My Top Tip for Apple Developers

Jul 17, 2022 • Extra Ordinary

If you start developing apps for iPhone, you will randomly be prompted at some indeterminate time in the future, “Do you trust your computer?” Always tap Trust. No matter what.

This might seem extremely counter intuitive. Surely, you have been told not to trust random dialog boxes, especially ones you don’t expect, especially if you aren’t even at your computer.

But the downsides to tapping Cancel are clear and measurable.

The next time you build your Xcode project, it will not compile. You will not understand why. The error will be bizarre and inscrutable. You will look for typos and you will not find any. You will close the project and open it again. You will quit Xcode and open it again. You will reboot your Mac. You will reboot your iPhone.

Somewhere in the mix, it’ll work again, and you’ll try to remember the last thing you did that made it work, but you will not remember. After reading this, though, you will remember to always tap Trust.

Steve used to quote Arthur C. Clarke and say, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” I would like to tweak that: “Any sufficiently advanced code signing is indistinguishable from black magic.”

The Gods work in mysterious ways. They may come to you when you least expect it. Do you trust them?

Always.