iOS

Serendipity Way gets a new logo as its launch approaches

Posted on by manitobaninja

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Note: Since this post went up Serendipity way has had to have a full rewrite due to a long list of issues of one of the APIs, a key API, being used. I have left this post up here regardless but in the next few days (June 3rd to be exact) I will post an all new update on the logo and launch of Serendipity Way.

Serendipity Way is now less then a month from launching and in preparation for the launch a new logo is being released for it! The final design will likely change slightly as it evolves to just the right size and proportions for iOS devices but the style and general design aesthetic are now in place.

The logo is meant to reflect an element of the UI that will become very familiar to users. And the colours have been chosen as a throw back to the spirit and design aesthetic of the early 70’s, and to be instantly recognizable on the users home screen. In fact many Canadians might be able to guess where the inspiration for this design came from.

There will be more to come in the next few weeks, including details on how way-finding and navigation will work in Serendipity Way, as well as an exact launch date, so stay tuned to this page to find out more!

Playgrounds…they aren’t just for kids

Posted on by manitobaninja

When Apple announced Swift back in the summer of ’14 they also made quite the fuss about Xcode’s new playground feature. This was going to be a live coding environment where you could work through simple expressions and functions and see the results in real-time. It was charming, and you could see this being a great tool for beginners, but I had a hard time seeing how a developer working on a project would gain much value from it.

Fast forward a year and a half later and now I get it. Today I find myself using playgrounds in my projects, not just for testing out quick little code blocks, but for organizing and keeping a detailed reference of code and other assets relevant to the project. It can actually be a valuable tool for managing your work and being more efficient!

Because playgrounds don’t get much attention I wanted to put together a quick post that highlighted as many of the best resources that I could find to help beginners, and people of all levels for that matter, get an idea of what playgrounds can do. I end the article with some examples of how I have starting using playgrounds in my own workflow, hopefully sparking some people to think about how playgrounds could work for them. It is not a big time investment so this is an ideal subject for a quiet weekend, or over the course of a few evenings. Read More

Resources for learning Swift

Posted on by manitobaninja

One of the challenges someone wanting to learn Swift faces right out of the gate is knowing where to start in terms of learning resources. Because Swift is still a young, new, and evolving language it has not yet built up the knowledge base you would find with other languages and because it continues to evolve it is key that the information you are getting is up to date as well!

This is the launch page for the collection of Swift learning resources I have put together. It will not remain static. New resources will be added as they are released, and ones that are no longer relevant will be removed. I am not listing every resource I have ever come across either. The only things I am listing are material that I have used, or taken a really good look at, and found to be genuinely helpful. If you have something that you think is worth adding to any of the lists then let me know. You can leave a comment below or send me a message on Twitter @ManitobaNinja or @Third_beach Read More

A collection of Swift tutorials.

Posted on by manitobaninja

With Swift into it’s second year of life in the public there are more and more tutorials appearing on the internet everyday which is a boon to new and experienced programmers alike. Of course there is a lot of rubbish out there to sort through. many just rip off other peoples work, some don’t get into enough detail to be helpful, and others are just not well written. I have compiled a list of what I think are some of the best tutorials currently out there on the interwebs.

A couple things to note. I did not include anything that was behind a pay wall, I just wanted to focus on what was free in this instance. This is also not an overly long list because I wanted to focus on collections and resources that are really worth while. And if anyone has any they think should be on the list then let me know and I will definitely take a look! So without further ado let’s get started.

Hacking with Swift

Though most of this list is not in any particular order this site really should be at the top. There are currently 37 individual tutorials online! And there is a full range of topics covered so you can pick and choose the ones that are most interesting and most relevant to you. They are structured in a logical, easy to follow way with good explanations on what is being done and why. The tutorials are free but if you find that you’ve really gained a lot from them you can donate as a way of saying thank you (and I would encourage it to help make sure this resource keeps going and continues to be updated with each update to Swift as well). Read More

Okay, now I understand why the cloud is so great!

Posted on by manitobaninja

At around 3:15pm, on a quiet Sunday afternoon, I was working away on my 6 year old MacBook Pro, doing some coding and enjoying a coffee. Despite its age it was still working alright. It was a bit slow at times, and it had some weird quirks lately, and the battery was all but done so I had to keep it plugged in all the time. But other then that it was a machine that had served me well, and would continue to do so until at least next fall, I had hoped.

And then as I was working away in Xcode it shut off on me. My mind went to the usual suspects; maybe the charger wasn’t connected properly and the battery had been drained. Maybe the power went off in my apartment. Maybe the charger itself had just died. After a few minutes I realized that it was probably something serious. So at 3:20pm I tossed my laptop and gear and into my messenger bag and quickly drove to the Apple Store to get someone to look at it before they closed their doors in just under 1 hour and 40 minutes time.

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Designing apps for cold weather use

Posted on by manitobaninja

Designing for cold weather might not seem like a topic that is going to be applicable to someone living in Miami or Brisbane. But it actually is because it will benefit almost all of an apps user base. What I talk about here can be just applicable to users who find themselves in rain, or high wind, or some other weather condition where long term use of your phone or tablet is not a desirable experience. It just so happens that, living in Canada, and in the prairies, cold weather is a reality for 4 – 5 months of the year and has lead to a lot of thinking of how apps work in those conditions.

So what are the challenges cold weather causes? This is pretty straightforward and I am sure most people could come up with most of these on their own.

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