Apple’s New Programming Language

Apple nabbed the attention of the developer community this month with the introduction of Swift, its new programming language for building applications on Apple devices.

The company announced the new language during its annual Worldwide Developer Conference in San Francisco.

Replacing Objective-C

Swift is intended to augment and eventually replace Objective-C, which has been the main language for Apple app development up until now. According to Apple executives, Swift will be faster and more efficient for developers building programs for its devices like the iPhone, iPad and Mac computers.

Swift has a simpler syntax than Objective-C, which means it should also be easier to learn for beginning developers.

Ready Today, Sort Of

Developers can begin using Swift code immediately to apply new features in current applications or to enhance existing features, according to the Apple website. The company has already released a 550-page language guide for free via the iTunes store. However, Apple won’t be accepting applications built entirely with Swift until after it releases iOS 8 and OS X Yosemite this fall.

Shift to Swift

The New York Code + Design Academy has already announced it will begin teaching a course in Swift this July, and other institutions are sure to follow suit.

One developer has already created a short demo app for the popular game Flappy Bird using Swift. Apple developer Nate Murry shared “FlappySwift,” which he uploaded to the forum site GitHub on the same day Apple made the Swift announcement.

The introduction of Swift is a bold move for Apple, as it continues to try and keep developers loyal at a time when Android-based mobile devices are gaining market share.

For more info

For additional perspective on the announcement of Swift, head over to GeekWire or Business Insider.

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