After getting my iPhone stolen several times, i thought a utility app that would only allow a user to power off the iPhone if he/she has passed the authorization screen (keycode/fingerprint). This would leave a good amount of time for the owner to be able and track their phone and would prevent thiefs from turning it off so findmyiphone won't work.
I asked on the ios developer forums but no answer. I know that it will most likely not get authorized in the appstore (at least for now), but would still love the functionality on my phone and hopefully others.
Thanks for the help!
Possibly with a jailbreak. But i'm pretty sure that the api's aren't exposed, and the functionality would not be allowed.
No it is impossible, period!
There is only one button in the device and you want to disable it, come on, and how do you feel if you get an app you can not dismiss it?
Related
I need to create and App that will run in the background and will monitor the user's behavior in term of applications installed, opened and deleted.
i.e Application will save the information in the database that at what time user has installed/opened/deleted an application in iphone.
I wonder if its possible and Apple will allow this??
I tried to google on it but did not get anything, i know if its possible then it would be possible by multiasking only??
Can any one please help me on the same.
Brn
Not possible. Your app can only run when the user chooses to (except for a limited sub-set of tasks like VoIP, etc).
Your app can know nothing about other apps.
iOS apps are sandboxed. I wouldn't say impossible but certainly not allowed. You'd have to find a security hole to give you root access first. Oh, and notify us when you do ;).
Edit:
Maybe it wasn't clear in my post but I was at least half joking. Not sure why you want to do what you want to do. I can imagine the following scenarios:
1) Your company wants to monitor everything their users do on their phones. In that case I would either
a) lock them down and only allow app installation through a company portal (enterprise distribution is possible in iOS) OR
b) forget about iOS alltogether. Blackberry would probably be closer to what you want, although I don't really have experience with that platform. Also, its future is not sure.
2) You're trying to do something illegitimate. Because of iOS's locked down nature it won't be easy. See how few successful attacks there have been in the last years - and that's for a highly successful platform where an attack could be high paying both in terms of money and reputation.
We are going to create a life saving app. This app is made for those critical and emergency conditions when someone fall ill suddenly.
As this application is for emergency case, we need to make this app accessible even when the phone is locked.
Is there any way including public or private API, we can implement the feature?
Thanks,
iOS isn't designed to be a life saver, it's designed to make income for Apple (to be crude, because many things you think would be possible just is not)
There is also the reason with battery life, memory usage etc that needs to be restricted in a mobile environment where power is not unlimited.
You could however look at things like Push Notifications (read the docs). The app won't be "accessible" in the sense, but you can have a chance users will launch the app when you ask them to - they will actively have to push a "ok open the app" button.
I would suggestnlooking into gestures to perhaps overide the lock for your apps usage. Whether it gets approved by Apple is another story.
I have a question for the iPhone Development community. I am currently building my first app, and on two of my views I have some buttons. Sales and Marketing have requested that these buttons do nothing and have the title of “Feature Available in Pro Version” or have a title of an application but when touched, an UIAlertView is displayed stating “Feature Available in Pro Version”.
First off, I think this is wrong from a user interface and experience. Secondly and more importantly, I think this will cause a denial when I finish the application and send the app in to the App Store for approval. I have look into the iOS Human Interface Guidelines and really can not find whether this will be an issue or not. I would like to tell Sale and Marketing that their request is stupid and will not get the application approved and they need to stick to their jobs and quit trying to play programmer.
Any comments would be greatly appreciate.
Quoting http://developer.apple.com/news/ios/appstoretips/
Only display the UI for what your "Lite" version will do. Grayed out menu commands, "more track/car choices" you can see but not select, etc. makes your "Lite" version feel more like a commercial than a product, and an annoying and ineffective one at that.
...
It's important to follow these simple rules not only to create a better user experience, but also because your app will be returned to you by the App Review Team for modification if it is found to have time limits, incomplete functionality, or disabled functionality.
Come up with some better options for your clients. They are not trying to "play programmer", they are trying to market their product. Also, try to mitigate the risk of the app being rejected by getting it in a submittable state as soon as possible, or at least make sure that you have a plan B for the things that you suspect might fail to get approved.
It sounds like you're just looking for a stick to beat your sales and marketing team with - there are quite a few apps out there in the wild that exhibit precisely this behaviour, painful though this might be to you. (The buttons do something after all - they show a dialog.)
That said, it's hard to recommend a more pleasant alternative without knowing more about your app. (Does it have the concept of "levels" for example? If so, you could replace the buttons with a nicer "purchase the full app to unlock additional levels" style message.)
I am pretty sure this never used to be allowed. If you show user interface elements they have to be fully functional. I don't know in which document or agreement this is stated, though.
It also may not cause your app to be rejected, at least not initially. The app may be removed from the store at a later date, though.
Apple has been known to quickly reject apps for non-functional or grayed-out buttons, especially if these non-functional UI elements are just to advertise Full or Pro versions in Lite apps.
Apple has also been known to approve apps with a non-functional button or two (happened to one of my apps, got a bug report several weeks after the app had become available in the App store), but this is probably due to oversight, and not a policy that anyone should count on.
If you want an advertisement for your Pro version, make it look and act like a standard in-app advertisement, and not a misleading UI element. Serving house ads, or mostly (99%) house ads is a widely done practice.
I know the iphone home button is extremely crucial for the functioning of the iphone.
However I have an idea for which I need the application running and the home button to be disabled. I tried googling, but haven't been able to find a solution.
Temporary or timed locking (Lock for 5/10 mins.) would also do.
The app. should work on non-jailbroken phones, hence going around apple won't work.
Appreciate any ideas.
Note, from 2014 onwards: just to be clear,
this is now built in to iOS...
Click to accessibility, click "guided access".
Conrats for "inventing" it, PlanetUnknonw! :-)
The answer below is only of historic value...
For the record, it's silly that people are saying "Why would you want to do this?"
it's a great idea for example for APPS FOR SMALL CHILDREN (which is indeed a very large market on the iPhone).
If you've ever marketed an app for small children, you'll know that instantly parents write in abusing you because you "did not stop that stupid home button working, so the child just turns off the game and makes phone calls"
To which you have to reply that it's of course not possible because of the way the iPhone works.
So yes it's a good question. As far as I know, Planet, it is not possible.
Apple should add a "kids mode" where parents can lock the fone on TO one particular app for awhile. (Perhaps you would have to long-press or something the home button to unlock it.)
UPDATE
*iOS 6 reportedly has a "Single App Mode" - Check out vpdn's answer below https://stackoverflow.com/a/10503799/333259
This is against the iOS interface guidelines, and apps have been rejected for "overriding" or restricting behaviour of hardware buttons/switches.
I suggest you have a read of the App Store Review Guideline for iOS apps for a good overview of what you shouldn't be doing.
Particularly:
10.5
Apps that alter the functions of standard switches, such as the Volume Up/Down and Ring/Silent switches, will be rejected
Pretty sure that the Home button is included in that.
I'm not sure what your "idea" is here, but I would suggest you look into other things such as backgrounding. There is a feature that allows you to finish executing tasks in the background, even if the user presses the home button, and optionally display a notification after certain time (before the task "expires"). I imagine that this might offer a more appropriate solution (again dependent on what your idea actually is).
In iOS6 (to be released), there's a feature called "Guided Access", which will allow device owners to lock users (like toddlers and school kids) into an app.
Update: Before the shitstorm about NDA content starts, here's where I got the info from: http://www.theverge.com/2012/6/11/3078350/apple-ios-6-guided-access-parental-control
You can't unless you want to run it on jail broken devices.
Apple currently will not allow any software to disable or change ANY button functionality for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch, so the only software solution is to jailbreak the device, so you're not forced to live by Apple's rules.
However, PaperclipRobot.com is about to release a home button cover specifically targeted to keeping young kids from pressing the home button. Not the exact solution to your problem as stated, but I figured it added to the discussion.
Unsure if you are looking for a way to do it in code in an app or if you're thinking of locking it in general.
Anyways, if you're looking for a way to do it in general, here's a guide for it
http://igrudge.net/how-to-disable-the-home-button-on-ios-devices-iphoneipad/
If you are looking to temporarily disable the home button to keep a child in a particular app, the tip for a make magazine article is to use a bulldog clip to cover the home button cheaper, and more reusable than a bubcap, temporary and effective.
Source: http://blog.makezine.com/2011/03/01/ipad-home-button-child-lock/
I just added a done button on my number keyboard and read that using the keyboard class directly is illegal but some people said that their app was successfully submitted to the app store? Does anyone know if it is legal or not?I have been googling around for 1hr and I keep getting yes and nos.. anyone knows for certain if this will cause the app to get rejected?
Thanks
It is not absolutely sure that doing something like adding a DONE button to a numeric keyboard is legal or not. It all depends on Apple, some app is rejected but many apps is already approved by Apple. It is hard to say.
It also depends on your technique as well. Usually, I see that people will work into the UIKeboard view hierarchy to add the DONE button and for this case, the usual approval problems is like I described above, some fail, some succeed