WWDC is just a few weeks away and I’m sure I’ll come up with more items that I’d like to see in the build up to it kicking off. The below should be considered as a work in progress.

Developer Relations

  • Allow developers to offer alternative payment methods. If required, reduce App Store commission fees to a competitive level with those payment methods.

Xcode

  • Vastly improve compile times for Swift projects (it should be as fast, or faster than, Objective-C compiled projects). Swift is six years old…compile times shouldn’t be an issue.
  • File names and document headers in newly created Swift Package Manager files should default to the file name given by the user and not File.swift. (Am I doing something wrong here?)

iPadOS

  • Make iPadOS a powerhouse operating system—a rival to macOS—and not an offshoot of iOS. The M1 SoC has really cemented the opinion that iPadOS is the weak link on iPad. To me, this would include:
    • A multitasking overhaul allowing more than two apps in split-screen.
    • The ability for developers to, you know, make apps on iPad. (I’m not sure the answer is Xcode on iPad. Instead, it maybe a new IDE entirely.)
  • Add App Library.
  • More control over widget placement.

Frameworks:

MapKit:

  • Access to the public transit map view.

BackgroundTasks:

  • It’s far too speculative. Give more control—within reason—back to developers.

WidgetKit:

  • Allow animations and interactivity.

SwiftUI:

  • Conceptual documentation for the SwiftUI framework at the same quality as the MVC Conceptual Documentation.
  • With Steve Ballmer “developers, developers, developers” enthusiasm, performance, performance, performance:
    • Vastly improved performance of List (especially on the Mac).
    • Vastly improved performance of Map on the Mac.
  • Native SwiftUI equivalents of the missing UIKit and AppKit controls/views, e.g. UISearchBar.
  • Modifiers that entirely remove the need to dip into UIKit or AppKit to alter appearance or behaviour.
    • Example: UISplitViewController’s preferredDisplayMode should be available as a SwiftUI modifier on a native SwiftUI view.

Combine:

  • Conceptual documentation for the Combine framework at the same quality as the MVC Conceptual Documentation.
  • Updates that confirm the future of the framework is not in question.

Finally, on pronunciation:

  • The ai in Craig should be pronounced in the same way as it is pronounced in aircraft. Craig is not the same as Cregg.