 | Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com Let's say you have an idea for a killer iPhone app. Where do you begin? Head First iPhone Development will help you get your first application up and running in no time. You'll quickly learn to use iPhone SDK tools, including Interface Builder and Xcode, and master Objective-C programming principles that will make your app stand out. It's a complete learning experience for creating eye-catching, top-selling iPhone applications. - Put Objective-C core concepts to work, including message passing, protocols, properties, and memory management
- Take advantage of iPhone patterns such as datasources and delegates
- Preview your applications in the iPhone Simulator
- Build complicated interactions that utilize multiple views, data entry/editing, and iPhone rotation
- Work with iPhone's camera, GPS, and accelerometer
- Create interactive, entertaining games
- Optimize, test, and distribute your application
We think your time is too valuable to waste struggling with new concepts. Using the latest research in cognitive science and learning theory to craft a multi-sensory learning experience, Head First iPhone Development provides a visually-rich format designed for the way your brain works, not a text-heavy approach that puts you to sleep. |
Average Customer Rating:   Great introduction to iPhone Development This is an excellent introduction to iPhone development, including Xcode and Objective-C. Like the other "Head First" books, this book takes a step-by-step approach to development, providing lots of examples and samples to help the reader along.
The book actually steps the reader through building a couple of sample applications. These applications start our small and simple, but become increasingly more complex as each chapter progresses. By the end of the book, you've actually built some pretty sophisticated iPhone applications. You'll also get experience using a number of built-in iPhone functionality, including the GPS and phone.
There are a few things the book doesn't cover, including using a built-in web browser and the accelerometer. Additionally, if you're interested in submitting an app to the AppStore, you'll be on your own, as the book ends right at that point.
However, aside from those few issues, this book will put you well on your way to developing iPhone applications. After just a few chapters, I had enough knowledge and experience to develop my own iPhone app. I'd recommend this book as a good introduction to iPhone programming.
Intuitive, clear, and very helpful book If you have experience in server-side, Object-Oriented languages (PHP, Classic ASP, C#, Java, any server-side programming language), this book helps a lot with the fundamentals of XCode and Objective-C coding.
The book briefly explains psychologically how people retain information. Using this knowledge, it reinforces the same information through multiple pages and in different ways. It provides development scenarios, some good methods of development, and then it provides the code for you. To the point, this approach from the authors won't have you battling long with Objective-C code, the XCode IDE, or it's Interface Builder screen. Once the code is presented, the authors explain it through conversation, charts, quizzes (cliche, I know) and simple descriptions.
I'm finishing up Chapter 3, and I have to say that I have learned a great deal so far about iPhone development. I've programmed for 3+ years in C#, Classic ASP, PHP, and JavaSript (Prototype/JQuery stuff); so I am somewhat versed in OOP and server-side coding. Reading this book is like reading clifnotes: the authors are direct, to the point, and the content does not contain tenuous coding information.
I highly suggest buying this if you have no idea what you're doing with iPhone development, but have a couple years experience with coding server-side and OOP. This book is different What can I say.... This book is different from any other book I have read.
It uses a combination of text, questions, converations and cartoon drawing to get concepts across... AND IT WORKS!!!
An awesome book for those that have trouble following the stock standard textbook. Not Worth the time & money At first glance this book seems simple to follow and easy to go through - evidently the first three chapters are - minus all the errors. However when you start to build programs in later chapters the amount of errors ends up being ridiculous.. to the point where you will spend countless hours figuring out that the book is wrong
Most horribly to note the website errata site - error reporting centre is not kept up to date, and all the user published errors seem to have been abandoned by the authors of the book. Within examples are simple miniscule errors that will cause your program and your time programming to go haywire. The information isn't very clearly descriptive - as in its not* good for beginners especially. Most of the information is thrown in a shot gun affect into a page with no explanation of where and how they came from - which is not good if you want to actually know how to program something yourself with a book telling you step by step what to do.
Overall I wish i had never invested my money and mostly time into this book. I gave it two stars really out of pity and because only the first 3 of 9 chapters was semi useful. Another Great Head First Title This Head First book is written by the husband wife team who wrote Head First Algebra, my favorite Head First Book. They do an excellent job of introducing one to programming the iPhone. The Head First metaphor uses many visual cues to reinforce learning, and is full of examples and stories for further reinforcement. It works particularly well for those who are visual learners.
The book starts with a general introduction to programming devices with minimal screen real estate such as the iPhone and proceeds all the way to how to get your app into the iPhone App Store. It is written for anyone who might be interested in programming the iPhone, but will be tough sledding for those who don't have some background in a programming language. It is probably the easiest book to follow for those who are interested in creating iPhone apps, but it will still require concentrated effort, particularly if Objective C is a new language.
A word of warning (re Apple's SDK, not about the book). There is no easy way to program apps for the iPhone without using a Mac. Windows and Linux users need not apply. So unless you have a Mac, or plan to get a Mac, don't plan on creating iPhone apps. Sorry. |  |
Select button not working? 
