The new security features on the 3.0 upgrade has broken our dialer programs. We see no way to work around it, and unfortunately you did not set it up like the core location function whereby it asks twice and then stops.
We have gotten dozens of complaints, as people feel truly cheated by this new issue. It really does render the apps useless, as what is the point of have a visual tap dialer when Apple decides to add an additional tap to the sequence?
Other dialer programs seem to have the same problem. Will there ever be a fix that approved developers can actually offer their application without this obnoxious function popping up, or a system-wide solution similar to the two-time confirmation used by core location?
Naturally panic kicks in when your iPhone locks up or an application crashes ... take a deep breath... From time to time, you may need to give your phone a HARD BOOT. This works the same way as when you reboot your computer, in that gets rid of all the confusing bits of data floating around.
Try a hard boot by doing the following:
Press and hold the small button on the top of the phone until the phone turns off.
Then restart the phone the same way.
If you want more detailed help with a problem you are having with your iPhone, be sure to check out the Apple Trouble Shooting Assistant.
Other iPhone App Developers often hit me up for app marketing tips. I like helping others, but truthfully, one of our services is apps promotion, so it is hard to help without giving away the farm. I have spent months gathering venues, sources, making contacts, building lists... thus I am not overly eager to share. Can anyone blame me? Nevertheless, here are some good places to start:
PurpleTalk Ad Sharing - I haven't tried this one, but listing it in hopes of some input! ;-)
Some other tips for those that have just got rolling ...
Get your arsenal together before you start trawling the web. You are going to want to dump the following into one marketing folder: A short description of your app & a long description too; multiple screen shots; your iTunes icon; all of your contact info and links for copying and pasting; and a video of your app.
Then you are going to want to go on a hunt for app listing sites. (My list is up to over 60 of them and growing all the time.) From there, you are going to want to post, post, post, post, post. Ask for reviews, and rub elbows as much as possible.
Look into fan pages, blogs, and other avenues of promotion... use social media anywhere and everywhere you can. After that, you might want to hunt down other app devs, they are really good at retweeting apps for each other. Just ask. Be sure to retweet for them without being asked! Back scratching is imperative!
Naturally, there is much more to it, but the bottom line is to just commit to a roll your own marketing schedule every single day, or just pay someone else to handle it for you. Hint! Hint! LOL!
Inius, Inc. - The parent company of PictureDialer is now offering Apps Development, Marketing & Promotional Services. Please visit our corporate site: http://services.inius.com
Monday, January 12, 2009
We took 8th in the Best Ever App Awards in the Free and Ad Supported Category.
Hmmm.... 8th. I guess we could be upset about that.
No way! How many free and ad support apps are there on iTunes?
I think Kane, Justin, and I will take that as a true honor!
Every since Apple released their 2.2 firmware, iPhone owners have been complaining about their apps crashing. At first I thought it was just our app, PictureDialer, that had gone nuts, however as it turns out, App Developers everywhere are moaning over the upgrade.
Sadly, PictureDialer went from a 4.5 star rating to a 3 in a matter of a day. Why? Because people assume it is the app, and rarely consider their new firmware upgrade to be the culprit. Apple wouldn't screw up, right? Meanwhile all the app development gurus of the world are are hacking away at code to stop the stars from falling away!
So don't go shooting stars, and cursing at your apps! There are some things you can try to relieve the pain:
Reboot Your iPhone
Try a hard boot by doing the following:
Press and hold the small button on the top of the phone until the phone turns off.
Then restart the phone the same way.
This works the same way as when you reboot your computer, in that gets rid of all the confusing bits of data floating around.
Be a Space Cadet
Give your iPhone plenty of breathing room. Make sure you have at least 10% of your total space free to give you operating system the ability to work properly. If you don't have the free space, stop being an App Hoarder, and delete some junk!
Back to Factory!
Try restoring your phone back to the original settings.
Warning - this will clear all your contacts, calendar, text messages, notes, call history, and MORE! First, be sure to back up your data! If you don't know how to do that, shame on you! No, seriously, it is okay, go here and learn how before you restore your iPhone. (Hint: Check out your Info tab on iTunes.)Restore Instructions:
Connect your phone to the computer, and go to iTunes.
Go to Devices and click the Restore button in the Summary Tab.
Remove and Reinstall the Buggy App This approach has worked for quite a few of our PictureDialer users, and could work for your cranky apps! It is worth a try, especially if you are being driven to distraction by the sudden bugginess of your phone.
Instructions for Removal/Reinstall:
Delete the application off your iPhone. (For you newbie iPhone users, hold your finger down on the app until it starts to wiggle, and X icon will show up, and you can delete it by pressing it. Simply tap the phone to make all the Xs go away.
Connect to iTunes and delete the app off your Application Library.
Do a fresh install of your app(s).
Flush it! This is a last resort, because you absolutely lose a ton of data. If you like your settings and having your recent call list, you might want to avoid this one all together! Nevertheless, you might be desperate, so here goes:
Go to Settings on your iPhone.
Select General, then choose Reset, the Erase all Content and Settings. Ouch! I know!
Note: You might want to go into your Preference in iTunes delete those settings as well. Why? Because it might be all those confusing data bits I mentioned earlier.
Well, that is all I have in my bag of tricks for now! Super-Developer-Guru-Dude, AKA Kane, has submitted a new release for PictureDialer. We are waiting for Apple to approve and upload it to iTunes. If you want to be informed of when the release is live, please sign up on our site to get updates! And as always, if you need help, holler!
Sunday, November 30, 2008
PictureDialer had to be fixed b/c iPhone's 2.2 upgrade was an app breaker! Submitted & waiting for iTunes to release.
Dear Apple:
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