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iOS App Store now allows legacy downloads to support older OSes

9to5mac.com

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Re: iOS App Store now allows legacy downloads to support older OSes

#61

Post by Florin_Andrei »

jaysonelliot wrote: post #6

It's a wonderful half-measure, but also serves to highlight a problem with cloud-based installs that I'm not optimistic will ever go away. When software was distributed physically, the consumer always had the freedom to use any version of an application they liked. Want to run a lightweight version of Word because you don't need all the latest features, or maybe you just hate the new UI? No problem. Did you like some…

> When software was distributed physically, the consumer always had the freedom to use any version of an application they liked. Want to run a lightweight version of Word because you don't need all the latest features, or maybe you just hate the new UI? No problem. Did you like some video game better before they "improved" it? Just get the old disk out and play it.

In theory, the cloud could do this, too - if done right.

Re: iOS App Store now allows legacy downloads to support older OSes

#62

Post by ianstallings »

iwasakabukiman wrote: post #25
jedberg wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> You can't force a user to upgrade Sure you can. Netflix will sometimes have to do this. The old software just isn't allowed to talk to the server anymore.

Which would be handling thins server side.

You can do this app-side by checking the version versus what's in the app store via itunes webservice. For example: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/2221436/can-i-force-an-ip...

I don't recommend that unless you have a mission critical bug, and even then I'd discourage it. A user is in charge of his/her device. I version APIs on the backend and then simply push out updates like any other software. If they choose not to use it then not much I can do. Eventually I'll turn the older API versions off and they'll either have to upgrade or stop using the app.

Re: iOS App Store now allows legacy downloads to support older OSes

#64

Post by ianstallings »

pdpi wrote: post #56
untog wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, which is precisely why you need 64-bit/32-bit fat binaries. I don't recall OSX refusing to run 32-bit binaries when it allowed 64bit computing.

You don't need the fat binary to make 32-bit work in 64-bit machines. You need it to make it so that you can take advantage of the 64-bit machine with a build that still works in a 32-bit machine.

Although you can do both, either 32-bit only or a combined, the preferred way to do it is as you say, a combined binary. I imagine that the differences will be fairly small because of the shared types and the resource sizes not changing. I'll have to experiment and see the results.

Just a note on how to build for 32 bit and still target IOS: You have to set the architecture for armv7, armv7s and then set your deployment target to 7. I have yet to deploy an app doing this so your mileage may vary.

Re: iOS App Store now allows legacy downloads to support older OSes

#65

Post by glitchdout »

gcb0 wrote: post #59
jcampbell1 wrote: post #26

The next step is allow us to do maintenance upgrades to legacy versions. In many situations it is easier to maintain a legacy app, with a separate iOS7 code base. Unfortunately there is no way to do this without creating duplicate apps in the store. The alternative is a single code base that is very difficult to reason about the behavior due to tons of feature/version checking.

For that the only solution is what already happens in android. You see lots of apps that have 20 versions for each device/OS version. Just to highlight the problem... i can't download a game on an iphone from [Adult Swim] because it requires a front facing camera! I've been playing the same game on the new ipad with the front facing camera for 2 months. Never found anything that use the camera. go figure.

Oh, that's an NSA-only feature, no need to worry about that.

Re: iOS App Store now allows legacy downloads to support older OSes

#66

Post by ianstallings »

kenrikm wrote: post #45
pdpi wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nah, this is because of the new 64 processors. There's still no mechanism that allows for 64 bit iOS7/32 bit iOS6 fat binaries, it's either 64 bits iOS7/32 bits iOS7, or iOS 6 only. Probably the first time that apps compiled for the latest and greatest can't run on old phones at all.

All my apps have compiled without an issue into 64bit on XCode 5 GM. Now that's not the actual hardware, however I don't anticipate any 64Bit transition related issues.

You shouldn't see any issues until you hit the size limits of the data types and/or have related alignment issues. You'll notice these types here: https://developer.apple.com/library/mac/documentation/Darwin...

Re: iOS App Store now allows legacy downloads to support older OSes

#67

Post by melange »

erickhill wrote: post #16

No offense to anyone but I have a serious question: why are we hearing about this from a Mac blog rather than from Apple directly? This is quite an important change and to learn of it by scanning HN et al seems a tad ridiculous.

The feature is announced via a popup when affected users try to install apps - I.e. They announce it to users for whom it's relevant.

That's much better than them mindlessly issuing press releases to the world every time they change a feature that affects a minority of users.

Re: iOS App Store now allows legacy downloads to support older OSes

#68

Post by melange »

pdpi wrote: post #27
iwasakabukiman wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What do you mean? The whole purpose of this new feature is that Apple is giving users older versions when they need them...

Which is novel enough to be a news article.

That's why we're discussing the news.

Re: iOS App Store now allows legacy downloads to support older OSes

#69

Post by melange »

jimsilverman wrote: post #36
escoz wrote: post #21

Apple could have told developers about this during WWDC, but didn't. My guess is Apple decided to do this last minute, after they saw the number of iOS7-only apps that developers were submitting.

looks like they're fearing slow/low iOS7 adoption, considering how boldly they emphasize how few legacy iOS users are out there.

No. It's looks like they are telling developers the state of affairs, so that they don't fear slow adoption.

Re: iOS App Store now allows legacy downloads to support older OSes

#70

Post by melange »

300bps wrote: post #39

This is likely an attempt to head off the jailbreaking and app copying that many people resort to after discovering their otherwise fully functioning device is basically a paperweight in that it can't install any apps. Unfortunately from real world tests it doesn't appear to be available for many truly older iOS versions.

What truly older iOS versions?
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