Amazon unleashed a ton of new Alexa/Echo product, filling in gaps in their product line.

Amazon unleashed a ton of new Alexa/Echo product, filling in gaps in their product line.

Ear pods, glass frames, a microwave, even ring on your finger. Alexa is showing up everywhere!

https://www.popsci.com/amazon-new-products/

Richard Harris of App Dev magazine talks IBM acquisition of Red Hat.

Richard Harris of App Dev magazine talks IBM acquisition of Red Hat.

In an interview, Sacha Labourey, CEO of CloudBees, expresses what a "massive win" this is for both Red Hat and the open-source community.

https://appdevelopermagazine.com/ibm-buys-red-hat-what-does-it-mean/

Exploiting Google Play cancellation policy, “Fleeceware” apps have unsuspecting user paying big.

Exploiting Google Play cancellation policy, “Fleeceware” apps have unsuspecting user paying big.

At least 24 Google Play Store apps, some very basic programs, charged up to $200 for their use.

https://www.tomsguide.com/news/android-apps-caught-obscenely-overcharging-users

Now that iOS 13 is official out, it is time to at Voice Control to your apps.

Now that iOS 13 is official out, it is time to at Voice Control to your apps.

Kristina Fox, Staff iOS engineer at Intuit, provides a break down of how to really take advantage of Voice Input.

https://kristina.io/adopting-voice-control/

Episode 2 of the Vader Immortal: A Star Wars VR Series, was releases at Oculus Connect 6.

Episode 2 of the Vader Immortal: A Star Wars VR Series, was released at Oculus Connect 6.

ILMxLAB (Industrial Lights & Magic software lab) calls this series a VR Adventures. Owning Episode 1, I agree. It is more than a VR movie, but not exactly a game.

https://www.oculus.com/blog/learn-the-ways-of-the-force-in-vader-immortal-a-star-wars-vr-series-episode-ii-available-today-on-oculus-quest-and-the-rift-platform/

Direct Link to trailer: https://youtu.be/_qCQLs1QpXI

Yet another good article from RayWenderlich site, this one by Ron Kliffer on Apple’s UIPresentationController.

Yet another good article from RayWenderlich site, this one by Ron Kliffer on Apple’s UIPresentationController.

An often misunderstood API, UIPresentationController manages the transition animations and the presentation of view controllers onscreen.

https://www.raywenderlich.com/3636807-uipresentationcontroller-tutorial-getting-started

I have often said that Steve Jobs failures made him more successful than his successes.

I have often said that Steve Jobs failures made him more successful than his successes.

Steve always used failure to improve the product, while this article talks about how killing products, helped the company.

https://blog.hellostepchange.com/blog/why-steve-jobs-killed-70-of-apples-products-a-lesson-on-range-architecture

Related article on Steve’s advice to Nike: https://www.inc.com/mikael-cho/how-steve-jobs-saved-nike-and-apple-with-one-simple-piece-of-advice.html

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History of the Exit sign, a great universal symbols that transcend language barriers.

History of the Exit sign, a great universal symbols that transcend language barriers.

Betty of ARTiculation shows that good UI design translates into art, architecture & Computer Graphics.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5uSlAw8U9s

Maksym Shcheglov gives us 3 methods for removing unused swift code from your project.

Maksym Shcheglov gives us 3 methods for removing unused swift code from your project.

Xcode compiler flags, Swift-scripts and open-source tool Periphery will help reduce your program size.

https://www.onswiftwings.com/unused-code-cleanup/

Sorry about the late posting, I spent entirely to much time this weekend at Swordplay. And had a wonderful time!

Engineers at Uber have created an iOS version of VectorDrawable (open sourced of course)

Engineers at Uber have created an iOS version of VectorDrawable (open sourced of course)

Ben Pious explains the huge advantages of using this SVG based solution for icons and art.

https://eng.uber.com/cyborg/

Github Link: https://github.com/uber/cyborg

Cocoapods, the mainstay of Mac/iOS open source libraries, may soon be replaced by Swift Package managers.

Cocoapods, the mainstay of Mac/iOS open source libraries, may soon be replaced by Swift Package managers.

Tibor Bödecs opens up on the way to move to this new Swift dependency manager.

https://theswiftdev.com/2019/09/02/migrating-from-cocoapods-to-swift-package-manager/

Out with NSLog & print, and in with OSLog, a new command part of Apple’s Unified Logging.

Out with NSLog & print, and in with OSLog, a new command part of Apple’s Unified Logging.

Grouping with subsystems & categories, supporting Privacy, message level, these are all new features of the first change to logging since the intro of the Mac!

https://medium.com/swift-programming/clear-and-searchable-logging-in-swift-with-oslog-eadc97b1a9b8

In my opinion, Swift compiles fast, but there are ways to optimize for even better compile times.

In my opinion, Swift compiles fast, but there are ways to optimize for even better compile times.

Here are 6 steps using the new version of Xcode, to reduce developers wait times.

https://medium.com/flawless-app-stories/optimize-swift-build-and-compile-times-in-xcode-8a212e2e7d86

Typography: the style and appearance of printed matter. Also an important part of Mobile UI Design

Typography: the style and appearance of printed matter. Also an important part of Mobile UI Design

Andrey Zhulidin article “focus on nuances and hacks that can be used in the typography in mobile apps design”.

https://uxdesign.cc/guide-for-designing-better-mobile-apps-typography-5796495ef86f

Did you know 90% of Fortune 500 companies still use Common Business-Oriented Language? Also known as Cobol.

Did you know 90% of Fortune 500 companies still use Common Business-Oriented Language? Also known as Cobol.

Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols for Between the Lines gives us some history of one of the original programming languages.

https://www.zdnet.com/article/cobol-turns-60-why-it-will-outlive-us-all/

Reminder: For those interested in VR...

Reminder: For those interested in VR, the DCVR in VA Meetup will be this Tuesday at NovaLabs in Reston. A local VR game developer will be talking about his experiences releasing a VR app, while another presenter will be showing off their full-body 3D scanner (suitable for VR).

https://www.meetup.com/DCimmersive/events/264354531/

Disney remake of “Lion King” may not have been super success of the original, but it proved importance of VR.

Disney remake of “Lion King” may not have been super success of the original, but it proved importance of VR.

The Lion King was filmed entirely in virtual reality, and the director used VR to review the work.

https://www.wired.com/story/disney-new-lion-king-vr-fueled-future-cinema/

What does it mean to have ‘meaningful’ design? It’s more detailed than just ‘good’?

What does it mean to have ‘meaningful’ design?  It’s more detailed than just ‘good’?

Using the psychology definition, UI could be broken down into Connectedness, Coherence, Purpose, Resonance & Significance.

https://uxdesign.cc/five-factors-of-meaningful-design-6819cda0cef2

Antoine van der Lee compares Apple’s URLSession vs Open Source Alamofire for networking.

Antoine van der Lee compares Apple’s URLSession vs Open Source Alamofire for networking.

It is often a question of Apple’s solution or Someone else’s tool.

https://www.avanderlee.com/swift/alamofire-vs-urlsession/

There have been many reviews of Apple Sept Event, but this one reflects my feelings: everything but Innovation!

There have been many reviews of Apple Sept Event, but this one reflects my feelings: everything but Innovation!

Tom’s Guide does a good job outline the announcement while pointing out the improvements were “Incremental, not innovative”.

https://www.tomsguide.com/opinion/apples-by-innovation-only-event-sure-lacked-innovation

Ps. Apple needs some innovation!

When is a tape not a tape? A detective story involving old technology

When is a tape not a tape? A detective story involving old technology

Techmoan, creator of Videos on New & Retro Tech, explores an unknown cassette.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJUYI3XkvT4

John Sundell of SwiftBySundell article on Caching with Swift.

John Sundell of SwiftBySundell article on Caching with Swift.

To provide a responsive UI, Caching is a method to manage data quickly. 

https://www.swiftbysundell.com/articles/caching-in-swift/

NSHipster explains Swift’s Identifiable, and in the process explains Equatable too.

NSHipster explains Swift’s Identifiable, and in the process explains Equatable too. The Identifiable protocol is a new feature of Swift 5.1 that provide a stable identifier for the entities they represent. https://nshipster.com/identifiable/ ps. No, I am not speculating tomorrows event.

From the Ambrotype (1850) to the ZX Microdrive (1980(, the Museum of Obsolete Media is keeping track of our digital past.

From the Ambrotype (1850) to the ZX Microdrive (1980(, the Museum of Obsolete Media is keeping track of our digital past.

This is a great resource for tracking old tech! Or just having fun remembering old times.

https://obsoletemedia.org

Kyle Bashour breaks down adding Context Menu to your iOS App

Kyle Bashour breaks down adding Context Menu to your iOS App

Surprisingly, this type of popup menus are coded differently depending on location, so this cookbook is very useful.

https://kylebashour.com/posts/context-menu-guide

Computer Animation Showcase in DC on Sept 12, 2019

Computer Animation Showcase in DC on Sept 12, 2019

Washington DC Chapter of ACM SIGGRAPH will be showing off!

https://www.meetup.com/ACM-DC/events/264510304/

USB 4 is coming, and no surprise, it is faster.

USB 4 is coming, and no surprise, it is faster.

Due in 2020, Tom’s Guide explains that USB4 will use the same USB-C connector, but be faster.

https://www.tomsguide.com/news/usb4

This day in history: Steve Jobs killed Apple’s Newton.

This day in history: Steve Jobs killed Apple’s Newton.

There is a lot to learn about from the design and business history of Apple’s first PDA.

https://www.cultofmac.com/500178/apple-history-steve-jobs-kills-newton/

We had a lot of unconfirmed rumors, but we now have evidence of Apple AR Glasses actually exist.

We had a lot of unconfirmed rumors, but we now have evidence of Apple AR Glasses actually exist.

Tom’s Guide  reports on the finding of references to AR Glasses in iOS 13 code.

https://www.tomsguide.com/news/apple-ar-glasses-evidence-found-in-ios-code

Tesla new user interface look futuristic, and may be not appropriate for current drivers.

Tesla new user interface look futuristic, and may be not appropriate for current drivers.

Rubens Cantuni tried a Tesla XL, and provides these insightful comment.

https://uxdesign.cc/teslas-ux-is-too-far-ahead-to-make-sense-now-21d943db467f

Rachel McConnell explains tone vs voice when creating User Interfaces

Rachel McConnell explains tone vs voice when creating User Interfaces

Something as simple as replacing style guides with Tone of Voice documents can make a difference.

https://uxdesign.cc/are-your-tone-of-voice-guidelines-fit-for-purpose-c5e6dfa04f20