So I am new here, after I have spent several nights trying to understand how can create my own apps. I hope I have found the right place to learn, to create and to enjoy the whole process :) It feels so, anyway... I got a question (could not find any related info so far): Since I dont have a Mac, I wonder if it is possible to run xCode on a virtual machine. Has anybody done this? Is there any alternative (besides buying a Mac)? Thank you! Yosi

You've landed at the right place. Buzztouch may not visually look as appealing to other app building sites, but it's by far the easiest to get complex stuff done and make a unique app. On the Xcode side, you will have to get a Mac, there's no negotiation about it. However, for the mean-time, you can develop on the Android platform, which is compatible with Windows. If you do decide to dish out the money for a Mac, you can develop on both iOS and Android. A five year old mac is better than a new PC! You can always look for a second hand Mac.

Welcome Yosi! I know it's been suggested several times to run OSX via parallels, but I don't know if anyone's tried it or not. I have a Mac, so I can't test the theory out. I know OSX tends to be very particular about tge hardware running it though. If you get it working, please let us know! As for making apps in general, you'll find everyone on here will tell you there is no better place to learn.

Hey Salamandra! Welcome! I'm pretty sure you're in the right place... There isn't much you can't do with Buzztouch, and with all the new plugins that keep being developed, it's pretty easy to stay on the cutting edge! Sorry about the Mac thing... I've 'heard' of folks doing it, but I've also 'heard' those folks finally giving up and getting real hardware because of poor performance and buggy operation. Hope you end up finding something that will work for you! Let us know if you have questions or anything! Cheers! -- Smug

Welcome! I did Android for a year and a half. I just recently went to a Mac.

Hi Yosi, Welcome to buzztouch! The Mac thing is indeed a bummer...I ended up buying a cheap Mac mini to get into the game. As others have said, it's pretty much non-negotiable. Even if you could get it to work, with decent performance and no hardware issue, running Xcode on anything but an Apple branded computer is against their Terms of Service. And Apple tends to play hardball with things like that. Here's a document that outlines everything you need to get going: https://www.buzztouch.com/files/howtos/Things_You_Need_Before_You_Start_Developing_Apps_v1.1.pdf Despite the Mac thing, you're still in the right place for developing apps! Very much looking forward to seeing what you come up with, and don't hesitate to give a shout if you need some help! Mark

Hey, Thank you all for you kind words and advice. Feel very excited about all this. Hope to share some progress soon :) All the best, Yosi

Hi Salamandra, Glad you found us! I see you already have one star. Excellent!

Hi Salamandra. Great place here! You will find a lot of people who want you to be successful.

Shalom Salamandra, seems that you have landed in the right place. There are many reasons for it, just read the webpage, most of all what I like here is that there are a few people always responding to questions. As far as Mac is concerned, I believe that in Israel there is enough brain potential to emulate Mac on a PC, I knew a some of your country pals who invented a lot of great things. It would make sense if: 1. you had a very powerful PC donated by someone else 2. you wanted to play around only, not to do serious stuff Then you can use software to emulate a MAC. But once you start developing, how would you know where is the bug that does not let you sleep? Is it in your development, is it a emulator problem, is it a PC problem or something else? Get a Mac Mini, mid 2011 release. You get a very powerful machine with excellent operating system, once you get used to it, you will never want to go back to what you had before. All you need then is a Developer Account and stamina. Cheers! Frogman

It's really not as simple as emulate Mac on PC. Apple keep a close record of what computer you used to publish your app. I've always had a mac, but until a year ago, I had never had an Intel one, so I couldn't publish. I used a friend's old MacBook Pro which had Intel and Apple emailed back stating that the MacBook Pro was old and was needing a replacement to continue with the development. They actually gave a 20% discount off any mac. I bought a refurb 27inch and that was great. But the fact is, Apple know what computer you're using, and if you're using a PC, your account will be banned from Apple.

Mac Minis are good choices, but you can't use a standard TV. The pixels on a TV are plain awful. If you're looking for a Mac, and you are prepared to pay decent money, get a MacBook Pro. Meanwhile, explore Android!

Thank you guys! Learning from all your advice... Definitely will start with Android, and get good reasons to buy a Mac ;) Happy Day to you all!

Hi again, 2 things I am not getting yet... 1. Cant make the Android Emulator to display what I do, so basically I am going blind... 2. How can I design a screen with an image, a couple of titles and a few buttons for example? Can the Custom HTML plugin include buttons that lead to an action? Thank you!

I would use Susan's Image Menu plugin. Are you sure you are updating the app, and are using the correct APIs and stuff. GoNorrhWest does excellent videos about this. To update the app, I think you press the 'menu' button and select update. I'm not sure, bit I think that's how it works.