Traditionally, integrated development environments were file oriented – if you edited code, you edited it on a file-by-file basis.
Code Bubbles is an experimental Java IDE which goes a different way. In it, functions are the elemental parts of an application: you edit code on a per-function level, and can open calling and called functions easily.
A video showing the concept is below – set it to a lower resolution on a slower machine:
Long-term followers of Tamoggemon know that the products usually have a minimized interface – this is due to fanatic tap counting in the UI design department. However, tap counting is but part of a successful mobile UI – you usually also need to adhere to common design patterns.
So far, no collection of design patterns for mobile applications has been published in book form. However, the design4mobile wiki is a more than adequate replacement:
Hit the link below to find out more:
http://patterns.design4mobile.com/index.php/Main_Page
At the Mobile World Congress, Microsoft refused to answer any questions about developing for Windows Mobile – if you wanted to know more about that, you were redirected to the MIX event which will be held in Las Vegas in the near future.
Nevertheless, a bit of information has just leaked out – and it confirms my fears of the iPhonization of Windows Mobile 7:
Amazon has just sent out a few invites to developers who indicated “interest” in the Kindle – it offered a further form, offering you to “apply for a place” in the Kindle developer test program.
Amazon has now posted an FAQ for Kindle developers – the most relevant questions are below:
# What APIs are available to me in the KDK?
The KDK is comprised of two sets of APIs:* Java version 1.4 Personal Basis Profile (PBP) APIs for mobile devices.
PBP JavaDocs can be found at http://java.sun.com/javame/reference/apis/jsr217/.
* Kindle custom APIs which complement the PBP APIs and provide UI components, JSON and XML parsers, HTTP and HTTPS networking, secure storage, and other features. Other APIs like audio and dictionary access will be available in a future release of the KDK.
KDK JavaDocs can be found at http://kdk-javadocs.s3.amazonaws.com/index.html.# I’ve already built a Java Micro Edition (J2ME) application. Can I port it to Kindle?
Yes. You should be able to modify existing Java applets and J2ME software to run on Kindle.…
As of now, Tamoggemon has not been accepted – stay tuned!
Apple’s App Store is unique in two aspects: it is, first of all, insanely successful – and does not allow time-limited trial versions. These two aspects have led quite a few to question the value of free trials – unfortunately, getting data out of developers has been all but easy.
Todd A. Sherman from Smart Box Design (a games company) now shares the following – according to him, trial versions don’t really pay out in the “nice new world”:
I did an analysis of the best selling Word games and compared their numbers and ratings against their free version. For the Word category it did not seem to make a huge difference if you had a free version or not. We got a huge bump in downloads from our Free version, thousands and thousands of downloads, but only saw a modest change in sales. However, getting on people’s mind space was worth it for us.
We are, of course, looking at an individual opinion here. However, the information I have received from other parties sounded similar…
Microsoft’s Visual Studio 2010 has been delayed multiple times. Fortunately, it looks like the folks now have a new (and possibly final) release date.
Microsoft’s Rob Caron has now stated the following new delivery goal:
Visual Studio 2010 and .NET Framework 4 Launch Date
Short but sweet, Visual Studio 2010 and .NET Framework 4 will launch on Monday, 12 April 2010.
Just to keep you all in the loop…
As some of you make checking your bank accounts every day a pseudo-religious habit, I felt that sharing the message from Handango below will definitely save some of you a lot of grief and anger:
With recent changes in resources and corresponding process changes here at Handango, last month’s royalty payments were not made until the end of the month. As you know, prior to last month Handango has typically paid royalties on or near the 15th of the month following the previous month’s close.
The reason for my note today is that due to a number of factors, including ongoing process adjustments, effective this month you can expect to receive your royalty payments on or near the 25th of the month following the previous month’s close. This timeframe for payment would still fall within the allowed month long pay period from previous month’s close.
I understand the importance of timing relative to receiving payment and I wanted to get this information of change to you as soon as I was able to confirm the necessary schedule of the new processes. To the extent that this change in our policy causes an inconvenience, I apologize.
P.S. Don’t forget to forward this to your accountant – these folks can also go bonkers 
!
This one should be very interesting for all those of you on an MSDN subscription: Microsoft Austria has just stated that it plans to make the second beta of Visual Studio 2010 available to MSDN customers “immediately”.
A new version of the .NET framework will also be made available in the process – the version will be dubbed .NET Framework 4.0.
As of now, no further information is available…
Seth Godin’s blog is difficult to classify, but tends to be extremely interesting for entrepreneurs and marketers alike.
His latest post is extremely interesting for all those of you in the mobile space. Seth basically asks whether your company can benefit from cooperating with somebody else:
…
Good business development allows businesses to profit by doing something that is tangential to their core mission. Sometimes the profit is so good, it becomes part of their core mission, other times it supports the brand and sometimes it just makes money. And often it’s a little guy who can be flexible enough to make things happen.
Examples:
x) Starbucks licenses their name to a maker of ice cream and generates millions in royalties.…
Hit the link below for a little FAQ on “business development”:
http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2009/09/understanding-business-development.html
Microsoft’s Marketplace for Mobile is scheduled to drop next week. ISVs who want to be in the pack right from the start should hurry to upload their apps ASAP.
In order to help accelerate this process, Microsoft has provided the following “best practices”, which should be followed to ensure a swift content approval process:
1. Review documentation: Be sure to read through the Application Submission Criteria, Policy Guidelines, Prohibited Applications List and Market Validation Guide prior to application submission. It sounds obvious, but it really is best to spend the time on the front end of the process.
2. Alert your team: Proactively contact the Corporate Approver you designated during Windows Marketplace registration. The Corporate Approver will receive several emails from GeoTrust, who is partnering with Microsoft to provide identity validation services. This will accelerate the identity validation process and reduce the time required before you can submit applications to the Windows Marketplace.
3. Have your ID ready: Individuals may be required to send a copy of government issued photo identification to GeoTrust. Notarized documents for individuals are no longer required. (note that the preferred method for GeoTrust support is through live chat at http://www.geotrust.com/support/chat/order-processing.html )
4. Use App Verifier on Native Code: Remember that Application Verifier only applies to applications written in Native code.
5. Start with the emulator: We recommend testing your application in the Windows Mobile 6.5 emulator prior to submission to the Windows Marketplace. Even better, test the application on a Windows Mobile 6.5 device.
6. Keep reading this blog: Check back to review technical criteria and top tips to help your certification go more smoothly.
Further information can be had at the URL below:
http://windowsteamblog.com/blogs/windowsphone/archive/2009/09/30/windows-marketplace-update-countdown-to-launch.aspx
Microsoft originally intended to use its .NET platform to make porting code between desktop and mobile versions of Windows easier. Fortunately (for developers), various companies have since stood up and provided .NET runtimes for other platforms.
Novell’s MonoTouch does this for the iPhone and iPod touch. ZDNet Asia claims the following:
…
The iPhone developer licence forbids scripting engines or Just-In-Time (JIT) compilers, which .NET needs to run code. “As a result, the world of iPhone applications had been previously closed to .NET and Mono developers. Developers can now use MonoTouch while fully complying with these license terms because MonoTouch delivers only native code,” Novell said in a statement.
As of now, the product is not available commercially. However, it will be Mac-only and furthermore costs at least 400$ a year…
The folks at AdMob’s usually compile monthly reports on device market share. Even though these usually are pretty valuable, they pale in comparison to their recent special report on iPhone and Android applications.
I have personally been so impressed by the report, that I felt like publishing it in its entity for you below without further comments:
Source PDF file here
Developers who use a multi-ESD strategy probably know about the huge efforts involved in keeping prices and product offerings consistent across all portals. PalmGear was known to be insane about it; MobiHand was more relaxed and usually didn’t complain if they had to wait a bit.
Unfortunately, these times are over. The company has just sent out a newsletter to its partners, reminding them to set prices consistent or else. Even though the note currently address BlackBerry developers, I am pretty sure that they will widen these measures to other platforms in the near future.
P.S: The full statement goes as follows:
Dear Blackberry Developer,
MobiHand is committed to offering competitive prices on the products we sell. For some products, we are seeing pricing higher on MobiHand than in other channels. This is in violation of our Developer Agreement (see http://corporate.mobihand.com/sda_dev.asp). More importantly, it conflicts with our commitment to our customers.
When products are priced higher in the MobiHand catalog, we hear from angry customers, and in some cases we have offered refunds and even incurred bank expenses for chargebacks.
Please check your products in the MobiHand catalog, and align prices as needed to assure that MobiHand prices are not higher than in other channels. If prices elsewhere are promotional prices, feel free to set promotional prices in the MobiHand catalog, too.
This is a very high priority for MobiHand, and we look for your compliance in the coming days. Thanks in advance for your help on this important issue.
All the best,
The MobiHand TeamPS: Please note, as previously announced, MobiHand now supports prices as low as $0.99.
Giovanni Galucci is best known for his recent series of webOS developer events – Microsoft’s Windows Mobile 6.5 is the next victim:
He describes his plans as following:
WinMoDevCamp is a series of upcoming not-for-profit gatherings to develop applications for the upcoming release of the Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.5 O/S. The event is currently being planned in 7 cities around the world. Our first Windows Mobile Developer Camp event has been scheduled for August 19 in Redmond, Washington at the Microsoft Campus. You can register now on the form below. Dates will soon be announced for the following additional cities: Austin, London, New York, San Francisco, Singapore, and Toronto. We will also encourage other mobile developers to host their own events on the same dates. This website will have facilities for local events to organize as well.
Further information can be had here:
http://winmodevcamp.org/
The slide below should give all developers food for thought – it shows Hutchison Austria’s mobileTV channel portfolio:
The surprising effect is that a very small group of Austria’s population (Turks) have all moved to the carrier because of the Turkish TV channel, and now bring large amounts of reliable revenue to the carrier.
Catering to small groups can pay out – sometimes even more than hunting after the masses…
