Writing iPad Apps Me learning to write iPad applications

The Seven Tent Poles of the iPhone OS 4

Here are the seven tent poles listed in the Apple iPhone OS 4 presentation:

• Multitasking
• Folders for apps
• email, email, email
• iBooks, transfer your books
• Enterprise support (vpn, etc)
• Game center
• iAd

Apple also has a list of all of the new features in version 4 of the iPhone OS. If you are a member of the iPhone Developer program you can download a beta version of the SDK now, cash strapped folks like you and me will have to wait until it's released. iPhone OS 4 will be available for the iPad sometimes in the fall, maybe by then I'll have my iPad development ducks in a row.

All in all, some interesting stuff, I'm the most surprised and interested in the Game center, since I was hoping to create some simple (and some not so simple) games for the iPad. I like the addition of easy matching making for multi-player games as well, especially since that's (in my opinion) a great space for iPad games.

I've got to get my hands on some new hardware so I can dig into this stuff!

iPad Problems

So it appears as though there are some problems with the first generation iPads. Interesting, pretty lame, but not really that surprising.

I was browsing the Apple Support site and came across two knowledge base articles regarding the iPad and it's WiFi issues:

• iPad: Does not automatically rejoin known Wi-Fi networks
• iPad: Troubleshooting Wi-Fi networks and connections

The only thing surprising about these wireless issues is that Apple didn't catch them before the iPad was released...I guess all iPad testers use Airports...

On a side note: Downloaded the new iPhone SDK but as I already knew, I was unable to install it on my ancient Mac mini. Time for a new Mac I guess, but what to get. I'm still thinking about it, I want to maximize power and minimize cost (of course) for now I'm leaning towards a refurb Mac Mini...but we'll see. Anything that will let me start writing iPad apps!

iPhone OS 4

Well the iPad was release on April 3rd and on April 8th Apple is previewing version 4 of the iPhone OS...? Personally the timing seems strange...unless they held off on version 4 so that the iPad could launch with access to all of existing the iPhone apps. Who knows, either way this update should be interesting.

It also looks like they have opened up access to the iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch SDK, so us poor developers no longer have to fork over $100 in order to peak into the SDK. Now if only I could install this on my poor first generation Mac Mini...silly Power PC chips...

iPad Almost Here

Well the iPad is almost here (one more day to be exact, late April for those of us in Canada), and there are lots and lots of reviews sailing around the internet.

So far most of the reviews seems to be pretty positive. Gizmodo has a great meta review that you can read. Overall the reviewers seem to be liking the iPad, they are not surprised by what it does, but they are enjoying it.

Sadly I haven't been able to dig into the iPad development as much as I wanted to, but I'm still planning on creating an app on this blog and detailing my progress. Hopefully the code examples and the pitfalls that I stumble into will help other iPad App developers in the future.

I'm really looking forward to writing some code for the iPad, and I'm still trying to decide which language to use (I understand that I can use Objective C or C++) and what type of Apple I'm going to buy for the development. So far I think I'm going to get an updated Mini as I'm hoping to reduce the amount of money that I need to spend. I'll let you know what I decide, if anyone has any tips I'd love to hear them!

50,000 iPads Sold in Two Hours

According to this article, Apple sold 51,000 iPads in the first two hours it was available for pre-order.

The last update in the post states that the number was up to 91,000 in six hours. That's pretty impressive for a device that so many have written off.

I'm hoping to start working on this site and posting my development stories very soon...he're hoping that everything works out!

Quick iPad link

Here is a quick link to an interesting iPad article over at InfoWorld: The iPad questions Apple won't answer

Saving and loading documents is a biggie for me, without options like those certain uses for the iPad are totally lost. Being able to edit documents that you don't have to email yourself seems a pretty big requirement to me, I don't see how Apple would omit it. Sounds like we'll just have to wait and see.

iPad News

Since the launch of the iPad there have been a lot of articles and blog posts written about it. Many of them are positive and many, perhaps even more of them have been negative. Personally I understand that. Robert Cringley doesn't seem to like the iPad all that much, and neither does John Dvorak, while John Gruber over at DaringFireball.net seems to like it quite a bit.

One interesting point that Dvorak brings up is the fact that people are griping about the iPad, and he seems to feel that there is more griping then in the past. While I'm not sure if there is more griping about the iPad then there was about the iPhone initially or the Apple TV, there are a lot of unhappy people.

And to tell you the truth I was one of those unhappy people at first. I saw the iPad and I just wasn't excited about it. However over the weekend I thought about the iPad more and more and my opinions began to change.

I had issues with the fact that it wasn't as powerful as a laptop, it wasn't open, I couldn't program on it, it wasn't like any computer that I had ever used. In the end it was that, it wasn't like a laptop or a desktop it was something different. It wasn't for programming or any "hardcore" computing (yet) it was for checking your email quickly without having to leave the room, checking the news, checking the weather, maybe sending an email or writing up a few notes. Will I use it to read a book? probably  not.  Will I use it to watch a movie? probably not...well maybe something on youTube. But I will use it for quick tasks, and maybe some document writing depending on how the keyboard feels.

One of the biggest selling point for me is gaming. The iPad has (in my opinion) some great opportunities for new styles of games, games that I cam play anywhere in the house. Take the games that were available for the iPhone or iPod Touch and make them real. Now that's something that I can get behind.

A Quick Introduction

My name is Mark Mruss and I’m a early-thirties computer programmer who spends his days, and some of this nights, in front of the computer. I’ve been using computers for a long time, not as long as some, but a lot longer than others.

For my job I program in C++ and have been doing so for the last ten years. I watched the iPhone/iPod Touch app market explode and I wanted to throw my hat into the ring but I just couldn't think of the right application...something didn't feel right. With the announcement of the iPad something clicked in my head and I knew that I had to give it a shot.

This website will be used to track my progress as I learn the iPad application development and will hopefully be a helpful resource for other people that want to develop for their own iPad applications.

• iPad Air 3: release date, rumours, specs & pricing - IT PRO
  
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• How to reset an iPhone or iPad: wipe and erase the contents of an iPhone or iPad - Macworld UK
  
• Double Robotics upgrades its iPad telepresence robot - Macworld
  
• Incipio ClamCase Comes to the iPad Pro - Gotta Be Mobile