It’s pretty hard to believe that it’s only been one year since VectorBloom joined the iPhone Developer Program. Over the past year much has changed within the rapidly evolving market of iPhone Development, rather, I mean, iOS development for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. We’ve been catching up and creating a new focus for VectorBloom’s apps and games currently in development. We also have been working on a custom App set to be released this Fall on the App Store.
Tennis Grips for Women has a whole new sexy, feminin design!
If you already have this app on your iPhone just wait for the next update from the App Store over the next 2 weeks to download this slick new look. If you haven’t downloaded Tennis Grips for Women, the new design will be available within the next couple weeks. The latest version update is qualified for iOS 4.0 and multitasking.
Sara’s Ladybugs is a fun counting game for children ages 3-5 years with interactive touch and simple animations. Tap the screen and move the ladybugs around while learning to count these cute little ladybugs! Soon to become available on the App Store world wide.
I am always surprised when I hear a new original song. When I was little I wondered to myself, ‘certainly one day, the musicians will run out of combination of note sequences and melodies and it will all have been done and we will only have a set number of songs’. Not so, there are so many ways to build a song, much like there are so many ways to create a painting or build an App for that matter.
At VectorBloom, we’ve been keeping up with the many advancements in mobile technology. Specifically our interest is focused on iPhone development but we are also developing our games to run on Android. Although VectorBloom will not be attending Apple’s World Wide Developer Conference next week in San Francisco, we are definitely anticipating announcements of new applications as well as the specs on the iPhone 4G device.
What is remarkable about mobile development, and I will say iPhone development since Apple has been leading with this technology (even without Flash), is that each new feature or hardware enhancement, introduces so many possible applications.
Today, I picked up a version of MacLife’s iPhone Handbook which features the “99 MUST DOWNLOAD APPS”. Why am I not reading it on the iPad? Frankly I spend almost all day looking at screens, I enjoy being able to switch to paper. Besides, I can write notes on each page as well as compare design layouts from the spread. Even after looking at these 99 featured Apps, it has only stimulated more app ideas to the ones which we have yet to develop here at VectorBloom. It’s really endless what can be done and what will be done.
If you are a developer with an idea, and it’s already on the App Store, there are so many ways that same idea can be altered by introducing a different approach through the artistic layout or even the target audience. What could have been a game for kids, could be a lifestyle app for an adult party game, just change the design. A good way to spark an idea is to ask yourself what do you want, and go from there, find a solution that makes your life better. Chances are it will make someone else’s life better either through convenience or fun. Expose yourself to different things and people. If you’re stumped for ideas having fun yourself is the best way to rekindle creativity.
That said the ability to learn quickly and constantly think creatively will drive the development of the most innovative, convenient and fun apps. A team which combines the skills of graphic design/ digital art with development makes for a perfect marriage in designing beautiful and innovative apps as well as mobile web apps.
The truth is we have only begun to see what’s possible.
Now you can buy Apps for your friends and family with the Gift This App option on the App Store.
Clicking on the disclosure triangle next to Buy App button displays a menu that lets you purchase your app and send it as a gift. The lucky friend or family member will receive an email letting them know that a gifted app is waiting for them to download.
Try it out, Stitches and Stitches for Knitting make a great gift for a friend who knits or crochets.
Don’t forget some yarn!
I have become so irritated by the many pennies upon pennies that accumulate in my wallet when dealing with cash. Many times I have told myself, they will stop minting pennies when stop printing notes and we enter a cashless alternative. We have come closer to this end with the iPhone. Now with DeviceFidelity you can turn your iPhone into your VISA credit card, and with SquareUp you can accept VISA from your customers without a merchant account. I wonder how long before everyone has a Smart Phone?
We have probably all heard the story of the previously unknown iPhone Developer making a killing from an iPhone app or game. Games on the iPhone continue to be the most lucrative category on the App Store. Which makes sense since the portability of the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch combined with the features of the accelerometer, on-line multiplayer gaming or peer to peer connectivity allows for the development of almost infinite concepts for creative play. But what about all the other categories? How do they fair and will a business recover the cost of design and development from the sales of their iPhone app? Also can a business afford to ignore the fact that mobile internet access is beginning to overtake online activity via the desktop?
Business cannot afford mobile internet development trends. The question for any business if they haven’t already invested in mobile development, is whether to invest in a native iPhone and/or Android App or the design of a Web App? What is the cost benefit analysis of each approach? When I say any business, I am not talking about a small local business like a hairdresser, the corner produce or butcher shop.
My most immediate question as an iPhone Developer was answered today. How do VectorBloom’s existing iPhone Apps fair with pixel doubling on the iPad?
I am so pleased to say that they look wonderful and better than I thought. In fact the how to crochet videos for iCrochet might even be easier to follow on the iPad’s larger screen than on the iPhone and iPod touch. Quite the relief since when I began to make apps last year, an Apple Tablet seemed like a rumor but lo and behold this iPad is definitely a technology game changer.
My second biggest question was not whether I would make personal use of the iPad, so much as how much and when I would use the iPad? Would I like it better than the iPhone or iPod touch? Maybe I’ll constantly carry it around with me in my purse or keep at my bed side night table, or under my pillow to watch late night movies?
So if you have an iPad and have been wanting to learn how to crochet, iCrochet‘s how to videos look great on the iPad with pixel doubling. And since the video’s are local you don’t need a Wi-Fi connection to follow them while you learn.
iCrochet is a free download on the App Store.
As a way to build our fan base before the release of VectorBloom’s first game for the iPhone and iPod touch we will be hosting a contest from our Facebook Fan Page and VectorBloom on Twitter.
If you would like your shot at winning a 32 GB iPod touch 3rd generation that will be compatible with the latest version of the iPhone OS version 4, there are two things you must do. First either become a fan of VectorBloom on Facebook by clicking the ‘Like This’ button or a Follower of VectorBloom on Twitter to follow contest updates and receive hints.
Second enter your name into the draw by sending an email to: contest {at} vectorbloom {dot} com with your name and contact information including your current mailing address for shipping and telephone number, with your best answer to the following:
Which Tennis Grip is the best grip to achieve a Topspin Forehand Lob?
(Hint: Answer found in the iPhone App Tennis Grips or Tennis Grips for Women)
Contest entry deadline is August 31, 2010. Only one entry per person. The draw for the winner’s name will take place on September 7th, 2010 and announced on http://facebook.com/vectorbloom. Immediate family members of the owners or employees of Vector Bloom Technologies are not eligible to participate. Participation to win the prize is restricted to residents of US and Canada. Apple is not a sponsor of this contest.
Of course it’s Mother’s Day this coming Sunday and being a mother I am reminded of how important it is to be a parent and what a blessing and privilege it is to have children. So as a Mum, I am making the following iPhone Apps free this Sunday for all the mothers or mothers to be: Stitches, Stitches for Knitting and Tennis Grips for Women.
All day on Sunday May 9, 2010 these 3 Apps will be free downloads from the iTunes App Store. These were created, developed and designed by me, Elizabeth Boylan and a stay at home mom. I hope that this little gift from VectorBloom is a warm reminder to us all of how lucky we are that our moms carried us into this World. Happy Mother’s Day!
We’re so excited about the latest results showing that Tennis Grips has hit Number 5 for paid Apps in China and the top 300 paid Apps in 32 different countries world wide within the Sports Category. Tennis Grips for Women is the same concept customized for female tennis players.
Both Apps were designed by John Borchert former Junior National Tennis Champ for Canada and Lead Software Engineer here at Vector Bloom Technologies.
Tennis Grips for your iPhone helps players determine which best grip to use for their serve, volley and ground strokes to adjust control of topspin, and improve one’s Tennis Game. Here’s are the results from Position App as of today Monday, May 3, 2010:
- China #5
- Republic of Korea #32
- Saudi Arabia #39
- Hong Kong #42
- Taiwan #46
- Singapore #55
- Israel #62
- Costa Rica #86
- Panama #89
- Peru #96
- Lebanon #100 read more »
Here at VectorBloom we’ve been busy adapting to all of the changes going on with the announcements of the iPad and iPhone OS version 4 from Apple. We or I should say I (the crochet enthusiast and creator behind Stitches, iCrochet and Hooked) have decided that I can only spread myself so thin marketing VectorBloom’s existing Apps while creating and developing more Apps and games. As such, I have decided to make iCrochet free for all you who have been wanting to either learn how to knit or crochet. You can now download this App for free from the App Store. If you decide you love to crochet, you will also fall in love with our Stitches App.
I designed Stitches as solution to my problem of always wanting to have on hand a series of crochet stitch patterns so that I could bring my crochet project with me in my purse, without a heavy book in my purse of various stitches. I refer to it myself when working in my free time on my current crochet projects. I keep reminding myself that I don’t need the book, I have the App. We continue to upgrade Stitches and Stitches for Knitting to include more stitch patterns with each version update.
I hope all of you who download iCrochet, fall in love with this craft AND the hat or scarf you create as your first project!
I am testing a new concept here at VectorBloom. I don’t know if any iPhone Developers do this, but I am making Stitches my favorite crochet App free for 48 hours effective April 17, 2010, with an end date of April 19, 2010. I want as many people who love to crochet to get their hands on this App. And no I am not doing this just so I can add advertising using iAd to make more money. Please rate it favorably, I’m a stay at mom, and would love to tell my daughter when she grows up how I made a Crochet App back in the day! I’ve made 3 upgrades and Stitches, with larger photos and more stitches have been added each time. This App will continue to improve over time, but really, does anyone need more than 31 different crochet stitches on their iPhone? Of course we do!
I wrote a blog post “Is $2.99 Too Expensive For An App?” where I addressed the different ways developers can earn revenue from apps in return for their creativity, time and effort.
If Developers are going to build free Apps, they will be forced to make money from advertising. Actually, I personally think most of us are being bombarded by Ads way too much. Ads which are effective, grab your attention, and a lot of them are emotionally manipulative. read more »
Early January I received a call from a potential client wishing to invest in an iPhone App as a small business owner. They wanted their App to feature Push Notification technology as a marketing tool for one of their products. After researching what this would entail, as well as the cost for ongoing maintenance and server upkeep, I discouraged custom building and designing the App before the release of the iPad and iPhone OS 4. read more »