iPhone SDK Development (The Pragmatic Programmers)

iPhone SDK Development (The Pragmatic Programmers)
by Bill Dudney, Christopher Adamson

iPhone SDK Development (The Pragmatic Programmers)
List Price: $38.95
Our Price: $11.35
You Save: $27.60 (71%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $4.47 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions


or

Book Summary Information

Author: Bill Dudney, Christopher Adamson
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2009-10-16
ISBN: 1934356255
Number of pages: 576
Publisher: Pragmatic Bookshelf

Book Reviews of iPhone SDK Development (The Pragmatic Programmers)

Book Review: Confusing
Summary: 2 Stars

I found some of the wording in this book confusing. It's not possible to attribute the problems to one author or another, but in general I had to re-read sections over and over to try to understand what the authors wanted to explain. I also think this book does a poor job of illuminating Interface Builder. I found many sections that attempted to explain how to make connections confusing; pictures would have been a better medium for explaining how the connections are made.

The book uses the "dot syntax" for the code samples, which is one of those hot button issues in the Objective-C/Cocoa community. I personally don't like it. I am very new to the language but as far as I can see it adds very little. The fact that the examples use it extensively (but not exclusively) makes it tricky to convert back to the normal syntax. In one of the code examples I noticed that in the header a variable was declared but in the implementation it was actually a method, which I think is probably improper.

In some sections the code samples skip ahead or doesn't clearly explain that code has been added; you end up having to assume that it's in the downloaded code. Also, there is inconsistent use of the markup in the sample code in the book. By this I mean that in some sections new code is highlighted and clearly noted as new, in others there is no such markup. Another common practice in this book is to make reference to code that you will be writing in a future section (sometimes noted "as yet written") which I find odd. I prefer to build up to something, not down to it. This is especially confusing if you are editing your code (following along, so to speak) and building the application as you go, since this will cause compilation errors.

In fairness though, the code samples I downloaded all worked when opened and run from XCode which is a plus if you want to stare and compare. It would be nice if the sample code was free of the START/END comments though, that is visually confusing.

As a beginner in Objective-C (but with 12 years of Java experience) who wants to learn iPhone development, I would not recommend this book. For me the style of these authors was incompatible with my way of thinking; I also did not like the heavy use of dot syntax in what appears to be an attempt to make the code "smaller" when for a beginner in the language it would be better to show more. In fairness, I think the authors make it plain that they do not intend to spend time on syntax. Perhaps this book is more useful if you have more background in Objective-C. In general I think this book rushes to get to the UI in an attempt to make developing an app seem easier than in reality it is.

Summary of iPhone SDK Development (The Pragmatic Programmers)

Packing the power of desktop applications into a small mobile device, the iPhone SDK offers developers the ability to create dynamic, visually-appealing, and highly-capable mobile applications, using the same APIs and tools that Apple uses for its own applications.

However, harnessing that power means learning new tools, new APIs, and even a whole new programming language.

iPhone SDK Development is a Pragmatic guide to get you started developing applications for iPhone and iPod touch. With it, you'll get a complete understanding of the tools and techniques needed to succeed on the platform:

Use the XCode IDE to manage your source code, images, sounds, database files, and other application resources, building your app and deploying it onto your own device for testing.

Develop your user interface the visual, code-free way, with Interface Builder.

Master the iPhone's unique user interface components, including tables, tab bars, navigation bars, and the multi-touch interface.

Connect your iPhone to the outside world with networking, exploit the power of a relational database with SQLite, and rock out with first-class support for audio and video.

Make use of the iPhone's unique mobile APIs, like geolocation and the motion-sensing accelerometer

Use XCode's powerful performance and debugging tools to eliminate memory leaks, zombies, and other hazards.

* Understand the process for packaging your application for end-user distribution through Apple's App Store.

With explanations of the big picture and an eye to the little details that you'll need, iPhone SDK Development will help you succeed on today's most important mobile platform.

Multimedia Information Systems Books

Book Subjects
Most talked about in Multimedia Information Systems Books
Multimedia Techniques for Device and Ambient Intelligence ImageMultimedia Techniques for Device and Ambient Intelligence
Springer; Published: 2010-11-05; Paperback; Book
Best price: $73.51
Price in other shops: $99.00
Introductory Readings In Geographic Information Systems ImageIntroductory Readings In Geographic Information Systems
CRC Press; Published: 1990-09-21; Paperback; Book
Best price: $41.98
Price in other shops: $61.95
Multimedia Systems and Applications: Porceedings of Spie : 2-4 November, 1998, Boston, Massachusetts (Proceedings of Spie--the International Society for Optical Engineering, V. 3528.) ImageMultimedia Systems and Applications: Porceedings of Spie : 2-4 November, 1998, Boston, Massachusetts (Proceedings of Spie--the International Society for Optical Engineering, V. 3528.)
Society of Photo Optical; Published: 1999-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $208.74
Linux iptables Pocket Reference ImageLinux iptables Pocket Reference
by Gregor N. Purdy
O'Reilly Media; Published: 2004-11; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.87
Price in other shops: $9.95
Media Engineering: A Guide to Developing Information Products ImageMedia Engineering: A Guide to Developing Information Products
by Steve West, Mark Norris
John Wiley & Sons; Published: 1997-06; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.35
Price in other shops: $74.95
Multimedia Semantics: Metadata, Analysis and Interaction ImageMultimedia Semantics: Metadata, Analysis and Interaction
Wiley-Blackwell; Published: 2011-11-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $67.04
Price in other shops: $115.00
Signal Processing for Image Enhancement and Multimedia Processing (Multimedia Systems and Applications) ImageSignal Processing for Image Enhancement and Multimedia Processing (Multimedia Systems and Applications)
Springer; Published: 2007-11-30; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $19.99
Price in other shops: $129.00
Basic Concepts for Managing Telecommunications Networks: Copper to Sand to Glass to Air (Network and Systems Management) ImageBasic Concepts for Managing Telecommunications Networks: Copper to Sand to Glass to Air (Network and Systems Management)
by Lawrence Bernstein, C.M. Yuhas
Springer; Published: 1999-11-30; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $12.89
Price in other shops: $139.00
Expanding a Digital Content Management System: for the Growing Digital Media Enterprise (NAB Executive Technology Briefings) ImageExpanding a Digital Content Management System: for the Growing Digital Media Enterprise (NAB Executive Technology Briefings)
by Magan H. Arthur
Focal Press; Published: 2006-04-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.00
Price in other shops: $50.95
Exploratory Image Databases: Content-Based Retrieval (Communications, Networking and Multimedia) ImageExploratory Image Databases: Content-Based Retrieval (Communications, Networking and Multimedia)
by Simone Santini
Academic Press; Published: 2001-09-13; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $96.31
Price in other shops: $103.00
Similar Books and other products
Beginning iOS 4 Application Development ImageBeginning iOS 4 Application Development
by Wei-Meng Lee
Wrox; Published: 2010-10-12; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.25
Price in other shops: $39.99
iPhone SDK Application Development: Building Applications for the AppStore ImageiPhone SDK Application Development: Building Applications for the AppStore
by Jonathan Zdziarski
O'Reilly Media; Published: 2009-01-19; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.88
Price in other shops: $34.99
Beginning iOS 5 Development: Exploring the iOS SDK ImageBeginning iOS 5 Development: Exploring the iOS SDK
by David Mark, Jack Nutting, Jeff LaMarche
Apress; Published: 2011-12-07; Paperback; Book
Best price: $24.34
Price in other shops: $39.99
Beginning iPhone Development: Exploring the iPhone SDK ImageBeginning iPhone Development: Exploring the iPhone SDK
by Jeff LaMarche, Dave Mark
Apress; Apress; Published: 2008-11-21; Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.61
Price in other shops: $39.99
Programming in Objective-C (4th Edition) (Developer's Library) ImageProgramming in Objective-C (4th Edition) (Developer's Library)
by Stephen G. Kochan
Addison-Wesley Professional; Published: 2011-12-26; Paperback; Book
Best price: $28.35
Price in other shops: $49.99
The iPhone Developer?s Cookbook: Building Applications with the iPhone SDK ImageThe iPhone Developer?s Cookbook: Building Applications with the iPhone SDK
by Erica Sadun
Addison-Wesley Professional; Published: 2008-10-23; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.77
Price in other shops: $39.99
Beginning iPhone 3 Development: Exploring the iPhone SDK ImageBeginning iPhone 3 Development: Exploring the iPhone SDK
by David Mark, Jeff LaMarche
Apress; Apress; Published: 2009-07-21; Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.99
Price in other shops: $39.99
Programming in Objective-C 2.0 (2nd Edition) ImageProgramming in Objective-C 2.0 (2nd Edition)
by Stephen G. Kochan
Addison-Wesley Professional; Published: 2009-01-08; Paperback; Book
Best price: $23.50
Price in other shops: $44.99
iPhone Programming: The Big Nerd Ranch Guide (Big Nerd Ranch Guides) ImageiPhone Programming: The Big Nerd Ranch Guide (Big Nerd Ranch Guides)
by Joe Conway, Aaron Hillegass
Addison-Wesley Professional; Published: 2010-04-23; Paperback; Book
Best price: $21.89
Price in other shops: $49.99
Beginning iPhone 4 Development: Exploring the iOS SDK ImageBeginning iPhone 4 Development: Exploring the iOS SDK
by David Mark, Jack Nutting, Jeff LaMarche
Apress; Published: 2011-01-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $20.00
Price in other shops: $39.99