First off, much appreciation for all the hard work @ cycling '74. I understand all the hard work that has gone into Max 5 and M4L.

However, being a demanding customer =) it's my responsibility to ask if there are any plans to support the iphone as a platform in the future.

I often daydream about running a native patch on the iphone...

However, for me, its less about the GUI Max currently supports and more about Max as an audio API.

Perhaps cycling could package up MSP in some form and make it available for a $500 dollar licensing fee similar to FMOD?

I often daydream about running a native patch on the iphone...
However, for me, its less about the GUI Max currently supports and more about Max as an audio API.

Perhaps cycling could package up MSP in some form and make it available for a $500 dollar licensing fee similar to FMOD?


iphone-as-a-platform-in-the-future

That would be amazing, though I imagine it would be insanely difficult, especially with Apple's restrictions. There have been some threads on this in the past.

In the meantime you could check out RJDJ, if you haven't already, which uses Pure Data to make its apps for the iPhone/iPod Touch. I haven't tried it but it looks very cool. So, given that this is a possibility, learning a bit of Pd could be a big step in the direction you're talking about. The learning curve should be pretty easy if you're already good with Max.

It's probably just the curmudgeon in me, but it seems like this would be as helpful to our community as mp3's were to the world of good sounding audio. Now as a 

 for max, the iPhone is a great tool...just not sure how useful it would be to run actual patches. But as I alluded to at the start...maybe I'm just old...

It's probably just the curmudgeon in me, but it seems like this would be as helpful to our community as mp3's were to the world of good sounding audio. Now as a controller for max, the iPhone is a great tool...just not sure how useful it would be to run actual patches. But as I alluded to at the start...maybe I'm just old...

You may be interested in checking out an app called "Jasuto" for the iPhone. Last I checked, it was $1, and great modular fun on the go.

(Although I cast my vote for an official Cycling '74 app on the iPhone. If not Max/MSP perhaps M?)

You may be interested in checking out an app called "Jasuto" for the iPhone.  Last I checked, it was $1, and great modular fun on the go.

(Although I cast my vote for an official Cycling '74 app on the iPhone.  If not Max/MSP perhaps M?)


I seem to recall someone here stating that Apple's iPhone application licensing prevents devs from creating apps that are in themselves programming environments.

I believe that there is a (selectively enforced) prohibition on Virtual Machines, mostly to keep Java out of the picture. I don't think that something Max-like would fall under this provision, though.

Jasuto is exactly the type of modular app that I was thinking of.

Although running max/msp on the iphone is nice, it's not my primary interest.

I'm thinking of something like an msp.framework that you can add to an Xcode project and start programming away.

Graphics can be done via Quartz, OpenGL, Core Animation, whatever - that's up to you.

To create something like Jasuto, you'd need to write your own low-level DSP routines using Apple's RemoteIO or buy something off the shelf (like FMOD).

I'd be willing to license an MSP API for the iphone for a $500 license (similar to FMOD).

Jeremy Bernstein wrote on Mon, 15 June 2009 17:35

Offtopic and in German, but here's an article in Spiegel Online about Apple's VM prohibition: C64 for iPhone isn't getting approval for the reason cited above.

http://www.spiegel.de/netzwelt/mobil/0,1518,631717,00.html

Jeremy Bernstein wrote on Mon, 15 June 2009 17:35I believe that there is a (selectively enforced) prohibition on Virtual Machines, mostly to keep Java out of the picture. I don't think that something Max-like would fall under this provision, though.

http://www.spiegel.de/netzwelt/mobil/0,1518,631717,00.html


Whether Android is likely to "blow" anything "out of the water" is a matter of opinion. It has its own set of limitations (cf eg the Wikipedia article). And the openness vis-à-vis running a VM is a potential can of worms regarding security (which is one of the reasons Apple is so restrictive about VM apps).

But the main thing to remember is that all of the mobile devices are seriously different CPUs from your Intel multi-processor multi-GHz chips. IPhones are running ARM chips at something like 600MHz, and they are among the zippier CPUs I've seen in the mobile phone market. Now, Max 4 ran pretty happily on G3s and G4s (comparable clock speeds, which is only a very very rough gauge of performance), but I'm not sure how well Max 5 would do on that kind of hardware.

It would be cool to be able to use Max/MSP as a development platform for mobile device development, but when I look at what Apple has put into XCode to support iPhone app development there, I just don't know that this is a very realistic wish for the near future.

Whether Android is likely to "blow" anything "out of the water" is a matter of opinion. It has its own set of limitations (cf eg the Wikipedia article). And the openness vis-à-vis running a VM is a potential can of worms regarding security (which is one of the reasons Apple is so restrictive about VM apps). 

But the main thing to remember is that all of the mobile devices are seriously different CPUs from your Intel multi-processor multi-GHz chips. IPhones are running ARM chips at something like 600MHz, and they are among the zippier CPUs I've seen in the mobile phone market. Now, Max 4 ran pretty happily on G3s and G4s (comparable clock speeds, which is only a very very rough gauge of performance), but I'm not sure how well Max 5 would do on that kind of hardware. 

RjDj relies on a port of PD to the iPhone, which was done by a small group of devs.

I can't imagine a minimal msp.framework C API being an unrealistic request.

Take a strategy from Microsoft's playbook: push it out the door half dressed, then worry about making some pants for it.

iphone as a platform in the future?