Teen iNFO

Learning to Create an iPhone App

Most developers find it daunting to create an iPhone app, let alone people who have no programming experience. If you have never programmed previously, you have no idea where to start. The sheer volume of information can be overwhelming. Moreover, if you pick up a book, mostly they assume you have some previous experience preferably with an object-oriented programming language. For some reason people keep thinking you need to learn the C programming prior to learning Objective-C. Some may not even have heard of these programming languages.

Myths

Let’s start by dispelling some common myths. No, you do not need to learn the C language. It would certainly help, but it is not required. If you have previous experience with one of the many object-oriented programming languages like: Java, Ruby, Python, and C#, then it is certainly helpful.

But where do you start if you have no previous experience with programming?

The Basics

First start with the basics: data types, variables, conditionals, loops and functions. After that you should be ready to learn object-oriented programming things like: classes, objects, encapsulation and inheritance. You can then pick up any beginner’s book or tutorial because you are now equipped to follow along.

It’s one of the reasons why we rethought our teaching style here at Treehouse. Seeing how daunting the experience can be for a beginner, we went back to the drawing board and carefully crafted the learning experience. Our new project-based content eases you into iPhone development especially if you have no programming experience. Why? Because we realize that many of you don’t have the time to learn a lot of theory to actually create an app. Don’t get me wrong, the theory gives you the building blocks that makes a good developer. And if you have the time and inclination, then please do learn it.

Imagine building an app while learning the theory as you go along. That’s exactly what we hope to accomplish at Treehouse. In our first project, we build a fun application called the Crystal Ball. Since we build this app in stages, you go through a step by step process in which we build upon the previous lesson until we have a fully functional app. You learn essential concepts like object-oriented basics, randomization, apply design, accelerometer or capturing device motion, gestures and how to deploy the app to the App Store.

Once you have the first project under your belt, you will have a very good sense of what it is like create an iPhone app. And if you enjoyed the process, then you can move on to the other challenging iPhone projects. And if you didn’t, then at the very least you can show off the Crystal Ball app to your friends and family. Our goal is to make app development fun and easy. So what are you waiting for? Go ahead and create your first iPhone app. After all, expertise comes with experience. The latter is quite important.