REAL Software Considering iPhone Application

One of the reasons why I believe the iPhone has been a game-changing product for Apple (AAPL) and the handset makers in general is the amount of excitement it has generated from users and potential developers. I’ve been asked many times by friends and readers for the easiest way to get an application up and running on the iPhone. The answer of course, has been to start with relatively simple HTML and JavaScript and to progressively proceed to more complicated server processed web applications using your preferred server side language. A few problems with this approach and common to all web applications, however, have been the need for web connectivity, slow performance, and the lack of access to operating system features that a native app usually enjoys.

The upcoming Apple Software Development Kit [SDK] due to be released in early ‘08, however, promises to change all that. Writing applications that run natively on the iPhone OS should then be possible using the framework that Apple provides. But what if you didn’t have to mess with the iPhone application framework and Objective C language and could just write code using BASIC language? The obstacles for entry into the third party iPhone app development could be virtually removed resulting in thousands of individuals writing free or for pay software. Exciting, wouldn’t you say? Well, I’ve received word from Ivan A. Lopez of REAL Software Inc. Customer Service that REAL Software has a goal of developing a version of REALBasic for iPhone.

Now I should mention that it may still be possible that Apple limits the iPhone SDK distribution only to select developers and/or reserves distribution of iPhone apps on iTunes to just those that are officially approved. Still, the potential for jail-broken native third party apps is too great to ignore.

If you’d like to help convince REAL Software that REALBasic for iPhone makes a lot of sense, follow the link to email them and voice your support.

Comments

[jmmx:]

I gotta say Citibank sucks (IMHO) I went through hell trying to get them to transfer money from USA to a an account in their Sevilla branch. In the end they were incapable of doing it. Cost me a lot of time and money - all wasted. I will never use them for anything ever again!

2007 Dec 02 01:49 PM

[jmmx:]

Great article - thanks.

I love your characterization: "... self-deception, usually seen only among rank amateurs and substance abusers."

Very accurate!

2007 Dec 02 01:51 PM

[RBUser:]

As a longtime owner of RB, I believe REAL have to stop running off after new features and streamline/polish what they do have (and abandon the subscription model which has two side effects: 1) smacks of 'charging for bug fixes' on the one hand and 2) forces them to concoct new 'features' to justify the yearly fee (which now happens to be more than what I paid for my license outright).

2007 Dec 03 02:25 PM

[tasminno:]

RBUser == BINGO!!
Realbasic has turned into a basic joke over these last years. They all but abandoned the Mac & just like you said pour resources into deadends like Linux & making yet another useless SQL server. wtf??
talk about bad management geeez. they dug a hole so deep they shouldn"t be helped by users to pull them back out

2008 Aug 31 06:57 PM