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2010 predictions: iPhone OS version 4.0 features
As 2009 draws to a close, its a good time to start preparing for upcoming trends and advances in the web and mobile space. The first in a series, this post is all about what should be the buzz of March 2010: the iPhone OS 4.0 announcement. Read the story »
Why the iPad’s user agent string presents a problem
The initial impressions are just about done flowing in on Apple's new tablet device, the iPad. Developers in the iPhone dev program were granted access to the new development SDK immediately after launch, but one area that is still largely in the dark is web development for the iPad.
The iPad simulator included in the SDK does not include mobile Safari, however twitter user yassiryaha managed to figure out the browser's user agent string, probably by applying a UIWebView within a test app and tracing out the value. User agent strings, for those who don't know, are effectively an identification to the page being loaded to say what browser is loading it, it's security level, and other useful information for developers to serve up their content as best as possible for the content consumer's platform.
The user agent string for the iPad, and why it matters, is after the break.
NOTE: Edited after reader Andrew provided more accurate - and more consistent - information.
iPhone SDK 3.2 beta and iPad simulator released
Following Apple's iPad announcement today, the latest version of the iPhone SDK is now available in the Apple developer center. As predicted, Apple has not announced OS 4.0, nor has it acknowledged any new functionality for the iPhone. However, a glance at the launch date for the iPad, March, does tie in rather nicely with the annual March announcement of iPhone OS updates. Expect to see unnanounced iPad features that would be shared with the iPhone (read: multitasking, new ways to manage apps) to be announced at that time along with the new features and API's of OS 4.0, and possibly a name change away from 'iPhone OS' to something more generalized, as there are now more product lines that do not have phone functionality (two) than those that do (one). In the meantime, registered developers can access 3.2 in the dev center.
Jeff dePascale is a web and mobile applications professional based in Fairfield County, CT.
