17. Creating and Distributing Content on the iPad
In This Chapter
• Self-publish and distribute interactive eBooks using Apple’s iBooks Author software on a Mac
• Create and sell eBooks using Blurb.com
• Commission a custom iPad app to be developed
Until recently, if you or your company wanted to create an app or distribute proprietary content via the iPad, a costly custom app needed to be created. However, to cater to the needs of businesses and entrepreneurs who want to utilize the iPad as an interactive tool for disseminating information, Apple has created several low-cost and easy solutions that require no programming skills and that can be utilized in-house in a fraction of the time needed to create a custom iPad app.
Using any Mac and the free iBooks Author software available from Apple (www.apple.com/ibooks-author), anyone who knows how to use a word processor can now create professional-quality and highly interactive eBooks for the iPad that can incorporate text, photos, video clips, audio, other multimedia content, interactive diagrams, 3D objects, voice overs, and quizzes.
eBooks created using the iBooks Author software can be distributed to employees, customers, and clients or distributed (sold) to the public via Apple’s iBookstore. Using the iBooks Author software, a company can easily adapt any printed materials, such as catalogs, annual reports, user manuals, training guides (and training videos), marketing materials, or other documents into eBooks for viewing on an iPad.
If a company’s needs involve gathering data via an iPad, streamlining the process of filling out forms, or accessing database content remotely from a tablet, using the FileMaker Pro 12 database software with the FileMaker Go iPad app serves as a low-cost, extremely customizable option.
From this chapter, you’ll discover more about how to utilize the iBooks Author software, learn about a similar eBook publishing solution from Blurb.com, and learn more about what’s involved in having an iPad app created from scratch.
Does your company have dozens or hundreds of iPads that need to be charged and synchronized simultaneously from a single iTunes source? Parat Solutions (866-647-5976, www.paratsolutions.com) has solved this problem with its ParaSync system, a proprietary docking station that allows up to 10 iPads to be charged and synced from one iTunes library. Using this system, multiple ParaSync docking stations can be linked together, so you can charge and sync 20, 30, 40, or more iPads at the same time. No special software or cable connections are required.
The ParaSync system includes a docking station that connects to a host computer via a USB cable connection for syncing. For charging, a single electrical plug from a wall outlet is needed. The system includes custom-designed iPad cases that not only protect the tablets while they’re in use, but also protect the iPad’s Dock connector port during the charging process.
Custom solutions for charging and syncing any number of iPads are available. These solutions can include lockable, steel enclosures for the ParaSync charging stations.
Creating Interactive eBooks for iPad Using iBooks Author
If you use a Mac, and you know how to use a word processor, you already have the knowledge needed to create visually compelling, professional-quality, and highly interactive eBooks for use with an iPad.
As you’ll soon discover when you use Apple’s iBooks Author software, any printed materials, as well as photos, graphics, illustrations, video clips, audio, or other multimedia content, can be incorporated into an interactive eBook that also utilizes the touch screen on the iPad.
iBooks Author is a free Mac software application that’s available from the Mac App Store. Using this software, you can custom create compelling eBook content using templates and a simple-to-learn, drag-and-drop interface.
In addition to the eBook templates that come bundled with the iBooks Author software, a variety of third-party companies have released additional templates for creating specific types of eBooks.
Jumsoft has introduced Book Palette 1.0 for the Mac ($2.99) that includes 10 eBook templates designed for use with iBook Author. You can also find additional free and fee-based templates by visiting www.iBookAuthorTemplates.com or by entering the search phrase “iBook Author Templates” into any Internet search engine.
When you select a template within the iBook Author software, you can import and format content from a word processor (such as Pages or Microsoft Word) within the eBook that’s being created. You can then import images or other pre-created multimedia content, and the iBooks Author software auto-formats the text around the photos or content.
Instead of having to program interactive elements into the eBook, from within iBooks Author, you can import and customize pre-created widgets, so it’s easy to incorporate an interactive table of contents, glossary, or quiz, for example.
After you’ve created an eBook using the iBooks Author software, you can transfer it to an iPad and read it using the free iBooks 2 app that is available from the App Store. Using the iBooks Author software, you can also publish your eBook using Apple’s iBookstore service and then distribute the eBook for free or sell it online.
Self-published authors, entrepreneurs, small business operators, educators, and public speakers, for example, have discovered a wide range of innovative ways to use iBooks Author to create and distribute compelling iPad content for employees, customers, and clients.
For example, traditionally printed catalogs and sales materials can become interactive and highly engaging when created into an eBook. Product user manuals can be created for the iPad that utilize more than just text and graphics to teach customers how to use a new product. Boring employee training manuals can be transformed into interactive training tools that can be utilized anywhere. Presentation handouts or reports can be published in eBook form and presented in ways not possible on a traditionally printed page. The possibilities are truly limitless.
eBooks created using iBooks Author are viewable on any iPad running iOS 5.0 (or later) and the latest version of the iBooks 2 app (version 2.0.1 or later).
iBooks Author runs exclusively on Mac computers and can create eBooks compatible exclusively for the iPad. (The eBooks are not viewable on an iPhone or iPod touch running the iBooks 2 app.) However, if you’re a Windows PC user, a similar eBook creation and publishing tool (albeit with fewer features) is available, also for free, from Blurb.com.
Blurb.com’s eBook Publishing Solution
For PC or Mac users interested in creating, publishing, and distributing non-interactive photo eBooks viewable on an iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad, Blurb.com (www.blurb.com) offers an inexpensive, easy-to-use eBook publishing option.
By downloading the free Blurb BookSmart software (www.blurb.com), PC or Mac users can easily create and publish professionally printed photo books in both hardcover and softcover formats. The books are created by dragging and dropping photos into a template, adding text and other graphic elements, and then uploading the book to the Blurb service to be traditionally printed.
Photo books created using Blurb on a PC or Mac can be printed one copy at a time or can be sold directly through the Blurb.com online store. By selecting the eBook publishing option, a photo book created and published using Blurb can also be created into an iPhone or iPad-compatible eBook and then downloaded directly to the iOS mobile device and viewed using iBooks for just $1.99 per digital copy.
You can use the Blurb software to create photo books, cookbooks, children’s books, or any content that includes photos and text. The software’s capabilities are not as advanced or robust as what’s possible using iBook Author. However, any book created using the Blurb software can be printed in hardcover or softcover in any quantity and also published in eBook form. The quality is extremely impressive, but the cost is highly competitive.
Does Your Company Need a Custom App?
There are currently more than 600,000 iPad-specific apps available from the App Store, in addition to more than 600,000 iPhone and hybrid apps that run on an iPad. If one or more of these apps do not meet the needs of your company, having a custom app created may be a viable option.
Many custom apps have been created by mid- to large-size companies in an effort to better cater to the needs of their customers or to serve as a marketing tool to increase business. Another portion of these apps were custom designed for specific companies to be used in-house by employees in an effort to streamline or automate specific tasks or give people access to company resources while they’re in the field.
Every day companies in all different industries are discovering innovative ways to utilize the iPad. Some of these uses, however, require that a custom app be created.
Before investing the time, money, and resources needed to create a vertical market app or proprietary enterprise solution involving the iPad, see whether a customizable app has already been created. Marketcircle, Inc. (www.marketcircle.com), for example, offers a handful of highly customizable iPad apps for billing, invoicing, time tracking/billing, and scheduling that have been created for use in specific industries, such as film and video, photography, print and design, real estate, sales, legal, recruiting, and software development.
From other app developers, there are also countless industry-oriented, vertical market or specialty apps for those working in hundreds of industries, including medical, manufacturing, retail sales, telemarketing, event planning, and education. Be sure to research what’s currently available before incurring the cost of re-creating something from scratch that already exists.
What to Consider First When Developing an App
If you’re thinking about having a custom app developed for the iPad, first carefully define the purpose for the app and determine exactly what you want it to do.
Next, sketch out or create a detailed outline for the app. For example, figure out what options should appear on the various screens and decide what features and functions the app needs to include. This includes determining your target audience for the app. For this step, absolutely no programming knowledge is required, but considering these things gives you, and the programmers you ultimately hire to develop your app, a clear understanding of your goals.
Based on your company’s needs, determine whether an iPad-specific app is more appropriate or if your app development budget is best spent on an app that runs on all iOS devices, including the various iPhones, iPads, and iPods. Making an app available to all users of iOS devices dramatically increases the potential audience for an app, which might be important if the app will cater to your customers or clients.
Before proceeding further, visit the App Store to determine whether an iOS app already exists that meets your needs. If similar apps already exist, determine whether you can use one, or what your intended app needs to do differently or better. It’s essential that you understand, from day one, how the app will be used and how it will fit into your company’s established workflow and overall business objectives.
If you hire an app developer to begin work on a custom app, but you have only a vague idea about what the app should do, how it will be used, and who it will be used by, in the result will be a variety of potentially costly problems.
At the very least, having a clearly defined one- or two-page summary of what you want the iOS app to do helps a developer dramatically when it comes to designing and programming the app you envision.
Remember, the app developer you hire is most likely an expert at designing apps and programming, but he probably does not understand your business, industry, customers, or the unique needs for the app. Thus, it’s your company’s responsibility to bring this knowledge to the table and stay active in the development process for your app.
If your app developer doesn’t understand your needs or isn’t listening to you during development meetings, find a new developer. Otherwise, you’ll wind up paying a fortune for a custom app that doesn’t meet your needs or expectations, that is confusing to use, and that is actually detrimental to your business because the end result will be an app that does not achieve its objectives.
Next, invest $99.00 (per year) and join Apple’s iOS Development Program (http://developer.apple.com) to learn more about what’s possible in terms of having a custom app created, plus gain access to the resources and tools available directly from Apple.
Having a Custom App Created
After determining that your company does want to pursue developing a custom app, you need to hire experienced and knowledgeable app designers and programmers (unless you already have someone on staff). It’s important to understand that developing a custom app is a time-consuming and potentially costly process that requires a clear understanding of what’s possible and what you’re trying to accomplish.
By hiring an independent iOS app developer, companies are creating innovative, proprietary, and highly specialized apps for use in house. An app that gives a sales force a streamlined method for entering and processing orders while on the road and grants them full access to an online inventory database or catalog from their mobile devices is an example of a custom app.
In some situations, cutting-edge companies are developing custom apps for their customers and clients as a way to boost sales, distribute marketing or promotional content, improve customer service, increase brand awareness, or build customer loyalty.
Thanks to the GPS capabilities and Maps app that is built in to the iPad, a custom app can determine where a customer is located at any given moment and direct her to a company’s nearest retail location. This same customized app can enable a customer to place an order online from her mobile device and have it waiting for her upon her arrival at her destination. In the case of Pizza Hut or GrubHub, for example, a customer can arrange for food delivery with a few taps on her mobile device’s screen.
The cost of developing a custom app is becoming far more economical than it was just a year or two ago, in part due to increased competition among independent software and app developers.
One of the biggest challenges you face after you decide to have a custom app developed is not determining what the app should do or how it will be used; it’s finding and hiring an independent app developer that’s capable of creating an app that perfectly caters to the intended audience by offering the end user value, simplicity, security, and intuitive functionality.
It’s important to realize up front that having a custom iOS app created is very much like having customized software developed for any other platform. Having a well-designed, highly functional, and bug-free app developed that includes a slick user interface and the back-end functionality you need is going to be a costly and time-consuming endeavor that should include involvement from various departments within your company.
One problem that many companies encounter is that they hire a low-cost app development company or team of programmers. Companies that do this wind up with an inferior result that is riddled with problems. It’s important to choose an app development company that’s stable because you want the same company to be around in the future to support the app and make enhancements or bug fixes.
Speaking of app development problems, to save money, some businesses opt to outsource their work to small, overseas app development companies. Common problems with this solution include dealing with time zone differences, which causes delays in communication, and significant language barriers. If you’re unable to easily communicate with your app developer, explain your needs, and closely follow the app’s development, the end result will often not be what you anticipated.
Ultimately, your goal should be to establish a long-term relationship with the app developer you hire. Even if you choose not to add new features or functions to the app down the road, as Apple releases new versions of the iOS operating system, you might need to have the app updated to keep it functional.
As a general rule, when it comes to hiring an app development company, you generally get what you pay for. A single freelancer or a small development company might be able to create the initial app for you, but if you want or need the app to be updated or expanded with new features in the future, that same freelancer or small development company might not be available or might have gone out of business.
Before hiring an app developer, look at the company’s portfolio of work. Carefully evaluate the quality of its apps, including the user interfaces and functionality. Also, keep in mind that many different factors go into calculating development costs and the amount of time the development process will take.
Development costs for most good-quality apps, created by an experienced and competent development company, run between $5,000 and $50,000. Realistically the development, programming, and testing process typically takes between 12 and 16 weeks.
The more detailed your company’s initial outline or plan for the app is, the easier it is for the app development company you hire to offer you a reliable price quote. How much you wind up paying for the app’s development is in part based on the complexity of the app itself.
As you’re sketching your app on paper and brainstorming about what the app should be able to do, start with what you envision the app’s home screen and main menu will look like. Then work your way out from there, focusing on one page or screen of the proposed app at a time. This helps you create a more comprehensive plan for your app.
To help you sketch a map or detailed plan for your app, consider using easy-to-use flowcharting or diagramming software on your primary computer, such as Microsoft Visio (www.microsoft.com), SmartDraw (www.smartdraw.com), or OmniGraffle (www.omnigroup.com/products/omnigraffle).
To keep things simple, start by developing an app with the core features and functionality you want or need. Work with your app development team to get the core app up and running so you can release it to your workforce or customers. You can later revise the app to add new features and functions after the initial app has proven itself to be a success. After launching your app, solicit feedback from its audience to discover ways to improve upon its interface, features, and functionality.
Hiring a programmer, as opposed to a full-service app development company, is a low-cost option for small to mid-size businesses. You can find iOS app programmers using an online service, such as eLance.com or guru.com. Alternatively, use a search engine to enter the search phrase “iOS app developer” to find links to app developer websites.
Another method for finding a well-qualified developer is to search the App Store for apps you like and then make contact with those developers. Part of every app’s description in the App Store includes the developer’s name and a link to the developer’s website.
It’s a good idea to have a lawyer who represents your company create a contract between your organization and the app developer. The contract should clearly state who will ultimately own the programming code and indicate that your company will also receive the source code associated with the app, not just the finished app.
In addition to indicating who owns the code, the contract should give you the right to modify the code as needed in the future and ensure that the code contains no backdoor access that could later be used by the app developer for unauthorized purposes.
Also, if your company will own the code, by purchasing it outright from the developer, the contract should stipulate what rights the developer has to reuse or resell the source code (or portions of it) to develop future applications.
Other Potential Low-Cost Custom App Solutions
If you’re thinking about having a proprietary app developed for in-house use to handle specialized tasks, determine whether it would be less expensive to have a developer create a mobile website that your iPad-using employees could access. Another alternative might be to have a custom database application created using FileMaker Pro and then use the FileMaker Go app for iPad to allow for remote access to that custom database.
Often, having a custom FileMaker Pro database created is significantly less expensive and much faster than having a iOS custom app developed, yet the functionality could be very similar, depending on your company’s needs. To learn more about the FileMaker Pro and FileMaker Go options, visit www.filemaker.com/products/filemaker-go.
To learn more about having a custom iOS app developed for your business, visit Apple’s iOS In Business website at www.apple.com/business/accelerator.
iPad Custom App Development Strategies
When you decide to move forward with a custom app, follow these strategies to help insure the successful planning, development, and deployment of the app:
• Do your research to determine what’s possible and then decide exactly what you want your custom app to do. As you do this, put yourself in the app user’s shoes. Determine their wants, needs, and level of expertise using the iPad and then cater to the intended user every step of the way.
• Develop a specific plan for your app, outlining the overall goal or objective of the app, as well as each feature or function you want to include within it.
• Plan the development process in a realistic way, making sure you have the budget and resources in place to handle the process appropriately. The main stages of an app’s development include Planning, Design, Coding/Programming, Debugging, Testing, and Deployment/Implementation. Each of these steps require planning, time, resources, and money. Cutting corners during any of these steps could result in costly problems, development delays, or unanticipated results.
• Be sure to put together the most knowledgeable and experienced app development team possible, starting with people within your business or organization who clearly understand how your business operates, the needs of those who will ultimately be using the app, and the ultimate goal for the app itself. Pair this in-house team with skilled and experienced programmers and app testers.
• For apps being developed from scratch, start by incorporating the core functionality that’s wanted and needed, and make sure that it works properly and has an intuitive user interface. Then, over time, add additional features and functions. Not only will this save time and money, it will also keep the app’s development easier to manage.
• Before releasing the app to your employees, customers, or clients, be sure it’s been properly tested and is 100 percent bug-free and that it functions exactly how it should. The easiest way to alienate your customers or annoy those who will ultimately be using the app is to release an app that contains bugs, is unstable and crashes, that doesn’t handle the intended objectives properly, or that is unintuitive to use.
• The app should also function using the latest version of the iOS operating system and fully utilizes the capabilities of the iPad. If the app ultimately doesn’t serve a defined purpose, successfully address a need, solve a problem, or provide value to the user, it will not be embraced and adopted by its intended users.
After your custom app is created and ready for distribution, you have several options, based on the target audience for your app. An iPad app can be distributed through the App Store and made available to the general public, or your company can work with Apple to utilize other enterprise solutions for distributing an app in house. To learn more about custom app development and distribution (deployment) options, visit www.apple.com/business/accelerator.
According to AppleInsider, a website that follows the latest Apple-related news, Apple is apparently working on Mac software, similar to iBooks Author, that will enable people to develop their own iPhone or iPad apps, without needing any programming skills or knowledge whatsoever. To learn more about this software, visit www.appleinsider.com/articles/12/04/12/apple_wants_to_make_it_easy_for_non_programmers_to_build_ios_apps.html.