I didn’t do much art at school on account of not being very good at it so I appreciate a cheat when I see one. Recently I’ve been learning to programme Objective-C with a view to creating my own app for the App Store. Through that I decided that I should mock up the various stages of my application, and although I’m not trying to impress any investors I though I’d make use of an iPhone GUI components file for Photoshop.
The end result looks pretty good and didn’t take much time or effort. Sure, it’s just the unlock screen but I don’t want to give my idea away!
Objective-C seems to be quite fashionable at the moment and it’s something I’ve been meaning to learn for a while. Objective-C is an extension of the C language and so allows you to do normal C programming but with added extras like Objects. If you’ve done any programming before you might have heard of Object Orientation (OO). I’m not going to explain it here but it’s not a new idea and is implemented in a number of languages such as Java and C++. I’ve never done C++ but at uni we were taught Java and then introduced to the more utilitarian C (of which many languages, including Java, are descendants). Objective-C is the language of choice for the various Apple platforms (including iPhone) and as a hardened Apple fanboy with the desire to create iPhone apps; Objective-C is a prerequisite.
What I’ve found to be helpful to getting my head around Objective-C quickly (making use of the OO languages I already know) is a series of screencasts and a book called Cocoa Programming for Mac OS X. I watched the screencasts first to see if I could get interested in it enough to stick with it and found that they were created in such a way that you can get stuck straight into the code. They’re US$5 a time but I found the first 2 very helpful (at the time of writing there was only 2 of the series). Apple also has a number of resources available for free (requires registration) on the Developer site. From my perhaps limited experience of development environments I’d have to say XCode is one of the best I’ve used and makes coding a very logical and easy process. XCode, various other applications and even an iPhone simulator are available to play with through your free developer membership.
I’m still working my way through the book but I hope to be making my own apps for the iPhone soon. All that remains is to actually by one!
So having spent the last few months trying to find the ideal job I’ve decided that it’s better to move to New Zealand for a few months. I’ve got a number of reasons; such as the kiwi economy being more buoyant, the desire to live abroad when I’m young and having friends over there. I’m really looking forward to going but I’ll miss home I’m sure.
I fly out early next month and I’m due to return at the start of December but you never know what the future might hold.
One thing’s for sure, it’ll be a big change.
Business cards are boring and short of having a fantastic design created by an artist, are instantly forgettable. Recently I came across a selection that can’t fail to stick in you mind. These business cards are more than just little bits of card, they’re something relevant to the business and all share one thing in common; they’re very creative.
A headhunters card with instructions ‘read it then eat it'
Continue reading ‘Wave goodbye to boring business cards’
Firstly I’m going to be honest, I’m a mac fanboy. I love my MacBook Pro and the Operating System (OS) it comes with but I was also really interested to see first hand what the upcoming version of Windows was like. Whilst Microsoft have only allowed normal users (not in their developer network) to download this legally since last Friday (09/01/2009) there has been dodgy versions on BitTorrent for a while but I’m a patient kinda chap.
I haven’t really used Windows Vista (they’re current operating system) much and find it very different from Windows XP (and not in a good way). Large companies such as Intel are refusing to upgrade their computers to Vista and along with a number of users want to hold out till the next OS update in the hope it will fix the many reported problems.
Windows 7 is still in Beta, which for the uninitiated means in the final stages of development but still containing bugs (try telling that to Google). Beta software isn’t meant for the end user and is normally restricted to members of a developers network who want to either use the beta to ensure their applications work in Windows 7 or to help find and fix bugs. Microsoft seems to be using this as a marketing offensive to prove that they have a capable new OS in the pipeline and allay peoples fears that this is going to be as bad as Vista. It certainly has to be the smoothest Beta experience I’ve ever had, with still no crashes or other glitches. Microsoft have a lot to prove and they seem to be doing an all right job at it so far.
Continue reading ‘Playing with Windows 7 Beta’