iOS iOS Apps : HTML5 vs Objective-C?

1. Not really. You can use a UIWebView to host an app written in these languages but it will always feel like what it is: a hosted web app. People have tried this approach in the past and it always feels somewhat non-native

2. Your server side is irrelevant: you can use anything you like regardless of front-end technology

3. How long is a piece of string? Anything from a month or two up.

4. If you want to write a native app that feels native you have to use Objective-C.

5. I believe it is lots of custom views written using native code.

If it's iOS6 only upgrade or interface it could be a UICollectionView with a custom layout.

You can wrap some Javascript for a UIWebview in a few pages or less of Objective C wrapper code and make an app for the App store. There are many apps in the App store constructed like this. However, Apple has been rejecting more and more of these types of apps lately, unless the app does something more than a web site can.

Professional C programmers have been reported to come up to speed in Objective C around in somewhere on the order of 2 months. Javascript programmers may require more time to learn some lower level coding concepts (threads, typing rules, memory constraints, etc.). The entire set of Cocoa Touch and iOS frameworks can take years to fully comprehend.

Facebook switched from using HTML5 to coding in Objective C for app performance and user experience quality. Their experience is not unique.

You can use PhoneGap (Cordova) to make a native iOS app with use HTML and JavaScript.

http://phonegap.com

CheesePuff said:

You can use PhoneGap (Cordova) to make a native iOS app with use HTML and JavaScript.

http://phonegap.com

Click to expand...

I don't believe those are truly native apps.

From their FAQ:

A PhoneGap application may only use HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.

Click to expand...

Took me about 3-4 months and 2 reads through an objective c book by stephen kochan. I was no means a pro but able to put my first app out.

I did have some exp in vb and java tho.

Problem with HTML apps is they still feel like HTML apps. The main reason to use HTML app is you want write a single app that you can push across Android, IOS, and Windows.

The problem is they still don't feel quick right and even using frameworks to work, they still do not feel right.

That is up to you though and your own personal tastes.

One of the biggest examples I can give is how Facebook made leaps and bounds improvements in responsiveness and reliability in their IOS app by switching From HTML to objective c base programming.

msaljaber said:

Thank you all

Is Objective-C really hard language to learn? -as 'they' said-?
I have some ideas, wanna bring them to life, also, I have 6 hours free-time to learn how to break a rock!

Any advices?

Click to expand...

6 hours total? 6 hours a day? Given your foundation I don't see it as a possible in 6 hours total...

msaljaber said:

Oops! sorry, 6 hours a day

Click to expand...

Then, depending on lots of factors, it could take a few months. You will need to ensure you are comfortable with object-oriented design patterns and the general Cocoa patterns in use as well as the syntax of the language.

Check out Titanium: http://www.appcelerator.com/platform/titanium-platform/

Apple's Objective C is kind of cumbersome. It's a pain, honestly.

Concatenate two strings: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/510269/how-do-i-concatenate-strings

Using 'self' in blocks needs workarounds like weakSelf. Multiple ways to do iVars some of which accomplish the same exact thing. Constant deprecation of methods. Constant changes to ways you do something in XCode yet the documentation is not updated to match. NSInternalConsistencyException when developing with a changing Core Data model (prevents app from starting).

ObjC in general is not as elegant a language as others. There's not really support for 'protected' access, for example. It's fake. There's no true private access either. No support for abstract methods. Things like that.

XCode is not a very good IDE. I use AppCode and XCode since AppCode's editing capabilities are far superior (like auto suggest), imo, but AppCode is missing some functionality that XCode has e.g. Interface Builder. But, then again, Interface Builder is pretty buggy - in its interactions and also in the resulting 'model' it outputs. Weird stuff happens. Doing the same thing programmatically fixes the issue most times.

Just a FYI for when/if you get into it. I make a living using it and it's not terrible. Just a lot that annoys me compared to when I develop in other languages/environments. Don't be discouraged if you're finding yourself constantly asking yourself "WTF?!"