August 2018 Summaries

Bitrise is now offering free access to its Developer Plan features for open source projects, allowing swift builds and secure setup on its platform. The new "Public Projects" feature combines several tailored options to support open source teams, including automatic filtering of sensitive information and public build pages. This move aims to give back to the open source community by providing a safe and productive environment for developers to create mobile apps in record-time.

The main code base is kept bug-free and clean by using branches for development, creating pull requests to merge new code, and tracking changes made in the pull request through a well-designed comparison page. The app's versions are handled easily by using git tags, which can trigger new builds when merged into the master branch. A release workflow can be created automatically with the help of the Generate Changelog step, which collects commit messages since the last tag event and exports them as an environment variable or a file called CHANGELOG.md. The GitHub Release step is used to create a release with the changelog, and the app's version can be deployed to the app stores by tagging a code state and triggering a build. A sample workflow is provided for reference.

We've rolled out the beta version of a new step: Xcode build for simulators. This step will run the xcodebuild command with an iOS simulator destination and generate an .app file, which then can be run on a simulator. The step outputs include the generated app directory path, paths to dependent target apps, and the raw build results log file path. Building an iOS project to a simulator does not require codesigning the project, eliminating the need for certificates or provisioning profiles.

When creating an Android app, developers face numerous challenges, particularly in choosing a suitable database that can efficiently store information without compromising performance or security. Two popular options are Realm and SQLite, each with its strengths and weaknesses. Realm offers simplicity, ease of use, and faster data processing, making it an attractive choice for new developers. However, its limitations, such as file access restrictions, may hinder more complex projects. On the other hand, SQLite is a widely used SQL database engine that excels in scalability and security but can be challenging to manage, especially for novice developers. Room, a relatively new abstraction layer over SQLite, has gained popularity due to its improved performance, security features, and simplified data migration process. Ultimately, the choice between Realm, SQLite, or Room depends on the project's architecture, coding skills, and specific requirements.