I am looking forward for the arrival of Xojo Mobile apps. From the video, it looks extremely promising.
Would it make sense to start working on a Mac OS app to advance work for a future Mobile iOS app ?
If Mobile is separated like Web, will it make sense to copy/paste methods and snippets of code coming from a Desktop prototype ?
Am not so sure to be quite clear, but say, I would love to be able to develop for iOS with a little more comfort than with today’s XCode contraption…
You will have to do some work to move the app from the current desktop framework to the iOS framework. However, at least you can get started now and work out the logic of your app. Long term, our plan is to make the desktop, web and mobile platforms compatible to the point where you could copy and paste controls with code between them and they would just work. But that’s a ways off.
The best you could do is separate your business logic from UI code.
That way the business logic is not tied into UI - which will undoubtedly be different for IOS, desktop & web.
I was planning to work essentially on the logic more than the UI. So I feel reassured my idea was not too far off.
I suppose development for iOS will require a developer contract. And some work on Xojo part to make it work pretty much the same way as XCode, with a simulator and a way to transfer the app to the device ?
[quote=37552:@Michel Bujardet]I was planning to work essentially on the logic more than the UI. So I feel reassured my idea was not too far off.
I suppose development for iOS will require a developer contract. And some work on Xojo part to make it work pretty much the same way as XCode, with a simulator and a way to transfer the app to the device ?[/quote]
Not sure about transferring to a device but the simulator with XCode already works
Thats what the demos have been using
I’d expect that of you want to develop for iOS you WILL need a Mac & Xcode (not to code in Xcode but for the other tools) since it’s unlikely we’ll port the codesigning & other necessary tools to Windows & Linux 
[quote=37552:@Michel Bujardet]I was planning to work essentially on the logic more than the UI. So I feel reassured my idea was not too far off.
I suppose development for iOS will require a developer contract. And some work on Xojo part to make it work pretty much the same way as XCode, with a simulator and a way to transfer the app to the device ?[/quote]
Without a developer subscription you wouldn’t be able to sign and upload apps to the App Store so probably yes. Not sure about jailbreak markets, though.
As an advice to the code itself the suggestions about separating the UI from the logic is a catch-all that benefits here and in a ton of other places (it’s one of the most common advices to programming in general, and it’s a straight-up mantra in web programming nowadays, with good reason).
It makes a bit harder at the beginning as almost no code resides in the events of controls and the like, but long-term it pays off in spades.
what if the Xojo iOS app is NOT going to the App Store??
Then you are p… 
scnr
what does that mean?? what i am trying to say is what if i don’t need have my iOS app using Xojo to be on AppStore. Just need to send to few private client.
As an iOS developer you have the opportunity to equip round about 100 devices as ‘dev devices’. In this way your app mustn’t be in the store. You can deploy in several other ways. With an Enterprise Account your number increases up to 1000 devices.
Klaus, what other ways??
I.e you can host the app on a webserver, send it via e-Mail or installing with the Apple Configurator App (Mac/Win) to ‘your’ developers. But requires a regular iOS developer account. Also read more on Apple’s Dev Pages
hosting on a webserver or sending my email sound good to me.
[quote=37568:@Norman Palardy]Not sure about transferring to a device but the simulator with XCode already works
Thats what the demos have been using
I’d expect that of you want to develop for iOS you WILL need a Mac & Xcode (not to code in Xcode but for the other tools) since it’s unlikely we’ll port the codesigning & other necessary tools to Windows & Linux :P[/quote]
At this time, an Intel Mac & XCode are mandatory anyway, so Xojo will be a welcome addition to an environment already familiar. And Xojo IDE may shame Apple in finally improving on their pitiful and old fashion Interface Builder 
I don’t know if you have been to Cydia lately, but it seems awfully small as compared to the App Store. I am not so sure it is a market. Maybe a specialty store ?
I don’t consider Cydia or jailbroken stores as a viable market. I just mentioned I don’t know what requirements they might have. I’d guess none.
It’s a bit more complex than just that. You need to know the devices beforehand since you need to have a provisioning profile that covers them in the devices that will use it or it won’t work.
I work in a VERY large enterprise and we do our private application deployment through Apple’s App Store because the alternative is unmanageable.
Good rundown of the options:
http://mobiledan.net/2012/03/02/5-options-for-distributing-ios-apps-to-a-limited-audience-legally/
I recommend option #5, but it should be clear it is really an automation of #4 or #2 (a damn good one, though).
Large enterprises that choose to deploy internally usually have their own certificates and tend to purchase the source code, so it becomes their problem.
For deployment to end user there’re no viable alternatives to the App Store, all being said.
Hi Eduardo, my issue is not distributing the app to the user in the large enterprise but instead our client that is using our desktop application. so yes to limited audience and the app might be customise to each client.
from what i understand the ‘iOS Developer Enterprise Program’ is for enterprise distributing to their own users in the enterprise.
The enterprise plan requires you a bit more paperwork and is more expensive, but it’s the only way to deploy to more than 99 people. If you’re willing to do multiple provisioning profiles (one per customer, for example) you could get by with a normal developer account.
The app you want your customers to use is linked to a provisioning profile that should have all their device IDs. Sites like testflight help you with this management and help your customers registering their apps.
Ad-hoc provisioning profiles last for a year, IIRC, at which point you need to redeploy your app with a new one to all customers.
It’s certainly possible, but I’ll leave you to consider whether it’s worth the hassle.