Swift 2, iOS 9, and Xcode 7

#1

Hey there, I started the Swift and iOS 8 Apps course some time ago, but didn’t get very far because I was working on my Bachelor Thesis and I didn’t have enough time for the course. Now I finished my thesis and I’d really like to finally learn how to build iOS apps in Swift.

With Swift 2 and iOS 9 on the horizon, and the Xcode 7 beta already out, I’m wondering whether it makes sense for me to do the Swift 1.1 course and then the 1.2 upgrade course. I’m worried that I might have to replace a lot of my newly acquired knowledge when the updates roll out. From my experience of trying to juggle Python 2.7 and 3.4 I can say that I get things mixed up rather easily, even though there aren’t all that many differences between the two.

Any advice, guys & girls? Paul, do you plan on creating a Swift 2 course? If so, will it come in the form of a “refresher” (like the 1.2 course), or will you adapt the material from the first Swift course and create a new course that is targeted towards users who haven’t previously programmed in Swift?

Cheers, Nick

#2

@PaulSolt looks like you weren’t tagged so you couldn’t respond to this.

#3

@nholtappels and @Ryan7

I do have plans for a Swift 2 course – I’ll have more details over the next few months.

For now I would stick to working through the Swift iOS 8 course and you can use the 1.2 upgrade course content to understand how to move forward.

There are more code changes coming with Swift 2, and I haven’t had time to put together videos to discuss those changes yet.

You can try Xcode 7 beta, but from my experience it would be safer to wait for Xcode 7 beta 3 or 4 when bugs get worked out.

In terms of re-learning – there are minor code changes and some API changes around NSError in Swift 2. The fundamental concepts will remain the same. It’s better to start now with the existing Swift course materials, instead of waiting.

#4

Thanks, @PaulSolt, that’s good to know. I’ll do as you recommended and work through the Swift iOS 8 course and the 1.2 upgrade course using Xcode 6.

You’ll probably be giving this enough thought as it is, but I’d like to nonetheless encourage you to create your Swift 2 course in such a way that it caters to beginners and those moving on from 1.2 alike.

As a final note: I think it’s amazing that you have created this forum - it adds an immense value to your courses!

#5

@nholtappels great!

Yes, I am planning to make the new Swift 2 course content approachable for beginners just like the current.

I may split apart the new courses into smaller sections that focus on more skill development for prototyping UI app screens, storyboarding, data for apps, tableviews/collectionviews, and gestures/animations.

Let me know what you want to be learning.