This question is similar to this one. My iPhone app allows the user to select the background image to use for the main screen. Therefore, depending on the background image selected by the user, the Launch Image screenshot (of the main screen) will likely display the wrong background image. When the main screen is finally loaded and the Launch Image is removed, it will be quite ugly for the background image to change suddenly to what the user has selected.
Does anyone have any suggestions on how to deal with this? Should I use some kind of splash screen (I thought I read in Apple's HIG that this was not allowed)? Or maybe I should somehow "transition" the user's selected background image into the view after the Launch Image is dismissed and the main screen is visible. Any thoughts?
If you really want to show a 'Splash' Image what you could do is forget about dynamically changing Default.png and use a simulated splash screen effect (simply a UIView or UIImageView covering the entire screen) which disappears after a number of seconds. What you need to ensure is you do the minimal amount of work to show the simulated splash screen and get it on the screen as fast as possible and then do any other computations later on whilst your image is shown.
There is no way you could change the actual Default.png without having the risk of your app being rejected by Apple.
Depending on how long your application takes to launch, you can use a black image as default.png. A "splash screen" isn't recommended but if there is no generic image possible and your app takes a significant amount of time to launch, it would be a better approach for the user's perspective as they would at least know that the application is launching.
Also remember that default.png is only shown when your app first launches, not when it resumes from multitasking (unless it has since been killed off).
See also this question Changing UIView when applicationWillEnterForeground fires which will be the next issue you face if your background image is set in preferences rather than within the app!
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I am having an app in which I have a requirement of changing the splash screen every time when the app launches.
I am having 5 images and i want to change my splash screen by one of the 5 images every time user launches the app.
Is it possible to do this?
You can't change the splash-screen that shows while your app is loading (that scales up when your app is launched), but you can make it something generic (like a texture or solid colour) then as the first view controller in the app you can load the exact same image (or just use a solid background colour), then you can fade-in one of your five images and show that for a short period before transitioning to the first (real) screen of your app.
For example:
Splash is solid black.
Root view controller gets set to a view with solid black background colour and an image-view containing one of the five images, with alpha set to 0.
Fade in the selected image.
Transition to first-screen of app.
By making the first view controller look exactly like the splash screen (initially) the cut-transition is seamless and your custom transition to your in-app splash screen can begin.
i suggest to leave the splashscreen empty and directly go to another view where you do all the loading and change images there. Changing the splashscreen image at runtime is not possible.
Maybe you can make an image like loading or your logo for the splash screen as this will still pop up for a few seconds.
It's not possible to do what you want. See App Launch (Default) Images. You can only change the Default image based on:
Orientation
Pixel density (retina/non-retina)
Device (iphone/ipad)
URL scheme used to launch the app
Your app data is also read-only so you can't get around this by modifying the Default.png file manually.
Also, it's a very bad idea to not add a Default.png file like some other answers are recommending. You will end up with a black screen for a few seconds, which will also appear in the multitasking switcher if your app has been terminated in the background. This is a very bad user experience and your app will look shoddy.
There is work around for this.
Don't load default Splash Screens.
You can create your own splash screen which will be called every time user open the app.
You can manage the 5 images in this very easily as control will be in your hand.
I have developed a straight iPhone/iPod Touch app.
A launch image is implemented for Retina displays as well as the lower resolution of the former generation devices.
Those images are displayed properly on the iPhone simulator as well as on several iPhone an iPod Touch devices.
However, since some days, when launched on an iPad (1) or iPad simulator one of the other images within the app is shown.
Apparently the image that is displayed wrongly, is one of two amongst ca. 70 images within the app. Those two images happen to be either
1. the first image in my xcode project groups hierarchy.
-or-
2. the first image in my project in alphabetical order.
I did not yet find a pattern of when 1. or 2. happens, so when the first image in the project's hierarchy of groups is taken or when the first in alphabetical order is taken. But it seems to be one of these two files only.
Any idea what I probably did wrong so that a wrong image is picked as launch image of this iPhone-only app whenever it is launched on an iPad?
Thanks in advance.
Cheers
Hermann
Try inserting an image named Default.png into Xcode. That's all, just drag it in. Xcode recognizes any picture named Default.png as the loading image. That should make it work.
To expand a little on Jack's answer - you can indeed use an image named Default.png which will automatically be used as a launch image for your app.
However,you can also customise the launch image for particular hardware and device orientations by using images of a particular size and name - for example, a 768x1004 pixel image named Default-Portrait~ipad.png added to your project will be automatically used as the launch image when you launch the app on an iPad in portrait orientation.
The use of these customised images is highly recommended, as it allows the launch image to be sized appropriately for the different shapes of screen (i.e. iPhone and iPad), and allows high resolution launch images to be used on Retina display devices.
For a list of these sizes and image names, see this page. The items of interest are the ones beginning with "Default"
All iPhone apps have a splash screen, or what Apple refers to as a “launch image”. It is the screen that is displayed immediately after you press your app’s icon on the home screen, while the app icons are sweeping away and your app is zooming into view.
Some apps opt not to display a splash screen and go for a black screen, which is the default behaviour when you create an app. Others display a wireframe of the app’s interface in order to look like it is loading faster. See Apple’s native apps such as Clock and Camera for good examples of this. The most common use of the splash screen (especially in games) is to present a company or game logo, as we do in Addicus:
Apple has made it so easy to set your splash screen that you don’t even need a single line of code to do it. Why, you don’t even need to change a setting. Here’s how to set your splash screen it in just 2 steps:
Add a file to your project’s Resource folder called Default.png.
There is no step 2. Take this time to reflect on how good life is.
And that’s it. Run your app and your splash screen will zoom into glorious view.
A couple of things to watch out for when working with splash screens:
Whatever image you give it will be scaled to fill the 320×480 resolution of the iPhone, so ideally you would use a 320×480-sized image.
If your iPhone app is running in landscape mode, you need to rotate the splash screen you use. For example, our splash screen is rotated 90 degrees to the right in the above image.
See more at: http://getsetgames.com/tag/launch-image/#sthash.GEXwuzsf.dpuf
I have a splash image that I want to display when the app is launching. I use it as a launch image - I want it to be displayed until the program is launched (rename the picture to Default.png).
In apple's HIG they say one should "avoid" using a splash screen as a launch image.
I know it's not recommended and that users often don't like them, but will it make Apple reject my application? If so, how can I display a splash screen so it'll be displayed as soon as the app goes on, but not violate those rules? because I have seen applications with splash screens as launch images.
Thx in advance!
It's not that Apple will reject your App just coz you have a splash screen. But it's advisable to not have a splash screen as the user has to wait. Better not make the user wait...
Flipboard which was the Apple App of the year in 2010 has an image splash screen. As the user enjoys the images, data is downloaded in the background so that as soon as the user flips the page, the next screen is all ready & up to date. But they have made it in such a tasty fashion that the user hardly feels as if he's been made to wait. So it all depends on your design...
If you plan to simply use the Default.png mechanics to display your splash image, there is no problem.
The issue arises when you would like to prolong the display of such image only for the sake of it. This is what the HIG are against: that the user is made to wait without any real benefit. It is also to be noticed that with the advent of multitasking (iOS 4), the effect of showing a splash screen is reduced, since most of the times the app is not closed, so you see no splash screen at all when you go back to it.
On the other hand, it is understood that if you need to do some setup task in your app that take time and you have to do that at startup, then the user will have to wait. It is important, though, that he/she be notified of the wait and why it is for. This could mean, e.g., displaying a label on top of your image saying: "Loading..." or "Preparing data..." or whatever your user might better understand as part of the functionality of the program.
As to how to do it, there is no other way, AFAIK, than starting your app with a view that is exactly the same as Default.png (a simple UIImageView would do). That means, that in you appDidFinishLaunching delegate method, you create the view and attach it to the window; then, when you have done with your app preparation, you switch to your real view.
This would give you also the chance to add the label or whatever other kind of messaging to the user.
ok. I know how to display the splash screen on iPhone. Seems quite simple enough (i.e. setting the Default.png and calling "sleep" command).
But, is the application actually doing anything during this time? My app needs to go and fetch some data from Web before showing the app's first screen, but when I do the splash screen, it doesn't seem like it's doing this while showing the splash image.
Can I actaully make the app do something while showing the splash screen?
The best way would be to structure you application differently slightly differently.
Make your application display the Default.png when it starts it (ie. put a UIImageView onto screen), then start fetching your data.
Then either when you have fetched the data (or if you really must, once an NSTimer has expired, but it's a better user experience if you avoid a fixed time interval) change the view to be your real one.
Where you have got the idea that you need to call "sleep" while showing Default.png and there is nothing going on while this image is shown? Default.png is shown when OS is loading your app. You can not do anything during this time. In fact you have not got any control yet. It is handled by the OS. The idea behind this is to give user a feeling that app has loaded quickly, but actually your app is not completely loaded while Default.png is showing instead of a black screen by the OS.
You can manually add a view looking like your splashscreen after starting your app and handle the work in background. I would also add a hint to the user which indicates "loading data", because an app should start within 3 seconds.
If you read the Human Interface Guidlines, they're pretty clear that Default.png isn't intended to be a branding splash screen. It's meant to bring up a static "shell" of the initial page of UI so that the user experiences quick loading. So it's not at all designed or intended for what a lot of apps are using it for (including some of mine).
If you have your first screen that comes up be that image again, maybe with an activity spinner or status text on it, you can do whatever you need to do in the background of it, and then replace it with the first "real" screen of your app when you're done.
Generally all of the awakeFromNib calls in view controllers are done while the app is loading (ie has the splash screen up). When I put breakpoints in my apps at awakeFromNib calls, the breakpoints are hit when the splashscreen is up and the app is loading. So everything you do in
those calls will be processed while the loading screen is up.
Originally I though I'll just take a screenshot of my app on the iPhone then tweak it in Photoshop.
The images should be 480 x 320 according to Apple doc, and the dimensions of my screenshot are 480 x 320. But, the screenshot contains notification area (where reception bars, battery life, etc. are displayed)
So, if I chop that part off my image will be a bit shorter and not 480px high.
What do I do? Submit a shorter image? Stretch it up so it's 480px but without the notification bar? Submit it with the notification bar in the image?
How did you create your Default.png?
There is support in Xcode for creating the default image. With the device connected, open the Organizer (Window > Organizer). Click the Screenshot tab, take a screenshot and click "Save as default image..." Choose your project and bingo jingo, you're done.
You can leave the notification area in the screenshot. The iPhone will draw the real notification bar over it.
iOS 7 update: the iOS 7 Transition Guide explicitly requires this:
Update the launch image to include the status bar area if it doesn’t already do so.
I think the best way to do it is to use the Xcode screenshotter & edit some of the GUI elements out, like the artwork or text on your buttons so people don't get frustrated when pushing 'buttons' on the Default.png doesn't make your app respond.
If you have a status bar, then you should design 320x460 (less 20 pixels).
Though it is correct that you can leave it at 320x480 and have the real status bar paint over the default.png, it will look weird when the phone is in Internet tethering mode or has a call on hold (another 20 pixels).
By cropping to 320x460, it looks better when in tethering mode.
Just edit out the notification area to match the background of the rest of the image. As long as your image is 480x320 you should be fine.
However, if your app takes more than a few seconds to load, you may want to rethink using a screenshot of your app as the startup screen. People might get confused and think the app is finished loading, when in fact it is not. I've seen some apps produce a "stylized" version of their UI in Photoshop, making it clear that it's just an image and not the actual UI.
you should remember that you maybe need also some space for an In-Call status bar or the Tethering status bar. this bar has a height of 20 pixels. Even apple does not make it right. Put a call on hold and start "Photos" or the "Weather" app, then you can see what I mean. To test that you can use the menu "Toggle In-Call Status Bar" in the iPhone Simulator app.
you can use a real 480x320 image if you add the boolean key UIStatusBarHidden to your Info.plist file and set it as true.
Take a screen shot as many of the answers already mention. However, if your screen shot includes the status bar, you should remove it/replace it with a transparent strip instead. It is true that the iPhone will cover this part of Default.png with the current status bar however, if you run the iPhone app on the iPad, you will still be able to see this part of Default.png.
I built a slightly modified version of the initial view in IB, ran the app with that and took a screen shot. That way, everything looks very iPhoney, no Photoshop needed. Don't worry too much about clipping the top, it will mirror how the view actually looks when loaded if more stuff covers it.
Apple recommends something similar to what the user will see when the app loads. E.g. for my Sudoku app, instead of the grid, the default.png shows a "please wait" message. When the app is loaded, that disappears and you see the grid you can interact with. It looks fluid, and it's obvious when it's loading and when you can interact.
Finally, the interface uses some toolbar buttons. In the default.png they are in the disabled state (grey text). When the app is loaded, they are enabled and change color.