Gabe Jacobs Blog

Writing iPhone apps is a hard thing to do, but coming up with idea for apps can be very hard too. So, if any of you readers have ideas for iPhone apps and would like to see them made, feel free to relay them to me!

I love new ideas for iPhone apps. They keep me active and they keep me thinking. If the idea is possible, I’ll try to make it
Please though, try to keep it simple, I am no genius.

GabeJacobsProductions.com

Gabe Jacobs Productions is the name of my company that produces iPhone applications. I figured it was necessary for it to have its own site instead of having it be fused with my blog. These sites will function as separate entities, one as a blog and the other as a place to display my portfolio of iPhone applications.

Check it out.

I am more busy than ever these days. I am really hooked on iPhone programming and I school work can be overwhelming sometimes. The time I had free used to be used for writing on this blog, now it is used to write in X-Code.

This somewhat saddens me because I love writing on this blog. I love expressing my thoughts, bringing new ideas into the work. Now, I really have no time to do that. At the same time… I am doing another thing I love, making iPhone apps.

See, iPhone apps are fun to make because the outcome can be outstanding. The actual production of the app is not so exciting, but once the app is in the app store, well that is another story. It’s extremely exciting to see how well an app is doing and how much money you’re making. It’s not everyday that you can do something fun from your computer and make money for doing it. There’s another difference between iPhone programing and blogging. I didn’t get paid when I blogged, it was simply for my own benefit.

After not posting for about 2 weeks, I feel that I am more than over due for a post. In a way, I feel like I have let my readers down. A blog is there for a reason, so that the blogger can blog on it! If it just sits there, collecting dust, there’s no reason for it. That’s why I am going to TRY my best to post a little more.

Hopefully I’ll get around 2 posts a week. I have 2 apps being reviewed in the App Store, so I do not feel rushed to start coding another one. This will free up some time for some good, quality posts that I hope you guys will like.

As most of you know, Apple is holding a special media event on Tuesday in which they will introduce their new notebook product line for this upcoming holidays. This includes new MacBooks, new MacBook Pros and possibly (no rumors yet), new MacBook Airs. I am particularly excited about the new MacBook Pros since I am looking to upgrade from my old MacBook.

Due to the rumors, I believe the new MacBook Pro will end up looking like a fat MacBook Air. All aluminum, black keyboard, rounded edges, circular iSight and best of all… some thickness. Think about it. The MacBook Air looks absolutely beautiful, but it really does not have the power to be worth the money. Also, don’t you just wish sometimes it was just a little bit chunkier? Maybe that is just my opinion, but I cannot use a computer that light and skinny. I need something firm and sturdy, just like the new MacBook Pro is going to be.

While this photo, rumored photo of the new MacBook Pro has been taunted as fake, it is exactly how I wish the new MacBook Pro will look. To me, this looks like the perfect size and the perfect shape. Except for the black outline over the screen, you have to say it does look just like a fat MacBook Air.

These two photos are rumored to be REAL photos of the base of the new MacBook Pro. If you compare these photos too the first photo up top, they somewhat match. They all show slightly more rounded edges, a flat keyboard like on the MacBooks and a cut out on top for the attached screen.

Even if the photo up top is fake, that doesn’t mean it is the wrong way to go. THIS IS HOW APPLE SHOULD MAKE IT. This is the new MacBook Pro should be and I will be slightly disappointed in Apple if it is not.

It has only been a few months since I have been developing for the iPhone and my 4th application has already been released into the App Store. “Got Riddles?” (supposed to be a play off “Got Milk?”) does exactly what it sounds like it does. It gives you over a hundred great riddles, brain teasers and educational problems. I don’t know about you, but I love riddles. I always love when people give me hard riddles to try to figure out.

If your like me, you’ll love this application. Here is a just a sample of the kinds of great puzzles you will get if you buy this app.

I bet you thought there was no way to do it without breaking the bottle…

Yes. Kroll (App Store Link) is the best game I have ever played on a mobile device. This game… is freaking incredible. To me this feels like a PS1/PS2 game. Kroll has just shown the world that the iPhone is the best mobile gaming device.

TouchArcade gives a good summary of the gameplay in Kroll:

In Kroll you play the hero in a side-scrolling 3D environment. The objective of the game is to defeat your enemies across 3 stages to “learn the secret behind the legend of Kroll”. The gameplay, however, is quite simple. Virtual buttons on to the left and right of the screen allow you to move forward, quick swing and hard swing in either direction. There is no jumping. You are either moving your character forward/backward or swinging at your enemies. There is a special attack that can be invoked at times by shaking your iPhone.

Kroll does not feel like a mobile game to me. The real time strategy really is what makes the game amazing. I have to figure out exactly how to kill a certain guy and come up with a strategy that works best. This is what good games do. Good games make you think, they have good graphics, and they are challenging. Kroll meets all of these necessities.

Kroll is unbelievable. Buy it.