Safari launching on an iPhone (it took many tries to get this screenshot right!)

More and more gadgets use fancy animated graphics. From your cellphone to your high-end Linux box running Compiz Fusion, they’re all looking better than ever. But animation is more than looks. And today I’m going to cover many of the benefits of animations in software, from multiple angles.

Animations are exciting

Animations makes people go “Ooh” and “Aah”. This makes people happy, and they’ll be more likely to like the software. Even Vista with all its problems was famous for its Aero flip 3D. Bringing animations to your software also makes it seem more professional and complete. Static software is boring, animations are not. Too much is not good either, so finding a place in the middle is important.

Using animation to hide slowness

Everybody hates slow software. Animation is a great way to hide this. Of course, the best solution is to make software faster. But when this is not possible because of limitations in hardware, animations can be a great solution.

A very good example of this is launching apps on an iPhone. You zoom from the springboard (desktop) to the app. It may only take milliseconds, but it gives the app some extra time to start that doesn’t annoy you. Many apps are ready to use when the animation is done, making the launch seem instantaneous instead of having a tiny delay. This gives a great user experience, and is one of the “secrets” to why people love the iPhone.

Using animation to give feedback

Animations is a great way to give users feedback on their actions. When you click something, you expect something to happen. A good example is the jumping dock icon on Macs when you launch a program. Another one is minimizing windows on almost any operating system.

On Windows 7, you get outlines when dragging windows to the edge of the screen, highlighting that you are about to invoke the Snap feature.

Using animation to show relations

Animation is a great way to show how things are connected. A perfect example is switching screens in a table-based iPhone app. When you press an item in a table, the table slides off to the left and a detailed view comes in from the right. When you go back, the opposite happens. This gives the user a sense of relations between objects on and of the screen. The app seems more logical and self explanatory.

This works so well because we humans are wired to see relations between objects. This is also the reason why interfaces inspired by real world examples often work well (provided they are well executed).

How to implement the correct animations in your software

Knowing that animations can be used for many things is good and well, but how do you use them the right way? The easiest way to know if animating something is the right thing to do, ask yourself these questions:

1. Are you sure it won’t impact performance too much?
2. Will it help users understand what happened?
3. Will it make the software look better?
4. Will it make the software seem faster?
5. Are users going to be excited by it?
6. Is it fast to implement?

If the answer to at least three of these questions are yes, you should really consider implementing animations.

Finding the right animation for the task is even harder, but this is so different from case to case that I won’t recommend anything specific. A great general tip is to look at software you love to use and learn from it.

Often used animations most people undestand are zooming, bouncing and sliding. Be careful not to let the animations become the main focus. They should generally last for under 1 second and be gone. A bouncing icon that repeats over and over until you click is not a good user experience.

Debate, test and ask

Are you unsure about animations in your software? Do you want to learn more? Debate with friends, test software yourself and ask people what they think. Hit me up at twitter if you have any specific questions, or leave a comment below.

They also (as I predicted) unleashed the beast of Jobs With Numbers™, showing how small this issue really was. 0,5% of users have even called Apple about the issue, and only 1,7% have returned their phone (compared to 6% on 3GS, which is also quite low if we are to believe Apple).

Me, I believed all along that this issue was overblown. I am going to get an iPhone 4, now happily with a free case. I use a case for my 3GS at work already, to stop myself from destroying it when I accidentally bump into stuff or scratching it when I get the phone up from my pocket past my keys hanging in the belt, ready to scratch anything in their path.

They also announced release dates for many more countries, including Norway, to be 30. July.

Well, today Apple will hold a special event, most likely to address this issue. I write “most likely” because they haven’t explicitly said so, just that the event will cover iPhone 4.

Predictions

I have two predictions, each quite likely. I think option 2 has a slightly better chance of being correct, detailed below.

Option 1

Apple will give out free bumpers or gift cards to all iPhone 4 buyers to date. New iPhone 4s will be bundled with a bumper of your choice.

Option 2

Apple will explain that they have discovered two possible issues, one in software and one in hardware. The software issue was partially fixed with today’s 4.0.1 update, but will be fully remedied by 4.1 coming soon. This will fix the problem for most people. The hardware issue will be explained to affect only some of the early adopters. Those who have experienced problems will be eligible for a free exchange at any Apple Store.

Apple will also announce that they’ve perfected the production method such that new iPhones will not experience this issue at all.

The usual stuff

Of course this will come after Apple goes through the usual list of iPhone reviews and numbers, praising the phone as the best smartphone ever. They may even be bold enough to mention that Consumer Reports rated the phone as the best smartphone to date but won’t recommend it, and hope they will change their mind now that the issue is resolved.

What is that plus icon next to the price?

I’ve heard many people ask what the plus icon next to app prices in the app store is.

The explanation is very simple: Apps with a plus symbol are adapted for both iPad and iPhone. Buy once, use native on both.

This is nothing but good news for you, so if you have an iPad or are planning to buy one, you should choose these apps when available.

First, the conceptual bit. A delegate in objective C is the same concept as in real life. You delegate a task to somebody else, who gives you the result when they are done. Or if there is no result, they just tell you they are finished.

So how does this work in code?

First you need to figure out what you want to use a delegate for. A common use is to close modal views, so I will use this in my example. The example is from one app I am currently developing.

When you want to close a modal view, they best way to do it is to let the parent view close it. The way to achieve this is to implement a delegate method. Let’s dive into it, shall we?

First, in your modal view, you have to implement a protocol. This is a description of what tasks you want to delegate to others. A protocol is defined in the header, like this:

Line for line:

@protocol HotelListViewControllerDelegate; // Tells the compiler: Hey! I’ve got a delegate protocol in this file!

id <HotelListViewControllerDelegate> delegate; // This is an instance variable where you save your delegate

@property (nonatomic, assign) id <HotelListViewControllerDelegate> delegate; // Create getters and setters for the delegate

@protocol HotelListViewControllerDelegate <NSObject> // Define your protocol
@required // This says that your delegate must implement these methods
- (void)hotelListViewControllerDone; // First delegate method. No arguments
- (void)hotelListViewControllerDoneWithHotel:(NSString *)hotel; // Second delegate methods. String as argument
@end // Declaration of protocole done

The only think you have to do in the modal views main file (.m) is to synthesize your delegate:

// Implements getter and setter for you (-(void)delegate and -(void)setDelegate).

That wasn’t too hard?

Implementing the delegate methods

First you must tell the view that initiated the modal view that it is the modal view’s delegate. In the header, you must show that you want to be the delegate for the modal view:

The only interesting part here is where you add <HotelListViewControllerDelegate>.

but how does the modal view know who to ask for help? It doesn’t yet. This we can fix, by adding one line to the method that creates the modal view in the main file (.m):

(I blacked out a bit hinting at what my app is about, this shouldn’t matter for your understanding of the code)

Here you set the modal view’s delegate to yourself.

And last but not least, implement the methods you described earlier (still in the parent view’s main file):

[self dismissModalViewControllerAnimated:YES]; // This dismisses the modal view

That’s it. If you followed this and implemented it in your own app, it should now work. Remember not to copy the names I use, but use names that fits with your app. If you have issues, comment below or mail me at help@thomassnielsen.com.

Drag your PDFs here

Method 1:

• Open a PDF in Safari.
• All the way up top there should now be a button: “Open in iBooks”. Press it.

Method 2:

• Open iTunes on your computer.
• Drag a PDF to your library (see picure). It should appear under Books.
• Connect your iPhone
• Make sure book sync is enabled (under the books tab), or check the box for the file there
• Sync

Now your PDF should open in iBooks.

PDFs reads a little differently in iBooks than elsewhere. It works better for books and papers in my opinion, but for other files like presentations and tables the normal view is equally good.
There you have it. I would guess the same also works on the iPad, although I can’t confirm that.

Bus schedules in iBooks. Handy.

Crush It the book

check out my friend Gary’s Business Book

add this widget to your site.

Sometimes you hear people talk about life-changing experiences. Maybe it was a trip, maybe it was an event, maybe an accident, or even a book. For me it was a book. More precisely “Crush it!” by Gary Vaynerchuk.

I listened to the book in audio format, read by the man himself. If you got an audible subscription, this is a great way to spend a credit. Even if you aren’t planing to start your own business this will give you a new perspective on life. But if your dream is to be an entrepreneur, this will be even more valuable for you.

So what does this has to do with the new design? I am planning to try harder. Much harder. And my first action is to redesign the site. I know it is a rip-off of apple.com, but so what? They’ve got better designers than I could afford if i mortgaged all of my family’s homes, so I might as well just copy their work.

Next on the agenda? Stay active, continue developing my apps, but most importantly of all, stay focused on what matters most: My family, and especially my girlfriend. Without them I couldn’t do this anyway, so they come first. Second? My dream of becoming and independent software developer, and hopefully expand it to a thriving business. Before TV, before playing games, and so on.

If you like tech, software or software design, my blog might just be the thing for you. Follow me on twitter or facebook to keep up with the latest news.

As simple as the game is, it is among the best in it’s category. Amazing Tic Tac Toe is a Tic Tac Toe game with both single and multiplayer, with 3 advanced AI opponents. And the best thing? It’s free!

The game is already a hit, 12 hours into it’s life. Over 5000 rounds have been played so far. And this is only the beginning. Updates will come, and they will come soon.

Can you beat it on hard? It is possible. Good luck!

Download

• 5Mpx camera with 720P video and flash
• Front facing video camera for video chat
• Super-hardened glass front and back, 30 times harder than plastic
• Super high density 960 x 640 IPS display
• Stainless steel sides
• Gyroscope sensor
• Light sensor at the back
• Double microphones for noise cancellation
• A4 Chip
• 16 and 32GB editions (same as before)

OK, so I missed a few points, but most were spot on. Other news:

• iMovie for iPhone
• 1500 new APIs

Jobs also demonstrated much the same as the iPhone OS 4 event. Sort of ironic that iPhone OS 4 is now renamed iOS 4. Makes sense though, as it now runs in 3 iDevices.

You can read all the details and see pics over at Engadget. (Norwegian, VG nett)

Since I follow Appple news (and tech news in general) pretty closely, I believe I’ve got an above average clue about what is likely to show up. So let’s get to it!

State of Apple

This happens every time. Steve Jobs brags about what Apple has accomplished since last time he spoke. They surely have a good reason to do so, they just passed Microsoft in Market Cap value.

iPhone OS 4.0

iPhone OS 4.0 has already been shown, but there is bound to be even more goodies in the bag. Features to match Android, features to match the new hardware, and repeats of features shown before. This will be a main focus, this is a developer conference after all. They will also show iPad specific features of the OS.

iPhone 4G / HD / 4GS /Jesus Phone Edition

The next iPhone will be shown. My guess is it will be called iPhone HD, and will resemble the one Gizmodo got their hands on. This means the following features:

• New design
• Better camera (probably 5Mpx and 720P or 1080P HD movie recording)
• Camera flash (not the Adobe type)
• Front facing camera. Will feature iChat software, APIs for others. Skype will show off software. Crowd will go wild.
• Higher resolution screen. 4 times todays resolution. Highest in the industry. More bragging rights.
• IPS display. Same tech as iPad
• A4 processor. Same as iPad. Might be downclocked somewhat to deal with heat.
• More storage. 32/64 or even 80GB editions.

More uncertain rumors

The above I give an 80% chance of happening more or less exactly as I described it, maybe with a few additional features. But I believe there are more secrets hiding behind the curtain:

• New Mac Mini (50% chance)
• New Apple TV (40% chance, more likely this fall)
• New Mac Pro (40% chance, but about time)
• Bing search options for safari and iPhone OS devices (25% chance)
• Something nobody predicted (60% chance. We know Jobs likes to surprise people)

What do you think? Leave your comment below.

Newspaper coverages:

(Norwegian) ITavisen
Macworld
(Norwegian) VG