Monday 2 June 2014

Apple announces iOS 8

Following the momentous visual overhaul of last year's iOS 7, Apple's next iteration of its mobile operating system tweaks and refines.


Apple unveiled the next iteration of its mobile operating system, iOS 8, at its annual World Wide Developers Conference in San Francisco.

Last year's bold mobile overhaul with iOS 7 was a stark departure for the iPhone maker's core philosophy of tweak and refine, but with iOS 8 Apple has returned to its tried-and-true approach of incremental but important enhancements. Some of the biggest changes for the software are interactive notifications and more fluid tie-ins with Apple's desktop OS X software.
For instance, users listening to music can now swipe down on a text message that pops up as drop-down notification and access the keyboard, replying directly from within iOS's Notification Center without having to leave the app you're currently in. Other, smaller changes include a better tab view for managing Internet browsing on iPad,

The biggest addition, however, is QuickType, which punctuates a greater SMS overhaul with iOS 8 -- Apple software head Craig Federighi said onstage that Messages is the most used app on iOS. QuickType gives users a predictive keyboard, meaning it will learn how you talk with different people to allow for quicker auto-correct and fill-out suggestions.

Beyond QuickType, the SMS tweaks include the capability to leave or mute specific message threads like group messages with a single button, as well as share location to users within the thread, as well as audio and video within the thread using a single swipe. Additionally, all media shared in a text thread is now grouped together in a single thread accessible by clicking any one of the audio, video, or photo messages.
iOS 8 marks the second major release of Apple's mobile operating system under the guidance of head designer Jony Ive and Federighi. Apple CEO Tim Cook fired the prior iOS chief, Scott Forstall, in October 2012 in part for refusing to take responsibility for Apple's Maps fiasco. Ive spearheaded the complete redesign of iOS 7, the first major overhaul since Apple introduced the software with the first iPhone in 2007.
iOS 7 featured different typography and color schemes from previous versions of the operating system, as well as a flatter design concept. iOS 7 also added useful features like automatic updates to make everyday use easier, AirDrop, and iTunes Radio, as well as a new control center that gives quick access to most-used features. The iOS 7.1 update in March incorporated CarPlay -- a way for the iPhone (5 and newer) to power a touch screen on a new car's dashboard -- and other bug fixes and tweaks.
This story is developing...

-from cnet.com

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