This article briefly describes the latest enhancements to the ADC Reference Library to help you get the most out of ADC content. Future versions of this article will preserve previous entries, so you can quickly catch up with earlier improvements if you've been away for awhile. If this is your first time in the Reference Library, you might want to read Making the Most of the ADC Reference Library to get a brief overview of its features.

The ADC Reference Library combines Apple-authored technical content, such as programming guides, API reference, and sample code, with easy-to-use navigational features and versatile filtering capabilities to provide you with a powerful development support tool you'll turn to again and again. Since its launch, the ADC Reference Library has never stopped innovating, bringing you new features such as:

• Getting Started documents that quickly orient you to Apple's technologies and outline focused learning paths you can follow to accomplish specific goals
• RSS feeds of new and updated content to help you stay current
• a feedback mechanism you can use to tell us what worked for you and what didn't
• API reference documentation organized by framework, class, task, and manager to make it easy to find reference at any granularity

As of May 2006, the ADC Reference Library responds to developer feedback with two new resource types: Guides and Reference. Replacing the Documentation resource type, Guides and Reference group ADC documents in a convenient and intuitive way.

The Guides resource type includes developer guides that contain the conceptual and task-oriented information you need when you're starting a project, exploring a new technology, or looking for advice on accomplishing a particular goal. Use the Jump To menu or the resource-type Display menu to select Guides and browse ADC's comprehensive collection of overviews, tutorials, programming guides, and tool-specific user guides in technology categories such as Cocoa, Carbon, Graphics & Imaging, and Performance.

When you're in the middle of a project and you want in-depth information about a specific programming interface, schema, or file format, you'll find the documents you need in the Reference resource type. Select Reference in the Jump To menu or the resource-type Display menu and peruse the reference documents for frameworks, classes, and low-level interfaces in each technology category.

If you're a regular visitor to the ADC Reference Library, you've probably noticed that the API Reference link on each category page has been replaced by a Frameworks link. Don't worry, all the API reference you depend on is still in the Library! But now you've got a shortcut to one of the most-requested developer features: API reference organized by framework.

For example, click Frameworks on the Graphics & Imaging page and you'll see a list of reference documents for the frameworks located in the System/Library/Frameworks folder that are most relevant to graphics developers, documents such as the Quartz Framework Reference, Quartz Core Framework Reference, and Application Services Framework Reference. Each of these documents gathers into one place all of the reference documents for that framework's classes, protocols, functions, data types, and constants, along with links to companion documents.

To see all other reference documents, just select Reference in the Jump To menu or the resource-type Display menu and browse by technology category or subcategory, or view the complete reference list for any category.

Posted: 2006-5-23