• TurboFuture»
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One of the really nice features we released in Tiggzi Mobile App Builder in April is the option to get iOS binary file for your app (similar to PhoneGap Build). Now you can create your mobile app in Tiggzi and instantly build the iOS binary file (or Android). As we use the standard iOS build process. Aug 31, 2012  This video shows the new database integration in Tiggzi app builder. You can now instanlty add database to your app and generate all REST services. Endoso vale vista chile. Tiggzi is a cloud-based mobile app builder. You can build HTML5 and hybrid apps entirely in the cloud. Nothing to install or download. Here is how the app is built.

Create a iPhone or Android App

If you are interested in creating a mobile application for Android, iPhone, the mobile web, blackbery, or even Windows mobile, but lack some of the technical skills to do so on your own there are many creator / builder tools available to quickly turn your idea into a functioning app that can be submitted to the app stores. The following list of WYSIWYG 'What You See Is What You Get' mobile app creators all will allow the average blogger to turn there blog or website into an app on the fly. Take a few minutes to read through the help sections and forums on these websites and you can have an application that provides more complex services for the users. If you are small business owner, in charge of an organization, or a running your social media marketing for a band / musician, than check out these tools and get a presence in the most popular mobile app stores where your customers likely will be happy that they can engage the brand directly through their phone.

Tiggzi - Create Fast and Easy Mobile Apps

Tiggzi Mobile App Creator

The Tiggzi mobile app creator tool is a cloud based builder for HTML5, JQuery Mobile, and Phone Gap Apps, that allows you to easily build application for Android iOS or just the mobile web in general. My experience with Tiggzi for building a simple application in Android replicating a website blog and a couple of data rich pages was surprisingly awesome. The drag and drop features are simple and the help section in Tiggzi was by far the best I have used with 'what you see is what you get' app builders. Each time i needed to look something up it appeared in my first search and the solutions and locations where each action is placed is intuitive, it just makes sense. Being non technical is OK if you are building with Tiggzi as it does not require coding knowledge to get from start to finish with a mobile application.

Tiggzi Pricing

• 1 Project with 3 screens for free
• 3 projects with 10 screens for $15 per month
• Unlimited projects, unlimited size and screens for $50 per month

Appmakr Mobile App Creator

The solution provided by Appmakr is great, there are many features that can be included in the application that may make it more advantageous for you to build the application of your dream with Appmakr. It is also a no coding required app builder that follows the simple WYSIWYG principles in development. A couple of the benefits to Appmakr is it is easy to add in analytics, push notifications, and is designed for monetizing the app from the get go. I have built an application using Appmakr as well, however the free version does have some drawbacks due to the fact that ads will be run on top of the application that provide you no revenue. Build applications for Apple iOS, Google Android, and Windows Mobile Phone to reach the maximum audience of smart phone users.

Appmakr Pricing

• Unlimited free apps, contain ads but can be sold on the app stores
• $79 per month per app subscription fee allows you 100% control of the application, access to premium features and the ability to monetize the app through advertising while providing it for free.

Biznessapps

So many different options out there. Check out Biznessapps for an interesting solution to quickly deploying a mobile app for iPhone of Android devices. This service has a great business model, never pay a dime until your app is actually published in the app stores. Design, build, and publisher in this easy to use 3 in 1 system for app development. They also have a great resource page set up with lots of content to help you navigate the adventure of developing and publishing your own mobile application.

Snappii App Creator

The Snappii mobile app creator tool has been used by over 4,000 business and is easy to to create a rich mobile app and deploy it easily regardless if it is for Android, iPhone, and iPad. Snappii is designed for non technical app builders so you can do it all by yourself, however they do have a full service development service available for customers that would prefer to have the benefits of a Snappii app build without all of the costs associated to building an app with independent app programmers. The app built is 100% yours and can be monetized by you in several different methods from ads to paid downloads and more. The basic pricing structure is simply $39 per month for a single platform and then $10 per platform that you want to add and additional charges to white label the app solution and have dashboard and notifications included.

Appy Pie

Drag and Drop, No Coding Required app Development

Appy pie makes making an app super simple. They have drag and drop no coding features for fast and easy development. It is possible to integrate with many of the most popular web services such as Sound Cloud, Open Table, and many more to make a rich app experience for the user.

The following features can be added to your AppyPie custom application: Push Notifications, Passbook, GPS, Social profile, Photo Gallery, Pocket Tools, Student Tools, Restaurant Tools, Blog, analytics, iBeacon and much more.

A very unique feature that separates this company from the other WYSIWIG App tools is the game builder feature designed to help you make your own hand held video game with ease.

Publish both on Apple iTunes and Google Play stores.

Favorite Builder?

Additional Mobile App Creators

As additional mobile application creators and tools come available I will list them here. If there is ones that I am missing please add them in the comments and I will make sure to get them added to the list.

1. Mobile Roadie is a slick mobile application creator tool that allows brands and individuals to build content rich mobile applications with many built in features. They have also incoporated a great library of mobile app API's to use for your app such as Instagram, facebook, foursquare, youtube, and many more. There is several analytic features and other elements that be used when developing your app. To simply use Mobile Roadie for creating a mobile website the service is free, a mobile app that can run on the iPhone or Android costs $99 a mont hand for creating iPad apps is $299 a month.

Tips and Tricks for Building an Easy Application

If you have an existing website then extending that to the appstores for iPhone and Android is simple, however there are a few requirements and details you will need to take care of in orderto get the apps listed.

• iPhone will require going through their developer registration process which does cost $99 and takes a few days to a week or two to get approved.
• Android can be down very quickly and has a low $25 developer license
• Take screen shots of the app in the creator tools using a chrome extension tool like Annotate and then resize the images according to the app store specs for including screenshots.
• Set up a simple email for support with your apps.
• Utilize sites like fiverr.com if you are having difficulty with any of these app creators or getting images for the requirements.
• Always refer to the forums and help sections, as a non technical individual I have found that there is a lot of help available and most searches for issues I have encountered have been easy to find through simple web searches and searches in the online help desk / FAQ.
• For you first version just replicate your blog and go through the whole process of getting your application live on the store. You will likely encounter issues along the way with just the procedures and so learn those and get a simple app live before making a second version or newer more complex application.

There are many other application builders as well as tools that are designed for technical individuals to create apps more efficiently. Do your research and make sure that you pick the right tool with the pricing model that you can afford and feel comfortable with.
Have fun making and publishing your own mobile apps.

No Coding Required

This article is accurate and true to the best of the author’s knowledge. Content is for informational or entertainment purposes only and does not substitute for personal counsel or professional advice in business, financial, legal, or technical matters.

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• I was looking for info like this.. then started on another project!

  BTW one Q: is it really worth turning a website into an app when the user can find the site on the web anyway?

• I am search for a web app / mobile website builder in which my customers can self design to white label and not pay per site per month.

  Any suggestions?

 

It's been awhile since I've had to sit down and actually build something for the web. When I started developing websites way back in 1995 there really were not a lot of choices other than a text editor and some good old fashion trial and error. I still remember the day I received my first copy of FrontPage, not the Microsoft version but the Vermeer Technologies version pre-acquisition. Later, as my company grew I began to do less and less in terms of actual development work until finally the company was acquired. Now in my new role, I'm finally getting the opportunity to explore my developer roots and explore some of the latest approaches to creating web and mobile applications.

A lot has changed since 1995, literally anyone with almost no technical capabilities can crank out a web or mobile app with ease. So I thought I'd take the opportunity to share some of the more interesting App development platforms I've discovered recently.

Microsoft version but the Vermeer Technologies version pre-acquisition. Later, as my company grew I began to do less and less in terms of actual development work until finally the company was acquired. Now in my new role, I'm finally getting the opportunity to explore my developer roots and explore some of the latest approaches to creating web and mobile applications.

A lot has changed since 1995, literally anyone with almost no technical capabilities can crank out a web or mobile app with ease. So I thought I'd take the opportunity to share some of the more interesting App development platforms I've discovered recently.

Knack is an interesting platform. Where many companies in the data space focus on so called 'Big Data' solutions, Knack has created what can be best described as a cross between Filemaker Pro and Caspio for little data. They describe themselves as a way to build simple web apps. The DIY tool is focused on building web apps that work with your data. The platform makes including functionality like search, custom forms and data display a breeze. The cloud service can be easily integrated in your website via a Javascript or web API.

Although the company is very new, it has already managed to attract a dedicated customer base including a variety of up-starts like transportation management platformMileLogic.com who are using the plaform to manage & track fleet assets, truck mileage, jobs dispatching, and taxes. Another firm using the plaform is Prontomarketing.com who uses it for creating custom reports and pivot table searches. The company says that 'this sort of thing just isn't possible by using Google Spreadsheet formulas. With Knack they are finding all sorts of new ways to explore and share our data.' Sample debut script for emcee.

Another very cool platform is Appery.io formerly called Tiggzi. The platfrom is described as a 'cloud-based HTML5, jQuery Mobile and Hybrid Mobile App Builder.' It's very easy to use and builds real cross platform HTML5 applications using jQuery Mobile. It supports Android, iOS and Windows Phone using integrated Apache Cordova/PhoneGap output. As the builder is running in the cloud, there is nothing to install or download so it’s very easy to build your app using a powerful drag and drop visual builder tool. The company says 'a mobile UI is not very useful without data so Appery.io connects to any REST API that can be easily used in your app. You can even test the REST API before using it on the page and automatically define the service response structure. This makes it very fast to try any new service.'

If you are less programmer and more designer then you'll love Codiqa. Similar to Tiggzi, but less developer focused, Codiqa's drag-and-drop interface allows for fast and easy mobile prototype building, with a Preview mode to test your prototype. The cloud based platform builds your App with 100% HTML5 components. Their pitch is you can take your idea, prototype it, and output real, usable code. No need to code all over again after making your prototype. No coding necessary.

By far the simplest mobile application builder I've found is from Conduit. Their pitch is pretty simple, 'build stunning app designs quick and easy — no coding, one click and it's ready!' I've tried the application for a Virtustream Mobile App and I was literally able to develop an App for both iOS and Android in a matter of minutes. The tool includes a variety of components such as social feed, RSS, events, e-commerce, notifications and more. They will even submit your App to the various App Stores for you. If you're non-technical. This is the solution for you.

Kinvey is probably the most technical of the various cloud based app development platforms I looked at. But if you don't mind a little programming, it's probably the most powerful too. The company describes itself as 'taking the hassle out of building and operating mobile backends' and like the others listed it comes through on its promise. Kinvey's value proposition is to 'eliminate your risk by reducing backend development time from weeks to hours, allowing you to prototype faster and with less effort. No servers to spin up and manage, no “API spaghetti” to detangle, no tedious backend code (e.g., database, user / file management) to write. And you never have to pay unless your app is successful.' Major companies like Johnson & Johnson and startups like Fetchnotes have built apps on Kinvey. It's a very nice platform and worth a closer look.

What's a modern App without modern analytics, this is where Keen IO comes into play. A rather new startup, the company provides a quick and easy way to embed powerful charting capabilities into your App. The pitch 'build your analytics features in minutes. Use our API to collect, analyze, and visualize your data. We do the hard stuff so you can do the fun stuff.' Its marque customers includes another cool start-up Kickfolio which uses Keen IO to track user sessions and display engagement graphs for every app on their platform.

While I'm on the topic of Kickfolio, they are also worth a look. Once you are done building your App. Kickfolio enables you to easily embed your iOS Apps anywhere, promote your apps, discover new users & engage your audience with an interactive app demos. It's a very cool service.

A few other platforms worth looking at.

• Urban Airship - Improve customer engagement with push notifications, location-based marketing, and analytics.
• Phonegap - Easily create apps using the web technologies you know and love: HTML, CSS, and JavaScript (based on Cordova, see below)
• Apache Cordova - Apache Cordova is a platform for building native mobile applications using HTML, CSS and JavaScript
• Canvas - Canvas makes it easy to publish data collection apps on wireless Smartphones
• weejot - Make mobile apps in minutes.
• Apigee - the leading API platform for enterprises and developers.
• Appcelerator - Create & Manage Native Mobile Apps Across Devices
• jQuery Mobile - Touch-Optimized Web Framework for Smartphones & Tablets

There are literally hundreds of App building tools out there. These are just a few of the ones I've tried. If you have your own favorites, add them to the comment area below.

Find Reuven on Twitter @rUv Linkedin Google+ Facebook Blog rUv.net

• cloudbase.io - Mobile Cloud Database service
• ratchet - Prototype iPhone apps with simple HTML, CSS, and JS components.