iOS 8 and Swift - How to Make a "Freaking" iPhone App

Learn how to make apps, submit them to the App Store, and develop your dream app through hands-on projects you can showcase to employers.

Build your first real iOS app, the emoji dictionary, and you'll love it as you get started.

Sketch your app first to map the user flow, then build a two-page emoji dictionary that uses a list (table view) to show an enlarged emoji and its description.

Launch Xcode to create a new single-view app named Emoji Dictionary, configure bundle identifiers, and explore the left panel, storyboard, and iOS simulator for quick iterative testing.

Link the storyboard to code by assigning the view controller class, align file and class names, and use viewDidLoad to set the background blue, then run to verify the connection.

Connect two view controllers using a segue by presenting the emoji list modally, assign a descriptive segue identifier, and trigger it from tableView didSelectRowAtIndexPath with performSegueWithIdentifier.

Learn to implement a navigation controller to enable back navigation and back button, configure a root view controller, and use a show segue instead of present modally.

Create EmojiDetailViewController, connect it to the storyboard, add an emojiLabel outlet, pass the tapped emoji from the list, and confirm the setup by setting the background to orange.

Create communication between the emoji list and the EmojiDetailViewController by adding an emoji property, passing the tapped emoji via prepare for segue, and updating the detail label.

Connect the emoji definition label to code and populate it from the emoji dictionary. Implement if-then logic in the detail view to display the correct definition for each emoji.

Finish the emoji dictionary by showing how tapping a list reveals the emoji and its definition with back navigation, and highlight table views and sketching the app idea.

Enroll in the iOS developer program by creating an Apple ID, selecting individual or company enrollment, and paying, noting that company enrollment may require a D-U-N-S number and 24-hour approval.

Craft a two-screen soundboard app with a table view of sounds you can tap to play, add new sounds by naming, recording, and saving or canceling, all built in Xcode.

Create an iOS 8 Swift app in Xcode, set up a single view project with Core Data, and add a navigation controller with a sound list table view in SoundListViewController.

Wire a table view in a Swift iOS app by connecting storyboard to the view controller, setting the data source and delegate, and implementing rows and cells with sample data.

Learn to play a bundled audio file nickSings.m4a in a table view using AVAudioPlayer from AVFoundation, convert it to a URL, and call play in didSelectRowAtIndexPath.

Add a plus button that presents a modal new sound editor. Provide cancel and save, a text field with placeholder, and a record button.

Connect a new sound view controller to the storyboard, implement cancel and save actions, update the sounds array, and refresh the table view with prepare for segue.

Master Core Data in a Swift sound board app by saving new sounds to Core Data and refreshing data on view will appear via fetch requests.

Tackle two iOS UI challenges: deselect the highlighted tapped table view cell with tableView.deselectRowAtIndexPath animated, and resize the navigation bar height via storyboard constraints.

Plan ahead for App Store submissions by optimizing metadata—icon, screenshots, title, description, and keywords—and learn how Apple reviews and rejects apps, with tips and a real submission example.

Learn to create a production certificate for App Store and ad hoc submissions via the Apple developer site, and to generate a certificate signing request with Keychain Access.

Create and submit your iOS app by configuring a provisioning profile with an app ID and distribution certificate for the App Store, then prepare store metadata in iTunes Connect.

Upload screenshots for four iPhone sizes in iTunes Connect, optimize the title and keywords, and provide descriptions and icons. Then submit a build for review and manage release timing.

Package your iOS app as a build, submit via iTunes Connect, and configure provisioning, icons, and launch screen, then archive in Xcode and wait for review.

This intro covers the essentials of Swift to build a base for iOS development, guiding you toward app store readiness and Apple approval, with notes that the coverage isn't comprehensive.

Learn to use a playground in Xcode to define and change variables with var, and declare constants with let that cannot be changed. See results as you experiment with Fido.

Explore if statements and booleans in Swift, using true or false logic to drive variable changes with examples like dog age comparisons, else branches, and boolean types.

Master for loops that traverse arrays like the dogs array, print each name with print line, and control iterations using 1...5 and 1..<9.

Discover how dictionaries map keys to values in Swift, enable fast lookups, and learn to add or update entries with string keys and integer values.

Learn how to define and call functions, use parameters like firstName and secondName, and return strings. See examples that print dog names and combine names with proper spacing.

Learn Swift classes as blueprints for objects, with properties like age and name. Create instances, update properties, and use methods like dogInfo with self.

Graduate with confidence in Swift and Xcode, understanding how functions return values, and how strings and integers work, enabling you to build more iOS apps.

Explore the iOS developer ecosystem by connecting with essential websites, events, and groups that iOS developers rely on, plus personal favorites and popular alternatives to boost your network.

Discover how to search StackOverflow and Google for iOS solutions, and assess answers by upvotes. Explore Cocoacontrols, GitHub, and weekly resources like iOSDevWeekly, SwiftDevWeekly, and Raywenderlich tutorials.

Discover local iOS and Mac developer groups like CocoaHeads and MeetUp, watch WWDC to learn about Swift, and explore CocoaConf and Startup Weekend to collaborate on apps.

Collaborate with experienced iOS developers through CocoaHeads or local conferences, ask questions, and leverage community resources to accelerate learning and overcome development roadblocks.

Create a pattern cataloging app that uses the camera to capture front and back pattern images, saves a name, shows fabric requirements, and enables pinch-to-zoom via a UIScrollView.

Sketch the app to map categories such as shirts and pants with pattern thumbnails and front/back previews, then build a minimal MVP to add patterns, capture images, and save them.

Create a Xcode project named patterns, enable core data, and build a navigation controller with a table view to list patterns, wiring storyboard to code as data source and delegate.

Define a Pattern entity in Core Data with name, frontImage, and backImage. Use a managed object context to insert and fetch test Pattern objects for display in a table view.

Create a pattern detail workflow by configuring a storyboard segue, wiring a PatternDetailViewController, and laying out front and back images and labels with auto layout for a tappable pattern preview.

Learn to pass the selected pattern to the detail view via prepare for segue, update the title, and display front and back images, with zoom on tap planned.

Implement pinch-to-zoom on images in a scroll view, triggered by tapping gallery images. Pass the selected image to a zoom view controller via prepare for segue.

Create a modal pattern editor with name and image fields, configure save and cancel actions, wire Core Data context, and refresh the patterns list via viewWillAppear.

Launch the camera from image views, capture front and back photos, and save them as a pattern by converting images to data for storage.

Master breakpoints to pause and inspect code, step through lines, and view variables like self.emoji and self.Emojis, using the left gutter to manage and disable them during debugging.

Learn to print to the console in swift with println and print, using string interpolation with dogAge, and understand newline behavior and debugging with breakpoints.

Explore advanced debugging with LLDB, edit breakpoints, and run Instruments profiles to analyze memory and CPU usage in your iOS app.