Monthly Archives: April 2011

Storing and testing credentials: Cocoa Touch Edition

This article introduces the concept of key stretching, using code examples to explain the ideas. For code you can use in an app that more closely resembles current practice, see Password checking with CommonCrypto. There’s been quite the media circus … Continue reading

Posted in Authentication, code-level, Crypto, iPad, iPhone, Mac, password, PCAS | 7 Comments

On cryptographic file storage

In Chapter 3 of Professional Cocoa Application Security, I talk about using CommonCrypto to encrypt files stored on either Mac or iOS file systems. In Chapter 4, I talk about using CommonCrypto to generate Hashed Message Authentication Codes (HMACs) to … Continue reading

Posted in code-level, Crypto | Leave a comment

Categories will bite you

What I wanted to do was this: + (void)load { Method foo = class_getInstanceMethod(self, @selector(foo)); Method newFoo = class_getInstanceMethod(self, @selector(FZA_swizzleFoo)); method_exchangeImplementations(foo, newFoo); } However, my tests wouldn’t work when I did that. It turns out that for some reason +load … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments

On internal quality

I was asked by attendees at my VTM talk on test-driven development a small collection of questions on a similar theme, which I’ll summarise here. How do I do TDD when my boss doesn’t want me to? What do I … Continue reading

Posted in Business, code-level, Responsibility, software-engineering, Talk, TDD, VTM | 6 Comments

A first look at appCode, and the future of Cocoa IDEs?

It’s been almost a full rotation of this great rock about its axis since JetBrains announced the start of its appCode Early Access Program. appCode is an Integrated Development Environment, just the same as Xcode. Just like Xcode, appCode works … Continue reading

Posted in code-level, tool-support | 8 Comments

On my own competency

There was a question on programmers.stackexchange.com about whether to put your Stack Overflow reputation in your CV. I don’t, and answered as much: there’s no point in writing for its own sake, unless you want to be a writer. If … Continue reading

Posted in Business, software-engineering | Comments Off on On my own competency