Auto incrementing version numbers in Xcode

Over the last month or so i've had to kick out a lot of betas for a project. Seeing as i use the fantastic Test Flight. I have to change the version number before i upload each build otherwise Test Flight will overwrite an existing build which is the last thing that we want.

I don't think anyone actually enjoys editing a plists, whether its in Xcode plist editor or the down and dirty XML. So has a result it was the perfect opportunity to get familiar with xcode's build process, and how to tie external scripts into it.

I use 3 segment version numbers (1.1.1), where the first digit is the major version, second digit is the minor version, and the 3rd digit is the build. For the benefit of the team, i wanted to have the latest commit hash in the build number so that people could quickly reference it and know whats going on.

With some direction from this post by Duane Sibilly i was able to hack together the below.

	# XCode 4 auto-versioning script for Git
	# Inspired by the work of Axel Andersson, Marcus S. Zarra and Matt Long
	# http://valthonis.net/u/19
	"""
	NOTE: Due to its use of build environment variables, this
	script will only work from inside XCode's build process!
	"""
	import os
	import csv
	from subprocess import Popen, PIPE
	from Foundation import NSMutableDictionary
	# get the short commit hash from git
	cmd = "/usr/bin/git rev-parse --short HEAD"
	commit_hash = Popen(cmd, shell=True, stdout=PIPE).stdout.read()
	#remove a trailing line feed
	commit_hash = commit_hash.rstrip()
	#load the plist
	info_plist = os.environ['PRODUCT_SETTINGS_PATH']
	# Open the plist and write the short commit hash as the bundle version
	plist = NSMutableDictionary.dictionaryWithContentsOfFile_(info_plist)
	full_version = plist['CFBundleVersion']
	#Break the version into parts
	parts = full_version.split('.')
	#Clean up the last part
	# %d ([A-9]*)
	currentDotRevision = parts[2].split(' ')[0];
	dotRevision = int(currentDotRevision) + 1
	if os.environ['CONFIGURATION'] == 'Debug':
	full_version = '%d.%d.%d (%s)' % ( int(parts[0]), int(parts[1]), dotRevision, commit_hash )
	else: #For releases drop the version hash
	full_version = '%d.%d.%d' % ( int(parts[0]), int(parts[1]), dotRevision )
	print 'Built => ' + full_version
	#Actual version
	plist['CFBundleVersion'] = full_version
	#git revision
	plist['CFBundleShortVersionString'] = full_version
	#Write the file to disk
	plist.writeToFile_atomically_(info_plist, 1)

view raw gistfile1.py hosted with ❤ by GitHub

I Took a Picture [Hong Kong Edition]

Hong Kong 2009 - Taken on crappy 8Mpx Kodak with no Tripod ;)

i Took Picture [LA Edition]

Walt Disney Concert Hall LA

Goodnight San Francisco

The Mighty Pacific

When i'm not winning iOS Dev Camp, answering emails or writing code i like to take photos. Lots and lots of photos. As my time in the Bay Area comes to an end, i thought that it might be nice if i actually took the time to visit the Pacific Ocean.

Initially it was foggy (like it usually is) however it soon cleared up.

The birds came out...

As did the people ...

The sun shone ...

And everything was well with the universe (if only for today)

I Took a Picture [SF Edition]

HDR of San Francisco with 3 RAW 14Mpx Exposures processed in Photomatix Pro (Unlicensed ^_^ )

This is what 16k miles looks like

Thanks to the great folks at the great circle mapper, i now know what a 16k mile journey looks like.

The Golden Gate

After years of just seeing it in photos i got the opportunity to photograph it myself. It was the culmination of a fantastic day; the end of WWDC and an excellent talk by Buzz Aldrin.

Many people have asked during my journey if i keep a journal. While i don't in a conventional sense, photo's like these will help me remember this experience for a lifetime. 

What isn't always obvious is that the Golden Gate is essentially in the middle of nowhere. There is no easy way to get there from downtown San Francisco without a car, so i had to get my bike on, by chance i was able to rent one at a bike shop near 4th & Harrison. The $400 deposit scared the crap out of me at first, but it was alright in the end.

San Francisco is hilly place, so my plan was to cycle along the Embarcadero, which runs parallel to the shoreline (read: nice and flat). The previous link goes to my little weekend project. I built an app called gpxshare which allows people to upload and share GPX tracks for free. 

This was some what of a rambling post, but i just wanted to share some of these awesome pictures.