I am a c# . net developer using windows xp. there is a requirement where I am asked to develop an iphone application. Can anyone mention me the steps how to get started on this?
Is it anyway i can code my applicaton on c#.net and on windows xp?
Is it necessary to have a mac os to build your application?
What is the first step towards buliding the iphone application?
Yes, you can code your app in C# using MonoTouch, but there is no way to bedug your code. The simulator will only run on OSX. Yes, you will have to have an mac to build, test, debug and submit your app.
The first step is to buy a mac and learn Objective-c.
Firstly, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad have iOS, and BlackBerry has Blackberry OS, so developing for both the platforms is completely different.
For developing applications for iOS, the first thing you'll need is Mac, or any way to run Mac OS X (like having Hackintosh or OSx86, completely beyond the scope of my answer). Since development for iOS is done in a programming language called Objective C. And the IDE for the same is XCode, which (unfortunately) is only available Mac OS, XCode includes the emulator for the iDevices as well.
And regarding Blackberry development, I don't have much idea about any particular language being used for the same. But you may follow this for a brief idea regarding developing apps for BlackBerry
You will need Mac OS X, you could search for tutorials on how to install OS X on a virtual machine.
Once you have access to OS X, you will need to register as an iOS developer. Registering is free and you will have access to Xcode 3 + iOS SDK (includes iOS simulator). If you need your application on an iOS device (other than the iOS simulator), you will need to purchase the iOS developer program which costs $99. Xcode 4 has now been released, but this requires purchasing if you haven't brought a developer program for $4.99. Registering as a developer also gives you access to iOS, Mac and Safari Dev Center Resources, which you will find useful at some point. You can register here for free. I recommend trying out iOS development first before purchasing, as it's hard for some people to get the hang of.
After downloading and installing Xcode 3 + iOS SDK, you may be a little lost. Answering with a step by step tutorial for your fist iOS application is a little hard, so I will provide links to resources which are very useful. Here is a very good tutorial which will help you install Xcode and write you first application. It also teaches you about the programming language you'll be using, Objective-C. Objective-C is similar to C/C++.
You may find it easier watching a tutorial instead, therefore I recommend searching for videos.
Hope this helps!
Yes, despite the other answers at this page, it is possible to develop for Android, iOS and Blackberry Playbook at the same time - in Adobe Air (using Flex or Flash projects).
And no need to buy a Mac, it all works with Windows XP.
The 1st step would be to install Flash Builder Burrito and the other software listed at the Playbook page. That gives you Android + Playbook
The 2nd step would be to install the iOS packager. And I think a new version of it is coming soon - together with Flash Builder 4.5
