Hanchor LLC

Updated with fixed link.

Hi Guys,

I’ve just completed a few little updates to iOS BetaBuilder in a release I’m calling 1.5. You can download that from the Mac App Store here:

http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=415348946&mt=12

The release includes the following changes:

• The app now remembers the values for items in it’s history, based on the bundle ID. That means you don’t have to re-type the Web server info every time for bundles you use again and again.
• A few tweaks to the HTML file (thanks to all that contributed) – better support for different display sizes and it now includes the date and the app version as well.
• The HTML template is now read from the App Support directory, meaning you can replace the template with your own file if you want. The syntax is very simple to understand.

Beyond that, I’m announcing that I’m submitting iOS BetaBuilder to the Mac App Store. The source will remain on GitHub but I may charge a couple of bucks in the store for people that want to support the project.

I thought this was an easier way for people to get the binaries than having to setup Sparkle, etc… I’ll post again when it’s available.

Enjoy and please let me know if you find any issues.

Since posting the source onto GitHub, I’ve seen a couple of interesting forks of BetaBuilder and I’m considering folding some of the changes back into the ‘official’ release. What do you guys think of these ideas?

There’s a fork with better support for using Dropbox as the storage medium – interesting. There’s also full command line support, helpful for people that want to script the entire build process.

What would you most like to see added to BetaBuilder?

Just a note that I’ve posted the 1.0.1 version of iOS Beta Builder. For those that don’t know, BetaBuilder is a simple way to generate all of the deployment files you need to do your iOS Ad-Hoc beta programs wirelessly. It’s similar to services like TestFlight (they do more than just the wireless bit  though – if you need a comprehensive solution, check them out too). BetaBuilder is free and the source is available.

You can download version 1.0.1 here.

Not all that much in this update, just a fix for the generated HTML files. This is the same source that is up on GitHub.

Happy to hear from everyone that’s been using the app. I’ve got some ideas for extra features but just haven’t had time to work on them.

Breastcancer.org’s “Breast Cancer Diagnosis Guide” is now available in the App Store.

I worked on this app with Foraker Design, providing the programming end as well as helping design the UI.

If you or someone you know is dealing with breast cancer, this app will provide you with valuable information to help you  through a difficult time. The app is available for free.

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.

NOTE: If you are on IIS, you may need to add a MIME type for plist files – should probably be ‘text/xml’.

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