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For those Answering, ‘Yes’, here is a simple option available now.<\/b><\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n
For those answering\u201a ‘No’, and find programming in objective C simple, this can just be a more simpler option;<\/p>\n
Ansca Mobile, a start-up founded by engineers with experience at Adobe and Apple released the Corona 1.0 Software Development Kit (SDK), a tool for rapid iPhone application development.<\/p>\n
The Corona SDK has been in limited beta testing for several months. It aims to provide a simpler way to iPhone development, the sort of developers who use Flash today instead of using Objective C which is the primary language Apple uses for software development.<\/p>\n
Available for $99 per year and as a free 30-day trial, Corona is set to replace somewhat complex Objective C with a lightweight, reflective, imperative, scripting and functional programming language named LUA.<\/p>\n
Lua is widely used in the video game industry. Apart from games, Lua has been used in many applications, both commercial and non-commercial.<\/p>\n
Like Flash, Corona is an effective tool for creating 2D games and graphically-oriented apps.<\/p>\n
Corona does not charge any per-app royalty or impose any branding requirement.<\/p>\n
Corona currently facilitates iPhone app creation, but Ansca says that support for other smart phone platforms is in the works.<\/p>\n
Programming in Corona is done using the Lua language, which is used extensively in Adobe’s Photoshop Lightroom software, in embedded systems, and for scripting in games.<\/p>\n
Lua is not only relatively easy to learn but it’s also lightweight. According to the company, the minimum size of an iPhone app built with Corona is 300 KB, compared to 8 MB for Adobe’s Flash CS5 beta (which can generate iPhone app builds from Flash content) and 10 MB for Unity 3D iPhone Basic.<\/p>\n
This matters because apps greater than 10 MB cannot be distributed via the iPhone’s built-in App Store; they can only be made available through the iTunes App Store. Apps under 10 MB thus have greater distribution potential.<\/p>\n
Corona still has few limitations: Native iPhone Controls and in-app purchase support have yet to be implemented. It is nonetheless a fast, capable development tool that has already helped a handful of apps get into Apple’s iTunes App Store.<\/p>\n
Considering the time it would save for iPhone application Development, shifting to Corona might just be the need of hour.<\/p>\n
So, be ready to Learn LUA!<\/p>\n