Well, Apple did it again. Known around the world for its decades of innovation, Apple Inc. held their annual Worldwide Developer’s Conference (WWDC) today and announced several new advancements across the board. Mac OS X Yosemite, Apple’s newly updated operating system, along with iOS 8 and a few other additions dedicated to developers were showcased as Tim Cook and colleagues spoke to a packed audience in San Francisco. AZTB live-tweeted the event and here are some highlights:
Mac OS X Yosemite: is available for developers today, with an expected Fall launch for the rest of the public. (Free to download)
- New continuity features that make working across your Mac and iOS devices more fluid than ever
- The new Today view in Notification Center gives you a quick look at everything you need to know, all in one place
- iCloud Drive is located within the Finder and can store files of any type
- Mail makes editing and sending attachments easier than ever
- Handoff lets you start an activity on one device and pass it to the other
- Yosemite even gives you the ability to make iPhone calls on your Mac
- Spotlight is now bigger and in the middle of the screen so you can find all the things you need
- Markup allows users to doodle, circle, and write on email/pdf’s
- The new Safari doesn’t require plugins to play video. It also has the fastest JavaScript compiler compared to Chrome, FireFox, Internet Explorer
iOS 8: is available for developers today and the rest of the public in the Fall. (Free to download)
- iCloud Drive, so you can store files and access them from anywhere.
- iCloud Photo Library allows you to enjoy your photos and videos more easily across your devices
- Ability to ‘like’ and ‘comment’ from the notification pop-ups
- Quicktype learns how you write in different contexts and apps and provides suggestions
- Messages now allows you to name threads, add and remove people, place a thread on Do not Disturb, and the ability to leave threads
- Family Sharing is the easiest way to share purchases, photos and calendars within the same household
- The new Health app gathers the information you choose from various health apps and fitness devices, and provides you with a current overview in one place
- You can now send audio messages, video messages and self destruct them to save space
- iOS enterprise- More security, encryption, support for 3rd party cloud service providers
For developers:
- Ability to purchase apps in bundles
- TestFlight is a new beta test service to invite users to beta test for free
- Swift is Apple’s new programming language: Run and preview your code in real time. Watch your game run with Xcode and Spritekit
Apple’s in-home automation
- Open/close your garage
- Turn on/off switches and lights
- Lock/unlock doors
- Turn on/off or change thermostats
For AZTB’s past coverage of Apple and WWDC click here