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How would one deploy a iOS app using this service? It seems interesting since i don't own a Mac and am interested in iOS Development, but don't want to fork ou

How would one deploy a iOS app using this service? It seems interesting since i don't own a Mac and am interested in iOS Development, but don't want to fork out the cash for a mac mini or something similar.

srainier 15y ago
That's a great question. I imagine you wouldn't be able debug on a device with Xcode, and that could be a hindrance to development. But you could use a service like TestFlight to deploy builds to your iOS device. Ultimately I think this would work for trying out iOS/Mac development, and if you decide you like it after a few months you'd get a Mac for more permanent development.
wgx 15y ago
You'd need to import certificates every time you booted the VM (I assume) which would get old pretty quickly. Edit - looks like there is persistent on-VM storage, from the homepage: "In additional to local hard drive space..."
- w33ble 15y ago
  It's unclear if that local space is shared with others that might be logging in after you though. Really cool concept overall, but there's a good amount of uncertainty in there. There's a handful of gramatical errors too, so maybe they aren't really ready to launch?
  - aninteger 15y ago
    Why wouldn't it be like unix where each user has their stuff in their home directory. OSX already has this concept with user switching. This just allows you to login as multiple users on an OSX machine at the same time.
delinka 15y ago
"I'd like to become an electrician, but don't want to fork out the money to buy wire cutters or something similar." Yes, the analogy falls apart because you don't run proprietary software on wire-cutters. I understand that you might want to "try before you buy" with Mac and iOS dev, but I'm speaking to a slightly different issue. If you want to do a job, you either acquire the tools to do the job (wire cutters/a Mac) or you Work Harder rather than Working Smarter (bend the wire until it breaks/shoehorn OS X onto a Hackintosh.)
- theBobMcCormick 15y ago
  Wire cutters cost a couple bucks. A decent Mac you could use for development is a bit more expensive.
  - delinka 15y ago
    The cost is not relevant to my point. If you want to start a courier service in a fairly large area, motorized vehicles are a bit more expensive than a Mac. Can't afford the tools? Find another line of work.
    - Wilya 15y ago
      I don't see how the fact that I don't want to pay for a specific set of tools (a mac machine) prevents me from being interested in alternative tools.
      - delinka 15y ago
        In the case of iOS development, alternative tools have their own cost: effort to set up and maintain. Akin to how most operating systems besides Windows take additional effort to set up on that new Dell. If you can afford this extra effort (i.e. have the patience to work through the quirks), then you're welcome to it. Complaining about needing to obtain a Mac to gain the convenience of Apple's development environment is pointless.
delackner 15y ago
Then buy up the oldest Core 2 Duo mini you can find. Probably $200-$300. You can download Xcode for free. Used iPod touch 3rd gen maybe $100-$150 if you don't have an iPhone. Back when OS 10.1 came out I took a look at Cocoa documentation and some sample code, read up on Interface Builder, and felt intensely that this was the clean, user AND developer-friendly well-packaged Unix platform I had been dreaming of. I had to learn it, despite having a pure Unix background (Vim was my editor for many years at this point). I paid more than $3000 for a mac desktop. That was more money than I had spent on anything in my life. It also opened the doors to my next job, and my job after that. Invest in your future.
w1ntermute 15y ago
I just pirated a copy of OS X and installed it in a VM under my Linux/Windows dual boot (the VirtualBox VM file can be opened in either Linux or Windows). I don't know about laptops, but with a decent desktop (probably cost me ~$1000 to build it ~6 months ago with components from Newegg and Amazon, but $500 would be sufficient), you can virtualize OS X without any problems.

srainier 15y ago

That's a great question. I imagine you wouldn't be able debug on a device with Xcode, and that could be a hindrance to development. But you could use a service like TestFlight to deploy builds to your iOS device. Ultimately I think this would work for trying out iOS/Mac development, and if you decide you like it after a few months you'd get a Mac for more permanent development.

wgx 15y ago

You'd need to import certificates every time you booted the VM (I assume) which would get old pretty quickly. Edit - looks like there is persistent on-VM storage, from the homepage: "In additional to local hard drive space..."

w33ble 15y ago
It's unclear if that local space is shared with others that might be logging in after you though. Really cool concept overall, but there's a good amount of uncertainty in there. There's a handful of gramatical errors too, so maybe they aren't really ready to launch?
- aninteger 15y ago
  Why wouldn't it be like unix where each user has their stuff in their home directory. OSX already has this concept with user switching. This just allows you to login as multiple users on an OSX machine at the same time.

delinka 15y ago

"I'd like to become an electrician, but don't want to fork out the money to buy wire cutters or something similar." Yes, the analogy falls apart because you don't run proprietary software on wire-cutters. I understand that you might want to "try before you buy" with Mac and iOS dev, but I'm speaking to a slightly different issue. If you want to do a job, you either acquire the tools to do the job (wire cutters/a Mac) or you Work Harder rather than Working Smarter (bend the wire until it breaks/shoehorn OS X onto a Hackintosh.)

theBobMcCormick 15y ago
Wire cutters cost a couple bucks. A decent Mac you could use for development is a bit more expensive.
- delinka 15y ago
  The cost is not relevant to my point. If you want to start a courier service in a fairly large area, motorized vehicles are a bit more expensive than a Mac. Can't afford the tools? Find another line of work.
  - Wilya 15y ago
    I don't see how the fact that I don't want to pay for a specific set of tools (a mac machine) prevents me from being interested in alternative tools.
    - delinka 15y ago
      In the case of iOS development, alternative tools have their own cost: effort to set up and maintain. Akin to how most operating systems besides Windows take additional effort to set up on that new Dell. If you can afford this extra effort (i.e. have the patience to work through the quirks), then you're welcome to it. Complaining about needing to obtain a Mac to gain the convenience of Apple's development environment is pointless.

delackner 15y ago

Then buy up the oldest Core 2 Duo mini you can find. Probably $200-$300. You can download Xcode for free. Used iPod touch 3rd gen maybe $100-$150 if you don't have an iPhone. Back when OS 10.1 came out I took a look at Cocoa documentation and some sample code, read up on Interface Builder, and felt intensely that this was the clean, user AND developer-friendly well-packaged Unix platform I had been dreaming of. I had to learn it, despite having a pure Unix background (Vim was my editor for many years at this point). I paid more than $3000 for a mac desktop. That was more money than I had spent on anything in my life. It also opened the doors to my next job, and my job after that. Invest in your future.

w1ntermute 15y ago

I just pirated a copy of OS X and installed it in a VM under my Linux/Windows dual boot (the VirtualBox VM file can be opened in either Linux or Windows). I don't know about laptops, but with a decent desktop (probably cost me ~$1000 to build it ~6 months ago with components from Newegg and Amazon, but $500 would be sufficient), you can virtualize OS X without any problems.