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iOS Testflight or hockeyapp or...

grandM

grandM

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Oct 14, 2013
1,568
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So I have some friends living far from me. They would like to look at my early stage of my app. The app is far from ready. I only have the free developer plan. What is the best way for my friends to run my app? Connecting them to my mac seems like a hassle.

I looked at testflight but still have some questions about it. When you upload the app to testflight is it already in the app store then? Can other people see the app or its name and description?

Is Hockeyapp a better alternative?

Thanks again
 
grandM said:
I looked at testflight but still have some questions about it. When you upload the app to testflight is it already in the app store then? Can other people see the app or its name and description?
Click to expand...

No, it won't appear in the App Store. That only happens once Apple approves the app and the status in iTunes Connect is "Ready for Sale"
 
dejo said:
No, it won't appear in the App Store. That only happens once Apple approves the app and the status in iTunes Connect is "Ready for Sale"
Click to expand...
Is it true I must create a new apple ID?
 
dejo said:
For what purpose? What leads you to believe you need to create a new Apple ID? Can you provide a link to where you're getting this info?
Click to expand...
Apparently one can use the same ID. Still have to look into how it's done exactly.
 
One big big big error that apple did with test flight is that testers are not just testers. They are a part of team and can see and change app activity. Not just that, thry would get emails about all your apps activity. Recently they made some improvement in that regard that you can hide some things from them and ommit them to just one app.
That is the reason we stoped using testflight.
 
dejo said:
What do you mean by "change app activity"? Can you elaborate?
Click to expand...

If you add someone as an internal tester, they are considered an internal member of the team - not merely a tester. By default they will receive the notifications about the state of the app. But, as internal members, you can submit any form of code without verification.

However, to avoid that you should be adding beta testers as external testers, as they are not a part of your team, and therefore should be receiving copies that initially passed review (you don't need to go through review each time, though)
 
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You can add their UUID to your developer account and just send them the .ipa file to install your build via iTunes. Or you can use TestFlight and simply add them as internal testers.

Personally I usually just send the .ipa along with screenshot installation instructions, unless they're part of a development team with me, in which case we will usually be using bit bucket version control.
 
Mascots said:
If you add someone as an internal tester, they are considered an internal member of the team - not merely a tester. By default they will receive the notifications about the state of the app. But, as internal members, you can submit any form of code without verification.

However, to avoid that you should be adding beta testers as external testers, as they are not a part of your team, and therefore should be receiving copies that initially passed review (you don't need to go through review each time, though)
Click to expand...

Thank you for clearing this :). Spot on btw :).

And to bo clear - it was my fault for not reading all about testflight beforhand. I just tought ( because the name and Apples keynote) it was basic test tool for easier remote testing. We develop for other companies who dont have knowledge and time to be bothered providing us with uuid and then installing ipa file via iTunes. Testflight seemed ideal for this task. Until i discovered they get notifications for all our apps activity. To bad.
 
In my case it's more meant for testers. I also like the grow approach getting feedback at every step. So the app certainly isn't ready for a review. Leaving me the internal member option or another solution. What's this notifications business about? Has hockeyapp the same issues?
 
grandM said:
In my case it's more meant for testers. I also like the grow approach getting feedback at every step. So the app certainly isn't ready for a review. Leaving me the internal member option or another solution. What's this notifications business about? Has hockeyapp the same issues?
Click to expand...

Then you should be using external testing, that is specifically what it is for.

The review is not judging the quality of your app, but making it available to a larger audience before general availability. When it goes through review, it will be checked for private API usage and other subtle things, nothing more. You only need to submit it for review for beta testing once every so often, mainly after large codebase changes or an idle period, so you can seed subsequent builds without having a several day gap.

It will also help you tune your App for the App Store, since TestFlight is technically a component of and requires your settings to be correct.
 
Hiw long does review for beta testing take? You still have to wait for a week or is it automated and is done in about one hour?
 
Fabric is definitely a service to consider as well. The only downfall is that you must manage UUID's yourself.
 
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