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New Dropbox SDK Satisfies App Store Review Guidelines

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Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
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Last week, we noted that several iOS developers were seeing their apps being rejected from the App Store for their inclusion of Dropbox integration that could allow users to sign up for Dropbox accounts and purchase extra Dropbox space. Dropbox moved quickly in attempting to roll out a new SDK to avoid the issue and noted that it was "working with Apple" on a solution, but developers continued to experience problems with their apps being rejected.

Dropbox has continued to tweak its SDK in order to fully comply with Apple's requirements, and while Apple has not officially given the latest SDK its blessing, it appears to be satisfying App Store reviewers.
So we didn't get an official verdict (imagine the worst game of telephone you've ever played), but we do have reason to believe that this build is more likely to get approved than the previous build I posted earlier. [...]

What has changed is if the Dropbox app is not installed, it opens a login view directly in your app rather than going to Safari, and there is no option to create an account.
Click to expand...
Filip Radelic, the developer behind Cambox, quickly incorporated the new SDK into his app and submitted it to Apple yesterday. The app was quickly approved by Apple's reviewers and it is now available in the App Store.

cambox_dropbox_settings.jpg



Cambox's settings page with Dropbox options and login webview​
Dropbox notes that the new SDK does not allow for account creation through the login webview if the Dropbox app is not installed on the user's device, but the company is hopeful that it will be able to add that feature as it continues to work with Apple to ensure the SDK's compliance.

Article Link: New Dropbox SDK Satisfies App Store Review Guidelines
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2012/05/11/new-dropbox-sdk-satisfies-app-store-review-guidelines/
nuckinfutz said:
How so?
Click to expand...

Probably how you can put any type of file in DropBox.

Also, I enjoy how it's not App-Centric. The only way to view Pages documents are within the app itself. But, as a student, I liked to have all my documents (MP4 Video, Pages, Excel) for one project visible in one "folder" as opposed to not having a bird's eyeview about all the content.
 
FSMBP said:
Probably how you can put any type of file in DropBox.

Also, I enjoy how it's not App-Centric. The only way to view Pages documents are within the app itself. But, as a student, I liked to have all my documents (MP4 Video, Pages, Excel) for one project visible in one "folder" as opposed to not having a bird's eyeview about all the content.
Click to expand...

But isn't that micro managing your computer? Should I really have to care about folder structure when it comes to sync technology?

I've got writing apps that sync via iCloud. I use Day One journal and I'm really not seeing where Dropbox makes a difference.

Note: I "do" use Drobox and plan to continue but I think iCloud offers a superior UI for most people that don't want to be fiddly.
 
nuckinfutz said:
How so?
Click to expand...

Flexibility. iCloud is great for uploading and distributing files across all my devices. But that only works with apps that take advantage of it. And what if I want to distribute these files to someone else? I could email em, I guess. But that's a bit clunky. What if I want to set up a project folder for people to grab and add their own files to my iCloud account? What if I want to use my iCloud account to save files from an older app that doesn't directly support it? I can't do it.

Dropbox can. There's really no limit to it. I can put whatever I want to in there. Do whatever I want to with it. I can even launch apps from it, or use it as a webserver.

As of right now, Dropbox is considerably more powerful than iCloud, and not any more difficult to use.
 
Meh, I don't understand why app developers are getting lazy these days. Why can't they keep up with Apple's premium standards? I guess if they can't, then they should be making money on the platform. Their loss.
 
I'm not sure what the problem was?
1) It let people (without dropbox) set up a free account?
2) In addition, it let the purchase additional space?
If #1, don't many services let you set up a free account via the app? Box, Flickr, etc.
If #2, doesn't many premium services like flickr, let you set up free (and they have premium account$)?

Because now they make it sound like people can't even sign up.

And pointing the finger at DropBox: with all of Apple's requirements around purchasing (and them getting their cut), they should have built a switch into the API months ago so if DropBox sets a flag at their end, it tells API calls to NOT show the purchase option. (Because Apple occasional does things like this)

Or if the app wasn't showing it and people were just getting a web page, they really should have been sending them to a webpage specifically for the device the request was coming from.
m.dropbox.com/signup/iOS or something like that....
They they could have tweaked the page and been done.

From a stats standpoint, seems like DB would want to know why people are hitting the mobile signup page? (From what platforms and apps).

Gary
 
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nuckinfutz said:
But isn't that micro managing your computer? Should I really have to care about folder structure when it comes to sync technology?

I've got writing apps that sync via iCloud. I use Day One journal and I'm really not seeing where Dropbox makes a difference.

Note: I "do" use Drobox and plan to continue but I think iCloud offers a superior UI for most people that don't want to be fiddly.
Click to expand...

You're making it sound like micro-managing is the problem, it isn't, the problem is when you allow micro-managing to control you and it adversely affects your productivity as a result.

I don't really see this as a case of "micro-managing" anyway, this is simply a matter of being organized and flexible. There's nothing wrong with that, and in that light, dropbox is simply superior to what icloud has to offer.

It doesn't really matter how "superior" the UI is if it doesn't do what you want it to do.
 
MacRumors said:
Filip Radelic, the developer behind Cambox, quickly incorporated the new SDK into his app and submitted it to Apple yesterday. The app was quickly approved by Apple's reviewers and it is now available in the App Store.
Click to expand...

They approved it in one day? This guy must have great friends at Apple, my app updates take a week to go through. And that's not a week in review, that's a week WAITING for review.
 
People should stop comparing iCloud and Dropbox. Dropbox is for sharing (as evidenced by their awesome new link feature), and iCloud is for keeping all YOUR devices synced up seamlessly.

I use both extensively, but for entirely different things.
 
nuckinfutz said:
How so?
Click to expand...

dropbox supports file versions

i was working on something on my iphone last night and erased it by accident. went to the dropbox website, clicked the file and restored from a previous version 2 hours before that

if you pay for dropbox than you get previous versions more than 30 days old
 
slrandall said:
People should stop comparing iCloud and Dropbox. Dropbox is for sharing (as evidenced by their awesome new link feature), and iCloud is for keeping all YOUR devices synced up seamlessly.

I use both extensively, but for entirely different things.
Click to expand...

Yeah. Are there places on the internet where people argue over whether Word or Photoshop is more useful?

Silly to even compare. They're not the same thing.
 
nuckinfutz said:
But isn't that micro managing your computer? Should I really have to care about folder structure when it comes to sync technology?

I've got writing apps that sync via iCloud. I use Day One journal and I'm really not seeing where Dropbox makes a difference.

Note: I "do" use Drobox and plan to continue but I think iCloud offers a superior UI for most people that don't want to be fiddly.
Click to expand...

I see your point. But as a student, I have folders for Projects. Those projects contain mixed file types: MP3s, MP4 Video, Excel, Pages etc... Currently, to get a quick glance of everything associated with a Project, I need to open 2 or more apps. It seems it would be simpler to have a "folder" within iOS.

Or simply this, I know I have a presentation on Biology. However, I cannot remember if it's a Keynote doc, PowerPoint, or another unique format. In iOS, you would have to open up each app to see if the app contained that document. However, if I was allowed folders in iOS, I could have made a folder that contains all my "Presentations"; I could see every presentation I have regardless of file type.

That's my point. I know Apple is trying to move away from that but it doesn't seem too thoughtout.
 
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