Steps to Code a Chat App in iOS Platform

Chat apps have been developing every day like we can see a new chat app each time we open the app store. The likes of Whatsapp, Messenger, and other social media chat apps are getting popular day by day. But the recent privacy issues concerned many users and they migrate to other chat apps which they think have more privacy. Chat apps are evolving day by day. In the initial stage, these apps were meant for chat only. And the option for sending and receiving multimedia is added. Now in a chat app, the user can access marketplaces can make payments. The world is changing so fast. New technologies are added every day. This change has to be adopted by all sectors. So chat apps are also changing according to the new developments.

What is iOS?

iOS is a macOS-based UNIX-like operating system exclusively for Apple iPhones. The first version was released in 2007.iOS is the second most popular mobile phone software available in the market. iOS phones have an app market called App Store which is similar to Google’s Play store. Like Android, iOS also provide so many free and paid apps to its users. Most famous applications have both Android and iOS versions.

App development in iOS

App development in iOS is the process of developing mobile applications for Apple hardware which includes iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch. To develop an application for iOS, the developer must satisfy these requirements:

• Apple Mac computer with latest macOS
• Xcode IDE for macOS
• An active Apple developer account

If a developer satisfies these requirements he can start coding an application for iOS. The next thing needed for developing an app is selecting a suitable programming language. There are currently two main programming languages available for iOS app development. They are Objective C and Swift. Objective C is developed in the1980’s and is still considered the primary language to develop iOS applications. This language s derived from the C Programming language. Still, many developers depend on objective C for developing iOS applications. The next language is Swift. Swift introduced in the year 2014 is a young programming language used for developing iOS applications. Swift is now considered the official language of iOS. Swift uses simpler syntax and it gives a high preference on security than Objective C. The main advantage of swift is that it is easy to learn even for beginners. Swift can easily interoperate with legacy codes to develop an iOS app.

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Steps to Code an iOS Chat App

We have discussed the development of iOS apps. The languages and tools used for the development of apps. By using these tools and programming languages chat is being developed. Chat apps are one thing that is much needed in the current world scenario. Connecting with multiple users at the same time, can do group voice and video calls, and much more. So coding an iOS chat app also involves some steps. Let us look into the steps involved in it.

• Getting the App idea

For an iOS chat app is to set up the idea of an app with the help of Xcode. Xcode is a tool for developing iOS apps which is the integrated development environment for the macOS. The use of dependencies like Scaledrone and Messagekit is also essential for developing chat apps.

• Setting up the UI

After the setting up of the app idea and tools, the next is to build a User Interface of the App. This must be a user-friendly one. With options has to be available according to users’ wishes. Messagekit library will help in setting the UI.

• User Login

For using the app a user login is required. For this purpose, a random user is developed using the Swift language. The random user is created and testing is done.

• Creating members as JSON Dictionaries

Sending and receiving messages from users will be as JSON Dictionaries. After adding members as JSON dictionaries they will be converted to swift language-friendly objects.

• Scaledrone connecting

The above all are the different ingredients and in this step, all these are connected to Scaledrone. After connecting to it we will enter the chat room where the users are.

• Final Touch

And at last, all developing stages are completed. In this step, swift is used to modify the chat service created. After that run the app and send a few messages.

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Conclusion

App markets are providing lots of chat applications to users. Each of them has a different purpose and different options. So in this pandemic era, everything is happening online across all sectors, a secured chat app with much privacy is needed for users. Institutions will go for a new app developed exclusively for their employees or the students to communicate with. Using Swift language and Objective C an iOS chat app can be developed without much effort.