New ? Safari to open YouTube app !

[FLK]

Hi ! (First post here )

Safari on iOS 6 seem to directly open the official YouTube app (if installed ) with a YT video link !

Is this a new undocumented feature ?

 

[i-John]

I'm sure it's not a feature that Apple added.

I'm sure it's a script that detects you're on the iPhone, checks whether you have the app installed and opens the app accordingly. I'm sure this is all the work of Google.

 

[FLK]

Well, it´s not working with Google Chrome or any browsers.

 

[i-John]

Well, it´s not working with Google Chrome or any browsers.

Could be Google's hook is mobile safari

 

[spblat]

Apple has a whole set of ways for applications to invoke other applications. It involves URL "schemes". Apps can register their URLs and developers can make it known how their apps can be communicated with. It's how apps like Launch Center Pro do their thing.

For example, if you have waze, go into Safari and enter this:

waze://?q=mississippi

For a http://youtube.com/dfgkhdkfjgd URL to map to the new Google App, I think Google and Apple would have to cooperate, because a typical URL scheme might look like "mytodo://newitem" instead of an actual valid web URL. But it's only natural that they did.

 

[FLK]

I've made a test page containing only a link, and it works, so it´s a Safari thing, and it´s also works with iOS 5.1, so it might be a server side configuration that Apple control.

 

[kas23]

What is opening in iOS 5.1, the new app or the original YT app?

 

[FLK]

Oops, i'm retarded, on iOS 5 it´s the old app of course. So the question is still here on iOS6. And since there are some jailbreak tweaks to force Safari to open new YT app, it's seems new, no?


Edit: According to some Website it´s a special treatment for Google... As expected. I'm an indy dev, and i would love to launch my app with a regular http link.

 

[spblat]

Oops, i'm retarded, on iOS 5 it´s the old app of course. So the question is still here on iOS6. And since there are some jailbreak tweaks to force Safari to open new YT app, it's seems new, no?


Edit: According to some Website it´s a special treatment for Google... As expected. I'm an indy dev, and i would love to launch my app with a regular http link.

Look into the link I shared above. You can put a pair of links on your website. One link goes to the app store to get your app, and the other link can launch your app, right from your web page. You don't have to get special treatment from Apple to do this; your URL will look something like mycoolapp://.