Dev101
Latest
iPhone Dev 101: Creating Xcode projects, brief Xcode UI overview
In our last iPhone Dev 101, a continuing series on iPhone development, we talked about resources that you can use while you are coding with Cocoa. In this dev post, I'm going to walk you through Xcode and creating your first project.First we need to open Xcode, so once you have the SDK installed, you'll need to open /Developer/Applications/ and look for Xcode.app. This is Apple's IDE (Integrated Development Environment) that allows you to code, debug, test, and build all of your iPhone and Mac applications. When you open this application, nothing specially really happens, although you might see the welcome center -- if you see this, you can choose to disable it at startup by using the check box at the bottom. To create a new project, select File > New Project. In the resulting window select iPhone OS Application > View-based Application, and click "Choose." You will then need to specify a save name and location for the resulting files that will combine to create your application. In the resulting Xcode window, you should note that most of the work is already done for you!At this point you have a fully functional application. Try it out: click the "build and go" button at the top of the window and wait while the app is compiled and opens in the iPhone Simulator. The app definitely doesn't do much, but still, it's a running application you made without writing any code. Continue reading to learn more about Xcode, and get a brief UI overview.
iPhone Dev 101: Downloading and Installing the iPhone SDK
We're continuing our series of iPhone Dev 101 posts -- a TUAW feature devoted to beginning iPhone developers. I'm going to spend a little time talking about where to download and how to install the SDK. Let's first talk about what exactly an SDK is. A software development kit is a set of tools and APIs (application programming interface) that allows a programmer the ability to develop for a specific system. Therefore, the iPhone SDK gives you the ability to program for the iPhone. The SDK is just a waste of space on your hard drive unless you know the programming language associated with the iPhone. To program on the iPhone, you will need some Cocoa (Objective-C) knowledge. There are a ton of resources available online and in book form -- I'll cover these and more in the next post in the series. If you already know a programming language like C/C++/Java, then you should just need a refresher course on the classes, methods, and basic expressions.To download Apple's iPhone SDK, you'll need an Apple ID -- this is a free account that you can use to access multiple Apple services including iTunes, Apple Discussions, the online store, and the developer site. If you don't have an account, you can easily get one on the iPhone Dev Center. Continue reading to learn how to download and install the iPhone SDK.
iPhone Dev 101: Introduction
Welcome to the iPhone Dev 101 series. This series on TUAW is designed to tell readers about iPhone development, and give potential iPhone developers a look at the iPhone. In this introductory post, I'll walk you through some of the most asked questions about the iPhone & App Store. These posts will be a little geeky, but I will try to explain anything that you might not already know about. Where do I start?If you already have an Apple ID (either from iTunes/MobileMe/.Mac/etc.), then the first place to start would be to join the iPhone DevCenter. The basic (free) access will allow you to download the SDK (Software Development Kit), look at documentation, download example code, and test your applications in the iPhone Simulator (a Mac application that emulates the iPhone OS). You will not be able to test and debug your application on your actual iPhone or iPod touch hardware, however. For that you will need to purchase a paid development membership. Once you attempt to sign in to the DevCenter with your Apple ID, you will be presented with some terms and conditions that you will need to accept. Once you accept them, you will be taken to the main DevCenter -- this is the place where you will be able to download the SDK and access some other important information about iPhone development. Read on to learn more about iPhone development.
