Apple releases Xcode 6.3 with Force Touch support, Swift 1.2
Continuing a barrage of software releases on Wednesday, Apple launched the latest version of Xcode with new compilers for the Swift programming language, SDKs for new hardware like the Force Touch trackpad and more.
Xcode version 6.3, which includes Swift 1.2 for iOS 8.3 and software development kits for OS X 10.10, brings a slew of improvements to Apple's coding suite for developers. The usual tools are back, including Xcode IDE, Swift and Objective-C compilers, as are analysis tools and device simulators.
The latest iteration also packs in SDKs for Apple's most recent OS X 10.10.3 and iOS 8.3 releases, which launched earlier today.
Updates:
Swift 1.2 includes its own improvements, including faster compile times, language refinements to "let" and "as," a standard library and a tool to help developers migrate software from Swift 1.1.
The usual bug fixes and stability improvements are also included with today's release.
Xcode 6.3 is a free 2.57GB download from the Mac App Store.
Xcode version 6.3, which includes Swift 1.2 for iOS 8.3 and software development kits for OS X 10.10, brings a slew of improvements to Apple's coding suite for developers. The usual tools are back, including Xcode IDE, Swift and Objective-C compilers, as are analysis tools and device simulators.
The latest iteration also packs in SDKs for Apple's most recent OS X 10.10.3 and iOS 8.3 releases, which launched earlier today.
Updates:
- Playgrounds are more attractive and readable with rich text formatting and results displayed in-line
- Playgrounds can embed additional code and resources to improve performance and simplify sharing
- Updated OS X SDK includes support for the new Force Touch trackpad
- Crashes organizer makes it easy to triage and fix crashes for App Store and TestFlight apps
- Apple LLVM compiler 6.1 improves diagnostic messages and adds support for C++'14
Swift 1.2 includes its own improvements, including faster compile times, language refinements to "let" and "as," a standard library and a tool to help developers migrate software from Swift 1.1.
The usual bug fixes and stability improvements are also included with today's release.
Xcode 6.3 is a free 2.57GB download from the Mac App Store.
Comments
The new phonebooks are here! The new phonebooks are here! ????
Apple is really kicking out the updates today.
I am still waiting for the iTunes Connect Analytics they promised in WWDC last year.
Maybe in about 60 days?
Maybe in about 60 days?
During WWDC Apple said in it will be released in 2014. Few months ago I made a bet with a friend that we will not see it before WWDC 2015, which is 60 days from now. Looks like I am winning this bet.
During WWDC Apple said in it will be released in 2014. Few months ago I made a bet with a friend that we will not see it before WWDC 2015, which is 60 days from now. Looks like I am winning this bet.
"You can't always get what you want" —Mick Jagger
It's great that Apple is releasing so much software. I really wish they would put some effort into fixing bugs. I have six bugs reported that they have not yet fixed. These are major kernel panic crashes and memory overruns that are easy to replicate.
Seems like they are flailing to get a stable build out and meet the scheduled timeframes for new products like Apple Watch. I'm not saying this as a troll. I'm an iOS developer and have scores of iPads and iPhones that we test with and use. I'm also a shareholder, but since iOS 8.0, I've seen a lot of issues that don't seem to be getting better.
Yosemite seems much more stable so far...
Yes. There was no download option for my Mavericks iMac.
Yes. There was no download option for my Mavericks iMac.
You can still download XCode 6.3 from
https://developer.apple.com/downloads/index.action
which requires you to have developer account. But there were no restrictions listed regarding XCode 6.3 and Mavericks. Note that Command Line Tools for XCode 6.3 are not yet available for Mavericks, only Yosemite. But I'm sure they are going to be released as well.
You can still download XCode 6.3 from
https://developer.apple.com/downloads/index.action
which requires you to have developer account. But there were no restrictions listed regarding XCode 6.3 and Mavericks.
I tried installing Xcode 6.3 onto Mavericks this way. I could indeed download and install the app, but the app icon has a bar through it, and when I double-click it, I receive an error message that it requires OS 10.10. So it does appear that Yosemite is required to debug iOS 8.3 devices (because debugging iOS 8.3 requires Xcode 6.3 and Xcode 6.3 requires Yosemite).
Apple's requirements once again alter my development priorities. I now need to spend time upgrading my computer and dealing with the inevitable domino effect of incompatible application software, instead of focusing on app updates that my users are waiting for.
Xcode 6.3 requires Yosemite as its host. However, its targets include many older versions of OS X. To the best of my knowledge, Xcode and its predecessors have always worked this way. As a developer, you should understand that this is a win-win. Mavericks software developed on Xcode 6.3 hosted by Yosemite yet the benefit of security updates and bug fixes in Xcode 6.3 with the vulnerabilities of Mavericks.
You misunderstood Mario's post. He said that you may use Xcode 6.3 to develop code for Mavericks. This is absolutely correct. He did not say you can install and run Xcode 6.3 under Mavericks.
He didn't explicitly say either, actually, but since he was replying to earlier posts about downloading and running Xcode on Mavericks, it appears that his comment refers to running Xcode on Mavericks. I wasted enough time searching in vain for the Xcode 6.3 system requirements, and then downloading the 6 GB file referenced above, to justify posting a clarification for others who might find this thread.