Getting an iPhone App to the App Store

So far my experience with trying to download my app and make it work on my iphone has not been a  pleasant one.  I have spent hours in the process- over the course of many months because I get turned every which way.

Here's my situation- I have files from a developer and the official provisional files have expired.  Since the files were made different versions of iOS have happened.  So, all I really wanted to simply to was transfer my files to my phone and have it work.  But here's the reality:

1) Apple did not provide a software update for my older ipod touch, so now my ipod and iphone 5 are on different operating systems

2) I then had to created an Apple Developer account

3) I downloaded Xcode

4) I had Lion running on my laptop.  When I plugged in my iphone5 it told me it needed Mountain Lion to run.

4) After I paid $20 to install Mountain Lion on my Mac, my laptop has been running much slower and has had strange quirks, for example I can no longer write to an external drive that I used to be able to write to.

5)  It took many hours to install the Mountain Lion operating system.  After it finally installed, I had to reinstall an updated version of Xcode

6)  After all of this I still could not load my file to my iphone.  It gave me an ambiguous error message.  After googling it, I found out I had to update information on the Provisioning Profile.  But when I tried to click to the page it just told me I did not have access, without suggesting how I could gain access.

7)  After another search I found I needed to pay the $99 annual fee to simply be able to put my file onto an apple device.

8) When I went to pay the fee and sign up as a company, it told me I needed to have a D&B number.  I couldn't continue the registration process without it.  Read this for more information directly from the Apple's mouth.

9) I went to fill out the D&B forms and the webpage froze, but told me it would take many minutes.. so I waited..and waited... then finally I ditched Chrome for Firefox, and the pages loaded right up.

10) But then it told me it takes 5-30 days of processing before I receive my number...

Apparently the secret here is if you don't have a D&B number, do no try and file for one on D&B's website.  They will try and get you to pay $300 and tell you it will take 8 weeks to receive a number.   If you stop your form right there, Apple will contact D&B and request the number for you.  They'll call you about a week later for your information, and process the number within 24 hours.  Apparently if you do both, D&B is disconnected enough to pursue the case down two completely different avenues!  And you'll be asked for the information twice... Read here.

11)  And then it will take another 2 days after that for Apple to receive my number...

12)  And then I'll have to find that form again to fill it out...

13) To them load and test the app on my iphone...

14) From when I decide I'm happy with it, it will then take apple another 6 days to approve or disapprove the app.....

I now can see why people develop on Android....

15) But if you still decided to go with Apple, here are some tutorial videos.