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Nine-Year Old iPhone Developer Releases Application

Tuesday February 10, 2009 9:41 am PST by Eric Slivka

Reuters recently reported on nine-year old Lim Ding Wen from Singapore, whose Doodle Kids [App Store] application has seen over 4,000 downloads since its release several weeks ago. The free application, designed for his sisters aged three and five, allows users to draw on the iPhone screen using random shapes and colors and then erase their creations by shaking the device.

TG Daily followed up on the story to reveal that the program, along with a number of others, was originally written for the Apple IIGS, as detailed on a personal website set up for him by his father, an Apple IIGS enthusiast. A second Apple IIGS game, Invader War, is also being ported to the iPhone and will be made available through the App Store.
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h.21
Posted: 43 months ago
I think I'll skip this release.
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chr1s60
Posted: 43 months ago
People are making way too big of a deal about this. I am impressed that a nine year old can write and release an app and happy that he has had over 4,000 downloads, but this has just received way too much press. It was on the front page of Yahoo! yesterday and I have seen this on numerous other sites.
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dacreativeguy
Posted: 43 months ago
Haven't 9 year olds been manufacturing products in Asia for years? :)
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MysterMac
Posted: 43 months ago
his dad is an iphone developer, coincidence ? meh
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Veri
Posted: 43 months ago
The average ultra-geek certainly can program by the age of 9 (IIRC I was just getting my teeth into ARM assembler on the Acorn A3000), this much is clear. But isn't it always the way that the story is spoilt with something like...

originally written for the Apple IIGS, as detailed on a personal website set up for him by his father, an Apple IIGS enthusiast


,,,which even to the least cynical man must read, "but basically his dad did the hard stuff."

If the kid were operating on his own steam, I expect he'd just release the app and be done with it, and no-one would even know his age.

If there are any 9 year old kids reading this: fear not, you can be a developer too, whether your dad has a clue about computers or not. Mine certainly didn't :D.
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chuckcalo
Posted: 43 months ago
I saw this on engadget 1 week ago, it's impressive how a "9 year old" can write/develop/test a painting program. It takes skills to even make a new application.

I'm not 100% sure he did it on his own.
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Dagless
Posted: 43 months ago
I don't get the hype around this. I was making games on my Amiga when I was 8, and PC at 9 with no help from anyone. My own code, art, music. Many of my local friends were also into this kind of thing. I'm sure there are even more young coders in the wild now.

Seriously. Where has this hype come from?
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iWoz
Posted: 43 months ago
fair play to the kid
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overanalyzer
Posted: 43 months ago
I'm kind of with others on this. I'm an application developer now basically because I was already writing programs for use in educating my classmates by the time I was 9 (and of course first learned to program a few years before that). While I think the majority of people aren't like that, I do think that the majority of people who become serious developer hobbyists or professional developers are like that, so I don't feel like this kid is particularly unique.

Not to rain on his parade, of course. I just also don't get the press attention.
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wonderbread57
Posted: 43 months ago
"TG Daily followed up on the story to reveal that the program, along with a number of others, was originally written for the Apple IIGS"

The Apple IIgs was Discontinued in 1992... That would make the purported 9 year old author -7 or -8 years old at most when it was originally written. Assuming he did not write it while he was merely a conversation between spouses (if that) then the father obviously wrote the program for the Apple IIgs. Which means the story is concluding that the kid PORTED the code to iPhone?

:rolleyes::apple::confused:
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