Enterprise Mac | Tom Yager » iPhone SDK: Interface Builder added; WebKit kicks into overdrive

March 31, 2008 | Comments: (0)

iPhone SDK: Interface Builder added; WebKit kicks into overdrive

TAGS: Design and engineering, New Products, Software, iPhone

Apple isn't shipping the official iPhone SDK until June, but if you're planning to create apps for iPhone or iPod touch, the pre-release SDK just became more than a curiosity for those writing native code. Interface Builder, the Xcode tool for creating graphical user interfaces for Mac applications, has been added to the iPhone SDK. This not only gives developers the ability to add non-HTML GUIs to their native applications, but Interface Builder also makes it easier to carry hardcore Mac coding skills to iPhone.

The SVG Animation in WebKit (Safari) is still under development, but in its latest incarnation it is fast, smooth and very close to passing the standard's acid test. I have little doubt that it will be in Safari's public release in time for WWDC in June. Developers who want to check SVG Animation out now can grab the latest nightly build of WebKit from www.webkit.org. Installing a nightly build binary will add an executable, webkit.app, to your Applications folder. It is indiscernible from Safari--even the title bar says "Safari" and all of your bookmarks are present. The tip-off is a gold-tinged rim around the compass icon. The About box reflects the latest full release build of Safari rather than the WebKit framework version.

There is always the risk that installing a nightly build over the top of production software will introduce some instability. I can't recommend it for Joe Machead, but if you're developing for iPhone, or developing for Safari for desktop, you should be tracking the WebKit builds and reading the blogs attached to the WebKit site.

You might not intend to build WebKit for yourself, but if you can read C and Objective-C, you'll find the WebKit source code to be a study in well-crafted code, written against multiple very complicated and moving specifications. Look at the HTML5 and CSS3 specifications on www.w3c.org to get a feel for what the WebKit crew is up against. Fortunately, it's a serious team that includes Apple engineers, and Apple is a key player in the specifications and standards processes.

Posted by Tom Yager on March 31, 2008 11:30 AM

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