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Four 'Parse' stories June 2013 - February 2016
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Apple adds server API to CloudKit, unlocking new developer possibilities for the iCloud service

Avatar for Benjamin Mayo Feb 5 2016 - 11:12 am PT
7 Comments

Apple has quietly added a server-side API to CloudKit, following an announcement on the developer news blog. This will enable developers to add a lot of functionality to apps powered by CloudKit, enabling developers to interact with the iCloud CloudKit database outside of user interaction with iOS, Mac or web apps. The web service API enables developers to run independent code on servers that can add, delete and modify records in the CloudKit stack.

Until now, interaction with CloudKit has been limited to the APIs Apple provided in apps. Although this was useful, it lacked the options for more advanced use — most modern apps rely on servers to perform tasks whilst users are away. With the addition of the web API, developers can create many more types of applications using CloudKit as the backend. For instance, an RSS reader app can now add new feed items to the CloudKit stack from the server. Before, this action could only occur when a user opened a CloudKit-powered app, which was essentially impractical and meant developers had to use other tools.


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AppFigures now lets developers easily share favorite App Store reviews, Parse SDK adds tvOS and watchOS 2 support

Avatar for Benjamin Mayo Dec 14 2015 - 11:20 am PT
4 Comments

There are a few new goodies for iOS developers shipping during the holiday season. Over the weekend, app analytics firm AppFigures released a cool new feature called ‘Sharable Review Cards’. Essentially, developers can curate their App Store reviews for some of their best feedback and quickly share a link to that comment for others to admire.

The cards take on the theme from the app icon, so each review card appearance matches the app it is about. In the example above, my app Bingo Machine uses a dark blue background tint, so the AppFigures Card uses the same blue for the review title. It’s a pretty cool feature for devs who want to positively promote their app on social media with actual customer testimonials.

There are also some new releases from Facebook’s Parse, the third-party cloud sync framework that Apple later aped with its own CloudKit service, with complete support for the newest Apple platforms, namely watchOS and tvOS.


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Apple considered buying Parse before building new CloudKit feature itself

Avatar for Mark Gurman Jun 16 2014 - 8:56 am PT
5 Comments

In an extensive profile of Parse co-founder and Facebook executive Ilya Sukhar, The Information reveals that Apple considered purchasing the cloud services startup before Facebook:

Mr. Sukhar, a mobile programming prodigy, had already rejected offers from Apple and Dropbox, which were more interested in the company’s four talented founders than its business, according to people who were involved in the conversations. Facebook persuaded Mr. Sukhar and his colleagues that it had much bigger plans.

Apple’s interest in Parse is interesting because of the recently announced CloudKit feature for iOS 8. CloudKit, just like Parse, allows developers to leverage pre-designed and implemented servers to control the backend of applications. This makes the development team and process quicker and simpler for building iOS applications. It’s interesting to see that Apple decided to build a Parse competitor itself rather than move forward in acquiring the company (or another player in the area). The entire profile is well worth a read and it provides an interesting perspective as to how a start-up co-founder has been integrating his company into Facebook.


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Some surprises we might see at WWDC 2013 next week

Avatar for Jordan Kahn Jun 7 2013 - 3:45 pm PT
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(Preparations for Apple’s 2013 WWDC developer conference / Image via Nick)

There’s a lot we already know about what we’ll be seeing next week at WWDC– we’ve already brought you exclusive details on iOS 7, OS X 10.9, a MacBook refresh, Apple’s new Radio service, and much more. What else might we see Apple show off next week? Below are a couple of our best predictions based on what we think Apple is most likely to show off as well as few things we’ve been hearing:
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