Minor iOS 8.1.3 Update in the Works Ahead of Apple Watch and iOS 8.2

While Apple is actively beta testing iOS 8.2 with developers well in advance of its public launch in order to provide tools for building Apple Watch apps, it appears there will be at least one more minor software update before iOS 8.2 launches to the public. Over the past week, MacRumors has seen an increasing number of devices from Apple's networks and in general that are identifying themselves as running iOS 8.1.3, likely another bug fix update.




Visitors to MacRumors.com via Apple's networks from devices running iOS 8.1.3


The first sign of iOS 8.1.3 from Apple appeared in our logs December 8, just a day before the company released iOS 8.1.2 to the public to patch a minor issue with disappearing ringtones and deliver other minor bug fixes. A day later, Apple seeded the second iOS 8.2 beta to registered developers.






Overall visitors to MacRumors.com from devices running iOS 8.1.3


The number of hits from iOS 8.1.3 remains low, numbering just a few dozen in total from Apple's networks. A view of overall traffic from iOS 8.1.3 devices shows a clearer upward trend aside from a weekend dip, based on a much larger sample size. While there are more likely to be faked identifiers in the general pool of web visitors, the clear trend of increasing usage and visits coming from Apple's own networks have historically been reliable indicators of Apple's development work.



A potential release date for iOS 8.1.3 remains unknown, but with the holiday season rapidly approaching, it appears likely a launch will not occur until early next year unless the update addresses a significant issue that Apple needs to fix more quickly.



The company has not seeded any builds of the update to developers for testing, and it is unclear whether the company has plans to do so, as minor updates such as this one typically do not go through developer testing. One recent exception, however, was iOS 8.1.1 seeded in early November and released to the public a few weeks later.



According to Apple's tracking, iOS 8 is installed on 63 percent of active iOS devices, a figure that continues to slowly rise as users upgrade their existing devices and purchase new ones already running iOS 8.

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Posted in 2014 at 05:28PM, December 16

Microsoft to Open Source .NET Stack, Expand Platform to OS X, Linux [Mac Blog]

Microsoft today announced that it is furthering its commitment to cross-platform development with an expanded open source program for its .NET platform and additional support for operating systems outside of Microsoft Windows.

"With billions of devices in the market today, developers need tools that target many different form factors and platforms," said S. Somasegar, corporate vice president, Developer Division, Microsoft. "Through Visual Studio and .NET we are committed to delivering a comprehensive end-to-end solution for developers to build and manage applications across multiple devices and platforms."

After releasing several .NET libraries earlier this year to the open source community, Microsoft confirmed it would open source the full server .NET stack, making it available to developers via Github. The company also is expanding .NET to run on third-party platforms such as Linux and OS X and is working with the open source Mono project to ensure these cross-platform operations are ready for enterprise-level applications.





As part of its Connect() event, Microsoft also unveiled its next generation Visual Studio 2015 developer suite with expanded cross-platform support. Additionally, the Redmond company announced the immediate release of Visual Studio Community 2013 and Visual Studio 2013 Update 4.



This open source initiative is part of a broader campaign to support platforms outside of Windows and Windows Phone. The company now offers Office on the iPhone and iPad and is continuing its support for Apple's OS X platform. An updated version of Office for Mac is rumored for release sometime in 2015.

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Posted in 2014 at 05:28PM, November 12

Nokia Preparing to Launch New Offline Maps App for iOS [iOS Blog]

After pulling its HERE maps app due to incompatibilities with iOS 7, Nokia is headed back to Apple's mobile platform with a new offline maps application that'll compete with Google Maps and Apple Maps. The app is in the final stages of development and expected to land before the end of the year, reports the Wall Street Journal .






Nokia is introducing its new maps app to customers who are tired of their existing navigation apps and are looking for an alternative solution.

"I'm convinced people are looking for alternatives," Mr. Fernback said. "Google Maps is a good solution for many, their maps work very well, but it has looked the same and done the same for a long time."

Nokia's will set its maps apart from its competitors by offering offline access to both navigation and searching. The new Nokia maps app will be offered for free in the iOS App Store once it passes through Apple's App Store review process.



Apple's Maps has been heavily criticized since it launched alongside iOS 6. The company slowly has been improving its mapping experience, adding features such as Flyoverand expandingthe points of interest available to users, but significant changes are still in the works. An overhaul of the underlying maps infrastructure and the addition of major features such as public transit directions may have been bumped from iOS 8 and pushed off to a future iOS version due to internal strifeat the company.

Nokia's previous version of HERE Maps for iOS

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Posted in 2014 at 05:28PM, September 03