Under the Radar

Optimizing performance using Instruments, Xcode, and the iOS Simulator — and when not to bother.

How we debug our apps, and avoiding common bugs in the first place.

The new Sources and Metrics in iTunes Connect that show us more about where our customers come from within the App Store.

Tackling hard problems to improve our skills, or simply as a form of intellectual indulgence.

In the second of a two-part series, we discuss app creation in iTunes Connect, including screenshots, keywords, descriptions, and other metadata.

In the first of a two-part series, we explore the non-app parts of iTunes Connect, including reporting, sales, and analytics.

Deciding which App Store reviews to respond to, and the types of responses worth giving.

Minimizing the mental burden and labor cost of accounting and taxes by optimizing for simplicity.

Planning for WWDC attendance (or not), and the value of the other conferences and social events around WWDC 2017.

Building apps with acquisition in mind, calculating your app's valuation, and what to expect in a sale.

Accumulating a portfolio of apps that provide long-term income with minimal maintenance.

The difference between good and bad hacks, and some glorious hacks we've shipped in our apps.

Adding features to your app that you don't want or won't use in order to satisfy requests or reach new markets.

Some of the challenges and decisions that led to the newly released Overcast 3.

Maintaining, testing, and modernizing old apps.

Where we are on our gradual conversion to Swift programmers.

Preparing for and reacting to Apple implementing your app's core functionality themselves.

The potential impacts of the new "rate this app" API and our upcoming ability to respond to App Store reviews.

Experiences and skills we lack by being indie developers, and whether our career path may ever include them.

The significance of App Store star ratings and reviews, and how to tastefully ask people to review your app.

How to get back into the zone after the holidays.

Unrelated abilities and techniques that prove surprisingly useful in indie app development.

David's audio diary recorded throughout the launch day of his newest app, Workouts++.

How we test our apps before release.

Deciding how much of your app to keep secret before release, and how to slowly reveal it.

Strategies for surviving the ups, downs, and increasing challenges of today's App Store and nearby businesses.

The effectiveness and side effects of sales and price changes.

Appearance managers, self-theming views, and rapid design iteration with code and variables.

Planning for annual events and marketing opportunities, and accommodating variable cycles of productivity.

The challenges of learning new languages, APIs, and tools, how we avoid facing these difficulties, and what drives us to overcome them.

Overcoming fears of speaking at conferences, how much work it really takes, and deciding whether it's worthwhile.

Responsibly shutting down a failed app.

An overview of advertising terms, costs, and metrics, and getting started with App Store Search Ads for indie developers.

Adopting techniques, tools, and APIs long after they've been introduced, with specific examples from Overcast's development.

Choosing a database or scheme for local data storage, including Core Data, SQLite, property lists, JSON, user defaults, and NSURLCache.

When to require new iOS versions, and the real-world need for test devices.

David's app income shifting to ads over time, and Overcast switching to ads.

Ramifications of pruning very old apps from the App Store and cracking down on title-keyword spam.

Preparations in the final week before a major iOS release, and handling Apple requests for promotional artwork.

Lessons from Vesper's shutdown and strategies to navigate the difficult environment for paid apps today.

Why and how to localize and internationalize your iOS apps.

Using lessons and analytics from watchOS 1 and 2 to rethink our Apple Watch apps for watchOS 3, using Overcast's app as a case study.

Quick takes on eight topics submitted by listeners.

Techniques often used by games to increase engagement, revenue, and addictiveness, and their potential ethical uses in our apps.

Creating and managing shared code, using Git submodules effectively, and whether to open-source your libraries.

Pros and cons of releasing your personal utility apps, focusing mostly on Mac apps.

The value of app ideas, evaluating their feasibility, and considering the business you want to be in.

Concluding our WWDC 2016 coverage, we discuss what's new (or not?) for indie developers in tvOS, macOS, and Swift.

Following on from last week's discussion of the newly announced changes to watchOS 3, this week we dive into iOS 10. We discuss what changes are especially relevant and how we think we might adopt them.

Live from WWDC 2016, we discuss what's new for developers in watchOS 3.