I am back with another interview and I will be talking to IndieDev this time around. Read the complete conversation below.
Firstly, I would like to announce our guest today, IndieDev. IndieDev is a newcomer on the tweak development scene and has just released his very first tweak, MicroPlayer, on the BigBoss repository.
He will also continue to work on Cydia tweaks and also wants to contribute to a jailbreak sometime in the future.
Table of Contents
Q1. How and when did you get started with jailbreak tweak development?
A. So I took an initial interest in tweak development almost a year ago. I started off by just reading on r/jailbreakdevelopers and the iPhoneDevWiki.
This continued occasionally for many months until I actually took an interest in exploits. I started doing simple lessons on exploitation and consequently Objective-C but found the Objective-C lessons boring and tedious at the time.
I eventually got to a point where I needed to learn objective C in order to make real progress with making exploits. So I reached out to some other new developers and started helping The Casle with his tweak Mistique.
He taught me a lot as he learned, but then he lost his jailbreak and I was back to learning alone.
This was when AntiqueDev called out to me asking if I wanted to work with him. This was where MicroPlayer was born and where I got serious about development.
Q2. Jailbreakers are drooling over your latest tweak, MicroPlayer. How much time did it take you to develop it from the ground up?
A. I started on Microplayer in July with some guidance from AntiqueDev and finished the bulk of it by August.
Since then I’ve been slowly fixing any bugs so that it would be perfect for release.
Q3. Do you think piracy is a problem in the jailbreak community?
A. Na, I actually don’t think piracy is the problem.
I reckon it’s more that people don’t know the effort it takes to make tweaks and overcome bugs. If people new, I believe fewer people would pirate and developers would be respected more.
Piracy will always be a thing. But developers can earn very little from tweaks. And if people realized this, I think they would be more generous.
Q4. Are you currently working on any new project or Cydia tweak?
A. I’ve currently got 2 projects on the go, working with a couple of other developers.
- One is a 3D Touch tweak for Control Center toggles.
- The other is a new App Switcher idea.
- I’m also taking suggestions for improving MicroPlayer and will continue to do so in any way I can. One idea I’m considering is to have a customisable default image instead of my own headphone designed logo.
Seeing people enjoying my work has been so great and it really is my proudest moment. I want that to continue.
Q5. Do you own a jailbroken device? What are your favorite Cydia tweaks and App Store apps?
A. Ohh, this is tough! I have a jailbroken iPhone 6s on iOS 10.1.1 and am hoping for an iOS 10.3.3 jailbreak for my other devices.
I use a lot of tweaks! Some for design and some to add functionality to my phone. My favorite had to be MicroPlayer (Obviously 😋). But excluding that, my top 5 have to be –
Q6. Apple is making jailbreaking harder with each firmware update. Do you think iOS 11 will ever get a jailbreak?
A. Of course. There will always be people working on jailbreaks. However, they could be far less frequent and I predict then, only certain ios versions will be targeted.
I’ve also seen work done towards creating an iOS 11 jailbreak and it’s looking very promising.
Q7. Antique Dev took everyone by storm when he announced Tigris Dev Team will be working on an iOS 11 jailbreak. Are you still continuing its development?
A. I don’t play a big role in Tigris. I was invited into the team as a learning opportunity and, other than that, for providing motivation and slight hints and tips here and there.
I’ve really not contributed much. I won’t speak on behalf of Tigris fully but I can say I personally will continue to take an interest and will continue learning. However, can’t promise my knowledge will ever be useful in time for an iOS 11 jailbreak
Q8. What can the jailbreak community expect from you in the future?
A. I will continue to be present in the community and as long as I’m jailbroken, I will keep on learning and improving.
I’m currently in my final year of studies and that puts a lot of pressure on my time and finance. But my jailbroken phone is a hobby to me and I’m going to continue enjoying and improving it, whenever I can.
I hope to eventually provide a real contribution to a jailbreak but I’m in no rush for that at the moment.
That’s it for now, folks! Be sure to follow IndieDev on Twitter and don’t forget to check out his jailbreak tweak, MicroPlayer.
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