build an app for a website?!

POM

hey guys,
i came across a big opportunity,
the general manager of a major bus transportation company in my country
asked me if i can make an app for the company, the app needs to include a search
like the website, so the user can search for lines, and paths etc..
is it possible with the pro membership?

synthesis

No.
The only thing that you can do in the pro license is link to an external webpage. Search is impossible in GS.

You might take a look at Appcelerator if you have any PHP coding ability...as it will do what you are looking to do...but you do have to have programming experience.

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POM

thanks for the quick reply, ill take a look!

gyroscope

Hi p-o-m, I'd underline that GS isn't the right tool for the job; a few other suggestions: if you use Quark Xpress, there's a plugin called Quark Interactive Designer to make interactive Flash content, using ActionScript. There's also revStudio, using a Basic-type language. Both make it relatively easy for web interaction (or even running the app on the web).

:-)

POM

to be honest.. i had no idea the pro membership gives you only link to website and logo change
i mean.. 2k$ .. seriously?!

gyroscope

Yes, it does seem a lot, with minimal benefits over and above the Standard licence. There's been a lot of muttering about this elsewhere in the Forum that I've read; you're not alone in thinking that way...

gyroscope

DeadPixelZ said:
Just read some tutorials. And Use XCODE! it's free so why not?

And learn Objective-C in a couple of weeks! ;-)

(Mind, you might be able to, but I've tried "painting the ends of needles" (C, C++) several times, and my poor ol' brain just can't hack it...)

synthesis

Not in a couple of weeks. My native coders have 30+ combined years of Object-Oriented C coding experience and it took them about 3+ months to wrap their head around it and about 6 months to complete an app (albeit they were part-time on it).

No one is learning Objective C in a couple of weeks...or just "picking it up" from a few tutorials. To print "Hello World" on the screen takes about 800 lines of code.

If you've never done object oriented programming and at least versed in C++ or C# for at least 2-3 years...I wouldn't plan on native app development right away. Appcelerator (or something similar) will make it much easier and faster to push out a simple data app. Plus Appcelerator is free (open source) and uses php as its core language for scripting.

gyroscope

Thanks for explanation, synthesis! Though I put a wink after my comment, meaning, as if; (perhaps in a very slight sarcastic sort of way, tut me...)

synthesis said:

...Objective C ...To print "Hello World" on the screen takes about 800 lines of code.

That's what I meant about painting the heads of needles!

;-)

Photics

synthesis said:
No one is learning Objective C in a couple of weeks...or just "picking it up" from a few tutorials. To print "Hello World" on the screen takes about 800 lines of code.

While I think xcode is much harder to learn than GameSalad, it's not too hard to make a "Hello World" app with xcode. Plus, there are plenty of webview tutorials around. Making things like books and simple interactive games is as easy as HTML.

gyroscope

I truly admire you guys who write in C, C++ and/or Objective C. Personally, I'm just not up to it and so have turned my back on that... (I did wave goodbye first though).

wayneh001

Whilst Obj-C and C type languages may initially 'seem' to be complicated, you do gradually get used to them.

For Example, to create a Hello World App using ObjC is as simple as adding 4 lines of code:
========================================================================
1. Open XCode.
2. Create a new iPhone project called HelloWorld of the “View-Based Application” type.
3. Open HelloWorldViewController.m in the “Classes” folder.
4. Uncomment the ViewDidLoad method, and add the following 4 Lines of code to it:

`- (void)viewDidLoad {`
`[super viewDidLoad];`
`UILabel *hTag = [[UILabel alloc] initWithFrame:CGRectMake(90, 40, 90, 40)];`
`[self.view addSubview:hTag];`
`hTag.text = @Hello World;`
`}`

5. Hit the "Build & Go" Button.
========================================================================

quantumsheep

You lost me at 'Whilst Obj-C'



QS

BarkBarkCo

synthesis said:
To print "Hello World" on the screen takes about 800 lines of code.

Two words ... Interface Builder.

"Hello World" takes 0 lines of "user-entered" code and a little less than a minute to complete and deploy ... to the simulator. ;-)

Rob2

@ Bark & Wayneh ... Good to see people posting facts instead of 'have not a clue what I'm talking about' scaremongering nonsense. The young people who read this forum need not to be frightened away from coding by ill informed bollocks.

AfterBurnett

wayneh001 said:
Whilst Obj-C and C type languages may initially 'seem' to be complicated, you do gradually get used to them.

For Example, to create a Hello World App using ObjC is as simple as adding 4 lines of code:
========================================================================
1. Open XCode.
2. Create a new iPhone project called HelloWorld of the “View-Based Application” type.
3. Open HelloWorldViewController.m in the “Classes” folder.
4. Uncomment the ViewDidLoad method, and add the following 4 Lines of code to it:

`- (void)viewDidLoad {`
`[super viewDidLoad];`
`UILabel *hTag = [[UILabel alloc] initWithFrame:CGRectMake(90, 40, 90, 40)];`
`[self.view addSubview:hTag];`
`hTag.text = @Hello World;`
`}`

5. Hit the "Build & Go" Button.
========================================================================

Wow, you're right! That DOES look simple! I can see why people would prefer this to GameSalad! :-P

AfterBurnett

gyroscope said:
I truly admire you guys who write in C, C++ and/or Objective C. Personally, I'm just not up to it and so have turned my back on that... (I did wave goodbye first though).

I agree, I wish I have the time and patience to learn. Although I must say, I know a couple of coders who have been doing it for years and are VERY proficient (they do it for a living). But even they admit that when it comes to making games, it's a whole different story. After all, why are there so many "coders" using GameSalad if Objective C is so easy? And why are there so many game engines in existence? And why are those game engines so expensive? Surely you could just do it all yourself in Objective C? Answer - it's not easy, although it's easy for the "coders" to say "just learn Objective C, it's easy". Until I see a good game one of these coders has made natively (without years and years of experience), I'll keep firmly believing that it is not possible to simply "learn objective C" and start making games quickly... unless you're an evil genius... like Dr. Horrible. He could do it, he made a freeze ray.

AfterBurnett

In other words, not trying to put anyone off at all. If you want to learn to code, do it! Would be an incredible skill to have. But you have to be realistic. Learning to code and practically applying that to game creation takes a very long time.

synthesis

I agree with most of you that learning XCode/Obj. C is an achievable goal and may not be an "impossible" feat for some...I will say for someone without at least a few years of coding experience...it will be an extremely daunting task ahead.

Like I said earlier...the guys programming our stuff have about 30 years behind them...and it took a little while for them to adjust to the syntax and to get through the meat of the API library (which is ENORMOUS). After about 6 months of working with it, they are now quite comfortable with it.

But I will say that working will GS will shorten your dev time by 80-90%.

@Bark
Yes Int. Bldr. can be a handy tool...but if you don't understand the code syntax or structure...you will be in trouble if you try to do anything very complex or considered "thinking outside of the box".