Developers

Apple now rejecting apps that use ad tracking but don’t show any ads

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 3, 2014

An interesting finding by TechCrunch this morning that Apple has now started to reject apps which retrieve users’ Identifier for Advertisers (IDFA), but don’t show any ads. IDFA was introduced alongside iOS 6 two years ago to replace the universal device identifier (UDID) from prior iOS versions amid privacy concerns and new regulatory requirements. The company last March stopped accepting apps into the App Store that use the now defunct UDID...

Apple seeds fourth OS X 10.9.2 beta to developers

Cody Lee ∙ Updated June 19, 2018

Apple has seeded the fourth OS X 10.9.2 beta to registered Mac developers this evening. The release comes just one week after the third beta, suggesting Apple is honing in on a final version.

The new build is available to registered Mac developers through the Software Update tab in the Mac App Store, or as a full download via the Mac section of Apple’s online developer portal…

Google launches Chrome apps for iOS

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

Just when you thought web apps were officially dead on mobile, the Internet giant Google has expanded the reach of its ecosystem by announcing Tuesday that it's bringing Chrome web applications to iOS and Android smartphones and tablets. Previously, Chrome apps were accessible via desktop computers only.

Conventional wisdom has it that the main advantage of web apps is that they're written using standard web technologies - HTML5, CSS and Javascript.

In turn, web apps run without major issues on any computing platform with a standards-compliant web browser. I know what you must be thinking, 'Apple offered web app development for the iPhone and it didn't work out for them', right?

Google thought of that, too: an early developer preview of its tool allows developers to actually compile their Chrome web apps as native applications which can be easily distributed through Apple's App Store and Google's own Play store...

DOJ files first ever criminal charges against mobile app pirates

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 16, 2018

The US Department of Justice has long taken issue with large-scale copyright infringement. It's gone after pirates of various different kinds of content, including music and movies—who could forget the FBI raid on the home of Megaupload's Kim Dotcom.

But up until now, the DOJ has never gone after mobile app pirates. That changed this week, though, when it filed charges against 4 men behind Android app piracy websites Snappzmarket and Appbucket for conspiracy to commit criminal copyright infringement...

Apple seeds third OS X 10.9.2 beta to developers

Cody Lee ∙ Updated June 19, 2018

Apple has seeded the third OS X 10.9.2 beta to registered Mac developers this afternoon. The release comes just one week after the second beta, suggesting Apple is honing in on a final version.

The new build is available to registered Mac developers through the Software Update tab in the Mac App Store, or as a full download via the Mac section of Apple’s online developer portal…

Purported screenshots of ‘iOS in the Car’ surface

Cody Lee ∙ January 21, 2014

Developer Steven Troughton-Smith posted several images on Twitter this afternoon of what looks like Apple's iOS in the Car project. The screenshots don't show the entirety of the feature, but if legit, they do offer some insight on what the Maps app will look like when in use.

For those unfamiliar with iOS in the Car, it's an interface that deepens the integration between iOS devices and cars far beyond playing music. First introduced at WWDC, the feature will allow users to view and manage many iOS applications using their in-vehicle hardware...

Apple seeds second OS X Mavericks 10.9.2 beta to developers

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

Apple has seeded the second OS X 10.9.2 beta to registered Mac developers this afternoon. The release comes nearly a month after the first beta, which was posted on December 19.

The new build is available to registered developers through the Software Update tab in the Mac App Store, or as a full download via the Mac section of Apple’s online developer portal…

Apple seeds iOS 7.1 beta 3 to developers: here is what’s new

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

Apple has released the third beta of iOS 7.1 to registered developers this morning. The update, which carries the build number 11d5127c, can be downloaded via Apple’s developer center.

Today’s release comes just under a month after the second beta, which brought about only a handful of changes like bringing the Touch ID and Passcode menu to the front of the Settings app...

Apple posts slides, videos from iOS 7 Tech Talk tour

Cody Lee ∙ December 23, 2013

Every year, Apple hosts a series of Tech Talk developer sessions around the globe. They're very similar to the sessions held at Apple's annual World Wide Developer Conference in June, but obviously on a much broader scale.

This year's iOS 7 Tech Talks ran from October through December, in various cities like London, New York and Shanghai. And for those that couldn't make it in person, Apple's just posted slides and videos from the sessions online...

First OS X 10.9.2 beta seeded to developers

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

Apple has seeded the first OS X 10.9.2 beta to registered Mac developers this afternoon. The release comes just three days after the public version of OS X 10.9.1 hit the Mac App Store.

The new build is available to registered developers through the Software Update tab in the Mac App Store, or as a full download via the Mac section of Apple's online developer portal...

Pebble Appstore is slated to launch early 2014

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 12, 2018

The Pebble smartwatch project has certainly hit the ground running since receiving funding via the crowd funding platform Kickstarter.

The regularly updated software has been improving the smartwatch's functionality as the company looks to secure its position before heavy-weights like Apple enter the category with their own products.

Aiming to secure its footing in the still nascent but fast-growing wearable technology industry, Pebble on Wednesday announced that an official Pebble appstore is coming early next year to give customers the official venue to download and install third-party smartwatch apps to their Pebble.

The store will launch with watchfaces and six app categories for Daily, Remotes, Sports & Fitness, Notifications, Tools & Utilities and Games. Like Apple, Pebble will feature a selection of the best/new apps on a per-category basis...

Apple: all new App Store submissions must be ‘optimized for iOS 7’ starting February 1

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

Apple has published a new note on its developer portal this evening, announcing some upcoming changes to its App Store policy. Starting next year, all new App Store submissions must be built with the latest version of Xcode 5 and 'optimized for iOS 7.'

The new rule goes into effect on February 1, 2014, and applies to both new apps and updates. So that means that, after this date, any apps that are built on older versions of Xcode or that haven't been optimized for iOS 7 will be rejected from the App Store...