On Wednesday I had the pleasure of attending the 2nd annual Application Developers Conference, put on by Scotia Capital. There was a big focus on BlackBerry at this event, considering that it was held in Toronto, and what I'd like to do here is report on the main highlights I took away from the event.

I applaud Gus Papageorgiou, the analyst at Scotia Capital who organized the event. Nobody was hosting an event for the financial community to learn about the investment opportunities in the mobile app market. He designed a great lineup of speakers and put on a fantastic conference. I sincerely appreciate him inviting me to attend.

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Hey developers, if you've been itching to get your hands on Cascades for BlackBerry 10, the day has come. The site is now live and you can check out some sample apps, explore new guides and tutorials, and download the native SDKs for your use. This is likely just the first of many releases we will see roll out over the next few days, and what an exiting start! Many developers have been waiting for Cascades, and we're excited to see what you all will create with it. Get Cascades for BlackBerry 10 now at the link below!

Cascases for BlackBerry 10 (Beta)

If you thought for just a second that RIM wasn’t serious about having the best tools for developers to create games and applications on the BlackBerry platform, then lets hope this post instills some confidence regarding their stance on mobile gaming.

Today RIM has announced an update to their open-source game development platform designed for indie developers called gameplay. Version 1.2 is being made available for download and brings along a few really cool features and additions.

New features in gameplay v1.2

• Newplatforms now supporting: BlackBerry Tablet OS 2.0 and BlackBerry 10 ready!, Apple iOS 5.1 for iPhone and iPad, Google
  Android 2.3+, Microsoft Windows 7, and Apple MacOSX
• New shader-based material system with built-in common shader library.
• New declarative scene binding.
• New declarative particle system.
• Improved physics system with rigid body dynamics and constraints.
• New character physics and ghost objects.
• Improved animation system supporting animated skeletal character animation.
• New declarative user interface system with support for declartive theming and ortho, and 3D form definition with built-in core control classes such as Button, Label, TextBox, Slider, CheckBox, RadioButton. Also includes Layout classes such as Absolute/Vertical and FlowLayout.
• New cross-platform new game project wizard scripts.
• New game developer guide.
• New game samples and tutorials.

Gameplay allows developers to build with cross-platform in mind. No longer should a developer have to commit to one platform when there is money to be made across all, and why should they have to choose? The gameplay platform is fully open-source and is available via the GitHub online community, allowing developers to use open-source assets in their games to build realistic 3D environments and gameplay.  It’s kind of interesting to see what direction RIM has planned with this development kit as they list gaming controllers from Wii, Xbox 360, and other Bluetooth controllers as being supported in future versions. To get the full details hit up the InsideBlackBerry blog or the BlackBerry GitHub development page.

Calling all devs! If you have a few minutes to spare, take a few clicks and help complete the App Developer Survey. The survey will be used to help understand the current mobile apps ecosystem as well as the thinking of mobile developers. You'll need to have developed mobile apps already as you'll be asked questions along the links of type of app and number of downloads. The survey only takes a few minutes and upon completion you'll be entered to win a BlackBerry PlayBook. So if you're a developer then spare a few minutes to help the community and chime in with your answers.

Take the App Developer Survey Now

There has been a lot of discussion lately following some tweets that Alec Saunders, RIM's VP of Developer Relations, posted regarding removal of the ability to side-load apps on the BlackBerry PlayBook. While some people were indifferent or thought it was a good idea to do away with the method, the majority of users that weighed in were not happy about the removal and in fact many were outraged. As we mentioned earlier on this afternoon's poll about side-loading and if it's removal would affect you, Alec has issued a statement regarding his tweets and the future of side-loading.

There’s been a lot of coverage this morning about tweets I posted regarding the side-loading of apps onto the BlackBerry® PlayBook™ tablet. Unfortunately, 140 characters doesn’t allow for nuance. I’d like to take this opportunity to set the record straight for our developer community.

We’re not getting rid of side-loading on the BlackBerry PlayBook OS or in BlackBerry 10.
Side-loading on our platform is changing in nature. Side-loading is a developer feature. It exists so that developers can load their apps onto their own devices to test. It’s there so developers can send a beta release to their testing community for review. It is definitely not there for some people to side load a pirated app.

What are we doing?
Starting with our next release of the BlackBerry PlayBook OS, we’re introducing a feature that will encrypt apps so they can only be run by the user who purchased the app.

What’s next?
We’re working with you, our developer community, to ensure you can still quickly and easily test your apps on real hardware. That’s one of the reasons we’re kicking off BlackBerry 10 Jam by giving each developer attendee a prototype device to start building on. I’ll be on-hand at the show to answer your questions – look forward to seeing you there.

Let’s Jam.

So there you have it folks, the official word from Alec, not constrained to 140 characters and a couple of tweets. Side-loading is not being taken away, but new features are being introduced with the next PlayBook OS update to help eliminate piracy. Sounds good to me!

Source: BlackBerry DevBlog

We're getting oh so much closer to some BlackBerry 10 love. It looks like any developer that attends BlackBerry 10 Jam in May will walk away with a sweet new toy dubbed the "BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpha". The limited edition prototype device is not a BlackBerry 10 smartphone or final hardware - RIM has made it clear that it is simply a device running a modified version of the PlayBook OS so developers can get their feet wet and start working on BlackBerry 10 apps. Maybe it will look like the BlackBerry Blade??

The purpose of this seeding is to give BlackBerry 10 Jam developer attendees a testing device to create excitement as they start to develop BlackBerry 10 applications alongside us.

To be clear, this is not a BlackBerry 10 device. It's the BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpha. It includes a modified version of the BlackBerry PlayBook OS which shows the path to the BlackBerry 10 OS, which has been customized to a phone. This device will allow developers to test the applications they are building with our BlackBerry 10 toolsets.

So if you're a developer and are interested in checking out the BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpha, you should most definitely check into attending BlackBerry Jam - it will be well worth the trip. Read more at the link below.

Read more about BlackBerry 10 Jam Tools

If you're a developer in New York or San Francisco and want to learn more about developing games for the BlackBerry PlayBook using the Native SDK - we have just the thing. RIM is offering developers a chance to win a spot at either of the BlackBerry PlayBook Native Gaming Development trainings. The New York session takes place April 9th-10th while the San Francisco event is March 28th-29th. All you need to do to apply is hit up the link below and let them know why you should claim one of the 12 available spots. The contest runs until 11:59pm March 20th, so get your entry in now! Be sure to check out the official terms and conditions, and if you do go we definitely want to hear all about it!

Enter for your chance to win

RIM has announced BlackBerry 10 Jam today, a conference for developers that will run together with BlackBerry World this May. The conference will be for BlackBerry developers and will hold instruction labs, information sessions and much more.

BlackBerry 10 Jam will be dedicated to developers and is a unique opportunity for developers to connect with BlackBerry platform experts and learn more about the benefits and business opportunities of the BlackBerry platform. The show will give developers insight on building applications in anticipation of the launch of the new BlackBerry 10 OS later this year.

BlackBerry 10 Jam will take place at the Hilton Bonnet Creek in Orlando Florida. More details and info can be found at blackberryjamconference.com. The BlackBerry 10 Jam conference is limited to developer attendees, but you will have an opportunity to speak with developers and meet with them as part of the BlackBerry World press program.

So if you're a current or would be BlackBerry developer, BlackBerry 10 Jam is definitely worth checking out. If you're looking to attend BlackBerry World this year, we have a contest on the way so stay tuned for details and your chance to win!

More on BlackBerry 10 Jam
More on BlackBerry World

Developers, if you're out at SXSW this weekend you're not going to want to miss the opportunity to hang out with BlackBerry experts at the BlackBerry Jam Sessions. You can have one-on-one meetings to get advice on making the most of developing for the BlackBerry platform, get your questions answered, and more. As a super sweet added bonus, if you pitch your best app ideas to the BlackBerry team, you'll walk away with a free BlackBerry PlayBook and the chance to share your idea with an expert panel. The sessions will be March 10th and 11th at 78 Rainey Street. Check out the agenda and find out more information at the link below.

Saturday, March 10

• 1pm: Doors Open
• 2-4pm: Meet the Experts and Pitch Your App
• 4-7pm: HTML5 Meetup (Sign up here)

Sunday, March 11

• 11am: Blogger Brunch (invitation only)
• 2-3pm: Meet the Experts and Pitch Your App
• 3-4pm: Expert Panel – One Pitch To Rule Them All
• 5-7pm: Open House

More information on the BlackBerry Jam Session at SXSWi

RIM held a cozy little developer panel at Mobile World Congress, where VP of Developer Relations, Alec Saunders, got folks from Zinio, Marmalade and Pacemaker to talk about precisely how awesome it was developing for BlackBerry. While most of the conversation was predictably positive, the Q&A with press was a bit more critical. I made sure to voice a few questions that were raised by you guys and fellow CB staffers. 

The biggest issue raised on the developer front, especially since support for Android apps launched in the BlackBerry PlayBook OS 2.0, is how RIM intends to attract, promote and retain quality developers. Supporting Android introduces a few problems; one that was brought up in the Q&A is piracy. There have apparently been many attempts to submit apps that have been blatantly stolen from other developers.  Luckily, RIM is committing to diligence on this front, and has already caught a couple of shady dealers. Alec said "We don't want the 'wild west' of the Android Market in App World"-- which is reassuring. 

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The BlackBerry Developer Relations team (aka Alex Kinsella and Victoria Berry) is hanging out in San Francisco this week at the Game Developers Conference, but they aren't there just for fun. Not only is BlackBerry a sponsor of the GDC again this year, they also have a booth set up (#1909) where they have a bunch of super cool gaming and platform experts on board to present some great sessions.

The formal sessions include:

• BlackBerry 10 – A Game Developers Platform – Wednesday March 7 @ 11am-12pm
• Introduction to the BlackBerry PlayBook Native SDK: Building a Sample Application – Wednesday March 7 @ 2-3pm
• Porting Games to BlackBerry PlayBook – Wednesday March 7 @ 3:30-4:30pm
• Social Gaming using BBM and Scoreloop – Thursday March 8 @ 10-11am
• Writing Web Games for BlackBerry 10 and PlayBook – Thursday March 8 @ 2:30-3:30pm
• Make Money on BlackBerry! – Thursday March 8 @ 4-5pm

Presenters include Volker Hirsch, Anders Jeppsson, Sean-Paul Taylor, Jonathan Feldstein, Ramgopal Rajagopalan, Dale Ducharme, Dimitry Tomilovskiy, Nick Landry; plus Developer Platform Evangelists Larry McDonough and Patrick Mollins.

Not only will they have the formal sessions listed above, there will also be some informal sessions held at the booth throughout the week. You will definitely want to make your way over to the booth or the sessions not only for the information they have to share, but also for the giveaways they have planned. We aren't sure what they have to give out but they always have something fun. If you hit up the booth, be sure to let us know what kind of awesome swag you come away with. For more information on the BlackBerry sessions at GDC, check out the link below. Thanks for the picture Alex!

Source: Inside BlackBerry Developer's Blog

Yesterday, we learned of RIM's offer to Android developers of a free BlackBerry PlayBook to anyone who submits an appby Feb. 13th but given the initial response to the app from other developers RIM has opened the offer up to everyone, no matter what type of app they wish to submit:

Wow BlackBerry Developer Community! You certainly weren’t shy about wanting in on the PlayBook offer for apps submitted to BlackBerry App World between now and February 13. And you know what? We are in the year of “Being Bold” and such an outpouring of interest from you should be rewarded!  We’re opening this offer to any app – WebWorks, Native, AIR, and Android.  Same deadline of February 13 applies.  There are some terms and conditions, but they’re there to protect you and your content. We look forward to your submissions!

That sums it up, get your app in there and claim your free BlackBerry PlayBook. Just remember, you're going to have to follow the guidelines for submission and you can hit the source link for those full details.

More info on BlackBerry Jam

BlackBerry DevCon Europe is just a month away and in preparation for the event, RIM is holding a webcast entitled The Future of Web Development. The webcast is open to all but is a must if you are looking to develop and create standalone web applications for the BlackBerry platform, be it for smartphones or tablets.

The webcast is more of a taster session for what will come at DevCon Europe, it looks at how to build HTML5 apps and monetizing them through BlackBerry App World.

When: Tuesday 17th January 2012
Time: 4:00pm GMT/5:00pm CET (11:00am EST)

Register now for The Future of Web Development Webcast 

 

With BlackBerry 7.1 on the horizon, BlackBerry developers will need to get their apps in order to ensure compatability across all devices and for that, they have the BlackBerry Java SDk to work with. Previously sitting at v7, the BlackBerry Java SDK has now been bumped up to v7.1 with a beta status and adds a few API's that developers will be making use of. Most notably:

• NFC Peer-to-Peer API, allowing applications to share files and other data through NFC technology initiated communication with Bluetooth® handover.
• FM radio API, which is designed to give applications the ability to manipulate FM tuner settings on BlackBerry smartphones with supporting hardware.
• Profiles API, which brings more Super App features to applications, allowing them to query current profile settings and adjust their own application behaviour accordingly; or, conversely, intelligently change the current profile to match the user’s current activities. 

Along with the Java SDK you can also download the BlackBerry Bold 9900 device simulator which runs on OS 7.1. That said; if you're wanting to get a look at OS 7.1 and aren't really a developer, the simulator is the best way for now. OS 7.1 is said to be reaching carriers by late November for testing with an expected roll out coming in December but who knows -- maybe we'll see some leaks before that... maybe.

Learn more at the BlackBerry Developers Blog

At this year's BlackBerry Developer Conference I had the opportunity to be one of the Community Speakers and host a session, so I chose to present on a topic that I have a lot of direct experience in - working with bloggers.

All said and done, my session COM32: Working with Bloggers and the Media to Promote Your App turned out to be a pretty solid success. It was the second most attended presentation of the week (after featured speaker Jane McGonigal's session) and the survey responses from those in attendance were overwhelmingly positive!

In general it's a pretty common sense subject, but it's one of those topics where the common sense doesn't necessarily jump out at you until you're made aware of it. If you're a developer, you know apps from the standpoint of a developer. This presentation gives you the perspective of how bloggers and the media will look at apps, which is a perspective you may not have thought too much about previously. 

Even though I approached this presentation based on my experience with CrackBerry.com and geared it towards BlackBerry Developers, there are a lot of good bits of info in here for app developers on all platforms. Even fans of CrackBerry who are not mobile developers might want to check out it - I kick things off with a bit of CrackBerry history and you'll pick up a bit of a glimpse of my perspective along the way. 

I hope you enjoy the session and find it useful. I had a lot of fun putting it together!! It also shows how far RIM has come on the social media side of things, letting a blogger give a session at DevCon. Kudos to RIM!