Apple is changing, and those changes are for the better. On Friday, the company launched Swift Blog, its first ever official Apple blog on the company's website. The blog is part of Apple's Developer connection, and it's stated purpose is to be a direct conduit to developers.
Swift is a new developer language unveiled by Apple during the company's annual World Wide Developer Conference in June. It is intended to replace Objective-C, and was designed as an entirely modern development platform.
From the blog's first entry:
This new blog will bring you a behind-the-scenes look into the design of the Swift language by the engineers who created it, in addition to the latest news and hints to turn you into a productive Swift programmer.
It was signed "The Swift Team."
Apple's Swift Blog
This is just one of many signs that Apple is opening up to the outside world. In June, the company relaxed the ridiculous rules that prevented developers from talking about beta releases of iOS and OS X. These rules were absurd in the face of widespread access to those betas, and Apple's decision to relax them was a very practical move for a company known more for control for control's sake.
Also in June, Angela , incoming Apple Senior Vice President of Retail and Online Stores, posted a blog entry on LinkedIn. Ms. Ahrendts wrote about starting a new job, though not particularly her new job at Apple, but even that was a first. Apple executives don't blog, period. At least they didn't.
They do tweet, however, and this is another sign of Apple becoming more and more open. For instance, CEO Tim Cook, SVP of Worldwide Marketing Phil Schiller, and SVP of Internet Software and Services Eddy Cue all tweet. You'll also find Angela Ahrendts. They tweet in a controlled manner, of course, but it's still a sign of a more open Apple.
Most recently, Apple openly participated in the Pride Parade in San Francisco. Tim Cook appeared in many photographs with Apple employees, and Apple itself released a wonderful video showcasing its participation in the event.
I don't expect Apple's developer blog to leak information or otherwise blow a hole in Apple's vaunted secrecy, but opening up a direct conduit to developers is great for developers and Apple alike.