Great Price Learn Cocoa on the Mac (Learn Series) for $24.82 Today

When I worked with the author of "Learning Cocoa on the Mac", Jack Nutting, at Integrity Solutions in St. Paul, Minnesota in the mid-90's, I had the strong sense that we were part of a very special group of people, at a very interesting time in the software business. The NeXT computers and software we were using to develop applications for our customers were years - perhaps decades - ahead of their time, and we felt convinced that NeXTSTEP was poised to dominate the enterprise software industry. Thanks to the power of NeXTSTEP's software frameworks, we were able to develop powerful, user-friendly, mission-critical software with astonishing speed and effectiveness. Furthermore, NeXT seemed to be taking the technology in a direction that would allow for much greater adoption, as it worked to develop versions of NeXTSTEP for SPARC and Intel processors.

Then came the World Wide Web, and the dot-com boom. Desktop applications gave way to Web-based applications, which made much more sense for big enterprise deployments as well as (of course) "consumer-facing" applications. For a while, NeXT's WebObjects (now the framework that powers Apple's iTunes Music Store and MobileMe web services) was the framework of choice for big enterprise software projects.

Then Apple bought NeXT, and Steve Jobs returned to Apple as CEO. Jobs quickly realized (to his credit) that if Apple was going to survive and prosper, it needed to focus on the consumer market. Sun's Java and Microsoft's ASP quickly rushed in to fill the void as Apple abandoned its support for OpenStep and enterprise development. NeXT's advanced technology became the foundation of Apple's OS X, and the future of the platform became intimately linked with the success of Apple's hardware.

Many NeXTSTEP developers simply accepted these changes and moved on to other platforms. A stalwart few however (like Jack) kept the faith and continued working with these awesome tools right through to the present day. Today, a growing number developers are being attracted to the Mac platform as Apple keeps turning out great products and increasing its user base. In recent years, the stunning success of the iPhone has given rise to a new generation of Objective-C developers creating great apps for the consumer market. This book is perfect for experienced developers wanting to develop software for the Mac, whether they be newcomers or NeXTSTEP old-timers returning to the fold.

It's hard to fully appreciate the power, beauty, and simplicity of the Cocoa frameworks until one has spent some time working with its alternatives. In the Microsoft world, VisualC++ and .NET provide similar functionality, but with far less elegance and a much steeper learning curve. In Java, AWT and Swing have nothing like Interface Builder, and the various Java layout managers are notoriously complex and difficult to work with. And web-based technologies such as Flex and ExtJS are only now just starting to rival the Cocoa UI frameworks. On the back end, Apple's CoreData framework, drawing on years of engineering done on its ancestor, NeXT's Enterprise Objects Framework, is unsurpassed as an Object Relational Mapping (ORM) tool.

Happily, this book (unlike so many others in this category) doesn't spend several chapters reviewing the history of computing back to the bronze age. Neither does Jack fill up several chapters extolling the virtues of Cocoa and its NeXTSTEP heritage. Instead he jumps right into the meaty stuff.

Jack's writing style in this book strikes a perfect balance between entertainment and substance. There are abundant useful tips sprinkled throughout, introduced at just the right time. This is not intended as a reference book; it's meant to be read from start to finish. Even if you already have some exposure to Cocoa or iPhone development, you will learn new things along the way.

Any book on a living, breathing technology like Cocoa is bound to be somewhat obsolete before it is published, and this book is no exception. Apple released Snow Leopard as this book was being written, so the author was challenged by having to deal with the significant changes from Leopard to Snow Leopard. In addition, while the book is primarily about writing desktop apps, it also attempts to document some of many important differences between the iPhone and desktop SDK's, though it could perhaps go a bit further in this regard - for example, when introducing a major new class or concept, we aren't always told whether it's desktop-only.

Learning Cocoa on the Mac walks the reader step-by-step through the process of building several "real" (albeit somewhat whimsical) applications. It starts by building out the user interface (View), then moves into the Controller layer, and finally covers the Model layer via CoreData. Concepts such as Key-Value Coding are introduced in the context of these projects, which really helps them "stick", as opposed to introducing them in an abstract way and hoping the reader will apply them later. This approach demonstrates good OO design principles and shows how the various parts of Cocoa map to the "holy trinity" of MVC.

While Learning Cocoa covers several of the "assistants" built into XCode, which can automate some aspects of programming, it also covers powerful high-level concepts such as Cocoa Bindings and the Responder chain in great detail. Whenever an automatic or otherwise seemingly "magical" technology is introduced, Jack always takes pains to explain what's going on under the hood. This isn't a book for entry-level programmers who just want to dip their toes into Cocoa; Jack gets you in deep with the technology, but always in a patient, clear, and thorough way. This book is destined to become a classic. I recommend it without hesitation.

Learn Cocoa on the Mac (Learn Series) Features

• ISBN13: 9781430218593
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• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.

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Learn Cocoa on the Mac (Learn Series) Overviews

The Cocoa frameworks are some of the most powerful frameworks for creating native desktop applications available on any platform today, and Apple gives them away, along with the Xcode development environment, for free! However, for a first-time Mac developer, just firing up Xcode and starting to browse the documentation can be a daunting task. The Objective-C class reference documentation alone would fill thousands of printed pages, not to mention all the other tutorials and guides included with Xcode. Where do you start? Which classes are you going to need to use? How do you use Xcode and the rest of the tools?

This book answers these questions and more, helping you find your way through the jungle of classes, tools, and new concepts so that you can get started on the next great Mac OS X application today. Jack Nutting is your guide through this forest; he's lived here for years, and he'll show you which boulder to push, which vine to chop, and which stream to float across in order to make it through. You will learn not only how to use the components of this rich framework, but also which of them fit together, and why.

Jack Nutting’s approach, combining pragmatic problem-solving with a deep respect for the underlying design philosophies contained within Cocoa, stems from years of experience using these frameworks. He’ll show you which parts of your application require you to jump in and code a solution, and which parts are best served by letting Cocoa take you where it wants you to go. The path over what looks like a mountain of components and APIs has never been more thoroughly prepared for your travels. With Jack’s guidance, the steep learning curve becomes a pleasurable adventure. There is still much work for the uninitiated, but by the time you’re done, you will be well on your way to becoming a Cocoa Master.

• Begin to really get to grips with the full Cocoa toolset—practical, hands-on learning
• Become familiar with the core concepts at the heart of every Cocoa application
• See which parts of the iPhone SDK overlap with the Mac OS X development tools so you can explore both Mac and iPhone development
• Packed full of goodness and enthusiasm for the Cocoa frameworks from a developer perspective

What you’ll learn

• How to actually make your own Cocoa applications—this is much more than just a quick introduction to Cocoa!
• Which classes, of the dozens included in Cocoa, are truly central to Cocoa development
• How to best use MVC architecture concepts in a Cocoa application
• How the various pieces of the Cocoa frameworks fit with each other and into the MVC architecture
• Which parts of Cocoa truly enable “visual programming”, letting you reap the benefits of proven, reusable code libraries that Apple gives you for free
• How to recognize recurring design patterns used throughout Cocoa, and put them to proper use in your own code
• How to approach Cocoa from different programming environments
• How to use the facilities provided in Snow Leopard to create software that distributes itself automatically among all available CPUs, improving the user experience for your users.

Who is this book for?

Anyone with basic understanding of object-oriented programming who wants to try out Mac OS X application programming, as well as iPhone developers who want to extend their knowledge of Cocoa Touch to include the Mac-specific technologies included with Cocoa.

Table of Contents

1. Must Love Cocoa
2. Hello, World
3. Lights, Camera... Actions! (and Outlets, Too)
4. GUI Components
5. Using Table Views
6. Cocoa Bindings
7. Core Data Basics
8. Core Data Relationships
9. Search and Retrieve Core Data With Criteria
10. Windows and Menus and Sheets
11. Document-Based Applications
12. Exceptions, Signals, Errors, and Debugging
13. Drawing in Cocoa
14. Advanced Drawing Topics
15. Working With Files
16. Concurrency
17. Future Paths

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Customer Review

One of the finest Cocoa books out there - EX600 -
I'm a big fan of Apress books as I find they offer very good value for money. I visit the Apress site on regular basis to check out upcoming titles on iPhone and Mac development. There was one book that was announced quite some months ago, but the release date kept slipping and slipping.

That book is called "Learn Cocoa on the Mac".

First of all, I'd like to point out that this book does *not* cover iPhone development. This is about Cocoa and Mac applications. Of course, with Cocoa Touch being a subset of Cocoa, you will recognize design patterns that you use on the iPhone and of course topics like Core Data can be used in both Cocoa and Cocoa Touch.

The chapters in this book are:

1. Must love Cocoa
2. Hello, World
3. Lights, Camera... Actions!
4. GUI Components
5. Using Table Views
6. Cocoa Bindings
7. Core Data Basics
8. Core Data Relationships
9. Search and Retrieve Core Data with Criteria
10. Windows and Menus and Sheets
11. Document-Based applications
12. Exceptions, signals, errors and debugging
13. Drawing in Cocoa
14. Advanced Drawing Topics
15. Working with files
16. Concurrency
17. Future paths

I'm not going to go through all the chapters in detail as the titles are clear enough.

You can see that the base of subjects is *very* wide and that is what makes this book a really great one. I find the explanations of the subjects and the samples really great. I felt really comfortable and got more confident going through this book, occasionally going through chapters very fast because of my knowledge of Cocoa Touch.

The nature of this book is really great. We all know that there are dedicated books on subjects such as Core Data and graphics. However, "Learn Cocoa on the Mac" does a great job of giving great introductions and clear explanations of what is going on. It goes deep enough into its subjects to make you understand what's going on.

I love this book. I had great expectations of it and it didn't disappoint. This goes easily in my personal top 3 of Cocoa books.

Cocoa, Xcode and Interface Builder kick-start - Staffan Nöteberg -
Jack Nutting has played, worked and turned Cocoa (and it's NeXTStep predecessor) inside out since the 80s. You can see that. He knows not only how but also why. And he shares that knowledge in this book.

Cocoa is a huge scope. An introductory book must select what is most important to learn first. This book does that. Furthermore, it is a great introduction to Conan O'Brien and Andy Richter...ehh, I mean Xcode and Interface Builder. The only thing that the book demands is that the reader has basic knowledge in Objective-C.

One of my principles as a writer is that more pictures and fewer words, doesn't make it harder to grasp - quite the contrary. This book is richly illustrated with screen shots, and the language is both simple and efficient.

This is a book for those who finally want to start to implement a killer app for the Mac desktop.

Related to Items You've Viewed

• Learn Objective–C on the Mac (Learn Series)
• Learn C on the Mac (Learn Series)
• More iPhone 3 Development: Tackling iPhone SDK 3 (Beginning)
• Learn Xcode Tools for Mac OS X and iPhone Development (Learn Series)
• Cocoa Design Patterns

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Great Price Cocoa Design Patterns for $26.99 Today

This has been a very interesting and easy read. This book covers Cocoa design patterns for Mac OS X 10.5, Leopard, as you can see on page xxiv. However, learning the design patterns of Cocoa for Leopard will greatly help your understanding of Snow Leopard and later iterations of Mac OS X. Though it would have been interesting to know of any changes to these design patterns in Snow Leopard, something you might have expected in a 2010 copyright book.

That being said, this book is very easy to read and understand, if you really want to learn Cocoa. Though the learning curve for Cocoa is steep, this book greatly simplifies that process. However, not all the code seems to have been carefully checked for errors.

For example, the terminal colon on a method name taking a parameter was often missing, as you can see on page 212:

[someControl setAction:NSSelectorFromString(@"copy")];

The method "copy:" is very different from "copy". "copy:" takes a parameter while "copy" takes none. A colon in an Objective-C method is part of that method name and indicates a parameter to be inserted after it when invoking the method. A method that takes no parameters has no colons in its name. A method name with any number of parameters has a colon for each parameter and always ends with a colon for the last parameter. The error of leaving out the terminal colon for method names taking a parameter was common in the code in the book.

Another error I found was on page 104 where this method was shown:

- (id) performSelector:(SEL)aSelector
{
IMP methodImplementation = [self methodForSelector:aSelector];
return (*IMP)(self, aSelector);
}

IMP is a function pointer type defined on page 103 as:
typedef id (*IMP)(id self, SEL _cmd, ...);

The error is that the return statement above should be this:

return (*methodImplementation)(self, aSelector);

This error was also from not carefully reviewing the code. It may have been better to test the code before putting it in the book to make sure it compiles and works. If I were to write a book, I think I would copy the code to an IDE first, test it, and then copy it back into the software I would be using to write the book.

However, generally the code is correct, and the code errors are not that unusual for computer books. Also, the book has the right mixture of code and text, and the examples are well thought out. At one point I thought I saw an error, but it was correct. On page 332 in the method + (MYGameHighScoreManager *)sharedInstance I did not see where the static variable myInstance was declared. Then I noticed that it is declared at the top of the code listing on page 331 outside of the @implementation block. Referring to page 154, I found a similar method with the same declaration at the beginning of the method:

static MyGameHighScoreManager *myInstance = nil;

In fact, except for that line the two methods on pages 154 and 332 are identical. The difference is that the method in page 154 declares it within the method statically while the code in page 331 shows the same static declaration made outside both the @implementation and the @interface code blocks, which is the correct way to do it, given the intermixing of C and Objective-C code. Hence, learning Cocoa requires expertise in both Objective-C and C, one reason for the steep learning curve. These languages may be simple to learn, but require a lifetime to master.

Due the code errors I found and for not covering Snow Leopard, I give this book 4 stars, but for the content and the explanations I would give this book 5 stars for the author makes it very easy to read and follow. Overall, I would recommend anyone who wants to learn Cocoa or improve their understanding of it to get this book, and I am glad I bought it. It has increased my understanding and filled many holes in my knowledge of Cocoa, for there really are not many books on the subject.

However, I see on Amazon that newer books are coming out on the subject soon. But I still recommend giving this book a read just to learn the design patterns and to understand how Cocoa works and the proper way to program in it. Whether you are expert at Cocoa or a beginner, you will get a lot out of this book.

Cocoa Design Patterns Features

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• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.

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Overviews

“Next time some kid shows up at my door asking for a code review, this is the book that I am going to throw at him.”

 

–Aaron Hillegass, founder of Big Nerd Ranch, Inc., and author of Cocoa Programming for Mac OS X

 

Unlocking the Secrets of Cocoa and Its Object-Oriented Frameworks

 

Mac and iPhone developers are often overwhelmed by the breadth and sophistication of the Cocoa frameworks. Although Cocoa is indeed huge, once you understand the object-oriented patterns it uses, you’ll find it remarkably elegant, consistent, and simple.

 

Cocoa Design Patterns begins with the mother of all patterns: the Model-View-Controller (MVC) pattern, which is central to all Mac and iPhone development. Encouraged, and in some cases enforced by Apple’s tools, it’s important to have a firm grasp of MVC right from the start.

 

The book’s midsection is a catalog of the essential design patterns you’ll encounter in Cocoa, including

• Fundamental patterns, such as enumerators, accessors, and two-stage creation
• Patterns that empower, such as singleton, delegates, and the responder chain
• Patterns that hide complexity, including bundles, class clusters, proxies and forwarding, and controllers

And that’s not all of them! Cocoa Design Patterns painstakingly isolates 28 design patterns, accompanied with real-world examples and sample code you can apply to your applications today. The book wraps up with coverage of Core Data models, AppKit views, and a chapter on Bindings and Controllers.

 

Cocoa Design Patterns clearly defines the problems each pattern solves with a foundation in Objective-C and the Cocoa frameworks and can be used by any Mac or iPhone developer.

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Customer Review

Very good, with only a few issues - W. Truppel - Copenhagen, Denmark
Overall, I thought the book was expertly written. It covers a lot of important and interesting aspects of Cocoa, and all its major patterns. The only reasons I'm not giving it 5 stars are:

- there are several errors in the code samples. Occasional bugs are inevitable, but non-compiling code is inexcusable and a major disappointment, for a book of this nature;
- its coverage of the Singleton pattern is incomplete, considering that it doesn't discuss Apple's own recommendations on how to implement a singleton;
- no discussion of patterns related to thread safety;
- the discussion of HOMs (higher order messages) is interesting, but it strikes me as something rarely used; I'd have preferred if the author had used the space spent on HOMs to discuss something more practical. For instance, a common application of the Proxy pattern is the asynchronous loading of images off the web. I think that would have been more useful;
- later chapters are very repetitive, and much less concrete in actual usage, than earlier ones. For instance, chapters 28 (Managers), 29 (Controllers), and 32 (Bindings and Controllers) have a lot in common, and that commonality is repeated in all 3 chapters. Chapter 31 (Application Kit Views) is a repetition of material covered in several previous chapters and adds nothing new.

I'm a great fan of Design Patterns and think that the Gang of Four book (Design Patterns: Elements of Reusable Object-Oriented Software) is still the best book on the subject. However, it's focused on C++ and not on Objective-C and Cocoa. This book, despite its faults, is a worthy partner to the Gang of Four book and is a great addition to any Cocoa programmer's library.

Absolute Must-Read - Innocente -
There are a few core books that I consider must-read books for starting Mac / iPhone developers. This is one of them.

It is especially important for current or former Language / Framework programmers to study this book, and study it hard.

Nothing is more obvious than code that has been architected by old C++ / .NET / MFC coders that do not 'get' the Cocoa Design Patterns.

Don't be one of those folks.

This applies to Java, C#, Smalltalk, C, C++, Delphi, etc coders. These Design Patterns MUST be learned, and used.

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Combinatorial Optimization and Applications: Third International Conference, COCOA 2009, Huangshan, China, June 10-12, 2009, Proceedings (Lecture Notes ... Computer Science and General Issues) Review

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This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the Third International Conference on Combinatorial Optimization and Applications, COCOA 2009, held in Huangshan, China, in June 2009.

The 50 revised full papers were carefully reviewed and selected from 103 submissions. The papers feature original research in the areas of combinatorial optimization - both theoretical issues and and applications motivated by real-world problems thus showing convincingly the usefulness and efficiency of the algorithms discussed in a practical setting.

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iPhone for Programmers: An App-Driven Approach (Deitel Developer Series)

iPhone for Programmers: An App-Driven Approach (Deitel Developer Series) Review

In the process of learning a new computer language or software development environment, I have found that multiple books are needed, each with a different focus: a good intro book with simple examples (Beginning iPhone 3 Development), a great language reference book (Programming in Objective-C), and a first-class advanced applications/topics book. This book, iPhone for Programmers: An App-Driven Approach, is the first-class advanced applications/topics book in my set.

Chapter 2 describes the process that follows the design step for an app: testing the app on an iPhone/Touch device, preparation for submission, pricing, managing, and marketing your newly created app. Chapter 2 lists common characteristics of great iPhone/Touch apps. Some of the reasons that may cause an app to be rejected by Apple are also described. Chapter 2 is a much appreciated chapter and a rare topic for an application programming book.

For the next fourteen chapters, example apps are provided; one per chapter. The apps look good enough to be listed on the app store. Each of the chapters follows a consistent organizational structure: Introduction, Test-driving the App, Overview of the Technologies, Building the App, and Wrap-up.

On the page just before the Table of Contents is a listing of the topics available at the resource center on the authors' website. The resource center is an extensive collection of well-organized current information about computer languages, internet business, open source, programming, and web2.0. This is definitely not your typical book-support website.

Although I am still working my way through the last few chapters, I am pleased with the depth of technical material and the variety of real application examples. After learning the basics, nothing beats further learning than developing, compiling and debugging your own code to create your own software application. It is also the most humbling part of the learning process. Dare to dream...

iPhone for Programmers: An App-Driven Approach (Deitel Developer Series) Features

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• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.

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The professional programmer’s DEITEL^® guide to iPhone app development using iPhone SDK 3.x, Xcode^®, Objective-C^® and Cocoa^®

More than 1.5 billion iPhone apps were downloaded from Apple’s App Store in just one year! This book gives you everything you’ll need to start developing great iPhone apps quickly and–once you’ve joined Apple’s fee-based iPhone Developer Program–to get them up and running on the App Store. The book uses an app-driven approach–each new technology is discussed in the context of 14 fully tested iPhone apps (7700 lines of code), complete with syntax shading, code walkthroughs and sample outputs. Apps you’ll develop include:

• Welcome
• Spot-On Game
• Route Tracker
• Tip Calculator
• Cannon Game
• Slideshow
• Favorite Twitter^® Searches
• Painter
• Voice Recorder
• Flag Quiz Game
• Address Book
• Twitter^® Discount Airfares

By Chapter 3 you’ll be building apps using Xcode^®, Cocoa^® and Interface Builder. You’ll learn object-oriented programming in Objective-C^® and build apps using the latest iPhone 3.x technologies including the Game Kit, iPod library access and more.

iPhone for Programmers include practical, example-rich coverage of:

• iPhone SDK 3.x, XCode^®, Interface Builder

• Object-Oriented Programming in Objective-C^® and Cocoa^®

• Collections, GUI, Event Handling

• Controllers, Application Templates

• UIView, Multi-Touch™

• Core Audio, Core Animation, NSTimer

• Tables, UINavigationController

• Map Kit, Core Location, GPS, Compass

• Photos, iPod Library Access

• Serialization

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Customer Review

Heavily annotated code, no fluff - Peter J. Neame - Tampa, FL
This is not a book for beginners - there isn't much about C-programming, or even about cocoa programming as such. You are expected to have a reasonable grasp of OOP, dot-notation and square brackets and all. What there is is very detailed annotated code for applications that you might actually use. Perhaps the code is over-annotated for some, but I found it very helpful to have a detailed, line-by-line description for those "what's going on here" moments. And in the body of the text, there is a further description of what and why.
A great book that seems to have given me enough "Aha!" moments to make me feel confident of producing something useful.
My only quibble would be that some flow diagrams would have helped. However, given the "style" of the code, which doesn't use interface builder very much, if at all, it's fairly straightforward to build your own diagrams. It is a matter of personal preference as to whether interface builder should be used or whether it's better to wire an application up in code - both may "break" with Apple upgrades/changes, so it is important to understand both approaches. And you can always get a diagram in Xcode.
Strongly recommended.

Iphone for programmers: App Driven Approach - E. Tompkins - Flroida
Excellent book for learning to program iphone apps. complete source code to 14 great apps. This book has a little bit of everything, with knowledge gained you should have no trouble creating a great app for iphone. I also liked that the author responded to emails when i had a problem, that was a huge plus in my book!!

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