After many months in the making, I’m pleased to be able to announce that the 2nd edition of Mastering Xcode is now available to purchase, and even more pleased to announce my involvement in the book as co-author.
Joshua Nozzi’s 1st edition was an invaluable reference for me as I started the process of transitioning to developing iOS and Mac software. The prospect of a 2nd edition was made even more exciting when Josh asked me to get involved in the production process. I initially came on as technical editor, but due to Josh’s other commitments I was fortunate to be asked to come on-board as a writer.
I’d done some technical writing in the past for UK magazines PC Plus and Linux Format, but this was the first time I’d ever been involved in the production of a book. The experience was challenging, and often time consuming, but ultimately very rewarding.
Mastering Xcode is a guide to using Xcode from a first introduction to what I like to think of an “advanced intermediate” level. The first section is a gentle introduction to the environment. The second section is a ramp up to using the editor, workspaces, interface builder, the debugger and core data modeler to produce a simple “suite” of applications. The third section dives into more advanced topics such as the build system, debugging and profiling, as well as more detailed examinations of Xcode’s command line tools and SCM integrations.
While we couldn’t cover every facet of Xcode we have endeavoured to touch on as much as possible. We’re also acutely aware of the fact that this book is focussed on Xcode 4.6, which will likely be superseded by Xcode 5 later this year. We feel that much of the information in the book will still be relevant (even if it looks a little different). We’re also planning some “delta” material that will document what is new and what is changing – keep an eye on the book website for more information on that.
From a personal perspective, I’d like to thank Josh for giving me the opportunity to work on this book with him. He, and publisher Cliff Colby at Peachpit, let a cheeky individual finaigle his way into the process, and decided to take a chance on him. For that I’m exceptionally grateful.
I couldn’t have devoted the time needed to complete this project without the support of my wife and family. Whether it was giving up our evenings together, or taking the kids away to give me “writing weekends”, the efforts that they went to in order to help the process along was invaluable.
In the production process itself, our production editor Robyn Thomas was amazing. She guided us every step of the way, and gave re-assuring feedback when confidence was waning. From a technical perspective we have Mark Goody to thank. His eye for detail kept us on track and made sure we weren’t misleading the reader too much.
If you are interested in getting a copy then please consider using one of the affiliate links below:
Peachpit Press: Print edition - Ebook edition
Amazon UK: Print edition - Kindle edition
Amazon US: Print edition - Kindle edition