Developers Frustrated at Apple for Just One Day's Notice to Submit Apps Ahead of iOS 14 Release Today

[Billyk711]

You obviously don't know anything about development or Apple development specifically if you think this has anything to do with "developers waiting until the last moment". Hint: It's not the developers fault at all and you have no clue what a GM is, its significance, or the fact that you can't even submit an update until the GM seed hits.
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No clue. I'm not on that team and they're not taking questions at the moment, they're trying to rush out a fix. I'll update if I find out.

Developers should only get 50-50 split,
Don’t understand why these baby developers don’t just support android if they dislike Apple that much, wait I know why they are greedy and know they will make more on iOS, deleting half of my apps I don’t use anymore, f developers most apps are horrible anyways

 

[Billyk711]

Wish Steve Jobs was still around, he would set the baby developers straight

 

[michelb76]

Yikes. 22 pages of comments from people that STILL just don’t get it.

Developers have had access to test with iOS 14 for a while, but if they can’t submit apps until Apple allows (which was less than 24 hours notice, basically the rest of Tuesday), and then the tool they use to submit apps (Xcode) is also buggy, I’m really not sure where anyone’s argument is coming from other than a lack of understanding and knowledge on process. For real, this entire article should have a few posts from people asking why and then a few of the initial explanations on the issue. Done. How has this managed to get to 22 pages of comments?!?

😇

Most people on here are just Android users trolling. If they are indeed actual iOS users, I would quit right on the spot if I was a developer and had to deal with these people.

 

[Billyk711]

ASK em - maybe something like this? “One such example was posted on Twitter by developer Peter Steinberger, who noted that Apple has removed support for a new API with iOS 14’s GM release, after it appeared in the beta releases.“

https://www.theverge.com/2020/9/16/...rprise-release-golden-master-beta-development

Really nice article from TheVerge. Short version reads like:

“A BIG WTF AT APPLE DROPPING IOS 14 TOMORROW WITHOUT GIVING DEVELOPERS ANY NOTICE, OR FINAL TOOLS TO SUBMIT THEIR APPS”

...

Apple did not return The Verge’s request for comment.

every September for 13 years, stop making excuses, I am already deleting most apps... f these developers. Most apps are horrible anyways.

 

[Rogifan]

No reason you can’t be ready within a week of iOS 14 release to get your app submitted. You had all summer to build in iOS 14 features.

Also I don’t think customers in mass will get that frustrated your app is missing App Clips or something.. But if you still don’t have dark mode I could see some customers getting annoyed.. Dark mode is from iOS 13 though- nearly two years ago.

As others have said it’s not about not being ready. iOS 14 GM and the version of XCode required in order to be able to submit apps was only available 1 day before iOS 14 was released. In other years devs get a week between those releases and the public release. I feel just as bad for Apple employees responsible for reviewing and approving all these app submissions. Was it enough time to properly review? Or will we have another situation were apps get approve and then rejected with their next update because app review found something wrong? And nobody has given a good explanation for why iOS 14 had to drop yesterday. Why not release it today or Friday and give devs a little more time?

 

[nylonsteel]

im not a dev
but one day notice is too short

 

[gank41]

As others have said it’s not about not being ready. iOS 14 GM and the version of XCode required in order to be able to submit apps was only available 1 day before iOS 14 was released. In other years devs get a week between those releases and the public release. I feel just as bad for Apple employees responsible for reviewing and approving all these app submissions. Was it enough time to properly review? Or will we have another situation were apps get approve and then rejected with their next update because app review found something wrong? And nobody has given a good explanation for why iOS 14 had to drop yesterday. Why not release it today or Friday and give devs a little more time?

I think the quick release was to accommodate new Apple Watches for tomorrow That will have watchOS 7 on them, and that requires iOS 14.

 

[cocky jeremy]

Well you DID try to impress a whole group of people here with your interaction so i figured why stop there

I tried to impress people? How exactly is that?

 

[cocky jeremy]

Honest question since you're bashing developers and clearly know more than them. If you must wait until a specific version of tools is released in order to submit your app, per Apple rules and restrictions, and that specific version of tools is not released, how do you submit your app ahead of time?

Have it ready and submit it the first day they allow. Pretty basic common sense stuff here.

 

[Rogifan]

I wouldn’t ascribe to malice what can be attributed to stupidity.

What likely happened is that Apple simply forgot to inform their developers. ie: communication oversight. I don’t think Apple intentionally set out to screw them over, when doing so would compromise the quality of their apps and consequently, the user experience on their platform.

Apple forgot to inform developers? That’s a pretty big forget. I think it’s more likely Apple didn’t care. I won’t be sad when Phil Schiller retires. App Store and developer relations needs new blood.

I think the quick release was to accommodate new Apple Watches for tomorrow That will have watchOS 7 on them, and that requires iOS 14.

Why did new Watches have to be released tomorrow? To get them in this financial quarter? That’s not even going to make a blip on Apple’s financials.

 

[russell_314]

This is the equivalent of your teacher giving you a project in the summer and asking you six months later I need the project by tomorrow. Well if you procrastinated and didn’t do anything for the six months I guess blaming your teacher for the short notice is one way to go 🤷‍♂️😂

 

[chrono1081]

This is the equivalent of your teacher giving you a project in the summer and asking you six months later I need the project by tomorrow. Well if you procrastinated and didn’t do anything for the six months I guess blaming your teacher for the short notice is one way to go 🤷‍♂️😂

Dev here, this isn't correct.

This is the equivalent of your teacher giving you a project in the summer, changing the specifics of the project every two weeks or so (meaning you have to go back and redo things), then while you're waiting for the teacher to stop making changes so you can put the finishing touches on your paper, and more importantly, proofread (testing), she suddenly dropped some more changes and decided the project is due tomorrow, and doesn't give you any way to submit your paper until that evening.

You now have to update your paper with those changes and you lost out on your proofreading time, and to equate this to developers, many people have way more than one paper due. Software development also isn't like writing a paper, you can't just go in and edit things and expect it to work. Software is very complex and changes in one place can cause bugs in another place.

At least this issue showed how much pure hate the community has for the developers who create the apps they use each day.

 

[chrono1081]

Have it ready and submit it the first day they allow. Pretty basic common sense stuff here.

Or read through the posts here where actual developers like myself are explaining why what you think is "basic common sense" isn't actually feasible like you think it is.

Developers do test with each beta. The problem is Apple made changes between beta 8 and the GM seed (which is expected), but they only gave developers ONE day with the GM seed. You also couldn't build your iOS apps for the App Store until the GM of Xcode was out and Xcode can take an hour or more to download and install. That's not acceptable.

We have to go in to each app, fix changes, regression test to make sure those changes didn't affect anything. Apple removed APIs between Beta 8 and the GM meaning it broke a lot of peoples apps and those people only had one day to try and fix everything and submit.

 

[russell_314]

Dev here, this isn't correct.

This is the equivalent of your teacher giving you a project in the summer, changing the specifics of the project every two weeks or so (meaning you have to go back and redo things), then while you're waiting for the teacher to stop making changes so you can put the finishing touches on your paper, and more importantly, proofread (testing), she suddenly dropped some more changes and decided the project is due tomorrow, and doesn't give you any way to submit your paper until that evening.

You now have to update your paper with those changes and you lost out on your proofreading time, and to equate this to developers, many people have way more than one paper due. Software development also isn't like writing a paper, you can't just go in and edit things and expect it to work. Software is very complex and changes in one place can cause bugs in another place.

At least this issue showed how much pure hate the community has for the developers who create the apps they use each day.

OK people don’t hate developers. There’s simply tired of the whining about poor me when they’re making millions of dollars in some cases. We have Facebook playing the victim when it comes to add revenue and it’s just ridiculous.

 

[gank41]

This is the equivalent of your teacher giving you a project in the summer and asking you six months later I need the project by tomorrow. Well if you procrastinated and didn’t do anything for the six months I guess blaming your teacher for the short notice is one way to go 🤷‍♂️😂

You forgot to add the part where the teacher (Apple) gives you a pencil (Xcode) that isn’t sharpened and has no eraser. It’s your only tool and you’re not allowed to use tools from anywhere else. And they’re only going to sharpen the pencil for you less than a day before the assigned project is due.

 

[russell_314]

You forgot to add the part where the teacher (Apple) gives you a pencil (Xcode) that isn’t sharpened and has no eraser. It’s your only tool and you’re not allowed to use tools from anywhere else. And they’re only going to sharpen the pencil for you less than a day before the assigned project is due.

This is why I could never be a teacher. Well see what happened was my mom was using my pencil in June but in July my Aunt Mae lost her pencil so I had to borrow one from Billy but he always chewed on his so it didn't write. When the store finally got new pencils in stock I did my homework but then mom accidentally vacuumed it up. When she took it out the dog thought it was a treat so he ate it. But I did my project so I should still get an A+ right?

 

[Stewie]

/s I assume? If so ignore the rest of my post, if not just know that's not how it works. Developers can test reliably only against the GM seed which literally dropped yesterday. Also Apples approval process isn't instant, so many apps won't work on day one.

Another excuse from lazy developers? Most all apps have been working fine on the beta's. The GM isn't going to suddenly start breaking things.

 

[DNichter]

Yikes. 22 pages of comments from people that STILL just don’t get it.

Developers have had access to test with iOS 14 for a while, but if they can’t submit apps until Apple allows (which was less than 24 hours notice, basically the rest of Tuesday), and then the tool they use to submit apps (Xcode) is also buggy, I’m really not sure where anyone’s argument is coming from other than a lack of understanding and knowledge on process. For real, this entire article should have a few posts from people asking why and then a few of the initial explanations on the issue. Done. How has this managed to get to 22 pages of comments?!?

😇

Lack of understanding, myself included.

 

[chrono1081]

Another excuse from lazy developers? Most all apps have been working fine on the beta's. The GM isn't going to suddenly start breaking things.

Except it can and did. Two of our apps at work broke because between Beta 8 and GM, Apple changed things. This is what all devs in this thread are trying to explain, but instead of listening to us, everyone just assumes we're being whiny when Apple created a real problem. June to September is a very busy time for iOS developers and it sucks when you spend all this time keeping everything up to date with every single beta only for Apple to throw a wrench into it right at the end.

 

[MEJHarrison]

...I am already deleting most apps... f these developers. Most apps are horrible anyways.

Speaking as a developer (not iOS), I would have to guess the general response is going to be "see you later". NO ONE wants a customer like you. Not worth the $0.70. So go ahead and keep deleting those apps. Feels like this is a win on both sides and everyone will walk away happy.

 

[Jyby]

I’ll repeat this... No one cares if your app doesn’t have the latest iOS 14 support day one... repeat no one cares! Maybe your business/managers care, but that’s not Apples fault. That’s the culture/ignorance you work in.

Except it can and did. Two of our apps at work broke because between Beta 8 and GM, Apple changed things. This is what all devs in this thread are trying to explain, but instead of listening to us, everyone just assumes we're being whiny when Apple created a real problem. June to September is a very busy time for iOS developers and it sucks when you spend all this time keeping everything up to date with every single beta only for Apple to throw a wrench into it right at the end.

Apple broke our apps during iOS 13 release cycles also... It’s just what happens. A few days notice would not have changed things significantly for most developers. And if it does then either they are on thin ice or they really need to manage user expectations

 

[hot-gril]

Not a good idea to work for a company that would attack you for something like this...

Could be that you have stake in the company, and since they're up and coming, this kind of screwup would cost them dearly. Lots of people update their iOS day 1. App broken, people delete it and leave bad reviews.

 

[Jyby]

Could be that you have stake in the company, and since they're up and coming, this kind of screwup would cost them dearly. Lots of people update their iOS day 1. App broken, people delete it and leave bad reviews.

Sure but those people are probably unlikely to be in the 2%-3% of people who actually make a purchase in your app

 

[MEJHarrison]

I’ll repeat this... No one cares if your app doesn’t have the latest iOS 14 support day one... repeat no one cares!

I'd agree with that. I'm a developer and I don't hold it against anyone if new features aren't supported on day 1. That makes sense.

But I disagree with the opposite. If an app DOES support all the new stuff on day 1, then they stick out in my mind. They come across as super competent developers. They impress me and stand out from the competition. I know it's not an abandoned app. If money is going to be spent, they've taken a great step towards being the recipient of that money. I have downloaded apps in the past solely because they demoed some new feature really well. I may be on the lookout for apps supporting widgets in the coming days just to see what's being done out of curiosity.

That's just 1 person's opinion of course.

 

[Rafagon]

Looks like these developers got their work done on time, so I'm not sure what all the others are crying about...