Hi all, We will soon be demoing our game in Edinburgh but we don't have access to many iDevices and would like to know if there is a way to get an app onto an iPhone/Touch without the app being in the app store and without having to register the device with an Ad Hoc profile (there won't be internet access at the event hall so we won't able to access the iPhone Provisioning Portal) Is it only possible if someone happens to have jailbroken their device as it would be great to be able to give people a free demo version to play on their own device.
Sounds like you already know the answer to this. As you suggest, without jailbreaking the only way to get an unpublished app onto a device is to add the device to an Ad Hoc profile (or a debug profile) and sign with the new .mobileprovision file.
Yea that's what I feared. If someone has jailbroken their phone, how easy is it to get the app on there? Do I need to do anything my end?
Well to be honest, another way you could look at it is, quickly make the provision and then use your BlackBerry or iPhone smartphone as a tether to relay internet access to your laptop or computer. There is an EXPENSIVE app called Tether out for BB ($50) but it will relay 3G coverage (if you have it), or you could view a crackberry thread explaining how to tether your phone and use a dial up connection. The latter uses your data service so if you don't have an unlimited plan, I don't recommend it. The first while being expensive, is a one time charge. Both of course, are only useful if you own a BlackBerry, there are other ways to go about doing it on an iPhone, however, but if you don't want to start jailbreaking devices, you should look into utilizing the abilities of your smartphone first. (That is, if you have one.)
I've never used a jailbroken device, so I can't really help with that part. Maybe you can get a UDID and email address from the person while at the show, then create an Ad Hoc profile later. Email them the ipa and they can install it.
For jailbroken users you just need to give them the ipa. Since it hasn't gone through Apple yet, there is no DRM to strip. Instal**us does on-device app installation. As for tethering, forget $50: since you already have an iPhone, tethering is built in for free. For wireless tethering (ie instant hotspot) use a $2 app from Cydia.
