Starting on iPhone app development

In May 2010 I decided to start making apps for iPhone. 

1. Buy a MacBook Pro

2. Register as a developer at Apple

3. Install X-Code

I simply left my apartment and bought a MacBook Pro (1) from a local dealer in Copenhagen. Spend about $2.500. Then I visited http://developer.apple.com signed up and paid $99, so I could test and publish my apps for real later on. Having accomplished (2) I went on and installed X-Code (3).

4. Learn Objective-C

This was the hard part. I am used to programming in various languages, but still there were many things to learn. I searched the Internet for tutorials and sample code. Also I found it useful to follow the videos from university classes - these can freely be found and access from iTunes (Search for Standford iPhone development). 

5. Make a few apps to see what can be done

I made a few apps with still increasing difficulty, like "Hello World!", "Tab Bar", "Web View"....just followed my interest and what I found in the tutorials. I aimed for getting to know all the pieces need to put my own app together. I tested it in the simulator that comes with X-code and the later on My iPhone. You need to register your device as a developer phone for this. 

6. My First own app

I wanted to make a quiz application, since I have a webpage with lots of questions. It was ready about two weeks later and it took another week for Apple to approve it. It surprisingly became the second most downloaded app in Denmark within a month.

I will post more about the creation of this app later...

Sorry for writing this about starting developing apps so short. There are many great guides out there - but go for Apples own, as this is guaranteed to be updated. 

Feel free to comment and request more information about the various steps - I can add specific tips and tricks if needed. I is over a year ago and therefore I do not want to go into details, if nobody is reading it anyway :)