I have an already published iphone app, call it ABCiOS1.5 done a year ago in BT 1.5 I recently created an Android version, in 2.0, call it ABCAndroid2.0. I need to make updates to ABCiOS1.5 and update it on the app store but I'm hearing that 1.5 is no longer supported in ios6. Would a good starting point be to create ABCiOS2.0, copy the config file from ABCAndroid2.0 and paste it into the config for ABCiOS2.0 I know I'll then have to go make some changes to things like ion sizes and list heights, etc., but if this works it would save me a lot of typing -- I have about 120 screens. Steve

I think what you are asking is possible, but there will probably be a few issues. First you won't be able to make changes to the ABCiOS2.0 from the control panel the app will have to be OFFLINE or any changes you make to the config data will be overwritten from the online data. I think there is a way to use the JSON Snippet Keeper plugin to copy JSON data from one app and use it in another. I would look further into this if you want to reuse the same data. The other option although a little more time consuming would be to open up two internet browsers. One with the ABCiOS2.0 control panel and the other with the ABCAndroid2.0 control panel and recreate all of the screens and settings using copy and paste from one browser to the other. I have done this and you will probably be surprised how fast you can recreate an app by doing this. The other advantage to this is you can take advantage of some of the really cool iOS only plugs that are available in the plugin market. That's my take on it maybe someone else has a better solution.

ABCiOS 1.5 was published offline, though ABCAndroid2.0 was put online. I would think if before I copied the ABCAndroid config file if I changed ABCAndroid to be an offline app and take out the appropriate links, then all should be OK, right? Afterward, I can then go back to ABCAndroid2.0 and put back the online links if I feel like it then, right?

You can make the config file offline in the iOS/Xcode project files. That will take the iOS app offline. All of the changes you want to make to the iOS app will have to be done directly to the JSON data in the BT_Config.txt file within the project. If you take the ABCAndroid2.0 file offline in the control panel any one with that app installed that updates the configuration file will end up taking the ABCAndroid2.0 app offline permanently. The only way to get those devices/ABCAndroid2.0 apps back online will be with an app update to the Google Play Store with the online config data restored in the BT_Config.txt. Once an app goes offline it stops checking the online control panel forever or until an app update is published.

I really didn't want the Android app online anyway since I don't really update it that much. So to summarize, it seems that the easiest thing to do would be to take ABCAndroid 2.0 offline via the control panel, then copy the config file, create a new ABCIos2.0 file and then copy the ABCAndroid2 config file into it. ABCAndroid will then be offline which is OK and I'll probably make ABCIOS offline also. THis would copy all the menus and then I'd just have to tweak some of the setting for ios devices. Correct?

If you are ok with the ABCAndroid2.0 app being offline then this should work. However, there are a couple of things to keep in mind. I'm not 100% sure about this so you might want to test it. If you take the app offline and make changes to the settings in the control panel when the app refreshes its data and takes itself offline it might also download those other changes at the same time. This could leave your app with undesired results and no way to fix it. As an example if you change a row background color in the control panel to look better on iOS if the Android app has not refreshed yet when it does it is probably going to take itself offline as well as get the new background color. If the Android app was published after Buzztouch implemented the Live Mode and Design Mode you can probably work around this problem. I would recommend taking the ABCAndroid2.0 app offline and then publish those changes to Live mode. Then work on the iOS settings in design mode and when you are ready take the iOS BT_Config.txt file offline manually. This would leave you with a Live configuration with the Android settings and a Design mode settings with the iOS settings. You would never be able to push the design mode setting live again without messing up Android, but that should work.

But if I delete the Report to Cloud URL and Config data URL in the Android app, hit save for both changes, then wouldn't copying its config file after that to the IOS app make it so that any changes to the ios app would not affect the android app? I could then, though it's cumbersome, copy and past the new config changes i make to the ios app to Xcode to test it out.

How do you plan on making the changes to the iOS app? in the ABCAndroid2.0 control panel or directly in the BT_Config.txt's JSON data?

In the iOS control panel, created when first creating ABCios2. I would copy the android config file (after deleting the URLs mentioned above) after creating the ios2 app and then make all changes to the ios app as always, through its control panel. I would then test it out on the real devices by copying the ios config file and pasting it into Xcode before running.

I'm not sure that you can just copy and paste a BT_Config file from one app to another and make changes in the new apps control panel. I think the screen IDs will still be linked to the Android app and any changes you make in the ABCiOS2.0 control panel will not show up because the BT_Config JSON data is not connected to it. I think this is where the JSON Snippet Keeper plugin would come in handy. You can use that plugin to port JSON data from one app to another and it gives you a way to actually connect the screens in ABCiOS2.0 control panel to JSON data from another app. I recommend watching this video. http://idevdepot.com/video-json-snippet-keeper-plugin-introduction/ It might help all of this make more sense.

I see what you mean, sigh. I may just have to do as you suggested with the two windows side by side though I'll look into the plugin. BTW, was my original comment correct, that is all 1.5 apps can not be updated anymore to ios6?

Also, if someone could come up with a plug in that could make a android into an ios app and visa versa, i'd but that in an instant.

I don't know for sure about that. I know that I still have a couple of v1.5 iOs apps in the app store and they still work. The v2.0 apps support iPhone 5 screen resolutions and just overall seem to work a lot better than the v1.5 apps. You can probably still use a v1.5 app, but in the long run it might become a problem. Also, I think Buzztouch has dropped support for v1.5 and for sure there will not be any updated features added to v1.5 apps.