Swift Thoughts
Swift 1.2!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So many HUGE improvements, including compile time, unwrapping multiple optionals, sets, initializing constants when needed (with conditionals). But don't take my word for it - check out Swift 1.2 reactions around the web.
Apple Love
Swift 1.2 and Xcode 6.3 beta
Summary of the main Swift 1.2 changes from the makers of Swift. I'm personally most excited about the much faster compile time (yay incremental builds!): "The Swift 1.2 compiler was engineered to be more stable and to improve performance in every way. These changes also provide a better experience when working with Swift in Xcode."
XCode 6.3 Beta Release Notes
Check out the release notes included with XCode 6.3 Beta to get a list of all the exciting changes in Swift 1.2! How excited are you about how easy it is to unwrap multiple optionals?!!! Goodbye the nested if pyramid of doom.
Swift Around the Web
Swift 1.2: Let's Talk About Sets, Baby!
Swift 1.2 includes the exciting addition of Sets. Hopefully you've used these in Objective-C and other languages, but in case you haven't: "sets contain unordered distinct collections of objects and allow you to implement set theory Venn diagram functionality against them." This post walks through how to use sets in a Swift-y way (with filters FTW).
Sponsored
Migrating to Swift for iOS Developers
5-day class for iOS developers: Migrate your own Obj-C app to Swift, and explore new iOS 8 features. First class led by Homebrew pro developer Max Howell.
Functional Voodoo
Objective-Curry
Ok, so this is not in Swift, but I find it almost easier to follow because it's taking a different approach to something we're used to - Objective-C and shows how to apply the functional concept of currying to it.
WATCH
WatchKit Settings Bundle
In iOS 8.2 Beta 5, Apple introduced Settings Bundles for WatchKit. This is a walk-through of how you can set up custom settings for your Watch App.
#iOSdev
Three Xcode Tips
Three very simple but essential XCode tips - you'll learn something new. For example, I do already do Clean Build Folder, but also manually delete the Derived Data. Didn't realized it did the same thing for some reason / been extra OCD to clean everything in every way haha. Thanks Swift! You can follow the conversation on Twitter here.
List of Parse SDK limits, downsides of Parse from experience
I personally LOVE Parse. It's great for getting started with a new app and getting it out very quickly. However, for those choosing to use it, this is a good article for understanding it's Limits. Unfortunately, none of my apps have been popular enough to surpass this limit (and most apps I end up not even releasing), so I'm still going to use it.
Podcasts
SwiftCastTV
A few people have asked to recommend Swift-focused Podcasts. Well, a few came out during WWDC, but haven't been kept up after an episode or two. However as of last week, SwiftCastTV is back with two new episodes, so hopefully they'll keep it up.
Swift Code
- Mendel - Swift miliframework for implementing evolutionary/genetic algorithms
- TextFieldEffects - Custom UITextFields effects inspired by Codrops, built using Swift
- SwiftMoment - A time and calendar manipulation library for iOS 8+ written in Swift
- Tempo - Date and time manager for iOS/OSX written in Swift
- ShapeAnimation - Vector animation framework in Swift for iOS.
Videos
Controlling Complexity in Swift by Andy Matuschak (Video)
This video is a must-watch for anyone who wants to go beyond the usual Objective-C patterns and understand how to write "Swift-y" code. Again, if you watch only one video this whole week (or month), this is the video to watch!
Design
Designing Search for Rooms
Even though I don't use Rooms or any of the other new Facebook products (except to check out the UI right away), I love reading about the effort it took to build very small details for these products: "While search is a seemingly straight-forward piece of UI with tons of examples to reference, I wanted to expose the whole process: from deciding if we even needed to build search, to fully fleshing out details for internationalization."
Random Cool Stuff
PaintCode
I find drawing really hard to work with in code, mostly because I don't know the basics of design / drawing myself, so it's hard for me to understand that a shape I need to re-create is a rectangle with a 3px radius and a 3-point gradient with a 60 degree rotation unless I'm pairing with a designer.
When I mentioned this issue to @jblocksom, he immediately demoed PaintCode, and I was mesmerized by it's magical power. A designer can draw a shape, and the code will auto-populate. Of course you should clean up the code in real life, but it makes things a lot easier for both designers and developers to recreate amazing design.