Cory Bohon

Last week I told you about my iPhone site that I create using Dashcode. These sites are extremely easy to create using Apple’s widget creation software that comes packaged with the Xcode download. In this post, I’m going to walk you through turning any RSS feed into an iPhone site that is updated automatically when new entries are created.

This things first, you’ll need an RSS feed from a blog, Twitter feed, etc. When you have Dashcode installed, you can launch it by going to /Developer/Applications. This is where Xcode, IB, and Dashcode are stored. When you first launch the application you will be presented with a pop-up that asks you wish type of template you would like to create. For this tutorial we’ll be using the Web Application > RSS template.

When you click Choose, your template will be built. As of now you have a fully functional iPhone web application; however, you need to input your RSS feed for it to actually work. Under the Application Attributes section you will be able to add your RSS feed in the Feed URL section. Be sure to type the feed in exactly as it is (for example, my blog feed is http://corybohon.com/feed/). From this section you can also edit the number of articles that are displayed, and the date ranges.

You now have a completely useable web app. To test it, click the “Run” button in the top-left corner of the screen. Dashcode will then launch the iPhone simulator and show you what the web app looks like in mobile Safari. Now let’s export is and move it to a internet-accessible server.

Back in Dashcode, click the Share button. Under the account, select localhost. This will export the web app as a folder ready for you to upload to your web server. Click the “Save to Disk…” button and a folder will be created in the location you specify. If you have a MobileMe account, you can easily add it and upload it straight from Dashcode by clicking on the new account option from the drop-down box.