iPhone App Decisions

As I near the end of my self-imposed education on Mac and iPhone programming, I am getting ready to embark on the development of an actual application. I love learning but dislike education. I'm just not patient enough. Trivial examples and exercises don't hold my attention. I've always been like this. I'm a better doer than learner, but in this situation I imposed a bunch of self-discipline and have really focused on trying to learn before diving headfirst into the iVortex.

So, the fun is about to begin. The problem I'm having now is trying to pick the right first app. The days of easy gold are gone for the iPhone market. With 25,000 apps in existence and thousands more in the pipeline, the obvious ones are already done. Even most of the non-obvious ones are done. There are still many ways to make a living doing iPhone development (at least that is what I need to believe), but choosing the right app to focus on is causing me grief. Rather than picking something truly unique, I am probably going to settle for doing something that has already been done and hope that I can find a good niche.  Something to make my app stand out -- better features, better UI, better price, whatever.

I've been spinning in circles a bit. When I first decided to pursue iPhone app development, I started making a list of app ideas. At various points in time, I have made a decision, picked an app category, decided it is the way to go, only to change my mind a few weeks later. That is all fine and good, but now I need to make a choice and stick with it. I'm torn between three basic directions. I'm going to be a bit vague here, because I can't (of course) divulge what I am actually working on for fear of alerting the market (like anyone is paying attention...).

1) I have an idea for an app that I truly think I could do a great job at. It would be cool and if done right would have a long life and lots of potential. The major downside is that it is somewhat of a niche product and the real lottery of the App Store is won by sheer volume. And it is a big project and probably not the best choice for a first app. I don't want to wait TOO long before releasing something, anything. Also, it really needs a desktop component and I could easily write a Mac app, but don't have the desire (or really the knowledge anymore) to write a Windows version. I'm sick of Windows and don't want to go there. Finally, there would be big payoffs in making cooperative third-party marketing deals, something not easy to do as a one-man show. So, I'm shelving this one for now.

2) I have several ideas for smaller, quickie sort of apps. Specialty things, what-not. This has an advantage in that I could get to market rather quickly, but there is less overall potential to do something that really makes money. Many zany and quick apps have made the top 100 list, but it is a total crapshoot. Once I have more experience from working on a bigger app, I will be able to crank out quickie apps and get from idea to market in a flash. I think this broad category of apps has a ton of potential but could also be a big waste of time.

3) Finally, I have an idea for an app that is somewhere in the middle in terms of scope. Not too big, not too small, perhaps just right :-) It is an app category that I already use and own, and I think I can do a better job at the basic design paradigm. At least I think so in my current analysis of things. Lots of room for tweaks and improvements as it matures.  The kind of thing where a great UI will really make a difference.  I'm great at criticizing existing UI's.  Now the test will be whether I can really come up with something better. There are lots of other apps already for sale in this category, but I don't think it is saturated yet, which is a little surprising, but good nonetheless.  And the potential customer base is quite large, almost enormous (i.e., the majority of iPhone owners). I think I've decided. Maybe.  Nothing is yet set in stone.

Getting back into software development after a many-year absence is more than a little unnerving.  I'm in a very crowded marketplace filled by other developers brimming with talent and vision.  Can an old dog really learn new tricks?  Woof!

App Store Frustration

As I'm starting the development of iPhone app(s), I am initially frustrated by issues surrounding the iTunes-based App Store.  It is, for the most part, a wonderful and well-implemented idea.  It allows end-users to be able to find, purchase and download apps easily from either their phone or iTunes on their computer.  From the developer's perspective, all the aspects of running a store (accepting different payment methods, etc.) are removed and, to some extent, the marketing is made easier simply by having a spot in a single-source App Store.

However, several issues are troubling me:

1. The submission process has timing problems.  Sometimes it can take a week to get an app approved and made available in the store, sometimes longer.  While frustrating to have delays, the real problem is when bugs strike.  If you find a killer (data destroying) bug, you still have to go through the standard approval process, which means that users are negatively impacted and may become disenchanted with your app.  I was personally bitten (as an end-user) by this exact scenario in two different apps.  Both times data was destroyed and I had to wait (and wait) to get the fixed version from the developer.  It isn't always easy to revert to a previous version, which makes it even more troublesome.
    
   
2. The approval process and rules are somewhat arbitrary.  Apple approves most apps, but they reject a fair number.  Certain classes of apps are more likely to get rejected, such as anything with porn, offensive language, etc.  However, some apps get rejected for silly reasons (an icon that looks too much like an iPhone, for example) or on an arbitrary basis (with similar apps, one may get approved and another rejected).  Or because Apple decides the app somehow competes with some built-in functionality on the phone (originally Apple rejected alternate browser apps, but I think they started allowing them eventually).  The scariest thing from my perspective is that the rules aren't spelled out clearly.  There are a couple of app ideas that I have which I'm not 100% sure Apple would approve.  It would SUCK big time to work for months on something only to have Apple reject it.  And there is no way to get "pre-approval" on a work-in-progress.  Things are improving in this area.  For example, the silly app category (farting apps, etc.) were initially rejected but eventually allowed by Apple.  But it is still something a developer has to be very careful and concerned about.
    
   
3. There are so many apps in the App Store (25,000 or so, with more coming every day) that it is very easy to get lost in the crowd.  It seems that apps that manage to get shown in the "Top" or "Picks" lists, do extremely well, but if you are not on those lists the download counts can be frustratingly small.
    
   
4. With 3.0, Apple is going to allow in-app purchasing, which is a fantastic idea.  Except that I fear some developers will overuse it and cripple apps with missing capabilities available only by paying an "upgrade" fee or whatever.  However, my problem is that I think a great model would be to give an app away for free and charge for data-packs.  But Apple says no to this ... free apps always remain free and therefore you must charge at least 0.99 to be able to activate in-app purchasing.

Just some things to think about.  I still like the overall implementation of the App Store and can only hope that Apple will improve its functionality as time goes on...