Reply to: Apple IOS vs Andriod vs MS Surface

[d000hg]

Platforms may outlast the technology though

[SimonMac]

HTML5 is still one single technology to throw your hopes onto, which isn't currently very good and has an unpredictable future as to what will be added.

If you want to fully use tablet hardware you'd need to package your HTML5 as a local app anyway.

Any of course you'd have to write it in JS

I was trying to make the point of having something that is platform agnostic, rather than long term tying yourself to a specific hardware

[d000hg]

HTML5 is still one single technology to throw your hopes onto, which isn't currently very good and has an unpredictable future as to what will be added.

If you want to fully use tablet hardware you'd need to package your HTML5 as a local app anyway.

Any of course you'd have to write it in JS

[SimonMac]

Sorry to jump on a established thread without reading it all

But isn't it very short sighted to be throwing all their hope into one technology, especially if you are talking a 5-10 year commitment.

Wouldn't a better policy be to create a platform agnostic approach, all apps in HTML5 rather than bespoke for a platform? Who can remember what tablets looked like 5 years ago, can you image what will have changed in the next 5?

[TheFaQQer]

That's a poor argument because
a)You don't know that the reason was "too much hassle".

Well, it was a paraphrase of what Steve Miranda said last year at OOW, Cliff Godwin said to UKOUG last year, and discussions I had with a former colleague who works in product management for mobile development for Oracle in the US.

But you're right, I don't know that was the reason - do you know that it wasn't the reason?

[Durbs]

No idea on Apple but Android development is a total pain, you spend your time battling with wierd errors. You find loads of others have the same problem on the net but solutions are often hard to find. MS dev in Visual Studio is a total joy by contrast, so bug free and easy.

Apple isn't too bad, very steep learning curve as a .NET developer but the IDE is quite good (not VS.NET good, but nothing out there is really) and the level of support within the 'official' developers forum is very professional and very comprehensive, same with Apples own KB.

[Durbs]

??? With HTML5 you're supposed to have only one app, the browser.

You know what I mean!

I'd always recommend native as you are giving your users the best possible experience that way. Sure, certain apps lend themselves to being purely browser based but even those apps would be better done native (without exception IMO).

The trick is to move all the lifting you can to the server (if you can) and stick to the platform you know (.NET for me). For my Plan B I implemented a ton of web services that did all the data crunching/transformation, image manipulation & resizing etc etc so when porting it from iOS to WP it was only really the presentation layer I had to worry about getting my head around, once I'd worked out how to do WS calls on the new platform, job was a goodun'.

Obviously if its something like a game, then that wouldn't work (I assume, I'm not a game dev) as you are going to have to get into the guts of whatever platform you are porting to, but for a general data I/O app then its not too bad porting it I found.

[IR35FanClub]

Ive just spent a few weeks reading up on mobile app development as theres something I want to code. I came to the conclusion ios was best for now to get market share with minimal headaches of supporting multiple device configurations, android was a must support, but once the ios has been finished. Then think about ms, once they have sold enough to make it worth developing for.

There are app dev kits that make cross platform development posible But as Im still looking into their suitability i wont name names.

Lastly, if you just need a basic web app, theres loads of HTML and java coders about, depends on what you are trying to build. I may start this way with a few prototypes and see how it handles camera and gps type stuff before commiting to a device.

I run a pc and mac laptops, a ipad for trains and tv browsing, ad an android phone. I use the ipad mostly, but miss the flexibilty of android, but then on android i miss the fact that the ipad just works. Even as a techy i sometimes find android apps breaking and not working together, A good example being basic text entry in apps. I get regular hangs, screens jumping around, trying to resize etc. The ipad just works. However Mrs has an iphone and the quality seems to have nosedived. Second repalcement had developed a fault with the button. Ive got an ipad2 from when they first came out, and still happy.

Will apple reign supreme in a few years? not unless they give me a sd slot, usb and open up the os a bit. And go back to google maps. But if you are buying now, Id say the apps avaialbe and reliablity cant be beat. Did anyone ever got fired for buying apple? Just get a stylus, case protector and you have an ideal notebook. I just got notes plus, my second favourite app after er, minecraft! lol.

I think theres also about to be a shift of app development tools that actually run on the ipad. Codea is the first im trying, but its for games not serious apps.

[petergriffin]

Yes, cause HTML5 apps are crap.

??? With HTML5 you're supposed to have only one app, the browser.

(but wait till I test it on my nu 4.2 tabbie)

[xoggoth]

No idea on Apple but Android development is a total pain, you spend your time battling with wierd errors. You find loads of others have the same problem on the net but solutions are often hard to find. MS dev in Visual Studio is a total joy by contrast, so bug free and easy.

[Durbs]

is there any great need for this?

Yes, cause HTML5 apps are crap. They are chosen entirely on cost, never on quality of user experience, a browser based app can never match a native app.

Facebook iOS a good example where they gave up and realised that to provide the experience their users wanted, they had to abandon HTML5 and go native, and the app is all the better for it.

[minestrone]

I could be wrong on this but...

I see a lot of apps that are used having no point being apps in future, going back to mobile HTML.

Much of the reasoning behind apps was to have the view pre downloaded and only the data having to be got real time. With mobile speeds improving to such a level is there any great need for this?

[smatty]

One consideration would be software updates. Android seem to release a major revision on a yearly basis. That's quite a lot of work if you've got custom builds maintain and they need changing/re-testing/etc.

I've got Android devices from HTC & Samsung and ended up going to custom ROMs to keep reasonably up to date which is not an option for enterprise. Both companies were very slow releasing ICS and now it's out I don't think they release security fixes for Gingerbread so you would have to upgrade the OS or run at risk. These devices were flagship models 14 months ago, both manufacturers seem to pretty much ignore them as soon as they hit market and something newer is released.

The official Nexus devices do seem to be supported a bit longer.

[eek]

If it's browser based you shouldn't target specific devices, instead target the capabilities of the device. You can use media queries to cater for different screen sizes.

True but that's extra work (for designers as well as programmers) and if you are targetting middle management and above (which most of these latest data in hand apps are) keeping it simple also means you can keep it pretty and consistent.

[Bunk]

IOS (Safari) and Android (Chrome) are both based on webkit. Surface still uses IE.

Personally I would target IOS as its going to have the fewest screen variations and the ipad mini is a definite thing of wonder.

If it's browser based you shouldn't target specific devices, instead target the capabilities of the device. You can use media queries to cater for different screen sizes.