iPad and iOS Books: Educate Yourself This Valentine’s Day
It's that time of year again. Hearts adorn the storefront windows, red and pink glisten the aisles, and restaurants are booked full of couples (and want-to-be couples). But what if you want to give a gift that offers more under the surface than flowers or chocolate? What if you're a true nerd, harboring secret dreams of creating the next great iPhone or iPad game? Or you bought your loved one an iPad for Christmas and couldn't help but notice that it hasn't been being used as much as you might hope?
We've got three books to check out today, all with an Apple bent, and all published by Wiley. Let's start with the one with perhaps the widest audience: iPad2 for Dummies by Nancy Muir. It's essentially the same as the rest of the Dummies series, which is to say, quite good really at helping folks who need to start with the basics. We've been reading the just-released 3rd Edition, which covers the original iPad and iOS 5 as well, and is broken up into sections like "Just for Fun", "iPad on the Go", "Getting Productive with iWork", amd "Must-Have iPad Apps". Of course, the information in the book isn't 100% up-to-date; there are always new apps and updates to both the iOS firmware and the software that you run, but we noticed remarkably few errors or inconsistencies considering the speed of change. And while much of the information is available online elsewhere, the iPad doesn't exactly come with a good manual, and this book does a great job of providing one with lots of pictures and explanations. For advanced folks, it'll be mostly review or skippable, but even technologically adept folks will find tips that come in handy- for instance, the "Share Location" feature that is easy to overlook in Maps. Available now, $17.
Beginning iOS App Development with HTML and JavaScript is definitely aimed at a different crowd- the motto of WROX is "Programmer to Programmer". Focused on those who already know some HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and have some Ajax skills, the book is a straight-forward introduction to iOS development using web technologies. Make no mistake: this book is not for true newbies; those without a background in programming already or who aren't proficient web developers will find themselves quickly lost. Also, as the author (Richard Wagner) makes clear, you're definitely making a few sacrifices- the techniques discussed will allow you to get a good web app running through Safari, which can look great but won't be as responsive or intuitive as a native app, and there are additional limitations. For rapid prototyping, or to help a client get a great-looking mobile site, this is a great guide. And many of the iOS-specific parts- Split View for iPad, iOS buttons, integrating with the built-in apps like Maps- come with great code examples. And the ordering is careful, with the section on Offline Applications naturally building on previous work, and finally ending with the chapter on simulation and submission to the App Store (using a wrapper like PhoneGap or Titanium to take a web app and make it function like a native app).Available now, $21.
Finally, if you're ready to move past the basics, you should definitely check out Rob Napier and Mugunth Kumar's iOS Programming: Pushing the Limits. This is a book for those who already have a couple of apps under their belt, and are interested in learning about some of the new features in iOS 5, changes to Xcode, best practices, and other advanced topics. Covered are bits like iCloud, exception handling, version control, and the new ARC- automatic reference counting- which means developers no longer have to worry quite so much about memory management. In other words, this it tough stuff, and incredibly useful to folks who worry deeply about the other kind of garbage collection. We learned a lot, even if we aren't yet comfortable with in-app purchases and controlling multi-tasking. Available now, $28.
About the Author
Greg Greg dreamed up the idea for the Truly Network while living in Hawaii, which began with a single site called TrulyObscure. In 2010, when advertisers and readers were requesting coverage beyond the scope of that site, TrulyNet was launched, reaching a broader audience over a variety of niche sites. Formerly the head technology correspondent for the Des Moines Register at age 16, he has since lived and worked in five states and two countries, helping a list of organizations and companies that includes the United States Census Bureau, TripAdvisor, Events Photo Group, Berlitz, and Computer Geeks. He also served as the Content Strategy Manager for HearPlanet, a multi-platform app that has reached over a million users and has been featured in the New York Times, Hemispheres Magazine, National Geographic Adventure, Fox Business News, PC Magazine, and even Apple’s own iPhone ads. Greg has written as a restaurant critic and feature journalist for a number of national and international publications, including City Weekend Magazine, Red Egg Magazine, the Newton Daily News, Capital Change Magazine, and an arm of China Daily, Beijing Weekend. In addition, he has served as a consulting editor for the Foreign Language Press of Beijing, as well as a writer and editor for the George Washington University Hatchet, the school newspaper of his alma mater. Originally from Iowa, Greg is currently living in the West Village of Manhattan.
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