Michal Ždanský We bring you an interview with one of the Czech developers. Today's "guest" is the young programmer Petr Jankuj, who holds an interesting first. He was the first Czech developer to obtain a license to develop iPhone applications and thus experienced the App Store in its infancy.
Petr Jankuj is a 21-year-old native of Přerov, Moravia, who is currently studying in the 2nd year of the VŠCHT in Prague. He has been programming for the iPhone since 2008 and currently has a total of ten different applications in the App Store. Although Petr focuses primarily on the international market, for the Czech market he has developed a successful application for timetables in the Czech Republic - Connections. So in our interview, we asked about his story and other things around iOS and the App Store.
To begin with, tell us how you got into iOS programming and what your beginnings were like.
I started programming for the iPhone right in March 2008, when iPhone OS 2.0 was released, then still in beta. I've been following the iPhone ever since its launch in January 2007, and I've had it since November, so I've gotten used to it in that time. And I saw a big opportunity in the App Store because millions of people owned iPhones, and there wasn't going to be a lot of competition in that store to begin with.
You were probably the first Czech in the App Store. What application did you go to market with at the time and how successful was it?
Due to delays in obtaining a license, I didn't get into the App Store right away when it opened in July, but about 3 weeks later. At that time there were around 5 applications, which is very few compared to the current situation. In August 000, there was no Czech language for the iPhone and typing on the keyboard was not as ideal as it should have been. That's why I had the idea to create something like a voice recorder for notes. I named the app for licensing reasons Audio Notes.
Sales were absolutely crazy compared to now, even 3 weeks after launch. I didn't own an Apple computer back then, so after my first "paycheck" I immediately went to buy a new aluminum Macbook.
So what did you program your first application on?
I had an Intel Celeron desktop computer about 2 years old. Overall, it was an average to worse computer, but the important thing was that it ran a modified Mac OS. But it wasn't without its problems, I managed to install it only after about the fifteenth time and due to Mac OS updates I had to go through this several times. Those were beautiful times.
Anyway, such a success must have inspired you to do more work. How did the development move forward and how difficult was it then to establish yourself when the number of applications in the App Store grew exponentially?
At first I was surprised by how many job offers I was getting. People from the States, Norway, Britain and the like called. They really liked the app and there was a shortage of iPhone developers. I was in high school at the time, so I didn't dare go to work somewhere in the States. A few weeks after that I made a unit converter Units and the finance manager the following month Expenses. Of course, sales went down over time, but I had the advantage of being in the App Store from the beginning and I still benefit from it. There are only two ways to compensate for the decrease in sales - better marketing or increase the number of applications. I went the other way...
You also contributed to the Czech App Store with the great application Connections, what led you to make an application exclusively for the Czech market?
Until then (end of 2009), I did not focus on the Czech market at all. I didn't see a reason to make an application exclusively for the Czech Republic when the sales would be so small. But I started studying in Prague, and there a good application for public transport is simply necessary. I started creating it around Christmas 2009 and after a month it was ready. But it was just for my own use and I didn't release it for a few months because I saw licensing issues. But a competing application appeared on the market, which, in my opinion, was far worse. I wanted to show how such a public transport application should look like and that's why I'm after obtaining the company's approval Chaps he stated at the end of March Connections.
And how successful was the application in the small Czech market?
It's all about marketing, which manifests itself mainly with the increasing number of applications in the App Store. But I have to admit that I was pleasantly surprised by the sales. I also enjoyed and continue to enjoy the positive feedback on this app. Maybe it was a mistake that I didn't focus on the Czech market for a long time...
Do you intend to pay more attention to the Czech market in the future than you have so far?
That I would make an application only for the Czech Republic? Probably not. The main reason is that such an application would have to provide the services of a Czech company, and I don't really want to cooperate with the company.
How is the current market in the App Store actually? Is it possible to make a living just by developing applications?
I don't know how it would be for someone who would start developing sometime now, because starting to develop and offer an app now, when there are 300 more apps on offer, is much more complicated than it was years ago. But if you had a sufficient portfolio of applications whose sales fluctuations would be compensated, then it is definitely possible. However, there is the risk that you never know how much you will earn next month. But we are talking about average applications that an individual is able to create, not about companies. It's completely somewhere else there...
Speaking of the portfolio, could you tell our readers what app you're planning for the future?
I have a lot of broken apps over the years, but I don't have much time for them because I develop apps in my free time. And I also always have to consider whether I should focus on current applications that are on sale or start developing new ones. As for my broken apps, I'm currently developing one for the iPad, but I won't be more specific.
It is probably not easy to find time to develop applications while studying at university. How long does it take you to develop an app on average?
During the week at all, I deal with e-mails and do administrative things, such as editing the text in the App Store and watching competitors, or doing marketing work. So I only have the weekend left. But the advantage is that I don't have to program if I don't want to. Sometimes I don't program for weeks because I don't feel like it, sometimes for 8 hours straight.
There is a new phenomenon for iOS developers to port their apps to OS X. How do you feel about it? Are you also planning a port or a completely new app for Mac?
It's no wonder, from a programmer's point of view, both iOS and Mac OS are getting closer and closer with each version, so the differences between developing apps for Mac or iPhone are blurring. In that case, it is directly offered to make a version for Mac OS and offer it on the Mac App Store. But the problem is that greater functionality is expected from the Mac application than from the iPhone application. I am not currently planning any application for Mac OS.
Back to your apps. You currently have ten on your account. Which of them do you consider to be the most successful, which one is the most successful, and which one do you think deserves more attention than it has received so far?
I used to have more apps, but ten apps is too much for one developer. I consider the application that I will release in a few weeks to be the most successful. Unfortunately, I can't say more about her. It is probably the most successful Events, even though it doesn't have the most customers, because I never changed its price. I think it deserves more attention Audio Notes, but when I consider that since iOS 3.0 Apple offers its own note recorder, I have to admit that sales are good.
As a developer, what would you like to see in future versions of iOS and what do you think we will inevitably see in the next big update?
As a developer, I am completely satisfied, because iOS is beautiful even from the inside, and the developers at Apple have done a lot of work for us. I will give an example. A year ago I offered an app Travel Alarm, which should wake you up if you are traveling by train and reach an area (perhaps 15 km from Prague). The application was not usable under iOS 3.0, multitasking was missing and working with the map was appalling. It was not possible to simply move with a pin, they could not draw circles dynamically. As of iOS 4.0, I'd almost say they wanted someone to make an app like that, because they added all the stuff that I had to figure out the hard way and still sometimes didn't work. They also added multitasking.
So are you going to bring Travel Alarm back to the App Store with these iOS improvements?
I'm working on it, but it has to be done entirely from scratch. A lot of people tell me that they would use such an application, and it will definitely be better than its predecessor.
We will look forward to it. On behalf of the entire editorial team, thank you very much for the exhaustive interview and I wish you good luck with the development of other applications.
Thank you, too.
I was looking forward to some sales statistics. How many copies were sold on the Czech App Store and so on...
Great interview…
Hello, super interesting article.. Still, could you publish some more specific numbers? How many applications were sold, e.g. first, second, third month, six months, year. The most successful, the middle and the loser. If possible, thank you very much...
Yeah, the grass would hiss. I wonder, z is not long ago for older OS.