InfoBeans Mobile
Development
Prac6ce
iPhone Apps and their
development
FAQs

<< About
Aim of this presenta6on
• iPhone is a rela6vely new pla>orm and many of us are not
aware of the pla>orm, its capabili6es, the way Apple works
and so on. This presenta6on aims to help answer some of
these ques6ons
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<< FAQs
What is an iPhone app?
• An iPhone app is a program that runs on your iPhone. It
enables you to accomplish a certain task
• They could be u6lity apps, games, enterprise apps,
entertainment apps, apps to access your bank account etc
• As Apple says – there is an app for everything
• Some popular apps are
– Facebook – social networking
– Doodle Buddy – drawing
– Pandora Radio – radio on your iPhone
– Yelp – restaurant reviews
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<< FAQs
How do I get these apps?
• Install iTunes (soTware from Apple) on your Windows or Mac
computer
• You create an account on iTunes
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<< FAQs
Why should I build an iPhone app in the first place?
• It has become a great new marke6ng and distribu6on mechanism that can
give your business a whole new way of transac6ng business and geXng
your brand known in front of millions of users
• iPhones are the market leaders in the smart phone segment
• The iPhone user group is the most influen6al buying demographic
– Students
– Execu6ves and professionals
– Enthusiasts
• The iPhone has become a great device to surf the internet, play games,
interact with social networks and transact business
• The iPhone has unique features that your app can take advantage of
• Most apps made for the iPhone also run on the iPod Touch, thereby
further increasing the market you are catering to
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<< FAQs
How do we build an iPhone app?
• iPhone apps are built using technologies from Apple
– Cocoa framework
– Objec6ve C
– Tools supplied by Apple to develop, test and distribute
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<< FAQs
What do I need to tell you, if I want to start building
an app?
• To start building an app
– Sign an NDA with us – we want to protect your idea
– Talk to us about your idea
– Enumerate the features that you would like to see in your app
– We will get back to you with what it would take to build the app
– Enlist a budget
– Priori6ze the features that are cri6cal
• Once we receive the informa6on from you, we will give you a budget and
6me line
• We will work with you at each of the above steps to achieve your business
objec6ve
• We do not have a set “requirements” template. We encourage you to just
write your idea as either a mind map or a bullet list
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<< FAQs
Who submits the app to the App Store?
• We can, or you can
• We will gladly help you submit the app to the app store
• You can use our account, but we recommend that you use
your account – it is just befer, cleaner and gives you more
control
• If your app is a paid app, you have to use your own account.
We will s6ll help you submit the app to the App Store
• It generally takes a couple of hours to actually submit the app
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<< FAQs
Do you charge a recurring fee?
• No, we do not
• Our fee is a one 6me fee, that covers the cost of design and
development or whatever we commit to you in the SOW.
• Once we do our part of the work, there are no recurring fees
that we charge our clients
• If you want us to do extra work – feature addi6on,
maintenance etc, we will let you know in advance what the
costs will be
10/10/09 9

<< FAQs
Do you sign an NDA? How do I protect my idea?
• Yes, we will gladly sign an NDA – and actually encourage
signing it
• This is a mutual NDA that protects all stakeholders
• We will not run away with your idea – it is not how our
business works. We build apps for our clients. We very rarely
put our own apps on the App Store
• We will not disclose your idea to anyone outside our
organiza6on
• We have a reputa6on at stake and we will do all to maintain
our stellar reputa6on
10/10/09 10

<< FAQs
How much will it cost to build my app?
• Again, it depends, on what you have set out to build
• It can cost a few hundred to a few thousand dollars
• We will gladly give you a discount if
– You agree to prominently credit us in your app and your website
– You contract with us to build more than one app
• Talk to us – we will help you build an app well within your
budget. Our clients are oTen surprised by our pricing. You
could be as well!
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<< FAQs
How do I distribute my app?
• Once your app is built, you submit it to the App Store for
review and approval from Apple
• Once Apple approves, it appears on the App Store in iTunes
• It can be downloaded from there
• You can send your friends a link to the app
• You can put the link on Facebook, Twifer etc and let the
world know about your app
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<< FAQs
Is my idea already on the App Store? How can I find out?
• Search on App Store (in iTunes, top right, there is a search bar)
using keywords that could be related to your idea
• You will know if an app like yours already exists
• But do not stop there
– See if your app can be built in a befer manner
– See if you can market your app befer – if you do not know about that
app, chances are that it is not marketed properly
• Talk to us – we might be able to help you differen6ate your
app or build something that is befer, or even give you 6ps on
how to market your app befer
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<< FAQs
Do you help in marke6ng the app?
• Yes, we do
• We can help you create a marke6ng strategy around your app
• What’s more, we will help you with your idea to
– Make it viral
– Incorporate marke6ng elements that can help your app generate
direct or indirect business
– Integrate your app with your exis6ng website to reinforce your
distribu6on mechanism
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<< FAQs
What happens aTer the app is submifed to the App Store for review?
• Apple reviews the app and will approve it or reject it
• It generally takes anywhere between 7 – 28 days (some6mes more,
some6mes less) to get a response
• Apple might get back to you asking for more informa6on
• Apple review policies are not known, but they oTen do check for
bugs (app crashing), copyright infringement, explicit material (adult
content) etc
• We, as developers of the app do not have any control on the
approval process – we can just guess
• If your app is straigh>orward and does not violate any copyrights
and does not have any adult content, it should get approved
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<< FAQs
What does Apple charge for submiXng the app?
• Nothing
• You do need an account on the Apple AppStore for which
there is a one 6me $99 fee.
• You can upload any number of apps aTer you get this account
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<< FAQs
Is there a recurring app hos6ng fee that Apple charges?
• No
• You do not get charged anything for free apps
• For paid apps, apple gets 30% of the cost of the app, each
6me it is downloaded. You get 70%
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<< FAQs
How do I know how many 6mes my app has been downloaded?
• Apple provides you monthly, weekly and daily reports
• They also provide you with other informa6on like loca6on the
app was downloaded from, date and 6me etc
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<< FAQs
Will my app be approved by Apple?
• Most likely it will
• Some of the reasons it might not be approved are
– Explicit adult content
– Bugs
– Trying to recreate the iPhone func6onality in your app to circumvent
their own apps
– Use of unpublished APIs
• This is not an exhaus6ve list. Apple is not consistent in its
approval policies
• We cannot guarantee it, no one can
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<< FAQs
What if my App is not approved by Apple?
• Well, hard luck
• Apple some6mes gives reasons for why it has not been
approved. We can help you analyze the situa6on and work
with you to find a solu6on
• There is only one genuine Apple App Store, so you cannot
really take your applica6on elsewhere
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<< FAQs
How do I know if my idea is feasible or not?
• We help you do a free ini6al feasibility study
• In most cases, we can tell if your main idea is feasible or not
before we start the app
• If we cannot determine feasibility earlier on, we will let you
know upfront how much it will cost to determine feasibility
and then proceed to build the app
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<< FAQs
Can the same app be used on other mobile phones?
• The exact same app cannot be used as is on other mobile
phones
• But we can help you port the app to other pla>orms like the
Blackberry, Android or Windows Mobile
• Generally the cost of por6ng is lower than the cost of building
the first app, as you can reuse the logic and some por6ons of
the code as is
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<< FAQs
What is the difference between a web app and a na6ve app?
• A web app runs inside a browser and always needs an ac6ve
internet connec6on. It is wrifen in HTML and JavaScript
• A na6ve app runs on the mobile opera6ng system and takes
advantage of the hardware’s features. For the iPhone it is
wrifen in Objec6ve C
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<< FAQs
My app needs to talk/interact with my external website/database. Is
that possible?
• Yes, it is possible. The app can talk to another website/
database
• It is done, mostly by building a webservice that accesses the
data for the iPhone and sits on your server
• iPhone apps can also consume RSS feeds, XML data and hfp
feeds
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<< FAQs
Can I create a lite and a paid versin of my app? Would it cost a lot
more?
• Yes you can and in many cases you should
• The lite version allows you to give your customers an
opportunity to try out your product before they decide to by.
This is a good idea to promote sales and en6ce users to buy
• If built correctly, the cost should be incremental, rather than a
whole lot more
• Talk to us. Once we know your requirements, we would be
able to give you a befer answer
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<< FAQs
How do we manage updates to the app? What happens if I wanted to
add a new feature?
• Updates are built and posted to the Apple App Store for
review
• Apple can approve or reject an update
• It takes 6me for Apple to approve or reject an app
• One should update the app for feature addi6ons and bug fixes
• Many people update the app for geXng fresh data into the
app, but that should be avoided
• Apple does not charge for submiXng updates to the app
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<< FAQs
Once you develop the app, who owns the app?
• You own the app
• We hold rights to the app only 6ll we are paid in full
• Once we receive our payment, all rights are automa6cally
transferred to you as the owner of the app
• You can choose to modify the app at will once you own the
app’s source code
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<< FAQs
Will I get the source code to the app? When?
• You own the app, it is your source code
• As soon as you pay us, the rights to the app are transferred to
you and we send you the source code
• You can modify the source code at will
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<< FAQs
Will you help me upload the app to the the App Store
• Yes, we will
• We will use your account to upload the app to the App Store
for review by Apple
• You will have to provide us your account creden6als
• Please note that we have no control over the review and
approval process itself. That is in the hands of Apple
10/10/09 29

<< For more informa2on
For more informa6on
Siddharth Sethi
Cell ‐ +1 925 415 0883
Email – siddharth.sethi@infobeans.com
Web – www.infobeans.com
Blog – hfp://wordpress.infobeans.com
LinkedIn profile ‐ hfp://www.linkedin.com/in/siddharthsethi
Address – 2410 Camino Ramon, Suite 288, San Ramon, CA 94583
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