iPhone Application Programming Guide
The iPhone SDK provides the tools and resources needed to create native iPhone applications that appear as icons on the user’s Home screen. Unlike a web application, which runs in Safari, a native application runs directly as a standalone executable on an iPhone OS–based device. Native applications have access to all the features that make the iPhone and iPod touch interesting, such as the accelerometers, location service, and Multi-Touch interface. They can also save data to the local file system and even communicate with other installed applications through custom URL schemes.
In iPhone OS, you develop native applications using the UIKit framework. This framework provides fundamental infrastructure and default behavior that makes it possible to create a functional application in a matter of minutes. Even though the UIKit framework (and other frameworks on the system) provide a significant amount of default behavior, they also provide hooks that you can use to customize and extend that behavior.
Who Should Read This Document?
This document is intended for both new and experienced iPhone OS developers who are creating native iPhone applications. Its purpose is to orient you to the architecture of an iPhone application and to show you the key customization points in the UIKit and other key system frameworks. Along the way, this document also provides guidance to help you make appropriate design choices. It also points out additional documents that may offer advice or further discussion of a given subject. Although many of the frameworks described in this document are also present in Mac OS X, this document does not assume any familiarity with Mac OS X or its technologies.
Prerequisites
Before you start reading this document, you should have at least a fundamental understanding of the following Cocoa concepts:
- Basic information about Xcode and Interface Builder and their role in developing applications
- How to define new Objective-C classes
- How to manage memory, including how to create and release objects in Objective-C
- The role of delegate objects in managing application behaviors
- The role of the target-action paradigm in managing your user interface
Developers who are new to Cocoa and Objective-C can get information about all of these topics in Cocoa Fundamentals Guide.
Development of iPhone applications requires an Intel-based Macintosh computer running Mac OS X v10.5 or later. You must also download and install the iPhone SDK. For information about how to get the iPhone SDK, go to http://developer.apple.com/iphone/.
Right-click here to download PDF version
Incoming Search Terms : Cocoa Fundamentals Guide, iPhone Application Development guide and Cocoa Fundamentals Guide, understand the key features of iphone operating system tutorial
