
47 segments available
PSPDFKit creator Peter Steinberger joins us to talk about the framework. Dru talks about UIKit widgets he hates and everyone enjoys some Marzipan. Interested in hearing past episodes? You can find them here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/raywenderlich-com-podcast-for-app-developers-gamers/id773910890 --- About the podcast: Join Dru and Jenn as they discuss every aspect of mobile app development with well-known experts from the iOS & Android community. Our goal is to help you learn something new each episode and level up your career! --- raywenderlich.com is a website focused on developing high quality programming tutorials. Our goal is to take the coolest and most challenging topics and make them easy for everyone to learn – so we can all make amazing apps. We are also focused on developing a strong community. Our goal is to help each other reach our dreams through friendship and cooperation. As you can see below, a bunch of us have joined forces to make this happen: authors, editors, subject matter experts, app reviewers, and most importantly our amazing readers!
In this segment, hosts Dru and Jenn introduce Peter Steinberger, the founder of PSPDFKit. They discuss his background, including his experience with iOS development since the inception of the iPhone and his role in managing the PSPDFKit team. Peter shares insights into his journey from being a senior iOS engineer to creating a leading PDF framework.
"hey what's up everybody this is Ray and welcome to the Ray Wendling kompot in this podcast we'll keep you up to date with the latest app development Tech Talk now here your hosts drew Freeman and Gen ..."
Peter recounts the serendipitous beginnings of PSPDFKit, sparked by a challenge he encountered at a Nokia developer event. He explains how a problematic magazine app led him to create a robust PDF framework, highlighting the initial struggles and the motivation behind his project.
"he also organizes cocoa heads and meetup for developers that work with Apple platforms prior to PS PDF kit he worked as a senior iOS engineer at a start-up in San Francisco and taw I oh s and Mac deve..."
In this segment, Peter dives into the technical challenges he faced while developing PSPDFKit. He discusses the limitations of the iPad 1, including memory constraints, and how he optimized the framework for performance. Peter shares anecdotes about the creative solutions he implemented to enhance user experience.
"point the furthest east that I have traveled in Europe is just about five or ten minutes over the NATO land border into Germany I haven't made it far enough east to hit Austria as of yet but it's it's..."
Peter reflects on the evolution of Objective-C and its role in the development of PSPDFKit. He discusses the advantages of using Objective-C for performance-critical components and shares insights on how he leveraged the language's features to create a fast and efficient framework.
"really hard at this point I tell people to jump on with the Eccleston first episode with the 2005 return because it's it's rather complete it's it's it works a nice binge so let's start with the let's..."
Peter explains how PSPDFKit transitioned from a side experiment to a full-fledged business. He shares the initial response from users, the demand for additional features, and how he navigated the challenges of scaling his project while managing his startup life.
"how the name comes about but why did you decide to make a toolkit for PDF honestly I mean it is kind of a little bit random because you don't just wake up one day and say I'm gonna make a PDF remember..."
In this candid segment, Peter discusses the realities of startup life, including the pressures of managing multiple responsibilities and the risk of burnout. He shares personal experiences that led him to prioritize his own well-being while growing PSPDFKit.
"actually in retrospect kind of ingenious because the people who worked under clearly had no understanding about the platform at all they used multiple UI windows to simulate tabs so you had like I thi..."
Peter addresses the ongoing debate between Objective-C and Swift, discussing the implications for developers using PSPDFKit. He shares his thoughts on the benefits of Swift, the challenges of maintaining compatibility, and the future direction of the framework in light of evolving technologies.
"interesting really challenging you had you had the iPad one it only had 64 megabyte of friend in total so if you got really lucky yet maybe got 40 or 50 megabyte rendering a PDF could take up to 30 so..."
Peter reflects on the importance of user feedback in shaping PSPDFKit. He discusses how initial customer inquiries led to a comprehensive list of feature requests, emphasizing the need for continuous improvement and adaptation in the competitive landscape of app development.
"okay all the things into a folder and this is all framework and then I renamed it and luckily everything was was fine with the rights I wrote it and I resold it to my friend and then I figured ok if h..."
In this segment, Peter shares insights on navigating the complexities of the app development landscape, including the challenges of integrating with various platforms and frameworks. He discusses the importance of flexibility and adaptability in meeting the diverse needs of developers.
"software that you you wind up being asked to fix is basically a train wreck that that you look I mean you go well this is a mess and and then the refactoring begins and and and I congratulate you beca..."
Peter emphasizes the significance of community in the development process. He discusses how collaboration and support from fellow developers have played a crucial role in the success of PSPDFKit, highlighting the importance of building a strong network within the tech community.
"was my my number one goal like it should be fast it should be easy to to integrate and I had a lot of fun with it and then I put it up and in the first week a few people bought it and then the emails ..."
In the closing segment, Peter shares his vision for the future of PSPDFKit and the innovations he hopes to implement. He discusses the potential for new features and improvements, emphasizing the importance of staying ahead in a rapidly evolving tech landscape.
"road and it was really way way more work than we both guessed and then when I was over there I was basically I had two jobs I had this really interesting start up when you start up life is not not nin..."
Peter Steinberger discusses the advantages of using Swift for UI development compared to Objective-C. He highlights Swift's readability and ease of use, while also acknowledging the complexities of data management and the need for compatibility with existing Objective-C codebases.
"take advantage of some of the really wonderful old hints and tricks that you could do with objective-c its lead so the question yeah if this were done in Swift today would you consider it to be a lot ..."
Steinberger explains the challenges PSPDFKit faces in supporting various frameworks like Cordova and React Native while maintaining compatibility with both Objective-C and Swift. He emphasizes the importance of ensuring that their SDK remains accessible to developers using different programming languages.
"it's also a lot of parsing and data management I'm not sure I would have gotten as much benefit I mean the other problem also is that our SDK on the Iowa side is used natively it's used by people who ..."
Peter shares insights on creating a Swift wrapper for commonly used Objective-C classes in PSPDFKit. He discusses the mixed reception from developers and the challenges of making the wrapper compelling enough for users to switch from Objective-C.
"think with react native there's a lot of massaging and if the moon is in the right position you can do most of your swing ed over your head yeah so give me some birds all the other rappers I'm not rea..."
Steinberger reflects on the evolution of rotation handling in iOS, comparing it to Android's approach. He describes the complexities involved in creating smooth animations during rotation and the challenges faced during the transition to newer APIs.
"thought everybody would love it almost nobody uses it turns out like it doesn't make some API a little bit myself but it also like is yet another thing that you need to add to your project right so so..."
Peter discusses the challenges of rebuilding the page presentation logic in PSPDFKit, including the need for different display modes and the complexities of managing scrolling behavior. He highlights the importance of user experience in designing these features.
"stable headers and I think this is now in Swift 5.1 so technically after that you could do also string works as a all Swift fine every frameworks way don't give away the source code I don't think it w..."
Steinberger shares his experiences with debugging complex UI issues in PSPDFKit, including pixel rounding problems and the difficulties of maintaining smooth scrolling. He emphasizes the importance of meticulous attention to detail in UI development.
"there and kind of the same state and then on iOS you could rotate it and you actually saw the page like rotating and like shrinking a little bit or even cooler than you headed in in portrait and you r..."
Peter explains the transition from traditional page views to collection views in PSPDFKit. He discusses the skepticism he initially had about this change and the challenges faced during implementation, including edge cases and performance considerations.
"and now I think what in a year ago almost two years we survey all of that code so we did like you know if you have a project it's sufficiently big you can just rewrite it it's like it's impossible but..."
Steinberger recounts a particularly challenging bug related to hidden views in the collection view. He describes the debugging process and the complexities involved in resolving the issue, highlighting the intricacies of Apple's UI frameworks.
"like different code paths and the one was a scroll wheel scroll view and not a squirrel knew it was it was really complicated and we had all this pixel rounding issues where okay you had this magazine..."
Peter discusses his experiences with Apple's bug reporting system, including the challenges of getting issues addressed. He shares anecdotes about his interactions with Apple engineers and the importance of persistence in following up on unresolved bugs.
"use size classes to optimize it a little bit for the device especially now it's like iPad and you can even have a small app on the size and the size class changes with a lot of fun except to but ultim..."
Steinberger reflects on the impact of Swift on the pool of Objective-C developers. He discusses the challenges of hiring experienced Objective-C developers in a Swift-dominated landscape and the implications for the future of iOS development.
"- way longer than we thought be able to really manage to do it there were a few really difficult edge cases when you know like the more you you show sinks into other things the harder it gets to make ..."
Peter shares insights into the innovative approaches taken within PSPDFKit to enhance Objective-C development. He discusses the use of macros and other techniques to improve code quality and maintainability.
"it's really bad if you're a pfm up and you scroll and it's like a page 80s out there it's called a little bit more and sometimes it's back and we like what the heck this is us squirrel dude it's even ..."
Steinberger discusses the future of Objective-C in the context of Swift's growing popularity. He reflects on the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for developers working with both languages.
"sometimes the pitch disappeared this took us so long to figure out and it also never this is an apple but yeah and even better it only happened when the view was first responder so we built this examp..."
Peter shares his experiences with bug reporting and the importance of following up on unresolved issues. He emphasizes the value of building relationships with Apple engineers and the impact of persistence in getting bugs fixed.
"performance focused so they we already got told well if your bugs not a p1 like this internal thing for Apple to be like really critical fixed oh yeah we'll see we'll see this year I got my my doctor ..."
Steinberger discusses the shift in developer skillsets as Swift becomes the dominant language for iOS development. He reflects on the challenges of finding developers with strong Objective-C skills and the implications for the industry.
"been fixed there are roses on the tree I wrote filk lyrics I just got silly I need to start doing that and that was why they say they caught me down at dub dub and said no we're not fixing it but ulti..."
Steinberger shares insights on the difficulties of hiring Objective-C developers in a Swift-centric environment. He notes that many developers prefer Swift due to its modern syntax, which complicates the recruitment of talent familiar with Objective-C and C++. This segment emphasizes the changing landscape of mobile app development.
"it's really useful and it's it helps finds box because if you're compared to the regular loop but you have to use the type it automatically first the type so if you change something up there then down..."
In this segment, Peter Steinberger argues for the continued relevance of Objective-C despite the rise of Swift. He discusses how many Apple frameworks are still built in Objective-C and the potential for future deprecation of Objective-C frameworks. The conversation touches on the historical context of programming languages and their evolution.
"because yeah most people want on White's list and then many don't have a lot of Objective C experience and we have Objective C and C++ which is even a little bit more difficult um yeah I would say the..."
Steinberger speculates on the future of Apple frameworks and the possibility of transitioning from Objective-C to Swift. He discusses the implications of new Swift-only frameworks and the challenges developers face when adapting to these changes. This segment provides a forward-looking perspective on iOS development.
"have pretty much come in and taken over and I think a the developers it's kind of on the developers to find the bucks they just deploy stuff and whether it's ready or not at least that was my experien..."
The discussion shifts to Marzipan, Apple's framework for building cross-platform apps. Steinberger and the hosts explore whether Marzipan will replace Objective-C or enhance legacy UI elements. This segment sets the stage for a deeper dive into UI development challenges and innovations.
"which is in itself a little bit problematic because you have this this this house or you could say city that has built around all this pattern the arc you see and then there it's like Swift which so m..."
Dru shares his frustrations with the UI Date Picker, describing it as an archaic element in modern iOS development. He critiques its design and functionality, highlighting the need for a more intuitive date selection mechanism. This segment captures the ongoing challenges developers face with legacy UI components.
"rewritten and Swift because I know a lot of the Swift is still being written in C some of its being written vector C that's why there's still a lot of the bridging that's there but the fact that they'..."
In this segment, Dru discusses his alternative approach to date selection using a jog mechanism reminiscent of video editing. He contrasts this with the limitations of the UI Date Picker, emphasizing the need for better user experience in date selection. This highlights the creative solutions developers are exploring.
"outside needs to be objective-c then at the or like at the top we need Objective C because all the wrappers and all the clients and at the bottom there's all C++ so we cannot directly interact with al..."
The conversation delves into the evolution of UI design in iOS, particularly the transition from skeuomorphism to flat design. Steinberger and Dru discuss how this shift has affected UI components like the Date Picker, reflecting on the challenges of maintaining usability while adapting to modern design trends.
"be I'm curious if Apple really becomes aggressive and starts to push new frameworks as Swift only this year and I think the real and this might be a great great segue for us to talk about the second h..."
The hosts introduce Triplebyte, a platform that simplifies the job application process for software engineers. They discuss how it connects developers with top tech companies without relying on traditional resumes. This segment highlights innovative solutions for job seekers in the tech industry.
"jobs sucks you have to put the right keywords in your resume you spend hours and hours on phone screens take home projects and that's assuming the company even responds to your interest or your cover ..."
Peter Steinberger discusses the transition from skeuomorphism in iOS design, highlighting how the tactile feel of interfaces has diminished over time. He reflects on the nostalgic elements of skeuomorphic design and how they have been replaced by more minimalistic approaches, losing some of the 'touchability' that characterized earlier versions of iOS.
"always like one of the weirdest things right it clicked when you when you turn it and it still kind of made sense in the whole paradigm but which I was seven when they redid everything it felt like it..."
In this segment, Steinberger explains the functionality of UI pickers in iOS, comparing them to multi-column table views in macOS. He emphasizes the limitations of iOS's single-column design and how UI pickers serve as a workaround for displaying multiple values simultaneously, while also discussing the nuances of date pickers.
"the touch ability of it without taking away that element I've also always found that element really fascinating because it really feels and plays like a Mac os10 tableview where in OS 10 your table vi..."
Steinberger shares insights on Apple's Marzipan project, speculating on its potential impact on app development across platforms. He discusses the lack of official terminology from Apple regarding Marzipan and anticipates upcoming announcements that could clarify its role in bridging iOS and macOS applications.
"picker and then live feedback goes away me too the big question and that is cometh June we got a preview last year of and the funny thing is we're all calling it marzipan but so far as I've read and I..."
Reflecting on a memorable keynote, Steinberger recounts the excitement surrounding the unexpected announcement of Marzipan. He shares anecdotes from Apple employees and the secrecy that surrounded the project, highlighting the anticipation for its features and capabilities.
"whether that means we're gonna get marzipan Developer Preview one we're not quite sure what do you Sam I was sitting in in the audience at this very keynote where I mean I guess the most memorable say..."
Steinberger narrates his experience of adapting an existing PDF viewer to work with Marzipan. He details the challenges he faced, including linker errors and the need to modify code to fit the new framework, showcasing the complexities of cross-platform development.
"four to five years of course but it says we think you should show we really think if you're gonna create some new code you should use this but we're not saying that your old codes gonna go away yet an..."
In this segment, Steinberger discusses the limitations of existing frameworks when integrating UIKit and AppKit. He shares his troubleshooting process and the creative solutions he employed to overcome obstacles, emphasizing the importance of adaptability in software development.
"crazy saying like it's more than the middle the client it's easy plus fat's Objective C Objective C plus plus even some Swift in there everything just do it you know I I mean I I built on the shoulder..."
Steinberger dives into the debugging process he undertook while working with Marzipan, detailing the various crashes and errors he encountered. He shares his strategies for resolving issues and the satisfaction of achieving a working prototype, illustrating the iterative nature of software development.
"solders framework like Apple in some ways reassured itself in the foot cuz FLOTUS framework was kind of like design to be the same but also not the same like there were a few things on the neck that a..."
Steinberger speculates on the future of UI frameworks, discussing the potential for a new, Swift-based framework that could unify iOS and macOS development. He expresses hope for improvements in cross-platform compatibility and the evolution of user interface design.
"and was like that was like another buggy and I did I did a similar approach at some point it was complaining about the accuracy like on UI button our Christine was not there so I like that I really us..."
In this segment, Steinberger analyzes how Marzipan could reshape the development landscape for iOS and macOS applications. He discusses the implications of integrating features from both platforms and the potential for a more cohesive app ecosystem.
"doing is with what you had available to you in iOS and Mac OS that was released this past year yeah we also know that there's a lot of stuff that will be in their servers that we will not see until th..."
Steinberger shares his creative ideas for new UI elements, including a circular date picker. He discusses the challenges of implementing such features and the excitement of pushing the boundaries of traditional UI design, inviting collaboration from fellow developers.
"things the Mac App Store so if they actually would use it to significantly change what's there it will be complicated again that's like why should I do it I think they won't they won't go down that ro..."
In this segment, Peter discusses the use of Metal to improve highlight annotations in PDFs. He explains the technical challenges and advantages of using multiply compositing for better visual results, while also reflecting on the complexities of working with Metal and undocumented APIs.
"like yeah but I don't know my medal I I've I've gone through so many podcasts with people who've done metal and Season seven I had Janey who was writing a book on metal all season and it's just like m..."
Steinberger emphasizes the importance of attending WWDC sessions and labs for developers. He shares insights on how these opportunities allow developers to connect with Apple engineers and gain a deeper understanding of new technologies, highlighting the evolving nature of the conference experience.
"like oh this is so complicated like so many other mistakes and also UI image is actually really good so this there's a lot of things that you have to replicate so for that particular thing I actually ..."
Peter shares his experiences with the WWDC ticket lottery system and discusses the challenges of attending the conference. He humorously suggests that working in certain countries might improve chances of getting a ticket, while reflecting on the community-building aspects of developer meetups.
"define the people you need to talk to a specific person about a specific problem and the talks are lost last year adopted by I think I only seen one talk and I only seen that because a friend of mine ..."
In this closing segment, Peter talks about his plans for WWDC and encourages listeners to connect with him at the event. He expresses gratitude for the opportunity to share insights on PSPDFKit and invites the audience to engage with him on Twitter, wrapping up the podcast with a preview of the next episode.
"absolutely not helped me with anything I mean it's good for the community I met a lot of wonderful and interesting people doing that I really I really like those monthly meetings but Apple never even ..."