Reddit reviews iPhone Programming: The Big Nerd Ranch Guide (Big Nerd Ranch Guides)

1. You should learn Objective-C. Start with Learning Objective-C from the Developer site, and follow the rabbit trail to other documents. Also, read up on iOS Application Design
   
   
2. Yes. You can register your app to be woken up in case of a significant location change. Or, you can register your app for continuous location updates in the background, which will kill the user's battery if not used correctly. See Executing Code in the Background.
   
3. It may be easier for you to pick up Cocoa programming on the Mac before going to the iPhone. Pick up Aaron Hillegass's excellent Cocoa Programming for Mac OSX and read the first five chapters. (I noticed that Hillegass has produced a new iPhone Programming textbook. I haven't read it but it has good reviews).

Thanks a whole lot!

I read a few basic books like this one for the first few weeks. Then I really just kept an idea journal and picked a few easy ideas out of it to get started. Once I decided what I thought should go into the app, I just dove in and started messing around until I eventually reached something that worked.

I only started programming a year before in Java and Android but decided to give iPhone development a shot because I used an iPhone.

I say Border's Book - since they're going out of business, I got the Big Nerd Ranch guide to iPhone programming for 50% off.

Programming in Objective C (Amazon link) is pretty well thought of as the bible for Objective C programming (the language iPhone apps are written in). I'm making the assumption you're talking iPhone here. Once you've gone through that book, which actually doesn't take a whole lot of time, you can watch the Stanford University iTunes courses on Objective C and iOS development. They're pretty great. If you still want more hands-on learning, the Big Nerd Ranch guide is awesome. It is screenshotted the whole way through and basically tells you to drag this here, click this, etc. to guide you through the creation of some programs.

The same folks who did that first book you recommend have a similar book for iPhone programming: iPhone Programming: The Big Nerd Ranch Guide

I've only begun learning iOS and Objective-C, with very little previous coding experience (some work with Visual Basic in high school...Har har). I'm using The Big Nerd Ranch Guide to iPhone Programming and Programming in Objective-C 2.0. Both come pretty highly recommended, and are even suggested for beginners, though both seem geared towards those with some previous coding experience. Either way I haven't had too much trouble yet, so I imagine someone with expertise in another language shouldn't have issues with these books.