While there are several books on programming for Mac OS X, Advanced Mac OS X Programming: The Big Nerd Ranch Guide is the only one that contains explanations of how to leverage the powerful underlying technologies. This book gets down to the real nitty-gritty. The third edition is updated for Mac OS X 10.5 and 10.6 and covers new technologies like DTrace, Instruments, Grand Central Dispatch, blocks, and NSOperation.

A guide for UNIX developers who want accurate information on getting up to speed with Mac OS X and its software development environment, this book provides programmers all the information they need to understand and use the operating system, its development tools, and key technologies such as Darwin, Cocoa, and AppleScript. Users are introduced to the UNIX-based foundations of Mac OS X and shown how they fit into Mac OS X architecture. Also provided is coverage of both GUI and command-line software development tools, realistic programming examples that developers will encounter, and a discussion of Macintosh-style software development.

Harness the power of Cocoa's object-oriented software development environment with this book that is completely updated for Mac OS X 10.2. Cocoa has quickly gained recognition as the leading development framework for building OS X applications. Users will understand the common features found in Cocoa's tools: InterfaceBuilder, ProjectBuilder, the GCC compiler and the GDB debugger.

Covering the bulk of what you need to know to develop full-featured applications for OS X, this edition is updated for OS X Yosemite (10.10), Xcode 6, and Swift. Written in an engaging tutorial style and class-tested for clarity and accuracy, it is an invaluable resource for any Mac programmer. The authors introduce the two most commonly used Mac developer tools: Xcode and Instruments. They also cover the Swift language, basic application architecture, and the major design patterns of Cocoa. Examples are illustrated with exemplary code, written in the idioms of the Cocoa community, to show you how Mac programs should be written. After reading this book, you will know enough to understand and utilize Apple’s online documentation for your own unique needs. And you will know enough to write your own stylish code. This edition was written for Xcode 6.3 and Swift 1.2. At WWDC 2015, Apple announced Xcode 7 and Swift 2, both of which introduce significant updates that (along with some changes to Cocoa for OS X 10.11) affect some of the exercises in this book. We have prepared a companion guide listing the changes needed to use Xcode 7 to work through the exercises in the book; it is available at https://github.com/bignerdranch/cocoa-programming-for-osx-5e/blob/master/Swift2.md.

A Step-by-Step Guide to the Xcode Mac OS Development Environment Every copy of Mac OS X comes with Xcode, the powerful development suite that Apple uses to build applications ranging from Safari to iTunes. But because Xcode is complex and subtle, even experienced Mac programmers rarely take full advantage of it. Now, Mac developer Fritz Anderson has written the definitive introduction and guide to using Xcode to build applications with any Macintosh technology or language. Anderson helps you master Xcode's powerful text editor, industry-standard gcc compiler, graphical interactive debugger, mature UI layout and object linkage editor, and exceptional optimization tools. One step at a time, you'll develop a command-line utility, then use Xcode tools to evolve it into a full-fledged Cocoa application. Anderson provides expert guidance on development frameworks, source code management, Core Data modeling, localization, and much more. Coverage includesUnderstanding Xcode workflow and the Mac OS X application lifecyclePorting established legacy projects into XcodeUsing the Model-View-Controller design pattern to build robust graphical applicationsBuilding static libraries and working with Xcode's build systemMaking the most of bundles and package directoriesCreating applications compatible with older versions of Mac OS X Creating universal binaries to run on both Intel and PowerPC MacintoshesAdding Spotlight searchability to data filesLeveraging Xcode's built-in support for unit testingUsing Xcode on makefile-based UNIX development projects "Step Into Xcode"'s breadth, depth, and practical focus make it indispensable to every Mac developer: current Xcode users upgrading to Xcode 2.1, experienced Mac programmers migrating from CodeWarrior, UNIX/Linux programmers moving to Mac OS X, and even novices writing their first programs or scripts.

Want to write iOS apps or desktop Mac applications? This introduction to programming and the Objective-C language is your first step on the journey from someone who uses apps to someone who writes them. Based on Big Nerd Ranch's popular Objective-C Bootcamp, Objective-C Programming: The Big Nerd Ranch Guide covers C, Objective-C, and the common programming idioms that enable developers to make the most of Apple technologies. Compatible with Xcode 5, iOS 7, and OS X Mavericks (10.9), this guide features short chapters and an engaging style to keep you motivated and moving forward. At the same time, it encourages you to think critically as a programmer. Here are some of the topics covered: Using Xcode, Apple’s documentation, and other tools Programming basics: variables, loops, functions, etc. Objects, classes, methods, and messages Pointers, addresses, and memory management with ARC Properties and Key-Value Coding (KVC) Class extensions Categories Classes from the Foundation framework Blocks Delegation, target-action, and notification design patterns Key-Value Observing (KVO) Runtime basics

Based on Big Nerd Ranch’s popular iPhone Bootcamp class, iPhone Programming: The Big Nerd Ranch Guide leads you through the essential tools and techniques for developing applications for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch. In each chapter, you will learn programming concepts and apply them immediately as you build an application or enhance one from a previous chapter. These applications have been carefully designed and tested to teach the associated concepts and to provide practice working with the standard development tools Xcode, Interface Builder, and Instruments. The guide’s learn-while-doing approach delivers the practical knowledge and experience you need to design and build real-world applications. Here are some of the topics covered: Dynamic interfaces with animation Using the camera and photo library User location and mapping services Accessing accelerometer data Handling multi-touch gestures Navigation and tabbed applications Tables and creating custom rows Multiple ways of storing and loading data: archiving, Core Data, SQLite Communicating with web services ALocalization/Internationalization "After many 'false starts' with other iPhone development books, these clear and concise tutorials made the concepts gel for me. This book is a definite must have for any budding iPhone developer." –Peter Watling, New Zealand, Developer of BubbleWrap