app development brochure


Developing Cross Platform Mobile Apps

Why do we design with PhoneGap?

A PhoneGap–based application is a thin layer of native code that resides between the

smartphone OS and a collection of HTML, JavaScript, CSS and Image files that forms your

mobile app. This layer of native code is different for each smartphone OS, but the HTML

and associated files can be virtually identical.

All modern smartphones have very good support for HTML5, and have shed some of the

legacy baggage that plagued website designers for years. There has never been an

“Internet explorer 6” for smartphones, so there is no need to write code into your mobile

app to support non-HTML5 compliant browsers

PhoneGap also offers a free service named “PhoneGap Build” that allows you compile

your HTML5 based mobile app for iOS, Android, BlackBerry, Windows Phone, WebOS and

Symbian simultaneously. Although platform specific development tools are a must for

serious application development

Attractive user interfaces for mobile apps

Why do we design with JQuery Mobile?

Getting your iPhone app past review on the first submission.

Developers who are new to iOS development are often disappointed when their

application is rejected by Apple for the infamous “10.6 … if your user interface is complex

or less than very good it may be rejected”. By using the JQuery Mobile framework, your

applications become more manageable, and generally more attractive. Furthermore,

online tools such as Codiqa offer a simple drag-and-drop interface that allows you

prototype your mobile app graphically, and export the final design to a JQuery Mobile

based HTML5 web application.

A word of note: Performance considerations for mobile apps are

somewhat different for mobile websites. Since it is more efficient to serve

files from the device itself, rather than from the internet. Therefore, if

you export from Codiqa, you should change all references to remote files

to device - relative links.

Mobile applications have an elevated level of trust when compared to mobile websites.

PhoneGap offers access to phone sensors, such as GPS, accelerometer & camera, but also

has relaxed cross-domain request restrictions. This means that your application can

communicate with any other webserver on the Internet, a right not bestowed upon less

trustworthy mobile websites, which can only communicate with the server which served

the website.

Our methodology to design a

successful mobile app:

� Pick an idea that has a broad public appeal, or

a must-have for a niche market.

� Check out competition in each smartphone

app store.

� Design a user interface that scales in size for

both smartphone and tablet screen sizes.

� Test your application in physical devices, not

simulators, where possible.

� Submit to every app store, smaller app stores

may have less customers, but there will be

less competition also.

� Translate your application description to

every language you can. Think beyond the UK

and USA.


Paid-for or Ad supported?

A critical decision that must be made is

whether you intend to sell your

application or provide it free, with ad

support. Paid-for apps tend to offer a

spike in income initially, and a gradually

decreasing revenue stream afterwards.

Free apps tend to show a gradually

increasing revenue stream, although one

that may take many months to match the

initial sales level of a paid-for app.

Limits of PhoneGap applications

PhoneGap applications may never be

capable of creating 3D games or

augmented reality. However PhoneGap

apps can be extended with platform-

specific native code through plugins.

However this does undermine the main

advantage of PhoneGap.

App store reviews

All app stores (with the exception of

Google Play) will review your app prior to

public release. Apple has a notoriously

strict review process, whereas BlackBerry

and Amazon have very superficial

reviews. As a rule of thumb, if your app

passes Apple review, it is acceptable to

every other app store. Be prepared for a

two-week review cycle at most app

stores.

Managing data in your mobile app

It is said that “No app is an island”, meaning that every app will communicate with the

Internet to obtain dynamic data, or report user generated data back to the Internet to be

shared with other users. Typically this would be a CMS system running on a webserver.

Since PhoneGap mobile apps run JavaScript, which has better support for JSON than XML,

we would recommend that your CMS system should return JSON data to requests from

your mobile apps. Furthermore, this data should be kept as concise as possible, since

mobile data traffic can sometimes be quite sluggish.

Data returned from the CMS system should be cached in “LocalStorage” on the mobile

device, so that the user can still view fresh data regardless of connectivity. LocalStorage is

limited to 5Mb, and platform such as Windows Phone require a progress indicator for

long-running process such as downloads.

Submitting your app to app stores

One of the most effective ways of making your application successful is to submit your

application to every app store you can. Smaller app stores have fewer customers, but less

competition will lead to proportionally more sales.

� Android stores include: Google Play, Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble Nook, LG

smart world, and Samsung Apps. Of these, B&N Nook tends to have the best

consumer / competition ratio, leading to best revenues.

� BlackBerry’s app store is called AppWorld. You should compile your application

for both BBOS and QNX, to ensure your app works on BlackBerry Smartphones,

the PlayBook and the BlackBerry 10.

� Apple’s app store is by far the best paying app store, so the annual fee

of $99 is a purchase that is well worth it.

� Windows app store requires a similar $99 annual fee, but is free to

students via the DreamSpark program

� Nokia OVI is very much for the lower end of the market, but is still very

popular in emerging markets like Russia, and Brazil.

� HP/Palm WebOS is a dying OS, but worth submitting anyway.


Open Merchant Account Ltd

10 Nualamont Drive,

Derry, BT48 9PH

N. Ireland

0044 28 71225151

[email protected]

How can we help?

There are many companies that offer mobile app development, but very

few can provide your app across the full spectrum of mobile operating

systems. Many companies have developed one or two mobile apps for

clients; we have developed over 100 applications across all platforms. In

2011, it was remarked by Microsoft that our company was the most

prolific mobile application developer in Ireland.

We develop our applications based on the industry standard PhoneGap

and JQuery Mobile frameworks. Our in-house designed CMS system is

used in conjunction with our apps to afford us the flexibility to deliver just

the data you need to your app.

We offer a free prototyping service, and our CMS system can be hosted

on your servers free of charge, with no ongoing charges.

Contact us

Contact us now! We build great cross-platform mobile apps!

T: 0044 2871226151

E: [email protected]

Open Merchant Account Ltd

10 Nualamont Drive

Derry, BT48 9PH, Northern Ireland.

app development brochure

Documents

mobile applications

cross platform mobile

successful mobile app

jquery mobile framework

trustworthy mobile websites

smartphone app store

application description

phonegapbased application