes page. So, think “eye candy” here — sell that steak app with a juicy, sizzling screenshot.

Use this form for handling those last-minute application information queries:

App Store Application Information

  1. Application name: RingsTrue
  2. Application description (keep it around 700 characters; remember it’s the Internet age and people don’t read anymore): A musical name game based on Musikalisches Würfelspiel. The origin of this game is occasionally attributed to Wolfgang A. Mozart.
  3. Device type(s) the application is designed for: iPhone and iPod touch
  4. Unique Stock Keeping Unit (SKU) for each major version of your application: PRO-RT-001
  5. Primary category: Music
  6. Unique version #: 1.0
  7. Application copyright holder: Dave Prochnow
  8. Support URL for the company: http://www.popsci.com/diy/article/2009-02/how-make-iphone-app
  9. Territories application to be distributed in: worldwide
  10. Application availability date: March 11, 2009
  11. Application price: FREE
  12. Localization desired: English

You should also keep an eye on your app size. There is a 10MB limit on over-the-air “sales” of apps. Luckily, my behemoth app, tipping the scales at 7.7MB, was able to just skim under the limit. This heft is from all of the CAF audio files (156 different audio files) embedded inside the app.

There are some additional questions regarding games, encryption, and licensing agreements. If your app doesn’t fiddle around with these items, then you’re home free and ready to complete the submission process under the purview of Apple’s overtaxed review board.


RingsTrue Pending Sale:  Dave Prochnow

Another problem looms on the horizon, however. First-time Apple developer’s contracts are being processed at an increasingly slowing rate. Likewise, current developers who wish to renew their license might be in for a wait, too.

No matter — I’m now a published app developer!


RingsTrue 4 Sale:  Dave Prochnow

With an app under my belt, maybe I’m up to anAndroid challenge, a BlackBerry cookoff or, in late 2009, a Microsoft Windows Marketplace venue. Or, better yet, what’s your current app-etite like? Do you have an app in progress? Are you vying for a different smartphone platform? Let everyone know in our comments section.

Finally, by the numbers: RingsTrue (my musical name game app), upon its initial release, logged 37 downloads. Housed in the Music category of the iTunes App Store, RingsTrue failed to receiveany promotion, mention, or placement on the iTunes daily “New” display. Therefore, these “sales” were obtained solely by random browsing of the 30,000+ iTunes App Store apps. I will update these download numbers as significant milestones are reached.

Update, March 25, 2009: Downloads for RingsTrue just broke the 100 mark.

Posted in The Daily Mail | Leave a comment

Application Uploader for the Mac is now the only way you can upload your apps

Posted on August 16, 2011 by

Application Uploader for the Mac is now the only way you can upload your apps. Lets hope this changes ????? otherwise development is dead in the water!

Unless you use Matthew’s uploader service.

Posted in The Daily Mail | Leave a comment