FAQ

Common
Distribution
- Why iTunes says: The application XXX was not installed on the iPhone "YYYY" because its resources have been modified.
HOWTO

Common

Are there any user created applications that using MotherApp?

Sure. Take a look at: http://www.motherapp.com/apps.

Can I get the source code?

No. We only pass you the executable file.

Does MotherApp supports cookies?

Yes.

Does MotherApp supports redirect?

Yes. It supports HTTP 302 Redirect.

Does Motherapp host the server side code for the users?

No. The user is responsible for the server side code. If you modify

your server such that it output follows the MotherApp HTML

specification, then with a click of a button we can create a native

iPhone app for you.

If I have an existing website, do I need to hire somebody to create HTML website supporting MotherApp for my product first?

Yes. But if you need help, you can talk to our team (contact@motherapp.com).

My tabbar is not working. Why?

for the "tabbar" widget, it is similar to the "frame" in html, so we cannot support "tabbar" widget combined with other contents.

this is the tedtalk example you can follow http://tedtalk.willflow.com/

it only contains a tabbar widget and point to 5 pages. And MotherApp load the 1st one by default.

What are the procedures getting the trial application?

1) You send us the link of MotherApp compatible website

2) We try to feedback you whether your website is fully compatible with

MotherApp until fully compatible

3) After making sure the website is compatible to MotherApp, we ask you give us the device id if generating iPhone app

4) Then we compiled and send you the trial app

What is the different between MotherApp and PhoneGap?

MotherApp: Use native user interface and native memory management

PhoneGap: Embed WebKit to the application

What is the window size, splash screen size, icon size?

The window size: 320x460

Both tab and header height: 44

Splash screen size: 320x460

Icon size: 57x57

When does MotherApp support other platforms?

Supported now:

Windows Mobile: 6.X. Should work well with the new HTC platforms.

iPhone: All iPhone and iPod touch.

Android: All Android versions.

Supported soon:

BlackBerry: Bold and Storm. (end of June 2009)

Symbian: Support the 2009 phones by the end of the year.

Which browsers do the simulator support?

Simulator is tested in <a href="http://www.apple.com/safari/" target="_blank">Apple Safari</a>. It should be workable in

<a href="http://www.google.com/chrome" target="_blank">Google Chrome</a> too.

Why the screen of Safari in iPhone so small?

You can add following line inside <head> tag to fix the viewport.

<meta id="viewport" name="viewport" content="width=320; initial-

scale=1.0; maximum-scale=1.0; user-scalable=0;" />

Why the simulator keep popping up new windows?

There are limitations in web browser. It does not allow to get the cross-domain content asynchronously.

So if the link is cross-domain page, it would popup a new window to show the content.

Would MotherApp supports AJAX?

No.

Distribution

Why iTunes says: The application XXX was not installed on the iPhone "YYYY" because its resources have been modified.

Please remove the Thumbs.db file inside XXX.app

HOWTO

How do I cache content in the application?

You can use the "wget" command (a free ultilty available from GNU available at http://www.gnu.org/software/wget) to grab all the content you want to cache, put it in a zip file (keeping the path information intact) and send to us. Then we can compile an offline version.

Assume your MotherApp-compatible website is http://abc.com/motherapp/, then the wget command is "wget -r -l0 http://abc.com/motherapp/".

How do I specify the splash screen and app icon?

The splash screen and icon are included in the app at compile time. So you need to email us the splash screen image and icon images.

How to deliver the app?

1) We upload for you

2) Use your own developer account to upload

We should be able to pass you the binary. You can then upload it

to App Store using your developer account.

How to do the coding logics in MotherApp?

There are two ways:

1. The app can talk to your server live. If the server's content is

updated, it will be reflected in the app.

2. You can cache all the content to the app. You can cache anything as

soon as it has a permanent link. Note that MotherApp relies on the

server for business logic. Therefore, if there is some logic in your

app (such as doing a search or adding a new item to a list), it must

be done through a connection to a server.

How to find the iPhone device ID

This is the instruction to get the UUID:

1) Connect the device to your Mac or PC.

2) On the "Summary" tab in iTunes, click the "Serial Number" label. You'll notice "Serial Number" changes to "Identifier".

3) Click on "Edit" in the menu at the top and select "Copy".

4) Now you can paste the device ID into an email.

How to install trial app on iPhone?

Steps to deploy to your device (must follow the sequence strictly):

1) open iTunes using PC or Mac

2) drag the .mobileprovision to the iTunes' App Tab

3) drag the .app folder to the iTunes' App Tab after extracting the .zip file

4) sync

5) you can try the app in your device.

How to launch the video player?

Use a simple link with the href set to a file that has an .mp4 (video) extension.

You can set the link style to "button". E.g. <a href="abc.mp4" wf_style="button">Play</a>