Most developers will probably never get to sit down in person with Apple's Jony Ive and discuss the various ways to fine-tune their iOS apps, but at least now they can download the book.
Although Apple's iOS Human Interface Guidelines (HIG) have long been available through its developer portal, the company recently decided to make it much more widely available, and in a format that may be more conducive to regular use.
On Twitter, iOS developers were quick to cheer the decision and to share the link to get the book to their peers and colleagues.
Great to see the iOS Human Interface Guidelines now available on iBooks - https://t.co/OxlIymLfmo
— Nik Fletcher (@nikf) May 14, 2014
Of course, Apple's iOS 7 required a lot of developers to radically rethink the user interface, if not the entire user experience, of their apps and mobile games. Some of them might have been reluctant, and the HIG book could change that.
@nikf a lot of iOS developers now have no excuse not to read it… Not that they never had an excuse.
— Ade Thompson (@apt) May 14, 2014
Just downloaded, great formatting http://t.co/6BruAv6m0A
— Ryan Nystrom (@_ryannystrom) May 14, 2014
So influential have Apple's HIG become that it became too hard to resist quoting favorite parts of the book:
"First, strip away the UI to expose the app's core functionality and reaffirm its relevance." —Apple iOS HIG https://t.co/RIAk4D64uC
— Luis Pangilinan (@lpotr4) May 20, 2014
Rule #1 from Apple's App Design guide: Don't Please Everyone, Just Most Of Them. https://t.co/HtzlonDjGK
— Chris Ford (@tigheford) May 16, 2014
If there is functionality that only a few users might want—or that most users might want only once —leave it out. http://t.co/WSsVzCyDCX
— Jan Rüter (@Jan_Rueter) May 14, 2014
Some suggested that Apple may be broadening the reach of its iOS HIG to prep for its next platform upgrade.
Maybe what's new is the iOS 7 update to the HIG in the iBookStore @cdoncarroll - get it out just in time for iOS 8. http://t.co/UlDZubHCm0
— Dulio Denis (@duliodenis) May 14, 2014
And others still were suggesting that Apple builds upon the iBookStore strategy with more of its developer support materials.
Finally: Apple releases iOS Human Interface Guidelines on iBookstore. Hope it's just the beginning. http://t.co/cA7Gjx967f
— Damien Petrilli (@TheKaizenPixel) May 14, 2014