Issue 440

Comment

Apple posted a couple of reminders this week about the upcoming deadlines for complying with the App Store review guideline changes announced at WWDC.

Apps in the Kids category and apps built with web technologies both have guideline changes that come into effect on March 3rd. You'll want to read both of those to check whether you're affected, but the main reason I mention them here is that I laughed out loud when reading that second one:

Apps that dynamically provide core features and functionality with web technology like HTML5 are best delivered through Safari, rather than through the curated App Store.

We sure have come a long way from the "sweet solution" that Steve announced on stage back in 2007. I know I'm happy that wasn't the actual plan!

News

On the road to Swift 6

Where does the Swift project go next? Here's Ted Kremenek with a recap of the goals of the project in general, as well as some food for thought as we move towards whatever becomes Swift 6. It also contains some important clarification that Swift 6 isn't going to be the next release after 5.2. We've got several more 5.x releases to come first. 👍

The (Unofficial) Apple Archive

Dedicated to the unsung studio designers, copywriters, producers, ADs, CDs, and everyone else who creates wonderful things.

Dedicated to those who stayed up late and got up early to get on the family iMac to recreate event slides in Keynote.

This is a remarkable resource from Sam Henri Gold… 👏

Tools

Fast build times for big Swift projects with barber

There are two interesting things about this project from Michael Eisel. First, I really like the idea of using multiple, temporary AppDelegates to increase your productivity when working with a specific view controller, or section of your app. Then, once that's done why not speed up your build times by only compiling what's necessary for what you're working on.

Core Data Lab

This dedicated Core Data SQLite client looks very promising. Not only does it give you a clean, sanitised view of your database with all of the Core Data artefacts abstracted away, but features like live change tracking look very interesting. I haven't had a chance to check it out properly myself yet but there's a free trial available, so there's nothing to lose if you're working on a project that uses Core Data.

Xcode tip: Using breakpoints as bookmarks

Jesse Squires with a great tip that'll have you skipping around your Xcode projects like a pro. I'm going to show my age here, but I fondly remember the Borland Turbo-C editor's dedicated keyboard shortcuts for setting and moving to bookmarks across source files. I missed that feature for years when I moved to more modern IDEs. Maybe this is how I get them back?

A breakpoint I cannot live without

Dominik Hauser with another tip that means you'll never have to write print("Entering MyAwesomeViewController") again. I really like this.

Code

Sign in with Apple

Sarun Wongpatcharapakorn with a comprehensive look at a whole load of different aspects of using Sign in with Apple. He covers apps, the private email relay service, token verification, and the web.

Equal widths view constraints in SwiftUI

It's often the way with brand new technologies that everything goes swimmingly, right up until the point that it doesn't. 😬

I love SwiftUI. It’s such a great technology and so much fun to use. And it recently sent me on a days long tangent to figure out a problem that used to be quite simple.

I really enjoyed this puzzler from Sven A. Schmidt.

Swift fatalError is a fatal error

I've always preferred preconditionFailure over fatalError but now Jeff Johnson has given me a concrete reason why I was right to prefer it. Thanks Jeff! 👍

Jobs

Senior Mobile Engineer @ On the Beach – We are building the future of travel and we want you to be part of it. You will join our award-winning development team to build and maintain new products and features for On the Beach’s customer-facing website and back-office systems. You will be joining a team of skilled and experienced developers and becoming part of one of the UK's most progressive, talented and successful Mobile Teams! – Manchester UK

Principal Software Engineer @ WillowTree – As an Engineering Manager/Principal Software Engineer you’ll mentor a team of all levels to help them achieve their personal and professional goals. Your partnership and coaching skills will impact our teams, clients, and company! You’ll have clear oversight of how engineering runs day-to-day and you’ll influence project outcomes and team happiness. – Charlottesville VA

Sr. iOS Engineer, Growth @ VSCO – The Growth team is looking for an iOS Engineer to work on a product that impacts millions of people around the world. You’ll be innovating and creating ideas through experimentation and learnings that will lead to significant changes in user acquisition, engagement and revenue, collaborating with other developers who have a similar passion for both our users and creativity. – Oakland CA

iOS Instructor @ Lambda School – Lambda School is a combination of a school and an investment fund. Lambda School's mission is to find untapped or underutilized talent and to train that talent for the most in-demand jobs in the world. Lambda School is pioneering a new model of higher education in which the school invests in the students, instead of the other way around. – Remote within the US

Senior iOS Developer @ Alarm.com – Collaborate with outstanding people; Make an immediate impact; Gain well-rounded experience; Work with the latest technologies; Focus on fun! – Tysons VA

Is your company hiring? There's thousands of potential candidates reading this and wanting to find out about the wonderful opportunities you have available. Head over at iOS Dev Jobs? Standard listings are free, so you've got nothing to lose! 👍

And finally...

After last week's link about localising colour, Richie Shilton let me know about his solution. Err, Richie… that's not… I mean… it's… yes… but… that wasn't really what I meant 😂

Issue 440 January 24th 2020