Getting your OS X app to Mac users is easy, but there are some issues you should know about.
First, due to a limitation in the embeddable version of Safari in OS X, the minimum operating system version that will currently run Macify apps is 10.9 (Mavericks). Your users will need to be running Mavericks or newer in order to run Macify applications.
Next, let's talk about distribution of your app. If you are a Windows user, you're used to programs being generally contained within a single .exe file that can often times be distributed to users. This is the case with most Clickteam Fusion applications.
On Mac, however, a program is actually a whole folder. The operating system makes all folders with the .app extension seem as if they are a single file, but under the hood they are a folder like any other. Because of this, you can't simply distribute your .app, it must be wrapped in some sort of container. Zip, dmg, tar and tgz (used by Macify) are common archive formats used to distribute Mac apps.
If you like, you can simply offer the .tgz file created by Macify for download. This will provide a painless experience for your users. In most cases, the file will be automatically extracted when they download the file through Safari and your app will appear in their Downloads folder. If the user has auto-extraction disabled (or they are using a browser other than Safari), they will have to double-click your .tgz file and it will extract.
One of the most common ways to distribute a program is with a .dmg (Disk Image). You can create a disk image using a program like DMG Canvas. Your user will mount the disk image by double clicking the .dmg file and can then explore its contents. One of the nice things about disk images is they allow you to create an introductory screen where the user will see your application and can then drag it to their Applications folder for installation.
A potentially confusing aspect of a disk image is if the user runs your app from the disk image rather than installing it to their hard drive. Disk images are read-only, so nothing your app tries to save (INI files, etc) will save.
After distribution, running your app on the Mac has additional considerations. Please see the GateKeeper section for more information.
What about the Mac App Store?
You are welcome to sign, bundle and submit apps created with the registered version of Macify to the Apple App store. But because of the way Macify apps work internally (opening an http server socket), Apple may not approve them for use on the store. Please let us know your experiences with this process so that we can publish some of them here.
One of the most common ways to distribute a program is with a .dmg (Disk Image). You can create a disk image using a program like DMG Canvas. Your user will mount the disk image by double clicking the .dmg file and can then explore its contents. One of the nice things about disk images is they allow you to create an introductory screen where the user will see your application and can then drag it to their Applications folder for installation.
A potentially confusing aspect of a disk image is if the user runs your app from the disk image rather than installing it to their hard drive. Disk images are read-only, so nothing your app tries to save (INI files, etc) will save.
After distribution, running your app on the Mac has additional considerations. Please see the GateKeeper section for more information.
What about the Mac App Store?
You are welcome to sign, bundle and submit apps created with the registered version of Macify to the Apple App store. But because of the way Macify apps work internally (opening an http server socket), Apple may not approve them for use on the store. Please let us know your experiences with this process so that we can publish some of them here.