Loading ...Design and Development for the iPhone: 20 Links to Help You Look Good on the Go
Posted by Mustafa
According to Apple, iPhone “Developers can create Web 2.0 applications that look and behave just like the applications built into the iPhone, and provide seamless integration with iPhone applications and services” and this post helps you do just that. These days, everyone from Matt Cutts to Craig at A List Apart are talking about developing/designing for the iPhone and it’s time for you to get in on the action.
The iPhone is not the only web browsing ’smartphone’ and it definitely isn’t perfect - especially with its initial activation problems – but its use of the Safari browser on the 3.5″ touchscreen revolutionizes web browsing from your mobile phone. With Apple slated to sell over 10 million of these devices the first year out, there will be millions of eyeballs on the web browsing on their iPhones.
Whether you want to create a full-on web application for iPhone users or you just want to make your existing site design to show up better on the iPhone, like Digg’s iPhone page, you’ll find something here to get you going on your iPhone development journey.
iPhone Site Design Inspiration
These are some nice sites which have been developed to target users logging on from the Safari browser on Apple’s iPhone.
- PopTakeout - The iPhone news aggregator which gives iPhone users the top headlines from Del.icio.us, Digg, Reddit, Newsvine and TailRank.
- The iPhone version of Digg.com - Slick Digg site designed especially for use on the iPhone.
- NetVibes iPhone Site - NetVibes mobile design created for use with the Apple iPhone.
- KeepCa$h iPhone Coupon Check - This site allows you to search for coupons from your iPhone so you can avoid paying to much while your out shopping.
See it with the iPhone Perspective
These links allow you to preview your work and see how it would look on the iPhone, if you don’t have a real one to use. You should also download Safari, if you don’t have it already.
- TestiPhone Web Based Simulator - This a browser based iPhone simulator which allows for fast testing of iPhone applications. It works with IE, Firefox and of course Safari.
- iPhoney - This is not an iPhone simulator, but it gives you an accurately sized 320 x 480 space to develop web sites for the iPhone.
- Downloadable iPhone Simulator for Mac - A free downloable utility which allows you to emulate the iPhone browser environment.
Examples of iPhone Applications
These iPhone apps give you insight on some of the many useful things that can be designed for the iPhone and implemented throug the iPhone’s Safari browser.
- Lifehacker’s Top 10 iPhone applications - This post at LifeHacker showcases 10 of the best iPhone applications.
- Leaflets: iPhone Apps - Leaflets are fun, useful applications designed to run fast on your iPhone. Includes iPhone apps for search, RSS feeds, Flickr, Del.icio.us and more.
- iPhoneChat in Javascript - allows you to log in with your AOL Instant Messenger account and send and receive IMs. A little buggy when I accessed it on my iPhone, but very cool to see that this is possible.
- iPhone Dev Camp Apps - A big list of apps created druing iPhone DevCamp 2007 in San Francisco.
- iPhoneWebDev Examples - Numerous examples for useful features such as iPhone user detection and iPhone tooltips in Safari.
- 17 Powerful Bookmarklets for the iPhone - Many people don’t know that most bookmarklets work on the iPhone too. Bookmarklets are little pieces of Javascript code that can be saved as ordinary bookmarks in your web browser.
Official Apple iPhone Developer Resources
Of course the first place you’ll want to look is Apple’s own official links at iPhone Developer Connection. While not the most helpful site, you’ll find their development guidelines and WebKit information pretty useful when starting your new iPhone development project.
- iPhone Development Guidelines - Provides information for optimizing your web applications and content for the iPhone.
- Interactive iPhone Game Sample Code - Contains example use of stylesheets, images, basic user interaction, JavaScript, and techniques for interactive standards-based iPhone design.
- Apple iPhone Developer Connection - The official Apple page about Developing for the Apple iPhone.
Unofficial iPhone Developer Resources
Here are some quality resources for iPhone development, provided by people who aren’t a part of the Apple team in Cupertino, Ca.
- iPhone Web Dev Google Group - A Google group created for developers to help developers create Web 2.0 Applications for the iPhone.
- AListApart: Put Your Content in my Pocket - The first of two articles by Craig Hockenberry on bringing your content to the iPhone.
- IBM’s iPhone Development Page - This page shows you how develop custom iPhone apps with PHP and XML.
- AddFone Applications Engine - Not looking to reinvent the wheel? Hop on over to this site and search their database of over 600 apps (and counting!). The page is also optimized for your iPhone, making those application downloads that much easier.
This is the first of a two part series for designing for Smartphones and Web Enabled Devices. Subscribe to our rss feeds and stay tuned for more.
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cheap iphones guy - December 5th, 2007
man I was looking for something like this! thank you 4 sharing all these cool resources! I personally use netvibes!