Issue 541

14^th January 2022

Written by Dave Verwer

Comment

I wanted to write about Locket from Matt Moss as soon as I read the first couple of paragraphs of this article. The app lets you send photos that automatically appear on the home screen of someone you care about. It’s a beautiful idea, and I’m confident it’s bringing joy to those using it.

I’ve said it before, but the main reason I got so caught up with the iPhone in the early days was not only the groundbreaking hardware or the well-designed SDKs. It was the apps which both of those things made possible. The first five or so years of the platform moved software forward so quickly it was dizzying. Some of the app ideas from that time were truly revolutionary and have fundamentally changed how we live. This idea reminded me of the early days of the iPhone, and that doesn’t often happen anymore.

So two paragraphs into the article, I’m all in and want to install it. That’s where I found the showstopper, unfortunately. You literally can’t use the app if you don’t allow it to upload your entire contacts database.

I’m out. It’s that simple.

It’s not even really Matt’s fault. I’m sure there’s no seedy mega-corporation behind this app looking to do “evil things” with your contact data. He was only trying to make the setup process easy. It would be great if there were a successful, independent, privacy-focused social graph API, but it doesn’t exist, and some of the biggest companies in the world will try their very best to make sure things stay that way.

What it does prove, though, is that people don’t care much about privacy. The app has had more than two million signups since its release less than a fortnight ago. It’s over, and you’re a dinosaur (like I am) if this would stop you from using an app. 😅

At this point, my comment was shaping up to talk about inspiring ideas and the disappointment of the whole contacts database thing. Then I read further into the article and came across this gem of a statement:

As to whether or not he’ll take on outside investment, however, remains to be seen.

Hold on. External investment? Why did that even come up? 🤯

The app doesn’t look to have a business model at the moment. It was a side project that had a happy accident of a lucky viral start on TikTok (thanks in part to this excellent marketing video). It could certainly make money, though. There are relatively obvious premium features that make sense.

But it’s hard to imagine a situation where external investment doesn’t make this app worse. Every idea does not need, deserve, or benefit from becoming a company that eventually needs to pivot into enterprise sales to try and find the return that investors were seeking. The fact that external investment came up in this interview says so much about this industry in 2022, and none of it is good.

I think this comment ended up being about how the world has moved on from those early days of the App Store, and it’s impossible to go back. Honestly, I find it all quite depressing.

Were you hoping for an upbeat ending? Sorry about that!

Dave Verwer

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News

I previously predicted that the deadline for implementing in-app account deletion might get delayed, but it does not look like that will happen. We’re now only two weeks away from Apple rejecting all app submissions for apps where someone can create an account but not delete it.

I predict some chaos in early February.

Tools

Daniel Kennett did, so he built a plugin for the Elgato Stream Deck and made it available as open-source! I’m enjoying having physical function keys back after losing the Touch Bar, but I miss some Touch Bar functionality. Do I now have the excuse I’ve been looking for to buy one of these? 😅 I really love the idea of buttons backed by LCDs.

Another useful tip, this time from Sarun Wongpatcharapakorn. Changing languages in the iOS Simulator can take a long time, and anything that speeds up localisation testing is good!

That headline got your attention, didn’t it! 😂 Thank Saagar Jha for the tip, and then enjoy the thread explaining why it’s faster and what happens behind the progress bar. Fascinating. ❤️

Want to use a Swift command line tool through Mint in a GitHub Action? Marco Eidinger has some tips for you.

Code

Moving a codebase of any reasonable size from Objective-C to Swift is a harder challenge than it appears on the surface.

The oft-repeated advice of writing new code in Swift while maintaining old code in Objective-C didn’t work well for Steve Barnegren. He did write up a thorough explanation of why it didn’t work, what went wrong, and how he would now advise approaching the problem of a mixed Swift/ObjC codebase. It’s worth reading, even if you’re not working on a mixed-language app.

After talking about diffing XCTest failures last week, I had a few messages mentioning this package from Brandon Williams and Stephen Celis, so I thought I should give it a link! I also meant to include another link to Difference from Krzysztof Zabłocki, so let’s fix that as well. 😅

I must say, though, I prefer solving this problem with an external tool rather than an extra dependency.

Design

If I know one thing about interface design, it’s that consistency is always goo… Wait. What was that, Craig? It’s not? Oh. 😅

I linked to the original version of this post from Kuba Suder back in 2014. All the different button styles in macOS have specific uses, and it’s good to see this valuable guide get an update.

Jobs

iOS Developer @ Okta – The future is passwordless. Okta is revolutionizing how users authenticate on their devices with FastPass. The expert iOS team at Okta is looking for amazing iOS developers to help them define the future of identity. Apply today to embark on an exciting journey and give your career a boost! – Remote (within US timezones) with some on-site work (Canada or United States)

Principal Software Engineer @ Alaska Airlines – We are innovators and creators, striving to continually improve our award-winning technology in ways that make travel simple, enjoyable, and seamless.  We’re looking for a lead subject matter expert on native app development as we reimagine the Alaska App used by millions of our guests. – On-site (United States in WA) with some remote work (within US timezones)

Senior iOS Software Engineer @ ESChat – ESChat is the market leader in secure wireless Push-to-Talk communications supporting first responders, transportation, hospitality, logistics and more. Join our iOS team and work to support these teams in getting their jobs done faster, safer and more efficiently. – Remote (within US timezones)

Senior iOS Developer @ Komoot – You’ll team up with world-class iOS engineers and take over responsibility for our iOS app. Touching all parts of the iOS app, your work will make outdoor adventures easily accessible to our users. You’ll develop diverse features for navigation, routing, social interaction and content visualization. – Remote (within European timezones)

Senior iOS Developer @ 3Squared – We are an award winning digital software company developing iOS applications that enables the transport sector to become safer, greener and more efficient through digitalisation. – Remote (within European timezones) with some on-site work (United Kingdom)

Senior iOS Developer @ ConceptsApp – Concepts is a sketching app optimized for iPad & Apple Pencil. We pay attention to the details and iterate on features until they are right. We’ve won multiple Apple awards and need a skilled Swift developer to join the team. 100% remote and we’ve always run that way. – Remote (within European timezones)

iOS Developer @ Doximity – Doximity, the medical network used by over 80% of US clinicians, is hiring passionate iOS engineers (remote). You’ll be part of an amazing product team and work on an app that is constantly evolving. Use your skills (Swift, MVVM, FRP) to be an integral part of our growing telemedicine feature. – Remote (within US timezones)

Software Team Lead, iOS @ Alarm.com – As a Software Team Lead on the iOS team, you will work to improve and add exciting new features to our mobile product. You will work in conjunction with our iOS Architect, Product Management and Quality Engineering teams to set the roadmap for our iOS app as well as manage a team. – On-site (United States in VA) with some remote work (within US timezones)

iOS Software Engineer @ Slumber Group – You will help millions of people sleep better as the lead developer on the Bedtime Fan app. You will be responsible for all technical aspects of planning and implementing new features. Initially, you will implement an improved UI/UX redesign. Join our growing, motivated and skilled team of 12. – Remote (within US or European timezones)

iOS SDK Developer @ Stream – You will write and maintain our open-source SDKs that are used by hundreds of our customers and consumed by hundreds of millions of their users. – Remote (within US timezones)

iOS Engineer @ sengaro GmbH – We offer an exciting position in the heart of the Alps (Innsbruck) with technical responsibility and conceptual refinements of our long-term products. They are used in the medical field by paramedics and doctors to help saving lives every day. Become part of it and support people in emergencies! – On-site (Austria) with some remote work (within European timezones)

iOS Software Engineer @ Luma Touch – Work with an amazing team on the 2021 iPad App of the Year, LumaFusion, and on exciting new professional video iOS apps in development. Knowledge of audio-video editing and processing a definite plus. We have offices in Salt Lake City and Seattle, will accept remote for the right person. – Remote (within US timezones) with some on-site work (United States in UT)

Senior Software Engineer - iOS @ Citymapper – Cities are complicated. We’re using the power of mobile and data to help humans survive and master them. We’re building the best app, with the best routing, and the best data in all the greatest cities of the world where we can make a difference. – Remote (within European timezones) with some on-site work (United Kingdom)

Is January making you itch for a new challenge in your job? There are plenty more opportunities than those listed above at iOS Dev Jobs. You should check them out.

Or, if your company is hiring, you can post jobs for free and get them in front of thousands of Swift developers who are looking for work. Get started here.

And finally...

How much does adding that uncompressed image file add to your app’s carbon footprint? 🏭