App Inventor seems like a fun diversion. I’ve just started playing with it. Watched the program and run on same iPad video. If everything can be done on one tablet, it makes all more casual and accessible than if a computer is required. Here I’ll give you my experience so far with coding and displaying on an iPad.
I’ve found two drawbacks so far for the young inventor restricted to an iPad: one for running beginning tutorials, and one for coding beginning tutorials. For the HelloPurr tutorial, running on an iPad falls down when the aspiring learner tries to implement purr. The iPad disappointingly does not vibrate. Switching execution to a connected iPhone results in the desired vibration. Continuing coding on the iPad, the BallBounce tutorial could not be completed. The step of hovering the mouse over the parameter speed to bring up the get speed action could not be completed. I tried every gesture I could imagine and spent hours on internet search but could find no solution. I wonder if with an Apple Pencil and iPad Pro the desired hover action might be present. Almost tempted to quit the iPad only coding solution, I considered breaking down and turning on a PC. But for the convenience of being able to code portably with an easily carried device (and simulating the experience some children might have if their parents think a “toy” like iPad more age appropriate than an actual computer), I bought the least expensive Bluetooth mouse I could find and paired it with the iPad. BallBounce worked great and so did DigitalDoodle. My sense is that only the hovering as opposed to selecting action stands between the user and doing all development on an iPad. The same may hold for owners of other tablet devices. Is there any way to slightly rework App Inventor to get around dependence on MouseOver to facilitate use with touchscreen devices?