Category: visionOS

We're slowly approaching 2024, another issue of good reads is here to make this weekend more productive.

• Small hint on NSFileManager from Michael Tsai – NSFileManager’s File Copy Error Messages Lie;
  
  
• Couple of good articles from Marin Todorov – Injecting code in result builders on how to improve debugging of SwiftUI views and other result builders and review of his MarkWalkthrough framework – Easy app walkthroughs with MarkWalkthrough (also, worth checking his project list – Marin's Side Projects 2023);
  
  
• Majid Jabrayilov continues his series on MapKit in SwiftUI – Mastering MapKit in SwiftUI. Customizations.;
  
  
• SFSafariViewController in SwiftUI: Open webpages in-app by Antoine van der Lee will help you integrate Safari into your SwiftUI app;
  
  
• Jesse Squires comes up with two hints for developers – Xcode does not have access to your shell environment and advices for those who want to become indie developers – Going Indie: bookkeeping and invoicing;
  
  
• Keeping Up with Swift and iOS is a good collection of resources by Jordan Morgan to keep up with modern Swift and iOS features;
  
  
• Domenico De Luca explores accessibility requirements from different perspectives – Exploring accessibility regulations and guidelines;
  
  
• Using and Creating Resources in Godot 4 by Eric Van de Kerckhove will improve your game creating skills;
  
  
• Leonardo Maia Pugliese explores use of geofencing in SwiftUI apps – A Guide to Geofences in SwiftUI.

With this – we'd like to wish you a great weekend. See you next time with more good reads.

Apple announced requirements to provide privacy manifests for third party SDKs on WWDC23.

Starting in spring 2024, if your new app or app update submission adds a third-party SDK that is commonly used in apps on the App Store, you’ll need to include the privacy manifest for the SDK. Signatures are also required when the SDK is used as a binary dependency. This functionality is a step forward for all apps, and we encourage all SDKs to adopt it to better support the apps that depend on them.

Apple Developer

Additionally, developers will have to provide clarifications for some API usage. APIs that could be used for device fingerprinting will require clarifications for App Store review.

Starting in spring 2024, in order to upload your new app or app update to App Store Connect, you’ll be required to include an approved reason in the app’s privacy manifest which accurately reflects how your app uses the API.

Apple Developer

Apple Developer: Privacy updates for App Store submissions

Apple announces the report claiming that 2.6 billion personal records were stolen due to lack of proper protection and encryption.

Report highlights benefits of end-to-end encryption for user data. Apple provides end-to-end encryption for iCloud data with Advanced Data Protection.

Apple Newsroom: Report: 2.6B records compromised by data breaches, underscoring need for E2EE

References:

• Apple Promotes iCloud's Advanced End-to-End Encryption Feature as Data Breaches Increase
• PSA: It’s a good time to turn on ADP; Apple study reveals 2.6B personal records stolen in data breaches

After a letter to DOJ by senator Ron Wyden Apple confirmed that governments were requesting push notification data to surveil users.

"In this case, the federal government prohibited us from sharing any information," the company said in a statement. "Now that this method has become public we are updating our transparency reporting to detail these kinds of requests."

MacRumors

Push notification statistics was used to match Apple ID with patterns of notifications for specific apps (for example, messaging apps). If app uses end-to-end encryption, contents of the messages could not be read by governments, but it is still possible to identify specific users by usage patterns.

Both Apple and Google were providing this data to governments.

References:

• Apple Confirms Governments Using Push Notifications to Surveil Users
• Apple reveals ‘push notification spying’ by foreign governments, after open letter
• Senator's paranoia opens door for Apple to speak out on government censorship
• Governments Using Push Notifications to Surveil Users
• Senator Ron Wyden: Governments Are Spying on Apple and Google Users Through Push Notifications
• Apple Requires Only a Subpoena to Turn Over Push Notification Tokens to Law Enforcement; Google Requires a Court Order
• Apple Adds Push Notification Data to Law Enforcement Guidelines
• Apple updates legal process documents to acknowledge push notification data requests

Apple continues to promote Xcode Cloud with development community. Staring in 2024 developers will get 25 compute hours per month with Apple Developer Program membership.

Xcode Cloud, the continuous integration and delivery service built into Xcode, accelerates the development and delivery of high-quality apps. It brings together cloud-based tools that help you build apps, run automated tests in parallel, deliver apps to testers, and view and manage user feedback.

We’re pleased to announce that as of January 2024, all Apple Developer Program memberships will include 25 compute hours per month on Xcode Cloud as a standard, with no additional cost. If you’re already subscribed to Xcode Cloud for free, no additional action is required on your part. And if you haven’t tried Xcode Cloud yet, now is the perfect time to start building your app for free in just a few minutes.

Apple Developer

Apple Developer: 25 hours of Xcode Cloud now included with the Apple Developer Program

Apple adds more resources for developers to Developer Portal. This includes:

• Q&A: Spatial design for visionOS – information on frequently asked questions on spatial design;
• New videos on Game Center, Journaling Suggestions API and updated documentation on various topics.

Apple Developer: Hello Developer: December 2023

Apple added more slots for 1-on-1 consultations on technology and design topics for developers.

Have questions on designing your app or implementing a technology? We’re here to help you find answers, no matter where you are in your development journey. One-on-one consultations with Apple experts in December — and newly published dates in January — are available now.

We’ll have lots more consultations and other activities in store for 2024 — online, in person, and in multiple languages.

Apple Developer

Developers could schedule sessions on schedule page.

Apple Developer: New design and technology consultations now available

Multiple active exploits could affect iPhone use of Bluetooth.

Flipper Zero hacker tool could be used to trigger iPhone DDoS attack using Bluetooth signals by AirPods, HomeKit accessories, etc. These signals usually trigger popup on iPhone allowing to connect to headphones or perform other actions. Crafting these signals in a specific way could result in iOS restart.

Newly discovered BLUFFS attack could be used to impersonate devices and trigger disclosure of private information. It is not yet clear, if AirDrop is affected by this attack as it uses more than just Bluetooth to authenticate the device. However, it is still possible to hijack audio or other Bluetooth connection. Fix would require device manufacturers to modify security mechanisms of Bluetooth stack.

References:

• Flipper Zero can still crash iPhones running the latest version of iOS 17
• Bluetooth security flaws allow connections to be hijacked; AirDrop unlikely to be affected [U]

It's December already. And we're getting our last installments of good reads in this year.

• Francesco Perchiazzi explores spatial computing development patterns in Embracing Extended Reality: visionOS challenges;
  
  
• Create an AsyncStream from withObservationTracking() function by Natalia Panferova is about merging new observation framework with structured concurrency;
  
  
• Natascha Fadeeva continues his series on SwiftData – How to store images in SwiftData;
  
  
• Mastering MapKit in SwiftUI. Basics is Majid Jabrayilov another good take on using maps in SwiftUI;
  
  
• Antoine van der Lee gives overview of Swift language development process – Swift Evolution: Reading and learning from proposals;
  
  
• Matteo Altobello explores SwiftUI app lifecycle in Accessing the app life cycle within a SwiftUI app;
  
  
• Create Your Own Step Counter SwiftUI App in 5 Minutes by Leonardo Maia Pugliese is a great guide on how to build full app on SwiftUI;
  
  
• And another take by Matteo Altobello on animations in RealityKit – Play an animation in RealityKit.

And this is it for today. Next week we'll have more great articles to read.

Bloomberg reports that Apple Vision Pro development is not yet done and headset is expected to ship no earlier than March 2024.

Another report claims that Apple is expected to ship 400k units in 2024 and up to 10 million by 2026. Next generation device is expected to be available in 2025 with reduced price.

Beware, these rumors are not fully verified and should not be considered as facts.

References:

• Apple Vision Pro now expected to ship in March
• Apple’s In-House Technologies Team Still Has Plenty of Work to Do
• Sketchy report says 400,000 Apple Vision Pro units to ship initially, 10 million by 2026
• Report: Work on Multiple Next-Gen Vision Pro Headsets Ongoing, Including Cheaper Model