As the stats of mobile users are going higher day by day. The mobile app industry has shown major interest in iOS apps too. IOS users are also loving the innovative ideas coming from developers. Apple themselves released Swift, a programming language introduced to create apps for iOS devices. Let’s discuss further the future of Swift in iOS development. But first, let’s start from scratch.
Over the last few decades, we’ve seen an incredible rise in mobile. Who could have thought that one day mobile will be able to overshadow desktop and other technologies?
And witnessing the change, businesses entered the market to create a prominent presence on mobile as soon as possible. Now that creates a strong demand for mobile app developers and iPad app development company in USA.
Matching the steps, Android and iOS continued to thrive in mobile app development. As of now, Apple’s App Store is home to more than 1.86 million apps.
The numbers were more than enough to convince Apple to release their own programming language named Swift.
Now introducing Swift, it is one of the most loved programming languages in the present-day iOS app development industry. Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, came out to introduce a new programming language, and since then, Swift has been on the tail of the dragon going up and up. Following the word, Tim Cook said while releasing Swift, claiming it was the following big programming language. The current popularity among iOS developers of Swift is quite enough to consider he wasn’t wrong at all.
Now before we talk about what makes it special, let’s first discuss what it is at the very basic ground.
What is Swift?
Swift is a high-level programming language. I made to develop large iOS apps to complete distinct requirements of several business fields.
Its first objective was to create quite complex high-end apps. And as it is quite related to English, that makes it fascinatingly easy and simple to code and learn. The feature makes it one of the favorite languages of beginners. Additionally, what’s makes it beginner-friendly is that it handle the code errors on its own in real-time. As it maintains Xcode, one doesn’t have to worry about major code errors.
The devices that are compatible with this language are iPhones, IPad, MacBooks, Apple TVs, and Apple watches. One can easily create functional and scalable apps for each of them using Swift.
Now that we know the origin and basic idea of Swift. Ler’s move on to talk about why one or a ios app development company in USA should choose Swift for iOS app development. And then, we’ll discuss the specified and detailed features that make Swift important and trendy.
Why is Swift Programming Language Special?
Swift by Apple is a magical language for iOS, OS X and watchOS. It supports creating apps that work fast and efficiently. One of the reasons that it is considered the future of iOS development is that it makes sure that the coding goes safe and secure. It simply deletes all the code classes that can present any type of risk. That way, it makes itself a safe and secure platform to create a stable result. Now let’s outline some key points of Swift that fascinate app developers to choose this language.
- Fast and Prevailing
- The cutting-edge error handling model
- Objective-C Interoperability
- Leverages the Power of Open Source
- New and updated syntax features for reliability
- Collaborative and Interactive Playgrounds
Apple aims to turn Swift into the best language for web and mobile applications. They also aim to add fields like systems programming and cloud services. That’s why the language was made to simplify handling and writing programs for developers. One of the major features it carries is that Apple has made it open-source. Let’s discuss what that particularly means and why is it important?
Why does Apple Make it Open Source?
The basic idea of creating an open-source language is to offer free usage, distribution, and improvement of the code. This implies that any developer out there can fix bugs and clear out issues. That also makes it simpler to identify the bugs, as then there’ll be an entire community working on it.
Now that reduces the work of the team that developed that code. As of now, anyone can find and fix issues by themselves. It also offers security to the programming language. And attracts many new developers and mobile app development company in USA with expertise in various programming languages. And they can help the language grow and improve.
Now, this is a major positive for both sides. Both Apple and developers get benefit from it. Open-source language attracts many developers and learners. It is resulting in faster growth, creating interest, and gaining fast popularity. And this way, a constant supply of fresh features continues, which is an advantage for either side.
Benefits of Swift Programming Language
Now after knowing the idea of creating Swift, an open-source language. Let’s focus our eyes on the brief benefits of Swift App Development Programming Language.
Reduces the time of development
Developers and android application development company in USA love to use a programming language that is easy to read and understand. Swift came up with solving the issue precisely as it is mostly based on the English language and has a clearer syntax. It makes that easy for developers to write, read and improve the code simultaneously.
Unlike other languages, it does not want too many lines of code to perform a specific function. Also, it does not follow legacy conversions, makes the process somewhat simple. These features allow a developer to code fast and create a fully functional app in a short period.
In Objective C, one has to add a semicolon at the end of parenthesis while working on uncertain statements. Whereas in Swift, it manages these multiple issues on its own, and one doesn’t have to spend his/her energy on it. That is one of the major reasons for believing Swift is the future of iOS development.
Require Less Maintenance
The development and launch is not the end of the task for the iOS mobile app development company in USA. They have to update it continuously to keep it bug-free and smooth to create an interactive user experience. In Objective C, a developer has to update two codes to enhance the functionality or to remove the bugs of an app. While in Swift the (.m) and (.h) files are included in a single (.swift) file.
Better Safety
Safety comes at the top of the priority list when considering taking an app development project. But Swift doesn’t allow a chance for risky codes to existing.
Also, it utilizes the newest programming conventions to aid developers in keeping the utmost security on the applications they create.
Open Source Language
Back in 2015, Apple came out to announce Swift as an open-source language from now on. That was enough to excite developers. As the realization strikes that Swift can now be used across various platforms and even for the backend from now on.
This step played an important role in growing the popularity of iOS Swift development. And many developers came to try iOS Swift development over other app development platforms. The step wasn’t expected from Apple as their general policies do not work this way.
And as things are looking now, if they continue like this, Swift is expected to take on the top position in the industry.
Playground to Experiment
Developers like to work on various application ideas at one time. And as an iOS development language, Swift has a playground mode to experiment as much as you want. The playground mode is quite helpful for developers as it displays the developer how the application will perform in that. And that can help a developer modify and shape the application in whichever way he/she wants.
Additionally, Swift also supports dynamic libraries. These libraries offer bits of code that a developer can add directly to make it perform a specific function. With the help of this, apps created by Swift have the ability to link the freshest version of the language. This way, one can ensure that the applications remain future-proof.
Simpler to Read
In languages like JavaScript, Java, C++, C#, and Python, one has to put a considerable amount of time and energy into reading them. Whereas in Swift, it is much easier to read, write and modify the code as the language is related to the English language.
Easy To Maintain
While the evolution of Objective C depends a lot on the evolution of C. The Swift does not face any of these issues. That’s what makes it easier to maintain. Also, as you would have read above, developers would have to update two code files while working on C. Same goes for Objective C.
But in Swift, that problem does not exist. How? Let’s see. In Objective C, one has to maintain two codes namely header file (.h) and implementation files (.m). Whereas in Swift, the two files are combined to form a single code file (.swift).
Source and Binary Compatibility
The fascinating thing Swift coding language five introduced with it is that one doesn’t have to modify Swift code 4 to utilize it. But by easily accessing the functionalities of Swift 5, one can migrate simply and can use the new compiler. Also, it offers binary compatibility for applications.
Quick and Strong
Since the birth of Swift in 2015, it has been continuously growing to be a quick and highly efficient programming language. Additionally, the code has been updated as a native code to align it with the present hardware.
Swift Package Manager
Swift Package Manager can be considered a cross-platform with fascinating features. It can help developers to create, manage, test, and package swift libraries. This is undoubtedly the best way to share source code with the entire community.
Resources of Swift
- Swift Sandbox: Swift Sandbox is a quite helpful and effective resource for a beginner willing to learn Swift from scratch. The beginner can simply write the starting 1000 lines of code on Swift and will get automated feedback from an expert platform.
- Medium: Medium is a renowned name in the online publishing industry. It can be used to gain ideas, knowledge, and information on the latest technology innovations. Medium has numerous Swift development communities that can be pretty helpful as they share the best practices and several ideas for app development.
- Visual Studio Code (VSCode): VSCode came from Microsoft as a cross-platform text and source code editor. It is safe to say it is one of the most informative open-source projects available. It often updates from various developers across the developer community keep it helpful.
- O’Reilly Media: O’Reilly Media’s Swift series includes various books about Swift and iOS app development.
- Packt Publishing: Xcode 6 Fundamentals, Working with Swift, Swift Fundamental, and a variety of learning kits are just a few examples of Swift-centric books.
- Swift Playlist on YouTube: Swift programming is covered in over 300 YouTube videos that may be viewed and learned from.
Swift In The Long Run
They were making Swift an open-source language surely worked out in favor of Apple. A lot of help came from the developer community growing and maturing beyond belief in this short period. The app development for iOS and macOS faced some heavy curves during the period. At the same time, most of them were positive. What could be expected from the future of Swift?
While at this position when after being through a heavy uprise, Swift is facing a downturn in its popularity. Right now, only Apple can clear out the precise future of Swift. But we cannot ignore the fact that in the last four years, the rate of its maturing is surely come out fascinating. And now when it seems that due to a loss in popularity, it seems to get a little unstable. It might be a short downturn or the end of the road.
Surely, the native apps creator or individuals offering ios app development companies in USA won’t be leaving Swift for a considerable period. As Swift fulfills all the need a native app demands that are good performance and a nice flow. Still, while the world evolves, Swift can’t stay at one location. Something has to be changed for it to be kept attractive and efficient.
Thinking of it now, it was quite a bold move from Apple to announce Swift as an open-source language. Being a company that has not a good reputation in this thing, this experiment surely worked out positively.
Last but not least, till now, Swift worked surely fascinatingly. But from now on, Apple might need to participate more too. As the interest of developers and ecommerce mobile app development company in USA are changing and the popularity of Swift is facing a downturn. Apple can save it by introducing some new and fascinating features. So, as of now, the Swift programming language is surely quite efficient, especially for the native app creators. And the future looks more in the favor of Swift, as it has surpassed all the expectations once. And I wouldn’t be surprised if it does it again.
