Apple Discusses iPhone & iPod Touch Software Development Kit (SDK)
30 April, 2010
Written by Dexter Han
Beijing RayooTech Co., Ltd.
A little late for Apple to creat a beta version of its promised Software Development Kit (SDK) for the iPhone and iPod Touch product line that will allow those third-party developers to develop application and utility programs for iPhone and iPod Touch.
So, I was wondering what exactly SDK is? A software development kit (SDK or "devkit") is typically a set of development tools that allows for the creation of applications for a certain software package, software framework, hardware platform, computer system, video game console, operating system, or similar platform.
While I was looking forward to this announcement to see what degree will Apple "open" to iPhone, I wasn't expecting that Apple would use the beta release of iPhone SDK to directly appeal Enterprise applications. But the truth is, judging by what Apple posted on apple.com about the SDK, the enterprise thrust for iPhone SDK is the primary message that Apple wants to impart.
Announcement made that iPhone Enterprise Beta Program is a unique opportunity for IT departments to try iPhone 2.0 software before the general release. If your company is willing to participate, you'll get a chance to test new iPhone enterprise features within your corporate environment, and provide Apple with valuable feedback. Do you like it ?
To sum it up, this is a very exciting news, and to me, it bodes very well for the overall prospects of iPhone. Apple has solved one major issue to iPhone when it released the new model last month - a 16 GB iPhone (previously 4 GB / 8 GB), and a 32 GB iPod Touch (previously 8 GB / 16 GB). The memory upgrade for iPhone would have been needed for "High-Power" users to be able to keep all of their email on-device and readily available.
The new capabilities made possible by the SDK are especially compelling when considering the stated plan for "3G" version of iPhone in 2008 that will use the much faster HSPA (High Speed Packet Access, over Global System for Mobile - GSM) data networks, especially the AT&T's HSPA network in America.
Now if Apple would only fix some nagging, fundamental issues to the iPhone platform, like not being allowed to use an (Apple!) Bluetooth external keyboard with an iPhone; a good way to transfer and store files like documents and PDFs on the iPhone without being posted and stored as an email; and being able to "local-sync" (the SDK partially fixed the lack of "global-sync") the iPhone with one or more Mac desktops / laptops through iPhone's wireless connectivity.
[ All rights reserved, reprint, please specify source and the author. Thank You.
