Hanchor LLC

Hey All,

Thanks for the support regarding the recent release of iOS BetaBuilder. Happy that I could maybe save some people a little time with my simple tool.

Anyway, several folks seemed interested in expanding the app (i.e. adding command line support, localizations, etc…). That’s great but since I don’t have the time to really do it, I’ve put the code up on GitHub for all to share.

http://github.com/HunterHillegas/iOS-BetaBuilder

I’m looking forward to seeing what you guys come up with.

Cheers.

For a developer, doing beta releases on iOS can be a real pain sometimes.

For the past few years, we’ve had to go through the same song and dance: gather device IDs, create ad-hoc builds and then try to explain to users how to install them via iTunes. This can be trying for even technical users and non-technical users can get totally flummoxed. Let’s not even talk about people on Windows where the files often unzip in strange ways, leaving them totally confused.

Thankfully, Apple has made incremental improvements to this process over time. iOS 4.0 brings Web-based, wireless distribution of ad-hoc apps and the ability to embed provisioning profiles right into the IPA bundle. Your beta users can now install the software without ever using iTunes at all!

The only problem is that it’s not really documented, at least not in an end-to-end manner. On top of that, while Xcode can help you create some of the files needed for distribution, it doesn’t seem to go all the way.

I wanted to use this method to distribute my beta apps but I found myself creating the required XML and HTML files over and over again. There had to be a better way.

Enter ‘iOS BetaBuilder’ – a simple MacOS X app takes your archived IPA file and creates the required manifest and HTML files for wireless distribution. It even zips up a copy of the app for folks on 3.x that need to install via iTunes.

iOS BetaBuilder is freeware and runs on MacOS 10.6 or greater. You’re welcome to use it however you’d like and feedback is encouraged but I’m not in a position to offer any support – you use at your own risk blah blah blah. Bug reports and feature enhancements are welcome, though my time to work on the app is limited. One feature I do want to add is the ability to include your own custom HTML templates so it’s easier to stylize the HTML output.

Apple may well build this into a future version of Xcode but until they do, I hope this helps save you a few minutes. In my beta tests, it’s cut down on the ‘how the hell do I install this’ emails completely.

Download iOS Beta Builder 1.0

While I’ve been working on iOS for awhile, I don’t have a ton of experience with Cocoa proper – I’m sure there are probably some issues that slipped through the testing process.

Screenshots:

How Does It Work?

1. Build your .ipa file using Xcode’s ‘Build and Archive’ option. Choose ‘Save to Disk’.

2. Launch BetaBuilder (or drag and drop the .ipa on to it). If you need to, select your .ipa file. The app should pre-fill the other details.

3. Enter your intended deployment URL. This is the URL on the Web where your beta will be posted / viewed in a browser. This info gets baked into the deployment file.

4. Hit ‘Generate Deployment Files’ and pick a location to output the files.

That’s it – just upload the generated files to your Web server and then hit the URL in the device’s browser. BetaBuilder simply generates the HTML and manifest files needed to make wireless distribution work. As a convenience, it also bundles an iTunes installable ad-hoc version as a zip file.

Follow me on Twitter: @hunter

Happy to say that development of Vegas Mate 2.7 on the iPhone is wrapping up. This release includes a bunch of new stuff including full Retina Display support, better iOS 4 support (it is now required), an improved photo viewer, weather information and a lot more. It’s gonna be a great release.

Hopefully it will go to Apple sometime in the next week – that’s the goal.

Been awhile since I posted an update. Since then, Vegas Mate 2.6 for iPhone and version 1.2 for the iPad have both been released. The iPhone version especially was a long time coming and I’m happy to have it in the store.

The next update will likely be a 2.6.1 release to support OS 4.0’s multi-tasking, as well as a few bug fixes.

This next week I’ll be at Apple’s WWDC conference, where everyone expects a new iPhone to be announced. I can’t wait – last year was a blast.

I’m very happy to announce that Vegas Mate for iPad, my first app for the new platform, was approved. It will debut with the device on Saturday, April 3rd.

The iPad version of Vegas Mate was completely re-thought for the larger display, flattening the view hierarchy as much as possible. I hope it’s a big success and it is most definitely the start of much more.

Very happy to announce that I’ve submitted my first iPad app, Vegas Mate, to Apple for approval.

For details, please read my complete blog post – there are some screenshots in there too.

http://www.ratevegas.com/blog/2010/03/vegas_mate_for_1.html

I’m writing this mainly for my friend @mtc. He’s said that he doesn’t understand who the iPad is made for. I think it’s made for people like me.

Who am I? I use a computer all day for my job. I write software in a variety of languages for a wide array of uses: iPhone, Web, desktop, etc… I have a MacBook Pro that I dock with two different monitor+keyboard setups, depending on where I am. I use this computer 12+ hours per day – as much as any serious user. I’ve been on the Mac for 20+ years, before that Amiga, C64, etc… I’m a big time nerd, no doubt.

When I’m at home, I have my laptop setup in my home-office. That’s where I have my big 24″ monitor, full-size keyboard, etc… I’ve tried to make it as good a working environment as possible.=

I’ve only been married for five years but one thing I learned fast was that spending time isolated, away from my wife and dog, is not something that helps to build on our relationship. It makes no sense to be squirreled away in the office just to catch up… but that’s been happening – a lot.

One of the things I do often (a dozen+ times a day?) on the computer is read – be it Twitter, my RSS feeds (150+ sites) or my Instapaper archives. I’d love to be able to do these easily in the living room. Could I undock my laptop? Yes, I could… but every time I do, I have to re-size my myriad of Xcode, Safari and Mail windows to match the new smaller screen size – annoying. Do I need all that laptop power to read a Web page? No – the iPhone does just fine, albeit with too small a screen to make it optimal. Can I please get a larger multi-touch device?

Enter iPad.

I see myself using iPad to hang out on the couch, catching up on this stuff that right now I gravitate towards the office for. I can see using it to read at the breakfast table – a laptop is *no good* for reading the New York Times or Wall Street Journal while trying to eat something. A Sunday morning spent out in the well-lit living room sounds far more compelling than lurking in my office. I can’t wait.

The meetings I loathe but have to spend time in? I’d rather take notes on iPad in OmniGraffle than on a laptop – it’s just [sounds] better.

I tried using a netbook – it just wasn’t for me. I bought a Dell Mini a few months ago, hoping that it would fill the ‘computer for the living room’ void. I had it for three days before I returned it – it was an exercise in frustration. I’m a full-time MacOS X user but my work means I’m in constant contact with Windows – that wasn’t the reason (I actually think Win7 is pretty good – a big step forward for MS). The Dell netbook just wasn’t usable! The keyboard was a piece of crap – a tiny toy – I could type faster on my iPhone. The screen was like a Fisher Price ‘My First PeeCee’ type deal. I shouldn’t have expected more, that’s just what the netbook market is – cheap crappy computers for people that don’t care.

What am I looking for in iPad? A portable device that’s fantastic for consuming media (no, I don’t like Flash, thank you very much), with the semi-occasional need for content creation covered as well. I could imagine weekend trips without my laptop, as long as I could send my photos to Flickr via iPad (I’m already aware of third parties planning this).

As a developer, I have a ton of ideas for iPad. I think Apple has make a bit of a mistake to imply that iPad apps will just be like re-vamped iPhone apps. I think the apps we will see for iPad will be far more complex and probably unique, though related to their iPhone brethren. iPad apps will require a larger budget for higher-res graphics, completely new UI paradigms and more  advance planning on that UI. I know for my apps, the planning process for iPad has been far more complex than ‘bigger version of Vegas Mate’. I want to do something great for the bigger interface. I have ideas but nothing to announce.

I’m excited for iPad’s release. I think ultimately it will be a big hit, though it may take a year or two to get traction. It won’t replace my laptop – I’ll always need both – but I can’t wait to consume my content on a bigger multi-touch device.

My partner in the Bombora project sent me a link to another app in the Weather category on iTunes. We’re constantly looking at what our peers are doing – some have some great ideas and there’s nothing wrong with being pushed forward by someone else’s solution to a coding or UI problem.

This morning’s link was different. It seems that another app, NOAA Buoy Data Reader, went ahead with an interface that seems very, very familiar. I’ve posted some comparison shots below – our app on the left, theirs on the right. They didn’t even bother to use different colors for the status icons.

What comes next? I don’t know, we’re discussing internally. That said, it’s just bad form to rip off someone else’s idea and there’s a big difference between being inspired by other good work and just being lazy.

On a final note – a UIToolbar and a UITabBar on the same screen? Really? Ughh. They didn’t copy that from us.

I read a lot on the Web.

I see articles all the time that look like they might be interesting. I’ll be cruising through my Twitter feed in Tweetie 2 (iPhone) or reading RSS via NetNewsWire (Mac OS X)… maybe I just found something via Google. This happens a dozen times a day at least.

Whatever the source, I don’t always have time to read everything right that second. There was a time when I would bookmark things like crazy, save links or even email myself to keep track. No longer.

I started using Instapaper about a year ago. It’s a simple ‘bookmarklet’ you put in your browser. When I see something I want to save for later, I click this link in my Safari toolbar. This transparently saves the link off into my Instapaper account.

When I’m looking for something to read, I head over to Instapaper.com and look at my feed. As I read the articles, they drop off my list.

What’s awesome is that there’s also an Instapaper iPhone app. It takes the articles that I’ve tagged, strips out everything but the text (no graphics or ads) and saves them offline – once downloaded I can read these even if I don’t have coverage. There’s also support for other devices like the Kindle, though I don’t use it myself – this will make a great iPad app.

Tweetie 2, my favorite iPhone Twitter client, has built in support, as do many others. When I see a link in a tweet, which probably happens 5-10 times a day, I can swipe and save to Instapaper with a single tap. Incredible.

There are few tools that have dramatically changed the way I use the Web as much as Instapaper. Basic use is free, there’s a charge for the high end iPhone client. I’d strongly suggesting giving it a try.

I’m very interested in iPad development – I’ve been going through the SDK for a few days, thinking about it in depth. That said, I think Vegas Mate really fits the phone/mobile concept very well, more so than it might on a larger screen size like we see on the iPad. Vegas Mate will run on the iPad, in either 1x or 2x mode (though so far it looks pretty weird in 2x, as I think most apps will).

I’m working on new iPad apps and I think I have some good ideas… but they won’t be Vegas Mate, at least exactly as you see it on iPhone… and I intent to continue Vegas Mate development – nothing is changing there, it’s a product I love and I have big big plans for the future.

What will likely be shared – the content. That’s a large part of the value of Vegas Mate and a place where I’m making significant investments over the next few months.

What I end up doing on iPad will be a bit of a different experience. I’m having a blast re-thinking all of the UI and workflow stuff for a larger screen. I hope you dig it too, whatever it ends up being.