TapLynx 1.4 has been released.

This is mainly a maintenance release which allows TapLynx apps to be built with iOS4 for release to the App Store.

Read more about the capabilities of TapLynx.

TapLynx 1.3 has been released with the following new features:

• Localization allows app text to be configured for different languages.
• Push notifications can be sent via push.io with config settings to allow users to select which notifications they receive. There is some overhead with configuration of provisioning profiles to achieve this but the solution does simplify a very complicated process.
• Image Flow allows better display of images

Updated: 1.3.4 has been released with fixes

Read more about the capabilities of TapLynx.

Tiny Shiny Apps and its first release, Number 10 were the recipients of some unexpected attention following the announcement of the release of the official Downing Street iPhone app.

The announcement was made by Gordon Brown at the “Building Britain’s Digital Future” event, at a time when then official app had not filtered through all parts of the App Store. Some eager reporters and bloggers found the Tiny Shiny Apps app instead of the official app which caused confusion and mild outrage as this was a paid app rather than a free app and seemed against the objectives of a more open Government. Shane Richards of the Telegraph asked: “How many iPhone apps does Downing Street need?”

The purpose behind us creating this app was to showcase how such an app may look without expecting an official version to arrive in such quick succession. Our app was released on 10th March 2010 and the official app followed on 12 days later. Ideally there would have been a nice 6 month gap at least!

The Tiny Shiny Apps Number 10 app was created using TapLynx to easily include news, videos and Twitter feeds from the Number 10 site.

Use our app (paid) or the official app (free), it’s your choice. If you need talk to someone about iPhone app development, talk to Tiny Shiny Apps. If you need a major policy change, please speak to Downing Street.

Tiny Shiny Apps is pleased to announce the release of its first iPhone app to the Apple App Store.

Number 10 allows you to:

• Read the latest news from Number 10 Downing Street
• Watch the latest videos and listen the latest podcasts
• Read transcripts of Prime Minister’s Questions
• Read transcripts of Number 10 webchats
• Read the latest Twitter updates
• View the most popular petitions
• Read transcripts of the Prime Minister’s speeches, statements and podcasts
• Read press briefings from the Prime Minister’s office

This application has been created using the TapLynx framework.

If you would like to discuss creating an iPhone app, then please contact us.

When the ReadWriteWeb iPhone app was released, there was a comment on Twitter that it had taken longer than they expected to complete the development. I decided to take a look at the app to see what may have caused them issues.

Through the review I created a similar application using the TapLynx framework.

I believe that an equally usable application could have been created in greatly reduced timescales and at greatly reduced cost.

If you have any questions about aggregating your content for the iPhone, please contact us.

Navigation

ReadWriteWebApp has channels displayed on the main screen for the application for ReadWriteWeb, Enterprise, Start and Cloud, the four mains section of the site. There is also a link to the Twitter accounts of the RWW Team.

ReadWriteWeb App - Main Menu

TapLynx - Main Screen

Options for sharing – Facebook, Twitter, Instapaper and Read It Later are all available from the home screen too. These configurable options allow for easy sharing of items when reading.

The main screen is easy to navigate although it feels unfamiliar as a tab based navigation would be a more obvious choice.

In the TapLynx main screen we have included additional categories of Products and Trends as featured on the ReadWriteWeb site. The More option allows the user to configure the main screen to include Cloud, Start and Twitter if preferred.

Articles

The article listing navigation is typical and includes entries for ads and sponsors. Linking through to the article displays pages optimised for mobile with graphics displaying correctly.

Ads

As mentioned above, ads and sponsor mentions are incorporated into the article list. The current sponsor link Camera Plus Pro, is a link to the AppStore Info page which closes the ReadWriteWeb app and launches the AppStore. This could be considered out of the users control until the behaviour is learnt.

ReadWriteWeb App - News

TapLynx - Article Ad

In article ads appeared to be removed when viewed in the app. While this may enhance the experience for the user, surely the publisher is missing out on a page view, especially if the app is a success.

Performance

In the ReadWriteWeb app, the navigation between pages can be slow at times, with the selected option remaining highlighted as the next screen is displayed.

Offline Browsing

Offline browsing is not supported in ReadWriteWeb app. This is supported as standard with TapLynx.

Twitter

The ReadWriteWeb app has a nice reply/retweet/follow Twitter function. All authentication is done use Twitter oAuth.

We recreated the Twitter page by grabbing the list of staff members from their Twitter page and creating a couple of Twitter Search feeds which were combined in TapLynx. The Twitter integration in TapLynx is not so solid as it relies on using the mobile version of Twitter after you’ve logged in or a simple post screen which requires your username/password once, not using oAuth.

ReadWriteWeb app - Tweeting	TapLynx - Tweeting
ReadWriteWeb app - Sharing Options	TapLynx - Sharing Options

Search

There is no option to search in the ReadWriteWeb app. This may be linked to the lack of offline browsing. The TapLynx app has searching built-in by default.

Conclusion

The TapLynx framework offers the ability to aggregate the content from an online publication into a mobile application. The flexible design of the framework allowed configuration without coding, with excellent results.

Other publishers can save time and money with the TapLynx framework. If you have any questions about aggregating your content for the iPhone, please contact us.

TinyShinyApps is proud to have been added to the TapLynx Partner Program. We will now have further access to feature requests and framework development which will assist us in delivering the solutions need by our clients.

Thanks to all the team at TapLynx for creating a great iPhone framework and we look forward to using it much more in the future.

Read more about the TapLynx Framework.

Attending NSConference in February 2010 was a great opportunity to meet other iPhone developers. The event organised by The Mac Developer Network is in its second year. The UK event was held in Reading and this year there is sister event in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.

I attended the iPhone Developer Conference on day four when many of the attendees were starting to struggle with information overload and lack of sleep. The sessions were varied and included a talk about considering the user, a overview of the design process for a game app using Core Animation and tech talks delving into Open GL ES and Data Syncing.

The lunchtime break was handed over to delegates with opinions or products to share and proved an interesting diversion.

One aim of the conference was to encourage community and the breaks in between sessions were ideal for meeting fellow developers. There was much speculation and talk of the impending arrival of the iPad. There was way too much try and cram into one day so next year, I’ll be there for the full 4 day duration.

Twitter updates from the event were tagged #nsconf. Follow Tiny Shiny Apps at @tinyshinyapps.

The announcement of the iPad as “magical and revolutionary” brings great opportunities for content creators to extend their audience.

All iPhone apps are compatible with the iPad. The app experience on the iPad will show iPhone apps at twice the size. That means that your existing iPhone app is compatible with this new device with no updates necessary. As soon as the iPad is released, your existing apps can be downloaded and used.

While scaling up from the iPhone to the iPad is simple it will still always be necessary to design for mobile with the iPhone. Even though there are certain design restrictions on the iPad, the size of the iPhone will always require extra consideration in the design process. As the multi-touch interface of the large iPad screen allows more possibilities, iPhone apps will continue to operate within certain constraints.

The assortment of products and services (TapLynx, AppMakr, iSites) which allow you to repackage your content for the iPhone may not be necessary for the iPad as it offers a full web browsing experience on its 9.7″ screen. While an iPhone app may provide a convenient shortcut to your content on the iPad, viewing your web site in Safari may offer a better experience.

If you would like discuss the possibilities of offering your content on the iPhone or iPad, please contact us.

Northern Film and Media (Regional Screen Agency for the North East of England) is investing up to £40K is iPad applications.

The scheme is looking to find uses for the iPad which were not possible on the iPhone and provide a showcase for the new ideas. The scheme is open to project teams with 70% of the team being from the North East of England. The app idea also must be revenue generating and ready for release by summer 2010. Grants of between £1K and £10K will be offered.

Tom Harvey, Chief Executive of Northern Film & Media, said: “We want the North East to have a place in the rapidly evolving global content market. We will do whatever it takes to ensure that North East companies have every opportunity to get their products developed, made, distributed and bought on whatever new platforms come along. Whatever we can do to help our companies get to the front of the queue, we will do.”

For more details on application criteria, Northern Film & Media launch £40k Apple iPad Fund.

Via: ReadWriteWeb and Walker Fenton

Tiny Shiny Apps will be attending the iPhone Developer Conference at NSConference on 3rd February 2010 in Reading, UK.

The iPhone Developer Conference is on day three of the event and will be covering:

• Understanding the User
• 3D Programming with OpenGL ES
• Core Data Synchronisation
• Developing iPhone Games with Core Animation
• Supporting Online Play and GameKit

Follow #NSConf and @tinyshinyapps for updates during the event.