Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Computing
  3. News

With no plans for merging operating systems, Apple opts to combine apps instead

By
Apple products stock photo
FirmBee/Pixabay.com/Pexels

App developers hoping to create the next big, must-have app for Apple product users will soon find it a bit easier to do so.

According to a recent report by Bloomberg, Apple is working toward combining apps built for its iPhones, Macs, and iPads in an effort to stimulate the development of new apps and services.

Recommended Videos

Codenamed “Marzipan,” Apple’s multi-platform app integration initiative is expected to be completed by 2021 and will begin as early as June 2019 with the debut of a new software development kit (SDK).

Related

With the release of the new SDK, app developers should be able to submit iOS and Mac versions of their apps to their respective app stores without having to rewrite the code for each version. The release of the SDK is expected during Apple’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference.

Apple also plans to expand the SDK in 2020, to allow for the conversion of iPhone apps into Mac-ready apps.

By 2021, the Marzipan initiative is projected to finally do away with separate app store submissions completely. Instead Apple will opt to allow developers to simply merge their separate iPhone/iPad/Mac app versions into a single app that will be compatible with all three Apple devices. This merged app will be referred to as a “single binary.”

It is worth mentioning, however, that though Apple plans to combine its apps, the technology company has already emphatically stated, as reported by CNET, that it will not merge the iOS and MacOS operating systems.

As The Verge notes, even though Apple isn’t going as far as what Microsoft tried to accomplish with its Universal Windows Platform initiative, Apple’s Marzipan endeavor still looks similar to Microsoft’s universal apps, even without trying to merge its own divergent operating systems.

The intent to create streamlined single-version apps for multiple devices is where the similarities end between the two companies’ apps-based initiatives.

In fact, while Microsoft’s universal apps seem doomed to obscurity, Apple’s Marzipan initiative might succeed where the Universal Windows apps have seemingly failed, mostly because Apple has a successful flagship smartphone with a devoted following, while Microsoft still struggles in the smartphone market.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Anita George
Anita George
Computing Writer
Anita has been a technology reporter since 2013 and currently writes for the Computing section at Digital Trends. She began…
This simple app changed how I use my Mac forever
The Paste Mac app, with its clipboard bar open and the Paste homepage in Safari.

Every time I sit down and use my Mac, I’m reminded that it’s full of advanced features and clever extras. Yet there’s one place that absolutely does not apply: the clipboard. Copying and pasting in 2023 feels like it’s stuck in the past with no prospect of salvation.

At least, it did feel that way until I came across an app called Paste. This superb utility has taken a knife to copying and pasting and made it… fun? I never thought I’d say that about such a mundane task, but here we are -- it’s true.
Stacked with features

Read more
One of my favorite Mac apps is driving me nuts
A close-up photo of the Shortcuts app on an Apple device, against a red background.

Shortcuts is probably the most frustrating app I’ve used on macOS. Not because it’s a bad app -- it’s actually one of the best Mac apps you can get -- but because Apple gives next to no support on how to use such a powerful part of its operating system. It’s like being given a supercar, but the dealership forgot to include the keys.

Most of the time in macOS, the low level of official support is not a problem. But with Shortcuts, it's detrimental.
Apple needs to do more

Read more
Apple fixed one of my biggest macOS gripes with Sonoma — but I still want more
Federighi talking about Continuity Camera.

Apple’s macOS Sonoma update has just been launched and, let’s be honest here, it’s a pretty modest upgrade (probably thanks to the work required on the Vision Pro’s software). Still, when Apple unveiled Sonoma a few months ago, there was one feature that got me excited: Continuity Camera.

This nifty tool lets you use your iPhone as a high-quality webcam. Sure, it actually debuted with macOS Ventura, but this year we’ve got much more control over how it works. Sliders! Toggles! Yes, it’s all here.

Read more