WWDC Day 5

1:00 - Getting help from the Table View Lab
11:45 - Time for lunch
10:30 - How Do I Do That? Tips and Tricks for iPhone Development
9:00 - Mastering iPhone Table Views
8:10 - Quick trip, but I did figure out my SQlite problem.
7:00 - Last Day on the Bus. Got my own seat. Must be some people working at home today.

WWDC Day 4

10:30 - Debugging and Profiling Your iPhone Application - have to try to pay attention while working on my app...
9:00 - Can't get into "Mastering Interface Builder", so I'll sit in "Building an Advanced iPhone Web Application, Hands On" and work on my code...
8:45 - Jeez, problem was that the db file wasn't getting copied to the simulator when I though it was, so it had an old version. Once again, not the code...
8:00 - Arrg! Can't get the friggin' SQLite code working.
7:00 - On bus, still working on that first app.

WWDC Day 3

6:05 - On the bus, hacking away!
5:25 - I'm not a dork - its an XCode bug - applied workaround - RUNNING IN MY IPHONE!!
5:15 - Go to XCode lab with problem
5:00 - Decide to see if I can download an app into my iPhone rather than go to session
4:25 - iPhone OS installed!
3:30 - iPhone Multi-Touch Events and Gestures
3:25 - SDK Installed!
3:20 - Installing Beta 7 of SDK and iPhone OS
2:00 - "Can't disclose" session (sorry!)
12:30 - Small Teams, Complex Pipelines: Writing Software at Pixar
10:30 - Controls, Views, and Animation on iPhone
9:00 - iPhone Application User Interface Design
8:30 - At WWDC. Made good progress on my first app - may even get it working today.
7:00 - On bus, working on my first app that isn't just a sample app

WWDC Impressions

Here are my main impressions of WWDC:

• Here's a link to a survey that suggests that 70% of planned iPhone apps may be free.  I think that is quite right, as many existing services will provide free iPhone apps to access their service.
• 5200 developers in attendance
• Standing in Lines - reminds me of college - it's like people are looking for lines to stand in.
• I'm special! - I'm one of 4000 approved iPhone developers.  That seems like a big number, but I've met a number of people who haven't been approved.  I have no idea why I was approved...
• The iPhone is big. Really big. - I don't know who is going to develop the killer app, or how many people will make a lot of money, but there are some cool applications under development.  It will be amazing to watch what happens over the next year.  Lowering the price of an iPhone to $199 while adding several important new features is also going to help in a huge way.
• As far as I can tell, there are no diet-colas available here.  17 other kinds of drinks plus coffee, but no diet-colas.  I'm seeing some serious withdrawal symptoms...

Missing iPhone Features

OK, so it has been announced.  What is the new iPhone missing?

1. Voice dialing - why is this missing?  It is a phone, right?  I can get a free cell phone that does this!
2. Copy and paste - this might actually be #1 - how often have I tried to do a simple copy and paste on my iPhone, only to be disappointed...
3. Video - I really liked being able to take short video clips with my Windows Mobile phone.  The iPhone is a video playing powerhouse, why not be able to capture, too?
4. Global search - I'd love to be able to search everything - e-mail, contacts, etc.
5. Voice Recording

WWDC Day 2

6:10 - Ducked out a few minutes early so I could make the last bus
5:00 - Designing Applications with Interface Builder
3:30 - Understanding iPhone Table Views
2:00 - Understanding iPhone View Controllers
12:30 - Lunch

12:18 - Developers Conferences are the only events on the planet where the lines for the Men's restrooms are longer than the lines for the Women's restrooms!

11:50 - Bean bag chairs?  This is a different kind of developers conference!

11:45 - Time for lunch, and perhaps a bit of development?
10:30 - Introduction to the iPhone Development Tools - very cool tools. The instruments capability makes me want to inject bugs just to have fun finding them...

9:00 - iPhone Application Development Fundamentals
8:50 - Just looked over to see the Army Colonel who was in the video clip during the keynote. In the clip, he said something like "We are the most mobile IT environment in the world, with one of the largest user bases. And the only one whose users get shot at."
8:14 - On the bus to WWDC day 2, trying to figure out which sessions to attend today. There is some unfortunate overlap to deal with.

WWDC Day 1

6:15 - On the bus, on the way home.  Good day, overall.

5:00 - Introduction to Mac and iPhone Development - Damn, the room filled up!  And no overflow.  Apple blew this one.  Maybe I can get my money back?  ;-)

3:30 - Developer Tools State of the Union

2:00 - Mac OS X State of the Union - In the overflow room, again.  BTW, the rest of the day is "Apple Confidential", so I'll have fewer updates.
1:49 - Just learned something. Treat your iPhone earbuds carefully!  $29 bucks for a new headset.  Jeez, an entire iPhone 3G (8GB) will only be $200!

12:35 - Super Geeky network stuff...

11:30 - 3G!! GPS!!  Go, Steve!
10:38 - Looks like there will be some cool apps at AppStore.
10:18 - Still waiting for something new...
10:07 - In!!! Just as Steve came on stage...
9:58 - Still in line. Steve, don't start without us!  Enjoying conversation with other developers in line.  Some are completely new to the mac, some are super experiences.
9:37 - Still in line...

8:50 - More than an hour 'til the keynote, I'm about 50th in line, and the auditorium is already full! I knew I shouldn't have stopped to use the bathroom!
8:00 - On the bus on the way to WWDC. Can't seem to do formatted blogging from my iPhone. Will update during or after the keynote.

New iPhone Features

Here's a list of my favorite new features of the iPhone 3G (and iPhone OS 2.0):

1. 3rd Party Apps - duh!
2. Contacts search - it is a phone, right?
3. 3G - Yup, downloading faster will be great.  Gets close enough to WiFi that most downloads (with the possible exception of video) will be way faster.
4. Push e-mail, calendar, contacts - Whether through Exchange or MobileMe, this will make it way easier to share calendars and the like.  Will make Enterprise users very happy...
5. GPS - I've already seen the advantages of this.  When I came down here on the bus, I noticed that my map continued to update my current location, rather than staying static as it used to.  Even though my iPhone doesn't have GPS, it showed a fairly accurate track.  And geotagging photos is automatic. Nice.