Interview with Application Developer Yves Gonzalez (Part 1)

“In today’s world it is easy to be first, but it is different to be the best.” One of the Philippines’ emerging application developers for the Apple iPhone and iPad platforms, Yves Gonzalez speaks with Tech Pinoy Trend.

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Having worked as application developer on utility apps for Apple, it is hard to imagine that Yves actually started off as an iPhone jailbreaker in 2007. Basically, the most common benefit of unlocking those phones is to break away from the exclusive carrier of service that is locked to the iPhone oftentimes purchased outside of the Philippines. Jailbreaking would immediately make the phone compatible to a local network’s SIM card. The owner would then reap the benefits and savings as well as the many more apps that can be installed offering more options and features. Eventually, when Globe Telecom become the official network carrier of iPhone in 2008, his “career” in unlocking iPhone has naturally died out.

On June 2009, Yves founded Giro AppSolutions, Inc., building apps exclusively for the Apple iPhone and iPad. Together with his partner, Laura Noel, who is the company’s user interface and designer, had made their very first app, ZZips Philippines (see image 1), a mobile resource for Philippine area and zip codes, which continues to be one of the Top Reference apps in the PH AppStore. Their second app, Enjoy Philippines (see image 2), is a reference app that provides Enjoy members guide to all the benefits and privileges of establishments that are part of the Enjoy Program. It is one of the Top Lifestyle apps in the PH AppStore. Both of these apps are available in the Apple iTunes PH AppStore for free. Their very first paid application is the Tawag Pinoy (see image 3) launched last year 2010, an address book app that automatically filter and sort the user’s contacts into three major networks, i.e. Globe, Smart and Sun, as well as landlines.

Tech Pinoy Trend: It is a lean team at Giro Apps, you worked as the developer and another partner, who worked as designer?

Yves Gonzalez: There’s a lot of developers who don’t have a designer and it is very obvious when a developer company does not have a designer. Take for example the ABS-CBNNews.com app for iPhone (newly released last 16 March 2011), you may noticed that the icon that they have used is not yet Retina Display Ready. When you say Retina Display Ready, you make apps for iPhone 4 which is four times the pixel count from the previous iPhone models. Any iPhone 4 users would see the benefit on the clarity of the graphics and would not just view a blow-up version of it. This automatically shows that any decent designer would not allow an app to be released without a Retina Display Ready version. So obviously, the one who made the app is an engineer and not a designer.

TPT: There are developers who are more inclined to using HTML and CSS since this can also be read easily by iPhone or iPad.

YG: The developer can also take that route but it becomes a website that pretends to be app. It is different when you do it in SDK or the Software Development Kit from Apple. These tools are made specifically to build the apps.

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TPT: What is your company’s philosophy in doing those applications?

YG: In today’s world it is easy to be first, but it is different to be the best. That’s what a lot of people are doing, trying to be first even if their product is crap, just for the sake of being first. The iPad should teach you that lesson. Microsoft was the first in tablet, but look what happened. They do not put their heart into the product. In Giro Apps, we may say that our apps are few because, 1) we do not build apps that we would not use for ourselves and we also don’t accept app just for the sake of having an app. 2) we do not make apps that we would not do great. All the elements from the design, functionality, up to the last details like determining the locations for each of the functional buttons in the design interface, we give much attention to it. Although, there is a trade-off, others may have probably been earning well, doing multiple apps at the same time just for the sake of doing it without paying much attention to details, or taking that Microsoft route so to speak. In our case, we do the Apple way, that if we cannot do it well or in an excellent manner, we will not do the app at all.

TPT: What is the average number of projects that you handle?

YG: Because of our mentality, we only accept one and maximum of two simultaneous projects per development cycle. We never worked on three projects at the same time. Currently, we are working on two projects which includes the MMDA (Metropolitan Manila Development Authority) app. Those two projects have similar functionalities, but we made it a point that their respective designs and user interface are totally different. Currently, my sole focus are on those two projects, yet the moment I accept a third one, it would already take away my time and attention particularly that I am also busy working with MMDA agency.

TPT: Most of your projects are released for app store?

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YG: There are some client apps for release in app store and there are client apps applied for their internal usage only, which they usually use for promos. This is what we did for San Miguel and Globe. If you want to earn as an app developer, right now, the money is in the internal client apps. It is easier to earn in the internal because once you have produced the game app for their promo purpose, that’s it, you’re done. There is no need of updating since the project is seasonal by nature and they have budget for it. It would only take at least 3 to 4 days to develop the app. Yet, even with internal client apps, I have seen competitor’s apps which noticeably has no design. Obviously, just for substantial compliance, you may notice that the quality of their apps, particularly in the buttons, have used the standards from the Xcode application, drag and drop style. In some cases, that would be fine but it is better if you make the buttons yourself, giving more time designing it.

TPT: Who are your top local competitors, for sure there’s a lot, and what is your selling proposition as compared to these competitors?

YG: In the Philippines, there are no more than ten iOS development companies. Currently, we don’t see anyone as a competitor and so far, we have not seen anyone who really pays that much attention to details. I won’t name names but you would see it in the list of the PH App Store. The company that I admire is MangoCode, run by Greg Reichow, a foreigner living here in the Philippines who does quality apps. He became my mentor and learned a lot of app development from him. He is not a competitor, and in fact, he gives me clients that I had to refuse due to workloads. Another one which we also have high regard is Kuyimobile company. Its main focus is on games, and it is noticeable that they give time developing the apps. They do it because they really love doing it. On the other hand, apps based on pdf file is a shortcut and you will not win any awards by putting up your content on a pdf or jpeg style. So, for substantial compliance, just to tell your boss that your company already has an iPad app, that would be fine. But if you want to tell the world, that you have an iPad app, and which has to be good, you need to spend a lot of time developing it. The advantage that our company have over our competitors in case that a potential client asks me? I would tell that we are the only company that goes to WWDC (Apple Worldwide Developers Conference*). I was the lone representative of the Philippines last year and we are that serious. If you are really serious with your apps development, you will go, because you want to learn as much as you can, direct from Apple itself and then you get to meet the other developers. So for us, which we started last year, we go to the conference and we are planning to go again. If you are really that serious as an iOS developer, you should go.

TPT: There are a lot of apps being developed in the U.S. as well as in Europe, so what do you think would be the trend here in the Philippines?

YG: What I can see is that there will be a lot of clones, the mentality of just to produce an apps. In Giro Apps, we are happy that for every apps that we made, we hope to change the world positively or at least change the development scene by introducing new innovations. Here in the Philippines, we were the first to have an app with Google maps, we were also the first to introduce Augmented Reality. It is a map that utilizes compass plus GPS. Nobody is still using gyroscope in local apps, because it is more on gaming, if ever, Kuyimobile may take advantage of that for their game apps. Ours is more of a utility or useful apps where our company is mainly focused.

*The Apple Worldwide Developers Conference, commonly abbreviated WWDC, is a conference held annually in California by Apple Inc. The conference is primarily used by Apple to showcase its new software and technologies for developers, as well as offering hands-on labs and feedback sessions. The number of attendees usually varies between 2,000 to 4,200 developers; however, during WWDC 2007, Steve Jobs noted that there were over 5,000 attendees. WWDC 2008–2010 were capped and sold out at 5,000 attendees (5,200 including special attendees). Reference: Wikipedia