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I've previously made native apps but I'm considering making an HTML/JS app. I'm uncertain as to how these should be structured.
For example:
Should the app just be a webview that points to my server, ie: www.example.com/webapp and have ALL the app files and resources there?
Should ALL the app files be contained inside the executable?
Something in between, like for example have big asset files (images, maybe libraries like jQuery) stored locally while the actual app gets pulled in from my server, as to always use the latest code.
This app in particular needs Internet access as it's only purpose really is to query a database of local offers, so in this case I'm not worried about providing offline access to any functionality.
Also, will Apple approve of any app that is just a webview pointing to a server, since I could totally change the functionality after it's approved?
Any other thing I should be aware of when creating HTML mobile apps, specially in regards to getting Apple approval?
Thanks!
Apple will aprove .ipa apps that are using just HTML and web languanges. However Apple has several requirements when submitting apps to the app store. These requirements sometimes make people who develope apps using HTML5 think their apps got rejected because it was in HTML5.
I would suggest coding in standard HTML5 JQuery, JQuery Mobile, CSS and using JSON for your MySQL Databases. You can compile your app using Phonegap this way you can make it for many types of mobile devices or you can simply upload it to your server.
Try to use PhoneGap it uses WebView in Android and IOS.
Also check Phonegap based frameworks and plugins like:
Appcelerator
KendoUI and Icenium
Convertigo
Sencha
You can also use jQuery mobile with those tools.
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I've heard a lot of the Phonegap framework and starting to dig into it soon.
As far as I've understood Phonegap allows you to create Web applications that is converted to a native mobile app.
However my questions is how do I use database ? fx SQL lite? If it is only HTML5, CSS3 and Java script then how is this possible? What if I want to use let's say access to the phone book? How is this accomplished?
Or if I want to use something else that is part of the Android SDK?
If you would go through with the documentation files many things could have been clear already.
1) There are 3 kinds of database in phonegap. localStorage, webSQL, indexedDB. If you want to use SQLite then there are SQLite wrappers which allow you to create and maintain SQLite database from javascript
2) Yes it's html,css,javascript. They are main weapons. But you can also use native codes to accomplish some task which can't be done with web technology only. There is a system called custom plugin. You can build custom plugin to use native codes if you need.
3) Most of the things are already taken care of by phonegap. Stuff like using contacts, playing media etc. can be done using various api. These are called plugin. If you install contact plugin, you will be able to use contact list using javascript code. (See this example for how it's done)
Basically phonegap gives you a framework which acts like a bridge between web technology and native technology.
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I am newbie, and i don't know how to create HTML5 based android application.
1.) Could anyone give me some workaround on how to create HTML5 based application for android platform.
2.) What tools/libraries should i use in creating application ?
if possible, then please share the links.
Android SDK enables you to create a web browser app. Just like Google chrome. You can then deploy the App to Google play store so people can download it and Install it on Android phones and tablets.
Jquery mobile is a popular framework that makes it easy to create a mobile web App that can be viewed in a browser.
Put the two together and you have a mobile APP that can be started on the phone just like any other app and it looks and feels just like a native APP.
Once you create your Android SDK webview App you can move the JQM folder in the resources folder and tell webview to load the index page of your web app when the app starts. When you create your first app and get the hang of it you will see its very easy.
Here is a Tutorial.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRa4yMjoI7c
But JQM still lacks a few things from what native written apps can do but its getting there. The latest version 1.4 is quite good but future versions will be even better and have more abilities.
The good thing about JQM Apps is that they can be viewed on any browser so it can reach more people and more platforms.
If you want to access some of the mobile phones inbuilt devices such as the camera or SD card with JQM then you need an addition to the Android SDk called Phonegap.
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There are hundreds of sites now which allow you to create apps for iOS & Android on the fly. Am completely lost on how they are able to achieve this online. Are there any services which help compile the code?
Can anyone help in giving an outline of the full process? They primarily look like mobile webapps placed in a virtual browser.
Any thoughts on the flow will be helpful.
Sample sites:
http://www.theappbuilder.com,
http://www.shoutem.com,
http://www.appypie.com,
http://www.appsbar.com,
http://mobiappbuilder.com
All of them support native apps. How do they do this?
UPDATE
Thank you for your answers. But am not looking at creating apps. Am looking at creating a service which creates apps. A service which allows creating mobile webapps is no issue at all. But how do the above companies allow creation of Android & iOS native apps on the fly? How do they do it i.e. what is the technology/flow for that?
They are HTML5+javascript based like crossplatform frameworks like PhoneGap for instance.
You are exactly right.
The trick is in the word native. A native application in this context doesn't mean an application written in Obj-C or Java. They have a small native core, mostly only to display a web view and they dynamically generate HTML pages for it. They can run their own web server on the device or use HTML prepared beforehand or load it from some internet source but most of the functionality is done by HTML(5).
Depending on how advanced the framework is, the native core is bigger and can provide some of the native features, e.g. access to filesystem or notifications. If a web server is running inside the application, then the server can provide the advanced functionality using some HTTP API.
The UI is usually done in HTML (+ CSS & javascript) but there can be also some native components.
The biggest problem is usually the look & feel which is not native (usually CSS mocks up the native UI), performance and memory problems.
It's good for small applications, it's terrible for bigger applications.
Once you have the framework and the user-generated functionality (UI, images etc), it's trivial to compile it using command line tools (e.g. ant for Android, xcodebuild for iOS).
Edit:
In other words, the native framework contains a web server and a web browser. The application is only a resource that is inserted into the framework. It's exactly the same as when you are creating a normal web application. The only difference is that the server side data is stored on the client, too. Depending on the framework, the server side scripts can be either compiled or interpreted.
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I want to develop a local web app using mobile jquery.
what is the way to open the app using icon in iphone and in android?
Thanks,
it really depends on your project depth.depth in sense of complexity.its always suggested to develop separate for each platform.evaluate your needs carefully.
if the application is simple enough then you can go for third party apis
PhoneGap and Sencha Touch are good options.
but still you might find yourself restricted by a third party API if you need to add new functionality in the future.
What i understand from your question is you want to create a iOS and Android app using html, jQuery etc. There are tools such as PhoneGap, Titanium and Sencha touch. Using this tools you can create a mobile applications with help you HTML, jQuery. However, this apps won't have same user experience as it'll have with the native apps. Also, just think about future releases of your application. If Apple or Android adds new features to there OS it'll be definitely take sometime for above third party API to implement them
Also, apple clearly rejects app which acts like a website. So, you'll have to be careful with this. I'd suggest you to go for native app development. It'll provide you flexibility.
As far as I know, you can't get anything onto iOS without an Apple Developer account. As for Android, you can check out PhoneGap. It also has iOS, but it won't build without a valid apple dev account. Does that seem to be what you're looking for?
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Can we create android applications using HTML5?
You can write complete apps for almost any smartphone platform (Android, iOS,...) using Phonegap. (http://www.phonegap.com)
It is an open source framework that exposes native capabilities to a web view, so that you can do anything a native app can do.
This is very suitable for cross platform development if you're not building something that has to be pixel perfect in every way, or is very hardware intensive.
If you are looking for UI Frameworks that can be used to build such apps, there is a wide range of different libraries. (Like Sencha, jQuery mobile, ...)
And to be a little biased, there is something I built as well: http://www.m-gwt.com
Try Sencha Touch. It is a HTML5 compliant framework to build application for touch devices.
Here is a starting point for developing Android apps with HTML5. The HTML code will be stored in the "assets/www" folder in your Android project.
https://github.com/jakewp11/HTML5_Android_Template.git
When people talk about HTML5 applications they're most likely talking about writing just a simple web page or embedding a web page into their app (which will essentially provide the user interface). For the later there are different frameworks available, e.g. PhoneGap. These are used to provide more than the default browser features (e.g. multi touch) as well as allowing the app to run seamingly "standalone" and without the browser's navigation bars etc.
You can use WebView and create a app that put your site inside.
https://developers.google.com/chrome/mobile/docs/webview/gettingstarted
you can use webview in android that will use chrome browser Or you can try Phonegap or sencha Touch
The WebIntoApp.com V.2 allows you to convert HTML5 / JS / CSS into a mobile app for Android APK (free) and iOS.
(I'm the author)