Today, if you want to make an income, it's not enough to simply have a job. You need at the very least 2 or 3 different sources of income to ensure that you can pay your entire bills in case something unfortunate happens. Technology has evolved so much that in recent years many individuals have found another way to earn money: they develop mobile applications. Many entrepreneurs have made a term for themselves by developing mobile apps, and if you're enthusiastic about learning how to develop mobile apps yourself, keep reading this article.
Mobile app development is just a rapidly growing industry because people are finding more methods to earn money through their smartphones. Every single day the number of active users keeps growing. Here are some numbers that'll illustrate just how big a is now:
- The number of smartphone users worldwide is expected to achieve 1 billion in 2014 ( source ).
- According to statistics there have been nearly 35 million iPhone developers at the time of December 2010 ( source ). This figure shows an increase of 25% over the previous year's figures!
If you want to develop mobile apps then you'll need several things before you can start. This will additionally apply to any type of development, however, you especially need the following:
- Skills and knowledge – You'll have to know how exactly to code, and you'll also should find out about design concepts like UX (User Experience) and HCI (Human Computer Interaction).
- Some type of computer – Of course! Ideally it must be a laptop/netbook that runs Windows or Deniz Guney Mac OSX since most computers nowadays run one of these operating systems. However, if your skills are sufficient then you might be able to produce a software on Linux as well.
- A smartphone – It's not necessary for developing apps, however it will surely help since you can test them entirely on your device. If you don't have a smartphone then you may always work with a friend's or a household member's device.
- An IDE – A computer software development kit (or IDE - Integrated Development Environment) is important to create applications for Android, iOS and Windows Phone platforms. Popular IDEs include Xcode , Eclipse and Visual Studio.
- The developer license – You are able to develop apps without paying anything, but when you want to publish them on app stores then you'll need to pay for the annual fee which can be currently $99 for Apple App Store and Google Play Developer Console. Several payment methods are available, including bank cards, PayPal and wire transfer from your bank account.
Mobile app development is just a rapidly growing industry because people are finding more methods to earn money through their smartphones. Every single day the number of active users keeps growing. Here are some numbers that'll illustrate just how big a is now:
- The number of smartphone users worldwide is expected to achieve 1 billion in 2014 ( source ).
- According to statistics there have been nearly 35 million iPhone developers at the time of December 2010 ( source ). This figure shows an increase of 25% over the previous year's figures!
If you want to develop mobile apps then you'll need several things before you can start. This will additionally apply to any type of development, however, you especially need the following:
- Skills and knowledge – You'll have to know how exactly to code, and you'll also should find out about design concepts like UX (User Experience) and HCI (Human Computer Interaction).
- Some type of computer – Of course! Ideally it must be a laptop/netbook that runs Windows or Deniz Guney Mac OSX since most computers nowadays run one of these operating systems. However, if your skills are sufficient then you might be able to produce a software on Linux as well.
- A smartphone – It's not necessary for developing apps, however it will surely help since you can test them entirely on your device. If you don't have a smartphone then you may always work with a friend's or a household member's device.
- An IDE – A computer software development kit (or IDE - Integrated Development Environment) is important to create applications for Android, iOS and Windows Phone platforms. Popular IDEs include Xcode , Eclipse and Visual Studio.
- The developer license – You are able to develop apps without paying anything, but when you want to publish them on app stores then you'll need to pay for the annual fee which can be currently $99 for Apple App Store and Google Play Developer Console. Several payment methods are available, including bank cards, PayPal and wire transfer from your bank account.